[Trailer] Machete Kills!

If you liked the over the top silliness of the first film, the sequel looks like it gets even more outlandish. I enjoyed the first one even though it had an unexpected political undercurrent which didn’t seem appropriate for an homage to Grindhouse films.

Sequel sounds a lot more straight forward and this trailer sure does give us a taste of what’s in store even if doesn’t tell us much about the plot.

TV SHOW REVIEW: ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT SEASON 4

“And now, The Story Of A Wealthy Family Whose Future Was Abruptly Cancelled…”

Writer / Director: Mitchell Hurwitz & Troy Miller

Cast: Jason Bateman, Portia de Rossi, Will Arnett, Michael Cera, Alia Shawkat, Tony Hale, David Cross, Jeffrey Tambor, Jessica Walters

Release Date: May 26, 2013

Genres: Comedy

Review:

The return of one of my favorite comedies of all time had my sights set high, very high. Years of seemingly endless discussions about a possible movie seemed more like a death knell than anything else. Diehard fans rejoiced at the news that Netflix had picked up the series for a new season. The result is an impressively intricate plot with a puzzle like structure. It starts a little slow but rolls towards hilarity as it all comes together. Due to scheduling, Mitchell Hurwitz & Troy Miller had to devise a way to work with the cast members they had at any particular time. As a result, most episodes focus on one family member typically interacting with some but rarely the entire family member. It takes a little while to get used to but as you make your way through the episodes you’ll the genius in viewing the same situations from different point of views. It’s all lovingly crafted and even more self aware than it was before. The jokes are just as rapid fire as you remember with plenty of call backs to previous seasons and a bevy of new instantly quotable jokes. Some of the jokes reach a crazy level of meta comedy at play. The main cast slip back into their roles with impressive ease. The format allows each actor or actress to shine usually accompanied by returning recurring characters or new guest stars. The one drawback to the format is that if you don’t like a particular character you are kind of stuck with them for an episode or two. Since the episodes are so well written it’s never a big issue but some drag a tad more than others, George Bluth Sr.’s plot is a good example. I will warn you that the season does seem to have slightly darker twisted feel to it throughout which might take some people by surprise. Additionally, some of the budget restraints are apparent and even joked about. Even with these minor drawbacks, the season as a whole is a massive success. I was more than a little depressed when I reached the last episode of season 4. It was short lived of course because I knew I’d be watching the episodes again very soon.

A-

Cindy Prascik’s Review of Fast & Furious 6

Dearest Blog, today it was off to the cinema with one of my favorite girls to see some of my favorite guys in Fast & Furious 6.
Agent Hobbs uses a ghost from their past to enlist Dominic Toretto and crew to bring down a dangerous international criminal mastermind.

Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.

Huge action, loud music, and plenty of eye candy make the Fast & Furious franchise my kinda movies, and the sixth installment does not disappoint.

I consider a big screen full of Vin Diesel the noblest and best use of a big screen. The Fast & Furious films don't tax what some might (cruelly!) call his limited abilities, and he capably leads the ensemble through its high-octane paces. Dwayne Johnson brings his customary charm back to the table, and great banter between Chris "Ludacris" Bridges and Tyrese Gibson provides most of the movie's comic relief. Luke Evans shines as a baaaaaaaaaaad baddie who poses the team's biggest threat yet. If you aren't a Luke Evans fan, well, you haven't been listening to a word I've said these past three years, but you're sure to be impressed with him in FF6. I only wish he'd had more screen time...but then again I always wish that!

As usual, jaw dropping car chases and stunts provide Fast 6's centerpiece. Had this film been in 3D, I might have gotten carsick! There's also a fair bit of impressive weaponry and plenty of hand-to-hand combat, including a hot girlfight between Gina Carano and the glorious Michelle Rodriguez. Though it's never slow, Fast 6 does run a tad long, something that easily could have been fixed by cutting some shots of gears being shifted. The car's going fast. Now it's going faster. We get it already.

