CBS Films, TriStar Pictures, Castle Rock Entertainment
Dwayne Johnson, Billy Bob Thornton, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Moon Bloodgood, Maggie Grace, Tom Berenger, Carla Gugino, Mike Epps, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Matt Gerald
Driver (Dwayne Johnson) was pulled into a heist with his brother. They were setup, his brother was killed and he was sent to prison for 10 years. Now he’s out and he’s got a list. Driver is out to kill everyone involved in the death of his brother. But he’s being chased by Cop (Billy Bob Thornton) and a hit man named Killer (Oliver Jackson-Cohen). Knocking them off one by one, Driver’s on a rampage in this action film.
This is not a perfect action flick, but it’s not too bad either. There are some problems. Rock is not a great actor yet (ex: The Tooth Fairy). But he’s pretty buff. Now in terms of the people on his hit list, none of them put up any fight, so it’s not very exciting tracking down someone who’ s waiting on him to show up. Likewise the action is not very intense either. There’s a fast car chase or two, but they’re pretty anticlimactic as well. The ending is fairly predictable tool. There’s not a lot of humor in this film either, but every once in a while there will be a chuckle or two. But despite this, it’s still a relatively interesting thriller action flick that has enough to keep you interested. If you’re a fan of police/bad guy action flicks where good is not always good and evil does not always lose, this is worth the watch. I rated it in the middle because despite the flaws it was enough to make it worth a rental. The Rock looks great, and handles the action parts pretty well. I think it’s enough to make the movie worthwhile for action fans. So if you’re a fan of these kinds of films, go for it.
Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield, Keira Knightley, Isobel Meikle-Small, Charlie Rowe, Ella Purnell, Charlotte Rampling, Sally Hawkins, Kate Bowes Renna
Based on Kazuo Ishiguro’s acclaimed novel, this sci-fi drama is about thirtysomething Kathy (Carey Mulligan), who reflects on her time spent at Hailsham, an English boarding school, alongside classmates Ruth (Keira Knightley) and Tommy (Andrew Garfield). Born for an unusual reason, the three struggle with their destiny and their love triangle. Charlotte Rampling plays headmistress Miss Emily. This is a very intense story of love and hard circumstances.
I was caught completely by surprise by this film. I had heard nothing about the film or the book and was very pleasantly surprised and very deeply touched. This is at the simplest level a wonderful love story, but much, much more than that. The film raises some ethical questions that cannot be answered. As the trio in this film head for the climax and the goal that they have long reached for, we’re suddenly slapped in the face very hard by reality. This is a film that you should see without preconceived notions. The cinematography is spectacular, the characters are wonderful, the music and soundtrack are exceptional and it’s a perfectly put together film. It’s a dark subject that will take much patience to get into, but it so well worth the wait. Not a thriller or a suspenseful drama, but it will have you on the edge of your seat, and I can promise this will make you think for a long, long time after the movie is over. Very excellent film. I highly recommend it for a cerebral sci-fi dramatic experience.
K5 International, Zanuck Independent, David Gundlach Productions
Robert Duvall, Sissy Spacek, Bill Murray, Lucas Black, Gerald McRaney, Bill Cobbs, Scott Cooper, Lori Beth Edgeman, Linds Edwards
Felix Bush (Robert Duvall) is a cranky old hermit that everybody thinks is nuts or maybe even dangerous. Tales have been circling about town concerning this guy for 40 years while he’s been holed up on his own property. Then suddenly he comes up with the plan to hold a “funeral party” for himself and invite everyone in town who has a story about him to tell to come and tell it. Then he offers to raffle off his property to someone who comes to the party. Funeral director Frank Quinn (Bill Murray) is in financial trouble and figures this is a good way to keep the business open by agreeing to hold the party. Meanwhile, a mysterious lady Mattie Darrow (Sissy Spacek), recently widowed, shows back up in town and seems to be the only one who wants to even talk to Mr. Bush. It’s obvious that Felix Bush has a secret to tell that has been hidden deep inside him for 40 years and it itching to be told. And it appears that Frank Quinn is going to let him tell it.
This is a very interesting film. Movies like this don’t come along very often. It is very deep and moving. It’s extremely well acted and very much worth the time invested in watching it. It’s dark in many ways. Duvall’s character has a deeply buried secret that he has never been able to tell anyone. He knows that the end of his life is coming, and he’s hell bent to explain what happened and seek forgiveness from the people who were hurt and knows this is his only chance to do it. In the very opening scene, someone braves the threat of being shot to trespass on his property to let him know one of his friends has died. When he asks what “got him”, he’s told “He just got old.” This makes Felix realize he’s also getting old and it’s nearly too late to start to undo some of the damage he has done. Duvall is superb. So are all the other characters. What a wonderful screenplay this is! This story is based on a real event when some similar events happened. The idea of someone planning their funeral for when they’re still alive to participate is what set of the writers to developing this wonderful story. I highly recommend this film, but be aware that though very interesting start to finish due to Mr. Duvall, it’s still a slow movie with lots of dialog and emotion and not a lot of action. Still, well worth the investment.
John Lasseter, Brad Bird, John Musker, Ron Clements, Glen Keane, Tim Burton, Don Bluth, Roy Disney, Michael Eisner, Jeffrey Katzenberg
Walt Disney Studios veteran Don Hahn directs and produces this documentary that looks at Disney animation work during the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s — from the team’s humble beginnings at CalArts to the box office triumph of The Lion King. In exploring the works of that era, the film illuminates the careers of top animators of the time, including John Lasseter, Brad Bird, John Musker, Ron Clements Don Bluth and many others. It was a bad time for the animation department. This documentary covers the time when Roy and Walt were gone and the studio was floundering. Disney was ripe for takeover and the team of Michael Eisner and Frank Wells was brought in to prevent takeover. But Eisner was a live action guy and no one knew what to do with the animation department. They were the core of the company, and now they were ripped out of their home, the animation building and moved off the lot altogether to give the building to the television production companies to use. Things were hitting rock bottom and when Black Cauldron bombed, it looked like Disney was getting out of the cartoon business forever. Then a perfect storm of people and situations hit Burbank and completely changed the art of animation forever. Suddenly hit after hit after hit along with huge technical advances (Pixar) suddenly put the animation department back on track.
This is the story of how it happened and is a great documentary on the part of the history of the company after Walt that is seldom talked about. Don Bluth suddenly left the studio and took a bunch of animators with him and formed his own company which put out some great films like “An American Tale” and “The Land Before Time“. This really hurt. But the exact right circumstances and the music of Alan Menken & Howard Ashman and suddenly Disney was back on top. There are lots of classic film clips of the animators at work. You get to see Tim Burton at work back in the 80’s, barely a kid, and lots of the other classic animators. Jeffrey Katzenberg, who was chosen to head the animation department comes off pretty bad in the film. I am not sure if that is the true story, as I always picked up a vibe that Jeffrey was given a bad deal in the end, naturally the one in line to be Eisner’s second after Frank Wells died, he was passed over and left to start Dreamworks. But maybe these guys know more about it than the average Disney employee and this is what really happened. I just know it is kind of sad either way. The documentary also covers a lot of the problems and dumb luck that got them to the pinnacle of animation. This is a very good documentary and anyone who loves Disney or animated fare should see it just to know the history of how it happened. It was certainly a lot of talented people and a few good decisions, tons of very hard work, and lots of luck that made it happen.
