Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

This. Is. Comedy. Ever since seeing Borat's Official Home Page, I had wanted to see this movie. And apparently, I wasn't the only one considering Borat blew the top off box office forecasts. I recognize that this isn't a film for everyone, but in complete sincerity, I haven't laughed harder in the theatres all year. In fact, it's been a few years since I've laughed this hard. Sacha Baron Cohen goes to great lengths to offend every possible person and group. Feminists. Jews. African Americans. The South. Fraternity members. Rodeo fans. Homosexuals. Charismatic Christians. Baywatch lovers. Politicians. And of course, anyone who lives in the "glorious nation" of Kazakhstan.

Even if you do want (and follow your instinct) to turn away from some scenes, there are plenty of others that will leave you rolling. I could talk about all the people Borat makes a mockery of, but you really should just see this yourself. This isn't a movie for kids, even high-schoolers in my opinion, but that's just another reason Borat is so refreshing: it's a stupid comedy, done intelligently, for adults. Or, I like how Ty Burr of the Boston Globe puts it... "[Borat] is Jackass with a brain and Mark Twain with full frontal male nudity." Yes, there is indeed male nudity, so you cannot say I didn't warn you.

While I still haven't decided whether Borat or Mission: Impossible III ranks now as my number one most rewatchable film of 2006 (thus far), I can decidely say that Borat is worth watching, and rewatching, and rewatching, and... well, you get the idea. Go see Borat as soon as you can. It may "make benefit glorious nation of Kazakhstan," but it will definitely make laugh glorious nation of U.S. and A.

The bottom line: Compulsively Rewatchable

Mission: Impossible III

Let me start by saying I never loved the first Mission: Impossible, and I absolutely despised M:I:II. Now, having said that, let me state the plain and simple truth: Mission: Impossible III rocked my face off. From the first frame to the last, I was captivated, on the edge of my seat, completely blown away. This is the action movie everyone hopes for. The type of film that ranks up there with Die Hard, T2: Judgment Day and Aliens. The summer movie everyone wants to see, but rarely has the opportunity to because Hollywood shells out formulaic crap after uninventive crap after ridiculous crap.

Unfortunately, a lot of people didn't see this movie because they think Tom Cruise has jumped off the deep end. And sure, I agree, his personal life seems weird. But this is a movie, people. And as far as movies are concerned, I think Tom still has that thing that can carry a movie. That natural star quality. All in all, I think he's a better actor than most people give him credit for, and if you don't believe me, go back and watch Rain Man, Magnolia, Born on the Fourth of July, Collateral, Minority Report, A Few Good Men, Jerry Maguire, or the long list of other good, even rewatchable films he's done. He has quite a resume if you think about it.

But I'm not here to talk about Tom or TomKat, I'm here to rate M:I:III's rewatchability. So let me put it this way: I saw this movie five, count 'em, five times in the theatre. That's just something I don't do. With ticket prices as expensive as they are, I have already spent over $70 paying to watch this movie and treat others to it. Yes, it's that good. In fact, the latest installment to the Mission: Impossible franchise has not only made this my number one most rewatchable film of 2006 (thus far), but has put it at number six (thus far) on my ten best films of 2006 (see the bottom of the right sidebar for my full list).

Tom Cruise is great. Philip Seymore Hoffman plays one of the most ruthless villains in action movie history. And, of course, the action is non-stop. Right when you think the movie might slow down to let you catch your breath, it starts right back up again. It's almost like when you're swimming and you need a fresh breath, but you only come up long enough to catch a brief little gasp of air, barely enough to hold you until the next time you make it out of the water. And it's two freaking hours of that.

Even if you hate Tom Cruise and his antics, or you despised the first and second Mission: Impossibles, I can't recommend you buy this movie enough. This is pure slam bang, non-stop, one-of-a-kind, compelling, compulsively rewatchable entertainment at its finest. Kudos to Abrams, Cruise, and the rest of the Mission: Impossible III team. After seeing this, you made me believe again that making action films of the highest quality is not impossible, just a rare gift worth hoping for, no matter how long the wait.

The bottom line: Compulsively Rewatchable

Groundhog Day

Sitting at coffee with my wife earlier today, she asked me out of the blue, "Do we own Groundhog Day?" Sadly, the answer was no. But this perfectly displays the nature of a compulsively rewatchable film and how you think about it even when you're not watching it. Compulsively rewatchable films are the type of movies that make you laugh just thinking about them, even when you're in a room alone. And Groundhog Day fits that mold.

Right up there with classics like What About Bob, Bill Murray turned in one of the funniest all time performances as the egocentric Phil Connors. It's not that he's over the top, but rather, that he's a droll schmuck of a man who you really can't help but like. You won't learn any profound life lessons watching this little gem (other than to "Watch out for that first step," of course), but there are just so many scenes and lines in this movie that make it memorable and worth watching again, and again, and again. "Am I right or am I right or am I right?"

I'm pretty sure almost everybody has seen this movie by now, but if you had forgotten about it, rent it or buy it and pop it in. One thing's for sure, I'm changing my answer to that question my wife asked. "Bing!"

The bottom line: Compulsively Rewatchable