The New Jersey Movie Reviews you'll only find on metrojersey.com:
 
Read About The Flixter's Unique Rating System Here.
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IRON MAN
a la The Flixter
Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is billionaire playboy who goes around in his own private jet that staffs some lovely, pole-dancing stewardesses. How he has achieved this luxurious lifestyle is a whole other story. His success has resulted from manufacturing weapons,
so he is a very successful arms dealer, arming anybody who pays the price. That point is hammered in when he is captured on one of his global expeditions and tortured by men whom he had helped arm. They put him through all sorts of hell and lock him up with the orders to build them some weapons that they can put to use. Everywhere he looks, he sees weapons with the stamp of Stark Industries.
He builds a weapon. But its not one that his captors are anticipating. What he builds is a giant, armored suit, equipped with weaponry, which he uses to escape from his captivity and return to the US... And when he returns, he is a new man. To the disgust of his company's shareholders, most notably
Obediah Stone( a mean looking
Jeff Bridges with a shaved head) he announces that his company will no longer be making weapons.
Stark sets about to making a niftier version of the suit that helped him escape from the dark caves where he was held. After many alterations and tests, a red and gold suit is born and
Iron Man hits the skies, fighting evil but not before he has paid a visit to the captors that brought about his epiphany.
And that, folks, is the latest comic book adaptation that brings us closer to what is happening in the fantasy land of good vs. evil without having to flip any pages.
An absolutely spectacular movie with a great cast that also includes the talented
Terence Howard and
Gwyneth Paltrow.
Downey does a great
job as the hard-partying Stark who realizes a need to change his old ways. I had a great time but can't compare it to
the original Spider Man or its equally impressive sequel. This one gets a little disjointed towards its ending
as the filmmakers rely a little too much on FX to wind up the tale. But it is still a great time.
RATING : FOUR STARS
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STREET KINGS
a la The Flixter
Every year,
Keanu Reeves
makes a movie that takes him further away from those
Bill and Ted movies. He's a grown man now and more serious fare is his new thing. Since
The Matrix trilogy has been wrapped up and
Speed ran out of gas a while ago, this is his latest serious effort.
Here he plays
Officer Ludlow of the LAPD, a straight cop whose heroics are bringing his captain (Forest Whitaker) closer to becoming Chief. He rescues two kidnapped girls and lands on the front pages. Good for him and the entire police department. But things aren't quite right as he finds out when trying to track down the killers of his partner, who dies in a blood splattered shootout. Its that killing that sets up his naive cop on a journey that will uncover corruption at all levels in his unit.
Nobody is who they appear to be. Its a nasty and corrupt world. After all this is coming from
James Ellroy whose
LA Confidential was overshadowed by
a big ship and lost as Best Picture in 1997, even though it was far superior. The director here
is David Ayer who
wrote the screenplay for Training Day, another great movie. So how could a movie with such talent behind it go
wrong? Watch it and see. Or just take my word for it.
The movie introduces, but doesn't delve
into, issues like alcoholism and racism. Our hero wakes up and starts drinking before he heads out the
door. The Captain is black but there is the constant underlying racism present within the rest of the
players. How can you take a movie seriously when it has
Cedric the Entertainer trying for a serious role but ending
up as comic relief?
RATING : TWO STARS
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21
a la The Flixter
Man, its been a long time since I was the age that is
the title of this movie. Oh well, this is my first review as a thirty year old. Yes, it was by birthday
last week. But I am really digressing; the title of the movie has nothing to do with age - its all
about black jack.
Kevin
Spacey is a math professor at MIT who has a plan to beat the
house by gathering a group of math geniuses and taking them to Las Vegas for some extra curricular activity.
Jim Sturgess plays
one of the students that joins Spacey's group of card counters. Initially it is with reluctance. He just wants to
go to medical school but is short of the money needed. How is he going to come up with three hundred thousand
dollars? That's where the black jack club becomes appealing.
They hit Vegas, score big, and the initial reasons
for being there seem foolish. Why limit yourself to three hundred thousand when there is so much more to
be taken? But the casinos frown upon card counting. That is where Laurence Fishburne's pit manager comes in. He
sees the goings-on from the surveillance cameras and turns the whole money making charade into something
dangerous. This injects a little violence into the situation as loyalties starting getting questionable.
And personalities become questionable as it gets hazy regarding who the real bad guy is,
Spacey or
Fishburne.
But both guys do a great job, as
Spacey proves once again that
he is just meant to play loathsome characters. A fun romp, inspired by a true story, that is disappointing
in the sense that it didn't really teach me to count cards like I was hoping it would. Oh, well...
RATING : FOUR STARS
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Drillbit Taylor
a la The Flixter
Another movie that revisits those most horrible of times,
High School. Yes, everyone is here. The bullies, the geeks, the parents who don't understand, and those
administrative people who let the bullied ones fend for themselves.
The bully in this case is overly sadistic.
Heck, he even has a samurai sword snuck away. But the three bullied ones have had enough... They post an
ad on the Internet that requests a bodyguard. They get a few responses but, because of their limited finances
(eighty something dollars), their efforts are brushed off by the applicants. In comes
Drillbit Taylor (Owen Wilson) who will do the job for that measly amount. Why? Because he is just as
desperate. What the three boys don't know is that he is actually a homeless bum who has his eyes set on
the bigger prize... the stuff that they have in their homes.
So Drillbit starts his bodyguard duties and ends
up faking it as a substitute teacher in the school. Somehow, nobody finds out that the new guy is the same
person they see taking his showers at the local beach... Or that he lives in the woods and was often begging
for change at the busy intersections. But who cares. Let's just go with it. He even manages to have a fling
with one of the female teachers. Oh yeah, what about the bullied trio? Well, they start liking
Drillbit beyond his employee
status, as he teaches them some self-defense moves to practice when he is not around... and that is a lot
of times. The boys get frustrated, start questioning the origins of their bodyguard, and eventually start
digging into his background. But by this time, Drillbit is actually starting to like them and thinking seriously about the role he
is playing.
That is enough about the plot. Now we get to
how the movie turns out.
An absolute charmer. A great time. Funny, sad,
and touching. Owen Wilson, who I have referred to as a male bimbo at other times, does his usual stuff. And it works
great here. The three boys (the fat one, the skinny one, and the clueless geek) are great, as well. When
the bully pays, you feel just as victorious as the three of them do. I, thank God, was never a bully or
bullied in high school. But I, somehow, can still relate.
