Aloha

A celebrated military contractor (Bradley Cooper) returns to the site of his greatest career triumphs – the US Space program in Honolulu, Hawaii – and reconnects with a long-ago love (Rachel McAdams) while unexpectedly falling for the hard-charging Air Force watchdog (Emma Stone) assigned to him. In play is a complex satellite system being launched by an enigmatic billionaire with suspicious intentions (Bill Murray).

I have always been a huge fan of Cameron Crowe.  He does such a great job with relationships in all of his movies.  He is able to develop characters so quick and well and create attachments to them for the audience.  This movie was no different and had an amazing cast.  Emma a Stone is awesome as always and there is a scene between Bradley Cooper and John Krasinski that was priceless.  The only thing that took away from this movie was that there was too much of the Hawaiian politics going on.  I get that it was an important part of the story but it was so far secondary to the relationships in the movie that it took away from the good stuff of the movie.

I still enjoyed the movie very much.  I would definitely recommend any fans of Cameron Crowe's previous efforts checking this out.  The cast really is worth the price of admission alone.

Hot Pursuit

Cooper (Reese Witherspoon) is a second generation police officer who is known as a bit of a screw-up, but when a federal witness and his wife Daniella (Sofia Vergara) need to be moved into witness protection, she’s called upon to guard Daniella as they go on the run from a crime boss and corrupt cops.

This movie was pretty disappointing.  The trailer looked really funny and I thought that this would be a good pairing for a comedy.  Unfortunately, it just kind of missed its mark.  There were a couple of laughs here and there but without the hook to get you fully into the movie there were not nearly as many as I had hoped for.  

I would very lukewarmly recommend this movie to people.  It's not the worst thing I've seen but it's not nearly as good as I expected it to be.  It ends up being a somewhat decent watch with some scattered laughs.

Unfriended

Ushering in a new era of horror, Unfriended unfolds over a teenager's computer screen as she and her friends are stalked by an unseen figure who seeks vengeance for a shaming video that led a vicious bully to kill herself a year earlier.

It was a decent idea and shown well using social media and an absurd amount of computer attachment and usage of the current generation.  Honestly - it made me feel really old because of the massive a.d.d. that it seems the whole generation has.  Anywho - the problem with the movie was that there really wasn't much of a fear element.  You just kind of watched it play out in a completely formula way.  It was a very short movie so it ended up being okay.

I would somewhat recommend people checking this movie out.  It might be more entertaining/scary for this generation since they can probably identify with it all more. Otherwise, it was a decent premise but not too scary.

Insurgent

Insurgent raises the stakes for Tris as she searches for allies and answers in the ruins of a futuristic Chicago. Tris (Woodley) and Four (James) are now fugitives on the run, hunted by Jeanine (Winslet), the leader of the power-hungry Erudite elite. Racing against time, they must find out what Tris’s family sacrificed their lives to protect, and why the Erudite leaders will do anything to stop them. Haunted by her past choices but desperate to protect the ones she loves, Tris, with Four at her side, faces one impossible challenge after another as they unlock the truth about the past and ultimately the future of their world.

This movie might have actually been better than Divergent simply because you can tell how much more money was put into the production value of it.  The movie just looks better.  The scenery is better.  The effects are better.  Everything just pretty much looks cleaner overall.  The movie continues the story from the first one so if you liked it or the books - you will surely like this movie.  The biggest thing that they were able to pull off was how much of this movie took part in the world of the simulations.  I had big doubts about this when reading the book but they pulled it off incredibly well.  

I would definitely recommend people checking this out.  It's a great young cast and an enjoyable story to watch play out.

Home

When Earth is taken over by the overly-confident Boov, an alien race in search of a new place to call home, all humans are promptly relocated, while all Boov get busy reorganizing the planet. But when one resourceful girl, Tip, (Rihanna, who also contributes a song) manages to avoid capture, she finds herself the accidental accomplice of a banished Boov named Oh (Jim Parsons). The two fugitives realize there's a lot more at stake than intergalactic relations as they embark on the road trip of a lifetime. Based upon the novel "The True Meaning of Smekday" by Adam Rex.

I wanted to like this movie.  I wanted it to be the kind of animated movie that is just as enjoyable for the adults as it is for the kids.  Unfortunately, it wasn't.  I found myself bored at numerous points and the laughs that I expected from the trailer just were not there.  Jim Parsons did a good job voicing the character and basically just being Sheldon.  I could have done without Rihanna voicing the girl lead and every song being sung by her.  It's like she got a whole album release from this movie.  

