REVIEW: 50/50

MOVIE
50/50

CAST
Joseph Gordon-Levitt,
Seth Rogen

RATING
R

RELEASE
September 30, 2011

DIRECTOR
Jonathan Levine

STUDIO
Summit Entertainment

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 40 minutes






STARS
***1/2











REVIEW:

There are many families around the entire world who suffer with a person who has cancer. It is a sad and frightening time, especially since you have no idea how long, or if the victim will even survive the disease. My family has had plenty of experiences from cancer, myself only been living through one family member's diagnosis. 50/50 tells the story of Adam, a 27 year old man who suddenly finds out that he has a rare type of cancer. This movie shows how Adam lives with the tumor and tries to get through it all, with the help of his parents, a psychiatrist in training, and a friend who only cares about sex and drugs. My dad was gracious enough to let me attend a special screening of this movie on August 2. I am very happy that he let me go see this movie because under all of the Seth Rogen "sex and drugs" humor, 50/50 is a gripping medical drama that deals with the harsh realities of everyday life.

The best thing that I got from this movie was the funny and powerful performances of the entire cast. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who may be well known to audiences from films such as '500 Days of Summer' and 'Inception' plays Adam, the film's sick character. Throughout the movie, you see Adam and the people around him dealing with his cancer in such a way that can make it funny and heartbreaking at the same time.  In fact, Gordon-Levitt's performance of Adam is so realistic and powerful, that he could just as well be a friend of yours that happens to have cancer.  Overall, Gordon-Levitt gives a powerhouse performance, and deserves all of the praise that is to come. 

As many know, Seth Rogen plays Gordon-Levitt's best friend in this movie and as expected, Mr. Rogen is playing himself once again, this time in a cancer movie.  Rogen delivers most of the laughs in this movie, and it's something you just go with.  He also delivers most of the foul language and sexual candor, which is also to be expected.  He is very funny in this movie, but I would've loved to have seen him branch out into a serious role rather than being the weed smoking, foul mouthed, horny we've all come to know and laugh at.  The supporting cast, including Oscar nominee Anna Kendrick, (Adam's young psychiatrist) Bryce Dallas Howard, (Adam's girlfriend) and Angelica Huston (Adam's concerned mother) was fantastic, all playing their parts to help keep this movie going along its melodramatic path.

The script for this movie was written by Will Reiser, who actually wrote the script based on his experience with battling cancer.  Reiser, who is a first time screenwriter has written a very powerful and funny script that will captivate the audience throughout the movie.  There is a particular scene in his movie involving Adam in a car that was so powerful and heavy that I doubt that it came directly from Reiser's mind.  You can see the reality of Adam's diagnosis in the movie, and feel for him as if he was a buddy of yours who has cancer.  Of course I doubt that Reiser had Seth Rogen in mind for this movie, otherwise there wouldn't have been so many f-bombs in this movie.  The script is well written, with the right amount of comedy and drama, and I believe that it should be considered for a Screenplay nomination during awards season this year.

As we're wrapping up the year of 2011, let's look back at what type of dramas we've gotten:  we have seen dramas about girls recovering shark attacks, white women defending black women against the racist, and two brothers fighting in wrestling for different reasons.  The story of a man who has cancer isn't brand new, but it certainly is a fascinating story, especially if it stars he drunkest man alive and was written by a fantastic newcomer who can relate this movie to his personal experience.  Sometimes the best movies come from the personal experiences of one's writer or director.  This fact is clearly shown in '50/50.'  The film will definitely make you laugh at parts, but it will also shock you or possibly even make you cry.  Overall, '50/50' has great acting, a well written script, and a lot of heart as the movie progresses rough its 100 minute length.  Whether you're seeing this movie because you know someone who has cancer, or are just going to see Seth Rogen f-bomb all of the time and make sexual references, you will come out of this movie enjoying what you say.  What are you're chances of seeing '50/50' whenever would be 50/50, but that would be just another one of my lame jokes.

