This is a film I have wanted to see for a while because I knew it was known for giving great performances with some legendary actors. The film has always been known for its performances instead of the story but I will get into that with more detail later.

The film is about 4 real estate salesman, Ricky Roma (Al Pacino), Shelley Levene (Jack Lemmon), George Aaronow (Alan Arkin) and Dave Moss (Ed Harris). After a terrible month of sales the firm puts on a contest for the best saleman of the month to win a new Cadillac, with the 2 salesmen with the lowest numbers is fired. The salesmen become desperate, as they must not only try to keep their jobs but to survive in a dog eat dog economy.

The film does have some good aspects as well as some that could have been worked on. However it does feel complete, at first watching I felt that it was missing something, a big climatic act. Later thinking about the film I realized that the ending was actually very powerful, as it doesn’t end the typical big climatic ending that we are all known to love but it ends on a very powerful note. The life of a salesman on commission is never an easy life and this film dissects it. I don’t want to spoil the ending because it does throw you off, but it does leave on this real world kind of aspect. In the film everyone is looking out for himself, not only to make it in the company but just in life. You grow attached to Jack Lemmon’s character as he is dealing family issues that aren’t over dramatic and hides in the background. Even Kevin Spacey’s character of the young boss has the same motivation as all the other guys in the movie, to keep their job. You still feel like he is being a dick but after thinking about it, he is looking out for himself just like everyone else, to were you almost feel disappointed in the protagonist.

It’s not just Spacey and Lemmon that give great performances either, as everyone gives a solid job in having different characters acting differently based on their situation. It almost feels like they are all the same type of character just each of them is in a different situation were they change to fit their kind of desperateness. Also a real surprise performance comes from Alec Baldwin’s character as it’s a short scene in the beginning and we never get to see him again through out the film but it sets the film off to a extraordinary start.

Now I do have some negative thoughts as I said at the beginning, it isn’t a perfect film. I do feel like the pacing is off in the middle of the film. Also, the set up to the ending is very rushed and isn’t very well explained. You understand through out the film of why and you can see their motivations but it just seems to come out of left field because there is no real build up to the ending as it almost feels like the film ends unexpectedly.

Overall, it is a really good film that when is does something right, its really amazing. However just didn’t feel in depth enough for it to be a perfect film. Check it out for the performances and a nice subtle story. Now, give me my mother f*cking Cadillac!!!
Final Rating: 4/5

In the previous review, I “might” have said that I actually liked Mission Impossible 2 when I saw it in 2000. Well, apparently I was stupid back in my youth, as this film is completely different from the first and doesn’t fit within the character of Ethan Hunt. The film is extremely over the top and focuses more on the action scenes instead of developing Tom Cruise’s character or doing anything interesting with the story of IMF. The film tries to hard to make Ethan Hunt an extreme badass, while rushing a dumb love story that doesn’t feel real. The film is a mediocre attempt of being like the Pierce Bronson 007 films instead of being unique.

The film starts off with a scientist with a cure for a deadly virus that kills its victims in 20 hours. While on a trip to give the virus and the cure to IMF, the scientist is killed in a plane crash that was taken hostage by a former IMF agent Sean Ambrose (Dougray Scott) as he steals the cure and virus. Ethan must find out Ambrose’s plan with the virus and prevent him from unleashing the virus into the world.

The only part of the film that I actually enjoyed was the whole plot with the virus and its cure, but it actually doesn’t make sense because Ambrose didn’t make it, a company that didn’t have any evil plans with it and was actually giving it to IMF when the plane is hijacked. The only character that had any demand or want was Ambrose because he wanted to steal the virus and cure in order to pursue a corporation, but why would a corporation make a deadly virus for no reason in the first place. This film just generally doesn’t make sense, like Ethan falling in love with a woman that is sent in undercover as Ambrose’s lover in order to find information on him. It doesn’t make sense because it is so rushed, basically it was a one-night stand but she never left, so he was surprised and fell in love with her. Also what doesn’t make sense is Ethan’s sudden urge to fight like he is Jackie Chan, like seriously you can tell this is a John Woo film because he tries so desperately to have martial arts and slow motion in this film. The film is a complete mess with nothing redeeming in it except for ridiculous action scenes that don’t fit in the series or in the characters and a rushed plot that isn’t suspenseful or satisfying. I gotta stop because the more I talk about it the more angry I get with the film.
Final Rating: 1/5

After a brief hiatus, I’m back, and I’m coming back with a review I’ve wanted to do for a while now.  Since the release of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, I have wanted to take a look back at the series’ previous 3 films, I remembered liking the series (yes, even the outrageous 2nd film) but I haven’t seen the films since they were released, so it seems like a perfect opportunity to add another classic to the section. 

