There's a fine line between a gripping, suspenseful thriller and a thriller that becomes so wacky that it takes you out of the film. Throughout the first 75% of the movie, 'The Call' is a well-acted, entertaining, and suspenseful thriller that had me on the edge of my seat. Then the film, in its final 20 minutes, turns into a psychopathic mind-number that has no relevance to the rest of the film and overall brings the film down in terms of a score. The ending was just so weird and so out of place that it sort of confused me in what the writers of the film were thinking. As if the film couldn't get any worse, the film's final 2 minutes turn into something that sort of angered me and just made me give up on liking the film. Sure, Halle Berry and Abigail Breslin give better performances than one could expect from the mediocre trailer, and the film is able to keep a mysterious and gripping tone for the most part. It's just that the final 20 minutes of this movie turn from a simple 911 thriller into something that goes into the realms of something like 'The Silence of the Lambs.' 'The Call' is a movie that came and left theaters fairly quickly, and it is, without a single doubt, one of 2013's most forgettable flicks. It's a shame, since it really has the audience going for the first 70 minutes.
To get this off the bat, 'Stoker' is a very strange movie. This is one of those films that people will either fall in love with, or just not care for it. At this point in time, I'm not on the 'Stoker' bandwagon. Stoker is a psychological thriller about an 18 year old girl named India whose uncle, whom she's never known about, mysteriously shows up and stays with her and her mother. This is a movie that delves into a bizarre territory filled with mystery, psychology, and incest. Lots of incest. The performances are good, especially Matthew Goode, whose portrayal of a mysterious psychopath is engaging and sometimes haunting. His character's story, along with the performance in general, keeps the audience guessing until his big secret is revealed.
Mia Wasikowska, while good, showed little to no emotion except in one scene that is quite disturbing. Nicole Kidman is just sort of there and is fine for what she's supposed to be, which is the mother who is simply there playing victim. I admire director/screenwriter Park Chan-Wook's vision overall, it's just that the full execution, as well as the editing which felt like it was trying to mimic Harmony Korine's editing style in 'Spring Breakers,' wasn't done that well in my opinion. Other than Goode, my favorite thing about the film is the luscious cinematography that just makes the gloomy setting of the film look astonishingly beautiful. It's very possible that in the future, I'll grow to really love 'Stoker.' For now though, as a 16 year old, this movie was too weird and too out there for me to fully appreciate. If you can't handle a scene that features the lead character pleasuring herself to her memories of murder, then you may want to stay away from this.
Magicians are starting to get popular once more with films like 'The Incredible Burt Wonderstone' and TV shows like 'Arrested Development' promptly featuring them as central characters. While magicians have been protrayed in a more comedic light, very few films have shown them doing things other than little party tricks. Introduce yourself to 'Now You See Me,' a new action thriller that turns magicians into bank robbers. The director of this film is Louis Letterer, whose previous works include 'The Incredible Hulk' and 'Clash of The Titans.' As you can see, it's not the best track record out there, but then again, it also isn't the worst. This may very well be Letterer's masterpiece, as 'Now You See Me' is exciting, mind-bending, and one of the summer's best movies.
Meet Daniel, Jack, Henley, and Merritt. These four individuals are all very talented magicians but for four very different reasons. A year ago, they were just a group of street magicians who didn't even know each other. Now, they are a ferocious Las Vegas act who are performing tricks that are so amazing that you'd have to look at the bigger picture to understand how they pulled off something so incredible. All it took for them to become the targets of an FBI investigation was for them to successfully rob a bank in Paris, France and give the money to their audience. As it turns out, this was only the first of three grand tricks that are being played out on a global scale. Even when the FBI thinks they're a step ahead, they're always two steps behind the street magicians, who call themselves The Four Horsemen. And yet, the FBI can't understand exactly WHY The Four Horsemen are robbing banks and individuals and not keeping a single cent for themselves. It must all be a part of the big trick.
All of the acting in this film is top notch overall. Jesse Eisenberg and Mark Ruffalo are the two scene stealers as Daniel, the leader of The Four Horseman, and Dylan, the head of the FBI investigation against the magicians respectively. Woody Harrelson manages to get some solid laughs out as Merritt, and Isla Fisher and Dave Franco also give solid performances. Michael Caine isn't in the film for very long, but he is good for the small role he has. Morgan Freeman plays a rival magician whose mission in life is to expose magicians so he can get money, and his voice alone makes his performance, dare I say, magical. Melanie Laurant and Common play the two "assistants" to Ruffalo, and they too are also really good. There isn't a single performance in this film that is bad, or even just ok. The standouts in the film, though, are most definitely Eisenberg and Ruffalo, while everyone is just really good overall.
The thing about magic tricks is that if it doesn't fully succeed, then the audience boos and walks away in disgust. 'Now You See Me' is a magic trick that succeeds on all notes, and for that makes a superb thriller. The acting is stellar, the special effects look authentic, and some of the magic tricks in this movie are just so damn awesome that it makes you feel even more satisfied when the secret behind the tricks are revealed. Louis Letterer has crafted a magic movie that is thought provoking and entertaining as hell, and proves that he does have something unique to give to the world as a director. Ed Solomon, Boaz Yakin, Edward Ricourt have written an original magic movie that manages to keep the audience guessing until the final reveal is made. 'Now You See Me' might split audiences depending on how they perceive the film, but I for one had such a fun time and will remember this as one of the best films of the summer by the time 2013 ends.
