The House (2017)

R | 88 min | 2017 | 2/5

There was once a time when you couldn't miss when a movie starring an SNL alum was being released, it would either feel like a skit or an original. With that said, how was The House released without me noticing, especially since it stars two known SNL members, Ferrell and Poehler. Although I knew nothing about it, I decided to watch it anyway.

Scott and Kate Johansen (Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler) have been planning for years for the day their daughter goes off to college. However, when she gets accepted to a school, they are faced with the dilemma of how to pay for it. When the scholarship money falls through, they have to think of something quick, with the help of their neighbor and buddy Frank (Jason Mantzoukas), the three brainstorm a crazy idea that may actually work - to form an underground casino, after all the house always wins -right? Unfortunately for these two, they have something resembling responsibilities, making a casino a much more dangerous and scary place than they could ever imagine.

It's crazy to think that a comedy with two of the funniest, talents surrounded by others in the game could result in such a dud, but unfortunately, that is what happened. Just like many comedies released these days, this one neglects to follow a coherent story. It's simply just a movie starring a couple mediocre at best funny actors just everything up as they go along. Even the jokes, which I kid you not appeared to be reworded over and over again, weren't very funny. For a movie that was as short as this, coming in at just over 80 minutes, it felt like it was much longer, it just dragged on and on.

Hey, at least we've got Daddy's Home 2 to look forward to, right? Never mind.

Wilson (2017)

Directed by: Craig Johnson
Starring: Woody Harrelson, Laura Dern, Judy Greer
MPAA Rating: Rated R for language throughout and some sexuality
Run Time: 94 Minutes

Wilson (Woody Harrelson) is a neurotic middle aged man who has lived alone most of his life. He loves to talk, to anyone, about anything even if nobody really cares to what he has to say. When his father passes away, he returns to his hometown for the funeral and decides to track down Pippi (Laura Dern), his ex-girlfriend who left him seventeen years ago. While they reconnect and everything seemed to be going great and wonderful, Wilson learns that they had a child together, in the form of Claire (Isabella Amara). Although Pippi put Claire up for adoption when she was born, Wilson takes it upon himself to find her and striking a sort of relationship that they clearly missed out on.

Rating: 3.5/5 Wilson has a mixture of comedy and drama but mostly, it's a sad attempt to string together a bunch of characters and ideas.

Keeping Up with the Joneses (2016)

Ah, the American suburbia, where your social status means everything and your status improves by the amount of money you have or the material goods you buy. Back in the day, neighborhoods like the one in the movie were close-knit communities, today it seems like the most you'll get out of your neighbor is a friendly nod.

The Gaffneys had a good life. Jeff (Zach Galifianakis) works as an human resources director at a big defense plant. He's an average guy who hasn't met a problem that couldn't be solved with a stress ball. His wife, Karen (Isla Fisher) is an interior decorator who took some time off to raise their kids. On the surface everything appears to be normal, however it feels like something is missing in their lives, especially now that they're kids are away for the summer.

That is, until the Joneses' family moves in across the street. Natalie (Gal Gadot) is super sexy, who excels at everything she does and Tim (Jon Hamm) is an handsome, accomplished travel writer. Tim and Jeff hit it off immediately, while Karen is a bit hesitant to connect with the ever-so-suspicious Natalie. As it turns out, the Joneses' moved in next door for a purpose, they are spies and have their eyes set on Jeff's place of employment. It involves a mole within the company, a vicious arms dealer who is only known as "Scorpion."

Let's face it, espionage movies involving ordinary people have been done many times over the years. Similarities include, but are not limited to, Spy, True Lies, Mr and Mrs Smith, among others. Keeping up with the Joneses isn't any different, actually truthfully it may be one of the worst of the aforementioned titles.

RATING: 2/5  A movie to watch if you're really, really bored and have a buck-fifty burning a hole in your pocket but don't expect anything close to a masterpiece.


Directed by: Greg Mottola
Starring: Zach Galifianakis, Isla Fisher, Jon Hamm, Patton Oswalt
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sexual content, action/violence and brief strong language
Run Time: 105 Minutes

The Edge of Seventeen (2016)

High school can be the best or the worst time of your life. For many, it's a wonder how anyone survives this awkward time. For Nadine (Hailee Steinfeld), she's earned the label. Over the course of the movie, which tracks during her junior year, she learns that the path of survival has less to do with doing homework, losing her virginity, or making friends than it does with becoming comfortable with herself.

Nadine is conflicted with one the most catastrophic ailments any nerd-leaning child can have: a popular sibling. Her brother, Darian (Blake Jenner) is beloved by the entire student body, but worse is he's always had more love and support from their mother, while Hailee's always been the black sheep of the family. Despite feeling isolated since the death of her father, Nadine has found solace in the friendship of Krista (Haley Lu Richardson), the sister-figure she never had. Krista isn’t just her best friend, however, she’s her only friend.

