Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

      As a young child there were many toys that I truly loved -  He-Man, Transformers, GI Joe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  Of all of those recent movies have been released except for He-Man and I am awaiting that one with high hopes.  The Turtles though were something that I found a true liking and of course the closest that I could relate.  They were of course teenagers and loved pizza.  So what if they lived in a sewer and probably smelled bad, I could never get enough of the cartoons or the toys and was completely amazed when the original movie came out.  It was actually well done.  Although the original April O'Neil wasn't my favorite, she kind of grew on you.  After a few sequels and cartoon movies, I had thought the franchise was doomed.  But in today's Hollywood, any movie out there is up for "re-imagination".  I am glad they are re-inventing the turtles though.  They needed an edgier look and of course with today's special effects and CGI what better way than to include the TMNTs. 

      I was a little worried because I had heard Michael Bay was in charge of this one.  Luckily for the Turtle fans out there Bay wasn't the director and was pretty much a Co-Producer.  Apparently he is busy working on how to screw up another Transformer movie.  Some people don't like Megan Fox but in the role of April O'Neil, she did a great job. April is a little on the corny side and well what teenager wouldn't look at her and fall for those good looks.  The Turtles are teenagers after all.  The only draw back to this movie was the character development in shredder.  There wasn't any at all.  He was kind of a side note and the only thing that made him even remotely cool was a metallic Samurai Iron Man suit.  It was interesting but a little too much.  Will Arnet Plays a great goofball and William Fichtner plays a great bad guy.  I actually wish they would have made Fichtner Shredder.  It would have actually made some sense but then again, who am I to say how Hollywood should make a movie?  I don't even get paid to write these reviews. 

    I can tell that this wasn't Michael Bay because there weren't as many explosions as one could expect out of one of his movies.  Yet, if you know his movies you can see the humor and use of actions that equate to a Bay movie.  Other than those undertones the movie has a pretty good pace.  The action scenes come often and one can throw in a good laugh track.   The graphics are great.  It is nice seeing the turtles as beefed up wrecking machines.  There is violence but in order to keep the PG-13 rating there isn't any gore.

     I would recommend this  movie to all the Turtle fans out there.  Even if you think you might be dissapointed by the lack of Fan Boy love, it still does the Turtles justice.  Children 9 and above shouldn't have too much of a problem watching it either.  Although some of the scenes can be a little scarrier for the younger ones.  The comedy does suit the younger crowd.  Unlike Guardians of the Galaxy the comedy here is geared to the young ones.  If you have no love of the TMNT or any kind of action flick and just want to cuddle to a honey, stay away from this one.  If you are one of us that grew up watching them in cartoon form in one way or the other, you won't be too dissapointed, and some of you may actually end up enjoying it more than you thought possible.

Guardians of the Galaxy

     I wouldn't say I am an avid comic book reader, although I do have a few in my collection.  I am however, an avid super hero fan and I knew of the Guardians characters from watching cartoons.  I always enjoyed the characters but the screen time in the shows were always limited to a few episodes and cameos.  I have heard that Marvel took a chance on making the Guardians movie, but right now I think Marvel is on top of its game.  It is the age of the super hero right now.  Although I believe that age started with the advent of Superman, Batman, and Spiderman and has continued on, but for movie sake, it doesn't get any better than the present.  Guardians of the Galaxy is a shot of adrenaline in an already speed induced super hero market.  The lesser known characters of Starlord, Groot, Gamora, Drax and of course the gunwielding racoon, Rocket, are a very interesting introduction to this market.  You may not know much of these characters.  The comics weren't well known and fairly short lived, but after watching this movie, you will want to know more.  I am pretty sure that Marvel will be releasing some new comics and possibly cartoons that help us delve more into the characters, and of course I don't think this will be the last we see of the Guardians on the silver screen.

    Chris Pratt plays Peter Quill a.k.a. Starlord and he does a good job of being the pretentious, self involved ladies man, who even though he seems to be looking out for number one, becomes the leader of a rag-tag group of misfits.  Zoe Saldean does a good job as a brooding assasin and even Dave Bautista of WWE fame does a great acting job.  Bradley Cooper as Rocket was pure genius and even Vin Diesel playing a part truly meant for him as the voice of Groot.  Groot only says three words the whole movie but in a way that oddly makes sense.  Overall the acting was great for this type of film.  There are a lot of points in this movie that the avid comic person will actually like and really take notice of.  Thanos for one is going to be a big character in upcoming films and it was interesting to finally get to see how
    The overall pace of the movie is fast.  The plot is actually well done and keeps you involved.  Amazingly (and here Michael Bay needs to take notes) the comedy in the movie actually flows with the action and the dialogue.  The action itself is non-stop.  There is always something going on.  You even truly hate the bad guy, who does a great job of being the bad guy.  I think the biggest downfall of the movie is the obscurity of the characters, but that can also be the greatest part of this.  Most people don't know them and will be able to enjoy the movie without nitpicking all the small things that can ruin a movie for the more avid or even part-time fans.
    Overall I would say that everyone should go see this movie.  I don't and won't say that very often but there is so much to offer for all movie types.  If you love action, great, if you love comedy, great, if you love sci-fi, great, if you want romance, well maybe a little, talking animals, great, even talking plants, that was covered.  There are explosions, violence and some language throughout.  The humor is more for the adults but thankfully the younger crowd won't understand the crudeness.  I would say keep this to a more mature child range.  The talking racoon may be cute but he is the crudest of them all.  If you are looking for the summer smash hit, then here it is.  It is a Hollywood big bangs, big action film but well done.  If you want nothing but drama then stay away from this movie but if you love comics and everything super hero then this is the movie for you.

