Rock The Kasbah

Yet another really good new Bill Murray movie.

I'm not quite sure why most people were not very fond of this movie, it could have been much worse and I had a good time watching it. Bill Murray like always, if doing reviews for Bill Murray movies for more than a year should tell you anything Bill is still great. I was kinda shocked to see Zooey Deschanel and Kate Hudson in this movie, and the sad thing was Zooey was in the movie for maybe 15 minutes but Kate was awesome throughout the whole movie, she was a blast to watch. The story itself is something I got to admit, I've never seen before. Bill Murray plays a music manager who decides to go on tour with one of his singers in Afghanistan, his singer soon leaves which causes him to not have an act. Not very long afterwards he discovers a girl with an incredible singing voice and wants her to be a part of his team. Her father says no and says it is forbidden and looked upon as a sin in their culture, but nevertheless she wants to sing on national television and change the views of her own culture. A very interesting premise and it does delve into the cultural and ideological standpoints of modern day Afghanistan. The film is a comedy even though there is some surprising amounts of gunfire in this mostly just for laughs. But the real element that steals the show is not in fact Bill Murray, but Leem Lubany who plays the singer Salima Khan. She is goregous, she sings like an angel, I couldn't give her more props if I tried and yet she is mostly in the background in this movie. But when she has her moments, she really shines through! I had a good time with this movie, I'm not sure what you'll think but if you ever get around to it, give it a watch and tell me what you think.

Creed

Now that's what I call a terrific movie.

Creed is a worthy succesor to the Rocky series, and I couldn't tell you how excited I was when I watched it. I guess you could say the story is a retelling of the original Rocky, but it picks up a few years after Rocky VI. And everything is the same. Philadelphia looks a little more new but it's still Rocky's home. Mickey's gym, Rocky's house, the museum steps, it's all exactly where and how you saw it last. Michael B. Jordan is a great choice to play the son of Apollo, and I'm very proud of him for such a great performance. Of course Sylvester Stallone still has all the charm and heart, he hasn't lost an ounce of it and I have to admit it was amazing to see him play the Mickey role to Adonis. It's just great to see Rocky again and things haven't changed much for him. There's lots of love and attention to detail of previous movies, you see the original Mighty Mick's Gym sign in the newly remodeled gym, you even see Rocky's turtles all grown up. The whole experience of the movie gets you going, it invests you in the story and the characters, it makes you root for Adonis claiming the title of Creed from his father. It's just a damn good movie, and I really want you to see it. One thing I ought to give you fair warning about though is the fact that it is much more adult and more grittier than previous films, you hear some pretty strong language and it just shows this is the film for a person who grew up on Rocky movies and is now an adult. It's a new film, but it still feels like home.

It's Our 1 Year Anniversary!!!

In less than one year I have done over 100 movie and television reviews. I can hardly imagine that way back when I did my first review of Birdman that I would continue on for one year, and review over a hundred movies. And this is the standard for every year from henceforth. I want to try and do a hundred reviews a year, while still taking a break or two just to try and plan out my reviews for the next few months. I have actually set out most of my reviews from now until December, but of course I can't remember every movie so some weeks are blank. So I thought of having those weeks as viewer picks, where the people who enjoy this blog and just the fact that I do movie reviews recommend some movies for me to watch. And seeing how next month is April, I want to actually do more of my favorite movies. I also have a few plans for an April Fools Day review but that is in the works. So in the meantime, here's to another year and here's to many more reviews to come.

The Batman Superman Movie: World's Finest

This was the standard of a Batman and Superman movie for almost 20 years.

