Safety Not Guaranteed

This suggestion wouldn't be a "must-see" but I like it enough to recommend it. It's a little 2012 indie film called Safety Not Guaranteed, rated R for its language.

It's about 3 Seattle journalists who seek a story about a guy who placed an intriguing classified ad about time traveling. In case you can't read the movie poster pictured it reads: "WANTED: Someone to go back in time with me. This is not a joke. You'll get paid after we get back. Must bring your own weapons. I have only done this once before. SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED"

Unfortunately, I don't have a whole bunch to say about this movie. It's more witty than laugh-out-loud funny - more of a subtle humor. But it's more than just a quirky comedy...

But I don't want to give anything else away.

Like I said, I really enjoyed this picture. Rent it if you get a chance.

If you're already feeling nostalgic for baseball and are dreading a long, long winter without, here's a suggestion that may help: HBO's 2001 film 61*, directed by Billy Crystal.

This is an uplifting (and mostly accurate!) historical drama about the 1961 season, in which 2 Yankees, Mantle and Maris, try to best Babe Ruth's single-season home run record. 

Hiring look-a-likes is a risky proposal. Thomas Jane (The Punisher) plays Mantle, Barry Pepper (Saving Private Ryan) is Maris, and both are great. In fact the entire cast is excellent! 


There's plenty of drama and tidbits to learn, even for anti-Yankee fans, like me. If you are a fan of the game of baseball this is a must-see!

Get the Gringo (Payback 2?)

Today's double feature is a bit darker and  mean spirited than usual - but in that, you know, good way.

Get the Gringo (2012) is so reminiscent of 1999's Payback that it might as well be its sequel. 

Both star Mel Gibson as the anti-hero who's relieved of his recently stolen loot. Mel attempts to get it back. Gringo has a corrupt Mexican prison, whereas Payback has the mob. 

Both have some voice-over narration by Mel. 

Sometimes it's fun to root for the bad-ass bad guy. Especially when his enemies are worse. And both films deliver.

I honestly think Payback is a little better - it's filmed in Chicago, its cast is better, less subtitles to read, and better... Well, I don't want to give away any spoilers. So I'd suggest renting this first and if you like it see Gringo.

Flypaper

Flypaper (2011) is a cute indie movie with an ensemble cast that doesn't fit neatly into any one category. It's a crime/comedy/action/mystery with a bit of romantic-comedy thrown in for good measure.

It starts by posing the question, "what happens when 2 groups try to rob the same bank at the same time?" And gets more interesting from there.

It's very original and plot twists abound.

I didn't laugh as much as I would have liked. Too many of the funny bits are in its trailer that I saw recently. But its Who-dunnit aspect more than made up for that for me. 

Still, if you happen upon Flypaper's preview while watching something else I recommend skipping it.

The cast is excellent. The bigger names are Patrick Dempsey, Ashley Judd, Jeffrey Tambor, Tim Blake Nelson, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Mekhi Phifer... and Curtis Armstrong (We have a Curtis Armstrong sighting!! Awesome!!). But everyone pulls his/her weight very well.

In the spirit of full disclosure, this was written by the 2 guys who gave us The Hangover. It differs from that movie in several ways. Probably the most important being 1) Flypaper seems to be written for people older than 15, and 2) Flypaper is good.

Tai-Chi Master

I had a blast watching 1993's Tai-Chi Master! 

It's about 2 best friends who travel 2 opposite paths after being forced to leave the Shaolin Temple in disgrace. Obviously, their paths will criss-cross again. 

Originally released as Twin Warriors, this is a throw-back to the old-school kung-fu movies I watched growing up. It's got plenty of wire-work (and you can even see some of the wires, being pre-CGI) and comedy - making it borderline cheesy. But mostly fun. 

The action is really good. There are enough non-flying fights to keep it from getting too cheesy. And even the wire-work fights are done well. 

But I was really blown away by Jet Li. The entire cast is great, including Michelle Yeoh. But Jet shows a subtle, brilliant hint at comedic expression that I've never seen from him before.

Rent Tai-Chi Master if you're in the mood for a good, dumb (and I mean that in the best possible sense - no thinking necessary) action movie. 

