Month: September 2017

Battle of the Sexes

Finally opened in wide-release, “Battle of the Sexes” is a look at the events and true story of the 1973 Tennis showdown between World number one Billie Jean King and former men’s champ, Bobby Riggs.

The real live event was one of the most watched televised sporting events in history. At that time over 90 million viewers watched Billie Jean King hand Bobby Riggs his hat in a match that he was overwhelmingly favored to win, but lost in stunning fashion.

During this time Billie Jean King was championing the cause for equal pay for female tennis players, while Bobby Riggs was a flashy gambler who refused to stop even as it almost cost him his family.

Bravo to the movie for truly displaying 1973, no state-of-the-art electronic devices of any kind and no flashy tennis outfits.

This epic tennis match is still talked about to this day.

“Battle of the Sexes” is definitely worth a look.

This is a 4 Star Move!

American Made

Remember the Iran Contra Scandal that plagued the Reagan Administration? “American Made” is about actual events from that scandal.

A TWA Pilot, Barry Seal (Tom Cruise) is approached by a CIA agent, Monty Schafer (Domhnall Gleeson), in an attempt to recruit Barry Seal away from TWA to make flights to Central America. On these flights Barry often times has merchandise such as motorcycles, guns or even liquor to drop off. Barry also picks up drugs while in Central America and makes drops on his way back to the US.

All the while this is going on other agencies are keeping an eye on Barry as they think he might be a criminal (Drug Smuggler). Not fully understanding what Barry’s mission is, the DEA, ATF and FBI ambush Barry in Arkansas. The story unfolds from there…

You have to respect the “Actor” in Tom Cruise as he puts a tremendous amount of energy into the roles he plays. This is true of “American Made”. Tom gives it the energy it needs and without his energy the movie might not be as good as it is.
“American Made” is entertaining. It’s not fast-paced, but it does tell the story in a reasonable fashion.

This is a 4 Star Move!

Kingsman: The Golden Circle

In this installment the Kingsman face a new challenge. Their headquarters and all of their secret places of operation are destroyed. The Kingsman discover a US Allied Spy organization called “Statesman”. After heading to the US to the “Statesman” headquarters the Kingsman soon learn that there is a drug cartel running an operation in a place called “Poppy Land”. If not stopped the Poppy Land operation could cripple the world. The two agencies join forces to try and stop the madness. The story unfolds from there…

Although not as good as the first installment, “Kingsman: The Golden Circle” does have plenty to offer in the way of action, intrigue and suspense. There is a bit of continuation from the first installment to tie the two together, but beyond that the movie starts off on a strange foot and continues on that path for quite a while. It’s not really clear at first what the movie is about. Things do start to heat up a bit and get interesting mid-way through the movie.

Once again I had high expectations due to the fact that the cast is strong and the first installment was excellent, but in the end “Kingsman: The Golden Circle” was a bit like letting the air out of a fully inflated tire.

This is a 3 Star Movie!

American Assassin

“American Assassin” follows a CIA Black Ops recruit, Mitch Rapp (Dylan O’Brien) who deals with losing his fiancée in a random attack at a beach resort to being under the guidance of a Cold-War veteran Stan Hurley (Michael Keaton).
The CIA assigns Mitch, Stan and a group of operatives to investigate random attacks on Military and Civilian communities around the world. These mini-missions lead the team to a bigger mission involving a lethal Turkish agent (Shiva Negar). Together they attempt to stop a mysterious operative known as “Ghost”. The story unfolds from there…

“American Assassin” would be awesome if it did not have so many agendas that go uncompleted. The movie starts off great, but goes off track within the first 35 minutes and never recovers. This movie is missing its foundation. There is lots of action, suspense and intrigue. The cinematography and camera angles are very good.

I had high expectations due to the fact that the cast is strong, but in the end the movie is just ok.

“American Assassin” will be a great Cable, DVD or Blue-Ray viewing.

This is a 2 ½ Star Movie!

IT

Normally I do not see/review Horror Movies, but “IT” is not just any “Horror Movie” it’s a Stephen King Horror Movie! During High School, College and the early part of my Technology career I was a Stephen King fan! I have read over 20 of his books all in Hard Back. I still have a few including “IT”.

In the little town called Derry, Maine there is a 7:00pm curfew for all children. It seems that the town of Derry is cursed and over 91 children have gone missing. No one seems to know how or why this happens. The local law enforcement doesn’t have a clue.

There are a bunch of young kids who are determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. As they sift through information and hunt for clues, the kids ultimately figure out that they will have to face-off with the sadistic, evil clown known as Pennywise. Myth or legend Pennywise has been associated with murders that date back centuries. The kids figure out that they are better off together as opposed to being separate because Pennywise prefers one on one. The story unfolds from there…

This installment of “IT” is definitely better than the 1990 installment. The movie is terrifying, nerve-wracking and intensely suspenseful. This installment is closely in line with Stephen King’s novel showcasing anxiety and fears that young children often face. The best part of the movie is the group of young kids. They are the heroes, but they also stay true to themselves as young innocent children.

If you can stand to be terrified, “IT” is a must see, but this movie is not for Children.

This is a 4 ½ Star Movie!

Wind River

After a 2 week hiatus because there hasn’t been anything good at the box office worth reviewing, I am BACK!!

“Wind River” is a well-executed Drama/Suspense thriller about the rape and murder of a young Native American Girl that occurs at the Wind River Native American Reservation.

The FBI teams up with the local law enforcement and a local game tracker to find out how this awful crime occurred, who did it and why.

The scenes are snowy with blizzard like conditions and sub-zero temperatures are the norm throughout the movie. Some of the events in the movie will have you shivering in your seat.

“Wind River” is gritty, will keep you entertained and on the edge of your seat. There is a mix of male posturing as well as a mix of soul searching displayed throughout the movie.

“Wind River” opened in limited-Release on Aug 4th. It recently opened wide to a broader audience around the country.

This is a 4 Star Movie!