Run All Night

***DISCLAIMER*** The following review is entirely my opinion. If you comment (which I encourage you to do) be respectful. If you don't agree with my opinion (or other commenters), that's fine. To each their own. These reviews are not meant to be statements of facts or endorsements, I am just sharing my opinions and my perspective when watching the film and is not meant to reflect how these films should be viewed. Finally, the reviews are given on a scale of 0-5. 0, of course, being unwatchable. 1, being terrible. 2, being not great. 3, being okay. 4, being great and 5, being epic! And if you enjoy these reviews feel free to share them and follow the blog or follow me on Twitter (@RevRonster) for links to my reviews and the occasional live-Tweet session of the movie I'm watching!  Since he ran all night, I guess he ran so far away...boy, I really pulled that Flock of Seagulls reference outta my ass, didn't I?

Run All Night ? 3 out 5

Liam Neeson definitely has some star power behind him and it?s a power that completely influences some of the films I will see.  For example, I never would have paid to see Battleship in the theater if it wasn?t for him being in the film.  However, as badass as the guy is, his ability to convincingly be someone who has that special set of skills that involve bustin? suckas in the face doesn?t always translate to the entire production of the film being good, decent or even watchable.  He?s been in some stinkers (for example, Battleship) but is Run All Night as awesome as Taken or is it as bad as the sequels to Taken?

I'd probably piss myself if Neeson gave me that look because it's clear an ass-kicking
is coming.

Jimmy ?The Gravedigger? Conlon (Neeson) might sound like a name of a professional wrestler but he?s a former mob enforcer who has fallen on hard times and spends more time drinking than mob enforcing.  His life caused a schism between himself and his son Mike (Joel Kinnaman).  One night, Jimmy?s former boss Shawn Maquire (Ed Harris) rejects a deal his son Danny (Boyd Holbrook) set up and it results in Danny killing some men and Mike accidentally becoming a witness.  Jimmy comes to his son?s aid and kills Danny.  Shawn, rightfully upset, tells Jimmy that since the former enforcer killed his son, he will see Jimmy?s boy meet the same fate.  Now Jimmy must do everything he can to protect his son.

He can protect his son because he has a certain set of...guns to help kill people with.
What did you think I was going to say?

The trailer to this one looked pretty cool and seemed like it would have some killer, gritty action sequences.  However, as much as I like Liam Neeson, a lot of his movies aren?t as good as he is as an actor so I?m reluctant to shell out the cash to see it in the theaters.  This one definitely looked cool but it also, most certainly, was going to be a film I would wait to see when it hits the home market.  Overall, I?m glad I waited because it definitely wasn?t worth the cash for a theater visit BUT it?s not as bad as some of his other recent films have been.

*Pew Pew*

Common was so badass it was a crime
he wasn't in the film more.

My feeling that the film would have some killer action was definitely a dead-on prediction because the film does not disappoint in this department.  There?s a great car chase when Jimmy is trying to rescue his son from the cops (because, not surprisingly, the cops are dirty and in the pocket of Maquire), there?s a fantastic fight sequence between Jimmy and the hitman played by Common in a burning building and the final shootout during the last moments of the film makes sure the adrenaline rush doesn?t end before the credits hit.  This is really the best part of the film.

Ed Harris' performance is pretty intimidating.  Just this pic is making me ready to
surrender and give him whatever he wants so he won't hurt me.

Gun Cam!

Additionally, there?s some really great performances in it.  Liam Neeson?s character starts out a little silly as he?s sheepish and a vile drunk who says inappropriate things to women.  While these character elements work for the character, Neeson just couldn?t pull them off convincingly.  However, once his character gets into form as he returns to being a badass enforcer extraordinaire, this slippery start to the performance is easily overlooked.  Furthermore, Ed Harris is predictably amazing in his role as the antagonist and he provides an excellent antithesis to Liam Neeson and Joel Kinnaman is giving, quite possibly, the best performance I?ve ever seen him in.  Prior to this film, I haven?t been too impressed with his work.

The crazy eyes that bothered me in RoboCop are definitely under control now.

Let's be real:  Nolte probably got the role because he was
living on the set under a pile of rags.

Ultimately, however, Run All Night does have some flaws that stop it from being better than just an average feature.  For example, Nick Nolte is in the film and acts as a walking plot device in order to create more tension between father and son.  In theory, this isn?t a bad thing but the character just sorta appears in the story and is never seen from again, so he feels like his whole existence was just too lazily create drama.  Additionally, the actual moment when the antagonist is stopped by Jimmy feels a bit hollow and not as important as it should be.  Finally, Common plays a really cool hitman character that is hired to come in and take out Mike and there was endless potential to this character but he feels terribly underutilized.  While his moments are cool and provide some killer action sequences, his potential promised so much more and not enough was done with him.  This complaint also applies to the cop character played by Vincent D?Onofrio as this character has a past with Jimmy ?The Gravedigger? Conlon but he just sorta comes and goes within the story.

Even though his character was underutilized, anytime D'Onofrio is in a movie is
a win in my book because that dude is talented!

Run All Night is a serviceable but not too memorable action film.  The cast is great and the action is definitely satisfying but the story doesn?t feel that unique and it?s is only hampered by some lazy moments in the plot.  It is definitely one of the better films that Neeson has starred in during the last few years but the film does fall short of the potential it has.

X-Men: Days of Future Past - The Rogue Cut

***DISCLAIMER*** The following review is entirely my opinion. If you comment (which I encourage you to do) be respectful. If you don't agree with my opinion (or other commenters), that's fine. To each their own. These reviews are not meant to be statements of facts or endorsements, I am just sharing my opinions and my perspective when watching the film and is not meant to reflect how these films should be viewed. Finally, the reviews are given on a scale of 0-5. 0, of course, being unwatchable. 1, being terrible. 2, being not great. 3, being okay. 4, being great and 5, being epic! And if you enjoy these reviews feel free to share them and follow the blog or follow me on Twitter (@RevRonster) for links to my reviews and the occasional live-Tweet session of the movie I'm watching!  Next time I go to the barber, I'll ask for The Rogue Cut.  I'll laugh and laugh and the barber will kick me out because I'm an idiot.

X-Men:  Days of Future Past ? The Rogue Cut ? 5 out of 5

I know, I know, loyal reader.  I already reviewed X-Men:  Days of Future Past when I saw it in the theater in the summer of 2014 and I sang its praises about how awesome it was and how cool it was to have Bryan Singer once again at the helm of an X-film.  However, recently I purchased The Rogue Cut on Blu-Ray and decided to watch it back-to-back with the Theatrical Cut of the film.  I wanted to see what was different and whether or not this is a more definitive version of the story?and then I decided to would review it because that?s just what I do.

                                                                                                                     20th Century Fox
It's on my bucket list to hug Ian McKellen.  Get ready, Ian, because it's going
to happen and it's going to be awesome!

                                                                                        20th Century Fox
Hey look!  It's Rogue!

In the future, mutant kind is at risk of extinction after deadly robot Sentinels run wild and hunt all mutants.  In a last ditch effort to save their kind, Professor X (Patrick Stewart) and Magneto (Ian McKellen) use the powers of Kitty Pryde (Ellen Page) to send the consciousness of Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) into his younger body in the 70s.  In that time, he will seek out a younger Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender) and get them to stop Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) from assassinating the man who creates the Sentinels; Dr. Bolivar Trask (Peter Dinklage).  However, along the way Kitty is hurt and doesn?t have the strength to keep Wolverine in the past and the team must rescue the power-stealing mutant Rogue (Anna Paquin) to help finish the job before the Sentinels descend on them and kill them, preserving a world where mutants are hunted like animals.

                                                                                                                     20th Century Fox
Michael Fassbender contains a of level of cool that is impossible for a mortal like
me to ever achieve.

In this cut of the film, everything that makes Days of Future Past so awesome that I completely forget that Brett Ratner nearly killed this franchise with X-Men:  The Last Stand (although, I will always say how awesome Kelsey Grammar was as Beast) is still here.  It's all still here in this awesome adaptation of the classic comic book storyline:  The great acting, the killer special effects and, of course, Evan Peters stealing the film as Quicksilver and that endlessly amusing and fantastic scene in the Pentagon kitchen set to ?Time in a Bottle.?  However, this cut of the film isn?t just a mad-dash for extra cash and something to convince fans to buy another copy of the film by adding a quick one-minute scene of Rogue?No, this is much more and it might actually be a better version of an already awesome film!

                                                                                                                      20th Century Fox
Without a doubt, this is one of my favorite moments in all of comic book movie history.

                                                                                        20th Century Fox
Blink must be really good at Portal.

Most notable about The Rogue Cut is how it changes the third act of the film with the inclusion of Rogue.  This results in a new and very exciting action sequence where they rescue Rogue from Charles Xavier?s school (which is now occupied by the Anti-Mutant agenda).  This scene is edited together with the scene from the Theatrical Cut of Magneto going to reclaim his helmet and it makes for a nice parallel to the rescue and makes the already cool scene of Erik getting his gear that much cooler.  This new cut may change when a certain character in the future dies but it also allows characters like Warpath (Booboo Stewart), Blink (Bingbing Fan), Colossus (Daniel Cudmore), Sunspot (Adan Canto) and Bishop (Omar Sy) get a few more lines of dialogue when they are coming up with the plan to send Wolvie back in time and that results in making the whole journey and adventure have a greater sense of weight to it and how truly important it is that they succeed?and also how deep the risks truly are.

                                                                                                                       20th Century Fox
I'm not going to make a joke here but rather talk about how cool Sunspot looks in the film.

The Rogue Cut also offers up some new gags?including a fun mid-credit sequence with Peter Dinklage? and some fun fan service by offering up a hint that Quicksilver?s sister; Scarlet Witch, was around the whole time but off-screen in her room upstairs in the Maximoff household.   Occasionally, these new or alternate scenes can slow the film down?like an additional scene where Mystique shows up at the X-mansion?but, even then, the slowdown isn?t that bad or distracting enough to harm the film.  There?s also times when edits in the Theatrical Cut can come off awkward but this is only noticeable if you watch The Rogue Cut first and know that the scene was originally meant to go longer.  This is ultimately balanced though because there are scenes that just feel stronger in TRC than in the original edit.

                                                                                         20th Century Fox
The movie did a great job of showing the unbridled passion that pretty much defined
the character of Beast in the comics.

Overall, The Rogue Cut of X-Men:  Days of Future Past is pretty freakin? rad?yes, I just said ?rad.?  The original film is already amazing as it not only helped bring back the X-films as a legitimate superhero franchise (something that was started by X-Men:  First Class?look, X3 did a lot of damage) but it also did something cool by combining the old films' cast with the prequel cast in a marriage of amazing (and plot holes and continuity errors?as good as this franchise is, there?s a lot of plot holes in it).  Is The Rogue Cut better?  That?s hard to say because that sort of thing is really just personal preference.  The Theatrical Cut is already amazing beyond amazing but, from a personal standpoint, The Rogue Cut is my preferred version of the film.

Movie Review: Airlift..takes off in nearly grand style

Movies like Airlift are not generally made in Bollywood and that?s really a pity. If this is a harbinger of things to come, 2016 couldn?t have started on a better note (let?s just forget about Wazir for the moment). While its not perfect, Airlift sets the bar really high. More so, it pays a grand tribute to an epic story, that most would never have known had it not been made.

There are two main reasons why Airlift succeeds ? one, due to its powerful storyline which is inspired by real events and two, because of the wonderfully understated yet deeply intense performance of Akshay Kumar. In fact, it?s the second of these that will get you to overlook some of the flaws in direction ? the unconvincing transformation of Akshay?s character, the hurried build up to the sequence of events that play out and even the over-dramatization of the hero towards the climax. I wouldn?t be overstating the case to say that this is probably Akshay Kumar?s best performance till date.

Playing his better half is Nimrat Kaur who is surprisingly a bit of a mixed bag. The dolled up look doesn?t suit her and for someone so naturally beautiful it is the second half where she isn?t wearing that much make up that she is much more appealing. Her performance also has a similar trajectory and it is her acidic monologue in the second half that gets you to sit up and take notice. The side act isn?t really for her and she should take more and more central roles ? she seems most comfortable and convincing in those. The side acts are solid as well ? Purab Kohli, Kumud Mishra, Inaamul Haq (a tad unconvincing in comparison to his natural act in Filmistaan previously) and Prakash Belawadi (as the particularly well delivered obnoxious Malyali) all bring credence to the script.

Unlike Baby, which harped too much on the mission and action, Airlift is about human emotions and you can feel for the trials and tribulations of every person you see on the screen. There are other gems as well ? the good production design, wonderful camerawork and mostly tight and deft direction which keeps your interest going in the events of Airlift pretty much throughout its runtime. There are some special touches too ? scenes where no words are spoken and yet everything is said, the aforementioned monologue, Purab Kohli?s understated character and his story arc. I should probably stop here..lest I spoil your fun.

Its not all a smooth ride though. There is the obvious turbulence with completely avoidable songs ? which do nothing to help the tense nature of the plotline and seek to provide unnecessary relief. Thankfully they are cut short and we go back to the events before they can become more tiresome. There is a distinct focus on keeping things real and balanced rather than making them sensational, that is truly the hallmark of the film and takes the script to greater heights. This has been the bane of most Bollywood commercial entertainers and while it almost teeters on the edge, Airlift doesn?t succumb to that trap.

Instead Airlift gives wings to a tight script and makes a near perfect lift off the runway giving us a flight that is truly worthy to remember and a great start to 2016

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

***DISCLAIMER*** The following review is entirely my opinion. If you comment (which I encourage you to do) be respectful. If you don't agree with my opinion (or other commenters), that's fine. To each their own. These reviews are not meant to be statements of facts or endorsements, I am just sharing my opinions and my perspective when watching the film and is not meant to reflect how these films should be viewed. Finally, the reviews are given on a scale of 0-5. 0, of course, being unwatchable. 1, being terrible. 2, being not great. 3, being okay. 4, being great and 5, being epic! And if you enjoy these reviews feel free to share them and follow the blog or follow me on Twitter (@RevRonster) for links to my reviews and the occasional live-Tweet session of the movie I'm watching!  I would suggest doing a spin-off called The Woman from U.N.C.L.E. but, after seeing the backlash from the Ghostbusters reboot, we know how well men on the internet take women doing literally anything.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. ? 3 out of 5

My familiarity with the old 1960?s television series that The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was based on is insanely limited.  I pretty much knew of its existence, that James Bond?s father Ian Fleming had a hand in its conception, that it starred Robert Vaughn and David McCallum and what its title was.  I never saw a single episode or even knew what it was about beyond that it involved spies.  However, when I saw the Comic-Con trailer for the film adaptation and saw that it starred Superman and was directed by Guy Ritchie I was all-in and pretty excited for the film.  I had planned on seeing it in the theater but never found the time to see it?because I was busy with my own spy work.  However, it recently hit the home media department and I was able to finally catch it?and it was okay.

Don't do a Grey Poupon joke, Ron.  Don't do a Grey Poupon joke.  Don't do a Grey Poupon joke.

"Excuse me...do you have any Grey Poupon?"

DAMN MY EYES!!!

In 1963, a super spy extraordinaire; Napoleon Solo (Henry Cavill) is forced to team with a very talented KGB agent named Illya Kuryakin (Armie Hammer).  What could possibly happen that would force the CIA and the KGB to work together, you might be asking yourself?  Well, it seems that a young girl named Gaby (Alicia Vikander)?who was recently rescued from East Berlin by Solo?has an uncle that mysteriously vanished and may be in the hands of a shady criminal organization that is looking to get their nasty hands on nuclear weapons.  In order to protect both countries, Solo and Kuryakin team together and work with Gaby in order to save the day and protect the world.

I'll be honest...a small part of me was hoping that explosion in the background
was Batman coming for Cavill.  I'm really excited for Batman v Superman.

Just the presence of Jared Harris in the cast made
this film worthy of its score of 3 out of 5.

For the most part, U.N.C.L.E. isn?t a bad film but it?s definitely not one of Guy Ritchie?s best films?but it?s clearly not the worst one he?s done either because this film isn?t Swept Away.  The film offers up some fun and very clever action pieces and there are the usual Ritchie standards of some killer music choices that always compliment the scenes and some slick editing.  Additionally, Cavill is very charming and fun to watch as Solo and Vikander is giving off a great performance, too.  However, the film does have some issues that kept it from being something better and just ended up making the film just alright.

Cavill has a jawline that can bring a population of a small town to its knees.

The story to The Man from U.N.C.L.E. isn?t the most engaging thing and does come off like a way too standard and clich? spy affair.  Matters aren?t assisted at all when it felt like the story was dragging too much.  The story never gets boring but it didn?t have that exciting or engaging feel that so many of Ritchie?s films have.  The man really knows how to tell a story and has always had creative ways of revealing exposition that never felt like you were about to sit through the obligatory boring part of the story.  Sadly, with U.N.C.L.E., Ritchie?s usual slick presentation just isn?t as prevalent so there were times when the story dragged and just got too boring for me.

The plot twist of her being a robot that uses men in order to free herself felt
a bit familiar, as well.

Finally, I wasn?t too thrilled with the performance of Armie Hammer.  He wasn?t terrible in his role and he definitely had some fun moments with Cavill?s character of Solo but his performance wasn?t commanding attention the way Cavill?s did or other actors in the feature like Vikander or even Hugh Grant and Jared Harris.  Too often, Hammer?s performance and accent came off a tad cheesy and his wooden portrayal, at times, hurt the chemistry between himself and Henry Cavill.  The two work well together but, at the same time, never truly felt like they were working the best together and it often felt like Cavill was carrying the two.  Adding in a bland and very stiff performance only went against the already shaky chemistry the two had.

Their chemistry was so unreliable that Vikander's eyes went wide!

Actually, I'm being told she's wearing sunglasses.  But still, they weren't the best together.

My expectations for The Man from U.N.C.L.E. weren?t insanely high but I was pretty excited to see it because I am a big fan of Ritchie?s work and the trailer did make the film feel like a sweet spy film.  In the end, the film wasn?t as good as I had hoped for but wasn?t as bad as it could have been.  Overall, with its occasionally boring story and weak performance from one of its leads but having that counteracted by some fun action and great performances from the rest of the cast, the film proved to be a decent watch that was ultimately a work of serviceable entertainment.