Category: Drama

XxX:Return of Xander Cage the IMAX Experience

After a 14 year hiatus, Xander Cage is back!

In this third installment Xander Cage is lured from his self-imposed exile to help stop a Pandora’s Box that is being used to take control of satellites and use them as weapons. Xander has plenty of company as he tries to stop the unknown enemy, but also stop alpha warrior Xiang and his team who are also racing to get their hands on the box. Xander recruits a whole new team that are highly skilled and thrill-seeking just as he is. The story unfolds from there…

The sound track is “Dope!!” There is a ton of action, fight sequences, out-of-this-world stunts and some pretty cool cinematography and camera angles.
The movie will keep you engaged, but unfortunately the story is lacking and dull. We have seen it all before. This has been a blockbuster Franchise in the past, but the story doesn’t bring anything new to the table.

This is a 2 ½ Star Movie!

Sleepless (2017)

“Sleepless” is a T.V. Cop Drama on the Big Screen.

Las Vegas police officer Vince Downs (Jamie Foxx) is caught up in a high stakes sting operation where he is trying to weed out the corrupt cops and bring down a known drug syndicate who controls one of Vegas’s Casinos. A heist goes wrong and Down’s son is kidnapped right in front of him. The story unfolds from there…

The story is mundane at best. We have seen it all before on TV. There is a strong cast and some decent action, but that’s not enough to keep you awake.

I like Jamie Foxx. He is a well-rounded entertainer, he can sing, act and crack some good jokes. He even has an Oscar to his credit, but Jamie appears to not be very invested in “Sleepless”. He looks as though he is going through the motions. I had high hopes for “Sleepless”, but unfortunately my hopes were dashed.

“Sleepless” will be a great movie to watch on DVD or Blue-Ray.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

Patriots Day

“Patriots Day” is a very well-orchestrated and very well executed account of the horrific Boston Marathon Terrorist Bombing that occurred in April 2013.

The movie shows the quick work of the Boston Police Dept, First Responders, the FBI, The Governor and other Boston and State Officials as they investigate and try to get to the bottom of this horrible incident as quickly as possible.

At the end of the movie the survivors speak about their challenges and triumphs. The movie reinforces to you that the human spirit is strong in the face of adversity.

While this movie is about a horrific incident that occurred in an American city, the movie is worth seeing because there are definite moments that are heart-warming.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

Live by Night

“Live by Night” is a slow burning gangster movie that has no sizzle. The movie is loosely based on Dennis Lehane’s Crime Novel about a prodigal son of a prominent police chief and his gradual descent into the crime world.

The cinematography is very good, there was lots of action and some of the camera angles were awesome, but the movie just doesn’t grab you. There is a HUGH cast, but even they couldn’t make an already hollow story whole. The story appears to have started in the middle instead of at the beginning.

Ben Affleck directs and stars in the movie. This could be part of the problem. Ben Affleck is brilliant behind the camera, but not in front of the camera.

Several people got up and left the theater long before the movie was over, that’s how boring the movie was.

The previews and trailers for “Live by Night” looked really good. Too bad the actual movie did not live up to its billing.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

A Monster Calls

“A Monster Calls” is based on a best-selling novel by Patrick Ness. The story is about a 12 year old boy, Conor (Lewis MacDougall) who has a lot on his young plate. Conor is dealing with his terminally ill mother (Felicity Jones), a mean, unsympathic grandmother (Sigourney Weaver) and if that’s not enough Conor is being bullied at school. To cope with all that is going on, Conor tries to loose himself in his art.

Soon Conor finds an unlikely ally when a Tree Monster (Liam Neeson) appears at his bedroom window at 12:07am. This time turns out to be significant because at 12:07am just about every night the Tree Monster appears doling out advise, stories and wisdom. The Monster helps give Conor courage to face the truth and deal with all of the events in his life. The story unfolds from there…

Although dark at times “A Monster Calls” has some eye pleasing visuals. The special effects are really good. The story is very emotional and moving.

This is a 4 ½ Star Movie!

Hidden Figures

This is a special edition of “Thursday Night at the Movies w/The Movie Warrior”

What a way to start off 2017!

