How Dare You! "Deep Blue Sea 2"

Deep Blue Sea 2 (2018)

Rated R

Starring Danielle Savre, Rob Mayes, Michael Beach, Aaron Ellroy, Nathan Lynn,

Directed by Darin Scott

The Story:

A billionaire decides to do some experimenting on sharks... and chaos ensues!

Come on folks, this premise works great.

See: Jurassic Park.
See: Deep Blue Sea.

See?

As I've well documented over the years, when a new shark movie comes along, I'm always looking to add it to the pile and give it a try.

Most of the time, even if it's not a great movie, I appreciate that it was made and I have a good enough time to justify spending 90 minutes on a low budget B movie.

In the last few years, I've even been rewarded with some pretty good shark movies to boot!

When I saw the trailer for Deep Blue Sea 2, I was amused that it seemed like it was going to be a note for note remake of the original film.

Well, how bad could that be, because I absolutely love the first one!

Yet it wasn't... and I didn't.

Everything that was great about the first one was missing from this tired retread.

They got nothing right for that matter, except for sharks gnawing on people... and even that wasn't very well done.

No stars of any caliber at all... wooden performances...

Not one bit of interesting plot or action...

It made 90 minutes feel like a 3 hour tour of the worst kind.

Had they called it any other cheesy shark movie name, I may have been kinder.

But when you hang an anchor around a fun franchise and sully its good name, I'm less kind.

I Waited 40 Years For This? "Halloween (2018)"

Halloween (2018)

Rated R

Starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, and of course, Michael Myers

Directed by James Gordon Green

The Story:

For the past 40 years, Michael Myers has been institutionalized for the violent murders in Haddonfield Illinois on Halloween night, 1979. However, thanks to some Podcasters and a poorly timed prison transfer, it appears Michael might be getting out of jail free and returning home for some unfinished business.

I'm not even sure I know where to begin with this one.

Soooo... Michael has been in prison for 40 years, wiping away every sequel we've plunked down money (and time) to enjoy (or ridicule) since the original came out.

That's too bad, because I still dig Halloween 2.

Thankfully, that does include the Rob Zombie reboots.

:)

The movie opens with podcasters arriving at Michael's doorstep and they pull out his mask that the D.A. let them borrow.

At this point, I'm thinking, what are the odds the D.A. still had this evidence from 40 years earlier? And if they did, why on earth would they give it to a pair of podcasters?

I know, that thinking seems silly, but at this point, I became disconnected to the film, and never really got back into it.

The plot points lined up exactly, beat for beat at that moment, and you can tell exactly how, where, and why everything is about to happen.

Meanwhile on the other side of Illinois, little Laurie Strode (Curtis) is all grown up and spends her day in Sarah Conner cosplay.

The horror film is out the window at this point as it jumps back and forth between thriller, action movie and oh yeah, let's be a horror film every 10 minutes.

People do die at Michael's hands, literally, but many were given so little screen time, I just didn't care.

I'm not referring to the "odes to the original" deaths.  Those I got the symmetry for why they were done.

However, the best friends, the kids being babysat... there was no emotional connection with them to the point that we fear for their lives and hope/wish they might survive.

If anything, Halloween (2018) simply reminds me of how well Halloween (1979) really was.

That Was Something All Right... "Suburbicon"

Suburbicon (2017)

Rated R

Starring Matt Damon, Julianne Moore, Oscar Isaac

Directed by George Clooney

The Story:

Things begin to get sinister in an all-white neighborhood in the 50s when the first black family moves in.

George Clooney directs this satire about suburbia... or was it race relations... was it the ideals of the 50s...

What was it exactly?

It was hot garbage, that's what.

Ejected after 20 excruciatingly long, unfunny, and most damning, uninteresting minutes.

Didn't care what was going to happen to the cast or how the movie turned out.

Now that we all know I'm using the Star System in 2019, welcome to the first actual ZERO star review of the year.

