Movie Reviews for August 9, 2015: THE GIFT and RICKI AND THE FLASH

THE GIFT
Rated: R
Director: Joel Edgerton
Stars: Jason Bateman, Rebecca Hall, Joel Edgerton
Plot: A couple runs into an old high school friend, but things get out of control when he crosses boundaries
Trailer

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

This is an outstanding, creepy, suspenseful thriller that will keep you guessing and freaked out until the very end. The "oh, crap" moment is one of the best and most squirm-worthy that I've seen in a decade.

I was nervous that this might not be a very good film since it is written, directed and stars Joel Edgerton. Many times in that situation it is difficult for someone else to tell them "no," but it looks like he had some help in making this film great.

Jason Bateman does a nice job moving away from his comedic ways for this role. It's a nice change of pace for him and for the audience.

There haven't been a lot good thrillers this year, so it's nice to finally see one worth the price of admission. If you like suspense flicks, this one will satisfy your craving.




RICKI AND THE FLASH
Rated: PG-13
Director: Jonathan Demme
Stars: Meryl Streep, Kevin Kilne, Mamie Gummer, Rick Springfield
Plot: An aging rocker mom tries to reconnect with her adult children
Trailer

Clint Says: Wait for the DVD

I finally got to see this movie in its entirety. (For the story on that escapade click here.) I would have been better off not having seen it. It's really not very good.

The cast is vanilla, the plot is tame, the conflict is stuff that many families go through every day, and it's slow. There are really only two good things about this movie: The music and the one great scene of tension between Meryl Streep and Audra McDonald. Other than that it's pretty boring.

One of the questions I always ask myself when watching a movie is, "Why was this made?" Much of the time the answer is pretty obvious. Some of the time the answer is, "I'm not sure." This is one of those times. This film doesn't offer us anything new or special.

There is zero reason to spend the money to see this in theaters. If you really must see it, wait for the DVD.

DVD Review for July 22, 2014

TRANSCENDENCE
Rated - PG-13
Stars: Johnny Depp, Rebecca Hall, Morgan Freeman
Plot: A dying scientist's thoughts are uploaded into an artificial intelligence device causing world-wide issues.
Trailer

Clint Says: If you have to see it, let someone else rent it

I had high hope for this film when I saw the first trailer and the cast, but unfortunately this film falls flat. It is brutally slow and when there is action it's anti-climactic.

The premise of the film is interesting. On one hand you have the people pushing the boundaries of technology past the limits of humanity, on the other you have the people that want all technology gone. Apparently, there is only a handful on the planet that can see a happy medium and have a plan to fix the problem.

I wish this film had more to offer the audience, but it's full of plot holes, undeveloped story lines and characters that are so two-dimensional it's really hard to care what happens to them.



TYLER PERRY'S THE SINGLE MOM'S CLUB
Rated - PG-13
Stars: Nia Long, Amy Smart
Plot: A group of single women with seemingly only that in common are brought together by their kids' school.
Trailer

Clint Says: Rent it if you have already seen everything else

This is nowhere near the best offering from Tyler Perry. It feels like this movie got rushed to print and the story was left in its wake.

This film is overly dialogue heavy with some scenes lasting several minutes and never really going anywhere or adding to the story. Even the musical montage to move the plot forward, (usually no dialogue), has words written all over the screen.

This is ultimately a relationship movie, but it's difficult to care about any of the relationships because they aren't developed well. If you want to see a Tyler Perry movie, I recommend saving your money and renting one of his better films.



HEAVEN IS FOR REAL
Rated - PG
Stars: Greg Kinnear, Kelly Reilly, Connor Corum
Plot: A boy suffers a near-death experience then returns to inspire the world with his tales of his time in Heaven
Trailer

Clint Says: Buy this DVD

This is a highly inspiring and encouraging film that will make you think a lot and challenge your faith. The kid is just about the most adorable thing ever and he does a great job in his role.

If you are familiar with the book, you know it is very short, so there wasn't a whole lot of material to draw from in making a feature-length film. While the film is good, and as far as "faith-based" films go it is one of the best I've ever seen, it still has many moments where it lags. That said, there are also several emotional moments that will have you reaching for the popcorn-covered napkins to dry your tears. I'm sure I heard some ugly crying from fellow movie-goers.

This film is absolutely worth seeing.



CESAR CHAVEZ
Rated - PG-13
Stars: Michael Pena, America Ferrera
Plot: A feature-length biography on the civil rights leader
Trailer

Clint Says: Rent it

Growing up in California, I was very excited for this movie to hit the theaters. Just about every town in California has a street named after Cesar Chavez. It took a while, but his contribution to the Latino community finally caught the attention of Hollywood. Unfortunately, this is the only wide-release Latino-based movie scheduled for release in 2014.

