Super Secret Sleeper Agent! "American Ultra"

American Ultra (2015)

Rated R

Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Connie Britton, Topher Grace, John Leguizamo, Walton Goggins, Bill Pullman

Directed by Nima Nourizadeh

The Story:

Mike (Eisenberg) is a stoner who works a dead-end job at the local convenience store while drawing his graphic novel about an ape with super-powers. His girlfriend, Phoebe (Stewart) seems to love him a great deal, but he fears he's going to lose her because he can't seem to get past the phobia of leaving their dreary little existence. Then one fateful evening, a woman (Britton) says some words to him and it unlocks memories and skills that transform Mike into the ultimate secret sleeper agent killer for the CIA. These skills might just help him survive an assassination attempt by the CIA to get rid of him once and for all.

So, watching this movie and it all seemed vaguely familiar. Then I put my finger on it, this is pretty much the tv show, Chuck.

Fair enough. I enjoyed that show.

Sleeper agent assassin who is an amazing killing machine. That they put him into the body of Jesse Eisenberg makes the situation more ironic.

However, it's a pretty fun movie.

Although, if you cannot stand Eisenberg (you know who you are) this movie would probably grate on you for the entire duration. It's also a nice chance to see Stewart doing something other than moping around and longing for vampires.

Topher Grace is hilariously evil as the CIA operative who demands Mike's death, and sends scores of agents into this town to kill him. All that was missing was the twirling of a villainous moustache.

A very fun script by Max Landis and great direction by Nima Nourizadeh makes this one a much more enjoyable experience than Nima's last effort, Project X,  had been.

Overall a pretty fun viewing experience and with a few tweaks (possibly including recasting Eisenberg and Stewart who have little chemistry together) this could have been even better.

Final Grade: B-

Friday Archives... "Push"

Push (2009)

Rated PG-13

Starring Dakota Fanning, Chris Evans, Camilla Belle, Corey Stoll, Cliff Curtis, Ming-Na Wen, Djimon Hounsou

Directed by Paul McGuigan

The Story:

In a world where people with abilities are utilized as weapons, The Division is looking to create a drug that will enhance these abilities. Until today, all test subjects died when they received the drug. However, Kira (Belle) is the first patient to survive, and she has escaped. Now being tracked by Henry Carver (Hounsou) and his cohorts, her only hope seems to be a young girl (Fanning) who can see the future and Nick (Evans), a telekinetic who she can't remember.

I think I last this film in 2009, so watching it again was almost like watching it again for the first time.

I remembered little bits and pieces, but that's like watching a trailer for a movie, and then seeing that part played out in the movie itself. A little deja vu, but nothing that ruins the experience overall.

Had this movie starred anyone other than Chris Evans, I likely would not have watched it the first time, and since I own it, apparently I liked it enough to pick it up from Blockbuster in the previously viewed movie sale.

Sidenote: I miss being able to pick up used DVDs at Blockbuster for a good deal.  ::sigh::

So this takes place back when Evans had already been Johnny Storm, wasn't yet Captain America and seemed to be taking parts in movies that had a superhero feel to it.

The man has been typecast, but I'm grateful for it, because he plays the parts very well.

Amusingly as we watched the film last night, it was fun to see how many actors would go on to the Marvel Universe in the future.  Apparently, they were just testing the waters for it on this film.

Taking place in Hong Kong, the city itself gives the movie a gritty, crazy comic book feel.

The special effects themselves aren't too bad, and really for a modest budget B movie, this film succeeds on that level.

Worth a look if you missed it the first go-round, or if you vaguely remember it from 7 years ago.

Final Grade: B-/C+ range

Not The Michael Jackson or NASA Experience I Was Hoping For..."Moonwalkers"

Moonwalkers (2015)

Rated R

Starring Rupert Grint, Ron Perlman, Robert Sheehan

Directed by Antoine Bardou-Jacquet

The Story:

Just in case the upcoming Apollo moon landing doesn't work, the government wants to have a backup plan. They send CIA Agent Kidman (Perlman) to offer a ton of money to director Stanley Kubrick to stage the whole thing. However Kidman runs into Jonny (Grint) who pretends to be Kubrick's manager, and then convinces his friend (Sheehan) to pretend to be Kubrick so they can get their hands on the cash.

What should have been a ripe satire or even a gripping joy ride to one of the oldest, and greatest conspiracy theories of all times is dead on arrival.

I gave it the full 20 minutes.

I was pressed to eject it out much sooner.

It's a shame because they nailed the opening credits to be some cross between Monty Python and Yellow Submarine.

After that though, Perlman's delusions of being in Vietnam and seeing the enemy everywhere he looked added nothing to the proceedings.

The quick sequence in Diamonds Are Forever poking fun at the moon landing is a much better alternative to watch than this.

Then again, so is just about anything.

Final Grade: D

I'm Always Up For A "Heist" Film

Heist (2015)

Rated R

Starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Gina Carano, Dave Bautista, Robert DeNiro, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Morris Chestnut, Kate Bosworth, D.B. Sweeney, Stephen Sepher

Directed by Scott Mann

The Story:

Vaughn (Morgan) needs a ton of money to save his little girl. So he goes to see his old boss, The Pope (DeNiro) who feels bad, but not bad enough to compromise on his principles to never give money to charity. Vaughn then turns to Cox (Bautista) who works at the casino and they hatch a plan to rob the casino. When the driver bails on them, the criminals end up hijacking a bus and taking the passengers hostage. Now it's a high stakes game of cat and mouse as they must elude the authorities and The Pope's men for a clean getaway.

Okay, so if you're going to make a heist film and call it Heist, it better be good.

