It's been a 4 year mission to wait for a sequel to J.J. Abrams' awesome Star Trek reboot but, finally Star Trek Into Darkness has arrived. And while it's not quite up to the 2009 blockbuster, it is still a really entertaining 2 hours at the movies. The film opens with Kirk (Chris Pine) disobeying Starfleet's Prime Directive to save a primitive alien race and his Vulcan first officer, Spock (Zachary Quinto). When the Enterprise reaches Earth, instead of being handed the much coveted 5 year mission, Kirk is handed a demotion and Pike resumes command of the good ole NCC 1701. But, this speed-bump in Kirk's career doesn't last as a mysterious rogue Starfleet agent by the name of John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch) launches deadly terroristic attacks against Starfleet and it's personnel. His actions put Kirk once again in the captain's chair with orders to hunt this dangerous fugitive down, on the Klingon home world of Kronos to where he's fled, and eliminate him. But, Kirk is not comfortable being an assassin and he and his and crew find that once they enter Klingon space and retrieve their quarry, that "John Harrison" is not who they think he is and they may be pawns in a greater conspiracy involving a Starfleet Admiral (Peter Weller) with a monstrous warship and his own agenda. Star Trek Into Darkness is a fun and fast paced action adventure that's only real problem...[more]...

WARNING: SOME SPOILERS...[more]...

On a basic level, Gangster Squad is entertaining. There is plenty of action, a good cast and Sean Penn's over the top performance as infamous crime boss Mickey Cohen is fun to watch. But, despite all this, the film ultimately disappoints as it had the potential to be so much more. Let's just say Untouchables, it is not. The movie tells the story of Sgt. John O'Mara (Josh Brolin) a war veteran cop who is tasked with putting together a squad of tough-as-nails cops to go outside the law to destroy the crime organization of mobster Mickey Cohen (Penn) in 1949 L.A. And while that is a solid enough story to make a really good crime thriller, the film is let down by a really cliche' and predictable script by Will Beall and some uneven direction by Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland). The film feels like it's missing parts as the story is choppy and the character development is also riddled with bullet holes as relationships and bonds seem to form off camera. This robs the audience of being able to identify with the characters and understanding how their relationships formed. We are never quite drawn in to the story or really get endeared to the characters because of this. For example... One minute Ryan Gosling's Sgt. Wooters is trying to pick up Cohen's girlfriend, Grace (Emma Stone) and the next minute the two are passionately in love. Relationships jump as does the...[more]...

If Stanley Kubrick, Dario Argento and Lucio Fulci got drunk and decided to make a horror movie together, Lords Of Salem would probably be close to what you'd get. Even back in the White Zombie days, rocker/director Rob Zombie has always shown a heavy influence from movies, especially horror so, it's no surprise to see such influences in his films. And this time, Zombie sheds the 70s grind-house style that his earlier films have had and goes for something that evokes the work of the previously mentioned filmmakers and also some of the 70s occult themed flicks like the infamous Mark Of The Devil. To a degree, it is Zombie's most solid effort as director but, also his most experimental as Lords gets downright head trippy and surreal at times, especially in it's last act. If you liked his dream sequences in Halloween 2, there's lots more where that came from. Today's impatient audiences weaned on cookie cutter horrors and endless sequels may not appreciate what Zombie has done here but, to me it was a disturbing breath of fresh air. In a time of CGI phantoms and overused jump scares, I really like that Zombie had the courage to make something that aims to simply unsettle and disturb you with it's atmosphere and imagery and doesn't rely on cheap scares and elaborate post production hocus-pocus. Lords tells the creepy story of late night Salem DJ Heidi (Sheri Moon...[more]...

Despite a great (and underused) cast and good performances, Hitchcock is a dull affair that can't decide what kind of movie it wants to be. It is a whimsical look at the making of Psycho? Is it a drama about the troubled relationship between Hitchcock (Anthony Hopkins) and his wife, Alma (Helen Mirren)? Or is is a psychological drama that gets in the legendary director's head and sees him conferring with Ed Gein (Michael Wincott) the infamous serial killer whose exploits were Robert Bloch's inspiration for Psycho? (So, shouldn't Gein have been haunting Bloch?) It's all these things and the lack of focus or consistent tone ruins what could have been a fun look at the making of a film masterpiece by one of cinema's greatest directors. A misguided mess by Sacha Gervasi. Also starring Scarlett Johansson as Janet Leigh and Jessica Biel as Vera Miles.

