The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare

Mouthful of a title!

Good times be had at the newest Guy Ritchie film with his directorial style mixed with real world history of a sordid group trekking to neutral water in an attempt to sabotage a german U-boat blockade to bring relief to His Majesty's kingdom. It really is what the trailers says it is and more so, it's not balls to the wall action nonstop this is essentially a wartime thriller and is paced like so. It has some pretty damn good moments of suspense and I never thought a musical score of jazz/big swing band could get me on edge, it has moments of communicado with the leaders of the military government and the Prime Minister, and strategizing when the plan goes belly up. For a 2 hour movie with credits it's paced to where it flies by! Cast does proper good work and while the characters aren't deep three dimensional people you like them and get where they are coming from. Henry Cavill is having a blast here and I'm always game to see him in any role under the sun, Eiza Gonzalez more underplays it but at times you can see just this hellfire rage at the natzi army she's proper good, Babs Olusanmokun thankfully had such a bigger role than the last movie I saw him in which was Dune playing a more undercover part and touches base on the espionage part of the war, and I'll give a shoutout to Cary Elwes and Rory Kinnear it's a joy to see them as always. That was wild to know good old Bill Tanner himself plays Churchill and the Bond references don't stop there, we meet Ian Fleming and I'll be honest I greatly enjoyed and liked the way they handled Fleming here than probably any biopic made of him in the decades past, he's just there no fuss made about him or eye rolling quip about his literary creation. Well done. The action is not super flashy or choreographed but still packs the right punch with the squibs and explosions. The score is something awesome in and of itself combining two distinct genres, western music a là Ennio Morricone or something akin to the Kill Bill soundtrack and syncopated jazz music like you hear in Birdman, doesn't seem like it would work in a World War 2 movie but it's absolutely great, I just love it! It's always interesting to learn about another facet of history especially during wartime and while it undoubtedly is theatrical and played up even just a notch, it's neat to see. Especially since this came from a declassified file not even made public a decade ago so this is still relatively new information! I can recommend it, entertaining and fun showing the opposite side of the spectrum when it comes to war cinema. 3.5 stars, 8/10! Expect some odd stuff for my birthday week, and have fun at the movies this weekend!

Civil War

A24 man. It messes with you.

