Room (2015) R - 4½ Stars

Here is a little movie that sounded interesting to watch. Its the story of a woman who has been trapped in a small one room shed for over 7 years. In this time she's had a child, a young boy she named Jack, who has never experienced anything outside of the 4 walls. His mother, has created their entire universe inside consisting of games, exercise, stories to tell all while confined to their small captive room. But things cant stay this way forever, Jack is growing up and as mom decides to enlighten his world with the tales of outside which just might be the scariest part of all.

The acting is superb and Brie Larson won the academy award in 2016 for her role along with a numerous list of other awards too long to list. Young Jacob Tremblay was excellent and so believable for such a tiny tot. I was amazed at just how well he adapted to this role. The movie will tug at your heartstrings watching the bond between mother and child in such a horrific situation.

Jack (Jacob Tremblay), wakes up each morning in a 10x10 room saying hello to everything inside of it. The sink, the refrigerator, the plant, even the toilet. His mother, Joy Newsome (Brie Larson) has spent the last seven years locked in this shed raising her small son to the best of her ability. The shed consists of a TV with poor reception and when Jack and she watch it, she explains that everything in the box is make believe and not real as it's the only way to keep this inquisitive boy to his confinements. The two spend their endless days and nights drawing, telling stories and home schooling. The only other person Jack knows of is Old Nick (Sean Bridges), an old man that brings them food and other necessities. Old Nick comes at a specific time some Jack knows he must hide in the wardrobe cabinet until he leaves, never making contact with him.

Joy turns Jack's entire world on end when she decides he is old enough to help her escape from these walls. Now she must convince hi that everything he has taught him up to this point was a lie and there really is a world outside of the four walls. But the enormous outside world is just too scary for Jack
and Joy and with the help of grandma Nancy (Joan Allen) and grandpa Robert (William H. Macy) who can't even look at his innocent face, they must find a way to come together.

Element Pictures, Film 4
Director: Lenny Abrahamson
Producers: David Gross, Ed Guiney
Writers: Emma Donoghue

A Fall From Grace (2020) TVMA - 4 Stars

Gosh a lot of people didn't like this movie at all but I found myself wrapped up in it. Yes there are flaws like - Sarah and Grace are friends for 6 years but the new love relationship takes 42 days to set up - The baseball bat to the head and fall from stairs surely must have caused more damage - Jasmine's cop husband witnessed the woman jump from the roof but never makes any association while watching his wife prep for the case. However, the movie has enough strong acting for me to overlook the obvious flaws and get lost in the story line instead. The film focuses on the vulnerability of an older woman's yearning for love and attention.

Grace Waters (Crystal Fox), sits in jail for the murder of her husband Shannon (Mehcad Brooks). She will sign a plea bargain to save her from death row while keeping her son Malcom (Walter Fauntleroy), to take the stand in a trial or be involved with anything to do with her case.

DA Jasmine Bryant (Bresha Webb), shows up to have Grace sign the paperwork and be over and done with it. But after meeting Grace, Jasmine feels compelled to dig deeper into the case to free Grace of the charges against her. But when Jasmine calls Grace's best friends Sarah (Phylicia Rashad), to the stand, things take a turn for the worse.

Netflix
Director: Tyler Perry
Writer: Tyler Perry

The Platform (2019) TVMA - 3½ Stars

This movie originally titled "El Hoyo", starts out like a train wreck, so very weird and wrong but you just can't look away. I instantly felt a familiarity to a similar style of filming like with the first Saw movie. Your first glimpse into this prison is watching a man wake in a poorly lit room where you can almost smelling the stench. There is no rhythm or reason as to why you are which sets up a psychological journey into your own mind of understanding the visual. "There are three kind of people in here. The ones above, the ones below, and the ones who fall." With not a large budget for special effects, the movie sends a huge message. You're instantly drawn in to feeling screwed as you watch human greed and selfishness at it's primeval finest.

Goreng, (Ivan Massagué) wakes up in a tiny small cement room known as "the pit." A vertical prison with two inmates per floor, and a slab of food is lowered per floor giving inmates a two minute window to grab food to eat. As the platform gets lower, less and less food is available for the starving people below. What will this do to Goreng's mind.

