The Critics Aren't That "Bright" After All

Bright (2017)

TV-MA

Starring Will Smith, Joel Edgerton, Noomi Rapace, Edgar Ramirez, Lucy Fry

Directed by David Ayer

The Story:

In a world where humans live side by side with the creatures of fairytale legend, Daryl (Smith) is an LAPD cop who is saddled with the first Orc recruit, Nick (Edgerton). When the pair stumble upon Leilah (Rapace) and her magic wand, they must put their differences aside once and for all if they hope to survive the night and all of the different groups that are coming for them to get that wand.

I'm not sure if the critics want to savage this movie because they don't like the inroads that Netflix is making by releasing movies directly onto Netflix and bypassing the movie theater with their Netflix Original movies, but this was hardly the worst movie of 2017, or any year for that matter.

It's Netflix's first true "big budget blockbuster" or "popcorn movie". Is it a great movie?

No, I don't think anyone will put it into that movie.

Is it totally watchable?

Absolutely.

It checks off all the marks for a big budget buddy cop action flick. The two cops that don't get along, but then get along just fine when the chips are down and they realize they only have themselves to rely on if they are going to survive.

It also serves an underlying message on racism in America, without trying to get too preachy and letting the action carry the movie.

I've read that many critics felt that the storyline was too confusing and people couldn't follow along with all of the backstory.

What?

I'm pretty sure that those opening billboards that show that this is a world where we coexist with the Lord of the Rings was pretty straightforward, if you ask me.

Guesstimates put those of us that watched Bright during the opening weekend at 11 million Netflix users. As there are no box office receipts to gauge whether this was a success or a mega flop, I'll do the math:

11 million times $ 8.00 a ticket (averaging a matinee and a full ticket price) puts the weekend box office for this film at $88,000,000.

Yeah, that pretty much justifies any price Netflix spent on the film, and shows why they already said yes to a sequel.

Trust me, I've seen a bad Will Smith movie (After Earth).

This isn't even close.

Final Grade: C+

The "Collateral Beauty" Of Life

Collateral Beauty (2016)

Rated PG-13

Starring Will Smith, Edward Norton, Kate Winslet, Michael Pena, Naomie Harris, Helen Mirren, Keira Knightly, Jacob Lattimore,

Directed by David Frankel

The Story:

Howard (Smith) is an advertising executive who owns his own firm. After a personal tragedy, he retreats within himself and his behavior grows stranger and stranger. His three best friends (Norton, Winslet and Pena) also work with him and they are growing concerned that his reckless behavior is going to cause the business to fold and all of their employees will lose their jobs. When they discover that he has written letters to Love, Death and Time, they hire actors (Knightley, Mirren and Lattimore) to play those parts.

Needless to say, the three friends get much more than they bargained for in this endeavor.

It was a very tricky movie to pull off, because quite frankly, aside from a brief glimpse at Howard at the beginning of the movie, there was nothing in the first act of the film that inspired that kind of friendship and loyalty from his friends.

Quite frankly, if not for the rest of the cast, it would have been easy to turn it off.

Howard was so undeserving of anything at all from any character or the audience for that matter.

Thankfully when he finally gets around to interacting with Death, Love and Time, his character finally begins to regain some humanity, and then you can sympathize with what he is going through.

It does indeed pick up though, and the rest of the cast soars as they bring the emotional weight of the film full circle.

A stronger beginning, yes, maybe even making this film a little longer, would have possibly made this an even stronger movie.

I still recommend having a tissue nearby before it is all over though.

Final Grade: B

Our First DC Premiere..."Suicide Squad"

Suicide Squad (2016)

Rated PG-13

Starring Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney, Viola Davis, Jared Leto, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Cara Delevingne, Joel Kinnaman, Karen Fukuhara, Adam Beach, David Harbour

Written and Directed by David Ayer

The Story:

Amanda Waller (Davis) has decided that in a world with more and more metahuman activity, she needs to assemble a team that is able and willing to do whatever it takes to protect National Security. After all, the next Superman might just be a hostile. So she rounds up the worst of the worst, implants them with a transmitter that doubles as a bomb, and under the leadership of Rick Flag (Kinnaman), the Suicide Squad is born.

