Andrew Detmer (Dane DeHaan) is a teenager with real problems. His father Richard (Mike Kelly) is a real bastard. He’s just plain mean. Everything bad in this man’s life is going to be taken out on his son. In a effort to fight back, Andrew decides to start filming his day-to-day life. Millions of young people do this everyday on their iPhones, iPads or Flip Cams. NO SPOILERS HERE
Something happens to Andrew and his cousin, Matt Garetty (Alex Russell) and a guy he knows from high school, Steve Montgomery (Michael B. Jordan). As you’ve seen in the Chronicle movie trailer, the trio soon begin having telekinetic ability. At first, this new talent is only used for practical jokes & insane juggling.
Didn’t Marvel’s Stan Lee write, ‘With great power comes great responsibility.’ It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that these accelerating powers, Andrew would soon be going to the Dark Side. There’s a steady build the does indeed have a payoff at the end. There were shots in this film that were so clever and well executed. This is pure Sci-Fi fun.
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Man On A Ledge is a simple story about sticking it to The Man. Nick Cassidy (Sam Worthington) has been kicked off the NYPD and arrested for stealing a $40 million dollar diamond from John Englander (Ed Harris). This thing is a ROCK let me tell ya. Cassidy must prove he’s innocent to clear his name.
The action takes us 220 feet in the air at the Roosevelt Hotel in downtown Manhattan. He goes out on the ledge. Why? Jumper? Psycho? To get answers, we need a negotiator. This movie is cast with People Magazine’s Sexiest Negotiators Alive. Representing the men is Jack Dougherty (Ed Burns) & the women, Lydia Mercer (Elizabeth Banks.)
The cat and mouse game ensues. What’s really going on here? All the answers are across the street. Things are not what they seem. I thought the film had good pacing. I also appreciate subtle twists & cleverness in heists. If you’re gonna jump in, jump in with both feet. This is strictly a formula film and I enjoyed it.
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Man vs. Wolves. When a plane crashes in the frozen Alaskan wilderness, survivors are left to fend for themselves. The bitter, icy cold is more than enough for any group to succumb to hypothermia. If this baron scenario wasn’t bad enough, these men had just become a meaty part of the winter food chain.
Dead passengers ripped apart in the plane crash, were devoured by savage wolves. It’s just a matter of time before they move in to start hunting living survivors. So sets in motion the core of The Grey. It’s desperate men in a desperate situation. The wolf attacks are vicious & non-stop. It’s fun trying to guess and see if Liam becomes Purina Wolf Chow.
The Grey is fun popcorn all the way.
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“In spite of adversity and limited opportunities, African Americans have played a significant role in U.S. military history over the past 300 years. They were denied military leadership roles and skilled training because many believed they lacked qualifications for combat duty. Before 1940, African Americans were barred from flying for the U.S. military. Civil rights organizations and the black press exerted pressure that resulted in the formation of an all African-American pursuit squadron based in Tuskegee, Alabama, in 1941. They became known as the Tuskegee Airmen.” http://www.tuskegeeairmen.org/
Italy 1944. During World War II, skilled African American Tuskegee fighter pilots at one time, were only allowed to engage in mop up air strikes. These low priority targets included fuel trucks or maybe if you’re lucky, a German train transporting ammunition.
The story focuses on a small group of pilots who are itching to do the job they were trained to do–engage in aerial dogfights & shoot down Nazis. Col. A.J. Bullard (Terrence Howard) constantly goes up against bigoted brass trying to secure a respectable mission. In the field, Major Emanuelle Stance (Cuba Gooding Jr.) does his best to motivate his squadron of flyers, Joe “Lightning” Little (David Oyelowo) Marty “Easy” Julian (Nate Parker) Ray “Junior” Gannon (Tristan Wilds) and Andrew “Smokey”Salem (Ne-Yo)
The movie’s message is rock solid. Seeing this caliber hate and ignorance on the big screen is tough to watch. But it did in fact happen. I think it should be required viewing for everyone. It gives the audience an inkling of what these brave men endured. Think about this, racists are allowed to be racists in this great country because these brave men fought & died for their freedom.