Based on a true story, “Hidden Figures” is a very eye opening, moving and entertaining movie.
In the 1960’s NASA employed a number of women of color who were Mathematicians and Engineers. These brilliant women helped NASA figure out how to get a man on the moon and then back to earth safely.

The movie chronicles these historic events while dabbling in the personal lives of the three main female characters. The story unfolds from there…

The movie is awesome! My only complaint is that the personal lives of the three main female characters, Katherine Johnson (Henson), Dorothy Vaughn (Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Monae) should have been a bit more prominent in the movie. It would have been nice to find out how they actually got to NASA.

Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae were awesome in their roles. The entire cast was really good.

“Hidden Figures” is definitely worth a look and deserves all of the buzz it’s been receiving.

This is a 5 Star Movie!

Jackie

“Jackie” is an intimate look at the events before, during and after one of the most tragic moments to happen in American History.

Mrs. Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy (Natalie Portman) suffered greatly after the loss of her husband and President of the United States but never showed any anguish while in public. “Jackie” gives you a more behind the scenes look at some of the events, conversations and controversy that took place after John F. Kennedy was assassinated and then laid to rest.

The movie is moving and eye-opening. Natalie Portman is outstanding as Mrs. Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. The movie borders on a documentary/mini-biopic.

“Jackie” opened on Dec 2nd in limited-release (5 Theaters). It’s only opened in a hand full of theaters around the country (348 Theaters). Check it out if you can find it.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

Fences

Denzel Washington and Viola Davis both give masterful performances in the big screen adaptation of “Fences”.

The main characters in the movie are both complex and deep. Their performances make it look easy.

“Fences” is about a family of color in 1950’s Pittsburgh. The Patriarch is Troy (Denzel Washington) who works as a city garbage collector. His wife, Rose (Viola Davis) takes care of the house and their teenage son Cory (Jovan Adepo).
Troy is trying to pave a path to a better life for Cory, but Cory thinks his Dad is selling out to the “Establishment”. The story unfolds from there…

“Fences” is August Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play that has been brought to the big screen. The movie shows its “stage” roots a bit, but that does not stop it from being excellent. Denzel not only stars but also directs. Viola and Denzel’s performances outshine and upstage any possible problems.

What a nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon that also happens to be Christmas Day!

This is a 5 Star Movie!

Collateral Beauty

“Collateral Beauty” is about an executive in a successful N.Y. Advertising Company who loses his six year old daughter. She dies unexpectedly and basically the executive never recovers. He totally retreats from day to day life. The other executives in the company spend an undisclosed amount of time trying to communicate with the executive. He totally ignores their calls, visits, emails, and letters.

The company decides they need to divest the executive of his shares in the company, they hire someone to watch him so that they can try to get evidence to show he’s unfit. The story unfolds from there…

“Collateral Beauty” starts off ok, but goes downhill quickly. It’s a colossal waste of some powerfully strong actors and actresses. Besides the main story there are several side stories that pop-up and take control, but are never completed. This causes the movie to appear and feel disjointed.

I had high hopes for “Collateral Beauty”, after all it is the holiday season and this is when the best movies make their appearances. Unfortunately there is no beauty in “Collateral Beauty”.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

Nocturnal Animals

I fully understand why “Nocturnal Animals” opened in limited release a couple of weeks ago. This movie is very graphic in nature. It’s also very well acted.

From the opening credits through the first 35 minutes of the movie was very disturbing in nature. I seriously considered leaving…but there was a turning point which captured my attention, the movie picked up steam and became very intriguing.

“Nocturnal Animals” is a haunting romantic thriller filled with shocking and graphic nudity. It’s not rated X, but probably should be. The nudity is not sexual in nature, it’s just raw.

The movie illustrates revenge, deceit, redemption and the thin lines between love and hate. A divorced couple (Jake Gyllenhaal and Amy Adams) head down a path of rediscovering one another, but also learning some dark truths about each other.

If you need something to compare “Nocturnal Animals” to, think of the 2014 hit “Gone Girl”.

See “Nocturnal Animals” if you dare!

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!