It's Watchable... "King Arthur: Legend of the Sword"

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017)

Rated PG-13

Starring Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law, Djimon Hounsou, Eric Bana, Aiden Gillen,

Directed by Guy Ritchie

The Story:

Arthur (Hunnan) is a bit of a rogue, but when fate finds him next to the blade Excalibur, it turns out he is also the long lost true heir to the throne. That doesn't please Vortigern (Law) in the least, and he attempts to kill Arthur and any who stand with him.

Well, this is certainly a different take on the legend of King Arthur.

Ritchie does his best to keep the story moving forward, and surrounds the film with a talented cast who keep your interest.

There are a few mystical aspects that just seem odd as the film unfolds, but it gives Arthur the reason to rise up and be a true hero.

As 2017 was filled with at least 2 versions of the story, if you're going to watch one, make it this one.

Personally, I'd say go find Disney's The Sword in the Stone instead, but maybe that's just bias.

Or maybe, it's just that much better than most incarnations that have come since.

Possibly both.

:)

Final Grade: C

They Don't Just Report The News... "Special Correspondents"

Special Correspondents (2016)

Rated TV-MA

Starring Ricky Gervais, Eric Bana, Vera Farmiga, Kelly MacDonald, Kevin Pollak, America Ferrera, Raul Castillo, Benjamin Bratt,

Written and Directed by Ricky Gervais

The Story:

Frank (Bana) is a great radio journalist in New York who pushes the envelope too often. His boss (Pollak) warns him that the next screw up will be his last. Taking technician Ian (Gervais) with him on assignment to Ecuador will be just the assignment he needs to show his boss that he's still got what it takes and keep his job secured. But when a strange turn of events leaves them stranded in New York, the duo hatch a scheme to report what's happening in Ecuador right from the streets of New York. When they begin breaking bigger news stories than anyone else, they find themselves at the very heart of the news they are reporting!

One of the Netflix original movies currently available for streaming, as noted it is written, directed and stars Ricky Gervais.

So unless you can't stand him, you might like this movie.

:)

The movie has a bit of a slow start, but it picks up nicely as the boys do all of their reporting from "Ecuador".

That's where a lot of the fun and humor sets in as they continue to break a story that wasn't a story at all, until they break it.

Eventually, the two become center to the storyline itself, and then it stretches credibility by making the guys break into Ecuador so that they can resolve the storyline honestly.

It would have been much easier to fake their way out of the country, but then you don't get the emotional finale.

It's a wonderful cast, and it's fun to see Bana again, in just about anything now that I think about it, but also looking to be having a little bit of fun with his character.

Final Grade: B-

"The Finest Hours" Is A Great True Story...But A Mediocre Movie

The Finest Hours (2016)

Rated PG-13

Starring Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Eric Bana, Holliday Grainger, John Ortiz,

Directed by Craig Gillespie

The Story:

During a tremendous blizzard in 1952, a tanker rips in two and the Coast Guard sends just about everyone they have to try and save any survivors.

This is not that story.

You see, there was a second tanker that also ripped in half and had survivors on it. What was left of the Coast Guard was dispatched to try and find the remnants of that ship and bring in any survivors.

This is that story.

And it's true.

The biggest problem with this, the story and much of the acting and pacing is stiff, wooden and rather boring.

Which seems really weird when you have a thrilling rescue mission at sea that bogs down while trying to be told.

Weirder still that it was a product of Walt Disney studios who excel at these true life stories.

There's equal parts of blame to go around all over the place, even the leading man, Chris Pine, and quite possibly especially him, is not above finger pointing.

His character is probably supposed to be shy and humble, but it just comes across as stiff and unlikable.

Things do pick up considerably once the storm is raging and the rescue attempt begins, but the buildup to it with Pine and Grainger's romance...

Goodness that's some painfully dull cinema to endure.

Good intentions, a great real story that just gets muddied when it was turned into a film.

Final Grade: C

My Money Is On Marky Mark Being The "Lone Survivor"

Lone Survivor (2013)

Rated R

Starring Mark Wahlberg, Taylore Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster, Eric Bana,

Written and Directed by Peter Berg

The Story:

Marcus Luttrell (Wahlberg) and the rest of his SEAL team head into Afghanistan on a secret mission to capture a Taliban leader.  When they are discovered by some goat herders, they are faced with the dilemma: spare them or kill/capture them?  Following their explicit rules of engagement, they let them go.

Naturally, the team is hunted down and killed until only Luttrell is left.

This is their sad story.

Not only do they lose most of their team, even a rescue attempt goes awry costing more men their lives.

That Luttrell finds safety and salvation in the village is both ironic and heartwarming.  The villagers live by the code to protect people from their enemies.

That includes standing up to the Taliban to give Luttrell a chance to survive and mend.

The end credits are a brief and touching tribute to the lives that were lost during this mission, and only begin to scrape the surface of how many have perished during this conflict.

I hate to give movies like this a low grade.  They mean well, showing people how horrible war can be, and how great those that serve in the military really are.

But somehow, I just didn't connect with this film or the characters enough to make me care more for their fates.


Or perhaps knowing that everyone aside from Wahlberg is going to bite the dust going in to the movie, all of the suspense is already sucked from the viewer, and so then it's just an exercise in paint-by-numbers.

And that's too bad.

Final Grade: C+/B- range

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Much like Zero Dark Thirty, many of these movies are now a one and done.  Well done, but too much for repeated viewings.

At Least She's Learning a Trade..."Hanna"

Girl gone wild...

The Story:

Genetically enhanced teenage assassin Hanna (Saoirse Ronan) has been living out in the wild with her father Erik (Eric Bana) and he's taught her everything he knows...and then some.  The goal?  To raise the ultimate assassin, and to kill the woman (Cate Blanchett) that killed Hanna's mother. 

Sounds exciting?

That's what I was hoping for...

Yet it really wasn't.

It was watchable, but it just mostly happened. 

I never got too invested in the characters, and aside from a few cool set pieces, my overall impression of the movie was "meh".

Final Grade: C-

Would I Own It: Nah... stick with the 3 minute trailer for the movie, it pretty much sums up the whole thing.