Movie Review: Iron Man 3 (2013)

I haven't seen any indication that Iron Man 3 is the final installment in the franchise, and I'm glad that it's probably not-- for me it is the weakest of the Iron Man movies thus far.

Maybe it's Jon Favreau's missing touch (Favreau directed the first two films), but the movie represents a slide from its predecessors. Robert Downey, Jr. is still snappy as billionaire Tony Stark, but his schtick is probably wearing thin-- this is the fourth film with Downey as Stark and the freshness is waning. This is why I think Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts was given a bigger role in this movie.

Don't get me wrong, but this movie is massive and armor-packed and the plot is quite excellent. Ben Kingsley and Guy Pearce as the main baddies do a very respectable job in giving Iron Man a hard time.

I really would like to see a stronger finish for the Iron Man franchise because so far, with Iron Man 3, third time is not a charm.

Rating: 3.5/5

Movie Review: Trance (2013)

Oh, Danny Boyle... I guess your success with Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours has given you license to create a mind-bending movie like Trance.

I tell people that this movie qualifies as a complete mind-f*&k and I think that it's an accurate picture of the type of twisting narrative this movie has. The film starts off with Simon (James McAvoy) describing his job as an art auctioneer and outlining the protocol for a heist. But when an actual robbery happens in their gallery, Simon confronts Franck (the leader of the robbers played by Vincent Cassel) and suffers a major blow to the head.

This development starts a mind-tripping journey towards amnesia, hypnosis, and selective memory. Add in the mysterious hypnotist Elizabeth (Rosario Dawson), Simon's race to find a stolen painting turns out to be a spiral towards knowing more about himself.

Trance may be too complicated for its own good, but folks who can connect the dots will see it as a film full of smarts and style.


Rating: 4/5

Movie Review: Oblivion (2013)

Tom Cruise is at his action best in Oblivion, a visually-rich, yet smart sci-fi film.

Drawing from a vast pool of popular science fiction themes such as perceptions of reality and the concept of sui generis, the movie ties everything together through the character Jack Harper (Cruise). Harper is a service technician with two weeks left in his assignment and all he needs to do is make sure the machines he is maintaining do not blow up so he can go to his cushy place in space with his partner (Andrea Riseborough).

Of course, it never gets simple like that.

Harper, through a group led by Beech (Morgan Freeman), soon discovers that there's more to the life he has been living. And it gets more complicated when a woman from his past (Olga Kurylenko) drops in from outer space. I won't spoil the whole thing, but I do like how in a lot of times, the relationships and premise have more weight than the action.

Oblivion is well-plotted and very good sci-fi watching. Tom Cruise should just stick to making movies like these, if you ask me.


Rating: 4/5

Movie Review: The Place Beyond The Pines (2012)

After watching The Place Beyond The Pines, I thought I watched two films. It may be because the movie clocks in at 140 minutes, but also because of how the narrative went.

There are two main parts in this movie (at least that's how I saw it): The one with Ryan Gosling's character Luke as the central focus, the other half belonging to Bradley Cooper's Avery. Without spoiling the story, the two parts intersect in the middle where Luke, a motorcycle stuntman who thought crime was the only way out of his situation, encounters the policeman Avery. That intersection is the emotional high of the movie.

The mood of the film is subdued, never rising to a boiling intensity. For an action-drama film, this one has definitely more dramatic moments, than action sequences. The theme of continuity and "what goes around, comes around" wraps up the the two halves nicely.

Watch The Place Beyond The Pines with an expectation that its a dramatic journey (a long one at that) and you'll be fine. 


Rating: 3.5/5

Movie Review: Evil Dead (2013)

An Evil Dead remake? My initial thought was "Why touch a horror cult classic?"

Adding 21st century polish and grit to the campy original may be a good exercise in refreshing an 80's movie and the end result is pretty good. It's hard to believe that this is the full-length directorial debut of Fede Alvarez of Uruguay.

The scares are definitely there and the blood/gore index is above horror genre standards. I found lead star Jane Levy a revelation to be honest-- I've caught her television show Suburgatory a few times and this was a huge departure from the sassy suburban teener she played. She has a high ceiling for sure-- if only her co-stars would take her lead.

Evil Dead is a departure from the original and it may be not be a bad thing. It definitely raises the banner for the franchise, but doesn't elevate beyond a glossy tribute film.


Rating: 3.5/5

Movie Review: Olympus Has Fallen (2013)

Olympus Has Fallen is a throwback action movie with a worthy lead star (Gerard Butler) and US patriotism to boot.

When the US president (Aaron Eckhart) is taken hostage and the White House (yes, of all places) gets besieged by North Korean extremists (very timely, if I must say so), it's up to disgraced Secret Service agent Mike Banning (Butler) to save the day. Banning, thanks to his extreme familiarity with the White House, escapes all the baddies' attempts to subdue him and sets up an intense finale where he predictably rescues the capital.

While not the most original of action movie premises, the movie does work because of the relatively smart villains and the siege of the White House sequences were pretty exciting. Butler is probably one of the stars that can carry an action movie on his own and he does his best John McClane tribute (minus the "Yippee-ki-yay, m#@$f#@r" bit of course).

I liked what I was in Olympus Has Fallen and I think action movie fans will share my sentiments.


Rating: 3/5

Movie Review: The Host (2013)

I've never been a huge fan of Stephanie Meyer adaptations on the big screen (have you seen my reviews of the Twilight saga films?) and The Host has not changed that.

This film has Twilight in its DNA (a headstrong yet sensitive female teen, a love triangle, and a supernatural/sci-fi backdrop) but it also has its major flaws (laughable script, shallow plot) raised to the second power. I really want to find the saving grace in this film, and when I say that its the actors (Saoirse Ronan and Max Irons), then this film is really an early contender for a Razzie.

The sci-fi component of this movie is pretty sound (aliens taking over a human body) but making that the core of a teen romance makes it full of awkward and unintentional comedy. Did I mention thatthe running time of the movie is over two hours? Many times I wished the film would fast forward to the syrupy sweet (and predictable) ending.

I can imagine that the only group that would like this film is really the thousands (or even millions) of Meyer's fans who want to see the sequel to The Host. Oh, shudder the thought.


Rating: 1/5