Category: Thriller

Bullet Train in AMC Dolby

Bullet Train in AMC Dolby

Brad Pitt is “Ladybug” an assassin who after a few derailments of assignments is determined to complete all of his assignments peacefully no matter what. As fate would have it, Ladybug’s latest assignment puts him in the path of some dangerous adversaries from around the globe. All of them have a connection although their objectives are different. All of this is taking place on the world’s fastest high-speed train. The story unfolds from there…

I had high hopes for this movie being that Brad Pitt and Sandra Bullock are both starring in it and one of the Producers is Antoine Fuqua. The movie is a high-speed chase through Japan…But alas…The story runs off the rails, you are not sure who is actually a bad guy or who can be trusted and there does not seem to be a destination/ending which leaves the train to just continuously speed on never ending tracks ultimately to derail. This movie could turn into a Franchise…Imagine “Bullet Train 2”. If this happens, I certainly hope the next installment is better than the first.

“Bullet Train” is only open in Theaters.

This is a 2 Star Movie!!

Death on the Nile

Death on the Nile

Set in the 19th Century…Image you and the love of your life are on your idyllic honeymoon. You are on a glamorous steamer floating on the Nile River. The scenic views and epic landscape are breath-taking but then tragedy strikes and suddenly your wonderful honeymoon is cut short…

This is the premise of “Death on the Nile”.

The movie is well acted. There are tons of suspense and intrigue. There are a lot of impeccably dressed travelers. The usual jealousy and envy take center stage. The Cinematography is on point.

“Death on the Nile” is a complex “Who done it”. It’s definitely worth a look.

This is a 3 Star Movie!!

No Time to Die in Real 3D

No Time to Die in Real 3D

Wow!! Finally… “No Time to Die”. This installment finds James Bond attempting to live a normal life in Jamaica. He is no longer with the agency and is enjoying a peaceful life. 

James’s peaceful life is short lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA contacts him needing his help. The mission is to find a Scientist who has been kidnapped. The mission ends up being far more dangerous than expected. The trail leads Bond to a mysterious villain who is armed with a dangerous new weapon. The story unfolds from there…

I will miss Daniel Craig as James Bond. He is cool as a cucumber in this installment. He dispatches bad guys with style and grace.

This installment leaves nothing out. The movie has tons of action, suspense, intrigue and a few special effects. The cinematography is on point. The story is rich with a back and a front. The 3D aspects were very good.

While “Skyfall” and “Casino Royale” are two of the very best Bond installments from Dan Craig, “No Time to Die” is right there with them.

If you are a James Bond fan “No Time to Die” should not be missed. 

“No Time to Die” is only available in Theaters.

This is a 4 ½ Star Movie!!

Copshop

Copshop

On the run from an Assassin, a wiry Con-Artist devises a plan to get arrested so he can hide out in the local jail. But when the Assassin shows up and is also booked and placed in a nearby jail cell, a rookie cop gets caught in the cross hairs. The story unfolds from there…

Actress Alexis Louder is absolutely stellar in her role as “Harper”. Actually, she is what keeps the movie interesting. There is action, but it is BLOODY!!


There is a combination of Director’s Guy Richie and Quinton Tarantino influences at work here. But with all of that and the great acting, the story is still lacking. There are many pieces to the puzzle that somehow must have fallen on the cutting room floor.

“Copshop” is only available in Theaters.

This is a 3 Star Movie!!

Cry Macho

Cry Macho

Clint Eastwood plays Mike Milo a former Rodeo Star / washed-up Horse Breeder in this Warner Bros Vehicle.

In 1979 Mike Milo takes on a job from a former Boss to see that his son gets safely across the Mexican Border to Texas. During the trip Mike and his young passenger are forced to take the back roads and they still face a number of challenges along the way. During the journey Mike reflects on his life and finds his own brand of redemption. The story unfolds from there…

While the story is interesting, the movie is slow and go. Clint Eastwood’s character seemed odd in this movie. There are a few bright spots in “Cry Macho”, but the story seems unfinished as if there should have been a better back story to really give the movie more meaning.

At 91 years of age, Clint Eastwood still gets around really good.

“Cry Macho” is at the Box office and also streaming on HBO MAX until Oct 17th.

This is a 2 ½ Star Movie!!

The Card Counter

The Card Counter

“The Card Counter” was not originally on my “Watch List”, but after seeing several trailers I decided to give it a look. 

“The Card Counter” is about revenge, redemption and moral responsibility. The movie is intense and at times difficult to look at because some of the scenes are very grotesque. 