I really wanted this movie to be good, and it's not bad at all, but it is very slow. I'm sure it can't be easy making an exciting movie about migrant farm workers unionizing, but this movie could have been something really special given a better screenplay.

I hope this movie does well, because I'd like to see more like it coming out of Hollywood, but the truth of the matter is, this movie will appeal to only a small portion of movie-goers and will probably fade away quickly.



SABOTAGE
Rated - R
Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sam Worthington, Terrence Howard
Plot: An elite DEA crew find themselves in danger after taking down a drug cartel
Trailer

Clint Says: Don't even bother

This film has a good premise and great potential, but it falls back on the violence-for-violence-sake theme again and again.

Even if you are looking for a mind-numbing action flick this movie will disappoint you.

Movie Review for April 18, 2014

TRANSCENDENCE
Rated PG-13
Stars: Johnny Depp, Rebecca Hall, Morgan Freeman
Plot: A computer scientist works to create a human-like computer, but an anti-technology militant group wants to stop his progress.
Trailer

Clint Says: Wait for the DVD and let somebody else rent it

I had high hope for this film when I saw the first trailer and the cast, but unfortunately this film falls flat. It is brutally slow and when there is action it's anti-climactic.

The premise of the film is interesting. On one hand you have the people pushing the boundaries of technology past the limits of humanity, on the other you have the people that want all technology gone. Apparently, there is only a handful on the planet that can see a happy medium and have a plan to fix the problem.

I wish this film had more to offer the audience, but it's full of plot holes, undeveloped story lines and characters that are so two-dimensional it's really hard to care what happens to them. If you want to see a sci-fi film this weekend, go see CAPTAIN AMERICA.


BEARS
Rated G
Stars: John C. Reilly
Plot: A mother bear and her two cubs must survive their first year together in the Alaskan wild.
Trailer

Clint Says: Wait for the DVD

Disney Nature brings their A-game once again with BEARS. It is a fun and encouraging story with incredible cinematography. John C. Reilly does a great job narrating this film. He has a great ability to add to the mood of the moment with his voice.

The true stars of this film are the camera crews that obviously worked long hours to catch hundreds of hours of footage in order for the rest of the crew to put together a compelling story. Make sure you stick around through the credits to see some of the camera crews in action.

I would say see it in theaters, but the reality is, this is a family movie and taking the whole family to a movie can cost upwards of $100 and this is the kind of movie that you won't miss anything by seeing it on your TV rather than on the big screen.



A HAUNTED HOUSE 2
Rated R
Stars: Marlon Wayans, Jaime Pressly
Plot: Malcolm has finally moved on from his possessed ex, but strange things start happening when his new girlfriend and her kids move in.
Trailer

Clint Says: Don't even bother

If you saw the first one, you've already seen this film. And believe it or not, this flick is actually worse than the first one.

It's full of the same sex and racial jokes that are slightly funny at best, but most of the time they are just tired. Spend your money on something better than this junk.


HEAVEN IS FOR REAL
Rated PG
Stars: Greg Kinnear, Kelly Reilly, Connor Corum
Plot: A young boy has a near-death experience and the story he tells of his journey to Heaven during that time is enough to make people all over the world question their own beliefs.
Trailer

Clint Says: Save some money and see a matinee

This is a highly inspiring and encouraging film that will make you think a lot and challenge your faith. The kid is just about the most adorable thing ever and he does a great job in his role.

If you are familiar with the book, you know it is very short, so there wasn't a whole lot of material to draw from in making a feature-length film. While the film is good, and as far as "faith-based" films go it is one of the best I've ever seen, it still has many moments where it lags. That said, there are also several emotional moments that will have you reaching for the popcorn-covered napkins to dry your tears. I'm sure I heard some ugly crying from fellow movie-goers.

This film is absolutely worth seeing, it's just not necessarily a must-see in theaters.


50 TO 1
Rated PG-13
Stars: Skeet Ulrich, Christian Kane, Todd Lowe
Plot: The true story of a rag-tag group of cowboys trying to get their horse, Mine That Bird, to the Kentucky Derby.
Trailer


Clint Says: I haven't had a chance to review this film yet

From all accounts, this is an exemplary film worthy of blockbuster status, but one that you will need to search for in order to see. (It looks like it is only opening at Opry Mills and Providence in the Nashville area).

I was able to sit down with the Director, Jim Wilson and his co-writer Faith Conroy as well as two of the cast members, Skeet Ulrich (JERICHO and THE NEWTON BOYS) and Todd Lowe (TRUE BLOOD) to talk about the film. You can hear that interview here.

L to R: Jim Wilson, Faith Conroy, Clint Redwine, Todd Lowe, Skeet Ulrich