Or...

The Story:

A group of scoundrels we've never met before team up to save the world while tossing off one-liners during action sequences set to a cool soundtrack.

Sound familiar?

Yes, Marvel Studios did that 2 years ago with Guardians of the Galaxy, and earlier this year with Deadpool from Fox.

Sorry folks, in the world of superhero movies, comparisons are inevitable.

But let's make this perfectly clear up front, don't compare Suicide Squad to the Avengers, at that point we move from comparing apples to oranges to apples and bananas. Save that comparison for when they finally roll Justice League into theaters.

So, is this movie as bad as Rotten Tomatoes claims, and rabid fanboys have decried that since this is the second DC movie in a row with low scores, that site should be shut down?

No.

It's totally watchable.

Is it rewatchable, either in theaters or at home?

That's debatable.

The Good:

I got to hang out with some of my kids at the movies. Can't ever go wrong with bonding over popcorn and a movie, am I right?!? :)

Viola Davis owns her role as Amanda Waller. She might actually be more frightening than Batman. :)

Will Smith returns to form in his first action flick since 2012's MiB3, and it's a welcome return. It's like an old suit that he slips right into, and watching this film makes me ready for his return as Mike Lowry in Bad Boys 3 (and apparently 4!)

Margot Robbie owns Harley Quinn. While I would have preferred her actual outfit, well, this is the revamped Harley costume they want to go with. Still, when these two are onscreen, the movie picks up tremendously.

The rest of the crew?

When they are given anything to do, it's quite enjoyable. Bonus points to Jai Courtney for actually putting some charisma into a role for a change, his Captain Boomerang is one of the high points as well.

The Bad:

Everyone else is woefully underused and underdeveloped. It seems like most are there simply to give Deadshot and Harley a breather in the action.

The villain? Also falls into the meh, who cares department. But, it was pretty much that way too when they used her in Ghostbusters. :)

The Joker. Totally could have done without him. Aside from the backstory with Harley, which is necessary, he actually becomes a distraction as the film wears on. As for him channeling both Nicholson and Ledger as his inspiration, I found it seemed to channel more of Jim Carrey's Riddler.

Setting scenes to music can be effective.

Setting nearly every scene to music can be overdone.

They decided to dial it up to 11 and introduce everyone to their own killer beat, when it might have been more effective to stagger all of the team introductions out through the film versus one after the other after the other.

Ah well, not my film, not my universe.

: )

That said, of the 2 (or is it 3?) films from the DC "Shared Universe", this is easily my favorite.

I've yet to see Batman vs. Superman (and the kids still don't want to see it!) but it's coming next week on Netflix.

And Man of Steel sucked.

Though I don't think it's considered part of the shared universe, or at least probably wasn't before it tanked.

Finally, you can tell the film was meddled with, even without reading all of the reports about the reshoots after Batman vs. Superman was given a resounding thumbs down upon reception.

We'll see where DC goes from here, but you have to hope, at least for their sake as well as the audience, that they are correcting the ship and if not trying to outright copy the Marvel movie formula, at least copy the part where we like seeing their movies.

:)

Final Grade: C+

Trying Too Hard..."Concussion"

Concussion (2015)

Rated PG-13

Starring Will Smith, Alec Baldwin, Albert Brooks, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, David Morse,

Directed by Peter Landesman

The Story:

Dr. Bennett Omalu (Smith) is a forensic neuropathologist in Pittsburgh who happens to be on duty when the body of former Steelers great Mike Webster (Morse) arrives at the morgue. As Bennett attempts to discover what really killed Webster, he makes the discovery of CTE: chronic traumatic encephalopathy. This discovery should be heralded as a scientific breakthrough, but instead threatens the very nature of the NFL.

