'Black Mirror: Bandersnatch' Movie Review
Posted on Dec. 29, 2018 on FanBolt.com
Saturday, December 29, 2018
Friday, December 28, 2018
Thursday, December 27, 2018
Wednesday, December 26, 2018
Mike's Top Ten Movies of 2018
Mike's Top Ten Movies of 2018
Posted on Dec. 26, 2018 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com
Mike’s Top Ten Films of 2018
1. Roma (2018) R
Two-time Oscar winner (Gravity, 2013) Alfonso Cuaron brings us a tale of a family in transition in the early 1970s in Mexico City. Based on Cuaron’s own childhood the center of the film is a live-in maid named Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio) as she tends to a large family. Roma is a beautiful film, shot in glorious black and white. Aparicio is brilliant as the maid who would do anything to make sure the children she cares for are loved and safe. The film takes place over a year as the marriage of the husband and wife falls apart. Cleo tries to make the lives of the children as normal as possible, but she is dealing with a dead-beat boyfriend and a ton of other problems. This was a passion project for Cuaron, and it shows on the screen. This is one of the best films of the year and a shoo-in for a ton of Oscar nominations.
2. Won’t You Be My Neighbor? (2018) PG-13
The exploration of the life of the beloved PBS staple Fred Rogers. This is a loving look at the life of the soft-spoken Mr. Rogers who shaped children’s lives for generations. The film explores how he started his legendary Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood and how he developed that series. I will warn you that you are going to cry at least once during this moving film. He wasn’t a perfect man, but man did we need him and his outlook on the world. We still do.
3. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) PG
Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) has been bitten by a radioactive spider and has become Spider-Man. When alternate universe Spider-people start showing up, they decide to team up and save the world from Kingpin (Liev Schreiber). Not only is this one of the best animated films of the year, it’s one of the best overall films of the year. The storyline is highly creative, and the movie is hilarious. I loved all the ‘Spider-People’ especially Peter B. Parker voiced by Jake Johnson, a sort of sad sack Spider-Man, Gwen Stacy, ‘Spider-Woman’ voiced by Hailee Steinfeld and Spider-Ham a ‘Spider-Pig[ voiced by John Mulaney. The ending is satisfying, and I can’t wait to see the spinoffs that they will be doing.
4. Eighth Grade (2018) R
Kayla (Elsie Fisher) is all about blending into the woodwork so that she doesn’t stand out. All Kayla wants to do is survive the last week of the eighth grade so she can start high school on a clean slate. Life has decided that Kayla should come out of the shadows. Kayla decides to give advice on how to navigate life through a series of YouTube videos. I loved this film, and Elsie Fisher is a delight to watch on the screen. Her performance is heartfelt and beautiful and writer/director Bo Burnham treats her with a loving touch. The film is filled with wonderful moments about an awkward kid trying just to survive one last week of school. This is a film that everyone will enjoy going into the last week of eighth grade with Kayla.
5. The Favourite (2018) R
In early 18th century England, a frail Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) occupies the throne. Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) and a new servant, Abigail (Emma Stone) vie for the attention of the Queen. While Colman, Weisz, and Stone give Oscar-worthy performances, I would like to single out Nicholas Hoult as a snarky Earl who uses any means necessary to obtain power. Hoult’s wisecracks and put-downs are the best part of the film, and there is an incredible outdoor scene with Emma Stone that will have you laughing out loud. The makeup, the sets, and the costumes are simply breathtaking. This tale of two women who battle over who can gain the affection and ear of the Queen is brilliant. Think Dangerous Liaisons with a touch of a lesbian War of the Roses.
6. Paddington 2 (2017) PG
Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw), who is happily living with the Brown family (Sally Hawkins, Hugh Bonneville), picks up a series of odd jobs around the neighborhood to buy the perfect present for Aunt Lucy’s (voiced by Imelda Staunton) 100th birthday party. I loved the first Paddington film and found it fun and delightful. I am happy to say that this movie is even better than the first. The CGI special effects are breathtaking, as the film has a number of close-ups of Paddington that show fantastic detail. The movie is full of funny scenes, and I love how Paddington is so nice and polite that he even wins over hardened criminals to his way of positively looking at life. Paddington 2 is a film that the whole family can love and enjoy. We all need a little Paddington in our lives. Be sure to stay through the credits as there is a wonderful surprise at the end.
7. A Star Is Born (2018) R
A legendary musician, Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) takes a young singer (Lady Gaga) under his wing and guides her to becoming a star, all the while his career beings to suffer due to his drinking. This is a fantastic movie with an excellent soundtrack (some of the songs were written by Cooper and of course, Lady Gaga). I highly recommend going out and buying the music to this film because there isn’t a bad song in the bunch. Bradley Cooper not only co-wrote the film and stars in it, but he also directed the film and did an incredible job. I had doubts about Lady Gaga in the role, but she knocks it out of the park with a multi-level performance that will bring you to tears. Cooper is perfect as the weathered music star whose career has seen better times. I can’t recommend this film more. Go see this magical film but bring a tissue or two.
8. If Beale Street Could Talk (2018) R
A newly engaged and pregnant woman (Tish Rivers) in Harlem struggles to prove that her fiancé (Stephan James) is innocent of a crime. This emotional and stunning film is one of the best films of the year. Rivers and James give outstanding performances but the performance of Regina King, as James’s character’s mother is the best thing about this film. Although set in the 1970s, this film could easily be set in 2018, and its message would be the same. This is a magical film that everyone should see.
9. Black Panther (2018) PG-13
After the events of Captain America: Civil War, King T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) returns to his country only to be challenged by a rival faction. Now T’Challa as the Black Panther teams up with C.I.A. agent Ross (Martin Freeman) to try and defeat the evil Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) and keep his countrymen free. This is a groundbreaking superhero movie because it doesn’t focus on the action sequences (though they are incredible) but focuses on the people and their back stories. The film feels extraordinarily personal and close up. You get to know why the heroes and villains become who they are now and why they are so driven. Michael B. Jordan’s character, Erik Killmonger, is the best Marvel villain ever. His backstory is exceptional and riveting. He is a character whom you hate, but you also understand why he does what he does. What I loved about this film is how many female characters kick butt. Letitia Wright, as the younger sister of T’Challa, steals every scene that she is in as the smart but snarky woman who is the brains behind the technology that T’Challa uses as Black Panther. I loved the humor in this film, which feels real and personable. This is one of the best Marvel films out there, but it’s also one of the best films of the year. Be sure and stay through all the credits as there are two bonus scenes.
10. A Quiet Place (2018) PG-13
A family of four is forced to live in silence while hiding from horrible creatures that hunt by sound. John Krasinski, who co-wrote the script and directed the film, has brought us one of the best horror films of the past ten years. The film is almost a silent film, as the family mostly communicates with sign language. Krasinski builds the tension throughout, making it far scarier than most jump-out-of-the-dark horror films. I loved the camera work in this movie, as it’s always giving us exciting angles and continually moving. The creatures in the movie are horrific and scary. The whole cast, which includes Krasinski’s wife, Emily Blunt, Noah Jupe, Millicent Simmonds, and Cade Woodward, are brilliant in this film, with Blunt and Simmonds standing out. At my screening, the crowd was quiet, and one person told me that they didn’t eat their popcorn because they were scared the creatures would get them. Don’t miss out on this unique movie-going experience.
Honorable Mention: Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Crazy Rich Asians, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, BlackKkKlansman, Shoplifters, Private Life, Annihilation, Mission Impossible: Fallout, Leave No Trace, Sorry to Bother You, First Reformed, The Rider, You Were Never Really Here, The Great Buster, The Guilty, Blaze, Pick of the Litter, RBG, Lilyana, Blindspotting, Mary Poppins Returns, Thoroughbreds, Love Simon, Isle of Dogs, Blockers, Lean of Pete, The Rider, Tully, Once Upon a Deadpool, Hearts Beat Loud, Ant Man and the Wasp, Three Identical Strangers, Puzzle, A Simple Favor
Monday, December 24, 2018
'Vice'
'Vice' Movie Review
'Vice'
Posted on Dec. 24, 2018 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com
Photo courtesy of Annapurna
Vice (2018) R
We first see the following statement on the screen: ‘The following is a true story. Or as true as it can be given that Dick Cheney is one of the most secretive leaders in history. But we did our best.’
We see a bunch of men gambling on a table and drinking, as one of the men keeps hollering. It appears to be in the 1950s. Next, we are on the road, the car weaving in and out of its lane. The car is not only swerving from side to side, but it’s also speeding. We cut to the car has now been pulled over by a highway patrolman, and we see the patrolman approaching the vehicle. He shines his light into the front seat of the car and taps on the window. The driver, Dick Cheney (Christian Bale) waves at the officer and rolls down the window. A radio is playing, and Cheney is signing along with the radio. The officer asks Dick to exit the car, and Dick takes one more drag on his cigarette and then drunkenly stumbles out of the car, going to his knees as the officer grabs Dick before he can fall to the floor as the scene fades to black.
