For anyone who's gotten a whiff of the trailer, it's no mystery that earthman "John Carter" somehow shows up on Mars, with extraordinary physical abilities (the most obvious one is the ability to jump high, very high and far, and land without hurting himself too much due to the lower gravity on Mars, similar to Hulk's jumping abilities), as a movie, it does a lot of the technical stuff well, showing us 3 different sets of Martians, with 2 sets of humanoids at war for a long time, and the taller, green-skinned 4-armed Tharks, who pretty much stay on the sidelines. John Carter, himself scarred by the conflicts his military service entailed in the mid-1800s, wants no part of this Martian war, and appears to be emotionally bottled up at the start of his Martian adventures.
There's a lot of material to cover in this film, but the script causes the film to sputter in the middle, and the motivations of the various characters are threadbare, and not quite involving. I'd say the film over-reached on the politics of Mars, and the plot developments don't quite unravel in a natural manner, which lends to itself to a lazy meandering energy level in terms of intensity of the stakes involved for Carter (I blame this lazy tone on the direction of Andrew Stanton), and the 2 humanoid factions at war with one another.
Due to the initial reddish white balance of the Martian atmosphere at the start of Carter's arrival on Mars, it's not quite all that pleasing to the eye, but there is a lot to stare at, as far as the Martian terrain goes, as well as the cities, the set designs, the technology designs, so I can't say it's really boring, just that the film never finds a groove to settle in. With much of the film's Martian terrain scenes shot on location (not in a studio with green screens), the film oddly has a hazy nondescript, unfocased look to it, rendering it less interesting than I had thought it would look.
Taylor Kitsch's casting as John Carter might have been a mis-step, he simply doesn't quite have disarming charm at his disposal as an actor, and comes across far too one-note for most of the film (the reluctant warrior, always looking to avoid physical conflict, but never quite managing to escape them), and has a difficult time raising his game as an actor, but it was like the director was afraid for push Kitsch, so his acting was average. I think it limited director Stanton's choices for camera angles, as he rarely pushed in on actors to rev up the emotional components that propelled the plotlines. Lynn Collins as Dejah Thoris was actually okay for me, I wasn't thrilled with her casting (plus it being a Disney film, I knew her wardrobe would be much more modest than the source material previously alluded to for her character), but she won me over for the most part, even with an accent that moved around from scene to scene.
The 3D is pretty much a non-factor in this film, I put the credit/blame at Stanton's feet, so if you want to save a few $$$$, go for the 2D showing.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Tuesday, February 28, 2017
The Vow
Inspired by true events, "The Vow" features Rachel McAdams as Paige, and Channing Tatum as Leo, a young married couple who experienced an accident which left Paige without her memories for the past handful of years, a span of time before she changed college plans/careers, jilted her then-fiance, became estranged from her family, met and fell in love with Leo. Obviously Leo bares the brunt of knowing how good they were together, only to have Paige understandably be wary of him, as she views Leo as practically a total stranger to her due to her memory loss. Her parents use this event to welcome her back into the family, causing Leo much consternation and heartache.
The plotline goes through Paige's struggles to fill in the gaps, re-connect with the life she once knew from 4-5 years ago, catching up with people important to her then (and uncomfortably in the present at times), and uncovering the reasons why her life changed.
McAdams is perfectly fine in a role she can do in her sleep, but she puts into an earnest effort in portraying Paige's re-discovery of her past and the confused emotional undercurrents she experiences along the way. Tatum is still sort of a lovable lunkhead, but his portrayal of Leo does stretch his acting talents a bit, and his own emotional responses to his wife's condition are equally as ernest, even if their journey as a couple hits quite a pothole and they have to sort through the aftermath.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The plotline goes through Paige's struggles to fill in the gaps, re-connect with the life she once knew from 4-5 years ago, catching up with people important to her then (and uncomfortably in the present at times), and uncovering the reasons why her life changed.
McAdams is perfectly fine in a role she can do in her sleep, but she puts into an earnest effort in portraying Paige's re-discovery of her past and the confused emotional undercurrents she experiences along the way. Tatum is still sort of a lovable lunkhead, but his portrayal of Leo does stretch his acting talents a bit, and his own emotional responses to his wife's condition are equally as ernest, even if their journey as a couple hits quite a pothole and they have to sort through the aftermath.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Safe House
One of the CIA's brightest spies, Tobin Frost (played Denzel Washington), who went rogue and disappeared for almost a decade suddenly shows up at the American Consulate in South Africa, is taken to a CIA safe house in South Africa for holding and questioning. The safe house's lone CIA operative, Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds) is bored out of his mind, bucking for a more active assignment when this falls into his lap. Men looking for Frost find the safe house, and attempt a take-down. Frost and Weston are on the run, with Weston having to become very resourceful in maintaining Frost's captivity and staying alive.
Overall, a pretty intense bit of cat-n-mouse, both in the physical sense (car chases, foot chases, gun-fire, etc.), and with mental games, as Frost is a psychological chess master, and Weston is somewhat young and green for such impromptu active duty. The CIA needs Weston to keep it together, as extraction teams are half-days away, an eternity for an inexperienced agent.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Overall, a pretty intense bit of cat-n-mouse, both in the physical sense (car chases, foot chases, gun-fire, etc.), and with mental games, as Frost is a psychological chess master, and Weston is somewhat young and green for such impromptu active duty. The CIA needs Weston to keep it together, as extraction teams are half-days away, an eternity for an inexperienced agent.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Chronicle
Andrew has an abusive father, and decides to basically film his existence starting with his senior year in high school. Andrew and his cousin Matt, along with a high school acquaintance, Steve, go spelunking in a hole in the ground near the grounds of a high school party. The camera comes in handy in telling the story of what happened to those 3 students when they found something not of this earth, and black out, only to wake up with telekinetic powers. Not everyone in the group has finesse with their new powers, Andrew has far better control than Matt. Steve is more athletic, and finds more active use of his powers. The script is quite clever in using Andrew's new-found powers for interesting camerawork, and spares us the shaky-cam-ness that afflicted "Cloverfield".
I wish the film was a little smarter in the final act, but overall, still a compelling film of young adults dealing with their new-found telekinesis.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
I wish the film was a little smarter in the final act, but overall, still a compelling film of young adults dealing with their new-found telekinesis.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Big Miracle
In the winter of 1988, way up in northern part of Alaska, 3 grey whales were trapped by the layer of ice and rapidly freezing conditions near the coastline before they could make their migratory journey along the Pacific coastline. An Alaskan news man discovers the plight of the whales, and his reporting of the story catches fire with the national news outlets (when there was but 3 main one - ABC, NBC and CBS), bringing together reps from Green Peace, the coast guard, execs from Oil drilling, other news reporters, and the town's people who survived through their own history of whale hunting.
The cast is pretty good (featuring Drew Barrymore, John Krasinski, Kristen Bell, Dermot Mulroney, Ted Danson, Vinessa Shaw, etc), and overall, the pacing of the film, along with keeping the ever-expanding key players's subplots, made for a film that can be enjoyed by the entire family (its key demographic). You can't but feel for the family of grey whales trapped by the ice as this rescue coalition of differing sides unfolds. I was actually surprised by the on-the-nose political interplay as the rescue effort looks more and more bleak as the weather freezes over the holes in the ice that allow for the whales come up for air, if only for a little while with each surfacing visit.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
The cast is pretty good (featuring Drew Barrymore, John Krasinski, Kristen Bell, Dermot Mulroney, Ted Danson, Vinessa Shaw, etc), and overall, the pacing of the film, along with keeping the ever-expanding key players's subplots, made for a film that can be enjoyed by the entire family (its key demographic). You can't but feel for the family of grey whales trapped by the ice as this rescue coalition of differing sides unfolds. I was actually surprised by the on-the-nose political interplay as the rescue effort looks more and more bleak as the weather freezes over the holes in the ice that allow for the whales come up for air, if only for a little while with each surfacing visit.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Man on a Ledge
"Man on a Ledge" has that feel of a 1st year screenwriter's attempt to script a movie about a man who escapes from the law, and later appears on the ledge of a New York hotel, causing a commotion, while his brother and girlfriend are breaking into a nearby building to steal something worth the risk of such a plan. Not too many surprises, and is burdened by that "script-by-numbers" feel. But, even so, the acting cast (Sam Worthington, Elizabeth Banks, Billy Bell, Ed Harris, Kyra Sedgewick, Ed Burns, and Anthony Mackie) somewhat tries to elevate the material, but in the end, it's not much more than a decent matinee flick. I will say that Genesis Rodriguez is fiery and smoking, pretty much the only one who feels like she has a pulse in the film.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
The Grey
Liam Neeson headlines this film of survival after a plane originating from Alaska crash-lands in the cold wilderness, and a group of men find themselves basically outnumbered by wolves. The marketing of the film is a little aggressive with the action content, of which there isn't that much, as it focuses more on personalities of the survivors and their in-fighting, but somewhat comes together to stay alive as the pack of wolves stalk them through the snowy countryside with no civilization in sight.
I thought it was okay, but felt a little cheated by the conclusion.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
I thought it was okay, but felt a little cheated by the conclusion.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Oscar Schell (Thomas Horn) lost his father in the 9/11 attacks on the WTC. Oscar had a good father (Tom Hanks) who piqued Oscar's native curiousity about the world with scavenger hunts. The aftermath of his father's untimely demise left him with a key and the last name of "Black". In order to find what his father might have left for him, Oscar embarks on a search for the right person, and he comes across a wide array of people on this final scavenger hunt with his father.
While Stephen Daldry's direction is solid, the film feels a little long, and Oscar's is somewhat likable, ernest, yes, with a slightly headstrong streak which doesn't quite endear himself to everyone who crosses his path. Sandra Bulloch plays Oscar's mother, and it's a fairly small, but important role. The same could be said about Max von Sydow's role as a mute renter of Oscar's grandmother's apartment. Oscar pretty much carries the film on his shoulders with his travels across New York City.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
While Stephen Daldry's direction is solid, the film feels a little long, and Oscar's is somewhat likable, ernest, yes, with a slightly headstrong streak which doesn't quite endear himself to everyone who crosses his path. Sandra Bulloch plays Oscar's mother, and it's a fairly small, but important role. The same could be said about Max von Sydow's role as a mute renter of Oscar's grandmother's apartment. Oscar pretty much carries the film on his shoulders with his travels across New York City.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Red Tails
George Lucas produced "Red Tails", a film about the Tuskegee Airmen who broke down racial barrier in WWII and demonstrated that dogfighting in the sky wasn't something only white pilots could do well in combat.
The direction of this film was tame, or uninspired. The script is a little flabby in spots, as there are many pilot characters in the film, and it was a little difficult keeping up with the various subplots for the main characters, and the screenwriting wasn't engaging, felt disjointed, threadbare in characterizations, and lacked confidence and bite. It felt like the first draft of a screenplay in many scenes, and didn't really flow well. The actors did the best they could with a weak script.
The aerial scenes were fine, as it is its main marketing point in its advertising.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
The direction of this film was tame, or uninspired. The script is a little flabby in spots, as there are many pilot characters in the film, and it was a little difficult keeping up with the various subplots for the main characters, and the screenwriting wasn't engaging, felt disjointed, threadbare in characterizations, and lacked confidence and bite. It felt like the first draft of a screenplay in many scenes, and didn't really flow well. The actors did the best they could with a weak script.
The aerial scenes were fine, as it is its main marketing point in its advertising.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
Underworld Awakening
Kate Beckinsale returns to the 4th installment of the Underworld franchise after sitting out the 3rd installment, and unfortunately, it's basically a cash-grab exploiting the fans of the Underworld film series, and the film is no more than an exercise in staging repetitive fights between vamps and lycan, with nary a care given to the script for a coherent and engaging scripts, or developing characters, so it bereft of tension and interesting conflict. So it's all flash, and no substance.
I give it 1.75 stars, or a grade of C-.
I give it 1.75 stars, or a grade of C-.
Haywire
Former MMA attraction Gina Carano stars in Stephen Soderbergh's briskly shot film about a female spy/merc (Mallory Kane) who's been double-crossed and is on the run.
The script isn't much more than a framework to propel the plot with some scenes with Carano kicking butt, of which she does quite well, though she has this sort of Jackie Chan quality to her fight moves that will make you laugh with how she dispatches the guys who intended harm to her character Mallory. They did dub Carano's voice with someone else who still gave off a flatness to the vocal inflections, it was a little distracting at first, but after awhile it didn't bother me all that much. It makes you wonder how Carano sounded in her own voice, maybe she might have given off a more monotone vocal performance in her first film, so they opted to dub her dialogue to punch it up a bit (though it still wasn't all that expressive).
The film title "Haywire" is a puzzler as I never got the impression that Mallory's world went all haywire on her, the script just plays it too cool and subdued to feel like Mallory was in over her head as she tried to regain her footing and deal with the situation.
Carano's acting is okay, not great, but not terrible, but she comes alive with the action scenes, with minimal stunt doubles, so it was quite entertaining to see a female doling out some ass-kicking without it being evident it was a stunt double doing most of the heavy lifting.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The script isn't much more than a framework to propel the plot with some scenes with Carano kicking butt, of which she does quite well, though she has this sort of Jackie Chan quality to her fight moves that will make you laugh with how she dispatches the guys who intended harm to her character Mallory. They did dub Carano's voice with someone else who still gave off a flatness to the vocal inflections, it was a little distracting at first, but after awhile it didn't bother me all that much. It makes you wonder how Carano sounded in her own voice, maybe she might have given off a more monotone vocal performance in her first film, so they opted to dub her dialogue to punch it up a bit (though it still wasn't all that expressive).
The film title "Haywire" is a puzzler as I never got the impression that Mallory's world went all haywire on her, the script just plays it too cool and subdued to feel like Mallory was in over her head as she tried to regain her footing and deal with the situation.
