Ed's Review Dot Com

Los Angeles Media Fund (LAMF), STX Entertainment, Southpaw Entertainment (I),

Gary Oldman, Asa Butterfield, Carla Gugino, Britt Robertson

Gardner Elliot (Asa Butterfield) was the first human born on Mars, and his birth and very existence has been kept secret by Nathaniel Shepherd (Gary Oldman) as the head of the corporation that put together the first manned mission to Mars. But Gardner has grown up and is mostly unaware of what life was like on Earth. He’s able to make contact with a young foster girl who is estranged from any contact with her classmates who enjoys talking to him. Tulsa (Britt Robertson) has no knowledge that the guy she is chatting online with is on Mars, and it’s a surprise when he suddenly shows up asking for her help to find his biological father. But Gardner has never experienced Earth’s gravity which puts his body in grave danger.

The previews of this film looked pretty good, and I expected to watch this movie, but it didn’, t last long in the theaters. The problem I suspect is that the story is rather shallow, and rather than a stunning science fiction film, this turned out to be a sweet adolescent coming of age – falling in love movie and is pretty good in that genre, but probably not what folks expected and that, and stiff competition blew it out of the theaters in record time. But is was a pretty good movie for what it tackled. The science is shaky, and there’s no great suspense. It is a lovely little romance though, and should have a great deal of appeal to the young ladies just like the fairy tales and romance stories from the past. Very warm and comforting, and if you don’t go into this looking for a super Sci-Fi adventure, you won’t be disappointed.

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Open Road Films (II), Rice Films, Gulfstream Pictures,

Jennifer Aniston, Jason Sudeikis, Julia Roberts, Jon Lovitz, Kate Hudson, Timothy Olyphant, Britt Robertson, Aasif Mandvi, Sarah Chalke, Grayson Russell, Shay Mitchell, Margo Martindale, Loni Love, Ella Anderson, Cameron Esposito, Jack Whitehall, Lucy Walsh

Mother’s Day is an ensemble film, telling four different stories that all tie together in the end. There are many different kinds of mothers, and many different situations, but we all stop on Mother’s Day to remember and honor those special women in our lives. As this story unfolds, we meet different families and different situations, but all are touched in the end in different ways.

Directed by Garry Marshall, this is the same team that brought us Valentine’s Day and New Years Eve. It is a great cast, and it’s a very touching story. Each situation is unique, yet they manage to tie it all together in the end. It’s got funny moments, and of course, the cheesy romantic ones. It’s a very clever put together tale and was fun to watch. If you have seen these hinds of stories, there have been dozens, where a number of different stories come together in the end. This is a very good one. Julia Roberts does a very great job as a childless, driven TV host, as does Jason Sudekis as a single widower dad trying to raise his two daughters. Jennifer Anderson is really good as a divorced mom of two boys who is trying to deal with her situation. It’s a very well developed story line that comes together beautifully. This is a touching movie, and one I can highly recommend for anyone who is a mother, who has had a mother, or knows a mother. If you don’t fit into any of those categories, you’re out of luck. This film is a tribute to mothers. This is a really good film, and I recommend this, especially now that it’s on DVD.

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Fox 2000 Pictures, Temple Hill Entertainment,

Lolita Davidovich, Britt Robertson, Alan Alda, Jack Huston, Scott Eastwood, Oona Chaplin

Sophia Danko (Britt Robertson) is a bright college student with big plans and goals in the art world. Luke Collins (Scott Eastwood) is a talented rodeo bull rider who was recently badly injured, but is looking for a huge comeback. But his doctors insist he should not be riding anymore. As sparks fly between the very different lovers, they find that opposites attract. But when they come upon an accident and Luke rescues the elderly man Ira Levinson (Alan Alda) from the car, they form a friendship. From this point on the tales intertwine in typical Nicholas Sparks fashion to tell the two stories.

Well, I must admit that I’ve seen a couple films based upon Nicholas Sparks books, and one thing for sure is that they’re all in the same style. So is this one with so many moments that feel like “The Notebook” that it’s remarkable. Still, it’s a good solid story, and two romantic tales for the price of one. Seriously, this is a chick flick. There’s no other way to put it. But I was impressed with the whole story. There was lots of rodeo action which helped keep my interest up. I’ve never really been sure what makes people want to do that. Really, there’s a lot of intense conflict to resolve and bring together to a fitting ending to the story. The performances are really good, and the script is really well done, so all in all it was a pretty interesting film. This is one I can recommend highly.

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Walt Disney Pictures, A113, Babieka,

George Clooney, Hugh Laurie, Britt Robertson, Raffey Cassidy, Tim McGraw, Kathryn Hahn, Keegan-Michael Key

Casey Newton (Britt Robertson) is a dreamer, an optimist. Frank Walker (George Clooney), on the other hand, is a pessimist. He once was a dreamer, but lost his way. The story of Tomorrowland, a Utopian city which may be the last best hope for Earth in the future, begins when Frank was a little boy. He was a child inventor, though not too successful, but he made his way to the New York Worlds Fair in 1964 to try to win. He was given a special pin that allowed him to go to Tomorrowland having been recruited by a little girl, Athena (Raffey Cassidy). Jump to today, and Casey, who’s father Eddie (Tim McGraw) worked for NASA, and she has not given up hope. She keeps reaching for the stars and surprisingly finds one of these little pins too. Together Casey, Frank, and Athena are going to try to go back to Tomorrowland and meet with Nix (Hugh Laurie) to try to repair the damage that has been done.

