Mike's Movie Tips

The way the media and politicians are going on about it, it is only a matter of time before this Ebola outbreak becomes a modern day Black Death (which killed around 75-100 million people from 1346-1353, including 30-60% of Europe's population).  In reality, it's more like the O.J. Simpson trial: a moderately interesting news story that doesn't deserve a fraction of the coverage it gets. Don't get me wrong.  Ebola is a deadly disease with a fatality rate between 25 and 90% (admittedly, not a very specific statistic).  There is also no standard treatment except to try and alleviate the symptoms.  It is also highly contagious. It sounds very scary, but here's the thing: transmission is difficult.  In order to become infected, you have to have contact with the blood or body fluids of someone who is infected...and that's only AFTER they begin to show symptoms.  If a person isn't showing symptoms, they're not contagious (and if they are, they're going...

3.5/4 Not Rated A few years ago, I recall seeing a story about Kelsey Grammar (I think) falling onstage.  He didn't get hurt, and it wasn't even a big fall.  If I remember correctly, he was on the edge of the stage and his foot slipped.  He fell to his knee and got back up.  I remember thinking to myself...so?  Who cares? To be perfectly honest, the concept of celebrity bores me.  I really don't care what so-and-so does in their free time.  I'd rather watch one of Angelina Jolie's movies than see a gossip spread in US Weekly about what the interior of her home looks like.  And I really could care less about what Nicole Kidman was wearing when she took out the trash yesterday. Apparently, though, there are people who drink this stuff up.  Celebrity photography is a billion dollar industry, and the problem is only getting worse.  Major news outlets are running celebrity gossip stories now too.  A story about whatever Branjelin...

3.5/4 Starring: Ben Schnetzer, Joseph Gilgun, Faye Marsay, Dominic West, George McKay, Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, Jessica Gunning, Paddy Considine Rated R for Language and Brief Sexual Content Gay movies are common enough that they are their own genre, but they're mostly direct-to-DVD (and for good reason...remember " Ben & Arthur ?").  Gay movies that are strong enough to get a theatrical release are rare.  "Pride" (not to be confused with the 2007 sports movie starring Terrence Howard and the late Bernie Mac) is among the select few that is a gay movie of high quality. It's 1984.  Margaret Thatcher has closed down a number of mines, which has led many miners to go on strike.  A young activist named Mark (Schnetzer) decides that the gays and lesbians of London should support them.  He faces hostility from his fellow "gays and lezzies" ("What have the miners ever done for us?" one asks), but he is undaunted.  The few who agr...

2/4 Starring: Annabelle Wallis, Ward Horton, Alfre Woodard, Tony Amendola Rated R for Intense Sequences of Disturbing Violence and Terror There are four things every horror movie must have: a threatening atmosphere, a sense of rhythm and pacing, identifiable characters, and a plot that establishes a set of rules about what can and cannot happen...and follows them.  These are absolute and non-negotiable.  No horror movie can succeed without them.  "Annabelle," the prequel in name only to last year's surprise hit " The Conjuring ," only succeeds in one area.  I bought into the world that the filmmakers established and believed that everything that happened was plausible in it.  Unfortunately, more is needed.  The film doesn't have a lot of atmosphere, is poorly paced and the characters are boring. The film opens with a short clip of four girls being interviewed the Warrens (it's from the original film).  The clip is a mistake; it's inclusion is...

3.5/4 Starring: Brad Pitt, Logan Lerman, Michael Pena, Shia LaBoeuf, Jon Bernthal, Jason Isaacs Rated R for Strong Sequences of War Violence, Some Grisly Images, and Language Throughout In 1998, Steven Spielberg released his revisionist WWII epic, " Saving Private Ryan ," which changed the face of war films forever.  The days of gung-ho macho warriors were over.  Movies like "Black Hawk Down" and " Enemy at the Gates " were the face of war in film. This year, screenwriter-turned-director David Ayer has tried to do something similar.  "Fury" isn't as innovative nor is its punch as strong as "Saving Private Ryan," but Ayer takes some of Spielberg's ideas and further develops them.  Next to the battle scenes, the most impressive aspect of the film is Ayer's attention to detail, which is fine-tuned and adds to the sense of realism. "Fury" is more of a slice-of-life movie than a story-oriented one, although th...