Noah

 

I love to watch movies in the theatre.  The whole experience is mesmerising to me.  A giant screen showing larger than life images of every imagineable situation possible.  I am also a graphics nerd and the bigger and better the CGI the more likely I will enjoy a show.  But, there is occasion where I would rather skip the theatre and just sit down and watch the movie at home.   Those would be the more involved thought provoking movies that I can rewind to rewatch a scene, or the romantic comedies that I can curl up with wife and enjoy the night, or that I just didn't feel warranted a big screen review.  It is the main reason why I have a Netflix subscription.  Well, for the movies and it keeps my children occupied watching cartoon reruns.  I decided therefore to write a review of a movie that was released earlier this year but I was unable to watch at the theatre.  I didn't feel a strong desire to watch Noah when released but was curious as to how Hollywood would interpret a book that has possibly sold more copies than any other book known to man.  I am a fairly religious person and know the story of Noah and the Ark.  I do admit that I had to sit down and re-read the story to "fact check" some of the finer points in the movie.  I would say that Hollywood has taken a huge literal interpretive stick to this movie.  The basics of the story are there; men are wicked, Noah builds an ark, animals fill the ark, earth is flooded, everyone dies, and olive branch.  The writers of this script  took many liberties with their thoughts and may have put what I call the "Hollywood Touch" to a story.  I find it amazing that the story of Noah isn't a huge epic scrawling tome of novels, it actually covers only a few pages.  Why then does Hollywood feel the need to make things a little weird?  Only way I can explain that is... It's Hollywood.

I actually think if one is able to set aside the actual story and watch this movie with a disregard to any religious afiliation or even think of it as a good Fantasy story then the movie itself is a good watch.  Russell Crowe plays Noah and Jennifer Connely plays Naameh, Noah's Wife.  The acting is very well done and the effects are actually pretty good.  I was amazed that they were able to take CGI and make it actually look like stop motion.

I woud recommend this to anyone that is able to look past the actual story and watch a movie that has some pretty good CGI and some decent action to it.  The pace of the movie flows and keeps one engaged.  If you are easily offended by someone's interpretation of biblical stories whether wrong or right, then this one isn't for you.  I would also say it isn't for the younger children, it is dark and can be violent at times.  I would agree with the rating and keep it above the 13 year old threshold.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

I decided that I was going to take a break from the big explosion, action adventure, CGI laden movie and watch something with a little less, and then I saw Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.  This is a continuation of the more updated Planet of the Apes and Rise of the Planet of the Apes.  This movie is set in a future in which most of the human population has been wiped off the earth and the apes are taking control. It is nice to see a more modern look on the series and with a complete and utterly needed retelling of the classic.  I was a big fan of the original shows, even with the cheesey costumes.  It is nice to see modern CGI that can make humanistic apes seem completely realistic.  The only thing that makes me excited about movies is if this is where we are at above and beyond 20 years ago, what is the next step 20 years from now.  I honestly look forward to seeing some amazing things from the film industry in the upcoming future. 

Ceasar returns in this movie as the leader of a group of isolated apes living in Northern California.  The movie takes place about five years after Rise.  The human population has been decimated by the simian flu and the apes are thriving with their new found brain power.  Although a little slow in the beginning due to story development, the pace does quickly pick up.  There is an emotional attachment not only to the humans but to the apes as well.  The human characteristics are evident throughout and helps one empathize and sympathize with a lot of the hardships they must endure. 

There is a dark tone throughout the movie and does have some strong violent scenes.  The apes are extremely realistic looking and would make anyone think twice before messing with one.  There are a few spots of comedy in the movie but the overall theme is very dramatic.  I was impressed that more of the story revolved around the apes and didn't completely center on the human issues.  There are a lot of lessons that can be gleamed from paying attention to the suttle undertones. 

I would reccomend this to anyone who enjoyed the first series.  There is a some great action scenes and the violence, though not bloody, can be intense at times.  If you enjoy movies about animals, a great plot line, and gun welding apes riding destria, the this is the movie for you.  There is even a little bit of a love story in it.  I don't reccomend this for the younger crowd because of the violence and dark tones.  Recommended age would be twelve and up and that would also depend on the childs maturity level.  This is not a dating movie, but feel free to take your spouse or long time relation to this movie.  Stay clear if you are looking for happy, romantic, feeling movies, this one is dark pretty much from the beginning to the end.