This was a hell of a little Science Fiction thriller from the folks at Disney with the help of Lucasfilm special effects. It’s stunning in beauty, and very, very fresh in presentation. I saw it in Imax and was blown away by the effects, and simply the beauty of the whole thing. There are many ties back to Disneyland/Walt Disney World and the New York Worlds Fair which provided Walt with some of the most beloved attractions of the parks. From the music to the scenery, even to Athena’s look and dress (She’s Wendy from Peter Pan, I swear), it’s like a trip down memory lane with a stopover in the future we all dreamed about back in the 50’s and 60’s. The story is exciting, and thrilling, and very suspenseful, and they don’t give too much away, so you get to figure it out step by step. Yes, there’s some similarities to other future world movies, but those are mostly homage rather than copying, and truthfully this is certainly one of those films that you never want to end, and you’re sad when the trailers come up. The only thing that would stop this movie from being perfect is, like Wall-E, about an hour and half or so into it they have to go off on their anti-human, anti-American global warming crap and get all preachy and stuff, but don’t let that stop you from enjoying the story. It doesn’t last long, and the preachy guy gets shut-up pretty fast, to the delight of most of the audience. I’m not sure why Disney has to get all Nazi environmentalist on us. Walt used to love and present nature in an educational way teaching us to appreciate the world without getting all “the world is going to end in 10 years if we don’t stop driving cars and producing goods” on us. I don’t want to dwell on that as I’ve gotten up on my soapbox many times about my feelings on Global Warming, so I’m not going to do it again. But that truly is the only negative I could give this film. Even George Clooney does a really decent job as the grown up Frank, which impressed me. He’s carried some heavy duty roles, but this was a stretch for him, and he did it well. Britt Robertson was really good as the dreamer who would never give up, and she was an excellent casting choice, but the absolute star of this film by far is Raffey Cassidy. She absolutely NAILED this role, and was practically perfect in every way! She did such a good job, I have to give her tons of credit. This film is not one to miss, and I must say it was one of the most enjoyable afternoons I’ve spent in a long, long time. Disney did this one really well, and I have to give them the credit for producing a wonderful film. Make sure you see this on the BIG SCREEN while you can. I highly recommend plopping down the money to see this one in the theater.

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Cinelou Films, Echo Films, We’re Not Brothers Productions,

Daniel Barnz, Jennifer Aniston, Adriana Barraza, Felicity Huffman, William H. Macy, Anna Kendrick, Sam Worthington, Chris Messina, Mamie Gummer, Lucy Punch, Britt Robertson, Paula Cale, Ashley Crow, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Camille Guaty, Allen Maldonado, Camille Mana, Julio Oscar Mechoso

Claire Bennett(Jennifer Anniston) is in major chronic pain. She still manages to keep her sarcastic sense of humor, but her life is very lonely filled with narcotics and vodka. She belongs to a support group with others who are experiencing pain, but when one of the members commits suicide, Nina (Anna Kendrick), Claire sets out to investigate everything she can find about this girl.

You won’t know what happened to Claire, and try not to find out before you watch this movie. This is a dark tale of a great deal of pain and suffering, but there are many bright points. One is Silvana (Adriana Barraza) Claire’s housekeeper who is the one who cares for Claire the most. It’s hard to find out the cause of Claire’s situation, especially because she is always in a haze from the booze and drugs, but piece by piece we get clues of what happened. The very last second of the film is very poignant. Why is it called cake? Well, you’ll have to wait 1 hour and 15 minutes into the film to learn that piece of information. This is definitely the best performance I have ever seen from Jennifer Aniston. This is definitely a dramatic role, there is very little fun in it at all, but but she carries the story like a champ. There are also some other very good performances. There is a great deal to think about, and this is a very thought provoking character study. There is a very small but poignant scene with William H Macy as well that is very, very touching. Sam Worthington as Roy, Nena’s husband is also very well done. Jennifer’s character is so very lonely, but it’s discouraging how she chases everyone away that even tries to show her some compassion. This is an excellent film, and one that is very worthwhile. I highly recommend it as one of the best dramas I have seen in a long, long time. There is a lot of criticism of the movie, mostly from folks like don’t like the non-resolution of all the problems and issues. Some things that could take much more development in a mini-series are left out. But to me, I think that shows the brilliance of the writer and director. These kinds of problems don’t come to a conclusion in 90 minutes. These kinds of problems take decades to work through. But I think we are told plenty to give us lots to think about, and to decide where we think Claire is headed. I think it’s about right, the way it’s handled. And if you figure out the reason why every A in the titles is laying down sideways, feel free to let me know. I have an idea, but I’m not sure if I’m right.

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