Author: moviewarrior

I am an IT Professional who has loved the movie going experience since Kindergarten. My favorite Genres are Action, Suspense/Thrillers, Drama, Sci-Fi, Animation, Art House and Romantic Comedies.

The Hunger Games: MockingJay Pt 2

At last the long awaited final installment in The Hunger Games Franchise has arrived!

This final installment picks up where the Mocking Jay Pt1 left off. Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) is recovering from her injuries. She wants desperately to speak with Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), but President Alma Coin (Julianne Moore) and others warn against it.

Once Katniss is well, the team is assembled. The goal is to go to the Capital and kill President Snow. Of Course the team runs into many obstacles, but this does not stop them. The story unfolds from there.

There is lots of action, special effects and mayhem. There are a lot of surprises. Jennifer Lawrence is flawless as Katniss Everdeen. It seems the role was made for her. She brings legitimacy to the story.
Sadly this is the last movie for Philip Seymour Hoffman. This franchise started off in 2012 with a bang, but now goes out quietly.

If you are a fan of “The Hunger Games” Franchise; this final installment should not be missed.

This is a 3 1/2 Star Movie!

Secret In Their Eyes

“Secret in Their Eyes” is a “Spine Tingling Suspense Drama that doesn’t quite hit its mark”

A close knit group of FBI Investigators are torn apart when they find the daughter of one of the Investigators brutally murdered. Ray (Chiwetel Ejiofor) one of the Investigators, spends years trying to unravel and solve the case. He finds new evidence so he goes back to his old office and tries to piece everything together. He visits his old teammates Jess (Julia Roberts), Claire (Nicole Kidman) and Bumpy (Dean Norris) to get them on-board. The story unfolds from there…

Julia Roberts is awesome as the grieving Mother Jess. Beyond that the movie is just ok. I was expecting more given the fact that the cast are heavy weight stars. There is some sort of sexual tension between Ray and Claire, but nothing ever comes to light.

The story skips around a lot and there is a lot of back and forth showing events that occurred in the past. I expected more intensity that never materializes and the movie ends a bit too soon. This is actually a remake of an Argentinian Oscar winner.

“Secret in Their Eyes” is just ok. It’s one of those movies where if you don’t have anything better to do, go see it. Otherwise it can wait for cable.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

Spectre 007 the IMAX Experience

I have been a James Bond fan for a very long time. Sean Connery is and always will be the best James Bond ever!!!

Contrary to what is being said, I do not think that “Spectre 007” is the best Bond ever!!
James Bond receives a cryptic message from his past that send him on a wild goose chase across the continent to uncover a sinister organization known simply as “Spectre”. While Bond is chasing bad guys and trying to find out about Spectre, M fights a political battle to keep the Secret Service intact. The story unfolds from there…

The first 15 minutes of the movie is awesome!! After that things go a bit awry. There are so many angles and layers to the story you are not sure who the bad guys are and who can be trusted or even what is really going on. There is a ton of action, crazy stunts and mayhem. The movie takes you to such places as Mexico, Rome, London and Austria. The usual sexy, awesome looking sports car and car chases are still there along with a couple of crazy Helicopters stunts.

What is not there is the original “M” Judi Dench. It is my understanding that the movie studio thought that Judi Dench was too old to continue to play “M’. For that blunder the movie loses a star.

Judi Dench makes a very brief cameo appearance via a video recording. Judi Dench is and always will be “M”.

This latest installment of 007 James Bond does not bring anything new to the big screen. If you are a Bond fan you have seen it all previously. With the exception of the song/scenes of Bond with naked women, the sound track is awesome especially the music that is playing when the movie starts and goes through the first 10 minutes or so.

“Spectre 007” is a decent movie, but nowhere near what you would expect a Bond movie to be.

This is a 3 Star Movie!

The Peanuts Movie in 3D

The most beloved comic strip of all times finally comes to the big screen and in 3D no doubt!

Snoopy, Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy and the entire Peanuts Gang make their big screen debut. If you ever read any of the Original Peanuts comics you certainly will be able to relate and should find the movie enjoyable. I found myself cracking up. Snoopy chasing the Red Baron, Charlie Brown in love with the Little Red-Haired Girl, Lucy being her crabby self and dispensing advice for 5 cents. Charlie Brown and his never ending effort to actually fly a kite. Even Pig Pen was casting dirt storms.

The movie is really fun, engaging and entertaining. I may be partial because I am a Snoopy fan. I grew up with Snoopy, although he was already in existence when I was born. Anyone who knows me knows I have a collection of Snoopy and Peanuts Gang collectibles.

The animation and 3D aspects are great. The sound track is awesome! They did the legendary Charles Schulz proud.

This movie is perfect for the young and the not so young.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

BURNT

Bradley Cooper is Chef Adam Jones a celebrated 2 star Michelin Winner and celebrity among the Paris Restaurant scene. He loses everything because of his “Bad Boy” ways. In order for Adam to obtain his own kitchen again and win a third Michelin star he will have to clean up his act and leave his “Bad Boy” ways behind him. The story unfolds from there…

The story has bones, but starts off dis-jointed and continues throughout the movie. There are too many elements missing and you have to piece it all together yourself. That’s not why we go to the movies. We want the story to unfold and all of the parts to be there. We should not have to guess or assume anything.

“BURNT” is a bit funny and heart-warming, but is incomplete.

“BURNT” is best viewed on cable. It’s not worth the price of a DVD or Blue Ray.

This is a 1 1/2 Star Movie

Our Brand is Crisis

“Our Brand is Crisis” is in and of its self a “CRISIS”.

“Our Brand is Crisis” is a political satire that doesn’t quite hit its mark. Sandra Bullock plays Jane a political strategist who is enjoying semi-retirement until she is summoned to assist a team that goes down to a war-torn area in South America to help install a new leader. The story unfolds from there…

There are a few intense comedy moments, be hard hitting and have some meat, but unfortunately “Our Brand is Crisis” does not contain any strong elements to endear its self to the movie going public. Sandra Bullock is the best element in the movie.

“Our Brand Crisis” is best viewed on cable. It’s not worth the price of a DVD or Blue Ray.

This is a 1 Star Movie!

Steve Jobs

The “Steve Jobs” Biopic opened wide this weekend. I decided to give it look.

“Steve Jobs” details mostly behind the scenes events and conversations that took place during three iconic product launches. The small intimate look at the man Steve Jobs (Michael Fassbender) that you get mostly centers around constant confrontations that he had with a woman he had been involved with who had a daughter that she claimed was his. Steve Jobs denied that the child was his, but did eventually provide for the little girl and sort of be a parent to her.

Other elements centered round Steve Jobs being fired from Apple. There were flashbacks of conversations that were had among board members leading up to the unanimous decision to terminate Steve Jobs. You also get a glimpse back in time to where it all started from.

I found “Steve Jobs” to be a bit boring, but the story in and of its-self is fascinating. The movie will cause you to think of this American Icon in a different way. The movie does not spend much time on Steve Jobs brilliance, you are left to assume. Kate Winslet is awesome in her role as Joanna Hoffman, Steve Jobs’ Media Coordinator/Assistant.

This is a 3 1/2 Star Movie!

Bridge of Spies

“Bridge of Spies” is “Cold War Espionage at its finest!!”

It’s basically “we got spies”, “they got spies”. We got their spies, they got our spies. We want ours back, they want theirs back. Let’s make an exchange on a bridge. That is the simplest unabridged version. Here are the details.

“Bridge of Spies” is based on factual events. Tom Hanks is James Donovan an American attorney in a major NY law firm. He gets tasked with providing legal counsel for a man who was captured in the US believed to be a Russian Spy. The man is convicted and sentenced to 30 years in a Federal Prison.

On another front, the military has a U-2 Spy plane that can fly at 70,000 feet in altitude. The plane is deployed, but during the mission the American pilot is shot down over hostile territory during the Cold War and is taken prisoner.

Attorney James Donovan and a team of CIA agents go to Germany and Russia to negotiate the release of the American Pilot. The story unfolds from there…

“Bridge of Spies” is excellent. The only problem I had with the movie is that some times it dragged a bit.

This is a 4 1/2 Star Movie!

The Walk in 3D

“The Walk” is based on a true story about a young Frenchmen, Philippe Petit, and a cast of unlikely recruits who work together to help Philippe pull off the stunning act of hanging a wire between the two World Trade Center Towers so that Philippe can “walk” the wire.

After seeing a high wire act in Paris, a young Philippe Petit knows early on that he too wants to “walk” the wire. He spends all of his free time practicing to the annoyance of his Father. As time passes Philippe moves away from home in search of the perfect place to hang his wire. He performs to crowds on the streets of Paris.

While in the Dentist office Philippe sees a newspaper advertising the World Trade Center Towers. Philippe knows then that he must go to New York and hang his wire between the World Trade Center Towers. The story unfolds from there…

The first 45 minutes of the movie is just “Dead Space”. This causes a slow start which in turn causes you not to be able to get into the story right away. The last hour is when everything starts to come together and the story becomes interesting.

The Cinematography at times is stunning. The 3D aspects of the movie are very good. Brush up on your French because sometimes French is the dialog used.

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie

The Martian in 3D

I love Matt Damon!! In “The Martian” he does not disappoint!!

A team of NASA Astronauts are on a manned mission on Mars. While members of the team are out performing routine tasks a storm brews in the distance. A quick decision as to whether to stay or go is made in a snap. While packing up and trying to get everyone back to the Space Shuttle to take off, the storm blows some heavy metal debris toward the team members as they are trying to run. Astronaut Watney (Matt Damon) is struck and buried beneath a lot of red dirt and is believed to be dead.

The team takes off and heads back to their Satellite station “Hermes” where they report the tragic incident to NASA officials. A few hours later Astronaut Watney wakes up. He’s badly injured, but very much alive. He gets himself to the team housing quarters and tries to repair his wound. The story unfolds from there…

“The Martian” is nail biting suspenseful, intense, intriguing, entertaining and very well executed. The movie is also moving and of “Epic” proportion. At times the cinematography is breath-taking.

“The Martian” will remind you of Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar”.

This “Science Fiction Epic” should not be missed!

This is a 5 Star Movie!