Tag: Mark Wahlberg

Mile 22

“Mile 22” is an intense thriller, but the story does not gel. There are many moving parts that don’t make sense. Nothing comes together, not even at the end.

A CIA Operative, James Silva and his unit go on a top-secret mission with a highly-skilled tactical team. They are tasked with retrieving an asset who holds life-threatening information. The asset needs to be transported to Mile 22 for extraction before the enemy closes in. The story unfold from there…

The story starts off strange and gets stranger as the movie moves along. There is no real back story to lend perspective as to what the CIA unit is about. There are several side-stories that don’t get enough air time to make any sense.

There is plenty of intense violence, action and some military special ops type of action. Those are the best parts in the movie.

I feel that “Mile 22” is a waste of some very talented actors. I had high expectations, but I am truly disappointed.

“Mile 22” is best watched on Cable. I would not purchase the movie on DVD or Blue Ray.

This movie gets no Stars!!

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!

Transformers: The Last Knight: The IMAX 3D Experience

I haven’t decided whether I like “Transformers: The Last Knight” or despise it. I’m concerned that I can’t summon any feelings toward the movie. It’s one of those movies where you leave the theater and you wonder…what just happened during the last 2 1/2 hours?

This is the fifth installment of a franchise that should have stopped at installment number two. The first “Transformers” was great, but each new installment got progressively worse. The two main characters from the first two installments left the franchise, one after the second installment, the other after the third.

There was no cohesiveness from the third installment to the fourth. This is where Shia LaBeouf exits and Mark Wahlberg enters. But alas this is Hollywood and these movies do make money!

This fifth installment starts off giving a history lesson and ends up with earth fighting to survive being destroyed.

There is mayhem and chaos from start to finish. Non-stop action and great cinematography. The Transformers are always the coolest element of these movies. Anthony Hopkins lends his acting abilities to this installment. He is the brightest spot in the movie.

But alas…the plot is tissue paper thin!! No explanation or reason for the events that occur is given. Two hours and twenty nine minutes is way longer than this movie should have been.

Just think there are two more installments coming your way…They won’t be directed by Michael Bay.

This is a 1 1/2 Star Movie!

Patriots Day

“Patriots Day” is a very well-orchestrated and very well executed account of the horrific Boston Marathon Terrorist Bombing that occurred in April 2013.

The movie shows the quick work of the Boston Police Dept, First Responders, the FBI, The Governor and other Boston and State Officials as they investigate and try to get to the bottom of this horrible incident as quickly as possible.

At the end of the movie the survivors speak about their challenges and triumphs. The movie reinforces to you that the human spirit is strong in the face of adversity.

While this movie is about a horrific incident that occurred in an American city, the movie is worth seeing because there are definite moments that are heart-warming.

This is a 4 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 Gambler (2014)

I love Mark Wahlberg. I think he’s a good actor, but this remake of the 1974 “The Gambler” that starred James Caan doesn’t quite cut it.

The movie drags for the first hour and twenty minutes. The best part is the last 30 minutes. It’s almost worth seeing just for the last 30 minutes, but the key word in my sentence is ALMOST!!

Mark Wahlberg plays Jim Bennett who is both a high Stakes Gambler and a Literary Professor at a local college. He borrows from a gangster (Michael K. Williams) and puts his own life up for collateral. Jim then pits the gangster against the operator of a gambling ring (Alvin Ing). The story unfolds from there…

I do have to say that the dialog for the gangsters was awesome. Their gift for gab was a lot more than I expected.

The 1974 version of “The Gambler” is available via Netflix. I believe that you will find more enjoyment watching that version.

This is a 2 Star Movie!

Transformers: Age of Extinction IMAX 3D

I have always been “Luke Warm” to the Transformer franchise. With Director Michael Bay retooling the franchise, there were high hopes that this installment would match the first installment. “Transformers: Age of Extinction” does not match the first installment, not even close, but it’s definitely better than the previous two installments.

