There Goes The Neighborhood..."10 Cloverfield Lane"

10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)

Rated PG-13

Starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Goodman, John Gallagher Jr.

Directed by Dan Trachtenberg

The Story:

Michelle (Winstead) is driving home late one evening and becomes involved in a car crash. When she awakes, she finds that she is being take of by Howard (Goodman). Apparently Emmett (Gallagher) is also being looked after by Howard as she learns that he rescued them both from some horrendous disaster and they should be thankful to even be alive in an underground bunker that he built. Michelle doubts the sincerity of the story and begins to think that Howard is making the entire story up, so she begins planning on how to break free.

But what if he's telling the truth?

Well, that was something alright.

The spiritual sequel to the 2008 found footage hit Cloverfield, this takes place almost entirely in the bunker as the 3 characters get to know each other.

It starts off creepy enough, wondering if you can actually trust Howard at his word.

But then you think you can.

Or can you?

And that twisting, back and forth logic propels most of the movie.

Then, it feels the need to loop back to the original movie, and nearly all of the suspense and tension just flies out of the film, like letting loose a balloon.

Perhaps not an unjustifiable ending, but one that a psychological thriller that makes up the majority of the run-time didn't deserve.

But when you switch gears, and genres, that quickly, you get what you deserve.

So a pretty good movie gets a markdown for an ending that underwhelmed.

Final Grade: B-

The Fourth for the Fourth..."Live Free or Die Hard"

I'm getting too old for this...

Whoops.

Wrong franchise!

The Story:

After over a decade, John McClane (Bruce Willis) is back in action again.  This time, he is asked to check on a computer hacker suspect named Matt (Justin Long).  He arrives in time to save Matt from an assassination attempt.  Now it's a race to get Matt back to the FBI and figure out what is going on.  It turns out that ex-Fed Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant) is going to bring down the Federal Government by hacking into it and destroying it from within.  Only Matt has a chance of stopping him, and McClane is going to make sure he survives.  But when Gabriel kidnaps Lucy McClane (Mary Elizabeth Winstead)...

Well saving the world takes a backseat to saving his daughter.

This movie gets more right than it gets wrong in the franchise.  Say what you will about it, but it definitely was great to see Willis back on screen as John McClane.  Could they and should they have embraced the heritage of the film and embraced the R rating?

Probably so.

And I think that's where most longtime fans had an issue.  Not nearly as bloody or violent as its predecessors, and not nearly as much sarcastic profanity-filled snark from our hero.

Plus, I think a lot of people simply hated Justin Long.

Me, I liked the guy, and as was proved in Part 3, McClane with an everyman partner works.  Matt is clearly in over his head, but McClane is there to help out throughout the film.  Plus Long works as someone who is in so far over his head, he is just amazed at what looks like second nature to McClane, and he just doesn't see how that kind of heroism is possible.

Again, this installment straddles the heist versus political stance like part 2, but comes off more on the side of the heist, which is a good thing.

It was a nice reminder of how great the franchise was, and unlike say the 4th Indiana Jones movie, it didn't come back and run the franchise into the ground.

Yes, I'm willing to forgive the fighter jet surfing at the end, they had to get McClane off the freeway somehow... ;)

Giving this one a slight edge over Die Harder in the overall scheme of things.

Final Grade: B+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: This one is growing on me.  : )