Director: Warner Bros Pictures
Writers: David Desola, Pedro Rivero
Producers: Raquel Perea, Carlos Juárez, David Matamoros, Elena Gozalo, Ángeles Hernández

The King (2005) R - 3½ Stars

I thought this was a real good movie through most of it but the ending was pretty weak. The characters sucked me in, only to be let down at the end.

20 year old Elvis Sandow (Gael García Bernal) has just gotten out of the Navy. He's looking for his biological father that abandoned him when he was young. When he finds out his father is Pastor David Sandow (William Hurt), he goes to Corpus Christi, TX to confront him. It seems that Pastor Sandow wants to forget that part of his sinful life for Elvis was conceived out of wedlock. Elvis agrees to allow Pastor Sandow to break the news to his family his own way but meanwhile violates Sandow's daughter Malerie (Pell James) who becomes pregnant with his child. The two sneak out a lot and her brother Paul (Paul Dano) follows them and threatens to tell on him. That costs Paul dearly and when the truth comes out, this family will never be the same.

THINKFilm
Director: James Marsh
Writers: Milo Addica, James Marsh
Producers: Milo Addica, James Wilson

I viewed 10/18

Michael Clayton (2007) R - 4 Stars

Clooney, Pollock and Winton give award winning preformances as they play off each other for control. You'll be entirely thrilled with the ending of the movie. It's true, the truth can be adjusted.

Michael Clayton's (George Clooney) job is the "fixer-upper" for a New York law firm. Having been a District Attorney, Michael knows all the loopholes of law and how to quickly get people off. Arther Edens (Tom Wilkinson) is Michael's mentor and close friend and lately the firm thinks Arthur is loosing it. Marty Bach (Sydney Pollack) the law firms president tells Michael to keep him in check as his behavior lately is questionable.

Karen Crowder (Tilda Swinton) is a litigator for a major company who is about to settle out in a three billion dollar law case. With so much to gain she becomes greedy and arrogant and will stop at nothing to take down her enemy. Arther is very close at finding the evidence needed to stop the settlement when suddenly he is found dead in his apartment. When Michael tries to figure out what really happened to his friend, he is almost killed too. But in the end Karen's greed costs her big time and justice is served.

Awards include:

2007 - Michael Clayton - American Film Institute - Best Picture
2007 - Michael Clayton - National Board of Review - Best Actor
2007 - Michael Clayton - Kansas City Film Critics Association - Best Supporting Actress

Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution
Director: Tony Gilroy
Writer: Tony Gilroy
Producers: Jennifer Fox, Steven Samuels, Sydney Pollack

I viewed 4/19

1408 (2007) PG13 - 3½ Stars

Mike Enslin (John Cusack) is writing a book "Ten Nights in Haunted Hotel Rooms." He mostly writes about disproving paranormal events. If he can't see it for himself, he'll let his audience know. Room 1408 at the Dolphin hotel is he next challenge to take on. The hotel manager, Gerald Olin (Samuel L. Jackson), insists the room is not available but Mike finds a convincing argument to allow him to stay in 1408. Things just keep getting stranger till Mike is actually getting scared. He thinks to himself if he can last the night, he will finally have something to write about sending his book to the top of the best seller list.

In the room he can no longer escape from he's being driven mad from and angry crowd of "dead" beats. Even when he finally thinks he has survived the night and escaped the room, he wakes up finding himself still there.

Dimension Films/MGM
Director: Mikael Håfström
Writers: Larry Karaszewski, Scott Alexander, Matt Greenberg
Producer: Lorenzo Di Bonaventura

I viewed 11/07

He Was a Quiet Man (2006) NR - 3½ Stars

I've never seen Chirstian Slater take on this type of a role before but he's great in it. Bob Maconel (Christian Slater) works for a real asshole boss. His picked on and made fun for some of his quirky ways, though most employees have never heard of him. There is one girl in the office, Vanessa (Elisha Cuthbert), who makes his day every morning with her wonderful smile but other than her, he'd like to see everyone else dead.

