Ed's Review Dot Com

Bigscope Films, Altitude Film Entertainment, Out of Africa Entertainment,

Joe Reegan, Rick Ravanello, Matthew Holmes, Reiley McClendon, Scott E. Miller

This is the story of Outpost 39, filled with soldiers who have been fighting an invasion of aliens set on taking control of Earth. The story is told in flashback as the soldiers of Outpost 39 are interviewed to find out what happened as the tell a tale of horror, terror, and some giant puzzles to figure out as the leaders try to get to the bottom of what happened. This is a thrilling mixture or war and science fiction that is the story of a huge military effort against the aliens.

This was a surprising little film. This starts out as a military report, but as time passes we gradually learn that the Earth has changed since the invasion of an alien species. I could not imagine how a typical war movie filled with military actions and activity could turn out to be a decent sci-fi film as well, but this strange little movie manages to do it both very well. It’s a unique little concept of a film. The acting is surprisingly good without any really big stars. The action and battles are very well filmed, and the fighting is hot and heavy. Piece by piece, interview by interview, we learn the truth about what has been happening and as the leaders put together the story, we learn it along with them. It’s an interesting and amazing little piece of film making, and well worth streaming if you enjoy War, Sci-Fi, or both!

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New Artists Alliance,

Brandon Routh, Caity Lotz, Ben Feldman, Dane Cook, Tom Cavanagh, Grant Bowler, Sally Pressman, Fernanda Romero, Dominic Bogart

As this movie begins, the base commander is holding a press conference to explain a 400 day mission that a select group of astronauts are about undertake in a buried mock up of a space ship underground. To assess the effects of being trapped in a tiny cylinder simulating deep space with no chance to get out, the group sets out to complete the mission. But it’s a difficult mental and physical experience and it brings a number of surprises. To fully test the crew a series of surprise tests is thrown at them in the way of mock failures and they are tested on their ability to cope and solve solutions sometimes without the help of mission control. But when they suddenly lose connection with the outside, tension grows as they wonder if this is really a test, or is it something much more catastrophic.

This, like any concept film, has its lovers and its haters. I really enjoyed the film, but did not get sucked into the tale, but took it much more cerebral in thinking about the effects of what they were portraying. The haters hate this movie because it offers no resolution, and I don’t mean a cliff-hanger ending. What I mean is that we’re not told what really happened. There are major issues between some of the characters that could be just a dream, or just mental health issues, or it could be a simulation for real, and the ending could have happened or been an elaborate setup. Expecting a resolution you get none, and you have to think your way through it. I think I know what I believe, but I’m not sure that I am right, but I have worked my way through the film, and appreciate the attempt to make this open ended and to allow you to interpret. There have been a few good films like this. Now, I must admit, usually I hate movies that don’t have a point, and just end. Sometimes it drives me crazy. But this time I found it much better that it allowed you to figure out what you will. It presents what it shows, and no interpretation follows. There is a lot of clues, such as the very ending frames of the picture, but those can be interpreted a number of different ways. The haters blame the writer and director for being lazy and not resolving the film, or give us enough clues to know what he intended. But perhaps these folks are being lazy in waiting for someone to tell them a story with a nice surprise ending that wraps it all up. To be honest I enjoyed the experience of not knowing what it really was. I also enjoyed reading the 3 or 4 or more major theories on what it all means. It’s an interactive movie that you have homework to do after it’s over. The story is not in the actors, nor is it in the presentation or the dialog. It’s not in the sets. It’s all there for you to absorb, but the point of the story is in your mind, and there’s time for you to work it out after it’s over. I’m ready to watch this one again.

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Columbia Pictures, LStar Capital, Material Pictures,

Chloë Grace Moretz, Nick Robinson, Ron Livingston, Maggie Siff, Alex Roe-Brown, Maria Bello, Maika Monroe, Liev Schreiber

Cassie Sullivan (Chloë Grace Moretz) is a typical high school girl who is experiencing the last normal day of her life. An alien ship arrives and parks over Ohio and begins 5 waves of attacks in increasing severity to destroy life on Earth. Not knowing what they’re after, survival becomes extremely hard as the world changes forever. When Cassie’s parents are lost and her little brother missing, Cassie sets out to try to stay alive avoiding the “Others” while trying to rescue her little brother.

