Category: 3.0 Star Reviews

No comments

Movie Review: Being Charlie – A Strange, Interesting Movie that Has A Problem With Clichés.

  By , ,

hero_Being-Charlie-2016

Being Charlie is a movie about an 18-year-old addict, cloistered away in a rehab center, to be hidden away from the public while his father runs for governor. So yeah, it’s a real laugh riot.

To be honest, while the premise makes it sound a bit sappy and sentimental, the movie isn’t quite that. Charlie isn’t exactly likeable as a character. He’s arrogant, rude and unpleasant to be around. His father isn’t any better, so when it comes to the war between the two, it’s more like you’re picking the lesser of two evils when you side with Charlie.

The dynamic feels real. We meet Charlie, think he’s a douche, and say “screw this entitled rich kid.” Then we meet the father and it’s like “ok, that’s why the kid’s so screwed up.”

beingcharlie03

One of the more endearing characters is a girl that Charlie meets in rehab. Eva (Morgan Saylor), with whom Charlie flouts rules that discourage romantic relationships among patients. Although Saylor brings some personality to her turbulent, unfocused character, you have the queasy sense that somebody decided the movie needed a pretty woman to give it some juice, because she becomes a side character as the movie takes a vicious turn.

This isn’t inspirational. It’s probably a bit less harsh than Rachel Getting Married, but not by much. It’s one of those hard to watch rehab movies because it feels far more true to life than most stories.

That being said, the movie has a bit of a problem with clichés. The characters feel a bit wooden, and it’s said that this movie is a very thinly veiled autobiography. Sometimes, when a movie is based on real life, I feel like they’re written out of revenge, kind of like Mommy Dearest. This is what that feels like. While the writer clearly didn’t pull any punches, even with his own character, he still comes across as a bit bitter in the end.

beingcharlie02

It’s a dark film for most of it, then for some reason takes a weird upbeat turn at the end. I feel like they felt required to give Charlie a happy ending, when Charlie didn’t deserve one. The problem with the ending is that it takes a tragedy to get Charlie to see the light. They’re playing this character pretty true to life, in that there’s no growth at all, so the sudden epiphany at the end feels false.

It’s a strange movie, because the writer clearly doesn’t care if the audience likes the characters, but then feels afraid to commit to the dark ending, instead giving the audience what he thinks they want. That was a disappointment.

Also, for a movie like this, the run time is way too long. It’s a tense film, but the character is too shallow for you to want to watch his introspection, when he never seems to learn anything. In short, it’s about an hour and forty minutes of dealing with an addict. Despite it’s flaws, I will say it’s worth the watch.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”_SDAKgyqKNI” width=”633″ height=”356″]

sUTtU4kQXNy9RCoU4dGdN086NQW

c

11 Comments

Movie Review: The Boy – An Elevated Horror Flick with a Chilling Premise and a Few Gimmicks

  By ,

fd5a2da22f9b7d2e_the-boy-BOY_092_DF-10870R_rgb_xxxlarge

The Boy is a big movie for Lauren Cohen, in that she’s trying to transition from TV to movies. In that, I think she made a good choice in going with this relatively sedate, more mature horror movie. While it’s a middle of the road effort, it was a good opportunity for Cohen to show her movie star skills.

Greta (Cohan) is a young American woman who takes a job as a nanny in a remote English village, only to discover that the family’s 8-year-old is a life-sized doll that the parents care for just like a real boy, as a way to cope with the death of their actual son 20 years prior. After violating a list of strict rules, a series of disturbing and inexplicable events bring Greta’s worst nightmares to reality.

7762f04004d0363f_the-boy-BOY_356_DF-10912R_rgb_xxxlarge_2x

While it sounds silly, it’s actually a pretty chilling premise. To anyone old enough to remember when Norman Bate’s mother is revealed to be a corpse in a rocking chair, this movie has that kind of feel to it. Despite a premise that might sound silly, it’s actually quite sophisticated. This is no Chucky.

