Category: Adventure

Ride Along

“Ride Along” was not on my original watch list, but after it took in so much money last weekend. I thought I would take a look.

Kevin Hart is the funniest man in America at the moment. Ice Cube is the perfect straight man for all of Kevin Hart’s silliness.

In Order to win over his girl friend’s brother, Ben (Kevin Hart) a High School Security Guard must prove he has what it takes by spending 24 hours on a “Ride Along” with James (Ice Cube) who happens to be a hot headed detective in the Atlanta Police department. They both get embroiled in James latest case pursuing a notorious felon. The story unfolds from there…

Kevin Hart is funny and silly. Ice Cube compliments Kevin nicely as a comic straight man to all of Kevin Hart’s antics. There are plenty of laughs, but the plot and story fall a bit short and are both very weak. “Ride Along” is a bit boring. It’s all too familiar as we have seen this before. Kevin Hart is an excellent comedian; but not such a great actor. He should stick to “Stand-Up Comedy”.

“Ride Along” will be great for some comedy relief once it comes out on DVD or Blu-Ray. You should wait for it then.

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit

It’s always fun to see a Tom Clancey character brought alive on the big screen. “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit” would be brilliant if the storyline weren’t so weak and the plot so “Been there before…”

To his friends and family, Jack Ryan (Chris Pine) is just another executive working to make a living. Little do they know Jack has been working for the CIA for years. He was originally brought in to handle Global data, but Jack soon uncovers a carefully planned scheme to crash the Global US Economy and create mass chaos.
When Jack flies to Russia to put a stop to the scheme, he soon finds himself caught between a Russian Leader, his clueless fiancée, and his secret handler. The story unfolds from there…

“Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit” is fast paced, non-stop action, a bit of intrigue and some nice cinematography. Unfortunately that’s where it ends. The story, the plot and the reasoning are all very weak. There are quite a few holes in the story at the beginning, so you are forced to draw your own conclusions.

The movie appears to end when things just seem to be heating up. If the movie had been made with a bit longer running time, the extra time would have served it well.

Lone Survivor

“LONE SURVIVOR”, is a tale of true Brotherhood, Sacrifice, Courage and Heroism. Based on a true story, four Navy SEALS go out on a covert mission to neutralize a high-level Taliban operative. The mission goes awry and the four SEALS find themselves ambushed and fighting for their lives.

The movie is very well executed, plenty of action, intense violence and very bloody. I found myself hiding my eyes sometimes…The realism of the situation is staggering. This is probably one of the bloodiest military movies I have ever seen!!

LONE SURVIVOR gives you a really good look at what our troops have been dealing with and are continuing to deal with today. No politics are implied in this movie, just the day to day operations that our military deals with. My heart goes out to the men and women who fight for our country and our freedom.

If you like military movies and can stand the bloodiness; LONE SURVIVOR is your movie.

Caution, LONE SURVIVOR is not suited for children under 17.

Hunger Games: Catching Fire The IMAX Experience

This second installment finds Katniss Everdeen back at home safely after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games. Part of winning means the winners must promote the games, so Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) and Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) embark on a cross country district by district tour. They are also both trying to convince President Snow (Donald Sutherland) that they do love each other and it was the right thing to allow them to be co-winners of the 74th Hunger Games. It would seem though that President Snow is not convinced.

The 75th Annual Hunger Games is approaching. President Snow has decided that all past winners must compete again to mark the 75th Anniversary. The story unfolds from there…

There is a nice continuation from the first installment. “Hunger Games: Catching Fire” flows nicely, keeps you engaged and thoroughly entertained. The cinematography is breathtaking and the special effects are awesome. My only problem was the ending is a bit weird, but the door is open for installment number three.
If you are a fan of the Hunger Games Franchise then “Hunger Games: Catching Fire” is a must see.

Ender’s Game

An Elite group of talented and gifted children are selected to train for a potentially very catastrophic War.

Ender Wiggins, shy but a strategically brilliant young leader, is recruited to join the elite group.

Once at the Battle School, Ender quickly masters the increasingly difficult challenges and simulations that are presented to him.
Ender soon gains that attention of Graff who is one of the schools Commanders who ordains Ender as the military’s next great hope. Ender is soon promoted to Commander School where he is trained to lead and given his own team of soldiers to lead into the next epic battle. The story unfolds from there…
If you read the NY Times best-selling novel you won’t be disappointed. It’s definitely a must see in IMAX to get the full effect. The special effects, cinematography and camera angles are fabulous. There is a small lull in the film, but it arrives at the end respectfully. Although this is a first chapter, “Ender’s Game” will lead to a blockbuster franchise.

