Tag: Jennifer Lawrence

X-Men: Dark Phoenix in AMC Dolby

The X-Men have been enjoying “Hero” status among normal humans when they are called out to use their powers to save and protect. But the X-Men soon find out that they will end up facing their worst foe, one of their own when after a journey into space to save one of NASA’s Space Shuttle crew Phoenix consumes the unknown fire source in space in order to save her team and the shuttle crew. The X-Men are unaware of the danger humanity could end up being in. The story unfolds from there…

First for the good…The cinematography is fantastic, the special effects and action are on point.

The bad… The story lacks emotion and depth and is not very entertaining. The acting seemed a bit dry also. This is supposed to be a “Finale” of sorts. I would have expected much better. I am highly disappointment. The story ends on a whisper. You are left more questions than answers.

“Dark Phoenix” is supposed to be the last installment in the X-Men franchise. It comes in with a whimper and goes out with a Whimper… The movie is not very memorable and does not do the comic book justice.

I think the 2017 “Logan” installment was much better and more entertaining.

This is a 1 Star Movie!!

Red Sparrow

“Red Sparrow” is a compilation of the following movies…””Black Swan”, “Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy”, “Atomic Blonde” and “Bridge of Spies”.

If you take something from each of those movies and put it all together, you get “Red Sparrow”.

Dominika Egorova (Jennifer Lawrence) wears many hats, she takes care of her crippled mother, is the principal dancer in the Russian Ballet and a master seductress and manipulator. A terrible accident befalls Dominika during a ballet performance. This accident ends her ballet career. Dominika is forced to seek other ways to provide for her mother. Dominika is invited to join the Sparrow School, a new Intelligence service that trains exceptional young people like her to use their minds and bodies as weapons. The fun really begins after Dominika emerges from the insane training. The story unfolds from there…

“Red Sparrow” is not “Fresh”. There are parts of this movie that have been seen before in other movies. The movie is suspenseful and intriguing. The casting of Jennifer Lawrence was spot on, but unfortunately the movie is boring at times and it drags. The running time is advertised as 2 hours and nineteen minutes, but it felt like 3 hours and nineteen minutes.

If you are a fan of Jennifer Lawrence, “Red Sparrow” is worth a look. It’s definitely better than her last movie “Mother!”

This is a 3 Star Movie!

The Passengers in Real 3D

“The Passengers” is about an idea that would be wonderful if it were clearly mapped out and executed appropriately, but unfortunately for the movie it’s not.

Imagine being able to go to sleep for about 135 years while being transported aboard a luxury space ship and wake up to embark on a brand new world. When you wake up you are the same age you were when you went to sleep. Along the way though the space ship has problems, this causes several people to wake up unexpectedly. The story unfolds from there…

The idea behind “The Passengers” is great, but there is no purpose, cause or reason why. Nothing is explained as to why and how these people were selected to make this journey. There are a ton of questions, but no answers. No real plot.

Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence have great on-screen chemistry, but even that is not enough to make “The Passengers” a blockbuster hit.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

X-Men: Apocalypse The IMAX 3D Experience

Welcome to a special installment of Thursday Night at the Movies with The Movie Warrior!

“X-Men: Apocalypse” is a very ambitious undertaking that doesn’t quite meet the mark. I found the plot to be bloated with no deflation and no explanation. There were really strong performances, but they were over shadowed by a plot that never quite comes together as it’s all over the place.

In this installment, everything gets torn up, destroyed literally and then put back together.

The best parts of the movie are the special effects, cinematography and the 3D aspects. There is non-stop action, but sometimes it does not make sense. That’s not enough to justify spending $17 dollars to see the movie.
To me personally after 16 years the “X-Men” franchise has run its course and is now an overdone franchise, also it was disappointing to not see Halle Barry reprise her role as “Storm”.

This is a 2 1/2 Star Movie!

JOY

“JOY” is based on factual information about a crazy family that crosses 4 generations. The anchor is the young woman who invents an innovative mop and goes on to create a dynasty. The movie is filled with Decent, Betrayal, Treachery and Heartache. All of this paves the way for “JOY”.

The absolute best element to “JOY” is Jennifer Lawrence. She turns in a strong performance. The movie is all over the map and then it’s not. The opening minutes do not make sense. Things finally calm down the last 45 minutes of the movie, but by then the damage is already done.

“JOY” does not turn out even close to what the previews lead you to believe. In fact almost all of the scenes you see in the trailers are the best scenes in the movie.

Unfortunately “JOY” does not bring joy this Holiday Season!

This is a 2 1/2 Star Movie!

The Hunger Games: MockingJay Pt 2

At last the long awaited final installment in The Hunger Games Franchise has arrived!