A lot of the credit is due to Cohen, who was poised to elevate this movie. She’s no scream queen, but instead reacts in a real, dimensional way as the tension builds. Her reactions are more realistic than most horror heroines and she stays composed throughout. She is the real stand out star in this.

The problem is with a movie that presents itself as sophisticated, I expect more psychological scares than I do jump scares. Jump scares are for kids watching Paranormal Activity 45…or whatever sequel they’re up to now. They don’t belong in a movie like this.

Cohen makes this movie far more credible and far more dramatic than it deserves to be. Without her, this would have been a silly, forgettable effort. With her, it’s elevated to a higher level. Despite the fact that she’s clearly used to excellent writing, she’s an actress who knows how to work with bad writing and I imagine that we’ll see a lot more of her in years to come…though I highly doubt The Boy will get a sequel.

08b39b87bc5090ba_BoyTop_xxxlarge

It’s a quiet movie, in that there are only a handful of speaking parts and for the most part, the movie is about Greta and the doll. During those times, Greta is the person who drives the tension. She’s the one that makes you build up for the big scare.

There are a few clichés to be seen in this one, like the chilling sound of children laughing, or a very unsettling mirror reflection, but they’re not terribly done, making older material seem a bit fresher.

All in all, it’s a middle of the road effort. If you’re dying for something scary, you could do worse than this. While it’s heavy on jump scares, it’s an elevated horror flick that might make you willing to overlook that tired gimmick. If that’s the case, this is worth the watch.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”XGbB9UQ6r1g” width=”633″ height=”356″]

286527

c

No comments

Movie Review: Daddy’s Home – Hannibal Buress Single Handedly Saves this Film From Disaster

  By ,

daddys-home-trailer-pic - 04JAN2016

I once tried chocolate covered bacon. While you wouldn’t expect it to work, weirdly, it did. While I wouldn’t live on it solely, I’d eat it again.

And that’s exactly how I feel about the pairing of Mark Wahlberg and Will Farrell. I enjoyed them in The Other Guys, so will admit it was a strange mix, and decided to give them a second shot on this one. Unfortunately, much like chocolate covered bacon, you can have too much of a good thing.

Farrell plays stepdad Brad, who is starting to get along with his new step kids. That is until Dusty (Mark Wahlberg) re-enters the picture intent on taking back his family. The two try to one up each other, while the long suffering wife just looks on in the thankless roll of ‘generic supportive female’.

The movie doesn’t capture the hijinks of The Other Guys as it lacks bite in the script. There’s no shock or laugh out loud moments. Instead the movie is all predictable punchlines and jokes that go on just a hair too long.

mark-wahlberg 04JAN2016

The only thing I liked about this movie was Hannibal Buress, the lesser known comic who is most known for the Bill Cosby rape joke that started the flood of lawsuits to follow. In this, he was a hilariously inept handyman who decides to just hang out all the time and insert himself into the two main characters’ fights, often stealing the show himself. His small but significant roll is one of the best parts of the film.

His character is so clever, I feel like maybe he pulled the pen from the writer’s hand and rewrote his own part. His clever character doesn’t seem to fit in with the generic, “good enough” writing style of all the other characters.  My assumption is that his role was highly improvised.

I enjoy Will Farrell, but it has to be in the right roll. He’s been playing characters so long that even when writers try to make him real, he feels clichéd and boring. In this film, he’s nothing special and certainly not memorable. Mark Wahlberg is equally weak. Both men play stereotypes while trying to get laughs, but the whole effort feels forced.

Screen-Shot-2015-12-20-at-4.49.04-PM-700x449 - 04JAN2016

This is not The Other Guys. In that movie, the unique combination worked because the script had the right amount of edge. In this one, it just feels boring, though it is mercifully short. But it’s certainly no one’s best work to date…with the exception of Hannibal Buress. That guy was the flower that grew out of the pot of dirt.

For Hannibal Buress alone, I’ll give this one a worth the watch. The movie isn’t so much painful as it’s just not that funny. As a result, if you’re looking for laugh out loud humor, I highly recommend you fast forward to all the Hannibal Buress parts. As far as I’m concerned, he made this movie.

But this is one where the Wahlberg/ Farrell comedy team just didn’t work. It’s a predictable story with a lot of predictable humor that very few people will find funny. It just not interesting enough to be laughable.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”2sgpwTBnuLo” width=”633″ height=”356″]

exclusive-new-poster-for-daddy-s-home-with-will-ferrell-mark-wahlberg-649891 04JAN2016

171 Comments

Movie Review: Krampus (2015) – Buried Under The Clutter Is A Watchable Movie.

  By ,

hero_Krampus-2015-2 13DEC2015

Krampus is an unusual Christmas movie, with a horror flair. While not entirely unwatchable, it suffers from amateurish direction and overdone CGI work.

The premise is this. A dysfunctional family’s constant fighting causes the youngest child, Max (Emjay Anthony) to lose his Christmas spirit. As a result, a deadly demon, Krampus, attacks the family with a ton of holiday themed monsters. The family members, including mom (Toni Collette), dad (Adam Scott), sister (Stefania LaVie Owen) and Max need to work together to survive the holidays.

So it’s a unique crossover premise. The last pure horror Christmas movie I saw was Silent Night, Deadly Night, and if that’s the only thing to compare Krampus to, then Krampus deserves an academy award. But as a fantasy/horror, stacked up against other offerings, it fails.

I will aid that failure has nothing to do with the cast. Honestly, with such a heavy comic cast, I was expecting to not buy the premise, but they really did make me buy it. I think their work was well done.

xxx_img_krampus_5_1_1_stbqnldk_75690776-770x470 13DEC2015

The problems came with the editing, and direction, and overdone CGI. The movie doesn’t have even pacing. One minute it’s building up, and then the next, it’s exploding with an attack from just about every Christmas based monster you can think of, from evil trolls to gingerbread men. At that point, it’s near impossible to know where to look. There’s way too much going on at once. It comes off as disjointed over scary and fails to deliver on fear.

It’s cluttered to the point where it feels like the director has ADHA. I could practically hear him screaming “more gingerbread men, more monsters, more, more, more…screw it, add the Easter bunny!”

krampus-movie-image-05 13DEC2015

I will say it was a clever idea. The story is based off of folklore and I’m surprised no one did it before. It started off as a movie with lofty ambitions, that easily could be franchised. It just feels like there was too much crammed into the premise, despite the fact that the storyline is relatively simple.

One thing that really brought this movie off to such a strong lead is its competition. Other than Victor Frankenstein, there’s really no other movie in the same competitive niche, so the release date was perfectly timed. If I had to choose between Krampus and Victor Frankenstein, I’d totally go with Krampus.

The score was well done, featuring some Christmas favorites that add a bit of a festive flair, while not going too heavy on the Jingle Bells. It was an understated, but appropriate score for the movie. Even the CGI was visually stunning, it was just poorly timed. Too much going on at once really pulled the pin out of a movie that could have been great.

Buried under the clutter is a watchable movie. It’s just that you’ll likely have a hard time to knowing where to look when the action scenes start. That being said, it’s still worth checking out. Take a chance and take out the family. At the very least, it will put them in a Christmas mood.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”h6cVyoMH4QE” width=”633″ height=”356″]

Krampus-Movie-Poster 13DEC2015

117 Comments

Movie Review: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 – Separating The Final Book Was A Bad Move

  By , ,

hunger-games-mockingjay-part-two-the-2015-001-katniss-at-head-of-rebel-crowd-ORIGINAL 28NOV2015

Before I get started on this review, let me say that I knew this was coming. In the last Hunger Games movie I reviewed, I said that I thought separating the final book into two movies was a mistake.

And I was proven right.

Jennifer Lawrence returns as Katniss Everdeen to live out the second part of the Mockingjay novel, which if you’ve read it, you know it’s incredibly dark and depressing. The story finishes up the war between the district and the capital, as Katniss struggles with Peeta’s brainwashing and choosing between him and Gale. All the same characters are back, but more than a few don’t make it to the end.

hunger-games-mockingjay-part-two-the-2015-002-katniss-gale-and-two-more-rebels-crouched-in-dust-of-capitol-ORIGINAL 28NOV2015

The problem with this film is that there is literally no comic relief. Woody Haralson’s Haymitch is sadly absent, leading us to nothing more than a story of teen angst and overwhelming odds. It’s also a lot of repeat from the first two movies. And I mean a lot. The entire climax is yet another repeat of the premise that’s been repeated over, and over, and over again.