The original Evil Dead is one of my all time favorite horror movies, if not the all time favorite. I was fortunate enough to see it in a theater when it was released in 1981 and it changed how I looked at horror movies. This one was furiously paced, wildly inventive and delivered buckets of blood and gore all on a shoestring budget. It launched writer/director Sam Raimi’s career and made a cult legend out of star Bruce Campbell. So, with the remake/re-imagining on the horizon, I thought I’d take a look back. The film opens as Ash (Bruce Campbell) and girlfriend, Linda (Betsy Baker) are traveling to vacation in a remote cabin with another couple, Scott (Hal Delrich) and Shelly (Sarah York) along with fifth wheel, Cheryl (Ellen Sandweiss). When they get to the rundown cabin they find an old book and a tape recording in the creepy cellar that claims it is the book of the dead and wrapped in human flesh. Thinking it’s all a joke, they play the recording which includes someone reading from the book and find out the hard way that it’s all too real as they unleash horror beyond their imaginations. The quiet Cheryl is the first to be possessed as she is attacked and literally raped by the trees during one of the film’s most talked about scenes and as the panicked bunch lock her in the cellar, it is only the beginning as they are soon possessed one...[more]...

The original Evil Dead is one of my all time favorite fright flicks so, I was very apprehensive about a remake. With Sam Raimi, Robert G. Tapert and even Bruce Campbell on board as producers, I hoped the material would at least be treated with respect. Now having seen this new vision of one of the all time horror classics, I can say not only was the material treated with respect but, it is one of the best horror remakes and one hell of a nasty, scary, bloody blast. The best thing is that co-writer and first time director Fede Alvarez smartly takes the basic premise and does his own thing with it. This version has heroine addict, Mia (Suburgatory's Jane Levy) being taken by big brother, David (Skateland's Shiloh Fernandez) and 3 friends to an old family cabin to try to get Mia to quit her habit cold turkey. But, someone has been in the cabin since they were last there and something gruesome has definitely gone on inside with blood stains and dozens of dead animals hanging in the cellar. Of course there is also a mysterious book and within it ominous warnings that certain words not be read aloud... so, of course, someone does... and at the same time Mia is alone in the woods... uh, oh... I don't need to tell you that soon Mia is possessed by some horrible demonic entity and the gruesome blood soaked nightmare begins as the ancient...[more]...

Red Dawn is a remake of a 1984 action fantasy that starred Patrick Swayze and Charlie Sheen and told of a group of high school kids who become guerilla resistance fighters when the Soviet Union invades the U.S. with South American allies. It was a fun but, flawed film that has now garnered a reputation as a cult classic. The new version is equally flawed and maybe not as iconic and thus more forgettable but, it's still a fairly entertaining flick as, this time, North Korea invades the U.S. with help from the Russians. As in the original, a group of high school kids, led by older, Iraqi war vet, Jed (Chris Hemsworth), form an ass kicking resistance group to harry the unwelcome invaders. And as with the original this can be fun as long as you are willing to cut it some slack. There is a lot of far fetched stuff happening and,as with the 1984 John Milius version, it requires a degree of suspension of disbelief. But, there is a lot of action and the cast, including Jeffery Dean Morgan as a US marine, handle their roles fine with Hemsworth proving once more he is a legitimate leading man, especially in action roles. At just over 90 minutes the flick moves fast, a bit too fast at times as it left me wanting to see more of certain aspects of the film as the Wolverines go from novices to folk heroes in no time....[more]...