This is going to be a loaded review no doubt, and lightyears from the reasons most people would associate ie. politics. The first thing I gotta get out there is pretty pivotal to almost everything I gotta say so allow me to quote a passage that I think sums this movie up, "A true war story is never moral. It does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior, nor restrain men from doing the things men have always done. If a story seems moral, do not believe it. If at the end of a war story you feel uplifted, or if you feel that some small bit of rectitude has been salvaged from the larger waste, then you have been made the victim of a very old and terrible lie. There is no rectitude whatsoever. There is no virtue. As a first rule of thumb, therefore, you can tell a true war story by its absolute and uncompromising allegiance to obscenity and evil.". Set in the alternate history of a not too distant future we follow a group of war photographers trekking to Washington D.C. to interview the president as, shock I know, a civil war has erupted with several states seceding from the US and it seems the combined forces of Texas and California are making the final push into the capital. The fact so many people I know who got hung up on this whole California×Texas alliance I feel is taking this too literal, and besides positions and politics evolve so it's not precisely in the realm of impossibility. I will admit I'm slightly upset they didn't give a backstory or reason as to why the war started, we're thrown literally at the tail end of this conflict with little information. How long has the war been raging? Why wage a war against the presidency? We certainly get no answers as to what could potentially happen after the end. Now maybe that wasn't truly the point, the film is wholly centered on the dehumanizing effects of war and almost a psychological study on war photographers which in and of itself is a pretty fucked profession. There's almost too much to talk about and I'd hate to forget everything so we may do a lightning round in a bit. First though, cast. I can easily see people criticize Kirsten Dunst as being very flat and monotone, but man if you've seen God knows how many battles and atrocities and war crimes trust me you get a bit friggin' desensitized and detached, she does fine work and it was nice seeing her in a new movie. Wagner Moura is her cohort and is the more aloof and passionate reporter on the matter, seeing it as just another day out in the field. Callie Spaeny plays a teenager who aspires to take up the same profession and tags along for the coverage, and I'll fully admit while I didn't hate it the execution and reasoning for her joining of the party isn't exactly smooth, I know it is to drive a point home but hey Callie killed it. Great as always to see Stephen McKinley Henderson again as the reasonable and cool headed news veteran who undoubtedly is the moral compass of this makeshift family unit essentially. Alright let's snap to and hit some bullet points. Speaking of bullets while far from spectacle or blood soaked this is a tense ass movie and if you see it in theaters I recommend earplugs because those gunshots are visceral and LOUD. You never quite know when the next attack will happen so you're always uneasy and nervous. Next up maybe it's because it's an A24 film but this film gets artsy, I mean black and white still photographs in the midst of gunfights, tranquil shots of nature, a rather mellow and contradictory soundtrack to the intense battlefield that is the States, it commits to that style. As you may know I am aware of next door to nothing about government or politics, so I can only see it as a war film and not some basis or platform to point at the other side in hate. Hell only yesterday did I read the Constitution, the Declaration, the Bill Of Rights, and pieces of the Federalist Papers not even really to get a grasp on this film but because I wanted to know. Could I easily see people point at this film as a massive what if and use it to fearmonger? Easily. But I view it as a cautionary tale, if it scares you it'll scare you to make a better future and world to avoid such an event. Conflict, battles, war, whatever damn name you have for it I find to be the most ineffectual and worthless gesture in the history of humanity. It does nothing and to give one more quote by my favorite Doctor Who, "Because it's always the same. When you fire the first shot, no matter how right you feel, you have no idea who's going to die. You don't know whose children are going to scream and burn. How many hearts will be broken. How many lives shattered! How much blood will spill before everybody does what they were always going to have to do from the very beginning! SIT DOWN AND TALK.". It's as simple as that. So view it as a tragedy, as a study into the mindset of people who document such heinous acts of cruelty, and not as some bullshit where a side is right or wrong. It's heavy, unapologetic, and does something no war film ever has that I've at least seen: it doesn't pick a side, it just shows what such a cataclysm does to people. Maybe more informed and knowledgable individuals on the sphere of politics can delve so much deeper into it, but perhaps the simple and unbiased lens is the right way to go. It's highly effective, well directed, maybe not as fleshed out as I would have liked, but a thought provoking and startling piece of cinema regardless. People will talk about it. That's all I really have to say about that. 3 stars, 7.5/10.

Inglorious Basterds

Got around to seeing it at last.