Photo courtesy of Annapurna
We hear an alarm going off in the White House. Secret Service officers are telling Cheney to move. As the men race Cheney out of the room, the camera pans to show a TV airing the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers on 9/11. The men push Cheney into a secure room as one of the security detail get word that a plane has just hit the Pentagon. Vice President Cheney from the ‘Presidential Emergency Operations Center’ begins barking orders to the people in the room. As Cheney looks around the room, a bunch of worried staff talk about how many planes are still in the air and how one plane has just crashed in the fields of Pennsylvania. We see National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice (LisaGay Hamilton) on the phone trying to gather information about the attacks. She informs the Vice President that she has the President on line one. He tells the President that the situation is ‘very fluid’ and suggests that he stay in the air aboard Air Force One. He informs the President that he has sequestered top congressmen and Cheney will talk with the President when he knows more. The Vice President hangs up and then talks to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld over the phone. Rumsfeld asks the Vice President for ‘Rules of Engagement’ to deal with the passenger planes still in the air. Condoleezza Rice suggests getting the President back on the line, and he tells her no. The Vice President tells Rumsfeld that he has the authorization to shoot down any aircraft ‘deemed a threat.’ Rumsfeld asks if this is under ‘Presidential authority’ and the Vice President confirms that it is. A narrator starts talking about what went on in that room that day. While everyone else in the room was feeling fear, confusion, uncertainty, the narrator tells us that Dick Cheney sees something that no one else saw in that room, ‘opportunity.’
This is the start of Vice the remarkable life of Dick Cheney, who went from drunk and working for very little pay to the most powerful man in the world. The problem is what was stated at the beginning of the film, that Cheney is a very secretive man, heck, he and his wife stayed in an undisclosed bunker for six months after 9/11. The problem with a man like Cheney is that you never really know what they are thinking, they hold everything very close to his vest, making it hard for the filmmaker, writer/director Adam McKay, to know exactly what his main character’s motives are, other than to get as much power as he can. So McKay has to make things up and much like his Oscar-winning 2016 film The Big Short, he uses comedy to fill in the gaps. Sometimes it works, as with a running gag that involves Cheney and his health that is fall on the floor funny, but at other times instead of funny, the attempt becomes just strange, making a peculiar film even more offbeat.
The core of this film is the performance of Christian Bale, whose appearance is a chameleon-like transformation. There were times watching this film that I forgot this was the same actor that fills the role of Batman in the ‘Dark Knight’ trilogy. Bale, using unbelievably effective prosthetics and either one of the greats fat suits ever used, or Bale gained all that weight for the role, it’s hard to believe that he isn’t Dick Cheney in real life. Other actors undergo similar transformations, including Tyler Perry (yes, that Tyler Perry) as Colin Powell, Sam Rockwell as President George W. Bush and Steve Carell as Donald Rumsfeld. At the very least, this film will be a Hair and Makeup Oscar nomination, if not a win
It is not just the hair and make-up that make Bale’s performance so exceptional, it’s the actor himself, who probably had to go deep inside himself to try to figure out the complex man that he played in the role. I did find Sam Rockwell’s performance of President Bush a little too cartoony. I mean it seemed, at least on the surface, that Bush was a pretty simple man, but Rockwell goes way over the top in making the President almost buffoon-like. Amy Adams isn’t given a whole lot to work with as Dick’s wife Lynne Cheney, though I did enjoy a scene where she has taken over Dick’s speeches when he suffers a health crisis. Besides Bale, the other performance that stands out is Steve Carell as the power fueled Donal Rumsfeld, who feels he is better than anyone in the room. Carell gives a masterful performance of a man who thought he would go further than he actually did.
At one point, I started to feel that the film drag, as McKay tries to give us the whole life of Cheney instead of solely concentrating on the White House years. McKay spends a lot of time showing us the early years, where a newly married Cheney was drinking too much, spending what little money he made in throw away jobs while getting into fights and arrested for drunk driving. I did find it interesting that Cheney became an assistant of Rumsfeld at the old age of 35 (most of his fellow assistants were in their twenties). It shows the drive and conviction that Cheney had to succeed after given the riot act by his wife to clean up his life or she would leave.
