The Gift

The Gift

This movie stars Jason Bateman as Simon Callen who with his wife Robyn (Rebecca Hall) move to suburban Los Angeles from Chicago for Simon’s new job.  Robyn had been expecting a child earlier in Chicago but she lost the baby and it was their hope that a change in scenery would help them to have another child. 

While on a shopping trip, they run into Gordon “Gordo" Moseley (Joel Edgerton) who had been a high school classmate with Simon.  One day Gordon shows up at Simon and Robyn’s home while Simon is at work.  Robyn shows him around and invites him to stay for dinner. 

Gifts begin to appear from Gordon and it becomes apparent that Gordon thinks there is a friendship where none exists.   Simon tells Gordon that he should not show up any more and to leave them alone.  After this, weird and troubling things begin to happen that Robyn and Simon contribute to Gordon.  It also becomes apparent to Robyn that Simon is hiding something from his past. 

Parts of this movie were really good and some were humdrum.  Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall were well cast and were quite good.  It was interesting to see Jason cast in the part of somewhat of a bad guy.  The real star of this movie was Joel Edgerton.  Not only did he play a lead role as Gordon but he also directed and produced this film.  We really had not seen much of him since The Gladiator. 

I enjoyed this movie but it was good not great.  About ¾ of the movie was satisfactory but the rest, I couldn’t get into.  However, I still give this movie 3 out of 4 stars. 

Pixels

Pixels

In 1982 a time capsule is launched into space carrying several popular items from the era.  In Pixels, some of those items return to earth in order to attack it.  The attackers are the characters from arcade games that include Pac Man, Donkey Kong, and Space Invaders. 

Kevin James plays the President of the United States, Will Cooper.  After the attacks, it’s decided that the only way to be rid of the characters is to beat them at their own game.  World champions of the games are called in to help. 

Adam Sandler plays Sam Brenner, a software installer who is also a Pac Man champion and one of the President’s best friends.  He is brought in as well as Ludlow Lamonsoff (Josh Gad) another game enthusiast who Sam and Will had met as children, and Eddie Plant (Peter Dinklage) a Donkey Kong expert. 

As a teenager in the 80’s myself, I played all of these games.  So I thought the concept of this movie was pretty good.  If you are too young to understand Pac Man and Donkey Kong, the idea may be stupid to you.  

Adam Sandler and Kevin James are always great together and did not disappoint.  This movie also did not receive good reviews but I disagree.  If you want to appreciate Pixels, you really do have to leave your mind at the door and just enjoy.    I just let the spirit of the movie entertain me and I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.  

Insidious 3

Insidious 3 is based on a different family than the first two movies but does contain some of the characters.  Stefanie Scott stars as teenager Quinn Brenner whose mother recently died. Quinn’s father, Sean (Dermot Mulroney), is very dependent on Quinn without their mother and she resents it.  

Quinn has heard of a woman who can talk with the dead and decides to visit her in hopes that she can help Quinn talk with her mother.  The lady is Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye) who had the same role in the previous movies.  Elise has decided to retire from speaking with the dead but warns Quinn to not call out to them since all of the dead could also hear. 

Days later Quinn sees a dark figure while auditioning for a theater academy.   That night she meets her friend Maggie.  While they are crossing the street, Quinn again sees the dark figure and pauses to look.  She is hit by a car and badly injured.  She has broken both of her legs and is wheel-chair bound while her legs are in casts.  
Her father takes her home and gives her a bell to use when she needs something.   
Soon after, bad things begin to happen to Quinn.I enjoyed the acting by Lin Shaye.   She is a tremendous actress. Dermot Mulroney and Stefanie Scott were also fantastic.  
The special effects in this movie were outstanding.  The story at large was pretty good.  If you like horror movies, I would highly recommend Insidious 3.  It’s far better than the second movie and just as good as the first.  I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.  

San Andreas

This movie is based off the notion of the horrors that would occur if the San Andreas Fault ever ruptured.  Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson stars as Ray Gaines who is a Los Angeles Fire Department Air Rescue pilot.  Ray and his daughter Blake (Alexandra Daddario) are to take a trip to San Francisco.

