Chris Reviews Silver Linings Playbook

Coming into this movie I really did not expect to like it. The only reason I wanted to see it is because I'm trying to watch all the Best Picture Nominees. So was this another overhyped Oscar Nominee or actually a really good drama? Read below to find out......

The Good-

Surprisingly I really enjoyed this film. I expected it to be more of a romantic comedy and it was definitely not one. The story was actually very entertaining albeit somewhat cliche and the acting was excellent. This is the first movie that I actually really like Bradley Cooper in and Jennifer Lawrence and Robert De Niro where very good as well. The comedy was pretty good but I still feel that it was more of a drama.

The Bad-

I did think the story and some of the characters where a bit cliche but I can get passed that. Other than that there was not anything that I thought was downright bad in the movie but it never elevated itself to be an Oscar worthy movie either. So I do think it is a bit overrated from that sense.

Summary-

I can see why this film got some Oscar nominations but I do not think it should win any. It was a solid and entertaining drama/comedy but it really didn't bring anything new to the genre. Still it is well worth a watch for almost anybody!

MY RATING- 

4 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart

 

Chris Reviews Zero Dark Thirty

I have wanted to see this for quite some time but had not gotten a chance to see it yet. I am a fan of this emerging genre of war films that cover The War on Terror. So is this the definitive film of this new genre or simply your average Oscar contender?

The Good-

Zero Dark Thirty is definitely a film that is trying to push peoples buttons and make them ask questions about the current state of the world. The torture scene has drawn a lot of criticism and it is fairly graphic but I think that is the point. The film is trying to make us ask ourselves how far would we go to protect our country and what is crossing the line. Kathryn Bigelow has really developed a skill at making these journalistic type films about the modern United States government and military. (she also directed The Hurt Locker) The acting is good as well as Jessica Chastain gives a solid leading performance that stands out from the overwhelming amount of characters. The most impressive and also controversial scene is the killing of Osama bin Laden. I have a feeling it may not be 100 percent accurate but from a purely cinematic perspective it was stunning. The last 30-40 minutes of the film sucked me in and I could not take my eyes off of the screen. ( Also I'm listening to the soundtrack right now and it is pretty awesome as well!)

The Bad-

This had to be a very tough story to tell as it spans over a decade and thus is somewhat disjointed at times. It was also difficult to keep track of the many different characters and names that are thrown at you so as I really had to stay attentive at all times. Outside of those complaints the only other problem people have with it was the torture scene and the final scene which I actually liked.

Summary-

Zero Dark Thirty is definitely a film that I think you need to see more than once to fully comprehend. That being said on my first viewing I really enjoyed it and recommend it to all film fans. Just keep an open mind and don't tune out because of the controversy surrounding it. While I think Django Unchained and Argo are more deserving of Best Picture this is worthy of being nominated.

MY RATING- 4.5 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart

Chris Reviews The Last Stand

I know I say this all the time but I freaking love 80's Action Movies. There is a certain nostalgic charm that I get when I see Dolph Lundgren and Jean Claude Van Damme beating the shit out of each other. Lucky for me the genre is making a comeback with films like the Expendables becoming popular and a great lineup of films coming out this year beginning with The Last Stand. So did the film live up to my boyhood fantasies or was it another big letdown that left me emotionally scarred. As usual read below to find out.

The Good-

Anytime I see Arnold pop up on screen now of days I want to stand up and start cheering. Unfortunately nobody else did it in the theater and I didn't want to get shushed like what happened to Kevin and I during Looper, so I restrained myself. That being said it is really freaking awesome to have Arnold back in a starring role. Arnold alone was enough to keep me interested in this film but the story was pretty interesting as well. It takes a little bit of building up but there is almost constant action that should keep the average audience member into the film. Jee-Woon Kim is a director that I have heard a lot about as he has created some very popular Korean films such as I Saw the Devil and The Good, the Bad, the Weird. He definitely gives the film a very interesting vibe and I am definitely curious to see his previous films now.

The Bad-

The acting is downright terrible in this and Arnold is extremely wooden. He seems to have lost any acting skills he had while he was governor. The writing was pretty awful as well and there were some major editing issues. The action scenes were OK but I was not as impressed as some of the critics have been. Overall The Last Stand is actually a pretty terrible film from a critical standpoint but it reaches hilarious levels of terribleness that make it fit right into the Arnold cannon of films.

Summary-

As I said before this is technically a pretty bad movie but it has a little bit of charm to it and is borderline hilariously bad. If you are an Arnold fan or the average dumb audience member then you will probably appreciate this, if not you will probably hate it. It is great to have arguably the greatest action hero in movie history back and this is definitely better than his films from the early 2000's but he has some work to do if he wants to keep his career alive.

MY RATING-

3 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart 

Gangster Squad: Worst Gangster Film of All Time?

Initially, I was excited for Gangster Squad. With a cast of Josh Brolin, Sean Penn, and even Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, I expected this to do well. That was a mistake on my part. Holy shit this film sucks.

I can only say one good thing about this film: Sean Penn gives an energized performance that is entertaining to watch. While his character is not very developed, his performance keeps this film from being an absolute train wreck.

Okay, now that I have gotten the one and only positive aspect of this film out of the way, I'm going to completely rip this film to shreds. Gangster Squad attempts to have that vintage visual style, but it failed terribly at doing so. Instead, it was a very cartoon-like environment, and even the action was horrible. Poorly choreographed fight scenes, video-game-esque shootings, and extremely mediocre car chase scenes come together to make potentially this year's worst film (Yes, I realize it is only January, but my God this was so bad, I doubt I'll see anything worse this year). I usually analyze most of the characters in my reviews but I am safe in using a blanket statement saying that all the characters were poorly developed and uninteresting. I didn't care what happened to the characters, and that's just a prime example of bad writing. The dialogue was anything but interesting, and the Ryan Gosling/Emma Stone relationship was fantastically cliched. Not to mention the entire film in general was a total cookie-cutter of gangster movies.

If you've never watched a gangster film, you could mildly enjoy this film. But after seeing some of the best of gangster films, Gangster Squad is a complete and utter disappointment; even worse than I expected it to be after seeing the negative reviews pour in. Gangster Squad is slick in style, but lacks any real substance. The only thing that could make this worse is if they make a sequel. Cross your fingers and hope they don't, for the sake of all that is good and decent.

MY RATING:

1 out of 5

-Kevin A. Millward

2012 in Review

I am working on finishing up my reviews of Les Miserables and Django Unchained so look out for those soon. I felt like writing something a bit more fun and in honor of the new year it felt like this needed to be written. Over the course of 2012 I saw 38 new films in theaters, 2 movie marathons and several of the films I saw multiple times. So after several hundred dollars worth of movie theater tickets and food what where my favorite and least favorite films? Read below to find out.......

MY TOP 5 Surprise Films-

5. Ted- It was a fun late night comedy that I expected to be terrible. 
4. Dredd- Expected something similar to this years Totall Recall and instead got a fun Action/Sci-fi film.
3. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter- Not a great film but was so over the top it was fun!
2. Premium Rush-I had no expectations going in and came out realizing how awesome Michael Shannon is.
1. The Grey- Borderline Top 10 film for me, one of the best survival movies in a long time!

MY TOP 5 Overrated Films-

5. The Avengers- I really liked this film and its in my top 10 but as with any big film, it was over hyped.
4. 21 Jump Street- It was a fun late night comedy but I didn't love it as much as most people.
3. The Amazing Spiderman- I hated this movie because of it just being such a generic comic book film.
2. The Dark Knight Rises- A fun film but it lacks the depth of the previous films, just a fun summer movie. 
1. Lincoln- I feel like people like it because they are told to rather than actually having an original thought about it.


MY BOTTOM 5 Films-

5. The Amazing Spiderman- Very generic and poorly filmed and written, a very disappointing movie.
4. Total Recall- Has nice production value but lacks any of the fun of the original film.
3. Man with the Iron Fists- One of the least coherent movies I have ever seen.
2. Lockout- Could have been fun but bad CGI and a PG-13 rating killed it.
1. Red Dawn- I love the original film and on the surface it is similar but lacks heart and film making skill.


MY TOP 10 Favorite Films-

10. Skyfall-

Arguably one of my most anticipated films of the year. It lived up to those expectations and probably would have been much higher on the list if not for a very strong crop of films this year.










9. Prometheus-

Like Skyfall, this was a film that I had high expectations for. While it may be a fairly flawed film as far as the story is concerned it was probably one of the most beautifully filmed movies of the year. I enjoyed it so much I saw it 3 times in theaters and have watched it about that many times on blu-ray as well.







8. The Artist-

I realize this was a part of last years Oscars but it was still out in theaters at the beginning of 2012 which is when I finally got to see this masterpiece. This was a   fun, well acted, well shot tribute to classic Hollywood.









7. The Avengers-

  The biggest, loudest and arguably the most fun movie of the year. I came into this skeptical and came out blown away. As far as Comic Book films go this was definitely my favorite of the year!









6. Moonrise Kingdom-

This was finally the year that I really got into Wes Anderson. Before this came out I watched all of his previous films and really got into his style of film making. So obviously when I saw Moonrise Kingdom I loved it because this is arguably his best film to date.








5. Safety Not Guranteed-

 This was definitely one of those movies that caught me by surprise and has at times been my favorite movie of the year but I think it has settled in at 5. A fun quirky comedy that has a bit of sci-fi and other genres mixed in. Probably the best movie that no one has heard of, this year.








4. The Raid: Redemption-

 This is tied with Expendables 2 for most Bad Ass movie of the year. One of the most impressive Martial Arts films in a while. While it may have a fairly thin plot, it works enough to make this one of the best films of the year.









3. Argo-

Ben Affleck continues his ascent to the upper echelon of directors in Hollywood. This film will likely garner numerous Oscar nominations and will be battling Zero Dark Thirty for best picture.









2. Looper-

Until last week this was number one on my list and for good reason. Rian Johnson has put himself on the map and will definitely be a director I am watching now. Not only a great sci-fi movie but a great movie in general!









1. Django Unchained-

My first thought after walking out of the theater was that this was my new #1 film of the year. Tarantino has created another classic film that is deserving of more awards than it will likely receive.








-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart