Say Whaaat? Michelle Rodriguez Suggests Liam Neeson Can’t Be Racist Because He Stuck His Tongue Down Viola Davis’ Throat

Liam Neeson has already damaged his career by saying a little too much during an interview, and now Michelle Rodriguez might be next.

Neeson and Rodriguez co-starred in the thriller ‘Widows‘ together along with Viola Davis. And in the movie, Neeson and Davis kiss each other passionately.

During an interview with Vanity Fair on Wednesday, Rodriguez defended Neeson by saying he couldn’t possibly be racist because of how passionately he kissed Davis during the movie.

“It’s all f—in’ bulls—. Liam Neeson is not a racist. Dude, have you watched ‘Widows’? His tongue was so far down Viola Davis’s throat. You can’t call him a racist ever. Racists don’t make out with the race that they hate, especially in the way he does with his tongue — so deep down her throat. I don’t care how good of an actor you are. It’s all bulls—. Ignore it. He’s not a racist. He’s a loving man. It’s all lies.”

I’m no expert in history, but didn’t ~white masters~ rape their slaves? I’m just saying. I don’t think kissing a person outside your race makes you not racist. That’s a pretty sad defense.

For what it’s worth, it looks like most people don’t agree with Rodriguez. Lionsgate canceled Tuesday night’s red carpet premiere for Neeson’s upcoming film ‘Cold Pursuit‘. The film, which features Neeson playing yet another character looking for revenge, is set to open today (Feb. 8).

Liam Neeson To Star In Revenge Thriller ‘Hard Powder’ Get The Details inside!

Liam Neeson has a space, and that space is filled with revenge thrillers. The dude knows what his audience wants and he’s more than happy to deliver.

His latest thriller will be titled ‘Hard Powder,’ based on the 2014 Norwegian film In Order of Disappearance. It’s set to hit theaters February 8, 2019.

In addition to Neeson, Emmy Rossum and Laura Dern will also star in the flick. The film follows Nels Coxman (Neeson), a local snowplow operator who was…

“…recently named Citizen of the Year of his small Colorado ski town for keeping the roads open through the winter. Nels’ quiet life with his wife (Dern) abruptly spins out of control when their son is unjustly murdered by a local drug cartel. Taking the law into his own hands with only the tools of an outdoorsman and snowplow driver, Nels sets out to find those responsible but inadvertently ignites a gang war that threatens to engulf the town — unless he ends it first.”

Sounds perfect for Neeson. At this point, I think screenwriters are just taking his previous films and basically creating the same plot, but they change his occupation to make it slightly different.

In a few years he’ll be starring as the owner of a bowling alley who kills bad guys by shoving them inside the ball return.

Movie Review: The Huntsman: Winter’s War – Bad Pacing, Poor Acting and a Confusing Plot

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If I saw the first Huntsman movie, I couldn’t tell you. I will tell you after seeing its sequel, I doubt I ever will. One dimensional storytelling and two of the worst accents I’ve ever heard turned this into a miss for me.

This story follows Snow White and The Huntsman, though apparently Kristen Stewart was in the last one and doesn’t appear here. This sequel kind of tries to pull in some Frozen by sticking in an evil Snow Queen played by Emily Blunt. Chris Helmsworth reprises his role as The Huntsman and this time is dealing with her, and her desire to revive her sister.

Yeah, they actually tried to shamelessly cash in on two movies, by slipping a little Frozen in, though a decidedly more adult version. It’s really attacking that mass consumer index from all angles.

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I think an accountant may have written this movie. At least I would think that, if it wasn’t so damn pretty. Because it is a good looking movie. Every single inch of it, from the cast, to the CGI, fight scenes, backdrop and lighting is gorgeous to look at.

Then, Chris Helmsworth spits out line after line with a Scottish accent only a cartoon character would sport. Its painful to listen to. The first time he did it, I laughed in surprise. The accent was so distracting that I decided to look into the first movie, and watched a few clips.

Why was he Scottish in this movie, but not that one? Can you do that? Suddenly just become Scottish? Is that like The Huntsman’s superpower? The sudden, inexplicable ability to sound like the Scottish version of Yosemite Sam?

