If there's one director you can bet on to give you a film worth the amount of money it took to make it, that director is James Cameron.  After taking a long break from making a feature length film with the huge success of Titanic, Cameron returns and doesn't seem to lose any of his brillant touches as he delivers us the most imaginative film he's ever created, Avatar.

The film tells the story of Jake Sully (Sam Worthington).  A wheel-chaired bound marine who ends up taking over his twin brother's mission after he is killed in battle.  Jake goes to Pandora, a distant world who are lived by Na'vis, which are 10 foot tall blue creatures.  However, he goes to the military unit that is stationed there where he learns about a program that creates Avatars who uses the DNA of real people and make them look like a Na'vi.  It becomes shortly after where Jake goes on a mission where he must learn the ways of the tribe.  Which he becomes very comfortable with as he ends up falling in love with a female Na'vi named Neytiri (Zoe Saldana).  However, its only a matter of time before the military takes over as they are led by a ruthless Colonel (Stephen Lang) to destroy the planet of Pandora and the tribe that live on it. Something Jake was not aware of.

Everything that this film was hyped up to be is pretty much everything it was promised to be.  It's visually stunning and amazing.  Even though I did see it in 3D, I honesty don't think it affects on how you really look at the film.  It's still an impressive scale for your eyeballs as the film makes you feel like you are on Pandora.  Cameron knew exactly what he wanted with how the world should look and he does not disappoint us with his vision.  Just when you thought the man couldn't achieve anything else, he gets right back up and throws more in your face with a grand finale battle scene that is worth the price of admissiion alone.

The performances are also quite great here.  Worthington proves why he's gonna be become a big movie star with a damn good performance that shows the action star and the dramatic star mixed together into one great character. 
I also enjoyed Sigourney Weaver as a tough-talking scientist and it's actually the best I've seen from her in quite some time.  
Now if you're looking for a film with a villain who is such a bad ass that you can't help but love to hate him, then Stephen Lang will get your vote as the baddest villain of 2009!  He is awesome as Colonel Miles Quaritch. 
If there's one more thing I can give Jamer Cameron credit for, its that he knows how to create a memorable movie villain!  And he succeeds again with the help of Lang. 
Even though her whole performance is motion-captured, Saldana was also quite terrific as Neytiri.  I would say it's her best performance yet and even though it probably won't get any oscar attention, it definitely deserves your attention.

Avatar is probably the best excuse to go the movies right now.  It may be a tad bit too long and the story does get extremely predictable at times, but it sure is worth your time.  It may not be Cameron's all time best film but its definitely one of his best.  Here's hoping that Cameron won't wait so long to write and direct a next film because after seeing this film, I just don't think anyone would allow him to torture us with his absence.

                                                           A-   

I've always been the type of guy who has the attitude of "I'll believe it when I see it" when it comes to certain subjects.  Two of those subjects that I use strongly the attitude strongly are God and 2012.  (That's right!  I question the existance of God!  OMG!!!)  I think too many people are so obsessed with the idea of the world ending that a part of me wonders if they actually want it to happen.  People read countless books about it and fascinate themselves by viewing the other theories that are written.  I, for one, have never believed this 2012 crap because, well, it's just cartoonish to me.  Remember Y2K? (You bunch of suckers!) 
So as we get closer to the "doomsday" year. a disaster film about the infamous prediction was bound to happen sooner or later.  Thank god, we have filmmaker Roland Emmerich to fulfill our appetite for destruction!  After creating big epics like Independence Day, Godzilla, and The Day After Tomorrow (I'm being sarcastic when I use the word "epic" for Godzilla), the writer/director has given us more blockbuster eye candy with his new film, 2012.  An extremely silly, overlong, and flawed movie that, somehow, does enough damage to entertain our little minds.

Just like most disaster films, we are introduced to a bunch of different characters as they are all connected in some way.  But the main focus of the story is John Cusack's character, who plays a divorced, science fiction writer who tries to protect his two kids, his ex-wife (Amanda Peet), and her new husband (Thomas McCarthy) when the apocalypse happens.  
We also spend some time with an American scientist (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who works for the President (Danny Glover) after showing them signs about the Earth shattering a few years back.