A Holiday Lump of Coal... "Holiday Breakup"

Holiday Breakup (2016)

TV-14

Starring Manon Mathews, Shawn Roe, Katie Leclerc, Matt Riedy, Daniel Hugh Kelly, Diane Robin

Written and Directed by Temple Mathews

The Story:

Chloe (Mathews) and Jeff (Roe) are a couple that have just moved in together. Except, after a lecture by his dad, Jeff begins to realize how childish Chloe is always acting, and the two break up. However, with the holidays looming, they decide to just pretend to still be together to avoid all of the awkward pity parties that they might be forced to hear. Will the pretend love rekindle their lost love, or is their relationship forever doomed?

In case you think I love all Christmas movies equally, here's proof that I don't, and I apparently have some sort of filter on what I consider a good Christmas movie, and the ones I just don't like.

I've often said that most films that are made now have competent direction, decent acting and the only thing that truly can let a film down for me is a bad story.

This hits the trifecta.

First, the story is written and directed by the same guy. So the terrible dialogue and 1 dimensional characters are all his fault.

Then the acting is abysmal. Chloe's "childishness" is so overblown, it's a wonder that anyone likes her at all. Then Jeff is so preoccupied with having breakup sex, the two are just oil and water and not only do I want them to either get back together or stay apart, I need them to do it now.

My other usual complaint when I don't like a movie is that it had too long of a running time. Trim 15, 30, 45 minutes and the movie would be better.

Well conversely, this movie that clocks in under 90 minutes, the standard "perfect time" for a movie....

However it feels like you're enduring a 3 hour marathon.

If you'd like to see for yourself, the movie is currently streaming on Netflix.

Thankfully it was not a Netflix original, and maybe it will go away by next year.

:)

Final Grade: D-

Good, Clean, Family Fun..."Deadpool 2"

Deadpool 2 (2018)

Rated R

Starring Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Morena Baccarin, Zazie Beetz, Julian Dennison, T.J. Miller

Directed by David Leitch

The Story:

Wade Wilson (Reynolds), for reasons unknown to even him, is trying to save a kid (Dennison) from being killed by a time traveling mutant named Cable (Brolin). However, to tackle this latest obstacle, Wade's going to need a little help, so he decides to make his own team of X-People...

X-Force!

Now playing in theaters, so I'll be cryptically vague to the point of being totally nondescript about anything in the movie so as to not sway your opinion one way or another as to whether you should bother to even see it or not.

Because apparently, that's my mutant power!

:)

IF you enjoyed the first Deadpool film...

then the odds are already in you favor that you've already seen the sequel.

The odds are also considerably high that you enjoyed this second coming of Deadpool as much, or possibly more than the original.

Hey, it happens.

Josh Brolin isn't the first actor to play double duty in comic book movies, but he's a welcome addition to the film and plays the perfect Cable.

There is even... gasp... some character development for Mr. Wilson between the start of the film and the end credits.

You'll laugh... you'll cry... you'll laugh some more.

Not sure if we'll get a Deadpool 3 first, or an X-Force movie, but either way, I'm in!

Final Grade: A-

Justice Is Served..."Stir Crazy"

Stir Crazy (1980)

Rated R

Starring Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor, JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson, Barry Corbin, Georg Stanford Brown,

Directed by Sidney Poitier

The Story:

Skip (Wilder) and Harry (Pryor) leave New York and head west to start over. When the duo are accused of robbing a bank, they are tried and convicted most expeditiously to begin serving their time in jail. When Skip shows a propensity to be able to ride a mechanical bull, the warden (Corbin) sees dollar signs in the annual upcoming rodeo contest, and Skip and Harry see a way out of their predicament.

The second of four comedies between Wilder and Pryor, I had decided to rent this one again since I hadn't seen it since probably 1980/81 and remembered very little about it.

