Review: Gravity

Director: Alfonso Cuaron

Written By: Alfonso Cuaron, Jonas Cuaron

Starring: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney

Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Rated: PG-13

Brief Overview: A first time space traveler and long-time astronaut have to fight for their lives after an explosion leaves them adrift in space.

Following is the trailer for Gravity.

I was sitting in the theatre as I waited for a movie that I can't remember when I first saw the preview for Gravity. I immediately turned to my friends like every other movie goer does after a good preview plays and whispered the classic line "yup I am seeing that."  I got even more excited to see it when I saw that Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 97%. I don't recall them ever giving a movie a rating that high so I had to go as soon as I could.

It is going to be hard to give a comprehensive review of this movie because it basically has no story line. What I wrote in the brief overview above really captures what the entire movie is about. Sandra Bullock and her partner George Clooney are in space where Bullock's character "Ryan Stone" is trying to insert a new hard drive system of some sorts into a satellite. During this mission they get hit with a massive meteor shower and their entire ship and equipment is destroyed. From that point on Ryan and her partner Matt work through various obstacles and hard ships to try and save their lives with the end goal to obviously reach Earth safely. Because of the fact there isn't any storyline to follow besides them trying to get back to Earth without dying it does get a little slow at some parts. I would have to disagree with Rotten Tomatoes and their 97% they gave Gravity. With that being said this movie was still very good and pretty entertaining.

As soon as the movie started I was immediately transported into space. It was as close to real as a movie could be and I really felt like I was floating around in space with the characters. This is where Gravity will win some awards. The cinematography and imagery was absolutely amazing. For the hour and a half that you are in the theatre you will be in awe of what you are seeing. The fantastic views you get really cover up the fact that it is very "Hollywood" when it comes to the acting. If Ryan was in trouble or floating away from a structure she would always catch herself at the very last moment. It was very predictable. You knew when you were supposed to be scared, happy, sad, etc. I know it sounds like I may be contradicting myself but it is hard to explain how good the cinematography and imagery really is. It really makes the movie and I think in the end that is what the director and creator were going for.

Following are a few images from the movie to give you an idea of what I am talking about...

These pictures don't really do it justice but it hopefully can give you an idea of how cool it was to be seeing images like this throughout the entire movie. All in all it was a very enjoyable movie and I would recommend it to everyone. I would call it a must see based on the movie going experience you receive from it.

One last thing... I saw it in 3D IMAX and I would say it is worth paying the extra money for it. The movie really is all about the experience of feeling like you are in space and I don't think you would get the same experience if you saw it on a normal screen.

Personal Ranking: 8.6/10

"Houston we have a problem..."

Quick Review: Top 100

I am back! I realize I have had a hiatus from my blog and I want to apologize for not putting out any awesome movie reviews over the last few months. Once the school year ended I went down to Texas for a summer internship. It was a ton of fun and I enjoyed the Dallas area a lot. I guess that the internship is my excuse for not posting anything since my last post Iron Man 3. However, I have seen a ton of movies since my last post. I had an idea to do a little "quick review" of all the movies I have seen that are in the top 100 of gross earnings for the last 365 days. Hopefully this list will give you a general idea of some movies that you might want to pick up at Red Box or possibly see in the theatre if they are still out! These wont be long reviews like my previous posts but quick thoughts/rankings. Hope you enjoy!

*The list goes from movies with the highest to lowest gross made in theaters.

Despicable Me 2 - Everyone I knew who saw it said they loved it. I disagree. I thought it was kinda boring and disappointing... I did see it late at night though. 6/10

Skyfall - Definitely a good Bond movie. Kept me entertained throughout. 8/10

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - This is a must see. Plain and simple. 9/10

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 - I am a little ashamed to have gone to this but I must admit it was pretty cool. 7.5/10

Oz The Great and Powerful - This was a pretty big let down. Pretty boring throughout. Last 25 min got a little more exciting. 6.5/10

Star Trek Into Darkness - Wasn't too excited to go see this. Left with a smile on my face. Cool movie! 8/10

World War Z - Didn't know if I was going to like Brad Pitt's role for this one but he pulled it off. Exciting and fun. 8/10

Django Unchained - If you haven't seen it yet, go get it now. Easily one of if not the best movie in the last year. 9.5/10

The Great Gatsby - I have never read the book so not sure if that would have swayed me one way or the other... I wasn't a huge fan. 7/10

Taken 2 - Was it better than the first? Debatable. Action packed movie. Keeps you engaged. 7/10

Silver Linings Playbook - I don't understand the hype over this movie. I hated it. 5/10

The Wolverine - I left happy but felt like I expected a little bit more from it. 8/10

Now You See Me - This was a solid movie and is for sure something I would buy on DVD. 8/10