Transformers: Age of Extinction

 Long ago in a time not so distant I sat, more than likely in my He-Man underwear, eating a bowl of cereal watching one of the most amazing cartoons of all time.  My brother and I would sit mesmerised soaking in every single bit of Transformer glory that we could.  Who wouldn't love giant robots that transform into different objects.  Michael Bay is at it again with all new bots and even new actors.  Mark Wahlberg has replaced Shia Labeouf and most people think this is a good thing.  There is a new threat for the autobots and the decipticons aren't the main bad guys.   A new evil has arisen along with some human assistance in the form of a very nasty Kelsey Grammar, who can play a very nasty bad guy. Also being introduced, to my childlike giddy pleasure, are the dinobots.  Giant dinosaur robots!  The only thing I could wish would be that I was a child again so that I can see this type of movie through the mind of a hyper-imaginative child.  Most of my childhood loves all in one movie and in awesome graphics. It would be a small slice of Heaven.

This is a movie about Transformers that was made by Michael Bay. I wish that the reigns would be handed over to someone like Joss Whedon or even Christopher Nolan, but we are stuck with Bay and at least we know we will get huge explosions, of which there are plenty. Autobots are now being hunted by humans with the aid of an extraterrestrial robot that is after Optimus Prime's    Spark. The plot does take a long time to figure out and the beginning of the movie does seem to drag. When the action begins though, it doesn't slow down for long.

 

There is a tone of humor early in the movie, and splattered through out.  It is a Michael Bay type of humor and may be lost on the younger crowds.  The movie is long and does drag in a few spots which is trying to fill in some plot gaps left from the previous films.  Overall the acting was decent.  This is a movie about giant robots so there can't be too many complaints about the human element and the acting or lack thereof.

 

I would recommend this movie to those that truly love the Transformers.  To the people like me that grew up watching the Autobots battle the Decipticons on Saturday mornings.  There are a lot of explosions and amazingly some death does occur.  Despite the destruction and violent nature I would say that if you have a child that is even remotely interested in robots or dinosaurs then this is a good choice for them.  Don't go to watch this movie hoping for a great plot or superb acting.  Don't even watch it for a good story.  Go to watch this movie knowing that you will see Optimus riding a dinosaur robot like a wild horse and leave reality behind.

22 Jump Street

  I decided that I needed to bust out of the shell of action or sci-fi movies and break into something a little different.  Well there is action in this flick but it is more of a comedy than action show.  It was a nice break from the overly digitalized CGI affairs that I have recented as of late.  I do enjoy a good comedy though, and of course how can you go wrong with a sequel to the 2012 Remake of 21 Jump Street.  I was not dissapointed as to the comedic aspect of the movie.  It is nice to see that big movie budgets aren't only spent of CGI oriented outings, but it would be nice to get a little more original with movie ideas.  The execs in Hollywood do seem to be grasping at straws more and more trying to find something that will sell instead of producing movies that are original.  There can be a whole other article about sequels and the unecessary greed that is the cause of them but I do not feel I need to digress to those levels at this time.  As sequels go, this particular one does not fall completely flat.  There are some good points in the movie but if you want to know more, just read on.

 

In the sequel we see a return of Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum reprising the roles of Schmitt and Jenko.  This time around the awkward duo get to be undercover at college.  The movie pokes a loto fun at itself.  There is even a girl that makes fun of Schmitt's (Jonah Hill) apparent age.  There is no lack of jokes and some of the gags seem to be a little forced.  The acting is not the best in the world even for Jona Hill.  Some of the scenes seem a little forced and of course weighing in a little heavy on the goofy side.  That is exactly what one would expect from this type of movie though.

 

The tone throughout is lite and funny.  There are a few gut busting hilarious moments.  The story and plot line is a little predictable with a decent twist in the end.  Nothing that would be hard to figure out if you really pay attention.  The story does focus a little more on the relationship between Schmitt and Jenko and that has some funny moments to it as well. 

 

Overall I would say this is an adequate summer feel good movie.  There is a good bit of laughter and one can take a long time date to see this movie.  I don't recommend it for a first date but certaintly for those that are looking for a more light hearted movie.  It is great for the guys and girls.  Plenty of Channing Tatum to look at for the girls and lots of goof for the guys.  I do not recommend this one for children under 16.  The language is barely suitable for most adults.  If you are looking for a funny break from the graphics hardened world and want to just go into a mindless meld, then this show is for you.  If you are easily offended by language and crude humor then look for something else.