Red Tails does have flaws. The acting was stiff at times. The dialogue was just ok. The dog fight scenes were what I looked forward to seeing most. They fell a bit short. The Germans didn’t seem like they were fighting back. The air scenes lacked the element of danger. Even with these flaws, let me repeat. If you’re a proud American, do yourself & your family a favor & go see Red Tails. We owe it to those brave Tuskegee Airmen!
“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.” What does the title mean? For me, the heart & soul of this movie is young Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn). So I believe the movie’s moniker pertains to Oskar and the events of 9/11. ‘Extremely Loud’ may be him describing huge airplanes slamming the World Trade Center. ‘Incredibly Close’ is really the best way to describe his relationship with his father, Thomas Schell(Tom Hanks).
One day, while looking through his father’s belongings, Oskar finds a key. But what secret could it uncover? Oskar & his dad were all about using deductive skills to solve most any mystery. This key just might unlock something that’ll bring him just a little bit closer to his father whom he misses so very much. And so it goes. This amazing kid, using wit & passion, searches throughout the five boroughs of New York.
The scenes are intense. My favorite parts of the movie were the flashbacks of happier times between Thomas & his son, Oskar. They were very sweet & made you feel good. The downside, those scenes are scant. The material here is very tough to watch. You’re talking about ripping off the scab of 9/11 and it is polarizing. There are people out in the world who feel, it’s good to stir up these emotions & weep about what happened to our country that awful day. I’m not one of those people.
Mark Wahlberg kicks off 2012 with the new R rated action flick, “Contraband.” Leaving behind a life of crime & going legit is Chris Farraday’s (Mark Wahlberg) new life plan. He’s got two growing sons & a smokin’ hot wife, Kate (Kate Beckinsale). In family, there’s always that certain screw up. Someone who’s playing on the wrong side of the tracks. This time it’s his brother-in-law, Andy(Caleb Landry Jones). He’s breaking the law & he’s not very good at it.
In my opinion, drug dealers in Contraband never read the book, Drug Dealing For Dummies. Page 169 clearly states, “No Drug Dealers or Drug Buyers Should Ever Program Each Other’s Last Name Into Their Personal Cell Phones.” Who does that? I’ve watched enough episodes of “24″ to know that that leaves a digital trail. So back to the story, Andy gets in way over his head with said drug dealer Tim Briggs (Giovanni Ribisi)(who’s real last name BRIGGS is actually programmed into Andy’s cell phone!) Swear to God.
One more thing I have to call out. During an “un-monitored” maximum security prison visitation, Chris tells his jailbird pop he’s gotta go back into the business of running contraband to bail out his wife’s brother. Hello Guard, anywhere? Hello!! While the first half of the movie is slow-building, things do heat up in the second half.
Panama is pickup point. The clock is ticking because, the ship’s captain (J.K. Simmons) has a schedule to keep. Chris has to obtain ill-gotten booty & get it back onto the ship undetected. During which, he’s got to navigate his way though poverty-stricken streets of Panama with zero GPS, just memory. It’s here where he meets up with an old business contact, a drug lord (Diego Luna) who’s expanding from smuggling, drugs, counter-fitting to armed robbery & murder.
With Briggs terrorizing Chris’ family back on the mainland, he’s gotta score and score big time no matter what or his family is dead. He’s desperate & his actions become more & more daring. The question: How far would you go to save the lives of your wife & kids? The action is there, no doubt about that. I just wish the film on the whole was more clever ala 2003′s “The Italian Job.”
America is currently faced with #Occupy Everywhere. The rich are getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer. “Tower Heist” is a movie hitting the box office with precision timing. It’s basically the one percenters vs. the ninety-nine percenters. Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda) is a billionaire Hedge Fund Manager who lives in the Penthouse high above The Tower. Josh Kovacs (Ben Stiller) manages the residence like a hotel. He’s all about customer service. He and his staff are at their beckon call 24/7.
About a decade before, Josh asked Mr. Shaw for a favor, a business favor. Representing Tower employees, Josh asked Shaw to invest their life savings. As you’ve seen in the trailer, Shaw gets arrested & all the money is gone. Infuriated, frustrated & cheated, Josh decides to take his team’s money back the swindler. This sets the story into motion.