REVIEW: Abduction

MOVIE

Abduction

CAST

Taylor Lautner, Lily Collins

RATING

PG-13

RELEASE

September 23, 2011

DIRECTIOR

John Singleton

STUDIO
Lionsgate

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 46 minutes





STARS
**1/2











REVIEW:

Behold, ladies and gentlemen: the stupidest, yet somewhat fun movie of the year.  'Abduction' is Taylor Lautner's attempt to break out of the 'Twilight' movies and into more mainstream productions.  I'm just going to say flat out that I enjoyed this movie for all the reasons why it's so mediocre.  In no way is this film a masterpiece, let alone a fantastic movie.  However, considering the fact that this movie is currently bombing with critics with a 3% on Rotten Tomatoes, and the fact that the trailers weren't the most impressive, I had myself one hell of a fun time.  The audience was clearly into it, clapping at random parts, "aww"ing when Lautner and Collins are cuddling/frenching, and were just mainly into the film.  People will be shocked by my reaction to the film, but I'm just saying that if you go in expecting pure cheese for two hours, with A-list stars featured in nice supporting roles, you will enjoy 'Abduction.'  I wouldn't recommend this to my buddies, mainly because they don't want to be in a theater filled with screaming girls.  Then again, I do recall a few college guys there by themselves enjoying the film.  College guys, who were straight, enjoying an action movie starring a werewolf.  I highly doubt that this movie will be very successful, considering the small number of Taylor Lautner fans out there.  But for what it's worth, this is a solid and fun action movie.  If a half hour in you start to hate on the movie, walk out!  There's always 'Moneyball' or 'Dolphin Tale' to check out, along with many more films to come this weekend. 

Imagine if your life wasn't what it seemed.  Imagine if your popularity, your parents, your NAME, was all a complete lie?  Well that's the story of Nathan Harper's life, who has only recently found out that everything in his life is not what it seems.  So chaos ensues, the government starts chasing Nathan and his somewhat life long friend/neighbor/high school crush Karen.  If you can handle this interesting plot, so-so acting, and crazy action sequences, then you may be one of the few people who enjoy 'Abduction.'  The story for example is not original at all, which is something to expect from a teen action flick.  In the split second it takes for Nathan and Karen to go on the run and become fugitives, you know EXACTLY what is going to happen at the end of the film.  This is one of the many flaws that the movie presents, so don't go in expecting a pitch perfect flick.  The script isn't well written, the acting is disappointing at times, and the last half hour of the movie is an advertisement for the Pittsburgh Pirates. (Boo, I'm a Phillies fan!)  The movie is pure cheese without a doubt, but there was just something in the cheese that made me enjoy this mediocrity, yet fun film.

As I just said, the acting isn't the best it could have been.  The well formed supporting cast, including Alfred Molina, Sigourney Weaver, and Jason Issacs are good, but not as good as they should have been.  Of the supporting cast members, my personal favorite was Issacs as Nathan's "dad."  Not only was he the most influential on Nathan, but he was the most badass person in the whole film, despite only being in it for the first 25 minutes.  If there is anyone in this movie who at least should get some recgonition for being good, then it should be Lucius Malfoy himself.  Sigourney Weaver is in the movie for about 10 minutes, and I wondered while coming out out of the theater "Why was she in this movie?"  Whether it's because there was nothing else to do, I felt that Weaver's talent was wasted miserably.  As for Molina, he was solid enough, but he wasn't as much of a menacing villain as he was back in 2004 when he played one of superhero's best movie menaces, Doc Ock in 'Spider Man 2.'  The rest of the supporting cast includes Maria Bello and Denzel Whittaker, who were fine, but unneeded for the most part.  If you're looking on what I thought of Taylor Lautner's acting chops, then just read the next paragraph and find out...

I've been familiar with Taylor Lautner ever since he starred in such 2005 (a bad movie year) kiddie films as 'The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl 3D' and 'Cheaper By the Dozen 2.'  Then 'Twilight' came out in 2008, and everyone knew exactly who he was.  I guess that this is Taylor Lautner's way of saying that he wants to be like Robert Pattinson when Pattinson starred in adult films like 'Remember Me' and 'Water for Elephants.'  Let me just tell you flat out that his acting was okay.  Nothing fantastic like Pattinson when getting out of 'Twilight,' but fine enough.  I can see that Lautner was only being a pretty boy trying to look cool with epic stunts.  The girls will be in theaters seats no doubt, but critics who are looking for a fantastic performance by a young actor will be squirming like a baby to get out of the film ASAP.  As for Lautner's co star Lily Collins, she was the female equivalent of Lautner, with all of my Lautner comments also directly towards Collins.  Don't expect a great story or good acting here, folks, because you will walk out very sad that you spent $20 on movie tickets.

A Predictable storyline, so-so acting, and over the top cheese make 'Abduction' a stupid, corny, but enjoyable flick.  The movie does promise an interesting career for young Lautner, who's just finishing up the series 'Harry Potter' style with a two part finale, Part 1 coming out in November, while Part 2 comes out next November.  I doubt that 'Twilight' fans, or "Twi-hards" will really hate this movie, then again I doubt they'll love it with all of their hearts.  Anyone outside of the demographic for which this film was made for will stop at nothing to hate this movie with all of their body, mind, and soul.  I would say to fans of Lautner that if they really want to check this out, wait for the DVD release, as there will be a nice absence of girls screaming when Lautner and Collins make out or when Lautner is shirtless. (Luckily he's shirtless only in one scene, which is about 5 minutes into the film) If you watch or go into this movie expecting something just really stupid, yet entertaining in some ways, then you will enjoy 'Abduction' for what it is: a cheesy movie with a bad script, so so acting, and a predictable ending.  If you see this with any other expectations, then you will be in the same category that the 97% of critics on Rotten Tomatoes who bashed this film are currently in.  The title of the film 'Abduction' actually has no relation to the film itself.  That's only because 'Taken' and 'Unknown' were already made, and they are better films with old school Liam Nesson.





PREVIEWS YOU MAY SEE:

Dream House


The Ides Of March


Footloose


The Twilight Saga:
Breaking Dawn Part 1
(wasn't actually shown but should have been!)


The Grey


One for the Money


The Hunger Games

REVIEW: Moneyball

MOVIE
Moneyball

CAST
Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
September 23, 2011

DIRECTOR
Bennett Miller

STUDIO
Columbia Pictures

RUNNING TIME
2 hours 13 minutes





STARS
***








REVIEW:

The baseball season is quickly coming to a close, so guess what we get in late September?  Yep that's right: a baseball movie. And not just any baseball movie, it's the true story of Billy Beane's attempt to win a few games for the Oakland Athletics while purchasing players with low statistics.  This movie has been all over the map, including some special showings at the TIFF this past week, scoring great reviews.  It might have been because the screening I went to was late on a Thursday night and I got out a quarter after 10:00 really exhausted, but I wasn't as mesmerized by 'Moneyball' as many others were.  Sure Brad Pitt has the charm and wittiness that every great protagonist needs, but the movie felt very long and I was falling asleep at times, trying to keep myself awake.  I did like the movie overall, I just want to let you know that right now.  It was well acted by lead Pitt, the script was well written, co written by Aaron Sorkin of 'The Social Network' fame, and the story was well executed, blending the right amount of comedy, drama, and heart needed.  I did enjoy this film quite a bit, but I enjoyed the 8 minute long 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' trailer that preceeded the movie even more.  Overall, 'Moneyball' is a good movie, but not a great one.  Baseball fans will love it, as well as any movie buff looking for a smart ass Brad Pitt and (surprise) Jonah Hill for once playing someone who doesn't shed a single f-bomb or drinks excessive alcohol.

Billy Beane, the general manager for the Oakland A's is having the worst of luck lately.  Not only is his team the laughing stock of the MLB, but Billy doesn't get any respect from such rich teams as the New York Yankees.  After another unsucessful attempt at getting good players, Peter Brand answers the prayers that Billy has been giving for quite a while.  Peter brings up an interesting plan that may help get the A's straight to the top: in order to get the best players, you must buy the cheapest players with abilities over looked by the baseball teams.  This plan, known as "Moneyball," is such an intellegant plan that it can either put the Billy, along with the A's right on top, or sink and kill their careers faster than the shot of a bullet.

