"Vivo" Early Movie Review

 

In just a little over a year, writer/director Lin-Manuel Miranda brings us his third musical film. Following a recording of his Broadway mega-hit, Hamilton, and the traditional musical In the Heights (which also enjoyed a Broadway run), comes Vivo -- the prolific creative's first foray into animation.

As he did in Hamilton, Miranda once again stars in the title role but this time as a rhythmically-inclined kinkajou instead of the U.S.'s first Secretary of the Treasury. After making his way from his native tropical rainforest to Cuba, Vivo is raised -- and taught music -- by local musician Andres, who frequently entertains crowds in a Havana square. One day, Andres receives a letter (and a plane ticket and backstage pass) from Miami-based pop star Marta Sandoval, inviting him to her farewell performance. It turns out that Andres was Marta's musical partner 60 years prior and, though they haven't kept in touch, Marta's been harboring romantic feelings for him ever since. Sadly, Andres passes away before he can make the trip to the Florida. However, he does manage to write a new song, Para Marta, intended for his old friend. So it's up to Vivo to deliver the tune. But of course, doing so is much easier said than done for a pint-sized "honey bear" who can't talk to humans.

Miranda wrote 11 songs for the movie and while Vivo isn't quite on the same level as Hamilton (What is?), it's a huge step up from In the Heights. And as a Latino animated musical Vivo even exceeds Coco, with which it shares more than a few similarities (for instance, the death of an elderly loved-one is an overriding theme). This Sony-produced competition for Disney and Pixar is definitely worth your time. Check it out.

Coming to Netflix on August 6.

All 14 X-Men Movies, Ranked from Hot Garbage to Mutant Greatness

 

After 20 years and 14 movies, the X-Men feature film series has gone the way of the dodo bird. Ironically, these cinematic mutants are destined to rise from the ashes of their penultimate release, Dark Phoenix, like a -- you know. But that resurrection is probably years away, since Marvel Studios'll have to make room on the MCU's already full schedule. But the X-franchise did manage to go out with a bang. Until Marvel Studios takes a stab at the carriers of the X-gene, let's take a look back at what was so good -- and so wrong -- about the X-Men movies that we already have.





14. The Last Stand

The third time definitely wasn't the charm for the live-action X-Men. The
Last Stand's depiction of the --- Phoenix --- storyline is so bad that it
had to be remade. Even the appearances of popular villains like the
Juggernaut were nothing more than woefully missed opportunities.

Worst of all, the movie's brimming with Black Pride statements ("I don't answer to my slave name", "Did he just call me boy?")-- spoken by white people. Is it ironic that Black actors comprise a minority of the characters in a film series that works as a metaphor for the Civil Rights movement? Or is it just utter tone-deafness? It's hardly surprising that one of this movie's three Black character's, Bolivar Trask, is replaced by a white actor in a later sequel.









13. X2: X-Men United

X2 is the first -- and sloppiest -- live-action attempt at retelling the comics' Dark Phoenix saga.

12. Once Upon a Deadpool

Once Upon a Deadpool is essentially the PG-13 -- and much worse -- version of Deadpool 2 with Fred Savage along for the ride to parody his scenes in The Princess Bride.

11. Apocalypse

The Avengers' face-off with their near omnipotent nemesis, Thanos, was a $2 billion-grossing smash (Infinity War) featuring a portrayal of said villain that seemed like some kind of miracle. But the X-Men actually had the first crack at showing movie audiences how to wage war against an inhuman arch-foe. And they fumbled at the 1-yard line. Apocalypse is a horrible movie featuring an astonishingly stupid-looking boss villain. Instead of springing for CGI to depict a ginormous guy who can change his shape and size, the filmmakers opted to slather cheap makeup on a short actor. But we did finally get Storm's Mohawk and a surprisingly accurate-looking Psylocke.









10. X-Men Origins: Wolverine

While this first X-Men prequel featured an indescribably horrible depiction
of Deadpool, it managed to do justice by Gambit, John "Kestrel" Wraith and Emma Frost. And the Wolverine war montage in the beginning of the movie is outstanding. The problem is that everything else in the film is trash.








9. X-Men

X-Men, Marvel's second foray into feature films, is a disappointing addition to the comics giant's film catalogue following 1998's Blade, especially considering rival DC's string of critical hits (Superman: The Movie, Superman II and Batman). But the origin story for Professor X's mutant academy kicked off with plenty of promise. Master of Magnetism Erik "Magneto" Lensherr------'s introduction as a young concentration camp prisoner is excellent. Of course, this is also the movie that introduced the world to Hugh Jackman -- who completely stole the show. But otherwise, with the off-brand Matrix outfits, bad wigs (Storm) and cheesy- looking
villains (Magneto in costume and Sabertooth), it was pretty much a suckfest. The "X-Jet"? "X's" on the wheels of Professor Xavier's chair? Come the fuck on.








