Robocop (2014)

2.5 out of 5 stars.

I'm not against a well made remake, and this one has some great bells and whistles, but it ultimately falls short. The original is still as valid and groundbreaking today as it was almost thirty years ago. This one just feels like a slick, and somewhat forgettable, sci-fi movie.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Bringing together a gaggle of British stars to bring to life this best selling novel, director Tomas Alfredson still can't seem to find the sweet spot. Not even the legendary Gary Oldman can save the story of a retired MI6 agent who is pulled back into action when it is discovered that there's a mole in the organization. With roster that includes Toby Jones, Tom Hardy, Benedict Cumberbatch, John Hurt, and Colin Firth, you would think this film would be a shoe in to be amazing, and, while some people can't praise it enough, I found it to be a bit tiresome. I don't feel like Alfredson ever really developed the proper tension to keep me in the story, and I kind of wonder how others were able to do it. It never feels like there's that much at stake, and I think that is the films primary problem. Yes, there's a mole, but... Who cares? The film did have some great scenes in it, was beautifully shot, and the production design was gorgeous, but overall it just kind of fizzled for me.

The Book of Eli

One of the funniest thing's I have ever read about The Book of Eli was a quote on someone's Tumblr that I follow, in which this person's cousin said " Ugh... I hope it's not the Bible...", and, after reading that I thought, Surely not! It seems almost preposterous for Hollywood to take a book like the Bible and make it the center piece of a film like this, not to mention how politcally correct they try to be in their blockbusters (except, apparently, for the "rascist" Autobots in Transformers). But, they did exactly that, and I think it is probably what I connected with most in the film.

The film centers around a character that, for the most part, goes unnamed for a while, until he is forced to give up his name as Eli. In a post-apocalyptic world, much like the recent John Hillcoat adaptation of Cormac MacCarthy's The Road, civilization is in shambles. Food and water is scarce, and everything is on the barter system. Paper money and coins mean nothing. Eli is a man who has spent thirty years, or so, walking across the country, presumably starting on the east coast, and trying to get his sacred book to the west coast, after being charged, by God, to do so. But, when he comes across the leader of a town he happens to be passing through, a man named Carnegie, Eli soon finds out that Carnegie has been looking for this book, the last known copy in the entire world, and is not going to let it go.

Denzel Washington has given some pretty amazing performances, even though he's been in some pretty crappy movies (why he continues to work with Tony Scott, I'll never know). Book of Eli, though, has Denzel delivering an almost zen like performance in a movie that borders on being a B movie. Gary Oldman plays a decent villian, as Carnegie, and Mila Kunis, as the daughter of Carnegie's woman, and eventual side kick to Eli, doesn't talk much but sure wears the hell out of a pair of Aviator's. This is one of my problems with this film, and that is the fact that there is some ridiculous subplot that is barely explained, about a "hole" being torn in the sky, and now everyone has to wear sunglasses or goggles of some sort, yet, they seem to have no difficulty taking them off outside. Seems not very thought out. Overall, though, the movie was pretty good. There were some cheesy moments, but you pretty much expect that in a movie like this, so, as long as you go into the theater with low expectations, you will have a good time.

A few thoughts on The Dark Knight

I'm not going to write a review about The Dark Knight. There's no point. It would just be a really long gush fest, with words like magnificent, amazing, and transcendent. It would include phrases like "easily one of, if not THE best of the year", "pitch perfect", and "everything that is amazing about filmmaking". But you can read all of that elsewhere. There's no point in me repeating it. I also don't want to go into the plot, because I am so afraid I might give out a spoiler (though I'm thoroughly convinced that I was, probably, one of the last people to actually see it). So, just a few thoughts, and we'll leave it at that.

- Easily the best Batman ever.

- I'm not actually sure they have a word to describe how amazing the film was. I'm still on the high of seeing it.

- I thought it was interesting that I liked the portrayal of Two-Face by Tommy Lee Jones in Batman Forever when I was a kid, but as I grew up, enjoyed its cartoonishness less and less. Now, as an adult, Aaron Eckhart's Two-Face is perfect - Bitter, Insane with rage and jealousy, and completely broken.

- Although Maggie Gyllenhaal is a better actress than Katie Holmes, I'm not sure she made a better Rachel Dawes. Gyllenhaal's  natural personal attributes bleed heavily into the character, and, while Katie Holmes is not the best actress, I will say that I think she was able to fill the role better. I wasn't able to see Rachel Dawes as well as I did with Holmes. I kept seeing Maggie Gyllenhaal AS Rachel Dawes.

- I'm glad the filmmakers followed the path they did. Yes, it was much darker than people expected, but the darkness serves the character of Batman a lot better. Nolan pushed the limits of all of these characters, made you fall in love with them (even the psychotic Joker), and when you fall in love with a character, the film suddenly becomes something bigger than everyone. That's what film is supposed to do - invite you into its world, stir up emotions and passions, and make you FEEL something. The Dark Knight accomplishes every bit of that.

- Heath Ledger, hands down, may be the best Joker there will ever be. I feel sorry for whoever else may have to step into his shoes in the future.

- Nolan had already proved his worth with films like Memento and Insomnia, but, with The Dark Knight, he shows that he is a master.

So, all in all, in the words of my friend Wes - It rocked my BALLS off!