American Hustle

"American Hustle" reeks of the 1970's. Everything from the costumes to the hairstyles to the soundtrack which ranges from Tom Jones to Wings. Director David O. Russell continues his hot streak and brings together a dream team cast that combines to make one of the most misleading, yet immensely entertaining films of the year.

"American Hustle" is the basis of a true story wrapped around in fiction (think Titanic). Set around the real life "Abscam" scandal of the 1970's. Christian Bale and Amy Adams are the two con artists who've mastered this scheme involving counterfeit art dealings as well as using bribery to bring in New Jersey powerbrokers (mafia) and corrupt politicians. When a hot wired FBI agent played gloriously by Bradley Cooper infiltrates the scam the con goes to a whole new level and can be brought down by their own bullshit as well as Bale's unhinged wife played by current Hollywood darling Jennifer Lawrence. "American Hustle" draws comparisons to past films but is most notably an offspring of Martin Scorsese's "Goodfellas".

With arguably the best movie trailer of the year "American Hustle" opens with countless awards buzz as well as high "must see" status from both film aficionados and Joe the Plumber and his wife. The biggest misconception coming in the pre release buzz is that this is a comedy, while there are definitely dark funny moments "American Hustle" is better appreciated as a crime drama. Following "The Fighter" and my pick for best film of 2012 "Silver Linings Playbook", director David O. Russell goes in a somewhat different direction then he did in his previous two films. There is a great comfort here between the director and his 4 leading actors, this comes as no surprise as both Adams and Bale were nominated for Oscars for their turns in "The Fighter" (Bale won) and Cooper and Lawrence both nominated for "Silver Linings" (Lawrence won). Because of some slow character development scenes early on I can't say that "American Hustle" is the best film of the year, however it is definitely in the top 10 and the cast's performances make it easily far and away the best performance based film and each of the four and good bets for Oscar nominations in the lead and supporting actor fields.

Cooper especially runs circles around his fellow actors here, echoing whispers of classic 70's Pacino as FBI agent Richie Dimaso. Going deeper and deeper into the con, as well as getting involved with Adam's character further unhinges Cooper's character and we get some great scenes, especially between Cooper and his boss played in a great small role by comedian Louis CK. Bale, trades the batsuit for extra pounds and the comb over to end all comb overs as lead con man Irving Rosenfeld disappears into his role which is not half as flashy as Cooper's but you actually forget that its Christian Bale you are watching.

Amy Adams as former stripper turned "British" financial advisor Sydney Prosser turns in yet another stellar supporting performance, this time with the help of 70's glam, her wardrobe becomes apart of her performance and one would be hard pressed to find another such performance this year. Jennifer Lawrence, looking like a young Ellen Barkin is absolutely in her own category here asIrving's bored housewife Roslyn. Her role here is pretty minor even in supporting actor terms yet every time she is on screen the movie becomes that much more interesting. Highlights include her take on the risks involving "Science ovens" and a performance of "Live and Let Die" while wearing dishwashing gloves. Lost under these 4 powerhouse performances is the 5th lead, a good-hearted yet corrupt New Jersey mayor played by Jeremy Renner. Renner, a good actor does a good job here but even with a poof hair do that would make Snooki jealous gets lost in the shuffle other than a great confrontation scene between him and Bale's character.

As stated earlier the biggest flaw with "American Hustle" are the character development scenes early in the film. While character development and introductions are necessary as the actors do such a good job with their roles the lengthy development is not needed. Once all that is finished this is where the movie really gets going. The film has narration by multiple characters which is again a tribute to "Goodfellas" though I would have liked to have had more of that, especially during the main con scene as it is so elaborate its almost dizzying.

"American Hustle" is going to divide viewers. The marketing campaign has been both the films best friend and worst enemy. What cannot be denied is the exclamatory performances that anchor the film as well as the entire vibe that the movie gives out. Director Russell has become such a director that his films have become event status features and will continue to incite great debates between moviegoers.

Anchorman: The Legend Continues

The sequel to "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy" has been eagerly anticipated by myself as well as San Diegites all over the world. Sequels to popular comedies for the most part are immensely underwhelming, I'm looking at you "Hangover Part II".  The first "Anchorman" was a modest hit upon initial release but grew a massive pop culture following by those who waited til DVD or had to watch it a 2nd time to actually get it (me). In what seems like a never-ending promotional blitz since 2012 when the sequel was announced we finally have another adventure with Ron Burgundy and the Channel 4 News team.  The question is, how does it hold up to the original? The answer to that is that while "Anchorman 2" is not the near perfect comedy that "Anchorman" is, it is still very very funny with a lot of great quotable lines that will make fellow fans happy and satisfied.

Ron Burgundy is one of the best characters created in the 2000's. It's everything from his mustache to his overall outlook on life. Created from the mind of star Will Ferrell and director/co-writer Adam Mckay Burgundy is the poster boy for mid 70's political incorrectness and male chauvinism. McKay and Ferrell have been writing partners since their days on SNL and their comfort level with each other shows on screen in "Anchorman" along with other collaborations such as "Step Brothers" and "Talladega Nights", they are not afraid to go outside the comfort zone sometimes taking chances on bits that are just too out there and don't stick but more times than not are hilarious. The first "Anchorman" focused mainly on sexism in the 70's with a local San Diego news station as the background. "Anchorman 2" shifts the setting to New York City in 1980 with Burgundy and his news team taking a job at one of the first 24 hour news stations in the world.

Gone in this sequel are a lot of the political and social undertones from the first instead giving us a lot more of the goofiness of Burgundy and other cast of characters who all return for the second go around. The rest of the channel 4 news team consists of Paul Rudd as "man on the street" Brian Fontana, sportscaster Champ Kind played by David Koechner and fan favorite weatherman Brick Tamland played by Steve Carell. Paul Rudd is again the MVP of the news team in terms of getting the most laughs for me. Carell, now arguable as big of a star as Ferrell thanks to his role in "The Office" and "The 40 Year Old Virgin" now seems kind of out of place in the role of Brick but while he is not as memorable as he was in the first he still gets a few good laughs.

The one problem that "Anchorman 2" has is that there are almost too many jokes to go around, this is a complicated problem. There are moments in the film that I laughed out loud more so than I have in a theater in a long time but there are also moments that just fall flat. Brick showing up to his own funeral and a scene in Ron's Winnebago come to mind. Scenes such as this could have easily been removed to make the scenes that do work (which there are a lot of) stick with the moviegoer. A lot of the funniest scenes come by so quickly and in succession of each other its almost hard to keep up. Christina Applegate also returns in very funny form as Veronica Corningstone and her scenes with Ron and their son are some of the best in the movie. Instead of introducing another female love interest for Ron played by the beautiful Meagan Good I would of liked to have seen more of Veronica in the mix.

While there is light commentary on how we receive the news now and even a bit on race in America Anchorman plays mainly and best as a spoof in the vein of "Airplane!" and "The Naked Gun". Everyone involved is completely on board for the ridiculousness and not in it just for a cash grab, looking at you "Meet the Fockers".... The appeal of the characters shows in the plethora of cameos, everyone from cinema icons to rappers to even an Oscar winner. There are a lot of great quotable lines that I think will remain in the pop culture pantheon along with "I love lamp" and others from the original.

The finale of "Anchorman 2" is a major hark back to the original. It is both one of the best scenes in the movie along with being one of the most absurd scenes I think I've seen. Without any spoilers I'll just say that a werewolf, minotaur and the ghost of Stonewall Jackson among many others are involved. "Anchorman 2" will certainly not bring any new converts to Burgundy's gang but if you are a fan of the original get your jazz flutes out and spray on a little Sex Panther and enjoy!

Nebraska

"Nebraska" the newest movie from heralded director Alexander Payne (Sideways, Election) in all its black and white glory is both a triumph as a film as well as a showcase for heralded yet underappreciated actor Bruce Dern. For the type of movie that "Nebraska" is I cant find a more appropriate word to describe it other than it is perfect.

"Nebraska" centers around Dern's character Woody Grant who has received a letter in the mail declaring him the winner of 1 million dollars. Woody takes it upon himself to walk from his home in Billings Montana to Lincoln Nebraska to collect his supposed winnings until his ne'er do-well son played impressively by SNL/MacGruber alum Will Forte to take this opportunity to bond with his estranged father on this road trip . Along the way they stop off in Woody's former hometown where word of his "millions" soons spreads fast and Woody becomes a living legend in the town no matter how obvious it is that Woody is in fact not going to be a millionaire.

Director Payne is one of America's most consistent directors of the last 15 years, all of his films share a dark comic undertone that is not lost at all on "Nebraska". Payne's most popular film has to be considered "Sideways" and "Nebraska" is actually a good companion piece to it, even though its almost completely opposite. "Sideways" took place in wine country on California's central coast, its beautiful scenery was showcased. "Nebraska" in contrast is shot in black and white and shows the dull, flat landedness that is America's Midwest, its dull and boring and that's the way it should be. What's similar between the two films is the depiction of the characters as being actually believable, flaws and all. Woody's pursuit of the money is not so much a thing of greed, he wants a new truck because he has never had a new truck before, he wants a new air compressor because his previous one was stolen by a "friend" 30 years ago. The Odyssey that takes place shows Woody's son David that underneath the alcoholic, distant father he grew up with was a man who couldn't say no to anyone and never went for his dreams. I do promise this is a comedy.

Actor Bruce Dern has worked with everyone from Alfred Hitchcock to Quentin Tarentino. He is a name you might not know but a face you would definitely recognize. His role here is probably the safest bet there is for an Oscar nomination if not a win, its both funny and heartbreaking. If you come from or at least know a dysfunctional family then you will find humor in this movie and the supporting cast does nothing but enhance this experience. The before mentioned Will Forte is a great surprise here and the scenes between him and Dern are some of the best between two actors in recent memory. Relative unknown June Squibb is a scene stealer as Woody's long suffering wife and another great character actor Stacy Keach shows up as a former business partner of Woody's who is looking to settled an old debt. everyone involved from Dern to the actresses playing waitresses are pitch perfect here.

