Zero Dark Thirty

A powerful film, though it was difficult for me to get through the first 45 min. of CIA operatives torturing enemy combatants, but perhaps that is what the writer/director Ms. Bigelow wanted – if so, she succeeded. I believe the beginning could have been edited to ten minutes or less. However, the wait was worth it and the rest of the movie was much more espionage driven and suspenseful. There is some controversy about the blending of fact and fiction, and the use of torture, but that did not bother me at all. From the outset, I was completely brought in to the world of the CIA and our fight against Al Qaeda. The characters were interesting and well developed, though it seemed the main character played by Jessica Chastain remained the same youthful and high intensity female CIA agent throughout the entire movie. Perhaps she changed emotionally during the 12-year span of the movie – her growth could have been emphasized a little bit more. The plot, which most of us lived through, was engaging and even though it covered over a decade, it was nicely paced. It was interesting to relive some of the terrorist attacks and to be reminded that we are still at war. Zero Dark Thirty is military slang for 30 min. past midnight – often considered the darkest hour of the night. It is also the time, Pakistani local time, when the special operation to kill Osama bin Laden occurred. You have to look closely at the clock just above Jessica Chastain to see this fact in the movie – a nice touch by Bigelow. Hopefully now, in 2013, we are beginning to emerge from the darkness...Definitely worth a rental.

Django Unchained

Quintin Tarantino has created another masterpiece. I enjoyed every moment of this two-hour and 45 min. roller coaster ride of entertainment. I was engaged from the very beginning. I love Westerns, especially the old Spaghetti Westerns and Tarantino did an excellent job paying respect to that genre, while adding his own unique modern twists and techniques. I believe this is Tarantino's best move since "Kill Bill." Quintin Tarantino is able to create a certain unique atmosphere with his movies that no other writers, producers and directors have been able to successfully copy. It starts with an excellent story and superb characters. A bounty hunter, Christoph Waltz, and his freed slave partner, Jamie Foxx, make a powerful and dynamic duo. Waltz, even though he is a vicious bounty hunter preferring to collect his reward with dead bodies, for reasons that are not totally believable or clear, has a certain moral code and empathy for his black partner and his bleak situation – together they set out to find and free Django's wife. Throughout the movie, their dialogue and actions made me cringe at times and smile at others. I burst out laughing during the scenes when the white people in the movie were aghast at seeing a black man riding a horse. Of course, they did not refer Django to slaves as blacks, but use the "N-word" throughout the movie – some critics and people found this offensive, I just thought it gave the movie a realistic sense of the times and an accurate portrayal of the pre-Civil War Southern United States. Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L Jackson, and the other supporting actors were all very believable and did an excellent job. I love Tarantino's ability to create suspense through dialogue and painstakingly choreographed scenes – even when there is not a lot of physical action on the screen, the subtle movements, expressions, and careful use of language create a palatable tension. Then suddenly the movie explodes with violence and gore! Amazing, mesmerizing, entertaining! If you're a Quintin Tarantino fan you will love this movie, if you're not, I still believe it's worth watching.

Seven Psychopaths

If a movie about psychopaths can be considered funny, then this film fits the bill. It is as violent and intense as it is comedic and touching. It's really a story about friendship. Colin Farrell plays a likable drunkard trying to make a living in LA writing a movie script – he starts off with no ideas, just a good title "Seven Psychopaths." His best friend, Bill Rockwell, supports him, even going as far as creating his own version of a psychopath to be included in the script. Christopher Walken is another psychopath – friend with an amazing story. I always loved the understated comedy of Christopher Walken – and this movie is just perfect for him. The money he and Bill Rockwell make  from stealing dogs goes to pay for cancer treatment for Walken's psychopath wife. While Colin struggles with his script, his two friends continue to steal dogs in the neighborhoods of LA, and collect the monetary rewards from unsuspecting owners. Unfortunately, they steal a cute Shitzu from a gangster and bona fide psychopath, Woody Harrelson. These four actors do a superb job! And the supporting actors and actresses are so unique and well developed that they add significantly to the film. There really are seven psychopaths, each with their own horrible and unique story. The writing is clever, and the story is extremely intense and engaging. I found myself laughing at times, and at other times, cringing from the senseless violence. I immediately began to care about these psychopaths, and hoped that they somehow could escape the hellish world they had created. For adults only, certainly worth a rental!

