Category: Drama

Rules Don’t Apply

Its 1958, a young aspiring actress Marla Mabrey (Lily Collins) from Front Royal, VA makes her way to Hollywood, CA along with her Mother (Annette Bening) in the hopes of getting a part in a Howard Hughes film.

Upon arriving in Hollywood a driver, Frank Forbes (Alden Ehrenreich) is waiting to take Marla and her Mother where ever and when-ever they needed to go anywhere. There is instant attraction between Marla and Frank, but they both try to hide it. Frank is an employee of Howard Hughes and does not want to mess up. Marla finds out that Frank knows Howard Hughes and everyday peppers him for information about the Billionaire.

Howard Hughes (Warren Beatty) does not want people to see him and if anyone does it’s with the lighting very dimmed or off all together. Soon Howard sends for Marla. The story unfolds from there…

I found “Rules Don’t Apply” to be quite boring. The story jumps all over the place. There are at least 4 stories brewing in the movie, but they never percolate. The plot appears to be missing. It’s obvious that “No Rules Were Applied” when making this film.

“Rules Don’t Apply” is best viewed on Cable TV.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

Arrival

“Arrival” is way more than your usual “Run-of-the-Mill” Alien Disaster movies. If that’s what you are expecting, you will be so disappointed.

“Arrival” is a “Thinking Person’s Sci-Fi Drama”. The movie in and of its self is thought provoking and very cerebral.

Amy Adams is Dr. Louise Banks, an expert linguist whose expertise is called upon when a number of mysterious spacecraft touch down in various places around the globe. Dr. Banks and an elite team investigate the spacecraft that comes to the US. Dr. Banks uses her knowledge and with the help of her team they translate the responses received from the alien beings, but what Dr. Banks does and learns could not only put her life at risk, but all of humanity. The story unfolds from there…

“Arrival” is a bit subdued. It’s an intensely calm movie that will get you thinking.
The movie did engage my brain, but not my heart. While it was executed brilliantly, it will not become one of my favorite all time flicks.

If you are a Sci-Fi fan, “Arrival” is for you.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

Inferno

“Inferno” lacks fire. It’s like riding on a runaway freight train without actually being on the train.

In this adaptation of the fourth Dan Brown novel, the opening finds Professor Langdon (Hanks) in a hospital with no recollection of how he got there or how he sustained his injuries. The doctor taking care of him is trying to extract information, but having no luck.

The police arrive at the hospital to speak with Professor Langdon, but it turns out to be the same people who actually kidnapped the Professor. Sensing something is about to go down, the doctor gets Professor Langdon out of his hospital bed and they flee the hospital in a cab.

The next day Professor Langdon slowly starts to put the pieces together. He figures out that there is a plot to release a deadly virus into the world. This virus would kill millions of people. After accessing his email on the doctor’s computer, the professor is tracked to the building where the doctor lives, so they both flee again. The story unfolds from there…

The absolute best elements of “Inferno” is the cinematography and the camera angles. There are some great shots of Venice Italy and Istanbul Turkey. Beyond that the story is very weak. The plot is almost non-existent and the movie has no substance.

This is by far the worst installment of the Dan Brown series and not a great outing for Ron Howard as the director.

This is a 1 Star Movie!

Tyler Perry’s Boo! A Madea Halloween

Halloween is approaching and the movies that usually open about Halloween fall into one of two categories, either the movie is scary or stupid. Tyler Perry’s Boo! A Madea Halloween falls in the stupid category.

There was a small amount of comic relief, but not enough and what did appear was a bit insulting. I like Tyler Perry and think he is very talented, but this is the worst “Madea” movie he has produced.

It’s Halloween night and Madea receives a call from Brian (Perry) to come over and “Baby sit” her teenage granddaughter, Leah (Lexy Panterra). Madea arrives with her husband Joe (Perry), Hattie (Patrice Lovely) and Aunt Bam (Cassie Davis). Brian needs to return to work and he does not want Leah to go to a Halloween Party at a nearby Frat house. Leah has other plans and eventually sneaks out of the house without anyone knowing she’s gone, but soon Madea discovers Leah is not in the house. All hell breaks loose…The story unfolds from there…

Without Madea and her antics this movie would be a total waste. The acting for the most part was horrible. The comedy relief wasn’t what it needed to be. I laughed briefly, but found most of the movie to be stupid, rude and insulting.

Tyler Perry should go back to the drawing board and make a “Madea” movie that is really funny and has some good acting. “Boo! A Madea Halloween” was not on par with any other Madea movie to date!!

This is a 1 Star Movie!

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back: The IMAX Experience

In this second installment based on the Lee Child’s best-selling novel “Never Go Back”, Jack Reacher (Tom Cruise) makes his way back to Washington DC to visit Major Turner. When he arrives at Major Turner’s office, Reacher finds out that the Major has been arrested and faces court-marshal. Not understanding this situation Jack starts doing his own investigation into the supposed charges. As he starts to uncover information, he finds out that there is a paternity suit against the army naming him as the father to a daughter that he isn’t aware of.

As Jack continues to dig a lot of people get nervous and they plot to get Jack Reacher out of the way using any means possible. The story unfolds from there…

“Jack Reacher: Never Go Back” should not have come back! It’s not Tom Cruise’s fault. He does everything he can with the story and script he was given. The problem is that the main plot gets messed up and becomes a plot among the many sub-plots.

