Tag Archives: film

Diamonds are Forever

15 January 2025 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Den of Thieves 2: Pantera: Big Nick (Gerard Butler) is tracking Donnie (O’Shea Jackson Jr.) through Europe, eventually catching up with him in Nice, France. There, Donnie and the Panther Mafia are plotting a seemly outrageous style heist at the city’s World Diamond Center. Nick, broke and tired, is eager to get a piece of the action.

Unlike the first Den of Thieves, this movie takes on a lighter, occasionally humorous tone. Big Nick dials down his badass-itude, though not entirely. The film focuses more on the meticulous planning of the heist than the actual event, reminiscent of the Mission: Impossible and Ocean’s film series.

The movie recreates, with creative license, the 2003 Antwerp Diamond Heist (Antwerp is the actual diamond center of the world), where $100 million in diamonds, gold, and other valuables were stolen. The heist was executed by a five-man team, four of whom were captured and imprisoned, but the loot was never recovered. The ringleader, Leonardo Notarbartolo, received a ten-year prison sentence, while his three captured accomplices were each sentenced to five years.

Trivia: The Panther Mafia in Den of Thieves is likely inspired and named after the real-life Pink Panthers, a network of international jewel thieves responsible for some of the world’s most daring and glamorous heists. The Pink Panthers were given their moniker by European police due to the similarities between their crimes and the antics in The Pink Panther film series. Art imitating reality in an unbroken circle.

Genre: Action—Crime—Drama–Thriller

Directed by: Christian Gudegast

Screenplay by: Christian Gudegast

Music by: Kevin Matley

Cast: Gerard Butler, O’Shea Jackson Jr.

Film Location: Canary Islands and United Kingdom

ElsBob: 7.0/10

IMDb: 6.6/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 60%

Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter: 79%

Metacritic Metascore: 60%

Metacritic User Score: 6.8/10

Theaters: 10 January 2025

Runtime: 145 minutes

Budget: $40 million

Box Office: $21 million

Source: Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, Metacritic. Graphic: Den of Thieves 2: Pantera Poster and Trailer, copyright Lionsgate.

Looney Toons–Live Action

2 January 2025 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Kung Fu Hustle: Sing (Stephen Chow), seeking to transcend his timid nature and achieve greatness, attempts to join a 1940s-era criminal gang in Shanghai. Through much pain and failure, he ultimately discovers his true inner self.

The film is a superb achievement in comedy and special effects, referencing, one way or another, dozens of movies and animated features from the past. Looney Tunes takes a central position in the film, along with The Karate Kid, The Shining, Gone with the Wind, The Blues Brothers, The Godfather, The Hulk, countless martial arts movies, and the final scene tips its hat to The Matrix Reloaded with the zillion Agent Smiths attacking Neo-ahh-Sing.

James Gunn, director of the Guardians of the Galaxy series and the upcoming 2025 Superman release, told Allie Capp in 2021, “Although I can, on occasion, be prone to hyperbole, I say without it here: Kung Fu Hustle is the greatest film ever made.”

Genre: Action–Comedy–Crime—Fantasy–Martial Arts

Directed by: Stephen Chow

Screenplay by: Stephen Chow, Huo Xin, Chan Man-keung, Tsang Kan-cheung

Music by: Raymond Wong

Cast: Stephen Chan, Yuen Wah, Yuen Qiu, Eva Huang, Leung Siu-lung

Film Location: Shanghai, China

ElsBob: 8.0/10

IMDb: 7.7/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 91%

Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter: 89%

Metacritic Metascore: 78%

Metacritic User Score: 8.1/10

Theaters: 23 December 2004

Runtime: 98 minutes  

Budget: $20 million

Box Office: $104.9 million

Source: Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, Metacritic. Capps Allie Capp, WGTC, 2021.Graphic: Kung Fu Hustle Trailer, 2004, copyright Columbia Pictures/Sony Pictures.

Madness

17 December 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Don Q: Little Italy in lower Manhattan needs a new Boss. Skateboarders, incompetent waiters, and macho Chinese boyfriends are everywhere, upsetting the idyllic life of the residents. Don Q (Armand Assante), disavowing his drug-controlled sanity, sets out to reclaim his neighborhood from the incorrigible and unwashed, adopting a mafia persona inspired by his vast library of mobster novels and mafioso crime books.

An almost original movie, it catalogs the great cost of a delusional life, not only to oneself but also for those around him, all on the lighter side without becoming preachy. The film is a masterpiece in storytelling—funny, sad, frustrating, if not downright maddening, which is likely the not-so-subtle point of the plot. And the ending is absolutely Hitchcockian; a finish of ambiguity and unease. Schizophrenic, actually.

“Don Q” and the early 17th-century Spanish comedic novel “Don Quixote” share a commonality of delusion and a desire to protect those they perceive as vulnerable. Don Quixote sees himself as a chivalrous knight on a quest to defend the helpless, while Don Q envisions himself as a powerful mob boss with a mission to control and safeguard his community.

Trivia: Armand Assante, of Italian/Irish descent, played John Gotti, the Gambino crime boss, in the 1996 HBO TV film “Gotti,” winning a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor for his performance. Within the family and the organization, Gotti was referred to as Boss, while to the outside world, he was known as the Godfather.

Genre: Comedy–Crime–Drama

Directed by: Claudio Bellante

Screenplay by: Claudio Bellante, Michael Domino

Music by: Jeremy Adelman

Cast: Armand Assante, Federico Castelluccio, Chuck Zito

Film Location: Little Italy, Manhattan, NYC

ElsBob: 6.0/10

IMDb: 4.7/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: –%

Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter: –%

Metacritic Metascore: –%

Metacritic User Score: –/10

Theaters: 1 November 2024

Runtime: 84 minutes  

Budget: —

Box Office: —

Source: Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, Metacritic. Graphic: Don Q Poster and Trailer, copyright Archstone Entertainment.