Also, the self-importance of this film is a bit much for me. It’s a bit like watching a college play about racism, where a bunch of idiotic newly political kids talk about race inequality like they discovered it. This is a film that thinks it’s more important than it is, rather than yet another movie about a dystopia that has heavy inequality between the upper and lower classes. The heavy handed sermonizing makes it sound like they’re the ones that discovered the fact that there was inequality between the classes to begin with.

The big problem here again, was the separation of the final book into two parts. As a result, the filmmakers were forced to stretch out the last half of a book into a full movie and the struggle to get it done shows.

the-hunger-games-mockingjay-part-2-review-Mjg3OTMwMjQ3OV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODMyMzkxNjE@._V1__SX1396_SY732_ 28NOV2015

I will say I was always dissatisfied with the ending in the novel series. I felt as though it started out strong and lost steam as the books progressed. I also found it annoying that whenever the author didn’t know how to transition a scene, she just has her heroine pass out.

I started to become concerned that Katniss was hypoglycemic.

The filmmakers did nothing to fix this. Instead, they followed the novel format, starting strong and then slowly running out of steam until the series close is decidedly anti-climactic.

It’s a disappointing finish for a story that should have been the ending of the last movie. And the studio is laughing all the way to the bank. Mockingjay Part Two came out on top at the box office, raking in an impressive $102 million. I can understand why they did it. I just wish they hadn’t.

In the end, I found this finale entirely disappointing and depressing. The Hunger Games started out strongly enough, but then failed to deliver in this final installment.

On the upside, at least it’s finally over.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”KmYNkasYthg” width=”633″ height=”356″]

h-HO00000004 28NOV2015

No comments

Movie Review: The Last Witch Hunter – Far Too Much For What Should Have Been a Simple Film

  By , ,

new-trailer-vin-diesel-is-the-last-witch-hunter-381970 - 03NOV2015

Every now and then, I see a movie that I feel like would have been done better as a TV show. It’s usually a movie with a decent plot and a decent lead, but not really enough power to play well on the big screen. I feel like if The Last Witch Hunter has been a TV pilot, instead of a movie, I’d probably be adding it to my already overfilled schedule of television shows to watch.

Before you find that too impressive, it should be noted that the vast majority of my shows that I watch now include screaming housewives, food trucks, or housewives screaming at food trucks. I don’t really have high TV standards.

But I will say it’s good, and it’s a good choice for Vin Diesel. He plays Kaulder, an 800+ year old warrior whose job is hunting down and killing witches who want to unleash all kind of nastiness on humanity. The movie starts off well enough, right around the time Kaulder kills the evil witch queen and gets cursed with immortality. The next time we see him, he’s wandering around a modern world with his sidekick Dolan the 36th (Michael Caine) who is almost immediately replaced with Dolan the 37th, (Elisha Wood) as the new sidekick. Then, they get word that the evil witches are planning on resurrecting the witch queen, Kaulder deals with some kind of witch hunter Alzheimer’s and Dolan the 37th tries to prove he’s just as awesome as Dolan the 36th.

the-last-witch-hunter-pic01 - 03NOV2015

This is a safe role for Vin Diesel. It doesn’t require him in any way to step of his Stalone-esque comfort zone. He stomps around, kicking butt and looking broody. It’s a good role for him. Wood is equally wide eyed and eager. There’s nothing wrong with their performances, but they hardly qualify as hard roles to fill, being written a bit one dimensionally.

The reason I say this would make a better series is because they tried to cram way too much into this movie. Witches, curses, memory problems, allies, foes, world building, everything is far too much for one simple film and an as a result, becomes really hard to follow. They throw in a “twist” at the end that doesn’t really inspire shock, because most aren’t going to be sure what’s going on anyway.

