Movie Reviews: Benjamin Button, Terminator, Broken Trail

I'm behind on my movie reviews, so today you get them in bulk.

First of all, have you guys even heard of Broken Trail? It's not a movie, it's a mini-series starring Robert Duvall that came out in '06 and is sort of an old Western. It was really highly reviewed on Blockbuster.com, so I added it to my queue. I actually ended up loving it - it has such a redemptive message to it and although it deals with some intense topics, I'd say the world-view of the show makes it very family friendly.

It's a little slow at time - it highlights the gorgeous scenery of a cattle drive through the West as a an old man and his nephew herd the last of their family cattle to sell. Along the way they encounter a load of Chinese women that are being taken from San Fran to be prostitutes in Wild-West sort of town. The addition of these Chinese girls into the story is really what made it fascinating to me - I know this plot twist is based on real historical trends, but I don't think this actual story is very realistic. Add in some bad guys, gun fights, saloon hold-ups, etc, and you have all the ingredients for a great old Western. I recommend it.
8/10 bags of popcorn

Terminator -
Well, in anticipation of the latest Terminator movie coming out Isaac has been borrowing the old ones from the people we babysit for (who are sci-fi fanatics) and forcing me into rewatching them. I managed to sleep through most of one of them and I've had some good laughs at the ridiculousness of the 80's, but all in all I've generally enjoyed getting on this bandwagon. Mostly I think I liked this newest Terminator best. It definitely reflects the trends in movies today, which is less pure action flick (like the 80's action flicks) and more plot and dialogue. That's what made Terminator Salvation much more enjoyable to me than the other Terminators, but I still wouldn't recommend seeing it without seeing the others, simply because there's so much continuity between them. Sci fi and action are not my thing, but given the genre this was okay.
7/10 bags of popcorn

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button -
You know, I actually really liked this movie. Brad Pitt has picked some excellent roles recently. The basic gist of the plot is that Benjamin Button is born into the body of an old man and proceeds to get younger as he goes through his life. He does life in reverse. He also just lives a unique life and has plenty of adventures and falls in love and it's really my kind of movie - very character-driven and interesting. I think the most powerful thing about the movie is how it examined age and its effect on people. What does an old soul do in a young body? What does a young soul do in an old body? In all of these stages Brad Pitt/Benjamin Button is an unperturbed and keenly interested man that is fun to watch.
8/10 bags of popcorn