This isn’t a romance (although there are romantic aspects); it’s a coming-of-age drama. Hailee Steinfeld portrays Nadine as an awkward student, supported by a best friend-turned-brother's-girlfriend, a absent-minded mother, a loving but recently departed father, and Woody Harrelson: a teacher we all wished we had in high school. The screenplay presents life through Nadine's perspective and, as circumstances force her to grow and change, we see things more clearly: betrayals that aren’t really betrayals, “perfect” lives that aren’t quite so perfect, and people hurt by her actions who don’t deserve the pain.

RATING: 4/5

Director: Kelly Fremon Craig
Starring: Hailee Steinfeld, Haley Lu Richardson, Blake Jenner, Woody Harrelson
MPAA Rating: R for sexual content, language and some drinking - all involving teens
Run Time: 104 Minutes

A Walk in the Woods (2015)

Directed by: Ken Kwapis
Starring: Robert Redford, Nick Nolte, Emma Thompson


A couple old guys taking a walk on the Appalachian Trail doesn't sound like an award winning motion picture does it? Well, as it turns out, it isn't. The success of similar features usually relies on the chemistry of the two leads, something we notice is a bit lackluster here.

Bryson (Robert Redford), a renowned author, is facing a delayed mid-life crisis and on a whim decides to walk 2100+ miles on the east coast, from Georgia to Maine, via the Appalachian Trail. The problem is: his wife, Catherine (Emma Thompson), won't let him hike it alone. After being rejected by most of his old friends, he is forced to invite the only one with an interest - a man he hasn't seen in decades and with whom he didn't part on the best of terms. By his own admission, Katz hasn't done much with his life and is so out of shape, it looks like he might have trouble walking a mile, let alone 2100+ of them. Nonetheless, the two of them hop on a plane to Georgia and the odyssey begins.


RATING: 4/5
Overall: A Walk in the Woods is a very mediocre adventure flick, if you want a similar film but with better background story my recommendation would be to see Wild. 

The Company You Keep (2012)

Directed by: Robert Redford
Starring: Robert Redford, Shia LaBeouf, Susan Sarandon, Chris Cooper, Nick Nolte, Terrance Howard, Richard Jenkins, Anna Kendrick, Sam Elliot


For anyone unaware, the Weather Underground Organization, commonly known as the Weathermen, was an American militant radical left-wing organization founded on the Ann Arbor campus of the University of Michigan in protest of the Vietnam War. In Robert Redford's film, The Company You Keep, he imagines what it would be like for some members of the group to still be alive and hiding in America today. They were once branded terrorists and now, the few that remain, have slowed down to blend in as soccer moms or local lawyers in small towns.

The movie begins when a mom, Sharon Solarz (Susan Sarandon) sends her kids off to school and sets to turn herself into the FBI for the crimes she committed while she was a member of The Weathermen. This event triggers a newfound interest in the case and the few others who remain hidden are suddenly being actively hunted again. The primary target is Jim Grant (Redford), a single father just trying to keep his daughter happy after the passing of her mother the year before. He is uncovered by a local journalist (Shia LaBeouf) and from that moment on, he runs, just as he's done for the last thirty years.


RATING: 3/5
Overall: This is a very slow thriller, starring many A-list actors which makes it worth checking out at least once.

Green is Gold (2016)

Directed by: Ryon Baxter
Starring: Derek W. Adam, Jimmy Baxter, Ryon Baxter


From the outside looking in Mason (Jimmy Baxter) may appear to be ordinary teenager, living an average lifestyle. What you may not know about him however, is what his family background is like. After his drug dealing father is sent to prison, he is forced to go to live with his older brother, Cameron, who is a career supplier of marijuana. Everything seems alright from the start, Cameron (Ryon Baxter) figures it'll be simple enough to take care of his younger brother and even teach him some tricks of the trade.

If you're like me, you've probably never heard of this film until now. I just happened to come across it at Redbox whilst looking for something lesser known to check out with a free credit I had. Reading the synopsis and watching the trailer, I could immediately tell this wasn't going to be an Oscar, but I was fine with that as I've been pleasantly surprised with movies like these in the past, The Brass Teapot (2012) comes to mind, so I gave it a shot. Upon starting it I could tell I was in for a rude awakening, for starters there were no premise to what happened to Mason's parents, we can only assume from the later phone calls that he was arrested for drug dealing. I could live with that missing minor detail, however I almost gave up after twenty minutes of shaky-camera-vision and obvious cue card acting from our main characters. Really, this is 2016, and this film seemed to be shot using a early millennium Motorola cell phone. Not being fully aware of the film crew I won't be too quick to judge their acting abilities, after all I'm sure big time directors like Spielberg and Scorsese weresn't perfect their first time out. One important thing I watch movies for is the story, this one had the potential to be big, but fell way short. The plot was choppy, the ending was pointless and generally the whole screenplay seemed like it was written by a ten year old writing a school play.

Rating: 1/5
Overall: I'd steer far away from this one unless you truly want to watch crap. My recommendation if you're really interested in this, just watch the less than two minute trailer below, it basically covers the entire film. The fact that this gets a 7/10 rating on IMDb really makes me wonder what kind of audience is on that site.

The BFG (2016)

Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Penelope Wilton, Rebecca Hall, Bill Hader


A Big Freaking Guy, yep.

Little orphan Sophie (Ruby Barnhill) is an insomniac, never having the opportunity to dream and as an orphan always looking for an adventure. One night unlike the rest, she was up roaming around the orphanage, staring out the window when she spots something unusual, the Big Friendly Giant (Mark Rylance). While initially she's scared of the Giant, she quickly learns there's more to him than just being monstrous and talking funny; he's actually quite sweet and just wants her to feel comfortable being around him. After all, the Big Friendly Giant feels as if he can’t let her go back to the real world, where she’ll most definitely be going on and on about the Giant, making everyone suspicious and worried about its actual whereabouts. For a short while, Sophie and the BFG seem to get along just fine, that is until word gets out in Giant country and his fellow, meaner giants like Bloodbottler, Fleshlumpeater and others, start sniffing around for something new to eat, giving Sophie and the BFG a challenge on how to stop these meaner giants once and for all.

This feature was brought to us by, in the humble opinion of this editor, the best filmmaker ever-Steven Spielberg. Spielberg's at the point of his career where he really doesn't have to try to please anyone, he's pretty much done a bit of anything and everything. He's done it all, and for now it seems Spielberg is oging to do what he wants, when he wants to, and how he wants to do it. With Disney picking up the tab, it should be an interesting result, right?

Well, yes it does, interesting being the key word. After watching The BFG, I'm reminded just what Spielberg is capable of doing: Taking any story, no matter how weird or realistic, compelling to watch.

The first act of The BFG is rather exciting because it's different then what we're used to seeing from a kid-approved Disney movie, where rather than concentrate on the visual effects and the like, Spielberg decides to take it slow so that we can connect with the chemistry between our characters a bit. It all works out too, because Rylance and Barnhill are both perfect for their respective roles.

Of course, the BFG isn't a perfect movie, as we can expect from the latter of Spielberg's work. He spends more time getting us to connect with the characters that I feel he neglects the actual story line, until, well it's too late. With a running length of just under two hours, it's a bit long for a children's movie but as I've said in the past, most any movie is worth sticking out to the end regardless (just good luck convincing that to a kid, who would have likely gave up on this one after the first 30 minutes).


RATING: 7/10; It's a good movie, although leaves a lot to be granted in the story department. A kid, whom I would think would look forward to this movie the most, would likely not make it past the thirty minute mark.

Unfinished Business (2015)

Directed by: Ken Scott
Starring: Vince Vaughn, Dave Franco, Tom Wilkinson


The Movie: 
Upon feeling unappreciated at a big corporation, a hardworking salesman decides to break off and form his own business. After a slow year on the business front, he and his two associates travel to Europe to close the most important deal of their lives. What began as a routine trip, ends up being a battle against finding out what is truly important.

Review:
After watching this, I decided to double take what appropriate rating this deserved.  I opted to go with a solid 7 out of 10, why? Well, despite it's attempt at humor weren't much more than crude sexual jokes, I did find myself laughing throughout this movie. It's not Academy Award quality, but come on, ask yourself when the last time Vince Vaughn or Dave Franco was in a Oscar winning film...right, never.

Bullying seems to be a hot topic these days, not just in schools but in life. It is because of this that the writers intuitively included a back story involving an bullying issue with Vaughn's two kids, in an attempt to grab some emotion from the viewer. Not only the kids, but we saw how bullying is involved in the real world as well. Dan Trunkman and his two colleagues were counting on this important deal to keep their business, the company they were meeting with knew this and in the words of Tom Wilkinson, used them as to fluffers. They knew they were going to hire the bigger and more experienced company way before meeting with Trunkman's company, but insisted on wanting them to travel half way across the world anyway.

Upon first arriving in Europe, the three unlikely businessmen find themselves already off to a bad start, there were no hotel vacancies. Good news for Franco, there was a youth hostel with a vacancy and although Wilkinson may be youthful at heart, but let's face it he hasn't been a youth in many decades, but the owner of the hostel showed him some pity and allowed him to stay in the hostel's business center. Trunkman lucked out and scored a suite at a museum, or did he? Little did he realize that suite was actually an exhibit, an American Businessman exhibit, so he was being watched by the public all day long. To make matters worse, he had a routine running schedule and allowed his daughter to pack his running clothes...which she did, by the way, his wife's workout clothes. Still a routine is a routine, he put on the jogging bra and short shorts and hit the road.