He's really loosing it at home as he speaks with his goldfish, who answers him back. That little evil fish inside of him keeps driving him to pull off, what he's till now only imagined, killing his bosses at work. The next morning he takes a gun to work and as he's ready to do it, he drops a bullet and some other asshole in the company, beats him to his plan. Bob pulls out his gun and kills the man but not until after he has taken quit a few people out. Bob's the hero of the day for stopping the bad guy.

Now Bob has a new set of problems. Vanessa wants to die. She could be paralized for the rest of her life and wants him to help end her life. Bob's heorism causes him to be even more unsettled until he comes apart at the seams.

Quiet Man Productions
Director: Frank Cappello
Writer: Frank Cappello
Producers: Michael Leahy, Frank Cappello

I viewed 1/08

The Departed (2006) R - 4 Stars

Yet another movie I saw on the big screen when it first came out. This was a great gangster movie with some scenes at the end I was not expecting. That's always a good thing.

The Irish mafia is trying to take over South Boston. Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a young cop working with chief detective Captain Queenan (Martin Sheen) and Queenan sends Billy in to infiltrate the mob syndicate run by gangland chief Costello (Jack Nicholson).

Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), is a young criminal who has infiltrated the police department. When Colin finds out about Billy's being inside the mob and Billy learns about Collin, they both are rushed to rat each other out and protect their identies. While each hides in each others worlds, will they be able to come back.

Awards are numerous and include:

2006 - The Departed - Academy - Best Picture
2006 - The Departed - Broadcast Film Critics Association - Best Director
2006 - The Departed - Broadcast Film Critics Association - Best Picture

Warner Bros Pictures
Director: Martin Scorsese
Writer: William Monahan
Producers: Martin Scorsese, Brad Pitt, Graham King

I viewed 10/06

Equilibrium (2002) R - 3½ Stars

When this movie first started, I was thinking, oh man this is going to suck as I didn't understand what was going on. But I stuck with it and actually it ended up having a decent story line. If you like a good action Matrix type - kick ass movie, then you'll like this one.

It's the beginning of the 21st Century and WWIII has erupted and from it a new nation is born called Libria. This nation is run by Dupont (Angus MacFadyen) under "Father's" law of complete conformity. The belief is that all wars are based on people's emotions of jealousy and rage so by making everyone equal there is no competition. This new society of equilibrium is insured when citizens must inject themselves daily with a dose of Prozia II to eliminate any chance of feeling emotional. Any form of creativity or any objects that trigger vanity and emotion are outlawed and immediately destroyed. Citizens caught with such items or showing any form of emotion, are immediately subject to death by incineration.

Cleric John Preston (Christian Bale) is a Grammaton, a real bad ass when it comes to fighting, and his job is to track down and punish these "sense offenders." Four years prior his wife was taken from his family of two children, and burned for showing feelings of emotion with them.

When John was washing his face one morning, his dose of Prozia II was breaks when it hit the floor. Not being able to get another dose right away, he starts to look at the world in a new light. When the Grammaton raid a commune of sense offenders, a small puppy licks him and triggers a whole array of feelings. In the raid, Mary O'Brian (Emily Watson) is taken prioner and he becomes completly fascinated with her. After meeting with her a few times, Mary tells him what type of life is worth living if there is nothing to be felt. He begins hiding his doses of the drug and eventually awakens his feelings that had lay dormant for so long. Now with these senses hightened, he joins up with the underground refugees that refuse to take their meds and together it gives them the passion to fight for freedom.

Dimension Films/MGM
Director: Kurt Wimmer
Writer: Kurt Wimmer
Producer: Lucas Foster, Jan de Bont

I viewed 4/18

Collateral (2004) R - 4 Stars

Here is another one of the real head game movies I love so much. Zola's pic for one you should see at least one time or own in your collection.

Max (Jamie Foxx) has been driving a cab for 12 years hoping someday to own limo company. He starts out his night picking up Annie (Jada Pinkett Smith). She's an attorney and Max thinks maybe hell get lucky later when she hands him her business card along with the fare. Then he picks up Vincent (Tom Cruise). Vincent offers Max several hundred dollars to drive him around and wait for him at each stop. Max just figures he has a lot of errands to run and gladly excepts. What he doesn't realize, till a body lands on the his car, is that Vincent is a hired hit man on a mission to take out key witnesses who will be testifying for a federal grand jury. Max is just trying to stay alive when he realizes one of the next people to kill on Vincent's list is Annie the girl he met earlier.

Awards include:

2004 - Collateral - American Film Institute - Best Picture
2004 - Collateral - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Best Cinematography

DreamWorks
Director: Michael Mann
Writer: Stuart Beattie
Producers: Julie Richardson, Michael Mann

I viewed 10/06

Rear Window (1954) PG - 4½ Stars

I can't say enough about one of Hitchcock's best!!! An all time classic that if you have'nt seen it yet, make a point to. A true classic that never gets old. Stewart and Keyy are awesome and, for me, the innocence of the era adds to the excitement of the film.

L.B. Jeffries , (James Stewart) is confined to his apartment after breaking his leg. With not much to do he takes comfort, with his binoculars, watching his neighbors through his window into the courtyard. While watching their normal daily routines and lifestyles, he develops nicknames for his neighbors. But suddenly, he can't believe what he thinks he sees. Could one of his neighbors just have murdered his wife and now trying to dispose of her body in a suitcase?

On the brink of obsession, he can't take anymore and involves his model girlfriend, Lisa, (Grace Kelly). Voyeurism at it's finest.

Awards include:

1998 - Rear Window - American Film Institute - 100 Greatest American Movies.
1997 - Rear Window - Library of Congress - U.S. National Film Registry.
1954 - Rear Window - National Board of Review - Best Actress.
1954 - Rear Window - New York Film Critics Circle - Best Actress.

Paramount Pictures
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Writer: John Michael Hayes
Producer: Alfred Hitchcock

I viewed 6/07

Six Degrees of Separation (1993) R - 4 Stars

This one gets my recommendation as one of those movies that messes with your mind. Starring Will Smith and Donald Sutherland, Smith is great playing a well educated, con man. The "six-degrees-of-separation paradigm" says that if you find the right string of friends, relatives, colleagues and lovers, you can move in six steps to connect them. Everyone in the world is touched somehow by this 6th person's connection therefore everyone out there somewhere/anywhere is connected to you in 6 steps.

Flan (Donald Sutherland) and Ouisa Kittredge (Stockard Channing) are married, living in Manhattan and art dealers to the higher ups. They are throwing a party one night to sell some art when Paul (Will Smith) knocks on the door. He tells them he is a friend of their children whom he went to school with. Seems he's been mugged and he just needs a place for the night till he can get himself together in the morning.

Paul is extremely proper and elegant in appearance and he offers to help fix dinner for them for payment. He claims to be the son of Sidney Poitier and tells them about his life in the upper class white area of New York. They Kittredge's are mesmerized with this young man who cooks like a chef and tells them magnificent stories. He helps close an art deal that night. Everything is grand until they find Paul in bed with another man in their home and immediately ask him to leave. Once gone, they realize how much he has touched them.

When the couple gets together with some of their friends, they find out that Paul has been conning all of them with his fascinating stories. Paul has touched them all in a way they'll re-evaluate their lives.

MGM Distribution
Director: Fred Schepisi
Writer: John Guare
Producers: Arnon Milchan, Fred Schepisi

Lakeview Terrace (2008) PG13 - 4 Stars

I like this movie a whole lot more than most other critics out there. For me, I think Samuel L. Jackson is perfect in his character. The macho cop, looking after his kids, but holds a grudge against everyone for the fact he's doing it alone. It's a good high charged movie throwing the proverbial wrench into the gear at every opportunity. The grass isn't always greener at the top of the hill.

Abel Turner (Samuel L. Jackson), is a LAPD officer living with his two children in the upscale neighborhood in Lakeview Terrace. Chris Mattson (Patrick Wilson) and his new wife Lisa (Kerry Washington), have just moved into their dream home, becoming new neighbors with Abel. Abel is not impressed with his new interracial neighbors. Instead shows contempt at any glace thrown his way.