I remember watching this as a little kid and I enjoyed it a lot, and all these years later it is still good. Released almost 20 years before the Batman fought the Man Of Tomorrow , this movie takes a different approach to the team up, although it does share some similar factors with the new movie. Batman and Superman have been doing their own things in Metropolis and Gotham, until one day both The Joker and Lex Luthor team up to kill both Batman and Superman. This causes the Dark Knight and the Man Of Steel to team up and stop their plans from, you guessed it taking over the world. The single most best element of this movie is that it takes place in the Animated Series universe or the Diniverse as fans call it, the universe where both Batman The Animated Series and Superman The Animated Series are found. If you were a fan of either of these shows, then you pretty much know the mythos and the voice acting and the animation style. All the original cast of both shows are here, and really that's half the fun of this movie. How would Superman and Batman talk to one another? Would they fight or work together? What would Joker and Lex be working towards and all the stuff that would happen between them? And in this universe, they do it pretty well. You can believe like, this is what would happen if these two met. And that's where the cast shines in this movie. They get to do something that is not what they do on a regular basis. Kevin Conroy and Tim Daly show that despite their different stances, Batman and Superman could work together costumes or not. Mark Hamill is glorious as always and it's just so funny to see him paired up with Clancy Brown's very serious Lex Luthor, you just don't see that anywhere else. If you want a good prelude to the new Batman V. Superman movie this would be a good place to start. And the film's running time is, and I kid you not...one hour. Just one hour. And they do a spectacular job with everything they put into such a short movie. Unfortunately I couldn't really find it anywhere besides in stores but the DVD is only $5 so it's not a waste of money. Whichever Batman and Superman movie you see first, I hope you enjoy both.

Batman V. Superman: Dawn Of Justice

I had great faith in this movie...and it did not disappoint!

What a great comic book movie! I loved it! Ben Affleck killed it as Batman, Henry Cavill is still a great Superman, even Gal Gadot whooped some serious ass as Wonder Woman! The cast, yes even Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor was fantastic. So what's the story? Well....it's a little bit more complex then Batman and Superman throw down and it's amazing. It sets up a lot of stuff, and some of it won't pay off until the future but it was still very well done! The best part of the movie in my opinion was the fact that this is a continuation of Man Of Steel. And some of the plot elements play strongly in this film. I dare not spoil how it all unfolds but I think it will thrill you. I think it will fascinate you about future DC movies. So for those of you who feel obligated to see this movie, despite my rave review I have to say you are very brave. Through all the hate, the doubt, the crazy choices it actually works. Would it make you happy? Would it make you think more? How come there were so many dream sequences? Well there's one thing you need to know: It's here. And it's a true marvel. So get your butts down to the movie theater right now!

Speechless

Or as I like to call it, The Unofficial Batman and Superman Movie.

No I'm serious. It stars Michael Keaton and Christopher Reeve. Excited yet? I know I am! So the story follows Michael Keaton and Geena Davis as speech writers for opposing political candidates. They meet and start spending time together before they find out the unfortunate truth, which causes them to start backstabbing each other until they decide, screw it why be enemies when you can be friends? So they start building a very nice, very funny relationship. They have terrific chemistry together, both when they are bickering and when they are together. The comedy really got me rolling in some scenes, and thankfully there wasn't much drama to bring me down. I do kinda hate that Christopher Reeve isn't much in the movie, because well it's Christopher Reeve. He's charming, he's awesome, you really wish you could see him more! And this film was made a little bit before his tragic accident so it can really tug at your heart strings. But still, it's a fun movie and not that very well known which is really a shame. You know those romantic comedy movies you dread to go see? This is definitely not one of them!

The Good Dinosaur

I needed something happy and fun to end this week so....Pixar!

This was a fantastic movie! Gorgeous visuals, awesome characters, a real good message, with good laughs for all. The story follows a dinosaur named Arlo who one day gets seperated from his family and along the way runs into a human named Spot whom he befriends, and thus the long journey begins to get back home. The one element of this film I would have never guessed in a million years (ha ha) was that the film has a serious western tone to it. Arlo and his family are homesteaders, there are friggin' longhorn herding Tyranosaurus Rex's who are without a doubt my favorite characters in the whole film, even rustling Raptors and Pterodactyls! Now let's talk about some of the stand out elements that makes this film so good. Now one of the things I thought was kinda clever was the fact that dinosaurs were the intelligent lifeforms whereas the humans are very primitive almost like dogs or wolves. The second thing is the visuals, now this is a very excellently designed and beautiful film, hell it even looks lifelike at moments focusing on the earth and the water and the trees. I just love it. Now needless to say the T-Rex's are my favorite characters in the entire picture, the lead one Butch being the best, I mean I loved the T-Rex's before I even saw the film but the fact that Butch is voiced by Sam Elliot makes it badass! They are Texan T-Rex's and that makes me grin like an idiot. Also the message it has about facing your fears is a very good one, and I have to say I have never heard the way they say to face your fears before, it is very original. Oh, and let's end this with the most polar opposite things you have ever witnessed in a Disney movie! Why is the loss of a family member such a staple of Disney? Like I know this kind of stuff happens to families in real life but seriously, Disney is making this the rule, not the exception. On the opposite end of this spectrum, this has never happened in any Disney movie ever. Two things actually! There is an honest to God drug hallucination in this movie. I am dead fraking serious. The closest thing we ever got to that was Dumbo getting drunk and seeing the Pink Elephants! But the most standing out point is we actually have a character that suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder! When in the blue hell have we EVER seen something like that? We haven't! That's insane in a movie like this! But that makes the film better. The entire film on a whole is great, I just love the look and the characters. I've always been a dinosaur fan and this movie brought it out in me, I was geeking the hell out throughout this movie. If you like dinosaurs or Pixar, you will really like The Good Dinosaur! I almost feel obliged to buy it but of course all in good time.