Fast & Furious 6 clocks in at 130 minutes and is rated PG13 for "intense sequences of violence and action and mayhem throughout, some sexuality and language."

Fast & Furious 6 is, in the immortal words of Sergeant Nicholas Angel, "an adrenaline-fueled thrill ride," sure to please old and new fans alike. Even a mid-flick theatre evacuation today couldn't derail the fun! The movie will never win any Academy Awards, but it's everything it promises to be and everything fans expect. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Fast & Furious 6 gets eight.

Until next time...


Luke Evans...as awesome as I promised you he is! ;-)

MOVIE REVIEW: THE HANGOVER PART 3

The Wolfpack set out in search of Mr. Chow after Doug is kidnapped by a criminal seeking to recover $21 million from the diminutive hustler as the decadent Hangover trilogy winds to an outrageous close. Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Ken Jeong, John Goodman, and Melissa McCarthy star in this Warner Bros. release from director Todd Phillips. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Todd Phillips

Cast: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Justin Bartha, Ken Jeong, John Goodman, Melissa McCarthy

Release Date: May 23, 2013

Rated R for Drug Content, Brief Graphic Nudity, Pervasive Language, Sexual References and Some Violence

Runtime: 1 hr. 40 min.

Genres: Comedy

Review:

“The End.” “It All Ends.” “It Ends.” Etc… I really hope those taglines at the top of the posters are a firm promise. Some series really shouldn’t go past its original film. It’s fairly apparent that The Hangover was the kind of movie that never should have been a franchise. It would have been a smart decision to avoid sequels, like Phillips did with Old School. Instead we were dealt one of the laziest sequels ever. This 3rd film is only marginally better. I do give Phillips credit for mixing up the formula this go around even though it creates a weird serious / comedic tone throughout. As a comedy, it’s never consistently funny. At best it, delivers a handful of chuckles here and there along with long stretches of nothing. By nothing, I mean nothing. No fun, no thrills, no suspense. The audience is just left wading through uninteresting exposition until we get to the next set piece. The cast is just as disinterested as most of the audience, Cooper and Helms in particular. They both seem content in delivering lines from the past films and not much else, not that I really blame them. Zach Galifianakis and Ken Jeong both get larger roles here and are given free reign to do whatever they want. Both take their characters to extremes with grating results. John Goodman and Melissa McCarthy are terribly underused in one note characters. The film has a strange feel about it, like it’s disinterested in itself. The few chuckles that come through don’t last long enough to reach a zenith. It only finds a tad breath of energy in a post credit scene which comes after an awkward slow-mo montage. Let’s hope they don’t renege on their promise to let it end.

D+

Cindy Prascik’s Review of Star Trek Into Darkness

Dearest Blog, today I set out for the cinema to see the much-anticipated sequel Star Trek Into Darkness.
An attack on Starfleet HQ sends Kirk and company after the terrifying culprit and into peril...erm...darkness.
Spoiler level here will be mild.

First, dear reader(s), a couple disclaimers. Been awhile since I've needed a review disclaimer, so here are two to make up for lost time.

1.) I am not deeply invested in Star Trek lore. The series was always on at my house when we were growing up, and I love the 2009 reboot with the fire of a thousand suns, but there's...uh...let's say a 90% chance that anything non-canon would go right over my head, and there's a 100% chance that it wouldn't bother me even if I noticed.

2.) The cast of the 2009 Star Trek flick is one of my top five movie casts of all time. I stalk red carpet footage, watch hour upon hour of interviews, and use their photocall shots as my desktop wallpaper. I love them as I love my dearest friends, and there's no doubt that affection colors my opinion of their movies.
That out of the way, I loooooooooooved Star Trek Into Darkness!

My beloved cast does not let me down. There's screen chemistry to spare between Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto, and both have ample opportunity to showcase their dramatic and comedic chops. Simon Pegg has a bit more to do this time 'round, and more Simon Pegg is always better than less Simon Pegg. Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, and Anton Yelchin are once again solid, exceedingly likeable, and exceedingly easy on the eyes. If I resent having to put up with Alice Eve and Aisha Hinds, it's more than outweighed by the awesomeness that is Benedict Cumberbatch. His performance is magnetic. Those who aren't yet fans (what's wrong with you???) surely will be by the end of 2013!

Star Trek Into Darkness has big, loud effects that, at times, had me jumping out of my seat. Per usual, I did a 2D show, but I'm confident several scenes must be absolutely stunning in 3D, almost certainly worth the upcharge and stupid-glasses headache.

What really makes this film special is the relationships among the characters. Sure, it's a wild ride, complete with terrific effects, amazing ships, shootouts, mortal peril, and crazy, futuristic weapons, but it's the great affection among the crew, and their faith in one another, that gives Star Trek Into Darkness its heart, and makes it better than your average summer sci-fi blockbuster.

Star Trek Into Darkness clocks in at 132 minutes and is rated PG13 for "intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence." I'm always complaining about movies being too long, but I could easily have sat through another two hours of this one.

Of a possible nine Weasleys, I'm giving Star Trek Into Darkness eight and a half, and officially naming it the best film of 2013 so far.

Until next time...




Perfect cast is perfect.

MOVIE REVIEW: STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS

The Star Trek franchise continues with this follow-up to 2009's J.J. Abrams-directed reboot. Abrams returns to direct from a script by Damon Lindelof and the writing team of Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman. The crew of the Enterprise engages in an epic battle of good versus evil after being summoned home, only to discover Starfleet in ruins, and they venture into a war zone to find the powerful villain (Sherlock's Benedict Cumberbatch) responsible for the devastation. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

Director: J.J. Abrams

Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zoe Saldana.

Release Date: May 16, 2013

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence.

Runtime: 2 hr. 12 min.

Genres: Action/Adventure, Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Review:

4 years ago J.J. Abrams restarted the Trek universe by moving it into an alternate time in order remove the burden of years of mythology to deal with. His new version was fun and had a certain pop while removing most of the subtext in most of the classic Trek shows and movies. As a long time fan of Star Trek I’ve had a weird relationship with the reboot because I like it but never warmed up to it as much as new fans. Still, I was interested in seeing where Abrams would take the franchise with the opportunity to blaze his own trail and tell his own stories. Star Trek Into Darkness delivers all the visual spectacle and massive action set pieces (a duel space flight and the Enterprise’s out of control decent to Earth in particular stand) to appease the summer blockbuster hordes. The story this go around is darker, duh, and more nuanced with plenty of real world parallels readily evident. Long time fans will have plenty to geek out over like redesigned Klingons, Birds of Prey and if you look carefully the Enterprise NX-01 and Zefram Cochrane's warp ship. Needless to say, there’s plenty of fan service throughout the film. Unfortunately, there are a multitude of issues with the film. While the over all plot is better the script itself is a disappointment. A large chunk of the dialogue sounds incredibly clunky with some of the speeches sounding kind of silly. Chris Pine, who did a solid job in the original film, is rather wooden this time around. There are times where his line delivery just comes off as disinterested. Zachary Quinto fares much better but it’s not on the same level as his debut as Spock. Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, Simon Pegg and to a smaller extent Anton Yelchin get moments to shine but they are in the background more often than not. Benedict Cumberbatch delivers the best performance of the bunch with his bellowing voice used to maximum villainous effect here. His character is the crux of a major twist. Sadly, said twist is so obvious that most people should be able to figure it out in the first act if not earlier. It’s a common theme as there are numerous moments that the filmmakers clearly expect to make a huge impact but they fail because it’s all so obvious. For a reboot series that tried so hard to tear itself away from it’s past, a lot of this feels incredibly familiar. I could go through a list of films that it borrows from but I’d spoil most of the plot. New fans should find plenty to enjoy and I did like it more often than not but not nearly as much as I did the first time around.