There will be two words that viewers will remember first upon exiting the auditorium for 'Moneyball,' and these words are well deserved to be remembered.  Brad. Pitt.  You will hear a whole lot of praise for Pitt's performance, and let me tell you that it's highly deserved.  Pitt brings a lot of high energy and sarcasm to his role, which brings in the comedy aspect of the film.  I think that Pitt has a fantastic performance in this movie, but I doubt that it will be nominated for any major awards.  However I wouldn't be surprised if he was nominated for anything.  Another great performance in this movie comes from co-star/funnyman Jonah Hill. 

For the first time since the fantastic Ricky Gervais movie 'The Invention of Lying,' Hill plays a very straight man with no f-bombs coming from his mouth (though there are two in the movie) and no drugs in his possesion at any time.  No fat jokes even, just a man who gives a brilliant idea to Brad Pitt.  Hill gives a very strong performance that is nice to see come from this actor.  Maybe the fact that he is now skinny shows that Hill is doing something good with his life, not relying on fat jokes and potty mouth humor throughout.  Phillip Seymour Hoffman is also in this movie, but his role is very small compared to Pitt and Hill.  I know that Hoffman can act great, but that's everything he doesn't do in this movie.  He barely acts, which makes since because his presence lasts about 20 minutes throughout the over 2 hour film.  It would have been nice to see more screen time for Hoffman, even from Hill, who's in about half of the film.  But the audience has to remember (and they'll be happy about this) that this is Brad Pitt's movie, and he is fantastic as Billy Beane.

Do you remember how 'Social Network' was all dialogue and fantastic acting that was wrapped up in a sublime film?  Well this film is only half of that.  Aaron Sorkin, the writer behind the 2010 Academy Award winning movie decided to polish the script up before filming began in July of last year.  If you loved the script for 'The Social Network' as much as I did, you will find 'Moneyball's' script to be just as quirky and witty/funny as the Oscar winning script from last year.  However this script is nothing compared to last year's Aaron Sorkin script.  Brad Pitt may know how to talk the talk and use his charm to win over Jonah Hill and the Oakland A's, but I didn't feel quite as much as a pull by this movie's script as, well, do I need to mention it again?  The dialogue is very well written, just to get back on the postitive note, and the cast knows how to act and work with Sorkin's script very well.  For one of the best written scripts of the year, though not as good as the BEST script of 2010 written by the same guy, 'Moneyball' delivers all the best performances from a solid screenplay, written by one of the best writers of the new decade.  I can't wait to see what Sorkin pulls off next year, if he writes anything next year.

'Moneyball' shows a fantastic performance by Brad Pitt, and a well written screenplay by co-writer Aaron Sorkin, but the rest of the cast isn't used as much as you'd think, and I found myself falling asleep during parts of the film, and the story to be very predictable, even if it's based on reality.  THis may be the first time in movie history where I checked my timer.  I actually checked it TWICE, believe it or not.  The first time was at the 51 minute mark, where the movie was going incredibly fast.  Then the movie got really slow, and I was fading away.  Guess what point of the movie this was at: 1 hour and 35 minutes in!  A 44 minute difference for a 133 minute movie.  It might have been because I had school the next day and I didn't get to bed until 11 that night.  It could have been bewcause the movie didn't start until 8pm when it was supposed to start at 7:30pm. (Actually the reel started up around 7:50, but that only played the eight minute 'Dragon Tattoo' trailer I mentioned before the film) Whatever the reason is, I just wasn't into the movie as much as I wanted it to be. 

I'll tell you what: my dad wants to see this movie anyway, so I'll go take my dad to the movie, see the movie for a second time, and I'll update this post with a better analysis on the movie.  I hope that I missed something when I first saw this movie, because I'd love to enjoy the film much more than I did the first time.  This film will be getting awards buzz very soon, so why not just go check it out.  Moneyball is a good, not great movie with a fantastic performance by Brad Pitt, and a well written Aaron Sorkin screenplay.  What more is there to say?  Oh yeah there is one word that comes to mind, and my dad loves to say this word in a specific way after going to a Phillies game a couple years back: BASEBALL. 





PREVIEW YOU MAY ONLY SEE
AT ADVANCE SCREENINGS OR ONLINE:

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
(8 minute long trailer!!)

