Tag: Vincent D’Onofrio

Death Wish (2018)

Bruce Willis is Dr. Paul Kersey. Dr. Kersey has a great life, he is a surgeon at a Chicago Hospital; Paul has a lovely wife and a daughter who has just been accepted to a New York University. Life is good!!

Dr. Kersey was called back to the hospital on the evening he had planned to celebrate his Birthday with his family, unbeknownst to the Kersey family a band of burglars had staked out their home for an invasion. The burglars broke in and a scuffle took place. Mother and daughter were both shot. When Dr. Kersey finds out what happened, he eventually puts a plan in place to deliver his own kind of justice and revenge. The story unfolds from there…

Charles Bronson will always be the best at the Death Wish movies, but this version with Bruce Willis is not bad!! There isn’t much in the way of new ground being covered, but the movie is still entertaining. You will find yourself rooting for the “Grim Reaper” Character that Dr. Kersey becomes.

There is plenty of suspense, action and intrigue. There is even some comic relief. My husband even found the movie enjoyable!!
Despite what the paid critics think, I say that this new installment of “Death Wish” is worth a look!

This is a 3 Star Movie!

The Magnificent Seven (2016): The IMAX Experience

Remakes are never as good as the original upon which they are based, but the remake of the 1960’s The Magnificent Seven does a pretty good job. It’s pure “Pop Corn Entertainment”.

The cast is awesome. Think the “Wild, Wild West” of 1897 or better yet think “Gun Smoke”, “Dodge City” and Sheriff Matt Dillon.

The little western mining town, Rose Creek is under siege by a greedy tyrant named Bartholomew Bogue. He and his merry band of men over throw the town’s sheriff and his deputies. All of the town is in jeopardy, but one resident, Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett) and other desperate residents seek out the help of a Bounty Hunter who comes through town looking for one of his Bounties. The Bounty Hunter finds out he knows Bartholomew Bogue and agrees to help the town out. The story unfolds from there…

“The Magnificent Seven (2016)” does what it’s supposed to do. It provides great entertainment. There are no special effects, CGI’s or anything that would remotely remind you that we are in 2016. This is a good old-fashioned western. It’s not perfect, but the cast makes the movie worth watching. There is lots of western style violence, action and blood-shed. There is even a bit of comic relief.

If you like Westerns, you should enjoy “The Magnificent Seven (2016)”.

This is a 4 Star Movie!

Jurassic World: 3D The IMAX Experience

Finally the long awaited next installment in the Jurassic Park Series has finally arrived!!

“Jurassic World” is a thrilling ride!! It’s definitely edge of your seat entertainment. The cinematography and special effects are very good and there is a lot of action.

The absolute best elements of “Jurassic World” are actor Chris Pratt and the T-Rex’s. The remaining cast-of-characters are very underdeveloped. Bryce Dallas Howard appears to me as if she is afraid to act or show any emotion in the movie. The story is a bit sketchy. You are not really sure what the plot is.

Although the characters are from the famed writer Michael Creighton’s books, his stamp is not as apparent as in previous installments.
If you are a fan of the Jurassic Park franchise, by all means do see “Jurassic World”. It’s a definite must see in IMAX, but not 3D.

This is a 3 Star Movie!

Run All Night

I thought the weekend was going to slip by before I could see “Run All Night”. I have been severely under the weather with an Acute Sinus Infection and on Antibiotics. Heavily medicated I was NOT going to let a Liam Neeson movie pass by if I could help it. So off to the movies I went late this Sunday afternoon.

Liam Neeson plays Jimmy Conlon, a mob hit-man in this crime thriller. He and his estranged son Mike Conlon (Joel Kinnaman) are fleeing the wrath of a vengeful crime boss, Shawn Maguire (Ed Harris) after Jimmy kills Shawn Maguire’s son in self defense to save his own son, Mike. The story unfolds from there…

There are lots of twists and turns and intrigue. It’s in your face violence. There are some interest stunts and moves, but nothing to far out of the way that it’s totally unbelievable.
The only strange element is actor Common playing a sort of “Cyborg” Hit Man. He is out of place here…Common is good looking and debonair. He should stick to the “Lover” type roles. He does not transcend to bad guy very well.

If you like Crime Suspense Thrillers and Liam Neeson, “Run All Night” is worth a look.

This is a 3 Star Movie!!

The Judge

In “The Judge”, big city attorney Hank Palmer (Robert Downey Jr.) is summoned back to the Indiana town he grew up in when he is informed that his mother has died. Once he returns to his childhood home Hank attempts to reconnect with his estranged Dad, “The Judge” (Robert Duvall) and re-establish a relationship with the family he walked away from.

Judge Palmer (Robert Duvall) ends up getting arrested for attempted murder when his vintage Cadillac strikes and kills a recently released ex-con that he himself once convicted. The story unfolds from there…

“The Judge” is not a bad movie, but it takes way too long to get to the point. Family dysfunction is the order of the day with the Palmer family. This is played out throughout the movie.

There are at least 5 smaller stories playing out in the movie involving a high school romance rekindled, a mentally challenged younger brother, past transgressions of a father, possible incest and an impending divorce. None of these scenarios have anything to do with the story at hand. This all causes the movie to be disjointed.

There is plenty of star power in “The Judge”, too bad it’s not fully utilized.

This is a 2 1/2 Star Movie!

Escape Plan

Sylvester Stallone is Ray Breslin, a respected authority on Structural Security. He agrees to take on a high-risk job of breaking out of an ultra-secret high-tech facility that is located in parts unknown called “The Tomb”.

At this ultra-secret facility things go awry and Ray is falsely imprisoned. He is then forced to recruit a fellow inmate Emil Rottmayer (Schwarzenegger) to help him devise a plan to escape. The story unfolds from there…

The story starts off ok, but loses its way through most of the movie to regain some footing toward the end. Sly and Arnold are good together and that’s what makes “Escape Plan” interesting. It was also great to see Vincent D’Onofrio from Law & Order Criminal Intent fame.

If you are a Sylvester Stallone fan then “Escape Plan” is worth a look.