The storyline could have used a bit more simplicity. It feels like they’re setting the scene for a series, and it’s a safe franchise for Diesel. The problem is they could have afforded to leave a bit out. It got to be too much.

the-last-witch-hunter-img07 - 03NOV2015

It also seemed like a strange timing for the release. October is traditionally Oscar Bait season, summer’s for blockbusters and January/February is for middle of the road series starters. This would have worked better as a January/February release.

It’s not terrible, but it’s not that memorable either. It’s clear that this was a project of passion for Diesel, the problem is it’s being met with a lukewarm reception. I think a bit more time spent on the screenplay could have really done something for this film. I will say it’s worth the watch, but I don’t think I’d watch the sequel.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”xsuG2JUgs_8″ width=”633″ height=”356″]

fin07_lwh_1sht_throne_modern_trim - 03NOV2015

No comments

Movie Review: No Escape (2015) – A Political Thriller That Delivers on Thrills But Can’t Make Sense of The Politics

  By , ,

no-escape-owen-wilson 05SEP2015

No Escape is Owen Wilson’s latest effort to try out his more serious side. While the movie has an intriguing premise, it suffers from an uneven plot, with the first half being excellent, while the second is less so.

Owen Wilson plays Jack Dwyer, an American businessman living abroad with his wife Annie (Lake Bell) and their two young daughters. Jack is relocating to an unnamed Southeast Asian country, but he never gets a chance to start his new job. Instead, the day they arrive the country is taken over in a violent coup. Initially, it appears that the revolution is directed against the very company Jack works for, a corporation that’s planning to privatize the country’s water supply. Then, they lose that thread of cause and just decide to go with the revolutionaries being anti-American.

The major problem I saw with this film was failing to continue on with the anti-privatizing natural resources angle. It would have given the movie a bit of conflict that might have allowed people to look at both sides of the issue, and possibly even empathize with the revolutionaries there. After all, the privatization of a necessary natural resource, in a country with an extremely poor population, is something to get upset over.

But then, they dropped that thread and instead just turned the revolutionaries into a bunch of anti-American clichés who just want to murder anything remotely western. The movie turns into extended action scenes of Jack trying to get his family to safety, across the river and to Vietnam.

The street action is gritty, upsetting and very realistic. Owen does a good job of portraying the terror of Jack as he’s being pursued by a mob that’s intent on killing every foreigner they can find. As he survives one hellacious trial after another, you feel for him, and you do get involved in the suspense.

no-escape-owen-wilson-pierce-brosnan-image-6 05SEP2015

No-Escape-2015-6 05SEP2015

But the choice to not give the mob a real direction makes it feel one dimensional. Even when you’re watching a movie where you couldn’t possibly agree with the terrorists, you still want to know there’s some driving point behind their actions, some kind of turbulent political atmosphere that makes ordinary people do horrible things.

But by pulling back on the motive, and instead turning it into a ‘look how much these people hate America” outlook, it becomes so one dimensional and nonsensical that it gets a bit ridiculous. This is supposed to be a political thriller. While this movie certainly delivered on thriller, it failed to deliver on political.

It’s still watchable, but maybe instead, watch it as an action flick and don’t expect a certain amount of reason from the subjects. Don’t expect a two sided story. Instead, the movie focuses on Jack’s desperate race to freedom. While good, it’s not as understandable because it’s impossible to get why these people are chasing after a harmless family.

I think it would have been better served to at least give an opposite outlook. To give an idea of why this revolution happened. In that, the filmmakers failed. However, it’s still a watchable effort, as long as you don’t expect a lot of reason with your carnage.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”VFpK71yBv1s” width=”633″ height=”356″]

m_188_ne_1sht_V2.indd

145 Comments

Movie Review: Southpaw (2015) – Strong Plot But Falters on Execution

  By , ,

The second I heard that yet another dramatic boxing movie had been made, I immediately thought “great, another attempt to copy Rocky.” I was expecting it to be filled with clichés, featuring an underdog who has to choose between the love of the sport and his own health, while a disapproving wife looks on. While that movie definitely had that, it also had some unique angles that made it a bit better than I expected it would be.

