Quick Shots 27

Title: Olympus Has Fallen.

Starring: Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Dylan McDermott, Rick Yune, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Melissa Leo, Cole Hauser, Finley Jacobsen, Ashley Judd.

Brief Synopsis: Mike Banning (Butler) is a member of the secret service, and close friend to President Benjamin Asher (Eckhart). He also gets along very well with the president's son, Connor (Jacobsen). On an icy night to give a speech, the president's limo is hit by a falling branch and teeters off a bridge - unable to get the first lady (Judd) out of the car, Banning makes the difficult decision of pulling the president out and the first lady fell to her death. Having to blame someone - Asher fires Banning. But, when the White House is under attack by North Korea - it's Banning that becomes the lone hope to stop the attack. 

Opinion: Pretty decent action-packed film. Butler I think is more of an action star than a romantic comedy actor - so he is in his element here. A lot of this was pretty predictable, but even though most of it was seen coming, the trip was still pretty enjoyable.

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Title: R.I.P.D.

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Ryan Reynolds, Kevin Bacon, Mary-Louise Parker, Stephanie Szostak, James Hong, Marisa Miller.

Brief Synopsis: Nick (Reynolds) is a police officer in Boston. After taking stolen items from a drug bust with his partner Hayes (Bacon), Nick has a change of heart and wants to turn it in - but says he won't turn Hayes in. During a raid at a warehouse, Hayes tracks down Nick and shoots him dead to cover up the theft. Heading to heaven, Nick takes a diversion into limbo - and is told to work in the Rest in Peace Department, a department that captures 'deados', or spirits that have managed to stay on earth despite being dead. His partner is Roy Pulsipher (Bridges), a marshal from the 1800s. On Earth, 'deado's are rounding up pieces of a machine that when put together would put an end to the dead going to the after life. 

Opinion: Sort of a poor man's Men in Black, but I didn't hate the film as much as everyone else seemed to have. Both Reynolds and Bridges were fun to watch together, and Bacon always plays a great villain. Sure, it could have been way better - and the CGI could have looked much better, but for what it was it kept me entertained.

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Title: The Other Dream Team.

Starring: Arvydas Sabonis, Sarunas Marciulonis, Rimas Kurtinaitis, Arturas Karnisovas, Donnie Nelson, Jonas Valanciunas.

Brief Synopsis: This is a documentary about the bronze-medal winning Lithuanian basketball team at the 1992 Olympic games in Barcelona, Spain. Lithuania for years, had been forced to compete with the Soviet Union and this team was the culmination in the struggle to become a free nation again. As a side story, we also follow the path of 2011 NBA draft pick Valanciunas on his journey to being selected into the NBA - showing how far the country had come over the years. 

Opinion: As most know, I am not a fan of subtitles, but I love sports - especially basketball. I remember this team so fondly, 1992 was really when I started falling in love with basketball, thanks to our Dream Team. And, I remember seeing the little known Lithuanian team in their Grateful Dead outfits. Now, I know the whole story - and I am glad I do.

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Title: Planes.

Starring: Dane Cook, Stacy Keach, Brad Garrett, Teri Hatcher, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Priyanka Chopra, Carlos Alazraqui, Roger Craig Smith.

Brief Synopsis: Dusty Crophopper (Cook) is a cropduster who dreams of being a racer in the Wings Across the World race. Though he is just a cropduster, he comes in sixth in the qualifying race, and misses out on the opportunity - but the fifth-place finisher used an illegal fuel enhancement and he has been disqualified - giving Dusty the chance to compete. He asks former Jolly Wrench, Skipper (Keach) to help him - and it is soon revealed that Dusty has a fear of heights. At the race, Dusty is well liked by many of the participants, but is loathed by three-time champion Ripslinger (Smith), who believes if he does well - all types of planes will soon try to join the ranks . 

Opinion: If you liked Cars at all, you will probably enjoy this. But, it wasn't as good as Cars. In fact, a lot of it felt recycled from Cars itself - the grouchy, old mentor, the weird best friend, the mean racer - seems pretty familiar. But, it was still an okay watch.

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Quick Shots 26

Title: Lincoln.

Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, James Spader, Tommy Lee Jones, John Hawkes, Jackie Earle Haley, Jared Harris.

Brief Synopsis: Abraham Lincoln (Day-Lewis), during the Civil War, tries to push the Emancipation Proclamation through to free the slaves before the end of the war. He feared that it would be tossed out if the war had ended before its approval. 

Opinion: These biopics are always done pretty well, but with Day-Lewis in as Lincoln - he transforms into our 16th president. But, as good as he was in the role, the secondary characters were just as good. To me, Tommy Lee Jones and James Spader particularly stood out in a film with tons of well-known, great actors.

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Title: Identity Thief.

Starring: Jason Bateman, Melissa McCarthy, Jon Favreau, Amanda Peet, T.I., Gensis Rodriguez, John Cho, Morris Chestnut, Eric Stonestreet.

Brief Synopsis: Sandy Patterson (Bateman) becomes a victim of when someone steals his identity. A woman (McCarthy) takes his identity and soon Patterson is wanted in Florida for missing a court date and also apparently is wanted for buying drugs. Detective Reilly (Chestnut) obviously believes Patterson and gives him the opportunity to track down the thief to clear his name. 

Opinion: This wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. I guess I don't really understand the fascination with McCarthy. She is ok, but I didn't fall in love with her in Bridesmaids. In fact, I recently came to the fruition that she is my least favorite part of her show, Mike & Molly. But, I like Bateman and McCarthy does have some comedy in her bones - and I actually did have some good laughs in this film. Much more than I thought I was going to.

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Title: Pain & Gain.

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, Anthony Mackie, Tony Shalhoub, Ed Harris, Rob Corddry, Rebel Wilson, Ken Jeong, Michael Rispoli.

Brief Synopsis: Daniel Lugo (Wahlberg) is a personal trainer and is hired by Sun Gym's John Mese (Corddry) to drum up more business - which he is able to do. Inspired by a motivational speaker, Johnny Wu (Jeong), Lugo recruits Adrian Doorbal (Mackie) and Paul Doyle (Johnson) to kidnap and ripoff Victor Kershaw (Shalhoub). 

Opinion: This has to be one of the craziest films I have seen in a really long time. And, it somehow worked - a little. I still can't believe how crazy and dumb these characters are. But, even though the characters didn't mean it, their stupidity made the film pretty darn funny - so outrageous it happened to make me laugh.

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Title: 42.

Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie, Christopher Meloni, Lucas Black, Alan Tudk, T.R. Knight, John C. McGinley.

Brief Synopsis: Yet another biopic, this one on the first African-American Major League Baseball player Jackie Robinson (Boseman). Brooklyn Dodgers executive Branch Rickey (Ford) tries to break the color barrier in professional baseball by bringing Robinson on the team. The film follows everything that Robinson went through during that time - all of the racial bigotry he faced from fans, opponents and even his teammates. 

Opinion: I have heard some people didn't really enjoy this - but I really liked it. Most people, even non-sports fans, know the story of Robinson. But, even I didn't know everything that he had to go through. And, seeing this made me respect him even more.

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Title: This is the End.

Starring: James Franco, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson, Emma Watson.

Brief Synopsis: Jay (Baruchel) arrives in LA to visit his friend Seth (Rogen). Baruchel is not really comfortable with a lot of Rogen's new friends, but begrudgingly accepts an invite to go to a housewarming party for James (Franco). While at the party, the end of the world occurs and most of the world is killed. However, Jay, Seth, James, Jonah (Hill), Danny (McBride) and Craig (Robinson) mange to stay alive and hold up in James' house hoping to ride out the apocalypse. 

Opinion: This was one of the 10 films I wanted to check out in the theater this summer, but it was one of only two (I believe) that I wasn't able to get out to see. That being said, I think the hype on this one ended up ruining the first watch for me - which means I definitely need to look in on it again. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it and thought it was very funny - but I thought it was going to be even funnier due to the response it was getting from everyone.

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Title: Perks of Being a Wallflower.

Starring: Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, Mae Whitman, Paul Rudd, Dylan McDermott, Kate Walsh, Melanie Lynskey, Nina Dobrev.

Brief Synopsis: Charlie (Lerman) has some issues and he is starting his freshman year of high school. On his first day of school the only friend he makes is his English teacher, Mr. Anderson (Rudd), due to his love of books. Soon, though, he befriends two seniors at a football game, Sam (Watson) and Patrick (Miller). The rest of the film is really the three of them fitting in at high school, with their friends and those that are not their friends. We also get a lot more of Charlie's back story - one thing we know is he lost his best friend to suicide the year before - and we see flashbacks of the death of his Aunt Helen (Lynskey) when he was just seven years old, which has effected the way Charlie has grown up. 