C+

MOVIE REVIEW: THE GREAT GATSBY

An aspiring writer falls under the spell of an aloof millionaire with designs for the young scribe's unhappily married cousin in director Baz Luhrmann's adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's celebrated novel. It's the spring of 1922, and wide-eyed Midwesterner Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire) has just moved to New York City in pursuit of the American Dream. Settling into a home next door to wealthy Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio), Carraway grows increasingly fascinated by the elaborate parties held at his new neighbor's estate. Meanwhile, across the bay, Carraway's cousin Daisy (Carey Mulligan) flounders in her marriage to philandering aristocrat Tom Buchanan (Joel Edgerton). Inspired by the debauchery on display at Gatsby's wild parties and the lives of the wealthy elite, Carraway begins putting pen to paper as it gradually becomes clear that his cousin and the millionaire share a complicated romantic past that remains unresolved. Isla Fisher, Jason Clarke, and Elizabeth Debicki co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Baz Luhrmann

Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Isla Fisher, Joel Edgerton

Release Date: May 10, 2013

Rated PG-13 for some violent images, sexual content, smoking, partying and brief language

Runtime: 2 hr. 22 min.

Genres: Drama, Romance

Review:

Let me start off by saying that I personally love Baz Luhrmann’s style. I’ve been a fan since I first saw his take on Romeo and Juliet. Moulin Rouge was one of the best movie going experiences I’ve ever had, turning me into a fan of movie musicals along the way. I’ll even admit that I enjoyed Australia which was an over long bloated mess of a movie but there was enough there for me to like that I had no problem trudging through its 3 movies in one self. Needless, to say I’m an easy mark for his latest adaptation and slightly biased. My expectation were set fairly high and while the movies runtime worried me, especially after sitting through an overlong Iron Man 3 last weekend. When it was all said and done I wasn’t disappointed. I watched the film in 3d, of the few shot in nascent 3D, and it thoroughly impressed me in its immersion especially in the frenetic first half where you feel like streamers and confetti fall around for the better part of the hour. Once we head into the more somber 2nd half of the film Baz pulls back, as required by the plot, and it’s equally engaging. The 4 primary cast members all deliver excellent performances throughout. Leonardo DiCaprio is mysterious and mostly restrained; he does a good job of capturing Gatsby psyche on film. Tobey Maguire, who’s usually bland for me, was rather impressive as the doe eye naïve narrator who slowly becomes more and more cynical as the film progresses. Carey Mulligan isn’t asked to do much but she does display a broken sadness appropriate for her character throughout. Joel Edgerton is just as impressive as DiCaprio and Maguire as the brutish Buchanan, his performance is actually quite eye catching. Equally eye catching is seeing Baz Luhrmann’s last 3 films come together to form this film. There are bits and pieces that taken from each but combined to deliver one of his most complete and compelling films.

A

Cindy Prascik’s Review of The Great Gatsby

Dearest Blog, with an extra-busy weekend ahead, yesterday I spent the afternoon with The Great Gatsby.
A smalltime New York stockbroker is drawn into his mysterious neighbor's bigtime life.

Not sure how I could spoil a story that's almost 90 years old but, for argument's sake, we'll say spoiler level here is mild, nothing you wouldn't have gotten from the trailers.

Dear Blog, we all know too-high hopes often lead to disappointment. Since I burned vacation time to see this opening day, it goes without saying my expectations were ridiculous, but I'm pleased to report the movie met all of them.
Starting with the obvious, Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby looks magnificent. I elected to pass on the 3D, and it was still as amazing as anything I've ever seen, so much so that I'll be seeing it again in 3D as soon as I can. The costumes, sets, and makeup are effectively another character in the film, setting each scene's mood and even its tempo. The quirky soundtrack suits the movie perfectly.

Leonardo DiCaprio is an actor I'll see in anything. Even if the project doesn't appeal to me, I know he'll be good enough to make it worthwhile. His Gatsby is alternately infuriating and heartbreaking, another stellar turn in an amazing career. Carey Mulligan does a fine job in the female lead, difficult for me to admit since I despise her. I generally have no feelings on Tobey Maguire either way, but his is the one role I wished had been filled by someone else. Curiously, his Spidey replacement Andrew Garfield kept coming to mind as a better fit. Gatsby reunites Zero Dark Thirty's Joel Edgerton and Jason Clarke in two quite unsympathetic roles. My favorite performance in the film is from newcomer Elizabeth Debicki. She doesn't have as much to do as some others, but every second of her screen time had my full attention.