RATING : FIVE STARS
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THE EYE
a la The Flixter
Sydney (Jessica Alba) is a blind concert violinist who gets her sight restored through a corneal
transplant. Yes, I just set up the movie's promising concept a little abruptly. But that's the point. Because
that is how quickly the movie jump starts with not much background or insight going into the how's or why's.
Anyway, once the transplant is done, recovery
is tough since there is a lot of visual interference that doesn't involve the young lady looking at the
whole new world around her. There are ghost-type thingees lurking around. There is the constant annoyance
of people asking her for things she has no clue about. There's the kid in her hallway asking her if she
has seen his report card. Then there's these shadowy specters taking the souls of the recently departed.
And images of being trapped in a burning building... So Sydney approaches her doctor (Alessandro
Nivola) to find out whose eyes she has. The doc can't reveal
that sort of information but eventually changes his mind. Why? Did I mention that the patient happens to
be Jessica Alba? That
is enough reason to rethink one's initial refusal. But getting back to the movie's plot. I think I already
covered the gist of it.
Is it scary, since it is a remake of a Hong Kong
horror film? No. Unless boredom scares you. What I did like about it, besides the presence of
Ms. Alba, was the idea of
literally seeing through someone else's eyes. Could you get yourself around what those eyes had seen? An
intriguing idea that could have been more thoroughly involved in the execution of the film.
RATING : ONE STAR
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CLOVERFIELD
a la The Flixter
A going away party is being thrown for one of the guys
in a group of twenty-something's (maybe thirty something's). He has landed a job in Tokyo and will be leaving
his friends and family in NYC. One friend is taping the whole affair and getting people's feelings about
the departure and how they feel about the guy. Of course, everybody thinks he is a great guy and they will
miss him very much. Then the thing gets a little soap operatic as things are brought up about who slept
with whom. And then there's a loud explosion outside. TV reports are blaming a capsized tanker in New York
Harbor. Then there's the unearthly roar and people pour into the streets to see what is going on. Buildings
are burning, some are crashing, and around that time the, head of the Statue of Liberty comes crashing
down the street. The guy, who was taping the party, is now taping the mayhem and chaos on the streets.
The origin of that unearthly roar is the reason behind all the chaos. So we see everything through that
camera's lens as people panic, scream, and run for cover from some huge Godzilla-type monster attacking
the city.
The guy with the camera continues taping so the world
will know how it all happened. The army comes in and tries to kill this beast whose origins are never really
brought up or explained. It just happened. I didn't think that the guy taping the stuff was going to last
long since he is running and trying to survive while lugging a camera. An interesting concept that has
its limitations from the conception. I mean, what fun is a monster movie when you barely get to see the
monster? All you get is the images of the destruction left behind. Plus the characters aren't really sympathetic
except for one who has to tell his parents about his brother dying. That is about the only scene that adds
a little emotion to the affair and makes you sympathize with his predicament.
An okay movie.....
RATING : TWO STARS
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THE BUCKET LIST
a la The Flixter
What would you do if you knew that you only had a limited
amount of time left to live? What is it that you would try to accomplish or achieve before you kicked the
bucket? Yes, that is what the bucket in the title refers to. A list of things that you want to do before
you kick the bucket. It is a concept that billionaire Edward
Cole (Jack Nicholson) is not familiar with. Stricken with cancer and forced to share a room, (since
it was his idea to cut back on expenses by putting two in each room of his hospital),
Edward learns of this concept
from his room mate. Carter Chambers (Morgan Freeman) is also on his way out and has to put up with the whinny Cole. They start to get along and that is when
Cole finds out about
the list, which Carter is so earnestly working on. Carter doesn't have the finances available to accomplish some of the things on the
list but Cole has the
money. The two get together, leave the hospital, and embark on their quest to do what they don't have long
to do.
See something majestic, go skydiving, and
race vintage sports cars are a few of the superficial things that are there.... But
Carter wants to do other things
as well. More meaningful things like make a difference in someone's life. Yes, that last one means that
things will get a little sappy. Thank God, the affair is in the hands of two of the best actors around
and they do a fine job of delivering two great performances that are more endearing than the seemingly
morbid subject matter. The only lingering question after the movie is which one of the two greats does
better. Honestly, I have no idea. And like life, sometimes things are better when they are not etched so
certainly. I loved it...
RATING : FIVE STARS
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CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR
a la The Flixter
Tonight is New
Year's Eve... 2008 is only a few hours away. What better way
to spend it than to write about a great movie I saw towards the end of 2007. Yes, I have gotten old and
grizzled and am not out partying with my friends like I used to... Anyway, here it goes...
Charlie Wilson (Tom Hanks) was a Texas Congressman who managed
to get elected and re-elected despite his hard-partying ways. His staff is made up of young females,
catering to his every whim and resembling a bunch of swimsuit models rather than a bunch of office workers.
Along comes Joann Herring (Julia Roberts), a rich socialite who talks Charlie into taking a trip to Afghanistan. He does it because, like I said, she is a rich socialite meaning a lot of
money for Wilson's
vaults... And the trip transforms him when he sees the dirt-poor Afghans fighting off the Soviet invaders
with whatever means necessary. They have small guns while the Soviets have their gunship helicopters and
tanks. So Charlie,
now a different man after seeing the horrors, gets to work in getting the Afghans the aid that they need.
Along to steal many scenes and provide
some comic relief is Phillip Seymour Hoffman as a CIA agent who is initially there to investigate
Wilson's unorthodox ways and
later becoming the Congressman's ally in achieving his newfound goal.
That about does it for the plot. What have I
always said when reviewing a movie with Tom Hanks? That he is probably the best actor out there, so I don't think I have to
say that again. He, of course, is great and rules the movie. But Hoffman is also very good and gives
Hanks a good match as to who
the better actor is. The only one that is slightly lower on the acting radar is
Julia Roberts. She is good
but the two guys have her beat.
Overall, I loved this movie, though...
RATING : FIVE STARS
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NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS
a la The Flixter
The first National
Treasure was a history lesson in disguise. But it was decent
entertainment as our treasure hunting hero, Benjamin Franklin
Gates (Nicolas Cage) went on a hunt to find a treasure buried by the forefathers. Now its about
honor when someone suggests that his great-great-grandfather was one of the conspirator's involved in the
assassination of President Lincoln. Well, Gates won't have it that way and watch his family's honor be dragged in the mud. So he, along
with dad (Jon Voight), an estranged ex (Diane Kruger), and a comic-relief/sidekick (Justin
Bartha) are off to prove Ed Harris' bad guy wrong in implicating the
Gates family in that
deed. Even mom (Helen Mirren), who left dad, is pulled back in to help.
