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In St. Vincent, Maggie (McCarthy), a single mother, moves into a new home in Brooklyn with her 12-year old son, Oliver (Lieberher). Forced to work long hours, she has no choice but to leave Oliver in the care of their new neighbor, Vincent (Murray), a retired curmudgeon with a penchant for alcohol and gambling. An odd friendship soon blossoms between the improbable pair. Together with a pregnant stripper named Daka (Watts), Vincent brings Oliver along on all the stops that make up his daily routine – the race track, a strip club, and the local dive bar. Vincent helps Oliver grow to become a man, while Oliver begins to see in Vincent something that no one else is able to: a misunderstood man with a good heart.
This was a great movie. Formula in every way. You are totally aware of where this movie is going to end up and the bumps in the road it will hit on the way there. That being said - it is still beyond enjoyable because of the performances across the board. Bill Murray finally returns to a straight up comedic role and plays his character to perfection. The kid actor was also awesome and the chemistry between the two really made the movie special and made the ending the type of source material that is the definition of causing happy tears.
I would definitely recommend people checking this movie out. Very enjoyable and filled with great laughs throughout.
Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels reprise their signature roles as Lloyd and Harry in the sequel to the smash hit that took the physical comedy and kicked it in the nuts: Dumb and Dumber To. The original film’s directors, Peter and Bobby Farrelly, take Lloyd and Harry on a road trip to find a child Harry never knew he had and the responsibility neither should ever, ever be given.
I tried to keep my expectations low for this movie. It's pretty much 15-20 years too late and the opportunity to make this anywhere near the level of the original expired a long time ago. There were parts of the trailer that cracked me up and I hoped that they wouldn't be the funniest parts of the movie but they were. There were still some laughs scattered in it but nowhere near enough and the movie was a major disappointment.
Unfortunately, I wouldn't recommend anyone bothering with this movie. It was nothing but a lame attempt at catching the hilarity from a 20 year old movie. Not worth the time or money.
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day follows the exploits of 11-year-old Alexander (Ed Oxenbould) as he experiences the most terrible and horrible day of his young life—a day that begins with gum stuck in his hair, followed by one calamity after another. But when Alexander tells his upbeat family about the misadventures of his disastrous day, he finds little sympathy and begins to wonder if bad things only happen to him. He soon learns that he’s not alone when his mom (Jennifer Garner), dad (Steve Carell), brother (Dylan Minnette) and sister (Kerris Dorsey) all find themselves living through their own terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Anyone who says there is no such thing as a bad day just hasn't had one.
This was based on a very popular kids book that I used to use in preschool to teach kids about how things can always get better. The book was short and to the point and happily so was this movie. The premise is pretty simple. The family is developed appropriately and quickly and we follow them through their day. Plenty of laughs. Plenty of happy feelings. This movie is a perfect family movie.
I would definitely recommend people checking this one out. It's a nice, quick and very enjoyable trip to the theaters.
Nightcrawler is a pulse-pounding thriller set in the nocturnal underbelly of contemporary Los Angeles. Jake Gyllenhaal stars as Lou Bloom, a driven young man desperate for work who discovers the high-speed world of L.A. crime journalism. Finding a group of freelance camera crews who film crashes, fires, murder and other mayhem, Lou muscles into the cut-throat, dangerous realm of nightcrawling -- where each police siren wail equals a possible windfall and victims are converted into dollars and cents. Aided by Rene Russo as Nina, a veteran of the blood-sport that is local TV news, Lou thrives. In the breakneck, ceaseless search for footage, he becomes the star of his own story.
This was a well done creepy movie that wasn't technically scary. It was creepy in the sense that there was just something seriously off with Jake Gyllenthal's character. His delivery, mannerisms and decision making process were all disturbing on so many levels. The performance was so good that you basically couldn't take your eyes off him no matter what he was doing on the screen.
I would definitely recommend people checking this one out. It's a great psychological thriller and Jake Gyllenthal's performance was Oscar worthy.