8. The Wolverine

The singular focus on the most interesting X-Man (a premise that would be perfected in Logan four years later) was a good idea that was executed poorly. The Wolverine features the title character traveling to Japan and coming face-to-face with his past.









7. Days of Future Past

The critics who raved about Days of Future Past were surely grading on a
curve. This time-travel tale, based on the comics story of the same name, merges
the younger versions of the X-Men saga characters, introduced in First Class, and the older versions and their comrades, first seen in 2000's X-Men, into the same movie.

Faced with the violent extinction of their kind at the hands of robotic Sentinels, the remaining mutants in a war-torn future concoct a desperate plan to send one of their number decades into the past in order to prevent the disastrous events that led to their current predicament. Because Wolverine's healing factor renders him the only one capable of surviving the trip (his psyche will heal from the destructive stress of the procedure), his awareness is transported by Kitty Pryde into his 1970s body. His mission is to convince a young Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr, the latter of whom Logan hates, to help him stop Raven "Mystique" Darkholme from assassinating mutant-phobic scientist Dr. Bolivar Trask. That act is destined to initiate a hatred of mutantkind that will only be satisfied with their obliteration.

Matters are complicated, however, by a drug-addled Xavier's inability to
access his telepathic abilities (due to the side-effects of medication that
allows him the use of his legs) and Lensherr's incarceration in an
impregnable secret detention facility [beneath the Pentagon]. But this leads to the highlight of the movie: the latter's prison break, facilitated by his son, Pietro "Peter" Maximoff. 









6. Deadpool 2

Deadpool is overshadowed by Cable and the Juggernaut and outfunnied by TJ
Miller.

While the film addresses sexism, racism and homophobia in its own way and
ostensibly promotes acceptance and tolerance, the characters (and by
extension, the movie) gleefully revel in ageism. While one older character
is ridiculed for being bald, another, Cable, is reductively described as
"the old guy" more than once.

And pedophilia and rape jokes abound. When Deadpool comes face-to-face with a guy's loincloth he jokes, "Is that you Scoutmaster Rick?" and he tells
14-year-old Russell, "...you'll win the Icebox Award for softest mouth."

Cable nailed Deadpool to a tee with the best line in the movie:

"Here's a spoiler alert: You're not a fucking hero. You're just an annoying
clown dressed up like a sex toy."

5. Deadpool

This do-over for the titular mercenary is an immense improvement over the movie that featured his cinematic debut, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and finally gave star Ryan Reynolds his first win in a superhero film. After Blade: Trinity, Green Lantern and XMOW, it's a testament to Reynolds' tenacity that he even went back to the genre. 

This R-rated action-comedy features a Wolverine ripoff breaking the fourth wall and satirizing comic book movies. Some people refer to this joint by its nickname, Cesspool, and I gotta say it's not entirely inaccurate. 









4. First Class

First Class focuses on the exploits of a younger Erik "Magneto" Lensherr and Charles Xavier's first batch of mutant students during the Cold War.









3. Dark Phoenix

Once again, Erik Lensherr -- along with vastly improved visuals and a captivating score -- steals the score in this retelling of Jean Gray's fall to the dark side. This penultimate movie in the series is the second -- and final -- X-Men do-over.

2. The New Mutants

I'm not gonna lie to you. I never liked the New Mutants comics. It always seemed to me like an obvious and lame attempt to squeeze more money outta the X-Men -- the comic book version of the James Bond, Jr. cartoon. But after Fox finally put together a great X-Men movie -- Logan -- there was a slim chance that they'd learned the error of their ways and New Mutants the movie might actually be decent. They did. And it is.

In the most underrated X-film and the closest that the X-verse has ever come to horror, The New Mutants features a group of five young people undergoing testing and receiving inpatient treatment for their respective genetic mutations at an otherwise empty medical institution overseen by Dr. Cecilia Reyes.

1. Logan

The title is simply, Logan. But the movie's partly based on the 2008 - 2009 Old Man Logan comics storyline, which sounds a hell of a lot better and also happens to be more accurate -- especially considering Hugh Jackman's look in the movie. The source material was inspired by Unforgiven and that influence is pretty clear in the film as well.

The movie does make a stark departure from the original story -- mostly due to corporate realities. Fox, the studio that held the film rights to the X-Men and Wolverine at the time of production, had no such claim on the Hulk, Hawkeye, the Red Skull, She-Hulk, Giant-Man, Thor, Captain America, the Kingpin, Doctor Doom, Iron Man and the Abomination -- all of whom are referenced (some play key roles) in the comics. Even so, the movie is just as good as the source material -- if not better.