This final installment picks up where the Mocking Jay Pt1 left off. Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) is recovering from her injuries. She wants desperately to speak with Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), but President Alma Coin (Julianne Moore) and others warn against it.

Once Katniss is well, the team is assembled. The goal is to go to the Capital and kill President Snow. Of Course the team runs into many obstacles, but this does not stop them. The story unfolds from there.

There is lots of action, special effects and mayhem. There are a lot of surprises. Jennifer Lawrence is flawless as Katniss Everdeen. It seems the role was made for her. She brings legitimacy to the story.
Sadly this is the last movie for Philip Seymour Hoffman. This franchise started off in 2012 with a bang, but now goes out quietly.

If you are a fan of “The Hunger Games” Franchise; this final installment should not be missed.

This is a 3 1/2 Star Movie!

The Hunger Games: Mocking Jay PT1: The IMAX Experience

The third installment of The Hunger Games franchise is long on intrigue and suspense, but very short on action.
Picking up were the previous installment left off Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) finds herself in a hospital ward in District 13 after she had destroyed the Hunger Games forever.
President Alma Coin (Julianne Moore)of District 13 wants Katniss to be “The Mocking Jay”, but after a brief conversation with her changes her mind. Katniss along with other convince the president that she can and will.
District 13 is tries to get all of the other districts to join together to take down the Capitol, but as they are mounting a charge it is determined that Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) is more in need of being rescued from under President Snow’s (Donald Sutherland) watchful eyes as it appears he is being forced to say and act as if everything that Katniss has done is wrong. The story unfolds from there…

The newly added cast members give this installment a shot in the arm, but it still falls short of being as good as its predecessors.
“The Hunger Games: Mocking Jay PT1” is long on intrigue and suspense, but the action you have come to expect just isn’t there.
The end sets up nicely for the fourth installment.

This is one of Philip Seymour Hoffman’s last movies. To say the least the situation is very tragic. Philip Seymour Hoffman was an excellent actor. He will truly be missed.

This is a 3 Star Movie!

X-Men: Days of Future Past 3D

“X-Men: Days of Future Past” is Excellent!!

The X-Men ensemble fights a war for survival across two time periods. In an attempt to change the course of history and to assure their species survives, the X-Men from the original installment must join forces with their younger selves from the past, X-Men First-Class. The story unfolds from there…

This movie has substance. It’s solid. You get time travel!! It’s very entertaining, has tons of action and is fun to watch. The cinematography and special effects are great! By far this is the best “X-Men” movie in the franchise.

This is a 4 1/2 star movie!

American Hustle

“American Hustle” is one of those highly anticipated movies, it doesn’t disappoint. You will be intrigued from the first 20 minutes. My attention never wavered. The cast was excellent. Depending on whom you are rooting for you will either be pleased or pissed off.

“American Hustle” is about cons and swindles going down routinely. A couple of con artists believe they have the perfect money making scheme. They go about executing their plan flawlessly until one day they happen upon the wrong client. An FBI agent happens to meet with the con-artists; of course they do not know they are talking with an FBI agent. Once the scheme goes down, he identifies himself and arrests are made.

The FBI agent isn’t all on the up and up himself, but he forces the con-artists to work with him undercover to bring down a group of shady State Senators and Congressman. The story unfolds from there…

“American Hustle” is very much a Martin Scorsese like film, but he did not direct this. This was directed by David O. Russell. You must pay attention. Things are not always as they seem. There are plenty of surprises that materialize before your eyes. There is a lot of drama, quite a bit of sexuality, but the movie does not contain a lot of brutality.

The male audience will find this movie entertaining from a sensual perspective. Amy Adams never wears a bra and this is obvious throughout the movie. There are several scenes where it’s clear she isn’t wearing any panties either. I also found Jennifer Lawrence’s performance interesting. This movie is definitely not for the teenage set.

“American Hustle” is worth the price of admission.

Hunger Games: Catching Fire The IMAX Experience

This second installment finds Katniss Everdeen back at home safely after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games. Part of winning means the winners must promote the games, so Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) and Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) embark on a cross country district by district tour. They are also both trying to convince President Snow (Donald Sutherland) that they do love each other and it was the right thing to allow them to be co-winners of the 74th Hunger Games. It would seem though that President Snow is not convinced.

The 75th Annual Hunger Games is approaching. President Snow has decided that all past winners must compete again to mark the 75th Anniversary. The story unfolds from there…

There is a nice continuation from the first installment. “Hunger Games: Catching Fire” flows nicely, keeps you engaged and thoroughly entertained. The cinematography is breathtaking and the special effects are awesome. My only problem was the ending is a bit weird, but the door is open for installment number three.
If you are a fan of the Hunger Games Franchise then “Hunger Games: Catching Fire” is a must see.