Pacific Rim - Wasn't too pumped to see this one but once again it turned out to be a really good one. 8/10

Zero Dark Thirty - This is a movie everyone should see. Pretty eye opening stuff.  9/10

Flight - High expectations come with every Denzel movie. I was let down with this one. Pretty boring. 6.5/10

Elysium - Did I love it? No. Did I really like it? Yes. 8/10

Safe Haven - Great date night movie. Entertains both sexes. 8/10

2 Guns - How could you go wrong with Denzel and Marky Mark? 8.5/10

Looper - Definitely an interesting movie. I would say it is a for sure Red Box movie night candidate. 7/10

Pitch Perfect - Was it one of my favorite movies ever? No. But it gave some good laughs. 7/10

Red 2 - Didn't see the first one but it was an enjoyable movie with a lot of action and some humor. 7.5/10

Tyler Perry's Temptations: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor - Pretty boring and predictable. 6/10

Pain and Gain - I felt disappointed when I left the theatre but it was still a solid movie. 7.5/10

The Internship - Great comedy to rent when looking for a lot of laughs. 8/10

End Of Watch - One of my all time favorite movies. 9.5/10

Trouble With the Curve - Surprised that this was on the top 100 list. Wasn't a huge fan. 6/10

Alex Cross - This movie had a lot of action and intense scenes. Great choice for a movie night with a bunch of friends. 7.5/10

After reading over the post a few times I am not so sure how I feel about the quick review format. I feel like a lot of you would want a little more as to why I gave it the ranking I did or just more details as a whole. I hope it helps you decide on some movies you were on the bubble about renting or even gives you some ideas of some good movies that you had forgotten about!

Review: Iron Man 3

Director: Shane Black

Written By: Drew Pearce, Shane Black

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

Rated: PG-13

Brief Overview: The world is suffering from the terrorist attacks from a man called The Mandarin and Tony Stark must save the day once again. 

Following is the trailer for Iron Man 3.

I love Marvel movies. So needless to say I was pretty excited for Iron Man 3 and expected big things from it. I can't say I really got what I was expecting from it but to be fair I was too excited and went into it expecting it to be the best movie ever. However, out of the movies I have reviewed so far on this blog, this one takes the cake for best yet.

There are people out there who are Marvel enthusiasts and go to these movies knowing every single little detail about the comic books and leave disappointed and mad that the movie didn't follow the comic book exactly. This is not me. I have seen every Iron Man but have never read one comic book. So if you are a comic book guy or girl this review is not for you. It is strictly about the movie itself.

A lot of critics have been giving Iron Man 3 bad ratings and basically ripping on it for this and that. While I agree there are things that could have been better in the movie, I think for the average person going to see a movie with their friends, it is a hit and must see. 

Robert Downey Jr. is the Iron man. It is tough to see him in any other movie or setting because of the great job he does in all three of these movies. However, in this movie we find "Tony Stark" in a whole different place in his life than in the previous two. He has a whole new persona and is not the "billionaire, philanthropist, playboy" that we are used to seeing. The events of "The Avengers" seemed to have taken a big toll on Stark emotionally and has been giving him bad anxiety. While his character has changed a little, RDJ performs magnificently and does not disappoint. 

We also meet a new villain in this movie called The Mandarin. At the beginning of the movie we see real life looking news coverage of bombings and explosions that have been happening that the Mandarin has been taking credit for. The movie revolves around the Mandarin, and Tony Stark has the task of taking him down in order to save the President of the United States and many other lives. The Mandarin seems like a very scary and intimidating character but there is a twist that ends up leaving you disappointed. 

The main problem with the movie as a whole is that there seems to be a handful of subplots that never end up getting developed and leave you thinking that there is a lot going on but nothing is actually happening. (If that makes sense.) That being said, lets get to the cool stuff. This Iron Man doesn't disappoint when it comes to the action scenes and cool new gadgets that Tony Stark has been tinkering on. There is new upgrades on the armor suit and only about 50 new ones that Stark has been creating as his "hobby." There is some really cool scenes where Stark is in action inside of the suit, especially this scene where he must rescue 13 people falling from an exploded plane when he can only hold onto four people himself. 

(Cool plane rescue scene) 

It is hard writing these reviews and trying to explain details about the movie without ruining parts of the movie for people who have not seen it yet. So I will stop there and say that aside from there being a lot of little subplots and details that could have been explored more, this movie will be enjoyed by a majority of people and I would recommend it to basically everyone. 

Personal Ranking: 8.5 out of 10

"A good end to a great three movies..."

Review: The Company You Keep

Director: Robert Redford

Written By: Lem Dobbs

Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Robert Redford, Julie Christie

Genre: Mystery, Suspense

Rated: R

Brief Overview: The story of wanted felons from the "Weather Underground" group from the early 90's being discovered by a journalist (Shia LeBeouf) and being hunted down by the authorities. 

Following is the trailer for The Company You Keep.

It has been a busy last few weeks. I mention in my profile that I play college baseball. Playing in Minnesota this year was really crazy and no one will probably ever experience a season like this again. We got snow all the way into May so all of our games were getting post poned. I feel like in the last week the only place I have been is a baseball field. Because of that it took me a while to get this review written on a movie I really enjoyed. 

Once again I gathered my movie buds up and we headed off to our favorite theatre where movies are only five bucks. After our usual Walgreens stop for candy we went into the theatre and I still hadn't told them what we were gonna see. When I told them we were gonna see The Company You Keep they weren't too happy but after the movie ended they were on the same page as me and ended up loving it. 

I will start off by saying this is not an action packed, fast moving, thriller. So if that is what you are wanting or expecting you might want to give this movie a pass. This is a slow moving drama in which we follow the aftermath story of a fictional happening. 

The beginning of the movie shows us real life clips from the early 90's of a group known as the "Weather Underground." The "Weathermen" were a group of radicals that are known for their many bombings and riots here in the United States. This is the where the movie begins. We are met with the story of how there was a bank robbery 30 years before where a security guard was shot and killed and the people responsible had never been caught. 

Right after the brief history lesson we are brought to modern day, about 30 years later, where we meet one of the people who was a part of the bank robbery. Sharon Solarz, who was part of the bank robbery group, is headed to supposedly turn herself in when FBI surrounds her at a gas station and arrests her. This fresh arrest of such a big name criminal, from so long ago, sparks interest in a local journalist named Ben Shepard (Shia LeBeouf) and his not so sure boss assigns him to follow up on the story. 

Ben Shepard just so happens to have a connection to someone in the FBI. That someone is his ex-girlfriend. Luckily they still keep in touch so he has an in with someone who has real and valid information. After telling Shepard some things she probably shouldn't, Ben ends up being in the right place at the right time (many of times) and ends up shining some light as to the where a bouts of the remaining robbery group members. 

From the beginning of the movie to the end you as a viewer get to watch the story unfold and meet all of the members of the robbery group and learn details about their character. In the end after the pretty exciting chases and manhunts there is some unexpected twists that you will not see coming. 

I would recommend this movie to all audiences. It is a fun and exciting movie that also gives somewhat of a real life history lesson. I also am a big Shia LaBeouf fan (partially from the show Even Stevens) which also made this movie enjoyable seeing as he was a lead role. 

Personal Ranking: 7 out of 10

"One of few history lessons I have enjoyed..."

Review: Oblivion

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Written By: William Monahan, Karl GajDusek, Michael Arndt

Starring: Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurylenko

Genre: Action Adventure, Science Fiction

Rating: PG-13

Brief Overview: A lone drone repairman, Tom Cruise, is the last hope for humanity as he and his partner are the "last" people left on Earth, which has recently been destroyed. 

Following is the trailer for Oblivion.

As I went to the theatre this last Thursday night with my buddies, I didn't really know what to expect from Oblivion. Well, now that I think about it that is a lie. I went into this movie thinking it was not going to be very good. Maybe that ruined the movie for me from the beginning, but as expected, I was not impressed.

This movie starts off confusing and ends even more confusing. We are met at the start of the movie by Jack Harper (Tom Cruise) who is basically a glorified "garbage man." We are told from the start that the Earth had been demolished and ransacked by some sort of alien invasion and all of the humans that survived are now living on some sort of giant space craft called the "tet." Harper is left on Earth because he is a drone repair man. The humans have these giant machines that are sucking up all of the water sources left on the Earth and will convert that water into energy or fuel. Harper's job is to repair the drones that are there to protect these giant machines from the aliens which we learn are referred to as "Scavs" or "Scavengers."Once the water sources are all sucked dry, Harper will join everyone else living in the tet. 

(Jack Harper and the Drones he repairs)

If I had to pick the best part of this movie I would have to pick the beginning. For the first few scenes and throughout the first act we are met with absolutely amazing graphics (which is the case throughout). Everywhere that Harper flies in his futuristic machine looks absolutely beautiful even though a lot of the sites are recognizable locations in the U.S. that are now demolished. We learn Harper's daily routine and follow him to the ground where he has to fix drones under dangerous circumstances. For lack of a better word, the start simply seems really cool.  Just as you think this movie might turn out to be good, it is flushed down the toilet. 

