Mike's Movie Tips

 3/4 Starring: George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez, Ving Rhames, Don Cheadle, Albert Brooks, Steve Zahn, Dennis Farina Rated R for Language and Some Strong Violence "Out of Sight" is better described as a romantic comedy rather than a crime film.  Oh there's a crime plot, a jail break and some robberies, but that's just what is used to draw the two stars together.  This movie is all about George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez. Jack Foley (Clooney) is the most successful bank robber in US history.  His m.o. is using his wits and his easy charm instead of a gun ("You'd be surprised what all you can get if you ask for it the right way," he explains).  But car trouble leads to him in the slammer again.  That doesn't stop Jack, and he escapes.  What he doesn't count on is kidnapping a federal marshal in the chaos.  Her name is Karen Sisco (Clooney), and she is a no nonsense type of officer.  But an intimate conversation in the trunk with Jack leads to an i...

 2/4 Starring: John Boyega, Nicole Beharie, Selenis Levya, Michael K. Williams, Connie Britton, Olivia Washington, London Covington, Jeffrey Donovan Rated PG-13 for Some Violent Content, and Strong Language "Breaking" is one of those movies that begins to vanish from the memory as soon as the end credits roll.  If not before that.  Not even a set of nice performances can save this pedestrian hostage film.  In fact, "pedestrian" may not even be a strong enough word.  Banal and vapid seem more appropriate. Brian Brown-Easley (Boyega) is on edge.  His life is falling apart.  He's divorced, unemployed and out of money.  One day he goes into a Wells Fargo bank and passes a note to the teller that he has a bomb.  Soon it's him and two hostages left in the bank: Rosa (Levya), the teller, and Estel (Beharie), the bank manager. But Brian's motives aren't simply financial.  He has something else driving him. Few things are more dramatic than a hos...

 1.5/4 Starring: Justin Long, Jess Weixler, Addison Timin, Tyler Labine Rated PG-13 for Thematic Material, Drug Content, Some Sexuality and Brief Language Roger Ebert once said that "death is the ultimate rebuke to good manners."  I can see what he means.  In addition to ruining the belief that our loved ones will always be there for us, they invariably leave questions unanswered.  What were they thinking then they did this?  Why did they do that?  When a person is alive, such questions are usually irrelevant.  Or at least easy to solve by asking them.  When they die, even the most inconsequential questions can drive someone mad.  With his film "Best Man Down," writer/director Ted Koland tries to address these questions in a bittersweet way.  Trying, however, is different from succeeding. Scott (Long) and Kristin (Weixler) have just gotten married.  Helping them celebrate is Lumpy (Labine), Scott's lifelong best friend.  In tru...

 3/4 Starring: Grace Caroline Currey, Virginia Gardner Rated PG-13 for Bloody Images, Intense Peril, and Strong Language Not to be confused with the 2006 film "The Fall" The more you're afraid of heights, the more terrifying you'll find "Fall."  I am afraid of heights.  I remember getting all tingly and afraid to move on the diving platforms at the local pool.  And when I looked over the side, I could see and feel myself jumping off before I actually did it.  I got that same sensation while watching "Fall."  That is to the film's credit. After losing her husband in a freak climbing accident a year ago, Becky (Currey) has shied away from life, preferring the easy path of drowning her pain in booze and pills.  Her father (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and BFF Hunter (Gardner) are worried.  To bring her back to life, social media daredevil Hunter has decided that they will climb a 2,000 foot radio tower to spread her husband's ashes and send him off in...