Going Postal

This goes straight to the top of my list of suggestions. Not just because it's the newest. I had such a wonderful time watching Going Postal, I have a feeling it will stay at the top for a while.


Being a 2010 British miniseries based on Terry Pratchett's novel, this may be harder to find than most. But it's worth it. (Netflix does have it!)


And being British you can forget any American connotations of the term "going postal" - something I was wary of when I rented it, never hearing of Terry Pratchett before.

But this is pure fantasy. A little more adult than Harry Potter but not too adult to lose its fun and imagination. It's about a suave con-artist whose forced to re-open the post office, long closed because of The Clacks - a mix of Morse code and semaphore that is the email of the time "if you have a whole bunch of string", to quote Pratchett.


The acting, directing, sets and costumes are all great. And it has one of the best opening credits: Mucked About by Terry Pratchett. It may be a little long for some at 3hrs 5min. But it's broken up into two parts. And I was so entertained by its cleverness, wit, visual aesthetics and charm that I had no problem getting through it in one sitting. 


I found this just a plain delight. It's rare that a movie hits me this, this hard - I don't think it's happened since Dr Horrible. And I think my dad would've gotten a big kick out of it.

Act Of Val or merely propaganda

I was going to review something else this week. But this has been bugging me all day.

It's really too bad that the first movie to be filmed using active-duty Navy SEALs as actors, Act of Valor (2012), is so manipulative.

Just after watching it I thought it was OK. I wouldn't call it great by any stretch of the imagination. There were even a couple "WOW!" moments. But the more I think of it, the more it irritates me. Man, was I a sucker!

I do like a good action movie (even some silly action flicks!). And special forces rock. That being said, I'm going to save y'all a rental.

[SPOILER ALERT: if you still want to see this read no further!]

It begins with the bad, I mean BAD, guy - and you can tell because he has the obligatory, gnarly scar by his eye - blowing up an Indonesian schoolyard of children just to kill the US ambassador. And his son? And 50 other children??

Of course the bad guy is Muslim. "Jihad" is mentioned at least once. But in order to keep it from getting cliche-out-of-hand they mercifully did not make him Middle-Eastern. Small favor.

Before the movie ever starts is the MPAA "R" rating for intense violence, some language and torture. But rest assured: the only torture is employed by the bad guys. To a woman. She's CIA and doesn't divulge anything. She's rescued by the SEALs. But then we get our hands on the Russian who is funding the bad guy. We get every bit of information he knows with 1 veiled threat in a very cordial conversation. Complete with handshake introduction!

But probably worst of all, there's a narrative woven throughout the movie. It's a letter speaking of honor, duty and sacrifice, and "I fought with your father". Guess who dies. It couldn't possibly be the commander of the unit who's wife is expecting their first son... right? The SEALs team up with the Mexican army for the finale. Plenty of red-shirts die (Star Trek term indicating the non-essential personnel - Mexicans). But only 1 SEAL ever dies. And he throws himself on a live grenade to save his squad.

Chronicle

The definition of obscure could be an American movie in which I've never heard of ANY of the actors, director or even producers. Chronicle, 2012, actually fits into that category. And if it weren't for the Seattle skyline on the cover I probably would've never seen it. 


Chronicle is about 3 teens who stumble upon mystical telekinetic powers. High school will never be the same!


I spent the first 25-ish minutes irritated by bad cinematography and worse editing. The first-person, hand-held camcorder thing was good once, as far as I'm concerned. Blair Witch Project nailed it. Done. 


...But not so much.


Once Chronicle gets going it is very entertaining! The pace picks up. The shenanigans! The visual effects are amazing! I was engrossed! And they actually get clever with the camerawork and editing. 


It is a a little predictable.  Drama is assured...


Yet, definitely worth renting!

White Irish Drinkers

Here's a really good, powerful drama. 2010's White Irish Drinkers, was written and directed by John Gray.


In 1975, two brothers struggle to get away from their abusive, alcoholic father, well-intentioned mother and blue-collar, Irish neighborhood. Brian, the younger, artistic and sensitive brother, has mixed feelings about Danny's plan to steal their way to freedom.


The acting is fantastic! A couple relative newcomers play the brothers -  Nick Thurston and Geoffrey Wigdor. Stephen Lang (Avatar, Manhunter) and Karen Allen (Raiders of the Lost Ark) play the parents. And even the supporting cast is great, most notably Peter Riegert (Animal House).