Opinion: Honestly, I think Watson is going to be one of the greatest actresses of our generation when all is said and done. It's strange to say the young Harry Potter actress could do that seeing we have seen her grow up from such a young girl. So, I went into this really because of her. But, the entire film was outstanding. I really enjoyed it, and I thought Miller was also a great actor.

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Title: Drive.

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Albert Brooks, Ron Perlman, Christina Hendricks, Oscar Isaac.

Brief Synopsis: Driver (Gosling) gets odd jobs as a getaway driver for criminals, while also being a part-time stuntman and mechanic at Shannon's (Cranston) garage. Driver is, well, an outstanding driver - he gives the criminals a small window of time, and wants nothing to know about the actual crime. He just drives. Knowing how great he is as a driver, Shannon persuades mobster Bernie (Brooks) and Nino (Perlman) into purchasing a stock car for Driver to race. Driver, though, has befriended his neighbor Irene (Mulligan) and her son Benicio while her husband Standard (Isaac) is in jail. After his release, Standard is beat up because he owes money from protection in prison. So, Driver agrees to help him rob a pawn shop - and soon the shit hits the fan. 

Opinion: First off, Hendricks being in this film was almost a complete waste for her - but so cool that she did it. If you've seen it you'll understand. Pretty darn good movie. A lot of great action scenes and the acting is superb.

Grade:

Quick Shots 25

Title: Dinosaur.

Starring: D.B. Sweeney, Alfre Woodard, Ossie Davis, Max Casella, Hayden Panettiere, Samuel E. Wright, Julianna Margulies.

Brief Synopsis: Aladar (Sweeney) is an Iguanodon, who is raised by lemurs and has a best friend named Zini (Casella), another lemur. A herd of dinosaurs are on the lookout for a new nesting area as the one they had relied on near a lake has dried up. Kron (Wright) is the leader of the herd, and believes in survival of the fittest - while being tested by Aladar's need to help everyone. But, in the end his stubbornness ways get hmi in trouble for always having to be right. 

Opinion: This was one of those Disney movies that snuck through the cracks for me. It came out in 2000, which is right around that time I was in college and didn't get a chance to check out too many animated features. The movie was decent - but the best thing about it has to be the animation. The story itself reminded me a lot of Ice Age, which I felt pulled it off a lot better.

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Title: Five-Year Engagement.

Starring: Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, Chris Pratt, Alison Brie, Lauren Weedman, Brian Posehn, Chris Parnell, Dakota Johnson, Rhys Ifans, Mindy Kaling, Kevin Hart, Randall Park.

Brief Synopsis: In a series of flashbacks we learn that Tom (Segel) and Violet (Blunt) met each other at a New Year's Eve costume party. Tom is a sous chef and Violet is a psychology grad-student living together in San Francisco. Soon after getting engaged, Violet gets into a great program at the University of Michigan and Tom agrees to give up his job and move there with her. But, things in Michigan go great for Victoria and soon her time there is extended, but its not going as well for Tom - who soon begins to go a bit nuts.

Opinion: This was a pretty fun movie, and shows just how important it is for both members of a relationship to be happy. The best part of the movie, though, hands down were Brie and Pratt. Pratt played Tom's best friend and fellow chef, Alex, while Brie was Violet's sister Suzie. Alex accidentally gets Suzie pregnant at Tom and Violet's engagement party - despite not liking him to begin with, they get married and soon are even happier than Tom and Violet are throughout the film. They were hysterical, and needed to be in the film a lot more.

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Title: Zero Dark Thirty.

Starring: Jessica Chastain, Kyle Chandler, Harold Perrineau, Jason Clarke, Joel Edgetton, Jamhris Pratt, Mark Duplass, Frank Grillo.

Brief Synopsis: The story is pretty much known, especially if you are an American and don't live under a rock. This is based on the CIA analyst, Maya Lambert (Chastain) and her non-stop desire to find those helping Osama bin Laden - and soon tracks down bin Laden himself - she thinks.

Opinion: I was pretty much enthralled the entire time of this movie. Such an important part of history that we all went through together, and this was the story of how we were finally able to track down the monster behind Sept. 11 and take him out. The Seal segment was both difficult to watch and hard to take your eyes off of. Chastain really does continue to impress me with the few movies I have seen her in. Really liking Pratt a lot as well.

