Category Archives: Movies

Storm Chasers and Death Wishes

10 October 2024 By in Movies, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Twisters: Kate Carter (Edgar-Jones), retiring her youthful death wish as a storm chaser starts afresh in NYC as a cubical bound meteorologist. In the Big Apple we learn she really didn’t want to be there because it was a pointless plotline with her resolve having the staying power of a dust devil in a snowstorm. With that drama out of the way she’s back in the OK prairies chasing her dream in a Ram truck.

Glenn Powell as Tyler Owens is worth the price of admission, the CGI is impressive, and the cinematography astounding but the screenplay lowers the movie back down to pedestrian status.

Trivia: Downtown OKC was transformed into NYC to shoot Kate Carter’s away from life hiding place.

Genre:  Action—Adventure—Disaster—Fantasy–Thriller

Directed by: Lee Isaac Chung

Screenplay by: Mark L. Smith

Music by: Benjamin Wallfisch

Cast: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glenn Powell, Anthony Ramos

Film Locations: Oklahoma City, USA

ElsBob: 6.0/10

IMDb: 6.6/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 75%

Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter: 91%

Metacritic Metascore: 65%

Metacritic User Score: 6.2%

Theaters: 19 July 2024

Runtime: 122 minutes

Source: IMDb. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. Graphic: Twisters movie trailer and poster, copyright Universal and Warner Bros.

No Country with Laughs

2 October 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Greedy People:  A rookie cop and a partner from a B-List precinct, a pair that couldn’t direct traffic in a parking lot, cover up a killing to steal a million bucks. From getting rich to not getting caught, Greedy People takes enough twists to make Rick Gervais’ bent wit resemble the lines of a B-52 runway.

For all the unexpected turns and plot reversals the movie is entirely predictable, even the ending. Fortunately, by the time you tire of guessing, correctly, the next unforeseen development the movie is over. Watch it for a few laughs, competent acting, and the plot, although predictable, is solid.

Trivia: Patel played Mahir in the Sci-Fi movie Tenet. Mahir, a bit character in the movie, crashes a plane into the Freeport to create a distraction for the protagonist.

Genre:  Comedy—Crime—Drama–Suspense

Directed by: Potsy Ponciroli

Screenplay by: Michael Vukadinovich

Music by:  Jordan Lehning

Cast: Himesh Patel, Lily James, Joseph Gordon-Leitt

Film Locations:  Southport, North Carolina, U.S.

ElsBob: 5.5/10

IMDb: 6.2/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 58%

Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter: 56%          

Metacritic Metascore: 45

Metacritic User Score:  6.2/10

Theaters: 23 August 2024

Runtime: 90 minutes

Source: IMDb. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. Graphic: Movie trailer and poster, copyright Lionsgate Films.

Future Apes

25 September 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes: In the future some apes remember Ceasar, some lord over their slaves, some covet man stuff, and some are for the birds–Animal Farm meets Captain Fantastic.

Kingdom is the 10th movie in the series that began in 1968 with Planet of the Apes starring Charlton Heston; still the best of the banana bunch, originality wise that is.  

This movie is the first in a planned new trilogy that attempts to build on the previous trilogy. Unfortunately, it doesn’t surpass them in either acting or plot except for the supporting work of Kevin Durand for his portrayal of the movie’s antagonist, Proximus. He is superb and worth the price of admission.

Trivia or Goof: The flooding the man cave defies gravity. Try not to think about it.

Genre:  Action—Adventure—Drama–Fantasy—SciFi–Thriller

Directed by: Wes Ball

Screenplay by: Josh Friedman

Music by:  John Paesano

Cast: Owen Teague, Freya Allan, Kevin Durand, Peter Macon

Film Locations:  New South Wales, Australia

ElsBob: 7.0/10

IMDb:  6.9/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  80

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  78

Metacritic Metascore: 66

Metacritic User Score:  7.0/10

Theaters: 11 May 2024

Runtime: 145 minutes

Budget:  $160 million

Worldwide Box Office:  $397.4 million

Source: IMDb. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. Graphic: Movie trailer and poster, copyright 20th Century Studios.

Mind Control

19 September 2024 By in History, Movies, Politics Tags: , , , Leave a comment

Ted Kaczynski, a domestic terrorist known as the Unabomber, had his 35,000-word anti-technology manifesto published on this day in 1995 by The New York Times and The Washington Post.

Kaczynski was a math prodigy and entered Harvard at the age of 16. While working towards a BA in math he participated in a Harvard psychology study that attempted to understand how to manipulate one’s psyche.

