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Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy expands the Marvel Cinematic Universe into the cosmos, where brash adventurer Peter Quill finds himself the object of an unrelenting bounty hunt after stealing a mysterious orb coveted by Ronan, a powerful villain with ambitions that threaten the entire universe. To evade the ever-persistent Ronan, Quill is forced into an uneasy truce with a quartet of disparate misfits—Rocket, a gun-toting raccoon, Groot, a tree-like humanoid, the deadly and enigmatic Gamora and the revenge-driven Drax the Destroyer. But when Quill discovers the true power of the orb and the menace it poses to the cosmos, he must do his best to rally his ragtag rivals for a last, desperate stand—with the galaxy's fate in the balance.
Marvel did a great job with what is easily their toughest sell so far. Imagine Thor but A LOT more sci-fi type of material. Plus making it about five central characters that all need to be developed pretty much from scratch for the general public because this is nowhere near one of their high profile comics. And they pulled it off. The characters were great and very well developed. The story was excellently told while doing this and bringing them all together. There were plenty of laughs. The action and cinematography was awesome. I had pretty high expectations for this even though I was trying to keep them in check but the movie completely met them and pretty much exceeded them.
I would definitely recommend people checking this movie out. This is what going to the movies during the summer is all about and it should be the start of another great branch of Marvel's universe.
Everyone knows the legend of Hercules and his twelve labors. Our story begins after the labors, and after the legend… Haunted by a sin from his past, Hercules has become a mercenary. Along with five faithful companions, he travels ancient Greece selling his services for gold and using his legendary reputation to intimidate enemies. But when the benevolent ruler of Thrace and his daughter seek Hercules' help to defeat a savage and terrifying warlord, Hercules finds that in order for good to triumph and justice to prevail... he must again become the hero he once was... he must embrace his own myth... he must be Hercules.
This movie was much better than I thought it would be. I knew that I would like it regardless because The Rock is in it. This guy just makes everything better. Even with that being said, I still expected this to be the same run of the mill Conan/Hercules type of movie with overdone special effects and what not. The fact that the movie pretty much made fun of the whole Hercules myth made it so much more entertaining. And the posse he had with him instead of him taking on the world by himself also made the movie better.
I would definitely recommend people checking this movie out. It was very entertaining and a very pleasant surprise since I just expected to watch The Rock in a piece of crap.
Planes: Fire & Rescue is a new comedy-adventure about second chances, featuring a dynamic crew of elite firefighting aircraft devoted to protecting historic Piston Peak National Park from raging wildfire. When world famous air racer Dusty (voice of Dane Cook) learns that his engine is damaged and he may never race again, he must shift gears and is launched into the world of aerial firefighting. Dusty joins forces with veteran fire and rescue helicopter Blade Ranger and his courageous team, including spirited super scooper Dipper (voice of Julie Bowen), heavy-lift helicopter Windlifter, ex-military transport Cabbie and a lively bunch of brave all-terrain vehicles known as The Smokejumpers. Together, the fearless team battles a massive wildfire and Dusty learns what it takes to become a true hero.
This movie is just a retread of the first Planes movie. The only difference is that its about fighting fires instead of racing. And just like the first one - this really is a movie that should have gone straight to DVD but Disney is just taking advantage of pretty much no family/kids movies out there and getting more money out of their parents wallets. This also applies to the marketing of toys that stems off of both Cars movies and Planes movies. I thought the first Cars was pretty good but all three entries in this line of movies is really just about getting the parents' money one way or another. And it is a shame because the voice casting is actually pretty good in this and the soundtrack was great.
I wouldn't really recommend anyone waste their time with this although it is incredibly short. Just wait for it to show up on Netflix, on demand or DVD since that is pretty much the kind of quality it is.
In The Expendables 3, Barney (Stallone), Christmas (Statham) and the rest of the team comes face-to-face with Conrad Stonebanks (Gibson), who years ago co-founded The Expendables with Barney. Stonebanks subsequently became a ruthless arms trader and someone who Barney was forced to kill… or so he thought. Stonebanks, who eluded death once before, now is making it his mission to end The Expendables -- but Barney has other plans. Barney decides that he has to fight old blood with new blood, and brings in a new era of Expendables team members, recruiting individuals who are younger, faster and more tech-savvy. The latest mission becomes a clash of classic old-school style versus high-tech expertise in the Expendables’ most personal battle yet.
This is pretty much just more of the same from the first two movies. The story doesn't really matter. It's the action and all these action stars not taking themselves seriously and riffing on each other while playing shoot em up and what not. The new additions this go around were good as the bad guy and the laugh track.
I would recommend this to anyone that liked the first two. You will probably enjoy this one as much as those. If you have not seen any of them - I have no idea why you would start now.
