Author Archives: moviejoltz
Flash Movie Review: War Horse
After seeing a scene from the Broadway show on the Tony awards, I had high expectations for this film. The director Steven Spielberg had what seems to be his requirements these days: lovable main character in Joey the horse, cute kid, pull your heart string scenes, funny interlude, obstacle course. Now I’ll be the 1st to admit, I had tears in my eyes, along with the majority of the audience; however, it was not enough to make this a great movie that moved me. I am afraid it was predictable and that is because Mr. Spielberg was directing. There were individual scenes that worked beautifully; though one important scene, I found odd, reminded me of Gone with the Wind. From what I read and heard, the Broadway stage production of War Horse was filled with drama; but in Steven’s hands, we evidently are required to have a wee bit of comic relief in our movie watching experience. With a stable of 20+ horses, filling in for Joey (stunt doubles?), the animal was wonderful to watch in this movie. And for those of you who want to take your children, please keep in mind; though we do not see horrific bloodshed, there are the 1st scenes depicted after a battle. I just wish this movie would have been better.
2 3/4 stars
Flash Movie Review: The Young Victoria
When you think about the year being 1837 and a young British Victoria is about to ascend to the throne, how could you not be amazed at this woman’s determination and love of her country. Emily Blunt (The Devil Wears Prada, Sunshine Cleaning) was outstanding as the young queen, totally believable. I felt she fully carried this picture; though the other actors, such as Rupert Friend (Pride & Prejudice, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas) as Prince Albert and Miranda Richardson (Sleepy Hollow, Harry Potter franchise) as the Duchess of Kent were excellent. My favorite quote in this movie was Victoria saying to her Mother, “Oh, and if you think I will ever forget that you stood by silent and watched him treat me thus, you are dreaming! C’mon, how can you not be impressed with the strength of this woman who would reign for 63 years. My wish would be to see a sequel with Emily continuing in the role of this magnificent monarch.
3 1/4 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
First I have to say I have not read the book; so, I am not sure my experience would have been the same if I had read this best selling novel by Stieg Larsson. Secondly, I loved this movie. From the moment it started, with an engaging score done by Trent Reznor, scene after scene played out in multi layered tensions. Rooney Mara (The Social Network, Youth in Revolt) as Lisbeth Salander had the intensity of a troubled soul who could easily burst apart at any moment. There is a possibility she could get an Oscar nod from the academy for this role. Hired for her investigative and computer hacking skills by Daniel Craig (Casino Royale, Munich), who portrays the journalist Mikael Blomkvist, the two try to solve the mystery of a woman who disappeared 40 years ago. I thought the 2 1/2+ hours would be a concern for me; but it was not an issue, as I was completely absorbed by the story. Even a couple of scenes that normally I would look away from, did not deter me from taking in each subtle twist of this thrilling mystery.
3 1/3 stars
Flash Movie Review: Margin Call
This drama played more like a thriller, taking place within a 24 hour period, during the beginning of the financial crisis back in 2008. Among the all-star cast there was Kevin Spacey (Casino Jack, The Men Who Stare at Goats), Jeremy Irons (Eragon, Being Julia) and Zachary Quinto (Star Trek, Heroes) all doing a strong acting job, as employees of a high profile investment bank. As I viewed this movie, I wondered how close to reality was the portrayal of upper management’s cold heartedness towards its workers. It certainly looked hellish to me. The other thought I had, was how one individual could make or break a firm during those perilous times. There have been several movies made already about the financial meltdown and some of them have been quite good. I would have to say this movie is among those well done ones. With a great cast and consistent directing, this story will keep your attention and I believe, draw a strong reaction from you.
3 1/4 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked
Why is it I can still sit down and watch an “old style” cartoon such as Bugs Bunny or Woody Woodpecker and be amused by it? I find the humor to be fun with a touch of sophistication. And I think that is the issue I had with this movie. This trend of taking cartoon characters and building a movie around them is just a cheap way to milk more money out of them, in my opinion. The movie felt like a reality show to me–fluff with no substance. Thank heavens the chipmunks and chipettes are underage; I could not imagine if they were doing shots! I was bored for a majority of this cartoonish film, as Alvin and his furry friends went from one scene to another, filled with either chaos or humorless jokes. To tell you the truth, I would rather they had just ran a string of music videos of what the chipmunks were singing. Due to Alvin disobeying Dave (Jason Lee), the chipettes and chipmunks got stranded from their cruise ship. Until the last 30 minutes did we get any action and excitement out of this tired story. Would children like this movie? I suppose so, maybe just to hear the high pitched voiced chipmunks and see their antics. Unfortunately, the parents would have to put on their happy faces and endure this film.
1 1/2 stars
Flash Movie Review: A Dangerous Method
If they want to nominate Michael Fassbender (X-Men: First Class, Jane Eyre) for an acting role, it should be for his role in this movie. He was excellent, playing the role of psychiatrist, Carl Jung. From the moment his image appeared on the screen, he captured the audience’s attention and did not relinquish it. And the beauty of this film was not only did one get to see his performance; they got to see a 2nd powerful performance in Keira Knightley (The Duchess, Pride & Prejudice) as Sabina Spieirein. Her manic portrayal simply blew me away. And for the last leg of this triad, we have Viggo Mortensen (The Road, Eastern Promises) as Sigmund Freud. He too was excellent in his role, but due to the other two actor’s staging, they simply outshine him. The story for this historical film is about the relationship that gets forged between Jung and his mentor Freud, when a deeply disturbed, but brilliant woman, becomes a patient of Carl Jung. This is a movie worth seeing; I was fascinated with the story and taken away by the acting. What more can one ask from a film?
3 1/2 stars
Flash Movie Review: Moon
A new standard in his acting career, the role of Sam Bell played by Sam Rockwell (Frost/Nixon, Iron Man 2) was a subtle, mesmerizing performance. An astronaut who is the lone worker on a moon base, Sam is nearing his 3 year contract, when he begins to hear and see something unusual. His only companion on the base is Gertie, a robot voiced by Kevin Spacey (Horrible Bosses, American Beauty)–think an updated version of Hal from 2001: A Space Odyssey. The story captivated me, holding my attention as I marveled at the way the tension was being built up. It is funny, when I hear a movie is a thriller, the first thing that flashes through my mind, is a fast paced movie, filled with action. And here, this movie was exactly opposite but was just as much a thriller as, let us say, Independence Day. This BAFTA winner is a mind bender of a movie that is worth adding to your must see list.
3 1/2 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
When I saw the trailer for this movie, I could not wait to see it. Not having read the John le Carre book, I still expected to be fully involved in the story. Unfortunately, the big surprise for me, was the dullness of this film. There were solid actors in the cast, such as John Hurt (V for Vendetta, Alien) as Control; Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight, Harry Potter franchise) as George Smiley and Colin Firth (The King’s Speech, A Single Man) as Bill Haydon. The film had a great look to it, the period being the cold war during the 1970’s. Sadly, I simply felt some of the scenes were executed poorly and the script was weak. The story has to do with Britain’s intelligence agency having a Russian mole, who might be deeply planted inside of its high ranking personnel. With a cast ensemble such as this one; if there was a good script, this movie could have been a good, cerebral challenge, that would have had the audience on the edge of their seats. I do want to point out that there were some scenes which were well done. Just why couldn’t there be more? After viewing this movie, I do not know if I will read the book.
2 2/3 stars
Flash Movie Review: Good Hair
For the past several years, the hair follicles on my head have been deserting me; so, hair has only been a minor focus for me. This documentary was both informative and funny, with Chris Rock leading us on a fact finding mission, to find out what it means to have good hair. Going from hair salons, to a hair convention, to science labs and even all the way to India–the biggest exporter of hair, Chris hopes to discover the reasons behind the different ways black woman display their hair. In some of the interviews, the responses to Chris’ questions were hysterical; for example, one man said he judges women by their hair style. If they are wearing a weave, he feels they will be a high maintenance woman. I am aware that Chris Rock can be a polarizing entertainer; but, I would like to suggest to you, do not let that get in the way from watching a documentary that will entertain you.
3 stars — DVD
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