X-Men: Days of Future Past

If you haven't had the opportunity to jump on the Marvel band wagon do so now.  I mean that seriously.  They are raking in the dough with all of their movies.  This is the era of the comic books and even though some of DC's stuff is good, Marvel has the market cornered completely.  This new installation of X-Men brings back a lot of the old characters we saw have a not so great demise in one of the not so great previous installations.  This is a good thing actually.  The new movie has done pretty much what has happened to the Star Trek franchise and reset the timeline.  Thank GOODNESS.  With the new way of super hero movies coming out (refer to all my past hero movie reviews) being darker and more edgier, I think the producers and directors have finally realized that more is not always better. 

This is a Marvel Super Hero movie.  Though there are going to be a huge list of "Hollywood Sins", it was fairly well done.  We get to see a lot of the old characters return.  They return not only as their old incantations but as the younger and more attractive models as well.  It is also nice to see some new faces.  Amazingly enough I was surprised at how much I liked Quicksilver.  Before the movie even came out there was a lot of backlash over his character but after watching the movie he quickly became one of my favorite characters.  I actually found myself wanting to see more of what he could do.  Peter Dinklage also has a nice role in the movie too.  For all of you GOT fans it was interesting to see him in another role.

The movie itself has a much darker tone than some of its predecessors.  Again going back to what is actually popular and what more people want to see - hyper-realism.  It is an action film as well, with lots of unbelievable explosions and it even has giant robots.  There is death in the movie but not a lot of blood and there are a few curse words.  The movie had to maintain its PG-13 rating.  There is a pretty good life struggle story that tries to develop some of the characters and make them seem more humanistic and to help us understand their motives and emotions.

I highly reccomend this to all the X-Men fans out there.  The series has returned in a great way and is now paving roads to hopefully a new outlook.  Who knows for sure though?  I would avoid this with smaller children.  The death and explosions can be a little much.  They might also not get a lot of the darker tones.  They will laugh at some of the lighter bits but those are very few indeed.  If you are looking for a romantic comedy or even a more thought provoking outlook on life then this isn't your cup of tea.  This movie is about Mutants and the super powers geeks like me wish we had.

Godzilla (2014)

I literally walked around for a week before watching this movie saying Godzira.   I grew up loving the old Godzilla shows with a small passion.  I was a fiend for the special effects, even if it was just a man in a lizard suit jumping up and down on cardboard buildings.  I was able to use an imagination and think of how it actually would be like.  When I heard they were making a new one I didn’t know if I wanted to cringe because it may turn out to be a little like the other one or would it follow along the lines of today’s more darker toned movies that try to delve into hyper-realism.  Well it is Godzilla there is no true hyper-realism.  In this new outing we see Godzilla has grown to a more respectable earth shattering size.  The only thing is, this time Godzilla isn't alone.

In this Godzilla movie I think the director and writers wanted to take him back to an original format.  Godzilla is even able to span the globe and we see him in Japan and in the United States.  Little touches that show that they were trying to bring back the old style and stop creating a story line that didn't follow the original monster feel.   Other than having Godzilla himself there is another monster element that has been added.  This makes the movie feel a little less like a Godzilla movie and more of a monster flick but they do pay good homage to the big guy. 

The acting isn't bad.  It was nice to see Brian Cranston doing something after Breaking Bad and Aaron Taylor-Johnson of Kick Ass fame.  The makers of the movie do try to have more of a human element to the movie.  They make you feel as if there are true heros and true villains both in Human and in Monster forms. 

I would recommend this to anyone that grew up in the monster era of the early to mid 80's.  It is a good modern day remake of a classic.  There are a lot of inconsistencies in building destruction and location markers but does anyone watch these type of movies to find reality.  There is a lot of loud explosions and monster fighting.  I would reccomend young children stay clear for the loud noises but the young may love the monsters more than the parents.  If you don't want to see mega monsters battling it out and wreaking mass havock, then this movie is not for you. 

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Captain America returns in this sequel to brighten the silver screen once again.  Marvel has found a niche in the movie going experience that is beginning to line their pockets very nicely.  And even better than that, it is a niche that is fairly fresh and not completely outdated or overdone.  Not yet anyway.  The Captain returns with a fresh new set of problems.  He doesn’t know what to do with himself in this new era of human history.  It seems that life isn’t as black and white as it was during WWII.  He now faces moral dilemmas, as well as enemies both foreign and domestic.  What is a super soldier to do?

In the sequel we get to see a spattering of the Marvel heroes including the Black Widow and Nick Fury, and of course seeing, as all the bad guys were killed off in the last movie, there are new bad guys, or are there? An addition to the story line is the Falcon.  Although the Falcon is a dumbed down version of Iron man, he does throw a little bit of a dynamic into the mix.  And thankfully here Marvel doesn’t inundate the viewer with more superhero than they can keep up with.   There are some interesting twists to the story line.  Some are completely expected and others not so much so.  It is an action flick after all.  Amazingly we get to see more of Nick Fury in this movie than in any of the other Avenger movies. It helps to be a fan of Samuel L. Jackson.