15 years later on I've heard strangely little about this movie beyond Christoph Waltz who we'll get to, so walking in I was blind but from years of seeing Quentin's films and recognizing that pansche that style he brings I knew it was worth watching. True to himself the movie is split into five chapters, connected in one way or another, of an operation in nazi occupied France to pretty much firebomb the high regime of the third reich as we follow a cinema owner, a group of americans behind enemy lines, and allied agents who all have pieces to the puzzle for ending the war. For a movie clocking in at two and a half hours it does not feel it's length able to build the mood, suspense, and story without rushing and while the characters don't ooze depth they all are immediately identifiable and engaging. Brad Pitt as the Tennesse bred leader of the american party Aldo Raine though not as much a focal point as you would believe is fun to watch and believable in the role. Melanie Laurent as the cinema owner Shosanna has her own agenda and story involving a german soldier, and because she's a theater owner we get to flex those movie muscles bringing up film around the mid 20s to late 30s so that's always great! And maybe this was just me, and I almost hate to say it but I think overhype is the keyword when it comes to Christoph Waltz as the SS officer Hans Landa, at least for me. Far from calling it bad, the dichotomy of how Waltz plays it so charming and nonchalant before seeing the cold dead stare and meticulous extermination of jewish people is indeed great, you almost get lost in the pleasantries before you remember oh yeah, nazi fuck! But somehow without spoilers I've heard people tout Landa as one of the greatest movie villains over the years and I just saw a solid performance. And I will give credit where it's due that Quentin Tarantino doesn't make light of the second world war, it does stand all on it's own as a war movie an alternate history war movie but regardless it takes itself seriously and doesn't shy away from the so called "Just War" when really it wasn't so black and white. It's no Django Unchained and just replace racist bigots with natzis, but nor is it a gritty as hell reality grounded war epic like All Quiet On The Western Front or Saving Private Ryan, there are some quirks of Tarantino but largely is it's own beast. That stated however the violence and blood is upped, the entirely practical production is outstanding with the period clothing and sets and the startling pyrotechnics. Soundtrack is pretty bitchin' too but that's to be expected! I'm so happy I got around to seeing it and talking about it, I do recommend it but the caveat here is Quentin Tarantino is a diverse filmmaker and you never know what project is next for him leading to different tastes and tones so don't walk into it expecting a Pulp Fiction or Once Upon A Time In Hollywood kinda vibe. It's something different but worthwhile and trying different stuff can be exciting. 3.5 stars, 8/10, and I guess Civil War is up next. Not the historical Civil War, no not the Marvel Civil War, the other Civil War. Yeah that one.

Napoleon

Happy giving of the thanks, now let's talk war.

We truly do not get big budget epic historical dramas like we used to, so when I saw the trailer for Napoleon I was onboard all the way. I am no history buff, but I like to show my support for the genre and thankfully it's not a case of where you have to be extremely familiar with the military career of one Napoleon Bonaparte to understand everything presented. The film begins with the french revolution and the execution of Marie Antoinette and concludes with Napoleon's exile to Saint Helena, covering his marriage, his crowning as emperor, his campaigns against Britain and Prussia, and his days in exile. And from what I saw this was a huge undertaking for Ridley Scott, I mean not to say historical dramas are box office bombs by a stretch but it is a risky venture mainly due to the budget. I have no idea what the budget was but it showed a lot in terms of set production, costumes, and volume of extras which is what is to be expected from a film like this! It's directed well, the movie has moments where you are just in awe, the cast is proper good, and keeps a brisk pace where the film doesn't feel like it's pushing 3 hours. It's a farcry from an all out action film, but man I gotta admit to you I haven't felt that sense of amazement and just plain blown away by the scale of the battles scenes here since shit like, Return Of The King easily. Not necessarily in terms of awesomeness but through sheer scaling. It looks real, they really went to a field and got hundreds of people to take opposite sides and charge in. They use CG but only if it's absolutely needed, and it felt appropriately big. The politics were handled very economically to sum it up, they give you the necessary information in a concise and short manner to understand why historical world events occured. And even as a straight up newbie when it comes to french history, I recognized events and names even without knowing the full context. Joaquin is effective, he has that star power where you lock in on him and he does carry the film throughout, it's not so much a character study on Napoleon and rather a short biographical look on his command. Vanessa Kirby as Josephine is such an interesting character who you don't really know that much about but it makes want to learn about her, because she really is this average woman who gets thrown into being the literal empress of France and her subsequent fall from that grace, you kinda want to delve into that historical text but she does very well and has...maybe intentionally and bizarre chemistry with Joaquin. Odd customs and behaviors and mindsets are to be expected when you travel in the fourth dimension. Bit of an ensemble cast of minor players but all did solid work. I quite liked it, it certainly did not disappoint, and I feel it can hold people's interest if they have any to see it. I do give it a recommendation, and 3 stars, 8/10! One more film before the winter of my discontent begins.

Midway

I never thought I'd say this but, you did good Roland Emmerich.

I was extremely iffy about reviewing this but truth be told, all in all it was a very good movie. Detailing the events after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. navy counterattack against the japanese forces and decrypt their plan to use the Midway islands as a point of operations to send out more attacks on the west coast. Leading to a highly important battle in the pacific theater that led to U.S. forces making headway to the mainland of Japan. It tells the story concisely and even splits the attention on both american and japanese military operations, which you just truthfully don't see in many a war film. It's often just, urgh japs bad now america go forth and win, but they do take the time to tell history on both sides and don't paint the japanese navy in an unnecessarily antagonistic light. It sure as shit handled the attack on Pearl Harbor far better than a single frame of that f***ing useless hack Michael Bay could ever conjure in that movie. Don't even get me started. And while I admit the effects are not entirely great, they don't truthfully need to be, special effects are just a tool a means of telling a story so it can look like a PS3 game and it doesn't detract heavily. You get a grasp on the characters, the action is prominent and done well with the highlight for me being a brief dogfight up in the clouds. It was just done so dang good, keeping the tension high and delivered extremely well. The fact it sticks by all accounts of the actual soldiers who participated in these battles must be commended, with some slight liberties of course being taken for the sake of film so no foul there. You got a pretty solid cast that does deliver on all bases quite well, I mean Patrick Wilson is always a win, and Ed Skrien is a good lead that settles you in to an air force pilot's mindset during the early days of America stepping into the war. Etsushi Toyokawa has a lot of silent resilience playing Isoroku Yamamoto and I appreciate the fact they kept his quote "I fear all we have done is awaken a sleeping giant, and fill him with a terrible resolve" because he did feel it wasn't true combat, and they struck an unsuspecting enemy who wasn't to be trifled with. Plus it was just great seeing Jun Kunimura again, any actor who I get to see outside of a Godzilla movie is a treat. In the history I have had with Roland Emmerich, I have to say this is his best film. He handled the subject material with respect and it was pretty entertaining and informative. I give it 3 stars, 7.5/10, and I guess I'll finally watch Top Gun for the first time tomorrow.

Captain America: The First Avenger

Alright, we're sorta back on track.

Captain America is a decent film, but honestly I haven't been enjoying much of these movies since Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk but I sense with Captain America we're getting back there a bit. This could very much just be a tribute to war movies from the 40s to the 60s, let alone a comic book film. The production design and style the movie gives us throughout kinda encapsulates war movies, film serials, and your modern superhero action flick. It's not half bad, and I can usually dig war movies so this film had a bit more going for it. It's really hit me though how much I know about these movies even though until this point I've saw only 4 of them, through pure cultural osmosis because people can't shut up about these movies, I was like oh we'll see Red Skull again, oh that's the tesseract, oh Bucky will have a robot arm, yep Steve's gonna crash in ice and wake up in modern day, it's like I've seen these movies without seeing them at all. How weird is that? I mean I knew very basic story beats of pipsqueak Steve Rogers wants to join the army, but he an 89 pound weakling so they test a super soldier serum on him and he quickly becomes a war hero going by the name of Captain America. That's pretty much the movie in a nutshell, not much happens beyond that but it really ain't a bad flick, I was with it from start to finish and actually did like Chris Evans in this so thank God he at least got better after Fantastic Four, and I even appreciated seeing the golden age Captain America suit in the movie. But seriously what in the hell was up with Steve before he got the serum, it's the closest I have ever seen of a human bobble-head, I understand why and how they did it but yeesh it looks bad at times. The action is decent, the supporting characters was quite star studded and worked well, in particular Tommy Lee Jones. Hugo Weaving as a villain hardly ever goes wrong and the Red Skull prosthetics are delightfully cheesy and yet a bit cool. Let's be honest people, cheesy and silly is imbedded in every facet of comic books whether we admit it or not regardless of the medium. I think it's an okay movie, it didn't strike me as something really good but I don't think we can sink much lower than Iron Man 2. I mean have you seen these utter clowns in Hydra? Sweet Jesus. You would have to pay me billions to do that f***ing ridiculous salute. I know I didn't have all that much to say about this particular entry, but to be honest it didn't give me too much to work with. I give it 2.5 stars, 6.5/10, and apparently the big guns are coming with The Avengers so no doubt I'll have a bit to talk about there. Until then.