In the 2015 edition of Trivial Pursuit, this will be the answer for why Jada Pinkett Smith boycotted the Oscars.

This was Will Smith's Hail Mary (see what I did there?) at an Oscar nab.

The problem is, the movie is rather uneven and therefore not worthy of Oscar buzz.

He gives a fine performance, but when he spoke for the first time with his accent, all I could think about was Eddie Murphy doing a similar accent decades earlier and laughed.

Probably not the correct first reaction to a riveting drama!

The science, the football, it's all good.

The sad decline of some of the NFL's fiercest warriors and the grim realization that Dr. Bennett was right years after bringing it to the attention of the NFL, and largely being ignored, brings the movie to a somber close.

What really isn't that great is the relationship with Prema (Raw). Whether it happened in real life like it does in the movie, I'm chalking that portion up to "who cares?" .

It seems tacked on and very poorly conceived, almost a tender romance bone to throw to the ladies in the audience that have to endure a football movie with their husbands.

Hands down, the best character in the movie is Bennett's boss, played by Albert Brooks. When he's onscreen, the movie picks up and hums along nicely. Sadly, he's not there nearly enough.

Still, no discounting the subject matter.

There was much potential here, but just like the NFL, the opportunity to do something historic was fumbled.

Final Grade:  B- / C+ range

If They Would Have Just Used A Bit More "Focus" On The Script

Focus (2015)

Rated R

Starring Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Adrian Martinez, Gerald McRaney, Rodrigo Santoro,

Written and Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa

The Story:

Nicky (Smith) is a really smooth con man with a great network of hustlers that help him work really big jobs. He takes a green rookie named Jess (Robbie) under his wing because she's a natural talent that just needs some...

focus.

Ooo.

See what I did there?

: )

Anyway, they work on the gig, and then go their separate ways.

They run into each other a few years later, each working on different cons that are both targeting the same guy.

Will their feelings for each other ruin an otherwise extremely elaborate ruse and wind up getting someone killed?

I try and avoid talking too much about the plots of heist/con man movies because that often takes out any or all the fun of watching them.

Ficarra and Requa have teamed again to bring another dramatic comedy to the screen.

My problem, here comes the soapbox, is this film would have played perfectly, and perhaps better, with a PG-13 tag. I don't think there's a line of dialogue that a writer has to write using Carlin's list of words you can't say on television, and not still convey the message you're trying to get across.

Take out the language, the film softens to a PG-13, more people go, even families, and more people turns this into a box office hit instead of a financial flop.

The heists and scams are always enjoyable to see orchestrated on the big screen, and this film tries to up the ante on what Nicky can, and will, be able to pull off.

Could've been better, still wasn't that bad.

Final Grade: B-

Taped From New York...It's "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon"

Television history is being made before your eyes...

It's not often that The Tonight Show gets a new host.

This is the 6th time in 60 years that someone new has taken over the desk.

The last time that I put any serious time into watching this show, Johnny Carson was the host.

When he said goodbye, I was upset that David Letterman lost the gig to Jay Leno, so I moved to CBS with Dave when Leno came onboard, and that's pretty much where I stayed for the next 22 years.

Sure, there were occasions when Jay would be on, usually because I had let an episode of ER or Law & Order run through the local news, and then The Tonight Show would start and the monologue would be half over before I realized I needed to change it.

I rarely found Jay Leno funny.

Amusing, sure.  

He's had lots of amusing bits over the years, but a great majority of those are because of the dumb people in America (Jay Walking, Headlines) moreso than anything Leno brought to the table.

Then there was the whole Conan O'Brian fiasco, and any begrudging respect I might have had for Jay over the years was washed away.

So it was with great happiness and a touch of skepticism that I welcomed the news that Jimmy Fallon was taking over The Tonight Show.

