Maze Runner: The Death Cure

In the epic finale to the Maze Runner saga, Thomas leads his group of escaped Gladers on their final and most dangerous mission yet. To save their friends, they must break into the legendary Last City, a WCKD-controlled labyrinth that may turn out to be the deadliest maze of all. Anyone who makes it out alive will get answers to the questions the Gladers have been asking since they first arrived in the maze.

This was a pretty disappointing ending to what was a pretty enjoyable franchise.  It was the same problem with the books that it started out so great and got a little more eh with each offering but I think that the final chapter of the movies was actually more disappointing than the final chapter of the books.  They didn't do as good of a job as they could have and the movie was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long.  

I would recommend fans of the others still watch this to get the "closure" of the series but just keep your expectations not too high because it was pretty disappointing.  Anyone who has not watched the others should obviously not bother with this one.

Den Of Thieves

Den of Thieves is a gritty Los Angeles crime saga which follows the intersecting and often personally connected lives of an elite unit of the LA County Sheriff's Dept. and the state's most successful bank robbery crew as the outlaws plan a seemingly impossible heist on the Federal Reserve Bank of downtown Los Angeles.

Wow!  This movie was waaaaaaaaaaaay too long.  They took a run of the mill cops and robbers movie with dime a dozen, stereotypical characters and a boring to non-existent story that would be rough for a 90 minute movie and decided to add another 45 minutes to it.

I wouldn't recommend anyone bothering with this.  It's a very long and not interesting movie you have pretty much seen ten times over at this point.

12 Strong

The story of heroism is based on true events that unfolded a world away in the harrowing aftermath of 9/11 when a U.S. Special Forces team, led by their new Captain, Mitch Nelson (Chris Hemsworth), is chosen to be the first U.S. troops sent into Afghanistan for an extremely dangerous mission. There, in the rugged mountains, they must convince Northern Alliance General Dostum (Navid Negahban) to join forces with them to fight their common adversary: the Taliban and their Al Qaeda allies. In addition to overcoming mutual distrust and a vast cultural divide, the Americans—accustomed to state-of-the-art warfare—must adopt the rudimentary tactics of the Afghani horse soldiers. But despite their uneasy bond, the new allies face overwhelming odds: outnumbered and outgunned by a ruthless enemy that does not take prisoners.

This was a great military movie.  The story, action and characters were great.  You really left it having that much more respect for anyone serving in the armed forces and you felt proud to be American.  Mission accomplished across the board on what they wanted to do.  

I would definitely recommend people checking this out.  It is a very enjoyable movie that fills you with pride and respect for those protecting the country.

Proud Mary

Taraji P. Henson is Mary, a hit woman working for an organized crime family in Boston, whose life is completely turned around when she meets a young boy whose path she crosses when a professional hit goes bad.

Wow!  This was really bad.  Like really bad.  Zero substance whatsoever.  It was like an hour and 15 minute blah blah session just for one badass car scene with Taraji to the Tina Turner song.  Seriously.  Like that was it.  All forced.  All pointless.  Wow.

I wouldn't recommend anyone bothering with this total waste of time.  Although the super short running time was the best part.  This is a shining example of not seeing movies released in January.

The Commuter

In this action-packed thriller, Liam Neeson plays an insurance salesman, Michael, on his daily commute home, which quickly becomes anything but routine. After being contacted by a mysterious stranger, Michael is forced to uncover the identity of a hidden passenger on his train before the last stop. As he works against the clock to solve the puzzle, he realizes a deadly plan is unfolding and is unwittingly caught up in a criminal conspiracy. One that carries life and death stakes for himself and his fellow passengers.

Most boring action/suspense movie ever.  I get that Taken was a pretty badass movie.  But how did that turn Liam Nesson into a regular action movie star.  I just don't get it.  And this movie was a prime example of it.  Every fight scene was boring as hell.  The movie felt like twice as long as it had to.  I didn't care about anything that was happening or any of the characters.  If I had been watching this online - I never would have made it to the end.  I'm actually shocked I stayed until the end in the theater.  

I wouldn't recommend that anyone bother with this one.  Huge waste of time and boring as hell.

Insidious: The Last Key

The creative minds behind the hit Insidious trilogy return for Insidious: The Last Key. In the supernatural thriller, which welcomes back franchise standout Lin Shaye as Dr. Elise Rainier, the brilliant parapsychologist faces her most fearsome and personal haunting yet: in her own family home.

It was kind of a lame overall attempt at continuing the franchise by branching off to explain the psychic woman.  It had some good scares and definitely did a good enough job of covering the background of her character but I am just not really sure that there was a demand for this to be done.  It seemed like a strange sideways move for the franchise as a whole.

I would still recommend the movie to people looking for a scare.  There were plenty sprinkled throughout.  Just could have been a standalone movie instead of forcing the connection to an already established horror franchise.

The Post

Steven Spielberg directs Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks in The Post, a thrilling drama about the unlikely partnership between The Washington Post's Katharine Graham (Streep), the first female publisher of a major American newspaper, and editor Ben Bradlee (Hanks), as they race to catch up with The New York Times to expose a massive cover-up of government secrets that spanned three decades and four U.S. Presidents. The two must overcome their differences as they risk their careers - and their very freedom - to help bring long-buried truths to light.

Never would I have thought that a movie about a newspaper could be this suspenseful and intriguing.  This movie was a pretty intense watch and was paced in such a way that you were sitting on the edge of your seat as it played out.  All of the actors were excellent.  Spielberg's direction was top notch.  They managed to take the kind of material that usually bores the hell out of me and totally hook the audience for an awesome ride.  

I would absolutely recommend people checking this out.  It's excellent filmmaking and storytelling all around.  

Father Figures

Owen Wilson and Ed Helms star in the Alcon Entertainment comedy Father Figures, marking the directorial debut of veteran cinematographer Lawrence Sher (“The Hangover” films). Wilson and Helms are Kyle and Peter Reynolds, brothers whose eccentric mother raised them to believe their father had died when they were young. When they discover this to be a lie, they set out together to find their real father, and end up learning more about their mother than they probably ever wanted to know.

This movie was pretty much a giant waste of time.  I barely laughed and these guys should be easily able to make me do that.  The cast had all the potential in the world and it was pretty much just wasted.  There really isn't anything else to say because this poop was just there.

I wouldn't recommend that anyone bother with this movie.  I really don't know why they bothered making it or why any of these actors are in it.  

Paddington 2

Paddington 2 continues the story of the enduringly popular little bear in the trademark blue coat and red hat that touched audiences worldwide. The new story finds Paddington (Ben Whishaw) happily settled with the Brown family in Windsor Gardens, where he has become a popular member of the community, spreading joy and marmalade wherever he goes. While searching for the perfect present for his beloved Aunt Lucy's hundredth birthday, Paddington spots a unique pop-up book in Mr. Gruber's antique shop, and embarks upon a series of odd jobs to buy it. But when the book is stolen, it's up to Paddington and the Browns to unmask the thief.

This was a very cute family movie sequel.  It's pretty much more of the same with Paddington making people's hearts warm up - even those of criminals in jail.  The material is mostly for younger kids but it's not terribly painful for the parents taking them because it is a pretty cute and heartwarming movie.

I would recommend that families check this out.  You could definitely do much worse than this for a family trip to the movies.

All The Money In The World

All the Money in the World follows the kidnapping of 16-year- old John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) and the desperate attempt by his devoted mother Gail (Michelle Williams) to convince his billionaire grandfather (Christopher Plummer) to pay the ransom. When Getty Sr. refuses, Gail attempts to sway him as her son’s captors become increasingly volatile and brutal. With her son’s life in the balance, Gail and Getty’s advisor (Mark Wahlberg) become unlikely allies in the race against time that ultimately reveals the true and lasting value of love over money. 


This was one hell of a twisted "true" story.  There were so many different emotions at play.  The grandfather being obsessed with money.  The mother willing to do anything.  The kid being scared.  Even the kidnappers covered all different kinds of angles of looking at what they were doing.  This was very well told and played from beginning to end with the audience hooked on where it was going.  As for the controversy about this movie - the removal and reshooting of Chrisopher Plummer taking over for Kevin Spacey ended up being awesome because there is no way that Kevin Spacey could have been as good in that role.

I would definitely recommend people checking this out.  It was a hell of a story and a very entertaining watch.  

The Ten Best Movies Of 2017

Honorable mentions:  Wonder Woman, Girls Trip and Beauty & The Beast
Wonder Woman would have been a lock for the top 10 if it were not for the stupid need of DC to overdue the CGI at the end.  Girls Trip was easily the funniest movie of the year.  Beauty & The Beast was by far the best live action remake of Disney since they started doing these a few years back.

10 - Thor: Ragnarok
Always been a huge fan of Marvel movies and even though I liked the Thor movies they were always towards the bottom of the list for Marvel movies.  That changed with this one.  This one was easily the best of the Thor movies and might be the funniest Marvel movie to date.

9 - Baby Driver
I can't tell you when I have ever seen the music in every scene used so well that it was like an extra character.  The action was great too.  This is the type of movies that I'm sure I will rewatch casually when its on over and over for years to come.