Once realizing they were what they were afraid of, they could've left Europe and moved on with their lives, but they didn't. They had unfinished business to attend to, and although Trunkman had possibly a bigger problem at home they stuck around to get what they traveled thousands of miles for.


RATING: 7/10 (Worth a rent.)

Pixels (2015)

Directed by: Chris Columbus
Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Michelle Monaghan


The Movie:
As kids in the 1980s, Sam Brenner, Will Cooper, Ludlow Lamonsoff, and Eddie "The Fire Blaster" Plant saved the world thousands of times - at 25 cents a game in the video arcades. Now, they're going to have to do it for real. When intergalactic aliens discover video feeds of classic arcade games and misinterpret them as a declaration of war, they attack the Earth, using the video games as the models for their assaults -- and now-U.S. President Cooper must call on his old-school arcade friends to save the world from being destroyed by PAC-MAN, Donkey Kong, Galaga, Centipede, and Space Invaders. Joining them is Lt. Col. Violet Van Patten, a specialist supplying the arcaders with unique weapons to fight the aliens.

Review:
So, to be honest, I wasn't expecting much when I went into this one. After all, I came to expect a lot of crap out of Sandler's latest. The man hasn't done a good comedy since what, Happy Gilmore? Nonetheless, growing up I loved going to the arcade - playing classics like Pac-Man, Asteroids, Donkey Kong, and the like - so I actually wanted to see this one. I think it's been at least ten years since I was last in an arcade, do they even still exist? I'm convinced kids today wouldn't even know what a arcade console looks like, with the modern advancements of home entertainment systems.

After losing the national Donkey Kong championship in the 80s, Brenner, played by Sandler becomes a tech support guru while his childhood best friend Cooper, played by James is the President of the U.S. When the world is invaded by the characters in those 80s video games, President Cooper calls upon gamer Brenner to save it.

This movie isn't meant to be taken serious, it's a fun flick remembering arcade games of the 80s. Sure, there's a fair mixture of poor casting and over generated computer graphics, but it doesn't deserve the hatred it's received across the boards.


RATING: 6.5/10

The Intern (2015)

Directed by: Nancy Meyers
Starring: Robert De Niro, Anne Hathaway, Rene Russo


The Movie:
Ben Whittaker is a 70-year-old widower who has discovered that retirement isn't all it's cracked up to be. Seizing an opportunity to get back in the game, he becomes a senior intern at an online fashion site, founded and run by Jules Ostin.

Review:
I have often asked myself, what will I do when I retire? After working all my life, I wouldn't be able to just sit around and do absolutely nothing and let's face it sitting in a senior citizen center playing bingo and eating pudding doesn't sound all that exciting. Unfortunately once you hit that certain age, employers no longer have an interest in you so finding a new job outside of a meaningless retail position will be extremely difficult.

If The Intern taught us anything, it's that Robert De Niro isn't far from living that lifestyle himself. Face it, he's old, he may have many years of successful acting experience under his belt as well as a few prestigious awards but even Hollywood is interested in finding new talent. Speaking of which, Anne Hathaway may have hit her peak in this film. I can't say I've seen anything else she's done that is so remarkably memorable.

We've pretty much seen this before with Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn in The Internship. When are filmmakers going to learn that jokes involving technology and older folks simply isn't funny? Oh, Ben's so old that he can't figure out how to turn on a laptop, we must milk that for everything it's worth.... However when young entrepreneur hot shot Jules (Anne Hathaway) finds herself too wrapped up in her business to spend time with her family, and is suggested to sell out to a big CEO, it's Ben who has to remind her what's truly important in life.

Experience is a good thing, but my advice? Do more than one thing, not just the same thing for 40+ years. Seriously, how many millennials even know what a phone book is? Thanks Google.

RATING: 6.5/10

Time is the Ultimate Currency

Directed by: Andrew Niccol
Starring: Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried, Cillian Murphy

Imagine a world where you stop aging at twenty-five, then you're genetically engineered to only live one more year-unless you can buy your way out of it. The rich "earn" decades at a time, becoming essentially immortal while the rest struggle to work or otherwise beg, borrow or steal enough hours to make it through the day.

That is the cycle of life for the people of this futuristic science fiction, In Time (2011), people like Will Salas played by Justin Timberlake. Will is a "time-watcher" of the ghetto who is just like everyone else wants to buy their way into an immortal youth. When his mother, played by the gorgeous Olivia Wilde dies, he meets a man who escapes the uptown life and gives Will his remaining time with one caveat, he must do something productive with it.

First he gives a couple dozen years to his best friend, Borel (Johnny Galecki) who we later learn spends it all on booze and as a result dies. The rest of the movie is your basic Robin Hood story, he travels through the toll gates out of the ghetto to the uptown neighborhoods. This is something that has never been done before, for obvious reasons. When Will is accused of murder by the timekeeper (Cillian Murphy) he is forced to take the banker's daughter Sylvia Weiss (Amanda Seyfried) hostage.

Living minute to minute, the two team up to be a powerful tool against the system. Sylvia decides the best way to get back at her father for sheltering her for all these years is to rob him blindly one 'bank' at a time. Keeping enough time to keep themselves alive, and giving the rest away to others struggling. An ordinary Robin Hood story, stealing from the rich to give to the poor.

The concept of this movie was excellent, but the way it was executed was terrible. For starters, let's take our main character, Justin Timberlake who quite frankly we find out cannot pull off a "tough guy" act, the idea of giving him the girl in the end is pretty believable although choosing a talented actress such as Amanda Seyfried may have had a little something to do with that. Next, the irony of our "timekeeper" dying because he stop keeping track of his own time? That was not only expected but silly to write into the script, as he was killed off without even trying.

 Other than those two disappointments, this movie was excellent. The run time was perfect, I didn't think it was. One other thing that impressed me about this movie was just how much it was right on with the analogy of how it truly is in some parts of the world where the rich have everything while the poor are neglected and struggling to make ends meet.

Overall, if you find yourself looking for a science fiction thinker, don't look any further than this title. If you are looking for something a bit more adventurous, you can do a lot better than this.


RATING: 7/10

Every Dog Should Have a Boy

Directed by: Rob Minkoff
Starring: Ty Burrell, Max Charles, Stephen Colbert

We could all learn a thing or two from our dogs. Things like how to greet others by sniffing butts, where to relieve ourselves on that bright red space ship on the curb, oh and using a time machine to learn about historical events first hand... Wait, what?

Dreamworks brings us yet another animated feature based on a childhood cartoon, Mr. Peabody & Sherman (2014). In case you're living under a rock or otherwise can't figure it out, Mr. Peabody (voiced by Ty Burrell) is the dog decked out in big framed glasses and bright red bow tie. He's unlike your ordinary dog in the sense that he walks on his hind legs, and has an IQ of a gazillion +1. As a pup, he knew he was different than his brothers and sisters at the pound, rather than fetch a stick he chose to do math problems and make science experiments. One day upon walking down the street alone, he stumbled upon a crying basket sitting in an alley, inside the basket as one would guess was a baby similar to his physique. That day forward, Mr Peabody knew he had to take him in, naming him Sherman (voiced by Max Charles) and proving to a judge that he could be a parent.

Who knew dogs could drive?

On the first day of school, the slightly geeky Sherman found himself bullied by a girl named Penny (voiced by Ariel Winter). When she stole his dog whistle, he retaliated by biting her. This resulted in a visit to the principal's office for Mr Peabody, as well as a threat from the indifferent child services representative Ms. Grunion (voiced by Allison Janney). Upon trying to show Ms Grunion he is a fit parent, Mr. Peabody decides to host Penny and her family for dinner on the same night Ms Grunion comes over to continue her investigation.

Everyone knows when you tell your child not to do something, they're going to try to do it anyway. For Sherman and Penny, it's using the Wayback machine even after Mr Peabody distinctly tells them not to. When Sherman uses the machine to prove to Penny that he truly saw and spoke with George Washington, she decides to use the machine as a toy rather than a tool and goes back to ancient Egypt. Upon rescuing her from nearly being married to king Tut and mummified, the Wayback machine malfunctions and lands them in France around the time Leonardo da Vinci (Stanley Tucci) painted the Mona Lisa. Following the repair of the Wayback they get into a panic and drops into The Trojan War, in ancient Greece.

What an adorable couple!

This movie was filled with emotions and conflicts. The time travel, like any other movie can get a little hectic and may be off a tad, but if you just sit back and relax you will enjoy this flick. Let's face it, any movie regarding time travel will have it's plot holes, even masterpieces like Back to the Future.

In the end we see the relationship between Mr Peabody and Sherman mature. This is simply not only a "kids movie." Sherman and Penny grow closer together, so much that upon returning to present day they're the best of friends. Even the hideous Ms Grunion meets the man of her dreams, as she is pulled into the past by a Greek soldier. Needless to say, "Mr. Peabody and Sherman" is a beautiful, funny, and most importantly probably the most entertaining flick Dreamworks has produced since Shrek.

RATING: 8.5/10

The Brass Teapot (2012)

Directed by: Ramaa Mosley
Starring: Juno Temple, Michael Angarano, Alexis Bledel


I don't normally watch much TV, the excess of commercials bore me but every once in awhile I'll find myself channel-surfing and will stumble upon a hidden gem or two. The other day was no exception, I came across this as it was just starting on HBO and thought the summary sounded interesting enough and being on a premium movie channel meant one most important thing: No commercials.