2/4 Starring (voices): Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, Channing Tatum, Ron Perlman, Kate del Castillo, Hector Elizondo, Carlos Alazraqui, Christina Applegate, Ice Cube Rated PG for Mild Action, Rude Humor, Some Thematic Elements and Brief Scary Images Guillermo del Toro really wants "The Book of Life" to be just like something out of the Disney canon (the good ones from the early 90's).  He and his director, Jorge R. Gutierrez, even borrow from the best of them, the most obvious being " Beauty and the Beast ," "Aladdin" and " Hercules ."  Sadly, it doesn't really come together.  The film definitely has its moments and gets points for spectacle, but it lacks the one thing that made the Disney greats so special: humanity.  The characters in movies like "Beauty and the Beast" felt like living, breathing creatures.  The ones in the book of life are stick figures. A group of kids are being herded to a museum for a field trip they ha...

1/4 Starring: Michelle Monaghan, James Marsden, Liana Liberato, Luke Bracey, Gerald McRaney, Sean Bridgers Rated PG-13 for Sexuality, Violence, Some Drug Content and Brief Strong Language Nicholas Sparks has distilled the "romantic tearjerker" genre down to a science.  He's become a genre all on his own.  When someone says "a Nicholas Sparks movie," you know exactly what you're getting: relaxed, Deep South culture, rich girl meets poor guy (both of whom are very photogenic), romance that most are against except a sage old man, violent/deadly plot twists and and ending that wraps everything up in a nice tidy little package.  No, it's not realistic, but Nicholas Sparks is not Richard Linklater, and none of his movies have ever been " Before Sunset ."  Sparks sells a fantasy, and he knows how to package it and sell it so that people will come back again and again. I haven't seen every movie based on his books (I've seen " The ...

2.5/4 Starring: Luke Evans, Sarah Gadon, Art Parkinson, Diarmaid Murtaugh, Dominic Cooper, Charles Dance Rated PG-13 for Intense Sequences of Warfare, Vampire Attacks, Disturbing Images and Some Sensuality It seems that every few months we get another vampire movie (thank you, Stephanie Meyer !).  At least in this one, there's no teen angst, goth girls and emo boys, and the bloodsuckers don't sparkle.  But it is PG-13, and that turns out to be its undoing. 20 years ago, the Turkish sultan came to Transylvania demanding 1000 boys for his army to be used as cannon fodder.  He also took the son of the king, who eventually put a stop to it by ravaging one of the Turkish towns, thus earning himself the name Vlad the Impaler (I think...the intro isn't especially coherent).  But Vlad is not the psychopath that history and legend have rumored him to be.  He is, in fact, a loving husband to his wife Mirena (Gordon) and son Ingeras (Parkinson), and a good king to ...

2/4 Starring: Ben Johnson, Andrew Prine Rated R (probably for Graphic Violence) Chalk this one up with " Hollow Man " in the list of movies that should have been a lot better than they actually were.  I mean, what is scarier than living in a small town with a masked killer on the loose and police who are unable to catch him? 1946.  Texarkana, Arkansas is a small town on the border of Texas and Arkansas.  The majority of the town's young men have returned from fighting in World War II, and everyone seems to be looking forward to peace and rebuilding.  One night, two young people seeking some private time in one of the town's many "Lover's Lanes" are viciously attacked by a man in a mask.  The police are on the case, but there's very little evidence to go on.  Shortly thereafter, two other people are attacked, but they don't come out of it alive.  Now the town is gripped with fear as a local cop named Norman Ramsey (Prine) and a legendary d...

2/4 Starring: Robert Downey, Jr., Robert Duvall, Vincent D'Onofrio, Jeremy Strong, Vera Farmiga, Billy Bob Thornton Rated R for Language including Some Sexual References "The Judge" is a movie as bland as its title.  Two days after seeing it, I remember almost nothing from it except the notes I took after the movie was done.  Compare that to " The Guest ," which I've been raving about to anyone who would listen. With it's high-profile cast and gripping premise (not to mention its release date), "The Judge" has aspirations of being an Oscar contender.  I would say that it isn't going to happen, but The Academy is difficult to predict, and is notorious for making boneheaded decisions ("Shakespeare in Love," anyone?).  The movie plays is hopelessly predictable and plays safe at every turn.  This is a movie that you'll enjoy only if you haven't seen a movie before. Hank Palmer (Downey Jr.) is a slick lawyer who doesn...

