Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Year: 2011

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant, Dianna Agron, Teresa Palmer, Callan McAuliffe, Kevin Durand, Jake Abel, Jeff Hochendoner, Patrick Sebes

Director: D.J. Caruso

My Review: So much for the preview… I sure got suckered by this one. I thought this was going to be a serious sci-fi thriller. Actually, it was a teen romance with a supernatural sci-fi flavor. The casting was horrible. Alex Pettyfer - at 21 years old - looks like he's in his late twenties as he plays the tormented teen alien (John Smith). His love interest, Sarah (played by Dianna Agron) - at 25 years old - is smoking hot, but still not convincing in the role. This movie had zero originality. It's a 'twilight meets 'terminator' summer time waster. The best acting came from Timothy Olyphant. The first half was incredibly slow and boring. Designed as nothing more than a template for character development. The second half was derivative but slightly more interesting and better paced. The writing was filled with cliches and stereotypical characters. Typical high school. Typical persecuted teen boy. Typical family background. New to school. Typical hot girl who's alone. Typical ex-boyfriend. Typical confrontations. Typical jealous rivalry and love-triangle story. Mix that in with a typical alien refugee story. Typical last of his kind. Typical persecuted and hunted story line. Typical good guys vs bad guys characters. Typical chased by the cops for crimes he didn't actually commit subplot. Typical lines from the bad guys. Typical action scenes. Typical choreography. This movie should have been titled 'The typical teen romance alien refugee craptastic movie'. The aliens are all style and no substance. The costumes, effects and cgi were all in poor taste and poorly done. Hold on a second… Produced by "Micahel Bay" - That explains everything. I sincerely hope they don't make the sequels they're obviously poised to do. I give this move a 1 out of 5. Yes folks, I watch the bad movies, so you don't have to.

Summary: Extraordinary teen John Smith (Pettyfer) is a fugitive on the run from ruthless enemies sent to destroy him. Changing his identity, moving from town to town with his guardian Henri (Olyphant), John is always the new kid with no ties to his past. In the small Ohio town he now calls home, John encounters unexpected, life-changing events-his first love (Agron), powerful new abilities and a connection to the others who share his incredible destiny.

Genre: Fantasy, Comedy

Year: 1993

Country: France

Rating:

Starring: Christian Clavier, Jean Reno, Valérie Lemercier, Marie-Anne Chazel, Christian Bujeau, Isabelle Nanty, Gérard Séty, Didier Pain, Jean-Paul Muel, Arielle Sémenoff

Director: Jean-Marie Poire

My Review: Poor production, but great energy and effort from a good cast. This French fantasy plays the time worn game of 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court'. In this spin, a medieval nobleman (Jean Reno) and his squire (Christian Clavier) are thrust forward in time from the 11th century to the 20th century. The senile wizard got the potion wrong. They were supposed to go back in time! Now the nobleman and his servant must struggle to find a way back to save the day. Fighting armor clad horseless carriages, shotgun toting maître d's and a crazy dentist, these two are beset on all sides by the insanity of the 20th century. I like Jean Reno (as an actor), and that's what drew me to this movie. He really gets into his role, and here the whole cast can be seen having a good time. Plenty of big laughs and ridiculous situations made me forget the woes of my office. The subtitles were rather poor, but the energy, chemistry and pacing made up for poor production problems. It rates a 3 out of 5.

Summary: A medieval nobleman and his squire are accidentally transported to contemporary times by a senile sorcerer. He enlists the aid of his descendent to try to find a way to return home, all the while trying to cope with the cultural and technological changes distinguishing his time from ours.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller

Year: 1962

Country: France | West Germany | Italy

Rating:

Starring: Anthony Perkins, Jeanne Moreau, Orson Welles, Arnoldo Foà, Jess Hahn, Billy Kearns, Madeleine Robinson, Maydra Shore, Suzanne Flon, Max Buchsbaum, Max Haufler, Romy Schneider, Elsa Martinelli

