Redemption (Hummingbird)

31st of 365.

Jason Statham ACTS! He didn't put in a performance that will make you rethink his entire career but it is a very solid performance. Statham plays a disgraced British war veteran who is homeless with possibly the worst hair that has ever been on the big screen.

Local thugs come around and start messing with the homeless populated alley. Statham's boxmate lady friend gets threatened with some level of sexual assault and STATHAM KICKS INTO GEAR. Well, not really he is a drunk so he does just enough for his cardboard companion to run away.  

An injured Statham goes on the run away from the thugs and sneaks his way into an apartment. The empty London flat become the refuge for Crazy Joe and a place where he can remake his life. He has from June to October to remake his life and set everything straight. 

Judgement: Send Away for it

Monsters University

30th of 365.

Monsters University is not as good as Monsters, Inc. That is unfortunate because the Monsters University is still a fun family movie. There is enough for a parent to be entertained, but still perfect for younger audiences.

Mike and Sully return and as expected they don't get along. I think this is where the movie didn't really work for me. I understand that you don't want them to be best friends right away. However, the big enemies turning into great friends is a little too Disney and not enough Pixar.

Judgement: Watch on Instant. 

The Kings of Summer

29th of 365.

This is a coming of age tale about a stuck up kid, who has a struggling single parent trying his best. However, he is too angry about his position in life to be a good father figure to his son. 

The strategy? Build a house in a clearing in the forest. This is in order to "become" men.  

The best character in the movie was Biaggio. The actor does a fabulous job playing the "weird" kid and he is easily the funniest thing in the movie.  

If you want a coming of age tale see mud. 

Judgement: Send Away for it.

The Bling Ring

28th of 365.

What do you get when terrible people do terrible things to other terrible people. A movie that isn't very interesting.

There are a few high schoolers that go to the reject school after being expelled from a regular high school. The obsession with pseudo-celebs like Paris Hilton, Audrina Patridge, and the cast of the Hills cause them to rob these people blind because they don't understand how to lock their doors and windows or set an alarm. Even if they didn't do those things, maybe just get a house sitter.  

I never got the fame thing for fame's sake. They also looked up to these people because of fashion, I don't get that either. 

Judgement: Watch it on HBO, but should expect more from Sophia Coppola.

The East

27th out of 365.

There was an academy award nominated movie called "If a Tree Falls: The Story of the Earth Liberation Front", that didn't really cause me to empathize with the eco-terrorism. However, the fictional story of the The East did give some angles that made me think harder about the acts of eco-terrorism.

An ex-FBI Christian agent joins a private investigative firm that wants to infiltrate The East terrorist group to attain contracts for the world's largest corporations. She has a boyfriend who is a bit of a dingus, he remains a dingus the entire movie, that believes she is going to Dubai, when really she travels about 2 hours to a house in a forest. 

Ellen Page and Alexander Skarsgaard lead this team of hippies and perform "jams". These jams all have a personal connections to the members of The East. The personal vendettas make it difficult to know if they have the purest intentions behind their acts, in the end that doesn't matter. The hippies get hippier and do some crazy things and then everything is gray.

Judgement: Send Away for It. 

World War Z

26th of 365.

This movie doesn't live up to the book. It isn't the book. There are a few similarities, but not very many. This partial story is rumored to be the first of a trilogy and that's about how much information ​you are given in this story.

​

Don't get me wrong, it is still an enjoyable movie, it has a beginning, middle, and end. However, the end is the beginning is the end.¹ The best part about this movie is that Brad Pitt is always one step ahead. He makes the smartest decision at every turn and you are always surprised at what decisions he makes.

The conceit of the movie, besides that there is a disease that creates Zombies, is that Brad Pitt is the guy that needs to go investigate the origin of the virus because a single UN guy believes in his investigative skills. The US means that Brad Pitt and his family are important enough to be saved with a helicopter, then sent with an elite team to the most dangerous parts of the Earth.

Judgement: Send Away for It.​

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​ ^{1. Thanks Billy Corgan!↩}

Much Ado About Nothing

25th of 365.

The Joss Whedon adaptation of this Shakespeare comedy takes the words of the bard and places them in the regulars of Whedon. The movie is in black and white, the words are in the olde english tongue, but the setting is a villa somewhere in California.

The modern adaptation manages to be very funny because of the great acting and blocking set up by the director. Nathan Fillion steals the show even though he only has about 10 minutes of screen time. 

Judgement: Watch on Instant. 

Before Midnight

24th of 365.

This is the first movie I have seen in this trilogy. It was really, really gutsy film making. It was amazing how long the takes were in this movie. There was literally 4 or 5 scenes that went 10+ minutes without a single cut. It was absolutely stunning. The scene kind of just settles in and you realize after 10 minutes that the camera has not left the actors. You are seeing two actors put on a clinic.

Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy were utterly fantastic.  The discussions range from existential questions of love to the ability to be a good father from across the ocean. I sided with Ethan Hawke in almost every argument, but it's probably because I'm a guy.