The film is based off of a television series from the 60’s, when the spy genre was at a high point due to the 007 series in full force. 40 years later, Brian De Palma and Tom Cruise take on the series with a more modern look.  The film is about an unofficial organization called IMF (Impossible Missions Force) and a team that is lead by Jim Phelps (Jon Voight) on a mission to stop the transfer of a list of under cover agents for the CIA.  The mission doesn’t go to plan and the entire team is killed except for Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise).  The IMF believe that Ethan is a mole in the unit and disavowed, now Ethan must find the mole in IMF in order to clear his name.

The overall story isn’t completely original as it is used from previous spy films like the 007 series, but it does manage to keep it fresh with its reveals and De Palma manages to keep you guessing through the entire film.  There isn’t a whole lot of action scenes except for the ending, but the scene in the middle, were Tom Cruise hangs from the ceiling is very suspenseful and iconic.  Tom Cruise is very good as a cocky hero that is in over his head. The only complaint is that all the other characters are kinda flat, but it does leave the door open for Cruise to show that he can be a action star.  It’s an iconic 90’s action film that is hard to forget. RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT!!!
Final Rating: 4.5/5

Based on a short story, Rollerball is a sci-fi film based in 2018, when the world is run by corporations, a sport exist called “Rollerball”. The sport is a combination of a lot of sports that we know of like; football, hockey, and roller derby. The film mainly centers on player Jonathan E. (James Caan) who is the best player rollerball has ever had, playing for the Houston team that is run by the “Energy Corporation.” Jonathan is presured by the Energy Corporation’s executive to retire from the game and except a retirement package. Jonathan refuses as the executive continues to pressure him. Jonathan must figure out why he is being pressured to quit as he finishes the last two games of the season, as the game changes its rules in order have Jonathan killed in the game. I like the story and the underline message of audiences just wanting to see blood instead of a good game. But I had a problem with some of the scenes, either it dragged on for two long or some of them just seemed unnecessary. There is one scene when Jonathan is convinced that the corporation is keeping a secrets from him so he goes to a library to find out more information only to find out that the corporation blocked the information, that scene just seemed like a waste of time. Also, some scenes tried to hard to have a even deeper message of where we are going as a society that missed too, either they didn’t explain enough or just didn’t spend enough time on it. This film could been an extra half hour shorter and it would have been a much tighter story about Jonathan trying to survive the game and the mystery behind the corporation. Overall though, I really liked the story surrounding Jonathan and I really did enjoy the idea of a blood sport, but some stuff just needed to be more explained.
Final Rating: 3.5/5

A classic Kevin Smith film that I just never got around to seeing, especially since I have seen the majority of his other films, including the recent god awful, “Cop Out.” This has been known to be one of Kevin Smith better films, so I finally broke down and watched it. The plot is about two friends, Holden (Ben Affleck) and Banky (Jason Lee) who are comic book artists living in New Jersey (god does Kevin Smith really like Jersey). One night, they meet a fellow comic book artist, Alyssa (Joey Lauren Adams) at a convention in New York and go out for drinks with her. Holden falls head over heels in love with her and tries to charm her only to find out she is a lesbian. Holden attempts to stay friends with her while still trying to make her come over to the straight side. The film has the same kind of comedy Kevin Smith is known for from his previous films, 'Clerks' and 'Mallrats', but this one tackles a lot of questions both straight and homosexuals face about dealing with ones sexuality. It is brilliantly well written which is common for Kevin in the early stages of his career, but I felt like one aspect was really missing, and that was the friendship between Holden and Bankey. When Holden starts to go after Alyssa, it causes a lot of tension between the friends, but you never really feel the close bond that they have until exposition starts to show that their friendship is on the brink. I felt that Kevin did a great job with the relationship with Holden and Alyssa but didn’t create a good friendship that he has done in Clerks and Mallrats with Holden and Bankey. I still really enjoyed the film and the issues it brought up. It’s just not a perfect film. But that’s generally what Kevin Smith films are, really good just not perfect.
Final Rating: 4.5/5

This film is one of my favorite action/sci-fi films of all time. I will admit, it’s not an overly good film, however it is enjoy able. It’s a classic film by legendary explosion director Michael Bay and it's produced by Jerry Bruckheimer. This film is one of the classic films that came out of the 90’s. The plot of the film is there is an asteroid the size of Texas that is on a collision course to earth. The guys at NASA lead by Dan Truman (Billy Bob Thornton) and his team make a plan to send oil drillers into space to land on the asteroid, drill to the center of the asteroid, drop a nuclear bomb down the hole they drill and blow up the asteroid. To make this plan succeed NASA gets the best deep core drillers, which consist of Harry Stamper (Bruce Willis) and a team of misfits, who are portrayed by Ben Affleck, Steve Buscemi, Owen Wilson and Michael Clarke Duncan. Now, this film is full of impossibilities. Firstly the whole plan is ridiculous; do you really think astronauts can actually land a shuttle onto a moving asteroid, let alone oil drillers? Also, the whole idea of blowing up the asteroid with a nuclear bomb sounds ridiculous and stereotypically American. But the whole film is just so much fun I look past all the technical errors. It’s over the top but makes you worried about the possibility of something like this happening in real life. I’m finding it hard to talk about all the problems this film has. I enjoyed it too much! I know its not good and the whole film is ridiculous but that’s what makes it so much fun. It’s a classic dumb American action film that is fun to watch every time.
Final Rating: 4/5

I’ve wanted to watch this film for a while now. Every time I saw it on the shelf at a video store it always caught my eye. So, I finally sat down and watched this cult classic to be ready for my review of “Tron Legacy.” The movie is about a computer hacker named Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) who is trying to hack into a corporate computer system run by ENCOM. Kevin is looking to get evidence that proves that the CEO Ed Dillinger (David Warner) stole ideas and games that Kevin created in order to become the new CEO. Kevin teams up with Alan Bradley (Bruce Boxleitner), who has created a security program for ENCOM called “Tron.” Alan doesn’t like the way Ed’s program, “Master Control Program” is controlling the system, while the “MCP” doesn’t want “Tron” to be watching its communications to the outside world. The story can be kind of difficult to follow, seeing as the dialogue has a lot of technical terms that only computer engineers would get, but it’s not too hard. If you really think about the emotions of the characters and their actions you can tell what is a good thing and what’s not, so you can follow the story. One thing that this film missed is a connection to the audience; the film needed another character that doesn’t know computer programming for the audience. It would have made the dialogue more understandable for the general audience, but like I said, if you really think about it, you can get a pretty good idea of what is going on. The visual effects are really amazing for the time, as it still felt like a computer world. I can get past the dated effects because it’s a fantasy world where no one in the audience really knows what the inside of a computer mainframe would actually look like. The sound was amazing, as it mixes well with the visual effects. The acting is really well done and Jeff Bridges does an amazing job. However, the direction is just a bit weak at times. The pacing is a little slow in the middle, but the film eventually picks up when it goes into the final act. I enjoyed this film; it wasn’t spectacular, but it’s pretty good. The story is pretty simple, but is enjoyable and was a fun adventure.
Final Rating: 3.5/5

How quickly can you judge someone? If your life was rested on the opinions of 12 men that are willing to get back to their own lives, would you want them to make a quick decision? This film looks at the judicial system, and how we let people who only care about their own lives run it. The film is set in the Jury Room during a case that shows all the evidence that a young boy killed his abusive father.  When 11 members of the jury vote guilty, one man (Henry Fonda) votes innocent, so that he can go over the case with the other men, and break down all the evidence. This film has been ripped off from the film Jury Duty starring… * sigh * Pauly Shore. Jury Duty doesn’t do this film justice (pun intended). 12 Angry Men is classic storytelling. Only about 3% of the film shot outside the Jury Room. You don’t see the trial or any flashbacks of the actual murder, but by the end of the film, you get all the information you need. The script was amazing, it never showed you the case, only the Jury Room without loosing the audience. The film never feels boring and it shows how we need to help out our fellow man by taking time to give them a second chance. Storytelling at its finest.
Final Rating: 5/5 

When a man is pushed so far, eventually, he pushes back. This film tells the true story of the longest bank hold-up in the 70’s.   Sonny Wortzig (Al Pacino) is in the middle of robbing a bank so that he can pay for his lover's operation, when the cops end up surrounding the place.  Sonny holds the bank tellers and manager as hostages and tries to negotiate in order to get himself a plane out of the country. It’s a great story of a man (Sonny) who is under pressure from his wife, children and unemployment. Everyone is putting the weight of the world on his shoulders and he finally has enough. Al Pacino does a great job in the role he plays as Sonny.  He plays the role very 3-dimensional and makes you root for him because he faces the pressures that the every-man really has to face every day. Directed by Sidney Lument, who is also know for 'Murder on the Orient Express' and '12 Angry Men', it’s an exciting while tense film and was a great portrayal of a true story. It won the Oscar for best original screenplay that year.
Final Rating 4.5/5     

This week I finally got around to watching the three hour and twenty minute film, Apocalypse Now! and I must say…. WOW.  Many great filmmakers have told their version of the Vietnam War, from Oliver Stone’s Platton to Stanley Kubrick’s epic Full Metal Jacket.  This film is definitely Francis Ford Coppola’s masterpiece.  The film tells the journey of Captain Willard (Martin Sheen) who is called back to Vietnam to kill Colonel Kurtz (Marlon Branto) who has abandoned his duties for the U.S army and set himself in Cambodia and become a godlike image to the local tribe.  Now I say this is a journey film because we follow Capt. Willard as he makes his way through the dangerous jungle of Vietnam.  But the film doesn’t just focus on Willard - the film stops to explore the many people that were involved in the Vietnam War and what the war meant to them.  I really enjoyed following the many stories that Coppola told as we were on this journey.  I also really enjoyed the fact that we don’t actually get to meet Kurtz until a good two and a half hours into the film.  It made it so much more rewarding when we finally got to see Kurtz.  This film is simply great story telling.  It keeps the audience in for the entire film with all the supporting characters and their stories.  I would definitely recommend this film to anyone who enjoys a good war film; just don’t expect something like Saving Private Ryan, because it’s not a film full of action, it’s a film about stories and it’s a great journey through the jungle in Vietnam.  Just be prepared to sit for three and half hours.
Final Rating: 5.5/5

__ Seeing as how this is my first classic review, I thought it would be best to write it on what is widely considered to be one of the most classic films of all time.  A cinematic masterpiece directed by Francis Ford Coppolla, made in 1972, based on Mario Puzo’s book; “The Godfather”.  Puzo joined Coppolla to write the screenplay for the movie and the film was a critical success that went on to get 11 Oscar nominations and 3 wins including best screenplay, best actor and of course, best picture. This truly classic film has a deep story with interesting characters, but it mostly allows the normal audience to see a side of the world that is responsible for the corruption of politics and police. The story follows a mob family run by Vito Corleone who is able to run his business of gambling and prostitution smoothly due to being able to pay off the majority of police and politicians.  But the times start to change, and the focus changes to illegal drugs which the Corleone’s don't want to take part in. The family must soon fight off rival mobs in order to keep their business going. The film also shows the “passing of the torch” as Vito gives the family business to Michael, and we see him struggle with keeping the business afloat during their tough time. Overall, this movie lives up to the hype.  It has a fantastic story that keeps you engaged for the full 3 hours.  It also has memorable primary and secondary characters such as Vito, Michael, and Sonny. But it also has a great supporting cast that makes the world of crime interesting and three-dimensional.  The editing is fantastic and the sets and costume design really make the films seem like its right out of the 40’s.  This truly is one of the best films of all time.
Final Rating: 5/5