GODZILLA - Updated

(2014) 123 Minutes, Rated PG-13

Mike's Review:  Well to start this movie was more entertaining then some of the other movies I have seen this year.  I could have done with out the whole boring beginning story line and the entire cast of characters were lifeless and forgettable...but the giant monster fight scenes were very well done.  If you want to see some giant monster destroy buildings and each other then the special effects of Godzilla won't disappoint.

I think this movie would have been better if they chopped it down to a 90 minute movie. Getting rid of the whole father part of the story line...and just added the human element in as a comic relief, while the monsters battle each other, or in other words to quote a line from the movie "Let them fight".

Best Scene:  Godzilla special weapon.  And it ended well.

Mike's Rating: Matinee

A.C.’s Review:  Godzilla is the latest take on the 60 something year old Japanese movie monster. Though he has appeared in many movies only four are really worth anything. The original from the 1950’s, Godzilla 85 which ignored all the low budget sequels and is the only truly direct sequel to the original, Godzilla from (1998) staring Mathew Broderick and a cast of forgettable and now this (2014) take on the monster.

In the plus column the film takes the monster seriously and tries to tell a fairly adult story unlike the silliness from the 1998 movie (for instance a buffoon mayor of NYC was a character and was named Mayor Ebert as a childish shot at the movie critic who panned the directors previous movie). Early in the movie actor Bryan Cranston who has achieved much acclaim in acting circles in recent year drives the story. When the character exits it’s a loss to the movie.

The effects are amazingly well done in regards to Godzilla and the two giant monsters called MUTO's that he is pitted against. The scale of all the creatures involved are pretty amazing. The CGI is so good you would think they actually went out and filmed all this for real. It should be noted though when it comes to Godzilla himself the director mimics Steven Spielberg in that like the shark in the movie JAWS is not on screen much. Godzilla is teased a lot in bits and pieces but its only really towards the climax of the movie called Godzilla gives you a dose of Godzilla.

The weakest link in the movie without a doubt is the hero Ford Brody played by Aaron Taylor Johnson (set to play Quicksilver in AVENGERS 2). He is so generic and cardboard as he coincidentally shows up at all the critical places he barely registers. He’s also in the military so when you put in him uniform it’s hard to pick him out from the crowd. Brody is so seemingly detached from all that it going around him you have to wonder if he has a pulse. Maybe mixing it up with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes next year will give Johnson a chance to actually act.

Best Scene: All the action that takes places in Honolulu…especially the Tsunami scenes.

A.C.’s Rating: Matinee

Bean's Review: Bit of a disappointment.  The storyline was choppy and the actors, except for Bryan Cranston’s role, were forgettable.  It is not really that the movie dragged, but the story and actors did not engage the audience.  Also, Lt. Ford looked so much like all of the other military personnel, it was difficult to separate him from the whole military gang.  I was surprised to see Ken Watanabe in such an underdeveloped role.  The special effects of the moth-like creatures and Godzilla were good, but more time should have been spent on showcasing Godzilla. 

Best scene:  When Godzilla swims under the ship-first time we see him and also breathing fire into the moth creatures mouth                 

Bean’s rating:  DVD-unfortunately, I was really looking forward to a great movie

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NEIGHBORS

(2014) 96 Minutes, Rated R

A.C.’s Review:  Neighbors is the latest “Seth Rogan film” playing in the multiplexes. Apparently not having learned my lesson from going to the last one of his films which was something called I believe THE END (that’s how memorable that film was that I can’t be sure of its name) I went to see this purported comedy to avoid the opening weekend crowds at GODZILLA.

Trailers are a remarkable thing in that they can suck you into thinking the film might be good only to find out upon viewing that the best bits were the ones used in the said trailer.

Depicting the exploits of a 30 something couple with an infant who must combat the unruly behavior of a Greek frat house that has purchased the home next door to theirs the film meanders through 90 plus minutes of one unfunny scene after another. What little plot there is seemingly was made up of the writers throwing everything at the wall hoping something will stick. We have sight gags like the frat trimming the couple hedge into an obscene shape. We have the “laughs” of scenes of heavy drug use. Every possible way to wring humor out of sex is tried and fails miserably. Then there is slap stick like exploding air bags stolen from a car propelling Seth Rogan through the air. It’s all so painfully juvenile. There is the trope all these movies have of the overweight protagonist inexplicably having a hot wife. I think this movie was intended for 14 year olds despite the R rating. I felt embarrassed for an older couple that was in the theater who probably had no idea how wretched this film was or hat it’s content would be so adult.

The only and I mean only redeeming thing worth mentioning is the casting of Rose Byrne as the wife…a favorite Australian actress of mine who actually gets to for once forgo her fake American accent and speak in her own Australian accent. She’s usually in dramas including a long stint on TV show DAMAGES with Glenn Close.

It was nice to see her branching out but sadly her first stab at comedy is this train wreck. I know she will be in the cute looking ANNIE remake with Jamie Foxx this Christmas so there is still hope.

Best Scene: NONE.

A.C.’s Rating:  I was going to say if it was free on TV but they’d edit it to pieces for it to air so it wouldn’t even be worth seeing for free. Avoid this film.

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 - updated

(2014) 142 Minutes, Rated PG-13

Mike's Review:   This is a must see movie.  I loved how the story line progressed as well as stays true to the Peter-Parker / Spider-Man story lines I grew up reading.  I actually saw this movie on opening day and have been thinking about how I was going to write the review this whole time.  

I knew before I even saw this movie they were going to kill off Gwen Stacy. You could say my spider-sense was tingling.  It just had to happen if the movie was going to stay true to the comic books.  I was just hoping they wouldn't to give the story a little twist in the end. 

I think because I was wishing they wouldn't kill her off, and then the fact that they do, kind of deflated the movie for me.  But on the other hand I was happy they did kill her off, because I knew then, they were staying true to the story line, and also paving the way for the next movie, and the introduction of Mary Jane into Peter's life.

The special effects were incredible for Electro, the way they made him all most translucent in some scenes and then when he turned into just pure electrical energy was awesome.  On the other hand the Rhino suit at the end was a joke.  In the comics the Rhino had an actual rhino type of hide...not some kind of robot suit.  They could have put a little more effort into that one.

Best Scene: There was great spider-man humor through out, and I enjoyed watching him tinker with his web shooters just as he did in the comics but the final battle scene in the electrical field was amazing.

Mike's Rating: Of course its a must see! And I will be going again to see it as well.

Bean's Review:  Good movie.  Kept my attention.  I really like Andrew Garfield as Spider-man.  The inclusion of humor in the storyline is well done.  Having never been a follower of the Spider-man comics, I am not familiar with all of the “evil” characters Spider-man battles.  I also was not aware of 2 love interests for Spider-man.   Knowing that Gwen was going to die, I was not that upset when she did die in the movie.  

The part that was most moving for me was the scene with Aunt May and Peter in his bedroom, when Aunt May was telling him what she knew about Peter’s father and that she always thought of Peter as her son.

The Jamie Foxx character was different and I thought he did a good job in portraying an electrified goon.  Paul Giamanti was not even recognizable as the Rhino character, which character I thought was just silly. Over all very entertaining movie.  I also liked the elusion to X-Men.  Very cute.

Best scene:  besides the one with Aunt May and Peter mentioned above, the scene in which the original Spider-man music was playing.

Bean’s Rating:  Full price ticket

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A.C.'s Review: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 is the follow up in the perhaps too soon rebooted SPIDER-MAN series from SONY pictures.

A quick bullet list of what the movie did right.

*Continued to develop the Gwen/Peter storyline instead of rushing straight to Mary Jane like the previous Sam Raimi/Toby McGuire series.

* Made Gwen’s death much more visually stunning than simply throwing her off the Brooklyn Bridge like the Green Goblin did in The Amazing Spider-man issue #121 (in a nice touch the time of Gwen’s death in the clock tower is shown to be 1:21 and they nicely recreated the panel of Spidy holding Gwen’s body right out of the comic down to her exact outfit.

*Electro was a sympathetic villain with a nice story arc on how he got to be the way he was.

Now for what it did wrong:

*The Harry/Peter friendship was so rushed that it was laughable when Peter called Harry his ”Best Pal”. It needed at least another movie to develop.

*A lot of time was spent setting up SONY’s planned spin off movie THE SINISTER SIX with glimpses of Doc Ock arms, Vulture’s Wings, The RHINO armour and an introduction to a Felicia who could only be Felicia Hardy the Black Cat of the comics.

*Peter’s father was a working class scientist who could afford a secret underground lab complete with hydraulics lift the lab in a train car from out of the ground. (Though the film did make me curious as to if these abandoned subway stations really exist)

Overall it was a decent movie and entertaining enough but it suffers from not being in the MARVEL/DISNEY cinematic universe because those movies are so rich with their shared history and interconnected heroes; It feels like an alternate universe straight out of the comics when you don’t have any references to the AVENGERS or Stark Tower being seen in New York. Not the movies fault but it is what it is.

Best Scene: Peter trying to rescue Gwen as she is falling.

A.C.'s Rating: Matinee

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THE OTHER WOMAN

(2014) 109 Minutes, Rated PG-13

Mike's Review:  For me this movie kind of reminded me a little of Nine to Five (1980) where you have three women banding together and becoming friends.  This movie wasn't a total riot but there were some funny scenes. I kept waiting for Nikolaj Coster-Waldau to get his hand cut off like he did as Jamie Lanister in the Game of Thrones, but the bathroom scene and the glass wall scene were pretty good.

On a side note I think the ending could have been a little better.  It seemed to end to nice.  I think they all could have stuck it to him a little more and ended up with some cash or something as well as their fairy tale endings.

Best Scene: Well I did like the Kate Upton beach scenes.  But I would half to say I laughed the hardest with the glass wall scenes at the end.

Mike's Rating: Matinee

Bean's Review:   Disappointing, as I was expecting actual humor, not the predictable, forced supposedly humorous stunts.  I thought Cameron Diaz performed fairly well for the storyline.  And, Cameron Diaz’s part in Bad Teacher was much, much more humorous. 

However, Leslie Mann’s character was extremely annoying, to the point where I did not want to watch her any longer.

With respect to the story, having the wife even contemplate staying with this adulterous husband, was absurd.  Seeing Don Johnson on the screen was enjoyable, although his part was not needed.

Best scene:  the theme music  from Mission Impossible

Bean’s Rating:  DVD


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RIO 2

(2014) 101 Minutes, Rated G

A.C.’s Review:  Animated fare is truly a hit or miss. For every brilliant production like TANGLED  you get some dreadful offerings like MEGA MIND.  Thankfully the sequel to 2011’s RIO falls somewhere between the two. Is it a master piece? No but it is entertaining.

Carrying forward the story of the Blue Macaw named BLU from the first movie-we now have Blu and his wife and three children happily living in Rio De Jannro until the sudden discovery of other members of their species deep within the Amazon Rain Forest including Jewel’s family.

Now knowing they aren’t alone the family of birds and a couple of their avian sidekicks from the first movie set out in search of the flock. Every movie needs a villain so the evil Cockatoo from the first movie is in pursuit of Blu out to exact revenge on Blu for costing him the ability of flight in the climax of the original movie. Every villain needs a good side kick and the Cockatoo I believe named Basil is given a colorful  little Dart Frog named Gabi as his loyal henchman. I will say hands down that Gabi stole the movie and I think kids will love her. There is the requisite human baddie out to cut down the rain forest where the Macaw flock calls home for sheer profit and his hate for “tree huggers”.