Addicted is a sexy and provocative thriller about desire and the dangers of indiscretion. Successful businesswoman Zoe Reynard (Sharon Leal) appears to have attained it all – the dream husband she loves (Boris Kodjoe), two wonderful children and a flourishing career. As perfect as everything appears from the outside, Zoe is still drawn to temptations she cannot escape or resist. As she pursues a secretive life, Zoe finds herself risking it all when she heads down a perilous path she may not survive.
This movie started off like a really good and sexy affair movie. It reminded me a lot of Unfaithful from a few years back. Unfortunately, about halfway through it switched the focus over to the sex addiction focus and the character's spiral out of control. It lost a lot of the hook that it had set up for the first half.
I would somewhat recommend people checking this out. It wasn't horrible but it did lose my interest with the focus switch.
Almost an entire century after the world's first cinematic introduction to Dracula placed audiences under his haunting spell, the studio that pioneered the genre reawakens one of legend's most captivating figures in an action-adventure that heralds a pulse-pounding rebirth of the age of monsters. Evans transforms from the cursed man history knows as Vlad the Impaler to an all-powerful creature of the night in Universal Pictures' Dracula Untold, the origin story of the alluring immortal we have come to fear as the sun sets: Dracula.
This was a very different take on the story of Dracula. And just for that alone it was an enjoyable movie and worthy watch. I like Luke Evans a lot and I think he was perfectly cast here. It was a very fresh take seeing Dracula not necessarily just be the vampire version that we are familiar with. The action scenes were good and the movie had such a better dramatic part than I expected.
I'd recommend people checking this out. It is not just another silly Dracula movie like I expected. It's a legit movie with a great telling of the start to Dracula.
An ex-hitman comes out of retirement to track down the gangsters that took everything from him. With New York City as his bullet-riddled playground, John Wick (Keanu Reeves) is a fresh and stylized take on the assassin genre.
This was an enjoyable, short, simple badass movie. It wastes no time getting started and they do a good job of building the John Wick character just through people's reactions to hearing his name. The fight scenes were great. There was plenty of action and very little talking for Keanu Reeves. This is basically a solid throwback to 80s/90s action movies.
I would recommend anyone who was interested in this from the commercials check it out. It will be exactly what you expect and I thought it was pretty enjoyable.
Ouija follows a group of friends who must confront their most terrifying fears when they awaken the dark powers of an ancient spirit board.
This was pretty much your run of the mill horror movie. Slow build up of stories where something happens to members of a group of friends one by one. There were some good sight gags to make you jump but there really wasn't much else to this movie. It actually felt like it dragged a lot for a 90 minute movie.
I wouldn't really recommend anyone checking this out. It's not the worst horror movie but it really wasn't that good either.
In The Judge, Downey stars as big city lawyer Hank Palmer, who returns to his childhood home where his estranged father, the town’s judge (Duvall), is suspected of murder. He sets out to discover the truth and along the way reconnects with the family he walked away from years before.
Wow! I thought this was pretty much one of those movies where you saw the trailer you saw the movie and to a certain extent it was. There wasn't much that you didn't see coming and that should have been a bad thing with a 2 hour 15 minute family/courtroom drama. But it wasn't. I loved this movie. The acting was awesome and felt so real across the board. It was awesome to see Robert Downey Jr knocking one out of the park in a non-action or super hero role. He was amazing showing such a huge amount of emotions. And the direction of the movie was done so well that even though you knew that your heart strings were being pulled you didn't care because you were so invested in the well crafted characters and watching this all play out.
I would absolutely recommend people checking this movie out. It's one of the best movies I've seen this year and never expected to like this as much as I did.
From producer Guillermo del Toro and director Jorge Gutierrez comes an animated comedy with a unique visual style. The Book of Life is the journey of Manolo, a young man who is torn between fulfilling the expectations of his family and following his heart. Before choosing which path to follow, he embarks on an incredible adventure that spans three fantastical worlds where he must face his greatest fears. Rich with a fresh take on pop music favorites, The Book of Life encourages us to celebrate the past while looking forward to the future.
I never in a million years thought I would love this movie as much as I did. The different visual style of animation used was very catchy. The story was simple but done well enough that you were rooting for the characters. And the music was awesome. The covers of recent songs mixed in with originals made this one of the better animated movie I've seen in a long time.