Its not that the movie was bad.  It was decent.  And the kids that it was made for will probably still love it.  It's just not as enjoyable for the adults as I had hoped it would be.

The Water Diviner

Starring Russell Crowe, The Water Diviner is an epic adventure set four years after the devastating battle of Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I. Australian farmer Connor (Crowe) travels to Istanbul to discover the fate of his sons, reported missing in the action, where he forges a relationship with the beautiful Turkish woman (Kurylenko) who owns the hotel in which he stays. Holding on to hope, and with the help of a Turkish Officer, Connor embarks on a journey across the country to find the truth about the fate of his sons.

Not going to sugarcoat it at all.  This movie was a straight up snooze fest.  I made it about 45 minutes into it and I couldn't have been less interested if I tried.  There really was no hook whatsoever.  The plugged was pulled.

I obviously wouldn't recommend anyone wasting their time with this.  It's 45 minutes I wish I had back and I couldn't imagine wasting a full two hours on it.

Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2

After six years of keeping our malls safe, Paul Blart has earned a well-deserved vacation. He heads to Vegas with his teenage daughter before she heads off to college. But safety never takes a holiday and when duty calls, Blart answers.

If I'm being realistic, this is definitely on the list of sequels that will surely be questioned for being made forever.  Is it stupid?  Yes.  Is it formula?  Of course.  That being said, if you find Kevin James funny and you liked the first one despite its same level of stupidity and formula - I'm sure you will like this one too.

Again, I would recommend this to anyone who enjoyed the first one.  Same kind of laughs and same kind of corniness.  If that one wasn't for you, then you shouldn't touch this one either.

It Follows

For 19-year-old Jay (Monroe), the fall should be about school, boys and weekends at the lake. Yet, after a seemingly innocent sexual encounter she suddenly finds herself plagued by nightmarish visions; she can't shake the sensation that someone, or something, is following her. As the threat closes in, Jay and her friends must somehow escape the horrors that are only a few steps behind.

This was easily one of the most original horror movies I've seen in a very long time.  Its so simple and so different.  And they didn't rely on any usual horror movie cheesiness for scares.  It was all done with amazing camera work and a really creepy tension inducing score.  I would go so far as to say that this was an artsy horror movie with how legitamitely well made of a movie it was.  

I would definitely recommend people checking this out.  I'm a pretty big fan of scary movies and this one was one hell of a great mind screw.  You will leave this movie asking people if they see creepy people around just to make sure you are not losing it.

Ex Machina

Caleb Smith (Domhnall Gleeson), a programmer at an internet-search giant, wins a competition to spend a week at the private mountain estate of the company's brilliant and reclusive CEO, Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac). Upon his arrival, Caleb learns that Nathan has chosen him to be the human component in a Turing Test—charging him with evaluating the capabilities, and ultimately the consciousness, of Nathan’s latest experiment in artificial intelligence. That experiment is Ava (Alicia Vikander), a breathtaking A.I. whose emotional intelligence proves more sophisticated––and more deceptive––than the two men could have imagined.

This movie was very well done from an artistic filmmaking perspective.  There was a great build towards the climax and Oscar Issac continues to shine as an actor.  This was exactly what psychological sci-fi should be.  The only knock is that it definitely dragged at points and hurt the overall momentum.

I would recommend people check this out.  It's absolutely not a mainstream movie, but it is a good watch for those able to appreciate these kinds of movies.

Get Hard

When millionaire hedge fund manager James (Will Ferrell) is nailed for fraud and bound for a stretch in San Quentin, the judge gives him 30 days to get his affairs in order.  Desperate, he turns to Darnell (Kevin Hart) to prep him for a life behind bars.  But despite James’ one-percenter assumptions, Darnell is a hard-working small business owner who has never received a parking ticket, let alone been to prison.   Together, the two men do whatever it takes for James to “get hard” and, in the process, discover how wrong they were about a lot of things – including each other.

You have to go into a movie like this with pretty simple expectations.  It's a bunch of simple jokes and will probably run a little bit longer than it should since it's more of a SNL skit than a full length movie.  And that's exactly what you get.  There were a couple of really good laughs but not nearly enough to warrant the whole story.  Plus they did the obligatory storyline putting some heart into it that usually tones down the laughs.  

I would still somewhat recommend people checking this out.  The two leads are funny and play very well off of each other.  Just don't expect the funniest movie of all time and you should be happy with the end product.

The Gunman

An adaptation of Jean-Patrick Manchette's "The Prone Gunman." Sean Penn stars as Jim Terrier, an international operative who is betrayed by the organization he worked for, and must go on the run in a relentless game of cat and mouse across Europe.

This movie was a really good watch.  How did this not get a wider a better promoted release?  Sean Penn was great in the Liam Nesson Taken-ish role and Javier Bardem is awesome in anything he does.  The fight scenes were great and they would go from 0 to 60 so fast.  There might have been a little too much dramatic talky talky at times but it was still enjoyable.

I would definitely recommend people checking this movie out.  It's a good action movie.  Unfortunately it was in and out of theaters pretty fast after minimal advertising.

Chappie

In the near future, crime is patrolled by an oppressive mechanized police force. But now, the people are fighting back. When one police droid, Chappie, is stolen and given new programming, he becomes the first robot with the ability to think and feel for himself. As powerful, destructive forces start to see Chappie as a danger to mankind and order, they will stop at nothing to maintain the status quo and ensure that Chappie is the last of his kind.

Neil Bloomkamp is becoming one of my more favorite directors.  District 9 was awesome.  Elysium was great.  I had high expectations for this movie and tried to not get too excited out of fear of it ruining the movie for me.  But it still delivered.  The story was great and managed put a lot of heart into an action/sci-fi movie and there were a ton of laughs.  One could break it down and say this was an updated version of Short Circuit and that is somewhat accurate, but this is nowhere near as kid friendly.  

I would definitely recommend people checking this out.  It's a fun ride and a well developed story.  Only complaint is the level of weirdness with everyone's hair.  What is that all about?

Run All Night

Brooklyn mobster and prolific hit man Jimmy Conlon (Neeson), once known as The Gravedigger, has seen better days. Longtime best friend of mob boss Shawn Maguire (Harris), Jimmy, now 55, is haunted by the sins of his past—as well as a dogged police detective who's been one step behind Jimmy for 30 years. Lately, it seems Jimmy's only solace can be found at the bottom of a whiskey glass. But when Jimmy's estranged son, Mike (Kinnaman), becomes a target, Jimmy must make a choice between the crime family he chose and the real family he abandoned long ago. With Mike on the run, Jimmy's only penance for his past mistakes may be to keep his son from the same fate Jimmy is certain he'll face himself…at the wrong end of a gun. Now, with nowhere safe to turn, Jimmy just has one night to figure out exactly where his loyalties lie and to see if he can finally make things right.

Let's call it like it is.  This movie is basically Taken 4.  Instead of a badass Ex-CIA or whatever he was in Taken, Liam Nesson is a drunken ex-hitman for the mob who will stop at nothing to protect his son.  That being said, I liked this movie more than either of the Taken sequels.  The cast was great all around, especially Ed Harris.  The movie was a little longer than it had to be but it was still an enjoyable enough ride with good badass acting to keep you entertained.

I would recommend people checking this out.  It was a good watch - especially if you like these kinds of movies.

Kingsman: The Secret Service

Based upon the acclaimed comic book and directed by Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class), Kingsman: The Secret Service tells the story of a super-secret spy organization that recruits an unrefined but promising street kid into the agency's ultra-competitive training program just as a global threat emerges from a twisted tech genius.

Matthew Vaughn is so good at making fun action movies.  Sure the violence and language tend to push these to being rated R but it's totally worth it.  This is a movie made for teenage boys but done well enough that grown ups can appreciate the guilty pleasure that it is.  Samuel L Jackson is at his over the top best.  Colin Firth is surprisingly badass.  The side characters are entertaining as hell.  It was just a whole lot of over the top fun.

I would definitely recommend people checking this out.  It was a lot of fun and almost Tarantinoesque with its witty banter and crazy violence.

Project Almanac

A brilliant high school student and his friends uncover blueprints for a mysterious device with limitless potential, inadvertently putting lives in danger.

This is another one of those first camera high concept movies.  I was excited about this one and all in all it was a decent watch.  They did a good job of portraying the time travel with minimal amount of special effects.  The characters played very well off each other and the story developed well.  The only knocks I could make on this are that it took too long to really get going with the time traveling and that it become a little too centric on a teenager being in love.  The movie was much bigger than that all along but shrunk itself down to be focused on that.

I would somewhat recommend this movie.  It's a decent watch of a great premise but definitely could have been so much better.