Friday Preview: This Means War

This Means War

This Means War seems to be an action/romantic comedy in the same vein as True Lies and Mr. and Mrs. Smith. The trailer looks amusing and the main storyline seems pretty unlikely and clichéd. It doesn't look like it's trying to win any awards, and as long as it doesn't take itself too seriously it could be a fun movie.

Director - McG - Terminator Salvation was just terrible. I thought the first Charlie's Angels was okay, but the sequel was unwatchable. This looks closer to Charlie's Angels than Terminator. One thing that gives me hope is that McG is a producer for Chuck, and that is a good show that deals with undercover spies and romance.

Writers - Timothy Dowling, Simon Kindberg - Dowling wrote Role Models which was alright, but he was credited with the story of George Lucas in Love. So he gets a pass from me. Kindberg wrote Mr. and Mrs. Smith, but is also responsible for such atrocities as X-Men: The Last Stand, XXX: State of the Union, and Jumper. He also wrote the first Robert Downey Sherlock Holmes, and the upcoming Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

Starring
Reese Witherspoon, Tom Hardy, Chris Pine, Til Schweiger, and Chelsea Handler

The three stars are all good actors, with Hardy being the best of them. I really liked Witherspoon in Walk the Line, but I haven't liked any of her romantic comedies (How Do You Know, Legally Blonde, Sweet Home Alabama.) Chris Pine was great as Captain Kirk. Tom Hardy is the big up and comer of the group, and this summer when he portrays Bane in The Dark Knight Rises will put him on the A-List. He was also really good in Warrior. Schweiger had a good role in Inglorious Basterds, and is very famous in his native Germany. I know who Chelsea Handler is, but have never seen her in anything.

Early Reviews
Colin Covert - 1/2 out of 4 - http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/movies/139455138.html


Roger Ebert - * 1/2 out of 4 - http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120215/REVIEWS/120219990

Christy Lemire - ** 1/2 out of 4 http://www.boston.com/ae/movies/articles/2012/02/13/review_stars_make_this_means_war_tolerable/?rss_id=Boston.com+--+Movie+news

May the Force be with you,

CHUD

Chronicle Review

Chronicle
Written by Max Landis
Directed by Josh Trank

Starring
Dane Dehaan... Andrew Detmer
Alex Russell... Matt Garrety
Michael B. Jordan... Steve Montgomery

Story
Three teenagers go into a hole in the ground and find some sort of alien life form. When they come out they find that they have the ability to control objects with their mind. However, if they push themselves too far they get a bloody nose or pass out. Of course one of them, Andrew, comes from a broken home, and doesn't have the maturity to handle the responsibility of his new found power.

It's a great premise. What would you do if all of the sudden you had the power of telekinesis? I would have liked to learn more about how they got their powers and what the military was up to when they cordoned off the area where they found the hole. But unanswered questions make the conversations about the movie afterwards more fun.

Acting
This is where the movie really shines. It would have been easy to cast Twilight stars in the roles, but the no name cast makes the movie a bit less predictable. Michael B. Jordan was great as the young politician running for class president. Most high school jocks are portrayed as assholes and obnoxious braggarts. But Steve Montgomery is likable and seems to genuinely care about his new friends Matt and Andrew, even though they're outcasts from their classmates. Alex Russell and Dane Dehaan both are excellent in their roles, but Jordan steals the show in his scenes.

Review
It's not the most original concept ever, but with the performances and the unique way the found footage style is used makes this a great movie. The first half is okay, but when Andrew starts controlling the camera with his mind it really takes off. I'd say this is the first top ten worthy movie of the year.

Rating - **** 1/2 out of 5

May the Force be with you,
CHUD

Friday Preview: Chronicle

Chronicle

Chronicle follows three teenage friends as they discover they have telekinetic powers. One of them begins to abuse his new found powers and all hell breaks loose. I like the premise of the movie, but I wish they had used another form of storytelling rather than found footage. It's been overused in the science fiction and horror genres, and I hope it comes to an end soon. I like how the trailer shows the escalation from small pranks to more dangerous use of their power. The scene at the end of the trailer when he throws back an army of policemen reminded me a lot of the ending of Akira. Favorable early reviews has me excited to see this.

The Director - Josh Trank - This is his first big screen directing job. He directed on a show called Kill Point that I didn't see. He is rumored to be the director of the Fantastic Four reboot, so I'm sure the success of this movie will determine whether or not he gets that job.

The Writer - Max Landis - His first big writing credit. He has done a handful of short films, but nothing that I've heard of. However, he is the son of John Landis, who is one of my favorite directors of all time.

Starring
Dane DeHaan... Andrew Detmer
Alex Russell... Matt Garetty
Michael B. Jordan... Steve Montgomery

As no name of a cast that you will find for a big scifi movie. Michael B. Jordan has a few big screen credits, but almost all of their previous work has been on television.

Early Reviews
Roger Ebert - *** 1/2 - http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120201/REVIEWS/120209997


Richard Corliss - http://entertainment.time.com/2012/02/02/chronicle-its-carrie-plus-x-men-with-found-footage/


Peter Debruge - http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117946985?refcatid=31


Owen Gleiberman - A- - http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20567008,00.html




May the Force be with you,
CHUD

The Grey Review

The Grey
Written by Ian Mackenzie Jeffers and Joe Carnahan
Directed by Joe Carnahan

Starring
Liam Neeson... Ottway
Dallas Roberts... Hendrick
Frank Grillo... Diaz
Dermot Mulroney... Talget
Nonso Anozie... Burke
Joe Anderson... Flannery

Story
On their way home from Northern Alaska part an oil drilling team survives a plane crash. Led by Ottway, the survivors try to find shelter from the elements, and safety from a pack of wolves.

This movie isn't really about the storyline. It's more about the characters, and how they interact with each other. The wolves hunting down the survivors of the plane crash is pretty ridiculous, but my favorite movie of all time is set in another galaxy in space, so I'm good at willfully suspending my disbelief. If you're willing to believe that the wolves would act this way then the story works.

Acting
It all starts with Liam Neeson. The movie is put on his shoulders and I thought he did an excellent job. The role seemed fairly personal for him after his wife died a couple of years ago. The others don't steal any of the spotlight from the star, but give decent to good performances. Frank Grillo and Dallas Roberts giving the best secondary performances. All the characters have unique personalities, both good and bad traits, which puts a little more weight as they are picked off one by one by the wolves and mother nature.

Review
By now I'm sure you have guessed that I enjoyed this movie more than most. However, I can't believe Harry Knowles (aintitcool.com) put it in his top ten list. It's obvious he wanted to gloat that he got to see it well before everyone else. It doesn't deserve any awards, but it is much better entertainment than we usually get early in the year. I will agree with Mr. Knowles that the trailer doesn't sell the movie correctly. If you're going to see it for Liam Neeson fist fighting with wolves you will be very upset, as some of the other patrons in the theater that I was in were. All in all, I thought it was very good, and definitely worth checking out in the theaters.

Rating
**** out of 5

May the Force be with you,
CHUD