6/50x2: Shutter Island

Hanks/Howard; Depp/Burton; DiCarprio/Scorsese.

Some actors and directors just seem to go together like peanut butter and jelly. Leonardo DiCarprio seems to have found his in Martin Scorsese.

DiCaprio stars as Teddy Daniels in Shutter Island, a private detective who has been asked to look into a missing inmate at Ashecliffe Hospital for the criminally insane. Daniels is introduced to his new partner, Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo) as the two of them prepare to look for Rachel Solando.

Dr. Cawley (Ben Kingsley) is the 'wardon' of the hospital, and Daniels uncovers that he and his partner, Dr. Naehring (Max Von Sydow), appear to be holding back a lot of information.

Also located on this island somewhere is arsonist Laeddis (Elias Koteas), who Daniels believes killed his wife, Dolores (Michelle Williams).

Located on the island is a mysterious lighthouse, where Daniels is given the impression that at this lighthouse lobotomies are performed on the patients at the hospital.

So many odd things happen during this film, but all are tied together in the end.

I love these type of movies - the type that keeps you invested, feeling that everything that you are seeing and everything that is said is important to the conclusion of the film.

I am not going to say anything else, just in case someone hasn't seen it, or no how it ends.

DiCaprio continues to impress me as an actor - I just wish he would let loose every so often and perhaps do a comedy. He is well-respected as an actor already - why not just have fun sometimes? He seems so serious all of the time with his charities and causes - crack a smile, buddy.

(NOTE: This was so hard to review. I can't really explain many of the details of the film - it just needs to be seen. So, this is a little shorter than usual.)

Grade:

Who? What? Where? #46

Whoa, Dylan must not have liked Nick creeping in on his first-place position. He correctly identified Dominic West as Jasper from 28 Days.

Nick made it there first, but luckily for Dylan he was stumped.

With that, Dylan expands his lead over second-place Jess, and up-and-comer Nick.

Anyway, good luck this week.


The concept is simple: each week I will place a photograph of a character within a film. It is up to you (the participant in the game) to tell me the following:

1) The name of the actor (or what the actor goes by in his acting profession).

2) The name of the character in the movie.

3) And, the name of the movie.

Each correct answer gets you a point - so if you get all three correct on a given week, you can get three points. I will keep a running chart each and every week. As of now, this will be played for bragging rights only - but we shall see what the future holds.

So here is week #46:

Standings:
Dylan - 34 points
Jess - 29 points
Matt - 23 points
Nick - 21 points
Ryan "Hatter" McNeil - 20 points
Stevee - 3 pointsWQ

HOT: Man with One Red Shoe

This is an odd, yet fun little CIA film.

I watched this many times when I was younger, but I hadn't seen it in awhile - and it was still a pretty decent watch.

Hanks stars as Richard Drew in The Man with One Red Shoe, a violinist who gets mistaken as a CIA operative.

Cooper (Dabney Coleman) and Ross (Charles Durning) are competing for the deputy director position at the CIA. Ross currently holds the position, but has messed up a handful of times and Cooper is doing all that he can to take over.

Ross comes up with a brilliant plan to throw Cooper and his team off of his track - knowing Cooper has bugged his house he tells Brown (Edward Herrmann) about a special CIA operative coming off a plane. What Cooper isn't told is that Brown is actually supposed to find some Average Joe, not a real operative.

At the airport, Brown waits by the escalator searching for his fake operative and sees a man wearing one red shoe - Richard Drew.

The rest of the film is Cooper and his team tracking Drew, and believing that every little thing he does, whether it's playing his violin or even going to the dentist, there is something behind it.

Drew, meanwhile, has no idea he is being tailed - he is a violinist in an orchestra, along with his best friend Morris (Jim Belushi) and Morris' wife Paula (Carrie Fisher). Drew and Paula also seem to have an affair going on before Drew meets Maddy (Lori Singer). Maddy is apart of Cooper's team and is trying to get even closer to Drew to figure out what he knows.

The film is a fun, little romp filled with lots of hilarious shenanigans - mostly supplied by the various team members on both sides.

After watching Splash, Lori Singer felt like a carbon copy of Daryl Hannah. Plus, I had no idea that this was the same person that was in Footloose. They look almost nothing alike.