The Last Samurai

Alright America, you did good.

It was about high time after many reviews of films set in a very specific time in history to see if american filmmakers could succesfuly pay tribute to the elite class of warriors known the world over. And while it does take a grab bag of different historical elements, and not being a straight up historical recounting, the story it crafts is excellent. An american soldier is hired to train japanese soldiers in an attempt to quell a samurai rebellion, however after the first encounter he is taken by the samurai and spends months with them. He learns a bit of the language, their lifestyle, forms friendships, and eventually fights with them against the Imperial Army. It's a lot better than I'm making it out to be, this is not your cookie cutter Pocahontas/Dances With Wolves/Avatar horseshit, it has a lot more meat to it whether you're familiar with the time frame and culture or not. Surprisingly the film did much better in Japan than America, receiving a lot of praise and a very good box office intake while domestically it didn't even make it's budget back. It's a bit of a shame to see people in my own country still refuse to view films in different languages, it's not as bad as it was when this film released but it could always be better. And it is worth your time, it does go at a slow pace but never to the point of being boring or dragging at places, every scene has a reason to be, the shots are ridiculously gorgeous at times, the music is nice, the acting is the reason you stay invested even though the story is a strong one. I wasn't quite sure what to expect from Tom Cruise's character, but to see a very broken down, emotionally damaged, full on PTSD afflicted army officer who finds a bit of solace in a small village while gaining appreciation for the warriors who live there and continually learns more about them is a good narrative. It helps center even the most uncultured of individuals to understand what they are seeing. Ken Watanabe is amazing as always, so good he got his first and only Academy Award nomination which I find to be just inexcusable by the way, his character is against the rapid modernization and dissolving of his creed yet he doesn't take an antagonistic edge. The movie is more about the clashing of ideologies than swords, during the latter half of the 1800s Japan was taking it's first steps into the modern world after about 200 years of self isolation, a country frozen in time and suffered countless civil wars. And the government essentially outlaws samurai, which was a very real thing that happened and affected a lot of people. So you can understand why he stands against the governement and more importantly the Emperor who he taught as a young boy, it's just a difference of opinions with no ill will towards the other. It's such a good dynamic because in war films, there is no good or evil but just a conflict that consumes all in it's wake whether you see the scars it leaves on others or not. Samurai have a code of ethics that is showcased in this movie, and the director obviously did his homework because the film implements so much of the time period and the culture in the movie, it really is very commendable. I was not disappointed with any facet of the finished product, and while there are inevitable discrepancies with history it never detracted from the overall experience. It really is a great film that has stuff to say and commits to it's vision from beginning to end. There's no tropes, there's no emotional manipulation, it just tells the story. That's an impressive feat for any film let alone a period piece. It really affirms why I appreciate and enjoy movies of that time period and culture, and I was flipping through other examples of samurai cinema outside of the Kurosawa library and there is so much more to enjoy so I'll pick a handful of other movies to discuss and share with next week from other classic names of the chanbara genre. I strongly recommend this movie even if it is a one time viewing, and I give it a full 4 stars, 8.5/10!

Red Dawn

Now that's...unexpected.

I'll be honest I'm shocked. Red Dawn could not be less of a dumb action movie if it tried, but my God is it engrained in pop culture as one of the most kick ass and action filled movies of the 80s. Like what the shit, it's really good, it has a lot of down time between the brief action segments, gives time to our characters, shows the dehumanizing effects of war, shows real human emotions on both sides of the conflict, and is steeped in realism. If this film got re-released today people would have a very, very different opinion of it than they did back in the day. Huge respect to the director John Milius that took a kind of absurd plot about communist soldiers invading the american midwest and a band of high school students take up arms and try to liberate their town, into a legit war film that has the heart as well as the explosions. The cast is pretty star studded with Patrick Swayze and Charlie Sheen as brothers who lead the guerilla fighting force, and we got Lea Thompson and Jennifer Gray (this being done before Dirty Dancing), all of whom do very good work and do sell this premise. I was surprised to see this movie actually takes place over the course of about half a year, so you see these kids go from survivors to warriors and how much damage they are inflicting to this army as time goes on. This was the last movie I would ever expect to tell kind of a dark, real, and straight up war film. You just think it would be ridiculous premise, shoot outs galore, plenty of explosions for your money's worth, "Wolverines!!", hey we won, the end. Nope! No horseshit, this movie deserves a better rating than 6/10 on IMDB, it really pulled the persian rug right out from beneath me and gave me something much better. I kinda want to give it a 7.5/10, it's not a great movie but I'll be damned if I said it was even subpar. I dare not talk about it further cause I certainly don't want to spoil things or hype you up too much. Just go in and watch it with an open mind with zero preconceptions, and I think you'll very much like it. Again, it's not the 80s action movie with a heavy layer of cheese everyone makes it out to be so if that's what you want, I suggest you go rent First Blood Part 2 or Commando. Positively shocking but 4 stars, 7.5/10, very recommended from me!

1917

Well the first movie going experience of the new decade and the year. Shit.

I'm just gonna get this out of the way but, I totally jinxed myself today. I said not 6 hours before I walked into this movie, "I haven't had a bad theater experience in the 4 years of reviewing I've done.". Yeah the projection broke down twice. And it hurt the experience, the immersion, and the enjoyment of the film for me. I wasn't mad at the theater cause these things happen and very rarely too but with a film like 1917, you need that immersion. The whole movie is set up to be shot in one long take, very much like Birdman, but when the film stops and then literally has to rewind back a few minutes it does hurt the film. We had no hiccups after that and it started around the 30 minute mark but I couldn't fully enjoy the film afterwards because there was a nagging thought in the back of my head, the movie could break down again. That f***ing sucks man. My rating has been compromised because of the experience. Granted I very much liked the film, it was filmed absurdly well and I only counted a max of 5 cuts in this 2 hour movie. It has a strong story with two british soldiers tasked with crossing enemy territory to relay a message that will save 1,600 men. It does warrant the R rating with it's content, they don't shy away from anything, there's multiple instances of decomposed and grotesque corpses littered on the battlefield and environment. It does remind that war is worse than any hell ever created by a religion, but it has deeper themes of friendship, loyalty, comraderie, life, death, and beauty amongst ruins. The performances are all done very well with Dean Charles Chapman and more importantly George Mackay, they have to carry this film all the way through on their backs and they do succeed. But Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Andrew Scott, and Benedict Cumberbatch though having bit parts do elevate the film. As I said Sam Mendes has done a great job with directing and each shot is excellent, never letting up that under the skin tension and anxiety for the audience. You just never know when someone is about to take a shot and you're as apprehensive and stressed as the main characters. It's a damn good film and if I saw it last year it would have made my top 10 list, probably would have put it at number 10 because while it is a technical marvel and a strong and powerful story, there was some stiff competition for last year that gave me a lot of enjoyment and love. So take my rating with a grain of salt, it could be way way better for you than it was for me. 1917 gets a solid 4 stars, 8.5/10. It does severely bum me out that the first movie experience of this year was less than spectacular but we must press on for better and new experiences.

Okay I've compiled a list of movies I own that I haven't done yet. It's a small list but there was one particular series that I'm all for revisiting, and I would like to do it 5 years in than much later. It's kind of a crime I haven't reviewed them before but that will be rectified starting next Sunday for a whole week. It will be a wild magical time for all.

Full Metal Jacket

Man. This was a tough one for me.