On paper a movie about an old man's odyssey for a cash prize that is shot in black and white and not starring Clint Eastwood is obviously not an easy sell nor probably appealing to the average moviegoer. I can say that if you appreciate dark humor and great acting you will appreciate "Nebraska", whether or not you can exactly relate to it.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

There are movies like the "Twilight" series and then there are movies like the "Hunger Games" series. Similar in that the hero is a female protagonist caught in a love triangle and torn between what is right and wrong but different in almost every other facet up to and including how the execution of the movie adaptation from YA novel series to worldwide blockbuster franchise is done right or for lack of a better term: holocausty.

"The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" is the 2nd in the 4 movie series based on the "Hunger Games" YA trilogy of novels (make sense?) The original brought two major things to the table upon its release last year, first was a new franchise that both women and men could find interest in and more importantly it brought Jennifer Lawrence into the mainstream with her role as heroine Katniss Everdeen. Catching Fire is the rarest of rare sequels in that it exceeds the overall experience from the first movie, basically improving on every flaw that the first one had.

I, along with other fans of the book series felt that the 3 books dissolved in quality as they progressed. The filmmakers have made great decisions in creating new things for the book to film adaptation that even at a 2 and a half hour running time makes the film feel fast paced and not just recycling the best things from the first movie. The first Hunger Games is by no means a bad movie but it took its time introducing the characters and original director Gary Ross relied too much on the hand held shaky camera to get his point across. "I Am Legend" and go to "TRL" music video director Francis Lawrence is better suited for this type of material, "Catching Fire" just seems crisper and cleaner than its predecessor.

Lawrence is, as stated in previous entries a "AOM" fave. Continuing to show she has many hats, "Catching Fire" is her follow up to last years Oscar winning turn in what was my favorite film of 2012 "Silver Linings Playbook".  Unlike say Kristen Stewart, Lawrence seems game and ready to take on a blockbuster franchise as well as hone her craft with smaller fare like "Silver Linings" and "Winter's Bone". Delivering hokey dialogue is a must in this kind of movie and Lawrence delivers on all levels, her take on Katniss has to be considered one of the best female action heroes along with Sigourney Weaver's "Ellen Ripley" from the "Alien" series. The rest of the cast is almost pitch perfect. Early 2000's indie darling and almost "it" girl Jenna Malone nearly steals the movie from Lawrence as fellow arena competitor Johanna Mason, its definitely a supporting role but every time she is on screen you want more of her. Donald Sutherland as President Snow and Phillip Seymour Hoffman as game creator Plutarch Heavensbee eat up all their scenes and the 2 or 3 they have together are especially juicy. Much like Anthony Hopkins in "Thor 2" these two distinguished actors know they are above the material they are given but they have fun and do the most with it. Stanley Tucci and Elizabeth Banks return as fan favorites Caesar Flickerman and Effie Trinket. Josh Hutcherson improves the most from the first film as one part of the Katrniss, Peeta, Gale love triangle. Liam Hemsworth, Thor's younger and especially boring brother treads dangerously on Robert Pattison territory again as Gale. Other fun casting choices include Jeffery Wright and Amanda Plummer as two older arena competitors and especially Patrick St. Esprit as Commander Thread who makes a great splash in his lone introductory scene.

For the uninitiated "The Hunger Games" tells the story of America in the distant future that has been through another, much more destructive civil war. The losers of the war have been divided into districts with "The Capitol" ruling over them all. As a constant reminder to stay in check each year "The Hunger Games" are held which requires a lottery in each district selecting one male and female to travel to the capitol and participate in a fight to the death with the other competitors with the lone remaining survivor reaping the benefits as "Hunger Games" champion. This premise is what sold me in the beginning and leaving out the fancy costumes and love triangles its far and away the most interesting thing about the movies. "Catching Fire" wisely focuses more on the training for the games and the battle itself than the first one. "Catching Fire" also needs to set up a lot bigger picture that will be seen in parts 1 and 2 of "Mockingjay" and it does so-unlike some Marvel features without taking away from the current movie at hand.

"Catching Fire" in no way suffers from a sophomore slump, if you were a fan of the first movie this should exceed all expectations and if you've read the books you'll be especially happy.

Dallas Buyers Club

"Dallas Buyers Club" is a small movie whose premise alone shouts "nominate me for something!" Usually things so blatantly packaged for end of the year awards consideration are either A) dramatically overhyped to make some money or B) so randomly mis-marketed that it gets lost in the shuffle. "DBC" avoids these ploys almost in full, this is a good movie with an outstanding performance from the nude bongo player himself- Matthew McConaughey who has transformed himself from absurd action and or romantic comedy roles to probably one of the best mainstream Hollywood actors going now.

"DBC" is the true story of Ron Woodruff, a rodeo cowboy/hustler who after years of a hard partying lifestyle and countless random unprotected sexual encounters finds himself with the HIV virus in the mid 1980's which was the beginning and the scariest time for AIDS in America. Confused as to how he could contact what is perceived as only a "gay" disease there is a moment early in the film when McConaughey as Woodruff reaches the point of realization that this is in fact a real situation that he now has to deal with, its a moment with no dialogue that immediately makes you feel empathy for the character and shows what a commitment McConaughey has made to the role- along with the much publicized 40 pound weight loss he made for the role. For the majority of his career McCounaughey has been an actor with a lot of potential, from his early work in "Dazed and Confused" and "A Time to Kill" but never seemed that interested in becoming a truly great actor. Roles in such fodder as "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" and other mindless crap has only helped in the conclusion that he just wasn't interested in expanding his horizons. With recent roles in another indie "Bernie" and his supporting turn in the "Citizen Kane" of stripper movies "Magic Mike" which he was criminally overlooked for in last years Oscar race he has seemed to turn a corner, "DBC" is for lack of a better term his official coming out party.

The title "Dallas Buyers Club" is in reference to the "club" that Woodruff starts to supply himself and others with HIV/AIDS with currently unapproved or illegal drugs to fight off the disease. Along the way he meets a transsexual named "Rayon" played by one time 90's TV star and current 30 Seconds to Mars frontman Jared Leto. Leto as well transforms himself into his role in a very effective and heartbreaking turn that has the potential for Oscar talk in the supporting actor category. Jennifer Garner also stars as a doctor torn between doing what she feels is right and what her bosses at the hospital feel is right, Garner is perfectly fine in the role but doesn't bring anything new to the table. Look for one time 80's star Griffin Dunne "After Hours" in a near cameo as the doctor working in Mexico who turns Ron onto to these new experimental drugs.

"DBC" at first glance could be lumped in with other "message" movies such as "Milk" or "The Help" but it really isn't. Its basically a black and white story about a time period in America that is confusing and scary for those who thankfully haven't had any experience with it. While I didn't necessarily identify with Woodruff the man you can't help but feel his pain and identify with the position that the politics and culture of the time put the people effected by this disease in. For that much the movie is good with the bonus of the fantastic acting by the performers that makes this a film that you should not miss.

Thor: The Dark World

"Thor: The Dark World" is the latest installment in the Marvel Studios "Avenger" series, it follows the years earlier "Iron Man 3" as the two most current follow up's to 2012's superhero mash up "The Avengers". Thor probably ranks behind only Iron Man as the most popular Avenger and a lot of that has to do with the good will that the original "Thor" brought as well as his role in "The Avengers". Most of this is due to star Chris Hemsworth's ability to bring a human side to the half man half god Asgardian. While its a good sequel the problem with "Thor 2" is that it suffers from a lot of the same problems that plagued "Iron Man 2" in that it preoccupied with setting up future installments of "Thor" and other Marvel entities.

With a : title such as "The Dark World" its already a preconceived notion that most of this adventure will take place in other realms other than Earth, unfortunately this portion of the nearly 2 hour film is the weakest and to be blunt: boring. The story begins with the return of an old enemy of Thor's home planet of Asgard. As this is the main villain at hand this is the main problem I had with "Thor 2". The villain known as "Malekith" is basically a dwarf that looks like something cut of "Lord of the Rings", he doesn't really talk and is not a very imposing figure unlike the much more charismatic, glam rock star in waiting "Loki" who is also featured and is just screaming for his own stand alone movie. Malekith also disappears for times and while its a welcome absence there is no feeling for his return and in turn never poses a threat to Thor and or the overall picture.

What does work is anytime Thor is on Earth. He does reunite with his true love "Jane Foster" played again by Natalie Portman who does look annoyed at times but never the less does a admirable job as the scientist/damsel in distress. "The Dark World" sets are often dark and dusted with charcoal and CGI that makes it look more like a video game. Thor on Earth plays like a fish out of water which adds to the comedic and relatable elements for the audience. The final battle scene ranks up their with the finale of "The Avengers" and a lot of this has to do with the human elements it brings with being based mostly on Earth. Other cast highlights include Anthony Hopkins as Thor's dad King Odin, I always enjoy seeing actors with such a high caliber as Hopkins delivering slightly over the top dialogue while overacting, if Shakespeare ever wrote a Hollywood blockbuster I hope it would be something like Thor. Kat Dennings, one half of TV's "2 Broke Girls" offers a lot of comic relief as Portman's intern and the depressingly underused Rene Russo returns as Thor's mom Frigga.

As a whole "Thor 2" works even with some parts not working at all. If you've followed the characters through their miscellaneous adventures you will find enough here to stay entertained even with the massive fails that occur during the middle portion. As with any Marvel feature be sure to stay until the last end credits roll as you get not one but two Easter eggs one of which sets up the big screen adaptation of the lesser known Marvel comic "Guardians of the Galaxy" featuring an almost unrecognizable Benicio Del Toro as "The Collector".

Captain Phillips

"Captain Phillips" is the harrowing, tension filled and exhausting in the best way true story of Somali pirates overtaking of an American freighter ship under the command of said Captain Phillips played by Tom Hanks in a career rejuvenating role that is not to be missed.

