Darkest Hour

Finally!! I was able to see “Darkest Hour” this movie has been on my “Watch List” for months!! I was highly disappointed when it opened Nov 22nd in limited-release and it did not open in a theater near me until Christmas Day.

It’s WWII and France is about to go down…Great Britain faces its problems as the threat of invasion is vast approaching. Great Britain hangs on the leadership of their newly appointed Prime Minister Winston Churchill (Gary Oldman). Churchill must decide whether or not to negotiate with Hitler to save the British people all the while maneuvering his political rivals, also deciding whether to fight the odds and at what cost to the nation. The Story unfolds from there…

Gary Oldman is brilliant as Winston Churchill. He deserves every award nod he is currently getting. While at times a bit dull, the movie is still moving, entertaining and educational.

I am not sure why it took so long to go wide-release, but at least it finally did.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

Molly’s Game

My movie going experience was enhanced today because my brand new husband went with me!! For those of you who did not know, One week ago today I got married! Going forward from time to time my husband may attend the movies with me making my reviewing experience more fun!!

Finally “Molly’s Game” has opened. I have been waiting for this movie for months and it does not disappoint!!

“Molly’s Game” is based on the true story of Molly Bloom (Jessica Chastain), an Olympic Down-Hill Skier who ran the most exclusive “High Stakes Poker Game” operation for over a decade before she was arrested in the middle of the night by the FBI.
Molly’s players included some of Hollywood’s Royalty, Sports Stars, Big Business Tycoons and unbeknownst to her, members of the Russian Mob.

Molly’s only ally turned out to be her criminal defense attorney Charlie Jaffey (Idris Elba) who learned that there was a lot more to Molly than what the tabloids reported. The story unfolds from there…

“Molly’s Game” is awesome!! It’s suspenseful, intriguing and edge of your seat entertaining. I love Jessica Chastain and she does not disappoint!! She makes it up as she goes along. The only down turn of the movie was there wasn’t enough “poker play” shown.

Molly’s Game was worth the wait. You should check it out!!

This is a 4 Star Movie!

All The Money in the World

“All the Money in the World” is the true story of the kidnapping of J. Paul Getty’s Grandson, John Paul Getty III. The story depicts the desperate pleas from John Paul Getty III’s Mother, Gail (Michelle Williams) as she begs the billionaire J. Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer) to pay the ransom.

J. Paul Getty believes the kidnapping is a ruse that will allow his grandson to gain access to his fortune, but as it turns out that is not the case. Precious time is wasted and the grandson is held for months. As time races on the kidnappers become desperate, volatile and decide to send the authorities a message. Gail and Getty’s advisor (Mark Wahlberg) become allies in a race to save the grandson’s life. The story unfolds from there…

“All the Money in the World” is a thought provoking mystery with a philosophical punch that shows no mercy. There is plenty of Mystery, Suspense and Intrigue to keep you entertained.

Christopher Plummer is brilliant as J Paul Getty. Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg bring a fresh perspective to the story.

“All the Money in the World” was not on my original “Watch List”, but the movie is definitely worth a look.

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!

Downsizing

“Downsizing” has an impressive cast, too bad the movie wasn’t as impressive as it should have been. The end of the movie is very anti-climactic.

When Scientists discover how to shrink humans to 5 inches in an attempt to combat over population, Paul (Matt Damon) and his wife Audrey (Kristin Wiig) decided this is the way to go for them, so they sign up. Half way through the procedure Audrey changes her mind, she calls Paul to tell him, but Paul has completed the procedure and is now 5 inches tall. The Story unfolds from there…

The movie starts off Ok, but after the first hour, the movie tanks. It does not make sense. It’s all over the map and becomes boring. This was supposed to be a Comedy, but I never laughed once.

This is a 2 ½ Star Movie!

Star Wars Ep. VIII: The Last Jedi in 3D

“Star Wars Ep. VIII: The Last Jedi” continues the saga from The Force Awakens as those heroes join the galactic legends in what turns out to be an EPIC adventure. Age-old mysteries of the Force and un-told/unfinished stories from the past are unlocked. The story unfolds from there…

If you are a “Die-Hard” Star Wars fan, you will love “Star Wars Ep. VIII: The Last Jedi”.

The movie is EPIC in its delivery and covers a lot of ground. There is plenty of thrilling action, super-cool special effects and breath-taking cinematography.

There are a lot of twists and turns which helps to keep a long-running (2:32) movie interesting.

