Ed's Review Dot Com

B24, Columbia Pictures, Danjaq,

Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz, Léa Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Dave Bautista, Monica Bellucci, Ralph Fiennes

Bond is taking a much needed (wink, wink) vacation in Mexico City during the Day of the Dead festivities when he disrupts a terror plot about to take place. However big changes are happening back headquarters as the 00 agents are being retired and replaced by a multi-national spy system of information gathering and drone attacks. But of course, there is a far more sinister purpose as some of Bonds old nemeses are still alive and active in this high action, big suspense, old style Bond film. Bond is back.

I don’t think we’re going to see any more Daniel Craig Bond films, and if we don’t, at least he went out with a bang. This film goes back to the classic Bond, and I really enjoyed this one. The formula that Ian Flemming used in creating his characters and telling his stories was very good, and this one is very much like the original Bond films in many ways. This film takes place after the struggle at Skyfall. Judy Dench’s M was killed so we get to meet her replacement. Originally Bond used to use his wits and super intelligence to get himself out of scrapes (and some luck, let’s face it). He was always a bit cheeky, but once Connery left the role, Bond became quite the smart ass. He used fantastic inventions and gadgets to escape and was not very clever himself, but depended on tricks to survive. I hated the wise cracking Bond, and am glad this is back to the nitty gritty hard working and very clever Bond who can work his way out of these situations. And the situations he gets put into are alarming. The usual trek around the world puts him some real messes, and it is quite full of suspense, wonderful chases, a lot of gun play, and some really stressful moments. It’s a relatively long film, but I was sad when it is over. The best part is that in the very end there is a promise that “James Bond will return”. I’m sure he will. This was really a nod back to the early days, and I think it was excellently directed and filmed. Whether underground, on the streets, or in the air, the action is non-stop. There is some humor in this one, as there always is, and some of it was very funny, but at the same time, the shenanigans were limited. It was a good mix and the timing was just right. This is the best Bond film I have seen in a number of years, and I certainly urge you to see it.

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NGN Productions, Prospect Park, Final Girl Productions,

Cameron Bright, Abigail Breslin, Logan Huffman, Francesca Eastwood, Alexander Ludwig, Wes Bentley, Reece Thompson

When Veronica (Abagail Breslin) was a little girl, she lost her parents. A gentleman took her in and trained her to be the ultimate assassin. When Veronica moved to a new school, a group of boys played a “game” where they would prey on the girls in their school, taking them out into the woods, and killing them. It’s a sport, but Veronica is ready for them and battles to bring justice and retribution to the group.

This is a rather odd movie. Not that it doesn’t have its merits though. It’s just a bit strange is all. There is not much explanation as to what is going on. We simply get the basics. The backstory is very sparse. But we’re aware that Veronica is being groomed for something. The final half of the movie is very powerful. There’s suspense, action, mystery, the whole shebang. Abigail did a heck of a job in this role. It’s coarse and very, very dark, but these clowns have some retribution coming. They are pure, unfeeling evil. I found it rather unique and interesting. Now there’s a lot of haters of this movie, and maybe they have a valid reason. All I can say is that if you can handle a dark mystery with a huge slice of crime and violence, give this a try. At least it will be interesting.

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A+E Studios, ChickFlick Productions, JuVee Productions,

Viola Davis, Jennifer Lopez, Shea Whigham, Andre Royo, Chris Chalk, Julius Tennon, Aml Ameen

Lila (Viola Davis) is a bright hardworking single Mom living in the inner city where she’s working hard to raise her children to do right and have good moral values. Her oldest son is shot and killed in a drive by shooting that sends Lila into a tailspin causing her to go into a very deep dark place. She worked for the city, but is on an extended leave due to the tragedy. She’s attending a support group of Mothers who have lost children, and meeting an interesting but bitter woman Eve (Jennifer Lopez) who has lost a child as well. The two form a friendship to try to determine who is responsible for the death of their children since the police are not making any headway. The form a tight bond and become partners in search and retribution.

This is actually a “small” movie that stirred my interest when it went into the theaters but wasn’t a big enough splash to make me run out to see it first run. Now that it’s on DVD I was anxious to see this film and see what it is all about. For the Eve character, Jennifer plays a very angry woman who is goading Lila to take action due to the lack of response from the authorities, whereas Lila, who cannot bring herself to tell the group that she really wants revenge for the death of her son, is much more grounded and unwilling to go too far other than to find out what happened. This brings a great conflict between the two characters who are very close, but like the little devil on one shoulder and the little angel on the other shoulder depicted in our childhood cartoons, Eve takes the devil’s side and Lila takes the angel side. It’s a struggle to see who will win out. That portion of it is quite interesting, thought provoking, as well as entertaining to watch. With Jennifer Lopez who does a really great job here, and Viola Davis who is another very good actress, we have all the talent we need for the emotional roller-coaster here. The story is very well written, and there is a surprise twist near the end to what really happened and how different characters were involved that I did not see coming and caught me blindsided, but in retrospect I should have seen it coming. It was a well filmed, well acted, well written, and well edited film that is still a small detective piece with a lot of really good quality at a meager budget. If you are fan of action/suspense thrillers, then I recommend this film as one that you probably, like me, passed over in theaters, and I suggest you watch this one for a good evening of intense suspense.

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Energy Entertainment, RatPac-Dune Entertainment, Vertigo Entertainment,

Joel Kinnaman, Common, Genesis Rodriguez, Liam Neeson, Vincent D’Onofrio, Ed Harris, Boyd Holbrook

Jimmy Conlon (Liam Neeson) was a hard drinking mob enforcer who had built a strong reputation for his ruthlessness. But he’s left those days long behind. But when his son is marked for death it’s his best friend, mob boss Shawn’s (Ed Harris) son who shows up to take out Michael (Joel Kinnaman), Jimmy has no choice but to take out Shawn’s son. This Shawn cannot forgive, and he wants to make both Jimmy and his son pay for taking his son.

This is a really dark film. I wasn’t really blown away from this, but perhaps because I’ve seen so many, many ex-cop, ex-agent, ex-mob guy, who gets out of the life who gets sucked back into it. Usually set in some unique spot like New Orleans, this one takes place in New York City. That’s not too original, is it. The highlight of the film is the play between Liam Neeson and Ed Harris, both really good actors and those who are able to grab our attention, even if the rest of the story is not so hot. This is definitely not a groundbreaking film. Just the same, I did enjoy watching it, and it’s a rather decent cop story, even it is so familiar feeling. I’d say go for it if you’re a fan of the gritty ex-mafia guys gunning each other down, and especially to see Ed Harris and Liam Neeson take each other on, but if that is not up your alley, it’s definitely not a must see film by any means. So-so.

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Kramer & Sigman Films, RatPac-Dune Entertainment, Zaftig Films,

Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Rodrigo Santoro

Nicky (Will Smith) is an experienced con-man. He’s a the top of his trade, but when he meets scammer Jess (Margot Robbie) who wants to be his apprentice he is apprehensive. But she’s insisting, and she does really have talent, so he introduces her to the rest of the team, and she becomes one of the gang. In the end, they are going to try to pull off one big scam.

I had no idea going in what this movie was about. The NetFlix description did not do justice to this movie. I feel that this is a nod to the original con-man movie “Sting” because of the format of the film and the surprise (sort of) ending in the end. Basically it’s a movie in two distinct parts. Part one is when Harry Met Sally. I mean when Nicky met Jess. Then it jumps to a whole new story three years later. There’s no indication what has been happening between the two in the missing years. That is an interesting way to tell the story and makes it a bit more mysterious. Like any good mystery story, there’s a lot you don’t know and it’s hard to know who’s scamming who until it’s all played out and the credits are crawling up the screen. I was not blown away, a phrase that I love to overuse, but I have to admit it was an interesting story. A lot of people did not appreciate this film, probably because they expected something different than what it was. Instead it was cleverly put together, very interesting to watch, and quite cool. This is the best I’ve seen Will Smith in a long time, although he was way down on the list of people they wanted to play Nicky, it turned out that he did a very good job. He didn’t overplay it, and kept his cool, and played the perfect con-man in my opinion. I was very impressed. Furthermore his kids were nowhere to be seen, so that’s a definite plus. This is one that caught me by surprised, and I was pleased at how easy it was to get into the story. I can recommend this one as worthwhile to spend some time on.

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