Florence Foster Jenkins

I absolutely love Meryl Streep! She makes any movie she is in better!
Meryl gives an absolutely awesome performance in “Florence Foster Jenkins”.

“Florence Foster Jenkins” is a dramedy about a woman in 1944 who has a love of music and the arts. In the face of war Florence (Meryl Streep) does everything she can to encourage music all around. Florence cannot really carry a tune, but that hardly keeps her from hiring a pianist, voice coach and then proceeding to practice singing opera. She then gives a small performance, makes a recording and then gets a gig in Carnegie Hall.

Florence is totally unaware of her singing deficiencies and the people around her don’t tell her. They coddle her and this leads to other issues. The story unfolds from there…

“Florence Foster Jenkins” is a delightfully entertaining movie. As I stated earlier, Meryl Streep is awesome. Hugh Grant gives a stellar performance as Florence’s music enabler and companion, St. Clair Bayfield, who happens to be a former Shakespearean actor.

There is another part of Florence’s history that is only broached briefly. Florence is ill and it stems from a problem with her first husband. This should have been expanded a bit more.

“Florence Foster Jenkins” is definitely worth the ticket!

This is a 4 1/2 Star Movie!

Suicide Squad in 3D

This is another edition of “Thursday Night at the Movies with The Movie Warrior”.

What was I thinking…DC Comics are not as good as Marvel Comics.

“Suicide Squad” is not entertainment, it’s just plain “Suicide”!!

The villains in this movie are just plain awful. You will be yawning before things really get going.

The movie has a great cast that tries to do something with nothing, but at the end of the day it’s just plain bad. The problem with “Suicide Squad” is the muddled plot. What am I thinking…there was no plot. The movie just rambles. The characters are not fully developed. This leaves you to guess. I did not go to see “Suicide Squad” to guess. There are some humorous moments, but not enough to sink $17 dollars into a ticket.

This is the second time this year we have been treated to a DC Comic on the big screen. The March 2016 Batman vs. Superman was bad enough.

I am giving the movie 2 stars because of the strong cast. Margot Robbie was awesome. Otherwise the movie would get no stars from me.

“Suicide Squad” is best viewed on Cable or Blue-Ray. On second thought just Cable.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

Jason Bourne: The IMAX Experience

Jason Bourne is Back!!

The 2012 “Bourne Legacy” was not received very well, so it’s great that Paul Greengrass (Captain Phillips) and Matt Damon came back to the Franchise that they together made great!

This installment finds Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) on a serious fact finding mission to get to the bottom of why he is who he is and how did he get there. Jason continues to have haunting memories of events past. He tries to put things together with the help of Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles). When the CIA receives an alert that their system has been breached and files are being copied, Director Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones) calls on all of his available field assets to track down and stop the breach. This leads them to Greece where Jason Bourne just happens to be. The story unfolds from there…

“Jason Bourne” dos a good job of tying in events from “The Bourne Identity”, “The Bourne Supremacy” and “The Bourne Ultimatum”. While we live in a world where CGI is used a lot in movies, this is NOT the case with “Jason Bourne”. All of the scenes are real and the action is live and intense. The camera angles are awesome! The signature car chase is there. It’s good but not as good as the car chase that occurred thru Germany in “The Bourne Supremacy”.

The paid critics complained that “Jason Bourne” was more of the same, well that’s what we want. I say do not pay the paid critics any attention. “Jason Bourne” is good and I am very happy to see Matt Damon back in the role. The door was left open at the end.

“Jason Bourne” should be viewed in IMAX. Do you want to see Jason Bourne? Or do you want to ride with Jason Bourne thru the streets of Las Vegas?

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!

Star Trek Beyond: The IMAX 3D Experience

This is another Edition of “Thursday Night at the Movies with The Movie Warrior”

The Star Ship Enterprise is back!

Captain Kirk and his crew go out on what they believe is a rescue mission. They take in a supposed survivor from a wrecked ship. When the Enterprise heads to the planet where they believe they will be rescuing people, instead as they approach this unknown planet, the Enterprise is severely attacked.

