These Final Hours (Netflix Streaming) What if you knew you were going to die in the next 24-48 hours? How would you behave? What would it look like if everyone knew they were going to die soon? Would there be any law and order, how about human decency? In These Final Hours some unspecified global event is setting the world on fire and time is running out. The story focuses on James a tough guy looking to spend his last…
Begin Again My constant struggle in talking about movies is giving enough information to encourage viewing, while not spoiling the fun bits that are so much more enjoyable when you don’t know they’re coming. The trailer for this movie gives away some good moments, but not all of them, so if you see it fine, if you don’t see it, that’s even better. Unfortunately it’s insufficient to say “Please go see this movie,” and leave it at that. You will want to know…
New to Netflix: Short Term 12 Looking for a solid drama to stream tonight? Look no further. Grace and Mason run a group home for teens not placed by the foster care system. These teens are troubled, hurt, angry, and unwilling to be helped, just like most kids but more so. Parenting is hard, but without the advantage of a biological connection it’s almost impossible. Grace slowly builds trust while overcoming her own childhood traumas. Great writing, directing, and acting make…
Her (2013) “Her” is a love story, but not one you’ve heard before. It’s a sure thing you’ve seen a movie about a boy and his dog, or even about a girl and her horse. But a love story about a boy and his computer is not nearly as creepy as you might think. In “her” we are immersed in a highly believable and not-so-distant future. Details have been removed except those essential to the viewer. The object of desire…
Saving Mr. Banks I was five years old when I saw “Mary Poppins” in the theatre. My first film viewed on the big screen mesmerized me and started a love affair, or addiction, that continues to this day. Fast forward forty plus years and I couldn’t wait to see “Saving Mr. Banks” which describes the making of the “Mary Poppins” movie and the story that inspired it. Emma Thompson stars as P.L. Travers author of the beloved children’s book who…
2013 Ticket Stub Review. Fifty six tickets stubs were in my 2013 manilla envelope that I use as a memory aide. Some movies I had to look up on in IMDB in order to recall (not a good sign for my memory or the movie’s quality). In short order I narrowed it down to my favorite eight. Four of them I had reviewed previously, and the remaining four movies I highlight below. American Hustle (2013) Absolutely the most fun I had…
42 (2013) I confess I’m not a big fan of baseball, but then again I’m not a fan of racism either. Because of the latter this movie worked for me. 42 is about Jackie Robinson the first black man to play major league baseball. The story of how America ended slavery, and the war for racial equality covers many years, has many players, and Jackie is one of them. Post World War II 1946 in America was so drastically different than…
The Way Way Back (2013) Ever had a day that went horribly horribly wrong? How about an entire summer? In “The Way Way Back” you have a summer vacation that goes horribly horribly right. This coming-of-age story is about an awkward adolescent named Duncan who is trying to tread the churning post-divorce blended-family waters. These waters are infested with snarky teenage girls, a loving but flawed mother, her dysfunctional boyfriend, and other interesting characters. Duncan is a likable blend of anxious, shy, pensive, and…
World War Z (2013) This might have been called “Zombies, Zombies, and more Zombies”. Seriously there are a ton of zombies, in “World War Z” and not the slow sluggish ones either, these babies can really move. WWZ plays out like a who-done-it with Brad Pitt trying to save the world. He trots around the globe in search of clues while still managing to call home every day to his wife. It has some amazing visuals, great action, and pretty…
Side Effects (2013) What starts as an interesting psychological drama soon progresses into a very suspenseful who-did-what-to-whom story. It has psychiatrists, insider trading, shock treatments. husbands, wives, yachts, courtrooms, lawyers, prisons, detectives, sleep walking, sex, murder, and enough anti-depressants to put down a small army. Staring Jude Law and Rooney Mara and directed by Steven Soderbergh, Rated R for nudity and violence. [rating=3] Sam