Month: July 2015

Mission:Impossible – Rogue Nation an IMAX Experience

I have to say that “Mission:Impossible – Rogue Nation” is the most thrilling installment in the Franchise history.
The IMF has been disbanded and its members have been forced to join the CIA, all but Ethan Hunt (Cruise) because his location is unknown.
Ethan Hunt finds himself (Cruise) out in the cold. He and his team are facing a highly skilled threat known as the Syndicate. The highly trained operatives will stop at nothing to destroy Ethan and his team plus create a new world order through specialized terrorist attacks.

Ethan and the team join forces with a DISAVOWED British agent Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), who may be a member of the rogue nation. This is the toughest mission yet for the IMF. The story unfolds from there…
The stunts in this movie are out of this world! Tom Cruise did all of his own stunts. That is extremely impressive considering some of the stunts in the movie. Rebecca Ferguson’s character had some really cool moves.

“Action Packed, Intriguing, Thrilling, Suspenseful” are all of the phrases for “Mission:Impossible – Rogue Nation”. The Cinematography is awesome.

Do you want to see the movie or be part of the movie? It’s a must see in IMAX.

This is a 4 1/2 Star Movie!!

Mr. Holmes

“Mr. Holmes” is another chapter in the life of the world famous Sherlock Holmes.
In this chapter set in 1947 we find an aging Sherlock Holmes on his return journey from Japan where he was searching for a rare plant that has powerful restorative qualities. He has witnessed the devastation of the nuclear war. Now Sherlock returns to his remote seaside farm house to live out the rest of his days.

He spends his time tending to his bees. The only company he has is his housekeeper and her young son Roger. Sherlock battles with a diminished mind and he relies on his house keeper’s son Roger to help him as he grapples with the circumstances of an unsolved case that forced him into retirement. The story unfolds from there…

“Mr Holmes” is a gripping tale. The story takes you back and forth between the aging Bee Keeper and the elegant younger detective that Sherlock was known to be.

Ian McKellen is a force on the screen. He plays Sherlock Holmes effortlessly.
“Mr. Holmes” is only open in a limited-release capacity. Check it out if you can.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

Southpaw

“Rocky” this is not!! But it does have its own identity.

“Southpaw” tells a riveting story about Billy “The Great” Hope a reigning Junior Middle Weight Boxing Champion of the World.

It appears that Billy has a great life and successful Boxing career, a loving wife and an adorable daughter. When tragedy strikes, Billy’s entire world is turned on its axis. His long-time friend and manager Curtis (50 Cent) up and leaves him. Billy hits rock bottom. Now in dire despair Billy turns to an old ally who owns and operates a run-down gym from Billy’s early boxing days. The story unfolds from there…

“Southpaw” is “Bloody”. The movie is physically brutal during the boxing action. It’s a bit tough to watch. The action scenes are very surreal. I felt that Jake Gyllenhaal did an excellent job portraying Bill Hope. The movie ends a bit abruptly leaving the family dynamic part of the story unfinished.

This is a 3 Star Movie!

Marvel’s Ant-Man: The IMAX 3D Experience

“Ant-Man” one of the founding members of Marvel’s The Avengers is brought to life on the big screen.

Master thief Scott Lang “Ant-Man” is called upon by his mentor Dr. Hank Pym to help protect the secret of behind the phenomenal Ant-Man suit.

With the ability to shrink to less than the size of a dime, gain extra-ordinary strength and speed, “Ant-Man” along with some of his closest friends (human and ants) device a plan to stop Dr. Pym’s secrets from not only being discovered and used for evil, but they must also save the world. The story unfolds from there…

The story starts off a bit slow, but soon becomes a runaway freight train and is very entertaining. The Cinematography is great!! The special effects are very cool. The movie is funny, clever and has plenty of action. The movie is better than I expected.

If you are going to see “Ant-Man”, it’s a definite must see in IMAX.

This is a 3 1/2 Star Movie

Self/less

“Self/less” is “Selfish”!! Its “Selfish” in its Execution and “Selfish” in its Delivery.

An extremely wealthy business man Damien (Ben Kingsley) is dying from some form of neurological cancer. He is offered a chance to undergo a form of radical treatment that transfers his consciousness into a healthy younger man.

Once the transfer takes place and the healthy young Damien (Ryan Reynolds) wakes up, is rehabilitated and starts his new life, all is not what it seems. As the younger Damien starts to uncover the mystery of the original older Damien, the secret society behind the treatment will stop at nothing to protect its cause.
The story unfolds from there…

This is one of the worst executed stories I have seen in a long while. It seems that the story is being made up as it moves along. There are so many miss-connected dots. The story does not flow at all. It starts off odd, gets odder as the movie continues and ends in strange fashion.
This is a movie that should have gone straight to video. Its not worth the money. In fact it probably should have been placed on the cutting floor.

It was a waste of Ben Kingsley and Ryan Reynolds acting abilities.

I do not recommend “Self/less”

Inside Out: Real 3D

“Inside Out” is a brilliantly executed animated movie about the emotions that live in all of us. The movie is centered on Riley, her Mom and Dad. The business of growing up can get a bit bumpy along the way.

Riley’s Dad gets a new job and has to up root the family to move from Minnesota to San Francisco. The challenges that this move represents to Riley causes her emotions to struggle with the day to day changes. The emotions live at Headquarters in Riley’s mind. Joy (Amy Poehler), Disgust (Mindy Kaling), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Bill Hader) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith).

At one point “Joy” and “Sadness are lost, so “Anger”, “Disgust” and “Fear” take over at Headquarters. The story unfolds from there…

“Inside Out” may be an animated movie, but it’s for adults as well as the younger set. I found myself in tears at one point because there were parts of the movie I truly can relate to my own childhood.

“Inside Out” is cute, funny, thought provoking, meaningful, touching and at times sad. The movie explores family challenges that occur in everyday life.

Check out “Inside Out”.

This is a 5 Star Movie!

Magic Mike XXL

I did not see the 2012 installment of “Magic Mike”. I thought it was cheesy, so I decided to skip it. After seeing an extended trailer I decided to give “Magic Mike XXL” a look.

All I can say is “Ooh La La!!! Eye Candy, Six-Packs and G-Strings Galore!!”

Mike (Channing Tatum) has given up the Stripper Life and owns his own Furniture making business in Florida. His old stripper friends come calling. They want to do one last blow-out show. With great reluctance Mike (Channing) agrees to join them, so they hit the road for Myrtle Beach.

What keeps “Magic Mike XXL” from being a 4 or 5 star movie is that the first 40 minutes is BORING!!

In comes Rome (Jada Pinkett Smith) and wow! The story picks up! From that point until the end you do not want to leave your seat!

Its sultry eye popping moves and G-Strings flying. The enticing dances are smooth and slick. “Magic Mike XXL” works really hard to keep it “R” rated, but with a little imagination it’s all “X” rated.
BTW…For you NFL fans, former NY Giants player Michael Strahan is in this movie. You will see him like you have never seen him before. I was shocked!!

“Magic Mike XXL” is definitely a “Chick Flick”. It’s all for the ladies. It’s definitely worth seeing even though the first 40 minute are a drag. The music is awesome!

I anticipate that “Magic Mike XXL” will do better than the $40 million opening weekend its 2012 predecessor enjoyed.

This is a 3 Star Movie!

Terminator Genisys: The 3D IMAX Experience

I can sum up “Terminator Genisys” in a couple of sentences…

It’s better than the two previous installments, but unfortunately it’s not as good as the first two installments.

“Terminator Genisys” is the same story only it’s being told with a time travel twist. The one intriguing element is that the time travel is done in the nude.
There are lots of explosions, action and gun fire. The best thing about the movie is Arnold Schwarzenegger. If he were not in this installment, it definitely would not be worth watching. His grin is hilarious.

The trailers made this installment look really interesting and worth seeing. Unfortunately the story is disjointed and there are two many sub plots that are not completed. This is the first of a new series of installments of this franchise. I am not sure where they are going from here, but I guess we will find out in a couple of years.

“Terminator Genisys” is best viewed on DVD or Blue Ray.

This is a 1 1/2 Star Movie!