Directed by Paul Greengrass of "United 93" and the two best entries in the original Jason Bourne trilogy (Supremacy and Ultimatum), "Captain Phillips" is a tightly wound thriller that is both large in scale and intimate enough to make you feel as if you are a witness to it all. Greengrass is the master of using the camera in a hand held manner that is ideal for this type of story. With scenes taking place in confined spaces onboard the freighter ship as well as the dramatic conclusion inside a lifeboat with Captain Phillips and his pirate hijackers it is a claustrophobic that much like the earlier released "Gravity" helps the viewer experience what the characters are experiencing though here we don't have the 3D technology to exacerbate this sensation-its not needed.

The almost always reliable Hanks has been in a slump as of late choosing to go with roles that require bad haircuts and uninspired acting (The Da Vinci Code), "Captain Phillips" is a welcome returned to form for the actor as this is the type of role that is expected of him and is sure to bring with it an onslaught of end of the year award consideration. Much like the movie itself Hanks brings quiet moments, especially early on in the film as the mild mannered family man Captain who is put in a position that no everyman could be expected to handle any other way than he executes here. The other great performance here is from absolutely unknown Somali actor Barkhad Abdi as the head pirate by the name of Muse. A role that could be easily played as a faceless villain, Abdi brings the human touch to Muse who is clearly out to make a better life for himself by the only way-or option that he knows its a remarkable performance is that its a menacing portrayal but part of you understands why he is who he is.

The events in the movie are true, but as with any "true" story it is hard to really know what happened and even how accurate that events that did happen are portrayed. That being said every moment in this film is believable, there are small moments of humor that break the tension even for a second that seem genuine in a moment of crisis. The scenes on the lifeboat towards the end are the most effective and emotional even with Hanks clearly going for a certain gold statue towards the harrowing conclusion, nothing feels forced.

October brings with it the start of the awards season for cinema and with "Captain Phillips" and the before mentioned and reviewed "Gravity" it looks to be an exciting and ridiculously competitive season. Do yourself a favor and seek out "Captain Phillips" before it gets lost in the inevitable awards bait shuffle, its a decision you will not regret.

Gravity

 The 3D genre for most, including this reviewer had seemed to run its course again. After the shock and awe that films such as "Avatar" and "Tron Legacy" brought to those that viewed them in their big screen glory went to the wayside as seemingly every movie that comes out each subsequent week had a lame post 3D conversion to squeeze another dollar out of the moviegoers pocket. With the release of "Gravity", the epic new space opera starring arguably the biggest movie stars in the world: George Clooney and Sandra Bullock the genre has been flipped on its ear and brings moviemaking technology and cinema on its own right to a level not seen before. In a word "Gravity" is simply breathtaking.

The simple premise is two astronauts, the veteran played by George Clooney and the rookie played by Sandra Bullock in easily her least Sandra Bullockly role get stranded in outer space after an accident involving a Russian missile debris leaves their space shuttle inoperable and the two of them spinning seemingly into oblivion. The director, Alfonso Cuaron has created some of the best visuals that I've ever viewed in a movie theater and his use of 3D completely immerses you in outer space as if you are there. There are moments that will leave you breathless and leave your heart racing all in one fail swoop, the film is being released as well in 3D IMAX locations and I can only imagine how much more the large formatted screen adds to it, to be sure standard 3D at the minimum is the only way to view this film. Seeing it in 2D would just be a disservice. Cuaron is almost assured a best director Oscar nomination, there are segments of the film that are just one long take that do nothing but help put yourself in the place of the two astronauts he has crafted this skill even more since his last film 2006's inhumanely underrated "Children of Men". Technical Oscars such as editing, sound, cinematography and of course special effects are a lock.

Other than Ed Harris's voice, Bullock and Clooney are the only ones here. While Clooney does a good job as the veteran astronaut and the calm to Bullock's panicky frenzied Dr. Ryan Stone don't be fooled, this is Bullocks movie in easily the best role of her career. The idea alone of two astronauts floating in space isn't anything groundbreaking, nor that interesting. The two performances intertwined with the visuals are what sells it. The scripted dialogue itself isn't anything to write home about and even has quite a few clichés towards the end but Bullock and to a lesser degree Clooney since he doesn't have the same amount of screen time that Bullock does make you believe and feel that they are in peril.

The runtime is a crisp 90 minutes, any longer and I'd have probably needed a Valium to calm myself. "Gravity" for me was more than a movie-its art. Wherever the 3D technology goes from here "Gravity" will be looked on as the film that took the next step, its the type of film that there needs to be more of it is what makes the movie going experience simply that, an experience.

The Butler

"The Butler" is probably the first movie of the summer that your mom, grandmother and aunt want to see, more or less because Oprah is in it. "The Butler" tells the true story of Cecil Gaines, played by Ridgemont High's own Forest Whitaker. Mr. Gaines was a butler in the white house for 8 Presidents, the movie is basically history through his eyes during the height of the Civil Rights movement while he serves the people who will shape it. Basically "The Butler" is "Forrest Gump", if Forrest Gump was a butler. The movie is riveting in parts however it does commit the mortal movie sin of trying way way too hard to become a prestige picture. The performances, especially from Oprah and Forest Whitaker are great and the overall story and execution is worthy.

Usually a movie with the cast predominantly made up of African Americans has the words "Tyler Perry's" in the title, its unfortunate and unnecessary but the majority of films made or starring African Americans are crap. Even when Hollywood deems a movie with this subject matter marketable it either comes off as a movie about kindly white people helping blacks in need (The Help) or just comes off as blatantly racist or stereotypical (Precious). The director of "The Butler" is Lee Daniels who also directed "Precious", himself an African American and while "The Butler" is a lot more accessible to the mainstream than "Precious" was the fact that this movie has Academy Award consideration written all over it the overall message of it sometimes gets lost.

Cecil Gaines was raised on a cotton farm in the south and after the death of his father by one of the farm owners family members Cecil is brought into the house, again by a kindly white woman (Vanessa Redgrave) and is taught how to serve the family and houseguests thus is his destiny to become a butler. Cecil as a grown man finds himself working in a hotel and through the recommendation of one of his regulars gets a job at the white house starting off with the Eisenhower administration. All of the Presidents are played by name actors: Robin Williams and Dwight Eisenhower, James Marsden as John F. Kennedy, Liev Schreiber as Lyndon Johnson, John Cusack as Richard Nixon and Alan Rickman as Ronald Regan. The other presidents that he served during his tenure are left out, either due to running time or they couldn't find any name actors that resemble them. Cusack as Nixon for me was the only one that really stood out and the choice to have name actors in these small, almost niche roles comes off more as stunt casting than anything as their screen time is minimal at best.

When on the clock Gaines is there solely to serve, if you believe the movie he was there to comfort Jackie Kennedy after JFK was assassinated and help Lyndon Johnson with his apparent constipation problem with prune juice always readily available. Where "The Butler" succeeds are the scenes featuring Gaines's family including his wife played in a great turn by Oprah Winfrey and his battle with his son (David Oyelowo) who is at the forefront of the Civil Rights movement and battles with his father on this subject matter. Had the movie focused more on this element and less on the showcase of Presidents the movie's overall message would be more clear rather than a cinematic Cliff's note of history through the turbulent 60's, 70's and early 80's.

Despite the criticism overall "The Butler" is a worthy movie and probably an important one for those not familiar with the time period on which is focused here. Though not as enthralling as his turn in "The Last King of Scotland" which got him an Oscar statue Whitaker is almost assured of a nomination for his work here as well as Oprah for best supporting actress as she certainly is not playing "Oprah" playing a character.

Blue Jasmine

"Blue Jasmine" is the latest film from legendary filmmaker Woody Allen. While not up to par overall with recent Allen flicks like "Vicky Christina Barcelona" and "Midnight In Paris" Jasmine does offer a tour de force performance by lead actress Cate Blanchett as well as solid supporting performances which comes as expected from Allen films. This reviewer is sort of a late bloomer to the work of Allen only fully becoming appreciative of his films with his more recent work.

The story is set mostly in present day San Francisco, a first for an Allen film and tells the story of Jasmine, played by Blanchett who comes to S.F. from New York after the death of her husband played by the always dependable Alec Baldwin who was in prison for a Bernie Madoff like financial scandal that lead to his suicide while in prison. Jasmine moves in with her adoptive sister Ginger played by British actress Sally Hawkins. Jasmine herself has recently suffered a nervous breakdown of sorts and the movie is basically her story of trying to adapt from her life of luxury and riches to trying to pick up the pieces and try to survive in a life of normalcy.

Allen has been making films since the 70's, he has always written female characters well from Diane Keaton in his most famous movie "Annie Hall" to most recently Scarlett Johansson in films like "Match Point" and the before mentioned "Vicky Christina Barcelona". Allen is pushing 80 years old and while his movies are generally set in modern times I often wonder if he actually still does all his own writing, be that as his may the script here is solid as usual even if with a 90 minute run time it does run long in places and some plot points like Jasmines relationship with her stepson fall flat and take away from the overall story. The dialogue remains sharp and timely and while this is much more a drama than comedy there are enough chuckles among the melodrama.

Blanchett is most assuredly getting an Academy Award nomination for her role here and if the remaining years female performances don't show something outstanding she is clearly the frontrunner to take home her second statue. Jasmine is either crazy or ignorant to the fact that her life is changed and Blanchett doesn't play either side to the point of parody or imitation of past performances in other films, its sad, depressing and funny all in one. The rest of the cast is filled with also great performances from Baldwin as well as character actor Bobby Canavale and an out of nowhere subtle performance from former 1980's stand up comedian mega star Andrew Dice Clay. Clay's performance is really really good, its unfortunate though that he only has a few scenes in the film or he could easily be looking at a best supporting actor nomination for himself which would be in the vein of Mickey Rourke getting his nomination for "The Wrestler" but its unlikely to happen. Ahead of seeing the movie I was looking most forward to seeing another stand up comedian, Louis C.K. but again while he is very good with what little screen time he is given I was looking for more humor from his character, this could be just the expectation from myself as I am a huge fan of his stand up and TV work on "Louie".

So overall unless you are interested in seeing great performances or are a fan of Woody Allen either from past or present "Blue Jasmine" is probably not the film for you. If you are interested though rent "Annie Hall" or "Hannah and Her Sisters" or "Vicky Christina Barcelona" so you get an idea of what to expect from this auteur. It will be well worth your time.

Kick-Ass 2

"Kick-Ass 2" comes in as one of this reviewers most anticipated movies of the Summer, if not the year. The original "Kick-Ass" came out in 2010 and while not a huge box-office success grew enough of a fanboy and cult following that three years later we now have the aptly titled "Kick-Ass 2". For the uninitiated, "Kick-Ass" is the name of our titular hero who during regular hours is Average Joe high school senior Dave Lizewski. The movie, as was its predecessor uses the most of its R rating  is extremely violent but still keeps its humor in tact and while not as outstanding as the original is still a sequel that is warranted and immensely entertaining.

The story picks up with Kick-Ass abandoning his role as a community service superhero and trying to lead a normal life. His former partner the fan favorite Hit-Girl, played by the great young actress Chloe Grace Moretz is not adapting as easy to regular life and she soons enlists Kick-Ass to help her defend the city to keep the dying wish of her father, Big Daddy formerly played in his last truly great performance by Nicolas Cage. Soon it comes about that another former average joe superhero, Red Mist has now converted himself into average Joe super-villain known as "The Motherfucker" who seeks vengeance against Kick-Ass for the death of his father at the end of the first installment.

Highlights:

Hit-Girl: I thought one of the difficulties the sequel might have is making the character of Hit-Girl as outlandish and brazen as she was in the first movie. The big problem is obviously Hit-Girl is no longer a 9 year old girl who curses and wields a butterfly knife whilst kicking bad guys heads in. Now as a 15 year old the cursing element isn't as shocking obviously but the character is still one of the better ones of the last decade. Chloe Grace Moretz looks to be the Jodie Foster of her generation, I look forward to seeing her continue to take on complex and varying roles a'la Jennifer Lawrence and Scarlett Johansson. Hit-Girls storyline works as she mutates into your stereotypical 15 year old teen-bop as well as still holding onto the great elements that are Hit-Girl. Robin wishes she was her indeed.

Jim Carrey: Jim Carrey takes the place of Nicolas Cage as the big name in the cast. Carrey has separated himself from "Kick-Ass 2" during the publicity tour because in light of the recent school shootings and gun control battle he didn't think it was appropriate. This is a shame as the role of Colonel Stars and Stripes, another suburban super hero is easily his best role in years and its unfortunate that its both more of a cameo than a supporting turn and that he has turned his back on it after declaring that he was a fan of the first film.


Violence is a big part of the movie, most of it over the top and often played for laughs. I can understand in theory Carrey's point about not wanting to seemingly endorse a product that glamorizes violence given the numerous events over the last year alone. My counterpoint would be that the movie is rated R for good reason but its kind of hypocritical that movies such as Iron Man 3 and Man of Steel show destruction upon destruction which leaves thousands upon thousands dead but because they actually don't show people dying or they show bloodless deaths it's ok because it gets a PG-13 rating. 

Kick-Ass doesn't try to be anything that its not. If you are a fan of the original then you will love this new entry, if you have no idea who or what Kick-Ass is then its probably not the movie for you.

2 Guns

"2 Guns" brings us the unique pairing of two of the bigger stars of the moment, Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg. This summer movie season has brought a plethora of action pics to the cinema and now as we wind down the summer movie season some might be getting a bit tired of the genre. "2 Guns", even with its generic title and at times discombobulated storyline does work on many levels and is an effective entry in the 80's style action yarn that has seen a renaissance as of late thanks in part to Sylvester Stallone and his "Expendables" series.

Like we talked about in this season's earlier entry "The Heat" movies such as this either flip or fly based on the charisma between the two main leads. While "2 Guns" is not a straight comedy as "The Heat" was they are similar in that Washington and Wahlberg play extremely well off of each other like Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy did. The cast overall is superb with everyone seeming to have fun with dialogue that in lesser hands could come off as stale and generic. Wahlberg and Washington play two would be crooks who are actually working undercover unbeknownst to each other, Washington as a DEA agent and Wahlberg as a naval intelligence officer. Both are trying to infiltrate a drug kingpin's cartel. The kingpin is played by Edward James Olmos (Stand and Deliver) in a great turn that is sorely underused. The absolutely breathtaking Paula Patton plays Washington's DEA partner and while in a perfect world I'd be raving about her acting chops, she is really there just as eye candy which is certainly ok by me. The one that really steals the show is the always dependable and "AOM" fave Bill Paxton as a corrupt CIA bigwig. One of "2 Guns" faults is that there are too many villains as James Marsden shows up as a Naval officer with bad intentions as well. Olmos and Paxton alone are worth the price of admission, Paxton has a great scene with Washington involving Russian Roulette and this might be a turning point in his career as he transitions into character actor from leading man a'la Alec Baldwin.

Washington and Wahlberg are on the run from all the bad guys involved after a failed bank robbery which becomes all the more difficult after they both realize they are undercover and not sure if they can trust one another. The movie has a hard time transitioning from comedy to straight action and while Washington knows how to read his character Wahlberg's interpretation of the character goes from fast talking wiseguy to serious where it would just be better if he stayed funny all the time. This can be blamed on the script as it goes from a great first half, to a confusing yet entertaining middle and then goes full Michael Bay for the conclusion, again its a mess but its a very fulfilling/entertaining mess.

The Wolverine

"The Wolverine", the sixth entry in the Marvel comics movie franchise of "The Uncanny X-Men" might well be the biggest surprise of the summer, considering that the last stand alone Wolverine movie, "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" almost nearly destroyed one of the 21st centuries most iconic screen characters.

"X-Men" has taken the reverse action against its Marvel counterpart "The Avengers" in that we first got the original trilogy of "X-Men" films which featured the group of superhero mutants including Storm, Cyclops, Professor X, Rouge and countless others as well as most notably Wolverine who at this time is the only one to have his own stand alone features. This is not shocking as Wolverine has the best backstory out of all the "X-Men" and with thanks to star Hugh Jackman is the most charismatic. After the original "X-Men" trilogy ended with the ho-hum "The Last Stand" it was with great anticipation that we got 2009's "Origins". "Origins" was to tell the story essentially of how Wolverine came to be who he is: a man who lives seemingly forever and due to scientific experiments has obtained an adamantium skeleton which gives him the ability to heal from any type of injury whether it be a broken leg or surviving an atom bomb attack. The movie failed on basically every level and came off as more of a weaker version of "X-Men" with uninteresting supporting characters including fan favorites "Deadpool" and "Gambit" and even Jackman came off as bored with the role and just in it for the fat paycheck that he surely got.

Whether it was the success and goodwill that 2011's franchise reboot "X-Men: First Class" got upon release or that just enough time has passed since his last stand alone outing Jackman is back in full mutton chop and wife-beater shirt mode with "The Wolverine". While there are definite connections to the original "X-Men" movies I consider this to be more of a standalone adventure. Other than a few cameo scenes from one "X-woman" in particular Jackman/Wolverine is the only recognizable face here as the rest of the cast is rounded out by Japanese actors as the story is set in present day Japan. This is probably the biggest reason why the movie succeeds, "Origins" made the unfortunate mistake of casting Ryan Reynolds aka "box-office poison" to partner with Wolverine as the before mentioned "Deadpool" and the movie was so focused on getting the audience to like "Deadpool" it took away from Wolverine.

The story for "The Wolverine" first takes place moments before the atomic bomb drop in Nagasaki, Japan during WWII. Wolverine/Logan saves the life of a young Japanese soldier who, fast forward 60 years later has become a giant corporate billionaire dying of cancer and wants to repay Wolverine for what he did for him so many years prior, but is it to good to be true? Wolverine is found in rural Alaska by one of the billionaires employees, who also happens to be a kung-fu master with psychic abilities. She's played by Japanese actress Rila Fukishima who will definitely give "Pacific Rim" star Rinko Kikuchi a run for her money in the "hot geek Japanese chick" race. Once Wolverine is convinced to take the trip back to Japan he gets involved of course in the conflict between the Japanese mafia and the billionaires family. While the overall the plot is by no means "based on a true story" after the CGI madness that was "Man of Steel" and even good movies such as "Pacific Rim" and "Iron Man 3" its nice to see regular good old fashioned real fight scenes here and the overall story is generally based in somewhat reality other than the kind of sloppy ending which comes off like the end of a bad James Bond movie, but even that is redeemed with a surprising twist that is very satisfying.

Director James Mangold, known for more adult fare such as "Walk the Line" and "3:10 to Yuma" was an odd choice especially after original choice Darren Aronofsky was such a brilliant one but had to drop out. Mangold doesn't do anything groundbreaking here but he keeps the action moving swiftly, most notably a scene taking place on a bullet train going full speed is one of the better action scenes of the year. "Everyone you ever love will die" is a phrase used throughout the movie, when you actually think about that phrase and how it connects with why Wolverine is a grumpy introvert and reluctant hero, it makes this a true origins story, even though Wolverine's other mainstay: a cigar is surprisingly and disappointingly absent.

Jackman was able to sing and dance through the French Revolution in "Les Miserables" because of Wolverine, he owes his career to the character. He is a very charismatic actor who can both be funny and serious, just like Wolverine. This movie requires the main character to carry the film and Jackman succeeds in bringing his signature role off of life support and back into the consciousness. It will be interesting to see where the character goes from here as its the rare character that the actor can actually age with, not saying I want to see him yelling "get off my lawn!" to a bunch of young mutant punks but it could be interesting.

**As with any Marvel movie be sure to stay for the end credits as you get a great sneak peek at next years "X-Men: Days of Future Past" which collides both group of X-men from original franchise and first class. I love that Marvel does this with all their movies, its a reason to go to the theater and their sneaks are usually effective in getting the fanboys excited and this peek is no exception, its better than most trailers can even hope for.

The Conjuring

After a fantastic opening title sequence "The Conjuring" seemed like it was going to fall into the same realm of today's version of "scary" movies, which in fact aren't scary at all. The first half hour or so is filled with the standard "Paranormal Activity" "scares" of creaking floor boards, doors closing on their own and creepy children. Thankfully though "The Conjuring" then takes a unpredicted turn and while the filmmaker still uses the old standard scare tactics the execution is such that "The Conjuring" ranks for me as one of the better standard scary movies of the last decade.