Carano's acting is okay, not great, but not terrible, but she comes alive with the action scenes, with minimal stunt doubles, so it was quite entertaining to see a female doling out some ass-kicking without it being evident it was a stunt double doing most of the heavy lifting.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Carnage
Quite an Oscar-laden cast featuring Kate Winslet, Jodie Foster, Christoph Waltz, and then there's John C. Reilly. Also directed by Oscar-winning Roman Polanski. The source material was from a French play, and the staging and blocking of the film has that stage feel to it, plus, filming could not have taken more than a week, but I get why the cast involved would take on this film, it's kind of a hoot once you get past the initial 20 minutes of the 2 couples feeling out the other couple as they deal with their sons having engaged in an altercation where one son lost a couple of teeth from being hit by the other son, and the other son doesn't know enough to be sorry for the outcome of the incident.
"Carnage" is basically our true selves revealed once we get past the political correct words and actions imposed upon us in polite society, while attempting to repress the fight instinct when we feel threatened in some manner. It's quite humorous how the flight reflex somehow gets sidetracked, and the 2 couple return into the apartment multiple times where most of the film takes place over the course of the day.
This film isn't for everyone, but as a peek into how conflict resolution can go horribly wrong, it might be worth a rental some day. There's enough in the script for each of the principal actors to chew some scenery, which turns out to be quite funny in spots. Just note that it's not a laugh riot all the way through, but I suspect couples will get some discussion out the different viewpoints expressed in the film as to couples dynamics and holding a mirror to each other's faults and foibles. The script does stumble a little bit in the final 10 minutes, but still engaging to watch if this is your cup of tea.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
"Carnage" is basically our true selves revealed once we get past the political correct words and actions imposed upon us in polite society, while attempting to repress the fight instinct when we feel threatened in some manner. It's quite humorous how the flight reflex somehow gets sidetracked, and the 2 couple return into the apartment multiple times where most of the film takes place over the course of the day.
This film isn't for everyone, but as a peek into how conflict resolution can go horribly wrong, it might be worth a rental some day. There's enough in the script for each of the principal actors to chew some scenery, which turns out to be quite funny in spots. Just note that it's not a laugh riot all the way through, but I suspect couples will get some discussion out the different viewpoints expressed in the film as to couples dynamics and holding a mirror to each other's faults and foibles. The script does stumble a little bit in the final 10 minutes, but still engaging to watch if this is your cup of tea.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Contraband
Mark Wahlberg headlines this new addition to the criminal heist genre, with Chris (Wahlberg) and his gang being really good at smuggling stuff into the country, but trying to go straight until his brother-in-law forces Chris to go back to his smuggling ways one more time to settle a score and save the brother-in-law from harm. Getting back into the swing of things proves to be a little challenging, but Chris and his buddy Sebastian (Ben Foster) overcome obstacles, while the final act deals with a dumb lovestruck subplot with Sebastian having the hots for Chris's wife (Kate Beckingsale). The other weak point is Giovanni Ribisi, who plays the ditziest bad guy on the big in quite a while, fairly not believable in the villain role in this film.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The Iron Lady
Meryl Streep pulls off yet another impressive role of Margaret Thatcher, Britain's first female prime minister, and steers her country through some tough times in the 1980s. The film's script is carried through Margaret's own bouts with dementia in present day, with the presence of her husband (Jim Broadbent) prodding her along, while also providing comfort of everyday normalcy, while being dead for years. The film fades in and out of Margaret's recollection of her younger years as a burgeoning political leader, through her years to party leadership, and finally as prime minister.
The make-up for Streep as Thatcher through her younger years, to her older year is amazingly well-done, much moreso than the effort in "J. Edgar". Streep is a shoe-in for yet another Oscar nomination for Best Actress, quite a strong effort, but it's probably Glenn Close's year for the golden statue.
In the end, the script is the weakest part of the film, and does feel like Oscar-bait.
I give it 2.75 stars or a grade of B- (almost gave it a C+.).
The make-up for Streep as Thatcher through her younger years, to her older year is amazingly well-done, much moreso than the effort in "J. Edgar". Streep is a shoe-in for yet another Oscar nomination for Best Actress, quite a strong effort, but it's probably Glenn Close's year for the golden statue.
In the end, the script is the weakest part of the film, and does feel like Oscar-bait.
I give it 2.75 stars or a grade of B- (almost gave it a C+.).
War Horse
The film "War Horse" answers the question of what would happen if you made a movie about Forrest Gump that took place during WWI in the UK countryside (and other European spots), and oh yeah, Forrest Gump was a horse.
Some bits were difficult to watch, as I'm not all that entertained by animals, even large animals like horses, being pushed to their limits and incurring depicted injuries and wounds.
Some of the plot points had that Gump feel to them, with shift of tone throughout the film that made viewing the film an awkward experience.
I give it 2.75 stars (mainly for earnestness) or a grade of B-.
Some bits were difficult to watch, as I'm not all that entertained by animals, even large animals like horses, being pushed to their limits and incurring depicted injuries and wounds.
Some of the plot points had that Gump feel to them, with shift of tone throughout the film that made viewing the film an awkward experience.
I give it 2.75 stars (mainly for earnestness) or a grade of B-.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
2-word review: Dreadfully droll
The film takes place in the early 1970s as a British spy vs. spy drama. The main head spy, Control (John Hurt), suspects a mole in his midst of 5 high level spies, and spy Smiley (Gary Oldman) is dismissed. Later, Smiley gets brought back in some oversight capacity to find the mole. Hilarity ensues.
And yes, I figured out the mole within 5 minutes of the film.
This film could have almost been given the "The Artist" treatment and done in the silent film genre because the director does rely a lot on visual information, and the script's dialogue doesn't quite given enough details or information on the prime mole suspects to generate any genuine investment in this spy hunt.
The trailers are far more entertaining than the actual film.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
The film takes place in the early 1970s as a British spy vs. spy drama. The main head spy, Control (John Hurt), suspects a mole in his midst of 5 high level spies, and spy Smiley (Gary Oldman) is dismissed. Later, Smiley gets brought back in some oversight capacity to find the mole. Hilarity ensues.
And yes, I figured out the mole within 5 minutes of the film.
This film could have almost been given the "The Artist" treatment and done in the silent film genre because the director does rely a lot on visual information, and the script's dialogue doesn't quite given enough details or information on the prime mole suspects to generate any genuine investment in this spy hunt.
The trailers are far more entertaining than the actual film.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Shame
I suppose the following paragraphs contains spoilers, but the film itself should be seen from viscerally experiencing it, as any discussion of the plot doesn't lend itself to the feelings the film evokes from viewing it. It's somewhat similar to "Requiem For A Dream", knowing the plot synopsis has very little impact from actually seeing the film itself.
The title of the film derives from literally the sense of shame that envelops Brandon (Michael Fassbender), who otherwise looks to be a normal, well-groomed, professional man working in New York City, with the means to live alone in an apartment, but has an addiction to sex, in all manners, be it online webcams/chatrooms, in-person trolling in bars and subways, porn, etc.
Actual one-on-one emotional connections with women eludes Brandon. Living on his own, his addiction occupies most of his waking moments, but his carefree sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan) shows up for an open-ended stay, and basically cramps his style to the point where her presence does the same as putting a mirror to Brandon's growing shame as his addiction continues to consume him, to the point of very selfish levels when it comes to feeding his urges with all manners of sexual interludes (quite a few graphic scenes are in the film) at the expense of living in the moment and putting his needs ahead of anything else.
Fassbender's character study of Brandon is very brave and strong work. His needs for sex overwhelms any sense of intimacy he might develop with anyone, including friends or family. It's quite a strong performance of a tortured soul caught in the throes of unbridled need for sexual activity and release. Even running through the streets of NYC and its release of endorphins don't seem to be enough for Brandon's appetite. Heh.
It's NC-17 for good reason, and if you aren't comfortable with the subject matter, you'd be better off avoiding this film, otherwise, it's a compelling look at something that probably goes on with some of your own friends, co-workers, acquaintances, and you just have no idea what goes through their own mindspace, but this film will give you an unflinching look at such addictive traits.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
The title of the film derives from literally the sense of shame that envelops Brandon (Michael Fassbender), who otherwise looks to be a normal, well-groomed, professional man working in New York City, with the means to live alone in an apartment, but has an addiction to sex, in all manners, be it online webcams/chatrooms, in-person trolling in bars and subways, porn, etc.
Actual one-on-one emotional connections with women eludes Brandon. Living on his own, his addiction occupies most of his waking moments, but his carefree sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan) shows up for an open-ended stay, and basically cramps his style to the point where her presence does the same as putting a mirror to Brandon's growing shame as his addiction continues to consume him, to the point of very selfish levels when it comes to feeding his urges with all manners of sexual interludes (quite a few graphic scenes are in the film) at the expense of living in the moment and putting his needs ahead of anything else.
Fassbender's character study of Brandon is very brave and strong work. His needs for sex overwhelms any sense of intimacy he might develop with anyone, including friends or family. It's quite a strong performance of a tortured soul caught in the throes of unbridled need for sexual activity and release. Even running through the streets of NYC and its release of endorphins don't seem to be enough for Brandon's appetite. Heh.
It's NC-17 for good reason, and if you aren't comfortable with the subject matter, you'd be better off avoiding this film, otherwise, it's a compelling look at something that probably goes on with some of your own friends, co-workers, acquaintances, and you just have no idea what goes through their own mindspace, but this film will give you an unflinching look at such addictive traits.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
The Artist
What's this, a silent film about the transitional period of silent flms turning into the talkies? The ironic meta-ness of this film, "The Artist" is quite charming, and uses quite a few cinematic nuggets from the film era of the late 1920s to tell the story of George Valentin (Jean Dujardin), star of many silent films, and Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo), a up-and-coming dancing starlet, who become somewhat intertwined in the business of making movies as George's star descent and Peppy's star ascents. Jujardin and Bejo have nice on-screen chemistry, and Valentin's dog is great.
The film has lot going for it, though the middle act is dramatically a bummer, purposefully so, otherwise, with such a light touch in tone and style, the film more than makes up for it with such a faithful use of the silent film genre to tell it tale. One theme that resonated with me is when it examines, broadly, the notion of whether or not the meaning of art comes from the message or the medium, or a confluence of both.
I give it 3.5 stars, or a grade of B+.
The film has lot going for it, though the middle act is dramatically a bummer, purposefully so, otherwise, with such a light touch in tone and style, the film more than makes up for it with such a faithful use of the silent film genre to tell it tale. One theme that resonated with me is when it examines, broadly, the notion of whether or not the meaning of art comes from the message or the medium, or a confluence of both.
I give it 3.5 stars, or a grade of B+.
We Bought A Zoo
"We Bought A Zoo" is the latest film Cameron Crowe (Almost Famous, Say Anything, Jerry Maguire). And while it features a family recently hurting from an all-too-early death of the mother, Benjamin (Matt Damon) is a father with 2 children, a cute daughter around 6, and a teenage son around 14, Benjamin takes a leap and buys a zoo so that his family can have an adventure, and perhaps overcome the void from the mother's recent passing, but in the end, it still somewhat a love story for Benjamin and coming to terms with his wife's recent death.
The cast of the zoo keepers is quite colorful, but Crowe doesn't put a lot of effort in developing most of them, rather, sets them up for comic relief, but at least Kelly (Scarlett Johansson) is quite grounded and puts the animals first in her care for them. Johansson is quite accessible in this film, and it was nice to see, given her list of past roles.
It's a nice little family film, doesn't stray too far from the path of zoo-mantic dramedies. I think they over-relied upon the wilderness musical scores that show up other films about nature, though.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The cast of the zoo keepers is quite colorful, but Crowe doesn't put a lot of effort in developing most of them, rather, sets them up for comic relief, but at least Kelly (Scarlett Johansson) is quite grounded and puts the animals first in her care for them. Johansson is quite accessible in this film, and it was nice to see, given her list of past roles.
It's a nice little family film, doesn't stray too far from the path of zoo-mantic dramedies. I think they over-relied upon the wilderness musical scores that show up other films about nature, though.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The Adventures of Tintin
Having not read much Tintin in my youth, I went in pretty much not knowing much about Tintin, his dog, or the 2 investigators, Thompson and Thompson. So I think the script doesn't quite do their introductions to a new audience much favor in the film, but even with the quick visual cues of Tintin's past adventures, and his journalistic zest for uncovering mysteries. But once the films gets going, you could tell Spielberg was having a ball with being able to move the camera's eye all over the place in an animated CGI film environment, which produce quite a few thrilling sequences through the film's plotline.
I think some of the "Uncanny Valley" aspects of CGI animated characters still persists, but mainly for Tintin himself, but for the rest of the characters with more exaggerated features, the animation works well. There's just something with the eyes that doesn't always seem believable to me, but it's a very small quibble, as the rest of the visual work and mo-cap by the actors exhibited in the film is quite appealing.
Plot-wise, it's a hodge-podge of dramatic adventure film-making relying on more of the flashier camera movement than the actual plotline itself, lots of flash, not as much substance.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
I think some of the "Uncanny Valley" aspects of CGI animated characters still persists, but mainly for Tintin himself, but for the rest of the characters with more exaggerated features, the animation works well. There's just something with the eyes that doesn't always seem believable to me, but it's a very small quibble, as the rest of the visual work and mo-cap by the actors exhibited in the film is quite appealing.
Plot-wise, it's a hodge-podge of dramatic adventure film-making relying on more of the flashier camera movement than the actual plotline itself, lots of flash, not as much substance.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
For a film with a 160 minute runtime, it breezed by like a 100 minute film, pretty much a hallmark of a David Fincher film with impeccable pacing, even though it covers a lot of territory and still manages to give room to develop the 2 main characters, Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) and Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), as well as the central mystery dropped in Blomkvist's lap as his professional career as an investigative reporter goes into the crapper.
Salander is a ward of the state who is an excellent hacker and investigator of her own, although she projects an alternative persona (aura of a gothy suicide girl) with a violent streak in her formative years. Salander's world goes terribly bad when her guardian suffers a debilitating illness, and a state-appointed shrink preys on her need for funds from her trust by subjecting her to coerced sexual acts.
