Genre: Drama

Year: 2012

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Tye Sheridan, Jacob Lofland, Sam Shepard

Director: Jeff Nichols

My Review: Mud - 2012 (drama) Starring Matthew McConaughey, Sam Sheppard, Reese Witherspoon, Tye Sheridan, Jacob Lofland and others. The movie is written and directed by relative unknown Jeff Nichols (only four feature length films credited as writer and director). This is an excellent drama starring a veteran actor and two young actors. The writing and direction are extremely well done. It’s a movie that doesn’t focus on explosions, special effects and scare-tactics. It’s a movie about human relationships, truth, lies, love, deception and revelation. When teenagers Ellis and Neckbone discover a ‘castaway’ on their private island, they enter a personal pact with a man of questionable moral fiber. They make an adult decision without realizing what they’re doing. If the movie doesn’t remind you of Huckleberry Finn then you don’t know what Huckleberry Finn was all about. The locations the river and the outdoor scenery set a perfect mood and stage for drama to unfold. The slow burn of the drama and muggy fog of raw emotions complement a film that’s rich in character and dialog. The performances and direction make for a humanistic and natural story that feels so real that I was immediately swept up in the drama of Mud and his sad story.

Summary: 14 year-old Ellis (Tye Sheridan) lives on a makeshift houseboat on the banks of a river in Arkansas with his parents, Mary Lee (Sarah Paulson) and Senior (Ray McKinnon). He sneaks out early one morning to meet his best friend, Neckbone (Jacob Lofland). Neckbone, also 14, lives with his uncle, Galen (Michael Shannon), who makes a hardscrabble living diving for oysters. The two boys set out to an island on the Mississippi River, where Neckbone has discovered an unusual sight-a boat, suspended high in the trees, a remnant of an extreme flood some time in the past. They climb the tree and into the boat only to find fresh bread and fresh footprints. Realizing that they are not the only ones who have discovered the treehouse boat, they decide to leave. When they reach the shore, they find the same footprint in their boat. And that's when they meet Mud (Matthew McConaughey). Mud is a gritty, superstitious character; his clothes are dirty, his tooth is cracked, and he needs help. He tells the...

Genre: Sci-Fi, Thriller, TV Movie

Year: 2001

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: David Keith, Stephanie Niznik, Ryan O'Neal, Brian Thompson, Steve Bond

Director: Matt Codd

My Review: Epoch - 2001 (sci-fi, thriller) Starring a bunch of unknowns (to me), this movie was written by two people, and directed by a third (Matt Codd) known more for his artwork (on numerous movies) than his direction. The movie is stylish, and despite the limited budget, the look was well executed. Drawing on a ‘2001’ theme, the movie begins with a distress signal sent out by a strange monolith. As disasters pummel the earth a team of specialists is dispatched to investigate the mysterious object at the top of the world. Poor special and visual effects do more damage than the marginal acting. The movie contains religious overtones as it highlights dichotomy between science and religion. Evoking evolution and an extraterestrial ‘god-like’ power (aka Intelligent Design), the movie plays upon themes designed to provoke an emotional response and a theological question. The military is painted as a universal evil and dominating force, subverting science and religion while it serves the politics of man. The pacing is designed to provide tension and a sense of an approaching climax, but the music and editing detracted from the intent of the pacing. I didn’t really like the movie, but it wasn’t the worst thing I’ve seen. I certainly wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. I give it a 2 out of 5.

Summary: Disaster strikes as a specialised team of investigators struggle to find out the truth about a strange monolith which sends out an intercontinental signal.

Genre: Horror, Thriller

Year: 2013

Country: USA, France

Rating:

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey, Max Burkholder, Adelaide Kane, Edwin Hodge

Director: James DeMonaco

My Review: The Purge - 2013 (Horror, thriller, drama) A dystopian America has become overburdened by crime and legislates an annual ‘Purge’. Once a year, citizens are allowed to indulge in any and all illegal behaviors during a 12 hour orgy of crime and decadence. All law enforcement and emergency services are suspended. Amnesty is granted for any crime committed during this 12 hour orgy of criminal activity. The cast is completely irrelevant once you unfurl a premise of unfettered violence. While the premise may seem appealing on paper, the execution didn’t satisfy. The film was well produced and adequately directed. The writing was lacking, the characters poorly developed. The whole movie falls apart if you spend a minute thinking about the premise. Given the backstory presented, I was entirely unwilling to suspend my disbelief for the duration of the film. The movie was filled with gratuitous violence, and that was it’s only redeeming feature - Since I don’t care for excessive and unnecessary violence, the film suffered on my ratings scale. I was hoping for more suspense, tension, dystopian logic and a struggle to overcome the violence inherent in this type of society. This movie delivered very little in those categories - Too predictable. Given the premise of this movie, there’s one logical conclusion. If someone comes knocking, don’t let them in. If someone gets in ‘Shoot Them!’ This movie deviated from its own premise by asking us to believe that anyone (under the conditions posited by the backstory) would do anything contrary. I give this movie a 1 out of 5. Thankfully I’ll completely forget about it after writing this review.