There is a lighter tone at times and even though the movie starts out at a fairly good pace it does slow down to try to get the backstory and future cast into place.  Seems like a necessary evil in movies these days.  Overall the flow of the movie is in the right direction.  The pace other than a little bit of a brief slow respite in the “near” beginning stays fairly constant.  The banter between Captain America and Black Widow throws a humorous touch and even maybe a hint of a future love interest, who knows for sure how that will end up.  There are a lot of explosions and a lot of gunfire.  Also we get to see Cap throwing his shield around and having it bounce around and boomerang right back to him.  There is a lot of violence but true to the PG-13 rating not much blood and not a lot of language.

I would recommend this one to anyone that is interested in the whole Avengers universe.  It adds another chapter to the story and continues the story line fairly well.  If you like action movies, high levels of CGI, big explosions, super hero movies and fighting scenes, then you can’t go wrong with this one.  If you are looking for the next IFC classic or for a romantic dinner date than you should probably go back and look at the choices you have made in life.  I don’t recommend this for the smaller children; the loud noises and violence may be overwhelming.  I would say 8-9 year old children especially the boys would appreciate this one, and adults can have fun with it as well.

Back at it ...

Back at the movie review thing, I am going to try to get a few of these things out there as often as I can.  I find that I love going to the movies and even though the prices have skyrocketed to unethical proportions, I don’t mind, because it is the experience that I crave.  When watching movies on screens that are taller than the average house and surrounded by complete strangers, it makes the jaunt to the movies just a little more interesting.  You really never know what you are going to get.  The unfamiliarity is part of the movie going experience.  Plus the overly priced popcorn and sodas can be nice too.  Too bad I am a penny pincher and would rather carry a bag of skittles in my pocket.  (This might be frowned upon though so I don’t recommend doing that.) 

So off to the movies I go.  The summer blockbuster period has started.  I think that this time period gets moved up every year too.  Not that I am complaining about that.  I look forward to the summer periods not only for the warm weather, but the movies tend to get a little better  and more abundant during those months.

Red Tails

Red tails is a movie that is about Black Americans flying sorties in World War II and the troubles that they encountered in order to do so.  This is a film by George Lucas and Lucas had a lot of difficulty in actually making this film.  The film was a few years in the making and was a challenge for Lucas to distribute due to a cast that was all black with no white main characters.  Lucas even put up some of his own money for distribution.

The movie itself is an action movie moves well and has a good story line.  The movie is about the Tuskegee Air men that became famous for their courage and their successes in the war.  It was believed that the black community could never do the things that these men were able to accomplish. 

The movie is a little on the inaccurate side when it comes to completely historical but what does one expect out of Hollywood.  There is a lot of high flying action, shooting and explosions.  The acting is pretty good.  Cuba Gooding Jr. actually finds his way to the silver screen, taking a break from his B movie career and actually getting back to the big budget movies.  Terrence Howard plays a good commanding officer, Col. Bullard. The rest of the cast are fairly unknown but they do a good job and keep one involved in the show.

I would recommend seeing this movie if you are into historical fiction or even war movies.  The fighting scenes can be pretty intense at times.  The aerial views are something alone to watch the movie for.  Dogfights are fun to watch and the bad guys do a great job of being the bad guys.  I don't recommend this one for the younger kids, maybe 9 or 10 and up due to some violence and loud noises but it is a good history lesson and a great lesson in tolerance as well.

Underworld: Awakening

Kate Beckinsale reprises her role as Selene, the Vampire who kicks butt, in this fourth installment of the Underworld series.  This one is just as dark as all the others but takes place in the future.  The humans have come to realize that there is a threat out there of both Vampires and Lycans (werewolves) and they pose a threat to humanity so must be destroyed.  Selene is caught and put on ice for study and wakes up in the future not knowing what has happened and realizing that she has a daughter.  The action that ensues afterward is gory and fast paced.

This is not a screen actors dream come true.  There isn't much in the way of great acting.  Even the newcomer India Eisley who plays Selene's teenage daughter is void of many emotions.  There is also no love story in this one.  Its vampire vs. lycan vs. human story that has what most people would think about when they imagine throwing all of these beings into a room and shaking it up to see what would happen.  This isn't Twilight in any sense, the vampires don't sparkle and the werewolves aren't Calvin Klein models.  This is Underworld were the bad guys are bad, and the good guys are bad.

The movie has a very dark tone to it.  Even in 3-D its hard to see from all the black that is flying around but the extreme actions and fast pace of the movie make it a little interesting in 3-D.  As mentioned before there is a lot of killing which in this case leads to a lot of blood and gore.  There are curse words and the gore and blood alone I would say one should keep the little children away from this movie.  The creatures alone could cause nightmares in the younger crowds.  I would recommend keeping this one to the older teens and above.

If you are looking for a love story than this one isn't for you.  If you want to take a date to a movie and they are huge Twi-Hards than this isn't for them.  There are no sparkly vampires and no unrequited love story.  Its an action flick plain and simple.  You go to this one to watch Kate Beckinsale wearing very tight clothes and kicking butt.  Throw in some guns, explosions and chopping off of extremities and you have the action flick you wanted to watch.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

Even though the spy thriller movies belongs mainly to one man (James Bond) his American counterpart has stepped up to take a stab at the genre of espionage and sneaking and all the gadgets that one wishes they actually had or are just myths in the making. Mission Impossible is the American Made Spy movie that spans the globe in search of redemption.

Ethan Hunt is at again in this one. But this time he loses the support of the fabled IMF. The black ops group that keeps America and all of its assets safe from the unknown terrors of the world. There is a comedic element in this one with the addition of Simon Pegg as Benji Dunn the Geek extraordinaire that desperately wants to be a field agent but lacks the skills to properly take down the bad guys. There is eye candy in this one in the form of the beautiful Paula Patton as Agent Jane Carter. She lends a beauty and a drama to the supporting cast. Also along for the fun filled ride is Jeremy Renner. His role also adds to the mystique and drama and provides for some interesting internal conflict. The bad guys do a great job of being just that bad guys. There is decent character development and the story telling is interesting

There is a warning though if you go to watch this movie. Read and remember what you are watching. It is Mission impossible. Don't try to over-analyze situations or gadgets or other things like that. Its the government with its seemingly endless amounts of money and ability to come up amazing gadgets that we only wish could be real but at least its fun to watch on the big screen. The action is over the top with lots of high flying stunts and many explosions.I did see a few younger kids in the theater, younger being about 8-10 but I would recommend keeping it around 10 and above if not a little older. There is death and shooting and lots of loud explosions and all that fun stuff, with a few spatters of cussing in there as well.

Without the British accent but with the fancy cars and all the non-stop fast paced sequences this Mission Impossible can seem just that, impossible but almost everything else in Hollywood can be label "Mission Impossible". If you are into action, like James Bond and those type of spy thrillers, than I think one will enjoy this movie and have a good time with it. If you don't like chases and fast paced action stay away from this one, stay far away, don't even go to the theater next to it, the booms through the wall might even bother you.

Sherlock Holms: A Game of Shadows

So there I was wondering what I could do with some free time that I had. Of course I did one of my favorite things in the world, and then I went to go watch a movie. One of the good things about the Holiday season is the release of movies that didn't want to compete with the Summer releases. Its always a joyous time for me for many reasons and the movies just make it that much better.

Sherlock Holmes is a movie that starts with a bang. Literally it starts with a bang. Not mere minutes into the movie and there is a blast of rubble and smoke and all that flying out at you. I am guessing this is supposed to be more enhanced by 3-D which I don't disdain but would rather not shell out the extra dough to watch it like that. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is an action adventure flick that has Robert Downey Jr. reprising his role as Holmes and Jude Law as his trustworthy and ever loyal sidekick Dr. Watson. Moriarty, Holmes's nemesis is played by Jared Harris. The story begins where the last movie left off following the adventures of Holmes and Watson as they try to outplay and outwit the famous Professor Moriarty.

The acting in this movie is above par. Downey Jr. and Jude Law play very well off of each other and the interactions between Harris and Downey are little delights in themselves. The female actress in the movie, Noomi Rapace is a newcomer to American cinema but has been seen in other foreign films. This character, even with a significant role in the plot of the movie kind of fades into the background more often than not and gets lost. That is easy to do though when overshadowed by Downey and Jude Law.

This is a movie of action and adventure spiced up with some upbeat comedy here and there. There are some darker tones to the movie in parts but overall the movie maintains a fast pace and keeps one second guessing. If you enjoyed the first Sherlock movie then this one will be a real treat for you. The movie is worth a watch just to see Robert Downey Jr. in his element. If you aren't of fan of his or would rather take it slow then skip this one. Its fast and loud and might require some thinking, but the good thing is there are parts that don't require a heavy thought process and one can just laugh at that. Not exactly for a younger crowd, some of the humor could be a little crude so keeping to above the 12-13 age group is a good idea for this one.

The Muppets

   I was able to take my two youngest daughters to see the new Muppets movie.  I wanted to give my little girls a taste of what I grew up with.  A crazy zany way of looking at things.  The best part of the movie wasn't actually in the movie it was something my youngest daughter said to me.  Half way into the movie my youngest daughter who is five leaned in close to me and said, "Daddy, Kermit's eyes are always open, he never blinks".  I didn't have an answer to that.  I just laughed and told her to watch the show.
    The newest edition of the Muppets does not fall far from the mark.   There are musical numbers, dancing and the movie making fun at its own expense.  The comedy is slapstick and what else would  you expect from a bunch of characters created from felt and other odds and ends.  There are also stars a plenty in this one.  Some great cameos that I will not spoil but, the Muppets really do play on our Pop Culture and some of the classics as well.  To me thought it will always be hard to watch a Muppet movie and not think about Jim Henson.  Sad to know that many children do not know who Jim Henson is let alone what he has done to the world of entertainment.  They know his beloved characters but not their creator.  I think Jim Hanson would be happy to see the direction his Muppets have taken.
     Children will be brought into a world without the CGI and other effects that they have grown up with and will be delighted to see some of the basic methods of entertainment that a lot of people have seem to lost and not know how to make a good movie without all the CGI. As mentioned before there are musical numbers with singing and dancing.  Something that is refreshing is there is no crass humor, no foul language, and a love story that doesn't delve into the more carnal side of relationships.    If you are looking for action and glory, blood and guts, scares and thrills, or a more thought provoking thrill ride, then look elsewhere.  This story is for the Child within and without all of us.  If you are annoyed by slapstick humor or anything Muppet related, take the kids at least and let them enjoy it. 
     

