Movie Reviews

I watch movies and write about it. No recapping. Just impressions!

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The Walk Of Shame

2/5★ The Walk Of Shame is on a mission to prove that yes, women can be just as freely promiscuous and foul mouthed as men, no judgment allowed. There are a few funny moments, and Elizabeth Banks has the comedy chops to pull it off, but as a whole, Walk Of Shame does nothing to further feminism, but instead is a shrieky, logic defying mess.

Verdict: Meh

Director:  Steven Brill

Cast: Elizabeth Banks, James Marsden, Gillian Jacobs, Sarah Wright, Ethan Suplee, Oliver Hudson, Willie Garson

Genre(s): Comedy

Rating: R

Runtime: 95 min

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Paddington

4/5★ A charming cuddle of a film in the quirky vein of Wes Anderson and his detailed set pieces, Paddington is a fun family movie about an unhappy family rescuing a talking bear who, in turn, rescues them from themselves by teaching them to be happy, while being hunted by sadistic museum taxidermist Nicole Kidman. In all honesty, while he is an excellent actor, Ben Whishaw's voice is distractingly annoying.  

Verdict: Family fun

Plot: From the beloved novels by Michael Bond, Paddington tells the story of the comic misadventures of a young Peruvian bear who travels to the city in search of a home. Finding himself lost and alone, he begins to realize that city life is not all he had imagined – until he meets the kindly Brown family who read the label around his neck that says “Please look after this bear. Thank you,” and offer him a temporary haven. It looks as though his luck has changed until this rarest of bears catches the eye of a museum taxidermist. ~metacritic.com

Director:  Paul King

Cast: Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Peter Capaldi, Nicole Kidman, Ben Whishaw

Genre(s): Comedy, Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 95 min

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That Awkward Moment

2/5★ An awkward title for an awkward film about the lives of Millennials in the big city. Played by inoffensively hot and up-and-coming actors, the film does nothing but drive home the difference between past and currant young adults as portrayed by cinema that reflects some truth in the arrested development of the 20-somethings of today. Bro code and all that entails-its tiresome and condescending. What passes as witty banter does nothing to disguise the fact that it has nothing original to say.

Verdict: Skip  

Plot: Three best friends find themselves where we've all been - at that confusing moment in every dating relationship when you have to decide "So...where is this going?" ~imdb

Director: Tom Gormican

Cast: Zac Efron, Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan, Imogen Poots, Mackenzie Davis, Jessica Lucas

Genre(s): Comedy, Romance

Rating: R

Runtime: 94 min

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who likes a muppets movie but not dr doom elevate your life

Apples and Oranges, sir. Also, I don't dislike Dr. Doom, just how he was portrayed in Fantastic Four. He should be given a better chance, don't you think?

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ABCD 2

2/5★ Bollywood is famous for its "Item numbers" which are song and dance routines that can be complex and eye-catching. Contemporary Western dance flicks are known to have terrible acting and dialogue but pretty cool dance numbers (Step Up 2-5.) Mix the two together and what you get is a film that is pretty bad once the synchronized bodies stop moving.

Verdict: Skip

Plot: Based on the actual story of the Fictitious Dance group; their rise to fame, sudden downfall, and their heroic attempt to seek vindication by regaining their lost pride and glory ~imdb

Director: Remo D'Souza

Cast: Varun Dhawan, Shraddha Kapoor, Prabhu Deva, Raghav Juyal, Lauren Gottlieb, Dharmesh Yelande, Punit Pathak

Genre(s): Musical

Rating: Not Rated but I would rate PG-13

Runtime: 154 min

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Fantastic Four

1/5★ I'll break it down to the level of Fanatic Four: This is dumb movie. Movie waste of my time, your time and must never be spoken of again. Did the director watch The Avengers, saw what made it good and go yeah, lets have none of THAT, and proceed to make a boring, lazy and sad film that would only serve as a contrast to better films?

Verdict: Skip

Plot: Don't care. Don't watch.

Director: Josh Trank

Cast: Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan, Kate Mara, Jamie Bell, Toby Kebbell, Reg E. Cathey, Tim Blake Nelson

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Fantasy

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 100 min

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Oblivion

3/5★ A textbook example of a film that has all the requirements of a sure hit: Great looking, great sounding and Tom Cruising. Unfortunately, while it looks great on the surface, its empty on the inside. Oblivion has great style, but no soul. Also: it has plot holes that are glossed over by all that shiny surface that are more memorable than the movie.

Verdict: Watchable.

Plot: A veteran assigned to extract Earth's remaining resources begins to question what he knows about his mission and himself ~imdb

Dir: Joseph Kosinski

Cast: Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Melissa Leo

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Mystery, Thriller

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 124 min

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Muppets Most Wanted

4/5★ Great casting, wonderful songs and the trademark Muppet humor all mix to make a fun film that is enjoyable to all but the most curmudgeonly of viewers.

Verdict: Enjoy!

Plot: Disney's "Muppets Most Wanted" takes the entire Muppets gang on a global tour, selling out grand theaters in some of Europe's most exciting destinations, including Berlin, Madrid, Dublin and London. But mayhem follows the Muppets overseas, as they find themselves unwittingly entangled in an international crime caper headed by Constantine-the World's Number One Criminal and a dead ringer for Kermit the Frog-and his dastardly sidekick Dominic, aka Number Two, portrayed by Ricky Gervais. The film stars Tina Fey as Nadya, a feisty prison guard, and Ty Burrell as Interpol agent Jean Pierre Napoleon.(c) Disney

Dir: James Bobin

Cast: Ricky Gervais, Ty Burrell, Tina Fey

Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Musical

Rating: PG

Runtime: 107 min

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Despicable Me 2

3/5★ While not as fresh and emotionally resonant as the first one, Despicable Me 2 offers enough laughs and visual delights to entertain and distract you from the fact that it just doesn't capture the spark its prequel had. Also: When it comes to cutesy animated sidekicks, more is less.

Verdict: Enjoyable.

Plot: Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment's worldwide blockbuster Despicable Me entertained audiences around the globe in 2010, grossing more than $540 million and becoming the 10th-biggest animated motion picture in U.S. history. In summer 2013, get ready for more Minion madness in Despicable Me 2. (c) Universal

Dir:  Chris Renaud & Pierre Coffin

Cast: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Benjamin Bratt, Miranda Cosgrove,  Elsie Fisher, Dana Gaier, Russell Brand, Steve Coogan, Ken Jeong

Genre: Adventure, Sci-Fi, Comedy, Crime, Animation, Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 98 min

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Date and Switch

2/5★ Maybe they tried to freshen the stagnant and unoriginal high school movie formula but feels like every other teen-oriented comedy, only with a contemporary twist. They even went with the time honored tradition of casting actors in their 20's as teenagers.

Verdict: Its not a bad film, just totally forgettable.

Plot: High school seniors Michael and Matty have been best friends since 3rd grade. Still virgins, they make a pact to help each other "score" before Senior Prom - but their mission suddenly takes an unexpected turn when Matty announces that he's gay. (c) Lionsgate

Dir: Chris Nelson

Cast: Nicholas Braun, Hunter Cope, Dakota Johnson, Zach Cregger, Megan Mullally, Sarah Hyland

Genre: Comedy

Rating: R

Runtime: 91 min

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Elysium

2/5★ Manipulative from start to finish, Elysium is an unsubtle metaphor for a pessimistic view of where modern society seems to be headed. The 1% are literally living in the sky, disconnected from the reality back on Earth, where the middle class seems to have disappeared and all that remain are the desperate poor, who appear to be non-white for the most part, the oppressed classes building the tools of their own oppression until along comes the one white guy who sacrifices himself for justice. Elysium is very functional, moving from A to B to get to C, but in a checklist fashion, not in an organic flow. Its also miscast, has plot holes and a while it asks serious questions like all intelligent sci-fi should, it makes no serious effort to answer them.

Verdict: Its ok, but no District 9.

Plot: In the year 2154, two classes of people exist: the very wealthy, who live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined Earth. The people of Earth are desperate to escape the planet's crime and poverty, and they critically need the state-of-the-art medical care available on Elysium - but some in Elysium will stop at nothing to enforce anti-immigration laws and preserve their citizens' luxurious lifestyle. The only man with the chance bring equality to these worlds is Max (Matt Damon), an ordinary guy in desperate need to get to Elysium. With his life hanging in the balance, he reluctantly takes on a dangerous mission - one that pits him against Elysium's Secretary Delacourt (Jodie Foster) and her hard-line forces - but if he succeeds, he could save not only his own life, but millions of people on Earth as well. -- (C) Sony

Dir: Neill Blomkamp  

Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga, Diego Luna, Wagner Moura, William Fichtner

Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Drama, Thriller

Rating: R

Runtime: 109 min

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Brave

3/5★ Beautifully animated (that hair!) and with contemporary themes (despite its medieval settings) Brave is a fun film, even a good film, but it is not up to Pixar standards. This is not a film I will remember or quote or see listed in "Greatest films of all time" list. Pixar films are adept at getting their message across without being preachy and Brave, while I appreciate its themes of female empowerment and choosing ones destiny, is uncharacteristically unsubtle. The biggest twist of Brave is not the mother turning into a bear, but with the twist of no happily ever after ending with her handsome prince for a Disney princess. It went with the theme of the film but I kept on expecting a romance with a peasant boy to be the surprise. Disney has ruined me.

Verdict: Enjoy it as a Disney film, dont expect a Pixar.

Plot: Determined to make her own path in life, Princess Merida defies a custom that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Merida must rely on her bravery and her archery skills to undo a beastly curse ~imdb

Dir: Brenda Chapman, Mark Andrews and Steve Purcell  

Cast: Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Julie Walters, Robbie Coltrane, Kevin McKidd, Craig Ferguson

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Comedy, Animation, Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 93 min

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Home

2/5★ Shrewdly manipulative, with child friendly colors, shapes and bubble pop tunes (its usually more subtle). Add Rihanna for a cheap "cool" factor and what you have is a zippy but forgettable film that is basically a Rihanna introduction to the last of the youngest generation that haven't heard her music. Home isn't bad but I expect better from the studio that gave us the likes of Shrek and How to Train Your Dragon. When the dialogue's sentence construction is the most interesting thing about the film, you gotta rethink your concept.

Verdict: For when you've already watched everything better.

Plot: When Oh, a loveable misfit from another planet, lands on Earth and finds himself on the run from his own people, he forms an unlikely friendship with an adventurous girl named Tip who is on a quest of her own. Through a series of comic adventures with Tip, Oh comes to understand that being different and making mistakes is all part of being human. And while he changes her planet and she changes his world, they discover the true meaning of the word HOME. (c) Fox

Dir: Tim Johnson

Cast: Jim Parsons, Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, Steve Martin

Genre: Adventure, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Comedy, Animation, Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 94 min

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The Monuments Men

2/5★ Its all very adequate, but it feels...indulgent. Its not a bad film just dull, and with a story that is actually quite interesting, I wonder what a better director could have done with it. The tone is proudly old-fashioned and there is a mini-series feel, a splintered focus on too many characters and locations. Despite a fantastic cast, Cate Blanchett is the only actor who gives a serious performance.

Verdict: For a really rainy day.

Plot: An unlikely World War II platoon is tasked to rescue art masterpieces from Nazi thieves and return them to their owners. ~imdb

Dir: George Clooney

Cast: George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balaban, Hugh Bonneville, Cate Blanchett

Genre: Action, Adventure, Biography, Drama, History, Thriller, Comedy, War

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 118 min

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Veronica Mars

4/5★ For fans of the series (myself included) and for mystery noir enthusiasts, Veronica Mars the movie offers more of what made the show great and throws out references and Easter eggs galore. We return to the characters and places we remember and see how they have, or haven't changed. On another note, the film is an example of the changing nature of Hollywood: The movie was funded through Kickstarter- regular people giving money to fund something they wont profit from but want to see because they love it. I wonder how many films would have been made if this had been an option 6 years ago: Pushing Daisies, anyone? Someone call Bryan Fuller.

Verdict: Enjoy!

Plot: Years after walking away from her past as a teenage private eye, Veronica Mars gets pulled back to her hometown - just in time for her high school reunion - in order to help her old flame Logan Echolls, who's embroiled in a murder mystery ~imdb

Dir: Rob Thomas  

Cast: Kristen Bell, Jason Dohring, Krysten Ritter, Ryan Hansen, Francis Capra, Percy Daggs III, Chris Lowell, Tina Majorino, Enrico Colantoni

Genre: Drama, Mystery, Comedy, Crime

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 107 min

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Son of Batman

3/5★ Who is the targeted audience? It's too cartoonish for the adult comic fan but too noirishly violent for kids. The action scenes are decent and the pace is brisk at an unpadded 74 minutes. Firefly fun fact: Two of the cast reunite as voice actors in Son of Batman.

Verdict: For the bored Batman fan.

Plot: Batman learns he has a violent, unruly pre-teen son, secretly raised by the terrorist group the League of Assassins.~imdb

Dir: Ethan Spaulding

Cast: Jason O'Mara, Stuart Allan, Thomas Gibson, Morena Baccarin, Sean Maher, Giancarlo Esposito, Xander Berkeley

Runtime: 74 Minutes

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How to Train Your Dragon 2

5/5★ Rare is the sequel that is almost as good as its prequel but DreamWorks does it, expanding on the world and characters without falling prey to the dreaded terrible two. The movie, like its hero, has more mature themes, and successfully entertains a mass audience without pandering to them. I would like to point out that it lacks the emotional resonance of the first film, and the finale is too big and too blockbuster actiony but an interesting twist- unlike many movies, the director chose not to make the relationship between the young couple,Hiccup and Astrid, a big plot point. Instead, the touching romance was between a married couple that had been apart for many years.

Verdict: Enjoy!

Plot: When Hiccup and Toothless discover an ice cave that is home to hundreds of new wild dragons and the mysterious Dragon Rider, the two friends find themselves at the center of a battle to protect the peace. ~imdb

Dir: Dean DeBlois

Cast: Jay Baruchel, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller, Kristen Wiig, Djimon Hounsou, Kit Harington

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Comedy, Animation, Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 102 min