They, of course, have to go all over the
US and even wind up in Paris and London, where they have to break into the Queen's room to retrieve a piece
of evidence. As you can tell from what you have read so far, there is a lot of talented thespians involved.
There is more than just one Oscar winner here. But as this movie so blatantly proves, that doesn't amount
to squat (trying not to use another "s" word that also ends with a "t"). So the hunt to disprove the accusation
turns into a hunt for a mythical lost city of gold.
Along the way,
Gates is forced to kidnap
the President (Bruce Greenwood) and get into a secret part of the Library of Congress to gain access to the Book of Secrets,
mentioned in the title. Guess what that book contains? Yup, secrets. Everything from presidential assassinations
and government involvement in everyday life to the existence of Area 51.
The movie is fun in the sense that its fun to
watch such a talented bunch trying to bring some dignity to the banal fodder at their disposal. Otherwise,
its just a hard way of killing two hours and ten minutes.
RATING : TWO STARS
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I AM LEGEND
a la The Flixter
In the year 2012, Dr. Robert Neville (Will Smith) is the last human being
roaming the streets of a deserted and abandoned NYC. He does have his German Shepherd accompanying him
around town. They hunt the wild animals roaming the streets. He goes into his usual stops and talks to
the mannequins he has set up around those stores. He talks to the mannequins behind the counter, picks
out what he needs, and tells them to put it on his tab. Then night falls and he and his dog go into their
apartment to hide out for the night.
There are the noises seeping in that tell
why he is in this particular situation. The city, and maybe the entire globe, was hit by a virus that killed
everyone. Actually, it didn't kill them but turned them into roaming zombies/vampires. So there is the
quest for survival along with dragging home those he manages to kill. In his lab he is conducting tests
to determine if there is a cure. After all, for some reason, he has been immune to this virus. Now he is
trying to find out why and if it is possible to find a cure. So the daytime is dedicated to speeding around
the desolate streets, hunting, and hitting golf balls off the deck of the aircraft carrier in Hudson Bay.
And then there are the constant memories of his wife and child who were killed while there was an attempt
being made to evacuate the city. Plus he sends out a message everyday to any other survivors that may be
out there... and thus Will Smith's one man show goes on.
The entire movie relies on him going around
all alone and try to undo the damage that, according to him, man's deeds brought upon itself. How does
he do? Well, he comes across as an excellent actor, a long way from his Fresh Prince of Bel Air roots. But if you have
seen Pursuit of Happyness, you know the guy can act. Besides his forceful performance, the movie is worth checking
out for the amazing sets consisting of a desolate and eerily quiet NYC. The monsters, though, are the only
drawback. Are they zombies or are they vampires? I was never too sure. What happens if the last man surviving
falls? I have no idea. But the point is not to ponder over the what ifs. The point is to go along for a
ride through a hellish future where being alone can be just as nightmarish as knowing that somebody else
is there.
RATING : FOUR STARS
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THE MIST
a la The Flixter
So this is the third movie I watched last week. Remember,
I mentioned that I picked up a ticket for this one when I went to see the crappy
Hitman? Anyway, here it goes.
Here's another collaboration between author
Stephen King and director
Frank Darabont. The
other two yielded two classics in the form of The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile. We find ourselves in King's home state of Maine where an electrical storm has hit a small community.
David Drayton (Thomas Jane) leaves his wife home
and takes his young son to the local supermarket to get some supplies. The place is pretty packed as the
community has descended on the place to stock up... and that is when the mist settles in. Its an ominously
thick fog that surrounds the place and leaves all the shoppers trapped in the place. But to make matters
worse, the mist is harboring some strange phenomenon within. There are things inside it. Hungry and malevolent
things.
So now the group has to band together,
lock the doors, and try to prevent these things from getting in, which they are trying to do. The small
community finds itself banding together at first and then, as it always happens in such situations, turning
on each other. Seems that there is a military base close to the town and the army may have been conducting
some experiments that have resulted in this mist and the creatures it harbors. Not helping the situation
is the batty Mrs. Carmody (Marcia Gay Harden) who seizes this as the end of days... God's wrath upon man for all the wrong doings
prevalent in society. Her solution is to offer a human sacrifice and start following the Good Book.
Consequently, more divisions are formed as some
start following her word while others decide to do their own thing. Things go from bad to much much worse
as attempts are made to leave the supermarket and the results are horrendous. That is enough about the
movie.
It is pretty standard monster movie fare. What
may set it apart, though, is the ending which can only be described as a downer. Very dark and extremely
depressing. Not the kind of movie that could be classified as escapist fare. Liked it but I think
Mr. Darabont did better
with his other two King adaptations.
RATING : FOUR STARS
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ONE WEEK AND
TWO MOVIES
(SO FAR)
a la The Flixter
Like the title says, I have managed to see two movies
during this week. First up, is Beowulf... or Beowulf 3D. Yes, I had to go a little far but since this movie was being offered in
3D; I had to check it out in that format. Is it a cartoon? Not really. Its a digitally enhanced film and
a lot that happens may not have been possible if it had relied on just actors. So the actors don't
really look realistic, especially Robin Wright Penn, who is a little hard to recognize and whose presence is reaffirmed by the
credits.
Well, it starts off with a celebration
in the Danish King Hrothgar's big hall. There is a lot of partying and even the king, played by
Anthony Hopkins, gets a little
tipsy after too much booze. He is quickly sobered up when the hall comes under attack by
Grendell, a hulking monster
who proceeds to rip the party goers, limb from limb. So that definitely puts a damper on the festivities
and the King puts out
on an APB on the monster and offers a huge reward to whoever slays the beast. In comes
Beowulf (Ray Winstone) and his posse. (From
what I have heard, Mr. Winstone, in real life, looks nothing like the digitally enhanced presence on the screen.)
Anyway, he goes after the beast, slays him, and ignites the wrath of his mother. The mom is played by
Angelina Jolie and
all you can think is that there must have been some hanky panky because Grendell the beast looks nothing like his hot-ass
mom. So, of course, there are some issues of soap-operatic dimensions effecting the whole situation.
There are many spectacular scenes of warfare
and, in case the one beast isn't enough, the movie throws in a fire-breathing dragon to up the ante. Yes,
absolutely spectacular to look at and worth the price of admission. Plus, I get to keep the glasses which,
unfortunately, don't work on anything else. So the movie is dazzling but once the glasses come off, there
isn't much else to recommend it since it is a very standard sword and sorcery flick.
Then I went to see
Hitman the next day.
Timothy Olyphant plays
Number 47, a bald-headed
assassin raised by a secret brotherhood to perform the sole task of assassination. But something goes wrong
on his latest assignment and he finds himself on the run, fighting, and killing while trying to uncover
the truth. Oh yeah, him and all the other assassins raised with him have a barcode tatooed on their skulls...
whatever that signifies. Maybe that they are just a product of a world fixated on violence and its determination
to resolve conflicts by further acts of violence. Or like I said before, whatever...
So there is a lot of actiony-stuff
including car chases and that complimentary hooker there to ease the tension and becoming a reluctant ally.
The action is so haphazardly put together that you might be pulling your hair out trying to keep things
straight. There are twists and counter twists... all attempting to make the movie rise above its generic
roots but to no avail. Anyway, what can you expect from a movie based on a video game. It sucked royally.
By the way, what did I mean by the "so far" in
the title? I happen to have picked up a ticket for The Mist for Friday night when I went to see Hitman. So I am hoping that it will be better
than Hitman. And in
case you were wondering, I did get lost on my way back from Beowulf since I went a little farther to see it in 3D. .
RATINGS :
BEOWULF: FOUR STARS
HITMAN : ZERO STARS
__________________________
A DOUBLE WHAMMY
a la The Flixter
Two great actors like Denzel Washington and
Russell Crowe collaborate
and the movie resulting is an utter piece of crap.... Hold on. My fault. Yes, the movie was a piece of
crap but I am talking about Virtuosity, a movie that had the two talents, a bunch of cheesy special effects, and
nothing worth recommending. But that was over a decade ago. Now the two collaborate again after bagging
two Oscars a piece.
The movie is American Gangster and is worth it just to see
the two try to top the other. Denzel Washington plays Frank Lucas, who is based on a true guy, and is a Harlem mobster. His big accomplishment
is cornering the drug market in the '70s and buying most of the law enforcement officials whose job would
have been to bust him. He also happened to make a trip to Vietnam and brought back a load of drugs in soldiers'
coffins. The only obstacle he faced was in the form of Newark detective, Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe). That incorruptible cop is bent
on bringing Lucas down.
What results is an exhausting chase,
both mental and physical, on both men's part. Washington tops Crowe, in my opinion, because he is just so good at playing the bad guy. After
all that is what he got his second Oscar for. Remember that despicable and corrupt cop from
Training Day? So both actors
do a fine job while the supporting players, including Cuba Gooding
Jr. and a pretty bad-ass Armand Assante, are just as well. The director
is the almost always great Ridley Scott
(I won't go towards Someone
To Watch Over Me). But the movie is a little too much at being
close to three hours long. That was on a Friday night.
If it wasn't for Daylight Savings
Time and the clocks falling back an hour, I probably wouldn't have been able to make it to
Bee Movie on Saturday. That
would have stunk because, in case you didn't know, Bee Movie was more my type of fare. A cartoon. And on top of that, one conceived by
Jerry Sienfeld, who
also lends his voice as the main character, Barry, who is a honey bee, shocked at his discovery upon venturing out of the hive.
That discovery being that the humans have been stealing the honey his kind are so dedicated to making.
He manages to find an ally in the form of a human florist (voiced by Renee Zellwegger) and proceeds to bring a lawsuit
against the human race. Yes, it sounds ridiculous. Maybe because it is. But it is also pretty damn hilarious.
I was a big fan of Seinfeld and its good to see he hasn't lost touch with his comic abilities. There is just so much
hilarity that I could be up all night attempting to mention everything. There is
Chris Rock as a mosquito and
a world inside the hive that parallels everything that goes on in our world. Even a hunched over talk show
host named Bee Larry King. Absolutely hilarious and a great time. The only bad thing about this type of movie is
that there aren't any shows really late at night, so the one I end up at is full of young kids who can
be a little disruptive at times.
RATINGS :
AMERICAN GANGSTER: FOUR STARS
BEE MOVIE: FIVE STARS
__________________________
SAW IV
a la The Flixter
Jigsaw is back. You know, that nut job who isn't killing his victims but making
them appreciate all they have. Okay, so his subjects do end up dead in the most gruesome of fashions. But
he never kills them. He just puts them in a trap where the only way out won't have them breathing too long
afterwards. Call me sick, but the traps have been some pretty nifty setups. People end up bringing about
their own demise or they find themselves in a situation where they are in a room with another person and
their only way out is to end the other's life. Remember when this girl had her head strapped in a thing
that was going to snap shut, with a timer, and crush her skull? Her only way out was to kill the other
person in the room, remove a key from their belly, and unlock that mechanism around her skull. Did she
do it? Of course. And all the while, the audience shrieked in disgust but enjoyed every moment of the new
sub-genre, which was to be labeled "Torture Porn."
Anyway, I kinda' liked the first three
Saw movies. But Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) died in the last one. But how many times has Jason Voorhees died in the
Friday the 13th franchise?
It doesn't stop him from coming back. Well there is the supernatural element to those movies which
makes his constant resurrection possible. Jigsaw, on the other hand, is just a regular guy. In fact, he is a terminally ill
fellow who is on his way out, regardless of whether or not he is nabbed. So the makers opt for the other
option available for these types - a flashback. We go back to see his origins. His sad past where he was
actually a loving husband with an expectant wife. Things didn't go too well and he became what we have
gotten to know. This time, Detective Rigg (Lyriq Bent), who is a little too obsessive about his job, is led into an ambush. But
two of his partners are already in Jigsaw's game. And he has to get involved and play the game as well, if he wants to
save those two guys. Anyway, the movie gets a grisly start as the comatose Jigsaw is undergoing an autopsy and the doctor
finds a tape recorder inside him that, when played, establishes the rules for the game.
The end has a twist like the first
Saw. Something you
won't be expecting, mainly because there isn't much given that could hint at its possibility. There's loads
of blood and gore but not much else that could separate it from the first three. What started out as an
original concept is getting a little redundant and losing its entertainment value.
RATING : TWO STARS
__________________________
30 DAYS OF NIGHT
a la The Flixter
If anything, this movie may teach you a little geography.
Actually, I am not sure if the geographical aspect is truly true. It seems to be.
Barrow, Alaska is the northern
most town in the USA, and it goes for 30 days without seeing sunshine. Seems right but I am not sure if
the name is correct. Anyway, no sun means an ideal spot for vampires dodging the sunlight. And that is
what Eben Olsen (Josh Hartnett) has to face as sheriff.
The long period of darkness means that they stop
serving alcohol which is what brings the initial trouble from a new comer who just doesn't seem to understand
and insists on getting whiskey. Olsen is forced to arrest this troublemaker and throw him in the jail which is
being run by him and a couple of other people, including his spouse who is leaving him. The guy warns of
the imminent doom facing the town and is ignored until more obvious signs indicate that there may be some
merit to what the guy is saying. All the dogs are butchered, the power is cut, transportation is crippled,
and people start dying. Massacred is a more appropriate word since people start meeting grisly fates and
the few survivors are forced to take shelter in an isolated attic. The vampires have descended on the town
for a feeding frenzy and they have a limited amount of time to fill their appetites since the sun is bound
to return. The only problem is how Olsen and his small band can survive those days while waiting for the sun to shine
again and drive away the new arrivals.
Concept wise, the movie is great. Its based
on some graphic novel. Execution wise, the movie is so-so. There is plenty of tension as this band of survivors
hides out, tries to survive, and attempts to fight off the exterior threat while suppressing any chance
of inner turmoil. Like I was just saying, there is plenty of tension but it gets a little tedious once
the number of survivors starts dwindling without getting much sympathy from the audience since there isn't
much in terms of character development. Do you care if the people live or die? I really didn't. Just waited
for the next death scene and how much blood was going to be spilt.
Josh Hartnett does a decent job and his final
act is supposed to raise him above the generic qualities he has displayed thus far. I liked it. Didn't
really love it though there are some nice touches, meant to carry the film beyond its generic constraints,
including an aerial view at the start of the massacre that gives us a bird's eye view of the hell unfolding
on the ground below. The actors are fine and the villains loathsome while the movie is somewhere in the
middle as a whole.
RATING : TWO STARS
__________________________
WE OWN THE NIGHT
a la The Flixter
The year is 1988 and the brothers
Grusinski find themselves
on the opposite sides of the law. Joe (Mark Wahlberg) is a dedicated police officer, taking after dad (Robert Duvall), who has just been
promoted to Captain. However, Bobby (Joaquin Phoenix) is not so good. He could be if he just stuck to his job of managing a nightclub, but
that job comes with its tweaks and temptations. There's all the drugs that make their way through his club
and he, of course, has to make those part of his managerial duties, distributing them in accordance and
trying them out to make sure his patrons are getting quality stuff. Eventually,
Joe really gets on the bad
side of his brother, and the Russian mob, when he raids Bobby's club. People are arrested, drugs are ceased, and he, along with his family,
is put in harms way since the angry mobsters want revenge. Bobby is just plain mad at his brother at first but changes his ways since those
mobsters put Joe in
the hospital and dad in the morgue. So what does he do?
What anybody in that situation would do.
He becomes a cop. He doesn't go to the police academy or take a test or anything. He just gets deputized
since he has some information, the police know will be useful, and has family ties to the police. That's
it. Who knew it was that simple? Things are complicated on the personal front since he tries to hide his
newfound career aspirations from his girlfriend (Eva Mendes) and the club owners, who initially didn't even know about his family ties
to the police. Then he is off to bring those responsible to justice.
There isn't much to recommend this movie. It's
pretty much a big letdown since the cast is so talented, ranging from the senior
Duvall to the younger
Phoenix and
Wahlberg. Good thing the senior
Duvall is discharged
honorably, via death, earlier in the film and doesn't have to stick around for the ridiculous turn of events.
About the only good thing is a car chase through pouring rain. That looks pretty cool. That's about all
that looks good, besides Ms. Mendes...
RATING : ONE STAR
__________________________
The Kingdom
a la The Flixter
A small community of Americans enjoys a normal summer
day. The kids have a baseball game where everyone is gathered. And then, the unthinkable happens. Gunmen
descend on their tranquil existence leaving scores dead and fleeing without capture. But what is different
about this situation is that this American community of oil drillers is in the heart of Saudi Arabia.
Washington DC is alerted and a team of
four is sent to the region to investigate and bring those responsible to justice. The team is made up of
FBI agent Ronald Fleury (JamieFoxx), bomb expert Grant
(Chris Cooper), forensics lady Janet
(Jennifer Garner), and Jason Bateman's Adam, whose purpose isn't really clear. He is there pretty much to crack jokes and make the
trio a quartet. Of course, upon arrival, they find out that they are not really welcome there. And
the Saudis don't really let them carry on a thorough investigation which needs to be done quickly since
they only have five days to do their job. Then things get nastier as they come under attack by gunmen.
That doesn't seem so bad since the attackers that follow are armed with heavier weapons that include rocket
launchers.
Actiony stuff happens as they close
in on their target, some Bin Laden-type named Abu Hamza. Of course, the team has to pause along the way and show that they are also
kind-hearted besides being ruthlessly efficient. Plus, they are also given an Arab cop to accompany them
in their mission. That guy, played by Ashraf Barhom, ends up being the most intriguing character since he is forced into this
job of watchdog which his Arab comrades considera betrayal of his roots.
Okay, so there is plenty of action. Director
Peter Berg said that
the movie is ninety five percent action and five percent message (or some
proportion like that). I guess he is right since there are a lot more explosions than there is preaching.
But the message ends up being more
loudly resonant than those explosions. What is that message? Don't mess with Americans, I guess. Or something
along those lines...
Fun at times but hardly a perfect getaway...
RATING : THREE STARS
__________________________
EASTERN PROMISES
a la The Flixter
Who could have guessed that one of London's biggest crime
families is of Eastern-European origin? But that is the case and Anna (Naomi Watts) finds that out the hard way when
she unwittingly crosses paths with the Vory V Zakone brotherhood while searching for some answers about a young girl who died
in her hospital while giving birth. Anna is a dedicated nurse and embarks on a quest to find out who is responsible
for the girl's condition and is to be handed the newborn child.