"The Conjuring" is based on a "true" account from real life Ghostbusters and husband and wife team Ed and Lorraine Warren. I'll say that while Ed and Lorraine are in fact real people and ghost-busting is their real profession I'm sure as with most "based on a true story" flicks a lot of liberties are taken here. Director James Wan, who most notably made his debut with the original and easily best movie in the now defunct "Saw" franchise and more recently with another haunted house flick "Insidious", which I found unbearably not scary and forgettable other than a great performance by Barbara Hershey. "Conjuring" and "Insidious" share a lot of the same DNA, including star Patrick Wilson but whether its the true story elements or just learning from past mistakes "The Conjuring" is vastly more superior and effective than "Insidious". The big difference is that "The Conjuring" is not your ordinary scary movie in that it borrows from many different genres and past movies.

Homages to "The Exorcist", "Amityville Horror" and "Rosemary's Baby" among other great scary movies are all evident here. As opposed to playing out one genre to death "The Conjuring" gives us numerous tastes but never enough to either become boring or repetitive. The exorcism angle was for me most notable as it is very rarely effective on film unless you are watching "The Exorcist" and in this day of computer special effects they chose to use old school make-up effects which makes it look more real which in turn makes it more scary. Creaking floor boards and things of that nature don't really do it for me in terms of getting the chills but as evidenced by the popularity in "Paranormal Activity" people do go for that stuff and there is a lot of it here as well. The musical score, as composed by Joseph Bishara adds to the scare tactics implemented here.

"The Conjuring" is also composed of a surprising for the genre high pedigree cast.  The before mentioned Patrick Wilson (Watchmen)  rebounds from his horrible guest starring role in last seasons "Girls" to play Ed Warren and as his wife Vera Farmiga (Bates Motel) shows she can do this type of genre in her sleep. Ron Livingston (Office Space) and Lily Taylor (Say Anything) round out the adult cast. As was the case with "Pacific Rim" there are very good child performances in "The Conjuring", especially from relative newcomer Joey King who looks like she may be following in the footsteps of Jodie Foster and more recently Chloe Grace Moretz.

Telling you the scary parts of a movie is like telling you the funny parts in a movie, it just doesn't work. What can be said though as someone who is one of the biggest skeptics of "scary" movies out there "The Conjuring" by maybe just process of elimination as there is nothing released recently to compare it to is something that as either a genre fan or as someone looking to get to 2nd base should lay down the cash and go see.

Pacific Rim

"Pacific Rim" the newest movie from fanboy fave director Guillermo Del Toro is 2+ hours of the longest, most expensive, most visually stimulating fanboy cream dream that has ever been seen. If the 13 year old version of myself could come out for a moment I can sum up the movie this way: "Pacific Rim" is FUCKING awesome!

The Setting for "Pacific Rim" is in the not too distance future when giant monsters start emerging from an alternative universe whose gateway portal to earth is discovered to be thousands of miles under the sea. The monsters are known as Kaiju and after lengthy traditional battles the world unites to undertake a project to build a series of man operated machines known as Jaegers. The Jaegers are operated by two co-pilots with "Avatar" like technology where their minds meld together as one brain, one controls the left side of the robot while the other controls the right.

Charlie Hunnam known by most from "Sons of Anarchy" but known by cool people for his work on "Undeclared" is the main character a once hot shot Jaeger pilot who due to the death of his co-pilot brother quits and becomes a construction worker. Fast forward a few years and the governments of the world have decided the Jaeger program is no longer working and have decided to build large walls around costal cities as a sort of blockade from the Kaiju, a very wall that Hunnam's character is working on! British badass and Julianne Gabert crush Idris Elba plays the leader of the newly underground Jaeger program and he seeks out Hunnam to re-enroll in the program as his old machine, aptly named "Gipsy Danger" has been put back into active duty.

Even if that above plot sypnosis did nothing for you or just made no sense "Pacific Rim" is for anyone who likes going to the movies to be wowed. We make fun of Michael Bay a lot here at "The AOM" and we will continue to do that here: "Pacific Rim" is just like "Transformers" if "Transformers" had any type of soul, humor and a director who wasn't in love with himself. Del Toro puts all of his geekdom passion in this effort, there are enough geek references and MechWarrior nods to keep the nerds happy and enough humor and originality to keep those with significant others interested. Even Hellboy himself Ron Pearlman stops by in a great role as a black market dealer known as "Hannibal Chau" (be sure to stay during the credits for a bonus scene involving Chau's fate). Japanese babe Rinko Kikuchi also stars joining a long list that includes Angelina Jolie, Milla Jovovich and Jennifer Lawrence as a hot babe who kicks ass.

Del Toro has proved with "Pans Labyrinth" and even the "Hellboy" movies that his prime objectives are visuals and story. The overall story of "Pacific Rim" has a few holes but is understandable and a given for a movie on this large of scale. the individual stories of the characters however are what really make the movie work. Most notably Kikuchi's character suffers a great loss as a child in the film that is told in flashbacks. Del Toro does have a pension for showing children in crisis and these scenes are heartbreaking to watch, massive shout-out to the child actor here who gives the best performance by a kid I've seen since the creepy little boy in "Looper". Idris Elba- who rocks in any role he takes but is especially great here, even delivering an "Independence Day" style speech towards the end that should evoke audience applause. Hunnam is more or less the star here, he definitely has the looks of a star but has to work on the American accent a little bit as there is a right way and a wrong way to deliver cheesy dialogue which he still hasn't figured out how to do. "Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia" star Charlie Day is also featured with a few funny scenes but overall teeters on the brink of annoyance.

Some of the Kaiju monsters look like rejected drawings from the new "Godzilla" reboot and 99.9% of the battles inexplicably take place during giant rain storms which since this takes place roughly 7 years from now could be the direct cause of global warming. The battle scenes between monster and robot are glorious, I saw it in standard 2D but this might have been the rare exception where the IMAX 3D expense would have been well worth it.

If you are like me and like your 200 million dollar budgeted popcorn summer blockbusters with a little bit of substance please seek out "Pacific Rim". On paper it might seem like a 12 year olds fanboy magna novel, which it is but it also is escapism to the very core. Look for end of the year awards consideration for the special effects, sound and sound editing, cinematography and if there is any justice at least a nomination for Ron Pearlman for "Best Supporting Actor".

The Heat

On paper "The Heat" is just another in the long line of generic buddy cop comedies with the asterisk this time of having two females in the lead roles. The list of "buddy cop" movies is long and except for a few exceptions (Lethal Weapon, Tango and Cash, Turner and Hooch) it is a mostly generic, unoriginal genre. Thanks to fantastic chemistry between stars Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy, "The Heat is funnier then it has any business being.

"The Heat" starts out fairly predictable and for a moment it seemed like it would just be a rehash of Bullock's film "Miss Congeniality". Bullock plays an uptight, yet efficient FBI officer who is in need of a serious makeover, both professionally and personally. It's when Bullock is assigned to a drug smuggling case in Boston where she teams up with a local officer played by McCarthy. Bullock can play the ugly duckling role almost too comfortably and once "The Heat" gets going its nice to see her step out of her wheelhouse and genuinely looks like she's having fun dropping F-bombs and shooting people.

For me McCarthy is the real stand out here. After the triumph that was "Bridesmaids" McCarthy was deemed Hollywood's next big comedy superstar, and deservedly so. Though after this year's absolutely dreadful "Identity Thief" I thought McCarthy may have gotten too big too fast and was on a course to follow Jack Black as a huge star who suddenly just collapses onto itself. She plays tough as nails "Bahstahn" cop Shannon Mullins here and if you are a fan of the cop genre as I am the stuff she does with your stereotypical cop film details is absolutely dead on. If this was a remake of "Point Break" Bullock would be Johnny Utah and McCarthy would be a cross between Patrick Swayze and Gary Busey's characters.


As with most comedies, the plot is really not important here though the screenwriter Katie Dippold does make the crime at hand somewhat interesting and I was kind of thrown off by the semi surprise twist towards the end. The movie is also filled with a lot of great bit players who make the most of their screen time including former "New Kids on the Block" member Joey Mcintyre and Thomas F. Wilson known most notably as "Biff" from the "Back to the Future" franchise.

For a mainstream comedy "The Heat" hits on pretty much every level. I appreciated the physical comedic talents of the two main leads showed as well as their performances with the dialogue. If "This is the End" seems a little to left of center for you then I would fully endorse seeing "The Heat" for some good hearty laughs.

The Bling Ring

"The Bling Ring", the 5th film from indie darling and Hollywood royalty Sofia Coppola is a pop fusion of celebrity, technology, youth, fun and a cautionary tale that should be sought out.

"TBR" tells the true story of a group of Hollywood teenagers that in 2008 used the internet and social media to break into the homes and rob some of the days biggest celebrities including Paris Hilton, Rachel Bilson, Orlando Bloom and the crème de la crème of the day: Lindsay Lohan. Much like this years "Spring Breakers" "TBR" is a comment on youth in today's culture and again like "Spring Breakers" its spot on.

After 2010's disappointing "Somewhere" director Coppola returns to more of the form that we expect from the director of great movies like "The Virgin Suicides" and "Lost in Translation". Coppola writes as well as directs all her films and while scene chewing dialogue is not her strong point her female characters are always strongly constructed and former "Harry Potter" star Emma Watson really shines here in her first real role outside of the boy wizard franchise. Watson plays Nicki, one of the Bling Ring members who along with relative newcomers Katie Chang and Israel Broussard are the standout characters of the ring. Perennial "Aisle of Mann" favorite Aimee Mann also shows up as Nicki's mom who homeschools her and is a devout follower of "The Secret". Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale also appears as a sleazy nightclub owner.