Director: Orson Welles

My Review: Directed by Orson Welles (Actor, director, writer), starring Anthony Perkins (as Josef K.), Jeanne Moreau, Romy Schneider, Orson Welles, and others. Here's an adaptation of a Franz Kafka novel. Josef K. is a bank clerk living a mundane, ordinary life; until he wakes up to find a group of men-in-black in his bedroom. They're members of some secret police force. Asking questions and insinuating guilt, they torment Josef with their accusations. No charges are filed, but Josef is presumed guilty of some undeclared crime. A bizarre and nightmarish judicial system keeps Josef in a constant state of fruitless defense. The movie is dreamlike and dark. Josef wanders the halls and poorly maintained rooms in the maze-like edifice called justice. Searching for an answer, a reasons, any semblance of logic. Josef protests his innocence, but doesn't know what he's innocent of. A maddening glimpse inside the twisted logic of a state gone mad. This 'Kafkaesque' nightmare is an amazing film to reflect on. The characters pathetic, sympathetic and condemned to live a life of 'just getting by' in the hollow halls of a justice system that's lost sight of it's purpose. The pacing was excellent, Anthony Perkins acting was excellent. If you enjoy films with an existential bent, you'll appreciate this work from Orson Welles. I give it a 4 out of 5.

Summary: Josef K wakes up in the morning and finds the police in his room. They tell him that he is on trial but nobody tells him what he is accused of. In order to find out about the reason of this accusation and to protest his innocence, he tries to look behind the facade of the judicial system. But since this remains fruitless, there seems to be no chance for him to escape from this Kafkaesque nightmare.

Genre: Comedy

Year: 2010

Country: France

Rating:

Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Depardieu, Fabrice Luchini, Karin Viard, Judith Godreche, Jérémie Renier, Sergi López , Evelyne Dandry, Sinead Shannon Roche

Director: François Ozon

My Review: Directed by François Ozon, here's a French comedy. A social statement on the social clash produced by sexual equality in France. Starring Gérard Depardieu, Catherine Deneuve and Fabrice Luchini. Here's a slow paced story of the French Bourgeoisie. A French upper-class family is thrown into turmoil when Suzanne's role as homemaker is swapped for that of Factory manager when her husband suffers an anxiety attack. Set in the mid 70s; Women's lib and Worker's rights are changing French culture (The World's culture), and here is a light-weight movie about those movements. Excellent production and direction. The acting was a bit uneven, but the multiple layers of social conflict, personal ambition, class, culture and comedy make for a good movie. I give it a 3 out of 5.

Summary: When her husband is taken hostage by his striking employees, a trophy wife (Deneuve) takes the reins of the family business and proves to be a remarkably effective leader. Business and personal complications arrive in the form of her ex-lover (Depardieu), a former union leader.

Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Year: 2011

Country: UK | Germany | France | Canada | Japan | USA

Rating:

Starring: Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, Aidan Quinn, Bruno Ganz, Frank Langella, Sebastian Koch, Olivier Schneider, Stipe Erceg

Director: Jaume Collet-Serra

My Review: Liam Neeson and January Jones (eye candy) star in this action packed thriller featuring amnesia, terrorists and a secretive group of assassins. Liam Neeson plays Dr. Martin Harris - an esteemed biochemist visiting Berlin to lecture at a big agribusiness conference. When he misplaces his briefcase, things start to unravel. A short cab trip produces tragedy. Instead of retrieving his briefcase, he ends up with a rather strange case of amnesia - He knows exactly who he is, but no one else can remember him, including his wife and closest friends. The writing is quite tight, but there's too many cliched plot points and similarities with other movies to make it remarkable. If the writers had focused on the 'corporate espionage' angle, the movie would have been much better. Instead the movie quickly devolves in to a frenetically paced terrorist driven action plot. Liam Neeson performs adequately, and January Jones is smoking hot if not a bit unbelievable in her role. The characters are colorful but lacking in depth. An entertaining summer movie which would have done better if they'd left out the explosions and terrorist angles. 3 out of 5.

