Dark Skies

Dark Skies is a supernatural thriller that follows a young family living in the suburbs. As husband and wife Daniel and Lacey Barret witness an escalating series of disturbing events involving their family, their safe and peaceful home quickly unravels. When it becomes clear that the Barret family is being targeted by and unimaginably terrifying and deadly force, Daniel and Lacey take matters in their own hands to solve the mystery of what is after their family.

I don't know why but I thought this movie was going to be more of a ghost story than an alien thing. So I was kind of thrown off throughout the movie. There were still a bunch of points where stuff made you jump and there was a pretty good build up. Unfortunately, the movie kind of ended flat. Well, I shouldn't say that. It ended in a take what you want from it type of thing instead of a straight forward wrap up type of thing that I was expecting.

I would somewhat recommend people checking this out. I think that I was kind of disappointed because I had expectations for a very different kind of movie.

The Numbers Station

After his latest mission goes disastrously wrong, veteran CIA black ops agent Emerson Kent is given one last chance to prove he still has what it takes to do his job. His new assignment: guarding Katherine, a code operator at a top-secret remote CIA "Numbers Station" where encrypted messages are sent and received. When an elite team of heavily armed assailants lays siege to the station, Emerson and Katherine suddenly find themselves in a life-or-death struggle against an unknown enemy. With the station compromised and innocent lives at stake, they must stop the deadly plot before it's too late.

This was a pretty decent watch simply because I like John Cusack. It was a pretty simple government conspiracy movie that didn't have a bunch of bla-bla-bla build up. The movie was barely 90 minutes long and was paced well enough to not lose the viewer.

I would somewhat recommend people checking this out. It's not a must see by any means but it wasn't a bad movie. Again, I'm somewhat biased because I've always been a huge John Cusack fan.

Side Effects

Side Effects is a thriller about Emily and Martin (Rooney Mara and Channing Tatum), a successful New York couple whose world unravels when a new drug prescribed by Emily's psychiatrist (Jude Law) – intended to treat anxiety – has unexpected side effects.

This was a really good movie with good acting across the board. There was a great build up of suspense and the whole side effects of taking these kinds of pills was a realistic concern that was tapped well. I can't say too much without giving away too much but there were good twists and the story was paced very well. Side rant . . . . . Catherine Zeta Jones has had two really bad plastic surgeries. She has something done with the end of her lips that make them pull up so she looks kind of like the Joker and her eyebrow lifts make it look like she is constantly giving The Rock's people's eyebrow. Very werid and I clearly couldn't stop focusing on that. Okay - I'm done now. Had to put that out there. Wait - there was another . . . . and it's one I've done before. Why does Steven Soderberg insist on all his movies having a yellow tint to them? It wasn't there at first and then showed up and stayed for the rest of the movie. It's as if someone peed all over the lens and it was then filmed with that stain on there. Okay. Now I'm really done. Feel much better now. Thanks.

I would definitely recommend that people check this movie out. It was a very tight and factually based story about a major issue in society with all the pill popping and how it can all be manipulated and what not.

Beautiful Creatures

A supernatural love story set in the South, Beautiful Creatures tells the tale of two star-crossed lovers: Ethan (Alden Ehrenreich), a young man longing to escape his small town, and Lena (Alice Englert), a mysterious new girl. Together, they uncover dark secrets about their respective families, their history and their town.

This was a very Twilight-esque story with much more substance. I liked the story, the actors and how it was developed. Unfortunately, I feel like they kept trying to develop it after we were already good to go for the ending and what not. If this were a 90 minute movie instead of 120 minutes I probably would have liked it a lot more. The extra 30 minutes made it start to go more in to the Twilight realm with the same thing being said over and over again by the two main characters.

I would somewhat recommend people checking this out. Its not a must see by any means but if you are the type that enjoyed the Twilight series or movies like that - you would probably like this as well.

Parker

Parker (Jason Statham) is a professional thief who lives by a personal code of ethics: Don’t steal from people who can’t afford it and don’t hurt people who don’t deserve it. But on his latest heist, his crew double crosses him, steals his stash, and leaves him for dead. Determined to make sure they regret it, Parker tracks them to PalmBeach, playground of the rich and famous, where the crew is planning their biggest heist ever. Donning the disguise of a rich Texan, Parker takes on an unlikely partner, Leslie (Jennifer Lopez), a savvy insider, who’s short on cash, but big on looks, smarts and ambition. Together, they devise a plan to hijack the score, take everyone down and get away clean.