I remember following the story of "The Bling Ring" as it actually happened, the movie is a great time capsule of the early 2000's when websites like TMZ and dlisted were in the newborn stages of reporting celebrity newstories often before mainstream media even had a clue that people were interested. These kids simply Google the addresses of the celebrities they target and find out when they are out of town filming or at a late night party and treat their Hollywood Hills pads as their own personal mall, without any remorse or thought of consequence.

Coppola grew up in Hollywood and is probably the best teller of this story, a mainstream structured production of this could easily come off as a Lifetime movie of the week. Along with creating a great soundtrack Coppola doesn't take sides and just shows the story as it probably actually happened.

Between Emma Watson's performance and the stylish setting and story take a chance on "The Bling Ring" it will remind you that you in fact used to be as cool as these kids, but maybe not with the same wrap sheet.

World War Z

We here at "The Aisle of Mann" love zombies. We've loved zombies before the TV show "The Walking Dead" made zombies cool and now everyone loves zombies including your grandma.

The "zombie" movie is a genre in of its own. Usually made for cheap and marketed to teens the zombie genre can range everywhere from the funny: "Shaun of the Dead" and "Zombieland", the topical: "Dawn of the Dead,1978" and the downright scary: "28 Days Later". The newest addition to the zombie genre is "World War Z". Easily the biggest, most expensive zombie movie ever made it also has easily the biggest movie star in the world headlining: Brad Pitt.

Purist's might scoff at the fact that the cult that is the zombie culture would be soiled with the likes of a big time movie star like Brad Pitt and a budget of nearly 200 million and rated PG-13. "World War Z" is based on the bestselling book by Max Brooks and blatantly is the story of the worlds demise during the end all be all zombie uprising. The budget for this material is warranted, zombie godfather George A. Romero couldn't even tackle this subject matter on a small scale budget. The question is always of course, is it any good? In short, while not the best zombie movie I've seen "World War Z" gets the distinct honor of being named the "Citizen Kane" of zombie movies.

As I stated earlier "WWZ" is based on a well known book of the same name, I've read the book and I assume at least some of you out there reading this have read it as well. compare and contrast between book and movie is not the goal here, to summarize: I LOVED the book, the movie I liked very very much. If you are going to the movie for a exact interpretation of the book then I'd just stay home, enjoy the movie as its own.

Brad Pitt plays "Gerry" a former UN worker who is now a stay at home dad. A zombie outbreak occurs while Pitt, his wife and two daughters are stuck in traffic in downtown Philadelphia. The movie is divided into two halves, the first is about Pitt and his family trying to escape zombies and get somewhere safe has some good action scenes and ok for PG-13 zombie gore. The family finally gets aboard a UN aircraft carrier and Gerry is forced to go back into the field to help find the origin of this outbreak which may lead to a cure. This is where the movie really picks up for me and "World War Z" turns into a superior film.

Other than the zombies, this is Pitt's movie. Other than character actor David Morse (The Green Mile) and a blink and you miss it cameo from Matthew Fox (Lost) Pitt is surrounded by either zombies or actors you never heard of. His performance here is subdued for the genre, "WWZ" is trying to make an as true to life movie about zombies as there can be and it does a good job. I would have liked to seen a little more humor however. The scenes between Pitt and his family are his most effective, he doesn't go into pure zombie kick ass mode too much which was disappointing.

What about the true stars, the zombies? Traditional zombies move slow and awkwardly, zombies for the new generation are quick and smart for being half dead. "WWZ" goes with the quick zombies here, no new ground is broken in terms of the makeup or how the zombies act but I did find myself jumping out of my seat a few times as "WWZ" does offer a few genuine scares. The biggest thing holding "WWZ" back is its PG-13 rating. Zombies attack in droves in some scenes and attack countless people but hardly a spatter of blood is shown. What it lacks in blood and guts "WWZ" does in fact make up for it in action scenes, two in particular during a zombie attack on a in flight plane and on the streets of Jerusalem are better than ANYTHING in "Man of Steel". The final showdown between Pitt and the zombies is tight and nerve-racking even if it is a slight homage to the raptors in "Jurassic Park."

What I hope "WWZ" brings to the table is that genre pictures such as zombie flicks can be sold to the masses and can carry a big budget and big movie stars. "World War Z" does a great job of wiping the wretched taste of "Man of Steel" from my palate even if there was a little left to be desired.

Man of Steel

And then I became really worried when they turned Lois Lane into a redhead....



"Man of Steel", the latest attempt to reboot the now 75 year old franchise that is "Superman" has finally arrived after months and months....and months of hype and hoopla. It's been somewhat of a bumpy road for Supes which is surprising seeing as he is arguably the most popular and recognizable of the superheroes. Superman was probably at his most popular during the late 70's and early 80's with Christopher Reeve putting on the spandex and starring in 4 movies (2 of which were great, the last 2....not so much) reboot upon reboot tried to take form during the 90's, most notably with director Tim Burton and star Nicholas Cage but those never came to fruition. 2006 finally brought Supes back to the big screen in director Bryan Singer's underappreciated "Superman Returns" starring complete unknown Brandon Routh. Even with a 200 million domestic gross "SR" was not able to revitalize the franchise and DC comics had to take a backseat to Marvel in the comic book movie wars.

I don't hold Superman in the high regards that most of my fellow fanboys do, I have and always will be apart of #teammarvel but along with Batman I have always respected the mythology of Kal-El/Clark Kent and will always show up for the movies. The main problem with Superman being converted into a feature film is the problem that other American literary classics have: the material, it can be said is un-adaptable. It may seem odd to think that a comic book such as Superman could be un-adaptable but beyond the "faster than a locomotive" notion there are a lot of layers to the character and the world(s) on which he is from.

After the success of "The Dark Knight" trilogy director Christopher Nolan was tapped to produce a new Superman movie. On paper this seems genius, after Batman was basically turned into a walking punchline Nolan revitalized Batman. It showed that when done right comic book movies can be seen as more than just popcorn fluff.


The bottom line is that "Man of Steel", with all the talent involved has to be looked at as the biggest disappointment of the year. Nolan again is just producer here but other than a few moments it hardly seems like he had any involvement at all. The director, Zack Snyder has made one great movie (Dawn of the Dead), two good movies (300 and Watchmen), a horrible movie (Suckerpunch) and a movie about talking owls (Legend of the Guardians) he has a great visual eye but his actual storytelling abilities leave much to be desired. Henry Cavill is Superman this time around and while he definitely has the look and build for Supes he plays the character very wooden and stale. This could be more from the wooden and stale script but the big problem here is that if this movie spawns off sequels and the long in development "Justice League" movie he has to be more charismatic. Amy Adams is Lois Lane and while its nice to see the character as more than just the damsel in distress even as talented as an actress as Adams is I just don't think that 250 million dollar blockbusters are really in her comfort zone. Kevin Costner and Diane Lane play Superman's adoptive parents, Jonathan and Martha Kent and both, especially Costner are underused as the stuff about Clark growing up and discovering his powers are some of the best stuff in the film.

The story structure is the movies main problem. Jumping between past and present gets tiresome and Clark seemingly jumps into his role as Superman in basically one scene, he gets the suit, he figures out how to fly and BOOM! he's Superman. The outline of the story was crafted by Nolan but Snyder can't tell the story with the same depth that Nolan would had he been behind the camera, the last 40 minutes or so is basically a CGI clusterfuck and a great character such as General Zod is basically left as a screaming thespian as played by character actor Michael Shannon. The final act of "Man of Steel is really its undoing, along with the CGI clusterfuck the movie ends just as last years "Skyfall" did in that it wraps everything that you actually wanted to see throughout the movie in the last 5 minutes so it gets you excited for the inevitable sequel(s).

Maybe Superman is the comic book equivalent of "Catcher in the Rye" a piece of literature that is universally loved but should just stay in the written form. To me Superman is not a relatable character and especially since they took kryptonite out of this version he has no weakness so when is there cause for concern? The Superman I respected stood for "Truth, Justice and the American way" this Superman is seemingly wrapped up in his own daddy issues and whether to keep facial hair or not...

How I would change the current movie-going experience

The earliest clear and concise recollection I have going to the movie theater was seeing "Back to the Future Part III" during a very hot summer day. I can remember standing in line outside with many others and then walking into that cool, comfortable theater and all it took was a wild west ride with the DeLorean and I was hooked. Other movie-going highlights include being both awestruck and scared shitless during "Jurassic Park", standing up and cheering with a sold out theater "Independence Day", camping out 12 hours before a movie was even set to premiere "Revenge of the Sith" and maybe most importantly seeing my first fully naked woman on the big screen (Thank you Kate Winslet in "Titanic".)

The movies and more specifically the theater has always been meant as an escape, this is why they became so  poplar around the country during the great depression. Whether you are happy, sad or indifferent the movies allow you to take a "time out" from whatever is going on in your life and laugh, cry, cheer, boo or simply say "meh".

I'm writing this to declare my disdain for the whole movie theater experience lately. Recently I went out to see "The Purge", obviously a younger skewing movie. It was on a Tuesday night which at my local theater means $5.50 for your ticket, not a bad deal. The discount Tuesday deal has been around for awhile now and I'm beginning to notice its starting to bring out the....how should I say....well its brining out those who frequent auctions or trade shows during the weekend or have their DVR storage saved up with countless episodes of "Duck Dynasty" and "Bigfoot Hunters" or have multiple subscriptions to various auto trader magazines. As well as it being the summer time obviously a lot more 12-24 year olds are going to be out as well. I'm not indicating that the movie theater should be an exclusive club by any means, I just believe that as movies become more and more popular there needs to be a universal set of rules that each theater should abide by. These are in no way meant to be a Marxist regime these are just a few "suggestions" that will make the whole experience better for everyone and most importantly for the theaters, make them more money.


                                              1. SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP


Once the previews are over and the movie has started nobody should be allowed to enter the theater. Nothing is worse than when you are trying to get involved in the beginning of a movie and someone or some people are walking into the theater, letting light in and having you get out of your seat so they can walk by. We can't outlaw people leaving to go the restroom but the theater should have a specific employee, the same who cards the kids before they enter an R rated feature to stand by the door and not let late arrivers in.



                                             2. SPEAKING OF USHERS


Ushers need to be doing more than just tearing tickets and telling you the wrong theater that your movie is playing in. I'd appoint one usher to survey the theater from a designated corner for the duration of each showing. Your phone rings or you pull it out to send a tweet or facebook status update during the movie? You're gone. If you are constantly talking or getting up and down to answer a call from your beeper or being a general annoyance to those in the theater, you are gone.




                                            3. FOOD AND BEVERAGE


Lastly, and most importantly the concession stand needs to be improved. Keep the classics like popcorn, candy and soda but does anyone really go to a movie theater with a hankering for a hot dog or nachos? AMPM serves each of these hotter and cheaper. In keeping with the corn theme I think one of those big corn on the cobs you can get at the state fair would be great or a nice hamburger or maybe a salad option for our vegan friends if the selection is expanded I might not feel so pissed when I shell out 7 bucks for a small popcorn. And booze, if I can go to any other major public event: ballgame, live theater, rodeo, truck pull etc and be able to get at least a beer then why cant I get one for a 2 hour movie? Romantic comedies would be much more tolerable for the guys if we could throw back a beer or two as would a action film if the ladies could sip on a nice glass of chardonnay.



There are exceptions to all rules of course and the big one here is that a lot of these rules do not apply if the theater is not at least 3/4 full. If you are in an awesomely bad horror movie and the theater is basically empty feel free to facebook, make snide remarks at the screen or make out with your significant other if you are so lucky....that's what I do.

This is the End

If I told you there was a movie about the Rapture coming out laugh out loud, gasping for air funny is probably not the first thought that would come into your mind. If I followed that up with that it stars: Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel, Craig Robinson, Danny Mcbride, Michael Cera, Jason Segal, Emma Watson, Rihanna and basically anyone else you could think of who ever had a smidge of dialogue in Judd Apatow production in the last 10 years, oh and The Backstreet Boys....well if that interests you then "This is the End" is your Holy Grail my friends.

The basic set up for "This is the End" is that Jay Baruchel comes into LA to visit his best friend Seth Rogen (all the actors are playing a version of themselves). Jay is just looking to hang out with Seth, watch TV, smoke weed and get some Carl's Jr. Seth coaxes Jay into coming with him to James Franco's new house for a party along with all of the above mentioned actors and more. While Jay and Seth go out for cigarettes the Rapture takes place and a giant sinkhole appears in front of Franco's house swallowing up everyone including a coked up, sex addicted Michael Cera (hopefully playing against type). This leaves Franco, Rogen, Baruchel, Hill Robinson and Mcbride left to fend for themselves while hellfire and chaos run rampant in LA.

The reason to see "This is the End" is obviously not for the story itself. "TITE" is co-directed and co-written by Rogen and his "Superbad" co-writer Evan Goldberg and instead of coming off as a self indulgent Hollywood pet project it is easily the funniest movie of the year and will be a mainstay in mine and I'm sure countless others DVD rotation, basically if you are fan of at least two of these actors then you will agree with me.

What ensues during The Rapture are hilarious discussions about fame and celebrity, run ins with demons, an ax wielding Emma Watson, and the exorcism of Jonah Hill. Franco, Mcbride, Hill and Robinson are my MVP's here, a scene involving a confrontation between Franco and Mcbride is one of the funniest scenes in anything I've seen anywhere-its that good. I don't want to delve into specifics of the many great hilarious scenes as coming from me its like when someone tries to re-create a funny joke. Simply put just take yo panties off and go see this movie!

The Purge

"The Purge" is a story set in the not too distant future where under new laws set by Americas new founding fathers for one day a year basically all crime is legal, including murder. This premise sets up what turns out to be a completely effective movie and one of the sleeper hits of the summer movie season.

Ethan Hawke stars here and continues with his mainstream Hollywood comeback. Between "Purge" and last years kinda creepy "Sinister" Hawke has made a nice niche' in the B movie horror/thriller genre. Hawke plays James Sandin who sells state of the art security systems to protect upper class citizens from the dangers of the annual purge, including his own family of 4 which includes Lena Headey (Game of Thrones) as his wife. A series of events lead the Sandin's youngest son to let a random homeless man who is being chased by "purgers" into their home for protection. From here "The Purge" becomes a nice mishmash of "Taken" and "Funny Games".

"The Purge" comes from the producer of recent low budget "scary" movies like "Insidious" and the "Paranormal Activity" franchise Jason Blum. Much like uber producer Jerry Bruckheimer has signature aspects in all his films Blum's films do as well. "The Purge" is definitely more of a domestic thriller than horror/scary but it does include low budget scares such as people jumping out of shadows and loud ominous orchestra score during high tense moments. James DeMonaco is the first time director here and can set up a high tense scene very well and though his script is not very talk heavy he gets his point and intention clearly across.

The main flaw with "The Purge" is that even though the movies running time is a perfect for its genre 85 minutes long I felt that there was a lot left on the table in terms of backstory. What exactly were the events that were the causation for the purge to become legal? Who are the governing bodies who set this law up? Also the main villains in the story really have no story other than a creepy monologue by the main baddie towards the beginning of the film, it leaves a lot to be desired on the table. The film also takes itself almost too seriously, implementing more humor into a sick, deranged scenario a'la "Funny Games" could benefit if any sequel(s) are to be made.

The Premise is the selling point here, if that doesn't work then the movie doesn't work. Coincidentally or not, the recent events with the NSA are kind of a companion piece to the story here in terms of how much involvement should the government have in your life? Questions such as "Is killing one to save my family the right thing to do?" are asked throughout, for a movie mainly targeted at the 20 something crowd it has a lot of big ideas, again something refreshing in this era of sequels and remakes that we are currently in.

So the overall success of the execution in "The Purge" makes it a welcome change and a must see.

Now You See Me

"Now You See Me" starts out with great potential as a surprise sleeper hit of the Summer movie season but unfortunately doesn't have quite enough follow through to make it anything other than just a very "ok" movie.

"Now You See Me" can best be described as "Ocean's 11 meets The Italian Job with Magicians". The story is about 4 B-level magicians who are mysteriously brought together to perform what becomes the biggest magic act in Las Vegas. The final act at one of their shows is to rob a random audience members bank. This "trick" is a success and soon the police become involved and are hot on the trail of the 4 magicians as the try and complete the trifecta of huge robberies.

The cast here is almost a dream, no huge stars but a plethora of solid actors. Included are Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), Woody Harrelson (The People VS. Larry Flynt), Isla Fisher (Wedding Crashers), Dave Franco (James's brother), Mark Ruffalo (The Avengers), Morgan Freeman (every other movie since 1992), Michael Caine (The Dark Knight trilogy) and the GORGEOUS Melanie Laurent (Inglorious Basterds). The basic storyline and the cast were the two major selling points for me to see this movie, unfortunately the movie suffers from a longer than needed running time and is inconsistent for the majority of its nearly two hour running time other than a very good 35-40 minutes towards the middle of the picture and standout performances from Ruffalo and Laurent.

The main problem with "Now You See Me" is that if you are like me you go in expecting to see a movie about these magicians who rob banks, but in reality the movie is about Ruffalo's detective character on the pursuit. Ruffalo again is outstanding but segments of the movie go on with no magicians and when they did finally show up again I had honestly forgotten about them. When they are on screen they are mostly doing stage performances and the dialogue is almost entirely ADR (additional dialogue recorded) this is disheartening especially as a fan of Eisenberg, who really seems out of his element here and Harrleson who as the teams mentalist has some of the biggest laughs but again just underused. Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine show up basically playing versions of other characters that they have played in superior movies, Freeman genuinely seems to be having fun with his role but it appears this was strictly a paycheck role for Caine who himself was in one of the better movies about magicians "The Prestige".

Five screenwriters are credited with "Now You See Me" which is even more evidence that the parties involved here couldn't decide which direction they wanted to take the movie. Too many times you are lead to just assume "well its magic so I wont ask questions" which in turn is discrediting to your audience, sure there are moments where things happened that even surprised me but the moments of eye rolling were equal if not surpassed. French director Louis Letterier has made a few big budget Hollywood films before but he is better suited for movies with more explosions than is what offered here, movies about magicians such as the aforementioned "The Prestige" and "The Illusionist" are prime examples of this, "Now You See Me" could have benefited with a director with visual flare and storytelling abilities, Barry Sonnenfeld would have been my choice.

I thought "Now You See Me" would be an interesting change for the normal Summer movie selection, the idea is original and it is nice to see non blockbuster actors get blockbuster work overall this movie was a disappointment with a few bright spots mixed in.

The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" is considered by most (including me) as one of the greatest American novels ever written. It was with great caution/anticipation that I walked into Australian auteur Baz Luhrmann's shiny new version. Gatsby has been adapted into film a few times before, most notably (boringly) in the 70's with Robert Redford as the title character. Luhrmann has adapted great works of literature before, 1996's  Romeo + Juliet was a great modern day take on the classic tale of love. Luhrmann however also has in his arsenal one of the worst movies I've ever seen: 2001's musical on crack "Moulin Rouge". This Gatsby was also being filmed in 3D, maybe a way to intrigue those who only read the Cliff's Notes version of Gatsby during their high school days. What is presented here is a grand mix of grandiose production design and a highly faithful adaptation of the book with a few flaws but overall a very good and surprising film.

Leonardo DiCaprio plays reclusive millionaire?, billionaire? Jay Gatsby here in a role that is tailor made for him. The main cast is filled out by Toby Maguire as Nick Carraway, also the films narrator, Carey Mulligan as Gatsby's love interest Daisy Buchanan and scene stealer Joel Edgerton as Daisy's husband/Gatsby's rival Tom Buchanan. I've always interpreted Gatsby from the book as a kind of Howard Hughesish playboy, has a taste for the finer things but also is reclusive and wary of people outside of his inner circle. DiCaprio does a fine job here but as the character is written he goes from reclusive shut in to a love interest for the newest Katherine Heigl romantic comedy, its an uneven interpretation at best. The role of Daisy while vital to the story is kind of a thankless role, Daisy is one of the more frustrating characters in the book. Mulligan obviously has the beauty for the role but isn't given a lot of dialogue to chew on. I thought casting Maguire as Carraway, really the central character in the book and movie was a mistake at first but as Carraway is out of his element for most of the film Maguire brings a believability to this. Edgerton is really the stand out star here for me, Tom Buchanan can be viewed as a meathead but Edgerton brings an intensity to the character, especially in the end scenes.