REVIEW: Dolphin Tale 3D

MOVIE
Dolphin Tale

CAST
Nathan Gamble,
Henry Connick Jr.

RATING
PG

RELEASE
September 23, 2011

DIRECTOR
Charles Martin Smith

STUDIO
Warner Bros. Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 53 minutes




STARS
***1/2








REVIEW:

As the summer was ending and students were preparing for school, my family and I were lucky enough to attend a special advance screening of the new 3D family drama 'Dolphin Tale.'  I saw this film exactly one month ago, so as the release is quickly approaching, I am finally letting my thoughts out from behind the curtain.  In case you don't know what 'Dolphin Tale' is about, it tells the story of Winter, a dolphin who lost his tale and, with the help of many believers, recovered by getting a prosthetic tail put in place.  This film is from the producers of the much acclaimed sports drama 'The Blind Side,' in which Sandra Bullock won the Academy Award for best actress.  While the film's cast, including Harry Connick Jr. and Morgan Freeman probably won't be nominated for any awards, 'Dolphin Tale' is a sweet, charming inspirational drama that will have young and old audiences cheering for Winter the dolphin, as well as her kid co-stars.

Like 'Blind Side,' 'Dolphin Tale' isn't afraid to show the gruesome reality of life.  As the trailer and poster show, Winter the Dolphin gets her tail amputated in order to prevent infections from spreading, which makes her ability to live very dismal as she can only swim in a way that could destroy her spine and cause death.  This aspect of the story can be very emotional, since it is very depressing to see this poor animal getting closer and closer to meeting death.  I remember hearing some parents sniffing a bit during some scenes in this movie, so I want to let you know now that this is a sad movie, but always gets lit up soon after.  The story is inspirational, so it may give kids hope about the future, kind of like 'Soul Surfer.'  There was a scene in this movie where you see a mother and a daughter who drove from Atlanta, Georgia to see Winter, and you don't expect this little girl to be handicapped and have one leg.  It was a shocking but satisfying moment for myself, as you clearly see how this poor Dolphin has changed the lives of young kids with disabilities or are missing body parts.  This moment in the film is what really got me, and boy did it get me good.

The casting in this movie was nearly perfect.  I've never seen Harry Connick Jr. or Kris Kristofferson in a movie before, but they gave very good performances throughout the movie, and helped keep the pace of the film going.  Another good cast member, surprisingly to me, was Ashley Judd, who plays the main boy, Sawyer's mother.  From the moment they meet, you expect Harry Connick Jr. and Ashley Judd to become a couple, mainly because they're both single and each have a child.  Luckily, screenwriters Karen Janszen and Noam Dromi were smart enough to leave out this cliché from the film, which is something remarkably different from most kids movies that come out these days.  Romance for the most part in kids movie are highly irrelevant, unless it's a romantic family movie.  Oh wait, has there ever been one of those?  Morgan Freeman is also in this movie:  Do I need to say more? 

When I originally saw the trailer for this movie and the "in 3D" title card came up at the end, I was somewhat disappointed because it seems that studios will convert anything into the third dimension in order to get some extra cash.  However there have been some good conversions recently, 'Captain America' and 'The Green Hornet' being the first movies that come to mind, so I went in with high hopes for a nice 3D experience.  Let me be the first to say that 3D is highly unnecessary for this movie, with most of the scenes in the movie involved human characters trying to find a way to deal with a life of Winter.  My family agreed with me, believing that the movie would have been just as good in 2D.  Luckily the conversion turned out good, and the 3D looked very good.  If you do have to see this movie in 3D, you won't be very disappointed, as the 3D ticket is worth paying for in my opinion.  But if you also get the 2D option, do yourself a favor and save the extra 3D money.  However you see this movie, whether it's in 3D or 2D, 'Dolphin Tale' is a great family film with important lessons on life and a very inspirational story about never giving up.