From the last installment an epic battle between the Transformers and Decepticons left a major city torn, but with the world saved. As humanity picks up the pieces and tries to go on with life, there is a group who is trying to change the course of history, while another group attempts to exploit the use of the transformer technology to build war weapons.

Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg) is a Mechanic/Scientist who stumbles upon an old worn diesel truck. He has the truck towed to his farm and after a few days of tinkering with the truck discovers the diesel truck to be an old broken down transformer. The story unfolds from there…

“Transformer: Age of Extinction” is a CGI extravaganza. There is tons of non-stop action, wild crazy special effects and eye popping cinematography. This is the best part of the movie, because the plot and story are stupid. You are not setup at the beginning properly for everything to fall in place and make sense.

Michael Bay has stated that this installment will kick off another series. If it takes this long to save earth, we are in trouble.

If you are a fan of the Transformer Franchise, then by all means do see “Transformers: Age of Extinction”. It’s a must see in IMAX, but you can skip the 3D.

This is a 2 Star movie

Lone Survivor

“LONE SURVIVOR”, is a tale of true Brotherhood, Sacrifice, Courage and Heroism. Based on a true story, four Navy SEALS go out on a covert mission to neutralize a high-level Taliban operative. The mission goes awry and the four SEALS find themselves ambushed and fighting for their lives.

The movie is very well executed, plenty of action, intense violence and very bloody. I found myself hiding my eyes sometimes…The realism of the situation is staggering. This is probably one of the bloodiest military movies I have ever seen!!

LONE SURVIVOR gives you a really good look at what our troops have been dealing with and are continuing to deal with today. No politics are implied in this movie, just the day to day operations that our military deals with. My heart goes out to the men and women who fight for our country and our freedom.

If you like military movies and can stand the bloodiness; LONE SURVIVOR is your movie.

Caution, LONE SURVIVOR is not suited for children under 17.

2 Guns

Denzel Washington plays Bobby Trench a DEA Agent and Mark Wahlberg is Marcus Stigman a U.S. Naval Intelligence Officer. For the past year they have both been trying to infiltrate the Mexican Drug Cartel.
Their current sting operation goes awry and they are disavowed by their superiors, so they devise a new plan to flush out all of the bad guys. The plan is that Bobby and Marcus pull of a very easy robbery at the local bank. $43 million dollars is stolen. This brings everyone out of the woodwork. The story unfolds from there…
Suspense, Intrigue, Twists and Turns are the order of the day with “2 Guns”. There is even a bit of slapstick comedy. There is lots of violence.
I feel the weak link is Paula Patton’s role. She doesn’t portray a detective very well. She was boring. Otherwise the movie is good.
The story is a bit disjointed, but it does all come together quickly. “2 Guns” is definitely worth a look. Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg make an interesting duo.

Pain & Gain

“Pain & Gain” is based on a true story about three guys who are tired of the poor life and are looking for a fast way to get rich.
Daniel Lugo (Mark Wahlberg) is a regular bodybuilder and personal trainer at a Florida Gym called the “Sun Gym” along with his friend Adrian Doorbal (Anthony Mackie). They both concoct a plan to kidnap and extort money from a gym member Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub) who is a rich business man.
Along the way Daniel and Adrian convince a recently paroled convict Paul Doyle (Dwayne Johnson) to help them. They became “The Sun Gym Gang”. They successfully get Kershaw to sign over all of his holdings and money, but when Kershaw survives their murder attempt on him, he convinces investigator Ed Du Bois (Ed Harris) to try and get his money and property back. The story unfolds from there…
I found it very hard to believe that this story was true. It’s such a hare-brained scheme. Some of the events seemed impossible to pull off.
There is a tremendous amount of crude sexuality, nudity and profane language used in the movie.
There are some really funny parts where you will be laughing out loud at them, but not with them. There are too many plot wrinkles. Too much graphic violence and the saga is just plain dizzy.
If you are familiar with this story then by all means do see “Pain & Gain” otherwise wait for it on DVD, Blue Ray or Cable.