The Brass Teapot (2012) is a movie about a high achiever who fell in love and later married a guy who had very few ambitions in life. Regardless of their financial woes, our lead character, Alice (Juno Temple) went to college but because she refuses to start at entry-level cannot get hired. Her husband, John (Michael Angarano) is a unsuccessful salesman. While driving down a seemingly desolate highway, they get hit by a large truck in front of a little antique store. Alice spots the owner, with an extraordinary looking teapot that she decides she must have so she finds her way inside.

Soon after arriving home with the teapot, she learns it's no ordinary teapot. Money flies out of this indestructible teapot whenever the person holding it gets hurt. The more pain, the larger the payout. One can only assume how the rest of the film goes, the once broke couple are now covered in cuts and bruises but are wealthier than they ever imagined they would be. This movie is an original story of greed, how can one be happy for beating the crap out of each another? The teapot, an imminent object, tears them apart physically and even emotionally.

I later found out this was an independent film, created on a low budget (est. $900,000), which would explain the rushed scenes and flopping storyline but not to say it wasn't enjoyable and the premise was original. The leading cast aren't well known names, Juno Temple and Michael Angarano but they both do a superb job, which sent me looking for the rest of their filmography.

Finally, the consensus is this film won't win any academy awards but that doesn't mean it's not worth checking out if you ever come across it.

RATING: 8.5/10

Curse of Chucky (2013)

Directed by: Don Mancini
Starring: Chantal Quesnelle, Fiona Dourif, Jordan Gavaris


The Movie:
Twenty-five years later, the infamous killer doll returns to seek revenge as well as to terrorize new victims. This story begins when the wheelchair-bound Nica (Fiona Dourif) accepts a package in the mail. Inside the package is a friend 'til the end.

Review:
This straight-to-DVD sequel is unlike the former two, it's actually pretty decent. The producers decide to bring back Chucky, and even release a little sinister history to keep the franchise fresh.

It all began twenty-five years ago, leading to the death of the "Lakeshore Strangler" and the reborn of Chucky. The "lakeshore strangler" falls in love with the then pregnant Sarah (Chantal Quesnelle). After the sudden death of her husband, Sarah goes into a depressed state, and insists on not seeing Chucky anymore. Now Sarah is still depressed and living with her wheelchair bound daughter Nica (Fiona Dourif) in a large, isolated house, when a package addressed to Sarah gets delivered. Inside the package, a Good Guys doll introduces himself as "Chucky". The event that night concluded in Sarah's untimely death. Nica's sister Barbara (Danielle Bisutti), her husband Ian ( Brennan Elliott ), their daughter Alice ( Summer H. Howell ), and their live-in nanny Jill (Maitland McConnell) all come to the house for their mother's funeral. When more people start showing up dead, Nica begins to realize the Good Guys doll isn't so good.

When I first went into this movie, I had the thought that it was going to be a total reboot of Child's Play which would've been disappointing. I'm glad to discover it was a sequel, and after all these years I think it was a job well done. Many scenes are effective with inbuilt tension and jump scares, notably the shower encounter and dinner gathering. With lingering camera movements and interesting angles, Mancini also leaves plenty to the imagination as some of the set ups take place off screen, that said there are lots of effects, blood and gore on display - decapitation, an electrocution, an empty eyeball socket and an axe attack to name a few.

I noticed they made the voice of Chucky more sparse this time around, I was expecting the foul mouthed one liners he was given in the Child's Play trilogy. That doesn't neglect my current feelings for this movie though, it was still superb acting and under great direction. The story leaves plenty of holes to be filled in with yet another sequel, which I will anxiously await. I definitely recommend this movie. And when you watch it, don't stop it as soon as the credits start rolling - stick around for the additional scene afterward.

Speaking of the after credits scene, my confusion was with the footage of Tiffany (Jennifer Tilly). She was killed, in the Bride of Chucky if I'm not mistaken, in the bathtub, shortly after transferring her soul into the Tiffany doll. So how could she still be alive at the end of this one? If anyone could clarify this bit for me, I'd appreciate it, drop a line in the comments.


RATING: 6/10

Red Riding Hood (2011)

Directed by: Catherine Hardwicke
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Lukas Haas, Gary Oldman


The Movie:
 Set in a medieval village, the young beautiful Valarie (Amanda Seyfried) falls in love with a woodcutter, Peter (Shiloh Fernandez) all while her parents have already arranged for her to marry the wealthy Henry (Max Irons). Not wanting to be apart any longer, Valerie and Peter decide to run away until her sister ended up killed by a werewolf that haunts the town. For years prior, the town has sacrificed a animal whenever the wolf comes around. Until one red moon night, when the werewolf decides to take a human life. The town is now frantic and decides to call upon a famous werewolf hunter, Father Solomon (Gary Oldman), to help them kill the wolf. Soloman brings some bad news that warns the people that the wolf takes the form of a human by day, and can be any one of them. Valarie quickly suspects the werewolf to be someone she loves, but has she starts to panic the townspeople turn on her declaring she is a witch because she did something none of them have ever done: speaks to the wolf.

