Five-Minute Movie Update

I've been neglecting this site lately (still heartbroken over the failed Halloween podcast, but we'll try again with a 2007 roundup show if everyone's game) yet I haven't stopped watching movies. A quick roundup

Ocean's Thirteen - Like canned Pabst, this tasted great going down and left a seriously acrid taste. Fast-moving plot, funny cast, funny situations... wait a second, those situations weren't so funny. Torturing the hotel critic? Seducing Ellen Barkin with a fake nose and hormones?

Juno - As delightful as everyone says it is, although the dialogue by Diablo Cody is as precious as you'd expect from her name. The first five minutes, worringly so. There is no reason for Rainn Wilson to call someone "homeslice." After that it takes on a pleasant, Linklater-ish rhythm and follows a cliched plot structure without getting predictable.

Eastern Promises - Suffers in comparison to A History of Violence even with a higher-minded plot. A little old-timey, a little gimmicky.