 Deadpool's position as the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time (at the time) prompted Jackman to insist on the freedom to earn the same rating. Deadpool's $783 million box-office take certainly gave the studio suits something to think about. It's considerably more than the $414 million 2013's The Wolverine took home. Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds was also in 2009's X-Men Origins: Wolverine ($373 million). He wised up. Fortunately, Jackman did too. The R-rating has allowed us to finally see Wolverine being the best at what he does.

Logan isn't just the best X-Men movie -- it's better than all of the others combined. Jackman's always been pretty good as Wolverine, but until Logan, he's always been stuck portraying the most popular mutant in sh#tty movies with unconvincing special effects, terrible costumes and just overall slackness. But this time around there's no mute Deadpool, no giant samurai, no leather outfits and no wheelchair with X's on the wheels.

Speaking of which, Logan also provides the best movie showcase for Professor X.

A good bit of the story involves a guy, with the aid of an old friend, hitting the road in order to keep his super-powered kid from being reclaimed by federal agents. It's like 2016's Midnight Special -- except entertaining. Logan's time spent with the mutant kids is also reminiscent of Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome. Wolverine even one-ups Batman by dying a hero's death the way the latter should've done in The Dark Knight Rises. Maybe best of all, Logan himself explains that comic books and other media greatly exaggerate his and his fellow X-Men's accomplishments. He says, "It happened once and they turn it into..." But both he and the Professor acknowledge (at least some of) the events that took place at the Statue of Liberty (from 2000's X-Men). Consequently, Logan renders all but the very first X-Men movie null and void - and even negates most of the events in that film.

The movie's only real flaws are the Superman III-style Wolverine vs. himself nonsense and the lack of an explanation for the mysterious green "medicine" -- which is too important to the story not to get one.

Jackman has announced his retirement from the role that made him famous. He even refused to make a cameo appearance in any Deadpool sequels. If he stands by his decision he'll be doing what Muhammad Ali and Michael Jordan should've done before him -- walking away at the top of his game.

"Blood Red Sky" Movie Review

 

by John Zenoni

One of the first vampires to appear in films was in 1922, when ‘Nosferatu’ was released. This was an unauthorized adaptation of Dracula but it's still considered a classic. Well, how many more hundreds of vampire films have been released since then? Too many for me to count and I won’t try to go over any of those in this review. The films featuring vampires have run the gamut from really, really good to really, really bad.

However, one of the latest in the vampire genre is actually pretty good and one of the most original that I've seen in a long time. The film is ‘Blood Red Sky’ on Netflix, which has been in the top 10 since its release and I can understand why. The premise is this - a mother and her son are on a plane headed to New York so she can be treated for her ‘illness’, which we find out later on is actually something else, but unbeknownst to them, the plane is going to be hijacked. When that happens the action begins and it's good!

What I like so much about this film is the fact that the mother is devoted to her son and is doing all she can to rid herself of the curse she was ‘given’ so she's desperate to get to New York for a cure. This is a movie wherein the the main character doesn't embrace or want the curse. The bond between the mother and son seems very genuine in this film and their performances are pretty good, particularly that of the mom, played by German actress Peri Baumeister. The son is played by Carl Anton Koch and he has his good as well as bad moments, which I'll get into later. Another positive for this story is that there isn't a long build up of explaining what the hijackers want to do. You just know they're taking over the plane and are violent and willing to cross the line. One of the terrorists in particular, played by Alexander Scheer, who's outstanding in his role, is a psycho. The other thing I liked was the makeup and special effects. Definitely a different look, in my opinion, of traditional vampires and I especially liked the small details, such as the fact that we're able to see the ears of the vampires twitch ever so slightly when they hear softer noises.

Although there are many positives, there are a also few things that I didn't like about the film. First of all, the son does a very good job in the beginning but then he becomes almost ‘whiny’ just over halfway in the film and it really becomes annoying - at least it grated on my nerves. The other thing is some of the passengers on the plane are annoying as well. One man is so much so that I was actually hoping he would get ‘changed’ and then done away with. Finally, because I'm still not one hundred percent certain that the use of flashbacks telling how the mom became cursed was done effectively, I'm putting that in the negative category. I may change my mind as I reflect on it more.

Overall though, while it's not getting much love from critics, I think this is a very good, unique vampire flick with plenty of blood, gore and action!

#cinemafiends

#fullycinematic

#bloodredsky

#bloodredskynetflix

#vampireinthesky

#vampireonplane

The 9 Best Movies of 1987

 

In 1987, Rakim was the undisputed greatest rapper alive, an African American comic ruled Hollywood and every Predator movie was a masterpiece. Decades later, "the R" is retired and it's been awhile since Eddie Murphy was a sure thing at the box office. But at least they're both still rich. Check out the best movies that hit theaters that year. 

9. Fatal Attraction

Depressingly relatable and deeply chilling, Fatal Attraction remains the ultimate cautionary tale for guys entering relationships. Never mind cheating husbands, this tale of romance-gone-wrong is a horror movie for single men as well. When a film's title becomes a common term in the cultural lexicon, you know it touched a nerve.

8. Raw

To this day, comic legend Eddie Murphy's movie, Raw, is still the highest-grossing stand-up comedy concert film of all time. And Raw's opening sketch features a star-studded cast, including: Samuel L. Jackson, Tatyana Ali and Kim Wayans. If that weren't enough, the movie itself is directed by independent filmmaking legend Robert Townsend. Raw is just one more piece of evidence that, with or without a stellar support team, Eddie Murphy ruled Hollywood in the 80s.

7. The Monster Squad

Universal's been trying desperately to launch a "monster-verse" in the vein of the MCU since 2015. But though it failed to turn a profit at the box office, Tri-Star and the filmmakers behind The Monster Squad pulled together a highly-entertaining "Dark Avengers" flick 35 years ago. Count Dracula, Frankenstein's monster, the Wolf Man, the Mummy and the Creature from the Black Lagoon terrorize a small town in what's essentially "Ghostbusters with kids" and a much better The Goonies -- but with monsters instead of criminals. The only real misstep in this cult classic is the head-scratching decision to dress one of the pre-teen squad members, Eugene, in a f&%@ing condeferate soldier cap.

6. RoboCop

When Detroit Police Officer Alex Murphy is killed in the line of duty, mega-corporation OCP use his remains, including his brain, for their new project. Now designated RoboCop and programmed to act in the interests of OCP, Murphy's brain retains memories from Murphy's life and compel him to continue to serve justice above all else -- including corporate directives. A remake was released in 2014 but that Robo-peacekeeper wasn't half the man -- or the machine -- that the one in 1987's Robocop is.

5. Overboard

What would you do if your boss talked down to you, refused to pay you and threw all of your tools -- and you -- into the ocean? Well, if you're Dean Proffitt, you'd exploit her sudden retrograde amnesia by convincing her that the two of you are married with children so you that can work the shit outta your new housewife.

4. La Bamba

La Bamba is a biopic of teen singing sensation Ritchie Valens, who died during the same plane crash that also took the lives of fellow 1950s rockers Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper, but Ritchie's big brother, Bob, kinda steals the show. Bob also steals Ritchie's gorgeous girlfriend, Rosie, portrayed by the late, Elizabeth Pena, who died in late 2014.

Ritchie, who was 17 when he was killed, had two #1 songs 13 years before Selena was born.

The movie focuses on Valens' career; his relationship with girlfriend Donna Ludwig, who inspired his first hit song, "Donna"; and his sibling rivalry with Bob -- the result of their mother Connie's obvious favoritism toward Ritchie.

3. Some Kind of Wonderful

Keith only has eyes for the prettiest girl in school, Amanda, which only makes life harder for his best friend, Watts, since she only -- and secretly -- has eyes for him. Keith's problem is that although both he and Amanda are from the wrong side of the tracks, she's a member of the in-crowd and he most definitely is not. So when Amanda agrees to go out with Keith in order to spite her boyfriend, Hardy (the most popular guy in school), he, Amanda's rich friends AND Watts try to convince the would-be couple to stick with their own kind.

If this all sounds familiar, it should. Some Kind of Wonderful is the gender-swapped -- and better -- version of Pretty in Pink. And both movies were written by John Hughes and directed by Howard Deutch. Wildly successful filmmaker John Hughes wrote and/or directed 13 1980s classics. But 1986's Pretty in Pink never sat right with him -- and who could blame him? It does kinda suck. Specifically, Hughes was bothered by the altered ending, in which the girl from the wrong side of the tracks, Andy, chooses spoiled rich guy Blane over her best friend Duckie. So the Hughes gave himself a do-over. He essentially switched the genders of the main cast (with all new actors, of course), restored the original ending and gave the story a new title. 

And honestly, the entire film is a vast improvement over its predecessor..

2. Like Father Like Son

Jack Hammond unwittingly drinks a mystical potion (because his son's friend hid it in a bottle of Tabasco sauce) that causes him to switch bodies with his son, Chris. So until they can get their hands on the antidote, uptight Jack has to fill in for his teenaged son at his high school while Chris screws up his father's job at the hospital where he works as a surgeon. The two can't relate to each other and don't get along very well so Jack gets the role reversal that he'd have to pay for in therapy without spending a dime and finds out what it's really like to be his son. I know what you're thinking -- but unlike Freaky Friday and Vice Versa, Like Father Like Son is actually funny.

