Oz the Great and Powerful

 

Oz the Great and Powerful:

Oz the Great and Powerful is a fun movie. If you like the original Wizard of Oz as much as I do then you will definitely enjoy this movie as well. The story is about how Oz became the Wizard of Oz and how the three witches split between good and evil. The movie also pays a lot of homages to the original Wizard of Oz including beginning in black and white and transitioning to color. An all star cast delivers great performances from James Franco, Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz, Michelle Williams, Zach Braff, Tony Cox, and Bruce Campbell. Sam Raimi does a great job directing and the cinematography speaks for itself. I saw it in 2D but I would be willing to ass/u/me that the 3D would make this movie even better. I give this movie an A so get out there and see it!

Gangs of New York

 

Gangs of New York:

I love this movie. Always have and always will. Amsterdam Vallon played by Leonardo DiCaprio is the son of an Irish gang leader. During an all out battle between the Irish gangs and the American gang, led by Bill the Butcher played by Daniel Day-Lewis, Amsterdam's father is killed. After growing up in a corrections house Amsterdam comes back to the Five Points in New York to seek revenge on Bill the Butcher. The story is amazing, the acting is phenomenal, and the cinematography is great. You couldn't ask for a better trio than Scorsese, Lewis, and DiCaprio. This movie gets an A+ and I implore you to see it and to show it to your friends!

There Will Be Blood

 

There Will Be Blood:

There Will Be Blood is a movie about the shady and ruthless dealings of an early oil tycoon. There are a lot of interesting dynamics that make this movie amazing. The dueling natures of Daniel Plainview played by Daniel Day-Lewis and Eli Sunday played by Paul Dano, the father/son relationship between Plainview and HW played by Dillon Freasier, and of course all the dangers involved with getting an oil derrick working. Daniel Day-Lewis successfully creates one of the most despicable characters ever put on film. Watching Plainview one up Sunday over and over again is the highlight of the movie for me. It is the perfect representation of their individual acting abilities. The acting is phenomenal all around in this movie. The story is enlightening to the backhanded dealings of the early oil tycoons and the cinematography is well done. I give this movie an A+ and remember "I drink your milkshake."

Looper

 

Looper:

I will start by saying I liked this movie. I had really high expectations for this movie and unfortunately they did not quite live up to them but made up for it in other ways. Bruce Willis, Jeff Daniels, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt star in this futuristic sci-fi thriller. Mob bosses from the future send hits back in time where they are assassinated by Loopers. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is supposed to assassinate his future self, played by Bruce Willis, but fails and ends up in over his head. Bruce Willis needs his past self, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, to help him change the future. The story is fairly easy to follow but the ending leaves an important question unanswered. It is one of the endings that is good but could be better. I give Looper a solid B and recommend checking it out.

The Prestige

 

 

The Prestige:

The Prestige is a must see film. Starring Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, and Scarlett Johansson the story revolves around two friends turned enemies who are trying to ruin each others careers as magicians. They do this by improving their own shows while sabotaging each others. The acting is phenomenal. The setting and cinematography weave fantasy and history together beautifully. Christopher Nolan, director of the Batman Returns trilogy directed this masterpiece. I give this movie an A+. Do yourself a favor and check this movie out!

Zero Dark Thirty

 

 

Zero Dark Thirty:

Zero Dark Thirty was an interesting movie about an amazing achievement in U.S. history. I still remember where I was when I heard that Osama bin Laden had been killed. I was in the shower getting ready for work, listening to the Preston and Steve morning show and I gave a small cheer. The movie covers the events leading up to and including the death of Osama bin Laden. The downsides to the movie is common among intelligence gathering community movies. These downsides are guaranteed: You will be confused at more than one point about what is going on and you will be bored at one or more points. The problem with the confusion is that most people are not part of the intelligence gathering community and are not on the same page as people who are working the same leads. Special to this movie are a large number of middle eastern names that are hard to understand and even more so put a face to. Also intelligence gathering tends to be boring. The acting is excellent and the events leading up to the operation are interesting even if they are hard to follow or boring. Jessica Chastain steals the show with an amazing performance. I give this movie a solid B+.



The Bourne Legacy

 

 

The Bourne Legacy:

 

I have a few problems with The Bourne Legacy. The Bourne Trilogy starring Matt Damon was great. I enjoyed each of the films. The problem with the Bourne Legacy is that it feels like a reboot of the Bourne Trilogy. That in itself is not a bad thing because Jeremy Renner does a great job in the "Bourne" role. The bad thing is that we already know the Bourne story. 80% of this movie is laying the story out for a new Bourne series. That leaves only 20% of the movie for action, which was awesome, but just not enough. I would definitely see a 2nd and 3rd movie with Jeremy Renner as Bourne but keep these things in mind if you watch this movie. I can only give this movie a B- because it was way below expectations.