Category Archives: Action

Weekend Outlook: Star Trek Beyond

What does this weekend look like for new releases? Two more sequels crash upon theaters this weekend and while they may not be total busts, both are probably going to fall short of the previous installments in their respective series. Star Trek Beyond and Ice Age: Collision Course represent the 21st and 22nd wide release sequels this year. Only four of them (Finding DoryCaptain America: Civil War, The Purge: Election Year and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice) have been able to outperform their franchise predecessor at the box office. Also opening this weekend is the new PG-13 thriller Lights Out from producer James Wan.

Star Trek Beyond

The third film in the rebooted franchise. It makes me nervous that there is no J.J. Abrams. Instead, it is being helmed by Justin Lin (Fast & Furious) although he wasn’t even the original choice. The original reboot of the series in 2009 was great and it enabled us to explore this world with a new reimagined cast. Because they had a blank slate to work with, I was a bit disappointed that Into Darkness was essentially a remake of Wrath of Khan. It was an acceptable remake, but I’m hoping we don’t see whales in Beyond. Regardless, I think it will easily end up on the top of the charts this weekend after Secret Life of Pets snuck past Ghostbusters to lead the box office for a second week in a row.

Ice Age: Collision Course

This weekend’s second sequel is likely going to fall short of second place in the weekend as it goes head to head with an original property in The Secret Life of Pets. I don’t like to hate on films, but this Ice Age series needs to go extinct. Interestingly, no Ice Age film has ever opened below $41 million. But this is the fifth in the series, sequels have not fared well so far this year, and we have had a very strong season of animation which I don’t think will help. I think it will be very close, but Pets will freeze Ice Age in 3rd place this weekend.

Lights Out

The final wide release is one that I won’t be watching unless it is a matinee showing. I’m not a huge fan of horror films but anything with James Wan’s name attached seems to have a leg up on the competition. Lights Out looks scary and with a budget of less than $5 million, I think it is safe to say that Lights Out will be in the green after one weekend in theaters. It won’t be enough to compete with Ghostbusters in its second weekend, but I think a respectable $15 million showing is very likely since it is doing well critically and there is no other genre competition right now.

How do you think these movies are going to do? My predictions are below. I’d love to hear what you are watching this weekend, even if you are just binge watching  Stranger Things on Netflix.

  • Star Trek Beyond – $60 Million
  • The Secret Life of Pets – $27 Million
  • Ice Age: Collision Course – $26 Million
  • Ghostbusters – $24 Million
  • Lights Out – $15 Million

2009 Best Movie Bracket

What was the best movie of 2009? I could have easily listed a top 3 with nothing but animated features. We saw traditional live action directors like Wes Anderson (Fantastic Mr. Fox) and Spike Jonze (Where the Wild Things Are) make a leap into animation and childhood adaptations with great success. The Secret of Kells came out of Ireland and is available on Netflix. It is well worth your time. Also, Pixar gave us one of the most painfully beautiful wordless montage that I have ever seen. I cannot watch it to this day without tearing up. If Up ended after the first hour it would probably be my favorite of the year, but I think it falls apart a bit in the 3rd act.

We had solid releases from directors like James Cameron (Avatar) and Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds). And real surprises from newcomers like Duncan Jones (Moon), Neil Blomkamp (District 9) and Yorgos Lanthimos (Dogtooth). All of these are great pictures and could qualify as the best of the year in their own rights. But let’s see my top 3 movies of the year.

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Independence Day: Resurgence (2016) Review

With Independence Day: Resurgence, Roland Emmerich is giving Michael Bay a run for his money and solidifying his status as the Director you call if you are looking for global catastrophe.

I try to watch a movie for what it is. This is not an artful indie flick with snappy dialogue. This 20 year old cluttered sequel to the 1996 smash Independence Day is a summer popcorn movie. That usually means destruction in between bursts of vapid or humorous dialogue, Resurgence delivers according to those expectations. But for some reason, Emmerich feels the need to continually remind us that this is an Independence Day sequel instead of just making an Independence Day sequel. It seems like we can’t go more than 5 minutes without some visual or auditory clue that we are watching the child of his most accomplished work.