Gatsby exceeds two hours by a fair bit, but it never felt long to me; I enjoyed every minute. If I ever knew what caused its release to be moved from December to May, I've forgotten, but after seeing the film it seems wrong. Gatsby is definitely more Awards Season fare than Summer Blockbuster.

The Great Gatsby runs 143 minutes and is rated PG13 for "some violent images, sexual content, smoking, partying, and brief language." (Does the MPAA seriously use "party" as a verb...and have a warning for it??) It is a beautiful, spectacular movie-going experience, and I can't wait to see it again.

Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Great Gatsby gets eight.

Now, if anyone needs me, I'll be building a mansion across the bay from where Gary Oldman lives with his wife.

Until next time...




Guys, guys, guyzzzzzzz...I think I'm in love (again)! ;-)

[Trailer] The World’s End

The trailer for The World’s End is out and I personally can’t wait to see the end of The Three Flavors Cornetto trilogy.

I personally love the first 2 films with a giddy abandon, not to mention Spaced created by the same team. Needless to say I’ve been looking forward to this trailer and while it doesn’t give away much it does give you a glimpse at what we’ll be in store for, synopsis below;

Five lifelong friends reunite to complete a historic pub crawl from their youth, and find that reaching the fabled World's End tavern will be no simple undertaking while they also fight for the future of all mankind. Twenty years ago, Gary King (Simon Pegg) and his pals embarked on the ultimate drinking marathon. But the beer got the best of them, and they failed to drink their final pint at The World's End pub. Now, as die-hard rebel Gary approaches middle age, he summons his old friends back to their hometown for another round. With each pint down, Gary and the gang take another step toward reconciling the past. Meanwhile, just when it starts to look like their goal is in sight, the stammering pals realizes that a much larger struggle is currently taking place, and that the future is looking particularly grim -- not only for them, but for the entire human race as well. Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsan, and Rosamund Pike co-star in the final chapter of Edgar Wright's "Three Flavors Cornetto Trilogy," which began with 2004's Shaun of the Dead and continued in 2007's Hot Fuzz. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Cindy Prascik’s Review of Iron Man 3

Dearest Blog, yesterday I braved the fanboy throngs for Iron Man 3's opening weekend.
Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you haven't seen in the trailers.

When billionaire Tony Stark's world is torn apart by a terrorist, he sets out to save "the one thing (he) can't live without"...and, you know, maybe the rest of us too.

If one of those realistic movie description sites took on Iron Man 3, its tagline would undoubtedly be "Go big or go home." The movie is in constant competition with itself to be bigger and bigger and BIGGER, to the point it sometimes feels like nothing more than a series of ever-growing explosions. Regular reader(s) will know that's a concept I firmly support, but the runtime's pretty bloated for so much filler.

Robert Downey, Jr. is, as always, magnificent in a role tailor-made for him. The brilliant Don Cheadle is underused 'til the movie's last act, and Guy Pearce is marginally less ridiculous than he was in Lawless. (That's meant as more of a compliment than it sounds.) Gwyneth Paltrow is her usual pasty, unbearable self--why can't all films take a cue from Contagion and kill her off right away??--but my beautiful girl Rebecca Hall more than makes up for it. Oscar winner Ben Kingsley does what he can with what I'll call a curious role.

As mentioned, the action and destruction in Iron Man 3 are HUGE; the digital surround-sound on this one almost necessitates earplugs. The effects are pretty terrific, though, and I daresay the bigger the screen, the better they look. I'm not invested in Iron Man lore, so any affronts to the core fandom would have gone straight over my head. The story's nothing to write home about, but some of the dialogue is amusing enough to showcase Downey's comedic talent. Overall it's pretty entertaining, but the film definitely over-labors some points and would have been a lot better with a half-hour edited out.