Now I'm not going to get into the politics and situations as to why in the name of human sanity this f***ing country stuck around in a war like Vietnam. I could. But I'm not going to. I will simply say that this film did nothing but reinforce my personal beliefs on it. Full Metal Jacket is a fine movie, made well over a decade after the war was over and I appreciate what the film intended and more importantly accomplished. The few war movies I have seen do not sugar coat anything and just tell it as it is, and that is exactly what it should do but with this particular movie it goes one step further and visually tells you about the dehumanizing effects of a war. It's really tough to talk about something both in film and real world conversation that destroyed millions of lives. However, Stanley Kubrick did it right and it's not a character study, it's not a film documenting a real life platoon, it just shows us the course of one soldier from boot camp to the middle of the war. No ending where he survives the war and gets to go home, the film ends in the aftermath of one conflict amongst hundreds if not thousands. It really does put it all into perspective, I'd be terrified beyond words to live in the 1960s at my age now and some people bitch and moan about today's state of the country but the 60s was an entire different beast. But it's not just the story, the performances are what either makes or breaks your film in such a context and they are spot on. Matthew Modine is something else, playing a soldier who states multiple times that he joined the Marines to kill and yet you never even see him pull a trigger, it is a fascinating and great performance and really is what sold me on this being one of the best war films if not films period. Vincent D'Onofrio is....shit, he's good. That's all I can say. Jesus H. Christ if that man didn't get any kind of award nod I'm going to have a problem. And I can almost say 110% that even if you haven't seen the movie, you can quote R. Lee Ermey in this movie, and I get it! It's a great performance that he barely had to even act in, the man was practically born to verbally rip you to shreds though he was a nice man and held a lot of respect in life. The film looks damn good at times, and is shot more traditionally than in Kubrick's usual style though it does creep in here and there, the music is used sparingly and effectively to perfect build and tension, and the use of slow-mo makes you feel every impact. I think the film was trying to convey this sense of abhorrent desensitized violence, and it really does get under your skin because some of the soldiers are just plain f***ed up. I've yet to meet a person who was pro-war, but even then I'm sure this film would change their stance pretty damn quick. It's not a film to entertain, but more to just make you question human nature. It's certainly worth your time and money easily, but there is more to it than one hell of an opening monologue and some very quotable lines. 8.5/10, can our final Kubrick film top two already great films? We shall soon learn.

Darkest Hour

And so we come full circle.

Darkest Hour chronicles the first 19 days of Prime Minister Winston Churchill as he tries to deal with the Dunkirk rescue as we saw, constant appeals to surrender to Germany, and trying to maintain his reputation and the security of The United Kingdom. It is a very good movie to say the least and I've never seen Winston in much, so to learn more about his term and an almost impossible victory which he helped achieve was a treat. Gary Oldman really got him down, like I even need to say that! Gary Oldman can play any part and make it different from his last. I believe he was nominated for a Golden Globe for this performance and I can see why! He is not an invicible figure, he has a hard time trying to sort out the problems, there is a lot of discussion about their situation but it's never boring because if you're like me and don't know much about his service it is very engaging. And I do think that it brings a lot more weight to the movie Dunkirk, because you see the effort that got those men off the beach and back home. The film is visually striking and has one of the best openings to a war movie I've ever seen, so the film looks great. Supporting cast, especially with Lily James is great, she brings such emotion and tact to the role, plus I just love seeing Ben Mendelsohn again it's good to know he still holds a seat of high power in an empire after Tarkin took the Death Star away. If war films or drama pieces on historical figures are your cup of tea, I do suggest you see Darkest Hour. I didn't think much of it when I saw the trailer but I'm very happy I saw it. Next week though, I think we will fall down the familiar rabbit hole of more cult movies so until then KBO.

Dunkirk

Jesus, I can't even imagine seeing this in theaters. The trailer in the theater made my heart race, I think the film would have killed me!