I’ve got a soft spot in my heart for good alien movies. I’ve been a fan of them all my life. And this is a pretty good one. Some people are going off about how this is the greatest film of all times. I suspect these are younger folks who haven’t seen a lot of these over the years. The classics going back to the 50’s and even before have already used all the gimmicks in this plot, and it is all too familiar. That’s what’s keeping me from giving this a super high rating. There aren’t any real surprises here for all of us who have been through these films over the years. But what’s different about this is the character that Chloe Grace brings to her portrayal of Cassie. She really nailed it, and this is totally her movie, for sure. Cassie is brave and strong and unafraid, but yet we have lots of emotion from her character from horror to sadness, to loneliness, to desperation. She carries the film with the help of some other strong performances as well. The story is well woven around the different twists that the plot takes, and though they’re easy to see coming, they are still fun to watch develop. The biggest issue I had with the DVD is simply that most of the middle of the movie is so dark, that I really thought I was watching the radio. I suggest if you don’t have a dark room, to watch this dvd after nightfall. It’s scary, and very suspenseful, and well put together. The scenery is really nice (when it’s daylight!). The action is hot and heavy, and as I mentioned before, the suspense is very high. I really wanted to catch this in the theater, but was never able to find the time, but watching the DVD was a good experience, so if you haven’t seen it, and you like a good little sci-fi space creature thriller, give this one a spin in your DVD player. It was well worth it.

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Roth Films, Universal Pictures,

Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Emily Blunt, Jessica Chastain, Nick Frost, Sam Claflin, Rob Brydon

Long before Snow White the kingdoms were run by the evil queen Ravenna (Charlize Theron) and her sister Freya (Emily Blunt). Freya was in love, but was betrayed and she become bitter and hateful. Her powers arrived and she had the abilities of snow and ice, and headed out to the North to find her own kingdom. Her soldiers would conquer the other kingdoms and bring the young people to her ice castle in the North where she trained them to be her army while outlawing love. But a young huntsman Eric (Chris Hemsworth), the best male warrior and Sara (Jessica Chastain) the greatest female warrior fell in love and found themselves banished while the sisters set out to conquer the whole land and each other in an all out war.

This is such a very well done film. The actors, all four leads, are all extremely accomplished actors in their own right, but together they make an assemblage that is spectacular to watch. The special effects are fantastic, and there’s humor (especially with a group of dwarfs the join the heroes to fight the war) and lots of action in the battle scenes. The settings are breathtaking, including the snow and ice effects and such. The story is very strong and a very fitting prequel to the fairy tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. This was a really well done film and one of the best I have seen in a long time. Along with Disney’s Jungle Book, this is a very stunning time for feature films. Be sure to see both of these two films. This was a great experience, and this is one of those films you got to see on a big screen. This is what is best about going to theater. You can’t help but enjoy a night out for a blockbuster experience like this. Be sure not to miss it!

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Paramount Pictures, Bad Robot, Spectrum Effects,

Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Goodman, John Gallagher Jr.

Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) has just left her boyfriend and is driving down a rural road in Louisiana when she suddenly spins out of control and blacks out. When she awakens, she is shackled to the wall on a mattress in a strange bunker. Not knowing what’s going on, Michelle meets Howard (John Goodman), the man who rescued her and brought her to the bunker to save her life. She soon learns of another resident of the bunker as well, but as Howard weaves his fantastic tale of a major attack killing everyone in the world, and only they are safe in this bunker. Howard is a conspiracy freak, and has been ready for years for an inevitable attack, and now it’s clear he is completely certain there is no life outside the bunker they are trapped in.

This science fiction/horror film is hardly related to the original Cloverfield at all. Other than the name, the movies are not very similar, and certainly not cursed with the same evil that was in the first film. By that I mean the shaky hand-held camera that would like to make you throw up after about 10 or 15 minutes. This one is much more steady, and professionally filmed, and is downright creepy. John Goodman plays the crazy (?) old man very well, and we’re not quite sure if he has any idea what he’s talking about. But neither do the characters. Surprisingly, there is really just the three people in the entire movie, and it is mostly done in the bunker, but an impressive bunker it is. The movie switches gears in the last half hour or show and becomes more of a horror film. The first hour is more a captive trying to escape type film. But the suspense is tremendous, and though it’s not classic horror, it has it’s moments. But it does ratchet up a notch at a time until you’ll find yourself on the edge of your seat. Marky Elizabeth Winstead did an excellent job in the lead. You could make an argument that John Goodman has the primary character, but I don’t think so. He is certainly good in his role, but this is Winstead’s movie to make or break, and she nailed it. Though this film is nowhere near as horrifying as the original Cloverfield, I would recommend this one many times over the original. Keep in mind though is it a psychological thriller first, and not really horror until the last 20% of the movie. But when it does come out of the darkness it is really good. All in all I found this a very nicely constructed movie and I can recommend this one for sci-fi/horror fans, for sure.

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