30 Minutes or Less ( 2011 )

30 Minutes or Less is a comedy and it is fun and funny . If you fall into the correct age group . I am not taking my parents , and the foul language makes it well worth the MPAA rating of "R" of restricted , even had all the guns, shootings and criminal behavior was absent .

The Villains 

The movie stars Jesse Eisenberg and Aziz Ansari, and the team makes the comedy work, to the point that if they are teamed up again , I would mark in down as another movie to go see . If they are a future comedy team of the likes of Abbott and Costello, Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder or Cheech and Chong , it promises to be a great series of films .

Black-mailed into Robbing a Bank .

The film is built on the their friendship , in a forgiving dialogue at the start of the film , however the same is not done for the villains of the film . As such character development does not occur , you never really feel they are in jeopardy or danger . The comedy prevails as one stupid event leads into another , and nothing does go according to plan .

Escape from the HEAT .

So the movie goes like this , pizza guy and friend , delivery gone wrong , bomb , rob bank , car chase , stand off , phone calls , stand off , the good guys win .

Of course , the good guys win , and the bad guys get their just deserves .

the Sexy and Gorgeous : Dilshad Vadsaria 

The film is like junk food , if you are hungry , you go and eat , and you will be satisfied . But this is not an Oscar winning film in no sense at all .

Stinger : stay till after the final credits for and additional scene .

Twitter hash tag #30mol

Run Time is 83 minutes .

Rated "R" Restricted . For Sex, Violence and Language.

Thor ( 2011 )

From the Stuido that Brought You IRON MAN

Thor , God of Thunder , has come to the big screen . Marvel Studio is on such a role , people are wondering if there a difference between Hugh Hefner and Stan Lee , and if the Playboy Mansion will double for the Marvel Mansion . Because I think Stan Lee has as much money , if not more , than Hugh Hefner .

Sorry back to the film .

Thor , played by Chris Hemsworth , the Australian Hunky from "Down Under" , straight from his Star Trek ( 2009 ) cameo and three years of the Aussie soap "Home and Away" . 


Odin , played by the great Anthony Hopkins , who was completely unfamilar with the comic books or Norwegian Legends , but came to do the part after reading the script's appeal, to the father and son relationship .


Loki , played by Tom Hiddleston came through working previously with director Kenneth Branagh , the character plays is the grumpy little brother , who wants to be king too . 


King of Asgard must choose his successor from the two princes , Thor or his brother Loki , which would one day ascend to the throne . ( Take a guess )

But the threat of the Frost Giants stand in the way .

Needless to say arrogance steps in , and Thor gets punished , he is send to Earth , stripped of his powers . Now I do not know if anyone less notice , but if getting send to Earth is begin punished , then someone is punishing all of us .

Needless to say he falls in love with Natalie Portman , who wouldn't , and finds redemption on Earth . He returns to Asgard the prodigal son .

The film works as an action film , with battle scenes with Thor and his crew , fighting Frost Giants and a PROTECTOR . The old mid-west town battle sequence for some reason reminded me of Superman II , Christopher Reeves and Terrance Stamp fighting it out in downtown Metropolis .

The one thing everyone agreed on was the 3D was the sh*t , for the first time since the 3D thing start in the last 2years , this was the film for it . Everything seemed real for the first time , the depth , the feel and the FLYING sequences were real . With the new 3D , Superheroes can FLY .

We have no access to IMAX here , but serious discussions were held about going to one, to see it in IMAX .

The Love in the film was 2D , there is no deep relationship , between the characters ; I did not feel the love , and I am starting to believe it is Natalie Portman . I have seen her in the Star Wars , No Strings Attached and now In Thor , and I am wondering is she can be passionate on the screen . Such a shame for such a sexy actress .

Watch out for the tongue in cheek Humour , and Stan Lee's cameo , "Did it work !!!"  

Awesome movie for the boys , and just to keep the ladies entertained watch out for the shirt-less scene with Thor . 

Stick it out till after the credits , for a stinger , on the upcoming Avengers Movie , and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury .

Then hold your breath for Captain America coming this summer .