From my point of view, it was.

: )

Your mileage may vary of course, but I quite liked this one from start to finish.

It starts with a strong cast, and there isn't much of a problem with that in this film. DeNiro can do the tough mob boss in his sleep, but he puts just enough heart and remorse to his character that you can understand why he makes the decisions that he does as the film moves forward.

Morgan is the emotional anchor and focal point of the film. Faced with the prospect of losing his daughter, he is determined to do whatever it takes, by any means necessary. Bautista doesn't get to do much acting like he did in Guardians of the Galaxy, here he mostly yells and spits a lot.

While this would be typecasting or typical of most WWE wrestlers turned actors, Dave has already shown much potential and heart as an actor and it will be interesting to see where he goes from here.

That said, he will grate on your nerves in this film, and that is both intentional, and necessary, to the overall narrative.

As you'll notice by the cast listed above, they all have numerous parts which all play pivotal roles in the film.

But remember, this is a heist film, so any plot twists and turns that you're expecting, or not expecting, are best enjoyed as spoiler-free as possible.

A few tweaks here and there, this movie could have been in contention for best of the year honors.

That said, it's a solid movie and I'd be willing to own it or watch it again in the future.

Final Grade: B

Let's Get Ready to Rumble..."The Condemned 2"

The Condemned 2 (2015)

Rated R

Starring Randy Orton, Eric Roberts

Directed by Roel Reine

The Story:

Will Tanner (Orton) is a bounty hunter. When a fugitive winds up dead, Tanner winds up in court and he is lucky to not be sent to prison. However, the fugitive's brother wants revenge, and in a high stake gambling match that pits Tanner against his old crew in a fight to the death, Will has little choice but to fight, or die!

Almost a decade ago, WWE Studios released The Condemned. The premise: 10 felons are left alone on an island and fight to the death. To the winner-freedom. And it's all televised across the world and it's a ratings smash!

I'm sure one of these years when Survivor's ratings are tanking, they will employ this strategy.

WWE  continues to pave the way!

:)

Randy Orton once again gets to be the star, having already been in the 12 Rounds franchise.

I think he needs to take a crack at The Marine in order to headline all of WWEs franchises. :)

Anyway, he does a fine and believable job. Eric Roberts tags along and has some fun as the dad who is hard on his son, but would do anything to help him.

All in all, the premise is actually pretty good, and WWE Studios continues to crank out modest hits that aren't too bad at all.

Nice to help bridge the gap into the movies for the wrestlers as they wind down their in-ring and prepare for life after the squared circle.

It's worked out pretty well for a lot of them, 1 of which will be in tomorrow's review.

Final Grade: C+

Love Can Be Dangerous..."Hit By Lightning"

Hit By Lightning (2014)

Rated R

Starring Jon Cryer, Will Sasso, Stephanie Szostak, Jed Rees

Written and Directed by Ricky Blitt

The Story:

Ricky (Cryer) and Seth (Sasso) are best friends since forever, but now that they are the only two men who are still bachelors from their high school graduating class, Ricky is entering panic mode. He joins a dating site and meets Danita (Szostak). She's perfect in every way, Ricky is in love, and the feeling appears to be mutual. There's just one little problem: Danita's abusive husband (Rees). If Ricky will just kill him, then Danita and Ricky can be together forever.

That's right, it's a noir thriller played for laughs, and for the most part, it works well enough.

It's not a parody of noir films, it plays the situation straight, and Seth even remarks that they've seen this movie before, and he cites examples. But Ricky is his best friend, so Seth is in on the plan to help his buddy be happy, even if it includes murder.

Cryer works perfectly as the nerdy guy who can't believe his luck to land a supermodel, or at least a lady who is clearly out of his league. The cast generates quite a bit of chemistry together and helps elevate this one to being better than just an average film.

Not bad for first time director Blitt. He continues to be a strong writer, with much of his dialogue and situations really make the movie enjoyable.

Plus, he'll forever get a pass in our household for giving us The Ringer. :)

Final Grade: C+

Always Be Prepared..."Scouts Guide To The Zombie Apocalypse"

Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (2015)

Rated R

Starring Tye Sheridan, Logan Miller, Joey Morgan, Sarah Dumont, David Koechner, Halston Sage, Cloris Leachman

Directed by Christopher Landon

The Story:

Ben and Carter ( Sheridan & Miller) feel they are too old for the Scouts, but they agree to go on one last camping trip with their friend Augie (Morgan) and their Scout Leader (Koechner). However when they are invited to a party by Carter's sister (Sage) they decide they will sneak away to the party that night. Of course, this happens the same day as a massive zombie virus infects the town, and leaves pretty much the three kids, alone, against the marauding assault of the undead. Good thing they have their scout training to fall back on!

From the killer opening, this movie will have you waiting to see what happens next all the way through to the end.

The horror-comedy is fast becoming my favorite genre of film to watch, because when they are good, they are really quite special. Especially the zom-coms.

However, when they are bad, they can be atrocious.

Thankfully, Scouts Guide falls into the really good category. Great cast, clever dialogue and wonderful action sequences make it a humorous jump fest at every turn.

While Tye Sheridan is the star of the film, it's Logan Miller who steals pretty much the entire movie out from everyone.

David Koechner has a great turn as the Scout Master who is repeatedly defeated throughout the movie, but something about being a Scout just won't let him quit.

Then of course, if you ever wondered what Cloris Leachman as a zombie might be like, look no further.

I'll also add that humans are not the only beings that get zomibified in this movie.

:)

If you were on the fence about seeing this one, get off that fence and give it a spin. I think you'll be glad you did.

Final Grade: Solid B