The Goonies

I know, I know, took almost a decade to finally get around to Goonies. I was kinda surprised too!

It's funny, I was never heavily nostalgic for The Goonies and while I have seen the movie many many years ago probably before I was even a teen, it still holds up remarkably well! Set in a seaside town a group of friends in an attempt to save their homes from being torn down find a treasure map and against all logic or reason decide to go for it, surpassing traps and capture from a band of criminals hot on their heels for mass amount of booty. Yo-ho! For a movie just a notch over 1½ hours even I was surprised how much time they set everything up before the hunt begins, a good 20 to 25 minutes as a matter of fact which I get! We got a lot of characters here and while they are far from deep are immensely charming and memorable and I could talk about every single cast member truth be told because of how good the performances are and how I really couldn't dream of anyone else playing these kids and it kinda breaks my heart I can't delve into everyone in great detail, so I'll shoutout my faves. Sean Astin my man, I love you my man, has such an innocence and wonder about him at all this stuff even in the midst of a death defying task, easily the heart of the group. Of course I have to shoutout our king Ke Huy Quan, I believe this was right on the cusp of Temple Of Doom and his hair brained gadgets and wild persona was a sheer blast to watch and lowkey honestly has the best look out of all the characters bar none! Jeff Cohen need I really say more, asode from Sloth is the face of this movie in the popular culture and I have to admit he got the most laughs out of me very easily, and I strongly relate to a foodaholic that doesn't want trouble. John Matuszak even though he's not in the movie all that much, Sloth is a beast all of his own and despite the impressive prosthetics showcases a lot of love and fun and you wouldn't have to ask me twice to share some rocky road with him. I have no friggin' clue how they got Robert Davi to be in this because he is a man of intensity and awesome in his acting but it was nothing short of great to see him here. The production is absolutely top notch without a shadow of a doubt, LOTS of intricate and well designed sets, simple but good stunts, and a scale that even the main cast were blown away by when it came to, I shit you not, a fully built pirate ship! Sure there is some blue screen effects but my God this movie has some polish on it that is sorely missing from cinema today! And I guess the saying of "Brevity is the soul of wit" shines through here because it is a simple story with simple characters, but the writing and humor is so good you don't need an inch more than what is presented on screen. The humor often comes out of left field but got good strong laughs out of me at points throughout the film. It's just highly entertaining and no wonder people look at it so fondly and have became big fans of it! Anybody can watch it, anybody can love it, really and truly everyone on that crew deserves the praise. Great cast, solid director, a simple but engaging story, culminating in a film that has stood the test of time admirably. 3.5 stars, 8/10! Ooooh did someone say pirates in space tomorrow? Cause that's all I need!

License To Kill

Ooh this is a tough call.

I honestly kind of like Licence To Kill just a tiny bit more than The Living Daylights, and I really enjoy that movie! I have no issue saying this is one of the best Bond stories, it's like For Your Eyes Only but incredibly commited and even better. We meet up with Bond on Felix's wedding day after they arrested a drug lord but he escapes and comes after Felix and his wife, leading Bond on a full fledged revenge mission as a rogue agent from MI6. Oh my God. I am so onboard with this story, you don't need to do a thing. I am there and I am loving it. It's a shame Dalton never got one more crack as 007 because he is really really good in this movie, and I know some say his intense attitude was occasionally off in the last movie which is somewhat true, but here I totally buy it. He friggin' wants this guy dead and will do anything to avenge his longtime friend. It kind of cut me a little seeing Bond show such love and kindness to Felix and his wife Della just to have this horrible thing happen to them, and the fact they brought up Tracy made me get misty eyed a little. He just loses friend after friend, ally after ally, and it really makes you get behind Bond's actions all the way through. I think this is a great story and one that was worth telling! The performances really sold me on this story, as I said Dalton is damn good in this movie and I feel people focus too much on the violence to really appreciate his performance. Robert Davi is such a good villain, he does downright gruesome things yet still has an air of charm and likability at times and his death is perfection honestly. Carey Lowell is a very good Bond girl in my eyes, kind of a more action more than words type of character though she certainly doesn't mind calling bullshit when she sees it, she's one of the finer Bond girls of the series. There's a handful of people you may kind of recognize in the story, we have two Mortal Kombat actors in this movie specifically Katana and Shang Tsung which is kind of cool to see, Benecio del Toro is the main henchman and it's really neat to see him in one of his earliest roles, but strangest of all Wayne Newton the famous singer plays a minor part in this movie and I swear to God I couldn't believe it was him even with my own two eyes. The action is pretty great at times, in particular the big rig truck chase at the end I mean damn guys, good show! So well done, and people throw a fit over, "Oh this movie's too dark and violent, I can't take my 7 year old to see this James Bond movie!" yes because clearly the James Bond series was created for pre-teen audiences. I was watching Goldeneye when I was 4 years old, and yes my parents and even grandparents were slightly concerned about that but they let me watch it anyway because I loved the movies for everything they did and not just certain, uh...elements. My point is, the violence should not take away from your experience unless you are really squeamish around blood. It's telling a very realistic and very serious movie, and I applaud the producers for taking that chance and doing something daring with a very formulaic movie series at this point. You need to shake it up occasionally! There was no harm done by this movie, but the production problems made this the last Bond film for 6 years and good God did they make that comeback worth the wait! Next time, this is where the fun begins. 4 stars from me, with a sterling 8/10!