A bit more of the “Dark-side” surfaces in this installment. This is the middle installment of a Trilogy. The door is open and set for the third installment. Mark Hamill does an excellent job paving the way for the new younger “Skywalkers” to come.

This is a 4 1/2 Star Movie!

Just Getting Started

I actually saw “Just Getting Started” Friday evening, but it was so bad and I had other things going on that I didn’t think it was urgent to post a review.

I don’t know if the actors in this movie needed money or if it was just the idea of making a movie that drew them to this project.

The story was silly, lazy and did not make sense. There was some humor, but it was short-lived. I actually fell asleep not once but TWICE!! The movie was only 90 minutes long, but it was a very painful 90 minutes.

Morgan Freeman is Duke Driver. Duke is the manager of a luxury resort in Palm Springs. Duke acts strange, although he does make sure that his residents at the resort have non-stop fun. Things start to go down-hill at the resort when an ex-Military guy Leo (Tommy Lee Jones) checks in. This causes a competition to ensue between Duke and Leo. The story unfold from there…

The jokes are dry, the humor is stale and the overall movie is just plan goofy. This is one of the worst comedies I have ever seen.

This is a 0 Star Movie!

Roman J Israel, ESQ

“Roman J. Israel, ESQ” is a slow-paced legal thriller. Unfortunately the pace was too slow and not nail-biting or edge-of-your seat thrilling.

Academy Award Winner, Denzel Washington plays Roman J. Israel, ESQ a defense attorney in Los Angeles. Roman’s life is turned upside down when a series of unfortunate events occur and challenge his otherwise daily routine causing chaos. The chaos causes Roman’s beliefs in the system to be question. The story unfolds from there…

The pace of the movie was too slow for what was going on. It dragged and at times became boring. The foundation was not laid properly so there are holes in the story.

Denzel Washington is the bright element in the movie doing what he does so well. Denzel works overtime to hold the story together. Without him, the movie would really be mundane.

This is a 3 Star Movie!

Justice League in Real 3D

Out of the gate this is NOT one of the DC Universe’s best outings.

There is a new rising threat to humanity. Batman (Bruce Wayne) works with Wonder Woman (Diana Prince) so that they can find and assemble a team of meta-humans to stand and protect against this new rising threat.
Unfortunately the task is not easy. Even though a league of superheroes (Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash) has formed, it may not be enough to battle the new threat. The story unfolds from there…

Superhero Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) is the best element of the film. In this first outing I find the movie a bit lacking. The Justice League members are a bit disassembled in this first installment. The director (Patty Jenkins) for Wonder Woman was definitely missed. The story drags and is missing some foundation and there is too much CGI.

However I did find the cinematography and 3D aspects to be good. There was lots of action, but that too was sort of chaotic.

Hopefully the DC Universe will go back to the drawing board and clean this up before the next installment. I still prefer Christian Bale as Batman, but alas I found out that he does not want to play that role anymore. Earlier this year Wonder Woman set the bar high and it’s still the best film that came from the DC Universe in 2017.

This is a 2½ Star Movie!

Murder on the Orient Express

The remake of “Murder on the Orient Express” is loaded with heavy hitters. Too bad they did not hit it out of the park!

“Murder on the Orient Express” is a story of thirteen strangers aboard a stranded train where a murder has occurred. Everyone is considered a suspect. There is a detective (Kenneth Branagh) aboard the train and he races to investigate and try to solve the crime before the murderer strikes again. The story unfolds from there…

I had high hopes for the remake of “Murder on the Orient Express”. The trailers were awesome. The movie does contain some very nice scenic views of Istanbul. The movie would be passable if it weren’t for the second half which drags and goes on way too long. At the theater I was in there were people standing at the exit waiting to bolt.

The train does not run off the rails, but it’s a bumpy ride along the European Countryside.

Stick to the original. Peter Ustinov in the original cannot be replaced.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

Jigsaw

I had never planned to see Jigsaw, but an opportunity presented it’s self today so I went with a friend.

I have never personally been a fan of the Saw or Jigsaw movies. They are just plan gory, but this installment actually had some legs…

The movie starts off with several people in jeopardy. Each person has committed an awful crime that they have each gotten away with, but Jigsaw knows the details of each person’s sin and plans to make them pay individually. The story unfolds from there…

“Bloody”, “Gory”, “Painful”, “Revenge” and “Just Plain Sick” is how I would describe the events that take place in “Jigsaw”. There are some appealing twists and turns and that’s what makes the movie interesting. But alas it was just too “Gory” and “Bloody” for me.

If you like Horror and Gore, by all means see “Jigsaw”.