A Moral Dilemma

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

Juror 2: Justin Kemp (Nicholas Hoult) is chosen as one of twelve jurors to decide the fate of a defendant accused of homicide, only to discover that his thumb-up, thumb-down decision transcends the trial itself; like free will, suffering is woven into the fabric of our existence.

Clint Eastwood’s movies typically deliver entertainment with plots that resolve in the great American tradition of truth, justice, and apple pie. This film is different. It’s a story where past mistakes lead to present agony and future pain.

This is a thought-provoking movie, brilliantly portrayed by Hoult. Very little staging or action is needed to polish it into a complete piece. My only quibble is that the moral predicament would resolve itself if the protagonist were fully aware of his actions when they occurred. But then there would be no plot.

Genre: Crime-Drama-Suspense-Legal Thriller-Psychological Thriller

Directed by: Clint Eastwood

Screenplay by: Jonathan Abrams

Music by: Mark Mancina

Cast: Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, J.K. Simmons, Kiefer Sutherland

Film Location: Savannah, Georgia and Los Angeles

ElsBob: 6.5/10

IMDb: 7.1/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 93%

Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter: 91%

Metacritic Metascore: 72%

Metacritic User Score: 7.4/10

Theaters: 1 November 2024

Runtime: 114 minutes

Budget: ~$35 million

Box Office: $18.8 million

Source: Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, Metacritic. Graphic: Juror 2 Poster and Trailer, copyright Warner Bros. Pictures.

Lighter Fare

13 November 2024 By in Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Monster Summer: Martha’s Vineyard of the 90s, a summer haven for kids of all ages having fun until a zombie virus begins to infect Noah’s (Thames) friends, draining their spirits down to their souls. Noah, suspecting foul play, recruits the town’s curmudgeon, Gene (Gibson), a retired detective, to help solve the mystery.

Monster Summer, not far removed from the 2006 animated Monster House, shows that facing one’s fears are better than hiding from the unknown and, in the process, discovering friendships that will last a lifetime.

The movie is a children’s film that requires a kid’s heart and a warm spot for Mel Gibson’s irreverent humor and unfortunate script to fully enjoy, even for the old and grey.

Genre: Adventure—Kids–Suspense

Directed by: David Henri

Screenplay by: Cornelius Uliano, Bryan Schulz

Music by: Frederik Wiedmann

Cast: Mason Thames, Mel Gibson

Film Location: North Carolina, USA

ElsBob: 6.5/10

IMDb: 5.8/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 59%

Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter: 84%

Metacritic Metascore: 53%

Metacritic User Score: -/10

Theaters: 4 October 2024

Runtime: 97 minutes  

Source: Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, Metacritic.Graphic: Monster Summer Movie Poster, copyright Pastime Pictures.

Coens’ First

19 June 2024 By in Movies, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Blood Simple.

Theaters: 12 October 1984

Streaming: 6 December 2022

Runtime: 96 minutes

Genre:  Crime – Drama — Mystery — Neo-Noir — Thriller

Els:  7.5/10

IMDB:  7.5/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  95/100

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  8.3/100

Metacritic Metascore:  84/100

Metacritic User Score:  8.0/10

Directed by: Joel Coen

Screenplay by: Joel and Ethan Coen

Music by:  Carter Burwell

Cast: John Getz, Francis McDormand, Dan Hedaya

Film Locations:  Austin and Round Rock, Texas

Budget:  $1.5 Million

Worldwide Box Office:  $2.7 Million

Blood Simple is a twisted Texas tale of a honky-tonk owner, a cheating wife, contract killings, misunderstandings, and violence.

This is the Coen brothers’ first movie along with the first major film for Barry Sonnenfeld and Francis McDormand. A classic neo-noir crime film setting the stage for Fargo and No Country for Old Men down the road.

The film was ranked at number 98 on AFI’s 2001 movie listing of the top 100 Thrills in American cinema. In case you are wondering Hitchcock’s 1960 film, Psycho was first.

Source: IMDB. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. Wikipedia. Graphic: Movie Poster, Circle Releasing.

Fear the Night

8 May 2024 By in Movies, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Arcadians.

Theaters: 12 March 2024

Streaming: 1 May 2018

Runtime:  92 minutes

Genre:  Action – Horror

Els:  6.0/10

IMDB:  5.6/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics:  83/100

Rotten Tomatoes Audience:  55/100

Metacritic Metascore:  60/100

Metacritic User Score:  5.6/10

Awards: —

Directed by: Ben Brewer

Music by:  Kristin Kontrol and Josh Martin

Cast: Nicholas Cage

Film Locations:  Ireland

Budget:  – $–

Worldwide Box Office:  $0.9 Million

In an apocalyptic world Paul (Cage) and his two sons live a normal farm life during daylight hours and lock themselves into their fortress home during the night, when fuzzy anorexic creatures with extreme dental abnormalities roam in the darkness to kill and feed on humans.

The acting is very good with excellent visuals, but the story is weak on details and inspiration. An OK movie dreaming of a sequel which will never happen.

The name of this movie intrigued me since it was never actually referenced unless I missed it. Arcadia is a district in the central Peloponnesian plane of ancient Greece, which meant refuge or an idyllic place. A place of refuge seems applicable for this movie but not a safe refuge. Or it could just be the city of Arcadia NE of Los Angeles.

Source: IMDb. Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic. Wikipedia. Graphic: Movie poster for Arcadian.