To no surprise everything here isn’t anything that is new…there is the conflict of Jewel’s family not liking Blu because he was once a human’s pet and there is an old boyfriend of Jewel’s on the scene that naturally Jewel’s father prefers over  city bird Blu. As said...though not new it’s the execution of the materials that is done well that even adults can enjoy these movies.

The only quibble I have is that Blu has a pair of human friends from the first movie...a husband and wife team that run a bird sanctuary. The husband  of the two is  written as such a dimwit that he makes Gilligan look like a genius.

Best Scene: Actually a series of scenes were Basil and Gabi make several attempts to take out Blu but always wind up getting foiled.

A.C.’s Rating:  Worth full price (if there is a part 3 I would show up for it).


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BRICK MANSIONS - updated

(2014) 90 Minutes, Rated PG-13

Mike's Review:  I thought this movie was going to be a good action movie with some great fight scenes with David Belle doing his famous style of fighting of Parkour and I was right...Only I saw this movie almost 10 years ago in 2004.  That's right this movie is almost an EXACT copy of a little known movie that came out in 2004 and was called District B13.  And the funny thing is even David Belle is playing the same character he did in District B13, except they changed his name.  

This movie wasn't even trying to pretend to be a remake, they changed the actors and moved it from the slums of Paris to the slums of Detroit but almost scene for scene this movie was a copy.  

I hate to say it but District B13 I thought was a better movie in every way and that was from seeing it 10 years ago with basically a cast of people no one knew.   It was good to see Paul Walker on the big screen doing his comic relief, but Cyril Raffaelli the actor who played his role in District B13 was much better at the action and fighting scenes.

District B13 is the better version of this movie. 

Best Scene: There were a ton of great scenes in District B13, but seeing them copied and toned down to a PG-13 rating killed it for me in this copied movie.

Mike's Rating: Don't bother with this one.  See the real one...District B13 if you want to see a good movie.

Bean's Review:  Amazingly, not too bad of a movie.  It had more of a plot than I was expecting, a lot less killing and did not drag.  Watching David Belle perform Parkour was captivating.   However, if Paul Walker was not in the movie, this would be a much different review, as without Walker’s talent, the movie would not have been worth watching.  Walker was very entertaining and provided some comic relief.  I also thought that RZA, whom I am not familiar with, also contributed a worthwhile acting job to the plot.  Although his character was the “bad guy” of the movie, he was not “evil” and refused to mass murder the population of Detroit.  Whereas, on the other hand, the Mayor of Detroit, supposedly the “good guy”, was actually the EVIL one, as he was willing to kill everyone in the Mansion district.

Best scene:  when Lola had Rayza, a true evil person, in a head lock with her legs and dropped her over the ledge of the building

Bean’s Rating:  matinee – great stunts

A.C.'s Review:  Currently playing to (unfortunately) nearly empty theaters in BRICK MANSIONS…the last fully completed film done by Paul Walker before his tragic passing. This remake of a French films depicts the exploits of a tenacious undercover cop out to end the drug trade in a Detroit of the near future that has had its low income section of the city walled off to prevent the rampant crime there from spreading into the city at large. Walker the cop is paired with a  French Caribbean immigrant  Mansion resident out to achieve the same goal but instead of using a badge and a gun he applies his acrobatic skills to fight the bad guys and get himself out of sticky situations.

Ultimately the pair come together when a threat emerges that puts millions of people’s lives at stake.

All and all its really a popcorn movie filled with some good fights, awesome cars, lots of stunts, some great fights including a cat fight between the bad guys female hench woman and the French guys ex-girlfriend. Some elements  momentarily threw me such as the appearance of a Neutron Bomb-the likes of which no one has talked about since Jimmy Carter was in office. Then I realized that a real estate scheme was afoot that would have warmed  the heart of Lex Luthor from 1978’s SUPERMAN THE MOVIE. Anyway It is what it is…and I imagine without Paul Walker as the star this would easily have been a straight to video release in your nearest Red Box.

 Best Scene: The French guy out running an army of thugs early in the movie.

A.C.'s Rating: Matinee

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