[Disney's] Alice Through The Looking Glass

 A mad adventure of the unpossible sort!

 When The Hatter is not himself his friends become gravely concerned; so, Alice is called upon to return to Wonderland in an effort to save him. As it is a past tragedy which has vexed her dear friend, Alice is compelled to undertake a most dangerous quest through time. And, one ought to be especially careful when traveling into the past... or everything shall be made dust!

 This film is well performed and superbly set, with a remarkable story well directed.

Grade: B
Rating: PG


 Starring:
Johnny Depp; Mia Wasikowska; Anne Hathaway; Helena Bonham Carter; and, Sacha Baron Cohen.
 Featuring:
Matt Lucas; Ed Speleers; Michael Sheen; Lindsay Duncan; and, Matt Vogel.
 With:
Stephen Fry; Timothy Spall; Leo Bill; Paul Whitehouse; and, Barbara Windsor.
 Plus:
Rhys Ifans; Richard Armitage; Hattie Morahan; Amelia Crouch; and, Leilah de Meza.
 Also:
Alan Rickman!

Writer: Linda Woolverton
From The Works Of: Lewis Carroll
Director: James Bobin

04 June 2016
Reel Reviews by Frank Jaymes

Lucy

Curious and stunning from the first moment!

  A young woman in Taipei is thrust into the field of theoretical evolution. With the world opening before her, she is reborn. Her rebirth has captured the attention of criminals, police and scientists. Her acquisition of knowledge and power has been violent and taken only a moment. In the next moment, an act of self preservation. Now, in her final moment, she must decide what to do with her life....

  Scarlett Johansson is superb! Brilliantly directed and set, this film is well written and should be seen by everyone with a curious mind.

Grade: A     Rating: PG2

Starring:
  Scarlett Johannson; Morgan Freeman; Amr Waked; and, Min-Sik Choi
Featuring:

  Nicolas Phongpheth; Julian Rhind-Tutt; Pilou Asbaek; and, Analeigh Tipton

With:

  Pierre Gerard; Isabelle Cagnat; Frederic Chau; and, Claire Tran

Plus:
  Loic Brabant; Pierre Grammont; Pierre Poirot; and, Bertrand Quoiniam
Also:
  Sandra Abouav

Writer:   Luc Besson
Director: Luc Besson

reposted from 26 July 2014

Reel Reviews by Frank Jaymes

Captain America

When America needed soldiers he was not a man they wanted. But, when they needed a hero, he was the only man for the job!

Steve Rogers, a kid from Brooklyn, small and weak of body, with courage and idealism defying expectation. He dared what few men would dare. A miracle of science gave form to that which lay within him – a soldier, a leader, an avenger – a hero!

{There’s a reason Captain America has been published monthly since 1941 – he’s the man few of us will ever be and the hero most of us would to be.}

World War Two, Adolf Hitler’s chief of advanced science, Johann Schmidt, has an agenda of his own. Schmidt has the desire to rule the world and the intellect to fulfill that dream. Herr Schmidt has vowed to dominate the world or destroy it. And, only Captain America has the power to stop him.

Brilliantly written and directed, with superb performances throughout, this film is exciting and energetic. Set with circa 1904s costumes and features, plus the fantastic advanced machines which stimulate adventure seeking audiences, this is the kind of film from which legends can be born!

{Graphic novel readers will appreciate the inclusion of nearly every creative tenure of this icon for liberty and freedom created by Joe Simon & Jack Kirby.}

A / PG2

Starring: Chris Evans; Hugo Weaving; Tommy Lee Jones; and, Hayley Atwell
Featuring: Sebastian Stan; Toby Jones; Dominic Cooper; and, Neal McDonough
With: Derek Luke; Kenneth Choi; JJ Field; and, Bruno Ricci
Plus: Stanley Tucci and Samuel L. Jackson
Writers: Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely
Director: Joe Johnston

By Frank Jaymes

Black Swan

   A thrilling challenge to maintain your sanity.

  Nina’s life has always been a perfect movement, flawless technique with graceful motion. After years, dedicated to the craft, dancing in the company core, she is given the chance to shine. Challenges mount: the scorn of a retired star; remorse for her role in that retirement; newfound desire for a new member of the company core; the malignity of that desired member; the spite of a particular core ballerina; affection and faith from the company director; and, her mother’s peculiar concern; plus, her own lingering doubt. Can she transform her passion for the science of ballet into passion for the art of dance and the tragedy of “Swan Lake”? Or, will she spin from the stage into tragic failure?