Taking it back to its roots in New York City.  Bringing a younger generational spin to the granddaddy of late night talk television.

Thanks to the Winter Olympics and a newborn, I watched The Tonight Show for seemingly the first time in a generation when Fallon came aboard.

And I laughed.

In fact, to sum up my feelings on the regime change:

I've laughed more in 2 weeks watching Jimmy Fallon than I did in 22 years with Jay Leno.

I've always been a fan of Jimmy Fallon since his days on Saturday Night Live.  His comic sensibilities and all around showmanship have been on display over the last two weeks.  

To be fair, I never watched an episode of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.  Sorry, I was hooked on Craig Ferguson.

So, not being familiar with any of his routines from that show, I'm not sure what skits/routines are old bits, but they all work for this viewer.

Whether he's dancing with Will Smith looking at the history of hip hop dance or rapping with Justin Timberlake, there's nothing Fallon is afraid to try.

Pretty cool.

I'm happy to say that I'm once again a fan of The Tonight Show.

I think Johnny Carson would be proud of what Jimmy Fallon is bringing to the show and bringing it into the 21st Century.

Final Grade: A-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: If I'm up, I'll keep tuning in.  Otherwise, I'll keep checking out the video highlights on YouTube/Facebook/Twitter, etc.

Here's a Movie to be Thankful For... "Independence Day"

E.T. phoned home...and brought back reinforcements!

The Story:

Just days before the 4th of July, communications begin becoming disrupted across the globe as alien spacecraft descend around the globe.  What do these aliens want?  Do they come in peace?  Or are they here for more serious reasons?

How can you not like this movie?

Yet, like almost all of the Michael Bay productions, this one gets glossed over as fluff and frivolity...

But that's the point!

This is a summer blockbuster, popcorn, check your brain at the door and just have fun movie.

An all-star cast tackles their pieces of the puzzle until they are all (or at least the ones that survive) united for the final act against the aliens.

You have the scientist (Jeff Goldblum) who warns the President (Bill Pullman) about the real threat and manages to evacuate the White House minutes before destruction.

Then Marine Captain Hiller (Will Smith) who flies fighter jets but dreams of becoming an astronaut.

Plus, you can't forget crazed vet, possible alien abductee Russell (Randy Quaid) who will ultimately figure out how to stop the alien invasion.

Aside from a few shots that are slightly unbelievable, this is epic disaster that would make Irwin Allen tear up with pride.

Roland Emmerich and his writing partner Dean Devlin throw everything they've got into this one, and the movie just clips along at a great pace.

There are rarely any dull moments, it's quick plot devices that propel the storyline forward through dialogue and circumstance.

While Will Smith was considered the star, Bill Pullman gave the movie it's heart, and Jeff Goldblum gave the movie its humor in possibly my favorite role in the movie.

It's also unabashedly a flag-raising jingoistic American piece of propaganda.

So yes, it's an awesome movie.

Going on 20 years old, it's still a pretty fun ride.

I hear rumors of a sequel...

Will Smith should take a cue from the audience enjoyment from this one versus After Earth and sign up.

It was fun, and we'd come back for more!

Final Grade: B+...A-...take your pick!

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: This is the first time I've watched it in about a decade.  I forgot how fun it was.  I won't make that mistake again.

"After Earth", What Else Is There?

Oh my stars and garters...

The Story:

Cypher (Will Smith) and Kitai (Jaden Smith) crash land on Earth.  Cypher is injured and must rely on his son to save them both.  Can Kitai save them both, or will the planet, or an evil nasty that is chasing him, finish him off first?

First, I can't believe I watched the whole thing.

Second, I'm not sure I actually did.  I think at one point I hit the remote by accident and skipped an entire chapter of the movie.

I don't think I missed anything.

Then, I know for a fact that I wrote a different movie review somewhere near the third act of the movie.