The girl's battered diary leads her to
a Trans-Siberian restaurant run by Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl) who is using the place as a front for his otherwise, unlawful activities.
That is where she meets Nikolai(Viggo Mortensen), Semyon's driver. He is the quiet type but underneath that quiet demeanor is a ruthless and calculated
killer. Also present is Semyon's son who is more loyal to Nikolai than to his own father.
The girl's diary is in Russian and
Anna needs these people
to translate what the girl knew. Her other option as a translator is her stepfather, who immediately warns
her, after reading a little bit of the diary, to destroy it and forget about its existence. But
Anna wants to get to the truth
and Nikolai seems to
be the only one she can trust.
Extremely violent in phases, this movie
is a showcase for Mr. Mortensen who shows his acting abilities. It is safe to say that the guy is definitely a fine actor.
This is his second pairing with director David Cronenberg, after A History of Violence, and the movie is similar to that one in the sense that this also deals with
a man who is trying to come to terms with his hidden agendas, which he questions, while trying to sort
out his present condition. Naomi Watts gives a fine performance while
Armin Mueller-Stahl makes his character despicably intriguing.
(Come on, the guy is just trying to run a business at whatever cost is necessary.) Violent, suspenseful,
and touching but a little slow at times, though this can be another distraction from the usual Hollywood
fare..
RATING : FOUR STARS
__________________________
THE BRAVE ONE
a la The Flixter
Erica Bain (Jodie Foster) is living a nice NYC life. She has her own radio show--- commenting on life
in the city, a boyfriend she is about to marry, and a dog to make it all complete. Life is looking good.
Until that night that she, her boyfriend (Naveen Andrews), and the dog are taking a walk in Central Park. Going through a dark tunnel,
they are attacked by a group of Latino thugs. The dog is taken away, the boyfriend beaten to death, and
Erica is beaten into
a coma. After a few months, she awakens, and sets out to recover, and leaves the hospital, an angrier woman
bent on vengeance.
The gun laws prevent her from getting a
firearm, so she turns to someone who will get her an illegal one. She trains and gets a chance at using
that training when she happens to be in a bodega that gets held up. She kills the guy there and finds herself
on a new mission -- not just tracking down those who brought her to this point but to also get any other
wrong doers in the city that she loved.
Enter Marcus (Terence Howard), a police detective, investigating
this sudden surge in vigilante style killings. Some evidence leads him to start suspecting
Erica. He confronts her with
his suspicions and the relationship that builds between the two is credible enough to carry the movie through
its slow sections. Meanwhile, the rest of NYC embraces the shadowy figure bringing the wrong doers, who
were roaming free, to their just fates.
The movie can be seen as a female variation on
Charles Bronson's
Death Wish movies (as
many of them as there were). But having Foster in the lead and Neil Jordan as director makes it a little classier. Tough, suspenseful, and touching,
all at once, this was definitely a worthy diversion from movies that are depending more and more on special
effects to entertain. Foster shows why she has already won two Academy Awards and Howard shows why he can't be too far from one.
Maybe not his role here but soon.
I loved it..
RATING : FIVE STARS
__________________________
3:10 TO YUMA
a la The Flixter
Farmer Dan Evans (Christain Bale) has a pretty harsh life. He lost his leg as a Union soldier during the Civil
War. He can barely make ends meet and his son thinks of him as a coward. But his chance at redemption comes
when he helps capture stagecoach robber Ben Wade(Russell Crowe) and agrees to deliver him
to his final judgment. He will get $200 if he can get Wade to the 3:10 train at Contention
City so he can be delivered to the hangman at
Yuma.
It could be a simple task if
Wade wasn't such a devious
delivery and wasn't being pursued by his posse who plan on freeing him. Along the way, he plays mind games
with Ben and offers
him a much larger sum if he frees him. Plus there are other hurdles along the way including an apparent
shortcut which turns out to be otherwise, thanks to the Apaches who populate the area.
Unknown to Dan, his son is following his father on this
task. Also accompanying Dan are a veterinarian, a bounty hunter (Peter Fonda), and the railroad official who hired Dan. The posse in pursuit of this party is headed
by Wade's No. 2 guy,
a psychotic nicknamed Princess.
There is plenty of action and the performances
are fine. But the movie is a little boring at times... too many times. The best has to be when a stopover
in some town turns for the worse when the head there, who has his own grudge against
Wade, offers a cash reward
to whoever kills the two. The two actually end up joining forces along the way, and bonding to almost make
this a buddy movie. Russell Crowe gives a very good performance but Bale, in my opinion, has a more multi-layered character and does better than his
Oscar winning co-star.
By the way, its a remake of a
Glenn Ford movie which
was based on an Elmore Leonard short story. Yes, the same guy behind such crime dramas as Get Shorty and Jackie Brown. A good movie, great performances,
but a little too slow for all that is going on..
RATING : THREE and 1/2
STARS
__________________________
HALLOWEEN
a la The Flixter
Poor Michael
Myers. He has a miserable childhood. He has an abusive stepfather.
His mom's a go-go dancer. He is constantly picked on at school. Poor Michael Myers.
So what can he do to vent all this
frustration? Well, he can mutilate animals... which he does. But he shouldn't have taken those pictures
because they will just get him caught. But what else can be done, since there is a lot more needing venting?
How about getting rid of some of those responsible for his frustrations? So he kills that bully from school.
And then he gets home and slits the stepfather's throat. Yup, things are starting to feel better, but the
stupid authorities won't let the 10-year-old be... After the initial killings, he is put in an institution
under the care of Dr. Loomis (Malcolm McDowell).
Fifteen years later,
Myers is a six foot, eight
inch hulk and escapes. He returns to his town on Halloween and picks up where he left off fifteen years ago... and there's plenty to
be picked at. There are plenty of horny teenagers and their likes. Laurie (Scout Taylor-Compton) is the baby-sitter from
Michael's younger days
who is now all grown up and finds herself being shadowed by a sinister figure. Her friends are the horny
youngsters I hinted at before. They get massacred but it is Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis in the original) who puts up the fight. Dr. Loomis comes back to try to lasso in his
former patient who has given him a lot of success in the form of a best-selling book he wrote about that
experience. Let's just say that things don't quite work out the way he is intending.
There's gore, there's blood, and
all that is missing is suspense or any lingering hint of scares. Michael Myers is played by wrestler
Tyler Mane. By the way, its
Michael Myers and not
Mike Myers. The later
is the comic behind Austin Powers and Shrek. But getting back to the movie, it is sufficient to say that it was terrible. I am a big
fan of director Rob Zombie... at least his music, whether it was his band White Zombie or his solo career. But in terms
of movies, he is too bent on gore and sadism instead of scaring the viewers. I do think his career would
have gone in a whole different direction if he had opted for Bob as a first name instead of Rob. Imagine
a musician and director named Bob Zombie. I think that is enough about this terrible movie going experience...
RATING : ZERO STARS
__________________________
SUPERBAD
a la The Flixter
High school is ending. Seth (Jonah Hill) may have a chance at getting it on
with his pretty lab partner. She is throwing a party and Seth volunteers to supply the booze. He gets the order of alcohol from her and
her friends, and sets out to round up the liquor. That's where the problems begin; he and his friends are
graduating from high school so no one is old enough to buy the alcohol. That is where
Christopher Mintz-Plasse's, Fogell comes in handy. The geeky, near-sighted kid has gotten himself a fake ID. Just that his
new ID only gives him one name, McLovin... and according to that ID, McLovin is an organ donor from Hawaii.
The third one in this trio of misfits hoping
to score, is Michael Cera's Evan. So McLovin goes into the liquor store and puts on his charade just as a robber barges in, punches
him and empties out the cash register. So things get complicated since the cops show up and take
Fogell's
McLovin along for questioning.
Good thing the two officers, played by Bill Hader and Seth Rogen, are a laid back pair of slackers who take a liking to
McLovin and take him along
in their car for a night that is made up of speeding through red lights with the sirens blaring and partying
like the cops were the ones graduating high school.
Meanwhile,
Seth and
Evan are wandering around
getting into their own misadventures and discussing ways they are going to unleash their sexual fantasies.
The movie is absolutely hilarious. A great time
at the movies with some of the biggest laughs I can recall from recent movie going experiences.
Seth Rogen, who recently achieved
stardom thanks to his turn in the hilarious Knocked Up, is also one of the screen writers here. Yes, it does get to be a little
sentimental in the final frames but its all appropriate, with enough hilarity ensuing in the earlier frames
to justify a great movie-going experience.
RATING : FIVE STARS
__________________________
RUSH HOUR 3
a la The Flixter
This review is long over due. Many problems and issues
on the personal front, but I figured that I should at least say something about this, since one of my favorites,
Jackie Chan, is in
it. So here goes:
Jackie Chan's
Lee and
Chris Tucker's Carter are back. So Carter is busy listening to his IPod while directing traffic, and you can guess
how that will turn out. Meanwhile Chan's Lee is escorting a Chinese diplomat who is about to give his big speech in front of the World
Criminal Court. That speech concerns the Triad and the whereabouts of its leader,
Shy Shen. The diplomat is
assassinated during his speech and Lee
is in pursuit of the killer when he runs into
Carter... and thus the two
are reunited.
Then the two are off to Paris since that
is where the conspiracy leads them. Turns out that Lee has a personal tie to the matter since his brother, played by
John Lone, is in with the
bad guys. In Paris, they manage to find the cabaret singer who has details of this Triad conspiracy tattooed
on her head. That is enough about the plot. Let's delve into some details now.
The movie was a huge disappointment for
me. Chan is 53 years
old now and should, maybe, start thinking about stunt doubles since the usual action you would expect is
missing. The movie concentrates more on comedy. That is where Chris Tucker comes in. I have usually found him
annoying. But he was bearable in the first two movies thanks in large part to a building chemistry with
Chan and comic
situations that were not so redundant back then. But now they are extremely redundant and he is back to
being annoying. Like I just said, there isn't as much action as you would expect. Even the out takes at
the end of the movie aren't that good. I remember a time when just those out takes were worth the price
of admission.
Very disappointing. In terms of bad
Chan movies, this ranks with
The Tuxedo... at least
that one had Jennifer Love Hewitt.
RATING : ONE STAR
__________________________
THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
a la The Flixter
Jason
Bourne (Matt Damon) is still at it. That would be trying to find out who he was, why people
are trying to kill him, how he got those lethal skills that enable him to defend himself, and how he got
to be where he is.... Let's go back to The Bourne Identity for a bit. That is where we first met Bourne, after he was pulled from the ocean, wounded,
battered, and without an inkling of who he was and now he was trying to find out. Then came
The Bourne Supremacy which
found our hero with a little closer to the truth. And now comes this one.
Bourne is on his globe spanning odyssey and getting closer and closer to where he
uncovers the truth. He doesn't have an arsenal of weapons like the ones available to another agent who
shares his initials and carries his own film franchise (I am referring to James Bond in case you didn't catch on).
Bourne makes use of
whatever is handy-- a kind of MacGyver, if you remember that show.
Anyway, the movie starts off in Moscow and then
heads to London where Bourne finds a reporter who has been writing about him. The poor guy was doing fine with his
journalistic activities until Bourne gets in touch with him, bringing him into the sights of his pursuers and
resulting in, you know what, for him. Then its off to Morocco and finally New York. He gets in touch
with Nicky Parsons
(Julia Stiles) who
may be his sole ally on the inside. David Straithairn is the CIA big, who is in pursuit of Bourne, with all his attempts focusing on ending
him before he finds out the truth about himself and the operations that yielded him.
The great Brian Cox is absent from this entry but there
is another great actor in his place. Albert Finney has a brief appearance as the doctor who is responsible for turning
Bourne into a cold
blooded killer. There are some good action set pieces, and some pretty good car chases, bit I think that
is enough praises. Now for the bad part.
I will hold the same thing that I held against
The Bourne Supremacy, against this one. That would be director Paul
Greengrass' reliance on using a lot of hand held cameras to capture
the action. Maybe I am just not sophisticated enough for that stuff, but I found a lot of the action scenes
to be too jumbled-up, where I had to wait for the action to end and the smoke to clear to see who was left
standing. That is my main complaint against this movie. Otherwise, it is pretty good in tying up the trilogy
from author Robert Ludlum. The acting is fine and Damon proves to be a worthy action hero. By the way, Joan Allen is also present as an ally for
Bourne. Like I mentioned
before, Robert Ludlum wrote three Bourne novels, but the series is still going on in the hands of Eric Lustbader. He has written two more novels,
The Bourne Legacy and
The Bourne Betrayal.
Let's see if they make it to the screen.