But regardless of better sound systems, Dunkirk is a really good movie. I have to admit I am not one for war films, well I'm just not one for war in general but with this film it did excellent work. Story wise, it's basically a fight for survival. Over 400,000 soldiers are trapped on the beaches of Dunkirk, surrounded by the enemy, looking for anyway out possible. Doesn't sound like much but I would be a lying bastard if I said I wasn't a nervous wreck sitting all the way through it. The friggin' music keeps you on edge from the beginning to the very end! And it is pretty damn good music! Cinematography is excellent, you do feel like you are in a warzone multiple times and the story is harrowing so it keeps you interested until the end. I think my favorite part is there is no real main character, sure we follow a soldier through most of it, and yet he's kind of in the background at the same time. There's no hero or true main character cause in war, there are no heroes or focal points. When survival comes to push or shove, people either work together or fight, and while thankfully it's mostly cooperation there is a few scuffs in between. It's just people trying to survive an impossible scenario, and the film must be commended on that. Bottom line, it's a damn fine war movie that I think would work even better if you watch Darkest Hour, and trust me we will get to that before the week is done. But tomorrow, we look at a film that has been waiting for me for a long time.

In Retrospect: Wonder Woman

On second viewing, yeah still very awesome.

At last! A film I desperately needed to see again and yes, it is just as great as it was the first time! You know what I noticed this time around? The film is very sweet and loving, I mean we are dealing with Wonder Woman here: Compassion, respect, dignity, strength, intelligence, and love, so it makes sense that this would be the message of the story, love triumphs over all and that doing what you believe can have great reprocussions on the world. Another thing I noticed is how well the movie does justice to the character of Diana Prince, I mean really when you get right down to it it is not possible to screw up Wonder Woman. Why is that though? I'm not sure, she's a very popular comic book character, potrayed before by Lynda Carter and that was in the 70s, so even then she was popular and loved. So I obviously can not say that she's not as famous or loved as Superman or Batman because that's a lie, but those characters have had their missteps, but not with Wonder Woman. Why? No idea, but I'm obviously looking forward to seeing her in Justice League and sequel talk has risen, so I expect great things in the future. If people ever had a problem with the new DC cinematic universe, they shut up real quick when this movie hit. And that's all they have to do really, tell a good story while doing justice to the character with love and admiration for their history and standing in pop culture. Bam! You done good DC, this is why you're my favorite. I know it can succeed, just like Universal's Dark Universe with all the classic monsters, true The Mummy wasn't a smash hit but they have until 2019 to work the kinks out for The Bride Of Frankenstein so I'm optimistic for it. I have great faith in the future of movies, and I hope you share in it with me.

War For The Planet Of The Apes

Holy shhhrimp!! Wow, this movie was amazing! Talk about a movie series that gets better with each movie!

I mean damn guys, this movie was rough but my God was it amazing! They were not screwing around with the title, WAR For The Planet Of The Apes. I mean this movie is dark guys, in imagery alone this film recalls the Vietnam War, slavery, and nazi concentration camps. Whoa. I mean everything, 99% of the movie is flying colors in terms of great work. The special effects have only gotten better, the action is very difficult to watch for the most part because apes just get slaughtered, acting is superb by Andy Serkis, and Woody Harrelson is so horrible you just want to punch him in the face (That's a compliment!), just everything blew me away in terms of quality. So the movie takes place 15 years after Rise, Caesar has been ruling in peace but a military cell has been hunting them down relentlessly, forcing Caesar to challenge an entire militia to save his people. Guys, you have got to watch this movie. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon. I am dead sucking ferious, this movie is amazing! I love this movie! If I compiled a top 10 list of best films of the year, I would daresay it would be top 5 maybe even top 3 (so far). A solid movie trilogy, a solid PREQUEL trilogy! Whaaaat?? When has that ever happened? Never, to my knowledge. So obviously this movie series is something special. By all means, watch these movies!!