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Weekend Outlook – Independence Day, Shallows, Free State of Jones, Neon Demon

It is a very busy weekend at your local multiplex. It’s really one of those weekends that there is something for everyone. However, the battle for box office supremacy this weekend is not going to be much of a battle at all. It would be a huge upset if Finding Dory doesn’t handily take down the alien invaders.

Since its record-breaking, $135 million opening weekend, Finding Dory has continued to impress with its box office performance. Forget about comparing it to all other animated films which it has blown out of the water (no pun intended). Finding Dory‘s performance puts it in the company of films such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Jurassic World and The Dark Knight. I’m expecting Dory to bring in another $80 million this weekend. So let’s look at the four wide releases that will hit theaters today and find out what you should watch and what your should wait for.

Continue reading Weekend Outlook – Independence Day, Shallows, Free State of Jones, Neon Demon

Trailer for Keeping Up with the Joneses

From the guy that brought us Superbad comes a hilarious looking comedy with a skinnier Zach Galifianakis and a load of other great actors. Remember Mr. And Mrs. Smith with Brangelina? Imagine being their next door neighbors. That is the concept behind Greg Mottola’s latest comedy, Keeping Up with the Joneses. Isla Fisher and Zach Galifianakis are an ordinary suburban couple that are in for a wild ride when they figure out that Jon Hamm and Gal Gadot are not who they appear to be. I can’t imagine a better cast of characters here. The trailer had me laughing out loud a couple of times. I just hope they don’t show too much in future trailers. I’m marking this one down as a great date night movie October 21st.

Not New Review: Equilibrium (2002)

Poster for the movie "Equilibrium"

Equilibrium (2002)

Director
Kurt Wimmer
Genres
Drama, Action, Thriller, Science Fiction
Actors
Christian Bale, Taye Diggs, Emily Watson, Angus Macfadyen, Sean Bean, Dominic Purcell
Overview
In a facist future where all forms of feeling are illegal, a man in charge of enforcing the law rises to overthrow the system.

If you are like me and are a fan of such books as Brave New World, 1984, and The Giver or movies like The MatrixLogan’s Run, and Gattaca Equilibrium is just the movie for you. In addition to a terrifying plot set in our very own future, the movie has beautifully choreographed action sequences and spectacular acting on the part of Christian Bale. I hate predictable movies and this one could have been predictable because it has a lot of things in common with other films of its time. This explains its dismal performance at the box office and even its negative critical reception, but I think Equilibrium is a worthy addition to the genre and presents a unique story that will keep you riveted in suspense the majority of the time.

The action takes place in Libria, a generic futuristic metropolis where peace reigns supreme after a ruler known as “the Father” has eradicated war, hatred, rage and jealousy by requiring all citizens to be dosed with regular injections of Prozium, a soul-deadening designer drug that erases all emotion.

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Unfortunately, this also removed all joy, love and compassion from the world, but “to make an omelet,” right? Those who dare to feel are branded as “sense offenders,” sniffed out by “intuitive” government operatives, then snuffed out by special police forces.

Anyone who has read dystopian fiction will have images galore of which to feed off. Remember the book burnings in Fahrenheit 451? Here, all works of art and literature are incinerated, including the original Mona Lisa. I’m sure that some would say that this kind of sci-fi escapism makes them think, but thinking is allowed in this world. Feeling is what makes us human, and this drama begs us to feel.

The enforcers of this branch of the government are called “clerics,” clearly meant to be an anti-church sentiment. Christian Bale plays the highest-ranking enforcement official. His brooding demeanor suits his role as an enforcer turned rebel. He is able to smite dozens of armed men with his bare hands. Initially, you question the physics of such fights, but by the end of the film, I understood that Christopher Nolan must have seen this film. Have you ever seen the things that Batman does? Most of them are completely impossible, and many are implausible. But they are entertaining and we suspend our disbelief because the story is good. It is the same thing here.

This is definitely not a masterpiece. There are giant plot holes and parts which are laughable and don’t feel like they fit, but at the end of the day it was a good story about Batman saving a puppy. Pick it up from the $2 bin at Walmart and add it to your collection. It is worth the lesson that life is not worth living without emotion. So watch this film. Let it wash over you until you feel as grey as its stark landscape. Then take it as a reminder and go watch a real movie with exquisite beauty that will actually make you feel something. Because what are we if we don’t feel?

The Nice Guys (2016) Review

The Nice Guys is to LA crime stories what Deadpool is to superhero flicks: at once a celebration and a send-up. That’s just the kind of storytelling moviegoers have come to expect from Shane Black, who directed the film and co-wrote it. Black has a history of blending irreverence and violence going all the way back to his legendary script for Lethal Weapon (1987). However, Black didn’t become a name until the release of Iron Man 3, which saw a lukewarm reaction from fans.

niceguysretro

Several years before that Marvel film, Black made his directorial debut, with the black comedy/noir Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, which is great. In many ways, The Nice Guys feels like a spiritual successor to Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. With twisty detective plots, style to spare, comedy as black as night, and a plethora of interesting characters, the films would make for a great double feature, and they showcase exactly where Black’s directorial strengths lie. Is this a family film? No way. Does it include scenes that some may find painful to watch? You bet. Will you be entertained? Thoroughly.

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Weekend Outlook – Finding Dory and Central Intelligence

There is no doubt who will be the queen at this weekend’s box office. The only real question is whether Finding Dory will have the biggest opening ever for an animated film. Last year at Thanksgiving, Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur failed to make a significant impact on the box office, though it has had good numbers through in home mediums. This weekend though, Pixar will look to rebound in a big way with a sequel to one of their most successful films of all time. See this weekend’s offerings and my projections after the jump.

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If You Liked… Independence Day

As we prepare for the sequel that has been 20 years in the making, lets take a look back at this alien invasion film. Independence Day is a 1996 American epic science-fiction disaster film co-written and directed by Roland Emmerich. The film stars Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Judd Hirsch, Randy Quaid, Robert Loggia, Vivica A. Fox, and Harry Connick, Jr. The film focuses on a diverse and interesting group of people who converge in the Nevada desert in the aftermath of a destructive alien attack and, along with the rest of the human population, participate in a last-chance counterattack on July 4th.

independenceday5

Has anyone not seen Independence Day? Seriously? I want to meet you if you’ve never seen it. I would be highly surprised if you could find anyone between the ages of 30 and 50 in the United States who hasn’t seen Independence Day.

That doesn’t mean everyone loves it. In fact, according to icheckmovies.com, only 2.6% of those that have seen the the movie listed it as one of their favorites, and 1.1% disliked it. This is one of those guilty pleasure movies for me. I saw this film in the theater on opening weekend during the summer between 7th and 8th grade. If you can find a more formative time in a kid’s life I don’t know what it is. It was then that I decided I really liked Jeff Goldblum’s stilted speech and acting style and found out that the Fresh Prince could do more than dance.

independenceday1

If you are like me and like Independence Day you might be looking for some other movies to watch while you wait for Independence Day: Resurgence to be released next weekend. I told my oldest son (12) that he could only see the sequel if he watched the original with me, so he obliged his old man and we sat down and watched this movie a few nights ago. Time has not been great to the effects on this film. Director Roland Emmerich loves to destroy New York City and threaten the annihilation of all mankind (Day After Tomorrow, Godzilla, 2012), it will be nice to see what he can do with the technology that 20 years has given him. In keeping with the guilty pleasure nature of Independence Day, all of my selections will also be selections that I might not often openly admit to loving.

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Alien: Covenant – David 8 is Back in One Piece

The fan anticipation for Alien: Covenant, the sequel to Prometheus, has been growing as we inch closer and closer to the events of the original Alien film that was released in 1979. The Ridley Scott-helmed project has been generating a ton of buzz since production and subsequent filming began. NOTE: if you haven’t seen Prometheus, Alien, and Aliens then there may be spoilers ahead.

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The first batch of set pictures went online late last month, revealing a dark and dystopian future as well as some particularly creepy ashy beings. Now, an official behind-the-scenes photo from the set of Alien: Covenant teases the return of a Prometheus character.

The Alien Anthology Twitter account posted the photo that reveals a repaired and whole David 8, the synthetic that was brought to life in Prometheus by Michael Fassbender. Take a look at the image after the jump.

Continue reading Alien: Covenant – David 8 is Back in One Piece