First thing to remember is this is a black satire not a documentary. Next is that it is a black satire based on the term of Gen. Stanley McChrystal in Afghanistan. Yeah the one that oddly shot his mouth off to a Rolling Stone reporter then lost his job. (more…)
Among my odd interests there is the one that finds organized crime intriguing. How those who are not concerned about laws make a business of breaking them. There are many types of crime organizations but when it comes to Whitey Bulger and his Winter Hill Gang of Boston working with FBI agents was unique. Then his being on the run for so long was also unprecedented. Needless to say I knew the story before we sat down to watch the movie. I was wary with Johnny Depp playing Whitey but… not as much as Benedict Cumberbatch playing the political office holding brother.
The required US legal disclaimer: All images are the property of their owners I reproduce them here under the Fair Use Doctrine of the copyright law for commentary and critique The required US legal disclaimer: All images are the property of their owners I reproduce them here under the Fair Use Doctrine of the copyright law for commentary and critique
Since I gave up comic books for other things, like space in my home, I get my fix in comic book movies. I didn’t see Avengers 2, aka Ultron, in theaters because of all the moaning about how badly it dissed Hawkeye. I did see it in February on the cruise. Deadpool I was anxious to see but came out in a busy time in my life so saw it via DVD. This summer with little to do when camping in an apartment and waiting on a house to move into we went to movies regularly – saw Civil War and Apocalypse in a theater. Now I know those are two studios but for a comic book lover like me it’s one publisher Marvel. Thus I’ll give my short thoughts on each in one post about Marvel’s Movies. Warning SPOILERS ahead if you don’t want them for a particular movie skip to the next. I feel comfortable doing spoilers because it has been sometime since the movies were released and they were successes. Thus I feel those who care passionately about the story lines have already been exposed to the plots. (more…)
I’ve admitted it here before I’m a crime documentary junkie. I also adore Hollywood heist movies. When I found this documentary on Netflix little did I know I found something that mixed the best of both.
What does one do when at the beach and the temp is over 100F with feels-like temps over 110F? Well go see a movie in a nice air conditioned movie theater that’s what. We did exactly that one hot evening in Norfolk. Mike wanted to see Lone Ranger. I vetoed that very quickly the badly CGI’d rubbery looking horse on top of the train in the commercial turned me off. Also I’m not into westerns much and prefer gritty ones or comedy – think Blazing Saddles.
Aaron had seen WWZ and said it was good. If a bio-chemist with epidemiology emphasis and loves actions flicks says it’s good we’re game. Besides I adore zombies from Walking Dead (comic or TV show) to Shaun of the Dead. I’m up for zombies. Heck even in bad movies zombies are good.
I wasn’t sure what to expect since I had read part of the book and liked it. It was a cyber check out and returned itself before I had time to finish it. That was a busy time and I’ve not put myself back on the waiting list for the kindle edition or paper one. I went in aware that there were changes from the book. First Brad Pitt made the movie for his son who loved the book so he wanted the hero he played to have a more family focus and in the end make it back to his family. Understandable, I can take differing stories (The Walking Dead does that) if both are well done.
Let me say up front WWZ did not disappoint in the action department. Then again when it is a true World War action is a requirement. The zombies being fast moving and traveling in insect swarms was well done and chilling. It really dehumanized them fast and made them things instead of Uncle Billy gone wrong. The moral issues of can we save them goes out the window very fast when they are doing things like piling up to rip helicopters out of the air.
The special effects were good. I’d heard that the swarms were a struggle to get a non rubbery look to them. They were decent and shown in quick flashes so they couldn’t be over scrutinized. Which honestly when running from zombies – that’s all you’d take in any way fast flashing looks to think “Holy shit they just tore my ride from the sky!” and run off to find a good hole to hide in and defend.
Over all it was a great Summer action flick with a very smart ending. It doesn’t resolve all the issues but it’s a nice chapter closing one. It gives room for sequels and I read that one is in the works. Unlike the book where it’s a series of characters telling their WWZ stories and from that we get the history of the incident it appears the movies are going to follow Pitt’s character. If you like zombies, action flicks, or both this is a good movie for you.