Judgement: See it in the theater. It's movie that could use the money.

This is the End

23rd of 365.

This is the second of three rapture movies I have seen. This one is the better of the two I have seen so far. They both contained Craig Robinson, so that is neat.

It is a very funny movie. There are many jokes that miss, but because the movie is so packed full of jokes they are easily forgotten. I have tried for a long time to not read any reviews or know too much about any movie before entering the theater, but this movie provided too much hype to be ignored. Unfortunately, it didn't quite live up to the hype that others had placed on it.

The action scenes were well done, but a touch out of place in tone.

Judgement: Send away for it.

Man of Steel

22nd of 365.

Another origin story of a superhero. I love Origin stories. They are great, they really are. I loved Casino Royale because of the origin story, Batman Begins is fantastic because we see what changed Bruce Wayne, but I may have had enough.

It may be the simple fact that not all origin stories are created equal. Superman is an alien that gets sent in a rocket ship to Kansas. He is raised by good old fashioned farmers as he tries to deal with his super powers.

The first 20 or so minutes take place on Krypton. His scientist father warns of the planets instability to a council, then a military leader decides to take Krypton himself. Zod, played by Michael Shannon, gets sent away in phallic shaped escape pods off of the planet. When the planet explodes he gets released out of his prison with his co-conspirators. 

The movie is too long. It could have been 90 minutes, there wasn't enough story to necessitate almost and 2 and a half hours. The action scenes were well done, if not overblown. The death count probably reaches 7 figures, but it's okay because Superman.

Judgement: Watch on Cable

Assaulted: Civil Rights Under Fire

21st of 365. 

This wasn't a great documentary. It doesn't make any of the arguments for the 2nd Amendment invalid, it just wasn't well made. The documentary wasn't consistently interesting and tried to sway you in a Michael Moore like fashion.

This movie will be unlikely to sway you from one side to other. Movies like this seem to be a fruitless endeavor. Those who are against the second amendment will probably not see it. It is preaching to the choir, who paid to get in. 

Learning about the "Battle of Athens" was a nice story. Although, I wish they included more of the first hand knowledge of the man who took part. The movie felt more like a history channel special, a lot of head-on interview shots , and it didn't really try to get the viewer invested more than "your rights are being infringed". That will work for gun owners, however, it won't really move the needle for myself.

Judgement: Skip, it won't change your mind and it is one-sided. Documentaries are best when they start with a question, not start with the answer. 

Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani

20th of 365. 

Well that was refreshing.

This enjoyable romantic comedy had everything you would expect from Bollywood. Hiking, drinking, weddings, 8 year flashbacks, and San Francisco. 

These were easily two movies. One was about 3 friends and a shy former classmate in a camping trip. They all grow a little and realize what they have to do with their life. The next movie is the sequel where they get back together when one is getting married.  

Luckily there were subtitles so I could follow along with the movie, until songs. For some reason songs don't get subtitles. Once anyone starts singing I get lost. It seems there were several times where the song and dance numbers represented several hours or even days. It would have been nice to know how it was moving the plot along, but I basically just guessed based on the dance moves. The dance moves were captivating.

Judgement: Send away for it. It'd be a fun date movie. 

The Internship

19th of 365.

The Internship is comedy aimed at a slightly older crowd then myself. It is about a generation that has trouble adjusting to the new technology driven world.  

The biggest issue I had with the movie is how they displayed the workplace. They talk about how it's the best place to work in the United States, then they start there and seems like an incredibly terrible place to work. Sure there are plenty of fun things all over the walls, but apparently you are not supposed to have fun.

Judgement: Skip.

PS: It seems to insult people of my age like we don't know how to have fun. It was a touch condescending. 

Fast and Furious 6

18th of 365.

What is there to be said that hasn't been said? This is the greatest street racing franchise that has ever existed. It is so good, that there is nothing to do with street racing in the past 3 movies! 

This generations greatest over the top action franchise, Fast and Furious delivers over the top action like no other movie can. Dom Toretto believes in family first, living life a quarter-mile at a time, and diving headbutts.   Paul Walker is out of the game, he has a wife and child at home, oh wait Dom's dead wife from 3 movies ago which I sent to undercover work is alive. Well I'm back in, you know Family.

The best portion of the movie is that Paul Walker, while wanted in the US for several crimes, sneaks into a prison to talk to the mob boss he puts away. After he returns with information to London where the rest of crew are, Dom let's him know that the information was just for him. He just broke several international laws just cause, Vin?

Look, this movie is not going to change your mindset on anything from this series. These guys were drivers in the first movies. Now, they are Avengers. They are expect shooters, fighters, and tech support. They have connections everywhere to get anything done and know everyone who needs to be known. They have really evolved, I'm happy for them. 

Judgement: Go to the Theatre with friends enjoy the spectacle! 

Now You See Me

17th of 365.