The first night in their new home, the newlyweds are rudely awakened by powerful spot lights, illuminate their bedroom. Abel has a sophisticated light system, surrounding his home, to keep intruders out. But it also makes it impossible for Chris and Lisa to sleep as the light blares in their bedroom window.

Tensions escalate, from both sides of the fence, as Abel's children are exposed to a midnight love making session in the new neighbors pool. It's not long after that, Chris and Lisa start receiving threats from their new neighbor. But no one will be ready when the sparks ignite into flames too hot for any of them to put out.

Overbrook Entertainment, Sony Pictures Releasing
Director: Neil LaBute
Writers: Howard Korder, David Loughery
Producers: James Lassiter, Will Smith

I viewed 2/09

The Air I Breathe (2007) R - 3 Stars

Great all star cast, I was hoping the movie would be over the top but instead falls into the mediocre. The movie splits itself into 4 separate stories, based on an ancient Chinese proverb of four emotional cornerstones of life: happiness, pleasure, sorrow and love. But with all the great acting, the characters don't fall into place properly. While each name star gives a great performance, I didn't feel that powerful connection in the end to Sarah the way the director probably intended. On the same plane as movies like "Crash" and different lives intertwining, it does allow you to get close to the characters, feeling their pain and desperation but it just doesn't come all together properly, instead leaves you depressed and wondering what that point is suppose to be as the time line is so confusing.

When a nerdy businessman, "Happiness"(Forest Whitaker), is in the right place at the right time, he over hears three men talking about a horse that's a shoe in in tomorrows race. Taking his entire life savings, he attends the race putting his life on the line to find out there is no sure thing and now finds crime boss Fingers (Andy Garcia), about to dismember him if he doesn't come up with the money. This once quiet man, now desperate, robs a bank to come up with the cash.

A gangster, "Pleasure"(Brendan Fraser), who works for Fingers, is assigned the task of collecting money along with his nephew Tony, (Emile Hirsch). His assignment is to go after Trista "Sorrow", (Sarah Michelle Gellar) a famous pop singer, who has lost her contract to Fingers without her knowledge. Along the way he has a powerful premonition keeping him from doing his job.

A doctor "Love"(Kevin Bacon), will learn the true meaning of the word as he attempts to save the woman he loves Gina (Julie Delpy), who is dying from serious injuries. But her rare blood type will test his abilities in playing God with the one he loves. Each event seems to have an effect on the other characters to come to a head at the end.

ThinkFilm, Pathe International
Director: Lee Jieho
Writers: Bob DeRosa, Lee Jieho, Jieho Lee
Producers: Darlene Caamano Loquet, Paul Schiff, Emilio Diez Barroso

I viewed 4/09

Stranded: I've come from a Plane That Crashed (2007) NR - 4 Stars

This is a very moving documentary about the 16 survivors of Uruguay's cricket team, who's plane crashed deep in the Andes October 13, 1972. After stranded 72 days, high atop the Andes mountain range of Chili, 2 exhausted survivors did the unthinkable by trekking over 8 large mountain ranges to get back to civilization. When all other hopes of rescue exhausted, these two brave young, men with little choice but to make it or die trying, crawl to freedom from their frozen tomb. Once they were found barely alive, their only thoughts were of getting help for their 14 friends still trapped in hell on the mountain. This documentary will make the hair stand up on your arms listening as the recapture their ordeal in the Andes.

I read the book, "Survived", when I was young and it has always stuck with me how these young men were forced with the decision to eat their fellow players in order to survive. Even learning that grinding done parts of the bone would give them a source of magnesium and calcium supplements their bodies needed to survive. These 16 survivors have uniquely special bond of a lifetime. Now, 30 years later in 2006, they reunite at the crash location and tell the stories to their families, and us the viewers, of permanent memories etched in their heads of the lose of their fallen friends.