For next week, boy howdy do I have some movies for you. Culminating in my review of Batman V. Superman, I will review other movies to prepare for it....

The Intern

What a beautiful film.

I am serious, this film is absolutely beautiful. Beautiful with it's concepts of old and new, of relationships, of old age, of the real honest to God human emotions that we experience. With as simple a concept of a film about an older gentlemen who interns for a new internet fashion store, the film holds many truths. The truth of the strain of being the big boss of a company and the effects it has on a family, the truth of how real people express their emotions and how they deal with situations. This movie is sincere, it is charming, it is funny with excellent human characters. Not characters but human beings. Robert De Niro's character is indeed a dying breed, a chivalrous, kind, compassionate human being who decides to spend a bit of time in his life when he doesn't have much time left to experience something new, but more so to help people. Anne Hathaway's character is an overworked, stressed mother who tries to make everyone happy and yet carries the world on her shoulders, trying to better her life for the sake of not only herself but her family. She has a daughter in this movie that is heart-gushingly adorable and sweet and that is only one element of this film that moved me. Moved me to laughter, to shock, and to tears. It is a beautiful film. Real, humorous, and lovely. Usually when I recommend films, it is because they are good movies that people should watch for one reason or another. But this is a film that...I demand people to watch. It is a life changing film, it changes your perspective on life, love, old age, being compassionate towards others, and to always help in anyway you can. Most people including myself saw this as a comedy focusing on an older man working with new technology and living in the modern world, but what it truly is is something far greater and meaningful than anybody could percieve.

Spring Break!

Good and bad news time. The good news is I am on spring break for a week so I can do more reviews than usual. The bad news is our apartment has flooded a bit and we are in the process of moving. That's why I could only get one review out last week, because soon after that we discovered mold and copious amounts of water in our bedroom so we are trying to get the hell out of here as quick as possible. I do believe we move into the new place on Tuesday, so a bit more packing to do before then and after that we can resume like normal. I want to try and get at least three new movies done before the end of the week. I've been wanting to review Creed, definitely thinking about doing The Martian, and one more that I need to decide on. The best part is I can just use Redbox, watch and review the movie in one day, return it and pick up a new one for the next day. So it will save me some money, and I get to review more new movies. I'm sorry I couldn't get you another review last week, so that's why I'm trying to get three reviews out this week. So I will see you guys and gals very soon.

Highlander

30 years ago today, one of the most imaginitive, awesome, and all around amazing fantasy movies ever made was released. And I am a fan.

Highlander is a truly remarkable film, with a big cult following and it's kinda hard not to see why. Great creative story, fantastic characters, fascinating mythology, and the entire soundtrack was done by Queen. It really can't get much better than that. So what's the story? Christopher Lambert plays Connor Macleod an immortal, who has lived for more than 300 years. The film follows his life in 1980's New York interwoven with flashbacks of key moments in his life. The mythology of the movie is the focal point, setting the ground rules of all immortals, The Gathering where all the immortals meet and battle until in the end there can be only one, and the mysterious Prize. It really grabs your attention and gets you invested in the film. But not just the mythos, the characters are interesting. Christopher Lambert is a great lead, Sean Connery is a awesome mentor to Macleod, friggin' Clancy Brown is the most badass, hilarious, and threatning villain I have ever seen and I can never get enough of him! The soundtrack by Queen is perfect, cause they actually wrote the entire soundtrack for the film so it fits almost too well and they are damn good songs on their own. I highly recommend it, I am totally biased cause I love it but give it a chance. I think you might really like it. Great movie!

Top 20 Favorite Films

First list and I wanted to make a list longer than 10 so with that, my top 20 favorite films!