Captain Kirk and his crew are forced to abandon ship. The Enterprise crash lands and the crew is scattered round this strange planet. Some of the crew are captured, others wonder looking for the others. The story unfolds from there…

“Star Trek Beyond” is full of suspense and intrigue. There is lots of Sci-Fi action and mayhem. The movie is visually entertaining and will satisfy any Star Trek fan. Although this is not your Father’s Star Trek, the Enterprise crew goes “Old School” to fight this unknown enemy. There is some cool throw-back special effects that are used from the old Star Trek TV Shows.

The original Dr Spock (Leonard Nimoy) was given a great send off, since he passed away last year. This movie closes that door to some extent.

Do you want to just see the movie? Or do you want to feel like you are riding on the Star Ship Enterprise? “Star Trek Beyond” is a must see in IMAX. The 3D aspects were not that great.

“Star Trek Beyond” is a “Bona-Fide” Summer Blockbuster that did not advertise very much.

This is 4 ½ Star Movie!

The Secret Life of Pets: The IMAX 3D Experience

Do you have a pet? Maybe a Dog, Cat, Bird, Fish, Hamster, Bunny or even a Snake. Do you know what your pet does all day while you are at work? Well “The Secret Life of Pets” is going to show you exactly what type of shenanigans your pet gets into the moment you leave for work or school.

Max the dog has a cushy life with his owner. She spoils him rotten. One day Max’s owner comes home with another dog that she picked up from the pound. The new dog is introduced as Duke. Duke is HUGH. When the owner isn’t looking Max is not very nice to Duke and this causes Duke to misbehave. The next morning after the owner has left for work, Max, Duke and the other Dogs in their neighborhood are taken for a walk to Central Park. Duke wants to get back at Max, so he lures Max away from everyone and suddenly they are on the run from Animal Control. The story unfolds from there…

“The Secret Life of Pets” is absolutely hilarious!! I laughed out loud many times. The 3D Aspects are awesome. I found myself ducking a lot. There are so many fun scenes from the Poodle who throws a Heavy-Metal Party, the Dachshund who uses the Kitchen-Aid Stand Mixer Beater as a Massage Tool, to the Cat who eats a whole chicken that is sitting in the refrigerator. The Poodle is so interesting that the movie circles back to the Poodle’s Heavy-Metal party a second time. There are so many crazy things going on that all you can do is shake your head.

“The Secret Life of Pets” is definitely worth the ticket.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

The Legend of Tarzan: The IMAX 3D Experience

“The Legend of Tarzan” was not on my original “Watch List”, but I decided to give it a look.

Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgard) became a modern man living as John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke with his lovely wife Jane (Margot Robbie). John has now been invited back to the Congo where he once called home to serve as a trade emissary of Parliament. John is unaware that he is the pawn in a crazy, deadly scheme of revenge and greed masterminded by Captain Leon Rom (Christoph Waltz). Unfortunately the people involved with Captain Leon Rom have no idea what’s in store for them when they try to take Tarzan or hurt anyone he loves. The story unfolds from there…

The story starts off painfully slow, in fact the first 40 minutes were useless. Once the story heats up and the action becomes lively, the movie becomes interesting. Samuel L. Jackson’s character does nothing more than provide comic relief. Christoph Waltz always gives his character in any movie he plays in everything he has. This installment is probably the best Tarzan movie of modern times.

There is plenty of action and lots of computer generated animals. You get that dark dank jungle locale and there are some stampeding scenes that remind me of one of the earlier Jurassic Park movies where the Dinosaurs are chasing after the Scientists.

In a lackluster summer of blockbusters thus far, Tarzan is probably the best movie ticket for the 4th of July Holiday weekend.

This is a 3 Star Movie!

Independence Day: Resurgence: The IMAX 3D Experience

Have you ever gone to the movies and while you were waiting for the movie to start, you have second thoughts…? That was my dilemma today. If I could have gotten my money back I would have left the theater. I just had my doubts about seeing this sequel.