I would definitely recommend people checking this movie out. It is an incredibly enjoyable watch. With all of the high profile animated releases, this and The Boxtrolls have really been two of the better ones.
In Fury, it is April, 1945. As the Allies make their final push in the European Theatre, a battle-hardened army sergeant named Wardaddy (Brad Pitt) commands a Sherman tank and her five-man crew on a deadly mission behind enemy lines. Outnumbered and outgunned, and with a rookie soldier thrust into their platoon, Wardaddy and his men face overwhelming odds in their heroic attempts to strike at the heart of Nazi Germany.
This was a very well done movie and the goal was clearly to make you feel like you are there in the middle of the war and more specifically - in the tank. That mission was definitely accomplished. The intensity was great. The characters and their different levels of acceptance of where they were was great. The only major knock I can make against this movie is that it was simply too long. This could have easily been 30 minutes shorter and there were various scenes that looking back were not necessary whatsoever.
I would still recommend people checking this out. It is a very good movie and could have been awesome if there wasn't such an overly long running time.
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.
A family event movie from the creators of Coraline and ParaNorman that introduces audiences to a new breed of family – The Boxtrolls, a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who have lovingly raised an orphaned human boy named Eggs (voiced by Isaac Hempstead-Wright) in the amazing cavernous home they've built beneath the streets of Cheesebridge. When the town's villain, Archibald Snatcher (Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley), comes up with a plot to get rid of the Boxtrolls, Eggs decides to venture above ground, "into the light," where he meets and teams up with fabulously feisty Winnifred (Elle Fanning). Together, they devise a daring plan to save Eggs' family.
I always liked the animation style used by the creators of this movie but their movies were always kind of out there and not simple/enjoyable for families. I always hoped that they would make that type of movie with this same kind of animation. They did with The Boxtrolls. This was a very, very enjoyable movie. I didn't remotely think that I would like this as much as I did. Again - I always liked their animation but even though it was quirky and dark - the story was great and you found yourself totally falling for the Boxtrolls as characters and rooting for them throughout the movie. That kind of a hook is all you need to make a great family film like this one.
I would definitely recommend that people check this movie out. It was cute. It was funny. It was great animation and story. And its super short.
The Drop follows lonely bartender Bob Saginowski (Tom Hardy) through a covert scheme of funneling cash to local gangsters – "money drops" – in the underworld of Brooklyn bars. Under the heavy hand of his employer and cousin Marv (James Gandolfini), Bob finds himself at the center of a robbery gone awry and entwined in an investigation that digs deep into the neighborhood’s past where friends, families, and foes all work together to make a living – no matter the cost.
Although this movie was a much more artsy character drama than I expected based on advertisements, I still enjoyed it very much. They had several different angles all playing out at the same time and even though you were not aware of the connections yet you were so intrigued throughout wanting to see how it played out. The chemistry between the cast was phenomenal - especially Tom Hardy and James Gandolfini. This was a great last role for the departed Gandolfini and Tom Hardy really is becoming one of my favorite actors at this point.
I would definitely recommend people checking this movie out. It's artsy and edgy but really is a very enjoyable watch.
She terrified you in The Conjuring, but this is where it all began for Annabelle. Capable of unspeakable evil, the actual doll exists locked up in an occult museum in Connecticut - visited only by a priest who blesses her twice a month. John Form has found the perfect gift for his expectant wife, Mia - a beautiful, rare vintage doll in a pure white wedding dress. But Mia’s delight with Annabelle doesn't last long. On one horrific night, their home is invaded by members of a satanic cult, who violently attack the couple. Spilled blood and terror are not all they leave behind. The cultists have conjured an entity so malevolent that nothing they did will compare to the sinister conduit to the damned that is now... Annabelle.
I enjoyed this movie. Scary movies are usually hit or miss for me. I either think that they are pretty much crap and a waste of time or good enough to keep my interest and make me jump a couple of times. This one fell into the latter category. I think I actually liked this one more than The Conjuring. I liked that movie but didn't think it was nearly as good as everyone had advertised. This one was more simple in story and sprinkled the scares around better. And that damn doll is still creepy as hell.
I would definitely recommend that horror movie fans check this one out. Its a good 'origins" story with more than enough scares to keep you entertained if that's your kind of movie.