(Examples of the beautiful views and graphics)

Throughout the beginning of the movie we realize that Jack Harper doesn't necessarily believe everything he has been told to believe. He thinks there is more to the story that he isn't aware of because to be the drone repair man that he is, he had to have his memory wiped. We continue to be shown flash backs that Harper is experiencing where he keeps remembering a certain woman in a certain spot. This reoccurring flashback is what starts his questioning of what is really going on. 

The climax of the movie is when there is a giant crash in a section of Jack's patrol. He is told from the command post that he is not to go investigate but he cannot help himself. When he arrives on scene he is shocked at what he finds. He finds humans that are alive but "sleeping" in their futuristic travel looking beds that are very hard to describe. What happens next is what is most shocking. The drones that he repairs appear on scene and start killing and destroying every human survivor. Harper manages to save one of the survivors from the drones... It turns out to be the woman he keeps seeing in his flashbacks. 

From this point on the movie has many twists and turns which are hard to follow and do not make much sense. I will not talk anymore about what happens just in case any of you decide to go see it. I am not sure if I would recommend this movie to anyone. It is a movie that you are either going to love or are going to absolutely hate it. I turned out to hate it. If I was talking with a close friend of mine who knew more about me and my personality I would tell them to not waste their money. However, if I was talking to a random person who doesn't necessarily know me, I would tell them to take the chance of seeing it at the local 5 dollar theatre. 

Personal Ranking: 5 out of 10

"A hit or miss... That missed."

Review: 42

Director: Brian Helgeland

Written by: Brian Helgeland

Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie

Genre: Biography, Drama, Sport

Rating: PG-13

Brief Overview: The life story of Jackie Robinson during his baseball days and the signing of him to the Brooklyn Dodgers under the watchful eyes of Branch Rickey. 

Following is the trailer for 42.

What better way to spend a night at the theatre? Watching a movie about America's favorite past time is hard to beat. I mean, who doesn't like playing a game of whiffle ball on a beautiful summer day with your buds? Spitting seeds and chewing massive wads of gum (or chew) is classic. I guess I am pretty biased because I have played competitive baseball since I was a young boy, but oh well. The film 42 really seemed to capture the essence of baseball and why America loves it so much, while needing improvement on certain aspects, the movie was very enjoyable and powerful. 

We are met at the beginning with what is basically a fast history lesson of baseball and what was happening at the time the movie was depicting. It goes from touching on baseball and the relationship baseball as a sport had with the war and then directly into segregation. This "fast pace" was something that happened throughout the movie as a whole. It is something that in my opinion hurt the movie. It seemed as though there was never any connections made through characters and we never learned more about a character than you would learn talking with them for about a minute. Every relationship depicted between Jackie and other players or people in his life were "surface level." This hurt the film because it made any scene that was meant to be emotional seem very cheesy. I understand that this is such a big event and story to try to condense into a two hour (ish) movie but I think by spending more time developing relationships between characters could have really helped this movie have more of an impact that it did.  

My favorite part about 42, and what I also think was done the best, was the way they depicted the actual baseball games and the chatter that would happen while playing. Being a baseball player, I knew the story of Jackie Robison and I would suspect a majority of people know the story of Jackie as well. However, it is hard to really imagine what he as a player had to go through not only in his life outside of baseball stadiums, but specifically on the field situations. They did a fantastic job of showing what it was like for Jackie during games. There are a couple scenes in particular that really capture the emotions felt by Jackie but also the other players and coaches in the league at the time. One of these scenes does happen off the field but still in the realm of baseball. Jackie's team, the Brooklyn Dodgers, pull up to a hotel in their team bus to unload and rest before a night game. As soon as the bus enters the parking lot the Dodgers are met by the hotel owner yelling for them to leave and that they are no longer welcome to stay at their hotel. This stirs up emotion in the team and a fight almost breaks out between some of the white players and Jackie. The other scene takes place during a game and we are given a front row seat to the types of things Jackie would have to go through during games. Not only did the fans yell horrible things at him throughout, but during one of Jackie's at bats we are met with the most powerful scene in the movie. Ben Chapman, a member of the Phillies emerges from the dugout while Jackie steps up to bat. Chapman proceeds to verbally harass Jackie to no end, yelling every racist slur one could think of and more. It is a very powerful scene because while it is hard to watch, it really depicts the harshness and terrible things Jackie Robinson went through just to play a game he loved. He encountered that kind of hate everywhere he went and for years could not get away from it. That scene really hit the nail on the head and you could feel the audience in the theatre tense up and really start to get emotionally involved with the film at that point. 

Despite some cheesy acting and lack of detail 42 is a movie I would recommend to any baseball lover and really anyone who loves history. It brings a history lesson you hear in a classroom setting to life, which always gives that story a greater meaning and impact when you can see it for yourself. 

Personal Ranking: 7 out of 10

"A bunt of a movie about a homerun type of man..."