    

Water for Elephants ( 2011 )

Water for Elephants ( 2011 )

Water for Elephants stars, Reese Witherspoon as Marlena Rosenbluth , the star attraction at the Circus and wife of the owner / ringmaster ; Robert Pattinson as Jacob Jankowski , the lonely poor orphan boy , intelligent and bright , wandering the open road of America ; Christoph Waltz as August Rosenbluth , as the Ringmaster ; but the star and hero of the film is "Tai" as "Rosie, the elephant" who saves the circus .

Set in the Great American Depression of the 1930s , where no one has any money , and worse than that , any booze . Prohibition just stinks , good hard working circus performers need a bit of the good stuff to carry them thru the day .

The story line is a little thin , but takes a long time getting to the end . The acting is good , and the period of the 1930s comes across well , but the hard sell is the chemistry between these people . The hubsand and wife seem to be in a loveless marriage , and in the end the film seems like a loveless movie .

But what is love ?

This is Francis Lawrence third time in the director's chair the first and second being Constantine (2005) with Keanu Reeves , and I Am Legend (2007) with Wil Smith · Water for Elephants (2011) also has the star power of Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson .

The question now is does Robert Pattinson have the box office draws of the Twilight Movies , or is it the popularity of the Twilight books ?

Coming back to Francis Lawrence , he has wandered away from a strong action based / special effects in his first two films , to a more character driven films in the story of the People of the Benzini Brother's Travelling Circus .

As many of my friends pointed out in the end , the real stars of the film were the animals , cause that is all they talked about , imagine you have a circus movie , without animals . It just does not work . Everyone you could tell wanted more animals , and more story to the animals . You wanted to know more about the horses , the lions , the dogs , the monkey and of course the ELEPHANT .

By the way all you PETA members , out there walk with your box of tissues , this one is a real tear jerker for you PETA guys and gals .

The movie is nice swing away from the Romantic-Comedy , but hardly fits the mold of a Love Story .

Watch for the old time New York Scenes , with the Empire State building and the Brooklyn Bridge in the background .

Also there is not stinger , after the movie , but if you do stay through the credits , you will notice the cast credits are done in the old time layouts :

"Marlena Rosenbluth..................................................................................Reese Witherspoon"

The list of Stuntmen goes on and on and on , but the stunts are so intergrated into the movie you do not see them , in train jumping and the stampede scenes .

The movie is a classic piece of movie making , and could be used to teach film students "HOW TO MAKE A FILM" , yet the story and the acting does not appeal to the mass audience . I am worried if it should make back it's $40 million budget .

Paul ( 2011 )

Paul ( 2011 )

Two nerd from England go to the United States to attend a Comic Convention , and do a road trip to the famous UFO landmarks . They run into an alien , and help him get home .

The movie is a nerd / geek trip , and I being a geek , had a hard time following some of the stuff . Sure we all know Area 51 , and Roswell , New Mexico , but the "the Black Mailbox" was a little outside my field of knowledge .

For more on the Black Mailbox : 
Info : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_mailbox   
Location : http://wikimapia.org/68004/the-Black-Mailbox
Picture : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Black_Mailbox_Road.jpg

The movie maintains normal storyline , the heroes , the victim , the bad guys and the final showdown . Yet through it all , it becomes a buddy movie , discussion of friendship , girls , marijuana , alcohol , the size of one's own sexually organ ( you know penis ) , Paul quickly becomes one of the boys .

The movie gives nods to , Close Encounters of the Third Kind , Star Trek , Star Wars , Aliens , Back to the future ,and Mac & Me . Many would be lost to normal people , but to the geekworld it is really cool . I found a list of all the inside the jokes at : http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1092026/movieconnections

A read through before going to see the film would increase the enjoyable factor by at least three . Nothing mentioned in the movie connections would be a spoiler .

Simon Pegg and Nick Frost

Does the film work ? YES the general public can go and see a buddy movie , an action / chase movie , a comedy movie and a science fiction movie and come out feeling like they got their money's worth .

Then there are those of us who will recognize the music from the Canteen Scene in Star Wars : Episode IV , and lines like "Boring Conversation anyway." and " Get say from her , YOU BITCH ! " . For us the movie works on an entirely different level .

Paul will never fall into the category of a classic , but will appeal to the young and older science fiction fans , and the chicks that they drag along kicking and screaming will get a laugh out of it too.

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Hanna ( 2011 )

Hanna , a 16 year old with 16 years in training , for just one mission , to kill Marissa Wiegler .

Trained by her father Erik Heller ; Marissa Wiegler must die .

Hanna and her father are in isolation near the Artic Circle in Finland . When she is ready , she will go on her mission .

We enter at the correct time , So the chase begins .

Details emerge , who is Hanna ? what is Hanna ? who is Hanna's mother ?

But the action sequences are perfectly European ; No Arnie or Stallone here ; the choerography of the fight sequences brought a sense of fear from this little girl . A Demon Killer .

Saoirse Ronan plays the character  to perfection , the blond , blue eyes set the character as a cool , confined master killer ; until she is faced with the real world of barbie dolls and bimbos . Clearly Saoirse Ronan is a name to be remebered with lots more Box Office draw to come .

Eric Bana and Cate Blanchett , seem stiff in their roles , written as CIA agents , personalities were not required .


The film's background of Finland , Morocco and Berlin , also the film a non-western feel , giving the matter a of James Bond fight the old Eastern Bloc of Communist goverment .

The only thing American about the film is the CIA headquaters and building .

The film works as a master piece of modern cinema . European . There is no action sequence , no show down at the OK corral , and most American audience will be waiting for the big HUAH at the end , the big gun fight . They will be disappointed . Yet if you are a believer in HANNA , going for her Mission ; no doubt her internal struggle between her training and her being a little girl ; HANNA wins in the end .

The film follows a thread , of all the "La Femme Nikita" films and tv series .





    

Sucker Punch ( 2011 )

Sucker Punch ( 2011 )

OMG is short hand used on the Internet by young people , it means Oh My God .

This film has a very simple story , some young ladies try to escape an institution , plain and simple . Yet to vamp up the stakes and to get young audience interested , the girls enter a fantasy world , zombie Nazis , Orcs and a Castle , Killer Robots all make an appearance in the course of the preparations to escape .

Zombie Nazis are a nod to the zombie and world war films . The Orcs in Castle sequence nods to the Lord of the Rings series , and the killer robots , feels like Will Smith's I,Robot film .




Yet each sequence plays out like a Playstation , Wii or XBox game . The film goes beyond typical action shoot them ups ; of the Rambo or Terminator films . The action special effects go so far past the limited of film , I was wondering if the kid in the row in front of me had brought his XBox controller , and was controlling the action on the screen .

The film surely hits a demographic ; teenage boys who like video games and girls . The five lead girls in the script who set out on the escape , scantly dressed in the fantasy dreams sequences with samurai swords and machine guns works , to the seventeen year old hormone raging teenager with his blood pumping . These perfect female fighting zombie-killing and orc-killing , can be the direct extraction from their own Wet Dreams .




The soundtrack however contains a 1970s Jefferson Airplane song and a 1980s Queen remix , which should re-introduce a new generation to some old classics .

The story is so short , fantasy sequences make up the majority of the film . Had we left out the fantasy sequence the run time of the film would have been forty five minutes , and I would have left the cinema with some respect to the writer and director . Natural I left disgusted , that I throw good money behind the price of a cinema ticket .

"Just because we can do something , does not automatically mean we should do something" - Jurassic Park

This quote came to me during the film , the prevailing use of special effects through the film industry and especially this movie , made me wonder ; How long did these girls spend in front of the green screen ? How long did they spend suspend from wires swing around in front of a green screen to get that shot ? Was it all worth it ?




I do not know what the director's or writer's vision was , but the film just feels like it was made by high school or university students with too much of a budget . Characters were never developed , personalities were non-existent , the star of the movie was the special effects . How far could they push the envelope of special effects action sequences , and get the audience to accept it ?

I would advise everyone to give the movie a miss , unless you are the demographic of a video games junkie . And if you are an action movie junkie , go see it in the IMAX format .

Battle - Los Angeles (2011)

Aliens Invade !

And the good people of earth fight back , Defending their home .