So let's hit it:

Will Smith.  The man exudes charisma and charm.  This is likely his most uncharismatic role. Ever.  You want to play against type, well done Mr. Smith, you are effectively boring.

But if you want to talk about a lack of charisma?  Look no farther than Smith's offspring, Jaden.  If it wasn't bad enough to endure a Karate Kid remake that was bogged down in boredom, barely watchable only for Jackie Chan, apparently we are now forced to a lifetime of Jaden Smith movies because of who his dad is.

What a shame for moviegoers everywhere.

If you really want a cure for insomnia, Walmart has a 2 pack with After Earth & The Karate Kid bundled together.

Of course, let's not leave the blame entirely on the Smith household.

No, I give you M. Night Shyamalan, writer & director of this science fiction epic...of disastrous proportions.

It's been all the rage to bash Shyamalan since The Sixth Sense.  Apparently when you storm onto the scene with a movie that great, it's all downhill from there.

Sidebar:  Come on folks, the Sixth Sense wasn't THAT great.  It was apparent what the shocking twist was if you were watching the movie.  Good, not great.

But from that point on, Shyamalan had an uphill battle where he seemingly had to throw a "twist" at the end of each of his movies, and they began to suffer for it.

That said, I'm one of the few people that actually didn't mind Lady in the Water, so go figure.

However, when you can't translate The Last Airbender into a good movie... I mean the cartoon was phenomenal.  All you had to do was a straight-up adaptation... but nooooo....

So, I would say the bloom is definitely off the rose with his career, if it wasn't already before.

Look carefully at the movie posters and trailers... Where was his name exactly?

Nowhere.

The studios didn't want you to know it was his film.

Sad, but true.

So if you haven't already wasted your time watching this film, save 2 hours of your life (it'll feel more like 4) and go watch just about any other Will Smith movie instead.

Yes, that even includes Wild Wild West.

Final Grade: I waffle... I feel I should give it a D-... but an F sounds much better.  How about...  F+ ?

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor:  Not even if you paid me.  Unless you were willing to pay me a lot, then we'll talk...

Another Romantic Comedy That Comes Off Without a "Hitch"

Love hurts.

The Story:

Hitch (Will Smith) is a "date doctor".  What's that  you ask?  He gives guys advice on how to present themselves to the ladies to woo them.  It's honest, it's sincere, and it works.  It gets the guy to calm down and provides them a chance they might otherwise screw up on their own.  His latest client, Albert (Kevin James) an accountant who is smitten by the lovely Allegra (Amber Valletta), a socialite who likely would never give him the light of day.  Meanwhile, Sara (Eva Mendes) a gossip columnist begins an investigation into the urban legend of the Date Doctor.  Things are about to get ugly.

Back to back Andy Tennant movies?!  Looking over his feature films, I think I've seen almost all of them, and I like all that I've seen, and own almost all of them.  Talk about under the radar!

This is a fun romantic comedy, thanks in no small part to the entire cast who are easily believable in their parts, and play to their strengths.

Hitch is Will Smith, or at least he seems to basically be playing himself.  The same charisma and assurance that made him a star on the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air oozes off the screen in this outing as the self-assured consultant who wants to make sure nobody ever gets hurt the way he was.

Sadly, this was the last "fun" Will Smith movie he has done over the last decade.  Minus anything that was a sequel, it was also his last good movie to boot.

Kevin James makes the perfect project for him.  His first feature as a co-star, he easily holds his own in every scene with Smith, and carries the film in his segments without him.  He is instantly charming, just simply nervous. 


Since that time, he's gone on to make many movies which meet with mixed critical and box office reviews, but keep finding a happy home with us.  Two stars going in different directions on their movie career path.  Hopefully James continues on his path, and Will Smith can regain that spark that's been disappearing over the last decade.

There's a few messages underlying this otherwise breezy comedy.  They don't hit you over the head with them, but they raise good points.

Would a supermodel ever notice, let alone fall for a chubby nerd, without him doing something that demanded attention?

Shouldn't reporters, even gossip columnists, put forth a  little more journalistic endeavors into their work?

I'm just saying...

Either way, love the film and enjoy it every time I see it.

Final Grade: A-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Own it. Watch it. Love it. : )

When "Monsters" Put You To Sleep, The Movie Just Isn't Any Good...

Where's Will Smith when we need him?

The Story:

Aliens have invaded!  They have taken up residence in the lands between Mexico and the United States.  However a journalist (Scoot McNairy) agrees to bring the daughter (Whitney Able) of someone fairly important back to America by traveling through the infected area.

What could possibly go wrong?

ZzzzzzzzZzzzzzZZZzzzzzz.

Welcome to the most boring monster movie you'll ever endure.

I watched the first 20 minutes before invoking the 20 minute rule, and pulled the plug.  Well okay, technically I just walked out of the room and the movie kept plodding along.

Slow, plodding, meandering.  Much like the actors involved.

It kept playing and I periodically checked in on the movie, and from the looks, it never really got any better.

The film is available to stream instantly on Netflix as of this writing.

A very uneven week of movies this time around.  Hopefully next week will be more consistent.

Final Grade: D

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: No chance for either.

What In The Wide Wide World of Sports Is "Django Unchained" Doing Here?

How the South Was Won...

The Story:

Django (Jamie Foxx) is a slave who is rescued by Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz), a bounty hunter.  He needs Django's help identifying three bounties, and offers to give him some of the reward.  The two get along quite well, and Schultz takes him under his wing.  Django proves to be rather adept at being a bounty hunter, and asks for Schultz's help to find his wife ( Kerry Washington) who has been sold to a southern plantation owner (Leonardo DiCaprio).  The two pull off an elaborate scheme to get to attempt to buy her freedom, but there's a good chance not everyone will walk away from this plan unscathed.

Dear Quentin Tarantino-

I apologize to you on behalf of all of the things I've ever said about your movies.

I didn't enjoy Pulp Fiction, I'm not even sure I finished it, and was unimpressed with Kill Bill.

So I believe I added him to the short list of directors whose work I do not like, and therefore will avoid.

Then I watched Inglourious Basterds, and rather enjoyed it.

So I'm now in a conundrum, has Tarantino's work shifted over time, perhaps showing me a growth in his work?
Was I simply missing out on the greatness that people profess of his work, or was I just not feeling that great when I watched Pulp Fiction?  I do remember being sick that day...

Or do I only respond well to genre films from him, From Dusk till Dawn (horror), Inglorious Basterds (WWII) and now Django (Western) ?

I'm not sure.

But I really enjoyed this film.

Jamie Foxx did a great job as the slave turned gunslinger, and owned the role.  I read that it was designed for Will Smith, but he turned it down because he thought Django wasn't the main character, or because he doesn't kill the bad guy (DiCaprio) at the end.

First, I'm glad that Will Smith didn't take this role.  It would have been too hard to see the guy who grinned his way through Wild Wild West try and become a hardline bounty hunter.  While he can go dramatic, I think he's seen too much as the fun actor to bring the edge that's needed to this part.

Plus, he's wrong.

The REAL bad guy of this film is not DiCaprio.  It's Samuel L. Jackson's character.  Take him out of the equation, and everyone walks out of this film alive.

Never have I rooted for a character to get killed more in a western, and his death was spectacular, and well deserved.

Jamie Foxx works well as the star of the film by allowing everyone else to overshadow him, something that I don't think Will Smith's ego would allow.

One of those, Christoph Waltz is simply amazing in his role as Dr. Schultz.  This is his second Oscar under Tarantino's hand, and he deserved both, as he was the most mesmerizing character in both of those films.

DiCaprio goes full on Johnny Depp mode as the bad guy, and I think he really plays well as the bad guy.  It's a role very unlike him, and I think Tarantino brought out the best in his actors.  Reading the background of the film, they say he used a real glass and actually cut his hand in one scene so that real blood and anger were on his face.

Method actors, gotta love 'em!

: )

Finally, I would be remiss to say that I would like to thank Mr. Tarantino for balancing out two of the most gruesome scenes ever filmed (The Dog and the Mandingo Fight) by trimming their grossness, but also by putting in two of the funniest scenes not in a Western by Mel Brooks.

1) The first big shootout in Candie Land.  The guy screaming in pain as he was shot repeatedly by accident... sorry, that was just hilarious.  That whole gunfight was epic and well done.
2) The Regulators getting to ride, but first discussing their masks.  Hahahahahaha... that was so politically incorrect, it was awesome.


My hat is off to you sir, thank you for an excellent movie.

I may have to revisit your catalog and see if my initial opinion was wrong, or if we've just both changed over the years.


Final Grade: A-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I could be persuaded to do either.  Be advised, the film is rather lengthly (nearly 3 hours) but sure doesn't drag like it's 3 hours.

The Third Time's a Charmer... "Men in Black 3"

Proof that sometimes you can go home again...

The Plot:

A dangerous alien breaks out of prison, goes back in time, and kills Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones), thus changing the future.  Only his partner, J (Will Smith) seems to remember the way things were supposed to be.  That leads him to time jump back to 1969 to save his partner (Josh Brolin)...oh yeah, and the entire world!

Some franchises churn out films to cash in on their name brand.  Some wait, and present films that help remind us of why we fell in love with the original movie in the first place.  If you had any misgivings on seeing the 3rd film because the 2nd film didn't live up to the original Men in Black, set those apprehensions aside.

This third entry into the series is worth a viewing, and you'll likely enjoy it enough to add it to your DVD library.

For the most part Tommy Lee Jones is not in the movie.  But Agent K is never for one moment NOT reminding you of Jones.  Brolin does a dead on channeling of Jones' Agent K, it's impressive.  He has the instant rapport and chemistry with Will Smith that this movie just unfolds as a nice trip down memory lane.

The movie spends a majority of time, back in time.  That allows for Will Smith to again play the fish out of water that worked so well for the first time.  Yeah, this time he knows all about aliens, but the 60s?  That's a whole different animal.

Not sure that we'll ever see a 4th Men in Black movie.  But that's okay.  This brings a nice closure to the series, and goes out with a bang, not a whimper for the franchise.


One of the best films of the year, that got overshadowed in a busy summer at the box office.  If you enjoyed the first movie, you should enjoy this one as well.

100 Greatest Movies of All Time...That I Own. # 62 ~ Men in Black

Welcome to today's installment.  It was actually posted yesterday, but we used our "flashy thingy" to make you forget all about it.

And we're off...

Welcome to a Comic Book Movie that you didn't realize was based on a comic book.  At least some of you didn't.

You're welcome.

Who says those "kids books" don't make for some entertaining flicks?

Anyway, this is a really fun film that still holds up today.  The sequel was okay... not quite great, but it wasn't a waste of time.  I'm looking forward to the third one.

We could discuss all day how awesome Will Smith is playing Will Smith, but to me, the real revelation in this movie is Tommy Lee Jones as Kay.  Up to this point, aside from his turn to crazy in Under Siege (See # 78), he was a dramatic actor.

Here, he played the perfect straight man, which was somewhere just this side of Leslie Nielsen in Airplane of the Naked Gun movies.  His delivery and pacing throughout are simply magical.  He buys into the part so much, you get swept up along for the ride, much like Jay.

As for the director, Barry Sonnenfeld will be back on this list one more time, with my favorite movie that he's worked on.

Better than Men In Black?

It must be Wild Wild West.

Not quite, but we'll get back to Sonnefeld later.

Now, if you could just look directly at this light...



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