Notes on a Scandal - 3 stars

It looks like I forgot to write up the last movie I saw, which was 6 months ago. Notes on a Scandal stars 2 Dame Judy Dench and Cate Blanchette. 2 actors that are a dream to watch. You can probably guess from the title that the story centers around a scandal. My problem with the movie is that I didn't believe the scandal. I don't want to give anything away, but I just didn't find the scandalous scenario plausible. The acting is good, along with the writing. The problem is in the casting. Cate Blanchette, for all her abilities, is just too stunning to play lowly. I don't buy it. Dench is a thrill to watch.

Ocean's 13 - 2.5 stars

This is probably the first new movie I've seen in 6 months. Ocean's 13 was a big fat disappointment. I'm not a big fan of sequels. Generally I think they are a rip-off, recycling the same jokes and story lines as the first installment. I really enjoyed Ocean's 11 and Ocean's 12, and was actually looking forward to Ocean's 13. Ocean's 12 did repeat the same formula as Ocean's 11, but it didn't feel formulaic. It was fresh and funny. Ocean's 13 is very poorly scripted, with the leads phoning in their performances. They don't even repeat the best stuff in the first 2 - they don't have the lumbering idiots trying to pull off something complicated. There is a busy scam, but it's not creative and they all act like they know what they are doing. The only good gag comes from Matt Damon.