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Also, I was so confused as to what was going on. I mean, seriously lost through the vast majority of it. I think this is supposed to be one of those sequel/prequels, where they slip in the backstory through the story, but the pacing was off and most of the time, I was too busy laughing at that bad accent to care.

If this was on mute, I might think it was a different movie. They invested a lot into effect, but feels like they threw together a script over a weekend and decided to let Helmsworth try out his new accent just because. The attempt to squeeze every little coin out of this franchise is sad.

It got some disappointing results at the box office. It hit number 2 in the box-office at its debut and has earned about $19 million, but I’m guessing that’s not nearly what the first one made. I think they tried to get too much out of the movie and as a result, lost the magic that likely drew viewers to the original. But I have to admit, seeing this gives me no desire at all to see the original. Bad pacing, poor acting and a confusing plot made this too much trouble to watch, despite how pretty it was to look at.

WE GAVE IT: 2 Stars – Watch the Official Trailer and Official Movie Poster below!

2 Stars

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Movie Review: Run All Night – Ed Harris’ Brings Out the Best Liam Neeson We’ve Seen in Years

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I am almost positive that Liam Neeson is required by law to film at least one movie a year where a family member of his is in trouble, and he’s the only person with a special set of skills, who can save them. Why? Because nobody does menacing threats like Liam Neeson.

This one does offer a unique twist. Jimmy Conlon (Neeson) is an assassin on the edge of retirement. After killing about 20 people for his buddy/crime boss Shawn Maguire (Ed Harris), he’s sitting in booze filled retirement, living in a hovel and ignoring his only son Michael (Joel Kinnaman). Then, the two are drawn back together. That’s because Michael witnessed a brutal murder, committed by Shawn’s son Danny (Boyd Holbrook). Of course, Jimmy tries to fix things with Danny. But as Danny is a crazy hothead, Jimmy is forced to kill him instead. Then, father and son go on the run, trying to get away from a mobster hell bent on revenge.

I like the newest trend in mobster movies. In the days of Good Fellas and Casino, mobsters were glamorized and put on some kind of common man crime boss pedestal. These days, we see these mobsters through a darker, and likely more realistic, lens. Jimmy is a more probable assassin than you would see in any other movie. He’s tortured over the things he’s done, to the point where he drinks himself unconscious every night. His involvement in organized crime has destroyed his life and ruined his relationship with his family. In this, I think the movie stays relatively realistic.

The screenplay could have been a bit tighter. The entire thing kind of hinges on a major coincidence. Michael just happens to be the limo driver for Danny the night that Danny decides to kill two drug dealers. Some of the fights were a bit over the top as well. While I expect crime movies to be gory, I do not expect the hero to have a superhuman ability to withstand any hit and still live.

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On top of the action, we also see the complexities of Jimmy and Michael’s relationship. We learn that Jimmy’s abandonment of Michael was done to protect his son from the corruption in his own life. While Michael sees it as abandonment, Jimmy sees it as the only selfless thing he’s ever done. I think this is a unique twist on the relationship.

The relationship between Shawn and Jimmy is equally complex. On one hand, Jimmy loves his boss for their friendship, but on the other, he resents him as playing a pivotal roll in the life he regrets. That rift becomes insurmountable when Shawn loses his son, causing the two friends to become mortal enemies. In this, you can really see the character motivation. Lot’s of this had to do with Ed Harris’ impressive acting abilities and his chemistry with the usually wooden faced Neeson. It’s like Neeson fed off of Harris’ abilities, because I saw some range from him that I haven’t seen before.

All in all, this was a stylish, tense crime drama with a lot of action. There are lots of fights for the blood thirsty crowd, and enough drama for people who prefer their crime movies gritty. A bit of comic relief might have broken up some of the tension, but regardless of that, I have to call this a commendable effort. I was expecting yet another Taken and instead, I got something a bit closer to Iceman.

WE GAVE IT: 4 Stars – Watch the Official Trailer and Official Movie Poster below!

