Ed's Review Dot Com

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Dune Entertainment, Stephen J. Cannell Productions

Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Jessica Biel, QUinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, Sharlto Copley, Patrick Wilson, Gerald McRaney, Henry Czerny

A group of Iraqi war veterans are on the run from the US Military after being framed for a crime they did not commit. It has to do with some stolen currency plates that they recovered, then were stolen from them. Now everyone is after them, and the only thing they can do (after breaking out of jail) is to recover them, and prove that they were framed. But everyone is after them. There is no way to know who they can trust other than themselves, and with this bunch of misfits, who could tell if they are honest with each other. This is based on the 80’s action TV show.

The A-Team is a tribute to the TV show, brought to the big screen. I was never a fan of the TV show and rarely watched it, although my kids watched it every day! Many of the TV shows brought to the big screen were not very well done. From The Beverly Hillbillies, to Miami Vice, to Dukes of Hazzard, they’ve tried and failed time and again. This particular one I think did capture the TV show pretty well. However lengthening it out to feature length didn’t help a lot. Instead of expanding the story by filling in the back story and telling us what’s the heck is going on, they add action, action, and more action. There is so much stuff blowing up here and falling out of the sky and being blasted off the ships that most of the time we don’t know what the heck is going on. On the other hand, I guess that’s what you expect from an A-Team episode, so maybe I’m just out of touch with it. There are certainly some cool sequences. For example, at one point they are falling out of a plan, inside an armored tank, using the gun on the tank to shoot so the recoil would steer them toward a small lake in Russia. The characters are very faithful to the TV show, and casting was pretty decent. The action is grand, even if there’s a little too much of it, and at times it hard to follow. But if you’re a fan of the TV show, I think you’ll be pleased with how they treated it, and if you just love action, then this one is spectacular in that department. If you want story, then there isn’t one here. It could have been much better, but it is what it is.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Warner Bros. Pictures, Legendary Pictures, GK Films

Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively, Slaine, Owen Burke, Titus Welliver, Pete Postlewaite, Chris Cooper, Dennis McLaughlin, Corena Chase, Brian Scannel

The Town refers to the Charlestown section of Boston which is known for a long history of bank robbers, armored car robbers, etc. Known to the local cops as “The Town” this seems to be where most of the criminals of Boston are born and raised. We meet a gang lead by Doug MacRay (Affleck) who have just pulled off a mostly successful bank robbery. The problem was that one of the guys took the manager of the bank Claire Keesey (Rebecca Hall) as a hostage for a short while. Later they found she was a neighbor in Charlestown. They are planning a big final heist but they have a lot of challenges. The biggest may be the FBI agent Adam (Jon Hamm) who cannot let it go and is driven to find and defeat them. To top that off, Doug meets Claire and they are attracted to each other. But she was the hostage in the bank robbery. That makes thing a bit sticky. That final heist may turn out to be their undoing.

This is an interesting crime drama! It is gritty and dark. The violence it intense and realistic and is what earns this movie an R rating. It’s well deserved. Ben Affleck directed this movie as well, and he did an excellent job. It moves along at a brisk pace and is never dull or boring. The characters are well developed and well acted. The action is great and you can almost see what the characters are seeing. There are some surprises, like Doug’s relationship with his father who is in prison. There are parts of the movie that are very suspenseful, and there are some parts that are funny. There are some that are very sad, and some that are very heart wrenching. It’s a very complete film that runs the whole range of emotions. The story is very well written. Ben’s character Doug is very hard to figure out as he is a good guy underneath with a very bad exterior. Is it his upbringing and environment that makes him bad? This is a fine film and Ben should be very proud of it. I recommend this film. When it’s over, you’ll understand a lot more about life in Boston, both from the gangsters side and the cops side. It’s an adrenaline rush.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Universal Pictures, Studio Canal, Relativity Media

Emma Thompson, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Oscar Steer, Asa Butterfield, Lil Woods, Eros Vlahos, Rosie Taylor-Ritson, Daniel Mays, Maggie Smith, Rhys Ifans, Ewan McGregor

Poor Isabel (Maggie Gyllenhaal) is in serious trouble. She has to run the farm, and take care of the family while her husband is off fighting in the war. She’s got trouble. They have to bring in the harvest, but the tractor is broken. Then her spoiled niece and nephew show up from London to be added to her own since it’s unsafe for the children in the city in case of bombs. Now she’s got 5 to take care of and her kids and the cousins hate each other with a passion. But help arrives when none other than Nanny McPhee turns up to teach the children FIVE lessons. You know the drill, when you don’t want her but you need her she must stay, but when you want her but no longer need her, she must leave. Nanny McPhee has a lot of magic and the children find themselves learning the 5 lessons in a strange and magical way. Hint: They’ll never use the term “When pigs fly” in the same way again!

This is the second Nanny McPhee movie. I don’t think it’s quite a good as the first, as this story is definitely derivative. Isabel has a brother who is a shyster. He’s got a load of gambling debts and needs money really bad, so he’s trying to talk her into selling the farm. (But Annie lives in the orphanage with Mrs. Hannigan whose brother is trying to get the reward from Daddy Warbucks) Oops, wrong movie. (But then Nanny McPhee gets on the bed with the kids and they turn the bedknob and fly to Portobello Road to find Professor Brown to get the last spell of substitutiary locomotion to fight the Nazis) Ok, wrong movie again. Yes this is very similar to both movies. So why did I rate this movie so high? Simply because it’s a really great kids film. The story is very well done, and though it’s derivative, the kids won’t mind that a bit. Emma Thompson has the Nanny McPhee character down, and her magic is as good as Mary Poppins any day! Maggie does a good job as the harried mother, and the two London cousins are awesomely evil. These kids are spoiled rotten, but they turn nice soon enough with Nanny McPhee’s prodding. Maggie Smith is in here too as Mrs Docherty, but I’m not sure at all how she even fits into the story. I’m not sure if I just missed it or if there is really a connection, but her talents are pretty much wasted in here. According to imdb.com’s trivia page, Mrs Docherty was the baby in the first movie. They may have said that, and I may have missed it. Otherwise it was a bit obscure for me. But obviously Nanny McPhee has been around a while as several people in this film recognize her from their childhood.

So what things do I like most about the movie? Well, the sense of irony is really strong, and I really appreciate that. The most outlandish proposition is stated and later comes true word by word. That cracks me up. The whole scene with the flying pigs is a blast, although not a large part of the film, but very cleverly done. Nanny McPhee is an icon and is well acted. There’s not a lot of suspense which is good for the younger viewers. I think this is an excellent kids movie and one the kids and the parents can watch together. There’s enough action, surprise, and laughs for the whole family to enjoy, so whether the kids are 3 or 17, the whole family can enjoy this, even the grandparents! I highly recommend this movie!

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, Animal Logic

Emily Barclay, Abbie Cornish, Essie Davis, Adrienne DeFaria, Joel Edgerton, Deborra-Lee Furness, Sacha Horler, Bill Hunter, Ryan Kwanten, Anthony LaPaglia, Helen Mirren, Sam Neill

This film starts out with some little owlets learning to fly. Soon they are kidnapped by the evil owls of St. Aggie’s so they can be brainwashed into becoming soldiers in the St. Aggie owl army. Soren (voiced by Jim Sturgess) enlists his new friends to make the long journey to the island of Ga’Hoole where there are supposed to be legendary hero owls of old as told in the stories. It’s a long hazardous journey, but when they arrive, the convince the noble wise owls to join them to fight the army created by the wicked owls of St. Aggie’s.

This movie has a lot going for it, but I have to say it did not reach out to me very well. I really didn’t get into the adventure story. The animation is wonderful, and the voices and soundtrack are good, so perhaps I should reconsider, but the story did not grab me. I couldn’t get into owls fighting each other. They are, after all, owls. I know some people were completely wowed by the animation and CGI in this film, and seeing on the big screen in 3D may have made a bigger impact on me. But if the story is not strong enough to catch you, then everything else is just gimmicks. I’m of the belief that the story is the key, and I felt this was just a little too weak for my taste. If you wish to disagree, feel free to comment and let’s have a discussion. I know this film did an excellent job in the box office, but I feel like I wouldn’t have missed much had I passed on this one.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Movie Rentals Releasing Tuesday Jan 18, 2011

• Takers
• Buried
• Animal Kingdom (Australian)
• Jack Goes Boating
• The Virginity Hit

Greetings friends. I’ve noticed a recent trend that also stirs my ire. I’ve noticed more and more DVDs arrive with a full menu. Then when you click on Special Features, another full Menu comes up. You click on “Bloopers” and a notice appears…”This disk is authorized for rental only. To enjoy the special features, you must purchase your own copy of this DVD/BlueRay”. Then you click on “deleted scenes” again a 2 or 3 page list appears with a number of deleted scenes, alternate endings, etc. But when you click on anything, the same message pops up. Ok, so they don’t have special features on the rental copy. But wouldn’t you know it, some of the stuff does work. A “Making of” or some other short is on there. This means that you will want to click on all the items in the special features to see what works and what doesn’t. Now come on. If you insist on screwing the rental customers out of the special features on the disk (at least they used to sometimes offer a special features disk that used up another line in your queue but allowed you to at least see them) is it necessary to put three or four levels of special features MENUS there just to tease us and torture us for not wanting to own a copy of some lame film for all time just to see the blooper reel? Do you really think we will plunk down $24.95 to own a copy of a movie we never want to see again just to see the alternate ending? I don’t think it’s worth irritating your customers just for one or two copies you’re going to sell to someone that just HAS to see something on the Special Features section. I think I’m going to start keeping track of which distributors and studios are doing this. What do you think? Someone should start a “YouTube” channel for on-line special features for disks that don’t have them. 🙂 Till next week. Happy Viewing! –Ed