Ed's Review Dot Com

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.

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Columbia Pictures, Pariah,

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jamie Chung, Michael Shannon, Dania Ramirez, Aasif Mandvi, Aaron Tveit

Wilee (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a bike messenger in Manhattan, a very important, but sometimes thankless job delivering envelopes and packages around Manhattan quickly by bicycle. They cycle along at breakneck speed and dodge traffic, pedestrians, and all manner of obstacles along the way. But when he is given a package that is desperately wanted by corrupt NYPD detective it becomes a life and death chase through the streets of New York City.

This is an unusual little film. It’s kind of like the Fast and Furious type stories, but with bicycles. I didn’t that that would work, but it did on a certain level. Certainly not the greatest crime adventure action movie, it still has a great deal of action surprisingly. A bike rider has certain advantages when outrunning a car, even more than a motorcycle due to the small size, and Wilee uses all his skills to avoid this guy who won’t give up, all the while trying to figure out why he wants that delivery so fast. We do eventually get to find out what the delivery is for, and that’s a bit of a letdown. It’s not as exciting as it could have been, but at least it’s original. Unless you’re a Joseph Gordon-Levitt fan, of which I know there are a lot, or missing Manhattan very much, there is just not enough here for me to highly recommend it. I found it somewhat boring, and hard to keep up my interest in the story. To be honest, I didn’t really care if he delivered that package or not, I just wanted the movie to stop. Not a great film, but it has a niche audience that will probably enjoy it. I struggle to give it 3 stars, but I guess it’s just barely worth that.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

DreamWorks Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Reliance Entertainment,

Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, James Spader, Hal Holbrook, Tommy Lee Jones, Jackie Earle Haley, John Hawkes, Jared Harris, Joseph Cross, Tim Blake Nelson, David Oyelowo, Bruce McGill

Abraham Lincoln (Daniel Day Lewis) was our 16th President, and presided over the United States during the darkest days of the nation. This film looks at the last months of the life of Abraham Lincoln. The war has been raging on, and he had released the Emancipation Proclamation declaring slavery had been abolished, but that was done as a time of war. It didn’t stop slavery truly, but rather stated that any slaves captured in battles would be free. But it was highly questionable to Lincoln whether he had the power to do this, especially if the war was over. So Lincoln was faces with a major dilemma. He must push for the 13th Amendment to the constitution in the house, to pass with a 2/3 majority, with not near enough votes to do it. He also had to do it before the war was over, because if the south rejoined the Union, they would certainly have enough power to block it. So Lincoln calls in all his favors, and even recruits his enemies, to attempt to pull off this coup. Lincoln may be able to stop slavery, or stop the war, but likely not both. This stunning documentary tells the story of a great American hero.

The similarities of the badly polarized congress to the situation the country is in today is so strikingly similar that it’s uncanny. This is one of the best films I have ever seen. The story is so gripping, and the performance of Daniel Day Lewis is certainly Oscar worthy. Sally Fields also shines as the trouble First Lady who has seen so much tragedy in her life that many deemed her insane. She was definitely a burden to the President, but also his strength. The performances here are certainly superior, and this film will be showered with honors this year, I am certain. There are so many wonderful actors in this movie that turn in amazing performances. Not the least of these is Tommy Lee Jones who is fabulous as the ornery representative from Pennsylvania. Spielberg has a sure hit here. This is a film that must NOT be missed!

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

DMG Entertainment, Endgame Entertainment, FilmDistrict,

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Piper Perabo, Paul Dano, Garret Dillahunt, Jeff Daniels, Tracie Thoms, Pierce Gagnon

Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a Looper. In the future, time travel was invented, but it was highly illegal. It was taken over by the mob, and when they needed to get rid of a body, there was no practical way, so they would send the prisoner back in time to a set time and place where the Looper would instantly kill him and dispose of the body. It seems someone VERY evil has taken over the mob and is getting rid of all the loopers, by sending the looper himself back from the future to be killed by his younger self. When Joe meets himself from the future (Bruce Willis) he manages to outsmart himself and escape. Now present Joe must find future Joe before future Joe finds the one who is responsible for all the problems in the first place. This is a sci-fi drama that will really make you think.

I was very impressed with this story. It is not a fast paced action thriller as you might expect (although there is a lot of run and chase in it) but it’s much more cerebral than that. There is a lot of levels of this story, and it could get confusing if you’re not paying attention, so it does take some concentration to keep it straight. But it was really well acted, and has a lot of character development which makes it very enjoyable to watch. Emily Blunt plays a young mother (and a very complex character as well) which is very well done. Bruce Willis doesn’t get as much screen time as he could have. I would like to have seen more develop between Young Joe and Old Joe, but we didn’t get a lot of that. But Bruce makes the very best of the screen time he does get, and he’s an interesting character as well. He is somewhere between ruthless and crass and a tender and loving old coot, and he’s actually both most of the time.

All in all, this was a very good film. I enjoyed the setting very much. It’s set in about 2024 or something like that, but it could really be any time. It’s kind of interesting to see a movie set in a future date with a further future date down the road. We get to learn a little about both times. It’s also interesting with the characters of young Joe and old Joe. You can see the difference between youth and character, and age and wisdom, but see the similarities in the two versions of the same character. I will be thinking about this film for quite a while, and I predict it will do pretty decently in the box office as it was a very good adventure.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

IWC Productions, Mandate Pictures, Point Gray,

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Bryce Dallas Howard, Anjelica Huston, Marie Avgeropoulos, Jessica Parker Kennedy, Serge Houde, Andrew Airlie, Matt Frewer, Philip Baker Hall

Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a young broadcaster for NPR in Seattle. He’s dating Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard) and best friends with good nature but crude Kyle (Seth Rogen). Adam has a strained relationship with his mom (Anjelica Huston) and his Dad who is suffering from Alzheimer’s. But everything suddenly comes caving in when Adam is told by the doctor that he has a very rare form of cancer of the spine. The film takes us through Adam’s life dealing with the disease, and how it affects everyone around him.

This is an interesting film. Based on a true story of writer Will Reiser who was diagnosed with cancer, and with Seth Rogen as his friend, beat the disease and under Seth’s urging wrote the script. So it’s very realistic because it’s written by the one who lived it. A lot of the misadventures in the screenplay are based on the real experiences Will went through. It has a lot of humor! How a movie about cancer can be funny is odd, but it really is. Seth Rogen does his gross out dialog that he’s famous for, so the R rating is mostly for the words that come out of Seth’s mouth! He’s so inappropriate, it’s hysterical.

There is a lot about the deterioration of Adam and Rachel’s relationship. Anna Kendrick plays a very young psychologist who tries to council Adam, and there are undertones of how much they like each other, even though it’s a doctor patient relationship. Then there’s the issues with Adam and his Mother. But the primary focus of the film is always the buddy film relationship between Adam and Kyle. After all, this is primarily Seth Rogen’s film.

Not exactly stellar, but very unique. It’s a very humorous look at something that is very serious. There are plenty of scenes that will make you cringe and look away, but it’s so light-hearted about it that makes it not a sad or depressing story. Very well written, and so it’s certainly watch watching.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog