Tag: Will Smith

King Richard

King Richard

In “King Richard” we get a view into the humble start of Venus and Serena Williams tennis careers. Richard Williams had a plan, a 78-page plan that he executed on and was determined to get his daughters, Venus and Serena into the Tennis Record Books. This movie is about that journey. 

The story starts off with the Williams family’s early life in Compton, CA. The Williams sisters trained on the neglected tennis courts in Compton, often times late into the evenings. Their Mother, Oracene provided the balanced perspective and great intuition to help keep the girl’s lives as normal as possible. The story continues to the family’s move to Florida and Venus’s signing with Reebok.

The movie is very moving! The execution is good. Will Smith is very impressive as Richard Williams. 

If you are a fan of Venus and Serena Williams, this movie is definitely worth a look. 

“King Richard” is in Theaters and Streaming on HBO MAX

This is a 5 Star Movie!!

Bad Boys for Life in AMC Dolby

I was not writing movie reviews back in 1995 when the first “Bad Boys” hit the big screen. In fact I can’t remember if I liked the first installment or not. I can however confidently state that I do in fact like “Bad Boys for Life”.

It’s been twenty five years since Mike Lowery (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) first became partners. Fast forward to 2020, Mike and Marcus get together for one last ride…

This installment of the Bad Boy franchise is really good. The movie is fun to watch from start to finish. There is a back story that is carefully laid out, but there is a hole in the plot that does not quite get filled. However that does not take away from the entertainment factor of the movie. There is plenty of action, crazy car and motorcycle chases, but brace yourself…Things do get bloody. The cinematography is on point. The comic relief is alive and well.

I recommend “Bad Boys for Life” for some fun entertainment during this MLK Day Holiday weekend.

This is a 3 ½ Star Movie!!

Gemini Man in 3D

I was so excited when I first learned of “Gemini Man”. The movie trailers made the movie seem interesting and intriguing. When I saw the Rotten Tomatoes score of 26, my heart fell. I told myself I was going to keep an open mind.

Henry Brogan (Will Smith) just completed what he felt was his last assassin job for the DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency). He planned to retire and enjoy time on his boat. The DIA had other ideas. They did not want to lose their elite assassin, so they decided to take action. The story unfolds from there…

The visuals for “Gemini Man” are impressive. There is a ton of action, suspense and intrigue. Will Smith turns in a strong performance. The problem with “Gemini Man” is the lack of foundation and a back story to tie all of the elements and other people you see into the movie.

“Gemini Man” is not a 5 or 4 star movie. I think it’s definitely worth a higher score than 26.

If you like Will Smith and suspenseful movies, you should check out “Gemini Man”.

This is a 3 Star Movie!!

Aladdin (2019) in AMC Dolby

“Aladdin (2019)” is a modern day remake of the 1992 Aladdin that starred Robin Williams.

The story itself is unchanged, this version of the movie is not animated, but “Live Action”.

A street rat named Aladdin (Mena Marwan) frees a Genie (Will Smith) from a lamp. The Genie offers to fulfill 3 wishes, but when the lamp falls into the hands of evil, Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott), her father and the entire kingdom are in peril. The story unfolds from there…

The movie is very entertaining. The cinematography is brilliant. The story does drags a bit, but the cast makes up for it. If you want to see a non-animated (Live Action) version of Aladdin by all means check this one out.

This is a 3 Star Movie!!

Collateral Beauty

“Collateral Beauty” is about an executive in a successful N.Y. Advertising Company who loses his six year old daughter. She dies unexpectedly and basically the executive never recovers. He totally retreats from day to day life. The other executives in the company spend an undisclosed amount of time trying to communicate with the executive. He totally ignores their calls, visits, emails, and letters.

The company decides they need to divest the executive of his shares in the company, they hire someone to watch him so that they can try to get evidence to show he’s unfit. The story unfolds from there…

“Collateral Beauty” starts off ok, but goes downhill quickly. It’s a colossal waste of some powerfully strong actors and actresses. Besides the main story there are several side stories that pop-up and take control, but are never completed. This causes the movie to appear and feel disjointed.

I had high hopes for “Collateral Beauty”, after all it is the holiday season and this is when the best movies make their appearances. Unfortunately there is no beauty in “Collateral Beauty”.

This is a 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!

Concussion

Based on a true story; “Concussion” is a solid movie that tells an important story. The subject matter is something not often thought about, but very important.

Dr. Bennet Omalu (Will Smith) is a Pathologist in Pittsburgh, PA who performs Autopsies. A retired NFL Football player commits suicide at the young age of 50. Dr. Omalu is tasked with performing the Autopsy. Some extensive tests are performed and it is uncovered that the deceased NFL player suffered many concussions during his career which lead to some other brain related problems. Dr. Omalu and his office face an uphill battle as they try to get to the true and make the public aware. The story unfolds from there…

Good execution, moving story. Will Smith does an excellent job as Dr. Bennet Omalu.

What keeps “Concussion” from being a 4 or 5 star movie is that it drags at times and the setting is a bit dark. “Concussion” is definitely worth a look.

This is a 3 1/2 Star Movie!

Focus

“Focus” is about a con-artist who takes on an apprentice, they become romantically involved, sensing things were getting too deep he breaks it off and then years later she gets in the way of a his biggest score.

I am sure the concept on paper reads well, but on the big screen this movie was lost to me. There were way too many “twists” and not enough “turns”. The ending was even weird.

There was about 25 minutes of real intrigue and then I was bored.

“Focus” was billed as a Drama/Comedy. I failed to find anything funny about the movie.

It’s been a while since Will Smith has made a movie that I liked. I guess that drought will continue.

This is a 2 Star Movie!!