3/4 Starring: John Cusack, Ione Skye, John Mahoney, Lili Taylor Rated PG-13 (probably for Some Sexuality and Brief Language) The romance has to be the most difficult genre to get right.  That's my guess, at least (although action, comedy and horror seem to be pretty difficult too).  It's weird, since the central feeling of falling in love is so universal.  Just about everyone has fallen in and out of love at some point. I think what makes the genre such a difficult playground is that it's essentially an all or nothing approach.  A romance either works, or it doesn't.  And the most important quality isn't something that can be generated with hard work or special effects: chemistry .  Writing, acting and directing are all important, but a romance is sunk if we don't believe that the two central characters are lovebirds who are destined to be together.  That's why our hearts swooned over Jack Dawson and Rose Dewitt Bukater (from " Titanic...

2/4 Starring: Jeremy Irons, Gong Li, Maggie Cheung, Ruben Blades, Michael Hui The version being reviewed is unrated.  For the record, the theatrical cut is rated R for Language and Some Sexual Content How could a movie starring the irreplaceable Jeremy Irons and international superstar Gong Li ever be boring?  I never thought it could be possible, given their considerable talents.  The script is a good place to start.  It's totally generic; there's very little in the way of character depth or interesting dialogue.  It makes attempts at both, but it comes across as a wannabe of something more substantial.  The direction by Wayne Wang is pedestrian.  His approach is clinical and without any personality.  It's a shame really, because considering the talent in front of the camera and the potential of the story, it had the potential to be something truly special. The film takes place from December 31, 1996 to June 30th, 1997, as Great ...

3.5/4 Starring Dan Stevens, Maika Monroe, Brendan Meyer, Sheila Kelly, Leland Orser Rated R for Strong Violence, Language, Some Drug Use and a Scene of Sexuality It's a funny thing.  This year, like seemingly every other year for the past half decade, is chock full of sequels, remakes/reboots and re-imaginings (basically, attempts to make lightning strike twice while changing as little as possible).  Two, " Dawn of the Planet of the Apes " and " The Purge: Anarchy ," where infinitely better than their predecessors.  While "The Guest" has no relation to director Adam Wingard's pseudo "wink wink nudge nudge" of a slasher movie (that wasn't a "wink wink nudge nudge" slasher movie) save for an Easter Egg, it's a significant improvement upon " You're Next ," which I disliked intensely.  And all things considered, it's the best of the three. One morning, a man shows up at the door of an all-American f...

3/4 Starring: Kathryn Winnick, Laura Breckenridge, Jessica Lucas, Keir O'Donnell Rated R for Horror Violence, Terror and Disturbing Images Most horror movies that fly under the radar do so for good reason: they're horrible movies.  Examples include " The Ice Cream Man " and " The Nun ."  Occasionally, though, you find a diamond in the rough like "Amusement."  I won't pretend it's a perfect movie (in fact it has some very serious problems).  But for what it is, it's a chilling 85 minutes. "Amusement" is made up of three short films about three old friends that tie together at the end.  First up is Shelby's (Breckenridge) story, where she and her boyfriend (Tad Hilgenbrink) face a nightmarish situation on the road.  Next up is Tabitha (Winnick), who has a very creepy experience babysitting (she and Laurie Strode would have a lot to talk about).  Finally, there's Lisa (Lucas), who is searching for her missing room...

2/4 Starring: George Clooney, Matt Damon, John Goodman, Bill Murray, Bob Balaban, Cate Blanchett, Jean Dujardin, Hugh Bonneville Rated PG-13 for Some Images of War Violence and Historical Smoking George Clooney never takes the easy road.  He makes only the projects that he wants to, and few of those outside of the trilogy where he played Danny Ocean are easy sells.  He's acted in some unusual movies ranging from " Three Kings " (where he infamously got in a fistfight with the notoriously difficult David O. Russell) to "The American" (unseen by me, although I've heard that it is decidedly not mainstream.  "The Monuments Men" was Clooney's fifth outing behind the camera, and having seen all but "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," I have to admire his passion and willingness to be outside the mainstream, but I can't excuse his ability to tell a compelling story. In an age where the height of our culture is compromised of reali...

2.5/4 Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Carrie Coon, Kim Dickens, Tyler Perry, Neil Patrick Harris, Patrick Fugit Rated R for A Scene of Bloody Violence, Some Strong Sexual Content/Nudity, and Language David Fincher was a respected music video director in the early 90's before moving into film.  By all accounts, his version of "Alien 3" was butchered by the studio, and while the movie wasn't good, it was weird enough to be compelling.  Fincher was given a second chance by directing " Seven ," which shocked and terrified audiences in 1995.  From then on, he's been making one good film after another, earning a Best Director Oscar nomination for "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and another for "The Social Network." I like Fincher's work.  Known for his careful (almost obsessive) attention to detail and demanding many more takes per scene than is par for the course, the director has been behind some of the most innova...