Tower Heist

   There are those times when you look at the movies schedule and you scratch your head wondering what in the world there is to watch.  Most of the movies during the October-November months really don't have that "movie theater" appeal.  Sure a good Netflix, Redbox, or Blockbuster rental but again not a real good reason to watch at the theaters.  I had a day off from work and was invited to go watch a movie with some of my friends.  Those friends having more leisure time than me are able to watch more movies than I am so this was the last choice on the list that appealed to our somewhat shallow minds.
    This is a comedy that has Ben Stiller being his usual typecast self.  The self motivated, anally retentive go getter that is funny because of the more than awkward situations that you see him get into.  Eddie Murphy and his brand of over the top in your face loud brashness that only Eddie can do was a bright spot in this one.  The other actors did a decent job of playing back up and brought in some other laughs as well.
      The premise of the movie is interesting.  Nothing that really hasn't been seen in any Oceans 11-13 movie but the idea behind this one is its not professionals that are doing the heist.  Its a bunch of misfit unemployed workers of a condo in Manhattan NY.   This does provide some funny and interesting situations.
     The movie has crass humor in it.  There are plenty of innuendos and some "minor" cussing.  With the PG-13 rating you wouldn't expect a lot of the harsh words to come out but there is an occasional bomb throughout the film.  I would recommend sticking to the PG-13 rating and leave this for the kids at least 13 and up.  I would not recommend this as a theater experience but more of a take home rental.  Its good for some laughs and to lighten up the mood.

Captain America: The First Avenger

The time for the Super Hero movies is now. There are those episodes in history where for a few years you get bombarded with movies of the same ilk. In the 80's it was the cheesy sci-fi/fantasy flicks with Conan the Barbarian and its like leading the pack. In the 70's and early 80's it was the gritty crime drama with Dirty Harry leading that race. For now we have the comic/super hero movies to deal with. Not saying any of this is bad in any way. I myself loved the campy fantasy pics of the 80's, and who doesn't love a good Dirty Harry one liner movie.

    Captain America lives up to the genre that its in. It is a movie filled with lots of action and does continually move in a generally forward direction. To those of you who are fans of the Marvel Adventures, one of the good things is they did not venture far from the storyline in this one. The main focus of the movie actually was on Captain America amazingly. Usually in a movie like this the character development is lacking but we see a lot of that with the Cap. Sadly there isn't much room left for the other characters which could make for a great side story. The movie stayed true though and pretty much left all of the other characters on the back burner. This is probably a good thing. Why develop characters that will never be in another movie?
      The acting was decent. Tommy Lee Jones plays a great General, Matrix bad dude Hugo Weaving does a great job as the Red Skull, and Chris Evans (even though has played other Marvel Super Heros sic. Human Torch) was a good fit for Captain America. Besides the token female role in the movie, there really isn't much room for any other acting, but its Captain America, you don't watch a movie like this to see acting. You watch Captain America to see a man throw a sweet looking shield and have it boomerang back to him.
      There is violence and explosions so some of the young children might not enjoy this much but overall its an action flick that makes its way into the Summer Blockbuster Extravaganza. My only let down of sorts and not major just minor annoyance was the ending "boss battle" was kind of lackluster. It seems shows are starting to lose their creative edge when trying to figure out how to off the bad guy in a grandiose type of manner. It was a fun movie, fast paced and hardly a dull moment. Watch with your children 8 and up, especially the boys, and both parents and children will be entertained.

