3 movies I saw in '09

So. It's a Zac Efron movie. Co-starring Matthew Perry. About a dysfunctional adult who wakes up to find himself 17 (again), a younger version of himself adrift to deal with the chaos of all the choices he's made over the years. Same sorta/kinda premise as Big. Freaky Friday. That movie with the kid from Wonder Years. You know the drill.

Except this one is really, surprisingly good.

It's funny for one thing. I don't mean a chuckle here and there, or a half-hearted smile, or even worse yet the pee-your pants laughter you'll sometimes get watching a raunchy comedy. No, this one actually makes you laugh because it has a script and acting that *work*.

Efron (whodathunkit?) plays the role of the bitter-man-in-teen-body with aplomb, and sometimes I got the impression he really was a crochety middle aged man. Perry's part is much smaller and not as impactful, but he still does well. And the love story that provides the emotional turmoil/chance for redemption throught the movie? Well done, sweet, and honest.

Did I mention this was a good movie? Go out and rent it already. I *really* liked it.

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Sad to say, my memory refuses to remind me of whether or not I've already reviewed Hamlet 2. I don't remember much of the plot details, as I saw this two years ago, but I know a whackadoodle teacher writes and produces a sequel to Hamlet for his drama class to perform.

It was funny, and I remember liking it, but obviously it didn't impact me enough to retain anything past the gist of the story. Still, worth a rental.

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Unrest is a horror film about a med student whose cadaver refuses to accept its death, leading to our heroine to believe she's a) going crazy or b) needs to investigate the cause of the death in order for the soul to be at rest.

It's not as cheesy or predictable as it sounds, and it does use genuine human fears (of death, of cadavers, etc) to ratchet up the viewer's paranoia and fear.

I liked it, even if I was grossed out at times, and I'd rate it a decent way to spend 90 minutes - if you enjoy devoting them to B movies. Which I do, so there.

~ Dan