I commend Tom Cruise because he does all of his own stunts! There is a fair amount of action, suspense and intrigue, but the execution somehow got lost. The movie seems a lot longer than the 1 hour and fifty eight minutes running time.

The first Jack Reacher that came out in 2012 was directed by Christopher McQuarrie. That installment was excellent. This installment was directed by Edward Zwick and its execution is a departure from the first installment.

Unfortunately “Jack Reacher” Never Go Back” only rates a Cable or DVD or Blue Ray viewing.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

The Accountant

If I have said this once, I’ve said it a thousand times…Ben Affleck is brilliant behind the camera, but not in front of it.

“The Accountant” is about a boy, Christian Wolff (Affleck) with autism who grows up to be a genius accountant, who also serves as an assassin for his clients. Wolff works as a free-lance accountant for some of the most dangerous people. As the Justice Department starts to close in, Wolff takes on a legitimate client, where there is an accounting discrepancy that has been uncovered by an in-house accounting clerk (Kendrick). Mysteriously as the accounting discrepancy comes to full light, the body count starts to rise. The story unfolds from there…

The movie has so many twists, turns and subplots that the main plot gets lost. This makes it difficult to tie all the pieces together, but at the end it’s all cleaned up.

There is so much going on in “The Accountant” that you will not be bored. This is truly a Drama, Suspense Thriller of epic proportion. The movie is better than Ben Affleck acting in it.

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!

The Birth of a Nation

“The Birth of a Nation” executes on Pure Raw Power!

The movie follows Nat Turner (Nate Parker), a literate slave from his childhood thru adulthood where he becomes a preacher. Nat’s owner, Samuel Turner (Armie Hammer) is financially strained and soon accepts an offer to transport Nat from plantation to plantation to preach to the slaves on each plantation. Nat and his owner, Samuel are shocked and dismayed at what they see as they move thru the Antebellum South from plantation to plantation. The things that Nat sees only fuels him to rise up and get other slaves to join him. The story unfolds from there…

Plain and simple…the movie is brutal to watch, but very compelling. It’s graphic and nothing is held back. The story is disjointed at times, but seems to make up the necessary ground when it counts. This is about American History. It’s not sugar-coated, but doesn’t go as deep as it probably could.

If you can stand the subject matter of racism and slavery in the Antebellum South by all means go see “The Birth of a Nation”.

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!

Queen of Katwe

“Queen of Katwe” is based on the true story about a young girl, Phiona Mutesi (Madina Nalwanga) from Uganda who sold corn on the village streets to help her family survive. She stumbles upon a group of kids in her village who are learning to play chess.
Soon Phiona learns the strategy of the game and wants to play every day. Phiona not only learns to play chess, but she excels at it, beating her opponents at every local meet. With her determination, the support of her family and community, Phiona realizes her dream to become an International Chess Champion. The story unfolds from there…

“Queen of Katwe” is an excellent movie. It’s executed brilliantly. There is a message for everyone, young or old. “You can realize your dreams with hard work and determination.”

The entire cast was great! Lupita Nyong’o and David Oyelowo were awesome and new comer Madina Nalwanga shines brightly.

“Queen of Katwe” is a feel-good movie and definitely worth a look.

This is a 5 Star Movie!

Deepwater Horizon

“Deepwater Horizon” is based on the true story about the worst oil spill in American History. The events are played out in the movie in painful fashion. Director Peter Berg really gives you an inside look at the good, bad and the very ugly of a horrific event.

As the events play out you will be on the edge of your seat. The tension mounts in pain-staking fashion. You will also be disgusted at how this all happened. Corporate (BP) greed takes center stage. Eleven lives were lost in this event. Those eleven lives were recognized at the end of the movie. The oil spill continued for 87 Days.

“Deepwater Horizon” is one of the better disaster movies. The movie is executed very well. The performances were awesome. There are many great panoramic views and the camera angles are mystifying. You won’t be bored.

If you can stand seeing a horrific event play out on the big screen, I say check out “Deepwater Horizon”.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

The Magnificent Seven (2016): The IMAX Experience

Remakes are never as good as the original upon which they are based, but the remake of the 1960’s The Magnificent Seven does a pretty good job. It’s pure “Pop Corn Entertainment”.

The cast is awesome. Think the “Wild, Wild West” of 1897 or better yet think “Gun Smoke”, “Dodge City” and Sheriff Matt Dillon.

The little western mining town, Rose Creek is under siege by a greedy tyrant named Bartholomew Bogue. He and his merry band of men over throw the town’s sheriff and his deputies. All of the town is in jeopardy, but one resident, Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett) and other desperate residents seek out the help of a Bounty Hunter who comes through town looking for one of his Bounties. The Bounty Hunter finds out he knows Bartholomew Bogue and agrees to help the town out. The story unfolds from there…

“The Magnificent Seven (2016)” does what it’s supposed to do. It provides great entertainment. There are no special effects, CGI’s or anything that would remotely remind you that we are in 2016. This is a good old-fashioned western. It’s not perfect, but the cast makes the movie worth watching. There is lots of western style violence, action and blood-shed. There is even a bit of comic relief.

If you like Westerns, you should enjoy “The Magnificent Seven (2016)”.

This is a 4 Star Movie!