Seismologists Lawrence Hayes (Paul Giamatti) and Dr. Kim Park (Will Yun Lee) are at the Hoover Dam to test a theory when a 7.1 earthquake hits destroying the dam and killing many people including Dr. Park.   Ray is called in to help so Blake is to instead go on her trip with her mother, Emma (Carla Gugino), and her mother’s wealthy boyfriend, Daniel (Ioan Gruffudd).

 Daniel is working on a new high rise that is being built to withstand earthquakes.  While in the high rise, Blake meets Ben (Hugo Johnstone-Burt).  Ben is an architect from England applying for a job with Daniel’s company who is travelling with his brother Ollie (Art Parkinson).

Lawrence realizes that the San Andreas Fault is shifting.  He tries to warn people but soon all of the cities along the fault, including San Francisco, are experiencing a massive earthquake.   Ray heads back to San Francisco to save his family.

The action scenes in this movie were fantastic.  The length of the movie was perfect.  It wasn’t too long as to become boring.  Dwayne Johnson is an ok actor but does have a strong presence in this movie.  I loved the display of family first.  Carla Gugino and Alexandra Daddario were pretty good in their roles so it pulled it all together.  

Overall this movie was very enjoyable.  If you go in expecting it to be real life, then you shouldn’t watch this movie.  I recommend it if nothing else for the action.  I gave it 3 out of 4 stars.  

Tomorrowland

This movie stars George Clooney as inventor Frank Walker and Brit Robertson as Casey Newton, a teenaged girl who is very bright herself.  Casey’s father Eddie (Tim McGraw) is a NASA engineer who has taught Casey to appreciate science.  With NASA decommissioning the launch pad, her father will lose his job.  She sneaks in with the intent to sabotage the work being done to remove the launch pad but ends up in jail.  When her dad comes to get her, she is given a pin with her belongings. Everytime she touches the pin, she is taken to a new place known as Tomorrowland.  However, she is the only one to see it. 

After time, touching the pin does not let her see anything new.  In search of answers, she meets up with Athena (played by Raffey Cassidy) an Audio-Animatronic recruiter for Tomorrowland who had given her the pin.  Athena sends her to meet with Frank Walker who had also been recruited by Athena as a young boy. 

Frank Walker had been banned from Tomorrowland after an invention of his went wrong and now he is a crotchety loner.  Once at Frank’s residence Casey is attacked by a hologram figure of a dog but she se’s through the ruse and remains much to the chagrin of Frank.  A group of robots are searching for Casey and in order to escape Frank takes her to Tomorrowland.

George Clooney was terrific as usual as was the young up and coming actress Brit Robertson.  Tim Mcgraw was also tremendous in the small part that he played.  Hugh Laurie also did great in his small part as the governor of Tomorrowland.  Brad Bird directed and produced this movie and wrote the screen play.  Having the same person do all worked out fabulously.

I thought that this movie was fantastic and I enjoyed every moment.  George Clooney who is a political person, made a statement in this movie and the point was well taken.  We should not take for granted what we have today.  

I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.  

Spy

This movie stars Melissa McCarthy as Susan Cooper, a trained CIA analyst who has only been allowed to guide agents in the field through their various cases in times of trouble from an office chair.  She generally works with Agent Bradley Fine (Jude Law) and has quite a crush on him.  One day while guiding Fine, she witnesses his death at the hands of Rayna Boyanov (Rose Byrne) who is the daughter of Fine’s latest target.  Fine had killed the target before learning the location of a nuke bomb. 

Rayna is now the new target but knows the identity of all the other agents. The leader of the CIA (Allison Janney) believes that Rayna could lead them to the bomb.  Susan volunteers to travel to Paris to spy on Rayna’s contact, De Luca.  Agent Rick Ford  (Jason Statham) is upset by allowing a “lunch lady” to get involved and quits his job.  He shows up in Paris, however, and begins to interfere with Susan’s espionage. 

Once again Melissa McCarthy is terrific in a comedy role and she was perfectly cast.  Jason Statham, Jude Law, and Rose Byrne were fantastic.  This movie was laugh-out-loud funny but definitely rated R due to nudity and a lot of profanity.  So if that’s not your kind of movie, you won’t like it.  If you liked “The Heat”, check this one out as you will definitely enjoy it. 

Paul Feig did an excellent job directing Spy and the music was great as well.    If you go see this movie, go with no expectations and you will like it as much as I did.  

I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.  

Aloha

Aloha stars Bradley Cooper as Brian Gilcrest, Emma Stone as Captain Allison Ng, Rachel McAdams as Tracy Woodside, and Bill Murray as Carson Welch.  Brian is an ex-military man who left the service to work for Carson Welch as a contractor making much more money.  After a mishap in Kabul, he is being given one last chance by Carson.  His job is to convince a Hawaiian king to give up land for an Air Force pedestrian gate and his blessing.  Captain Ng has been assigned to assist. 

Tracy and Brian had been a couple many years ago with Tracy expecting marriage.  Brian had other ideas, however, and they broke up.  The pilot who flew Brian to Hawaii was Tracy’s now husband, Woody, who according to Tracy doesn’t talk.  When they land, Tracy is there to greet Woody and upon seeing Brian, invites him to dinner.  Brian brings Captain Ng who he is falling for but old feelings surface between Brian and Tracy. 

This movie was directed by Cameron Crowe who is one of my favorite directors of all time.  He also wrote this movie and I found it to be very entertaining.  It was a mix of romance, humor, and a little action. Emma Stone played her perky role to perfection and her character was extremely likeable.  This was one of Bradley Cooper’s best performances as well. 

Rachel McAdams and John Krasinski (who played Woody) were fantastic also.   Alec Baldwin played a small part as General Dixon who had a strong dislike for Brian.  That dislike was made clear by Alec Baldwin’s portrayal who was perfectly cast.  Danny McBride also had a small part so there were a lot of stars in this movie. 

I think this movie was excellent but it wasn’t Cameron Crowe’s best film.  He did a much better job with Jerry McGuire and Almost Famous since both affected me greatly.  This movie was enjoyable but left me wanting more.  

I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.

Hot Pursuit

This comedy stars Reece Witherspoon as policewoman Rose Cooper and Sofia Vergara as Daniella Riva, the wife of a cartel informant.  Rose’s father was a police officer who often took her with him in his squad car.  This led to her desire to follow in his footsteps and become an officer herself.   Rose, however, has problems separating her police life from her personal life because of her intensity.  She is the butt of many jokes on the police force.  

One day she is asked by her captain to help escort Daniella and her husband to safety before he testifies.  While at the Riva house, shots begin flying and Rose and Daniella escape together in one of the Riva’s cars.  Rose and Daniella then get into one escapade after another since many on the police force are on the cartel’s pay roll. 

Reece Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara were terrific in their parts and Anne Fletcher did a great job of directing.  The movie started out making me laugh and really didn’t let up.   This is a movie where you really need to check your mind at the door and just allow yourself to enjoy.  

I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars. 

Monkey Kingdom

This Walt Disney movie follows Maya who is toque macaque monkey living in ruins in the jungles of Sri Lanka.  The film is narrated by Tina Fey.  Maya is of the lower caste within the Monkey Kingdom and knows her place in the pecking order.

 

After another male shows up and takes a liking to Maya, she finds that she will soon be a mother.  The leader of the monkeys chases off the newcomer leaving Maya alone again.  She must now find food for her and her newborn son if he is to survive. 

This movie is cute and enjoyable and leaves a warm feeling inside while teaching the ways of this kingdom of monkeys.  

I gave this movie three out of four stars.  

Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2

This sequel again stars Kevin James in the lead role and Raini Rodriguez as his daughter Maya.  In the previous movie, Paul married Amy.  At the beginning of this movie, he receives notice that Amy has filed from divorce.  Soon after that, his mother is hit by a milk truck and killed. 

Paul is struggling to find happiness again when he receives notice that he has been requested to attend a security guard convention in Las Vegas.  At the same time, Maya is reading an acceptance letter to UCLA.  Paul tells Maya his news and she decides to keep UCLA’s letter to herself. 