It's kind of hard to take a movie seriously when it's not even taking itself seriously. 'White House Down' is the second white house takeover film that has been released this year, with the first being 'Olympus Has Fallen.' Basically, if you saw 'Olympus Has Fallen,' then you have no real reason to see this film. Having not seen 'Olympus Has Fallen,' I chose to see this because, let's face it, who can pass up a free movie? Anyways, 'White House Down' takes a serious concept of a man trying to rescue the President of the United States from a group of American terrorists and makes it more comedic than one would or could expect. If you're not a fan of thrillers that treats themselves like cheesy and over the top action movies, then this is not the film for you. However if you're able to suspend disbelief for 2 hours and check your brain in at the lobby door, then you'll probably have a fun time with this movie. As stupid, predictable, cheesy, and over the top 'White House Down is,' it is a fun time at the movies and nothing more than mindless entertainment, aka the perfect formula for a summer movie.
John Cale is a man who is struggling to find a decent job and have his 11 year old daughter Emily like him. The one way he feels is the way to connect with his daughter is to bring her to The White House on the day he goes to apply for a position in the Secret Service, since his daughter is a freak about all things politics. Due to his past jobs, lines of education, and things like that, John is denied the job, but of course he can't lie to his daughter about that. Before the two are able to leave the building, though, a group of American terrorists blow up the Capitol, invade the White House, and take everyone hostage. John is able to escape and, knowing a thing or two about guns and combat, is able to locate President James Sawyer and rescue him from the terrorists. Refusing to leave without his daughter, though, John decides to attempt to rescue Emily from these evil men, and President Sawyer joins him for the ride. As the clock winds down quickly, the two men realize they're caught up in a bigger terrorist plan than any of them anticipated.
In all honesty, there isn't really much to talk about in regards to the acting. Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx, along with the rest of the cast, all gave fine performances. None were bad per say, but they weren't Oscar worthy performances at the same time. Even the direction by Roland Emmerich was fine for what it was. The big action scenes are fun for a big screen film, despite some of them being CGI rather than actual stunts performed. As someone who enjoys '2012' to an extent, Emmerich did a decent job directing this flick. Plus, who can resist huge explosions on a big screen that keep the audience's attention for over 2 hours? The big thing to really talk about regarding this movie is James Vanderbilt's script.
Vanderbilt is probably best known for writing the screenplays for 'Zodiac,' 'The Losers,' and most recently 'The Amazing Spider-Man.' The main problem with the film is that it's so absurd and stupid that it almost insults the intelligence of its audience. It would have been nice if this film did take itself seriously, but sadly it almost treats itself like a spoof film of sorts. At the same time, though, those who take this film seriously are not a part of its target audience. As dumb and cliched as the movie is, it is still a fun ride for those who check their brain in at the lobby door. Still, this movie could have and should have been more intelligent and clever rather than dumb and over the top.
'White House Down' is the type of movie that isn't clever or anything original, but it is a fun time at the movies as a whole. Sure, it's absurd and over the top and acts like an 80s action film, but that isn't entirely a bad thing. Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx are good leads and have solid chemistry together. In fact, all of the acting in the film is solid, though not award worthy by any means. The direction from Roland Emmerich is good for a big budget action movie, and he tries to do nothing more than to make a fun action movie. Screenwriter James Vanderbilt could have made this film a gripping and intelligent thriller like 'Zodiac,' but it did seem like he had a fun time writing a predictable and cheesy White House thriller. As stupid as 'White House Down' is as a whole, it is a silly, mindless, and fun thriller that is a nice way to take your mind off of serious things and watch tons of explosions and listen to mediocre jokes instead. That alone is worth the price of a matinee ticket.
Last year, Mark Webb's 'The Amazing Spider-Man' was constantly being advertised as being "the untold story" of Peter Parker and how he became the infamous web slinger. However, despite the film being enjoyable on its own, it really didn't have much of an untold story and actually managed to show over 25 minutes of the film in its commercials and advertisements alone. The reason why 'The Amazing Spider-Man' needs to be mentioned is because 'Man of Steel,' the latest Superman reboot, is how an untold superhero story is told right. This is a different Superman than most are used to, mainly because almost the entire origin story is different. There are things about Kal-El, which is what he's mostly called throughout the film, that are different than what the comics say. This might upset fans of the comics, but as someone who never read a Superman comic growing up, I loved this movie. Despite having some minor flaws and plotholes, 'Man of Steel' is everything I could have asked for in a Superman movie and more.
Throughout his life, Clark Kent always felt and acted differently from other children around him. He has performed acts that almost seem god-like, yet he has no explanation for them. As it turns out, Clark's real name is Kal-El, and through years of discovery, learns that his home planet of Krypton exploded and that he possesses super powers that make him invincible to many things on Earth. Clark also finds out that he isn't the last Kryptonian alive, as the evil General Zod and his henchmen were saved after being unfrozen due to the explosion. Now Zod wants to recreate Krypton on Earth, which would mean killing off the entire human race. It's now up to Clark, or Kal-El, to stop Zod and protect the people that he's gotten to know over the course of his lifetime.
If you're a die hard Superman fan, then chances are this won't be your cup of tea. As someone who loves to see new things happen to familiar characters, this was a huge gaze of fresh air for me. The story was very fascinating, and possibly even more creative than the original comics. The acting by everyone was great, and Henry Cavill makes a fantastic Superman that even rivals Christopher Reeve's portrayal. Zack Snyder clearly had a keen eye for this material, making the scenery gorgeous and the battle sequences spectacular to watch. I give props to Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer for crafting such a unique Superman tale that is original and really cool. The 3D isn't necessary by any means, but it is nice to have during the film, especially during the scenes on Krypton, as well as the battle scenes. It would be easy for many to complain about the tiniest of nitpicks scattered throughout this movie, but honestly it's not worth doing. 'Man of Steel' is a love it or hate it film, and I for one am on the side that really enjoyed it. This is a spectacular superhero movie from start to finish, and is hopefully the start to a new Superman franchise that will be beloved by all and be carried out through the ages.