Billy Hope (Jake Gyllenhaal), a man who grew up in an orphanage in Hell’s Kitchen, is a light-heavyweight champion in the ring with a unique fighting style that I’ve never quite seen in a sports movie. He has a unique ability to absorb pain, and uses this to allow his opponent to beat him until he’s filled with rage, at which point, he just starts kicking butt. Maureen (Rachel McAdams) is his lifelong love, with another unique twist. She grew up in the same orphanage, so she gets him and his need to be strong. When his manager Jordan Mains (50 Cent) brings in a contract for a three-fight deal, she opposes it, thinking his body has undergone enough punishment.

url - 10AUG2015

I immediately started thinking, ‘great, another movie where a boxer is torn between his love of the ring and his health.” Then, everything changes. Billy gets into a fight in a hotel, a gun is fired, his soul mate is killed, and he’s left to raise his young daughter Leila (Oona Laurence), alone. The downward spiral begins and soon, he loses everything because he’s completely lost to grief and anger.

This is a comeback story with a great set up and an insurmountable tragedy. I will say that the comeback pretty much sticks to formulaic, Rocky-like ‘wise older man teaches young angry dude how to live again.’

While the plot is strong, I have to say that much of the cast didn’t feel very human to me. Instead, it feels like they came out of the ‘character-o-matic’ by the corporate movie machine, designed to make Oscar bait. The dialog is too stagnant to really bring these characters to life, which is a shame.

SOUTHPAW SOUTHPAW[/caption]

Gyllenhaal is a slurry, stumbling trainwreck of a character. Maureen is your standard “stand by your man long suffering wife” and Jordan is a one dimensional sports agent who acts pretty much how you’d expect him to act. The actors do their best with the poor dialog they were given, but it still isn’t very strong, despite a compelling plot.

I’m torn on this one. I’d give this a strong score on plot, but less on execution. In a movie like this, character development is key and I just didn’t feel it. It’s a movie that should have a human touch, but instead feels like a poorly commercialized attempt at Oscar bait.

I can’t say I loved it, but I can’t say I hated it. Would I trouble myself to go all the way to the theater for it? Probably not. But if you can get it on demand, I’d give it a worth the watch.
WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”Mh2ebPxhoLs” width=”633″ height=”356″]

southpaw_poster - 10AUG2015

No comments

Movie Review: Max (2015) – Jarring, Disorienting and Surprisingly Violent

  By , ,

hero_Max_2015_1 - 04JUL2015

When it comes to dog movies, my standard is Marley & Me. It’s the perfect blend of humor and sentimentality that most dog lovers can enjoy. However, it’s easy to go wrong with dog movies, especially when people try to cram too much into the plot.

That’s kind of what happened with Max.

The premise is this. A bomb sniffing dog named Max is adopted by his grieving handler’s family after he’s killed in action. It’s earnestly patriotic and clearly aimed at conservative Christian audiences. If you need the plot, take an entire season of Lassie, significantly increase the violence and you have Max.

There is a lot of violence. A surprising amount of violence for a PG movie. It was almost a bit too much for me and this probably isn’t a movie I’d consider bringing my kid to. And I brought my kid to Ted.

That’s because it’s harsh and hard to watch, not to mention stuffed full of clichés. We have the younger brother in the shadow of his more successful and impressive older brother, who gets attention from their distant father by acting out. Of course, when given the opportunity to chat with his older brother, he turns it down and instead plays video games.

So of course the older brother is going to buy it a few minutes later. This leaves his trusty canine companion with nowhere to go and in danger of being euthanized.

So the family adopts him and he bonds with the little brother. It’s a good redemption movie that would have been fine on its own. It wouldn’t have been a Marley & Me, but it wouldn’t have turned into a train wreck either.

MAX-21493 - 04JULY2015

MAX-11523r - 04JULY2015

Then, suddenly, for no reason at all, we’re plunged into some kind of side plot where another army guy is up to something nefarious, with the help of a bunch of drooling, angry Rottweilers that Max fights more than a few times. I don’t know if they thought the movie needed more action, but it actually got a bit ridiculous.

If they’d left it alone and stuck with the simple story, it might have worked. But really, this sentimental coming of age story becomes something ugly and dark. You know what it feels like? It feels like what would happen if someone asked Quinton Tarantino to write an episode of the Veggie Tales. It just got weird, and filled with violent intrigue. It really was like two completely different movies slapped together. On their own, each could have been a passable effort.

But slapped together, it’s just jarring and disorienting.

I will say the movie has its strong points. I particularly liked the scene where Max is pacing around nervously during a Fourth of July celebration, because he’s a bomb dog with PTSD. Is it weird that the dog was one of the best actors in the movie?

For dog lovers, it’s a decent movie, but the dog fight scenes were a bit too much and the entire secondary plot was very confusing. All in all, it’s not terrible but it’s just not cohesive, which makes it hard to watch.

And it’s sure no Marley & Me.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”4tgxoas-36Y” width=”633″ height=”356″]

max

187 Comments

Movie Review: Vendetta – I Just Didn’t Buy The Whole “Dean Cain, Badass” Thing

  By ,

ven_6 - 22jun2015

Never in my life have I wanted to pat Dean Cain on the head and say ‘good try’ more than I do right now. I get that’s he’s trying to play a tough guy, but in my heart, he’ll always be Clark Kent. No, not superman. I mean he’s just so generically Clark Kent. There’s just something that’s so weirdly average about him.

He plays a great serial killer though. I’ll give him that. In fact, I think he might be one.

Back to the movie. Vendetta is a movie whose plot can be summarized by its name. It follows the same generic outline. Mason Danvers (Dean Cain) is a cop with a mission. His arch nemesis Victor Abbot (Paul “The Big Show” Wight) had his wife killed and now he had a vendetta to settle. Hence the name of the movie. Lucky for Danvers, Abbot’s in prison. So it’s off to jail for lots of bare knuckle fights and subtle innuendos about ass rape.

Let’s just admit that Dean Cain would be insanely popular in prison. While you’re trying to watch this movie, your mind will keep drifting back to that thought.

There’s no real plot to speak of. The entire thing is reliant on rapid fire action, which isn’t bad in and of itself. Cain spends most of the movie punching his way in and out of things. But he just kind of ruins it for me.

As a result, even though this movie has a lot of the things I like, shivs and punching and the like, the whole thing just rings so falsely to me that I can’t seem to get invested. I can’t make myself care.

ven_10 22JUN2015

deancainvendetta - 22jun2015

Even when Danvers loses his wife, I just kind of said “eh, saw that coming.” The fact is no happy couple at a beginning of a movie with a name like “Vendetta” gets to make it to the end. That’s just a Hollywood rule. The Big Show is pretty good, but his job is mainly to be menacing.

He does that by walking into a room.

But no matter how many beatings Danvers dished out, I just didn’t buy the whole “Dean Cain, Badass” thing. The fights were choreographed well. They looked gruesome and violent. This movie definitely has a mean streak. It’s just that Dean Cain doesn’t feel like he does.

If you’re looking for a gritty revenge thriller, I just can’t recommend this. It’s a formulaic movie and it should have worked. But Dean Cain as the lead just throws the whole thing off. As a result, it’s impossible to get into.

Maybe it’s all the years in Lifetime movies, but Dean Cain just feels softly menacing. He’s the kind of guy who buys you flowers…and then disposes of your body in a lake. When I see him playing a hard ass role, its more ‘charming sociopath’ not bare knuckle bad ass.

It’s a loud movie, with a lot of in your face, brutal action. It’s earned its R rating for the violence and f bombs dropped. It’s just that every time a bad word comes out of Dain Cain’s mouth, you’ll flinch. It’s like catching your mom rapping. It just doesn’t work.

WE GAVE IT : 3 STARS! Watch the Official Trailer and See the Official Movie Poster below

stars

[youtube id=”b8FWcvOCj3k” width=”633″ height=”356″]

vendetta-600x814 - 22JUN2015