The Great Gatsby Review

Justin and I saw The Great Gatsby on May 10, 2013. I was extremely impressed with this movie. I felt it followed the book by F. Scott Fitzgerald quite well, and the acting performances were well done. I am not the biggest fan of Baz Luhrman, but I felt he did a good job bringing a classic novel to the big screen. The story of course is told through the eyes of Nick Carraway, which I thought Tobey Maguire did a great job with. Luhrman presents the big party atmosphere in a very animated way that worked. When you read Gatsby, you have this vision in your head of what these parties look like, and this was pretty close to what I envision. I liked the usage of modern day music as well in these party scenes as it connects past generations to current generations. Leonardo DiCaprio was simply excellent as J. Gatsby displaying that suave, debonaire exterior, while also exploring the demons that haunt him within. When I found out he was cast as Gatsby, I was extremely excited. He is my favorite actor, and he tapped right into the character of the man on the pages. His friendship with Nick was captured well. My favorite part of this movie however lies with the character of Daisy Buchanan. Carey Mulligan is my top three favorite actresses with Ellen Page and Emma Watson being the other two. She put so much meaning, voice, and physical presence into the Daisy Buchanan character that I felt that she was the embodiment of the words on the page. Though the book may portray her as more of a shallow individual, I like Mulligan portraying her as a deeper person. She is absolutely amazing. The love triangle between Daisy, Gatsby, and Tom Buchanan has always been incredible. I was impressed with Joel Edgerton's take on the character. He combined the unlikable nature of the character through his infidelity and controversial opinions with an insecurity deep inside him that his wife is not really by his side. I've always felt that maybe he always knew about the past of Gatsby and Daisy, and this is why he resorted to setting up rendezvous with other women. Everybody has their own views on these characters. Daisy has always been my favorite, so I usually take her side. I think the best scene in this movie was the scene where Gatsby tells Daisy to tell Tom that she never loved him. The intensity and emotion in this scene was incredible. Mulligan, DiCaprio, and Edgerton put forth such amazing acting performances in this scene that you felt you were in the room with them. That's when you know you watched something truly special. I think the combination of the Daisy/Gatsby relationship, the Gatsby/Carraway friendship, the hit and run and subsequent consequences from that leading to Gatsby's death at the hands of Myrtle Wilson's husband along with the incredible soundtrack (one of the best in recent memory with songs my Lana Del Rey, the Filter cover for Happy Together, Jay-Z, etc.) made this a very good movie. I will give the movie a 4/5 overall. I was very impressed with this. I think this may be the year that Leonardo DiCaprio gets on the nomination list for Best Actor (not for this movie as it came out early, but for the Wolf of Wall Street in November directed by Martin Scorsese), and I will be extremely happy to see him there. The guy has turned out great movies since 2002, and I want to see him finally win an Oscar. I look forward to more by Carey Mulligan. She commands a screen I feel Mulligan should already have one for An Education. I'm still frustrated that Sandra Bullock won for the Blind Side over that performance. I believe she will win an Oscar eventually as you have to recognize the raw talent this woman has when she is on screen. This was a great movie with a colorful atmosphere mixed with the amazing story we grew up reading.