The study was led by Henry Murray, a former U.S. intelligence employee. Some have suggested that Murray was working with or under the CIA’s MKUltra program. This program tested procedures and drugs to lower individuals’ defenses during interrogation and brainwashing.

Source: NBC News. Sott.net. Graphic: Movie poster and trailer, copyright Cinedigm.

Caged

18 September 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Longlegs: Lee Harker (Maika Monroe), mildly clairvoyant, rookie FBI agent, tackles a satanic serial-killer case with the enthusiasm of a vampire seeking high noon.

The movie possesses a few good, creepy scares molded around a very predictable plot with characters needing the IQ of twigs to make the story work.

Nicholas Cage elevates the movie to watchable while simultaneously establishing a serious deficiency in talent for the remainder of the cast that chose to perform in front of the camera.   Unfortunately, his acting is not enough to salvage this flick.

Trivia: Three songs by Marc Bolan’s band, T-Rex are woven into the Longlegs’ plot: Get It On, Jewel, and Planet Queen. All three songs provide a creepy, lyrical cadence to the horror that is Longlegs.

More Trivia: Zilgi who is credited with the music score is Osgood Perkins brother, Elvis Perkins, both of whom are the sons of the late actor and director Anthony Perkins.

Genre:  Crime–Horror—Mystery—Suspense–Thriller

Directed by: Osgood Perkins

Screenplay by: Osgood Perkins

Music by:  Zilgi

Cast: Nicolas Cage, Maika Monroe, Blair Underwood, Alicia Witt

Film Locations:  Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Els: 5.0/10

IMDb:  6.8/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  85

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  60

Metacritic Metascore: 77

Metacritic User Score:  6.3/10

Theaters: 12 July 2024

Runtime: 101 minutes

Budget:  <$10 million

Worldwide Box Office:  $104.1 million

Source: IMDb. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. Graphic: Movie trailer, copyright Neon.

Ride

11 September 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

The Bikeriders: To Kathy (Comer), Benny (Butler) was everything she wanted in a man, handsome, quietly romantic, and wild. She slipped into Benny’s life with the ease of a merge into 3 a.m. traffic, marrying him 5 weeks after first meeting him.

Benny was an enigmatic cross between Peter Fonda’s Easy Rider’s Captain America aka Wyatt and James Dean’s, Jim Stark in Rebel Without a Cause. He didn’t fit into life but Kathy, his bike and the Vandals’ motorcycle club was his universe except he couldn’t resolve their correct order of importance.

Trivia: In real life, the motorcycle gang that inspired the Vandals in the movie “The Bikeriders” was the Chicago Outlaws Motorcycle Club, a criminal enterprise. The film is loosely based on that club in which Outlaw member Danny Lyon dramatized in his 1968 photobook, ‘The Bikeriders.’

Genre:  Action—Biographical–Crime–Drama—Historical

Directed by: Jeff Nichols

Screenplay by: Jeff Nichols

Music by:  David Wingo

Cast: Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, Tom Hardy

Film Locations:  Cincinnati, Ohio

Els: 7.5/10

IMDb:  6.7/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  80

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  75

Metacritic Metascore: 70

Metacritic User Score:  6.3/10

Theaters: 21 June 2024

Runtime: 116 minutes

Budget:  $30-40 million

Worldwide Box Office:  $35.8 million

Source: IMDb. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. History vs Hollywood. Graphic: Movie Poster, Focus Features.

Hamlet Plays Conan

4 September 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Prince Amleth, ‘The Northman’, losing his royal inheritance with the murder of his father the king, vows vengeance against his uncle, killer of his father, and kidnapper of his mother.

‘The Northman’ is loosely based on the Norse legend of Amleth, son of King Horwendil and his wife Gerutha. Horwendil was murdered by the king’s brother Feng, who then married Gerutha. Amleth feigned madness to retain his head and to plot his vengeance upon his uncle for murdering his father.

Amleth was Shakespeare’s inspiration for Hamlet in his most famous tragedy ‘Hamlet, Prince of Denmark’. Hamlet is the son of the late king of Denmark and the king’s wife Gertrude. He is also the nephew of the present king, Claudius who killed his father and took Hamlet’s mother as his wife. Hamlet is told by his father’s ghost that Claudius murdered him and that he must exact revenge for his death. The play climaxes where Hamlet, Gertrude, and Claudius all meet a tragic end.