There are a million reasons not to like realtor Oren Little (Michael Douglas), and that's just the way he likes it. Willfully obnoxious to anyone who might cross his path, he wants nothing more than to sell one last house and retire in peace and quiet -- until his estranged son suddenly drops off a granddaughter (Sterling Jerins) he never knew existed and turns his life upside-down. Clueless about how to care for a sweet, abandoned nine-year-old, he pawns her off on his determined and lovable neighbor Leah (Diane Keaton) and tries to resume his life uninterrupted. But little by little, Oren stubbornly learns to open his heart – to his family, to Leah, and to life itself - in this uplifting comedy from acclaimed director Rob Reiner.
This is a textbook "you see the trailer - you see the movie". There was not a single thing you didn't see coming from the commercial whatsoever. That being said, it was a cute romantic comedy. And it did a good job of portraying people falling in love later in life after suffering personal hardships and how doing so can work wonders for people's demeanor as well as confidence. Douglas & Keaton were great and played really well off of each other.
I would recommend this movie for couples wanting a good laugh and some heartwarming moments as well.
Luc Besson has created some of the toughest, most memorable female action heroes in cinematic history. Now, Besson directs Scarlett Johansson in Lucy, an action-thriller that tracks a woman accidentally caught in a dark deal who turns the tables on her captors and transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic.
This movie was basically a great premise and would only work if it was short and fast paced in order to prevent it from just going on and on and becoming to talky. This movie completely did what was necessary to keep it great. There was no slow build. It jumped right into the story and kept its foot on the gas for the 90 minute run time. It's very smart and has crazy philosophical/scientific ramifications. The action was different and intense. And the movie overall seemed to be very fresh and edgy.
I'd definitely recommend people checking this movie out. It was a very fun and quick watch that had a great premise and didn't drop the ball.
The New Founders of America invite you to celebrate your annual right to Purge in The Purge: Anarchy.
There really is no more need of a summary for this one because the original is still more than fresh enough in our memories. I was a huge fan of the first one until the end where I felt like they tripped all over themselves getting wrapped up in philosophical stuff too much. When I heard they were making a sequel I thought that this would pretty much be garbage. However, the fact that they left the style of the first one where it was an attack on the house and flipped it to people stuck out of their house trying to avoid getting "purged" was great and in all honesty I liked this movie more than the first one. They did another great job of "taking us" to this version of the world where the Purge exists. They kept you on your toes by having three different groups trying to survive before meeting up and trying to get through it all together. I thought it would slow down tremendously at that point, but they managed to amp up the crazy even more while showing so many different views on how to feel about the Purge.
I would definitely recommend people checking this out. If you liked the first, I believe that you will definitely like this one too. Again - I liked this one more actually. It's a violent/horror movie but is also really eye opening about how to look at things and what not government/political/humanity wise.
When Jay (Jason Segel) and Annie (Cameron Diaz) first got together, their romantic connection was intense – but ten years and two kids later, the flame of their love needs a spark. To kick things up a notch, they decide – why not? – to make a video of themselves trying out every position in The Joy of Sex in one marathon three-hour session. It seems like a great idea – until they discover that their most private video is no longer private. With their reputations on the line, they know they're just one click away from being laid bare to the world... but as their race to reclaim their video leads to a night they'll never forget, they'll find that their video will expose even more than they bargained for.
This movie was a decent watch with some great laughs. Unfortunately they were spaced out too much. For a movie that is a sex comedy, they tried to involve way too much relationship and emotional stuff. It should have been more off the wall consistently. The parts where it was were great but then it slowed down tremendously in between. A 90 minute comedy should not have felt this long.
I would somewhat recommend people checking this out. You might enjoy it more if you lower your expectations some. I was hoping for a laugh riot and got some good laughs but not enough.
Snowpiercer, based on the French graphic novel "Le Transperceneige," is set in a future where, after a failed experiment to stop global warming, an Ice Age kills off all life on the planet except for the inhabitants of the Snow Piercer, a train that travels around the globe and is powered by a sacred perpetual-motion engine. A class system evolves on the train but a revolution brews.
I liked this movie a lot. It was a great take on the overly tried apocalyptic future. When told the entire movie takes place on a train, you would never imagine that the film would be so creatively cinematography wise but it really was. The story is excellently told with lots of hooks to characters. You really feel like you are along for the ride and at no point does the movie drag or get boring.
I would absolutely recommend people checking this out. It can be pretty violent at times but it is a great watch and story. How did this movie get such a small release?
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth's dominant species.
This was an excellent continuation of the modern version of the franchise. I thought it would be great and loved the first one but had no idea how dramatic it would be. Normally, you would think that referring to this movie as dramatic would be bad since half if not more of the cast were apes. However, the effects used to bring the apes to life was so lifelike and the different emotions shown through them should have some of them up for oscar contention. Andy Serkis did another excellent job as Cesar but it was whoever played Koba that really stole the show. There was one part where that monkey went from serious to scared to being silly to get out of a situation and then vicious. It was really impressive. The matching emphasis on the importance of trust and family between the humans and apes was very well directed and kept the pacing of the movie great even though it had a two hour running time.
I would definitely recommend people checking this out. It was a great watch and entertaining in many more ways than I expected.
In this summer family adventure movie, Tuck, Munch and Alex are a trio of inseparable friends whose lives are about to change. Their neighborhood is being destroyed by a highway construction project that is forcing their families to move away. But just two days before they must part ways, the boys begin receiving a strange series of signals on their phones. Convinced something bigger is going on, they team up with another school friend, Emma, and set out to look for the source of their phone signals. What they discover is something beyond their wildest imaginations: a small alien who has become stranded on Earth. In need of their help, the four friends come together to protect the alien and help him find his way home. This journey, full of wonder and adventure, is their story, and their secret.
This movie is exactly what is wrong with Hollywood today. You have movies like Transformers 4 which cost like 200 million dollars to make, are 3 hours long and just crammed with over the top nonsense, crazy special effects and big name actors. They are a dime a dozen. We all flock to see them and they are all out of our minds two minutes after we walk out of the theater. Then there is a movie like Earth To Echo that will phase out of theaters in the blink of an eye without most people even knowing what it was. It had to cost pretty much nothing to make comparably. It has pretty much no known actors whatsoever and is really just four random kids. It's barely 90 minutes long. It's that single camera filming with minimal amounts of effects. Yet - this movie has the whole crowd clapping at the end of it. It has made you completely fall in love with this group of kids and Echo over the course of 90 minutes. You are laughing your ass off at parts and getting choked up at others. You catch yourself completely rooting for these kids and Echo as the movie plays out in E.T. like fashion. I had a hunch that I was going to like this movie but I ended up absolutely loving it. This is one of those special connection type movies and I loved how incredibly simple the movie was.
I absolutely recommend people checking this out. It was a fun, touching and very entertaining watch. This will probably be the shocking movie to show up on my Top 10 of the year when 2014 comes to a close.
In Deliver Us From Evil, New York police officer Ralph Sarchie (Eric Bana), struggling with his own personal issues, begins investigating a series of disturbing and inexplicable crimes. He joins forces with an unconventional priest (Edgar Ramirez), schooled in the rituals of exorcism, to combat the frightening and demonic possessions that are terrorizing their city. Based upon the book, which details Sarchie's bone-chilling real-life cases.
This was easily one of the better exorcism movies in a long time. And I feel like there have been way too many of them in the last couple of years. This one was different simply because it had a whole separate slowly evolving storyline that led up to the exorcism. And it was creepy as hell the whole time. It also had great casting. Eric Bana was great. Joel McHale was awesome as his partner. All the characters played really well off of each other and the story developed at exactly the right pace and didn't fall into that textbook, wash-rinse-repeat story. The tension was clearly there throughout the movie and there were numerous points where the audience will jump out of their chairs.
I very much recommend people checking this movie out. It was a huge surprise how much I really enjoyed this movie and I don't understand how underadvertised it was.
Tammy (Melissa McCarthy) is having a bad day. She's totaled her clunker car, gotten fired from her thankless job at a greasy burger joint, and instead of finding comfort at home, finds her husband getting comfortable with the neighbor in her own house. It's time to take her boom box and book it. The bad news is she's broke and without wheels. The worse news is her grandma, Pearl (Susan Sarandon), is her only option—with a car, cash, and an itch to see Niagara Falls. Not exactly the escape Tammy had in mind. But on the road, with grandma riding shot gun, it may be just what Tammy needs.
I find Melissa McCarthy absolutely hysterical. She is a lock for the top five funniest people in my opinion. It really doesn't matter what she is doing. Her delivery and physical humor get me every time. This movie is a pretty great testament to this. Spade a spade - it was a pretty pointless and stupid movie. But the surroundings are carried by the aforementioned strengths of McCarthy and I still found it enjoyable and funny. It is nowhere near the league of The Heat or Identity Thief where the movie around McCarthy was also hysterical. This is just a testament to how talented she is when it comes to hitting the funny bone.
I would still recommend this movie to anyone that is also a fan of Melissa McCarthy like I am. I honestly wouldn't recommend it to anyone that isn't though because if you don't find her funny - the movie is pretty much trash.
