Movie Review #17 - "The Hunger Games - Catching Fire (2013)"

Movie Review #17 - "The Hunger Games - Catching Fire (2013)"

On IMDB:  "The Hunger Games - Catching Fire (2013)"

Before I start on my review, I have a really good friend, Elyse Dufour, who was part of the non-defunct company, Solari Tales Films LLC.  She was cast as a featured extra in the film.  I spent most of the film trying to find her.  Instead of focusing on the nuances of the film, I ended up scanning the screen looking for her ...  However, it doesn't impact my review ...






Benny Tabasco Rating:  6 / 10  Tabasco Peppers

Synopsis:  The film picks up from the last film, "The Hunger Games".  Katniss is now trouble with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder after killing several people in the 74th installment of "The Hunger Games".  Because of Katniss's popularity, the 12 districts have started to revolt to a small degree because of her defiance of the Capital's direction.  

President Snow, leader of the Capital, calls for a "redo" of the Hunger Games with past winners of the games that are still alive from each district.  There is a new game master that has a plan to destroy the impact Katniss has achieved with her defiance to the directions and orders of the Capital.

They start the 75th Installment of the Hunger Games ... There are lots of battles and a LOT of dialog setting things up for the obvious third installment of the film (and book series).

It's pretty much the same plot with a lot more twists than I expected.  I don't want to spoil this film with more details ... Things aren't as they appear ...

Casting:   Again, Jennifer Lawrence plays Katniss Everdeen.  However, I felt her character more than in the first film.  She continues to get better and better each film.  If you don't believe me, watch "The Silver Linings Playbook" ... She deserved the Oscar for that one ...

Liam Hemsworth plays more a role in this film as Katniss's true love.  He plays Gale, a coal miner, in District 12.  Josh Hutcherson comes back as Peeta ... His portayal of Peeta is almost laughable at times ... He doesn't come across as a strong character ... He's like a leech in a lot of the scenes ...

Donald Sutherland is back as President Snow ... Again, I had a lot of trouble connecting him as a villain.  

The best casting move was Phillip Seymour Hoffman ... That man can act ... He's believable and very good in the role of the new "Game Master" ... 

Jena Malone join the cast as Johanna Mason ... I really enjoy her acting ... However, she didn't have a lot of lines and there was not enough character development with Johanna.

Writing:  Again, as with the first film, I loathed the dialog ... Apart from the glimmer of hope with Jennifer Lawrence, the majority of the film drug along ... Not a whole lot of new ideas or promise of new ideas ... 

Cinematography:  Not bad for the most part ... Again, the vastness during the hunting scenes was impressive.  When the enter the fight arena, I wanted to shoot the Director of Photography.  There was a lot of shots hinting to the fact that they were in a "dome" as they were playing the game.  And further more, the CGI was worse than I expected.

Direction:  Much better that the first.  The core principal of the movie with the "Hunger Games" was still there ... However, the PTSD scenes with Katniss were very good and very well acted.  It seemed as though there was much more time working on character development.  I felt that the director really wanted us to know who each of the characters really were.  That's a big step forward from the first film.

Overall Synopsis:  Again, don't bring the youngsters to this film.  There is a lot of violence, betrayal, and complex plot twists that they won't understand or think that this might be our "future".  It's not a great film by any stretch.  It's not a bad film either ...

If you liked the first film, I would recommend going to see this one.  It's much better than the first.  If you didn't like the first, but are still curious, go see it ... If you hated the first, send me $10.00 for the cost of my ticket ... :)

I went to see it because a good friend of mine was an extra.  Otherwise, I would have waited for Redbox or Netflix ....

Again ... These are my opinions ... It's up to you whether you like it or not ... The box office sales show that a lot of people really wanted to see it ...

One last comment.  I am a huge fan of the first "The Matrix" movie.  I left this movie feeling the same way as I did watching the second Matrix movie (which was disappointed and left with tons of unanswered questions ... So ... Let me know if you go see it and what you think of it  ...

Movie Review #16 - "The Hunger Games (2012)"

Movie Review #16 - "The Hunger Games (2012)"

 

So ... Before I start writing my review of the second installment of "The Hunger Games" that I saw this weekend, I felt obligated to write my review of the first movie in the series ...

On IMDB:  "The Hunger Games (2012)"

Benny's Tabasco Rating:  4 / 10 Tabasco Peppers

Synopsis:  Society has fallen apart.  There was a big war with 13 factions.  One was victorious.  The other twelve were basically slaves to the "Capital".  Every year, each of the twelve districts has to offer up a male and female to participate in a fight to the death.  The victor, in turn, gets a life of luxury, freedom ... yawn ... and whatever ...

The story focused on Katniss Everdeen and her relationships to her sort-of boyfriend, Gale, and her pretend boyfriend, Peeta.  Katniss and Peeta are eventually the chosen people to represent District 12.  

There are long drawn out story lines about the battle, the fight to the death, the inhumanity, yawn ... and so on ...

They fight with the participants from the other 11 districts ... (I won't go any further.  Just in case you want to see it, it's similar to a much better Japanese film, "Battle Royale (2000)".

Cast:  The casting director did a fantastic job casting Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen.  Katniss's character is a strong, versatile, and quite lonely girl from District 12.  She hunts and knows how to use a bow.  Jennifer Lawrence makes you actually believe that she is Katniss incarnate.  She's really brilliant in this role.  Even though the writing is (in my opinion, weak and unoriginal), she works well within the framework of the film.

One of my all-time favorite actors is Donald Sutherland.  Everything from "Kelly's Heroes (1970)" to "Without Limits (1998)" to "The Italian Job (2003) -- The remake", I have truly enjoyed his work ... Except for this movie ... Mr. Sutherland is getting old ... And this movie, it appears that he has "called his performance in" (meaning just showed up and read the lines).   He's not especially believable in this film as a bad guy.

The rest of the cast was OK at best ... I've seen other film work with Liam Hemsworth that I enjoyed more. He plays Katniss's true love interest, Gale.

Writing:  Since this series of films is based on a book, I am wondering how the writer got away with the amount of stolen ideas from "Battle Royale".  Yes, teenagers kill other teenagers ... Some of my friends were appalled by that.  Just go to South Central Los Angeles or Detroit, there's more of that than 23 people killed in this film for the entertainment of the people in the Capital.  

My opinion is that the writing is terrible.  While I haven't read the books, I doubt seriously that I would even consider reading them now ...

Cinematograpy:  This is one of the highlights of the film.  There's a lot of CGI / Green Screen used in the film.  However, most of the CGI is done well.  I really enjoyed the expansive shots in the film to depict the loneliness and isolation of the Districts as compared to the Capital.  

Editing:  Did I ever mention that I hate "shaky cam" work.  There are a couple of scenes were this tunnel vision and shakiness are used to convey Katniss being disoriented and confused.  I didn't care for that approach.  If you are going to do a "first person perspective", please stick with the perspective until the screen fades to black.  The back and forth between first person perspective and third person perspective gave me a headache.

Direction:  I wouldn't say that the director, Gary Ross, did a bad job.  However, I wasn't overly impressed with some of the characters.  The over the top view of the people that live in the Capital was too much ... He should have rethought that approach.  A little bit of difference between the Districts and the Capital would have been more acceptable.  However, he goes to the extreme.  I felt as though I was watching an old "Duran Duran" video at times with the costuming ... Maybe, A Flock of Seagulls would be a better example ...

Overall Review:  It's not a horrible movie.  Yes, there is a lot of violence and blood.  There's a fine line between using camera techniques and dialog that I feel were missed.  I don't recommend this film for anyone under the age of 12 up to 14.  Your kids have probably seen worse on "The Walking Dead", "CSI", or even "NCIS" ...

It's free to watch on Netflix right now ... If you are going to see the second film in the series, I would watch this first to understand what is going on ...

Movie Review #15 "Top Gun (1986)"

Movie Review #15 "Top Gun (1986)"

Okay ... Okay ... Most people my age have seen this at least once ... twice ... well ... I'm in the 50s on the number of times I have seen this movie.  My brother and I used to watch this, turn down the volume, and take a character's dialog and do the movie ourselves ...

So ... I'm a little sentimental ... This is the movie that made me cut my "Greg Brady Afro" to a crew-cut!

On IMDB: "Top Gun (1986)"

Benny Tabasco Rating:  8 / 10 Tabasco Peppers

Synopsis:  A fighter pilot goes to Top Gun Aviator Flight School to become "One of the Best Fighter Pilots (excuse me, Naval Aviator) ... He has some misfortune due to his cockiness and falls in love with one of the instructors.  I don't think that the plot was much more than that ... Sorry ...

Cast: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Tom Skerritt, Michael Ironside, Meg Ryan, Kelly McGillis, and Anthony Edwards ... There is so much testosterone in this film that it borders on same sex marriage ... Well ... I won't reprint rumors ... :)

Direction:  For the most part, this is a guy's film ... The acting is so-so ... Not much direction that I could see ...

Quotes:  "I feel the need, the need for speed" or "Take me to bed or lose me forever" ... I could go on ... "Hey Slider ... You stink" ...

Cinematography: Still to this day, one of the best aerial shots there is ... The planes (primarily the F-14 - now retired) and some T-38 for the Migs ... were filmed OUTSTANDINGLY (Is that a real word?) ... If you ever watched the TV show, "JAG", they used some of the footage from the movie ...

I do have to mention one scene that I thought was filmed brilliantly ... When Maverick (Tom Cruise) and Charlie (Kelly McGillis) are having dinner ... The use of natural light and camera angles was something that I have tried to replicate in my own work (unsuccessfully so far) ... That one scene makes me want to continue as a filmmaker ...

Writing:  It should have been titled "An Officer and a Gentleman Part 2" ... Very cliche ... Very expected ... Dialog for the most part is trite and unoriginal ...

Overall Review:  It's worth a sit-down and a bowl of popcorn with your TEENAGERS ... Not for the little ones ... Unless you fast-forward through the bedroom scene ... I love this movie ...

Movie Review #14 - "The English Teacher (2013)"

Movie Review #14 - "The English Teacher (2013)"

Before I start, I really like the acting style of Julianne Moore ... I really enjoyed her character in "Laws of Attraction" with Pierce Brosnon ... and also, "Evolution" with David Duchovny ...

Unfortunately, I didn't like the character in "The English Teacher" ...

On IMDB:"The English Teacher (2013)"

Benny Tabasco Review:  5 / 10 Tabasco Peppers

Synopsis:  A High School English Teacher played by Julianne Moore runs into one of her former students who has written a Broadway play.  The student, Jason Sherwood (played by Michael Angarano) is somewhat of a MONUMENTAL liar.  His dad, Dr. Sherwood (played by Greg Kinnear) plays the mean and belligerent father since his wife left him ...

The story deals with a Drama Teacher played by Nathan Lane (aka Timon from "The Lion King") gets a hold of the play and decides to perform that play instead of the same play that they produced year after year at the high school.

Ruckus erupts with Julianne's character (Linda Sinclair) is seduced by Jason Sherwood in the classroom ... Needless to say, they do the "nasty" ... Then, she decides it's not best or she gets jealous (pretty forgettable at this point) and Jason decides to get romantic with one of the High School Drama Kids (a girl) ...

It's sappy .. It's soupy ... And up until the last 30 minutes mildly unpredictable ...

Writing:  It's was OK ... At best ... The story is interesting ... I would have rather seen the set be a College / University instead of a high school ... Sorry, not into the pedophile thing ... 

Cast:  Julianne Moore ... Nathan Lane ... Greg Kinnear ... and a couple of kids that look like they came from a Disney set ... I thought that Julianne would carry this ... But alas, I was wrong ... The performances, other than Nathan Lane, were tolerable at best ... Greg Kinnear has one decent scene ... The rest seems contrived and trivial ...

Cinematography:  Sorry ... Looked like an Indie film ...  Shot like an Indie Film ... Probably is an Indie Film ... Enough Said.

Direction:  Did I say "Indie Film"?  Julianne's talent was so wasted in this movie ... It was kind of depressing ...

Overall Review:  Pass ... It's pretty simple.  One person has suffered for all of you ...  If you don't believe, you can choose to watch it on Netflix ...

 

Movie Review #13 - "Kon-Tiki (2012)"

Movie Review #13 - "Kon-Tiki (2012)"

Before I delve into this movie review, I remember as a child seeing the book, "Kon-Tiki" by Thor Heyerdahl in the libraries that I visited.  Someone told me that it was a great book about adventure and sailing ... How stupid was I never to have read it then ... 

On IMDB:  "Kon-Tiki (2012)"

Benny's Tabasco Rating:  10 / 10

Synopsis:  Thor Heyerdahl, a Norwegian scientist, ventures to the Polynesian Islands to do research for (I'm guessing here) to be published or a doctoral dissertation.  The movie doesn't elaborate on it much.  While he is researching, one of the native Polynesians takes him to a statue of Tiki, a Peruvian idol.  Thor gets inspired and writes a book on how Polynesia was settled from the West not the East (e.g. Asia).

So, he goes to New York City to raise capital for his voyage.  During his trip, he meets Herman Watzinger, a somewhat lonely and depressed refrigerator salesman.   The two become instant friends and they leave New York City without all of the funding they need.

They travel to Peru and meet up with Thor's friends, Erik, Knut, Torstein, and a photography named Bengt.  They build a raft made a balsa wood (yes, balsa wood) and begin their 5,000 miles journey from Peru to the Polynesian Islands.

There are challenges along the way ... And of course, they make it ... 

Writing:  Oh my word!   This is one of the best screenplays ever written.  The dialog is tight, solid, and substantial.  The character development of each character blew me away.

Direction:  Joaquim Ronning and Espen Sandberg are incredible.  The movements, the pain, the joy, the sadness ... They really brought it out of a cast of actors that most people (including myself) have never seen or heard of ...

Cinematography:  One word.  Stunning.  Even though I was watching this on my 27" monitor, I was amazed at the incredible shots.  Almost every shot was breath-taking, even the shots in New York City.

Actors:  While I really had never seen any of them until this film, they were amazing.  Pal Sverre Hagen plays Thor Heyerdahl and truly carries a lot of the film.  My favorite actor, by far, was Anders Baasmo Christensen  who plays Herman Watzinger.  The other cast members were solid in their performance; each of them plays a key role in the success of the adventure.

Overall Review:  First, it's on Netflix (link below).  You might try to find it at Redbox or even the Public Library.  It's now one of my Top Ten.

You have to watch this film if you have any spirit of adventure, love the ocean (or nature for that matter), or simply love a good story.

So .. What are you waiting for?

Netflix:  "Kon-Tiki (2012)" --- On Netflix

Movie Review #12 - "The Wishing Tree (2012) -- TV Movie"

Movie Review #12 - "The Wishing Tree (2012) -- TV Movie"

All right ... Before you get started on me for reviewing a TV Movie ... It was on Sunday morning ... I was half asleep at 6:30 AM when I got up ... After breakfast, I woke up and watched some other nameless "Hallmark Channel" Christmas Movie with Tammy (my wife) ... Then, I fell asleep again and started watching this Christmas Movie ...

Me, watching a Christmas movie before Thanksgiving ... That's almost sacrilegious ... But Tammy and I were watching it ....

On IMDB:  "The Wishing Tree (2012) -- TV Movie"

Benny's Tabasco Rating:  1 / 10 Tabasco Peppers (I was close to 0 peppers .. but it allowed me to spend time with my wife.

Synopsis:  First, this movie was on the "Hallmark Channel" ... So ... Don't expect much ... It's a story about a trio of rich prep school kids that are stuck on school grounds during the Christmas break ... Professor Evan Farnsworth (played by Jason Gedrick ... you know him from the 1st and 2nd Iron Eagle movies ... wait .. that's a long time ago ... Maybe his character role in "Backdraft" ... Wait, that's old too! ... He was on "Desperate Housewives" ... any better? ) is recovering from the death of his wife from two years ago and is stuck babysitting the trio of kids at the school ... Along comes "The Wishing Tree" ... It's a fundraiser for the little storybook town ...   Long story short, Professor Farnsworth has dreams about his dead wife ... One of the three kids is a trouble rich kid ... One lacks confidence ... and the other is a kid who lacks acceptance by his classmates in general ... (I feel like I am writing a review for "The Wizard of Oz" (which, by the way, comes on TV on Sunday on TBS on your TV :)  ...

Characters:  Professor Evan Farnsworth is the lead character played by Jason Gedrick.  The character is developed well, but it is SO PREDICTABLE ... You basically can do the dialog without the volume turned up.  The three students, Andrew Breen (played by Richard Harmon ... who?) is the troubled rich kid searching for love from him parents, Juliet Espinoza (played by Emmalynn Estrada ... no relation to Erik Estrada) is the singer who lacks confidence, and Albert Nevins (played by Amatai Mamorstein) is the nerdy kid that no one likes but becomes a great leader, are SO laughable in the acting ... I giggled a lot at the "sad parts" ...

Writing:  It's so predictable that you can look at the title and figure the movie at before watching ... Yes, it's that bad ... No offense to Michael J. Murray, the principal writer, but ... please ... make it interesting ... There are so many cliches in this movie that you have time to fix breakfast and not have missed a thing ....

Cinematography:  Not awful. However, your personal video camera or the one on your phone could do just fine for this movie.

Location:  Not bad for the film.  Set design was decent ... But the writing just dragged the whole movie down.

Direction:  I think that they should have fired both the writer and the director ... Direction was weak at best.

Overall Review:  If it's a Sunday morning, you are half-asleep, and nothing else is on TV, please do the following:
- Change into your pajamas (if you were pajamas)
- Set the thermostat on your heater or air conditioning to the optimal level of comfort
- Dim the lights or close the curtains
- GO BACK TO SLEEP ... 

This movie is not just bad ... It's like a bad dream ... 

Movie Review #11 - "Olympus Has Fallen (2013)"

Movie Review #11 - "Olympus Has Fallen (2013)"

On IMDB:  Olypmus Has Fallen (2013)

Benny's Tabasco Rating:  8 / 10 

Synopsis:  A terrorist has taken over the White House.

What?  That's it?  That's all you are going to say ...

No?

Cast:  Gerard Butler. Aaron Eckhart, a small part for Ashley Judd, Morgan Freeman and ... Angela Bassett ...

The casting was pretty darn good for this movie ... Gerard Butler plays a Secret Service agent ... There's a lot of fighting, shoot'em up, and explosions ... Definitely a guy's film.

Aaron Eckhart plays the President of the United States ... Morgan Freeman, Speaker of the House ...

Mr. Eckhart was tolerable as the President, but seemed to be a little too ... well ... punchy ... Morgan Freeman ... I don't know if he was napping or acting ... He simply needs to retire .. His best work is light years beyond this performance ...

Director:  Antoine Fuqua directs this one ... You might know him from "Shooter" with Mark Wahlberg and Michael Pena ... or "The Replacement Killers" with Mira Sorvino and Chow Yun-Fat ... I love this guy's style ... He's very on par with his previous work ... So, if you like "Shooter" or "The Replacement Killers", you will enjoy this one!

Writing / Story:  I really enjoyed the writing even though it may seem ... well ... A lot over the top ...
North Korean terrorist gaining access to some of the US' super secret weapons much less a US Air Force Cargo Plane seemed a lot unrealistic ... Also, the response time was ... well ... too much delayed ...

Synopsis Part 2:  It's a story about a Secret Service who early in the story, unfortunately, let's the President's wife die in a car crash.  He's sent to the Treasury Department to work when ... BOOM! ... there's a terrorist attack on the White House ...  Lots of death, gun fights, explosions, a little torture, and ... Watch the movie!

Overall Review:  Lots of action ... Some language ... So, not for the kiddies ... But it's a good movie ...

It's now on Netflix ... Add this one to the queue ...