Now that said here are some spoilers that are issues I had with the movie. If you don’t want spoilers then don’t go below the jump.
What if you died and no one noticed for three years? That’s what happened to Joyce Carol Vincent. I have to admit when I first read the basis for the documentary Dreams of a Life I thought the subject would be a drug addict. Maybe someone morbidly obese with no relatives and withdrawn from society so no one noticed with the calls for pizza delivery stopped. I didn’t image it would be a young vibrant woman who had, had lovers and was admired by many. I didn’t image it was someone with sisters and her father still living. I didn’t image… so I watched. How does someone 28 years old wind up dead for three years and no one notice?
I’m sorry to say there aren’t any pat answers. No answers as to how she died, was it natural? was it murder? No answers as to why no one came in three years to collect bills or rent. The answer comes in our society where we have any acquaintances but few true connections. People are transient we move on and assume so do they. But in the case of Joyce – she wasn’t moving.
I found that in many ways I understood Joyce. I move a lot and here in Kenosha I have acquaintances but no real friends. Same could be said of Oak Ridge and Kalamazoo. I think after a few military moves I learned not to connect to people easily, it’s hard to keep up long distance friendships so best to be choosy – very choosy. Which leaves me with few regular contacts here where I live and it has been that way for years.
But unlike poor Joyce, I do have those I keep in touch with – my best friend and I haven’t lived in the same county since I was in 8th grade – rarely have we lived in the same state. My husband and I talk daily when at all possible even if he’s traveling. So there are connections, there are those who would notice. Yet, would work check? I think so but it might be a bit before they did. Would my on-line friends check? No, people cyber-fade it’s a fact of on-line life. We just figure real life took them in another direction.
By the same token, if I didn’t see a neighbor for sometime would I check on them? The lady that walks the big rottweiler would I learn her name, check to see why they haven’t been by in some time? No. It’s not maliciousness or total lack of caring – it’s just we don’t know each other. I look back in old pictures and how intertwined my parents life growing up was with the neighbors. Now, I’d be hard pressed to tell you my two side neighbors names much less front and back neighbor or at angles. People keep to themselves, watch tv, play on computers, chat with cyber-acquaintances half a world away.
There are good and bad things to modern society but the saddest things are when good souls slip away through the cracks… good ones like Joyce. We are left wondering what if… I ponder what if we were disturbed by her story enough to make a change and connect with more people?
You know I like action movies. I want something to entertain me as I find most plots don’t keep me guessing but the action is where I get my thrills. Also you know I love wisecrackin’ Deadpool. Well in this movie I got them both! Action and a wise crackin’ reluctant hero. Not to mention a female lead that wasn’t the screaming damsel in distress. All in all good fun.
Sure there’s a lot to be desired in the plot. You see there’s a prison of the world worst criminals in orbit. Yep in space orbit around the earth. There they are put into hibernation. Why it requires the expense of putting them in orbit, moving the staff back and forth from earth to the platform and all I dunno. Harder to escape I’d guess but still the cost must be exorbitant per prisoner.
Then there’s this nonsense that they’d let the President’s daughter not only go to a prison like that but wake up and talk to one of the most psychotic prisoners of the bunch. Yeah like the Secret Service would agree to that. BUT they did and you can guess what goes wrong. Yep and our wonderfully quipping reluctant hero has to go in and save her. Only thing is this woman can save herself, she’s one tough cookie. True with trained help she does much better but she wasn’t some crying wilting flower either.
I’d put this movie down as a popcorn watcher that was kinda fun but not great if it wasn’t for the character Snow. He was awesome, no awesomesauce! He cracked the funny one liner I adored in the craptastic 80s action flicks and that make Deadpool the nutty merc with a mouth that’s dear to my soul. His character alone pumped this up to a B movie from a D. Just because he could make this girl laugh. Really guys don’t wasn’t money on covering your grey, learn to make a girl laugh that’ll bring them in more than dyed hair.
There is nothing to this movie beyond action and quips. The insane inmate character is over played. The inmate rebellion leader has no where to go but down in firey debris as they crash into the atmosphere or starve to death in orbit so naturally he wakes ALL the prisoners. For some reason the prisoners are identifiable by bad Scottish accents. Not much to recommend this beyond the joy of silly word play and some good ole fighting. Oh and Guy Pierce isn’t hard on the eyes…
Until next time!
I love spy drama. I especially love spy drama of the Cold War period. I’m hoping to see a movie about 26 Sept 1983 the day the world almost died and didn’t know it. Until then I enjoy fiction inspired by the mood of the times.
The original BBC Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is one of my favorite spy movies. When the remake came out recently I was hoping for a new take on telling a favorite tale. Like most movies I don’t catch them in the theater but do catch them later. This was one of our weekend movies.
I can’t say I didn’t like the movie. I did. I can say it was true to the BBC original. I enjoyed the twisted tale as always where who is who and where do loyalties fall is always fun. Except when it was over I pondered why the remake? Did we really need to make a copy of the classic? Nope. I walked away from this one with nothing more than I got from the original. It wasn’t updated. It wasn’t tweaked as far as fashion, setting, or anything. It was all the same tale with fresh faces and new names playing the parts.
Some movies are so well done, so powerful, so masterfully made the first time they don’t need remakes. Casablanca comes to mind. It doesn’t need to be copied with fresh faces and color. It stands as the best it can be as it is. So what if the new generation doesn’t know Bogie let them be introduced to him at his best. That’s how I feel about the ’79 version of TTSS. It’s Cold War drama at its best. Let it stand as the masterpiece that it is.
I felt for the cast of the new one. The best they could do is live up to the first. When up against something like this – you are set to fall short. Gary Oldman turns in a powerful performance but it is only equal to Alec Guinness’s in the original. Hard to exceed a master in one of his best performances ever.
I’m not sure what I wanted when I sat down to watch. I generally stay away from remakes of movies I think are the final say on that particular story. When it was over I was left with the thought that this added nothing nor took anything from the original, that it was just eh – new faces in familiar places. I don’t think I needed that. Despite the sets being spot on to period, fashions being grand, pacing and delivery top-notch I was left thinking I could have just watched the ’79 one and gotten the same thing saving the world millions.
If you’ve not seen the first and you don’t want to watch actors of a previous generation at the top of their game then this version is for you. Otherwise – get thee to a library and look up the original. It’s excellent and it was the first. Until next time!
We watched this movie recently and I enjoyed it greatly. The Ryan Reynolds character comes to the realization of how dirty politics is through some brutal events. The candidates aren’t the stars here it’s the back room men (yes they are white males) that are the stars of the tale. The differences aren’t about ideals which are mocked but about what can “I” get, what can “we” get from doing this, or what damage can we inflict on the other side? It’s not a pretty picture but it’s a fascinating one to watch. Being a cynic wearing a hopeful human coat I could relate to the Ryan character. However honestly it’s the Marisa Tormei reporter character that sums up my true thoughts. Her statement in the bar to Ryan near the beginning of the tale was the most eloquent and succinct statement of my thoughts on politics today.
The painful disillusionment of Ryan’s character is interesting and powerful to watch. I think any of us that have seen a few elections know how it feels on some scale regardless of what side of the aisle come your political leanings. Oh of course it’s ramped up to add drama to the movie. The brutal crush of innocence and the innocent in the chase of the ultimate political power is a very old human story. To see it retold yet again with modern trappings is striking. Like most tragedies you want to look away, to not see it. Yet you can’t. I’m not sure if it’s morbid curiosity morbid fascination, lessons of a cautionary tale, or hope of redemption that kept me watching. I’d like to think it’s the latter but my gut said it’s the first and second.
This movie isn’t action driven. It’s a character driven tale. It moves subtly and builds with small but emotionally impactful turns for the main characters. Sometimes the off the cuff decisions change our life the most and that’s the start of this ride. Those decisions don’t always change it for the better. Once you see behind the curtain of how it works and what it takes to work you can’t unsee it. The magic is gone and the brutal knowledge will change a person. The question at the center of the movie is what will the main character do with his full knowledge of what goes on behind the curtain. THAT’S what kept me watching, THAT’S why I liked this move very much.