This movie was basically Transporter 5 or 6 or 7. The only difference was a lot more actual violence and blood than Jason Statham usual movies. Outside of that it was pretty much the same characters, the same story and the same ending.

I would recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys the Transporter movies or any Jason Statham movies. I do so this movie was enjoyable for what it is. Other like me won't be disappointed. Anyone that doesn't - why would you see this or start watching his movies now?

The Last Stand

After leaving his LAPD narcotics post following a bungled operation that left him wracked with remorse and regret, Sheriff Ray Owens (Schwarzenegger) moved out of Los Angeles and settled into a life fighting what little crime takes place in sleepy border town Sommerton Junction. But that peaceful existence is shattered when Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega), the most notorious, wanted drug kingpin in the western hemisphere, makes a deadly yet spectacular escape from an FBI prisoner convoy. With the help of a fierce band of lawless mercenaries led by the icy Burrell (Peter Stormare), Cortez begins racing towards the US-Mexico border at 250 mph in a specially-outfitted Corvette ZR1 with a hostage in tow. Cortez's path: straight through Summerton Junction, where the whole of the U.S. law enforcement, including Agent John Bannister (Forest Whitaker) will have their final opportunity to intercept him before the violent fugitive slips across the border forever. At first reluctant to become involved, and then counted out because of the perceived ineptitude of his small town force, Owens ultimately rallies his team and takes the matter into his own hands, setting the stage for a classic showdown.

This movie is exactly what you would think it would be. It's a throwback to 80s/early 90s action movies. The problem is that unlike the two Expendables movies that basically mocked these kind of movies in a tongue in cheek kind of way, this movie tried to take itself seriously. That's just silly. Arnold is OLD now so the him playing an action hero ship has pretty much sailes. Ironically, the scenes without Arnold (as beyond overdramatic) as they were are more enjoyable than the scenes with him.

I wouldn't recommend anyone bothering with this movie. The Expendables movies were one thing but are Arnold and Sylvester Stallone really going to start making movies again? Again . . . . . the ship has sailed.

Stand Up Guys

Stand Up Guys stars Al Pacino, Christopher Walken and Alan Arkin in a tough but touching action comedy as retired gangsters who reunite for one epic last night. Val (Al Pacino) is released from prison after serving twenty-eight years for refusing to give up one of his close criminal associates. His best friend Doc (Christopher Walken) is there to pick him up, and the two soon re-team with another old pal, Hirsch (Alan Arkin). Their bond is as strong as ever, and the three reflect on freedom lost and gained, loyalties ebbed and flowed, and days of glory gone by. And despite their age, their capacity for mayhem is still very much alive and well - bullets fly as they make a hilariously valiant effort to compensate for the decades of crime, drugs and sex they've missed. But one of the friends is keeping a dangerous secret- he's been put in an impossible quandary by a former mob boss, and his time to find an acceptable alternative is running out. As the sun rises on the guys' legendary reunion, their position becomes more and more desperate and they finally confront their past once and for all.

This was a fun watch simply because it was Al Pacino and Christopher Walken playing off of each other for an hour and half. How could that really go wrong. Is it a great movie? Not really because there really isn't too much more substance than these two great actors talking about getting older and living in the moment. But it's Pacino and Walken so I enjoyed it.

I would definitely recommend people check this out. Again - nowhere near must see status, but . . . . . IT'S PACINO AND WALKEN, people!

Cloud Atlas

Cloud Atlas explores how the actions and consequences of individual lives impact one another throughout the past, the present and the future. Action, mystery and romance weave dramatically through the story as one soul is shaped from a killer into a hero and a single act of kindness ripples across centuries to inspire a revolution in the distant future.

I wanted so very badly to like this movie. I knew that it was going to either be completely awesome or way too far out there and suck. The movie is three hours long and after a little over an hour, I had no clue what was going on, I wasn't even sure that they were speaking english half the time and I simply couldn't see sitting through this for another two hours. The plug was pulled and maybe one day I will try to brave the rest of this movie, but I doubt it.