Even though I have some problems with the Vice, it is worth seeing for the performances by Bale and Carell. You may be horrified by the Bush administrations policies at the time and how much power that Cheney had, but you will be amazed by the performances in the film My Rating: Full Price
My rating system from best to worst: 1). I Would Pay to See it Again 2). Full Price 3). Bargain Matinee 4). Cable 5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again
Friday, December 14, 2018
Thursday, December 13, 2018
'Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle'
'Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle' Movie Review
Posted on Dec. 11, 2018 on FanBolt.com
Thursday, December 6, 2018
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Thursday, November 29, 2018
Wednesday, November 28, 2018
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
'The Christmas Chronicles'
'The Christmas Chronicles' Movie Review
Posted on Nov. 27,2018on FanBolt.com
Sunday, November 18, 2018
"The Great Buster: A Celebration"
'The Great Buster: A Celebration' Movie Review
Posted on November, 18, 2018 on FanBolt.com
Friday, November 16, 2018
Tuesday, November 13, 2018
Friday, November 9, 2018
Monday, November 5, 2018
'The Legend of Cocaine Island'
'The Legend of Cocaine Island' Movie Review
Posted on Nov. 5, 2018 on FanBolt.com
Friday, October 26, 2018
Monday, October 22, 2018
Monday, October 15, 2018
'The Kindergarten Teacher'
'The Kindergarten Teacher' Movie Review
Posted on Oct. 15, 2018 on FanBolt.com
Friday, October 12, 2018
Thursday, October 11, 2018
Friday, October 5, 2018
Thursday, October 4, 2018
"Venom'
'Venom' Movie Review
Posted on Oct. 4, 2018 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com
Photo courtesy of Columbia Pictures
"Venom" (2018)
Eddie (Tom Hardy) is an investigative reporter for a network in San Francisco who is own worst enemy. He is engaged to Anne (Michelle Williams), a lawyer that works for a large but shady corporation. Eddie is set to interview the CEO of the corporation, Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed), a man who developed a way to cure some forms of cancer while in his twenties. Drake, a very self-assured man, is on a mission to save the world, and through his corporation, he is sending out spaceships to look for worlds that humans could inhabit before humans destroy the earth’s environment. One ship comes in contact with extraterrestrial life, and they bring back four samples of alien life. The spaceship crashes and an alien escapes, a blob that has the ability to take over human bodies by osmosis. The alien has many different types of super-human capabilities that allow it to do just about anything.
Eddie is hell-bent on exposing Drake’s shady company, and he opens a file on his fiancée’s computer which has evidence that Drake’s cancer cure is actually killing people. When Eddie tries to expose Drake, he loses his job and his fiancée. A down on his luck, Eddie meets Dr. Dora Skirth (Jenny Slate) who wants Eddie to investigate the experiments that Drake is conducting using homeless people to fuse with the alien blobs. With the help of Dr. Skirth, Eddie breaks into Drake’s lab and comes in contact with one of the aliens who invade his body. It turns out that the alien is named Venom and can talk to Eddie in his mind, with Eddie talking back out loud. Venom wants Eddie to help him steal one of Drake’s spaceships, so Venom can go back to his world and gather an invasion force to come back and conquer Earth.
Photo courtesy of Columbia Pictures
I went into this film with minimum expectations, and all I knew about the Venom character was from the horrible Spiderman 3. That being said, I enjoyed this film. It was very different than what I was expecting. The Venom character is what you would call an ‘anti-hero.’ He really isn’t about the normal Marvel hero who is all about saving lives, he is all about what is best for him. Teaming Venom up with the self-called ‘loser’ in Eddie makes their interactions very funny. Venom doesn’t understand how Eddie’s world works, all Venom knows is how to kill and survive. Eddie becomes someone how can survive just about anything, including falling off a tall building or bullets fired at him. The interactions between Eddie and Venom are quite funny, and when Venom takes over Eddie’s body, I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of humor in this film – making it feel very different from other Marvel films (other than Deadpool). This humor may make some of the comic book fans of Venom mad because the comics don’t contain a lot of humor.
Photo courtesy of Columbia Pictures
The action sequences are well done, and there is a thrilling chase sequence about halfway through the film up and down the hilly streets of San Francisco. The special effects are well done, and Venomis incredibly scary.
This is a very different role for Tom Hardy. Eddie is a selfish jerk who is willing to do anything to get the story, usually with adverse consequences. It’s hard to root for Hardy’s Eddie at the start of the film, but once Venom takes over, you warm up to Eddie. Michelle Williams isn’t given very much to do until the end of the film, and even then it’s not much. I did like Riz Ahmed as the villain of the story, and I loved Jenny Slate as the doctor with a conscious who helps Eddie try to expose Drake’s evil plan.
Photo courtesy of Columbia Pictures
I didn’t like that fact that it took too long for Venom to show up (about 35 minutes into the movie) which made the film much longer than it needed to be. All in all Venom is a fun ride, it’s not a great film, just fun to watch. Be sure to stick around through all the credits as there are two bonus scenes, one after the main credits and another after all the credits. Both are worth the wait. My Rating: Bargain Matinee
My rating system from best to worst: 1). I Would Pay to See it Again 2). Full Price 3). Bargain Matinee 4). Cable 5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again
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