Ed's Review Dot Com

Worldview Entertainment,

Colin Firth, Reese Witherspoon, Dane DeHaan, Mireille Enos, Bruce Greenwood, Elias Koteas, Stephen Moyer, Alessandro Nivola, Amy Ryan, Robert Baker

This crime story is based on a book of the same name covering the murder of three eight year old boys in the small town of West Memphis, Arkansas. Because it was a very brutal murder, everyone was anxious to find and prosecute the killers as quickly as possible. The teens became the focus because of their penchant for things like wearing black, listening to heavy metal music, and being interested in the occult. But did their rush to nail someone for the crime cause a horrible miscarriage of justice? This film, based on a true story tries to look at that possibility.

This is an interesting story that I had never heard anything about. Being a true story, it was all the more interesting. It’s very appropriate for the current time since there is the same kind of mass fear going around that is often very unfounded. In this time, in this town, there was a concern about the behaviors of the teens of the town that seemed to love heavy metal music, show an interest in the occult, and wear all black. The citizens were all fired up, just like the Salem witch trials of long ago, and is often the case, ready to convict whoever is handy, just to solve such a horrible crime. The moral question of a rush to judgement, and guilt unless proving innocence makes this an intriguing story. But at the same time, the story seems to have taken a side, and been told to uphold the side of the author, so I’m not sure they really pulled off an open minded story. Choosing facts to prove your point is a dangerous method of determining the truth. The performance of the primary actors in this movie is at a very high level. This is a bit of a different role for Reese Witherspoon, but it goes to show what a talented actress she’s become. Very good job. Colin Firth, on the other hand, seems to have been slighted in this film. It appears that he is going to have a major role, and it was really sidelined early on, and he mostly puts in an appearance. He usually has a much meatier role, and this is not one of his best by any means. All in all, though, it’s a good story and an interesting case, and as a fan of courtroom stories, this was an interesting film. I think it’s well worth watching.

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Bron Studios, Creative Wealth Media Finance, Follow Through Productions,

Nate Parker, Armie Hammer, Aja Naomi King, Jackie Earle Haley, Penelope Ann Miller, Gabrielle Union, Aunjanue Ellis, Colman Domingo, Dwight Henry, Roger Guenveur Smith, Mark Boone Junior, Esther Scott

The Birth of a Nation is the story of a real character, Nat Turner (Nate Parker) who as a child was found to be an educated fellow who could read and write, even though raised as a slave on a plantation. Nat became a preacher, and was paid to preach to the other slaves to convince them to work hard and listen to their masters to avoid trouble. But after events that turned Nat into a rebel that hated the treatment of his people in the south and caused him to start a bloody uprising that killed scores of white men, women, and children, until a battalion caught up with him and his men and they were all brought to pay for their rebellion. Based on a true character, this is harsh look at the terrible treatment of slaves and former slaves that occurred in the South in 1831 before the Civil war.

This was an interesting film, that is difficult to criticize without casting a very dim light on yourself. First let me say that the brutality and abuse that did occur was very horrible and unexcused, but I’m not sure that this is a completely accurate vision of what in particular happened this time. Historically Nat Turner did head a bloody uprising 1n 1831, but he was despised both in the North and the South due to the killing of little children and women along with the true slave masters. This film certainly does take one side of the story and makes a very shocking story that may be quite a bit embellished as to what really happened in this instance. Nate Parker, who plays Nat Turner, wrote the screenplay and the story and directed the film besides being the primary actor in it. It has a rather weird vibe to it. Though it’s obvious a brand new film, the style and feel of the movie made you think you were watching one of the old 70’s movies, just by the look of it. It wasn’t really very well put together, and it seems to suffer a bit from one guy having to do everything. Perhaps a bigger team would have helped. Still, it’s very touching and moves you to the core, but I’m not sure if we’re being played or if there’s really much truth to this one particular character and his portrayal historically. Likewise, the title, The Birth of a Nation is a political and racial hot button due the to D.W. Griffith 1915 film about the death of Lincoln and the birth of the Ku Klux Klan which is unfortunately a racist white supremacist one sided film that was certainly made to excuse the Klan, make them heroes, and appeal to the racists that existed, and to create many more of them. Now 1915 was a long time ago, but it seemed to be created to stir people up and tell a very incorrect and lopsided tale of who were the heroes and who were the villains. This film, was most likely given the same title to invoke some of the hatred toward the original film and start people off with a particular point of view. I don’t really think this movie is very fairly told either, as I doubt the true character of Nat Turner was really presented here. It was a really flat one sided portrait that simply appears to fire people up to protest. It doesn’t feel like a historical analysis or a documentary, but a one sided attack with no effort to show any balance. Now I can understand how this could happen, as it is a very touchy subject, and one that we really have to deal with in a rational manner. I just feel like this is throwing gasoline on a house fire and doesn’t serve a really good purpose other than to promote hatred. It’s a shame, as I certainly have seen other films that depicted the horrors that happened through a lot of the South at the time, and as a child of the 50’s I’ve seen it in person and on TV and in people I actually know. It’s an ugly thing to judge someone by the color of his skin, but it’s ugly either way, and we need to come together, not try to drive a wedge in to stir up the radicals and make them develop more hatred. With all that’s going on in our nation these days, it’s hard to tell what it all means. Maybe my own fear of being labeled is causing me to feel uncomfortable at this portrayal, and I really wish I had the opportunity to see Nate Parker and find out if he really hates me because of my skin color, or if he’s actually a really nice person who would like to talk to me as well. I would hate to prejudge that, but going by what I see in this film, I don’t think he’d like me very much. Most all ‘isms suck, but racism is one of the worst. In summary, I’m glad I saw it, but I’m just not sure how to react to what I saw.

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Endgame Entertainment, Vendian Entertainment, KrautPack Entertainment,

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Shailene Woodley, Melissa Leo, Zachary Quinto, Tom Wilkinson, Scott Eastwood, Logan Marshall-Green, Timothy Olyphant, Ben Schnetzer, Lakeith Lee Stanfield, Rhys Ifans, Nicolas Cage

This biographical drama covers the life of Ed Snowden (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) for a period of about 10 years until he shocked the world by showing the world the scope of the data the U.S. Government was collecting on private citizens. It covers his love of his job with the CIA, and his relationship to his girlfriend Lindsay Mills (Shailene Woodley) which was doomed from the start because he couldn’t divulge what he was up to without putting her in danger, and she knew very well something major was going on, but had no clue. With a lot of background on the time, and the technical data collection, and the life in the CIA, it’s a very technical look into the events and the motivation behind what happened. Whether you look at Snowden as the devil, or as an American Hero, this will give you the background of what really went on.

I was a bit disappointed in this movie, although I have been anxious to see what it had to say. I think I have figured out why I was disappointed as I struggled to figure out why. I do not think I have ever seen a movie made by Oliver Stone that I was not disappointed with. I don’t mean to say he’s not a good director, or that he is not an amazing talent, but I am saying that his movies never seem to work for me. There must be something on a personal level that make these movies never click for me, even though I have always been excited about the subject matter. It’s just one of those things I guess. So what did I find wrong with this film? Well, typically when you watch a movie about a historical event you are given enough background for even a layman to understand what it all means. From the housing bubble and the stock market crash which was explained to us in a way that I was able to understand, to even the crash and investigations covered in the movie Sully which dealt with complicated issues of whether or not the right choices were made or not, was fairly easy to follow. But I feel, after this one, that I couldn’t really follow the technical gobbledygook that was thrown out at us at a feverish pace. Yet great detail of Ed’s relationship to Lindsay was explained in great detail which doesn’t seem to really have much to do with the story or the motives of Ed Snowden. I found at times it was really slow and hard to stay interested in, and at other times the scope and magnitude of the data that was being gathered was overwhelming and went past me way too fast. I suppose I could get more out of it by watching it again, but I am not sure I want to put myself through the slow parts again. I think it’s a very interesting subject and one very worthwhile to learn about, but I’m afraid this movie is a missed opportunity to explain the story to us normal folks out there. I work in IT and I still found it hard to follow. It’s a shame.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Hannibal Pictures, USS Indianapolis Production,

Nicolas Cage, Tom Sizemore, Thomas Jane, Cody Walker, Matt Lanter, Weronika Rosati, Brian Presley, Emily Tennant, Callard Harris, Mandela Van Peebles