All of the films reported 120 million dollar budget is on the screen, along with the A-list cast the production design is some of the best I've seen. Computer green screen is used thoroughly and throughout to give the film which was filmed in Australia the New York/Long Island scenery that is required along with the material, this trick is sometimes blatantly obvious especially in driving or flashback scenes. Scenes inside many of the glorious mansions or apartments are more rich and gives the performances themselves an extra jolt instead of just pretending that you are there. The soundtrack features new and old tracks from some artists you might not associate with the roaring 20's. Jay-Z (also the films executive producer) and Lana Del Rey among others fill out the soundtrack and the songs even appear in the film. At first I thought this was a ridiculous idea but maybe not surprisingly it actually works in the limited role the songs are used, mainly during the extravagant party scenes which could stand alone as their own movie.

If you aren't a fan of the book I don't think this Gatsby will convert anyone. If you haven't or don't remember reading the book I think this is a great introduction and should make those who are curious to actually read the book. Lurhmann's style isn't for everyone but other than a misguided introduction and a lack of focus on the supporting characters this version of "The Great Gatsby" should be viewed as the benchmark for the cinematic material, especially if you are too lazy to read the book.

Iron Man 3

April showers bring May flowers but what May also brings for the last 7 years now is a new entry in the Marvel comic movie series. This year brings the return of Iron Man/Tony Stark in "Iron Man 3". Arguably the most popular stand alone character in the Marvel movie universe "Iron Man 3" is the first Marvel Disney release since last years box-office juggernaut, super hero cream dream crossover "The Avengers". Gone is Iron Man 1 and 2 director Jon Favreau and taking his place is 80's action/buddy flick phenom Shane Black (Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight) a random if not inspired choice. Returning is the always charismatic Robert Downey Jr. as the billionaire inventor Tony Stark turned superhero Iron Man and Gwyneth Paltrow as love interest/Stark Industries CEO Pepper Potts, playing the classic Iron Man foe "The Mandarin" is Oscar winning Sir Ben Kingsley. Iron Man 2 was seen as a disappointment to many (not me) but after the HUGE success of "Avengers" does Tony Stark still have enough power to succeed in his own stand alone franchise? The short answer is yes.

For me,Iron Man was always Marvel's response to DC comics own "Batman". Much like Bruce Wayne, Tony Stark is a billionaire playboy who essentially has no superpowers but is incredibly smart and has the ways and means to create themselves into superheros and seeks justice for the justified. Tony Stark, unlike Bruce Wayne going back to the actual comics has always had charisma and most importantly a sense of humor. That is partly what makes this the perfect vehicle for Robert Downey Jr. who again knocks this role out of the park, he could play Iron Man in his sleep at this point. "Iron Man 3" finds our hero having sleepless nights as he is suffering from panic attacks and anxiety from the events that took place at the end of "The Avengers". Through a series of events (no spoilers) Stark seeks all out revenge on "The Mandarin" which leads him to of all places: rural Tennessee.

One of the big problems people had with "Iron Man 2" was that its place was basically just to be a set up for "The Avengers". I appreciated the effort because "IM2" delved into the darker side of Stark/Iron Man, including his battle with alcoholism and the fact that Mickey Rourke is worth the price of admission alone. The producers were smart to insert new blood into the creative side of the franchise, with enlisting Black to write and direct "IM3" is easily the best written entry in the series and for fans of the old 80's/early 90's action films you'll appreciate it. This is only Black's second directing job but the action scenes here are flawless, the centerpiece being one involving Air Force One is particularly pulse pounding.

There is one portion of "IM3" that will probably have fellow nerds up in arms. It is a pretty big moment in the film and if you know your Iron Man comic book lore you know that the big revelation is something not out of the comic book stories. This revelation did catch me off guard and goes against everything that the comics had already determined about a particular character but after getting passed all that the way they switch things around is actually pretty clever and original, if you have never read an Iron Man comic then this will mean nothing to you and wont notice any difference. And as with every Marvel film be sure to stay until the end of the credits, you will get a little Easter egg. It has nothing to do with any future "Avenger" installments but it is good for a few chuckles.

Overall "IM3" gives the fantastic and always anticipated summer movie season a well deserved kick off. This has been a consistent and durable franchise in an era of "Fast and Furious 11". Downey Jr. and Paltrow continue to have some of the best on screen chemistry in movies today. If messy contract negotiations between Downey Jr. and Disney/Marvel go south for future installments this trilogy ends on a solid note.

Pain and Gain

The 2013 release "Pain and Gain" is a conundrum wrapped in an enigma. Overblown, overstylized and just overstupid for the majority of its overlong 2+ hour running time you'd think that "Pain and Gain" had a surefire slot in the worst films of the year list-but it doesn't. While there are almost too many flaws to count "Pain and Gain" is also laced with moments of pure brilliance that are both funny, uncomfortable and artistic, and yes I did just use the word "artistic" to describe a Michael Bay movie....

The director here, Michael Bay is best known for making big Hollywood blockbusters such as "Armageddon" "The Rock" and probably most notably the "Transformers" series among countless others. Bay over his career has been much maligned for making these "popcorn" flicks, some criticism warranted, some not. In my opinion if you need something blow'd up real good in your movie there is no one better to direct your movie. The problem here is that with "Pain and Gain" Bay is trying to make a Coen brothers movie in the vein of "Fargo" and he just doesn't have the skill set to pull it off. "Pain and Gain tells the story of three bodybuilders in Miami in the mid 90's who in order to gain social stature and money scheme a plan to kidnap a wealthy sandwich shop owner (this is a true story by the way) and torture him until he signs over all  his assets to them. The bodybuilders are played by Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Anthony Mackie. The performances here are another saving grace for the film, the three leads do what they can with the disjointed script which cant decide if it wants to be a dark comedy or a "point break" imitator. The supporting cast, for as good as it is pretty much is underused. Ed Harris must owe Bay a favor after "The Rock" because he just seems out of place here, Bay wants this to be a Coen brothers film so badly that he even cast Coen brother go to character actors Peter Stormare and Tony Shaloub.

"Pain and Gain" has been a passion project for Bay for years and on paper it should have worked. Gorgeous locations, fast cars, scantily clad women and explosions, these are all mandatory "Bayisms" in his movies. Unfortunately if you are trying to make a dark comedy/true crime story these elements have no place here, even in a story based in Miami. You cant just throw a random explosion in the middle of a Miami street or have 10 cops fire at you in a waterway during the day and expect people to take you seriously. The only reason the studio let Bay direct this is because he did sign on to helm "Transformers 4" for them which shows that "I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine" is indeed a real thing.

"Pain and Gain" is definitely worth the $1.23 Redbox will charge you but not much more than that. The real discovery here for me was the performance by "The Rock", having already mastered the action film genre it will be interesting if anyone gives Rock a shot at something with more substance. He shows in "Pain and Gain" that can play "cocaine" among the best I've seen, I'd love to see him in something like what Bruce Willis did in "Pulp Fiction". As for Bay I'm sure as long as he keeps chugging out movies that give Megan Fox a consistent income he'll be able to make one of these passion projects every few years, George Lucas did the same thing after he wrapped the Star Wars trilogies and looked how well that worked out for him...

The Place Beyond the Pines

"The Place Beyond the Pines" is a true epic crime saga with whispers of great 70's cinema including "The Godfather Part II". Director Derek Cianfrance avoids the sophomore slump and Ryan Gosling and Bradley Cooper give great lead performances in what is a film that will definitely be on my year end top 10 list.

Stars Gosling and Cooper have a great advantage among their peers in Hollywood, both have the matinee idol looks to sell tickets as well as being two of the better actors of their generation. Gosling is slowly becoming that actor that no matter what he is in you want to see it, almost like Daniel Day Lewis-almost, he has to stop picking paycheck projects like "Gangster Squad" to pad his resume. "TPBTP" is Goslings second collaboration with director Cianfrance, the first was with "Blue Valentine" the extraordinarily underrated tragic love story, Gosling and Cianfrance work wonders with each other hinting at a partnership in the vein of Scorsese and De Niro. Cooper in his first film since his most impressive turn in last years Oscar winning "Silver Lining Playbook" is nearly as effective as Gosling in a less showier role, between his last two roles and comedic turns in "The Hangover" and "Wet Hot American Summer" is shadowing Tom Hanks in that he can play almost any kind of role.

"The Place Beyond the Pines" is structured in two parts. The first half centers around Gosling's character, a motorcycle carnie with the stage name "Handsome Luke". While at a tour stop Gosling runs into an ex played by Eva Mendes, he soon finds out that her infant son is in fact his-he abruptly quits the carnival circuit and stays put in the small upper New York state town to be closer to his child. Through various events Luke decides to start robbing banks so he can provide better for his son. Bradley Cooper plays an ambitious cop who through another series of events that become apparent in part 2 becomes linked with Gosling's character for the rest of their lives. Delving anymore into the plot would give away major spoilers.

Director Cianfrance's style and pacing is not made for everyone, some will find this movie slow-and in parts, especially in the second half it is. Pacing is a tricky thing in film, characters and story need to be developed especially in complex layered thrillers such as "Pines" is. He is definitely a young director on the rise and we look forward to see what he brings to the future tables. The supporting cast includes a brief appearance by "AOM" favorite Ray Liotta and Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn who was highlighted in this blog late last year in the Brad Pitt starrer "Killing Me Softly", he is equally memorable here and is fast becoming this decades Steve Buscemi.

As with other movies reviewed here, "TPBTP" is not for everyone and will likely get lost once Tony Stark and Clark Kent take their spots on the summer throne as well as be forgotten during awards season due to its questionable release in March. It is drama to almost the exact definition of the word with slight mixes of 70's cinema and Shakespearean themes "TPBTP" is one not to be missed.