lheist

I went into this movie expecting a really bad teen horror flick. But I was pleasantly surprised to see a genuinely entertaining movie with some mind-bending twists and philosophical underpinnings.

The movie is about a kid named Evan who has blackouts during traumatic incidents. When he starts studying psychology as a college student, he tries to find out what happened during his blackouts and finds that he can return to the time of his memories.

When Evan travels back in time, he realizes he can change the outcome of the future by changing his actions in the past. But when he returns to the present, he finds his actions have had unintended consequences. (Sort of a scary version of Back to the Future, if you will).

Unfortunately, to make the audience understand what will come later, the filmmakers chose to show all of the childhood incidents first, which forces child actors to carry a movie in the beginning. Another gripe is the cheesy special effects they use to transport Evan back in time.

But by the time the movie really gets going, you'll be so engrossed you won't mind these drawbacks.

Ashton Kutcher was also a strong leading man, and the movie really livened up once he took over the role from the kids playing his younger self. Amy Smart was also believable in her various roles.

This is really a movie that sticks with you long after you leave the theater.

OK, so looking back on this movie now that I'm an adult, I realize it is probably not the most quality movie I have ever seen. But as a kid, I loved it. I taped it off of the Wonderful World of Disney and watched it over and over. There are some very funny lines, and I love how the maid is nosy, just like in the first movie. But my main problem is how can Haley Mills, a blond, have a daughter who's a red head? If you loved the first Parent Trap, see the sequel, just so you can know what happens to Susan and Sharon once they're all grown up.

Favorite line: "All right, but he's really cute. For a minute I thought he was Ralph Machio."

For whatever reason, this was one of my favorite movies as a kid. It's the story of a reverend (the same guy who is in Gilmore Girls and who plays President Roosevelt in Annie) who comes to a new town. He and a bunch of church ladies are enlisted by the FBI to help crack down on illegal gambling in their town. The subject matter of the film is probably over the heads of some kids, but they'll love the car chases and general mayhem that abounds.