The Campaign

A senseless comedy full of foul language and crude behavior – sounds like politics! And perhaps it was a good satire of politics today, but instead of being funny. It just felt cruel, crude and sad. Stupid can also be thrown in there! Will Ferrell, I usually enjoy, but in this movie he was just overly loud and over the top. I'm sure there were some scenes which he even couldn't believe he was doing. The other guy, Zach G., From the hangover movies, was actually the better actor and had a more likable character to play – stupid, but likable. Unfortunately, the move was not likable at all. I smiled, perhaps twice, and never laughed out loud. Not even once. The funniest part, which they showed in all of the previews, they actually changed in the movie – it made the change less funny. There were lots of cameos in the movie, but no amount of guest stars could salvage the poor writing and crass humor. Don't bother with this one.

Saying goodbye to Blockbuster

Sadly, I have to cancel my DVD by mail subscription with Blockbuster. I remember when the first Blockbuster stores came to Honolulu, gosh, those were exciting days! Remember going to the video store and being totally amazed at all of the choices on the shelves. My wife, son and I used to spend hours there, sometimes getting so overwhelmed with all the choices that we would end up walking out of the store with nothing! Then came DVDs by mail. What a wonderful service that was... It was especially great for me since my diagnosis with ALS. I could select my movies on the Internet and they would be delivered to my door. Now however, times are changing again and "direct streaming" is the new way to watch videos/TV/movies. Blockbuster has not kept up with the times, and their streaming selection is very poor. I was hoping that they would continue to emphasize movies by mail, but even their availability of new titles by mail has gone below satisfactory. I also prefer Blu-ray, and that has made the availability of movies that I want to watch even more difficult. So, I say goodbye to the convenience of movies by mail and now begin to embrace the wonderful world of "streaming" movies. I think the cost will be somewhat more expensive, but the selection should be more current and immediately available. I will be using Netflix and Oceanic Cable on demand, initially until the next big thing comes along!

The Hobbit

I loved reading the books as a teenager. Tolkien had a way of bringing me into a totally new world, with lovable characters and a fascinating adventure. The Lord of the Rings trilogy, by Peter Jackson, was amazing. It's actually one of the few movies that I have purchased and watched more than once – it's very rare that I would buy movies, and rarer still to watch a movie more than once. The Hobbit, however, is a disappointment. I will not be purchasing this one, well I guess it remains to the be seen how well the next two movies are presented. I think Peter Jackson should have stopped while he was ahead. He did try to stay relatively true to the original story, but unfortunately, the original Hobbit was much better as a book, rather than a movie. It took 49 min. before Gandalf the wizard, the 14 dwarves, and our hero, Bilbo, even started on their quest. Two hours later, I didn't feel satisfied. The characters seem flat, the story contrived. I was entertained however, and it was fun to watch, the movie just didn't live up to my high expectations. If you are a fan of the original movies, you of course have to watch this movie. If you're not a fan of the original movies or the books, you can probably skip it and not be missing that much.

Life of Pi

This move is now out on DVD, and I was really looking forward to watching it. I was pleasantly surprised, but also slightly disappointed. I was disappointed because the movie promised to be spiritual in breath and depth – it was, but in a shallow way. I enjoyed the little boy's attitude about God and religion at the beginning, he believed in everything. He was Catholic, Hindu and Islamic in his beliefs as a little boy growing up in a confusing world. But his father's words, "if you believe in everything, you believe in nothing" seemed to resonate through the entire movie. This tainted the all-encompassing spiritual feeling of the story, and it seemed that the boy only really believed in God because of the horrific adventure he survived. The main character of the story promised that in the end, the person who was going to write a book about his adventure, would believe and understand God. Unfortunately, I didn't get that from the movie. I think the connection could've been stronger. I was pleasantly surprised and pleased with the story as a whole – a story of adventure and survival, inner struggle and courage. The special effects were dazzling. I was totally engaged for the entire two hours plus. I sympathized with the character, and empathized with his setbacks and victories. A mystical and entertaining movie. I recommend it!

The Avengers

It took a long time for this movie to move to the top of my Blockbuster queue, I almost deleted it several times, but I was glad I didn't. It turned out to be two hours of comic book action fun and entertainment. I watched it this Friday night, morphed into my 12-year-old boy-geek mode, suspended my reality and sensibilities – and just enjoyed the show. Nick Fury had some pretty stupid lines and moments in the movie, but turned out to be a decent leader of the Avengers. I felt sorry for Samuel Jackson, but I'm sure he made a large paycheck. The Black Widow was slick, sexy and cool. Scarlett Johansson always looks good in black spandex. The Hawk, Jeremy Renner, a pretty decent actor was part bad and part good – same as the character in the movie. I don't understand where he kept getting the unlimited supply of arrows. The Hulk, I don't know this actor's name and I'm too lazy to look it up, was perhaps the most entertaining of all the superheroes. I like the way he is angry at everything and loves to smash the daylights out of whatever is in his way. Somehow, though in the end he turns out to be a reasonable green monster. Thor, also don't know this guys name, sorry, I have to do more research in the future before I start writing my reviews, was perhaps the most unbelievable and silly character of them all, but he had probably the best fight scene with the Hulk – they duke it out quite convincingly. Captain America was ridiculous, and he had worse lines to say than Nick Fury, but every comic book action movie needs a patriotic hero. He served his purpose. Iron Man was technologically, and in terms of substance, probably the most interesting and full-bodied character in the movie – too bad I dislike Robert Downey Jr. so much. He's just too arrogant for my taste, in life and on the big screen. So, did I like it? Yes I did. If you can suspend your adult sensibilities for a couple of hours and engage your 12-year-old comic book action imagination, you'll probably enjoy this movie as well.

Flight

This movie is not about flying. It's about alcohol and drug addiction. There is one fantastic, well choreographed plane crash, that's bound to scare the heck out of anyone who flies frequently. Other than that it's all about Denzil Washington's struggle with alcoholism. He uses alcohol to deaden the pain, and drown himself from the world – then cocaine to boost him up for the incredible task of flying an airplane. Washington's acting is superb, he makes a fantastic and unbelievable drunkard, and when he snorts the cocaine his courage, competence and bravado come alive. It's really difficult to watch some of the sad and depressing drug induced scenes, but very powerful. It's hard to imagine someone so addicted to drugs and alcohol, but I guess it's much more prevalent than we realize as a society. Washington's transformation throughout the movie is well written, though the end I found to be a little bit hokey. A great movie, but a hard look at this terrible problem. Not for kids, though I might like my teenagers to watch it with me. Could lead to some great discussion. Worth a rental.

Argo

Best picture of the year? I'm not sure I can't compare, as I haven't seen any of the other nominated movies, but this one was available on Oceanic Cable on demand for six bucks! Money well spent! A thoroughly enjoyable two hours of entertainment. I don't remember a lot about this event because it was 1980 and I had just graduated from college – didn't watch much news, was more interested in working, girls and having fun. However, it seems as if Ben Affleck and his crew did a great job capturing the 1980s and the Iran hostage crisis. Based on a true story, but embellished for sure. I particularly enjoyed the fashion and music. It even seemed like the film they use was Technicolor and vintage 1980s. The suspenseful telling of the events was also very well done, without any real explosions or big special effects, I was still on the edge of my seat (just a figure of speech, as actually I watch from my hospital bed, laying down). It was well-written and very well acted. If you're one of the few people that I haven't seen this movie yet, go ahead and rent it. Well worth the time.

Lawless

The back hills of Virginia during the prohibition, moonshine, white lightning, bootleggers, hillbillies, Chicago gangsters, crooked coppers, murder and mayhem – all with a pretty decent supposedly true story attached. If this sounds like your cup of tea, or hard cider, then this is a movie for you to rent. I enjoyed it! It was well done, nicely acted and filmed. The story revolves around three brothers, born in the back hills of Virginia. Their family has always lived just outside the law, and through the generations, they gained the reputation as being invincible. Of course, the Chicago gangsters want to move in on their territory, and laugh at the idea of such a powerful family. Never underestimate the power of family ties. I found the entire movie entertaining, and a few scenes excellent. The ending was also satisfactory. A decent story, well done.

The Three Stooges

I was unsure about watching this movie, the Three Stooges were my heroes and favorite comedians, when I was little boy. I wasn't confident that they could do justice to the original stooges and I wasn't sure if that kind of silly, slapstick humor would translate to the 21st century. I was pleasantly surprised and actually enjoyed the film. The three actors who played Mo, Larry and Curly did an excellent job! They must've really practiced with the physical slapstick, zaniness to get it correctly. The sound effects were perfect, making each slap and poke in the eyes, just as funny as it was 50 years ago. I had to overlook some of the stupidity and silliness – at my age, some of it just didn't connect. But, all in all, I think they did a great job! (Spoiler alert) – the part where Moe becomes a reality star on the show "Jersey Shore" had me in stitches. Poking. "The situation" in the eyes and slapping "Snooki" was priceless and worth the rental. If you remember the Three Stooges fondly as I did, and still do, then probably you should rent this movie. I cannot guarantee that all of that the comedy will translate to the newer generation, but us old school fellas should find this entertaining.

Brave

Disney-Pixar did it again and created another enjoyable animated feature. This is good family fun, I recommend it, especially if you have elementary school-age children. What I like about Pixar is that they strive very hard to make the story as excellent as the animation. Too many animated movies these days lack any original thought or story line – they rely on remakes or traditional fairytales. I like to see originality – Brave, fits the bill. It's a lovely, heartwarming, original story. The central character, a young girl, is precocious and fun-loving. Of course, she doesn't want to get married, who would when all of the males around are brutish looking Vikings. The animation of the characters is fantastic – I especially enjoyed that they took a lot of time to develop the three clans different personalities through their looks and actions. Then the little girl's red hair was just delightful! There were some good action scenes, and some good jokes. The pace was too my liking – not too slow and not too fast. Too often these days and animated pictures that actually goes by too quickly for my old eyes to enjoy it. This, I did enjoy. If you have children, it's worth the rental.

Savages

A film by Oliver Stone. For those of you that like Oliver Stone movies, he's made several excellent ones, you should probably watch this and you will enjoy it. If you're not familiar with Oliver Stone's documentary style, gritty realism, and unbelievable conspiracy theory, theme and elements – you may find this movie not to your liking. The blood, gore, sex, drugs and violence are extremely graphic. The story revolves around the California medical marijuana and the illegal marijuana, drug trade between Mexico and the US. The Mexican cartel boss, Selma Hayek, is fun and an interesting character. The Mexican assassin is very familiar, forget his name, though he is popular. John Travolta plays the corrupt DEA agent, and three unknown actors – two guys and a girl – are the central characters. All of them do a very believable and credible job of acting. However, there were a few lines in the movie that Oliver should've left out. "I love you man!" In the middle of an intense action scene, was unnecessary. And, when the young girl referred to the threesome as being like the characters in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid" I wanted to eject the disc and search Netflix for that much better and more heartwarming story. I'm sure Oliver Stone just wanted to pay respect to that film classic, but he needs to consider his audience – old folks like me who grew up loving that movie will resent the comparison – while younger folks who had never seen the classic Western would just be thinking "what the heck did that mean?" Other than that, I've got no real complaints. It was a decent movie, good action and interesting story. Oliver just needs to lighten up a little bit.

Batman: Dark Knight Rises

First, I was apprehensive about watching this video because of the horrible shooting incident at the theater in Colorado last year when this movie debuted. Our thoughts and prayers should go out to the people who lost their lives, their family and friends. Support Obama's efforts to control guns!

The Batman movies are always entertaining, this one was also a solid two hours of fun.. However, perhaps I'm getting more critical in my old age .I couldn't help but while viewing the film said to myself at various times, "that's stupid "or "that is silly" –I also found myself at times thinking, "pretty cool" –especially the gadgets ... Then I realized that these movies are based on comic books. They are supposed to be cool and silly at the same time. Some of these silly moments were best illustrated by the long drawn out testimonial dialogues by several of the characters , . I guess the writers felt that we needed to be caught up on this story or need additional character development /information . the other silly thing, spoiler alert , was the ridiculous fistfight between the 3000 cops and the evil Army that had taken over Gotham . with all the guns and high-tech weapons, why did they resort to a street brawl /fistfight . silly! we are left at the end of the movie knowing that there will be a sequel ! . I am not sure that  if this is such a great thing, perhaps it's time for Batman to hang up his cape . Anyway if you can look past the silliness, and agreed that this is just pure, comic booking entertainment , . It is quite fun!
PS sorry for all of the typos , my dictation software and blog OS are not cooperating ??

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

If you're over 50, you'll probably enjoy this movie as much as I did. However, My 20-year-old son didn't find it very amusing. The story centers around a group of senior citizens from Britain, who for various reasons decide to leave their homeland and try to live in a beautiful hotel in India that caters specifically to the "senior and beautiful." I enjoyed how each character was introduced, and how each one developed throughout the movie. Each character was unique in their own way, and each was able to find what they needed/what they were looking for at that time of their life, by the end of the movie. The young man, from "Slum Dog Millionaire" – by the way of you haven't seen that movie, you really should watch it! – Played the hotel manager, who always sees things from a rose colored pair of glasses. Even through all the adversity, he stays mostly positive and upbeat – at times that became a little bit silly and felt shallow compared to the emotions and events occurring in the guests lives. His girlfriend and mother were delightful. Very well acted movie. A good positive message. The scenery of the city in India was spectacular. The color and vibrant life of that country came through with exceptional clarity. I enjoyed the music too!