   Very well directed, this film will defy the viewer’s certainty of reality. Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis perform brilliantly and are wonderfully choreographed as ‘twin’ ballerina’s equally attracted and opposed, to the ‘Swan Queen’ and to each other.

B / R
11 December 2010 (reposted)
By Frank Jaymes

Starring: Natalie Portman; Mila Kunis; and, Vincent Cassel
Featuring: Barbara Hershey; and, Ksenia Solo
With: Winona Ryder; and, Benjamin Millepied
Writers: Andres Heinz; John McLaughlin; and, Mark Heyman
{plus (original composer) - Pyotr Tchaikovsky}
Director: Darren Aronofsky
{plus choreographer - Benjamin Millepied}

Scott Pilgrim

Quirky, simple, entertainment without much lasting value.

Scott is, in best terms, a nerd. High school four years gone, he’s still hanging with buds, playing in a band and dating a high school chick. But, there’s this other girl, skating through his dreams and occupying his mind. Then, the day came when she was not simply in his dreams... the day came when Scott met Ramona. Now, what’s a nerd to do when the girl of his dreams has seven ex’s who won’t let them be together – BATTLE! Defeat the super ex’s, score points and win the girl....

A fair bit of work all around with performances and effects keeping it all from falling apart.

Starring: Michael Cera; Mary Elizabeth Winstead; Kieran Culkin; Anna Kendrick; and, Ellen Wong
Featuring: Alison Pill; Aubrey Plaza; Johnny Simmons; Mark Webber; and, Jason Schwartzman
With: Chris Evans; Brie Larson; Brandon Routh; Mae Whitman; and, Satya Bhabha
Plus: Shota Saito; Keita Saito; and, Bill Hader
Writers: Edgar Wright and Michael Bacall
Director: Edgar Wright

C / PG
10 August 2010
Reel Reviews by Josef

Jonah Hex

   Not nearly as gritty and violent as the modern graphic novels but a wild and interesting adventure nonetheless!

   Walking a fine line between righteousness and wickedness, Jonah Hex is a man of certain skill and questionable motives. He survived the bloodiest war ever fought on American soil only to have everything he loved taken from him. Scarred for his ‘betrayal’ and believed to be demonic, he will hunt the guilty and bring them to justice - dead or alive.

   Jonah’s vengeance was robbed from him by fate but an amoral bandit, “a terista”, and a call from The President of the [newly] United States has given him a new opportunity – justice for his family is at hand!

   Revered and reviled, Hex is coming... and death lay behind him.

   Well written {though not without the usual Warner’s departure from the source material} and remarkably performed, this film is decently directed and well set [with some ‘wild west’ innovation].

Starring: Josh Brolin; John Malkovich; Michael Fassbender; and Megan Fox
Featuring: Will Arnett; John Gallagher, Jr; and, Jeffrey Dean Morgan
With: Tom Wopat and Aidan Quinn
Writer: Brian Taylor; Mark Neveldine; and, William Farmer
Director: Jimmy Hayward

B / PG2
19 June 2010
Reel Reviews by Josef

Karate Kid (2010)

   Delightfully familiar, yet refreshingly new.

   When his mother is promoted to a new position, Dre Parker is relocated from his comfortable home in Detroit to an uncomfortable apartment in China.

   Language, customs, and culture unknown to him, Dre is soon in turmoil. Targeted by bullies who torment him daily, he is soon overwhelmed. But, his salvation is found in the form of a simple handyman with a promise to teach him “true kung-fu.”

   In learning the discipline of martial art, Dre will learn the beauty of a new culture and put his turmoil to rest.

   Still, his tormentors are relentless and without mercy... a battle is inevitable.

   Well written and decently performed this film is brilliantly directed and wonderfully set. Like the title, many scenes are an homage to the 1980's films starring Ralph Macchio and Noriyuki ‘Pat’ Morita – shame a cameo or faux cameo could not be included in this film.