Summary: In an America wracked by crime and overcrowded prisons, the government has sanctioned an annual 12-hour period in which any and all criminal activity-including murder-becomes legal. The police can't be called. Hospitals suspend help. It's one night when the citizenry regulates itself without thought of punishment. On this night plagued by violence and an epidemic of crime, one family wrestles with the decision of who they will become when a stranger comes knocking. When an intruder breaks into James Sandin's (Ethan Hawke) gated community during the yearly lockdown, he begins a sequence of events that threatens to tear a family apart. Now, it is up to James, his wife, Mary (Lena Headey), and their kids to make it through the night without turning into the monsters from whom they hide.

Genre: Action, Thriller

Year: 2013

Country: Canada

Rating:

Starring: Lloyd Adams, Alfredo Álvarez Calderón, Josh Bainbridge, Danielle Baker, Steven Bauer

Director: Damian Lee

My Review: A Dark Story - 2012 (Action, thriller) This movie is a fine action thriller with a conspiratorial premise. A large corporation is conspiring with the CIA to engage in and cover up a series of third world criminal activities. Who will uncover the truth? A talk-show whistleblower takes an assignment from the beautiful and wealthy president of a multinational corporation, to uncover the corruption and political malfeasance that all leads back to a massacre in a sleepy third world south american country. Its a statement on the morality of heavy handed corporate and political involvement outside our borders - Focussing on exploitation of indigenous people and natural resources. The film suffers from a low budget and a story that doesn’t dive deep enough. The cast makes the movie a bit more enjoyable. With Andy Garcia in the lead role, Forest Whitaker as the activist and Eva Longoria as his wife. The editing could have been better, but the action scenes were well done. I give it a 3 out of 5.

Summary: A former CIA operative turned political talk show host is hired by a corporate whistle blower to expose her company's cover-up of a massacre in a South American village.

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Year: 2011

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Richard Gere, Topher Grace, Martin Sheen, Tamer Hassan, Stephen Moyer

Director: Michael Brandt

My Review: The Double - 2011 (Action, Crime, Drama) Starring Richard Gere, Topher Grace, Martin Sheen, and others. Old guys with gray hair are hunting an old Soviet Era assassin who’s started killing again. Cassius is the code name of a Cold-War double agent. The twist in this movie was boring and predictable - Revealed very early in the film, the rest is an exercise in the obvious. While Richard Gere does a good job in his role, this action film lacks suspense and thrills. The pacing, editing and direction were well handled, but the story lacked compelling reasons for the character motivations and the lack of true Cold-War double-agent/double-cross drama left me wishing this movie had been made in the early 80s. I give this rather obvious spy drama a 3 out of 5.

Summary: Story kicks off with the mysterious murder of a senator bearing the marks of a Soviet assassin, who was long thought to be dead. To hunt down the killer, a retired CIA operative, who spent his career going toe-to-toe with his Soviet nemesis, is teamed with a young FBI agent.

Genre: Thriller

Year: 1999

Country: Germany

Rating:

Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Ashley Judd, Benjamin Weir, Jay Brazeau, Bruce Greenwood

Director: Bruce Beresford

My Review: Double Jeopardy - 1999 (Action, Crime, Thriller, Drama) Starring Ashley Judd (as Libby Parsons - the persecuted/wrongly accused wife of Nick Parsons), Tommy Lee Jones (as Travis Lehman - the parole officer/former law enforcement officer who pursues justice in this case of murder and deception), the remaining cast supports these two primary actors. The writing seemed rushed and very linear. The direction was similar. There was very little subtly or deception in this movie, despite its premise. Libby and Nick are enjoying an overnight outing on their boat. When Libby wakes up, she finds herself alone on the boat, amidst signs of a struggle and no Nick. The boat is soon boarded by the Coast Guard - The blood and circumstantial evidence convinces a court that Libby murdered her missing husband. She turns her son over to her best friend and heads off for prison. She soon loses contact with her son and her best friend. Pissed off at the system, her dead husband, and her sorry situation; she learns some hard lessons and gets some legal advice in prison. When she gets out of the big-house (6 years later), she goes searching for her son. She finds him, her ‘dead’ husband and her best friend all living together under new names. They set her up! Now she’s pissed off and out for revenge. Travis (Tommy Lee Jones) is her parole officer and he gets involved when she goes missing on his watch. Now he’s involved, trying to track her down and eventually he gets dragged into the deception as well. According to the law - Nick is already dead - She can’t be convicted a second time for the same crime. The Double Jeopardy theme works in her favor… Guess who eventually ends up dead during the final confrontation? The plot and writing are fair. Ashely Judd is good looking, and Tommy Lee Jones is a strong male lead, but the acting of these two just doesn’t convince me fully. Tommy Lee jones as a ‘Parole Officer’ just doesn’t work as well as his role as a Federal Marshall pursuing an escaped convict (The Fugitive w/Harrison Ford). The film is highly predictable, and that’s the part that defines its ultimate rating - 3 out of 5.

