Review: Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

20th Century Fox

I wonder if this movie will receive any more attention because of the state of our economy as of late. I see trailers for so many documentaries about how the people on wall street are all crooks and terrible people and how this all could've been avoided, and etc, etc. I don't claim to have any sort of knowledge when it comes to wall street and/or the economy. I've never been much interested in that sort of thing and I find it kind of boring. But not too long ago I saw Oliver Stone's original "Wall Street" starring Charlie Sheen and Michael Douglas where the character of greedy, crafty, wall street giant Gordon Gekko was first created. Although I admit to not understanding a whole lot about the terms and lingo of the business traded back in forth throughout the movie, I found myself entirely engrossed in it. "Wall Street" has a great balance of complex stock trading information along with intense characters and relationships that are not all good and you get caught up in seeing them fall helplessly into money traps and illegal activity. 

"Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" starts out along the same lines. It seeks to return to the fast-paced, slick, yet dangerous life of stock broker, and for a while there I was excited to see where it would lead. Unfortunately, partway through and on to the end it lost much of the reality and intensity the first one profited on. Charlie Sheen's Bud Fox is a young and determined stock broker who wants to make it big, even if that means going the illegal route. Of course, he ends up giving himself in along with Gekko for the sake of saving his father's company whereby retaining some of his respectability. On the other hand, Shia Labeouf's Jake Moore is something of a justice seeker and honorable stock broker. I have to admit I was surprised by Labeouf's role, because I usually hate him in movies. I found he did a pretty good job here when he was forced out of his bumbling teenager role he's so used to. However, compared to Bud Fox, Moore is not as fun to watch. It's hard to find such an honorable figure in wall street realistic; especially when compared to the last film.

Weeks trailers: Oscar contenders + a few failures

"The King's Speech"

Everything about this trailer just screams OSCAR NOMINEE. It may be a fairly stereotypical trailer for such a movie, but it's got the star power and skill behind it to ensure nominations. "The King's Speech" has already won awards at various festivals, including the People's Choice award at Toronto, so I'd say it's fairly safe to say we have a best picture (and various other awards) nominee here. Colin Firth was super close to winning best actor last season with is role in "A Single Man", plus he's getting older-ish. Not THAT old, but you know, old enough to where a great actor like him should have received an Oscar by now. So I don't believe I'm being too coy or ignorant when I say I think he's going to win this year. Almost for sure. Period pieces like this often garner the most attention because they involve the most costumes, sets, locations, etc. Director Tom Hooper is also a popular director as of late after his "The Damned United" came out last year about this soccer manager for some team in England. I wasn't that interested. But I am excited to see Geoffrey Rush in a movie again. He's always loads of fun to watch and was the best part of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies, in my opinion. I'll definitely be seeing this one ASAP uponp it's November 26th release.

"Gnomeo and Juliet"

It feels really stupid to be putting this trailer right after such a prestigious looking movie as "The King's Speech", but at the same time, the contrast is funny to me. Seriously, this movie looks so TURRRRIBLE. I'd be curious to know if anyone, ANYONE laughed at the jokes in this. Probably the most cliche, lazy jokes and storyline I've seen for a while. How many movies have the "makers of Shrek" made now that have been horrible? Too many. It's still funny to notice how a bunch of famous actors such as Jason Statham, James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, and Michael Caine lend their voices to such things. Obviously it's for an easy paycheck. It's also coming out in February which is just further proof that it'll be awful. (for those who don't know, any movie that comes out from January till about mid March is generally destined to be bad). I guess some people's sense of humor is just this bad. I feel sorry for you.

Harry Potter and more after the jump!

Review: The Town

Warner Bros.                                                                                 

How does one go about making a truly good, unique and realistic crime thriller? This genre has to be one of the hardest to avoid cliches and dull plot lines and characters we've seen before. It's not one of those genres that has a whole lot of examples for what a great movie looks like. The one film that comes mind right away as a brilliant, intense, and exciting crime thriller is "Heat", in my opinion, Michael Mann's best movie, starring Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Val Kilmer. It also exhibits one of the best shootouts I've ever seen. So where does Ben Affleck's second directorial work since "Gone Baby Gone" fall?

Well, as said before, it's hard to find a really unique film in this genre these days, and "The Town" is not what I'd call "unique". But it sure is a surprise. It's great all around cast and intense, expertly paced plot makes it a film you do not want to miss this fall. Affleck stars as Doug MacRay, born and bread in Charlestown, Massachusetts, and an expert when it comes to planning and executing bank robberies along with his childhood friend Jim Coughlin (a very intense, violent Jeremy Renner). It's a great opening to the story as the movie starts with a bank robbery and Coughlin ends up taking the manager, Claire (Rebecca Hall) kidnap just for a backup plan. Ultimately, Doug takes it upon himself to follow Claire later and make sure she doesn't know too much. But then he asks her out.....and you guess how that might complicate things. Meanwhile F.B.I Secret Agent Frawley ("Madmen"'s Jon Hamm) is close on their tale.

Week's Trailers

"Due Date" trailer #2

I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who thought of "The Big Lebowski" when he had his dad's ashes at the Grand Canyon. And it also seems everyone is comparing this to "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles", which doesn't seem far off. But then again, it didn't have Zach Galifianakis and Robert Downey, Jr. And from this new trailer (which you can also see in glorious apple-nerd version over at apple trailers) from the director of "The Hangover" we see Danny McBride ("Pineapple Express") and Michelle Monaghan ("Gone Baby Gone") also have parts. I think this trailer looks even funnier than the first one. I think you'd have to be a pretty hard-hearted person to not laugh at all of Zach's facial expressions. I also really hope his dog's name is Funions (#betweentwofernsreferences). Hopefully we get a comedy that is just as good as or even better than "The Hangover", and I have a strong feeling that we will. There's really not a better staging for a comedy than a road trip, in my opinion. This one is coming November 9th.

hit the jump for more excitement!

Review: Centurion

From the beginning of "Centurion", it's very clear what the movie is going for. Within the first few scenes we have a small Roman garrison attacked by barbarians and some very brutal violence with stylish blood spattering everywhere. And even before that the credits appear with big, bold Celtic font, rushing over the northern mountainous regions of Britain where this was shot. It's a full blown, bloody, grisly epic in the tradition of the sword and sandals which I so dearly love. Of course, "Centurion" is far from having the depth and heart of movies like "Gladiator" and "Braveheart". But it's not going for that, far from it. It doesn't set out to achieve much, and what it does set out to do, I think it does quite well.

Michael Fassbender (above) plays Quintus Dias, a centurion stationed in the far north that gets raided and he subsequently gets captured. Luckily, he escapes and is rescued by the Ninth Legion and gets turned right back around from where he came to go fight Gorlacon, the leader of the barbarians. But sadly, it's a trap and the legion is completely destroyed. All except for Dias and 6 others, of course, and Dias is determined to get the last of the legion back home safe even with Etain (Olga Kurylenko), the mute, deadly warrior woman, on their tail.

Review: Get Low

"Get Low" characterizes what has come to be Robert Duvall's standard role in a few ways. First and foremost his god-given talent to play an old man. Even though he's had many famous roles such as "The Godfather" and "Apocalypse Now" when he was young, the first image that comes to mind when I think of Duvall is the grizzled old man you find in "Open Range", "Crazy Heart", and now "Get Low". The second most noticeable trait is the theme of this movie: forgiveness. Naturally this theme can be interpreted as 'redemption' and is seen in the likes of "Tender Mercies" and "The Apostle" which Duvall wrote, directed, and starred in. I'd say that "Get Low" just about takes the cake on all accounts of Duvall's performance as an old man and the theme of forgiveness.

In this unnamed area of America, (I'm assuming somewhere around Pennsylvania/Virginia judging by the countryside) everyone has heard the stories about old hermit Felix Bush. He's lived on his own out in the woods for 40 years until he shows up in town one day to say that he'd like to put on his own funeral. At first, the reverend there won't help him since the idea of him being alive at his own funeral is beyond absurd. Then funeral home owner Frank (Bill Murray), followed by his reluctant associate Buddy (Lucas Black), sees an opportunity to make some money by setting up a funeral party for Bush. But there's a past and story no one has heard about Bush that he won't talk about.

The Week's Trailers

"Hereafter"

Old Clint's at it again, making as many movies as he can before he....you know,.....dies. And apparently his new favorite person is Matt Damon who starred in last year's "Invictus". But now he's a psychic who communicates with dead people? I wasn't aware that that was what a normal psychic does. I thought they just counseled people. Nevermind that, Matt Damon's a SUPER psychic because he's Matt Damon and because he's afraid his other movie "The Adjustment Bureau" looks too dumb and unbelievable to do well. I have to give it to this trailer though, it's a well done trailer. Good job trailer! You got me semi-interested because there's a tsunami and there's so many characters and dead people my brain feels like it's going to explode with visuals! Clint often rides the fine line of being too melodramatic, and this could definitely breach that oh so important line when Damon says "it's not a gift it's a curse!". But, I also really enjoyed "Unforgiven" and "Mystic River" and the Iwo Jima series, so Clint can definitely deliver. But can this seemingly overly complicated plot and simple/cheesy theme of missing your dead relatives/friends really hold up? I guess we'll see.

News: From "Holmes" to "Tree of Life"

It was announced today that Noomi Rapace, star of the "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo", has accepted a role in the sequel to last years very successful (and very good) "Sherlock Holmes". Although little is known about the plot or who Rapace will be playing, it is believed she'll be a gypsy of sorts and it'll be a main role. It's obvious the plot will revolve around Robert Downey Jr.'s Holmes and Jude Law's Watson trying to track down and outsmart the archnemesis of Arthur Conan Doyle's book series, Professor Moriarty. I posted a while back about how director Guy Ritchie had his heart set on getting none other than acting legend Daniel Day-Lewis to play the renowned Professor. This seemed like an impossible task since Day-Lewis rarely lends his talent to mainstream blockbusters like "Holmes", but IMDB has him listed as in the cast with no "rumored" tag attached. It could be false advertising, but I have every hope that this is a dream come true because seeing Day-Lewis as another villain after Bill the Butcher in "Gangs of New York" would be so fantastic. 

But enough of rumors, Rapace is big news in Hollywood these days. Having wowed audiences with her acting abilities in the "Tattoo" series, she's wanted all over. News leaked a few days ago that she took a role opposite Jeremy Renner ("The Hurt Locker") in "Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters" as well. She's been offered many other roles but has only taken these two as of now, which I believe to be two good choices that will get her name out to a wider audience.

Legendary director Terrence Malick has frustrated fans to no end lately with no word on when his long awaited "Tree of Life" would finally premiere. Everyone hoped it would premiere at the Cannes Film Festival last Spring (didn't happen), then every other film festival after that, (still didn't happen). But it seems that Malick may be forced to speed up his meticulous editing process since Fox Searchlight Pictures purchased the rights to distribute the film and is pressuring him to a release date sometime next year. Even though there is still no exact date, it's still encouraging news to know we'll finally see this film for sure.

Though Malick is one of the most respected and studied directors of all time (definitely in my opinion), he's only made 5 movies since 1969, "Lanton Mills", "Badlands", "Days of Heaven", "The Thin Red Line", and "The New World". His films are known for their general lack of dialogue and brilliant visuals which I LOVE. "The Thin Red Line" is, in my opinion, the best war movie ever and one that looks at the struggles facing soldiers and the environment of war in an entirely different way. "Tree of Life" sounds similar to "Red Line" in that there's a lot of philosophical content. Malick actually studied philosophy at Harvard and taught philosophy at MiT before becoming a filmmaker so it has a heavy influence on the themes and dynamics of his movies. 

Sean Penn and Brad Pitt star in "Tree of Life" and Fox Searchlight lists the plot as "the impressionistic story of a Midwestern family in the 1950's chronicling the journey of the eldest son, Jack (played as an adult by Sean Penn), through the innocence of childhood to his disillusioned adult years - trying to reconcile the complicated relationship with his father (Brad Pitt). Jack finds himself a lost soul in the modern world, seeking answers to the origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith." Sounds really heavy to me, and really interesting. I doubt there's anyone more excited about this than I am. Malick is definitely in my top 5 favorite directors. Although I'd have to think for a bit about who the other 4 would be.....probably Christopher Nolan, Martin Scorsese, The Coen Brothers, aaaannnnnd........either P.T. Anderson or Wes Anderson.

Review: The American

The first question I had about this movie was the title. "The American"? It probably is because George Clooney's character, Jack, is in a small Italian town where everyone is aware that he is in fact an "American". Or is Jack, a depressed, quiet hitman, the epitome of what it means to be "American"? I wish. Sadly, Americans are not that exciting (sorry guys). 

And neither is this film. Jack is sad. Very sad. How do we know this? Because he has obviously killed many people and has committed "many sins" according to the priest of the town who befriends him. There's hardly any mention of how many "assignments" Jack has completed, so it's not exactly obvious he's killed "many" people, but it's obvious he's not happy with his past. *cue sad, slow piano music set against beautiful, but barren Italian countryside*

Review: Machete

After leaving the theater where we saw Robert Rodriguez's newest movie "Machete", my friend Alex commented on how it's definitely targeted at a specific group. It definitely is. It's easy to see how many people would be shocked, offended, and possibly disgusted by the absurd amount of violence. And it's easy to find fault with such a ludicrous storyline that pays little to no attention to what many people deem "necessary" or "important" to any story. However, it's hard to take such a serious stand against a movie that is in no way serious at all.

It's next to impossible that "Machete" is a 'bad' movie when it's not trying to be greatl. In fact, everything about it is purposely on the verge of terrible. Anyone who's seen "Desperado", "Once Upon in Mexico" or any of Rodriguez's other films knows exactly what I'm talking about. "Desperado" is silly and totally unbelievable but it's one of the most entertaining movies I've seen for a long time. Both "Desperado" and "Machete" tend to be that type of movie where you're just waiting for the next action sequence after a bit of dialogue to move the actual plot forward. So in reality all that matters here is the over-the-top action and violence you're hoping for, and believe me, you'll get it. And often times it's easy to point at movies like these and call them terrible for being 1-dimensional flicks that rely only on one aspect to get people in the theater.