Pain & Gain Review

Justin and I saw Pain & Gain on April 28, 2013!! When I first saw the trailer for this, I knew it was based off factual events. I didn't think I would end up enjoying this as it seemed like it would strictly be a comedy. Luckily, I was proven wrong and absolutely loved every second of this insane thrill ride. I was pleasantly surprised by how good this actually was. It ended up being a serious, intense dramatic telling of the real life events that provided the material for the movie. It was a dark movie that really brought me into the story right away. I am not a huge fan of Michael Bay, but I know he has the ability to make good movies, and this kind of went back to his roots with Bad Boys. The events in the movie take place between October of 1994 to June of 1995. The movie revolves around Daniel Lugo, a bodybuilder that works at Sun's Gym as a personal trainer, with his good friend Adrian Doorbal. Lugo enjoys the gym and the clients he makes friends with including his new client Victor Kershaw. His talks with Kershaw and bills piling up lead him to think of ways to achieve the American dream. He is tired of being poor. A seminar with Jonny Wu causes him to keep on Kershaw about his money/investments. He and Adrian realize that in order to make it in America, they can get Kershaw's money. They encounter Paul Doyle, a man that served a stint in prison, and recently had tried to change his life through Jesus and AA. From here, the three create a Sun's Gym gang to extort money from Kershaw. They concoct a plan (though they are all really dumb, particularly Lugo, who really doesn't think at all) to kidnap Kershaw and torture him to give them his money/property/assets. We get an insight into each of the three main characters, and we see that Paul is not really on board early on. It's only when he becomes involved further with Lugo's insanity that things start getting out of hand. These bumbling fools eventually are able to get what they want through really unscrupulous methods. It leads to problems with law enforcement and Kershaw. Due to the crazy world that Lugo reintroduced Paul to he isn't thinking straight. He concocts a plan to pull off another heist. The rest of the movie from here really becomes a captivating cornucopia of crazy twists and bloodshed. I personally believe this could be Mark Wahlberg's best movie role to date. He was so into the Daniel Lugo character, and you could see it in the dialogue. He delivered it with such fire that he became the person. I was extremely impressed. I think the star of this movie was undoubtedly Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as Paul. There were so many excellent dynamics to his character to the man that found Jesus and struggling with sobriety to the crazy world that Lugo reintroduced to him with money, drugs, and women. He put alot into this role to show how versatile he is. I think this also was one of Johnson's best movie roles. He was larger than life in this movie. He stole so many scenes, and its great to see from somebody you've always liked. His character is actually one that you feel like you can support throughout the movie. It was really cool to see The Rock share the screen with Kurt Angle for one more fight as well. Nice cameo by one of my all time favorite wrestlers. Rock and Angle have great chemistry from Rock's 2000-2001WWE  run. I thought Angle's cameo was perfect, because he was just a guy that fights you. It was simple and it worked. Anthony Mackie did an excellent job as Adrian as well. He followed Lugo's lead, but still always had some doubts about what they were doing. The scenes around the last half hour really showed how good Mackie is. Tony Shalhoub did a great job as the rich jerk that people want to see fall, but they balanced it well because they made Lugo so animated. Wahlberg made Lugo more hated than Kershaw through intense facial expressions and passionate dialogue. The cast, adaptation of real life events, dramatic atmosphere speckled with comedic moments, and presenting a movie opposite that the trailer presented successfully make this a 5/5. Everybody in this movie did an incredible job. I have to commend Michael Bay for how well he did with this. I should also throw in it's always great to hear Coolio's Gangsta's Paradise-which was actually a big hit in 1995. I'd definitely recommend this. You will not believe how intense this gets, especially during the last half hour. The whole movie is a thrill ride, because each scene presents something that really will shock you. Remember, this movie is inspired by true events and it's so surreal to know that these events happened to real life individuals.