Summary: A biochemist and his dishy wife arrive in Berlin for a conference at which a scientist and his controversial Arab funder will announce breakthrough research. While his wife checks into the hotel, he grabs a cab to return to the airport for his briefcase, left at the curb. En route, an auto accident puts him in a coma, from which he awakes four days later without identification and with gaps in his memory. He goes to the hotel: his wife refuses to recognize him and another man has claimed his identity. With help from a nurse, the cab driver, a retired Stasi agent, and an academic friend, he tries to unravel what's going on. Is the answer in the briefcase?

Genre: Drama, War

Year: 1960

Country: Italy | USA

Rating:

Starring: Van Heflin, Charles Laughton, Mylène Demongeot, John Ericson, Cecil Parker, Folco Lulli, Alex Nicol, Liam Redmond

Director: Duilio Coletti

My Review: A World War II drama produced (By Dino de Laurentiis) in 1960. Based on True events, this story tells the tale of the German Cruiser Atlantis. One of the most successful merchant raiders of WWII (2nd to the Pinguin in tonnage destroyed). This converted auxiliary cruiser sank or captured 22 ships between November of 1939 and November of 1941. Led by Capt. Bernhard Rogge (played by Van Heflin), the Atlantis hid from allied warships as it raided merchant vessels all across the Atlantic. Disguised as a merchant vessel, the Capt. and crew used decoys, costumes and merchant practices to deceive their opponents in a successful strategy designed to starve the allies of the supplies they needed to maintain a war effort. Charles Laughton stars as British Adm. Russell; charged with tracking down and destroying the Atlantis. The movie featured some splendid performances and great direction. Unfortunately, the sound production was poorly handled. A compelling true story, packed with historically accurate details and thrilling drama which avoids the character stereo-types of most American movies about WWII. I give this one a 4 out of 5.

Summary: Spain released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), Spanish ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), SPECIAL FEATURES: Filmographies, Interactive Menu, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: Under Ten Flags is a fact-based British maritime epic set during World War II. Allied ships are being victimized by a German surface raider, which sails under friendly flags until moving in for the kill. Since so many nationalities were involved in making this film (both before and behind the cameras), it is difficult at times to determine whose side one is supposed to be on. On screen, the Germans seem the cleverest and most resourceful of all the combatants; at times, one hopes that they'll get away with their high-seas perfidy--especially since the captain is played by charismatic American actor Van Heflin. Under Ten Flags has a minimum of war action, but this didn't prevent an enterprising home-movie firm from excerpting nine minutes' worth of highlights for an 8-millimeter version--which did better business than the original 92 minute feature! SCREENED/AWARDED AT: Berlin International Film Festival,

Genre: Crime, Drama

Year: 2009

Country: Romania

Rating:

Starring: Dragos Bucur, Vlad Ivanov, Irina Saulescu, Ion Stoica, Marian Ghenea

Director: Corneliu Porumboiu

My Review: Directed by Corneliu Porumboiu, this Romanian film is a very slow, droll, and understated. It tells the story of Cristi, a young police officer. New the force, he's charged with tailing a teenager suspected of distributing pot. It doesn't take too long to figure out that the kid is only sharing with his friends. His superiors are impatient and inflexible. They demand results and refuse to consider the possibility that this kid isn't hurting anyone. The name of the movie is derived from some rather odd grammar oriented dialog featured in the movie. Most of the films nuance is lost on this english speaking critic, but I have to admit that the writing, direction, acting and production were all superb. Unfortunately, the movie was just as boring as it was technically perfect. I liked it for the technical and directorial excellence, but most viewers may find this form of realism less than satisfactory. 3 of 5.

Summary: In grim, dull Vaslui, Cristi is a young police officer, conscientious, laconic, recently married to Anca, a teacher. He's tailing a kid who smokes pot and may be supplying his friends. Cristi dislikes the assignment: the kid's clearly not a dealer, an arrest would ruin his life, and, Cristi assumes that Romania will soon tolerate marijuana. His superior tells him flatly that the law is the law and to finish the case with a quick arrest. Cristi wants to follow the informant, a youth whose father is a builder. Cristi watches, he smokes, he writes reports, he wants to meet with the prosecutor. Can a cop have a conscience? Is the noun being modified "procedural" or "state"?