Iron Man 3 runs a very unnecessary 135 minutes and is rated PG13 for "sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence throughout, and brief suggestive content. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Iron Man 3 earns six.

Until next time...




Well, hellooooooo Iron Man!

MOVIE REVIEW: MANIAC

Elijah Wood steps into the role made iconic by Joe Spinell in this reboot of the 1980 cult classic featuring an artistic style that takes you into the killer's POV. When a mannequin store owner (Wood) meets an attractive artist (Megan Duffy), his psychotic impulses are awakened and soon he starts a murderous rampage across L.A. Piranha 3D's screenwriting duo of Alexandre Aja and Gregory Levasseur provide the script, with P2's Franck Khalfoun handling directing duties. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

Director: Franck Khalfoun

Cast: Elijah Wood, Nora Arnezeder, Megan Duffy

Runtime: 89 min

Rating: Not Rated

Release Date: Jun 21, 2013

Genres: Horror

Review:

The original Maniac is one of those grindhouse nasties that really captured New York in the late 70’s early 80’s. It had a tangible sense of the grime and nastiness wrapped in its cheap yet disturbing dissection of a serial killer. I’d never say it’s a classic but it’s one of the better grindhouse films from that era. The remake, stylishly directed by Frank Khalfoun, is mesmerizing unsettling walk into the mind of a self loathing killer. Khalfoun’s decision to shoot the film from the killers POV works incredibly well. We hear his thoughts yet rarely see his face as he tracks his victims; the voyeuristic nature of it all is terribly unsettling. The kills themselves are incredibly gory and not for the squeamish at all. Elijah Wood is fully committed to the role even if it amounts to narration for the better part of the film. The film has a strong bit of polish but it does borrow heavily from horror classic but beats the mommy issues into the ground with its heavy handed approach. Some subtly would have worked in the film’s favor. Still it’s probably the most disturbing serial killer film I’ve seen since Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer.

B

MOVIE REVIEW: IRON MAN 3

Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) wrestles with inner demons while contending with monsters of his own creation in this sequel from writer\director Shane Black. The story in Iron Man 3 picks up shortly after the events of The Avengers. Having previously entered another dimension in order to save New York City, Tony remains deeply haunted by the experience. Tony has only started to appreciate the gravity of his problems when an enigmatic terrorist named the Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) hijacks the airwaves and threatens to bring America to its knees with a painful series of "lessons". ~ Rovi

Director: Shane Black

Cast: Robert Downey, Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall

Release Date: May 03, 2013

Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence throughout, and brief suggestive content

Runtime: 2 hr. 20 min.

Genres: Action/Adventure

Review:

Picking up after the Avengers was going to be a bit of a task, thankfully Iron Man 3 handles it fairly well lead by new director Shane Black. A slightly more focused, albeit kind of silly, plot than the overstuffed 2nd entry breathes life back into the franchise. Black and Robert Downey Jr. have a tangible chemistry together. Black is capable of keeping RDJ from going into cruise control and the script forces him to explore the effects of the events in The Avengers. It’s a solid logical choice, it would have been terribly easy to just breeze past it and keep him feeling invincible. There are still plenty of laughs and tons of massive summer movie level action set pieces that are thrillingly staged such as the attack on Starks home and a mid air multi-person rescue. That being said there are a few blemishes on the film. It’s not as overstuffed as Iron Man 2, which was too busy serving as a sequel to Iron Man and prequel to The Avengers, but it’s still too busy. The villains are a bit too cartoonish with Ben Kingsley going a bit too overboard (with good reason though). Sadly, Guy Pierce’s character never feels like a complete creation, simply functioning as a plot mechanism. Paltrow and Cheadle are given some extra bits of characterization but nothing earth shattering. As the film, wraps the film starts to feel like it’s tying things up in case RDJ decides to retire from the superhero business (this films marks the last film on his contract with Marvel). While a bit of streamlining and trimming would have made this more efficient summer film, it still manages to trill and excite so maybe it’s not time to throw this franchise on the scrap heap just yet.

B