All Civilians are to be evacuated inland . Leading the government attempt to save the citizens from the invading army , is the Proud , the Few , the Marines , Semper Fi .

After the normal first encounter butt kicking from a superior force , this small band on Heroes re-group ; and re-engage the enemy .

In the end , we fight to a draw .

But do not worry , as the credits roll , we are going back for more .



The movie is an ongoing battle scene , and the gun battles barely pause for a breather , before it starts back again . Making it truly a boy's movie , a friend of mine tagged it as RAMBO 6 . He expected Arnold and Sylvester to appear out Beverly Hills in a pimped up Hummer , machine guns blazing .

The continuous violence and heroism was a little to much for older audience , but the young people ate it up , cheering on the marines .

Michelle Rodriguez , known for tough-chick roles , has once again been type-casted in her role from Resident Evil and S.W.A.T. as the bad ass soldier . If I was ever in trouble , I know who I would like to have come rescue me .

In the end the film seems like an infomercial for military recruitment , be a hero is the message , and I am sure the recruitment numbers are up for the month of the film's release .

Another movie doomed for late night re-runs on cable television .

The Green Hornet ( 2011 )

The Green Hornet ( 2011 ) in 3-D : The movie is based on a 1930s Radio program and then 1960s TV show with Bruce Lee . Now the 2011 , the Movie .

However we face the same slapstick , "make it funny" as of most of the reboots of the 21st Century , following on Charlie's Angels , Starsky and Hutch and so on , it is funny . However the saving grace is that is it is an action movie too . Not the Charlie's Angels funny or Starsky and Hutch funny . It is Seth Rogen funny .

So basically your like or dis-like of this movie balances on the question : Do you Like Seth Rogen ?

Jay Chou is relegated to Straight Man , playing Abbott to Setn's Costello , and takes the role of action hero , with most of the stunts falling to him . Leaving him the more favored character throughout the movie .

Cameron Diaz , in all her beauty appears , but that is about the length of it . She plays the love interest , of whom I do not know . But fails to have a purpose in the film , and leaves one wondering if she is hoping for more in a sequel , playing a Villian QUEEN BEE .

Battlestar Galactica fans would be please to see Edward James Olmos , playing the newspaper mentor . However not fulling his full acting potential , mostly due to the small part .

Was it worth the 3D ? I am hard press to site a scene where the 3D made the film better than the normal 2D . Some smoke and glass were flying around , and made me blink twice , but that was about it .

I expect the film to be as popular as the original TV series , and break even enough to spawn the sequel , and with a dry spell in the cinema , this could do the job of filling quite a few seats . But a CLASSIC , no .

The Movie Keeps begging the question, TO SPOOF or NOT TO SPOOF ?

IF you are a fan of the original , by all means go and see it on the big screen, but for the rest of us , it is just a night out of the house .

The Tourist (2010)

The TOURIST : This American remake of the French Film , is pitched to the public as a Thriller film, but plays out more like the final act of a Heist Film.

There was absolutely nothing Thrilling about the film's story , and as such we move from act to act , with little to no substance . A Thriller uses the elements of suspense, tension and excitement, none of which appears in the movie. However being a Heist movie, we continue down a road , "whodunit" and where is the money ?

Angelina Jolie plays the role of a typical European trend-setter , set out on a road for love, or is it revenge, for Alexander Pearce. The character is cold, unfeeling and never too bothered . Hence the audience is unable to believe that there any real love between her and the mystery man. So should she run into him , would she embrace him or kill him ?

Johnny Depp plays the role of the victim, a Wisconsin math teacher, an innocent by-stander brought into their world of criminal activity, only to fall in love with the leading lady. But again Angelina's cold personality brings the relationship on screen, to the high-school behavior of "prom queen" and the "nerd" .

As the film continues, and INTERPOL and the MAFIA get involved, she abandons him to his mundane life, but having been bitten by the love bug, he must come to her rescue. Laughable and stupid , is actually what it comes to. The Knight in Shinning Armour syndrome fails , thus the audience disappointment in the ending .

• Official Website : http://www.thetourist-movie.com/
• Wikipedia : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tourist_(2010_film)
  

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