The Place Beyond The Pines

I saw The Place Beyond The Pines with Dad on April 16, 2013!!! In my opinion, this was the best movie I saw this year so far. Derek Cianfrance did an incredible job with this. The movie follows generations of families. It connects how the past can come back to haunt us, and how we can try to shape our future and step away from the past. The plot really is split into three seperate stories of their own. One story follows the life of motorcycle stunt rider Luke, played by Ryan Gosling superbly in a similar fashion to his role in Drive (his best role to date). He resorts to dangerous and desperate measures to provide a life for his son that he had with Romina played by Eva Mendez. Luke resorts to robbing banks with his boss in order to help his family. He showed alot of intensity in his scenes and at times reminded me of Jax Teller from Sons of Anarchy. He encounters rookie cop Avery played brilliantly by Bradley Cooper, who seems to have found his niche. He needs to stay with drama, because he's actually a good actor. What was interesting about this is the encounter with Luke leads to consequences for both families for the next 15 years. Luke's story arc transforms into Avery's story arc where we get a look at his life within the police department and corruption that runs rampant throughout. I liked Rose Byrne playing Avery's wife Jennifer as she worked in that atmosphere. Avery wants to change things in the police department, and we find out there's more to his background which really keeps things going strong. There are some great cameos by Ray Liotta and Bruce Greenwood in important roles which help to progress Avery's future in the story. We also get a story arc looking at the lives of Luke and Avery's sons in the future. I thought this was a brilliant arc connecting past and present. I felt that Dane DeHaan and Emory Cohen both did a phenomneal job as the respective sons of their fathers. The third arc really does a great job in connecting the first two arcs to really make a complete movie. DeHaan's Jayson role was especially incredible, and I though Cohen did a great job as the rebellious AJ. I thought it was interesting seeing the movie have three very different plots, but they all connect similar to what Quentin Tarantino did with Pulp Fiction in 1994. The cast, characters, directing, cinematography-everything was incredible and so well done. I felt I was watching three different movies that in the end blended together to create something really special for the audience. I liked that, because the three stories really gave us a look where each character was coming from emotionally in a deeper manner than some movies will. This movie is a definite 5/5. Everything about this movie was well done. You can only find solace in the Place Beyond The Pines. I highly recommend people check this movie out. It's absolutely amazing. I really hope the Golden Globes and the Oscars look at this movie. It deserves to be on the nominee lists.

Temptation Review

I saw Temptation on April 3, 2013!! Now normally, I dislike Tyler Perry's movies a great deal, but I had actually wanted to check this one out. The trailer looked good, so I decided to check it out. I ended up enjoying it. This movie showed the story of an ambitious woman working as a marriage counseler/date coordinator for wealthy men. I was extremely impressed with the lead actress Jurnee Smollett-Bell who played Judith. She is involved with a man named Brice who she has been married to for 6 years, but had been close with for 19 years when they first met at the age of 6. This eventually turned into a romantic relationship in high school. It shows us some of the past involved with their early lives. The mother Sarah is very religious and actually becomes a reverend. We follow her life as they have been married for six years. As I was watching this story unfold, I kept seeing many elements of 50 Shades of Grey. There are definite points such as the relationship that develops between Judith and Robbie Jone's Harley character. Similar to Christian Grey, they made him this 27 year old hot shot who was loaded, but had a troubled past with his mother and things like that.  However, his dark side was alot like Jack Hyde, so it balanced really well. Judith was very Anastasia Steele throughout this movie in terms of how she interacts with Harley. It should be noted that Lance Gross's Brice character was really good, and I actually felt bad for him through parts of the movie, however, he also did forget Judith's birthday. Remember, they had known each other for 19 years. How do you forget her birthday? That is a red flag, but Judith initially kept rebuking the advances of Harley. When Judith and Harley eventually consummate their relationship, Judith still pushes away. She literally cannot get away in this instance. You'll see what I am talking about. Eventually, that leads to the downward spiral of Judith and Brice. I thought that Brandy's character Melinda added a pretty good dynamic as she needed to be there to eventually reveal a big twist that added to the plot quite well. I figured her twist was coming, but I still loved Brice's reaction to it. I think Bell was easily the standout of this movie, and she showed great acting chops. Judith is gorgeous. There are some really powerful scenes between her and Brice where you get angry at Judith for treating Brice the way she is. Sarah warns her that she is going down a path to hell. Judith's response: "I'll enjoy the ride." I should also add that Ella Joyce who played Sarah, though a smaller part was great. Her scenes with Judith were excellent. The two of them really commanded the screen when they were on it. She also provided some great comedic lines for a light laugh when it was needed. She couldn't be more right as Judith's life becomes chaotic and ultimately will change her life forever because of Harley. There was never a point in the movie where I liked Harley. I wanted to punch him in the face. Judith was becoming bored with her relationship to Brice, and once somebody showed her a different approach she jumped on it. Bell did very well balancing the two different sides. Gross did a great job throughout this movie as well, especially during the second half of the movie. I was glad they kept Kim Kardashian's spot to a minimum. She played a character named Ava, but everybody will just see Kim, because that's exactly what she acted like. Her voice can get very annoying. Vanessa Williams is always fun to watch as she is a pretty woman that portrays powerful women, and this was no exception. She was in the movie briefly as well, but she still made an impact. Overall, I thought the cast, plot, and characters were interesting. I think Jurnee Smollett-Bell is a really good actress, and I hope to see her in more movies, because she really stood out. I will give this a 4/5. I have seen alot of negative reviews for this, but I don't agree with what they're saying. I thought the story flowed and for those that read 50 Shades of Grey, you'll see the elements there. It isn't as extreme as those books which is a good thing because that is graphic, but they definitely showed outlines from that series which fueled a Tyler Perry movie that I finally liked.

The Host Review

I saw The Host on April 1, 2013!! Despite the negative reviews and attitude towards the film, I knew it would get these just because it is based on a book written by Stephenie Meyer. Also, I liked the Twilight series a great deal, and I have no problem saying it. I enjoyed this movie, and found it to be quite interesting. It was a nice mix of science fiction with a little romance thrown in. I thought it blended Doctor Who, Aliens, The Walking Dead, and some elements of Twilight very well. The story revolves around an alien species that takes over human beings erasing their minds and taking over the body. This process destroys the human race, and increases the power of these hosts. However, what these hosts fail to realize is unlike most species, the human being is a complex organism that is difficult to control. I really liked that idea. Saoirse Ronan was perfectly cast as Melanie Stryder, who is a human being fighting off The Wanderer. Melanie is using her mind to control Wanderer, and avoid being consumed by her, The Seeker, and the other hosts. Ronan had a very similar role in Hanna back in 2011, where she was being controlled by a government organization to make her a killing machine. That's why it felt natural to me. She's a very talented young actress. She is on a quest to locate her brother Jamie, uncle Jedediah, and best friend Jared Howe. While Wanderer is trying to consume Melanie, we notice that they are starting to bond and create a connection which shows that humans and the hosts can live together rather than one species trying to wipe out the other. She comes across her family, who is initially skeptical that Melanie is still in her, but through different scenarios with Jared, Jamie, Jedediah, and characters like Ian O' Shea and rescuing Aaron from raging waters, she earns their trust. The group calls her Wanda. I thought it was interesting how these remaining humans created a living community within caves using solar energy to grow wheat for sustenance as well as growing emotional attachments to Wanda with Melanie inside. Melanie and Wanda are both battling over which guy they are interested in which made for some funny lines. There were some great action scenes with the hosts chasing the remaining humans. Wanda helping the humans was great to watch. We know Melanie is affecting her actions, but we also notice that Wanda grows to agree with the humans instead of what The Seeker wants. Wanda wants to return the real Melanie back to her family and friends. Melanie doesn't want Wanda to leave them. The solution dealt with the extraction of the soul, which was an interesting concept and visual. I liked how they took the host out of Melanie and placed it in a dying human girl to allow Wanda to stay, but also to give the human girl life. It showed how beneficial a host can be, as well as showing the idea of co-existence between the humans and the alien race. It was really awesome to see Emily Browning aka Babydoll in Sucker Punch make an appearance as Wanda in the end. Like the Twilight movies, I will once again be the one that gives this the positive reviews it should get. I will give it a 4/5, as I felt it was an interesting concept, had a great cast, and I enjoyed watching the human mind maintain control over the alien body in the Melanie Stryder/Wanda character.

Spring Breakers Review

Justin and I saw Spring Breakers on March 23, 2013!! This was an insane movie balancing a look at moral decay in the youth of America today, intense scenes of violence and sexual promiscuity, and some comedy thrown in. This movie definitely reminds me a little bit of Requiem for a Dream mixed with Trainspotting in alot of ways. I thought it was a well done movie with an excellent cast. This movie had been getting alot of attention due to the controversial presentation of Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, and Ashley Benson. This movie definitely will erase the previous image you have of Gabrielle from High School Musical. The movie centers around the notion of four friends since grade school wanting some adventure on spring break. They are tired of the "boring dorm life" that college has. Harmony Korine took these four girls and created a chaotic environment to show how much he dislikes the way youth spends their midsemester breaks. Each of the girls has a bad side, but none more so than Hudgens and Benson. I thought it was really amazing to see how Hudgens did a complete 180 in this movie to portray Candy, while Benson turned the voltage up from her Hanna character on Pretty Little Liars for her role as Brit. The girls will do anything to get out of the dorm life and experience adventure. The other two girls are Faith and Cotty. Cotty is played by Korine's wife Rachel, while Selena Gomez did a very good job as a girl maintaining her churchgoing attitude (her name being Faith wasn't a coincidence). She put deeper meaning and understanding into where the Faith character was coming from. The girls (minus Faith) end up going on a mission for extra money to make sure they get to Florida for spring break. What ensues is a chaotic scenario where Candy and Brit end up robbing a restaurant with Cotty watching on from the car-great camera work. The girls end up in Florida amidst a cornucopia of parties, where things really spiral. They encounter a rapper/hustler/drug dealer named Alien played very well by James Franco. My favorite was Hudgen's role of Candy, because it was just so different than what you're used to as well as Gomez's Faith character. However, Franco stole alot of scenes with his over the top look and attitude. Of course, I knew right away that Candy and Brit would want in on this type of activity because they want out of their dull lives. Faith wants out of this before things get too out of hand. There was a phenomenal face to face scene with Gomez and Franco where Gomez did an excellent job displaying her character's dilemma with getting involved with Franco's business. The other three would stay on board. One scene I really liked was when Alien plays "Everytime" by Britney Spears showing us a montage of events where Candy, Brit, Cotty, and Alien raid houses for money, drugs, etc. They are decked out in these pink ski masks-it was a very colorful atmosphere, so it added even more. Alien and his best friend Archie are in a feud, where Alien wants to take him out for an issue between them. After getting shot, Cotty realizes what Faith did and wants to go home back to the "dull dorm life." Though Franco's dialogue can get played out in this, I still was always interested in whatever Candy and Brit were doing. The colors, camera work, and intensity of the final scene was really well done. Candy and Brit are the last two girls standing and finish Alien's mission to take out Archie. It was a really chaotic scene that definitely summed up the insanity and controversial message of the movie. The final scene reminded me so much of Scarface, and there are subtle hints throughout that the final scene will take place especially the way Hudgens and Benson are able to get the money in the first place. The cast, characters, directing, plot, and scenes that will propel this to cult status kept me into the movie. I have always liked Vanessa Hudgens-she was nuts in this movie, and she did a great job going outside of her comfort zone. Selena Gomez is very good in this movie, and I think she'll become an even better actress over the years. Ashley Benson was good in this as well, and I thought her and Hudgens had fantastic chemistry. Rachel Korine was alright, but I thought the other three did much better with their roles. There's also a fun cameo by Jeff Jarrett who I didn't know was in this movie. Overall, I would give this movie a 4/5. This movie will shock you, but it has alot of crazy things going on, and the cast is brilliant.

