Action

Dragged Across Concrete

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

Director: S. Craig Zahler
Writer: S. Craig Zahler

This is what I like to call a film of convergence. We’re introduced to two separate storylines, with the knowledge that at some point, those lines are going to meet, and—in this case—bad things are going to happen. The first storyline has to do with two cops, Ridgeman (Mel Gibson) and Lurasetti (Vince Vaughn) who get caught on camera roughing up a drug dealer and get suspended without pay. They both need money, so they decide to rob another drug dealer, an “out-of-towner.” Needless to say, in this genre of film, things don’t always go as planned. The second storyline introduces us to Henry Johns (Tory Kittles), a smart, small-time crook who just got out of prison to find his mom working as a prostitute to support herself and his wheelchair-bound little brother, Ethan. Also needing money, he lets an old neighborhood friend, Biscuit (Michael Jai White) talk him into signing on with a gang of psychotics looking to steal a bunch of gold.

Continue reading →

Man of Steel (2013)

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

mv5bmtk5odk1ndkxmf5bml5banbnxkftztcwnta5oty0oq-_v1_sy1000_cr006761000_al_

(Originally from August 9, 2013)

My worst fears for Man of Steel have been confirmed. As soon as I found out Zack Snyder was helming, I worried that it would end up like his other films–visually stylistic, but without much else to back it up. I think this latest Superman film has suffered the same fate. I can’t remember being as bored as I was while so much was happening on the screen. Entire skyscrapers were razed, super-powered punches launched characters through…pretty much everything. Continue reading →

After Earth (2013)

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

mv5bmty3mzqymjkwml5bml5banbnxkftztcwmdk2ote0oq-_v1_sy1000_cr006741000_al_

(Originally from Facebook – August 13, 2013)

Poor M. Night Shyamalan. He gets so much hate. But what do you do when you’re a director who peaked with his first two films?** I guess you get relegated to doing vanity projects for wealthy movie stars. I defend Shyamalan a lot, too, primarily because those first two movies are two of my favorites. I would go so far as to say that The Sixth Sense has one of the most nearly perfect narrative structures in the last 30 years of film. But also…The Happening happened. So what’s an M. Night fan to do? I just can’t defend him on this one. (Well, I will say that rumor has it that Smith stepped in to do a good portion of the direction, so I will defend him that much.) Continue reading →

The World’s End (2013)

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

mv5bnza1mtk1mzy0ov5bml5banbnxkftztgwnjkzntuwmde-_v1_sy1000_cr006741000_al_

(Originally from Facebook – December 25, 2013)

Great movie, and the third of the trilogy, after Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. (I’m not counting that weird ET one.) It’s too bad I can’t tell you much about it. Believe me, you don’t want me to. Don’t even read the description below!* Just watch it. I will say that it stands a very good chance of cracking my top 10 of 2013. (running time 1:49)

* This was originally posted on Facebook, and the movie blurb was below the post. But don’t go read it!

Red 2 (2013)

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

mv5bmji2odq4ody3nl5bml5banbnxkftztcwntc2nze1oq-_v1_sy1000_cr006391000_al_

(Originally from Facebook – August 2, 2013)

Going to keep this one short. You know what you’re getting into with this one, especially if you’ve seen the first one. It’s not highbrow cinema, by any means. It’s frenetic, and often times unbelievable, but it’s also a lot of fun. I thought Parker and Malkovich were quite funny, and I have a bit of a man-crush on Willis, so any movie that he’s in, I’m going to watch. IMDB gives it a 7.2, which seems very high, especially when taking into account some of the critical reviews out there. I really enjoyed it, and I think if you liked the first one, you’ll like this one, too. I’m giving it a 6, or 6.5 if you’re a fan of any of the players. (running time 1:56)

Parker (2013)

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

mv5bmtk4mzm2ntq1nl5bml5banbnxkftztcwodiyody1oa-_v1_sy1000_sx675_al_

(Originally from Facebook – July 26, 2013)

Tonight’s fare: Yet another incarnation of Donald E. Westlake’s Parker character. Although this one is based on a different novel than Point Break and Payback, there isn’t much noticeable difference here. A standard revenge film. Parker gets screwed over and left for dead, but he doesn’t stay that way long. Continue reading →

Oblivion (2013)

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

mv5bmtqwmdy0mta4mf5bml5banbnxkftztcwnzi3mdgxoq-_v1_sy1000_cr006311000_al_

(Originally from Facebook – July 31, 2013

I’m going to end this trifecta on a good note. The #3 entry is the post-apocalyptic sci-fi film, Oblivion. Let me tell you, the Church of Scientology should just replace whatever holy document they have with a picture of Tom Cruise. Then, whenever someone makes fun of it, or wants to know why they should join, they could just hold up that picture. The guy is constantly impressing me, not only with his performances, but also with things such as his stunt work. Did you SEE him running around outside that building in MI: Ghost Protocol?? It’s got to be difficult to do that because of the great heights involved, and also because it’s got to be hard to move so fluidly with the giant set of balls he must have to do it in the first place. Add to that the fact that he seems to actually be aging in reverse, and it’s hard not to be impressed. But I digress…

Continue reading →

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

mv5bmja4mdqwodg2nv5bml5banbnxkftztcwntc5odc2oa-_v1_sy1000_sx638_al_

(originally from Facebook – July 27, 2013)

Two films tonight, and both of them were scored nearly the same by IMDB, but I’m scoring them quite differently. The first one was another mindless action film. It had potential, but there just wasn’t much beyond the action itself. I expected a little better from Renner and Arterton, but I realized at the end of the film that these parts could have been played by just about anyone, and very little would have changed, so maybe it isn’t their faults, but the writing. I think viewers with shorter attention spans might like this, but even with my own short attention span, I can only muster a 4.5. IMDB fans gave it a 6.1. (running time 1:28)

Dunkirk (2017)

/ Shawn / Leave a comment

mv5bn2yyzjq0ntetnzu5ms00ngzkltg0mtetyzjmmwy3mwrhzjm2xkeyxkfqcgdeqxvymda4nzmyoa-_v1_sy1000_cr006741000_al_

Michael Bay makes a film that places action over character, shoehorns in too much story for the running time, and fills it with moments clearly designed to tug our heartstrings, complete with a tear-jerker of a score, and the critics make him their whipping boy. Chris Nolan does the same thing, and it’s a masterpiece. Maybe I’m exaggerating, but there were moments in Nolan’s latest film, Dunkirk, that seemed to me just as carefully constructed to elicit the same kind of “guy cry” moments as ones in The Rock or Armageddon (and yeah, I cry when Bruce Willis blows himself up. What’s it to you?) That’s not to say I didn’t like the film, or those moments. They work as they’re supposed to. But in the end, much like the story of Dunkirk itself, the film seems like a failure dressed up to look like a success. Continue reading →