The Prestige meets Catch Me If You Can, complete with Michael Caine. ​ In my review of Oblivion I talked about the power of a trailer to totally give away the plot devices a movie has in store. Now You See Me has a trailer that entices with a story that doesn't give everything away. ​ ​The magic done by The Four Horseman¹ in the movie is mostly practical, but they do not go out of their way in order to explain how each trick is done. Woody Harrelson's character requires a leap of faith in his ability to hypnotize people quickly and easily. The rest of the characters are just good at their trade and we simply do not see their secrets. Morgan Freeman is there to expose how the main characters are pulling off each of their tricks. The character has made a living on divulging how magicians do each illusion.​ He becomes a pseudo nemesis, but does not help the feds led by Mark Ruffalo. Ruffalo only believes in logical explanation and is balanced out by Interpol's Melanie Laurent's² faith and belief in more than the cold hard facts. She is not a damsel in distress rather someone who relies on history and research over crime scene investigation and suspect interrogation. The movie was entertaining all the way through and kept you guessing. It may have had one two many twists in the end, but the ending was satisfactory. ​

Judgement: Send away for it

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^{1. The group consists of Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Woody Harrelson, and Little Franco.↩} ​ ^{2. She was the female theater owner in Tarantino's Inglorious Basterds.↩} ​

The Purge

16th of 365.

You ever wonder what would happen if there was one day a year where you could commit any crime you would like?

Apparently the cast of School Ties will become psychopaths and want to murder you because you housed an injured person. While Ethan Hawke's character sells security systems to keep your house safe he does not sell Panic Room's. He sells cameras and metal shutters. Not exactly a fortress.

The movie has interesting points throughout, but no empathetic decisions or characters. You have interesting characters who are insane, an interesting homeless injured veteran, and an uninteresting family. We follow the family. 

Judgement: Skip, possible watch for DVD on TV. 

Vehicle 19

15th of 365. 

PAUL WALKER in driving a car, BUT NOT FAST AND THE FURIOUS. 

A man on parole tries to visit his ex-wife in SOUTH AFRICA! They drive on the wrong side of the road like kooks!  He receives the wrong car from the rental agency and ends up being chased based on a crooked cop scheme.

Paul Walker narrates us through every action in the movie and sometimes after some one else has explained the plot, just in case we could not hear through the non-existent South African accents. It's a bad action movie, that surprisingly has a moral core that really doesn't get explored. 

Judgement: Wait til it's on DVD on Movies, but only if there are no sports or other movies on. Or if there is a re-run of Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives or South Park. Or Seinfeld. Or really anything you have seen before.

The Hangover : Part III

14th of 365. 

Do not see this movie. 

There are no laughs. 

There is nothing to be redeemed.  

Please, save yourself. DO NOT SEE THIS MOVIE. 

Judgement: Burn in a Fire. 

PS: It is very difficult to make movies. It is near impossible to make one almost universally loved as the first Hangover. When not everyone wants to buy in to make a movie centered around the 10th largest character in the first one, maybe you shouldn't try to cash the checks. 

Rapture-Palooza

13th of 365.

This is the first of ​three apocalypse comedies coming out in the summer/fall. This one is probably the lowest budget of the trilogy of apoclolypses. There are two that feature Craig Robinson¹ and in this picture he is the anti-christ.

This a spoof of the Book of Revelations. There is blood raining down, Crows calling out insults, screaming locusts, and people being brought up to heaven. Of course, some one got sent back down after complaining about line butters². It is a story of how people who are not especially religious try to continue living life during the Anti-Christ's reign. They try to create their own business, but the meteors that fall to earth crush the beginnings of their sandwich carts.

The movie plays out like a well done sketch show and contains plenty of laughs. Unfortunately, it is not a continuous stream of laughter but it hits enough to keep you entertained.

​ Judgement: Watch on Cable.​

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^{1. ILLINOIS STATE!↩ 2. I say line cutters, but I am just following the movies, nomenclature.↩}

After Earth

12th of 365

Now this is the story all about how 
My plane got flipped, turned upside down 
And I'd like to take a minute just sit right there 
I'll tell you how I became the general from planet Nova Prime air.

This is not a good movie. It takes away all the charisma from Will Smith and decides to make him as emotionless as possible. Jaden is allowed to act with green screen animals or nothing at all. It was not a recipe for success.

I wouldn't lay the full problem of the movie at director M. Night Shamamalalmalann, TWIST,  but he didn't help.  He probably gets hit harder based on the fact he has failed so much in the past. It was a well made movie, but there is no emotional tie to anything in the movie.

Although, it is not nearly as bad as it's Rotten Tomatoes score. It really is a bad movie. Go ahead and listen to How Did This Get Made? featuring Paul Scheer (The League), June Diane Raphael (Burning Love), Jason Manzoukas (The League), and Paul F. Tompkins (Comedian, Dapper Dresser). It is far more entertaining than the movie itself.