An unlikely team of bandits is assembled. They are, a down and out Wall Street investment broker, Mr. Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick) a concierge with a very short attention span, Charlie (Ben Affleck) a bellhop with visions of grandieur, Enrique Dev’Reaux, (Michael Pena) who’s nicknamed The Puerto Rican-Mohican, a Jamaican maid with attitude & hormones (Gabourey Sidibe) & a small time street hustler, Slide (Eddie Murphy.)
Together, they’re after $20 million. The build up was very good. You could see things clicking & working. I also liked Special Agent Claire Denham (Tea Leoni.) She played a likable agent who sympathized with the fraud victims & clicked with Ben Stiller’s character. It was good to see Eddie Murphy returning to familiar territory. After all, he’s played a few of my all time favorite characters like Billy Ray Valentine: Capricorn in “Trading Places,” Reggie Hammond, “48 Hours” & of course, Axel Foley in “Beverly Hills Cop.”
I’m sure Eddie’s early worked inspired director Brett Ratner. It was vintage 80′s Eddie & that was good to see back on the big screen. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough. Everything with Tower Heist was working until the Tower Heist itself. On another note, last year, I was diggin’ “Iron Man 2″ until the lame sequence when Jon Favreau was driving through the Monaco Grand Prix– inthe wrong direction!
POSSIBLE SPOILER, BUT WHEN THE HECK, IT’S IN THE TRAILER. The movie derails into the very same lameness when the caper resorts to driving a speeding truck through the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade– inthe wrong direction! It turns into a slapstick vibe when marching band trombone players are jumping out of the way. It’s pretty bad.
In closing, the first two-thirds of Tower Heist are enjoyable. In my humble opinion, the heist could have been more clever, more daring & most of all more believable. It’s OK if you’re in the mood, but certainly won’t be remembered as a great heist film. If that’s what you’re into, rent the original or remake of “The Thomas Crown Affair.” It’s the very definition of a clever heist movie.
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“The Rum Diary” is the co0lest movie of the year, by a longshot. Puerto Rico circa 1960, how amazing that must’ve been. Paul Kemp (Johnny Depp) is a reporter who’s had enough of the big city. His writing assignments will now be for the San Juan Star newspaper. The supporting cast is outstanding. The paper’s editor, Lotterman (Richard Jenkins) is a frantic mess. In the newsroom, Paul buddies up with another reporter Sala. (Michael Rispoli)
If two words could describe this chapter of Paul Kemp’s life, they’d be rum-soaked. Booze is everywhere. Moburg (Giovanni Ribisi) is yet another reporter who covers religion, witchcraft & loves playing his records. The downside of the records is they’re speeches of Adolf Hitler. Moburg’s got access to booze that’s over 400 proof. This isn’t alcohol abuse, it’s akin to drinking rocket fuel. And these boys do drink. Depp does hangovers like no other.
There is a ‘Rub’ a midst all the rum. Sanderson (Aaron Eckhart) sees the island of Puerto Rico not as a tropical paradise, but as the tropical paradise that’ll make him a billionaire. It’s all about the money. So when Sanderson needs to ‘buy off’ a reporter to ensure favorable copy, he seeks out Paul Kemp. The rich playboy Sanderson has everything, even the blonde bombshell pinup girl, Renault. (Amber Heard)
What I liked about the film is Johnny Depp’s return to quirky. Johnny actually found this novel gathering dust in Hunter S. Thompson’s office. After almost a decade of sailing, swords & sashaying ala Captain Jack Sparrow, Depp ventures off the beaten path to a place where few are willing to go.
The dialogue is wicked crisp. The jazz score is perfect. Along the way, you’ll encounter hostile natives, cock fights & alternate methods of transportation. My favorite: The motorbike with sidecars. Ultimately, Paul Kemp has to answer one question: Do I sell out, or do I bring down the bastards ‘with ink & rage!?!’
Johnny Depp developed & produced this film dedicating it to his late buddy & father figure, Hunter S. Thompson. What a perfectly psychedelic tribute. Now, someone pass me the rum.
“The Rum Diary” is Rated R.