First, and foremost, this film has two action scenes that are probably the most ridiculous I have ever seen!  And they both involve Cusack's character trying to speed away from the disaster as it is happening.  Once in a limo and another in a R.V.  And you know what?  They are a blast to watch!  At least for me, it is.  But that first action scene became important for the film because it set the tone about what the movie was gonna be.  An over the top adventure that wasn't gonna take itself too seriously.  Even with a subject matter that is not meant to be taken lightly.  Of course, anybody who has watched The Day After Tomorrow should probably already have an idea what direction this film is going for before they arrive in the theater.  But I have to give to kudos Emmerich for being a big kid and just have fun with it.

At 158 minutes, common sense should tell you that the characters are gonna come first before the mayhem begins.  So we do spend some time with the large group of people.  However, my problem with the character development in this film is, with the exception of Cusack and his family and the American scientist, none of the them are that interesting.  Which, to me, hurt the film a little bit because when it gets to those long pauses involving conversations between characters, your mind sorta just wanders because you don't give any good reason to care about them that much.  Sure, it's awful what they are going through but you do have to give a good reason why, of all the people in the world, we should focus on them.  Even the President of the United States becomes an uninteresting figure to the story.  Which is why this film tends to take forever to end.  Hell, Titanic even feels like a shorter film to me!

There isn't much to talk about when it comes to the acting.  It's mostly pretty average for your standard disaster film.  Cusack is always watchable and does the best he can do with the material he's got.  Ejiofor probably gives the most heartfelt performance even though it isn't too worthy to praise about.  Woody Harrelson makes an ummemorable appearance as a hippie radio host who has an obsession about the world ending and Thandie Newton comes aboard as the president's daughter. 

Despite the lack of interest with characters and the unnecessary film length, I can't say I was too bored with this film.  Probably because I knew going in that it wasn't gonna be anything more then a typical Roland Emmerich disaster movie.  For the most part, it is a fun film to watch.  The comic relief may be silly and goofy, but I can't stress enough to the point that it isn't meant to be taken serious.  In some ways, you could look at it as a parody for the specific genre.  A parody look at the world ending.  Who else better to deliver that then the director of 10,000 BC?

                                                                         B-

LAW ABIDING CITIZEN       D+

Anybody who knows my taste for films already knows how much I love revenge films.  But this could be one of the worst I've ever seen.  Jamie Foxx looks to be bored stiff in his performance and Gerard Butler, even thought I do like the guy, seems to be focusing on hiding away his accent more than actually focusing on his performance.
The film starts off interesting but then it gets downright stupid and idiotic making every character in the film look clueless and not aware of reality.  A very poorly made film that just get dumber and dumber by the minute.  Even for a senseless revenge film, it's makes no sense!

MICHAEL JACKSON'S THIS IS IT    B+

A highly entertaining concert film showing The King Of Pop at his finest during his last months before he died.  If you are a fan of his music then you are in for a treat with this film.  You won't see any signs of his struggle prior to his death and you will be surprised to see that he was extremely healthy while all of this was being filmed.  But what's most important is you get to see the artist at work and how passionate he was about his music and his performance. 

SAW VI    C

Plain and simple, if you are a fan of the series then you might find this to be one of the best of the series.  However, if you're like me and are worn out by the series, then you will probably be as underwelmed as I was.  There are some nice moments with the story and the traps are pretty sadistic, but it's just more of the same without trying anything new or interesting. 

A CHRISTMAS CAROL   C

People might look at me as a Scrooge for saying this but I found this new adaptation of Charles Dickens' classic story to be dull and disappointing.  However, I was mildly entertained by Jim Carrey's great performance and there are some amazing visual moments.  But with Robert Zemeckis adding more excitement and interesting elements in his last two films, The Polar Express and Beowulf,  he fails to try anything remotely memorable with this film.  And I'm sorry, but I really wish he would add more emotion withi this motion capture stuff.  It may have the motions of the actors and it leaves me cold with the emotion part.

THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS   D-

One of the worst films of the year, in my mind!  This dreadfully, unfunny comedy has wonderful actors like George Clooney, Kevin Spacey, and Jeff Bridges giving probably the most boring performances I have ever seen by any of the actors.  Ewan McGregor even looks lost as he becomes dangerously miscasted in his role. 
I'm sure there will be a bundle of moviegoers disagreeing with me on this one but if they enjoyed it then I'm really happy for them.  I have never been unhappy for anybody enjoying a film that I hated.  However, I'm still gonna bash the film in front of them no matter what.  :)

THE BOX   A

Whether people will agree with me or not,  I found this film to be brillant and original.  I absolutely loved this film!  Richard Kelly has always been a misunderstood filmmaker, which there's no one to blame but himself for that.  But you have to give the guy credit for creating worlds that you have never seen before.  He created the unforgettable Donnie Darko and the wish-you-could-forget-it flop, Southland Tales.  Now this time, he's created another world where weirdness and unexplained questions arise, but he somehow hooks you in from beginning to end.  The look of the film and the way its shot is pitch perfect and the performances by Cameron Diaz and James Marsden are excellent.  But the scene stealer is, of course, Frank Langella, who is so charming and creepy at the same time that you can't help but admire the actor for pulling something like that off.
This is definitely not a film for everyone and its not something I strongly recommand to a certain amount of people.  But for me, this is one of the best films of the year.

It has been so long since I seen a horror movie that really haunted me all the way..  A movie so creepy and terrifying that you can't get it out of your head.  A movie where you leave every light on in the house for one or two nights after seeing it. 
Well, I can finally say that I seen the movie that did all of that to me.  A movie that only cost $15,000 and has already made $62 million in the U.S.  That movie is titled Paranormal Activity and not only is it one of my favorite films of 2009 but it's also one of the scariest films I have ever seen!

Filmed with handheld cameras, we see the story of a young happy couple named Katie and Micah (Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat) who are living in a house that they suspect is haunted by paranormal beings.  So they decide to keep cameras filming throughout every day and night for evidence.  But the most occurances happen after hours mostly in their bedroom when they are asleep.  What starts out as minor evidence becomes more severe then what they could ever imagine. 

In my eyes, this is what horror filmmaking is all about!  A story with great build up and suspense up until the horrifying last half.  It also helps by adding great characters played by great actors.
Even though this film isn't real at all, first-time filmmaker Oren Peli does an outstanding job at creating a real factor to the story using practical effects that doesn't go over the line. 
He also creates some of the most disturbing, frightening images ever created on screen.  The bedroom shots are just proof that Oren is a genius when it comes to knowing how to get under moviegoers' skin.

Despite me praising this film like I am, I'm aware that not everyone will like it.  I've already heard a few unsatisfied opinions from various people.  But I truly think that they were expecting way too much, which has become a big problem with horror films.  There's nothing scary anymore because the films today tend to take the fun out of horror films with overexposure.  And that seems to be what certain people are believing is scary anymore.  Me, however, is an old-fashioned moviegoer who thinks the less you see, the scarier it is. 

Now I'm not saying you don't see anything in this film because you definitely do see some stuff that will make your jaw drop, or even, make your eyes shut.  But I'm so happy that the people involved in this film decided to keep it cool and steady with the story and the scares.  And since this film only cost $15,000, there's not a whole lot you can expect.  But with that small of a budget, you will be surprised at what the filmmakers were able to do.

Paranormal Activity is pure gold for horror moviemaking, in my mind.  I've never felt so cautious going into a dark house as I have for the past week.  I understand that it's only a movie but this certain movie is special because of what it's capable of doing with your mind.  If you haven't seen this film yet, please go see it!  Just go see it with some patience because it does take some time for the characters and plot before the thrill ride begins.

                                                                 A


(MINOR SPOILER)


THIS HAS THE BEST ENDING TO ANY HORROR MOVIE I'VE EVER SEEN!!!! 

                                                        

I know!  I know!  I've been slacking on movie reviewing lately.  That's why I decided to catch up on four newer releases that I've went out to see during the past two weeks.  I am hoping to get back on the horse and shell out weekly reviews like I did in the past.  Since it's been getting colder now and I'm usually in the house during that kind of weather, I really have no excuse anymore. 

ZOMBIELAND  B+

This movie was alot of fun!!  Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin are the perfect four some to battle a zombie attack and they work very well together.  Lots of great tongue-in-cheek humor, zombie action, and interesting characters. 
There are also some clever things about the movie.  Like Eisenberg's character with his many rules of how to survive a zombie invasion and Harrelson's quest to find a box of twinkie.  There's also a wonderful cameo by a certain movie star that I won't give away even though I'm sure everyone know who it is by now.  I found it to be the highlight of the picture.
It's definitely hard to dislike a movie like Zombieland unless you have lack of a sense of humor.  It's not really scary but I don't think it was meant to be.  It's mostly played for laughs and it does not disappoint.  There were a few things I was annoyed by during the last half hour during a climatic showdown in an amusement park.  Frankly, I thought what the female characters got dumbed down, which really bothered me after seeing them being such smart con artists during most of the film.  But it's just mostly nit picking on my part. 
Go see Zombieland!  It's not as original as Shaun of the Dead but it's definitely the best film in theaters right now!