1. Predator

You can't tell me that the idea of a hostile alien -- that you can't even see -- that can take out heavily armed, seasoned black ops killers with ease isn't scary. The marines actually managed to shoot down quite a few xenomorphs in Aliens. Not so much in Predator. 

"Heist" Review

 

by John Zenoni

I've been on a roll lately watching true crime docuseries and all those that I've watched in the past several months have been really good. So, I had really high hopes for the latest Netflix entry, ‘Heist’, but unfortunately this is probably my least favorite of those that I've watched, the reasons for which I'll get into shortly.

The storyline/concept of this series is interesting - telling stories behind some of the biggest heists in US history. There are 3 stories of crimes covered in this series and each one is told in 2 segments. The first heist covered is entitled, ‘Sex Magick Money Murder’ and is about a lost, very impressionable young lady who meets a hardened criminal who coerces her into taking a job with a security company in Vegas with the idea of robbing the armored car company that takes money from a casino on a regular route. The first thing that caught me off guard with this particular segment/episode is that the lady who's being interviewed and telling her part in the crime, Heather Tallchief, just didn't seem to fit the type of person who would have committed this type of crime. Well, that's because it's not the real Heather Tallchief, but an actress portraying her. I just couldn't help but get this vibe that she wasn't capable of doing such a thing. The story was also - in my opinion - almost a glorification of the crime the way the people talked and laughed about it at times. I just couldn’t get into that.

The next story or heist, entitled ‘The Money Plane’, is about a group of men, living in Miami-Dade County, who manage to rob over $7 million from an airport, where money was transported and moved in a warehouse on a regular basis. This was harder to watch because there was a husband and wife involved, who so desperately wanted a child and had been trying unsuccessfully to start a family. This is why the husband got involved, with the goal of obtaining enough money to adopt a child. Needless to say, it ended on a bad note and was quite sad.

The third, and probably my favorite, of the three segments is the one entitled, ‘The Bourbon King.’ Who would have thought that bourbon and whiskey would have been worth so much money? A family man, who seemed to have it all, just got caught up in what started as doing favors for people and then began stealing bottles and barrels of whiskey and bourbon. Needless to say, this one didn't end well either and he does regret (or seems to) his poor choices.

While an interesting show, it's not my favorite in the latest docuseries entries.

#cinemafiends

#fullycinematic

#heist2021netflix

#heistnetflix

If You Have No Interest in Plot or Character Development, Then "Jolt" May Be For You

 

by Terrance Elmore

If you’re looking for a movie that has a lot of action but lacks in plot and character development, this is the movie for you. Lindy is an ex-killing machine who struggles with controlling her impulses to respond to stressful situations with violence. When it seems she’s finally got a grip on her impulses, her life gets turned upside down and she finds herself on a high-octane mission to find out who’s behind it all. This isn’t the typical assistant/agent, movie but it did remind me of Boss Level minus the reliving the day over and over again. The plot would have made a little more sense if they gave us more insight into Lindy’s past instead of the sporadic 5-second flashbacks. I wouldn’t recommend rushing to see this unless you just want a break from watching the Olympics.

John's Rewatchables

 

Movie buff and MID-contributor John Zenoni has sworn -- and since retracted -- his refusal to watch the same movie twice. While John has -- and does -- rewatch films it doesn't -- and hasn't -- happen(ed) very often. So when he does hit the theater (or even a streamer) for a second viewing, it's a big deal. We've compiled a list of the flicks that he's done this with so far and have even included his original review for each movie (where available).

The Greatest Showman

The thing we all know (and I assume all love) about movies is that you can find those that will educate you, shock you, scare you, make you sad and then there are those that just entertain you. If you want to see one that strictly is a fun, entertaining film then you must see “The Greatest Showman.” I know, I know it is a musical and not everyone enjoys these particular kind of films but this is one that I just cannot imagine anyone not enjoying. 

The plot is simple - it is a story about the beginning of PT Barnum’s circus and the people he helped find a home/family because of their differences and/or special talents - and is not complicated to follow. Hugh Jackman and Michelle Williams both do a great job in their roles as childhood sweethearts - him coming from a very poor family, her from a wealthy family whose father rejects Hugh Jackman’s character due to his low status in society and tells him he will amount to nothing. 

So while the plot itself is ‘simple,’ the music itself is so integral to the plot that you cannot help but enjoy scene after scene. Being set in a circus world, the people or ‘oddities’ who are introduced are captivating and the cinematography is really good. Speaking of the music, the dance sequences are so good and the music is perfect for each scene. There is one in particular that is so beautiful that you are just pulled into it as if you are really there. This is a happy, feel good movie that I could watch over and over again. Definitely a good one to see.

"There’s no such thing as bad publicity,"
-- P. T. Barnum

Coco

I love Disney & Pixar movies and cannot believe that it took me 3 years since its release for me to watch ‘Coco.’ This is a visually stunning film and one that has such special meaning since it's about family and remembering those who have gone on before us. What I love about this film is that, while it focuses on the annual Mexican celebration Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead), which is a time when families gather to honor and remember deceased loved ones (it is believed that the souls of the dead return to visit the living families in homes, businesses and cemeteries), this is a cultural celebration whose meaning applies to each and everyone of us. The animation, colors and music in this film are all amazing and if you don’t feel your heart being tugged on at the end of this film then you need to have it checked. 'Coco' is a beautiful film.

The Way Back

For those people who love sports and films about sports, the recently released “The Way Back” is definitely for you. This is one of the best sports themed films I've seen in a very long time for several reasons. (For those not familiar with this movie, it's about a former high school sports star who ends up stepping in as head coach at his former school where he played due to the current coach having to step down for health reasons.)

First, and I will try to say this without ruining anything about the film, it does not follow that typical down-and-out athlete or coach story who all of a sudden makes a miraculous turnaround and then either makes the greatest save or score or win for the team and all ends happily ever after. No, the story-line in this one definitely strays away from that which was a nice surprise. 

Second, it has a plot twist that totally caught me off guard and punched me in the gut. Some people might say that they could see it coming a mile away but perhaps it was the way the film progressed that made me miss it until it happened. The other thing I loved was the scenes of the young men playing basketball. It felt like you were in the game with the players and you could feel the coach’s (portrayed by Ben Affleck) enthusiasm carry over into their games as they proceeded to get better and better. 

Finally, the performances are superb, particularly that of Ben Affleck. What an outstanding job he does playing coach Jack Cunningham. He also does an excellent job carrying this film with his performance and he makes you root for him (while being mad at him at the same time)! This performance is one that demands recognition and I hope that he won't be overlooked during awards season as he's so good. Great film!

Sound of Metal

Talk about an absolutely stunning performance in a great movie - definitely check out Riz Ahmed as musician Ruben Stone in the film, ‘Sound of Metal.’ It's one of those performances that makes your mouth drop as well as feel every emotion the actor feels in his/her portrayal.

The film is about a heavy-metal drummer in a band with his girlfriend who begins to suddenly lose his hearing. A former heroin addict, but four years clean, he begins to panic and feels that he's spiraling out of control. His girlfriend is worried that he's going to revert back to his drug use to deal with the situation so she gets him into a house for people learning to adjust to life as a deaf person. Ok, this is where people might think the film would fall apart and into the trap of sentimental, heartfelt overload. But thank goodness it doesn't do that. Ruben is given an opportunity and he slowly begins to try and adapt to his new life as a deaf person, learning sign language and developing relationships with those who live in the home. But the whole time he has plans to try and revert to his former life as a musician on the road and living in his RV with his girlfriend again, moving from city to city and playing gig after gig. Without giving anything else away, I'll say that things do not exactly fall into place as he expects.

The acting by the cast in this film is all good but this movie definitely belongs to Ahmed and rightly so. He puts his whole heart into this performance, learning to play drums and sign language. I'll back up on an earlier comment and admit that there were a couple of touching moments and the ending is a killer at playing with your mind and heart.

Definitely one film that pulled at my heart strings, not only because I'm a person who loves music immensely and couldn't imagine going through what Ahmed’s character does, but also because it teaches so many good lessons while not doing overkill. It's a well balanced, well made film with a tour de force performance!

Top Gun

A Quiet Place II

Well, the summer movie event of 2021 is ‘A Quiet Place Part II.’ I have to say a couple of things about this and that is: 1) it's been a long time since I've jumped a couple of times like this during a movie; and 2) I actually found this sequel to be better than the original. Definitely an unusual case for me. In fact, I can’t recall - other than ‘The Godfather Part II’ and ‘Aliens’ - seeing a sequel that's better than the original. Such a great, psychological thriller, which is how I would classify this film. I also want to point out that everyone did a great job in their roles, especially Emily Blunt, who plays mom Evelyn Abbott, and Noah Jupe, who plays son Marcus Abbott. The way they bounced off each other made the relationship between them seem so real. The other thing I loved about this film is how multiple action scenes were taking place simultaneously between key characters. Brilliantly used in this film! Speaking of ‘Aliens’, I see this and the original film as the ‘Alien’ of this generation.

