For God and Country... Geronimo, Geronimo, Geronimo

When you ask yourself  "Is this the same movie I saw ads for?" it's usually not a good sign but in this case it is. The ads sell Zero Dark Thirty as a pure action movie which it defiantly is not. The hunt for Osama Bin Laden was a long and arduous process and director Kathryn Bigelow does a remarkable job illustrating the devotion and sacrifice that was required to finally find him. It's a unflinching look at the tactics and internal politics that evolved over the years took it to bring Bin Laden to justice.

There is a sense of of tension and urgency that drives the movie forward from the first moments of the movie. As Maya, Jessica Chastain ably acts as the fulcrum around which a strong ensemble cast revolves. Her strong portrayal of an agent who's determination turns to obsession in her ceaseless campaign to find Bin Laden is central to the success of this movie.

Bigelow has made one of 2012's best crafted films that should be in contention for much recognition (and rightfully so) during award season. A strong script, solid visuals and good performances from a talented ensemble cast make Zero Dark Thirty one of my favorite movies of the year.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1790885/

Rotten Tomatoes: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/zero_dark_thirty/

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero_Dark_Thirty

Maybe Chicken Little was right...

Bond is back... both literally and figuratively. The first two Daniel Craig era Bond films took the franchise in a distinctly different direction. They were both good movies but somehow weren't fully Bond. Craig's Bond is a new Bond for a new age; tougher, edgier, and more serious. Bond had lost some of his charm and pretty much all of his sense of fun. Going into Skyfall I was resigned that my and my father's Bond was completely gone. It was a pleasant surprise to see I was wrong.

Skyfalll hits the sweet-spot between Octopussy and Casino Royale. It preserves the energy and grittiness of the new Bond but brings back just enough of the old Bond's levity to remind the audience that Bond is supposed to be fun.

Beyond the solid script and heart stopping action, Skyfall is far and away the most visually striking Bond movie yet. Whoever is is doing the location scouting and production design also deserves special recognition. Skyfall is the perfect way to celebrate 50 years of Bond. It pays homage to the storied history of 007 while pioneering a new trail for Bond to venture for years to come.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1074638/

Rotten Tomatoes: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/skyfall/

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyfall

Dumas for Dummies

2011's The Three Musketeers will never be accused of devotion to it's source material, Dumas famous novel. While it doesn't have a strong script, excellent acting, or even a loose grip on reality it does have absurd fun in bucket fulls. It's a movie that you turn of all the parts of your brain that handle higher functions, sit back and hold on for the ride.

It's Renaissance-punk styling and and it's devotion to flash over substance may not have won it any acclaim, but it sure does make it a visual treat. It's one of those movies that if you go in looking for a challenging mentally stimulating movie you'll be sorely disappointed but if ya got a bowl of popcorn and hankering for madcap adventure this i the movie for you.

Good movie? No. Fun movie? Yes.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1509767/

Rotten Tomatoes: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_three_musketeers_2011/

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three_Musketeers_(2011_film)

The Force is Strong With This One

As this is the fourth entry of what I hope to become The Mack Minute saga it’s appropriate that we look back to where my love of movies began… Episode 4. Although I was too young to be there when Star Wars originally debuted in theatres in 1977, I did get to see it a couple years later and I was hooked. I spent countless hours of my childhood playing with my Kenner action figures saving that galaxy that was far far away.

There already is a library written about Star Wars and all it facets. Covering everything from movies as modern myth and Lucas’s implementation of Joseph Campbell “Hero’s Journey” to merchandising and Star Wars' impact on the monetization of the entertainment industry. So this is just going to be a short walk through my personal relationship with Star Wars saga.

Although it began with Star Wars my love really flourished with Empire Strikes Back. My strongest and fondest memory of going to the movies is sitting in the ancient squeaky seats of the Eastgate Theatre on 82nd street in 1980 with my mom and dad in the dark and then... it happens. John Williams’ epic theme rumbles, the logo appears and that famous text scrolls into infinity. For the next 2 hours I was enthralled. Allot of the finer details that make Empire the most popular of the Star Wars movies went over my 6 year old head but that didn’t matter. It was magic.

I was still young enough to enjoy Return of the Jedi  through children’s eyes. Able to revel in the spectacular conclusion to Luke’s story. I’ve personally have never had a problem with Ewoks which have garnered so much fan ire. As I grew into a teenager and no new movies were forth coming I explored the Star Wars universe in other all its other forms.

Then came the re-releases of the trilogy which really was a mix blessing. It gave us all a opportunity to experience the films in the theatre again but it also gave Lucas a chance to meddle. Some of the subtle changes were successful but the awful musical number added to Jedi almost killed the film.

And then the dark days of the prequel trilogy are upon us. They had the potential to be another great space opus but for several drastic miscues drag them down. Other then the weak scripts the biggest misstep of the whole series was the tragic casting of both of the actors that played the central character of all the films, Anakin. The kid (Jake Lloyd) other then being a bit snotty was just several years too young, enough so to make his flirting with Natalie Portman just plain creepy. And then there’s Hayden Christensen… we’ll just say that my opinion of what he did to the role is not something that can be expressed in mixed company or where honest decent people could be exposed to it.