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Antonio Banderas’ voice is simply perfect for the animated feline, Puss in Boots……oh, and the Nasonex Bumblebee. Puss In Boots finally steps out into his very own adventure. This story takes us to a time and place years before the feisty feline ever met a wise-cracking ogre named Shrek.
This a prequel I like to call, #OccupyFairyTale. It weaves in familiar characters like the dude with those crazy-magic beans, Jack, (voiced by Billy Bob Thorton). Or the dude who’s rightfully afraid of heights, Humpty Dumpty (voiced by Zach Galiafinakis). Oh & there’s furry love too with Kitty Softpaws, (voiced by Salma Hayek).
Puss In Boots is silky smooth with all the lady cats, but come morning, he’s makin’ tracks. The story synopsis: Running from the law, Puss is an outlaw, with wanted posters adorning his hometown. As kids, Puss In Boots & Humpty Dumpty were thick as thieves living in the same orphanage. They both had a dream, they’d one day get Jack’s crazy-magic beans, plant the beanstalk & ascend to rarefied air, the place where a magic goose lays Golden Eggs, (by the dozen).
That scheme gets put into motion. If there’s a theme for the young ones here, it’s trust issues. Trust your friends. They may sometime betray you, but that’s life. Learn from it. There’s plenty of scenes that involve swordplay & dancing. I’m confident all the kiddies will be spellbound for the 90-minute running time.
My favorite parts of the movie were when we see the little things cats do. Scratching, cleaning, rubbing & purring. I especially enjoyed seeing Puss In Boots order up a straight shot of milk in a western saloon. Hats off to the animation team.
This is a fun movie. Kids will love it. As for movie critics who gave it an F, do us all a favor, just quit. Can’t you let kids enjoy a movie without snooty criticism? Does every single movie need to be an Oscar contender starring Helen Mirren? Get out of the business.
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Justin Timberlake continues his non-stop acting assault. Last year, he took on the part of real-life Tech Wiz, Sean Parker in “The Social Network,” this year the romantic comedy, “Friends with Benefits” & now the Sci-Fi Thriller, “In Time.” Set in the future, “In Time” is a simple story about the “Haves” & the “Have Nots.”
The currency isn’t money, it’s seconds, minutes, days, weeks, months, years, decades & tens of decades. In this world, humans age until their full growth peak of 25 years old. That’s when everyone stops aging. The time display on your forearm allows just one more year of life. One year, not a second more or less.
The way to stay alive in this game (of life) is obtain more time. Beg, borrow, steal. Most people are poor and only have one or two days worth of time. You get up, work & you’re given a few precious hours, another day. Just enough hours so you have to come back the next day, just in the nick of time.
Timberlake plays Will Salas, a guy in the ghetto who lives day to day. He represents the masses. In a twist of very good fate, Will finds himself with more time than he ever dreamed. Imagine, you were walking down the street & you found a wheelbarrow filled with thousand dollars bills & it was all yours. So now Will is upwardly mobile. He was to mix it up with the ultra rich. This is where society takes its time, because they have more than they could ever use.
It’s there where he meets Sylvia Weis, (Amanda Seyfried) a woman who comes from time. Her father, Philippe Weis (Mad Men’s Vincent Kartheiser) owns & operates the largest Time Lending Company on the planet. Long story/short, Will & Sylvia make a run for it. I like the cops of this world: Time Keepers. Cillian Murphy plays Raymond Leon, a time cop that’s been on the beat for well over 50 years. Sylvia finally learns what life is like when you can only live it day to day.
The film is set and filmed in Los Angeles for a specific reason. People in LA seem to be much more obsessed with youth & the idea of staying young. Take note. You won’t see any graffiti in the movie, because people in this world just don’t have time to waste on such nonsense. I liked how people in the ghetto were always rushing. No choice. If you only had 12 hours before you ‘Timed Out,’ you’d hustle, double-step & eat your food on the run every single day.
At the end of the day, it’s a Robin Hood story of stealing time from the rich & giving it to the poor. The filmmakers aren’t being coy. This is social commentary. Those on the political right will have a field day dissecting “In Time.” It’s all about redistributing wealth. Those on the top want to keep it all while those on the bottom are quite literally dying in the streets because they’re out of time.
“In Time” is rated PG-13
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