Ed's Review Dot Com

Blueprint Pictures,

Penelope Wilton, David Strathairn, Judi Dench, Celia Imrie, Ronald Pickup, Maggie Smith, Dev Patel, Bill Nighy, Richard Gere

Time has passed since “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” (2011) and Sonny (Dev Patel) the young entrepreneurial owner and manager of the hotel has big plans. Engaged now, and planning to expand the hotel with a second property he heads out to the U.S. to talk with some hopeful business partners. They are sending a secret inspector to visit the hotel before they make their decision, so Sonny is going crazy trying to figure out who this inspector is and how to impress him. Meanwhile, the residents from before are still there and are partners in running the hotel, although they have many side issues going on, and everyone is very busy. This fitting sequel to the original brings back the familiar characters and adds a few more for good measure.

The original was certain a surprise hidden gem of a movie. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and though I had never heard of it before, I was really impressed with the characters. Basically the first movie was about senior citizens from Britain who lost everything, and went to India answering an ad about this amazing retirement hotel which wasn’t exactly as promised. A lot of the humor of the first movie brought to our attention the problems with trying to settle in India and the issues that caused. We became very familiar with the characters in the original and got to know their quirks and character. This sequel is very different because now we are already familiar with the characters, so we don’t need to become acquainted with them in this film. Additionally, the issues with the hotel are already known to us, so we get to see how, in the years that followed, they made it better together. This is, however a good sequel with lots of activity going on to keep it interesting. We’re involved in Sonny’s wedding and the problems of trying to grow the enterprise and his problems in trying to do both at the same time. Additionally there are side stories going on with each of the characters that makes it quite worthwhile. There are some of the greatest actors of all times in this film and the quality of their acting abilities also adds to the wonderfulness of this movie. I would definitely recommend you watch the original 2011 film first to get really familiar with the characters, and then watch this right after when you’re still familiar with it. That way it’s a seamless transition and that would be one hell of a double feature. I believe the first film was the better of the two, but that may be mostly because of the newness and uniqueness of the many characters, but this one is darn near as good, and certainly feels a lot more comfortable with the relationship we already have with the characters. I highly recommend both films.

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Translux, Working Title Films,

Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy, Lydia Wilson, Lindsay Duncan, Richard Cordery, Josh McGuire, Tom Hollander, Margot Robbie, Vanessa Kirby

When Tim (Domhnall Gleeson) turns 21, his Dad pulls him aside and informs him that the men in their family have always had the ability to time travel to the past. When he finds this unbelievable, He gives it a try and find out it is true. As he proceeds through his life he meets a young woman played by Rachel McAdams. He’s immediately smitten by her, so travels back in time many times to try to win her heart. But he finds there are some events which you cannot go back before without changing things too much. There are limitations in this very quirky little time travel film.

First of all, I must say that I am a sucker for time travel films. I’ve always been fascinated with the paradoxes of time travel and typically enjoy these kinds of films. This one is unlike any I’ve ever seen. There is deference given to the method in which they travel back, nor is there any mention of the quandaries of traveling in time. We just accept it as a fact. This is, after all, mostly a love story. But I think it’s more of a love story between Tim and his father, even more than his love for his wife and children. It is certainly a quirky film, but it was very powerful to me. I was deeply moved by this story and enjoyed it way more than I thought it would. This movie has a feel to it much more like Somewhere in Time or Tuck Everlasting, or even Lake House. The character that Rachel McAdams plays is kind of unlike her other roles. She’s much less the centerpiece of this film than she usually is, but she gives a splendid performance. She’s one of the newer actresses who doesn’t disappoint with her ability to really sink her teeth into whatever role you give her. She adds a lot to the film. The only complaints I might have is that a lot of the wonder of how he can go back in time is wasted when they just kind of throw it aside. There’s not much purpose in his repeated jumps back and forth. But if you stick through the movie, it really gets to the meat of the story and the things that are very important to him. He finds the things that he really needs and the movie turns very touching. It’s deep and it’s soul searching, and not near as novelty driven as most time travel adventures. This movie just slipped in out of left field and shocked me with it’s impact. I was impressed and it has definitely been a quirky week.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

New Line Cinema, Legendary Pictures, Original Film,

Nicholas Hoult, Eleanor Tomlinson, Stanley Tucci, Ian McShane, Bill Nighy, Ewan McGregor, Eddie Marsan, Ewen Bremner, Christopher Fairbank, Warwick Davis

Jack (Nicholas Hoult) is just a farm boy, struggling to make ends meet, when he accidentally waters the magic beans which grows a giant beanstalk into the clouds opening the pathway to the land of giants, and restarting the ancient war between the kingdom of the giants and mankind. Jack becomes a warrior, fighting for the king and for the love of the princess while not only fighting the giants, but betrayal in the kingdom as well.