The film starts with a great setup, showing how all of this started from day 1 - definitely nerve-wracking and a great way to start the sequel - and then jumps to day 400+. Blunt, excellent in her role, is still trying to survive with her 3 kids - one being an infant - in this new world where everyone has to be quiet so the noise-sensitive alien creatures can't hear them. As they move from one place to the next, all goes well until the inevitable trip-up when Blunt’s character hits a trip wire and they have to run, literally, for their lives. They end up meeting up with Emmett, played by Cillian Murphy, a former family friend who lives life hiding out on his own but who eventually teams up with Blunt’s daughter, Regan, played by Millicent Simmond, to try and find a safe place to live.

The action, suspense and dialogue - more in this than the original - is great and keeps you on the edge of your seat. If I had to find any fault with the film it would be the lack of screen time for actor Djimon Hounsou, from ‘Amistad’, who I definitely wish had a bigger role.

This is definitely a nail biter and I loved it!

Grease

Grease -- a popular film that I grew up loving and still stop to watch anytime it's playing on cable or network stations. I love it because this is another one in which the soundtrack is a key aspect of the film and you know just about every song that's played. Mr. Travolta struck gold again (I mean, two major blockbuster hits back-to-back!) with this one and at that point it seemed that he could do no wrong -- which we would eventually find out wasn't the case at all, since he made some major stinkers later.

And poor Olivia Newton-John...what a debut! Starring in one of the biggest movies (at that time) only yo never have another hit. But the appeal of the movie itself is, I think, that it takes the audience back to a more 'innocent' era -- the 50s is one where you, at least I do, think of 'Happy Days', soda shops, clean tv shows, etc.

Amazingly, the movie itself still holds up pretty well -- even today. The acting is solid and the cast does a great job. It's hard to believe that this was released so long ago -- in 1978.  

Saturday Night Fever

"Saturday Night Fever" is a film that defined a generation. It confirmed John Travolta's acting talent for sure but the soundtrack, along with the attitude and dance scenes in the movie sealed its place in cinematic history. I mean, who hasn't seen -- or even mimicked -- the hand gestures of the dance-move from the song "Staying Alive"? 

The film just happened to come along at the right time as people were being introduced to the new dance craze known as disco. The combination of the timing and music meant the movie was destined to be a hit. Now, I'm not saying that "SNF" is the best film by any means, but it was different and the music made it captivating. It deserves to be considered a classic.  

The Northman

I really don't even know where to begin with ‘The Northman’, the much anticipated and talked about Viking film from director Robert Eggers, who also directed the critically-acclaimed films, ‘The Lighthouse’ and ‘The Witch’, which in my opinion is one of the creepiest films I have seen since ‘The Exorcist’ (needless to say, I can never look at a goat the same way again).

Let me start with the most obvious thing I think there is about this film and that is that it is visually stunning. I mean it has absolutely beautiful visuals as far the scenery, costumes, set pieces, and even the (much) blood and gore. Not that I would know what the old world would have looked like, by any means, but I can only imagine Eggers must be close in capturing the era as it seems realistic. One character in particular who's getting a lot of attention is the Seeress, played by indie singer Bjork. And based on some of her album covers and how she has dressed on stage, this film was right up her alley. Although she doesn't appear long in the film, she was captivating for sure.

The other obvious thing about the movie is that, if you have seen Eggers’ other films, you can tell that this was a vision directed by him. The film work itself and the use of the lighting and scenes and close up all work the same as in his other movies. Not to mention the fact that even this film had a sense of creepiness about it. I don’t know, the themes and things he has come up with and introduced into his films is just odd and, sorry to repeat, creepy. If you want action, blood-and-gore, revenge and more then you definitely need to see this one. It's sometimes hard to follow - in my opinion - from a plot perspective, but it's based on an ancient tale that Shakespeare himself wrote about in ‘Hamlet’, which he supposedly used to write his famous work.

As far as the actors go, everyone goes all out in this one and they do a great job, especially Alexander Skarsgård. He definitely steals the show and is a commanding presence, no doubt.

Joker

I've been waiting on this particular film to come out for months, which is rather ironic considering I don’t really care for films based on comic books. However, the difference here is that this film isn't like any other ‘comic book’ film. It's truly a stand-alone piece of work and the main character is a ‘regular’ human being - completely insane, of course, but still a human being and not some blue creature from a far off planet or an alien with unique super powers.

The main thing I can tell anyone is to not go into this film expecting action right away. This is definitely a film that focuses on studying the main character, Arthur Fleck (played by Joaquin Phoenix), and how he goes about his poor, sad and lonely life each day. As each passing day goes by, you can sense the frustration that Arthur experiences and see him going deeper and deeper into darkness. You know that nothing good is going to happen as you watch him interact with those around him. While he descends into his madness, you can almost pity him as you see how he's treated and what he learns later on in the film about his younger years and his life. However, that does not by any means excuse him from his actions as the course of the film goes on. In my opinion, we see a failure of both Arthur, his mother, co-workers and others taking responsibility for their actions as well as our society and the ‘system’ as far as how others are helped or, better yet, not helped. It's really a sad state of affairs overall.