Eventually Blomkvist and Salander are paired up when he is in need of an investigator to follow up on the clues and photos he's gathered as part of an investigation to the murders from over 40 years ago on the behest of a wealthy man, Henrik Vanger, who lives on an island with many of his rich relatives.
The opening credit sequences was a little over-the-top, but you won't forget it all too quickly.
Having seen the original Swedish version, it's almost impossible for me to not compare the 2 versions, but I think they are both very solid films, and I think I still prefer Noomi Rapace's portrayal of Salander, as Rapace had a more haunting quality to her portrayal than Rooney Mara, but I think Mara may have awakened within me a latent fondness for gothy suicide girls. (heh). I also think the original did a little better job of developing the investigational aspects of the mystery, but Fincher keeps everything moving, and has no problem heightening the feelings of dread and consequence as this story unfolds and our characters find themselves in perilous situations.
Well worth seeing at the theaters.
I give it 3.75 stars, or a grade of A-.
Salander is a ward of the state who is an excellent hacker and investigator of her own, although she projects an alternative persona (aura of a gothy suicide girl) with a violent streak in her formative years. Salander's world goes terribly bad when her guardian suffers a debilitating illness, and a state-appointed shrink preys on her need for funds from her trust by subjecting her to coerced sexual acts.
Eventually Blomkvist and Salander are paired up when he is in need of an investigator to follow up on the clues and photos he's gathered as part of an investigation to the murders from over 40 years ago on the behest of a wealthy man, Henrik Vanger, who lives on an island with many of his rich relatives.
The opening credit sequences was a little over-the-top, but you won't forget it all too quickly.
Having seen the original Swedish version, it's almost impossible for me to not compare the 2 versions, but I think they are both very solid films, and I think I still prefer Noomi Rapace's portrayal of Salander, as Rapace had a more haunting quality to her portrayal than Rooney Mara, but I think Mara may have awakened within me a latent fondness for gothy suicide girls. (heh). I also think the original did a little better job of developing the investigational aspects of the mystery, but Fincher keeps everything moving, and has no problem heightening the feelings of dread and consequence as this story unfolds and our characters find themselves in perilous situations.
Well worth seeing at the theaters.
I give it 3.75 stars, or a grade of A-.
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
In the 2nd installment of the Guy Ritchie-helmed Sherlock Holmes franchise, Holmes and Watson are faced with going up against a brilliant mind in Prof. Moriarity, even though they don't quite know how well insinuated Moriarity is within the various governments in Europe of the 1890s, or his end game. Jared Harris is actually quite good as the good professor.
I think I dislike the color palette of these Sherlock Holmes films, just too dingy and rusty-grey. RDJ's portrayal of Sherlock Holmes is almost insufferable at times, and even with Watson's bluster and exasperation with SH's antics, their relationship dynamic just doesn't quite do it for me. Noomi Rapace's character in this film doesn't really have much to do, and it feels like a wasted casting choice given the role as written (she stares a lot at Sherlock, it seems). The Holmes' slo-mo brain-cam footage was novel in the first film, but seems to be overly used in this film, and the slo-mo is also used in an extended getaway sequence that seems to overstay its welcome too, it just makes the pacing far too languid and somewhat boring.
That being said, I think I liked the last act of the film more than the initial setup and mid acts.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
I think I dislike the color palette of these Sherlock Holmes films, just too dingy and rusty-grey. RDJ's portrayal of Sherlock Holmes is almost insufferable at times, and even with Watson's bluster and exasperation with SH's antics, their relationship dynamic just doesn't quite do it for me. Noomi Rapace's character in this film doesn't really have much to do, and it feels like a wasted casting choice given the role as written (she stares a lot at Sherlock, it seems). The Holmes' slo-mo brain-cam footage was novel in the first film, but seems to be overly used in this film, and the slo-mo is also used in an extended getaway sequence that seems to overstay its welcome too, it just makes the pacing far too languid and somewhat boring.
That being said, I think I liked the last act of the film more than the initial setup and mid acts.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Young Adult
While I can't say I wasn't interested in seeing the latest film from the combo of director Jason Reitman and screenwriter Diablo Cody (they hit a chord with "Juno" a few years ago), I have to admit it was sort of uncomfortable viewing, as its main character, Mavis (Charlize Theron in an almost-sure-to-be-nominated Best Actress Oscar performance) in her late-30s, stumbles through her present state of depression. Present-day Mavis is a ghost writer of a series of "young adult" book winding down due to sales slowdown, and she's having problems finishing the last book, and having moved away from a small Minnesota town (and landing in its bigger city of Minneapoilis) and having gone through a lot of the "expected" life milestones with little to show for it, she's at a cross-roads of her life and mired in a life stuck in neutral. She lives on diet Coke and booze, and reality TV when she's not passed out.
Mavis was one of those popular girls whose best years where in high school, and 20 years later, she gets an email announcing the birth of her high school sweetheart Buddy's (Patrick Wilson) daughter, and Mavis decides it's time to win him back, so she heads back to her small hometown, and her delusional plans get reality-checked by a former schoolmate, Matt (Patton Oswalt), whom she bumps into at a bar, and he has had his own cross to bear being subjected to a severe beating from other school bullies and left crippled, necessitating the use of a brace-cane to walk around, among other injuries. Mavis and Matt were never in the same orbits in high school, but 20 years later, Mavis's plans to win back Buddy befuddles and yet intrigues Matt, and Mavis would soon uses him as an unlikely sounding board amongst her drunken states.
The trailers are cut to show a far funnier film than the actual film is, but in the midst of Mavis's misadventures and mis-overtures, it cuts to Mavis's core in the final act, and the uncomfortable tone and misappropriateness of her self-inflicted mission comes full circle. As a character study, it's messy and throughout the film, Mavis manages to use real-life events seen or overheard to produce some material for the book, and that interplay with her own life yields an interesting view of Mavis's own internal conflict and reveals the absurdity of an immature outlook on life and immediate situations, but it also allows her to work through her own issues and finding her way back to some of her lost mojo, albeit with a better emotional foundation.
I think it'll play better to the audience in their 30s and 40s, asking them to reflect on meta-life questions and their general state of happiness and whether they are living the life they thought they'd be living coming out of their formative teenage years.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Mavis was one of those popular girls whose best years where in high school, and 20 years later, she gets an email announcing the birth of her high school sweetheart Buddy's (Patrick Wilson) daughter, and Mavis decides it's time to win him back, so she heads back to her small hometown, and her delusional plans get reality-checked by a former schoolmate, Matt (Patton Oswalt), whom she bumps into at a bar, and he has had his own cross to bear being subjected to a severe beating from other school bullies and left crippled, necessitating the use of a brace-cane to walk around, among other injuries. Mavis and Matt were never in the same orbits in high school, but 20 years later, Mavis's plans to win back Buddy befuddles and yet intrigues Matt, and Mavis would soon uses him as an unlikely sounding board amongst her drunken states.
The trailers are cut to show a far funnier film than the actual film is, but in the midst of Mavis's misadventures and mis-overtures, it cuts to Mavis's core in the final act, and the uncomfortable tone and misappropriateness of her self-inflicted mission comes full circle. As a character study, it's messy and throughout the film, Mavis manages to use real-life events seen or overheard to produce some material for the book, and that interplay with her own life yields an interesting view of Mavis's own internal conflict and reveals the absurdity of an immature outlook on life and immediate situations, but it also allows her to work through her own issues and finding her way back to some of her lost mojo, albeit with a better emotional foundation.
I think it'll play better to the audience in their 30s and 40s, asking them to reflect on meta-life questions and their general state of happiness and whether they are living the life they thought they'd be living coming out of their formative teenage years.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
This is a big action flick with some bits of personal motivations sprinkled throughout to keep us invested in the newly put together IMF team. It's filled with spectacle and moves rather briskly, almost too briskly, but I still appreciated the pacing as it could have settled into a maudlin tone otherwise. I saw it on IMAX and the larger IMAX footage on the screen does work to bring you along right into the various action sequences and the sound system delivered on the kinetic and dramatic impact of the audio from explosions, and collisions.
Director Brad Bird has a nice visual eye and it shows in his live-action debut by appreciating the scope of the perilous situations and giving the viewer enough visual evidence to heighten the dramatic tension. Tom Cruise brings his reliable portrayal of Ethan Hunt, and the script saddles him and his team (Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton, and Simon Pegg) with challenges that rarely go as planned, a final objective that is nigh impossible to achieve, and that keeps things flowing.
It's sheer movie entertainment, delivered on its promise and premise of the Mission Impossible franchise, and will be a crowd pleaser for the holiday audiences.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Director Brad Bird has a nice visual eye and it shows in his live-action debut by appreciating the scope of the perilous situations and giving the viewer enough visual evidence to heighten the dramatic tension. Tom Cruise brings his reliable portrayal of Ethan Hunt, and the script saddles him and his team (Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton, and Simon Pegg) with challenges that rarely go as planned, a final objective that is nigh impossible to achieve, and that keeps things flowing.
It's sheer movie entertainment, delivered on its promise and premise of the Mission Impossible franchise, and will be a crowd pleaser for the holiday audiences.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
New Year's Eve
As a companion piece to "Valentine's Day," Gary Marshall's "New Year's Eve" is a rather inert piece of filmmaking, and the final resolution of the tangetial relationships of the criss-crossing subplots didn't quite hit the spot for me for many of the characters, so it's pretty much a miss, but you pretty much know what you're in for if you've seen the earlier film. I don't even know what they were thinking in how they resolved the Josh Duhamel's character's subplot, it doesn't make any sense. Hilary Swank's character's subplot was also "meh". Just a lot of average screenwriting.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
The Descendants
Director Alexander Payne returns to cinema with "The Descendants", a quirky family dramedy set in Hawaii, which deals with a mother in a coma, and a father (Matt) who isn't quite emotionally equipped to handle the reins of fatherhood for a 10-year old daughter (Scottie), and a 17-year old daughter (Alexandra, played by Shailene Woodley, who'll most likely nabbed a best supporting actress nomination and be this year's Jennifer Lawrence).
George Clooney does good work as Matt, and will nab a best actor nomination (not sure he'll win, though). The film's title deals with inherited land from George's family that needs to be sold off due to the perpetuity laws, and he's faced with deciding between 2 offers, and facing quiet pressure from various factions of his extended family. And while he's dealing with the business end, he's been coping with a wife in a coma from a boating accident, and adjusting to being the actual parent in the family, as his wife did most of the child-rearing in their family.
There are signature bits of Payne's humor sprinkled in the film, though it's almost always kept on low simmer, as George and his family go on a quest to deal with revealed secrets of his wife's own indiscretions, which sandbag Matt emotionally, but he presses on, even as the land deal decision looms in the very near future.
It's a solid film, but I just didn't quite love it, but it's worth seeing this holiday season with your family at matinee prices. Just be warned, some foul language from Matt's children does show up in a few scenes.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
George Clooney does good work as Matt, and will nab a best actor nomination (not sure he'll win, though). The film's title deals with inherited land from George's family that needs to be sold off due to the perpetuity laws, and he's faced with deciding between 2 offers, and facing quiet pressure from various factions of his extended family. And while he's dealing with the business end, he's been coping with a wife in a coma from a boating accident, and adjusting to being the actual parent in the family, as his wife did most of the child-rearing in their family.
There are signature bits of Payne's humor sprinkled in the film, though it's almost always kept on low simmer, as George and his family go on a quest to deal with revealed secrets of his wife's own indiscretions, which sandbag Matt emotionally, but he presses on, even as the land deal decision looms in the very near future.
It's a solid film, but I just didn't quite love it, but it's worth seeing this holiday season with your family at matinee prices. Just be warned, some foul language from Matt's children does show up in a few scenes.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
My Week with Marilyn
"My Week with Marilyn" is a film featuring the memoirs of Colin Clark, who details the short time period in 1959 where, as a young man looking to make into the film industry in England, he somehow ended up working on the film set with Sir Laurence Olivier and Marilyn Monroe, and according to Clark's memoirs, he gets involved with Monroe for a spell.
It took a little getting used to Michelle Williams playing Marilyn Monroe, as she doesn't quite have the eyes of Monroe, but she does a credible job channelling the various facets of Monroe's personality, looks, speech patterns, and performance quality playing to the camera, all the while driving Olivier to the brink of madness due to her use of "The Method" yielding production stoppages and budget overruns, while he could easily rely on his years of theatrical training to bolster his film performances. And as the film wore on, she inhabits the role very well. Most likely Williams will get a best actress Oscar nomination for her work in this film, but I don't think she'll win.
The story itself is fairly breezy, almost fantasy-inspired, but it has enough humor and pathos to be enjoyable enough. Kenneth Branagh might also snag a best supporting actor Oscar nomination for his work, but not sure if it'll resonate with the academy.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
It took a little getting used to Michelle Williams playing Marilyn Monroe, as she doesn't quite have the eyes of Monroe, but she does a credible job channelling the various facets of Monroe's personality, looks, speech patterns, and performance quality playing to the camera, all the while driving Olivier to the brink of madness due to her use of "The Method" yielding production stoppages and budget overruns, while he could easily rely on his years of theatrical training to bolster his film performances. And as the film wore on, she inhabits the role very well. Most likely Williams will get a best actress Oscar nomination for her work in this film, but I don't think she'll win.
The story itself is fairly breezy, almost fantasy-inspired, but it has enough humor and pathos to be enjoyable enough. Kenneth Branagh might also snag a best supporting actor Oscar nomination for his work, but not sure if it'll resonate with the academy.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The Sitter
As a free-wheeling homage to the zany teen comedies of the 1980s, "The Sitter" almost works, it's got misunderstood kids, slacker college guy Noah (Jonah Hill) for the main character, and less-than-satisfactory girlfriend situation that drives the plot and gets Noah in way over his head during a night of babysitting 3 kids.