With harmless laughs, some emotional patches, and nothing but heart throughout, 'Dolphin Tale' may be the best live action family movie out there.  In a year where we got little blue smurfs, wimpy kids in middle schools, and a whole lot of animation, this is a sort of refreshment for the family movie season, as the best thing we got from the summer was either a action packed spectacle or a fun animated flick.  Unless you want to take your kids to see 'The Lion King 3D,' this is the best family movie playing out there right now.  This also may be the first family movie this year that people of all ages will enjoy.  Everyone at my screening seemed to have all had a good time, and there was even a huge standing ovation.  It seems that there's something for everybody this weekend, and it seems that everything coming out is going to be good.  'Moneyball' is for the baseball fanatics and teen boys, 'Abduction' is for the teen girls/Taylor Lautner fans, and 'Killer Elite' is for those looking for some solid action.  It's going to be interesting to see how well this movie does this weekend, but just remember that if you're looking for pure family entertainment, do yourself a favor and check out 'Dolphin Tale,' the best family drama since 'The Blind Side.' (To parents reading this, 'The Blind Side' is rated PG-13, but can still be appropriate for kids over the age of 8.)

REWIND REVIEW: Win Win

MOVIE
Win Win

CAST
Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan

RATING
R

RELEASE
March 18, 2011

DIRECTOR
Tom McCarthy

STUDIO
Fox Searchlight Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 46 minutes





STARS
***1/2








REVIEW:

Charlie Sheen must have gotten his catchphrase from the title of this movie, because that's exactly what 'Win Win' does.  'Win Win' is just as funny and charming as much as it's poignant and surprising.  This film tells the story of Mike Flaherty, a New Jersey lawyer who has a position as a wrestling coach in New Providence High School.  After taking up the job of taking care of an old man with dementia, he soon gets an unexpected visit from the 16 year old grandson of the old man.  As it turns out, this kid is a pro at wrestling and may be Mike's wrestling team's only hope.  So Mike takes the kid under his wing and he becomes a major influence on both the teammates and the coaches.  This is a film that will lift your spirits up all the way to the top and keep them up even when the film gets into its dramatic moods towards the middle. 

I've only seen one other Paul Giamatti film in my life, so I don't know how good of an actor he really is from his other work.  I can tell you that Giamatti is excellent in this movie, playing a struggling father with some dark secrets of his own.  Giamatti and the young kid in the movie, Alex Shaffer have such an irresistible chemistry together, that it's almost hard not to enjoy seeing these two men have so little in common, yet can have a sweet father/son like chemistry together.  My two favorite characters in this movie are Bobby Cannavale and Melanie Lynskey as Terry and Cindy respectively.  Cannavale has played the narcissistic ass supporting characters in 'Paul Blart: Mall Cop' and 'The Other Guys' recently, so it comes as no surprise that he plays an even better version of that character in this movie.  He may have the biggest potty mouth that the film has to offer, my my gosh is he damn funny!  Lynskey you'd know for playing the psycho neighbor of Charlie Sheen in 'Two and a Half Men,' so you know that she can be a very funny person.  In this movie, despite being a comedy, is the more dramatic, disturbing character, playing the druggie mother of Kyle, the young kid in the movie.  You would never expect such a deep character from Lynskey, which is all the more reason why she is one of my two favorite characters in the film.

I'm glad I didn't wait 28 days to see this at Redbox, because 'Win Win' is worth any price you pay to see it.  The performances are great, the story is light and moody, and a lot is put in perfectly into the 106 minutes this film has to spend.  Director Thomas McCarthy knows how to make a deep character study film with the oddest sports and some very funny dialogue.  He is an expert in knowing how to control his cast members and get them into the best positions the script can give them.  The movie is only "R" for language, so this should be fine for young adolescent teens if they can handle both kids and adults dropping f-bombs a lot.  So to conclude this review, 'Win Win' is a feel good sports drama with some good comedy put into it.  If you're ever in a bad movie, do yourself a favor and look for this movie somewhere and just watch it.  Sure it's just shy of two hours, but it's well time spent, especially considering the crap we see in theaters today.  I know why this movie didn't find such a big audience like 'Midnight in Paris' did back in the summer, but now it's September, the season of DVD rentals!  'Win Win' isn't just the feel good film currently out on DVD.  Believe it or not, it is undoubtedly one of the best comedies/dramas you'll see this year.  Charlie Sheen may agree with me, but we won't know because of the only word he likes to say: "Winning!"  If he actually is saying this about the movie, then he for once is absolutely right.