Summary: A woman framed for her husband's murder suspects he is still alive; as she has already been tried for the crime, she can't be re-prosecuted if she finds and kills him.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime, Mystery, Thriller

Year: 2009

Country: USA, Germany

Rating:

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong, Eddie Marsan

Director: Guy Ritchie

My Review: This movie was purchased at Kim's insistence. She loved it. It was on my list (to watch), but I wasn't quite as impressed (the first few times I watched it, but the movie got better each time I watch it). Here's a re-imagination of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's detective series by Guy Ritchie (director of Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch). Starring Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes and Jude Law as Dr. Watson. This movie seeks to remake the genre as an action flick. This remake/reimagining is based on a Comic book by producer Lionel Wigram. The Comic book influence makes for great storyboarding, translated into great camera work, but the story was a little watered down when compared to the narrative of the original genre. I enjoyed the revised Watson character, but the new Holmes as a disheveled, pugilist, savant didn't quite meet with my approval (the first few time I watched the movie). The pacing was quite brisk, and the HD (we bought the Blu-ray version) treatment was great. Unfortunately, the plot was a bit transparent. Mystical bad man threatens to overthrow the British government using black magic. Holmes and Watson team up to thwart his dastardly plans and expose him as the fraud that he is. The level of intricacy was focused on the background of the investigations instead of the primary plot as it unfolds. The settings, props, and digital locations were all highly detailed. I liked the movie, but didn't appreciate the rather linear and uninspired plot. The ending was a clear set-up for sequels or a series. 4 of 5.

Summary: After finally catching serial killer and occult "sorcerer" Lord Blackwood, legendary sleuth Sherlock Holmes and his assistant Dr. Watson can close yet another successful case. But when Blackwood mysteriously returns from the grave and resumes his killing spree, Holmes must take up the hunt once again. Contending with his partner's new fiancée and the dimwitted head of Scotland Yard, the dauntless detective must unravel the clues that will lead him into a twisted web of murder, deceit, and black magic - and the deadly embrace of temptress Irene Adler.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

Year: 2013

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

Director: Joseph Kosinski

My Review: Oblivion - 2013 (Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Mystery) A visually spectacular sci-fi thriller derivative of many other sci-fi movies (notably Moon). Directed by a new talent - Joseph Kosinski (Tron Legacy), starring some old talent - Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurylenko and others. The story is interesting if a bit derivative. In the year 2077, the Earth is a scarred husk barely surviving after a long running battle with off-world invaders. Earth's irradiated landscape is home to a caretaker force of technicians tasked with the tedious job of patrolling the remaining radiation free zones and maintaining the water conversion reactors. Jack Harper (played by Tom Cruise) is a maintenance tech left behind on the earth to care for water conversion reactors and the drones that do most of the ‘hands on work’. He lives in a secure facility high above the desolate landscape of a ruined earth. His live-in companion - Victoria, is a controller and he's the troubleshooter who goes out on runs to maintain the drones that service the reactors. He's occasionally called upon to deal with the irradiated scavs (scavengers), but the alien refuse is no match for his technological edge. Everything is going smoothly until a crippled starship crashes and the lone survivor emerges from the wreckage. The CGI, photography, locations, lighting, editing and visual effects are all outstanding. The soundtrack, pacing and production superb. The acting is good, and the direction excellent. The cast does a fine job of selling the story and the execution is superb. I didn't have any trouble following the plot as it contained numerous elements derived from previous sci-fi movies/themes. While the script is tight and well written it's a bit of a let down in the lack of originality. Thankfully all the other elements exceed my expectations. I give this movie a 5 out of 5. I bought and own a blu-ray copy because of the outstanding visuals and landscapes.