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Title: Safety Not Guaranteed.

Starring: Aubrey Plaza, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Jake Johnson, Karan Soni, Jeff Garlin, Mark Duplass, Jenica Bergere, Kristen Bell.

Brief Synopsis: Darius (Plaza) interns for a magazine company in Seattle. One of the writers at the magazine, Jeff (Johnson) sees an add in the newspaper looking for someone to go back in time with him, and that he had only done it before. He takes Darius and another intern, Arnau (Soni) with him. All of them take the assignment as a joke at first, but Darius soon begins to take it seriously as she is the one who the guy, Kenneth (Duplass) will be taking back with him. Jeff is really not taking things seriously, and is more looking to track down a girl from high school, Liz (Bergere). Soon, though, things begin to both crumble around them, is Kenneth serious? Or does he have a serious problem?

Opinion: When I first saw this trailer I was into it. I like Plaza, Johnson and Duplass - I didn't even realize Bell was in it, though her role was very small. The movie was outstanding; I loved every moment of it. This was really the second film (Zero Dark Thirty) in a row where Duplass was out of his comedic character, and really even more so, and he was amazing. Really has a well-rounded talent.

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Quick Shots 24 Part II

Title: Rock of Ages.

Starring: Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Russell Brand, Alec Baldwin, Bryan Cranston, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Paul Giamatti, Tom Cruise, Malin Akerman, Mary J. Blige.

Brief Synopsis: Sherrie (Hough) a girl from a small town heads to Hollywood to become a star and immediately gets robbed. But, she meets Drew (Boneta), an aspiring musician who works as a bartender at The Bourbon Room - and gets the owner, Dennis Dupree (Baldwin) to give her a job as a barback. Meanwhile, The Bourbon Room is in trouble in more ways than one - the wife of Mayor Mike Whitmore (Cranston), Patricia (Zeta-Jones) is trying to shut them down because she is trying to rid LA of sex, drugs and rock 'n roll. But, she may not have to worry as the bar is also struggling with money - but hopes a concert by Stacee Jaxx (Cruise), who got his start at The Bourbon Room, would get them back on the right track.

Opinion: A lot of people hated this - my wife being among them. But, honestly, I really enjoyed it. I really liked most, if not all, of the music that they performed - and all of the actors did a pretty darn good job at performing. As a fan of Glee I saw this as a pretty long version of that - tons of great music and actually a few storylines playing out along the way.

Grade:

Title: Green Hornet.

Starring: Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Cameron Diaz, Tom Wilkinson, Christoph Waltz, David Harbour, Edward James Olmos.

Brief Synopsis: Britt Reid (Rogen) is a spoiled rich kid, who pretty much had everything handed to him. He partied all the time and didn't have to work a day in his life as his father James (Wilkinson) was the owner of the newspaper The Daily Sentinel. After his father's death, Reid awakes and realizes everyone who had waited on him hand-and-foot was now gone. But, he brings back the guy who made his morning coffee, Kato (Chou), and befriends him. After a night of partying the two decide to 'make a difference' and become superheroes, with the help of temp, Lenore Case (Diaz) the two makeup the alter ego The Green Hornet, but soon get in the way of a drug kingpin, Chudnofsky (Waltz).

Opinion: This could have been worse, but it could have also been a lot better. Not to fault Rogen, who played the spoiled rich kid pretty well, but I just don't see him as a superhero. Though I am not too familiar with The Green Hornet, the absolute best thing in this movie was Kato - he was funny and was pretty much the real superhero (which I am guessing may be what actually happens in the comic). But as far as Green superheroes, I will take Lantern and Arrow over Hornet.

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Title: Next Day Air.

Starring: Donald Faison, Mike Epps, Wood Harris, Omari Hardwick, Darius McCrary, Cisco Reyes, Yasmin Deliz, Mos Def.

Brief Synopsis: Leo (Faison), works for Next Day Air - a package delivery company. He is a pretty big slacker that enjoys smoking weed, and one day that catches up to him. On a delivery meant for Jesus (Reyes) in apartment 302, he drops it off to apartment 303 where Guch (Harris) and Brody (Epps) live. Not a big deal, except the package held uncut cocaine meant to be dispersed on the streets by Jesus. Guch and Brody, though, get in touch with Brody's cousin Shavoo (Hardwick), who happens to be a drug dealer, to try and sell the cocaine. Jesus, meanwhile, is in trouble with his supplier and believes Leo stole the package for himself.

