DVD Review For October 7, 2014

A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST
Rated: R
Stars: Seth MacFarlane, Charlize Theron, Liam Neeson
Plot: A meek farmer must stand up to a rough cowboy to fight for the woman he loves
Trailer

Clint Says: Don't even bother

If you are in the mood for a completely mindless, boring, useless flick full of juvenile humor this film will still disappoint you. I can't stress enough how bad this movie is. Seth MacFarlane wrote, directed, produced and starred in it, and apparently he didn't have anyone around him willing to tell him "no".

MacFarlane must have compromising pictures of Liam Neeson and Charlize Theron or they owe him a huge debt. Those are the only plausible explanations as to why they would be in a horrific train-wreck of a movie like this.

On the plus side, I will admit that there are a couple of good laughs in this flick, but only a couple. And having to sit through almost two hours of clichéd crap for two or three laughs is painful at best.

The best thing about A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST is that it is so bad there is zero chance we will have to see Seth MacFarlane screwing up the OSCARS again.

EDGE OF TOMORROW

Rated: PG-13

Stars: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt
Plot: A soldier finds himself repeating the same day, a day the aliens destroyed humanity. But he uses his special ability to get trained in a way to destroy the enemy.
Trailer

Clint Says: Rent this DVD this week

If you like sci-fi action flicks EDGE OF TOMORROW will completely satisfy your craving. It has aliens, explosions, cool weapons, people that don't get what's happening, a pretty boy that has no clue how to do anything and a super-awesome, kick butt woman that has to turn the pretty boy into a hardened soldier so he can save the world.

I found the movie to be mostly original in its story, with the exception of the one-alien-to-rule-them-all thing that so many sci-fi movies use as a crutch to make sure the humans can finally win. But aside from that it was an enjoyable action flick with a 50 FIRST DATES style love story thrown in to give the audience a little break from the action.

I would recommend seeing this on as big a TV screen as possible with the best sound available. So if that means finding someone with an awesome man cave, start planning now.



MILLION DOLLAR ARM
Rated: PG
Stars: John Hamm, Suraj Sharma, Madhur Mittal
Plot: A down-on-his-luck sports agent tries to right his career by creating a reality show in India to find cricket players and turn them into Major League Baseball pitchers.
Trailer

Clint Says: It's worth watching once

MILLION DOLLAR ARM is a fine film. It has an interesting story and beautiful imagery that is worth seeing, but it's not worth spending the money to own the DVD.

This film is family-friendly, so if you are looking for a movie for the crew you won't be disappointed in this.

John Hamm gives a fine performance and Alan Arkin is a show stealer as usual. It's a great feel-good, inspirational story that is worth seeing once.

Movie Review for May 16, 2014

GODZILLA
Rated: PG-13
Stars: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Bryan Cranston, Elizabeth Olsen
Plot: Godzilla returns from the deep, forcing humanity to come together to try to bring down their common foe.
Trailer

Clint Says: See it in theaters if you love monster movies

As far as monster movies go this may be one of the best ones ever. If you're looking for cinematic perfection, you should probably skip this flick.

This is one of those great summer popcorn movies that gives you tons of action, suspense, chills, jumps and bumps, but you can't think about the plot too much. You just have to leave all reality at the door and escape into the movie.

The effects are A+ and the acting is surprisingly above average for a film like this. If you're looking for a fun movie without too much thinking involved, GODZILLA would be a great choice this weekend.



MILLION DOLLAR ARM
Rated: PG
Stars: John Hamm, Suraj Sharma, Madhur Mittal
Plot: A down-on-his-luck sports agent tries to right his career by creating a reality show in India to find cricket players and turn them into Major League Baseball pitchers.
Trailer

Clint Says: Wait for the DVD

MILLION DOLLAR ARM is a fine film. It has an interesting story and beautiful imagery that is worth seeing, but it's not worth spending the money to see it in a theater.

This film is family-friendly, so if you are looking for an outing for the crew you won't be disappointed taking them to see this, but the movie offers nothing on the big screen that you won't get on the DVD. (In fact, the DVD will probably be better because of all the extras they usually throw on those things).

John Hamm gives a fine performance and Alan Arkin is a show stealer as usual. It's a great feel-good, inspirational story that you can wait another four months to see.



LOCKE
Rated: R
Stars: Tom Hardy
Plot: A construction foreman must make an unexpected drive to London. During the drive his life falls apart.
Trailer

Clint Says: See this in theaters, if you like non-traditional films

This movie is not for everyone. It is not entertaining by any stretch of the imagination, however, it is highly compelling.

The entire movie is one man's 90-minute drive into London. There are no cut-away scenes to prior events, the only exterior shots are of things you can see from the car, and Tom Hardy is the only person you ever see on screen. During his 90-minute drive he makes and receives several phone calls that change his life drastically.

I would have never thought that a movie made in such a fashion would ever keep an audience's attention, but this film does a marvelous job of sucking you in and keeping you in suspense until the end.