Rainbows End

     Rainbows end hasn't been released as of yet.  I have had the pleasure of watching this movie a few times and hope that my brother does not mind me posting a review here on my blog.  (I will beg forgiveness later)  The movie is about a conglomerate of oddballs from deep East Texas who are traveling for various reasons to California to find their pot of gold and the end of the rainbow.  Characters like Audrey Dean the olden oracle who wears short shorts and walks around town twirling a baton, or Brian the Birdman who just wants to get his roosters into the movie business,  Peter who is stuck in the 70's and is a one man singing sensation, and Country Willie who just wants to sing and play guitar with the Legendary Stardust Cowboy.
     Rainbows end is an up and down thrill ride filmed as if it were a documentary.  Some may say mocumentary, but all of the "acting" is mostly unscripted and the ups and downs of the movie are things that truly happened to this oddball bunch as they traveled across the county.  This is a very low budget movie.  There is no CGI and special effects are left to the musical score.  Most of which are provided by the band in the movie Country Willie and Cosmic Debris.  This a comedy of which few have seen.
    This isn't for the faint of heart.  It isn't a love story and the true meaning of the movie is much deeper than a lot of people expect.  It is a comedy of Epic proportions and the laughs rarely ever stop.  The characters are real.  This may be hard for some people to wrap their minds around this fact but the acting wasn't contrived it was these guys being who they are.  If you love independent films, if you really want to laugh and don't mind a Napoleon Dynamite style of humor than this movie is for you.  If you want to see an action film with fighting scenes and huge amounts of CGI and stunts galore, then well stick around there will always be those but this movie is a one of a kind.  The only thing is now for the movie to be released to the public.  Hopefully this is sooner than later. 
  

Cowboys &. Aliens

     Who on earth would go up against the cowboys of the old Wild West. Nobody that's who. No man in their right mind would tangle with the roughest, toughest, baddest dudes that ever existed. These guys were so tough that they drank cups of molten metal and pissed out nails. Their shooting so good that they would target practice on flies from 50 yards out shooting from the hip and never ever miss. The Cowboys of the Wild West were Chuck Norris's Idols and to this day he still cries because he knows he could never quite achieve such badassery. So who on Earth would ever take on said cowboys. Nobody, but from another planet now that is a different story. Aliens not knowing of the baddest beings to ever walk on two feet would make the mistake of landing in a time when humans where at their meanest and their toughest. It was their first and final mistake.
      Cowboys Vs. Aliens adds its mark in the great Summer blockbuster run. Opening with the likes of Smurfs to me it is a no brainer on which one I would pick to watch. Without children in tow I was able to take my wife and go see this movie. The acting was fairly decent. Olivia Wilde though not the best actress was good eye candy and did a good job. Daniel Craig even though not of the American persuasion still did a pretty good job of playing a grizzled cowboy type. Harrison Ford did a good job as well. The character development was well rounded and actually had you thinking about who was a "good" guy and who wasn't. Besides you know the bad guy aliens. The Aliens where well done. Its nice to see movies that don't overdo the CGI and use enough to make you want a little more.
Its an action packed movie. There are a few slow moments in this one but are quickly squashed and are followed up by the big explosions and fast paced action. You can't go into a movie like this thinking that things look real or don't look real, if you do that you need to seriously take a look at the name of the movie. If you really want realistic movies go watch the Smurfs or Twilight, that will give you huge dose of reality. Its an action movie with good effects and an intriguing story line.
      There are deaths, loud booms and a more adult oriented content. I would suggest the 10 and up crowd for this one. Amazingly though at the theater it was filled with more of the older crowd and when I say older I mean 50+. I think Harrison Ford was the draw for that one. If you don't like Sci-Fi then skip this one. If you like gritty westerns and Sci-Fi then you are going to love this one. Its got the best of both worlds. Don't go watch this one for the Oscar contention that it won't be up for, go to watch it for the action and not to mention its always cool to see Harrison Ford doing action movies.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Harry Potter and the .... Part 2(now known as HP)  I took my wife to see this and chose to leave the children at home. That was probably a good idea. As seen from the last few HP movies and from reading the books, the last few movies were going to be dark. And of course the mood and the on screen views were definitely dark.
I can see why there was a two part final movie. They wanted to make more money. Pretty much the only real reason. I think that with a little bit of an extension of time the Final movie could have been just one part. But then again why do that when one can make twice the amount of money. But alas I am writing a movie review not a review on the greed and corruption of Hollywood which we all know exists but we love to soak it all up.
The movie was Dark. I wouldn't recommend children under the age of 11. There isn't a lot of blood but there is a lot of killing. Voldermort is a scary guy and some of the little ones might be scared off from all that. I would think that if you hadn't have read the books it wouldn't be hard to follow the movies but there would be holes that are hard to fill in. Some of the emotions you felt in the book from people dying aren't really there. I think due to time constraints they played the death scenes down and tried to hurry to the action scenes. This isn't a bad thing necessarily but you lose interest in characters when there isn't a mourning period of sorts. Acting was decent, its really hard to tell because it seemed this one was more about action than acting. Things did happen quickly and the flow was much better than part 1.
If you are a fan of HP films then this is a must. That is a no brainer right there. If you have been hiding in a dark dank hole or living in your momma's basement for the past 5 years or so then first get a life, otherwise go watch the movie. It was a good summer flick. A lot of people will be dissapointed at the ending but its OK that's what happens when you get tired of writing a series and can't really figure out how to off the bad guy in a glamorous awesome way. Its not an Oscar contender for best Screenplay but is a good visual ride.