The slow destruction and reconstruction of a character is something amazing to watch. Good stories (as opposed to movie rides or comfort beach reading) are about the character arc – start here, experience story, then end there. A truly good story leaves the characters irrevocably changed. The change doesn’t have to be for the better, but it is drastic enough they can’t go back to who/where they were at the beginning. The Ides of March has that in spades for the main character played by Ryan. The events of the movie make him a different man. The tensions comes in not in the destruction of who he was but in the construction of who he is to be – what choices will he make, what events will push him to be that final incarnation of the character at the end. The power of this tale was I wasn’t sure just what I wanted that reconstruction to be given the setting. In the end I think Ryan’s acting gave us the answer unequivocally in his eyes in the final scene. The new character steps into his next story a changed man. The movie goer is left to ponder just what that change means.
There are phrases that stick in our family vocabulary for decades. Some are from beloved media (books, movies, songs, etc.). Others we created ourselves. Most of the self created were unintentional but long lasting. Still today you’ll hear odd sayings slung about our house with love and caring. It’s our own family language, when we shout “Eat More Pizza!” as you leave you know you are near and dear to us.
Some we still use today without really being there for the origin of them. The title falls in that category. The “Peaches, Daddy, PEACHES!” came from my maternal grandmother who loved peaches. This story goes way back before I was born. Apparently my grandparents were traveling in Georgia and Pappaw foolishly drove past a peach stand. Seems that good fresh peaches were hard to get in Tennessee and Nannie wanted some while they were in Georgia. As the silly man drove past she went into a conniption! The most memorable part was the exclamation of “Peaches, Daddy, PEACHES!” Which is still said in our house when peaches are eaten. (a quick side note – do you peel your peaches or just wash and eat the skin? I’m doing a very unscientific survey on peach skin consumption.)
Over our almost 30 years of marriage Mike and I have developed a few of our own. One came from the movie Man on Fire . In this movie the typical action set up happens. A person the reluctant hero cares about is put in danger. This pisses off the reluctant hero who goes into full badass hero mode to save the person who holds their affection. Now when this plot device show up we announce in a deep Suthern Drawl “Not dat’s a man on fuh-eye-ur.” Needless to say this often leads to much badassery action on screen which we both love. So ‘ah man on fuh-eye-ur’ is someone you don’t wanna mess wit. Trust me.
Hulk Need Red Bull – this came from a blog that is now retired. However, you can read it here at The Incredible Hulk Diary That Is On The Internet I’m sure Hulk Blogger where ever he is, is now relieved to know Katie got away from Tom eventually! That was a popular blog in this house back in the day. We all loved to read Hulk’s life adventures. The phrase “Hulk Needs Red Bull” came about when we made a silly/stupid mistake. ‘Hulk not know why do that. Hulk need Red Bull to figure it out.” So it’s still occasionally heard about the house more muttered than proclaimed when silly errors are made.
Finally the “eat more pizza” farewell. This one gets used fairly often between Mike and me. It goes back to the second Terminator movie. This came from a moment when I should have proclaimed “Hulk Needs Red Bull” but I didn’t know about that one yet. Mike was leaving early in the morning. I was just getting up and still in a pre-coffee fog. He kissed me then said in his bad Ah-nold accent “Hasta la vista baby.” I thought he said “Eat more pizza” since I’d packed left over pizza in his lunch. Well, that misunderstanding made us both laugh and became our farewell. Just yesterday when I left for work as I was going out the door as after the kiss and good-byes there was a shouted “EAT MORE PIZZA!” just as shut the door and locked it. It’s a way of saying I love you be safe.
Actually these and other catch phrases are all about familial love. It’s acknowledging the personal journey we share together. It’s remembering our ties that even in our most “Hulk Need Red Bull” moment we’re there for each other. It celebrating the moments we enjoy sharing and celebrating that there is life we share together. When you get all our sayings – you’re part of the family, like it or not.
So until next time – eat more pizza!
Mary Louise Eklund 