Aside from the "that's right, we bad" scene and the dancing birds costumes, that was probably the sum total of my memory.

I watched this a few weeks back, and added the movie to my "To Be Reviewed" pile, probably as a #ThrowbackThursday review.

Then Gene Wilder passed away, and I debated, do I do a R.I.P. Gene tribute piece or not?

To be fair, I enjoyed Wilder's performances in just about anything I saw from him, but sadly, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, Silver Streak, and See No Evil, Hear No Evil were pretty much my entire catalog of Wilder's works.

But look at that list again.

That's a pretty impressive list of comedies all on their own merits.

Wilder actually steals most of the scenes he is in, even though it's a lock that Pryor's character is normally the crazier, funnier one in their duos.

Wilder brings an everyman approach to the role. His characters seem honest, unassuming and likable.

So when he rides the mechanical bull like it's nothing, you have no doubt in your mind that he's as happy on that bull as we are to be watching him.

So we've lost another Hollywood great, but he's left behind a pretty good legacy on film.

Even Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, though that movie is just too creepy to really be enjoyable.

:)

So if you're up for a laugh, you'll be hard-pressed to not find one under the Wilder/Pryor catalog.

Though I still have one more that I've never seen.

Hmmm....

Final Grade: Solid B

Down For The Count... "Countdown"

Countdown (2016)

Rated R

Starring Dolph Ziggler, Kane, Katherine Isabelle

Directed by John Stockwell

The Story:

Ray (Ziggler) is a detective who's living on the edge. Facing suspension by his captain (Kane), he goes rogue to save a boy who has been kidnapped and has a bomb strapped to him. His only ally as he tries to elude both the police and the Russian mafia is an Internal Affairs (Isabelle) officer who was leading the charge to have him suspended or fired.

The latest offering from WWE Studios allows Dolph Ziggler (Nick Nemeth) his first feature movie and Kane (Glenn Jacobs) a supporting role as the Captain.

The nice thing with WWE Studios is they pretty much have their own farm system to take the most entertaining superstars and help them transition to actors.

While none of them will likely ever rival the Rock in terms of success or charisma, so far they've all held their own and turned in enjoyable performances in ultimately throwaway "B-Movie" vehicles.

This one is no exception.

Sadly, it may also be one of my least favorites from WWE, through no fault of Ziggler, who I think is one of the best wrestlers in the business today.

No, this one is saddled with a script that is borderline tedious and sometimes laughable. They had about 60 minutes worth of script, and 90 minutes worth of movie to make.

It features one of the worst car chase scenes in cinematic history.

Wait, I think there was actually more than one.

Basically, every time they are in a car... just hit fast forward if you're watching.

They used the car chases to get to 90 minutes. None of them were exciting; no snappy banter, no excellent stunts.

They were actually laughable or painful to watch.

This would make sense if this was the first movie WWE Studios has released, but it's not.

Ziggler deserves better, both inside and outside of the ring.

Final Grade:  C-

The Things They'll Do For A Beer..."Kidnapping Mr. Heineken"

Kidnapping Mr. Heineken (2015)

Rated R

Starring Jim Sturgess, Sam Worthington, Ryan Kwanten, Mark van Eeuwen, Thomas Cocquerel, Anthony Hopkins

Directed by Daniel Alfredson

The Story:

In 1982, 5 men who are down on their luck and looking to better their life decide to turn to crime to make a buck. Their objective: kidnap Freddy Heineken (Hopkins) and demand a king's ransom.

This is that story.

The problem is, the story is rather bland, all things considered.

The crew decides they have to have money to make their kidnapping look legitimate, so they rob a bank.

Then they spend that money getting everything ready for the kidnapping.

Then they kidnap Mr. Heineken.

Then they sit back and wait for the money, but it never comes.

Then panic and paranoia set in.

Now, this works with a movie like Ruthless People because they add laughs and you get to see what's happening from the point of view of the kidnappers, the police, the victim, etc.