The plot of the film is believable and the storyline is really well done but at the same time this movie is a very ‘dark’ and grim film to watch. It is absolutely intense and will definitely stay with you after it's over, which, honestly, I love because it means the director, actors and all involved have done a great job. It definitely made me think about Arthur and his circumstances and how I wish things could have been different for him. But at the same time, I found him revolting for thinking he could just take ‘justice’ into his own hands.

The casting in the film was spot-on with the exception, in my opinion, of Robert De Niro, who plays talk show host Murray Franklin, one of Arthur’s heroes. I just didn't feel that De Niro was believable in this role and he appeared to be out of place. But the other actors were amazing. Which brings me, of course, to Joaquin Phoenix and his role as Joker. Mr. Phoenix absolutely gives a tour de force performance! All I can say is that he's incredible and I couldn't help but see how engrossed he was in the character. If he doesn't get the Oscar - which I know we're still early on yet before that time of year - then something's wrong. Go ahead and give the man his award now. This is an amazing film that is haunting and yet beautiful to watch at the same time!

Jaws

There are movies in life that can impact us in many ways, both positive and negative, of course. As individuals, as a culture, as groups. But in my opinion, no other film -- to this day -- that's had the overall type of impact that Jaws did on society upon release. When I say this I mean that even now people still talk about the effect it's had on them and their feelings about going into the ocean. 

Just a couple of weeks ago, while I was on vacation at the beach, I met a family who was talking about their kids and how they had watched Jaws and Shark Week and didn't want to go in the water! And I'm with them one-hundred percent! When I get in the water I'm always watching around me and thinking in my head, "Please don't let there be a shark!" This film changed everyone's perception about going to the beach and swimming in the ocean. Having read several articles and watched many shows on the topic, I can tell you that scientists weren't happy about it because they believed that Jaws gave sharks a bad name. Basically, scientists consider them to be miracles, as far as animals are concerned, and want people to realize that we're swimming in the sharks' home -- not ours.

With all that being said, I love Jaws for the following reasons: One, I read the book, which was very good, and I think that the movie was pretty faithful to it -- with the exception of a key part regarding Chief Brody's wife and Matt Hooper (We won't go there because it's so inconceivable!); Also, I loved the drama and -- for the time -- realistic horror scenes. That opening scene of the woman getting shaken back-and-forth in the water is one of the most terrifying moments ever. When she gets to the buoy you hope she's going to be ok but when she's pulled under you just know that it's over for her. Although the discovery of body parts was pretty gross at the time, you can tell that it's not real today. The scene with the boy on the float is horrible because things like that have actually happened and when his mother confronts Brody on the dock it's gut-wrenching.

Another key scene is Quint's recounting the horror of the sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the sharks' subsequent feeding on the sailors. I've since read that some liberties were taken but the facts weren't too far off. And besides, it doesn't matter. That was an amazing scene. You could hear a pin drop in the theater when he was telling that story (I read that costar Richard Dreyfuss was blown away by Robert Shaw's performance during that scene). The irony of him having survived and then ending up getting killed by that shark!

Another reason I love Jaws is that it was the first summer blockbuster to be released. This was the first film to gross over $100 million! The movie came out in 1975 and I'll never forget riding by movie theaters and seeing people lined up for what seemed like blocks to get in to see it. The film was talked about for months! I'll never forget how nervous I was when I finally got to see it -- my mom and dad had to see it first to approve -- and being 12 at the time, it was a big deal to see such a film. It definitely made a lasting impression on me and many others.

Oh, and last but not least, how can anyone forget that music composed by John Williams!

Star Wars

Star Wars was released on May 25, 1977. I wasn't quite 12 at the time but I remember seeing the trailer for it and couldn't wait. You could tell it was going to be unlike anything seen before in terms of filmmaking and that the special effects were going to be amazing. All the kids in my neighborhood -- and adults -- were buzzing about it. Well needless to say, the build-up was worth the wait. I remember from the opening scene of the dialogue scrolling on the screen that there was excitement in the room and then when the ships and various firefights came screeching across everyone was just amazed.

From that point on, the summer of 1977 was all about Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, R2D2, Chewbacca, C3PO and Darth Vader. People just couldn't get enough of it -- pajamas, Halloween costumes, games and, especially, toys, were the rage. Needless to say, a film and retail empire had been born and everyone couldn't wait for the next film to be released.