20. Citizen Kane. Yeah it may be obvious to put the greatest film ever made on here but it is an excellent film with a great message. I am proud to say I own it.

19. Heat. Anything with Michael Mann and bank robberies is no bad thing. The inner character dynamics is what made this film a favorite and it has the best running firefight ever put on film.

18. Rocky. A story with power, emotion, great characters, and lifting music? Sign me up! This is a true classic and should be seen by everyone.

17. The Princess Bride. Talk about a new found gem. This movie stole me away to a great story, memorable characters, perfect humor and a damn good romance. And I just saw it!

16. Tron. A cult film with an emphasis on technology, that made my imagination run wild. And had Bruce Boxleitner and Jeff Bridges!

15. The Lord Of The Rings. Epic fantasy series that never gets boring to me. For over 3 hours of film, that's saying something! I love it to there and back again.

14. Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan. Science fiction, Shakespearian writing, and much more that made me appreciate storytelling and characters even more.

13. Big Trouble In Little China. Original as it gets, great fighting, absolutely hilarious, and changed every preconception of an action movie.

12. Up. My favorite Pixar movie ever made, made me cry like a baby more than three times, and gave me a story and experience I can never forget.

11. Clue. It's been one of my favorites since I first saw it, took me years to finally own it and was totally worth the wait, amazing dark humor, and a awesome adaptation of a friggin' board game!

10. Rocky Horror Picture Show. Can you tell I like cult movies? I don't just like this, I adore it. Fantastic music, campy, and Tim Curry at his finest. How can you not love it?

9. Pulp Fiction. Quentin Tarantino's greatest film in my opinion. Why is it #9? Three things: the dance scene in the restaurant, the way the story is told, and of course...Christopher Walken.

8. A Clockwork Orange. Insane? Yeah. Creative? Absolutely. Music? Can't get enough of it. Malcolm McDowell? Dear sweet God yes! This movie is art to me.

7. Ed Wood. Classic look, excellent writing, Johnny Depp and Martin Landau floored me with their performances, quirky, full of heart, and amazing. My favorite movie about making movies.

6. The Big Lebowski. You know I had to put it on here, I'm the Dude for crying out loud! It's impossible to hate a film like this, the Cohen Brothers are geniuses with awesome dialogue, a fun and interesting story, characters you can never get enough of. I aspire to be The Dude, now and forever.

5. Birdman. It was my first review, I loved it then and I love it even more now. Not much else to say, just read the review and watch it and you will know why Birdman stole the #5 spot.

4. Her. Best relationship movie ever! I cannot praise it enough! I want to watch it over and over again, and I only dream of a better romance movie. Speaking of which...

3. Lost In Translation. It's still perfect. Still can't stop loving it and worshipping it. It's just too good to be real.

2. Batman (1989). Batman fan forever, love every single movie but this one takes the cake! Best comic book movie ever, Michael Keaton is THE Batman, I cannot do it justice here and the review will be coming.

1. Star Wars Trilogy. Yeah I can never pick just one of them, it's like making me choose my favorite child. I love them all, I cannot wait to see them again, I live it, I breathe it, The Force is my ally.

Citizen Kane

I can understand why this is the greatest film ever made.

I may be a film snob but I love this movie! There have been countless documentaries and commentaries on why Citizen Kane is the greatest movie ever made, so I will not bore you with why this is the greatest movie ever made but merely, give my honest opinion on this film. Let us start with the plot, which follows after the death of our main character, Charles Foster Kane and the subsequent investigation into his dying word "Rosebud". The film constantly shifts from past to present chronicling his life from a small boy to his dying day, with opinions on him from his friends, family, and enemies. Orson Welles wrote, directed, and acted in this picture with pressence and immense power. You can see him age both in personal actions as well as physically, changing from a fun loving spontaneous happy human being to a sad lonely bitter old man. The film has a central message of enjoying life. Always do what you want to do, have fun with your life, never stop for a second doing what you love. Do not do things for pure monetary gain or for fame, but do things in your life that you enjoy and do it until your dying day. For if you do not, you will have doubt and regret and misery for the rest of your life. If it does not shorten or end your life, do it. And that is a message all should take to heart. What is Rosebud? I cannot tell but we all have our own personal Rosebud's.

Thank you so much for reading my 100th review. I hope you will stick around for my 200th review. This place is nothing without my readers, just the rambling and ranting and personal opinions of a would be critic. Thank you so much. Good night.