Summary: In 2077, the human Jack Harper works with his companion Victoria "Vic" on the surveillance station Tech 49. Jack repairs drones and his memory was erased as part of the security process to stay on Earth, and he knows that Earth is completely depleted after sixty years of war against the alien invaders Scavengers "Scavs". The aliens have destroyed the moon and were defeated by nuclear weapons and the earthlings have moved to Jupiter's moon Titan since the planet was completely destroyed. Now Jack has to protect the power stations that use the ocean to supply energy to Titan fixing the drones. He also has recollections of a mysterious woman at the Empire State Building when Earth was habitable. Jack and Vic receive instructions from Sally (Melissa Leo), who is located on the space station Tet, and Vic is anxious to leave Earth in two weeks to join the survivors on Titan. However, Jack has a cabin in a secret place where he likes to stay alone. When the spacecraft Odyssey crashes on Earth, Jack witnesses the drones killing the human crew but he rescues a woman, Julia, who is the woman of his recollections. Julia and Jack recover the flight recorder but they are captured by the Scavengers. Soon they learn that the Scavs are actually a group of humans, who tell Jack that the invasion was a lie. Jack does not believe them, and they release Julia and Jack into the radiation zone to find the truth.

Genre: Documentary, TV Movie

Year: 2012

Country: New Zealand, USA

Rating:

Starring: Michael Baden, Jason Baldwin, Holly Ballard, Jamie Clark Ballard, Jennifer Bearden

Director: Amy Berg

My Review: West of Memphis - 2012 (Documentary) A well produced documentary that examines the West Memphis Three case. The case involves the triple homicide of three eight year old boys, and the supposed mutilation of their bodies. The film focuses on recent attempts to re-examine the evidence and free the convicted teenagers (at the time of arrest) who served/were serving time for the murders. The state of Arkansas re-opened the case after it was convinced that a re-examination of the DNA evidence was warranted. This story seemed to be slanted as it didn’t re-examine all the evidence, only specific ‘questionable’ aspects of the case. The gruesome and graphic crime scene photos didn’t really add to the investigative aspects of the documentary, but they certainly made it more salacious. The film did a fair job of examining the failures of the Justice system in Arkansas, but it didn’t do a fair job of exonerating the accused. I give the film a 3 out of 5.

Summary: West of Memphis is an examination of a failure of justice in Arkansas. The documentary tells the hitherto unknown story behind an extraordinary and desperate fight to bring the truth to light. Told and made by those who lived it, the filmmakers' unprecedented access to the inner workings of the defense, allows the film to show the investigation, research and appeals process in a way that has never been seen before; revealing shocking and disturbing new information about a case that still haunts the American South.

Genre: Drama

Year: 1948

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire, John Garfield, Celeste Holm, Anne Revere

Director: Elia Kazan

My Review: Gentleman’s Agreement - 1947 (Drama) Directed by Elia Kazan (a favorite director - A Face in the Crowd, The Last Tycoon, On the Waterfront, A Streetcar named Desire). Starring Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire, John Garfield, Dean Stockwell, Celeste Holm, Sam Jaffe and others - Its a great cast. This particular film won three oscars. I enjoyed the movie/liked it, but it didn’t make me want to watch it again and again. Gregory Peck stars as ‘Philip Green’, a highly respected journalist and author. He’s recruited by a national magazine to write a series of articles on anti-semitism in America, but he’s not Jewish. He’s not to thrilled with the idea at first. He doesn’t necessarily agree that there’s much to the story and he doesn’t quite know how to approach the subject - besides, he’s not Jewish… He then decides to ‘come out’ as a Jew. He begins telling friends and acquaintances that he’s Jewish. It doesn’t take long before he starts to experience the bigotry that he initially dismissed as anecdotal. Peck usually does a great job as the righteous and forthright crusader. In this film he lacks the dedication and zeal he’s best known for. The film tends to be a bit heavy handed at times - It focuses more on bigotry as an affliction of the family than a problem within the American society. Peck’s role doesn’t push him as the moral spokesman where he excels, and in that casting choice the movie made its biggest blunder. Aside from this problem, the rest of the cast is quite good. The truthful focus on the minor and small injustices is more accurate than a portrayal of violent racism, but it makes for a less entertaining movie - lightening the movie with some humor might have made the movie more popular, but it wouldn’t have communicated the films themes more effectively. It’s hard to give this movie a rating higher than 3 out of 5. It’s not my fault that it didn’t do so well at being both - Entertaining and Socially Impactful. Does not rating this movie higher make me a bigot? I hope not, I hope it only marks me as an honest critic. The movie was too big to tell an honest story in this venue. A smaller cast and less hyped production would have reduced the ‘hollywood’ expectations and possibly allowed the writers and directors to convey their message more effectively.

Summary: Philip Green is a highly respected writer who is recruited by a national magazine to write a series of articles on anti-Semitism in America. He's not too keen on the series, mostly because he's not sure how to tackle the subject. Then it dawns on him: if he was to pretend to all and sundry that he was Jewish, he could then experience the degree of racism and prejudice that exists and write his story from that perspective. It takes little time for him to experience bigotry. His anger at the way he is treated also affects his relationship with Kathy Lacy, his publisher's niece and the person who suggested the series in the first place.