It’s 20 years since “Independence Day” and we have taken up residence on the Moon. We have a fully operational Space Station with astronauts and scientists manning the station. Flights to the moon are routine. The current president of the United States is a Woman. A HUGH celebration is in effect honoring the fallen of 20 years ago.

On the Moon, we mistaken a friendly arrival from another planet who comes to warn Earth that an Intergalactic war is about to take place and Earth is in trouble. We fire upon the friendly ship destroying everything but its messenger. Once we find out what’s about to happen it’s too late. The Alien Ship with the “Queen” as already entered Earth’s air space. The story unfolds from there…

Bottom line…”Independence Day: Resurgence” attempts to match the same “End-Of-The-World” urgency that its predecessor did. It falls far short of even coming close.

While the movie is visually appealing and the CGI and Cinematography are stunning, the rest of the movie, story and plot are missing.

“Independence Day Resurgence” is best viewed on Cable.

This is a 1 Star Movie!

Free State of Jones

It’s another edition of “Thursday Night at the Movies with The Movie Warrior”.

“Free State of Jones” is an Epic Civil War Satire based on factual events that occurred between 1862 and 1876.

Matthew McConaughey is Newt Knight a stubborn southern farmer who goes up against the Confederate Army. Over time Newt assembles an army of his own made up of free slaves, women and white men who defected from the army.

They fought against farmers losing everything to the Confederacy, slavery, the right to vote and any act that was unjust or unlawful during those times.
This is a big story to tell and it can’t be told in 2 hours and nineteen minutes. The movie jumps around a lot. There are actually 2 stories occurring simultaneously. There are many holes left unfilled.

This is the type of movie that has all of the elements that grate on my last nerve, “Racism”, “The N Word being used rampantly”, “The KKK running amok”, “Hangings, Lynching” and “People being beat with a whip”.

If you wish to stomach all of that, have at it!!

This is a 2 Star Movie!

Central Intelligence

I am not a Kevin Hart fan and “Central Intelligence” wasn’t on my original watch list, but I decided to give it a look anyway.

Kevin Hart is Calvin Joyner the guy in High School who was the most likely to succeed. Dwayne Johnson is Bob Stone the guy in High School who was the butt of fat jokes and pranks.
Fast forward 20 years…Calvin Joyner married his High School sweet-heart and is an accountant in a prestigious firm. Bob Stone has lost 200 pounds and is a field Agent in the CIA. Bob contacts Calvin because Calvin always came to his rescue in High School.

After Bob and Calvin meet for drinks things start to unravel with a case that Bob is involved with. He needs Calvin’s help. The story unfolds from there…

Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart actually make a good comedy duo. They feed off of each other pretty well. “Central Intelligence” is funny with some slap-stick thrown in, serious at times, but also entertaining with a decent amount of action.

The movie is better than I thought it would be. It’s not all jokes for Kevin Hart’s character Calvin Joyner. “Central Intelligence” is probably the best movie I have seen that stars Kevin Hart.

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!

Finding Dory in 3D

Sometimes Animated Movies are more thought-provoking, entertaining and intriguing than the movies made by adults… I will review “Central Intelligence” later this weekend.

Dory a Blue Tang Fish (Ellen DeGeneres) has a short memory span. Somehow Dory loses her parents. As Dory tries to figure out what when wrong, a year passes. She frantically searches the big blue sea. Soon though she finds out that it’s possible that her parents were “captured” and placed in “Quarantine” at the Science Marina Aquarium. Dory, Nemo and Jenny set out in search of Dory’s parents, but then a giant Octopus chases them and Dory gets separated from Nemo and Jenny. The story unfolds from there…

“Finding Dory” is cute, funny, entertaining, thought-provoking and light-hearted. The 3D aspects were excellent. There is a message about the meaning of family. This message is for every one of all ages.

I loved the cinematography and the graphics. The colors in the ocean with all of the different types of fish were awesome.

If you are looking for some light-hearted entertainment, I suggest “Finding Dory”.

This is a 4 Star Movie!!