DVD Review For March 17, 2015

ANNIE
Rated: PG
Stars: Quvenzhane Wallis, Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz, Rose Byrne
Plot: A young orphan and a wealthy businessman create an unlikely alliance that leads to a deeper relationship
Trailer

Clint Says: Rent this for a fun family evening

This is one of those films that if you don't find yourself dancing in your seat you may need to check your pulse. It's a fun, entertaining film that is great for the whole family.

It's interesting that the movie executives decided to go with big-name talent over lesser-know actors that are trained singers. The music is a bit weak in the film, but strangely, it doesn't really matter. The acting is great and there are several funny moments where they break the fourth wall and poke fun at the whole idea of musicals.

The story is engaging and fast-paced, but it's almost a little too fast-paced. The movie seems to go from Annie's hopeless situation to happily ever after in the blink of an eye.

Gather up the whole family and enjoy a sing-along with the rest of the theater.




PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR
Rated: PG
Stars: Benedict Cumberbatch, John Malkovich, Tom McGrath
Plot: The penguins must team up with another elite force to try to stop a villain from kidnapping the world's penguins.
Trailer

Clint Says: Buy this DVD and enjoy it with the whole family

This may well be the funniest animated movie of 2014. I laughed out loud 15 or 20 times and spent the better part of the rest of the film trying to wipe the smile off my face with no luck.

Kids will love this movie because it has a lot of fun elements for them, but adults will be just as pleased with it because it has an interesting plot, surprisingly in-depth character development, and it is fast-paced.

I put this movie up with the likes of THE LEGO MOVIE and MR. PEABODY AND SHERMAN. 2014 was an incredible year for animated films and PENGUINS was a big part of that.




EXODUS: GODS AND KINGS
Rated: PG-13
Stars: Christian Bale, Joel Edgerton, Ben Kingsley
Plot: The story of the battle between Moses and Ramses for the lives of the Hebrew slaves.
Trailer

Clint Says: Rent this if you don't have anything better to do

When one hears that a film is being made about the life of Moses and his tumultuous relationship with Ramses, one would think that the film would include significant coverage of the plagues, the parting of the sea and the bringing down of the Ten Commandments. While all of these events are technically covered in this movie, they are a small fraction of the 2-plus hours of otherwise dull movie.

The film does have a few interesting moments, but overall it just skims the surface of the biblical story, and, on several occasions, skips major plot points leaving the view to have to fill in the blanks for themselves.

Director Ridley Scott takes several liberties with the story which will, no doubt, upset a portion of the movie-goers, but it's not so far off the beaten path from the original story that the average movie-goer will find fault with it.

I will say that the effects of the plagues and sea are incredible for the small amount of time we get to see them, but you didn't miss anything if you didn't see this on the big screen. You'll get the same effect watching it at home.




TOP FIVE
Rated: R
Stars: Chris Rock, Rosario Dawson, Gabrielle Union, Kevin Hart
Plot: An alcoholic comedian spends the day with a reporter trying to explain why he wants to be a serious actor.
Trailer

Clint Says: If you must see this make someone else rent it

This is supposed to be a comedy, right? I saw the movie and I'm still not sure if it was supposed to be a comedy or not. There was not a single audible laugh from anyone in the theater when I saw this movie. That's not an exaggeration. Not one single laugh.

The film is an awkward mix of fiction and what is supposed to be reality. For example, Chris Rock's character is at a strip club for his bachelor party with Adam Sandler, Whoopi Goldberg and Jerry Seinfeld all of whom are playing themselves.

You can tell that a lot of this movie was allowed to be improvised, but it's not great improvisation. A lot of it feels off or choppy.

I'm a big Chris Rock fan, but this movie misses the mark on many levels. Don't waste your time or your money.

Movie Review For December 19, 2014

THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES
Rated: PG-13
Stars: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellan, Richard Armitage, Luke Evans
Plot: Bilbo and Gandalf must work together to try to save Middle-Earth from the greed of its varied inhabitants.
Trailer

Clint Says: Save some money and see a matinee

Director Peter Jackson finishes strong with the final installment in THE HOBBIT trilogy. It's not the best film of the bunch, but it is satisfying enough that fans of the series will walk away feeling fulfilled.

I will say that it feels like there is something missing from this movie. To be quite honest I can't figure it out, but I think it's the lack of character depth. This is essentially a 2 1/2 hour CGI battle movie and I would have liked a bit more story out of it.

The action is spectacular, the creatures are fascinating and the quest is compelling. And, without giving anything away, the finale of this film ties in beautifully to the beginning of THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy.

It's the end of an era, so go enjoy this one.




NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: SECRET OF THE TOMB
Rated: PG
Stars: Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Dan Stevens, Rebel Wilson
Plot: Larry and his museum friends must travel to London to find out why their magic is coming to an end
Trailer

Clint Says: Wait until after opening weekend, but see this in theaters

It's surprising that this franchise is now releasing its third film and all three of them are great movies. One would expect there to be a dud in the bunch by now, but not in this case.

The effects are fun, the jokes are funny and the story will keep audiences of all ages engaged and entertained. (It may be a bit too intense for the under-five crowd, but everyone else will be fine).

Even though it is set, mostly, in London, we really don't get to see their culture. As with the other films, most of the movie takes place inside the museum. So if you're going to see London you'll be disappointed.

For those of you that were fans of the three old night security guys from the first film, you will be happy to know that they return in this one and they are just as funny as ever.

This is the last on-screen performance by Robin Williams and Mickey Rooney, which is sad, but it's a wonderful film in which to see them off.




ANNIE
Rated: PG
Stars: Quvenzhane Wallis, Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz, Rose Byrne
Plot: A young orphan and a wealthy businessman create an unlikely alliance that leads to a deeper relationship
Trailer

Clint Says: Save some money and see a matinee

This is one of those films that if you don't find yourself dancing in your seat you may need to check your pulse. It's a fun, entertaining film that is great for the whole family.

It's interesting that the movie executives decided to go with big-name talent over lesser-know actors that are trained singers. The music is a bit weak in the film, but strangely, it doesn't really matter. The acting is great and there are several funny moments where they break the fourth wall and poke fun at the whole idea of musicals.

The story is engaging and fast-paced, but it's almost a little too fast-paced. The movie seems to go from Annie's hopeless situation to happily ever after in the blink of an eye.

Quvenzhane Wallis has proven to be one of Hollywood's great child actors, and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see her get several major award nominations for this role.

Gather up the whole family and enjoy a sing-along with the rest of the theater.



WILD
Rated: R
Stars: Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern
Plot: A woman endures a long hike to try to rediscover who she is
Trailer

Clint Says: Wait for the DVD

I know there is a lot of awards buzz surrounding this film, but I found it to be an okay movie at best. It has several compelling moments and Witherspoon does a wonderful job in her role, but there is only so much you can do with a movie about someone walking 1,100 miles.

The film starts slow and drags on for a while, then, just about the time the movie starts to get really good, it's over. And the ending of the movie feels like it would have made a more compelling chunk of the movie rather than the one paragraph of narration jammed in to try to tie the whole package up with a nice bow.

Typically, I don't like to do this, but I feel that a lot of movie-goers may be shocked at the content of this film. It is Rated R for a very good reason. WILD is full of sex, nudity, drug use and adult language. I'm not sure that most audiences will realize the adult nature of this film until they are already in the theater.

There is nothing in this film that makes it worth seeing in theaters. You'll be fine waiting for the DVD.

Movie Review for May 2, 2014

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2
PG-13
Stars: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx, Dean DeHaan
Plot: Peter Parker continues his journey to discover more about his parents while fighting new villains and past demons.
Trailer

Clint Says: See this as soon as possible and spend the extra money for the huge screen

When the original Andrew Garfield as SPIDER-MAN reboot hit theaters I was nervous that it would be simply another rehash of a tired story with better graphics. I was happily surprised at how compelling and well done it was.

The second in the series is just as good and just as compelling as the first and the graphics are insanely incredible. I was thrilled to see that the director took the time to give us close up, slow motion shots of the action rather than flash through it as quickly as possible, as is typical for many other comic-book action movies.

SPIDER-MAN 2 also bucks the trend of the one-dimensional villain. Both Electro and The Green Goblin are flawed, misunderstood and sympathetic characters rather than being evil for evil's sake. Jamie Foxx does a superb job of transforming from a misfit to an angry, delusional misfit with the power to do something about his situation. The moment where he is forced to decide to follow Spider-Man or try to destroy him is heart-breaking and tragic, but entirely understandable.

Emma Stone returns as Gwen, the love interest of Peter Parker, but she is so much more than that. The dynamic she brings to the role and the way her character is written is as beautiful and strong as any leading lady I've seen in a while. It's refreshing to see her do her part to save the day to the point where Spider-Man couldn't succeed without her, both against the bad guys and in their own relationship.

Andrew Garfield may be one of the best actors in Hollywood right now. His banter and delivery throughout this two-hour plus movie keeps it light and refreshing without losing the drama of the moment.

Without giving anything away, I will say I was very excited to see the film makers make a very gutsy decision, that will have people talking as they leave the theaters. If I had any kind of heart at all I would have ugly cried.

If I had to say anything bad about this film, it's that the movie ends and then there is another half hour of movie. I'm not sure why MARVEL movies tend to be edited this way, but the climax comes really early and then there is a ton of clean-up work left to do. The climax in this movie is so powerful, but it gets watered down and even a bit lost as we sit through the tidying up process. Even so, this is an incredibly fun, exciting and well done film.

So far it's looking like the MARVEL/DISNEY marriage is a huge success, not only for their company, but for moviegoers as well.