It was in the midst of WWII in the pacific and Captain McVay (Nicholas Cage) is captain of a Navy ship, and he and his men are given orders to deliver two packages with unknown contents to the Mariana Islands in the Philippine Sea. It is a top secret mission and so their ship must sail across the Pacific alone without other ships accompanying them. This puts them at great risk of Japan submarine attack because the ship is a dead duck if a sub attacks them. The crew has no idea what’s in the boxes, but set out on their way. The custom was for large ships like this to follow a zig-zag path, but Captain McVay decides the best move is to sail as straight and quickly as possible. The Japanese were now using manned torpedo subs, and zig-zagging was of no value if there were attacked by one of these because the suicide pilot would follow and hit you for sure, so the only choice was to get there as soon as possible and keep a low profile and hope. They delivered their packages, but were sunk by a Japanese sub on the return trip. The survivors were thrown into the sea with very basic rafts, hardly any supplies, and in water full of sharks. Because of the secret of their mission, the Navy was not searching for them and they had no contact. The sailors suffered terribly from hunger, thirst, exposure, and shark attacks.

This is based on the true story of the sinking of the USS Indianapolis, a cruiser that was sunk by a Japanese sub. Historically it may be correct. There is a lot more to the story than what I have given you above, and this story didn’t end when the survivors were recovered. The feel of the torment on the sea was very well done, and I feel Nick Cage did a wonderful job in portraying this character. A lot of people have complained about this film, but I think some people complain about anything Nick does. I felt he was very well suited for this role, and he did a very good job. I like how the movie at the end, in the credits gave us a look at the actors and the real sailors side by side, and there are lots of special features and interviews with some of the survivors on the DVD, even the rental version. I have briefly heard of this story, but did not really know the facts, and I was impressed with the whole story. If you can remember, Quint (Robert Shaw) from the original Jaws movie talks about the USS Indianapolis with Richard Dreyfus while aboard the ship. I was glad to learn much more about these brave men, and the terrible way they were treated by the Navy to provide the coverup of their mission. In my opinion this was a darn good movie based on real WWII history and had some very touching and thought provoking experiences. CGI is good, and I think the acting was good, and the look and feel of the story was really authentic. I recommend this move for mature teens and adults, especially those interested in military history.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Sony Pictures Television, Storyline Entertainment,

Emile Hirsch, Holliday Grainger, Holly Hunter, William Hurt, Sarah Hyland, Elizabeth Reaser, Lane Garrison, Austin Hébert, Dale Dickey, Jack Thompson

This TV Miniseries is inspired by the true story of the infamous bank robbers Bonnie Parker (Holliday Grainger) and Clyde Barrow (Emile Hirsch) who were rather incorrectly portrayed in the 1967 film featuring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway. This is a longer (about 4 hours) much more historically accurate tale of how Clyde met Bonnie, swept her off her feet, and how they along with his brother and his wife, who set out on a crime spree filling the papers with juicy stories.

This TV miniseries is a much better telling of the tale of Bonnie and Clyde which is filled with intrigue and mystery and tries to show the true facts of what we know. William Hurt portrays Frank Hamer who came out of a semi-retirement to hunt down the couple like animals. It is hard to say who is the bad guy here, as obviously Bonnie and Clyde were criminals, but the feeling of a lot of people is that in America we do not play executor and slaughter people without even an attempt to apprehend them. His excuse is that they were dangerous, but a lot of people were not buying it. In the end, we may never really know the truth. But I can tell you that I was not a fan of this guy after watching the film. Technically it was very well done, and according to the research I was able to do, rather historically accurate. Having seen the incredible “Bonnie & Clyde death car” at a little casino in Stateline, Nevada it was an incredible sight to see. There were somewhere between 25 and 50 shots that hit each of them, and they didn’t stand a chance. They were killed without ever being able to exit the car. The car is a mass of bullet holes and is one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen. I was really interested in the story and the performances were outstanding. I thought the film was a very interesting story and I was glad to know the story a lot better. If you have any interest in the subject matter, this is a good way to learn the legend of Bonnie & Clyde, and i really enjoyed it. I’ve been waiting to have the time for this for a long time, and I’m glad I finally watched it. Very well done.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog