American Hustle

Remember The Sting?  Remember Ocean's 11?  Or how about TVs Mission Impossible?  All those shows portray teams of scammers who pull off a heist under the very noses of less-than-savory dudes.

American Hustle is a fine example of the genre.  Never the spoiler, I can't say much, but I will give you the general gist, lest you turn your back on an excellent film.

Back in the 80's, there was a true story of a bunch of politicos, senators and others, who accepted bribes tied to the visit of an Arab sheik to the U.S.  The whole event is known as ABSCAM.

Interested?  No?  Me neither!  Booooring!  But then this film comes along and all of a sudden jsut another little political brouhaha involving corrupt politicians becomes fun!

See, the hustlers hustle the hustlers, and soon we are in the middle of a very intriguing story!

So why the picture of Jennifer Lawrence being slinky and sexy?  Easy.  She steals the show.  You might remember when she wowed audiences in Winter's Bone.  In that dark backwoods flick, she deftly played a hillbilly in search of a louse of a father.  Then came her brilliant performance in Silver Lining, for which she earned a well-deserved Oscar as Best Actress.  Of course she's fantastic as Katniss the Survivor in The Hunger Games.

But if that's not enough, this starlet extraordinaire acts up a storm in American Hustle.  She plays the ditsy blonde with so much pizazz it'll knock your socks off!  She's more than a moll:  She's the epitome of the charming idiot with the perfect looks!

A shoo-in for Best Supporting Actress?  Absolutely.

Other stars:  Christian Bale.  He was soooo scary as the Yuppie businessman monster in American Psycho.  Now he plays a Jewish scammer to perfection.  Amy Adams.  Did she impress you in Doubt?  She's always great, in my book.

Caution:  The first half of the film confuses, drags, and nearly drives the audience to head for the Exit signs.  The second half is the redeemer.  Because of this inconsistency, the film is not worthy, in my mind, of Best Film.

But if you want superb entertainment, this one is a winner.

Elysium

The year is 2154, and that's Matt Damon fighting for truth, justice, and the American Way!

Here on earth in the future, life is bleak.  There is terrible pollution, disease, and well, Earth just ain't what it used to be!

But up there in the sky lies utopia:  The rich have created a satellite called Elysium, where folks live on tree-lined streets and have machines that can cure any illness.  There is peace and harmony.  Everything is pristine.

Hey....let's go!  Oh wait, the folks up there don't want us!

Matt Damon's character represents us common people.  He will somehow get up to the sky and see that the spoils are shared.

That's enough info!  No spoiler from this reviewer, but I need to say that this crazy flick is fun!  Sure, it requires just a little suspension of disbelief (haha), but once Matt dons his power suit and fights the baddies, all hell breaks loose!

Jodi Foster is delightful as the evil bitch.  She has a harsh, quiet sternness about her that is downright spooky.

Will you find any redeeming value in this mindless flick?  I doubt it.  But count on two hours of solid, gripping entertainment.

And, by the way, if you find a way to get up to utopia, let me know....I'll join you!

Dallas Buyers Club

Sometimes it just takes one role of a lifetime to kick an actor out of his complacency in settling for unchallenging, static roles.

In other words:  I take back everything I ever thought about Matthew McConaughey.  The dude can ACT!  Who knew?

Dallas Buyers Club is a film not to miss.

DBC chronicles the true story of Ron Woodruff, a promiscuous, bull-riding, Texas good-ol-boy who contracts AIDS back when we all feared a true plague in America, almost as much as most people feared homosexuals.

Fighting to prolong his life and others', he begins the ultimate start-up company out of the trunk of his car, distributing as yet FDA-unapproved drugs.

Equally compelling and riveting in his performance is Jared Leto, who, playing a transsexual, actually steals scenes from the captivating Woodruff character.

McConaughey (as well as Leto)  dramatically altered his appearance by dropping a tremendous amount of weight for this role.  It is mesmerizing.  I truly forgot who it was.

This was a tough film for me to watch for personal reasons.  David knows.  But I didn't even cry; it's not sappy at all.

Hope I've gotten your attention.  This is a truly powerful film that will stay in your consciousness for days to come.  Go see a quality film!

The Book Thief

This period piece takes us into a small village in Germany during the war, where food is scarce, bombs fall, Nazi propaganda is everywhere, and traumatized folks seek solace in the comfort of their homes.  From 1938 to the end of the war, we view the conflicts of normal folks as they strive to figure out how to survive, both physically and mentally, in the midst of madness.

No spoiler, of course.  But the setting is fascinating:  An older couple, played brilliantly by Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson, adopt a young girl because they need "credits" from the government for more food.

The waif, played perfectly by the up and coming French star Sophie Nelisse, has to adjust to the quirks of the older couple.   They too have to adjust to her.  Everyone grows in the process.

Well, it turns out the girl, Liesl, loves books.  How does she get them?  Check out the title!  Don't worry, she's not a serious thief.  But she is crazy about reading.  The film offers contrasting themes: while she lives to read books, the Nazis live to burn them.

Now add to that enticing plot the fact that this couple is "righteous," bravely hiding out a young Jewish man and risking their lives in doing so.  Simple in their ways, the elderly pair come to grow on you as the film shows you small details of life during a horrendous period in history.

Is this a masterpiece?  Not quite.  Something is lacking.  Can't really say what it is without getting into details that I can't divulge.

Suffice it to say that the acting is extraordinary, the story gripping, and the setting educational.  The film has a dour tone, but it avoids the true horrors of the Nazi era.

Grade of A-  The film keeps you thinking long after you've left the theatre.

Breaking Bad (TV)

For more than five years, many TV fanatics like me have heard a lot of buzz about Breaking Bad.  I've said, sure, I'll get around to it.  Then the series started winning numerous awards, and folks over dinner asked me if I'd seen it.  Being a movie/TV reviewer, it was high time to get educated!

Well, more than 50 episodes later, I'm almost done with the series!  Yeah, I went back to the start where  I was supposed to begin, and sat there and watched the series like a real TV crazy....and what a delightful ride it has been.

At the risk of overusing superlatives, I'd have to say that Breaking Bad is the most original, thought-provoking, brilliant show I've ever seen on TV.  Bar none.  Yep, it's true.

So what's it about?  No spoiler ever from this reviewer, but here's the gist of it:  A high school Chemistry teacher suddenly faces a life crisis, when he turns up with a serious disease and has to find a way to pay his medical bills and care for his family.  He knows that on a teacher's salary he will never be able to leave his family well set, should he pass.

The solution:  Become a meth chef!

OK, that's basically it: The teacher turns to producing meth, and he works with a former student who is a drug dealer.  As the show progresses, we begin to like this guy, who is trying to do the best he can to take care of his family.

FACT:  We begin to get confused about our own values.  After all, we're all opposed to drugs.  But what if someone gets involved for a good cause?  Hmmmm....

As you watch the series, you begin to wonder where you really stand.  When is bad good?  When is good bad?  As you see the protagonists do things quite unimaginable, you begin to wonder what you would do in their situation.

The tension:  Well, in this "bad" world, there are "bad" dudes.  Yes, readers, how does a high school Chemistry teacher take on gangsters?  How does he take on the infamous cartel?  What does he do to survive?  Whom does he harm along the way?

Walt White, the Chemist, grows on you.  He loves his wife, son, daughter, and inlaws.  He becomes a father figure to the student who works with him.  He cares about people.  He has high standards.  He is a GOOD man.  But wait... Isn't he BAD?

Prepare to view the best acting ever.  Prepare to marvel at the best scripting ever.  Prepare to be dazzled.

A+++ plus plus.  My highest endorsement.  NOT to be missed by any viewer who considers himself/herself "good"....or is that "bad"?

Enjoy!

Gravity

Hi readers...and welcome to high altitude fun!  I'm never the spoiler, so I have to report obliquely on this film.  I don't want to give anything away!

Imagine, however, that you're floating in space like that figure in the picture above.  You are tethered safely to your craft, and in zero-gravity, you're doing some nice work on your space station.  How peaceful and other-worldly!

Then ka-boooooom!  Something goes majorly wrong!  Uh-oh!

OK, now consider that with the fanciest effects perhaps ever coming out of Hollywood, you are somehow that person out there in space in the middle of a terrible emergency.  No need to imagine, dear readers.  Somehow, the special effects guys put you in that spacesuit!

YIKES!

Hahahaha.  Yes, this film is a wonder of special effects.  Shot in 3-D beyond your wildest imagination, the flick puts you in space!  Woweeeee!

And just which actress is in the spacesuit with you?  None other than the ultra-talented Sandra Bullock.  Sandra got me at Speed.  Remember her with Officer Keanu Reeves trying to keep that bus above 50?

Well, Sandra got us again!  She's fantastic in this sci-fi thriller.

Problem is, it's not really sci-fi.  What happens out there is well within the realm of reality.

Piqued your interest?  RUN out and see this whopper!  It's an incredible ride.

A+    Not to be missed!  And a must-see on the largest screen available, which is IMAX.  It's loud, real, and wonderful!

29 Palms

Back in 2002, an absolutely brilliant film came out about a chase in the desert between a corrupt cop, a hit-man, an undercover FBI agent, a scheming young lady, and several other notable members of the underbelly of society.

The movie is currently playing on the movie channels and I had a chance to catch it.  So glad I did.  Wow!

See Chris O'Donnell in the picture above?  Well, he's the hit-man, and he's got his weapons pointed at two different guys.  Why?  Because he's not sure which one to shoot!  Got your attention?  Yeah, it's that kind of movie.  Quite tongue in cheek.  Cynically whimsical and yet so serious that you can't turn away from the screen.

Point is, all the folks in the desert are after a bag of money, and what a bag it is!  With wads of hundreds stacked thick, everyone wants the path to the big easy.  Funny thing is that the bag just goes from one greedy fool to the next, as each strives to figure out how to keep it.

With big name stars like Bill Pullman and Rachel Leigh Cook, the movie abounds in fine acting.  But the guy who steals the show is Jeremy Davies.  Lest you forgot who he is, he's the one who played the translator peacenik in Saving Private Ryan.  Remember him running between soldiers to supply the ammo?  Remember how conflicted he was about killing the German who fired on his buddies?  Davies plays the FBI agent on the run here, and he is fantastic!

What else is worth noting?  The amazing effects.  Recall the original, dazzling effects in Natural Born Killers?  If you think those effects were cool, wait until you watch this film.

Overall, it's a real gem.  A diamond in the rough.  Or, I should say, a diamond in the desert.

Grade:  A+