This movie gives you the point of view of the kidnappers.

Never do we see what law enforcement is up to during the entire process.

There is basically no tension or no other narrative attempt to make you feel like the criminals are getting away with it, or are being this close to getting caught aside from whatever the kidnappers may say or do reacting to something the viewer is never really privy to.

Hopkins screen time is all too brief as he attempts to get into the heads of his kidnappers.

The kidnappers themselves are rather a bland mixed bag of talent with little to do but yell and get worried a lot.

There is a nifty story buried in the movie, but the execution only gives you part of it.

Currently streaming on Netflix as of this writing.

Final Grade: C

Special Guest Reviews: "Kung Fu Panda 3 "

Kung Fu Panda 3 (2016)

Rated PG

Starring Jack Black, Bryan Cranston, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen, Jackie Chan, Lucy Liu, Kate Hudson, J.K. Simmons, David Cross, James Hong

Directed by Alessandro Carloni, Jennifer Yuh

The Story:

Po (Black) reunites with his long lost father (Cranston) and they journey to where the rest of the Pandas are located.  However, while he is away, a new villain, Kai (Simmons) begins defeating the Kung Fu masters. Po must teach the new pandas how to do the Fu in order to save his friends, and the world!

Kung Fu Panda was released in 2008 to much commercial and critical success.

In 2011, Kung Fu Panda 2 came out and did the unusual and unthinkable: it was the sequel that was better than the original.  It matched the humor of the original, but this time it brought some emotional heart to the festivities.

I never bothered with either for years, until I finally watched both last year. Hmmm. I guess I should've thrown some reviews on the site! ;)

So with the release of Part 3, I sent the experts on all thing Panda into the theater to do my dirty work for me.

Here then are some of their thoughts on the movie:

First we'll start with the biggest fan of  Kung Fu Panda in the house -

There was a very good plot. A great balance between the action and the humor.  It didn't let me down with the franchise and go out on a low note.  I'd give it an A!

Next kid:

Amazing.  I give it an A!

How about # 3?

I think it was very funny, not too serious and not all action. I really liked what the movie did with both of Po's dads. I give it an A!

As for the oldest that saw the movie on Friday:

 So far the best film I've seen all year. It didn't exceed the the greatness of Part 2, but it may very well have equaled it. Definitely an A.

And the opinion of the youngest:

It was great. There were two sad parts that made me cry sad tears. I was glad I got to see it.

Apparently it was so good, the oldest had to go see it on Sunday to see if it was indeed truly as good as everyone said.

Her text: It was phenomenal. She elaborated later that it was by far the prettiest of all three movies and the animation was just spectacular. Then her comments seemed to echo just about everyone else, not quite as good as Part 2, but really, really, really good nonetheless.

Overall final grade (for now):  Looks like the A's have it. Sounds like a contender for Best of the Year if I know what's good for me.

The real grade will be revealed when it comes out on Netflix or for sale later this year.

;)

A Long Time Ago...And Not A Moment Too Soon! "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

Rated PG-13

Starring Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Harrison Ford, Peter Mayhew, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Andy Serkis, Anthony Daniels,

Directed by J. J. Abrams

The Story:

30 years have passed after the fall of the Empire. Rising from the ashes are the New Order, and they are bent on finding Luke (Hamill) the last of the Jedi and killing him. Thankfully, the Resistance is led by General Organa (Fisher) and she has sent her best pilot (Isaac) to locate the whereabouts of her brother. However, nothing is ever easy for the Resistance, and if not for the conscience of a pacifist stormtrooper (Boyega) and a plucky desert scavenger (Ridley), the galaxy would be reduced to a pile of burning rubble.

Seriously, what's the point of writing any synopsis for this movie. Everyone's seen it by now, right?

Those that haven't either don't want to, or don't want to.
:)

Well, I wanted to, and I took the boys, and we had a blast.

