Transformers 3: Dark Side of the Moon (Firs Full Length Trailer)

Here's the first full length trailer for Transformers 3: Dark Side of the Moon. Just from this it looks like this is going to be much better than the crapfest that was Transformers 2. Let's hope so.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II Trailer!

Here is the first full length trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II! I'm not going to lie it gave me goosebumps I'm so excited for this movie. Who is with me?

Source Code

            What if you had the power to go back and view the last eight minutes of someone's life and help prevent a future tragedy from happening; would you do it? That is the basis for which the movie Source Code revolves around. Source Code is a sci-fi action thriller starring Jake Gyllenhaal as Captain Colter Stevens, a helicopter pilot in the army.
               We first find Stevens when he wakes up on a train across from Christina (Michelle Monaghan) whom he doesn't know. Not only that, but he doesn't know how he got there and Christina recognizes him as someone completely different; a man named Sean Fentress. When Stevens looks in the mirror he even sees Fentress' reflection. If everything wasn't confusing enough eight minutes after Stevens wakes up a bomb goes off and blows up the entire train.
                Stevens is brought back to "reality" where he is in some sort of capsule and being spoken to by Colleen Goodwin (Vera Farmiga), some sort of military personnel. We learn that Stevens is there to use the technology source code, created by Dr. Rutledge (Jeffrey Wright), to revisit the last eight minutes of Sean Fentress' life and find out who bombed the train. By finding the bomber of the train they can hopefully prevent a future attack that is supposed to happen later that same day. The trick of course is that each time Stevens goes into the source code he only has eight minutes to discover who the bomber is because at the end of the eight minutes the train blows up again.
                Getting Stevens to do all this isn't so easy though as he is still not exactly sure where he is and how he got to be a part of this program. The last memory he has he was with his unit in Iraq. So there's multiple conflicts going on as Stevens must discover who bombed the train, but also use his time in the source code to figure out what has happened to him.
                 I liked this movie because I thought it's plot was smart and original, even though it used a cliched conflict as its starting point. That of course being the bomb on a train and having to discover who did it. But once the movie dives into its real conflicts and story lines it gets much deeper and has twists and turns that were not expected.
                I thought everyone did a good job acting wise. Monaghan does a good job of having to constantly repeat the same performance with slight changes. As with Gyllenhaal and his character, he does well as his character is all over the place and constantly on edge.
                I give this movie a thumbs up and three out of four stars. It's definitely more entertaining and has more depth than its trailers lead on to. I will say it's fun to see in theaters, but it's not necessary too. So, if you feel like waiting until it's out on Netflix or Redbox then go for it, because you won't be losing anything from the movie without the theater experience. Enjoy!

Once again I don't have anything lined up for my next review so feel free to comment with suggestions.

No Strings Attached

            Awww relationships, are they ever easy? Do they ever not get complicated? The complexity that is a romantic relationship has developed so many questions and answers and variable solutions that a whole industry has been created. Men trying to understand women and vice versa. The movie industry is no newbie to playing to this facet of human life either. There have been tons of romantic comedies made over the years that try to play to different, but often hit similar angles of the romantic relationship. In the movie No Strings Attached however I believe they actually played to one of those different angles.
             The movie introduces us to Emma (Natalie Portman) and Adam (Ashton Kutcher). They aren't best friends or get set up together. They meet at a summer camp when they're teenagers and then don't stay connected. They bump into each other a couple of times over the years with the last time being while they're both adults and living in LA. Emma is a doctor and Adam is a production assistant on a Glee like TV show who is trying to become a writer without the help of his father Alvin (Kevin Kline), an old TV star who is perhaps one of the worst father figures ever.
              Emma and Adam's relationship begins randomly as what came off to me as the releasing of years of built up sexual tension. Here's where the plot begins to hit those different angles. From here on there's not a lovey dovey relationship. Instead, the two agree to have a strictly sexual relationship and nothing else. Plus, Emma is not only the one to purpose it, but is the most persistent they stick to the rules. Of course, here comes into play how long they can go without real feelings and emotions becoming a problem.
              What I liked most about this movie was how they played it to their audience; young people. The plot was rich with jokes and dialogue with dealing with relationships using texting, Facebook, phone calls, and everything else used today to communicate between people. The whole idea of a relationship with no strings attached may not be new, but I feel like it's probably more or a common thing in today's day and age. Plus, with the slight twist of Emma being the least emotional/committing character instead of Adam, gave me and I'm sure other viewers the feeling of watching something fresh.
                Now it wouldn't be a romantic comedy without the supporting cast of characters around each main character to provide comic relief. This movie had a nice collection of surrounding talent including Kevin Kline, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Jake Johnson (Paper Heart), and Mindy Kaling (The Office). They all do their jobs well with many good lines, as do Portman and Kutcher who have a nice realistic chemistry throughout the movie as their relationship evolves.
                 I highly enjoyed this movie as I thought it was quite funny and ended nicely without being too cheesy. I give it a thumbs up and 3 out of 4 stars. I believe it's a good date movie as both parties can easily enjoy it. It may still be in some theaters near you, otherwise you'll have to wait for it come out at Redbox, OnDemand, or Netflix. Enjoy.

Toy Story 3

            Who would have thought that 16 years ago, an up and coming animation company would be the brains behind a movie about talking toys that we would all still be talking about to this day. Well the bright people over at Disney seemed to think so and as soon as the original Toy Story hit theaters back in 1995 it became an instant classic and let the whole world know who the little animation studio Pixar was. Flash forward 16 years and we're here to discuss Toy Story 3, the obvious third film in the franchise about the lovable talking toys owned by a boy named Andy.
              In the third installment we find Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz (Tim Allen), and the rest of the toys at a bit of a crossroads. Their owner Andy is not a kid anymore. In fact, he's about to head off to college, so needless to say the toys haven't been played with for awhile. Some toys are gone, but the core group remain together but now find themselves stuck in a trunk facing being thrown in the attic or donated.
              Through a series of unfortunate circumstances the toys find themselves being donated to a local daycare, where from first look seems like a heaven for the toys. Daycare seems like an endless place of children to play with them and somewhere they can all find a place to fit in. Not everything is what it seems however, and daycare isn't any different. The toys find themselves in a situation they didn't ask for and without their fearless leader Woody, as he's determined to get back to Andy. It's soon left up to Woody to rescue his friends from the daycare and try to get back to Andy before he leaves for college.
              Toy Story 3 brings all of the hilarity and realness of its characters that we've come to love from them over the years. Pixar does not disappoint as their plot is once again sharp and clever and knows how to bring those genuine human moments to life even in animation. The idea of change and knowing it's time to grow up are moments we've all had or will face in our lives. There is no question why this movie was nominated for Best Picture at this year's Oscars, or why it won for Best Animated Feature.
              If it's not broke then don't fix it is the old saying and Pixar agrees as all of the usual people are back voicing their characters; Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack (Jessie), but their are also a few new voices. Michael Keaton voices Ken, Barbie's other half and Ned Beatty (Shooter) voices Lotso the plush bear that runs the daycare. Even Randy Newman is back to compose the soundtrack which he won an Oscar for in the Best Song category.
              I give this movie 4 stars out of 4 and a thumbs up. If you somehow have not seen this film in the last year then I highly recommend you do so now. I can safely say you will not be disappointed. The movie will make you happy, sad, laugh, and maybe even get you to cry. It even got a couple tears out of me. So go to Redbox or stream it instantly on Netflix and if you've already seen it, then hey, see it again.

This Film is NOT Yet Rated

            Have you ever wondered how exactly movies are rated? For instance, who does it? Or what's the line between an R rated movie and one that is PG-13 or even NC-17? Maybe, you haven't. It could be one of those things you have just never put that much thought into. For me, I'd have to say that's how I pretty much felt, but when I came across this film I found myself really curious of the answers to these questions.
             This movie is a documentary directed by Kirby Dick (Outrage) about the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). The film goes into how the MPAA's ratings system, which has been applied to movies since 1968, acts as a censor for directors and not just a guideline, as well as an extension of the major studios.
            Over the the film's 97 minute running time it hits over many different aspects of the ratings system and what's wrong with it in different areas. It specifically focuses on the thin line between movies being rated R and NC-17 and the inconsistency and harsh penalties a movie suffers if its hit with the highest rating. In order to get a good perception of this Dick talks to directors who have had movies rated NC-17 at one point and either had to edit their movie to get an R or kept the rating. Some of the people they talked to were Kevin Smith (Clerks), Matt Stone (Team America, South Park), and Kimberley Pierce (Boys Don't Cry), just to name a few.
             The automatic perception for most people when you hear NC-17 is it must be close to a porno, but in reality most films that are initially slapped with this are no where near. In fact the movie strikes a good point where movies with gay sex scenes are slapped with an NC-17 rating and other movies with straight sex scenes that are no less graphic than their counterparts are given R ratings.
              This is just one of the injustices that the movie points out, none the less the censorship that these ratings bring down on filmmakers. A director doesn't have to accept the MPAA's rating, but if it's given a NC-17 rating for example, but when that happens all potential marketability of the film goes away.
               The other huge interesting aspect the film touches on is who comes up with the ratings and who handles the appeals of ratings, as both groups are kept anonymous. Dick does all that he can to find out who these people are and what exactly goes on behind closed doors to come up with these ever important ratings. The results that Dick is able to find will probably surprise you as I know they surprised me.
                 In the end, this movie for me was a real eye opener to something I had never really thought of to begin with, none the less it potentially being a problem. It's really crazy the collusion that goes on in major businesses that many people are completely unaware that it's happening. I highly recommend people see this movie as it could easily change your view of things. I understand documentaries are meant to be persuasive, but I believe this one brings a strong valid point.
                 I give this film 4 stars out of 4 for it's amount of knowledge it brings to the table and the effort put forth to get it, as well as a thumbs up. Its streaming now instantly on Netflix.

From Paris with Love

            From Paris with Love. An obvious play on the old James Bond movie, From Russia with Love, but that's the point, and I think that fun attitude with the title fits in with the rest of this movie. This movie came out just over a year ago and is an action thriller starring John Travolta, Jonathan Rhys Meyers (The Tudors), and Kasia Smutniak.
             Meyers plays James Reece, an assistant to the US Ambassador to France that doubles as a low-level spy. Looking to move up in the world of espionage is difficult enough for Reece, especially when trying to deal with his fiancee Caroline (Smutniak); and then he gets assigned to partner up with Charlie Wax (Travolta). Wax is the US' best operative, on a mission to prevent a terrorist attack from going down in Paris. Wax isn't your normal operative though. He has very unorthodox methods and acts on a motto of shoot first ask questions later, where as Reece is a play by the rules at all times sort of guy. You're everyday odd couple.
             Besides this sort of predicability the movie is a fun ride from beginning to finish. Travolta's portrayal of Wax is spot on through the entire film as that over the top kick ass guy. He takes the James Bond type of character and transforms it from the high class suave agent to the all around bad ass, the guys who is kicking ass and taking names and having fun doing it. All while trying to losing up the uptight Reece.
             The search for the terrorists in charge of the expectant attack leads Reece and Wax all over Paris to deal with many groups of people in all sorts of odd and different situations. The best part about all of this though was that not only was the movie fun to watch, but it's plot ended up being more complex than I thought would be and even threw a twist at me that I didn't see coming. The ending believe they is left slightly open for a possibility of a sequel. If one never came to be the ending works with that, but it also plays for there to be one, which I hope there is. Meyers and Travolta played well off of each other and it would be great to see Travolta to play the Wax character again.
             Overall, I have to say this movie was very fun and entertaining and it had a perfect running time of a n hour and a half. I would definitely recommend anyone interested in this movie to see it. I give it 3 out of 4 stars and a thumbs up. For availability I believe you can still get it at Redbox and it is available for instant streaming on Netflix. Enjoy.

              Not sure what my next review will be, so if you have any suggestions feel free to post them. Otherwise, I may go with some of the other best picture nominees from this years Oscars.

Green Lantern 4 minute Trailer

Here is the 4 minute trailer for the Green Lantern starring Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively shown at Wondercon. Looks pretty cool to me and it helped me understand more about this movie and superhero that I didn't know before, so check it out.

Takers

            Going into the movie Takers I thought it would take a couple hours of my time and waste it so that I'd regret having lost that amount of my life. However, that is not how I felt when the movie came to an end...thankfully. All prejudice of the movie aside, it did turn out to be a fun heist movie that was entertaining.
             Takers is your pretty typical heist movie. You've got a group of thieves that have a couple of cops after them while they deal with some internal conflicts as well. In this case your takers include Idris Elba (Charles in The Office), Paul Walker, Chris Brown, Hayden Christensen, Michael Ealy (Californication, Miracle at St. Anna), and T.I.  Matt Dillon and Jay Hernandez (Friday Night Lights) play the two cops on their tail from beginning to end.
              The movie begins with the takers, minus Ghost (T.I.), pulling off a pretty clever and well executed bank robbery. This of course brings in detectives Welles and Hatcher (Dillon and Hernandez) to investigate. Welles is the loose cannon, married to the job cop dealing with Internal Affairs while Hatcher is his more level headed partner. After the initial robbery is where Ghost comes into play as he is recently paroled from prison and a former member of the team of takers, that got caught on a job in the past. He comes to the team not only to collect his money from the job he was caught on, but to pitch a new job of robbing an armored truck.
               If this sounds familiar it's because this is what they did in The Italian Job. However, I enjoyed the fact that they didn't ignore this as Ghost makes the joke, "Let's Italian Job their ass." This wasn't the only similarity to past movie of robbers and thieves. Later on they pull a Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid moment as well that I thought was pretty cheesy.
              Anyways, the conflict of the movie of course revolves around the cops getting closer and closer to catching the group, as well as the difficulty of pulling off the new job and whether or not the crew can trust their old associate Ghost. The acting in this movie was far from spectacular, but that was expected with newbies Chris Brown and T.I.  involved as well as Paul Walker who I swear gets jobs just to show up and look pretty for the girls. That aside I thought the new guys did a decent enough job and Chris Brown did have a pretty entertaining chase scene where he's free running all over LA.
               In the end, the film's plot was better than expected with a couple turns I didn't see coming, but still not too complex. It definitely had its holes and the ending left me asking, "Really? Just like that?" It seemed forced and not very realistic. But the film had its moments as the heist and chase scenes are entertaining and filled with action.
               The movie is PG-13 and runs 107 min which is probably 17 min too long. I've decided to give the movie 1 1/2 stars out of 4 and a thumb in the middle due to its holes and lack of originality. A thumbs down I feel like represents me saying don't see it, but I feel like if you like heist movies then you'll probably be entertained about the same amount I was and I don't feel like I wasted my time despite the low rating. Definitely Netflix or Redbox it to save yourself the most money however.

My next review will be of the movie From Paris with Love starring John Travolta

The Hangover: Part 2 - First full Trailer

I'm assuming the trailer isn't where all of the laughs are so this looks like its going to be just as funny as the first.