8 - The Shape Of Water
The true mark of an excellent fantasy movie is that they hook the audience and make you feel like what you are watching could truly be happening.  This movie was done so well that I would not be surprised to see a fish man as I was walking out of the theater.

7 - The Greatest Showman
This movie had me wanting to jump out of my seat and start dancing along.  The music was awesome and I loved the quick pacing that got you through all the material they wanted to without it taking forever.

6 - IT
Easily one of the best remakes ever.  This version of Pennywise was terrifying and the scene with him in the sewer has to be one of the best scenes at movies this year.

5 - I, Tonya
I never thought I would have laughed as hard at this movie as I did.  All of the acting in this was awesome and Allison Janney gave one of the best performance of the year at Tonya's mother.

4 - Dunkirk
Christopher Nolan delivers again.  Outside of Saving Private Ryan, I don't know of a war movie that has made you feel more like you were there with them.  Add to that the three different timed stories intersecting and its another example of why he is the greatest director of this generation.

3 - Get Out
This movie was equal parts creepy, hysterically funny and filled with social commentary.  I was so uncomfortable watching at times and others terrified from the suspense of what might happen.  The fact that it was made by Jordan Peele only made it that much more impressive.

2 - Spider-Man: Homecoming
I have always been a huge fan of Spidey and this is by far the best movie that they have done to date.  So glad that he is back under the Marvel umbrella.  This movie served as an excellent relaunch of Spider-Man (with Tom Holland being perfectly cast) but also surprised throughout with character twists and surprises.  It also ties into the Marvel timeline perfectly.  I was cheering throughout this movie like a young teenager pumped up to see it.

1 - Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
This was easily the most real feeling movie of 2018.  The acting was awesome across the board and even though the subject matter was incredibly dramatic - you laugh from beginning to end because of the sarcasm, wit and delivery from all involved.

The Ten Worst Movies Of 2017

Dishonorable Mention - Star Wars: The Last Jedi
This is only on here because it kills me that it's not on the top 10 list.  There was a lot to like about it but there was also a lot to not like.  I don't have the same major issues that a lot of fan boys have with it but there are some things that really do bother me.  I thought for sure this would be a lock for a top 3 after The Force Awakens and at worst maybe a little lower in the top 10 but for it to not come close to making that list - it gets the dishonorable mention of the year.

10 - Mother!
You want to talk about false advertising destroying a movie?  This one tried to capitalize on the scary movie hype from IT and went all out advertising it as the next big scary movie.  It was so not that.  It was a philosophical movie that was not in any way meant to be for mainstream audiences.  This definitely had the biggest WTF audience reaction to a movie I have seen in a long time.

9 - Fifty Shades Darker
This was easily the most not sexy movie about sex I've ever seen.  It was just plain painful.  The actors looked like they didn't even want to be doing it and couldn't wait for this franchise to be over.  The feeling is quite mutual.

8 - Valerian & The City Of A Thousand Planets
I was kind of excited to see this.  It looked like it could be Fifth Element-ish.  It very much was not.  It was a crapshow of special effects that honestly were not all that special.  I pulled the plug about halfway through the movie and have never bothered to watch the rest of it.

7 - Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
Please for the love of all that is holy let that tag line be true.

6 - XXX: The Return Of Xander Cage
No need for this return.  It was basically like watching Vin Diesel in really lame X-Games commercial for an hour and a half.

5 - Monster Trucks
There are lame kids movies and then there are ones that are just insulting grabs at the parents money.  This one definitely took the award for the latter in a year with lots of competition for that category.

4 - The Space Between Us
I would love to know whose idea it was to take the teenage romance craze from Twilight and say you know what that genre needs?  A sci-fi twist where a kid is born in space to add some spice to the whole long distance romance.  This movie was so bad that I just kept laughing through the whole thing.

3 - The Dark Tower
I have read all the Dark Tower books and am a HUGE fan of them.  I was so excited to hear that this would finally be getting brought to the big screen.  This was easily the most disappointing movie of the year and just such a jumbled mess of something that could be truly epic.

2 - Geostorm
How the hell do you screw up your run of the mill disaster movie?  You try to take it too serious and make it about a government conspiracy.  This movie was so bad and should have been a lock for worst of the year if it wasn't for the only movie to trump it.

1 - Transformers: The Last Knight
I literally see every movie that comes out but after suffering through an even worse sequel to one of my favorite moves ever in Transformers than the second turd, the third dung pile and fourth steaming pile of elephant crap - I swear that I am never going to watch a Transformers movie again.  So done with this over the top garbage.  Pulled the plug 1/2 way through this and am never going back.