When the lights dimmed, and the logo pops up with the John Williams fanfare...

I got a little misty.

This isn't a movie, this was an event 30 years in the making.

The future trilogy, as promised by George Lucas back in the 70s that he retconned himself into believing he never said, is finally here.

And Lucas is nowhere to be found because he sold the franchise to Disney.

They in turn handed the keys to the kingdom over to J. J. Abrams who successfully, like it or not, revamped Star Trek for a whole new generation.

As you watch this movie, there are many, many, many familiar beats to the story.

Sure, it's because J.J. took the entire original trilogy, dropped it in a blender and poured out The Force Awakens.

And you know what?

I liked it.

You didn't need to see the original trilogy to get what was going on here, but it certainly helps.

You definitely didn't need to see any of the misguided prequels.

Everything you need to know is right here.

J.J. Abrams basically said " I'm going to do one Star Wars film, and this is it." He bridged the gap between then and now and introduced us to a whole new cast of characters that we can get to know and love.

Little kids will now be able to be Finn, Rey or Poe out on the playground, if kids still do that pretend stuff in the 21st century.

Plus almost all of the stars of Star Wars have returned in one form or another, and we get to watch Han Solo (Ford) nearly steal the movie out from under his younger co-stars every time he's on screen.

The movie ends with a nice closing shot of what to expect in the next movie which should be here in about 18 more months.

Everyone's got an opinion about this film. This film is getting picked apart in ways I never dreamed possible. Even by people who claim to like it!

My opinion is: I had a lot of fun.

Welcome to 2016.

Welcome to the first film in the running for Best of the Year status.

Final Grade: A-

The Entire Movie Takes Place In "The Kitchen"

The Kitchen (2012)

Rated R

Starring Laura Prepon, Bryan Greenberg, Dreama Walker, Matt Bush, Tate Ellington,

Directed by Ishai Setton

The Story:

Jennifer (Prepon) is preparing to celebrate her 30th birthday. However when she finds out her boyfriend (Greenberg) has been cheating on her, she really could care less about the entire day. The efforts of her sister (Walker) and friends to cheer her up will all take place in...

The Kitchen.

Okay, so a few times the action of the film takes place just outside of the kitchen, but if you can't view it from that location, then it totally happens offscreen.

There are amusing parts sprinkled throughout, but really, it's a talking heads type of comedy where people just talk and have conflict throughout the night.

Truly, nothing happens.

I kept debating on whether to pop this one out, or hold on to see if the pace ever really picked up.

Nope, never did.

Great cast, by the way, as they all handled the roles they were given and made the movie more watchable than it should be.

But otherwise, utterly forgettable.

Streaming available on Amazon Prime

Final Grade: C-

Cumbersome Title, A Couple Laughs... "This Is Where I Leave You"

This Is Where I Leave You (2014)

Rated R

Starring Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Jane Fonda, Adam Driver, Rose Byrne, Dax Shepard, Timothy Olyphant

Directed by Shawn Levy

The Story:

After their father passes away, all of his family reunites at his house and is forced to stay their for a week due to Jewish customs. They naturally all find this very odd, since their dad wasn't Jewish... Naturally, whenever a dysfunctional family is forced to be together under one roof for more than about an hour, chaos and insanity ensues.

For a very funny cast, the laughs are few and far between.  If you're expecting a laugh riot, you will be disappointed.

It's a dramedy in every sense of the word.

Divvying up screen time to allow the stories of each of the children to unfold is naturally rather difficult. Most centers on Judd (Bateman) who starts the movie with a shock to the system, even before he finds out his father passed away.


The cast does a fine job balancing their angst with their humor.

Not a bad movie in any sense of the word, just nothing that memorable that would require another viewing down the road.