This epic film is a extravaganza of action, suspense, and great battles. The effects are spectacular as well, and the CGI is on steroids! Jack is a worthy hero, and has all the tricks and misdirects of Aladdin as he tries to outwit the giants. There’s all the parts of an epic battle film and it’s an interesting retelling of the Jack and the Beanstalk tale. It doesn’t break a lot of new ground, but it’s a really good fantasy adventure story that makes a great Saturday matinee film. Interesting enough for the older kids, (maybe a little too intense for little kids, the PG-13 is probably appropriate), but a complete fantasy for the grown-ups, it’s one of those films that the family can enjoy together. I really didn’t expect a lot from this film, but I was really impressed with how well it captured and held my attention. I rather enjoyed the adventure, and I can recommend this film as a good escape flick.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Total Recall, Original Film, Rekall Productions,

Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, Jessica Biel, Bryan Cranston, Bill Nighy, John Cho, Bokeem Woodbine, Will Yun Lee

Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell) is bored with his life. Things are ok, but he feels like he’s destined for more. When he hears an ad from a company called Rekall, which offers vacations to exciting places without leaving home, he has to check it out. You are attached to a chair by a collection of wires and they push the memories into your brain. You remember you wonderful exciting trip, but never leave the chair. Douglas chooses to be a secret agent, but suddenly things go horribly wrong, and Douglas is off running for his life. He finds out he is really someone else, and there’s no one he can trust. Douglas sets out to find out the truth before it’s too late. The future of the world may hang in the balance.

This is a new version of the Arnold Schwartzenegger film from 1990. This is not a “remake” as it’s a good bit different. They want back to the book and based the movie on the original work rather than copying the 1990 version. So you do need to look at this film as a new movie and not a remake. The years have been good to this story. Today the special effects and tricks of trade make this an exciting roller coaster ride of suspense and thrills. The special effects are stunning, and the action is non-stop. It is a little hard to follow sometimes, and of course one huge question looms as we wonder what’s real and what isn’t. The world is well developed in this film, and Collin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, and Jessica Biel do a great job bringing this adventure to life.

This is far better than I expected it to be. I was looking for a cheesy remake, as the original certainly had it’s corny side, but it didn’t even nod to the original. They went back to the source and developed a really good screenplay. I was very pleasantly surprised, and found myself riveted through the whole film.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Aardman Animations, Sony Pictures Animation,

James McAvoy, Hugh Laurie, Bill Nighy, Jim Broadbent, Imelda Staunton, Ashley Jensen, Ramona Marquez, Marc Wootton, Laura Linney, Eva Longoria, Michael Palin, Joan Cusack, Andy Serkis

This animated film explains about a super top secret toy making facility under the North Pole. Over the years, the technology has gotten very sophisticated. But somehow Santa manages to miss one gift, which means somewhere out in the world, one child was forgotten. Everyone says no one is perfect, and it’s no big deal, but Santa’s son Arthur believes that it’s important that no child is ever forgotten on Christmas, so he grabs his grandfather (the ex-Santa), an elf, and sets off on an impossible journey to make sure the gift is somehow delivered. The primary rule is that Santa must not be seen, but in the end there may be FOUR Santa’s

There is a lot of discussion about this film which was released in theaters last year. Somehow I missed it, so I’m happy it’s out on DVD this year. This was a good DVD feature. It’s done with CGI animation, but in the look and feel of the classic Claymation films from yesteryear which I think works very good here, even though the characters look a little odd, like they stepped out of a Dr. Seuss book. Well, maybe not that bad. This film was obviously inspired by the “Prep and Landing” short Christmas specials that have come out over the past few years. It features a super duper highly organized arm of elves who do all the real work, while the “Santa’s” seem to do nothing but screw things up. But it is a rather unique story and one that captures your attention.

There’s also a huge family dynamic as the Claus family is downright dysfunctional. Grandpa Santa like Arthur Claus, the younger son of the reigning Santa, but Dad like the older boy better, it’s pretty obvious. So there’s naturally a lot of competition between the brothers (Think Fred Claus for example). But it’s funny, and exciting, and certainly a hit with the younger folks. For those old folks like us, it’s nice to see something new.

Certainly it’s not sappy or syrupy sweet, like it could have been. In fact, it’s a little bit cutting edge and somewhat intense sometimes. But it’s certainly different, and quite unique in its own way, and well worth the trip to the video store (does anyone still do that?) to see.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog