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Flash Movie Review: The Independent
EXCEPT FOR A COUPLE OF PRIMARIES while I was away for college, I have voted for every election. It certainly is easier now with the early voting opportunities and mail in options. I remember back earlier finishing work at the office and racing to get to the polling place before it closed, sometimes showing up just minutes before. So yes, the system to me is much better today. However, in my opinion, I would make election day a national holiday. For something so important as elections, I think all citizens should have the day off to make sure they can exercise their right to vote. The things I have seen taking place in other states troubles me because it appears as if the new state laws being put in place are geared to make it harder for an individual to vote. The news on this last election was showing lines of people, blocks long, waiting to vote. If I am not mistaken, one place did not allow voters to have any food or liquids with them while they were waiting in line for hours. It saddens me to see how such an institution and cornerstone of our government is being tarnished and abused the past several years. THERE IS ANOTHER ASPECT OF THE voting process that I find scary. It is the ability for a candidate to receive massive amounts of money from a single donor. Maybe it does not come directly from one individual, but their money can easily be divvied up among different political action committees for the candidate. There was a billionaire who lived in our state who donated millions of dollars to a governor candidate who had a hateful agenda. The amount of money given was obscene and all because the billionaire disliked the current governor’s policies which did not offer extra favor to the billionaire’s company. I think about the amount of money that goes into today’s campaigns and it could be put to better use in feeding the world or educating every single citizen or even funding new scientific research. But now it seems like only millionaires and billionaires run for political gains and positions. I know not every politician fits this description; but I would like to see a time where there are less political ads and mailers and more time for the candidates to go door to door or hold more campaign town hall meetings. Gratefully in my state the billionaire’s candidate lost significantly to the incumbent, so money did not make such a difference; but who knows what money can do. It may play a factor in this thriller for all you know. A YOUNG JOURNALIST MAKES A DISCOVERY that could have a major impact on an upcoming election. With Jodie Turner-Smith (Queen & Slim, The Last Ship-TV) as Elisha, Luke Kirby (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel-TV, Glass) as Lucas Nicoll, Ali Marsh (Queens of Daytime, In Plain Sight-TV) as Sharon Romney, Julianne Arrieta (High Resolution, Del Playa) as Rachel Atkins and John Cena (Vacation Friends, The Suicide Squad) as Nate Sterling; this political film was lucky to cast Jodie Turner-Smith. For me, she is the reason I was able to get through the story. The script needed to find a new angle or a flair of surprising twists because the story played out like something I had seen before. I liked the idea, but the directing along with the script did not take advantage of the acting skills of its cast. There certainly were good scenes throughout the movie, but as a whole it felt more like a wannabe picture instead of something new and fresh. It was too bad because Jodie and Ann Dowd had wonderful screen presence that grabbed my attention. The idea for the story was both good and scary, making me more anxious about today’s political scene.
2 ½ stars
Flash Movie Review: Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse
WHETHER IT WAS RIGHT OR WRONG, I felt a sense of betrayal. Having worked at the company for many years, there was a sense of family amongst the employees. I had worked my way up through a few departments before I settled into a management position. We came from different backgrounds and places, but we all shared a common goal; we wanted our company to be the best. The company had another location out of state that was headed by a relative of the owner. I knew most of their employees by name but had only seen a couple of them when they flew in for business meetings. We had 3 competitors who had their corporate headquarters in the same city as us; so, it was especially “sweet” when we would get a large order that all of us had bid on. I do not know if it was true or not, but I heard the outside salespeople from each company, including ours, were ruthless to each other. Not to their faces, but they would do things like throw away the sample books from a competing company or hide them while placing their books in a prominent location. I knew each of us bought our inventory from the same manufacturers and what sealed the sale was price and customer service. I SAW MYSELF RETIRING FROM THIS company. That is why it was so hard for me to be told the company was filing for bankruptcy. To say I was shocked would be an understatement. I could not understand for what reason was the company closing its doors. As far as I could see we were doing everything we were supposed to do. Many of the employees were there longer than me; some only had a few years left until retirement and now they did not know what was going to happen to them for their remaining years. Unemployment can only take one so far, then what? I put my trust in the company; showing up to work on time each day, getting our customers’ issues resolved and yet all of sudden my life was going into freefall. This is why I felt betrayed. I worked hard and appreciated the rewards I received in the process. I had put my trust in this company and for whatever reason, I was being terminated. The dreams and hopes I had based on my employment had to be put on hold. Not that my job defined who I was; however, it was something I took pride in. My feelings of broken trust and betrayal, though on a different scale, is what I connected to with the main character in this action, adventure thriller. WHEN HIS LAST MISSION TURNED OUT different from what he expected, a growing suspicion made John Kelly, played by Michael B. Jordan (Black Panther, Just Mercy), question the orders he was receiving. It would take death to get him to find the answers. With Jodie Turner-Smith (Queen & Slim, The Last Ship-TV) as Karen Greer, Jamie Bell (Rocketman, Fantastic Four) as Robert Ritter, Guy Pearce (The Last Vermeer, The Rover) as Secretary Clay and Lauren London (Baggage Claim, This Christmas) as Pam Kelly; this movie was a reboot for the franchise. The action scenes were for the most part exciting and I especially enjoyed the performances from Michael and Jodie. However, the script was confusing and sloppy to me. The characters in general were a bit boring at times and I felt the excitement level needed to be amped up. Another negative to this picture was how it was filmed; there were multiple scenes that were so dark I could not make out much detail. I think with a better script Michael could do justice to the franchise. In the meantime, there was an extra scene placed in the middle of the ending credits.
1 ¾ stars
Flash Movie Review: Queen & Slim
IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A LEISURE afternoon ride because it was going to be my first. Mark and I were work friends; we had known each other for a few years. Our social activity together up until this point was sitting together at company functions or going out for drinks after work. One day we were talking, and I mentioned I had never ridden a motorcycle. Without hesitation, he said he rode one and asked me when I would be free to take a ride. We decided he would come pick me up on Saturday. It never occurred to me I needed a motorcycle helmet; but thankfully, Mark brought an extra one with him. Once he went over the safety instructions and told me how to convey a message to him, he had me get up on the bike to get used to it. The motorcycle was heavier than I imagined it to be. He placed the helmet on my head and adjusted the chin strap. With my jacket zipped up to my neck and my leather gloves snug on my hands, I wondered if I looked like Steve McQueen when he was on that motorcycle in the film, “The Great Escape.” WE STARTED OUT EASY WITH MARK sticking to the side streets around my neighborhood. Once I became comfortable, he headed out to the highway. I was not prepared for the bumps in the road which made me bounce off the seat; I kept squeezing my legs tightly around him. The roads he took from the highway were unfamiliar to me; but the scenery was beautiful through the forest we were in. At some point a strange sound came out of the motorcycle and it started slowing down. By the time Mark steered the bike off to the side of the road, the engine had died. He tried a couple of things to restart the motorcycle, but nothing worked. Reaching for his phone, he noticed he was not getting any cellular service for it; I tried mine but with the same results. I was starting to get concerned. Mark decided it would be best to push the bike further into the woods to conceal it, then we would start walking until we could call for help on our phones. While we walked, we started to talk more on a personal level, not the usual work conversation we did. The sun was setting and both of us were thirsty and tired. Luckily, we hit a spot where he could get a call out for help and a friend of his was coming to get us. I was grateful. After the weekend when I returned to work, there was a deeper bond that formed between us where we were no longer work friends; we were simply friends. The main characters in this dramatic movie took a different route. AFTER BEING PULLED OVER BY THE POLICE things quickly escalated in a series of events for Slim and Queen, played by Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out, Widows) and Jodie Turner-Smith (The Last Ship-TV, Nightflyers-TV). With Bokeem Woodbine (Overlord, Spider-Man: Homecoming) as Uncle Earl, Chloe Sevigny (Love & Friendship, Big Love-TV) as Mrs. Shepherd and Flea (Baby Driver, The Big Lebowski) as Mr. Shepherd; the story in this film had a familiar theme to it. However, the writers took the story and turned it into something else that totally grabbed me. The chemistry between Daniel and Jodie was thick and rich; I thought she was dazzling in the role. The script provided a clear path where one could connect to it and think about it further even after the picture ended. There were a couple of weaker scenes that did not work for me; but this would be only a minor complaint. My eyes were glued to the movie screen due to the incredible acting, directing and filming of this topical storied movie.
3 ½ stars
moviejoltz 