The Grandmaster (2013)

Overall: 7
The are several great movies inspired by the life of Yip Man, the martial artist who was one of Bruce Lee's mentors. This is unfortunately not one of them. I am not exceptionally knowledgeable about Chinese culture or history, but I am not completely ignorant on this front either.

I felt like this movie was modeled after some kind of Chinese opera; it seemed more like a series of loosely connected events in one man's life than an actual story. The result was a less than captivating experience. Please note, I have not read any reviews on this movie, and perhaps other's thoughts and historical insights would have helped me more fully appreciate what this film intended to accomplish.

Entertainment: 2
An unengaging protagonist combined with an incomprehensible story and less entertaining fight scenes to create a low entertainment environment.

Writing: 2
The writing had various beautiful points in individual lines, but was overall disjointed.

Presentation: 3
This movie is often beautiful in style, but spent way too many moments watching feet slide across the flooring, etc. The acting was generally flat for me, though perhaps the cultural gap led me to miss the point. That said, I have watched many films in Mandarin before, and good acting generally shines through despite the language gap.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)

Overall: 15
Catching fire is even better than The Hunger Games, with a tighter script, better visuals, and a rare place of privilege having a sequel exceed the original.

Entertainment: 5
As with the first, the movie keeps your interest despite a dour, post apocalyptic setting. It wisely avoids the excessive gore that could have made it unpalatable for many (like myself), and sticks to the stylized action violence we have all come to know and love. The movie may not be deep, but it is not all fluff and lights either. It has a decent story to carry it through.

Writing: 5
The script for Catching Fire was stronger than The Hunger Games. It managed to tie up its plots and subplots, while developing characters and relationships. It was really good, though it still did not win me over to loving Katniss--even with Jennifer Lawrence playing her. (I obviously still have a crush on JL at this point.) As a character I just find Katniss hard to connect with.

Presentation: 5
There were several beautiful moments visually in this film, and the acting is very good too. You probably won't feel let down on this front, though Lawrence's portrayal of Katniss was a little weepy for my taste.

The Hunger Games (2012)

Overall: 13
A surprisingly enjoyable film that manages to do a lot with less budget than many blockbuster type films. While not perfect, I would recommend this movie to those who liked the book, and to those who never read it.

Entertainment: 5
This movie was the kind of film that I really liked watching it, but it was not so amazing that I felt interested in seeing it again.

Writing: 4
The script was generally good, but a few issues kept me from loving it. For one, the movie missed several obvious opportunities to show the games from the perspective of the Capital. It also did not come full circle with some issues raised in the film. For example, Katniss goes on about how strong Peeta is supposed to be, yet he does not use that strength for anything. He could easily have used it to help Katniss defeat Cato on the cornucopia. Also, the muttations (wolves at the end) really did not make any sense (honestly, this was a goofy part of the book too). Let's just say the not all the hits were clean in the writing, but it held its own.

Presentation: 4
The visuals were pretty good, although in one or two spots they had the feeling of a low budget film trying to be bigger than it is. The acting was also fairly decent--don't hate me for saying that, because I have a crush on Jennifer Lawrence just like the rest of you. Nevertheless, nothing in the acting or the presentation blew me away. There should be a "wow" moment or two in a true blockbuster.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

Overall: 14
This is a fun movie that does not stray from the high fantasy novel genre. It is as beautiful and detailed as the The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, though not quite as well written as far as the story arc is concerned--by that I mean the movie was not translated from book into a movie story arc as cleanly as the first movie.

Overall I liked this movie, and it is definitely worth watching.

Entertainment: 4
Of your average watchers (i.e. people who are not into all things Lord of the Rings), some people will probably love the Desolation of Smaug, but for me it was solidly in the like range. It was a little meandering in style (even for a fantasy movie), without that feeling of intensity that accompanied the previous film. This is also a darker, sadder period of the story, which can dampen the effect of the entertainment in a fantasy adventure. Despite all that, there are great and enjoyable scenes throughout. The issues that keep me from a higher range are not about the individual parts, just a few of the ties that bind them.

Writing: 4
As mentioned above, the writing in this movie did not capture the arc a movie plot should have as well as the previous film. Some will complain that I am being to harsh here, and that the second movie in a trilogy always suffers from story positioning. However, I will note that many movies have managed to accomplish this goal in a sequel (e.g. X-Men 2, The Empire Strikes Back, The Dark Knight, etc.).

Presentation: 6
As with all the Lord of the Rings movies, this film is fantastically beautiful. The visuals and audio are breathtaking, and the acting is wonderful.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

Overall: 16
A fantastic first installment to The Hobbit. Some have complained that the movie adds elements and story lines that were not in the book, but my feeling is that The Hobbit should not be looked at as a prequel to The Lord of the Rings books. Rather, it should be considered as a prequel to the LotR movies. In that regard it is wonderful, and I fully enjoyed it.

Entertainment: 5
This movie is another fantastic trip to Middle Earth with action, history, excitement, and beauty in every frame.

Writing: 5
The writing is very good, with the additions to the book giving the movie a better plot arc than it otherwise would have had if held more strictly to Tolkien's text.

Presentation: 6
As with all Peter Jackson movies, this film is fantastically beautiful. The visuals and audio are breathtaking. This movie is made to be seen. Also, the acting is excellent. Particularly, Martin Freeman's portrayal of Bilbo really makes the character shine while being true to the text.

Frozen (2013)

Overall: 15
I'll keep this brief. Do you like Disney? Do you like broadway? Then you will very likely love Frozen. My kids all loved it, and I thought it was excellent too.

Entertainment: 5
Frozen is a brave story in a way the movie Brave never was. It is thoughtful in that it addresses the standard princess love story without following the same old script. I also enjoyed most of the music.

Writing: 5
The writing in this is mostly strong, and were it not for the almost extraneous snowman character (and his songs/problems), along with a few lack-of-character-development issues for the prince(s), I would have given this a 6 on writing. Still, a very strong showing, as the writers reconsidered standard Disney assumptions about love and heroism.

Presentation: 5
The presentation is beautiful, clean, and creative--though there was no moment where I was blown away. The voice acting was wonderful, and the singing exceptionally talented.