Genre:  Action—Adventure—Fantasy—Historical—Mythological–Tragedy

Directed by: Robert Eggers

Screenplay by: Sjon, Robert Eggers

Music by:  Robin Carolan, Sebastian Gainsborough

Cast: Alexander Skarsgard, Nicole Kidman, Anya Taylor-Joy

Film Locations:  Ireland and Iceland

Els: 7.5/10

IMDb:  7.0/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  90

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  64

Metacritic Metascore: 82

Metacritic User Score:  7.2/10

Theaters: 22 April 2022

Runtime: 136 minutes

Budget:  $70-90 million

Worldwide Box Office:  $69.6 million

Source: IMDb. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. Viking.Style. Shakespear’s Tragedies, 1980. Graphic: Movie Poster, Focus Features.

Wolverine: The First X-Men Movie

21 August 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

In the beginning there was the 2000 cinematic introduction of all things mutant, some good and some excessively proactive. The good were the Xavier’s X-Men and the excessively proactive belonged to Magneto’s unsympathetic Brotherhood of Mutants.

Wolverine, not necessarily part of the good or proactive, is living in the Canadian wilderness as an outsider just trying to make a buck by winning a cage match here and there. With a body full of adamantium with rather remarkable healing powers he is a formidable opponent in the ring.

Wolverine quickly becomes entangled in Magneto’s plans for annihilation of humans, forcing him to team up with Xavier’s X-Men. He ultimately plays a crucial role in the epic battle against Magneto and the Brotherhood.

Genre:  Action—Adventure–Fantasy—Sci-Fi

Directed by: Bryan Singer

Screenplay by: Tom DeSanto, Bryan Singer, David Hayter

Music by:  Michael Kamen

Cast: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen

Film Locations:  Ontario, Canada

Els: 8.5/10

IMDb:  7.3/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  82

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  83

Metacritic Metascore: 64

Metacritic User Score:  7.5/10

Theaters: 12 July 2000

Runtime: 104 minutes

Budget:  $75 million

Worldwide Box Office:  $296.3 million

Source: IMDb. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. Graphic: Movie Poster, 20th Century Fox.

Miller’s Crossing

14 August 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Tom Reagan (Byrne), indispensable man to prohibition crime boss Leo (Finney), is caught up in a no-win love affair, mounting gambling debts, and to add some juice, Irish and Italian mobs are competing for his unique talents. With everything to lose Reagan plays to keep his hat.

A suspenseful movie playing tribute to film noir/crime noir flicks of the 40s and 50s with inspiration from Dashiell Hammett’s ‘The Glass Key’ and ‘Red Harvest’. The plot is complicated that with a patty wagon full of characters it takes considerable effort, initially, to keep ‘em all straight.

This is Coens’ 3rd movie coming after ‘Blood Simple’ in 1984 and ‘Raising Arizona’ in 1987.

Genre:  Crime—Drama—Film Noir–Thriller

Directed by: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Screenplay by: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Music by:  Carter Burwell

Cast: Gabriel Byrne, Albert Finney, John Turturro

Film Locations:  New Orleans

Els:  8.5/10

IMDb:  7.7/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  93/100

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  90/100

Metacritic Metascore:  66/100

Metacritic User Score:  8.4/10

Theaters: 21 September 1990

Runtime: 115 minutes

Budget:  $10-14 Million

Worldwide Box Office:  $5 Million

Source: IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic, Wikipedia. Graphic: Movie Poster by 20th Century Fox.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

7 August 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

I’m currently working my way through the 10 X-Men Wolverine flicks.

In the 2009 X-Men Origins: Wolverine, exhibiting twisted bureaucratic logic, the U.S. Army takes a seemingly immortal and invincible mutant and makes him into the more immortal and more invincible Wolverine. Not a logical plot line but it does make for an enjoyable movie.

This is the 4th X-Men film and the 1st solo Wolverine project of a planned trilogy.  

Genre:  Action—Fantasy—Sci-Fi

Directed by: Gavin Hood

Screenplay by: David Benioff, Skip Woods

Music by:  Harry Gregson-Williams

Cast: Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Ryan Reynolds

Film Locations:  Australia, Canada, New Zealand, U.S.

Els:  7.5/10

IMDb:  6.5/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  38/100

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  58/100

Metacritic Metascore:  75/100

Metacritic User Score:  8.0/10

Theaters: 1 May 2009

Runtime: 107 minutes

Budget:  $150 Million

Worldwide Box Office:  $373.1 Million

Source: IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic, Wikipedia. Graphic: Movie Poster by 20th Century Fox