Starring: Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan
Featuring: Taraji Henson; Wenwen Han; and, Zhenwei Wang
With: Zhensu Wu; Rongguang Yu; and, Wang Ji
Writers: Christopher Murphey and Robert Mark Kamen
Director: Harald Zwart

B / PG
12 June 2010
Reel Reviews by Josef

When In Rome

A very light romantic comedy.

Beth is a career driven young woman with neither faith nor courage for love. In Rome for her younger sister’s wedding she’ll defy reason and challenge divinity to bring her true and lasting love. Alas such defiance will always bring challenges unexpected and unwanted... Beth now has five impossibly smitten, determined and devoted love interests. True love may be among the five, if only she can find the courage to see it.

Simply written and directed with easy performances throughout, this film might best be viewed at home.

C / PG

Starring: Kristen Bell; Josh Duhamel; Will Arnett; Jon Heder; and, Dax Shepard.
Featuring: Angelica Huston; Danny DeVito; Alexis Dziena; and, Kate Micucci.
With: Peggy Lipton; Luca Calvani; Keir O’Donnell; and, Bobby Moynihan.
Plus: Don Johnson
Writers: David Diamond and David Weissman
Director: Mark Steven Johnson

Reel Review by Josef

Sherlock Holmes

Intriguing And Energetic.

Nineteenth Century London, a game is afoot. Sherlock Holmes and his long-time partner, Dr. Watson, are on the verge of altering, if not ending, their association. But, personal matters are untended when their final case together is unexpectedly reopened, calling into question the reputations and integrity of Holmes and Watson. With the return of Irene Adler, the duo is thrust into a world of trouble, beset by adversaries of substance and shadow. Murder, assassination, corruption, revolution, espionage and theft confront the great detectives... and it may be too much to survive.

Challenging the known characterization of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, this film is written with an eye toward action not unlike swashbucklers who chase Nazis and Mummies. But set some three or four decades before such adventures were ‘common’ and using a character so well known for intellectual rather than physical resolutions, some viewers may take exception to this piece of cinema. While the direction and set may seem a bit dull, the story and performances are certainly exciting.

B / PG

Starring: Robert Downey, Jr; Jude Law; and, Mark Strong
Featuring: Rachel McAdams and Eddie Marsan
With: Kelly Reilly
Writers: Michael Robert Johnson; Simon Kinberg; and, Tony Peckham
Director: Guy Ritchie
Reel Reviews by Josef

Avatar

   A Stunning, Remarkable, Overwhelming Achievement!

Across the universe, on a lush green alien world the interests of science and commerce collide. While scientists hope to explore and learn, a conglomerate is seeking to acquire a precious element. The business of that acquisition may have a diplomatic solution, offering the native, primitive, people education, medicine and other advancements in exchange for their cooperation. Should diplomacy fail, a corporate military is waiting... but life on Pandora has many deadly secrets and an army of it’s own!

Seen in IMAX 3D, this film is almost overpowering – visually. The story here is decently written, only slightly predictable. It is the direction, incorporating vast CGI with live action in such a manner one may forget nothing on Pandora is real. Even so, the performances seem a bit weak, becoming lost amongst the wondrous CGI characterizations and sets.

B / PG2

Starring: Sam Worthington; Zoe Saldana; Sigourney Weaver; Stephen Lang; and, Michelle Rodriguez
Featuring: Giovanni Ribisi; Joel David Moore; and, CCH Pounder
With: Wes Studi; Laz Alonso; and, Dileep Rao
Director and Writer: James Cameron

Reel Reviews by Josef

Star Trek

A Bold New Beginning For Gene Roddenberry’s Creation!

Jim Kirk was born in outer space, across the galaxy, in the wake of a stellar event with a heroic finale. On Earth he became a reckless, adventurous, dangerous, care-free, young man. Brilliant but without ambition, abandoning the legacy of his parents... until the day he met Captain Christopher Pike. Now, he will take-up a new challenge and find an ambition which few can match.

For twenty-five years a threat has loomed across the galaxy... waiting for Starfleet’s flagship and it’s famed captain and first officer! James Tiberius Kirk and Spock are young and inexperienced; yet, they face an enemy harboring for them much anger and contempt.

Taking incomplete threads from the short-lived series, “Star Trek: Enterprise”, this film has dared to ask: What if everything we know were to change? It’s an amazing concept, wonderfully made reality! This film is filled with bits reminiscent of Trek past but it’s shape and sustenance is fascinatingly fresh!

Masterfully written, performed, directed, produced and effected, this is a Must-See film... and it’s just the beginning!

A / PG2

Starring: Chris Pine; Zachary Quinto; Karl Urban; and, Zoe Saldana.
Featuring: Bruce Greenwood; Simon Pegg; John Cho; and, Anton Yelchin.
With: Leonard Nimoy; Eric Bana; Winona Ryder; and, Ben Cross.

Reel Review by Josef

Wolverine

Edgy. Sharp. Fast. Thrilling.

He’s much older than anyone would believe. His life before joining the mutant team created and trained by Professor X was as unpleasant as it was long. He began his life simply, sickly, but an act of brutality gave birth to the animal within him and he’s been running from it ever since. Beside his brother, even more an animal than himself, he’s traversed the world fighting and killing... until one day he left it all behind.

But, men such as he can’t escape the tragedies of life. All too soon, his past has come for him and he’ll strike a bargain with a devil to put down an animal...!

Borrowing from graphic novel masterpieces, “Origin” and “Weapon X”, plus thirty years of stories by such masters as Chris Claremont and Jim Lee, this film is brilliantly written and performed. It’s fast pace and hard edge was likely a challenge to direct, especially when faced with working it all into an established cinematic history [something which was remarkably well done in the end]. That challenge was remarkably well met here.

A / PG2

Starring: Hugh Jackman; Liev Schreiber; Danny Huston; Lynn Collins; and, Taylor Kitsch.
Featuring: Ryan Reynolds; will I am; Daniel Henney; and, Scott Adkins.
With: Dominic Monaghan; Tim Pocock; Kevin Durand; Julia Blake; and, Max Cullen.
Writers: David Benioff and Skip Woods.
Director: Gavin Hood

Reel Review by Josef Franklin

Race To Witch Mountain

A fun race for those who remember the first trip to Witch Mountain and for those who are making the trip for the first time.

When an extra-terrestrial object entering Earth’s atmosphere changed course a call to arms went out and the hunt began. Unbeknownst to Jack Bruno, a not-so-simple cab driver, the two kids seeking a ride are far more than they appear and the men chasing after the cab aren’t coming for him. They mean us no harm but if they do not find what they seek, retrieve their space craft and get home – two worlds are doomed! But, short-sighted soldiers and nefarious criminals aren’t the only people chasing after these two kids... the real enemy is far more dangerous!

Simply written and directed, the charm of this film is in the performances – and the nostalgia! Fans of the classic Witch Mountain films will recognize Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann in their brief but pivotal roles.

C / PG

Starring: Dwayne Johnson; Anna Sophia Robb; and, Alexander Ludwig
Featuring: Carla Gugino; Ciaran Hinds; and , Tom Everett Scott
With: Kim Richards; Ike Eisenmann; Garry Marshall; and, Cheech Marin
Writers: Mark Bomback; Andy Fickman; Matt Lopez; and, Lloyd Taylor
Director: Andy Fickman

Reel Review by Frank Jaymes
20 March 2009

Watchmen

You’ve never seen super heroes like these!

The year is 1985. President Richard Nixon has been elected to his fifth term in office. The world is on the brink of nuclear armageddon. The masked heroes of old are gone. Humankind’s one hope is Dr. Manhattan, a nuclear man who has lost all his humanity, believing human life is parasitic and pointless. Tonight, in the city, a comedian is killed. And, tomorrow the world will end.

This film is brilliantly written, though with great foreboding and dread. The direction here is spot-on, exactly what readers of the graphic novel would expect. Most impressive are the performances, especially Jackie Earle Haley and Billy Crudup!

{Why Alan Moore demanded his name be removed from this production is beyond my comprehension!}

B / R

Starring: Malin Ackerman; Billy Crudup; Jackie Earle Haley; and, Patrick Wilson
Featuring: Matthew Goode and Jeffrey Dean Morgan
With: Matt Frewer and Carla Gugino
Writer: Alex Tse [from the graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons]
Director: Zack Snyder

Reel Review by Josef

Coraline

Somehow familiar and without true excitement.

Coraline doesn’t like her new home. She doesn’t particularly like her parents either. And, the neighbor boy stalking her isn’t a friend she would choose. What’s a girl to do with so little... go somewhere much bigger, much more fun, somewhere hidden, secret – but is it safe?