Genre: Horror, Adventure, Mystery

Year: 1970

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Edward Connell, Barbara Hewitt, Frank Bonner, Robin Christopher, Jack Woods

Director: Jack Woods

My Review: An amazing low budget, b-grade, sci-fi masterpiece. Created as a student project with a $6,500.00 price tag, this film manages to incorporate all the classic earmarks of low budget cult movies. A small amateur cast, an isolated setting, ambitious special effects, and a lot of imagination. The story begins in narrative by a lone survivor, but it quickly enters the realm of first person as we're captivated by this fantastic sci-fi, horror plot involving an amazing set of characters, stop motion animation, excellent (if low budge) special effects and a crazy story. A group of California teenagers stumble upon a mystical book, a hidden castle, and a demonic plot. The characters are outstanding, the special effects cheesy but awesome and the plot as crazy as the mad hatter. The pacing was perfect, the tension high, and I was glued to the screen as this magnificent amateur production paraded across my 52" flat panel. I love b-horror/sci-fi and this movie fits perfectly into the pantheon of classics such as 'Evil Dead', 'The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra' and 'Incubus' (with William Shatner). I loved it. 5 out of 5.

Summary: Four friends are attacked by a demon while on a picnic, due to possession of a tome of mystic information. Told in flashbacks by the sole survivor.

Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Year: 2010

Country: UK

Rating:

Starring: Whitney Able, Scoot McNairy

Director: Gareth Edwards

My Review: Another low-budget (appx $800,000) sci-fi movie with some excellent production. Set in a not too distant future, this movie is basically an escape thriller with some romantic undertones. The setting is a contaminated zone along the U.S. Mexico border. In addition to the typical dangers (drug runners, kidnappings and rampant crime), the zone also contains alien life forms that increase the tension of a border crossing. The characters are a freelance reporter/photographer and the spoiled hot daughter of the reporters boss. Together they travel through the zone in a desperate attempt to reach safety in the U.S. Some plot elements are lax, and the acting is amateurish, but the digital effects are quite good. The movie was told in a something of a documentary or travelogue style. The quiet still moments were the best parts of the movie, and the digital effects were quite good. Despite the limited plot and lax character development, the locations, cinematography and digital effects carried this film. 3 out of 5.

Summary: Six years ago NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system. A probe was launched to collect samples, but crashed upon re-entry over Central America. Soon after, new life form began to appear and half of Mexico was quarantined as an INFECTED ZONE. Today, the American and Mexican military still struggle to contain "the creatures"...... Our story begins when a US journalist agrees to escort a shaken tourist through the infected zone in Mexico to the safety of the US border.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Year: 2011

Country: USA, Germany

Rating:

Starring: Topher Grace, Anna Faris, Dan Fogler, Teresa Palmer, Chris Pratt

Director: Michael Dowse

My Review: Set in the late 80s, here's a tribute to 'American Graffiti'. A night of revelry, romance, action, crazy characters and the consequences of life in transition. Topher Grace (Eric Foreman of that 70s show) plays Matt Franklin, the underemployed college grad who hasn't figured out what he's going to do with his life. Matt experiences life's lessons up close and personal during one night of debauchery at a Labor Day party. It's a party movie, a coming of age movie, a little bit of romance and some raucous party scenarios. The writing was weak, the sound track pleasant but typical, the acting mediocre. The funniest/best acting came from Dan Fogler as Barry Natan, Matt's sidekick. Unfortunately, Dan Fogler's comedy and half hearted 80s references can't help this instantly forgettable date movie. 2 of 5.

Summary: It's the late 1980s, when Wall Street is riding high, and it seems as if the entire country is cashing in on the bumper profits. Disgusted with the materialism that surrounds him, Matt Franklin, a brilliant young MIT graduate, has walked out on his well-paid position at a local lab and taken a low-level job as a video clerk, much to his father Bill's consternation. And the crises keep piling up in Matt's life. His best buddy Barry has just gotten fired from his job, his brainy sister Wendy is getting hitched to her vapid boyfriend Kyle, and the gorgeous Tori Frederking, long-time object of Matt's unattainable adoration, is suddenly back in the picture. Now, on one wild, woolly and irresponsible evening, everything is coming to a head, with explosive results.