The writing and direction are almost as great. There's only one scene I found a little fault with. The scene's message still gets through, but it could have - should have - been more compelling. I thought. Otherwise, I think it was very well done. 


I really liked the soundtrack also. (No disco in 1975 working-class Brooklyn!)


All that said, this is not the easiest movie to sit through, A lot of that is purely expectations. But it is gritty and emotional. 


So watch this. Take a couple 5-minute breaks as I did if you need to. But watch it. 


It is well worth it!

The Ledge

Practically everything I've seen since March I've rated Three Stars (Liked it) on Netflix. But that is only because Two Stars would mean I didn't like it and they won't let me rate anything at Two and a Half: Meeehh, it was OK, But here's what I woulda done with it...


FINALLY, here's one I'm actually willing to say that I liked enough to endorse by putting it on my blog.


The Ledge (2011) is about a man (Charlie Hunnam, from Sons of Anarchy) who steps out on a building's ledge and the officer (Terrance Howard) who's intent to stop him from jumping. They get into theological discussions, meaning of life issues...good drama ensues. It's billed as a thriller, but it's more of a good drama. 


The cast is brilliant. Hunnam, Howard, Liv Tyler and Patrick Wilson are all fantastic. The script, editing, and directing are all on target. (btw, this was produced by Norman Mailer's son.) 


I found myself much more emotionally invested than I thought I would. (Especially considering Liv Tyler is the female lead! Not a fan, but she's better than OK in this! [Can't believe I printed that!]) This involvement could be the result of my political likeness and similar temperament of the lead character. But I watched it with someone who doesn't necessarily share my theological/philosophical tendencies and we both liked it. 


The best compliment I can give: I'm still thinking about it 24+ hrs after viewing.

The Rum Diary

It's been a long time since updates. And for that I apologize. I just haven’t seen anything that’s been worth writing about.

But finally, here’s one that was entertaining and a bit obscure: 2011’s The Rum Diary.

Based on Hunter S. Thompson’s only novel, it reminded me of a prequel of Fear and Loathing Las Vegas. With the witty banter, quirky characters, substance abuse and resulting absurd/absurdly funny situations, it could only be Hunter S. Thompson.

Johnny Depp (another reminder of Fear & Loathing) stars as Paul Kemp, a writer who takes on a job at a failing Costa Rican newspaper, circa 1960. Contradictions abound, morals are questioned, and characters are more human than in your typical Hollywood feature (although not in wit).

The supporting cast is as good. Aaron Eckhart is over-billed as the next star but has a small (but still decent) role. But 2 great character-actors, Michael Rispoli (Kick-Ass & Rounders) and Giovanni Ribisi (Saving Private Ryan & Avatar), keep up – to say the least – with Johnny Depp.

This was one of the few films that I’ve actually enjoyed in the last 3 months. I can’t say that it was perfect. (Fear & Loathing was better, I thought) But it was fun. And sometimes that’s enough.

Nikita

Again, I stray from the movie path to review a TV show. But this one has a nice tie-in to movies!

Nikita (2010, season 1) picks up where Le Femme Nikita (1990) leaves off. [Personally, I prefer Bridget Fonda and Gabriel Byrne in Point of No Return (1993), but there are so many direct scene copies I've almost forgotten how they differ.]

Nikita (Maggie Q) is a trained spy/assassin who is determined to take down the now-rogue, super-secret agency that "recruited" and trained her. "Recruited" is a very generous term. See the movies to get a full understanding. But the first season of the show actually spells it out enough that I don't think it's imperative.

I stumbled upon Nikita season 1 while surfing Netflix's instant watch list. Boy, am I glad I did.

I was instantly hooked. I watched the entire 22 eps of season 1 in ONE weekend!

Plots, writing, action, acting, direction, editing... all are really good by TV standards. For movie standards I'm not complaining that much, either. This is a smart action/intrigue show - similar to Burn Notice in that regard. 

I suggest you rent Season 1 and 2, cram, and tune in Jan 6 for season 3's premier!

OK, maybe that's unrealistic. Rent Season 1 then 2, watch, enjoy and tape the new eps until you're caught up!