A simple, twisted, tale. Brilliantly animated and decently performed.

C / PG

 

Starring: Dakota Fanning and Teri Hatcher
Featuring: John Hodgman and Ian McShane
With: Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders
Writer: Henry Selick [from the book by Neil Gaiman]
Director: Henry Selick

Reel Review by Josef

Push

Something like [NBC’s] “Heroes” on the silver screen.

They’ve been among us for years. They are something more than human, something extraordinary. Taken from their homes, hidden, studied, tested and used. Now is the time foretold, when one of their number will bring about their salvation... but first there must be a revolution.

The story here is not especially strong but if this is just the beginning, a story which is a bit weak and slow should be expected. Typical of action genre films, there is an uneven hand in it’s direction. This is a light load for the performers to carry but they do carry it well.

C / PG2

Starring: Chris Evans; Dakota Fanning; and, Camilla Belle.
Featuring: Djimon Hounsou
With: Cliff Curtis
Writer: David Bourla
Director: Paul McGuigan

Reel Review by Josef

He's Just Not That Into You

A bit too much to be truly romantic, too much like daytime drama – but if you’re into soaps....

The lives and relationships of seven people are interwoven in this story of what woman want, what men need, and what will make or break them. More, this is a story of love and hope and finding the jewel hidden right in front of your eyes.

Decently written and directed, the strength of this film is the brilliant performances!

B / PG2

Starring: Ben Affleck; Jennifer Aniston; Jennifer Connelly; Ginnifer Goodwin; and, Justin Long.
Featuring: Drew Barrymore; Bradley Cooper; and, Scarlett Johansson.
With: Kevin Connolly and Kris Kristofferson.
Writers: Abby Kohn and Mark Silverstein [from the book by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo]
Director: Ken Kwapis

Reel Review by Josef

The Reader

Unusually romantic. Compelling and brilliant.

It was a turbulent time in Germany, in the years soon after the end of the second World War, when a teenaged boy met a much older woman. Their affair was mutually loving and gratifying, born, bred and secreted in literature. Years later the boy is now a man recollecting his first love, how it was lost, and all the regret and tragedy which followed.

Brilliantly written and directed, this film is alive with remarkably outstanding performances!

A / PG2

Starring: Kate Winslet; Ralph Fiennes; and, David Kross
Featuring: Bruno Ganz; Hannah Herzeprung; Vijnessa Ferkic; and, Matthias Habich
With: Susanne Lothar; Karoline Herfurth; Alexandra Maria Lara; Volker Bruch
Writer: David Hare [from the book by Bernhard Schlink]
Director: Stephen Daidry

Reel Review by Josef

Revolutionary Road

Morose and forlorn – but outstanding nonetheless!

Frank and April once dreamed of a life singularly free, unique and pleasurable. Still, their life course led them inevitable to a little house in the suburb, raising their children... and pretending to be living happily-ever-after. Now, all their pretense is threatening to crush them. Conformity has robbed them of their once brilliant creativity, stolen their freedom and killed their spirit. But, there is hope, an opportunity to restore all they’ve lost – if only they can get to Paris before the rules of society make yet more demands.

Weakly written and unevenly directed, this film’s strength is in it’s brilliant performances!

B / PG2

Starring: Kate Winslet; Leonardo DiCaprio; and, Kathy Bates
Featuring: Michael Shannon; Kathryn Hahn; David Harbour; and, Jay O. Sanders
With: Richard Easton; Dylan Baker; Zoe Kazan; and, Max Casella
Writer: Justin Haythe [from the book by Richard Yates]

Reel Review by Josef

Taken

Nothing here we haven’t seen before now.

Bryan Mills is a retired covert operative “with a particular set of skills”. Traveling to Paris after his daughter is abducted, he’ll put those skills to use. Anyone and anything between him and her will be destroyed.

Weakly written with typical direction and performances.

D / R

Starring: Liam Neeson
Featuring: Maggie Grace; Famke Janssen; Leland Orser; and, Olivier Rebourdin
With: Jon Gries; Holly Valance; Katie Cassidy; and, Xander Berkeley
Writers: Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen
Director: Pierre Morel

Reel Reviews by Josef