Unless you are the most dedicated of movie watchers - I would not recommend checking this out. Like I said - I was pretty much staring at the screen with a "what?" face for a little over an hour before my frustrations took over and I bailed.

Texas Chainsaw 3D

Texas Chainsaw 3D continues the legendary story of the homicidal Sawyer family, picking up where Tobe Hooper's 1974 horror classic left off in Newt, Texas, where for decades people went missing without a trace. The townspeople long suspected the Sawyer family, owners of a local barbeque pit, were somehow responsible. Their suspicions were finally confirmed one hot summer day when a young woman escaped the Sawyer house following the brutal murders of her four friends. Word around the small town quickly spread, and a vigilante mob of enraged locals surrounded the Sawyer stronghold, burning it to the ground and killing every last member of the family - or so they thought. Decades later and hundreds of miles away from the original massacre, a young woman named Heather learns that she has inherited a Texas estate from a grandmother she never knew she had. After embarking on a road trip with friends to uncover her roots, she finds she is the sole owner of a lavish, isolated Victorian mansion. But her newfound wealth comes at a price as she stumbles upon a horror that awaits her in the mansion's dank cellars.

This movie was pretty much awful. It’s not like I expected anything good from it going in, but it was actually worse. There were pretty much zero frights and I never thought I would say this, even the amount of gore was pretty lame . . . . . especially for the blatant “3D” version. To make matters worse they tried to expand the story. They even went so far as to try and portray Leatherface as misunderstood and . . . . . .wait for it . . . . . one of the good guys. Yeah. That happened.

I would recommend nobody bother with the bazillionth attempt at this movie or an expansion of it. It is a total waste of 90 minutes of your life.

Jack Reacher

When a gunman takes five lives in what seems like an open and shut murder case, all evidence points to the suspect in custody. On interrogation, the suspect offers up a single note: "Get Jack Reacher!" So begins an extraordinary chase for the truth, pitting Jack Reacher against an unexpected enemy, with a skill for violence, a secret to keep and a target on Reacher's back.

This was a very enjoyable popcorn/crime solving type of movie. It was nice to just sit down, lean back and enjoy the ride. Tom Cruise was perfect for the part and the dry humor of all his character's deliveries made the movie pretty funny at times as well.

I would definitely recommend that people check this out. It's just a fun ride that you enjoy from beginning to end.

Safe Haven

A story about a young woman's struggle to love again, Safe Haven is based on the novel from Nicholas Sparks, the best-selling author behind the hit films "The Notebook" and "Dear John." When a mysterious young woman arrives in a small North Carolina town, her reluctance to join the tight knit community raises questions about her past. Slowly, she begins putting down roots, and gains the courage to start a relationship with Alex, a widowed store owner with two young children. But dark secrets intrude on her new life with such terror that she is forced to rediscover the meaning of sacrifice and rely on the power of love in this deeply moving romantic thriller.

This was a pretty decent chick flick. It was a textbook romance story with a little Sleeping With The Enemy stuff thrown in there for drama. You care about the characters. There was good build up to the romance and they made it seem very realistic with the kids factor part of it. Surprisingly, no main characters die or struggle with a horrible disease like in pretty much all other Nicholas Sparks movies. In all honesty, he spared the audience the usual getting choked up until a reveal at the very end of the movie.

I would recommend couples going to check this out. I doubt that the ladies will be disappointed and the guys will get the bonus points for taking them. Just saying.

Mama

Five years ago, sisters Victoria and Lilly vanished from their suburban neighborhood without a trace. Since then, their Uncle Lucas (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and his girlfriend, Annabel (Jessica Chastain), have been madly searching for them. But when, incredibly, the kids are found alive in a decrepit cabin, the couple wonders if the girls are the only guests they have welcomed into their home. As Annabel tries to introduce the children to a normal life, she grows convinced of an evil presence in their house. Are the sisters experiencing traumatic stress, or is a ghost coming to visit them? How did the broken girls survive those years all alone? As she answers these disturbing questions, the new mother will find that the whispers she hears at bedtime are coming from the lips of a deadly presence.

This was one of the more blah PG-13 fright flicks. These movies really are hit or miss. This one definitely missed. It took too long to shed light on the story and there was no real hook into being invested enough in the ghost haunting the family.

I wouldn't really recommend anyone wasting their time with this. Not only is it not scary enough but the "ghost" effects were beyond subpar and not scary.