It does have a bit of heart, and some decent comedy, plus good raunchy cursing here and there, and will leave you with the deja vu feeling of having seen this film before, so there you go.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
It does have a bit of heart, and some decent comedy, plus good raunchy cursing here and there, and will leave you with the deja vu feeling of having seen this film before, so there you go.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Hugo
Martin Scorsese returns with an ode to cinema with "Hugo", a film set in Paris around the 1930s (going by the reference to the war, which I took to be WWI,), featuring a boy named Hugo who keeps the clocks going in the train station after being taken in by his uncle upon his father's untimely demise. But Hugo's father sparked Hugo's mechanical aptitude, and also left him with an automaton, which would offer Hugo a secret that would change the lives of the characters in the film. I'm glad I didn't know much about the film going into it, and I'm not going to say much more about the plot, just know it's an engaging, heartfelt, film, though it might run just a smidge long in spots, nothing too objectionable. It's a film that has a timeless, classic, feel to it, and could end up being holiday viewing for families for years to come.
This film was shot in 3D, and Scorsese uses the cameras as another character with the many intresting tracking shots, and inventiveness in embracing 3D filmmaking. But Scorsese knows when to go flashy with 3D, and when to rein it in. I think it's worth seeing in 3D if you're so inclined.
I give it 3.5 stars, or a grade of B+.
This film was shot in 3D, and Scorsese uses the cameras as another character with the many intresting tracking shots, and inventiveness in embracing 3D filmmaking. But Scorsese knows when to go flashy with 3D, and when to rein it in. I think it's worth seeing in 3D if you're so inclined.
I give it 3.5 stars, or a grade of B+.
The Muppets
A pretty solid movie about the relevance of the Muppets in today's world, and growing up and moving towards one's destiny, no matter how much it shakes up the status quo, growth requires confidence and support. Enjoyed all the time capsule-worthy nods to the past, the song numbers. Jason Segel clearly loves this stuff, even if his singing and dancing are average. Amy Adams felt a little too much like an acting version of the Stepford wives (just a little too "put on" in her scenes). It was good to see many of the Muppets back on the big screen. Chris Cooper's villainous turn was a little over-the-top, though.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
P.S. The Toy Story short at the beginning was also funny and enjoyable.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
P.S. The Toy Story short at the beginning was also funny and enjoyable.
Arthur Christmas
I'll go ahead and admit that I like most of the Aardman productions (mainly from the Wallace and Gromit realm), but transfer that animation sensibility from claymation-ish techniques to CGI animation, you still get a visually fun and interesting film about the logistics of being Santa Claus, and how does he manage to deliver all those toys around the world in just one night.
But, I think it won't play as well to kids, as the scenes elicit grins, more than laughs for most of the film, so I don't know what the word of mouth will be for it, but I enjoyed it for the most part.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
But, I think it won't play as well to kids, as the scenes elicit grins, more than laughs for most of the film, so I don't know what the word of mouth will be for it, but I enjoyed it for the most part.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Tower Heist
I think this film does suffer from stretching it out into 2 films when the plot of part 1 just doesn't have a lot of meat to it even with its running time, there's just a lot of waiting going on in the 2nd half the movie for its inevitable plot development. The tone of the film felt a little snarky, but the director seemed to have fun with the familiarily of the 3 main characters. Too bad the script missed a nice opportunity to press the horror and go "Rosemary's Baby" with such a development post-marriage. Lautner's acting is still pretty bad (or immature), but he somewhat gets a second wind as the movie goes on.
I give it 2.5 stars or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars or a grade of C+.
Twilight - Breaking Dawn Part 1
I think this film does suffer from stretching it out into 2 films when the plot of part 1 just doesn't have a lot of meat to it even with its running time, there's just a lot of waiting going on in the 2nd half the movie for its inevitable plot development. The tone of the film felt a little snarky, but the director seemed to have fun with the familiarily of the 3 main characters. Too bad the script missed a nice opportunity to press the horror and go "Rosemary's Baby" with such a development post-marriage. Lautner's acting is still pretty bad (or immature), but he somewhat gets a second wind as the movie goes on.
I give it 2.5 stars or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars or a grade of C+.
Immortals
Narratively a little weak, but many scenes are so gorgeous to stare at in this film. Saw it in 3D.
The story felt overly long in the first hour for its general plotline, and doesn't give enough information to develop the players in the story: humans (Theseus the good guy, Hyperion the conquering type, and other supporting folks), the gods (Zeus, Athena, Poseidon, and others), and Titans (just a bunch of dudes standing in a mythical prison cube for a long time). So carefully constructed sequences show up on the screen, but without proper character build-up for the players in the story, the action, while skillfully executed, fails to engage the viewer, and becomes a fine reel of artful EFX and composition.
Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful film in many of the scenes, and it takes the viewer away to a place a long time ago where humans and gods engaged one another to fight the release of titans, who have the potential to bring the heavens down to earth and make it a very unpleasant place to be. I just wished it had a better script to engage the viewers with a more vested interest in the central conflict. I wanted more content of the gods and titans. The script relies too much on narration to fill in the gaps, to its detriment.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The story felt overly long in the first hour for its general plotline, and doesn't give enough information to develop the players in the story: humans (Theseus the good guy, Hyperion the conquering type, and other supporting folks), the gods (Zeus, Athena, Poseidon, and others), and Titans (just a bunch of dudes standing in a mythical prison cube for a long time). So carefully constructed sequences show up on the screen, but without proper character build-up for the players in the story, the action, while skillfully executed, fails to engage the viewer, and becomes a fine reel of artful EFX and composition.
Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful film in many of the scenes, and it takes the viewer away to a place a long time ago where humans and gods engaged one another to fight the release of titans, who have the potential to bring the heavens down to earth and make it a very unpleasant place to be. I just wished it had a better script to engage the viewers with a more vested interest in the central conflict. I wanted more content of the gods and titans. The script relies too much on narration to fill in the gaps, to its detriment.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas in 3D
Overall, I enjoyed it, though it takes a little while to set the table and gain traction, and goes for broke on most of the politically incorrect plotlines and scenes. There are some utterly poke-you-in-the-eye type of 3D footage in the film, they almost celebrate this 3D crutch, much to the point to satirizing its use in the movies. Even NPH's scene was solid, with quite a bit of self-awareness of the 3 main actors's other pursuits outside of the H&K films integrated in the script.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
J. Edgar
While the film is paced well, the script bounces around Hoover's recounting of his touchstone exploits as he built up the FBI from the early days of fairly little clout into its more stronger and wide-reaching arm of the US Attorney General. The main problem is that it just feels like an unreliable recounting of his greatest hits without much of a focused theme for Hoover's life and times being the head of the FBI, and his own use of leverage to stay on top.
Overall, the make-up job on the 3 principal characters (Hoover, Tolson, and Gandy) was distracting to the point where I'd rather they just cast older actors (say Jon Voight, James Cromwell, and Helen Mirren) to play them in the 1960s-1970s, while utilizing Leo DiCaprio, Armie Hammer and Naomi Watts for their younger versions because no one really goes to movies to see this trio of actors in old-people make-up.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
Overall, the make-up job on the 3 principal characters (Hoover, Tolson, and Gandy) was distracting to the point where I'd rather they just cast older actors (say Jon Voight, James Cromwell, and Helen Mirren) to play them in the 1960s-1970s, while utilizing Leo DiCaprio, Armie Hammer and Naomi Watts for their younger versions because no one really goes to movies to see this trio of actors in old-people make-up.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
Jack and Jill
Adam Sandler returns to play the dual roles of Jack and Jill, fraternal twin brother and sister. Jill is Jack's sister who is from the Bronx and is visiting Jack and his family for Thanksgiving in Hollywood. Jack runs an advertising outfit facing difficult times unless he can land Al Pacino for a coffee commercial campaign. After some really uncomfortable attempts at humor with Jill attending the family Thanksgiving dinner, Jack tries to make up with Jill and takes her to a Lakers game, while also trying to get some time with Pacino. Only in a Sandler movie, is Pacino quite taken with Jill, and the film spends the rest of the time on the rather unsightly subplot of Pacino pursuing Jill.
I give it 1.75 stars, or a grade of C-.
I give it 1.75 stars, or a grade of C-.
The Three Musketeers
"The Three Musketeers" was quite a bombastic production. Director Paul W. S. Anderson treats the viewers to large explosive elements in this cinematic return to the telling of tales of the Three Musketeers (Athos, Porthos, and Aramis) as a brash, would-be, 4th Musketeer (D'artagnan) arrives on the scene, as France and England have to deal with issues of supremacy in Europe.
For the most part, the film is short on characterization, moderate on character motivations (double-dealings), and long on spectacle in order to mask its shortcomings. Director Anderson often picks odd angles to shoot scenes with dialogue, almost distractingly so. But some of the action scenes are fun and lively, and others are shot with 3D in mind (while stretching all sorts of incredulity - some of Milla Jovovich's character's action scenes are of this ilk, but she's married to the director, so you can do the math).
I give it 2.5 stars or a grade of C+.
For the most part, the film is short on characterization, moderate on character motivations (double-dealings), and long on spectacle in order to mask its shortcomings. Director Anderson often picks odd angles to shoot scenes with dialogue, almost distractingly so. But some of the action scenes are fun and lively, and others are shot with 3D in mind (while stretching all sorts of incredulity - some of Milla Jovovich's character's action scenes are of this ilk, but she's married to the director, so you can do the math).
I give it 2.5 stars or a grade of C+.
In Time
I sort of liked some of the ideas of having to scrounge around to live past a year after you reach your 25th birthday due to the genetic time clock everyone is now born with. And then you have the concepts of the "rich" loaded with "time" units, and how longevity without risk isn't really living, it's simply existing due to some born-in inherited advantage. I didn't like the ease of siphoning off people's time from one another, seems like there should have been more of a intrinsic barrier to just handshake your way into additional time units. Some of the plot points just seem too "set up" for encounters in the final act, too telegraphed, with a narrative flow based on our 2 protagonists (Justin Timberlake's character Will, and Amanda Seyfried's character Sylvia) literally being on the run for half of the film. Even the Timekeeper character played by Cillian Murphy didn't feel fleshed out motivationally speaking.
I give it 2 stars or a grade of C, mainly for its politics, but on the plus side, also for showing us that Amanda Seyfriend make make a decent casting choice as Batwoman (totally has the look of Kate Kane's short red bob, and porcelain skin, though she's a little short and skinny in this film).
I give it 2 stars or a grade of C, mainly for its politics, but on the plus side, also for showing us that Amanda Seyfriend make make a decent casting choice as Batwoman (totally has the look of Kate Kane's short red bob, and porcelain skin, though she's a little short and skinny in this film).
Puss in Boots
Granted, I like cats, and I liked the character of Puss In Boots from the Shrek movies, so I was pre-disposed to enjoy this full-length feature of Puss In Boots, and I saw it in 3D as well.
The first 20 minutes are really entertaining, then it hits a bit of a lull as Puss reveals his origin and his relation to Humpty Dumpty, and then it's off on the main plot of the film that involves magic beans, giant bean stalks, castles in the sky, etc. They made good use of the 3D for many kinetic scenes featuring running, jumping, sliding, and flying.
What I find really funny is how Puss reacts when he's scared or surprised, he reacts just like a real cat, and his reactions just slay me, it's a small detail, but appreciated. There are some fun dance sequences, and Antonio Banderas has a lot of fun voicing Puss In Boots.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B. I'd grade it higher if I wasn't weirded out by the sight of Humpty Dumpty looking like Steve-O from Jackass.
The first 20 minutes are really entertaining, then it hits a bit of a lull as Puss reveals his origin and his relation to Humpty Dumpty, and then it's off on the main plot of the film that involves magic beans, giant bean stalks, castles in the sky, etc. They made good use of the 3D for many kinetic scenes featuring running, jumping, sliding, and flying.
What I find really funny is how Puss reacts when he's scared or surprised, he reacts just like a real cat, and his reactions just slay me, it's a small detail, but appreciated. There are some fun dance sequences, and Antonio Banderas has a lot of fun voicing Puss In Boots.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B. I'd grade it higher if I wasn't weirded out by the sight of Humpty Dumpty looking like Steve-O from Jackass.
Real Steel
Pretty much, "Real Steel" is what happens when you put "Over the Top", "Rocky", "A Boy and His Robot" and "Rock'em Sock'em Robots" in a cinematic blender. The writers almost try to provide some emotional hooks into a story based on a washed up boxer Charlie (Hugh Jackman), who now manages robot fighters in seedy fight rings, and is down on his luck. Enter a young boy, Max, who lost his mother recently, and of course is Charlie's son, whom he has had little contact with in the boy's 11 years on this planet. Charlie needs money for a new robot and mounting debts, and conveniently, the boy's aunt wants custody of Max, and Charlie literally sells his parental claims to Max to the aunt and rich uncle with the stipulation that Max spends the summer with Charlie as the couple goes on a summer-long vacation.
Max is mouthy, a bit street-wise, but still just a kid who makes decisions on the best of outcomes without considering negative outcomes. Pretty soon Charlie and Max go on a robot fighting spree after finding an old robot, Atom, who was mainly a sparring robot fighter, but with Charlie's boxing skills, Atom has enough resilience and skill to find success in the ring. The pacing is surprisingly brisk for a 2-hour movie, but it's very predictable, and apes so many of the Rocky movie cliches, it's almost comical, unnecessarily so.
It's a decent kid's movie, but offers little in surprises or narrative originality.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Max is mouthy, a bit street-wise, but still just a kid who makes decisions on the best of outcomes without considering negative outcomes. Pretty soon Charlie and Max go on a robot fighting spree after finding an old robot, Atom, who was mainly a sparring robot fighter, but with Charlie's boxing skills, Atom has enough resilience and skill to find success in the ring. The pacing is surprisingly brisk for a 2-hour movie, but it's very predictable, and apes so many of the Rocky movie cliches, it's almost comical, unnecessarily so.
It's a decent kid's movie, but offers little in surprises or narrative originality.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Footloose
I was little skeptical about a remake of "Footloose", but director Craig Brewer continues on with a nice little winning streak (previously efforts were "Hustle and Flow" and "Black Snake Moan"), and comes up with another watchable film, this time steeped with a lot of nostalgia of those of us who grew up as teens in the mid 1980s. What Brewster does well is develop good character interactions on-screen, even if the plot is threadbare, as there's not a lot of high-brow material here, it's embracing youthful hormones and the release of pent-up energy due to the town's heavy-handedness with the laws of youthful conduct.
Bomont, GA, has an anti-dancing law due to tragic circumstances 3 years ago, and Ren (Kenny Wormald) arrives from Boston to live with his uncle and family due to his own tragic circumstances. Ren is the new boy in town, talks "funny" in a town of southerners, and has to deal with more civil limitations than he's accustomed to from his former life. Rev. Moore (Dennis Quaid) was the one who worked the laws to put on the clamps of teenage behavior (teens also had curfews, as well as the anti-dance laws), and Rev. Moore's daughter, Ariel (Julianne Hough), is in a rebellious phase, hanging with the bad boy, Chuck, in town, who doesn't quite treat women with respect. Ren makes a new friend in Williard, drafting off that original film's buddy-buddy bromance with Kevin Bacon and Chris Penn. And it works, Williard is a fun character and plays off well with Ren. Of course, Ren and Ariel are sniffing around one another, in antagonistic ways at the start, but that soon melts away, and they connect on more than superficial levels.
In a film like this, you just have to let the dance choreography wash over you, it's fun, and lively, just what you'd expect. There is enough heart in the film to like the cast of characters, and detest the ones who deserve the audience's derision. In the end, the film won me over, though it won't quite totally replace the original film, but it's not a terrible remake, as I feared it would be.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Bomont, GA, has an anti-dancing law due to tragic circumstances 3 years ago, and Ren (Kenny Wormald) arrives from Boston to live with his uncle and family due to his own tragic circumstances. Ren is the new boy in town, talks "funny" in a town of southerners, and has to deal with more civil limitations than he's accustomed to from his former life. Rev. Moore (Dennis Quaid) was the one who worked the laws to put on the clamps of teenage behavior (teens also had curfews, as well as the anti-dance laws), and Rev. Moore's daughter, Ariel (Julianne Hough), is in a rebellious phase, hanging with the bad boy, Chuck, in town, who doesn't quite treat women with respect. Ren makes a new friend in Williard, drafting off that original film's buddy-buddy bromance with Kevin Bacon and Chris Penn. And it works, Williard is a fun character and plays off well with Ren. Of course, Ren and Ariel are sniffing around one another, in antagonistic ways at the start, but that soon melts away, and they connect on more than superficial levels.
In a film like this, you just have to let the dance choreography wash over you, it's fun, and lively, just what you'd expect. There is enough heart in the film to like the cast of characters, and detest the ones who deserve the audience's derision. In the end, the film won me over, though it won't quite totally replace the original film, but it's not a terrible remake, as I feared it would be.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Ides of March
I quite enjoyed "The Ides of March", a modern day retelling of how political ambition can tear down one's own personal ethics and propel personal actions that not only manifest themselves in self-preservation moves even at the high cost of political and personal fall-out.
Ryan Gosling does most of the heavy lifting in this film, playing Stephen, a very on-the-rise political mover-and-shaker working on the campaign of Mike Morris (George Clooney), in a race for the Presidential nomination for the Democratic Party. Paul (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is the campaign manager, trying to secure the nomination for Morris, and Stephen gets involved in some overtures from their adversary's campaign manager Tom (Paul Giamatti), and things quickly spiral out of control for Stephen as the Morris campaign faces a major crossroad at the Ohio primaries.
The script is lean and economical (as is Clooney's direction), but sets up all of the pieces quite well, and the cast is uniformily solid, and they produced some good work in creating a world falling apart for Stephen, and how does he go about finding his bearings in such a political quagmire that unfolds in a merciless manner. It feels like a longer movie in terms of scope of plotlines, but it's actually paced quite well, coming in at about 100 minutes.
I give it 3.5 stars, or a grade of B+.
Ryan Gosling does most of the heavy lifting in this film, playing Stephen, a very on-the-rise political mover-and-shaker working on the campaign of Mike Morris (George Clooney), in a race for the Presidential nomination for the Democratic Party. Paul (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is the campaign manager, trying to secure the nomination for Morris, and Stephen gets involved in some overtures from their adversary's campaign manager Tom (Paul Giamatti), and things quickly spiral out of control for Stephen as the Morris campaign faces a major crossroad at the Ohio primaries.
The script is lean and economical (as is Clooney's direction), but sets up all of the pieces quite well, and the cast is uniformily solid, and they produced some good work in creating a world falling apart for Stephen, and how does he go about finding his bearings in such a political quagmire that unfolds in a merciless manner. It feels like a longer movie in terms of scope of plotlines, but it's actually paced quite well, coming in at about 100 minutes.
I give it 3.5 stars, or a grade of B+.
50/50
Cancer in young men is not common, especially men in their mid-to-late 20s, but it happened to Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), who gets a cancer diagnosis and has to come to terms with it, and then prepare for the battle in the form of chemo. Adam gets some unexpected support from his best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen), his girlfriend (Bryce Dallas Howard), his mother (Anjelica Huston) and a young therapist (Anna Kendrick), as well as a couple of guys from his chemo group (played by Max Frewer and Philip Baker Hall).
While cancer isn't a funny topic, there are some laughs (mainly from Kyle's contribution to the storyline, and using cancer to get laid), some tears, some pain, some resentment, some self-pity, some bittersweet self-realization of one's mortality. The script was penned by Will Reiser (friends with Seth Rogen in real life), and follows a somewhat auto-biographical bent for Will as shown with Adam's story. I didn't love the film, but didn't loathe it, either.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
While cancer isn't a funny topic, there are some laughs (mainly from Kyle's contribution to the storyline, and using cancer to get laid), some tears, some pain, some resentment, some self-pity, some bittersweet self-realization of one's mortality. The script was penned by Will Reiser (friends with Seth Rogen in real life), and follows a somewhat auto-biographical bent for Will as shown with Adam's story. I didn't love the film, but didn't loathe it, either.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Drive
I wanted to like this movie more, but in the end, I just don't have any real affinity to the driver dude (Gosling). Sure, the extended gazing/staring scenes didn't help things, and I never got the idea he really knew what he was getting into when it goes really bad. There are some nice stylistic choices and touches (the whole 70s vibe in terms of tone, cinematography), but having an enigmatic protagonist just didn't work for me.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Moneyball
"Moneyball" is the concept of small market baseball teams using stats to find imperfect players to produce enough runs to win enough ballgames to be competitive in Major League Baseball where there is no hard salary cap (so large market teams, like the Yankees, can outspend the rest of their competitors, even with luxury taxes in place, and get premium ballplayers for their team). Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), as the general manager (GM) of the Oakland A's, has a much smaller budget for ballplayers, and homegrown talents has a way of finding bigger dollars later, so Beane, along with Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) eschew the time-honored tradition of scouting players, and turn towards statistics to find those cheap gems to put together their team in 2002. It's not all bed and roses for them, with many potholes along the way to the chase for a championship.
The script is lively (Zaillian and Sorkin arej listed for screenplay) , the scenes with Beane wheeling and dealing with other GMs in-person and on the phone were fun viewing. The human element was dealt with, as each chess move a GM makes or doesn't make affects families of ballplayers on and off the team, it even impacts Beane's family life. Pitt gives a good performance, he's simply Billy Beane on the screen. There are a few repeated scenes of just Bean's right profile as he's shown driving around in his truck with something on his mind, it almost became a drinking game type of shot in the movie. Jonah Hill, stripped down from most of his neurotic tics, was effective as a statistical whiz-kid. I don't think I liked the casting of Philip Seymour Hoffman as Art Howe, but only because I think of an older Mark Strong looking like Art Howe.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
The script is lively (Zaillian and Sorkin arej listed for screenplay) , the scenes with Beane wheeling and dealing with other GMs in-person and on the phone were fun viewing. The human element was dealt with, as each chess move a GM makes or doesn't make affects families of ballplayers on and off the team, it even impacts Beane's family life. Pitt gives a good performance, he's simply Billy Beane on the screen. There are a few repeated scenes of just Bean's right profile as he's shown driving around in his truck with something on his mind, it almost became a drinking game type of shot in the movie. Jonah Hill, stripped down from most of his neurotic tics, was effective as a statistical whiz-kid. I don't think I liked the casting of Philip Seymour Hoffman as Art Howe, but only because I think of an older Mark Strong looking like Art Howe.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Killer Elite
Robert De Niro plays an old-time assassin named Hunter, having taken Danny (Jason Statham) under his wing in the killing biz until a mission goes bad, and Danny retires from the game. Well, killers never really do retire from the game, do they? Hunter is held hostage by a oil sheik whose 3 sons have been murdered by Britain's SAS (special ops), and revenge is demanded. Hunter as bait convinces Danny to get back into the game, and Danny has to bring back the rest of the gang, Davies (Domenic Purcell) and Meier (Aden Young) and take out the 3 men responsible for the sheik's sons demise. Former SAS Spike (Clive Owen) takes note of his comrades being killed and goes on the counter-offensive, along with the backing of a covert society called The Feathermen.
Overall, the film is somewhat not as involving in terms of building up relationships or characters you want to invest much viewing interest into, so the film has a some twists and turns, and can be quite loaded with action and killing, but it lacks something where it just never hits another gear and stays in a rut through most of its running time.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Overall, the film is somewhat not as involving in terms of building up relationships or characters you want to invest much viewing interest into, so the film has a some twists and turns, and can be quite loaded with action and killing, but it lacks something where it just never hits another gear and stays in a rut through most of its running time.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Contagion
I wanted to like "Contagion" more, as it features Steven Soderbergh at the directorial helm, and an Oscar-studded cast of winners and nominees. Overall, I think the script was too briskly paced, without as much background details to ground the story of a viral outbreak that threatens to reach pandemic levels. There are many players in the story, and the film just bounces from subplot to subplot (or character groupings) until it finally concludes. I didn't like the musical score, it tended to make the film feel too euro-pop-ish, public access station-ish at times, which didn't help things.
If you're a germophobe, this film won't help you with that condition. It'll make you think twice about touching any object out in contact with the general public.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
If you're a germophobe, this film won't help you with that condition. It'll make you think twice about touching any object out in contact with the general public.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Straw Dogs
Kate Bosworth plays a small town girl, where high school football ruled the day, who makes it "small" in Hollywood, but married a writer (James Marsden) and they come back to her small town to stay at her deceased father's place to do some writing and remodeling. To help with roofing a barn, they hire some former football stars who don't really have the best work ethic, and after a while the film turns into this what-if situation to "Friday Night Lights" where all the former high school football stars were truly dumb as bricks and acted like savages when opportunities present themselves. Alex Skarsgard is football jock who still has an attraction Bosworth's character (and she doesn't mind running around in the bare minimums of clothing, further stoking the fires of former flames.) James Woods is the retired football coach who thinks he's still running the football program, and he's got a daughter who has a weird attraction to the town's mentally challenged dude, and the coach is always trying to keep them apart.
Not sure what to make of this movie, as motivationally speaking, it's almost preposterous as to where the film goes in its final act, but it does feature some decent death scenes.
I give it 2 stars or a grade of C.
Not sure what to make of this movie, as motivationally speaking, it's almost preposterous as to where the film goes in its final act, but it does feature some decent death scenes.
I give it 2 stars or a grade of C.
The Debt
Set in the late 1990s, 30 years ago, a trio of Mossad spies set out to track down a Nazi war criminal. After capturing their prey, something happens, and the war criminal escapes, but the spies decide to cover up the escape, and take credit for the apprehension and disposal of the war criminal. After spending all those decades celebrating their story, word of the war criminal's whereabouts surface, and the 3 spies must confront their past, and deal with the problem head-on as a journalist is on the trail of a story that could unravel everything for the trio.
Both sets of actors for the present day, and for their younger selves give solid performances, and the direction was good, but the last 20 minutes felt a little suspect, though it was nice to see some spy skills never leave you even after 3 decades. I would suggest that Sam Worthington not attempt to do accents because he just not all that convincing when doing them.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Both sets of actors for the present day, and for their younger selves give solid performances, and the direction was good, but the last 20 minutes felt a little suspect, though it was nice to see some spy skills never leave you even after 3 decades. I would suggest that Sam Worthington not attempt to do accents because he just not all that convincing when doing them.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Warrior
"Warrior" is a swiftly paced long movie, but even with a longer running time, it felt like they did skimp on some background character bits here and there, which made for some confusing viewing at times, but overall that first 2/3 of the film does set up the stakes for each brother who enter a MMA tournament from different life paths, and a father whom neither had much love for due to the father's personal demons that undermined any meaningful relationships before the father and the sons.
Overall, it's easily digestible, and the MMA fights were choreographed well, and both principal actors, Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton, come off credible in the ring.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Overall, it's easily digestible, and the MMA fights were choreographed well, and both principal actors, Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton, come off credible in the ring.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Sunday, February 26, 2017
Colombiana
Zoe Saldana plays Cataleya, who as a young girl witnessed the murder of her parents by a big-time crime boss in Colombia, escapes the country, and uses some leverage to get into the US. Fueled by her grief and need for revenge, Cataleya is trained by her uncle in the art of assassination, and finely honed spy. The girl playing young Cataleya is pretty good, and I almost wished they included more of her formative years, as there's a big skip in time to get to Zoe Saldana in the role as a grown-up Cataleya who's been on a execution spree of criminals, and Lennie James is the FBI agent with the job of hunting down this assassin.
I found the characterization of adult Cataleya a little weak, and the action sequences tended towards the cat-burglar aspect of Cataleya's skill set, but she could bring the pain down when she put her mind to it. It did feel a little like a follow-up to "The Professional", which should be a surprise given that Luc Besson produced and co-wrote the film.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I found the characterization of adult Cataleya a little weak, and the action sequences tended towards the cat-burglar aspect of Cataleya's skill set, but she could bring the pain down when she put her mind to it. It did feel a little like a follow-up to "The Professional", which should be a surprise given that Luc Besson produced and co-wrote the film.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Our Idiot Brother
Paul Rudd plays the idiot brother Ned with 3 sisters (played by Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, and Emily Mortimer) who all have their own issues to deal with, and a mother, but Paul goes to jail after selling pot to a uniformed policeman in broad daylight, and when he gets out, things have changed for his living situation, and he has to rely on his family to get him through the tough times.
Even though the plot points rely on Ned's cluelessness and naive outlook on life to mine its humor, and play the game of telephone to cause confusion to sustain the plotlines. Even with their issues, the sisters are still sympathetic enough characters.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Even though the plot points rely on Ned's cluelessness and naive outlook on life to mine its humor, and play the game of telephone to cause confusion to sustain the plotlines. Even with their issues, the sisters are still sympathetic enough characters.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Conan
This film started up quite promising with scenes of Conan as a boy showing his future prowess with being at home with barbarian violence, but the main storyline lumber heavily and without much verve or attitude, and the final act just doesn't cut it for a Conan movie.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
Final Destination 5
While it's better than the last installment, and there is enough kill-vision sequences and actual clever kills to keep the fans of this franchise somewhat happy. There's a scene which should scare away prospective lasik patients, too.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Fright Night
Not sure if I ever saw the original, but this remake was visually dark and bland, though there are flashes of fun with the vampire genre, the film just felt slow and stuck in quicksand at times, and the plot jumps never felt organic or naturally developed.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
One Day
Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturges play Emma and Dexter, who have this 20 year romance fueled by somehow reaching out to one another one specific day each year. Given that I didn't much care for the mess that Dexter is for most of the film, it's pretty much a miss for me.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
The Help
Amongst the female-laden cast, "The Help" features some sparkling performances, and a good script that keeps the film going, even with its long running time (around 135 minutes). Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer are really good in the film as the 2 leading maids dealing with racism in Mississippi in the mid-1960s, as were Emma Stone, Jessica Chastain, and Bryce Dallas Howard. Emma's character, Skeeter, freshly graduated from college and looking for literary work, lands a job answering an advice column at the local newspaper. Then as the undercurrents of racial inequality inspire change in black-white relations, Skeeter comes up with an idea to write a book from the point of view of the black maids who not only do the household chores, but also rear white children in the households in an unspoken fashion. Skeeter was also raised by her maid, and understood the culture, but also acknowledged the social injustice of the race relations. Skeeter has a tough time finding other maids willing to come forward and speak of their experiences. EVentually the book does happen, and things would never be the same again.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Glee the Concert (in 3D)
If you enjoy the TV show's musical numbers, you won't be let down by the film's concert medley of their hits, and they do a good job featuring the entire cast amongst the songs. I had a good time, even with the intertwining segments of high school kids who are on the social fringe at their own schools, but found their own voice through Glee.
I give it 2.75 stars or a grade of B- (but you pretty much need to be a fan of the show to enjoy it a lot, and the Brittany number in 3D is pretty much worth the price of the 3D upgrade).
I give it 2.75 stars or a grade of B- (but you pretty much need to be a fan of the show to enjoy it a lot, and the Brittany number in 3D is pretty much worth the price of the 3D upgrade).
30 Minutes of Less
Not quite a fully fleshed out movie script, though they spent about 20 minutes trying to set up the premise and the characters' somewhat flat motivations, but the film does pick up some momentum and builds to a decent conclusion. Structure-wise, it feels like it's missing a middle act, so at best, I'd recommend it as a matinee or later as a rental.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
This re-imagined prequel to a longstanding series of Planet of the Ape films from 40 years ago is actually pretty fresh with the launching a new PoTA franchise. The star of the film is the mo-cap performance of Andy Serkis as Caesar, the newborn of Bright Eyes, an ape injected with an experimental Alzheimer's drug being researched and developed by Will Rodman (James Franco in a so-so performances). Caesar is raised by Will (who oversees the care for his father (John Lithgow), who is afflicted with Alzheimer's. The best thing about the film is the character development paid to Caesar, and how we get to such a possibility where apes are the dominant species on earth by the end of the film.
The CGI apes are pretty believable, and we've finally reached a point where films like this can be made within a budget, and still retain human performances through these CGI creatures.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
The CGI apes are pretty believable, and we've finally reached a point where films like this can be made within a budget, and still retain human performances through these CGI creatures.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
The Change-Up
Mitch and Dave, the characters played by Ryan Reynolds (a total sex-charged, slacker) and Jason Bateman (Partner-to-be in a law firm, father, provider, husband) change bodies while making a wish peeing in a water fountain. What follows in discovering the other person's life and bodily features is raunchy in spots, funny as well, but by the end, even with some character development focused more on Mitch than Dave, the script goes for the more predictable road to its conclusion. Probably worthy of a matinee or rental, but I enjoyed it, and Olivia Wilde has never looked so good in a movie.
One thing I will note is that I'm not a fan of the faux nudity that is being CGI's into films nowadays. This film feautures some of that for the Leslie Mann character, and a just smidge for Olivia Wilde's character.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
One thing I will note is that I'm not a fan of the faux nudity that is being CGI's into films nowadays. This film feautures some of that for the Leslie Mann character, and a just smidge for Olivia Wilde's character.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Friends with Benefits
Justin Timberlake and Mia Kunis play "Friends with Benefits" in a rom-com about whether or not men and women can keep feelings and emotions out of such a booty-call arrangement between consenting adults. It's somewhat predictable, but the leads are likable, and supporting cast is good. It does run a little long, chopping off 10-15 minutes would have helped its pacing overall.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Crazy, Stupid, Love
I didn't have much in terms of expectations, but overall, I enjoyed this film, even the B-subplots. At the core, it has a lot of heart that simmers quietly and confidently as the film comes to its conclusion.
Steve Carell and Julianne Moore are a married couple, Cal and Emily, going their separate ways as Emily has a mid-life crisis fling, and Cal checks out of the relationship. Ryan Gosling is a lothario named Jacob who takes Cal under his wing and brings up his "game" so he can get back into the dating scene. The B-subplots revolve Cal's 13 year old son who is crushing on his 17 year old babysitter who has a crush on Cal; and Hannah, a lawyer-to-be, who staves off Jacob's advances at the local drinking spot, but has second thoughts after her own romantic life throws her a curveball.
The film is easily worth an afternoon matinee screening if you like the cast, and the premise sounds interesting to you.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Steve Carell and Julianne Moore are a married couple, Cal and Emily, going their separate ways as Emily has a mid-life crisis fling, and Cal checks out of the relationship. Ryan Gosling is a lothario named Jacob who takes Cal under his wing and brings up his "game" so he can get back into the dating scene. The B-subplots revolve Cal's 13 year old son who is crushing on his 17 year old babysitter who has a crush on Cal; and Hannah, a lawyer-to-be, who staves off Jacob's advances at the local drinking spot, but has second thoughts after her own romantic life throws her a curveball.
The film is easily worth an afternoon matinee screening if you like the cast, and the premise sounds interesting to you.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Captain America: The First Avenger
I wish Joe Johnston wasn't the director for this film, as it's just dull and paint-by-numbers movie-making. Chris Evans has charisma to spare, and yet he is really lifeless in this film, and I blame Johnston's direction on Evans' performance. There are no surprises, no suspense. It's just 'there'. The script is boring. There are no dramatic decisions, just automaton-like plot point after plot point as the film rolled on.
I also wish they'd use film camera instead of digital video cameras because this film set in WWII was screaming for it. As it looked with super-clean non-film look, it was just too "video-like" and looked too "current". Bad choice, but I'm sure it was cheaper shooting on digital video.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I also wish they'd use film camera instead of digital video cameras because this film set in WWII was screaming for it. As it looked with super-clean non-film look, it was just too "video-like" and looked too "current". Bad choice, but I'm sure it was cheaper shooting on digital video.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Cowboys and Aliens
This was fairly mediocre, and they wasted a solid premise in "Cowboys and Aliens", and just turned it into a big, loud mess. I'm still not sold on Favreau as a gifted director, more of a promotional PR guy who gets to direct as well.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
While I haven't been all that high on the last 3-4 HP films, the final cinematic chapter to Harry Potter's journey concludes with the confrontation that fans of the HP books and films have been clamoring for all this time. The film has the advantages of being able to go out with a bang, and not have to build towards the next installment, so while the first 2 acts are weighted down with the search for the remaining horcruxes, the freedom to spill the beans and let loose with the magical pryotechnics is going to obviously allow for a more involving spectacle, but it never loses sight on heroism, friendship, and admiration amongst the Hogswarts crew for one another.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Horrible Bosses
I'm enjoying the resurgence of R-rated comedies, and "Horrible Bosses" had a slow build-up at times, but the last half-hour was very fun and engaging.
Basic premise: 3 friends with horrible boss situations at their workplace, and one night over dinner/drinks, the idea of how much better their lives would be if their bosses were out of the picture at work comes about, and this gets the film's plot going. Lots of humor from their incompetence in putting their plan into action is put to good use. The script probably fired off a few too many F-bombs early on, but the dialogue gets betters as the film rolls on.
Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis and Jason Bateman are the 3 amigos, and horrible bosses include Kevin Spacey (over-controlling CEO with jealousy issues), Jennifer Aniston (a nice bundle of sexual harrassment), and Colin Farrell (sporting quite the combover and insensitivity traits). The entire cast plays off one another quite well, though the directing could have been tighter, and the script could have been leaner with profanity - I don't mind profanity, but it's best used with clever intent, and not bludgeoned with it just because the film is R-rated).
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-
Basic premise: 3 friends with horrible boss situations at their workplace, and one night over dinner/drinks, the idea of how much better their lives would be if their bosses were out of the picture at work comes about, and this gets the film's plot going. Lots of humor from their incompetence in putting their plan into action is put to good use. The script probably fired off a few too many F-bombs early on, but the dialogue gets betters as the film rolls on.
Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis and Jason Bateman are the 3 amigos, and horrible bosses include Kevin Spacey (over-controlling CEO with jealousy issues), Jennifer Aniston (a nice bundle of sexual harrassment), and Colin Farrell (sporting quite the combover and insensitivity traits). The entire cast plays off one another quite well, though the directing could have been tighter, and the script could have been leaner with profanity - I don't mind profanity, but it's best used with clever intent, and not bludgeoned with it just because the film is R-rated).
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-
Larry Crowne
Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts reunite onscreen for a small, quaint little film, which was light and fluffy, and went down like comfort food.
Larry Crowne (Tom Hanks' character), high-achieving employee at UMart, has hit the ceiling for career advancement due to his lack of college education, and a college degree, and is unceremoniously let go. In order to make a change, Larry goes back to college, and there he makes friends, learns from his professors, and finds a spark between himself and Prof. Tainot (Julia Roberts' character), who is in a crumbling marriage (hubby played by Bryan Cranston).
Tom Hanks directed, and co-wrote (with Nia Vardalos) this film, and it's a throwback to character-driven movies where characters are all but down and out, and find a way back to the business of living with unexpected help from literally new blood/people in his life. The movie's tone is quite suited for its story, and paced very well. The film does ask the audience to buy into some of the premises to make the story work, and it's hit-or-miss at times as the supporting characters are somewhat broadly drawn and not fully realized. I have to say that I did not recognize Wilmer Valderrama until the 2nd or 3rd time I saw him in the movie.
But overall, not a bad way to spend an afternoon matinee viewing, especially since Hanks and Roberts still have good onscreen chemistry.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Larry Crowne (Tom Hanks' character), high-achieving employee at UMart, has hit the ceiling for career advancement due to his lack of college education, and a college degree, and is unceremoniously let go. In order to make a change, Larry goes back to college, and there he makes friends, learns from his professors, and finds a spark between himself and Prof. Tainot (Julia Roberts' character), who is in a crumbling marriage (hubby played by Bryan Cranston).
Tom Hanks directed, and co-wrote (with Nia Vardalos) this film, and it's a throwback to character-driven movies where characters are all but down and out, and find a way back to the business of living with unexpected help from literally new blood/people in his life. The movie's tone is quite suited for its story, and paced very well. The film does ask the audience to buy into some of the premises to make the story work, and it's hit-or-miss at times as the supporting characters are somewhat broadly drawn and not fully realized. I have to say that I did not recognize Wilmer Valderrama until the 2nd or 3rd time I saw him in the movie.
But overall, not a bad way to spend an afternoon matinee viewing, especially since Hanks and Roberts still have good onscreen chemistry.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Transformers 3
I think you're kidding yourself if you don't know what you're getting yourself into when you go see a Michael Bay Transformer movie. Given those lofty expectations, while the film does its best to keep the adrenaline pumping in the final hour, the first half of the film is a bit over-"written" and could have had 15 minutes cut out of Sam's job hunting subplot. .The casting of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is distracting, as you just sort of have to accept her being shoe-horned into the film dispensing enough 411 to keep the plot going at times, which was just weird (like a record screeching to a halt when something weird just went down).
The story beats are a little jarring, but let's face it, it's about transformer-on-transformer action pr0n that people come to see, and Michael Bay delivers in spades, definitely in excess. Those wondering about what the alien invasion of earth looked like for "Fallen Skies" just need to watch this movie, it'll fill in those blanks. This is a long, loud, bombastic movie featuring lots of everything (except clever writing). But still, I was entertained given my expectations.
Saw it in 3D, and it wasn't too distracting in terms of following the action.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+
The story beats are a little jarring, but let's face it, it's about transformer-on-transformer action pr0n that people come to see, and Michael Bay delivers in spades, definitely in excess. Those wondering about what the alien invasion of earth looked like for "Fallen Skies" just need to watch this movie, it'll fill in those blanks. This is a long, loud, bombastic movie featuring lots of everything (except clever writing). But still, I was entertained given my expectations.
Saw it in 3D, and it wasn't too distracting in terms of following the action.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+
Bad Teacher
This could have been as crass and freewheelingly fun in spots as "Bad Santa" was, but the script is a little too safe and flatline, and while there are bits of good R-rated dialogue and hijinks, it's just not bold enough to sustain such a consistent snarky tone throughout the running time. Plus the characters are under-developed, which lessens the impact of the various subplots throughout the film. The motivation for Elizabeth Halsey (Cameron Diaz) for shaping up as a teacher is overwhelmingly shallow, it's tough to really root for or against her, so that hurts the film. Though Lucy Punch, Halsey's foil, almost steals the movie from Diaz. Justin Timberlake pretty much sleep-walks through the film, while Jason Segal plays it fairly straight.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Midnight in Paris
In a somewhat eyebrows-raising re-teaming of the pair from "Wedding Crashers", Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams are an engaged couple, Gil and Ines, visiting Paris on the tails of Ines's father's corporate trip. Gil is a writer, and discovers that taking taxi rides in Paris after midnight somehow transports him back to the 1920s where he is able to converse with his artistic and literary icons in the flesh. Writer/Director Woody Allen takes this premise and mines it for all it's worth. Owen Wilson dials down the snark, and embodies bits of Woody's persona without the neuroses. It's quite a charming film, with McAdams bringing the antagonism to the film as Gil's after-hours adventures threaten their engagement in present day.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Cars 2
Cars 2 is a mashup of Cars meets James Bonds spy adventure, with far too much running time in Mater's lap. I can only listen to Larry the Cable Guy for so long before I tire of him, and this was the case for this Pixar movie, that was high on their trademark CGI animated style, but pretty low on heart.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
The Tree of Life
My 5 word reaction to this film was: An ode to progeny, perhaps.
Malick's vision produced some haunting sequences in this film, though jarring at times, and mystifying, but there's enough "downtime" during the film for you to review what's come before, and what's happening on the screen to piece together such a fractured narrative.
There's this thread running through the film on the creation of life, and the nurturing of it, and the requirements to keep the sustainment of life amongst one's progeny, to see it fullfilled and unfulfilled. It's not always pretty and pure, there's some hardships, heart ache, and hateful times through the course of one's life to fuel the search for meaning in living and death, coming to acceptance after a long journey of emotional hurt and loss. There's even some bits on intentional or unintentional mercy at the dawn of time sequence.
It's weird to give this film a rating, as it does run a little long, but its visuals and imagery will linger in your subconscious much longer than the run-of-the-mill movie that exist solely to entertain for a couple of hours.
Brad Pitt gives a nuanced performance of a father at odds with realities of a family and his own dreams. The 3 child actors gave solid performances as the 3 sons, and their performances felt very natural and lived-in. Jessica Chastain, as the mother, was almost dreamy in her presence in the film at times, as I felt she was more of an ideal, than a character for Pitt's character to be a foil to in their family. She provided more of the emotional touchstone responses through their family's journey through life.
That being said, I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Malick's vision produced some haunting sequences in this film, though jarring at times, and mystifying, but there's enough "downtime" during the film for you to review what's come before, and what's happening on the screen to piece together such a fractured narrative.
There's this thread running through the film on the creation of life, and the nurturing of it, and the requirements to keep the sustainment of life amongst one's progeny, to see it fullfilled and unfulfilled. It's not always pretty and pure, there's some hardships, heart ache, and hateful times through the course of one's life to fuel the search for meaning in living and death, coming to acceptance after a long journey of emotional hurt and loss. There's even some bits on intentional or unintentional mercy at the dawn of time sequence.
It's weird to give this film a rating, as it does run a little long, but its visuals and imagery will linger in your subconscious much longer than the run-of-the-mill movie that exist solely to entertain for a couple of hours.
Brad Pitt gives a nuanced performance of a father at odds with realities of a family and his own dreams. The 3 child actors gave solid performances as the 3 sons, and their performances felt very natural and lived-in. Jessica Chastain, as the mother, was almost dreamy in her presence in the film at times, as I felt she was more of an ideal, than a character for Pitt's character to be a foil to in their family. She provided more of the emotional touchstone responses through their family's journey through life.
That being said, I give it 3 stars, or a grade of B.
Green Lantern
The space/Oa stuff was fun (in 3D), the earth-side stuff was stiff and uninvolving (flat in 3D). I think kids will enjoy the spectacle and comic-book sensibilities. Chemistry between Reynolds and Lively was so-so. The script is haphazardly plot-driven with wide jumps from scene to scene without the requisite connective tissue to tamp down the jarring jumps between the earth-side scenes and the space-faring scenes. But it was enjoyable to see the GL's on Oa and in action at times.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Super 8
I wanted to like this film, but after you get past the nostalgic look at 1979 (everything, the cars, the lack of smartphones, the use of super 8 film for childhood movie-making, etc), the film's storyline has a rather meandering focus due to it keeping the reveal of the thing in the train firmly underwraps until the last 1/3 of the film, and then it just never pays off in the end, except for some orchestrated sentimentality that isn't quite earned through the first 2/3 of the film, mainly the subplot between Joe and his father after his mother perished unexpectedly, and each trying to find a way to get past the heartache.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
X-Men: First Class
There's a lot of like, but far too many characters on the screen for develope the characters or their subplots. The bromance between Xavier and Lensherr was bittersweet at times. The mutant power training montage was okay. The cool 60's vibe was done well. The overall plot seemed cobbled together, and you could see the stitches holding it together.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Kung-Fu Panda 2
This was a worthy followup to the original Kung-Fu Panda, and it delivers not only the humor and the amazing fight scenes and teamwork amongst the Furious Five, it delves a little into Po's own "origins", since the goose dad obviously adopted Po. The antagonist is literally a peacock named Shen with some amazing moves of his own, and comes with his own angsty motivations. The plot is a little thin in spots, but the direction of the action sequences more than makes up for it being a fairly straight forward plotline. The CGI animation is really top notch, and the 2D animation is also solid.
I give it 3.75 stars, or a grade of A-.
I give it 3.75 stars, or a grade of A-.
The Hangover part 2
I got some laughs from this followup of "The Hangover", though the scope of this film is a little smaller in spite of its Thailand backdrop (Vegas felt like another character in the first film), and the new characters were drawn quite broadly, my crowd ate up all the low-brow humor, and I was nyuk-nyuking along with them. The script is a little underwhelming in term of plot. So, sure, if you're expecting crude humor, along with an inspired peek into the mind of man-child Alan (Zach Galifianakis), you're going to get it, it'll be a good time for you, but just don't expect a lot of rewatchability from it.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
I thought this latest installment of the PotC franchise to be mostly uninvolving, and it probably had too much Captain Jack Sparrow in it, as well as some other subplots that didn't really add much to the overly simplified narrative (the search for the Ponce de Leon's fountain of youth). The film featured much less spectacle (did the budget get slashed by a lot?) It had a somewhat long running time (though 30 minutes shorter than the previous installment, but felt just as long). Didn't think Rob Marshall was the right person to direct such a film, and it showed in the final product. The Jack and Angelica hinted-at romance felt forced and stale. A lot of chasing of the chalices between Jack and Barbosa, but uninterestingly so.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
Priest
"Priest" is short on character-building elements, and relies on a lot of CGI-fare to propel its threadbare plot, thus it follows the recipe for an uninvolving viewing experience. Not sure why Bettany is taking on these types of roles, and Karl Urban is pretty much under-utilized in his role.
I give it 1.75 stars, or a C-.
I give it 1.75 stars, or a C-.
Bridesmaids
"Bridesmaids" had really boring direction in the first half of the film, and I don't think Kristen Wiig is ready to anchor a 2-hour comedy film. There is some truly gross out comedy in the first half (mainly the scene of the ladies trying out the dresses), but other than that, the material still need work, alot of work. The second half has better energy and direction, but again, the script just doesn't quite gell, and the movie ends without much fanfare.
I give it 2 stars or a grade of C.
I give it 2 stars or a grade of C.
Thor
The casting of the large cast of characters was pretty good, though I'm not sure I liked all of the direction by Branaugh (mainly the action sequences, and the angles used for the shots). There is some funny comedic moments sprinkled in the first half of the film. The film sags in the middle, and it sort of muddles to a conclusion, but without enough familial resonance for my tastes (the Odin-Thor-Loki relationship just fell flat for me). The script sort of limps to the finish line as well, so it was just okay, not great. The script also tries to balance the goings-on for the subplots on Earth and Asgard, and doesn't quite feel like a finished script in spots. Asgard felt antiseptic to me, too much so. But even so, it's still worth seeing on the big screen, but I doubt it's all that necessary to see it in 3D (I only saw it in 2D).
I give it 2.75 stars or a grade of B- (some parts get a B, but not all of it).
I give it 2.75 stars or a grade of B- (some parts get a B, but not all of it).
Fast Five
Fast Five is a briskly paced, entertaining movie that delivers on the legacy of previous installments of the Fast and the Furious franchise. Bringing in players from the previous four films, filling in the past histories between one another, the plot is straight forward, but the path has a lot of turns and curves to it. Each character in a sprawling cast has their moment to shine (some for just a bit, but overall good cast chemistry).
Running on fumes in the beginning, Dom, Mia and Brian take on a gig, which goes somewhat badly for them as far as staying off the wanted list, and that brings Hobbes (The Rock) and his crew after them in Brazil. Pretty soon, an opportunity manifests itself for the gang to make one last score and then disappear. This requires additional personnel, and together they plan and plot and practice, while Hobbes continues to hunt them down.
Going into this kind of film, you know what you're in for, but they continue to up the ante in car driving stunts, and entertain its audience.
I give it 3 stars or a grade of B.
Running on fumes in the beginning, Dom, Mia and Brian take on a gig, which goes somewhat badly for them as far as staying off the wanted list, and that brings Hobbes (The Rock) and his crew after them in Brazil. Pretty soon, an opportunity manifests itself for the gang to make one last score and then disappear. This requires additional personnel, and together they plan and plot and practice, while Hobbes continues to hunt them down.
Going into this kind of film, you know what you're in for, but they continue to up the ante in car driving stunts, and entertain its audience.
I give it 3 stars or a grade of B.
Water For Elephants
In the depression era years, Jacob (Robert Pattison) gets some terrible news while attending Cornell, both of his parents are killed and were heavily in debt, so Jacob ends up running away. His life forever changes when he hops onboard a train, and finds himself part of a circus crew. He is met by carny folks, some take a liking to him, others don't. He earns his way onto the crew, and when the star attraction has an animal go down, his schooling in Vet sciences helps him offer advice to animal care. August (Christop Waltz) runs the Benzini circus show, and he is always under a lot of pressure to keep it going, at the expense of feeding spoiled food to the animals, discarding people in the middle of the night when it gets really tough. Marlena (Reese Witherspoon) is his young wife whose act is the main attraction of the show, and Jacob's presence creates some tension between her and August, who is also a jealous man who brooks no disloyalty.
Soon, the main act needs to be retooled, and August goes all-in with the acquisition of an elephant, and Jacob becomes the handler for the elephant, and it's tough going in the beginning, with August using a hook tool to bludgeon and coerce the large animal to act properly, but eventually they figure it out, and things take an upturn for the circus, but the culmination of August's actions have dire consequences.
The Jacob-Marlena subplot never really gets beyond the simmer point, it never takes root to anchor character motivations, so the romantic/dramatic tension of the film is sorely undercut. This keeps the overall arc of the love triangle at arm's distance for the viewer, and becomes fairly uninteresting as a star-crossed romance with the backdrop of a travelling circus.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Soon, the main act needs to be retooled, and August goes all-in with the acquisition of an elephant, and Jacob becomes the handler for the elephant, and it's tough going in the beginning, with August using a hook tool to bludgeon and coerce the large animal to act properly, but eventually they figure it out, and things take an upturn for the circus, but the culmination of August's actions have dire consequences.
The Jacob-Marlena subplot never really gets beyond the simmer point, it never takes root to anchor character motivations, so the romantic/dramatic tension of the film is sorely undercut. This keeps the overall arc of the love triangle at arm's distance for the viewer, and becomes fairly uninteresting as a star-crossed romance with the backdrop of a travelling circus.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Madea's Big Happy Family
Given that this was a Madea movie, and not a "Tyler Perry tries to write serious stuff" movie, I checked it out, and while it is littered with medical warnings for his intended audience, and shines a light on the lack of parental fortitude producing disrespectful offspring, also deals with family interactions and long buried secrets to pump up familial drama and confrontations, it still manages to be funny if you enjoy the character that is Madea. There are some insufferable characters that you were almost okay with Joe's "Choke-a-ho" anthem, and the movie is pretty much played broadly and farcical, even if there are some underlying moments of heart and clarity to be found in the end, although the ending is a buttonhook for another Madea movie to come, I would surmise.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Insidious
This was actually an effective spooky/scary movie, providing plenty of jumps and red herrings and done with enough directorial skill to heightened your own movie-watching paranoia, which is a sign the movie worked.
In a nutshell, a family of 5 move into a new house, and things go bump in the night, enough so that they end up moving, but the weird things keeping happening to them in the new house too. Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson play the parents raising their 3 children in the film.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
In a nutshell, a family of 5 move into a new house, and things go bump in the night, enough so that they end up moving, but the weird things keeping happening to them in the new house too. Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson play the parents raising their 3 children in the film.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Atlas Shrugged: Part 1
Ayn Rand's novel has been brought to the big screen in a multi-part presentation. In the not too distant future, the economy is in the crapper, gas prices have skyrocketed, causing air travel to become less of a feasible way to travel or for transport, railroads have regained a footing in filling in that transportation need for people and business.
Taggert Transcontinental is run by a brother-sister team of James and Dagney Taggart after their father passed away. James is not the smart one, while Dagny not only has a engineering background, but is business-savvy in an age where it becomes harder to keep their railroad transport company afloat. I liked Taylor Schilling as Dagny in this role. Grant Bowler plays Henry Rearden, the CEO and architect of Rearden Metal (and other business holdings). Rearden Metal has been able to produce a lighter, stronger version of steel, and Dagny is willing to bet that it can be used to replace worn out railroad tracks, especially in the run to Colorado, where a crucial customer, Wyatt Petroleum, is looking to jump ship due to James' incompetent handling of the business. James is far more reliant on goverment regulation to keep his company afloat, while sister Dagny forges ahead with actual business deal-making.
Obviously the broad strokes of determination of individuals in the face of oppressive governmental controls in the guise of the public welfare is a major thrust in Rand's novel, and the script is pretty polar about the 2 sides, so not too many shades of grey happening here.
This film is tailored to a specific audience with specific leanings, that's can't really be argued. But viewed as any other film where the protagonist has to overcome what appears to be insurmountable odds to achieve their goals, it works from that perspective. It's just that the depiction of the antagonists probably hit home far too easily given even today's political climate.
The film as cinema is fairly average, the production budget wasn't big, and it shows, and the direction by Paul Johansson has a nightly soap opera quality to it, here and there, but the storytelling was satisfactory. I'll check out Part 2 when it shows up later in the theaters, as I want to see what happens next for Dagny and Henry, as Part 1 ends with a dire turn of events for them both.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Taggert Transcontinental is run by a brother-sister team of James and Dagney Taggart after their father passed away. James is not the smart one, while Dagny not only has a engineering background, but is business-savvy in an age where it becomes harder to keep their railroad transport company afloat. I liked Taylor Schilling as Dagny in this role. Grant Bowler plays Henry Rearden, the CEO and architect of Rearden Metal (and other business holdings). Rearden Metal has been able to produce a lighter, stronger version of steel, and Dagny is willing to bet that it can be used to replace worn out railroad tracks, especially in the run to Colorado, where a crucial customer, Wyatt Petroleum, is looking to jump ship due to James' incompetent handling of the business. James is far more reliant on goverment regulation to keep his company afloat, while sister Dagny forges ahead with actual business deal-making.
Obviously the broad strokes of determination of individuals in the face of oppressive governmental controls in the guise of the public welfare is a major thrust in Rand's novel, and the script is pretty polar about the 2 sides, so not too many shades of grey happening here.
This film is tailored to a specific audience with specific leanings, that's can't really be argued. But viewed as any other film where the protagonist has to overcome what appears to be insurmountable odds to achieve their goals, it works from that perspective. It's just that the depiction of the antagonists probably hit home far too easily given even today's political climate.
The film as cinema is fairly average, the production budget wasn't big, and it shows, and the direction by Paul Johansson has a nightly soap opera quality to it, here and there, but the storytelling was satisfactory. I'll check out Part 2 when it shows up later in the theaters, as I want to see what happens next for Dagny and Henry, as Part 1 ends with a dire turn of events for them both.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Rio
What happens when a blue macaw, aptly named Blu (voiced by Jesse Eisenberg), thought to be the last male of the species, is brought thousands of miles to mate with a more adventurous female macaw named Jewel (Anne Hathaway)? Well, Blu was captured as a young macaw and found his way to Minnesota where he was raised by Linda, then a young girl who grew to be a bookstore owner, but in such domesticity, Blu never learned to fly. Blu and Linda's lives are interrupted by Tulio, a bird expert from Brazil, and they journey to Rio de Janiero in hopes of keeping the Macaw species going.
The remaining plotline seemed pretty light and fluffy, filled with humor that appeals to kids, so in that respect they delivered a kid-friendly movie but for a film that desperately wondered if Blu would ever soar, the film never quite takes off, though we are treated with chase scenes after chase scenes that make good use of 3D animation, but it felt like the cinematic equivalent of running in place.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
The remaining plotline seemed pretty light and fluffy, filled with humor that appeals to kids, so in that respect they delivered a kid-friendly movie but for a film that desperately wondered if Blu would ever soar, the film never quite takes off, though we are treated with chase scenes after chase scenes that make good use of 3D animation, but it felt like the cinematic equivalent of running in place.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Scream 4
The film starts of with a lot of meta-scenes about the Scream genre, using a fabricated slasher movie franchise "Stab" and its multitude of sequels to comment on cinematically going back to the well far too many times. Then it settles into the main story of having Scream survivor Sydney Prescott returning to her hometown for a book signing, and the Ghostface killings start all over again, along with the creepy phone calls and attacks on the victims.
I was actually pretty surprised by all the actresses in the opening meta-scenes. The onscreen pairing on Courtney Cox and David Arquette was a little on the awkward side. Neve Campbell reprises her role as Sydney. Alison Brie's PR agent character cracked me up for her desire to use the return of Ghostface to garner more book sales for Sydney. The script litters the film with red herring characters who could possibly be Ghostface.
The final act was actually pretty silly and nutty, and they could have even strung it out by a few more minutes to wring even more menace out of the scenes.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of B-.
I was actually pretty surprised by all the actresses in the opening meta-scenes. The onscreen pairing on Courtney Cox and David Arquette was a little on the awkward side. Neve Campbell reprises her role as Sydney. Alison Brie's PR agent character cracked me up for her desire to use the return of Ghostface to garner more book sales for Sydney. The script litters the film with red herring characters who could possibly be Ghostface.
The final act was actually pretty silly and nutty, and they could have even strung it out by a few more minutes to wring even more menace out of the scenes.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of B-.
Hop
Is this the movie in which we point to and say that James Marsden's hit rock bottom? Perhaps.
It was weird hearing Russell Brand's voice used for EB, the Easter Bunny-in-training who tries to escape his destiny by running away from Easter Island and ends up in Hollywood, where he is almost run over by Fred, who's on his way to house-sit for his sister, and is basically a slacker after getting through college. After they get through the weirdness of talking rabbits, the film doesn't have much of a plot, but settles for EB trying to find his bliss in drumming, while avoiding the Pink Berets (an elite corps of bunnies sent to bring him back to Easter Island).
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
It was weird hearing Russell Brand's voice used for EB, the Easter Bunny-in-training who tries to escape his destiny by running away from Easter Island and ends up in Hollywood, where he is almost run over by Fred, who's on his way to house-sit for his sister, and is basically a slacker after getting through college. After they get through the weirdness of talking rabbits, the film doesn't have much of a plot, but settles for EB trying to find his bliss in drumming, while avoiding the Pink Berets (an elite corps of bunnies sent to bring him back to Easter Island).
I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.
Soul Surfer
Long story short: amatuer girl surfer champion gets left arm chomped off by a shark, and learns to come to grips with it all. Based on a true story.
The cast features AnnaSophia Robb as Bethany Hamilton in a solid turn, and Helen Hunt and Dennis Quaid as her parents. I can't really explain it, but I felt just sadness for Bethany as her story unfolded, but it slowly brings the focus of overcoming tragedy by reminding us that there are even bigger tragedies out there, and living right is the best revenge. The script is a little clunky at times, but its heart is in the right place.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The cast features AnnaSophia Robb as Bethany Hamilton in a solid turn, and Helen Hunt and Dennis Quaid as her parents. I can't really explain it, but I felt just sadness for Bethany as her story unfolded, but it slowly brings the focus of overcoming tragedy by reminding us that there are even bigger tragedies out there, and living right is the best revenge. The script is a little clunky at times, but its heart is in the right place.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The Conspirator
On the footsteps of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln comes the hunt for not only the shooter, but those who helped him with the deadly deed. "The Conspirator" deals with the swift call for justice on any and all possible conspirators tried in a military tribunal, not civilian court. James McAvoy plays Frederick Aiken, a war hero and young lawyer put in place to defend Mary Surratt (Robin Wright) - the lone female amongst the other alleged co-conspirators, albeit without vigor nor zeal. The more Aiken digs into the case, the more he uncovers, and his certainty of Mary's guilt becomes shaken.
Robert Redford directed this film, and there is painstaken attention paid to the look and feel of the mid-1860s, but the film has this one-note tone to it, and failed to engage me. But if you're a history buff, it's worth a matinee viewing.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Robert Redford directed this film, and there is painstaken attention paid to the look and feel of the mid-1860s, but the film has this one-note tone to it, and failed to engage me. But if you're a history buff, it's worth a matinee viewing.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Arthur
I liked the first half of the film for the most part, but it clumsily goes through Arthur's "maturation" in the second half, and kills any momentum it had built up, so it becomes a chore to watch for most of the last 45 minutes of the film. The script is quite funny for the first half I liked, and I liked the main quintet of the cast (with Arthur's mom being a weakly cast part, but Jennifer Garner, Greta Gerwig, Helen Mirren, Luiz Guzman and Russell Brand were solid players).
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Hanna
I was not overly impressed by "Hanna", but I think it comes down to Joe Wright films in general for me, they seems to leave me cold and uninvolved, and "Hanna" is no different. With the basic plot of teenager Hanna (Saoirse Ronan) being raised in remote isolation in Germany by her father Erik (Eric Bana) until she is ready for the outside world, but she's been trained to be a survivor ready to counter forces ready to do her harm. Hanna and her father make a run for it with separately journeys to an agreed upon destination in order to reintegrate into the normal world. On their scent is Marissa Wiegler (Cate Blanchette), a CIA spook who has a stake in finding them after all these years.
There are some good fight choregraphy scenes without the million and one edits, so you get a good idea of what's going on (though Hanna's fight scenes left me somewhat unconvinced of her fighting acumen, but I suppose her age and slight build had her would-be assailants underestimating her). Joe Wright is a good director, but his style just doesn't click with me. The score by the Chemical Brothers was far too intrusive to my liking, jarring at times at odds with the story unfolding. Oh, and running, lots of running and chase scenes.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
There are some good fight choregraphy scenes without the million and one edits, so you get a good idea of what's going on (though Hanna's fight scenes left me somewhat unconvinced of her fighting acumen, but I suppose her age and slight build had her would-be assailants underestimating her). Joe Wright is a good director, but his style just doesn't click with me. The score by the Chemical Brothers was far too intrusive to my liking, jarring at times at odds with the story unfolding. Oh, and running, lots of running and chase scenes.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Your Highness
I initially found "Your Highness" silly but fun. Then I let it marinate for a day, and found it more silly than fun. The script is a hodge-podge of the classical elements of the reluctant hero's journey set in medieval times, but the promise of hilarity missed its mark repeatedly, though there were some laughs mined from uncomfortable situations or profane gall, and they made use of the R rating through the trifecta of dropping F-bombs, boobs, and sexual situations. Is there a good movie within a couple of re-writes, I'm not sure.
Natalie Portman's role was written far too straight, but I enjoyed her scenes, while the scenes with James Franco and Danny McBride were hit-or-miss, and the scenes featuring Justin Theroux and Zooey Deschanel played relatively flat most of the times.
Ironically the biggest laugh for me was almost a throwaway scene given its role in the film, it involved fairy dust.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Natalie Portman's role was written far too straight, but I enjoyed her scenes, while the scenes with James Franco and Danny McBride were hit-or-miss, and the scenes featuring Justin Theroux and Zooey Deschanel played relatively flat most of the times.
Ironically the biggest laugh for me was almost a throwaway scene given its role in the film, it involved fairy dust.
I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.
Cat Run
All I knew was that Paz Vega was in this movie, and so was Janet McTeer. So off I went to see it.
This was a mild surprise in tone and tomfoolery at times. 2 bumbling childhood friends, Anythony and Julian, somehow get the idea to start up a detective agency, and their first case involves Cat (Paz Vega) who is on the run from people who want to kill her because of something she has in her possession. So the bad guy hires some assassins to put the hit on Cat, and in the mix is Janet McTeer's character, who is full of surprises, and reminiscent of Helen Mirren's character in "Red" at times. It's rated R, and the tone harkened back to full use of the R rating with a full plate of violence, profanity, and sexuality. It's not a great film, but it's a film that appears to have a good time throughout its running time, and those films are harder and harder to come across. Plus, having the film bounce around Europe, it made it even more of a zany case forthe "detectives".
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
This was a mild surprise in tone and tomfoolery at times. 2 bumbling childhood friends, Anythony and Julian, somehow get the idea to start up a detective agency, and their first case involves Cat (Paz Vega) who is on the run from people who want to kill her because of something she has in her possession. So the bad guy hires some assassins to put the hit on Cat, and in the mix is Janet McTeer's character, who is full of surprises, and reminiscent of Helen Mirren's character in "Red" at times. It's rated R, and the tone harkened back to full use of the R rating with a full plate of violence, profanity, and sexuality. It's not a great film, but it's a film that appears to have a good time throughout its running time, and those films are harder and harder to come across. Plus, having the film bounce around Europe, it made it even more of a zany case forthe "detectives".
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
Source Code
With a tagline of "Groundhog Day meets Quantum Leap", director Duncan Jones's next effort is "Source Code". Jake Gyllenhaal is Colter Stevens, a military helicopter pilot involved in the Source Code project, which somehow allows Colter to go back and relive the last 8 minutes of someone's life before they died, and this happened on a train heading for Chicago, but the train explodes on the outskirts of town. The project is tasked with trying to find the bomber through the source code simulations that Colter undergoes repeatedly through the , but through each iteration, he is able to piece information quicker and more effectively. Michelle Monaghan plays Christina, the train passenger that Colter is directly involved with, though at a burgeoning point in their acquaintance.
The film itself is pretty entertaining through most of its running time, but the ending is a head-scratcher, almost too optimistic for my tastes. I was taken by the divergent paths each iteration into the source code, it seemed almost too much of a reach within the confines of such simulations, but it's a movie, and I went with it willingly.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
The film itself is pretty entertaining through most of its running time, but the ending is a head-scratcher, almost too optimistic for my tastes. I was taken by the divergent paths each iteration into the source code, it seemed almost too much of a reach within the confines of such simulations, but it's a movie, and I went with it willingly.
I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.
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