Review: 
Twilight director, Catherine Hartwicke brings us a folk tale adaptation. The idea was good, but the way it was portrayed was horrible. There's something about movies like this that make me cringe for thinking there's no value in film anymore, a story that's supposed to be about a little girl walking through the forest to grandma's house only to find a big bad wolf has taken her place has been transformed into another love triangle. I couldn't help but think to my self whether I have  already seen this movie, even though I know it was the first viewing. It became obvious to me that this movie was put out to attract Twilight fans with this plot.

Casting Amanda Seyfried as "Red" (err, Valerie?) was an interesting choice, considering the last movie I remember seeing her in was Jennifer's Body where fortunately her good looks distracted us from her bad acting ability. And why Valerie? What was so wrong with keeping the original fairy tale alive and naming her Red?  Overall, Seyfried was the right choice. To be fair, given the cheesy dialogue and Hardwicke's uninspired direction you couldn't expect anyone else to do a better job.

This movie had it's fair share of bad CGI, especially the werewolf scenes. For a PG-13 rated film, you can't expect any hardcore action or gore and Red Riding Hood was no exception.

Bottom line, Red Riding Hood is a campy popcorn flick and is worth a dollar rental if you are hard pressed for something to watch.

RATING: 6/10

Spy (2015)

Director: Paul Feig
Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Rose Byrne, Jude Law, Jason Statham

Synopsis: 
Susan Cooper, played by the witty Melissa McCarthy has always been told she didn't have what it takes to be a field agent, but when her partner is allegedly killed by a deadly arms dealer and another top agent is compromised, she volunteers to go deep undercover to prevent a global crisis.



Reviewing movies still in theaters is so cliche that I rarely do it, actually I rarely watch movies in the theater period. However over the weekend I had the opportunity to see a double bill of Jurassic World and Spy, two of the year's current top movies at the box office.

As a long time fan of Melissa McCarthy, well before she started appearing in movies, I was looking forward to seeing Spy sooner or later. Reuniting McCarthy with Rose Byrne on the big screen, since Bridesmaids was such a treat. The plot brings us a James Bond type film, with the novelty factor of interesting characters of it's own - creating a one of a kind spy adventure with some seriousness one would find in a Bond film.

Spy is an action comedy, whether you view it as a action or a comedy is up to you. Personally I found it hilarious from the first minute it flashed on the screen to the very end of the credits. If you're not laughing at the jokes, you're laughing at the over-the-top action sequences.

The characters each have their own way of being likable, not just Melissa McCarthy, Jude Law, or Statham but also the supporting cast. For instance, Miranda Hart plays Susan Cooper's goofy friend and colleague who does some dumb things with the right intentions, Rose Byrne plays the daughter of a deadly arms dealer and exchanges some hilarious one liners with Cooper throughout the film, and Peter Serafinowicz who plays Aldo, the sleazy Frenchman who loves women and everything about them. The leading cast includes Melissa McCarthy is one of her funniest roles since The Heat. Her witty humor and snarky personality makes her a perfect undercover CIA agent. Next brings us Jude Law, this man could very well become the next James Bond, as scary as that may sound. Finally, our last lead actor is a recent action hero who requires no introduction, Jason Statham. Personally I believe he was trying too hard to steal the show in this movie, his jokes was uncanny and even the action sequences he was involved with seemed a bit washed up. That's not to say he's a bad actor, he just should stand clear of comedic roles of which he does not belong.

Spy was everything I expected plus some, directed by Paul Feig proves he clearly knows how to join the right amount of comedy and action to make a blockbuster worth watching. It's not Oscar-worthy, but I believe it was only aimed to be a campy fun Bond-esque flick, nothing more or less. A movie I would recommend if you are looking for a fun movie night.

My Rating: 8/10

Take a Walk in Someone Else's Shoes

Director: Tom McCarthy
Starring: Adam Sandler, Steve Buscemi, Dustin Hoffman

 I used to be a big fan of Adam Sandler. In the last decade, we've seen a lot of crap that was somehow affiliated with him, so naturally I was a little nervous when my ten year old asked if we could rent The Cobbler.

Having known absolutely nothing about this movie, hell I wasn't even aware of it's existence until we saw it on the screen at the crimsoned rental kiosk. Despite all odds against this movie, I had a free credit burning a hole in my virtual wallet to use, so what did I have to lose, other than ninety minutes of my life? The Cobbler was significantly a better film than I had expected, it delivers a magical concept that actually works. While it still has it's flaws, like a few dumb jokes and a couple predictable plot events, it remains entertaining without juvenile humor attempts.


Max Simkin (Adam Sandler) repairs shoes in the same New York shop as four generations before him. Just when he finds his life not exciting enough, he finds a antique stitching machine in the basement of the shop that miraculously does more than stitch soles. It allows him to step into the lives of whoever owns the shoes, to include lives of those whose lives are more diverse than his. Adam Sandler has less of a juvenile attitude in this, and more of casual awkwardness from a polite man. Not to mention having a decent supporting cast to include Steve Buscemi, Ellen Barkin, and Dustin Hoffman gave this movie a different approach than what we are used to.