RATING : FOUR STARS
__________________________
The Simpsons Movie
a la The Flixter
I am not going to put down who voices which character since each
voice talent provides the voice of several characters.
Grampa has a vision during Sunday services in which he warns of imminent doom. The
rest of the family just categorizes it as just another episode for the old timer. Then
Homer comes home with a pig...
That starts everything, since Homer decides to dump all of the pig's waste in Springfield
Lake, triggering an environmental catastrophe, that results in
the town being sealed in a bubble... But the family finds a way to escape.
Their next option is moving to
Alaska.
Marge insists on returning
to their hometown to help out the people there. But Homer is liking it in Alaska and refuses to ever return to "America", however
Bart,
Lisa, and
Marge eventually coax him
into doing so.
As you already know, I am a big fan of cartoons.
But The Simpsons is
beyond a cartoon. It is probably the funniest thing on TV that has been hilarious and satirical in the
vein of Voltaire's
Candide. So when the
movie finally opened this Friday, you know I had to be there for the first show, which was actually a Thursday
night showing at 12:01am. So I, along with my crew of eight people, consisting of cousins and friends was
there; so were a lot of other Simpsons fans. The hardest part, since we all had to wear a
Simpsons t-shirt, was to pick
which one I was going to wear since a lot of my wardrobe is adorned by those guys.
Anyway, back to the movie. How was it? Some may
say that it is just like an episode of the show on a bigger screen. And the problem with that is... ?
I loved it. An hour and a half of animated, movie-going
bliss. Some of the characters (since there are so many) don't get enough screen time, if any. But the main
players are all there. And since the movie is rated PG-13, there's a lot of stuff that wouldn't make it
on the small screen. Like full frontal nudity involving Bart when he takes on Homer's dare to skateboard
in the buff. By the way, in all this environmental catastrophe, the nation is being run by a clueless
President Arnold Schwarzenegger. Plus one of the voices is being provided by a huge movie star (whose name I won't reveal)
who also happens to be a big fan of the show and one of the best actors around. Let's not forget that the
movie starts off with Homer addressing the audience as suckers who are paying to see something they can watch for
free on TV. Loved it and may watch it again...
RATING : FIVE STARS
__________________________
Hairspray
a la The Flixter
Let me start off by saying that this movie is a musical... meaning
that they sing and dance... and I hate musicals. I cannot stand the actors breaking into song and dance.
I can't recall a musical that I liked.
Now for the review:
The year is 1962. Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) has a dream. She rushes home from
school to tune into The Corny Collins Show, a TV show that is pretty much a rock n' roll dance party... oh yeah, the
dream.
Well, her dream is to be a contestant on that
show and, maybe, one day get the title of Ms. Hairspray. There's just one problem: she is a chubby girl that doesn't quite fit the
mold of the statuesque dancers on the show. Then there's other issues to be dealt with, like her mom, who
happens to be a huge recluse, both in size and manner. She, (played by John Travolta in a dress, wig, make up, and lots
of padding) hasn't left the house in years because she is ashamed of the way she looks. Then there's the
racial segregation of the times which has resulted in the show having a Negro Day where all the contestants
are (take a wild guess) black.
So
Tracy is not just going to make it to the show, she is also going
to end the racism, since her dance instructors end up being a group of black dancers. That could get tough
since the station manager is a racist snob, played by Michelle
Pfeiffer, who wants to see her own daughter become
Miss Hairspray. When she sees
Tracy becoming a threat,
she tries to seduce her father, played by Christopher Walken, and undermine things at home.
Zac Effron steps in as Linc, who becomes Tracy's love interest. But their
romance takes the back seat to the one involving her best friend, Penny (Amanda Bynes) and Seaweed(Elijah Kelley)
since they are THE interracial couple in those troubled times.
Sounds pretty complicated for a musical, doesn't
it? Yes, I did mention that I hate musicals. But I ended up loving this movie, including all the song and
dance numbers. The performances are great, especially Mr. Travolta in his fat suit. And Queen Latifah is also on board as the owner of a record store. Some may recognize this
as being a filming of the Broadway musical. But don't forget that before it got there, it was a movie from
John Waters back in
1988...
RATING : FIVE STARS
__________________________
Tranformers
a la The Flixter
Instead of writing this review, maybe I should be looking for
that Transformers toy
thing I had back in the day. Maybe its worth a lot of money now since the movie is out. But laziness prevails.
Anyway, yes, this movie is based on those toys, and
cartoon series,from the late 1900s. Shia LaBeouf plays Sam Witwicky, a high schooler who has just gotten his first car. Its a beat up Camaro
that he wasn't too keen on but had to settle for because of his stingy father. What he soon finds out,
makes him think again about his initial reluctance. It turns out that the car, named
Bumblebee, is actually quiet
effective in getting him the girl he has a crush on. And there's more. At night, the car transforms into
a giant robot. As he soon finds out, Bumblebee, is part of the Autobots, an interstellar race of robots that has come to Earth in search of the All Spark. (That happens to be
a cube type thing that holds the key to the survival of Earth.) So the Autobots are actually Earth-friendly, which cannot
be said for the Decepticons. That would be a similar race of robots that also comes here looking for that cube except
that they are not that friendly and are planning to use the cube as ways of universal domination.
These mass of robots, both the Autobots and Decepticons, transform into vehicles and aircrafts
to blend into their new environment. The hunt for the All Spark is on and the stage is set for some awesome action. Director
Michael Bay, known mostly
for loud and flashy films(except for The Island, which showed a little more depth) delivers the goods here. Having
Steven Spielberg as a producer
also helps.
The movie is pretty incredible to look at, mostly for the
CGI content which is dominant. The humans are secondary here, but you know that going in. Like I said before,
the action is spectacular as the robots, in all their shapes and forms, face off against each other, while
causing much destruction on our planet which some of them have the intention of saving. The humans are
pretty secondary but the actors deliver the goods in the midst of all the special effects.
Shia LaBeouf does a decent
job, though Disturbia was a better vehicle (no pun intended) for him.
A fun movie, but a little too much at times...
RATING : FOUR STARS
_________________________
Live Free or Die Hard
a la The Flixter
Its not going too well for Detective John McClaine (Bruce Willis). Its the 4th
of July weekend and the NYPD cop has just had an argument with his daughter, who has chosen to use her
mother's last name instead of John's. And then McClaine gets assigned to bring in Matt
Farrel |
