JACK RYAN: SHADOW RECRUIT - Updated

(2014) 104 Minutes, Rated PG-13

Mike's Review:  For not really following the the Jack Ryan novels, I didn't know what to expect from this movie.  I knew I liked all the previous Jack Ryan inspired movies, The Hunt for Red October (1990), Patriot Games (1992), Clear and Present Danger (1994) and The Sum of All Fears (2002). 

This movie seemed like it was the prequel to all of those, and it didn't disappoint.  I would say this one was just as good as any of the other Jack Ryan movies and if Chris Pine stayed on for another one I would say it would be in league with the Jason Bourne movies.  The action seemed real and very plausible which made this movie seem more down to Earth and believable.  If anything I would have added another 10 to 15 minutes to the movie for more detail to the back story of Jack Ryan.

Best Scene: The car chase scene.

Mike's Rating: Worth the price of the ticket.

Bean's Review:  The beginning of the Jack Ryan saga.  Chris Pine, as Jack Ryan was an excellent choice.  This is my first experience with seeing Pine, and he is a very engaging actor.  I also enjoyed watching Kevin Costner, as in a lot of his movies, you are not sure if he is a good or bad guy, so you are left hanging until the end.  Kenneth Branagh was quite convincing as the truly bad guy.

 Pine is better than Affleck, however, Harrison Ford will be a tough act to follow. Alec Baldwin is mostly forgettable, as Sean Connery was the star in that film.

The action scenes had you holding your breath, especially Ryan’s chase to catch Branagh’s character after kidnapping Keira Knightley’s character.

Overall very entertaining movie that definitely kept your attention.

Best Scene: Costner’s character meeting with Ryan in the park with the golden retriever.

Bean's Rating: Full price ticket.

A.C.'s Review:  Released many years after The Sum Of All Fears we find the latest Tom Clancy movie featuring a new actor playing Jack Ryan taking over from Ben Affleck. Known to Star Trek fans as Captain Kirk, Chris Pine (Star Trek Into Darkness) has now assumed the role of Ryan. Apparently Pine is now the go to guy for rebooting old franchises.

This movie is an origin story for the character which is something we haven’t seen before. What works perfectly is that in the opening we see him inspired by 9/11 to join the Marines where his promising career is cut short after insurgents shoot down his helicopter in Afghanistan. In short order he meets his future fiancé and a CIA spook who recruits him into the fold. It really works using 9/11 as the jumping off point for the movie.

What doesn’t work quite as well is frankly Russian bad guys. This shows the Clancy series has its roots in the Cold War which has long been over. Since they were updating things it would have been better to use the North Koreans as the bad guys because frankly the economic meltdown  plot is the only way a country like that could take down America and it would make more sense. But we’d lose Kenneth Brannagh as the villain who did an excellent job in the role.

I’ve always been luke warm on the Ryan franchise but I would defiantly watch another one with Chris Pine continuing the adventures.

Best Scene: Ryan fighting a bad guy in a hotel bathroom.

A.C.'s Rating: Worth a matinee.

THE NUT JOB

(2014) 86 Minutes, Rated PG

Mike's Review:  I don't see this movie winning any awards or having any sequels, but it was fun to watch and made me laugh a few times.  I couldn't tell you the names of any of the charters because there really wasn't any connection to them like there is from a movie like Ratatouille (2007) or Scrat the sabertooth squirrel from the Ice Age movies.  If the movie had more of a back story that developed the animals and there personalities better it would have made it more memorable. But it is what it is, a cute cartoon about a squirrel trying to get some nuts.  On a big plus side for me, this is a rare cartoon in the sense that it didn't have a body count. 

When my 4 year old daughter gave me her review on the movie she said she thought it was really funny and asked when we could see it again.  The scene she like the most was when the pug dog was talking about it's curly tail.

Best Scene: There were some funny scenes but nothing that really struck me as the best scene.
Mike's Rating: Matinee

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GRUDGE MATCH

(2013) 113 Minutes, Rated PG-13

Mike's Review:  By far the funniest movie so far this year.  I was actually surprised on just how many times I laughed out loud.  I don't know if it was due to the well placed and well timed comedy, or just the fact that this movie didn't just rely on old jokes and slap stick, but that it also had a little heart and soul thrown in, which got you a little more involved in the story.  For me it was entertaining and very funny but just a tad too long. 

Best Scene: There were a few good ones, vinegar, butterscotch jelly beans, and the little nods to Stallone's, Rocky movies.

Mike's Rating: Worth the price of the ticket and DVD worthy.

Bean's Review:  Although I was expecting this movie to be full of clichés and a bit hokey, it was surprisingly better than I expected.  The movie began a bit slow, but picked up, especially with the introduction of Alan Arkin as Stallone’s trainer.  Stallone and DeNiro are a good match in this movie and are in quite good shape for their respective ages.  Alan Arkin does a great job, as does Kevin Hart.  Hart is very humorous without being as obnoxious as Chris Rock, in some of his roles.

Although the story line is predictable, with 2 aged boxers, coming together for a rematch, it was funny, pulled at the heart strings a bit, so overall entertaining, which is what you expect from a movie.

Best Scene: When Stallone’s character punches the MMA fighter.

Bean's Rating: Matinee.