The plot reminded me of Be Kind, Rewind , in that the community is out to rescue an old neighborhood fixture - in this case the whole neighborhood - from being re-developed, using any means necessary. Overall, it's a film I can rightfully recommend.

My Rating: 7/10

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)

Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu
Starring: Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton

The Movie:
Michael Keaton plays a washed up actor, who once played an iconic superhero, battles his ego and attempts to recover his family, his career and himself in the days leading up to the opening of a Broadway play.



Review:
Finally a movie I feel deserves four Oscar wins, not to mention best picture. Every Oscar season I tend to spend a lot of time catching up on past nominees and winners, the last best picture winner I approved of was A Beautiful Mind - that was an incredible film. That is until I saw Birdman, knowing nothing about who directed, wrote or produced this film I went into it for it's excellent cast line up - after all, there's very few movies Michael Keaton stars in that I dislike.

Speaking of Keaton, before deciding to watch this movie I actually started to think this was a biography on his life. Substitute Birdman for Batman, which happened to be his best work in my humble opinion, and looking into his filmography it comes to little surprise that he's taken on some awful roles in the last decade or two. I'm not sure if he's ever considered being in a Broadway play, but he definitely appears to be a bit washed up as an actor, as he gets older, just like his character: Riggan Thomson. Many big name celebrities are like that, they work up to one big break then fall back. For instance, Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Terminator movies, and Sylvester Stallone and the Rocky franchise. They all want to return to stardom so bad that they take on any random role that seems profitable, in the end they tend to fail to upkeep what once was.

This movie also Zach Galifianakis who should really stick with comedies, his serious dramatic roles simply don't work in anything. The gorgeous Emma Stone, whose last big hit was Zombieland. And speaking of washed up actors, let's look at Edward Norton, this guy was great in Fight Club, but his role in this movie just made me want to punch him in the face. It's incredible how he can portray enough negativity on an otherwise great film.

This film, at it's attempt to be artsy, won't attract everyone, especially casual movie goers who are only interested in Blockbuster films. It almost didn't attract me but I'm not your ordinary movie fan.

** Won four Oscars for 2014: Best Picture, Best Directing, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography

Rating: 8/10

Note: I feel I could talk more about this movie but without spoiling it for those who haven't watched it I've decided to further any discussion to the comments below, leave a comment and I'll love to discuss this movie with you guys one-on-one.

Join the Revolution

Director: Francis Lawrence
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Donald Sutherland, Philip Seymour Hoffman

Picking up where Catching Fire left off, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014) takes place in District 13, the once forgotten district containing refugees of fallen districts before it. Once Katiness (Jennifer Lawrence) awakens from her coma she is told her former homestead that was District 12 was destroyed by President Snow (Donald Sutherland) following the rebellion she reluctantly lead.

Under the leadership of District 13 President Coin (Julianne Moore) and the advice of her trusted friends, uses the courage she's shown during the games to become the symbol of the rebellion for the remaining districts of Panem, with one caveat: To rescue Peeta and the other Hunger Games victors currently held against their will at the Capitol.
Now to be honest, I'm an avid movie watcher and haven't read a page of the books these movies are adapted from. The first movie was entertaining enough for me to actually go see in theaters, but much like the Twilight movies, the excitement stops there. Surely Catching Fire was better than I expected, but there was a bit of a drop that gave me the impression that I didn't need to see any further sequels of this franchise on the big screen. It became obvious once Lionsgate announced they were splitting this last installment into two parts, that this franchise has become a cash cow for them. Mockingjay is nothing special, an excessively long melodrama that refused to follow the premise of the former two movies, which was to intrigue and entertain from one scene to another.

See the expression on her face? Even she's uncertain about this film.

Slow to arrive at a possible climax-inducing cliffhanger, the director seemed to miss the potential for a meatier action sequence. There were, however, some good scenes of the rebels fighting for their freedom but they were more of a exposition than anything else.

R.I.P. Philip Seymour Hoffman 1967-2014

Unfortunate fault to this film chapter's downfall, was it's subtle cash grab strategy of being split into two movies. Obviously this shouldn't come to surprise anyone, the first half is supposed to recreate our main character to become a heroine against the ruthless ruler of Panem. There wasn't much to see here, although it was refreshing to see the story shift from the arena type games to a more realistic battle of the empire. It's lack of action seemed to bore more than entertain, which doesn't make much sense for a movie, which was created to entertain. We can only hope the second half of this chapter in The Hunger Games novel will offer a lot more gripping action and drama, but still will be nothing I'm going to bother seeing on day one.

Rating: 6/10

Related:  The Hunger Games (2012) & The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)