 3/4 Starring: Johnny Knoxville, Brian Cox, Katherine Heigl, Bill Chot, Jed Rees, Edward Barbanell, John Taylor, Leonard Flowers, Luis Avalos Rated PG-13 for Crude and Sexual Humor, Language and Some Drug References "The Ringer" blindsided me.  Consistently funny and occasionally hilarious, it freely pilfers from the cliches of sports movies and both honors and parodies the message movie with equal zeal. Steve (Knoxville) is the kind of loser that makes losers look good.  He hates his job, has nothing to show for his life, and even though he knows when he's being conned, he's too much of a milquetoast to stand up for himself.  When his boss orders him to fire Stavi the janitor (Avalos), he ends up hiring the guy as his gardener.  Of course, Stavi loses some fingers in an incident with the lawnmower, and now Steve is on the hook for a lot of money.  His ne'er do well uncle Gary (Cox) is also deep in debt, and comes up with a scam: rig the Special Olympics. ...

 3/4 Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris, Ashton Holmes, William Hurt, Heidi Hayes Rated R for Strong Brutal Violence, Graphic Sexuality, Nudity, Language and Some Drug Use The deeper you look into "A History of Violence," the more you'll find.  It's a rare thing these days to find a movie that works on more than one level, but this is one of them.  The film asks questions about identity, violence and human nature in ways that other films don't bother to consider. "A History of Violence" is many things: a mystery, a film noir, a crime drama, an action flick.  Ironically, the film centers around one very simple question: who is Tom Stall? Tom Stall (Mortensen) is a mild-mannered family man living in small-town Indiana.  He owns a diner in the center of town, has a loving wife Edie (Bello) and two children.  One day, his diner is held up by two thugs.  Tom leaps into action and kills the criminals.  He's hailed as a hero, but it's a l...

When " Top Gun: Maverick " came out, a USA Today contributor, Cari Pierson, mentioned how relieved she was that the film didn't feature any sex scenes.  She explained how when her family went to the movies she and her husband would always have one hand ready to cover their children's eyes in case anyone started having some activity in bed (or elsewhere...hey, it's the movies!). I could go on another rant about the bizarre and hypocritical "sex vs violence" debate in American culture, which would no doubt lead me to take another potshot at the MPA, but why bother?  Besides, if Pierson doesn't want her children to see sex on a big or small screen, that's her choice.  I vividly remember my parents struggling to shield my eyes from a particularly violent scene in " The Jackal ." Then I decided to write about what really bothered me. Pierson went on to plead with Hollywood to make more big budget movies without sex so she and others wouldn...

 3/4 Starring Brad Pitt, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Brian Tyree Henry, Joey King, Andrew Koji, Hiroyuki Sanada, Michael Shannon, Sandra Bullock, Bad Bunny, Logan Lerman, Zazie Beetz Rated R for Strong and Bloody Violence, Pervasive Language, and Brief Sexuality "Bullet Train" is a headfirst journey into crazy.  It's filled with wild action, screwy humor and a love of the absurd.  The story doesn't descend into ridiculousness.  Director David Leitch charges towards it full throttle.  It's not always successful and the story doesn't always make sense, but I can't deny that I had fun. A man, codenamed Ladybug (Pitt), is on a train with a mission. An assassin by trade, he is nervous about his task but his handler Maria (Bullock) reminds him that it's a simple "snatch and grab."  He is supposed to steal a specific briefcase (with a train sticker on the handle) and get off at the next stop.  It's his bad luck that there are others who want that brie...

 3/4 Starring: Vivica A. Fox, Larenz Tate, Halle Berry, Lela Rochon, Paul Mazursky, Pamela Reed Rated R for Language and Some Sexuality I'll be that as soon as you saw the title of this movie, Frankie Lymon's groundbreaking song started playing in your head.  I know it did for me.  There's no shame in it.  After all, it's a great song.  Bright, catchy and guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Unlike most musical biopics, this movie isn't about the artist.  By the time the film starts, Frankie had been dead for more than a decade.  Instead, this film is about three women: Elizabeth Waters (Fox), Zola Taylor (Berry) and Emira Eagle (Rochon).  Each one of them claimed to be Frankie's widow.  And they all want control of his royalties. Frankie Lemon may only appear during flashbacks, but he's the beating heart of the film.  Thus the key to the film is Larenz Tate, who despite having two obvious handicaps (he is far too old for the role and...