THE INVENTION OF LYING  B
Ricky Gervais co-directs with Matthew Robinson in this very funny and sweet comedy about a man who lives in a world where everyone tells the truth no matter what.  Well. Gervais becomes the first man to tell a lie and realizes how much power he has.
Gervais has always been an underrated comedian in the United States and he really shines in this role in the comedy and drama aspect.  Louis C.K has a funny supporting role as does Jennifer Garner who plays Gervais' super cute love interest.  You also get some great cameos by certain actors who, again, I won't reveal.
The movie does die down a little bit from its original premise to a romantic comedy and even though some of the religious crack were funny at first, they do overstay its welcome. However, it's still a fine, enjoyable comedy.  Not as great as Ghost Town, but definitely worth a look.

WHIP IT  B-
Drew Barrymore makes her directorial debut with this small chick comedy about a girl who decides to try a career in roller derby.  And what do you know?  She becomes a hit with it.
Ellen Page plays the opposite of Juno as a shy nerdy teenager but she does a very good job in the role.  There's definitely a reason why this girl got nominated once already.  You also get fun performances by Kristen Wiig, Juliette Lewis, Daniel Stern, Marcia Gay Harden, and Andrew Wilson.  Of course, Drew Barrymore plays a small role and you get a few laughs out of Jimmy Fallon, who appears in a few scenes.
Even though I didn't find the movie great, but I did have a good enough time.  The female friend I was with enjoyed this film alot more than I did but that's mostly because this film is aimed more to the female audience.  Having said that, I've seen a hell of a lot worst chick flicks than this one. 
Barrymore does a wonderful job in the director's chair and should definitely direct again. 

COUPLES RETREAT  C+
This film has been getting trashed by critics left and right and I can't say I don't understand because this is definitely not the hilarious comedy that we all were hoping.  But it did have some nice touches where it didn't seem like a complete waste of time.  
You would think with a script co-written by Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn that this would be knee-slapping comedy but it really never became that.
All the actors work well together and you do have some nice conversations about relationships between the actors, which is actually one of the things I did like about the movie.  But the funny parts are mostly from the trailer.
I was never really bored by the film but it did leave me wishing there's was more to it.  Better luck next time, I guess.
 

Diablo Cody probably confused a few moviegoers when she decided to follow up her award-winning screenplay for Juno with a B horror screenplay about a high school girl who becomes possessed and eats boy.  But that might be why Cody is such an interesting figure in hollywood.  She's never afriad to take chances.  Having said that, I do believe she could've shelled out better material for this type of story then what she actually delivered. 

Jennifer's Body tells the story of two high school girls Jennifer Check (Megan Fox) and Needy Lesnicky (Amanda Seyfried) who have been best friends ever since they were kids.  Jennifer is the most popular girl in school while Needy belongs more in the shy, nerdy group.  But somehow, they are like sisters. 
But after one tragic night during a rock concert that involve a satanic rock band, Needy finds Jennifer becoming a much different person.  It doesn't take long before Needy realizes that Jennifer has become a demon monster who have a hunger for fresh boy meat. (get your mind out of the gutter, pervert, because that's not what I'm meaning).
Now Needy has to do whatever she can to escape the nightmare that her best friend is causing.

Many people have questioned Megan Fox's ability to act.  After all, she has been in two Transformers movies and a Simon Pegg comedy where she never showed off anything special that didn't involve her looks.  So the big 10,000 dollar question is, can Megan Fox act? 
Well, she was okay.  Nothing great but nothing horrible either.  But keep in mind that she played a character that was written in a one note style.  So you can't blame the young lady for not giving anything too worthy.  But all in all, I thought she held the movie good enough.
As for Amanda Seyfried (Mamma Mia, Mean Girls), her character was written much better, therefore, she was the better of the two.  Her performance was very good and definitely showed a big promise to what we can expect from her in future roles.
J.K Simmons also has a small but memorable role as a goofy teacher and you also get a very quick cameo by the writer herself during the bar scene where the concert is held.