Anyway, a pretty decent film that still made me laugh at times. And it's funny to see what happens with Drew just because he happened to wear one red shoe.

Grade:

Tuesday's With Movies: 10/25/11

Captain America: The First Avenger: I have already seen this movie, but I will definitely be checking it out again. I loved it upon my first viewing, and Mrs. Kano loved it as well. My son has really gotten into the superhero films - and although this one is a bit bloodier than the previous films, I will do my best to remember where those were so he can still watch it.

Winnie the Pooh: Apparently a really decent film with the acclaimed characters we all grew up with. I had originally planned on seeing this in the theater with my son, but realized it was only 63 minutes long - no way I am spending that much money for an hour film. But, now that it is coming out on DVD we will be checking it out.

Attack the Block: Well, I don't know too much about this film - just some of the odd things I have heard. About a gang in London that protect their 'block' from an alien invasion. Sounds like a very odd premise, but looks like most people actually enjoyed it. Not sure where it stands really - but as of now I have no real interest.

5/50x2: Buried

I am so very surprised that not much about this movie was spoiled to me.

I knew a few of the minuscule moments going in, but that is it.

Buried stars Ryan Reynolds as Paul Conroy, a truck driver from the United States working in the hostile territory of Iraq.

That is pretty much the only person in this movie. Sure, you hear others, but Reynolds is the only actor you actually see during the entire film. 95 minutes of Reynolds and the occasional black screen.

I have to admit, when it first started I thought there is no way they can stay with Reynolds in this tiny spot for the entire film and still hold my interest. How would that be possible? Well, they did it.

Without giving too much away, Conroy awakens at the beginning of the film inside a buried, wooden coffin somewhere in the Iraqi desert. His truck driving convoy has been ambushed, as we are told in the story, but never see. Apparently everyone else was killed and he was buried alive.

Inside his coffin he is given a lighter, a cell phone (in Arabic), glow sticks, a flask, a pencil, a knife and a flashlight. He tries to contact his family and his employer, to no avail. He does manage to get in contact with the U.S. Embassy and tells them his predicament.

He is also contacted by a man named, Jabir (Jose Luis Garcia Perez), the leader of those who attacked his convoy, and is ordered to send a ransom message for his life for $5 million (which is eventually lowered to $1 million).

During this time, Conroy is also talking to Dan Brenner (Robert Paterson), a hostage rescue group leader, who now appears to be Conroy's lone chance at being rescued.

Like I said, hard to believe I could be so fascinated with a film that stays inside a wooden box throughout its entire run. I loved Cast Away, but even that film was off the island for at least 1/3 of the film - and, with no disrespect to Reynolds, but Hanks has the clout to carry a film alone.

Well, apparently Reynolds does as well. At least for me.

I adored this film, and truly began to felt for Conroy during my brief time with him. Reynolds did an amazing job at allowing that to happen. You could feel his pain and you could feel his pessimistic attitude.

Only a few things stuck out to me that I either felt was a useless moment or didn't really work for me. Other than that, I truly found myself engulfed in this film.

Grade:

Who? What? Where? #45

Nick's streak is broken as Ryan "Hatter" McNeil correctly identified the person to the left as Andie MacDowell as Laura Kinney in Multiplicity.

With that, Ryan moves to within one point of the streaking Nick.

So sorry about missing yesterday - it has been a few busy weeks and I forgot.

Anyway, good luck this week.

The concept is simple: each week I will place a photograph of a character within a film. It is up to you (the participant in the game) to tell me the following:

1) The name of the actor (or what the actor goes by in his acting profession).

2) The name of the character in the movie.

3) And, the name of the movie.

Each correct answer gets you a point - so if you get all three correct on a given week, you can get three points. I will keep a running chart each and every week. As of now, this will be played for bragging rights only - but we shall see what the future holds.

So here is week #45:

Standings:
Dylan - 31 points
Jess - 29 points
Matt - 23 points
Nick - 21 points
Ryan "Hatter" McNeil - 20 points
Stevee - 3 points

Tuesday's With Movies: 10/18/11

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides: Got a lot of back-and-forth about just how good this film is. I was a huge fan of Keira Knightley in these films (for obvious reasons), but the real attraction was always Capt. Jack. I really have enjoyed Ian McShane in things like Deadwood, so he will be a welcome addition. I will definitely be checking it out - plus my son is really into Capt. Jack and pirates now.

Red State: As I have stated before, not much into horror films, but occasionally one grabs my interest enough that I may check it out - and this one certainly has. I have been a fan of mostly everything Kevin Smith has done, so I will check this one out. From what I can tell, not much gore if any - so I should be in the clear.

Bad Teacher: One of the many raunchy rated-R comedies that was released this year. I can take or leave Cameron Diaz, but here she looks to be on the take side. Jason Segel has become a pretty nice go-to guy for comedy - and usually Justin Timberlake can be hilarious as well. So, I will definitely be checking this one out as well.

Monte Carlo: I know absolutely nothing about this film except it stars some teenie boppers and appears to be a chick-flick. Mrs. Kano wants to check it out, so it will be coming eventually. Will I be watching it with her? That remains to be seen.

A Better Life: Yet another film on Mrs. Kano's radar that has missed mine completely. I will probably wait until I know more about it or she has watched to see if I want to.

Who? What? Where? #44

Nick has made a serious run as of late. Watch out top of the list.

He correctly identified the person to the left as Dennis Quaid playing Tuck Pendleton in Innerspace.

And with that he now stands just two points behind Matt for third place. What a comeback story.

Good luck to everyone again this week. Someone should step in and break Nick's streak.

The concept is simple: each week I will place a photograph of a character within a film. It is up to you (the participant in the game) to tell me the following:

1) The name of the actor (or what the actor goes by in his acting profession).

2) The name of the character in the movie.

3) And, the name of the movie.

Each correct answer gets you a point - so if you get all three correct on a given week, you can get three points. I will keep a running chart each and every week. As of now, this will be played for bragging rights only - but we shall see what the future holds.

So here is week #44:

Standings:
Dylan - 31 points
Jess - 29 points
Matt - 23 points
Nick - 21 points
Mad Hatter - 17 points
Stevee - 3 points

Tuesday's With Movies: 10/11/11

Green Lantern: So, apparently this is not a great superhero movie. Or, a good film at all. But, I will check it out. Sure, why not?

Horrible Bosses: Got a lot of great reviews and is apparently very funny. This is definitely in my wheelhouse and I will be checking it out as soon as possible. Which unfortunately means at least another month.

Zookeeper: Looks completely stupid, but possibly could be a good watch for my 5-year old. Will check it out with him - probably the only reason why I would.

Tree of Life: I know absolutely nothing about this one. Except I heard that people have a hard time understanding it. This one doesn't really appeal to me, so it will most likely be a skip.

Who? What? Where? #43

Nick continues his dominance of late, correctly identifying Mike Vogel as Jason Hawkins in Cloverfield.


With that win, Nick moves past Hatter and into fourth place, now just five points behind third-place Matt.

Anyway, congrats to Nick and good luck to everyone this week.


The concept is simple: each week I will place a photograph of a character within a film. It is up to you (the participant in the game) to tell me the following:

1) The name of the actor (or what the actor goes by in his acting profession).

2) The name of the character in the movie.

3) And, the name of the movie.

Each correct answer gets you a point - so if you get all three correct on a given week, you can get three points. I will keep a running chart each and every week. As of now, this will be played for bragging rights only - but we shall see what the future holds.

So here is week #43:

Standings:

Dylan - 31 points
Jess - 29 points
Matt - 23 points
Nick - 18 points
Mad Hatter - 17 points
Stevee - 3 points

Tuesday's With Movies: 10/4/11

Fast Five: I enjoy the Fast & Furious franchise, and after the slip up that was Tokyo Drift they seem to have gotten back to their roots - especially reuniting Vin Diesel and Paul Walker. And now, with the guys from 2 Fast 2 Furious (the lone Diesel-less film of the franchise) with everyone this looks to be a thrilling ride.

Scream 4: One of the only 'horror' franchises that ever interested me. As I said before, the gore-machine of some films really doesn't appeal to me, but this one was also pretty light and was more of a thriller then a horror movie, at least to me. I look forward to seeing what the new film brings to the table.