They travel to Las Vegas where someone leads Paul to believe he will be the key-note speaker.  He soon learns that this was incorrect but a series of events leads to a request for him to speak anyway.  In the meantime, Maya has made a friend out of the hotel’s valet, Lane. 

As usual trouble seems to find Paul.   A very wealthy man has made plans to steal all of the valuable art work that is in the hotel.  Maya and Lane attend a party in one of the hotel’s suites and stumble upon the heist.  Both are kidnapped and Paul takes action. 

I loved every second of this hilarious movie.  You need to go in and check your brain at the door.  If you do, you will truly enjoy.  The whole cast was great.  

I gave this movie three out of four stars.  

The Longest Ride

This movie was an adaptation of yet another novel by Nicholas Sparks.  It stars Scott Eastwood as Luke Collins who is a successful bull rider, Britt Robertson as Sophia Danko who is an art student about to graduate from college, and Alan Alda as Ira Levinson, an older gentleman who the two find after he was in a car accident.

Sophia’s friends convince her to leave the studying behind to attend a rodeo even though it’s not Britt’s cup of tea.  While there she catches the eye of Luke and he tosses her his cowboy hat.  Later at a bar, the two meet again and Luke gets Sophia’s phone number.  After ignoring several of Luke’s calls, she finally answers and they go out. 

When returning from a date, they come upon a car accident involving Ira.  Sophia retrieves a box of old letters that were in the car and delivers them to the hospital to give to Ira.  They become friends and Sophia begins to read the letters to him.  The letters were old love letters between Ira and his wife, Ruth, who had recently died. 

Rodeo is a dangerous sport and Luke has been seriously injured many times.  His mother, played by Lolita Davidovich, has been trying to get Luke to quit for years.  

Sophia tries as well but also with no success.  Luke and Sophia who are from two very different worlds must figure out how to make their lives work together. 

I really enjoyed everything about this movie. Scott Eastwood who is the spitting image of his dad Clint Eastwood was terrific as was Britt Robertson.  They make a great couple on film.  I normally do not like Alan Alda but he was really quite good in a pretty big role.  He pulled off the part quite nicely.  

I gave this movie three out of four stars.  I enjoyed it from beginning to end.  

The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

In this version, Sonny (Dev Patel) has decided he is ready to expand.  He and Mrs. Donnelly (Maggie Smith) travel to San Diego to convince a hotel chain to invest.  They are told that an inspector will make an unannounced visit before a decision will be made. 

Sonny is on pens and needles and becomes at odds with his fiancé, Sunaina who is played by Tina Desae.  It doesn’t help that one of her brother’s friends (who is very good looking) is spending a lot of time with her.  When the inspector arrives, Sonny immediately recognizes his purpose.  However the inspector, who is played by Richard Gere, says he is there to write a book. 

Evelyn (Judi Dench) is offered a job as a fabric buyer and must decide if the amount of travelling that will be required is what she wants at her age.  Douglas (Bill Nighy), who is in love with Evelyn, is afraid he will not have any time with her if she accepts the job. 

All of the characters return and are dealing with different events in their lives including  Madge (Celia Imrie) who is still hunting for a husband and Norman (Ronald Pickup) who has found his love but is afraid he’s losing her.    The acting was quite good and I really enjoyed this movie.  In fact, I enjoyed it as much as the first. 

I gave this movie three out of four stars.  

Get Hard

This hilarious movie stars Will Farrell as James, a hedge fund manager who is very rich.   He is engaged to Alissa (Alison Brie) who only wants his money.  Kevin Hart plays Darnell who is James’s car washer.  One night in a parking lot, Darnell accidentally frightens James and is given a big speech about how James got to be a success.

Alissa throws an engagement party which is interrupted when the police storm in and arrest James for fraud and embezzlement.  He is found guilty and sentenced to ten years at San Quentin and given 30 days before the sentence begins. 

James again runs into Darnell in a parking lot and asks him to train him to be able to survive in prison assuming that Darnell has been in prison himself.  Darnell, however, has no idea what life in prison is like but agrees to help toughen James up. 

I have to say that Will Farrell and Kevin Hart are so very funny in this movie.  It’s just one riot after another.  I enjoyed every second.  It’s not going to win any academy awards.  However, if you check your mind at the door and just go in ready to enjoy, you will.  