Oz: The Great and Powerful Review

Justin and I saw Oz: The Great and Powerful on March 9, 2013!! This movie was incredible, and my favorite movie of 2013 thus far. The theater was packed. There weren't any empty seats, which was awesome. This movie is a prequel to Oz, based off the books by L. Frank Baum. It follows the arrival of the wizard into Oz, and how the land was shaped when he arrived. James Franco plays a con artist magician named Oscar in Kansas. His nickname is Oz. He's conceited, selfish, and a fibber. We follow his journey from Kansas doing magic shows for half a house in a world of black and white to a world of colorful personalities and wondrous sights to behold. He is transported to Oz via hot air balloon and a twister. He encounters a good witch named Theodora. She tells him of a prophecy of a great wizard that will save them from the wicked witch and restore the Emerald City and Oz. I really liked Mila Kunis in the role. Her role is important as she has to portray two sides, and the one side is kind and gentle, while the other side would be revealed towards the middle of the movie. They start somewhat of a relationship, but based off of the personality of Oscar, we know he's not committed. He journeys to the Emerald City with a trusty companion in Finley the monkey, voiced by Zach Braff, who provides some great comedic lines. The scenery of the Emerald City and the poppy fields was really beautiful. Rachel Weisz filled the role of Evanora perfectly. Weisz is one of my favorite actresses of all time. She demonstrated the calculating presence you want to see from a villain. Evanora has deceived everyone into believing somebody else is the Wicked Witch. Evanora spins a tale trying to tell Oscar if he destroys the wand of the Wicked Witch, she'll end her and become king. In Oz, the journey is always exciting, and we meet a new character in China Town (which is a town featured in the books). Her name was China Girl, and voiced by Joey King. That's not the first time we see China Girl in the movie, as she was a girl in a wheelchair in Kansas asking Oscar to help her walk. The Wicked Witch had ransacked China Town, and had killed China Girl's family. Her legs had fallen off, and she wanted to get her family back. In a really nice parallel, Oscar is able to make China Girl walk again with the assistance of glue. The audience really liked that. She was a favorite character amongst the audience in general. I knew that the other witch Evanora sent Oscar to take out had to be Glinda, and I loved the introduction of her. Normally, I can't stand Glinda, but Michelle Williams portrayal made me like her here. She was good, powerful, instilling hope in Oz and its citizens, and pushing Oscar to be a great man-what Glinda is supposed to do. I never liked her in the original because she just comes across as such a first class...something that rhymes with witch haha. Oscar recognizes Glinda from somebody in his past, who is the mother of a certain character we all know from the original so well that begins with a D. Of course, Evanora is spinning her web of deceit over her sister Theodora showing Oscar with Glinda, which infuriates her. She is able to make her tap into her wickedness that has been in her all along. I noticed a ruby ring on her finger which gave Theodora power, like Evanora's emerald necklace. I liked the way the transformation scene was shot. Evanora brought Theodora down to her level. The rivalry of the Wicked Witch of the West vs. Glinda is one of the best rivalries you can find. Since Theodora is young, obviously her heart is going to take a toll. The spell took away Theodora's heart, made her the WWOW, and transformed her beauty into what a wicked witch would look like. Why is Evanora beautiful though? We'd find that out. They had a great scene where WWOW, in a similar fashion to when she first appears in The Wizard of Oz, appears for the first time. I liked the look of the WWOW-it maintained the traditional look Margaret Hamilton made famous, while also adding a few new tweaks to keep it modern-particularly the dress. She vowed to make people regret their decision to make Oscar their king. She also showed her disdain for Glinda. We know that the army of Oz cannot kill, so a plan has to be hatched to stop two Wicked Witches now. I liked that while appealing to a younger audience, they still were able to appeal to an older audience, particulary when Theodora and Evanora captured Glinda. The witches of Oz is the best story in the Oz universe. The intensity where two sisters team up to drain Glinda of her goodness to have her join them was great. Williams sold it so well. Oscar is a magician, and is able to portray some tricks that excite the citizens of Oz, as well as battle the witches of Oz without killing anybody. Evanora and Glinda have an intense fight where Evanora and Glinda have a staredown and a crazy battle using their magic to gain an advantage over the other. Glinda is able to expose Evanora in her true form, and I liked the way they did that. We all know how Evanora will meet her end, so its not going to be here where it happens, but it was a good battle. Glinda was awesome in this movie. My favorite character in the Oz universe is the WWOW, though. Oscar takes his seat as the wizard fulfilling the prophecy, as well as granting wishes to help those who came with him on the journey, and allowed him to create the magic to battle Theodora and Evanora. This movie was excellent appealing to a new generation as well as an older generation. It balanced many of the traditions we came to love from the Wizard of Oz in 1939 and added a new story for a different audience-great blend. We saw the introduction of the Wicked Witch of the West similar to how we did in the original. we saw the Scarecrow-who would have even more of an impact on the Emerald City than Oscar. We saw the Cowardly Lion briefly. We even saw a reference to the Tin Man with the tinker men, and of course Evanora's spell taking away Theodora's heart. We saw Glinda's bubbles as well, which was really cool. The cast, effects, story, characters, and blend of comedy with fantasy dramatic elements make this a 5/5!! I really enjoyed this.