After the winter of this Star Wars fan discontent there comes spring and a new hope that Star Wars last word wouldn’t have to be “ NOOOOOOOOO!!!”. The Clone Wars cartoon has helped keep Star Wars alive in a surprisingly well crafted form. Even more intriguing are the possibilities now that Disney has purchased Lucas Film studios. Disney has already announced it’s plans for a new trilogy with several actors from the original movies expressing their willingness to reprise thier roles. ABC (another Disney company) is looking at making a live action Star Wars series that has been long shelved due cost of production. It looks like Star Wars is going to be here for another generation to fall in love with.

Star Wars

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076759/

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080684/

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086190/

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120915/

Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0121765/

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0121766/

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458290/

Tis the (Mid)Season ...

Banshee, the first of several new mid-season shows to premiere, tries to bring something unique to the already crowded crime drama genre. While the final vote is still out the pilot gives some hope of it’s potential success. That is not to say that there aren’t any issues. The biggest of which is the base premise of the show and your ability to accept  it and enjoy the ride. I can just imagine the pitch for this show... "Ok so there's a guy fresh out of jail on the run from mobsters who want to kill him for some reason so he leaves the state (parole officers tend to look down on that) in search of his share of the loot from heist that sent him to jail and for his women which leads him to Amish country and with help of circumstance and his Asian cross-dressing super computer geek hairdresser friend becomes the new sheriff" … and breathe. If that hasn’t scared you off yet you may be in for some fun .

As a premium cable show it does have it’s requisite allotment of sex and violence. Quality of production sit it some where between HBO and Starz. The pilot does feature one of the more intense, stunt heavy car chases I’ve seen on a TV show. Which is a good sign of their willingness to spend on the production of the show.

With solid acting and writing Banshee makes a good lead off batter for the mid-season premieres. While it didn’t knock it out of the park , it defiantly makes it on base. We’ll just have to see if the rest of the season can bring the show home for the score.

Rating: Show: tentative 3.5 out of 5 stars - Episode: 3.5 stars out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2017109/

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banshee_(TV_series)

Lists of Mid-Season Show Premieres:

Returning Shows: http://www.imdb.com/list/ik9atisLfkw/

New Shows: http://www.imdb.com/list/bg1lmSKhT4Q/

Crazy About Shih Tzus

Seven Psychopaths is a dark and violent “comedy” that is very reminiscent of classic Coen  Brothers movies. While writer/director  Martin McDonagh doesn’t quite reach their level of deftness and whit in his script, he has created several entertaining psychopaths for his actors to inhabit.

Woody Harrelson channels just enough Mickey Knox into his portrayal of his unstable Shih Tzu loving mobster to make him my favorite loon in this flock. Colin Farrell adeptly plays the straight man role of the dysfunctional drunk writer around which this story rages. Playing the common man acting as the lens through which the audience can relate  is one of the roles that Farrell has the most success in playing. It’s when he is called on to carry too much dramatic weight that wheels tend to fall off his performances. Christopher Walken doesn’t phone it in and brings a dollop of his low key genius to the screen.

The absurdity of the characters goes hand in hand with the appropriately disjointed plot. You can’t expect a story about the misadventures of a couple crazy dog kidnappers, a drunken screen writer and his semi-fictional psychopaths to walk a straight line can you? While the soundtrack and cinematography are nothing to write home about they don’t detract from the film.

Those yearning for a return of a Fargo / Barton Fink era Coen Brothers sensibility wrapped in enough violence and gun play to keep even a psychopath happy, with a side of Shih Tzu, look no further you’ve found your fix.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1931533/

Rotten Tomatoes: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/seven_psychopaths/

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Psychopaths

Tarantino Being Tarantino

Django Unchained is a bit of a conundrum, largely in part due to it's creator Quentin Tarantino. I have had long love/hate relationship with his movies. When he debuted in 90's  with Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction I rode shotgun on the Tarantino bandwagon, but as time wore on and more and more of his personality came to light I started to sour. Tarantino strikes me as that kid in middle school that got crammed in a trashcan and rolled down the hill and who was rejected by cheerleaders in high school. He has spent the rest of his life trying to prove to all of us that he really is cool. That desperation for hipness bleeds through in everything he makes. This is not to say he is without talent because he does have a sharp eye and a feel for jaunty banter. He also has a encyclopedic knowledge of film history and flair for homage. That can be double edge sword though, what differentiates insightful reference and a lack of his own voice?

That brings us back to Django Unchained which is Tarantino's spin on spaghetti westerns. It's Tarantino through and through. From soundtrack to visuals it all screams "LOOK HOW COOL I AM!" and occasionally it's right. There are scenes that feature genuine humor and visual flash as well as some solid performances in particular from Sam Jackson, who steals all of his scenes. All of this is smothered in Tarantino juice and there's the rub. If you love him you'll the love movie but if you think he's a pretentious douche bag this movie won't change your opinion. So many of his conceits took me right out of the movie from his typical "hip" soundtrack to Jamie Foxx's sunglasses.

Django Unchained like most of Tarantino’s movies is unapologetic in it's violence and often wanders the gray wastes of where just tasteless ends and where offensive begins. One has to question if he makes these forays for anything other then shock value. Despite all of Tarantino's efforts, he doesn't quite drive me away. Beneath it all Django Unchained is a serviceable revenge tale with several water cooler moments but beyond that? ... More shock then awe.

Rating : 3 out of 5 stars

IMDB :  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1853728/
Rotten Tomatoes:  http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/django_unchained_2012/
Wikipedia:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Django_Unchained