I gave this movie three out of four stars. 

Home

This animated movie stars the hilarious Jim Parsons as Oh, a Boov who is not liked by his people due to his constant mistakes.  The Boov are always on the run from their enemy, the Gorgs, and are in search of a new planet.  They settle on Earth and quickly banish the humans from their homes so they can take over. 

Oh is excited to be in a new home and throws a party inviting all his neighbors.  When no one shows up, he becomes depressed.  He decides to send a mass email to all of the Boov inviting them to the party.  However, the email goes to everyone in the galaxy including the Gorgs.  All the Boov are searching for Oh in hopes of recalling the message.  They just need Oh’s password.  

One teenaged girl named Tip (voiced by Rhianna) has managed to escape capture along with her cat who is named Pig.    While on the run, she meets Oh, who is now also on the run after realizing his mistake.  Oh and Tip soon strike up a friendship and Oh promises to help Tip find her mother who was banished with the other humans. 

The humor in this movie was terrific. What else would you expect from Jim Parsons who was absolutely fantastic?  Rhianna did a great job as well.  The animation was really well done.  3D doesn’t always add a lot but I felt it did here. 

The movie was just a little too long but I still loved it. 

I gave this movie three out of four stars.  

The Spongebob Movie: Sponge Out of Water

This movie features the lovable cartoon character, Spongebob and his friends. The crabby patties are stolen by the pirate, Burger Beard who was voiced by Antonio Banderas, and brought to land.  It is up to Spongebob, Patrick, Squidward, Mr. Krabs, Plankton and the others to bring back the crabby patties. 

My daughter and I really enjoyed it, but it was a little too long.  I still highly recommend it for families with small children.  

I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.  

Kingsman: The Secret Service

This movie is an action film based off of a group of spies known as the Kingsmen.  Colin Firth plays the part of Harry Hart (code name Galahad) who is a member of the Kingsmen.  During a mission in the Middle East, one of the members is killed.  Harry goes to visit the family of the fallen member which includes a young boy, Gary. Harry leaves his number for them to call if they are ever in need of assistance. 

Years later, Gary who is known as Eggsy, gets into trouble and lands in jail.  Gary decides to call Harry.   Harry gets him out and sees potential in him.  After the death of one of their members, the leader of the Kingsmen, played by Michael Cain, asks each Kingsman to suggest one person who they feel can replace their lost member.  Harry chooses Eggsy, who is played by Taron Egerton, and so begins Eggsy’s training to become a Kingman.   Eggsy is initially not chosen but is later brought back. 

Samuel L. Jackson plays the part of Richmond Valentine, a very rich man interested in surviving Global Warming who is developing a plan to lessen the harm to the environment.  The Kingsmen are brought into investigate Valentine after several VIP’s begin to disappear.

I really enjoyed this movie, especially Colin Firth, Michael Cain, Samuel L. Jackson, and the others.  Samuel L. Jackson was terrific in the part of the bad guy.  I thought the writing was crisp and well-thought-out.  The action scenes were amazing.  The stunt guys really earned their pay in this one.  

I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.  

Fifty Shades Of Grey

This movie is based off of the first of a trilogy written by E.L. James.  Anastasia (Ana) Steele, played by Dakota Johnson, is a soon to be college graduate majoring in Literature.  Her roommate Kate (played by Eloise Mumford) has arranged an interview with millionaire Christian Grey who is played by Jamie Dornan and is strikingly handsome.  However Kate becomes ill and asks Ana to go in her place.

Ana meets Christian as arranged and finds she is attracted to him.  After the interview is complete, he surprisingly shows up at the hardware store where she works.  Before their romance can go far, Christian has Ana sign a non-disclosure agreement and then lets Ana in on his secrets in his world of lovemaking. 

Christian’s world is far different than Ana’s and she finds she is unable to resist him.  She soon realizes she is fighting for her independence and wants more from their relationship.

I’m told this movie follows the book pretty well.  It will appeal to couples and women.  The acting in this movie could have been better but it wasn’t awful.  This is definitely not a movie for everyone but it is pretty good.   

I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.

Unbroken

This movie directed by Angelina Jolie is based on the real life of Louis Zamperini who was the son of an Italian immigrant.  The story begins with Louis as a young boy who is always getting into mischief.  His brother convinces him to take up running as a way to stay out of trouble and he finds he is quite good at it.  He makes the Olympic team and is to compete in Tokyo.  However the Olympics are halted due to the war.

Louis, who was played by Jack O’Connell, is a bombardier in the war and his plane is shot down over the ocean. After being on a life raft for 47 days, him and the only other survivor Phil, played by Domhnall Gleeson, are taken as prisoners of war by the Japanese and taken to a POW camp.

Louis becomes the whipping boy for the camp leader who was known as “The Bird”.  He endures many hardships at the hands of “The Bird” but survives.  His motto becomes “If I can take it, I can make it”. 

I enjoyed this movie and it was heartbreaking at times.  The strength of Louis is admirable and you can’t help but respect him.  Angelina Jolie was terrific as a director and got the best out of all the actors. I look forward to any future movies with her as a director. 

Interestingly enough, Louis was selected to be the grand marshall in this past week’s Rose Bowl parade.  He however, died at the age of 97 on July 2, 2014.    He lived his life in a way I would hope everyone should look up to.   

This movie has been a sell-out almost every night it has played and I rated it accordingly.  I gave it 3 out of 4 stars. 

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb

I thought the First Night at the Museum movie was OK, the second was horrific.  So I went to see the third and final version with mixed feelings.  I was pleasantly surprised as it was quite good.  In fact it was the best of all three Night at the Museum movies. 

The movie begins by showing some history of how the Egyptian tablet came about and how it was cursed.  The tablet needed to be in moonlight every so often or it would lose its magic.  Since the tablet had been inside the museum for so long without moonlight, all of the exhibits in the museum would no longer be able to come to life in the evenings. 

Larry (played by Ben Stiller) decides to go on a road trip to the museum in London to find out more.  He brings along several of the main exhibits who had played major parts in all 3 movies.  They included Owen Wilson as Jedediah the cowboy, the late and great Robin Williams as Teddy Roosevelt, Steve Coogan as Octavius the Roman, Patrick Gallagher as Attilla the Hun, and of course Dexter the monkey.  When they arrive at the London museum, they are met with Tilly, the security guard who was played by Rebel Wilson.  She lets them in but has no idea of what is about to occur. 

Soon the exhibits in the London museum come to life as those in New York City had done before.   These include Sir Lancelot (played by Dan Stevens) and the Egyptian leader who cursed the tablet played by Ben Kingsley. 

The comedy in this movie was pretty good and very family oriented.  The actors really shined in their roles.  Even Dick Van Dyke and Mickey Rooney had small parts as former museum employees.  The storyline was easy to follow and appropriate for all ages.  At the end of this movie there was a small tribute to both Robin Williams and Mickey Rooney who had passed away earlier in the year.  It was a great way to end the movie.  I thought this movie was entertaining and I gave it 3 out of 4 stars. 

Annie

There are several versions of this movie and I enjoy each one.  This one stars Jamie Foxx as Will Sacks, a wealthy mobile phone mogul and mayoral candidate.  Quvenzhane Wallis stars as Annie.  Annie is an orphan living as a foster child in the home of Colleen Hannigan, who was played by Cameron Diaz. 

While out and about one day, Annie is running down the sidewalk and bumps into Mr. Sacks and falls into traffic.  Mr. Sacks quickly snatches her from in front of an oncoming truck.  This act captures the attention of the news as well as his political advisor, Guy, who was played by Bobby Cannavale.  Guy convinces Mr. Stacks to take Annie in to his home in an effort to garner more votes. 

Jamie Foxx, Quvenzhane Wallis, Cameron Diaz, and Rose Byrne (who played Mr. Sacks personal assistant) were all fantastic actors, singers, and dancers.  Their performance was terrific.  I have seen this movie two times and left feeling uplifted and cheerful both times.  I would encourage everyone to bring the entire family to see this movie that grabs you by the heart.  I thought this movie was just as good as any previous version.  I gave this movie 3 out of 4 stars.