Final Grade: C+

Feeling Sorry For Those "Left Behind"

Left Behind (2014)

PG-13

Starring Nicholas Cage, Chad Michael Murray, Lea Thompson, Cassi Thomson

Directed by Vic Armstrong

The Story:

Ray (Cage) is an airline pilot. Sometime during his flight across country, half of the passengers and crew on his plane simply disappear! Meanwhile, across the globe, the same phenomenon is happening, kids are vanishing and so are people. Cars are crashing, planes are crashing. I assume boats crash too.

What's happening?

Duh, it's The Rapture!

Perhaps if the rest of the people had listened to their Christian friends and family, they wouldn't be wandering around in a panic like they are now.

:D

Seriously though, as many atheists that claim they know the Bible backward and forward better than a Christian, it takes an alarming amount of time for the people left behind to actually put 2 and 2 together.

This was a movie back in 2000 starring Kirk Cameron as journalist Buck Williams. His character is now played by Chad Michael Murray, and he gets bumped back to the sidelines for Cage's character.  Based on the best selling book series of the same name, it will be interesting to see if this moves forward as a series.  They had tried before with direct to dvd efforts with less than impressive results.

I was expecting it to be horribly unwatchable, but it was engaging enough to keep my attention.

Cage gives a restrained performance as the pilot, so there's that.

Final Grade: C

Stick To The Cartoons..."Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles"

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014)

Rated PG-13

Starring Megan Fox, Will Arnett, William Fichtner, Tohoru Masamune

Directed by Johnathan Liebesman

The Story:

Shredder (Masamune) and his Foot Clan are terrorizing New York City. However, there are apparently some vigilantes that are standing up for what's right. Reporter April O'Neil (Fox) follows them and discovers that they are giant turtles.

But not just any turtles.

They are teenage mutant ninja turtles.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Turtle franchise, this movie was unleashed on the world last year.

Looking at the trailer, I couldn't help but think to myself, "this looks terrible."

My instincts were not wrong.

I turned over guest-reviewer status to my girls who saw the film, and they enjoyed it.

I worry about the taste in movies of my girls.

:)

I think a lot of it is the joy of seeing your childhood heroes brought to the big screen.

I get that.

Tell me I don't gush each time Marvel Studios releases a new movie! :)

This isn't the turtles I grew up on.

Heck, this isn't the latest revival on Nickelodeon which is actually pretty good.

No, this is something entirely different.

Having endured the film, I'm still not exactly sure what it was.

However, good isn't one of the words I will use.

I want to say there were approximately 3 amusing lines in the entire movie, and I believe they all belonged to Mikey.

No, this train wreck just kept adding more and more to the screen, apparently hoping to simply overwhelm the viewer with CGI and Megan Fox.

Don't get me started on her, but as I've mentioned previously, once she left the Transformers franchise, the films started to get better.

I guess I'll wait for her to leave this franchise on the 3rd film?


Final Grade: D+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: No, I won't be buying this film, not even if they beg.  I had several audible gasps when I warned them that this film is officially eligible for Turkey of the Year honors.

Sorry kids, this was awful.

Third Time's The...Yawn... "The Expendables 3"

The Expendables 3 (2014)

Rated PG-13

Starring Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Wesley Snipes, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mel Gibson, Jet Li, Terry Crews, Dolph Lundgren, Harrison Ford, Antonio Banderas

Directed by Patrick Hughes

The Story:

Barney (Stallone) is on a mission with the team when he runs across his old partner-in-crime, Stonebanks (Gibson). They founded the Expendables together, and Barney thought he was dead. Instead, it's Stonebanks who is going to try and kill Barney and his all new team that he has assembled. So naturally it's up to the old gang to help save the day and stop the bad guy.

Piece of cake!

I'm not sure how I feel about this entry in the franchise.

One, everything changes.

Gone is Bruce Willis, replaced by Harrison Ford. Meh... I guess that works.

Mel Gibson is given prime crazy time to chew scenery and play the bad guy, and he does that well. You know there will be a straight up fight at the end that will leave someone dead.

Only this time, Gibson plays the Gary Busey role!

:)

Then there is Wesley Snipes who gets out of prison, and winds up right back on the big screen. He seems to get quite a bit of screen time which throws off the chemistry of the main characters a bit, in my opinion.

In fact, that's the biggest problem with the film, look at that poster. There isn't enough time to have much character interaction because there are just too many characters.

Don't even get me started on how shortchanged Banderas' part is. : /

So naturally, of the 3, this is my least favorite of the franchise.

If it was the end, so be it. It was a fun ride. The first one was good, the second one was a hoot.

This one was a suitable bookmark.

Audiences seemed to have finally had enough, but really, it was more of the same.

I guess in reality though, we've gone through just about every action start out there.

Except Steven Seagal.

Or Michael Dudikoff.

There's hope for 4 yet!

Final Grade: C+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Maybe...no hurry though.

The Rock Is "Hercules". Talk About Typecasting!

Hercules (2014)

Rated PG-13

Starring Dwayne Johnson, Ian McShane, John Hurt, Rufus Sewell,

Directed by Brett Ratner

The Story:

Hercules (Johnson) is much more man than the legends would have you believe. However, he travels with his companions to earn their wages and set up for an eventual retirement. When he is approached to help Lord Cotys (Hurt) train an army to defend themselves, Hercules and his companions may have finally reached the end of their legend.

I think the biggest knock against this one, aside from Brett Ratner directing, was that it didn't play up the actual legend of Hercules.

On the contrary, it actually made sense out of how a legend of Hercules could have grown without him being the actual son of Zeus.

If he indeed was not the son of Zeus.

McShane and Sewell provide great support to The Rock as his compatriots.  The whole ensemble works, and makes the most of their screen time together building camaraderie amongst the group.
Naturally, Dwayne Johnson is his usually charismatic self and plays the part of Hercules with his usual wink and smile delivery, but enough remorse and regret because of his troubled past.

It may not be the greatest adaptation of the legendary warrior, but I enjoyed it.

Come to think of it, I'd be hard-pressed to come up with a better version anyway.

So there!

:)

Final Grade: B-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I enjoyed it enough, and was pleased to see a copy under the tree for Christmas. :)

Time For The First Review Of The Year. Sorry, That's "As Good As It Gets"

As Good As It Gets (1997)

PG-13

Starring Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, Greg Kinnear

Directed by James L. Brooks

The Story:

Melvin Udall (Nicholson) is a cranky, bigoted writer who suffers from OCD. He enjoys picking on his gay neighbor, Simon (Kinnear) and gives the local waitress, Carol (Hunt) constant grief at work. However, when tragedy strikes Simon, Melvin's world turns upside-down and he is thrust into a situation where he winds up going on on a road trip together.  Will he be civil to Simon? And will his true feelings for Carol bubble to the surface?

This is one of those deceptively enjoyable films.

There isn't a whole lot to it, just a lot of character interaction between the three main actors.

Kinnear holds his own against Nicholson, and the two sparkle in their debates and encounters with each other throughout the movie.

The love story between Melvin and Carol is a bit more troubling. Perhaps it is the age difference?

At nearly 30 years her senior, it seems odd that Carol would fall for Melvin, no matter how kind he is to her and her son.

Just a minor quibble, and not enough to derail the movie.

Just something that always seemed a bit off when I've watched it.

Final Grade: A-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I do own it, and this was the first time I've watched it in about a decade. Holds up pretty decently after all these years.

"The Christmas Candle" Will Light The Way To The Second Week Of December Christmas Reviews!

+

The Christmas Candle (2013)

Rated PG

Starring Hans Matheson, Samantha Barks, Susan Boyle, Lesley Manville, Sylvester McCoy

Directed by John Stephenson

The Story:

In the late 1800s, a new preacher (Matheson) comes to the English village of Gladbury. Legend has it that for years, an angel comes to the candlemaker's shop and bestows a Christmas Miracle on one candle. However, with the new preacher, the advent of electricity, and the confusion on which candle was blessed, will the time of miracles finally pass away?

This was a pretty good made for tv movie.
The problem, it wasn't made for tv, it was released in theaters, and it didn't do too well.

While it's not an instant classic, it's a decent enough tale to watch, but one that is rather slow and deliberate with the pacing as it sets up the finale.

So yes, great for the Hallmark Channel, Lifetime or ABC Family, not so great for $10 tickets at the multiplex.

When the candle is lost, the candlemakers let several people know, secretly, they had the miracle candle. Sometimes, faith is all you need and you make your own miracles.


Final Grade: C+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Wouldn't add it to the library, but one I could revisit in a few years if it's streaming.

Throwback Thursday Streamer! "Trading Places"

Trading Places (1983)

Rated R

Starring Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche

Directed by John Landis

The Story:

The Duke Brothers (Ameche and Bellamy) make a wager that they can take a street bum (Murphy) and give him everything he could want while taking a life of luxury from someone (Aykroyd) which would cause him to resort to a life of crime. Their behavior experiment works at first, but when the two figure out what the Dukes are up to, the tables are about to be turned!

 And just like that, I snuck a Christmas movie in on you that you probably forgot takes place around Christmas time. :)

Eddie Murphy was on his meteoric rise to stardom, following up 48 Hours with this buddy comedy before moving on to star in Beverly Hills Cop.

The movie is still pretty fun, if a little dated, throughout.

However, for a movie over 30 years old, it's still got more than its fair share of comedy that still works after all these years.

 So, if you're still slowly easing into the holidays, here's another one that you can watch that's a Christmas movie, without being overly Christmas-y.

:)


Available to stream instantly on Netflix as of this writing.

Final Grade: B+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: This one gets revisited every decade or so.

You Look Very Familiar... "RoboCop"

RoboCop (2014)

Rated PG-13 for violence and language

Starring Joel Kinnaman, Gary Oldman, Michael Keaton, Samuel L. Jackson,

Directed by Jose Padilha

The Story:

In the future, OmniCorp has been sending their cyborg troops overseas as peacekeeping soldiers ensuring real people aren't dying anymore.  Only America is refusing to allow these tin men to patrol the streets, and with pressure on politicians by OmniCorp president Sellars (Keaton) and crusading journalist Pat Novak (Jackson) are lobbying to get a RoboCop trial program off the ground.  The missing ingredient: the human factor.  When they receive the gift of a cop that was targeted for assassination (Kinnaman), they hardwire him into the RoboCop program.

This is not your father's RoboCop.

Or mine, for that matter.

The original, satirical take on America in the 80s is still a science fiction classic, however, my fears, as I voiced in my review last year of the original RoboCop (1987), were thankfully unfounded.

While many of names remain the same, there are subtle, and less subtle shifts in tone and behavior to the original.

Whereas Total Recall tried to change the story completely, the over-reliance of the original ended up casting a shadow that the remake could not crawl out from under.

RoboCop takes the least amount of the original and transplants it, without the satiric tone, into a possible future America that could likely exist.

Why wouldn't we want to send robotic soldiers to fight wars and save hundreds/thousands of human lives?

You would think it would be a no-brainer, but politicians want human capability for discernment to be included.

Kinnaman brings life to the suit, literally if not figuratively.  Not familiar with his work, the big names all float around as secondary figures.

At the end of the day though, if I am only going to watch another RoboCop with my kids (assuming they want to watch it again...), it would end up being this version.

Simply because the tone and violence is dialed waaaaay back this go round.

The revamped RoboCop is a perfectly serviceable science fiction/action flick for a new generation.

Final Grade: B-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: It actually wasn't too bad.  I don't think I'll rush out to own it, but I could watch it on cable in the future.