4 stars

 

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Movie Review: A Million Ways to Die in the West (2014)

million_ways_to_die_in_the_west_ver11Utterly Offensive but Side Splittingly Funny

Star Ratings

As a fan of most Seth MacFarlane productions, I was thrilled to see the release of a movie based on his book of the same name. Of course, I expected the critics to pan him, because this is Seth MacFarlane and critics love to pan him. This movie was no exception and he’s currently performing at a very low 33% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. So are the critics panning it because he’s actually bad, or are they doing it because it’s Seth MacFarlane?

MacFarlane directs, produces, co-writes and stars in the story of cowardly sheep farmer Albert. After Albert chickens out of a gunfight, his fickle girlfriend (Amanda Siegfried) leaves him for another man. Then, the mysterious and beautiful Anna (Charlize Theron) arrives in town and teaches Albert how to grow a pair. Everything is going just fine until Ann’s husband, notorious gangster Clinch (Liam Neeson) shows up seeking revenge.

And the verdict is everyone’s panning it because Seth Macfarlane wrote it. I really don’t get the problem people seem to have with this movie. Personally, I haven’t laughed this hard since Ted. Is the humor utterly juvenile and completely disgusting? Absolutely, but this is Seth MacFarlane. I expect that. I wonder what these other critics were expecting? Have they not seen Family Guy?

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Honestly, this movie really reminded me of Blazing Saddles, which I’m sure got panned during its first run as well. It feels like that was the kind of vibe MacFarlane was going for and I’m going to say, I think he did it pretty well.

MacFarlane himself is great in the title role, and Theron is an acceptable foil. They have a surprising amount of chemistry, aside of MacFarlane’s goofball antics and they play well together. Neeson is fantastic as well, as he seems to be the only character that isn’t in on the joke. There is a hilarious and fantastically inappropriate scene using shadow that had me laughing hysterically, while Neeson somehow managed to remain deadpan.

Actors playing smaller parts shone as well. Watch for Sarah Silverman, the most morally confused prostitute in the West, and Neil Patrick Harris, a man with a fabulous mustache.

Is the movie utterly offensive? Absolutely, to those who aren’t in on the joke. Blazing Saddles was offensive as well, but it’s still considered a comedic classic. The humor is slap-stick and gross out, sometimes predictable, but it never falls flat.

A Million Ways to Die in the West

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At least for me it didn’t. But then again, I’m not the type to get my panties in a twist when a movie fails to be PC. Was is as good as MacFarlane’s last major picture, Ted? That’s like comparing apples and oranges. Both had their high points.

Ted was a bit more unique that A Million Ways to Die, but A Millions Ways to die has more character power behind it.

My advice? Don’t worry too much about what the critics say. I’m sure that most had already written their poor reviews before they even saw the movie, simply because MacFarlane’s name was on it. If you’re not the sensitive type, if you’re a fan of family Guy and Ted, then A Million Ways to Die in the West is right up your alley. Watch the hilarious official trailer below.

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Liam Neeson takes on Kidnappers again in ‘A Walk Among Tombstones’ (Official Trailer & Poster)

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Liam Neeson and kidnappers; that sounds as good as peanut butter and jelly. The two go together well and so far always makes for a great movie. A Walk Among Tombstones sees Neeson playing an ex cop turn unlicensed private eye who helps a drug trafficker after a ransom deal has gone bad. If that sounds like it can be a series of novels, it’s because it is. The character Matt Scudder is from Lawrence Block’s best selling series of mystery novels that this movie is adapted from.

Neeson takes on the role as a scruffy, down on his luck average Joe like a pro and in typical Neeson fashion his character, turns out to be a bad ass.  Neeson is getting paid to be Neeson.

The screenplay is written by Scott frank who has a crazy resume: The Wolverine, Marley & Me, Minority Report, Get Shorty and Out of Sight to mention a few. If this movie is half as good as the novels then it should be great.  Oliver Stone took a stab with Jeff Bridges as Matt Scudder back in 1986’s 8 Million Ways to Die and it was awful.  From the looks of the trailer, it looks like Hollywood got it right this time.

Watch the official trailer below.

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