Ben Affleck is 3 for 3 as a director with this simply great film set during the Iran hostage crisis of the late 70s/ early 80s. Argo tells the story of 6 Americans who barely escaped the U.S. Embassy as it was being taken over by hostile Iranian citizens after the overthrow of the Shah. While the rest of the embassy staff become hostages, the 6 find refuge in the home of the Canadian Embassy's director. Knowing that the Iranians will soon figure out they are missing and hunt them down, CIA extraction specialist Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) hatches a wild scheme to sneak them out disguised as a film crew scouting locations for a make believe science fiction epic called "Argo". Ben Affleck takes Chris Terrio's script and crafts a suspenseful, thrilling and extremely entertaining true life historical drama that manages to be a lot of fun despite the serious nature of the story. Affleck deftly weaves in some welcome humor to give us a bit of relief from the almost non-stop tension, in just the right amount to gives us a break and make us even more susceptible when he decides to turn the screws again. He gets great performances out of his top notch cast including, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman and a wonderful Alan Arkin as the Hollywood producer who helps him fake the production of the sci-fi flick Argo. He and his crew also do a great job of recreating the...[more]...

Zero Dark Thirty is a good movie but, not a great one and doesn't quite live up to the hype in it's telling of the hunt and assassination of Osama bin Laden. The film is well made and well acted but, never really draws you in until the final act when the compound is found and the raid commences. One of the reasons for this is that director Kathryn Bigelow, in an effort to not over-sensationalize the material, goes a bit overboard in the opposite direction and doesn't give it the dramatic intensity it needs until the climactic last act which is two hours in. The pace is very slow and and the by the numbers approach makes it difficult to really become involved. That and there is over 10 years worth of story here and the film comes across as a bit choppy as we go from one stage to another. She does get good performances out of a good cast with lead Jessica Chastain carrying the film well though, I am not sure the performance was quite Oscar nomination worthy. All in all it's a film worth seeing about one of the greatest manhunts in our country's history but, it's not the great film the material warranted or suggests it should be. Kinda forgettable when all is said and done.

Frank Langella proves once again that he is one of the most underrated actors in the business with a great performance in this touching and whimsical story from Director Jake Schreier and writer Christopher D. Ford. This story, set in the near future, tells of retired cat burglar Frank whose slipping mental state causes concern from his kids and provokes his son to buy him a robot home assistant to take care of him. At first Frank hates his automaton companion but, then the two bond as Frank realizes he has a new partner to resume old habits. Robot is a cute and endearing indie comedy/drama that is given added weight by a wonderful performance from lead, Langella. He gives Frank multiple layers as a man who both enjoyed his life of crime yet, regrets the effect it had on his life and relationship with his kids. He also portray the frustration of someone trying to deal with the effects of aging and trying to overcome it the only way he knows how. It helps that he is surrounded by a good cast with James Marsden as his son and Liv Tyler as his daughter. Both trying to care for a man who wasn't there for them when growing up. Susan Sarandon is a local woman who catches Frank's eye and Jeremy Sisto as the local sheriff who becomes very suspicious of the retired burglar when a few thefts hit the small town they live in. A...[more]...

Pretty teacher Kate (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and husband Charlie (Aaron Paul) are a young married couple who are also alcoholics. When Kate gets sick of waking up in strange places and peeing herself, she decides to quit drinking and get help. But, Kate faces an uphill battle as she gets resentment, not support, from her husband and to gain sobriety she may loose everything. What I liked most about this indie drama was that co-writer/ director James Ponsoldt avoids the melodramatics that usually come with films of this nature and guides his cast trough a real life situation and has them play real life people complete with quirks and all. And as for his cast, they all give good down to earth performances but, it is Winstead who owns the movie as the troubled young woman who wants to change the downward spiral of her life. She effectively portrays the frustration of her own behavior and then then hurt and anger when she tries to change her life and doesn't get the support she needs from those she cares about. Winstead shows chops that she hasn't yet had the opportunity to show and she gives a very real and effecting performance. True, I would like to have seen more of the relationship between Kate and her AA sponsor, Jenny (Octavia Spencer) and a subplot involving her vice principal, Dave (Nick Offerman), who has a crush on her and introduces her to his AA group, doesn't quite...[more]...

I've never played the video game on which these films are based and am not big on the first film, despite being a fan of director Christophe Gans, so, I went in to this with very little expectations and still got even less then expected. Basically, from what I gather from writer /director Michael Bassett's mess of a story is that the surviving little girl from part 1 is now grown up (and played by Michelle Williams clone, Adelaide Clemens) and is being continuously stalked by Silent Hill. Whatever that actually is. To me it's some kind of netherworld filled with CGI and actors whose careers are fading. So when her father (Sean Bean) is abducted back to this sinister place, Heather or Sharon or whatever her name is goes to look for him and is attacked by endless and obvious CGI phantoms. And this goes on for the films monotonous 90 + minutes until we finally see the light at the end of the tunnel... the credits. It's all quite lifeless and extremely boring under Bassett's leaden direction and while Miss Clemens shows she might have some spunk in a better film, the cast is simply collecting their paychecks and running. The film uses a lot of flashbacks from the first movie yet still makes little sense. Worse yet, we are given the hope that Sean Bean might actually survive a movie only to have our hopes dashed in the final moments. A boring CGI...[more]...

The RZA is a man with a lot on his resume' and with The Man With The Iron Fists, he adds writer, director and star. Fists is a Tarantino-esque mash up of 70s Shaw Brothers kung fu, 80s/90s Hong Kong martial arts epic, 70s blaxploitation and a touch of Spaghetti Western. Too bad RZA is no Quentin Tarantino because, had this film fired on all intended cylinders, it would have been a real blast. RZA's heart and intentions are in the right place for this story of a runaway slave (RZA) who finds himself shipwrecked in China and now plying trade as a much sought after blacksmith. When he and his prostitute girlfriend, Lady Silk (Jamie Chung) get caught in the middle of a clan war over gold, an act of violence transforms him into the vengeful Man WIth The Iron Fists. The real problem here is that the film has far too slow a pace for this kind of flick and has far too much set up, causing it to take way too long to get going. Once it does, it is somewhat entertaining but, RZA doesn't give his flick the delirious fun that Tarantino gives his genre mash ups and he just doesn't capture the kind of energy the plentiful action scenes need. The film seems a lot longer then it's 90+ minutes would suggest. Fists has some colorful characters such as Jack Knife (Russell Crowe), Lady Blossom (Lucy Liu) and Brass...[more]...

Cabin Fever has some very effective moments especially when the gore starts flying but, writer Director Eli Roth's insistence on filling his influence drenched horror with sub par, frat boy humor that sinks his first film (and sunk Hostel too). The film opens with a group of annoying college kids heading up to a small secluded cabin in the woods, that is, of course, near a town filled with bizarre rednecks. The characters are fairly two dimensional college stereotypes and the rednecks are weird just for the sake of being weird. Only Cerina Vincent's Marcy shows a bit of brains and spunk but, sadly she is not the central character, it's Rider Strong's annoying, Paul. These kids unfortunately encounter a hobo with some kind of flesh eating disease, whose origin is never explained, though, it's hinted the townsfolk have encountered it before, and soon red blotches and rampant paranoia fill the cabin. It takes a while for things to get rolling but, the film is most effective when it does but, even then Roth stops momentum dead to have more cartoonish antics from the strange locals. He would have been better off sticking with the kids in the cabin but, is too giddy to involve the twisted inhabitants of this back woods community and the goofiness is too broad to work with the more serious aspects of the story. And his story is good but, Roth seems more interested in his frat house comedy then...[more]...

Barry Levinson directs this found footage horror about the small town of Claridge, Maryland that sits on Chesapeake Bay and comes under attack from a vicious flesh eating parasite. The first act of The Bay is quite effective as we follow a young reporter (Kether Donohue) who is covering Claridge's fourth of July celebration but, soon what appears to be a bacterial infection breaks out and more and more people start to succumb. But, the actual cause is revealed far too soon and then the Bay starts to get more and more outlandish and silly and degenerates from what started out as an effective thriller into a found footage SYFY channel bug movie. This is a case where the found footage format actually accentuates how silly things are getting rather then keep things intimate and draw us in. Between the scenes of the robotic and incompetent CDC trying to figure out what is happening, to the oft captured footage of the CGI parasite in question crawling out of the victims bodies, it just becomes a silly killer bug movie and loses any tension or suspense the first act started to build. There are a few effective moments amongst the schlock and some gruesome ones too but, it's not enough to keep this found footage horror afloat.

Thoughts, questions and observations on the abysmal awfulness that is Breaking Dawn Part 2...
1) Is there actually a director on set or does the cast just wing it?
2) Did Bella just wrestle a mountain lion?
3) The CGI baby is creepier then any vampire or werewolf...
4) ...except for that vampire chick with the disturbingly large forehead.
5) When did Twilight become The Avengers complete with vampires with specialized superpowers?
6) Why do the Volturi dress like Flock Of Seagulls?
7) Is it possible Robert Pattinson's acting has gotten even worse?
8) Are those Mayans? WTF!?!?!?
9) Why does Jacob have to strip in front of Bella's dad, yet in other scenes transforms fully clothed... don't answer that.
10) Speaking of Jacob, is he a pedophile now?
11) Kellan Lutz's dye job is just wrong.
12) What the hell accent are those Euro trash vamps in the dorky ties speaking?
13) Michael Sheen is channeling both Michael Jackson and The Joker. Creeptastic!
14) All the money these make and they can't afford good CGI?
15) Wait... that whole thing was just a... Are you fucking kidding me ?!?!?

Gregory Widen writes and directs this clever and often very creepy horror flick concerning a second war in Heaven spilling out onto the Earth. Jealous over the attention God has given humankind, the Archangel Gabriel (Christopher Walken) has waged a war that has lasted centuries. But, if he can acquire the soul of a heinously evil human general who has recently died, it could turn the tide. But, loyal angel Samuel (Eric Stoltz) has hidden the soul in a little girl, Mary (Moriah Snyder) and now it's up to ex-priest turned cop, Thomas (Elias Koteas) and school teacher, Katherine (Virginia Madsen) to stop Gabriel from getting the soul from Mary. Complicating matters is a third party, Lucifer (Viggo Mortensen) who has an invested interest in how this situation plays out. Widen gives this film a nice atmosphere and creatively weaves Bible scripture into this very original and effective horror, as well as, gives some very good dialog for star Walken and Mortensen's Lucifer to chew on. He also has a nice visual style and makes good use of a small budget. He gets good performances from all the cast with Koteas really convincing as a man who has lost his faith now faced with defending the God he turned away from and Madsen making a strong willed heroine forced to stand against the unthinkable. Obviously, thought, it is Walken who takes his role and runs with it with his sinister and quirky performance as the vengeful Gabriel....[more]...

Richard Bates Jr. writes and directs this trippy and really disturbing horror/drama about an emotionally disturbed teen, Pauline (AnnaLynne McCord) who escapes from her repressive mother (Traci Lords) by immersing herself in an interest in surgery complete with gruesome and bizarre fantasies. But, fantasy and reality may collide as the disturbed Pauline grows desperate to win her distant mother's love and plots to do so by saving her little sister, Grace (Ariel Winter) from her cystic fibrosis in the only way her demented mind sees possible. Not only does Bates weave a drama that mixes with equal parts horror but, gets great performances out of McCord and Lords that really make this haunting and sometimes gruesome character study really work. Not for everyone but, for those who don't mind something different and disturbing, this is a really good watch.

Pat (Bradley Cooper) is a bipolar man who has spent the past 8 months in a psychiatric hospital after beating his cheating wife's lover half to death. Upon release, Pat goes to live with his parents, Pat Sr. (Robert De Niro) and Dolores (Jacki Weaver) and has every intention of trying to rebuild his life and get back with his wife, Nikki (Brea Bee) despite a restraining order. But, his plans take an interesting twist as he befriends an emotionally disturbed widow, Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence) who claims to want to help him reach his wife, but, possibly has her own agenda. Silver Linings Playbook is written and directed with a nice offbeat style by David O. Russell, based on a book by Matthew Quick, who crafts a nearly perfect film that is both romantic comedy and emotional drama. He gets fantastic performances out of his cast. Lawrence fully deserves her Oscar as her performance is a tour de force portraying the emotionally damaged Tiffany and Cooper is right behind her as the determined but, still slightly delusional Pat. De Niro gives his best performance in years as Pat's Eagles loving bookie father and Chris Tucker, in a supporting role as a friend of Pat's from the hospital, gives the performance of his career. Who knew from Friday and the Rush Hour movies that he had such depth. I really have no major faults with this offbeat flick that is filled with emotion, heart and laughs too. It...[more]...