Oscar Isaac plays William Tell, a former Military Interrogator who becomes a gambler. He is haunted by events and tasks he participated in during his time in the Military. William meets a woman in a Casino that he becomes attracted to. The story unfolds from there…

 The story and the movie are super intense and riveting. While the performances of Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Willem Dafoe and Tye Sheridan are outstanding, the movie was not very entertaining.

Some of the viewers in the cinema I was in got up and left an hour into the movie. Had I not been writing a review; I probably would have left also.

Hopefully in the near future we will see Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish and Willem Dafoe in something more entertaining and light-hearted.

This is a 2 1/2 Star Movie!! 

The Protege

The Protege

The Protégé follows in the footsteps of movies like “Atomic Blonde”, “Peppermint” and “The Rhythm Section”.  


Anna (Maggie Q) is rescued as a child by the legendary assassin Moody (Samuel L. Jackson). As Anna grows up, she is trained in the family business to one day take over. 

But suddenly when Moody is violently killed, Anna’s world is once again upended. Anna comes to her senses and vows revenge against whoever murdered Moody. As Anna searches for Moody’s killers, she becomes entangled with a suave killer (Michael Keaton) and their attraction to each other goes way beyond the usual cat and mouse. The story unfolds from there…


The story is decent. There is no plot to speak of. The movie is part violent, bloody and sexy, with a comedic twist. The movie really finds its self in the third act. Everything comes together nicely. I felt the end could have been handled a bit better.

This is a 3 Star Movie!!

Stillwater

Stillwater

Academy Award Winner Matt Damon plays Bill Baker, an out of work roughneck who travels from Oklahoma to Marseille to visit his estranged daughter Allison (Abigail Breslin) who is in prison for a crime she swears she did not commit. Allison happens upon a new tip that could possibly exonerate her. During a visit with her Dad, Allison instructs him to reach out to her legal team, but Bill wants to take things in his own hands first and with a language barrier and cultural differences, Bill soon finds himself in over his head.

While staying in a hotel Bill meets a French actress Virginie (Camille Cottin) who is a mother to an eight-year-old little girl named Maya. Bill and Maya become best friends. She teaches Bill how to speak French and her mother Virginie becomes attracted to Bill and offers her assistance. The story unfolds from there…

The story has holes and drags a bit, but the strong performances by Matt Damon, Camille Cottin and Abigail Breslin makes the movie interesting and intriguing. There are some very nice views of Marseille throughout the movie.

“Stillwater” is only playing in the theaters, so check it out!

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!!

Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse

Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse

A Tom Clancy movie that’s not on the Big Screen. 

At first, I was upset that “Without Remorse” did not come to the box office. Give me a break!! This is a Tom Clancy book come to life, so I expected to see it on a big screen, but none the less it’s available on Amazon Prime.

Tom Clancy’s “Without Remorse” is about an Elite Navy Seal who uncovers an International Conspiracy while seeking justice for his murdered wife and unborn child. This is the explosive original story of John Clark who is one of the most popular characters in Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan Universe. 

A group of Russian soldiers kills Sr. Chief John Kelly’s (Michael B. Jordan) family in retaliation for his role in a Top-Secret Ops. John Kelly makes it his personal duty to get revenge at all costs. The story unfolds from there… 

As you would expect Tom Clancy’s “Without Remorse” is action packed from the start. I wanted to love it, but unfortunately the main characters appeared flat and uninviting. I stayed with it for the action, suspense and intrigue.

It’s probably just as well that it’s not on the big screen, but this is a Tom Clancy installment and Tom Clancy’s books are awesome! This installment to the screen just missed its mark.

Check out Tom Clancy’s “Without Remorse” streaming on Amazon Prime or wait for it to come to cable.

This is a 2 Star Movie!!

The Courier

The Courier

 A really good movie worth wearing a mask to see!!

Based on a true story, “The Courier” is a Cold War Thriller about an unassuming British Businessman, Greville Wynne (Cumberbatch) who is recruited into one of the greatest International Conflicts in History. At the request of the UK’s MI-6 and a CIA operative (Rachel Brosnahan) Greville Wynne forms a covert and super dangerous partnership with Soviet Officer Oleg Penkovsky (Merab Ninidze) in an effort to provide critical intel needed to prevent a Nuclear attack and defuse the Cuban Missile Crisis.

After making what he believed was a sufficient number of journeys to Russia, Greville informs MI-6 that he no longer wishes to participate. The story unfolds from there…

The story is tightly constructed, intense and edge of your seat suspenseful. Benedict Cumberbatch brings deep star power to the story. The cinematography is often dark and gloomy, that does not take away from the story or the movie. It’s just a reminder of that time period in the 60’s.

This is a 4 Star Movie!!