This film has definitely had its share of bad reviews from critics even though I am ignoring the ones that compare it to Juno because this and Juno are two completely different movies and you can't really expect Cody to write something as excellent as her last film. 
This film was kinda hard for me to review to friends, quite honestly.  I mean, it's definitely not as horrible as I was led to believe since I did enjoy some of the black comedy that was involved where it sorta reminded me of Heathers in some ways.  And the horror stuff, despite it not being scary, worked quite well also.  But there were a lot of off moments that take you away from the story.  The relationship between Jennifer and Needy was never fully explained and some of Cody's famous "hip" dialogue got corny and unnecessary to the point where you might think she has way too much love for coming up with new ways to have a conversation.  

Frankly, if I could sum up the several things I didn't like about the film in one word, I would probably use the word: Lazy.  Because there just wasn't enough added to it.  You can definitely tell Diablo and the director (Karyn Kusama) have a lot of love for the B horror movies that were released in the 80s and wanted to make something to that degree with their own style.  But it just didn't work.  
Jennifer's Body is definitely a one of a kind film but that's not always a good thing.  And even though it might seem like I'm downgrading the film roughly, that doesn't mean I hated it.  To put it simply, it's a 50/50 movie for me.  Even though I did like the half where the black comedy and horror took into effect, I didn't like the half that involved the development with the story, characters, stuff that was never fully explained, and the "hip" dialogue overstaying its welcome.

By the way, if any of the males who are reading this wanted to know how hot the makeout scene between Fox and Seyfried was, all I will say that even though I don't think it was worth the price of admission alone, it definitely wasn't disappointing!  :)

                                                            C+

Prior to the release of his 2007 Halloween remake (reimagining, whatever its called) Rob Zombie made it clear that he had no intention to do a sequel saying the way he ended the first film wasn't supposed to move the story along. 
Well, two years later, Rob Zombie returns as writer and director for Halloween II.  An unsatisfying sequel to what I thought was a great remake to the horror classic, despite the many haters of that film.

Zombie continues the story one year later after the murder spree of Michael Myers where Laurie Strode (Scout Taylor-Compton) is struggling to move on despite having horrible nightmares involving the killer.  Even though she thought she killed Myers in the first film, she still can't get over the fact that Myers' body was never found.
She also discovers about the truth about herself from a newly written book by Dr. Samuel Loomis (Malcolm McDowell).  Which is that she's Michael Myers' sister.  Her mental state doesn't become too clear and it becomes much worse when Michael Myers does, in fact, return to Haddonfield to continue what he started.  Of course, his one goal is to find Laurie since, in his evil mind, killing her will reunite the entire Myers family.

What disappointed me with this film was the lack of new and interesting ideas Zombie brought to the story.  I thought he brought a lot of new things to the first film, but with this one, he just throws in some cool looking nightmares and a more psychological element to the story.  Which would be find if he had a better story to tell.  We basically just see Myers killing one obnoxious character after another, which I know is a must for slasher films, but it became rather dull this time around.  No matter how ridiculous the kills were. 

When it comes to performances, there were some solid ones.  Taylor-Compton was pretty good as Laurie even though I'm sure she was exhausted by the time filming ended since she runs, screams, cries, and act totally insane.  That's a lot to deal with for such a young actress.  But she held it pretty well, if you ask me.
Brad Dourif also gave a better performance this time around as Sheriff Lee Brackett.
However, McDowell's role as Dr. Loomis was completely wasted as we see him become an annoying, egomaniacal author.  It's not McDowell's fault since he does give a decent performance but his role just wasn't written well.
Sheri Moon Zombie returns after giving a damn good act in the first film. but this time around, she becomes nothing more than Living Dead Girl all over again.  Anybody who has watched the music video of Living Dead Girl by Rob Zombie will know what I'm talking about.

Granted, this isn't a horrible film.  Zombie does have a unique visual eye as a filmmaker (The Devil's Rejects is still his masterpiece) and there were some moments where he impressed me once again.  He even throws in a few good scares from time to time.  However, I just didn't feel like he delivered enough with the story and characters. 

Halloween II was a sequel that was better off not being made.  I never felt the passion that Zombie had with the first film in this entry, and I truly believe he was either hounded by the studio to throw in a follow-up or he just wanted an easy paycheck.
I still respect him highly as a filmmaker and am looking forward to what he will bring out in the future.  I just didn't find Halloween II to be his finest moment.