Escape Plan

Sylvester Stallone is Ray Breslin, a respected authority on Structural Security. He agrees to take on a high-risk job of breaking out of an ultra-secret high-tech facility that is located in parts unknown called “The Tomb”.

At this ultra-secret facility things go awry and Ray is falsely imprisoned. He is then forced to recruit a fellow inmate Emil Rottmayer (Schwarzenegger) to help him devise a plan to escape. The story unfolds from there…

The story starts off ok, but loses its way through most of the movie to regain some footing toward the end. Sly and Arnold are good together and that’s what makes “Escape Plan” interesting. It was also great to see Vincent D’Onofrio from Law & Order Criminal Intent fame.

If you are a Sylvester Stallone fan then “Escape Plan” is worth a look.

Captain Phillips

“Captain Phillips” is an extremely well executed movie. It’s like waiting for a rose bud to bloom. It happens slowly, but oh very much worth the wait.

“Captain Phillips” is based on the 2009 hijacking of the U.S. Container Maersk Alabama by a crew of Somali pirates. The movie is meticulous in its execution. Showing you every layer and angle of the story as it unfolds from the relationship between Captain Phillips (Tom Hanks) and the Somali pirate captain, Muse (Barkhad Abdi) to the U.S. Navy coming to the rescue.

As the events occur you will be on the edge of your seat. There is no pause or “dead space” in this movie. Director Paul Greengrass is excellent at providing you a scintillating thriller with “on the edge of your seat” intrigue. Remember Paul Greengrass is the director of all of the Bourne movies that Matt Damon starred in. Tom Hanks is masterful in his portrayal of “Captain Phillips”.

“Captain Phillips” is definitely worth a look.

The Family

I found “The Family” to be mildly entertaining with its “Slapstick Wit” and “All out Stupidity and Silliness”.

“The Family”, The Manzonis a notorious Mafia family, are on their way to witness protection. They have been relocated to Normandy France. They go about trying to fit with daily check-ups from their FBI Handler (Tommy Lee Jones), but soon find themselves doing things “their way”. Each family member has some sort of run-in during their first full day in the little sleepy town of Normandy. Soon they settle in, but back in the US, there are mobsters still trying to find them. The story unfolds from there…

The problem with “The Family” is there is no foundation and you are left to make your own determinations about the reason The Manzonis have been relocated. You are shown snippets of days and events long past, but even then the picture isn’t quite set. I see “The Family” as more of a “Dark Comedy” that doesn’t quit come together. The bright spot is the cast.

I would wait for “The Family” to come out on DVD, Blueray or Cable.

2 Guns

Denzel Washington plays Bobby Trench a DEA Agent and Mark Wahlberg is Marcus Stigman a U.S. Naval Intelligence Officer. For the past year they have both been trying to infiltrate the Mexican Drug Cartel.
Their current sting operation goes awry and they are disavowed by their superiors, so they devise a new plan to flush out all of the bad guys. The plan is that Bobby and Marcus pull of a very easy robbery at the local bank. $43 million dollars is stolen. This brings everyone out of the woodwork. The story unfolds from there…
Suspense, Intrigue, Twists and Turns are the order of the day with “2 Guns”. There is even a bit of slapstick comedy. There is lots of violence.
I feel the weak link is Paula Patton’s role. She doesn’t portray a detective very well. She was boring. Otherwise the movie is good.
The story is a bit disjointed, but it does all come together quickly. “2 Guns” is definitely worth a look. Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg make an interesting duo.

The Wolverine 3D

In this installment Mutant Wolverine is a century-old. He is lured to Japan to say Good-bye to a very old friend whose life he once saved, but once Wolverine arrives he finds out that things are not what they seem and he finds himself being pushed to his physical and emotional limits. The real threat of death hangs over him. The story unfolds from there…

“The Wolverine” is not great, it’s just pretty good. There is some cool Samurai sword fighting and the cinematography is interesting, but the story is a bit boring and dis-jointed. However there are a few eyebrow raising surprises.

Hugh Jackman’s dialog comes out as growls rather than actual speaking. The saving grace is that Hugh Jackman is as buff as I ever seen him without a shirt. He’s definitely “Eye Candy” for the ladies.

It’s definitely a waste of money from the 3D aspects. If you are a Wolverine fan then don’t miss this.

This is the sixth time that Hugh Jackman has reprised his role as Wolverine. This tale is getting a bit stale.