The Bourne Legacy

I thoroughly enjoyed the original three Jason Bourne movies, so when this one came out I was a little bit apprehensive – remakes and multiple sequels often do not live up to the original. However, this film was a pleasant surprise. Jeremy Renner made a great substitute for Matt Damon. The writers struggled at the beginning of the movie to make all of the parts fit together so that the sequel would make some sense – most of that I felt was unnecessary and bogus. At least they didn't devote too much time to connect the dots – mostly just short flashbacks or quick references in various conversations. The director and producers focused on the action – rightly so! This is what makes the Bourne movies worth watching. And from the very beginning, the action was realistic and "cool"... The format and the premise were exactly the same – super agent gone rogue, CIA and National Security agencies out of control. The new agents were stronger and smarter than the original Jason Bourne, genetically altered by drugs. I kept thinking of "Alice in Wonderland" – one pill makes you stronger, and one pill makes you smarter. One pill kills you – and the others do nothing at all. The obligatory chase scene through the streets of a busy city, this time Manila, Philippines, was super fun to watch! The ending, of course, sets us up for many more movies to come. If you enjoyed the original Jason Bourne movies, you will probably enjoy this one too! It's worth a rental.

Albert Nobbs

A well-made enjoyable Victorian England period film. If you enjoy these movies from the Jane Austen era, and Downton Abby, you should enjoy this movie. This movie however, offered a very unique perspective on the situation of middle – lower-class women during this time. Albert, actress Glenn close, pretends to be a man – a waiter – in order to make a living and find some success, and  some meaning in her difficult life. I think she won some awards for her acting, which she clearly deserved – however, I found her to be more robotic than masculine. An excellent waiter! The surrounding stories of the hotel, where she works, and the various characters that come into her life are well developed and add much to the story. Her struggle to succeed, and some day be free of servitude and have her own business have given this film its unique perspective. The fact that she has to dress and act like a man to succeed reveal a lot about this time of our history. An excellent story, well told, perfectly acted, beautiful photography and costumes. Well worth the time to watch.

Red tails

This film tells the story of the Tuskegee airmen – the all-black air Corps, that served and fought during World War II. Definitely a story worth telling! I was looking forward to seeing how George Lucas would handle this part of history. Unfortunately, the writers and director failed miserably. Halfway through the movie I was happy that the disc was damaged and I didn't have to watch until the end... From the outset, the action scenes had poor quality CGI and the dialogue was extremely corny and ridiculous – the poor actors were given lines that made them sound like schoolboys on a basketball court. The story was shallow, and the pace of the movie jumped along like a teenager's pulp fiction novel. I really felt sorry for the actors in this movie, some of them are great actors and I have made good movies in the past: Terrence Williams, Cuba Gooding Junior, and others. I felt more sad for the families of the courageous airmen – they deserved a much better telling of the story. Don't bother with this movie. If you want to watch a film about the Tuskegee airmen, check out one of the documentaries made by HBO or the history Channel.

Prometheus

I had to look this up, Prometheus was a Titan from Greek mythology who stole fire from Mount Olympus and gave it to the humans. Not not sure how that fits in with this prequel to the Alien movies. The trailer for "Prometheus" says that questions will be answered, but after watching it. I believe there are more questions then answers – perhaps they planned it that way. Now I'll have to watch the next movie when it comes out. First, let me confess that I always enjoy science fiction movies. This one did not disappoint me. It was suspenseful and exciting, plenty of cool space travel and futuristic stuff – though I still can't understand how 100 years into the future, the high-tech weapons are still hand guns and flamethrowers. Can't they borrow a "Star Trek" phaser from someone? The aliens are gruesome and nasty as ever. I don't want to spoil the movie but, but I guarantee there is one scene where you will totally cringe. Maybe two... The script and acting is pretty good, the guy who plays the robot does an excellent job. A little creepy though. If you like science fiction, and if you enjoyed the original Alien movies, I definitely recommend that you don't miss this one. Worth a rental.