Opinion: The only reason I got this movie was because of Faison. My love for Scrubs has been shown on this blog site many, many times. So, I thought I would at least give it a try. The movie was ... decent. Nothing to write home about, but it was ok. Kind of cool to see McCrary in a film - best known from Family Matters.

Grade:

Title: Wild Target.

Starring: Bill Nighy, Emily Blunt, Rupert Grint, Rupert Everett, Eileen Atkins, Martin Freeman.

Brief Synopsis: Victory Maynard (Nighy) is an assassin, and he is good at his job. It was handed down to him by his father and his mother is always on his case to be better. But, Maynard feels he may be missing out on a relationship. Ferguson (Everett) is swindled by a thief, Rose (Blunt), in an art deal and hires Maynard to kill her. But, Rose catches Maynard's eye and soon he and Tony (Grint), a street kid in the wrong place at the wrong time, look to protect her from Ferguson and his back-up assassin Hector Dixon (Freeman).

Opinion: Wow, I absolutely loved this movie. I can take or leave English humor, but here it was at its best. I think I got this movie because of Blunt and Grint - and they were both fantastic. Also cool to see Bilbo Baggins as an assassin. I read somewhere that Grint may be the character from Harry Potter that can't branch out - but after seeing this, he has the chops to certainly continue doing well - perhaps not Emma Watson style, but certainly a decent career. 

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Quick Shots 24 Part I

Title: Argo.

Starring: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Tate Donovan, Clea DuVall, Rory Cochrane, Kerry Bishe, Kyle Chandler, Victor Garber, Scoot McNairy, Christopher Denham.

Brief Synopsis: During the Iranian revolution, the American embassy in Iran was overtaken and those present were taken hostage. Six, however, got away and took 'sanctuary' in the residence of the Canadian Ambassador. Without wanting to start something in Iran, the CIA and Canada set up a joint operative to get the six out, led by Tony Mendez (Affleck), whose idea to put on a fake movie - with the help of Hollywood types John Chambers (Goodman) and Lester Siegel (Arkin). A crazy idea, that needed to look real.

Opinion: This film was nominated for an Oscar for a reason, and Affleck really continues to impress ever since Gigli and his breakup with Jennifer Lopez. I love these type of Based on a True Story films, and this one is no different. All of the characters were very well done, and I honestly didn't even recognize Rory Cochrane, great transformation. Obviously dramatized a bit, but it still had you on the edge of your seat as you hope Mendez and his fake movie idea works.

Grade:

Title: Django Unchained.

Starring: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, Walton Goggins, Don Johnson.

Brief Synopsis: Dr. King Schultz (Waltz) is a bounty hunter who comes across a line of slaves. He frees one in particular named Django (Foxx), who he befriends and agrees to help find his wife, Broomhilda (Washington). Django and Schultz work together bringing in bounties and making money before finally tracking down Broomhilda on a plantation run by Calvin Candie (DiCaprio). Hoping to outsmart Candie, the two try to purchase Broomhilda without him technically knowing that is who they come for.

Opinion: I would probably rank this right around No. 3 as my all-time favorite Quentin Tarantino films. Inglourious Basterds and Pulp Fiction still have to go ahead of it - but that is still great company. As much as I loved Waltz in this film, DiCaprio certainly stole the show for me. I feel he deserved the nod in the Supporting Actor category. Tarantino may go over the top on most of his movies, but they certainly prove to be entertaining. And, I absolutely despised Jackson's character in this film - which means he just did a great job.

Grade:

Title: End of Watch.

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Pena, Natalie Martinez, Anna Kendrick, David Harbour, Frank Grillo, America Ferrera.

Brief Synopsis: Brian (Gyllenhaal) and Mike (Pena) are partners on the South Central LA police force. A bit off the book they sometimes put themselves in more danger than they need to, whether making busts without back up or saving people in a fire - they took chances, but they were good cops. But, after busting a drug and human trafficking house, a hit is ordered on them by the drug cartels.

Opinion: Pretty interesting take, and occasionally shot in the Southland-esque way of shaky came as Brian was filming for his vlog. I would have to say a pretty life-like look of a cop on the beat in dangerous neighborhoods. And, as the two felt they were invincible, it proved to be incorrect.

Grade:

Title: The Last Stand.

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Forest Whitaker, Eduardo Noriega, Jaime Alexander, Luiz Guzman, Zach Gilford, Genesis Rodriguez, Johnny Knoxville, Peter Stormare.

Brief Synopsis: A small-town sheriff and former LAPD officer, Ray Owens (Schwarzenegger) is looking for a nice, relaxing day off - until the FBI tries to transport Gabriel Cortez (Noriega) and he is able to escape. Now, he is armed with an extremely fast car and is trying to cross into Mexico through Owens' jurisdiction, and he and his crew may be all that can stop him.

Opinion: Excluding his small role in the original Expendables this was Schwarzenegger's first large role since he became governor of California. I think the film was unnecessarily panned, I got exactly what I wanted out of this. It had great action, some humor and those crazy one-liners Schwarzenegger is so well known for. I thought it was a pretty good first outing since exiting as governor.

Grade:

Quick Shots 23 Part II

Title: Unstoppable. 

Starring: Denzel Washington, Chris Pine, Rosario Dawson, Ethan Suplee, T.J. Miller, Kevin Corrigan, Kevin Dunn.

Brief Synopsis: Rookie Will (Pine) is joining veteran railroad worker Frank (Washington) to pick up and deliver a shipment. Meanwhile, Dewey (Suplee) and Gilleece (Miller) accidentally let a train get away from them with no driver - setting up a thrill ride to try and figure out how to stop the train before it gets to a largely populated area.

Opinion: This was pretty darn fun. You pretty much know what you are going to get from Washington now, but Pine is still somewhat of a new commodity - and so far he has done a great job. And, even though his role was small, anytime you can get Kevin Corrigan in a film I am going to love his character. He is great. Pretty exciting film, and also pretty hard to believe that something like it could actually happen.

Grade:

Title: Dredd. 

Starring: Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Lena Headey, Wood Harris, Warrick Grier.

Brief Synopsis: In a future United States, most of what is left is a wasteland. Not just police officers, but law enforcers are now judge, jury and executioners depending on how they see it. A new drug called 'slo-mo' is introduced and after Judge Dredd (Urban) and his new partner Cassandra Anderson (Thirlby) find a couple of dead bodies and decide to check out the slum tower known as Peach Trees, which is ruled by drug lord Ma-Ma (Headey).

Opinion: Wow, a non-stop thrill ride. I was really hoping to check out the original Judge Dredd before I watched this one, but I had heard so many good things that I just decided to check out the new one. And, it was a great action flick. Urban was great as Dredd, and my first real introduction to Thirlby - even though I have apparently seen her a handful of times before. She was just more of a standout here.

Grade:

Title: Expendables 2.

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, Liam Hemsworth, Nan Yu.

Brief Synopsis: Church (Willis) has returned to force Barney (Stallone) to retrieve an item from a plane that has crashed in Albania and sends along tech expert Maggie (Nan). Barney pulls up his Expendables crew and has no problems tracking down the item. But, Billy (Hemsworth) is captured by Jean Vilain (Van Damme) and his crew - which forces Barney to hand over the retrieved item. The rest of the film, the Expendables look for revenge on Vilain and his crew, and look to retrieve the stolen item.

Opinion: In the first film, I was just happy to see some of the old guys - Stallone and Lundgren for the most part - but the film itself wasn't exceptional, though it was still enjoyable. This one, though, I felt was much better and more of a fun ride. Plus, seeing Stallone, Willis and Schwarzenegger shooting their guns side-by-side was just amazing to see. Looking forward to the next installment.

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Title: Taken 2.

Starring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Leland Orser, Jon Gries, D.B. Sweeney, Luke Grimes.

Brief Synopsis: Bryan Mills (Neeson) and his daughter, Kim (Grace), are still trying to recover from the events that happened in the first film. But, apparently so are the families of those that Mills killed trying to recover his kidnapped daughter. And, they are out to kidnap the family again and make Mills suffer like they did.

Opinion: As much as I was still into this film, I don't think they caught the lightning that they did during the first film. Something in that one just mesmerized a lot of people - including Neeson's delivery over the phone of that one conversation with the kidnappers. The first film was centered around Grace's character, but she wasn't as involved as she was here - though I liked her, she may have held Neeson back a bit. Not sure, but I liked the first one better.

Grade: