Action and Retaliation in Spring 2013

 

DEAD MAN DOWN

CRIME DRAMA

PLOT: Man wants revenge that killed his wife and child.

Colin Farrell is Victor who is moody for he wants death to a crime boss who killed his family and he meets Beatrice (Noomi Rapace) a scarred women who wants vengeance of her own.  The trailer is better than the movie.  The acting is good especially Farrell and Rapace and when there is action it is very good.  It is not a typical Hollywood action drama so it didn’t do well at the box office but when it comes out on video it will do better.

THE CALL

SUSPENSE THRILLER

PLOT:  A 911 operator tries to save a young girl’s life.

Halle Berry is a 911 operator and one of the thing they are not suppose to do is get emotional attached to the person in need.  She does as she tries to save a young woman from a killer of young girls.  It is a tense ride until the far-fetch finish but it is very good.  Oscar winner Ms. Berry is believable as the concerned operator.  Abigail Breslin is great as the frightened young woman.  Morris Chestnut is good as Berry’s handsome cop boyfriend and for the wrestler world David Otunga is pretty good as Chestnut’s partner but has very little to do.

GI JOE: RETALIATION

ACTION/ADVENTURE

PLOT: Sequel to GI Joe: Rise of Cobra.

If you didn’t like the first GI Joe you won’t like this one.  It is a popcorn movie, a cartoon made into live action!! Many people and fans are hating on this movie but not me.  I enjoyed in very much.  Maybe because Duke (Channing Tatum) dies and Roadblock (Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson) is the new leader.  I found him annoying as a wrestler and a good screen presence as an actor!!  Don’t see it in 3D unless you want to pay more it’s just as good in 2D.  Action hounds rejoice, a summer blockbuster came in March!!

A Good Day for Great and Powerful Snitches

A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD

ACTION

  

PLOT:  John McClane is back but this time he is in Russia.

Bruce Willis returns for the fifth outing of the Die Hard franchise.  Now a senior cop goes to Russia to help his son but nothing is what it seems.  This is the shortest Die Hard movie and not the best it has action and humor to help it along.  The villain not good, a few strange potholes but if you like these kinds of movies you will like this.  It is not doing well in the states but it is raking in the bucks overseas so don’t be surprised if there is a Die Hard 6.

OZ:  THE GREAT AND POWERFUL

FANTASY

PLOT:  Prequel to the Wizard of Oz

I went to see this movie because the critics didn’t like it!! It is better than what they say but nothing is good as the original. Actor James Franco is Oz a magician, con man and loves the ladies.  He wants to be more than what he is and gets his chance when he is transported to the beautiful Land of Oz  The people there believe he is their savior and he acts it only to get the gold.  He flirts with Theodora (Mila Kunis) which is a bad idea and because of his actions she turns to the wicked witch of the West.

Kunis is very good but not as good as Margaret Hamilton in the Wizard of Oz. The other sister Evanora (Rachel Weisz) the wicked witch of the east is okay.  Michelle Williams as the good witch Glinda has more lines and is okay too.  Doubters should not see this movie or wait for cable.  You will want to see the Wizard of Oz again once you do see this movie. 

  

SNITCH

CRIME DRAMA

PLOT: A father goes undercover for the DEA to free his son from prison

This is not an action movie!!  The trailer is very misleading.  Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson plays a hardworking man who is willing to trap a major player of a cartel to save his son from prison. The film is series stuff for it is based on a true story and Johnson is REALLY acting.  It is very intense and very good.  You want to see The Rock in an action wait until GI Joe 2: Retaliation and Fast and Furious 6.

2013 Mid-Winter Round-up: From Silver to Silly

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK--2012

ROMANTIC COMEDY DRAMA

  

PLOT:  Two mentally unstable people fall in love.

Pat (Bradley Cooper, The A Team) is bipolar and is finally getting out of institution.  With the help of his friend he meets recovering sex addict Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence Hunger Games). They fuss, fight like a romantic comedy but this movie is so different it should get an award for originality.  His parents are Robert DeNiro and he is very good and Jacki Weaver.  The big surprise is Chris Tucker (Rush Hour films) is good as Pat’s friend in the institution.  He is not loud but very subtle.  It is good and strange like IFC films so if you can deal with that please watch.

LAST STAND--2013

ACTION

PLOT:  Sheriff has to stop a drug lord from crossing the Mexican border.

Ray Owens (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is back in action and the only reason you should see it because of Arnold and the body count.  It is an expensive B-movie but it is good. The villain is okay but he could have been better.  It didn’t do well in theaters but it will explode on video. Action hounds must go!!!

PARKER--2013

ACTION

PLOT:  Parker is a thief and he has to get revenge on the gang that tried to kill him.

If it is January or February, Jason Statham has a movie.  He really plays the same character all the time-ready to kick a lot of butt.  You know there will be action and he has two pretty women with him and one is Jennifer Lopez.  She plays a down on her luck real estate agent who helps him.  She is very attractive and funny too but she deserves much better and I hope she gets it. The shocking thing about this B-movie is it is directed by Taylor Hackford, the man who directed Ray, the movie about Ray Charles. In spots it is vile and violent –action hounds take a look.

HANSEL AND GRETEL:  WITCH HUNTERS--2013

HORROR/ACTION/FANTASY

PLOT:  Beloved fairy tale has a new twist to it.

You know the story but now after burning one witch they make it a business of killing witches. Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye, Avengers) and Gemma Arterton (Prince of Persia) are Hansel and Gretel.  They don’t speak noble English they speak like in modern times and it is very funny.  Famke Janssen is Muriel queen of the evil witches, and is very good at being very bad.  It should have been on video, but it is good enough for theatres if you like that sort of film.

Oscar Contenders in 2013

BEAST OF THE SOUTHERN WILD

DRAMA/FANTASY

               

PLOT:  Young black girl has to deal with harsh realities by imagination.

Hushpuppy (Quvenzhane Wallis) is six years old who lost her mom and her father Wink (Dwight Henry) is trying to make her tough before he dies while escaping before the levees break.  WARNING:  Before you see this film this is an INDEPENTANT films it is not like what you would expect from a mainstream movie.  That being said it is a wild ride reality and fantasy combined.  To tell you the truth I can’t explain the plot but the young Ms Wallis is fantastic!!  She is tough, tender.  She has to be an adult in tragic situations.  I wasn’t going to see the movie until the black actress was nominated for an Oscar.  I like weird but this one baffled me.  If you want to see it wait and watch it when it comes to IFC or Sundance.

LIFE OF PI

ADVENTURE/FANTASY/DRAMA

PLOT:  A young man begins an epic journey alone on a boat with a Bengal tiger.

The story is not as simple as I stated.  The story is really not the movie’s strong point but the stunning visual effects.  It is a feast to the eyes.   Based on the novel by Yann Martel director Ang Lee(Hulk-2003 and Brokeback Mountain) brings an un-filmable movie to life!!   The actors are mostly India and they are fantastic!! If you can see it on the big screen for it was shown in 3D like Avatar 3D to see the depth and beauty of this amazing feature.

LES MISERABLES

MUSICAL/DRAMA

PLOT:  Based on the novel by Victor Hugo turned into a hit musical and now the film adaption.

Oh boy this is a tragic story so they release it on Christmas Day. Hugh Jackman plays Jean Valjean who is sent to jail for stealing a loaf of bread. He has done his time but Javert (Russell Crowe) still chases him because once a thief always a thief.  Jean also helps a dying prostitute Faintine( Anne Hathaway) and takes care of  her daughter, Cosette (Amanda Seyfried).  The performances by the leads are outstanding and director Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech) is epic!!  There is no dialogue only singing and that is great on Broadway and on the big screen if you like that.  I don’t really like it at all.

Wango Django--Winter Action Unchained

DJANGO UNCHAINED

WESTERN/DRAMA/ACTION

PLOT:  Django, a former slave becomes a bounty hunter to find his wife.

                When you mix blaxploitation and a spaghetti western you get this movie.  You can love or loathe this film because it is entertaining but inaccurate.  The good: it is very violent as well as funny.  There is a love story.  Jamie Foxx is great as Django and a black hero.  Samuel L. Jackson is the meanest Uncle Tom I have ever seen. Christoph Waltz, a dentist turned bounty is a good German!!

The bad: well, it is about slavery and the white folks as well as the black folks use the N word a lot but at least  when the white people who say it  they don’t last long. Director Quentin Tarantino could never make a family film in his life shows slavery as it is brutal and unpleasant.  The movie is long: 2:45 minutes--he stretches it out likes it’s epic.  It may bring blaxploitation back!!  Black audiences are going to see especially women because of the love story.

JACK REACHER

DRAMA/ACTION/MYSTERY

PLOT:  An expert sniper kills five people then asks for Jack Reacher and he has to investigate to clear his name.

             It is interesting movie with Tom Cruise in the starring role. But if you have read the book by Lee Child he doesn’t look like Cruise at all--he is supposed to be tall (6’5’) and strong, but that doesn’t stop Cruise from being a bad-ass.  I think he wants to do roles that stretch his abilities which are a good thing.  The trailer is better than the movie from an action standpoint, unless you like a complex plot (then you will like it).  Otherwise, action hounds will like it in spots, but not really.

ZERO DARK THIRTY

DRAMA

PLOT:  CIA operatives hunt for Osama Bin Linden

                The title of the movie means 30 minutes after midnight and darkness and secrecy.  It begins with news reports about 9/11 and then the search for the most hated man in the world.  Maya, (Jessica Chastain) a CIA agent who takes over from Dan (Jason Clarke) who is tired of torturing people to get information.  His performance is good-at least he shows that the horrible things he does to suspects is truly getting to him.  The pacing is slooow, so this isn’t action-packed at all. 

I believe director Kathryn Bigelow (Hurt Locker) wanted to show how long it takes to find Osama. Ms. Chastain performance is good.  She is smart and caring but she would do anything including torture to find the terrorist.  It is not doing well at the box-office at all.  It is a downer, it is long and I believe the public doesn’t want to see anything about war right now.