Tag: Morgan Freeman

Angel Has Fallen in AMC Dolby

“Angel Has Fallen” is a good Action/Adventure flick with a tightly wound plot that unravels it’s self at the end.

Not everyone agrees with President Trumbull (Morgan Freeman) of the United States on his views about war and combat. Little does the President and his Security Detail know that the trouble maker is right in the President’s cabinet. When there is an Assassination attempt on President Trumbull, his best and most experienced Secret Service Agent, Mike Manning (Gerard Butler) is framed and ends up on the run. The story unfolds from there…

As I stated in my opening lines, “The plot is tightly wound”. You will scratch your head for a while trying to figure things out. Once it becomes clear everything goes downhill quickly.

There is lots of action, suspense and intrigue and some nice cinematography. There are times when the scenes will get on your nerves and you will want to wring your hands. That’s the reason “Angel Has Fallen” is not a 4 or 5 Star movie.

That being said, “Angel Has Fallen” is an enjoyable movie and still worth a look.

This is a 3 ½ 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!

Going in Style

“Going in Style” is Hilarious!!

Just imagine you are in your “Golden Years”. You have retired after working 30, 40 years at the same company. You have a pension that you expected to last as long as you do. The company you worked so hard for is having problems and has been purchased. The new company has decided to freeze all pensions from the purchased company. This leaves all of the current retirees without any money.

Desperate times calls for desperate measures. You get together with your retired pals and decide to rob a bank. There is planning, getting into shape and learning to shoot a gun among other tasks that you need to undertake, but first you need some help from someone with a criminal mind. The story unfolds from there…

The paid critics are very Luke-warm about “Going in Style”. What could possibly be Luke-warm about a movie with Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Alan Arkin as its stars?
I thought it was funny, entertaining and lighthearted while potentially ringing in some truth. In America today, pensions disappearing does happen. It’s funny to see 70+ year old’s putting together a plan and robbing a bank.

“Going in Style” is an entertaining movie and worth a look.

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!

Now You See Me 2

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

Three years later…here we are for another magical installment of “Now You See Me”. Did you see the first installment? If not you should.

This installment finds the Four Horseman (Jesse Eisenberg, Lizzy Caplan, Woody Harrelson and Dave Franco) performing extreme magic and illusions to tantalize crowds of fans. The Four Horseman unwillingly traveling across the globe to China and once there they are enticed to perform their biggest and most dangerous trick yet. They are tasked with stealing a computer chip that has the power to erase every single computer on the planet. That feat will indeed take some serious magic and illusion to pull off. The story unfolds from there…

Plain and simple this installment tries too hard. The magic appears forced. There is a lot of magic and illusion. It’s practically non-stop. The first installment was exciting and fun. This second installment is intriguing but not very interesting. There are parts of the movie that are totally boring. There is no context at the start of the movie. It just starts without explanation. You are left to try and figure it out.

All of the originals from the first installment are back with the exception of the female Horseman, Henley Reeves who was played by Isla Fisher. In this installment there is a new female Horseman, Lula played by Lizzy Caplan.

Magic and Illusion are what made “Now You See Me” an enjoyable movie. It’s the overkill of Magic and Illusion in this second installment that destroys the fun.

This is a 2 ½ Star Movie!

London Has Fallen

“London has Fallen” is an “Action Junkie’s” Dream!

At the order of the US President a drone strike attempts to take out an internationally known Terrorist. It’s believed that the strike was successful, so no further Surveillance was ordered after the strike.

Fast forward two years, an announcement that the British Prime Minister has died causes a major stir among world leaders. Everyone makes plans to descend on London to pay their respects. Security is extremely high given the importance and severity of the situation. The leaders start to arrive in London. The story unfolds from there…

“London Has Fallen” is not quite as bad as the paid critics indicated.
There is a plot, a story, tons of action, suspense and intrigue.

The only problem is that a lot of the events couldn’t possibly happen in the real world. Agent Banning (Gerard Butler) tries to come across as a Presidential James Bond, but he lacks the charisma to pull it off and the movie is a bit short at 1:39.

The action is non-stop. You won’t be bored. I thought Morgan Freeman was pretty good as the Vice President. I still think the movie is worth at least 2 1/2 stars.

Lucy

I am really not sure what I expected from the movie “Lucy”. There haven’t been many previews, but the ones I did see were intriguing…

“Lucy” (Scarlett Johansson) accidentally gets caught in a “dark” situation not of her own making. Circumstances present themselves and Lucy turns the tables on her captors. She is then able to transform herself into a merciless assassin that defies logic and reason. The story unfolds from there…

“Lucy” contains lots of action, suspense and intrigue. It’s also very bloody.
There is a pretty intense car chase through the streets of Paris France that will remind you of a Jason Bourne Movie. There are plenty of special effects.

The problem with “Lucy” is that you are not given any background or foundation for the events leading up to Lucy’s situation. Nothing really makes any sense. There is no plot.

“Lucy” is an ok movie, it’s not great!

This is a 2 1/2 stars movie

Transcendence

“Transcendence” is a Suspense Thriller that doesn’t Thrill!!

Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) is a celebrated researcher in the field of artificial intelligence. Will is working to create a sentient machine that combines the collective thought intelligence of everything known and with the full range of human emotion.

Because of his genius Will becomes the target of anti-technology extremists who will stop at nothing to keep Dr. Caster from realizing his dream. The story unfolds from there…

I was unable to wrap my brain around this movie. I am sorry to say but, Johnny Depp should stick to the character “Captain Jack Sparrow” in movies like “Pirate of the Caribbean Dead Man’s Chest”. Rumor has it that “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man Tell No Tales” is slated for 2016.
“Transcendence” was dry, lack-luster and flat. There were a few moments of suspense and intrigue, but that’s about it!!

The paid critics were dead on regarding “Transcendence”. Wait for DVD or Blueray.

Last Vegas

“Last Vegas” is like “The Hangover” for the “Geriatric Set”. The comedy was fun but calm, nothing really outrageous!

Billy (Michael Douglas) decides to get married after being single for 58 years. The woman of course is half his age. He calls his childhood pals, Paddy (Robert DeNiro), Archie (Morgan Freeman) and Sam (Kevin Kline) who are located in various parts of the US and invites them to Vegas for a weekend of bachelorhood fun and for the wedding. After everyone arrives in Vegas, there are a number of basic problems that occur, one being the fact that they forgot to book a hotel room.

Archie (Morgan Freeman) tries his luck at the gaming tables with $15,000 dollars. He turns his $15,000 into $100,000 plus. The Casino owner wants a chance to recoup some of their money so they offer the best suite in the casino to the four pals. The story unfolds from there…

“Last Vegas” will be considered boring by the younger set, but if you are over the age of 40, you will be entertained. Great cast, very good chemistry. A nice weekend movie.

Now You See Me

“Now You See Me” is a sophisticated game of “Cat & Mouse” with a group of extremely good magicians, the police and the FBI.
Four top notch magicians perform never before seen tricks. Their tricks are so elaborate they involve theft of money and safes. This draws the attention of not only a former magician who seeks out magicians to expose their tricks, but the police and the FBI get involved. the story unfolds from there…
Things are definitely not what they seem and this is the “Magic” of “Now You See Me”. Move over Houdini because you have nothing on these four fresh magicians.
The movie is good and you will be entertained. The magic is very cool!! The intrigue, twists and turns will keep you on your toes. Don’t blink or you might miss something important. This is a “Must Pay Close Attention” type of movie.
The plot and reasoning is baffling at best and that’s what keeps “Now You See Me” from being a 4-5 star movie.
The paid critics say it’s “So-So”. I disagree, I think “Now You See Me” is worth a look.

Oblivion

“Oblivion” is about the battle for control of a post-nuclear earth. The movie is visually appealing, but that’s about it.
It’s the year 2077 and all is not right with the world, in-fact the world as we know it no longer exists.
Tom Cruise plays Jack Harper a security repairman who goes out daily to find and repair Droids who actually kill humans, but Jack is safe from the Droids because he works for the company that controls them.
Jack only has 2 weeks left until his mission is complete and he can join other surviving humans on a far away colony.
Everything changes when Jack rescues a survivor (Olga Kurylenko) from a downed spacecraft; this survivor triggers memories of things past. Jack finds himself in a battle to save mankind. The story unfolds from there…
As I mentioned earlier, “Oblivion” is visually appealing. The Cinematography is breath-taking. The story and plot are disjointed. Things are confusing from the start. The movie in its entirety is dull.
“Oblivion” is best served via Blue Ray, DVD or Cable.