                                                                  C

First off, I wanna throw out there that I was never a fan of G.I Joe.  The cartoons or the toys.  It wasn't that I hated it.  I was just too hooked on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. WWF, and Looney Tunes when I was a kid that I never bothered to pay attention to anything else that was for kids.  So I can't say I was too excited when I heard they were gonna make a movie based on the popular group of soldiers.  I wasn't even excited when I heard Stephen Sommers (The Mummy/The Mummy Returns, Van Helsing) was helming it, even though I am a fan of most of his fun filled adventure movies.  But I must say, after leaving the theater, I was pretty satisfied with the outcome that Sommers brought to the material.

G.I Joe: The Rise of Cobra tells the story of an elite military unit of special operatives who join together to fight against an evil organization that pretty much wants to take over the world by shooting warheads.
That's pretty much all you need to know since there isn't much of a plot but what did you really expect with this kind of movie?  The whole point throughout the film was to entertain the kid inside you and I found myself having a good time.  But I'm also considered to be a big kid so take that kind of praise for this movie anyway you want.

Most of the actors don't do anything special but they were good for the most part.  Channing Tatum (Step Up, Fighting) did an alright job as Duke even though he's just in this film to look good and kick ass.  Marlon Wayans was funnier than I expected as Duke's best friend Ripcord, who became the comic relief of the film.  I also enjoyed watching Ray Park (Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace) play Snake Eyes despite the fact that he doesn't say one line in the whole film. 
However, the one actor who I thought was horribly miscasted was Dennis Quaid as General Hawk.  While everyone in the film seemed to be having fun with their role, Quaid felt to me like he didn't want to be a part of this.  He didn't seem tough enough to be a general and his delivery on some of the lines were from pretty bad to embarassing.  Don't get me wrong, I do like Quaid but this film just wasn't for him.

Now the one actor I really enjoyed was Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer).  I'm not gonna say what his role was just incase there are people out there who know nothing about what he plays.  But he was quite excellent. 

I'm guessing that the majority audience that go see a movie about G.I Joe expect action, action, and more action.  Believe me, brother!  You get exactly that!  There was definitely enough action to entertain the hell out of that certain audience and they were also very cool action scenes.  My favorite being the chase scene in Paris.  Some really cool stuff!  Now some of the CGI is a bit hokey in some parts but you kinda expect that from the man who brought you Van Helsing and Deep Rising.

I respect director Stephen Sommers for not hiding what this movie really was.  A silly, popcorn flick that doesn't take itself too seriously.  I'm sure many who expect every film to be The Godfather or Citizen Kane will hate the hell out of this but I'm not one of those people.  I didn't expect G.I Joe: The Rise of Cobra to be anything more then a standard summer action flick and that's exactly what it was.  It definitely wasn't great but it was definitely good.  And it was definitely a hell of a lot better than Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li and Push. 
Hell, while I'm in a movie bashing kind of mood, I'm even gonna write that it's a HELL OF A LOT better then Angels & Demons.

                                                               B

Mr. John Hughes brought classic films about high school (Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off) and other relatable subjects (Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, She's Having A Baby) like no other writer and director. His films were funny, touching, and unforgettable!
Oddly enough, me and two other friends of mine were talking earlier this afternoon about how great it would be to see John Hughes make another film since he hasn't directed a film since Curly Sue.  All of a sudden, later on in the evening, I read a status/mood blurb from Dane Cook writing something involving the words "In Memory Of John Hughes".  That was the first I had heard about the shocking death of Mr. Hughes.  I have to admit, it was sorta creepy that he and his films were one of the subjects me and my friends had spoken about on the same day he passed on.
When it comes to my favorite films from him as a writer and director, I will always be the biggest fan of Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, Pretty in Pink, and Some Kind Of Wonderful.  Don't get me wrong, The Breakfast Club and Uncle Buck were great films also but I was always a bigger fan of those four films I just mentioned.  Now keep in mind that he never directed Pretty In Pink or Some Kind of Wonderful, but he did write them and because of that, I consider them John Hughes Films.
I usually don't write a blog about a certain actor or director.  Usually I just write a little blurb on my mood/status about how deeply missed the certain person will be.  And trust me, I mean it everytime.  But I feel as someone who looked up to him and his films like I did (and still do) I just had to write a little more besides "R.I.P John Hughes". 
Without John Hughes, you probably wouldn't have had films like She's All That, 10 Things I Hate About You, Mean Girls, or the other teen comedies that came out after the 80s.  He was an inspiration to so many filmmakers and moviegoers and will be deeply missed by everyone who love movies.

R.I.P John Hughes