Jose Algorta - Himself (as José Pedro Algorta)
Roberto Canessa - Himself
Alfredo Delgado - Himself
Daniel Fernandez - Himself (as Daniel Fernández)
Bobby Francois - Himself (as Roberto François)
Roy Harley - Himself
Jose Luis Inciarte - Himself (as José Luis Inciarte)
Alfredo Mangino - Himself (as Álvaro Mangino)
Javier Methol - Himself
Carlitos Paez - Himself (as Carlos Páez)
Nando Parrado - Himself (as Fernando Parrado)
Ramón Sabella - Himself
Adolfo Strauch - Himself
Eduardo Strauch - Himself
Antonio Vizintín - Himself
Gustavo Zerbino - Himself
José Gilberto Bravo Castro - Himself
Laura Canessa" - Herself (as Laura Inés Canessa)
Antonio Caruso - Himself
Juan Catalan - Himself (as Juan Catalán)
Sergio Catalan - Himself (as Sergio Catalán)
Jorge Massa - Himself
Juan Pedro Nicola - Himself
Mateo Nicola - Himself
Carlos Páez Vilaró - Himself (as Carlos Páez-Vilaró)
Madelón Rodríguez - Himself
Alejandra Strauch - Herself
Lucas Zerbino Payssé - Himself
Martín Zerbino Payssé - Himself
Sebastián Zerbino Payssé - Himself
Bernardo Antonaccio - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Rafael Beltrán - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Mauro Bettega - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Mario Bianchi - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Hilario Canessa - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Rodrigo Castellanos - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Pablo Collazo - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Juan Antonio Damiani - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Alfonso Díaz Cat - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Pablo Di Leva - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Nicolás Estrada - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Nicolás Furtado - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Joaquín Jaume - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Simón López Ortega - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Romeo López Ortega -Actor in reconstructed scenes (as Romero López Ortega)
Pablo Magariños - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Silvana Magrini - Actress in reconstructed scenes
Javier Martínez - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Pedro Musto - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Pilar Pelfort - Actress in reconstructed scenes
Carlos Scure Lacoste - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Ariel Tornin - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Rafael Soliwoda - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Alejandro Zivov - Actor in reconstructed scenes
Ernesto Cantu - Narrator (noncredit)

Columbia Pictures
Directors:Gonzalo Arijon
Writers:Gonzalo Arijon, Deborah Ford
Producers:Sally Jo Fifer,Mariela Genta,Sergio Gándara,Virginia Martínez Vargas

I viewed 4/12

After (2006) NR - 1 Star

Rarely does a movie come along that makes one have the urge to shoot themselves but I've found it.

An extreme group of urban thrill seekers travel to Russia in search of Stalin's secret metro and Ivan the Terrible's torture chamber. The film is shot in a documentary style but trying to be creative, the camera jumps all over the place. I think the producer thought that added to the effects but for me at least, I really could not stand watching it. I felt like shooting myself for wasting my time and applauded that is was finally over.

I doubt you'll be seeing any awards for this one any time soon.
No photos to be found as well but trust me - no big loss.

After... Films LLC
Director: David L. Cunningham
Writers: Kevin Miller, David L. Cunningham
Producers: Penelope L. Foster, David L. Cunningham, Edwin L. Marshall

I viewed 1/08

Falling Down (1993) R - 4 Stars

Zola's pic for one you should see at least one time or own in your collection.

William Foster's (Michael Douglas) is not having a very good day. He's on the way to a job that he's been laid off from and it hasn't quite sunk in yet. Neither has the fact he is divorced and is suppose to stay clear of his daughter and ex-wife Beth (Barbara Hershey).

While day dreaming about his daughters birthday, he finds himself in the middle of traffic pile up on the 110. With so much annoying him, he abandons his car and just walks off. He needs to make a call to his daughter and when the Korean shop owner refuses to make change for him, his anger starts to mount. No one seems to be cooperating with him.

Obviously delusional, he stops to rest and gets lippy with a group of gangsters defending their turf. The punks later retaliate but wind up fighting for their lives. Foster becomes armed and though already mentally unsound, takes on the rest of the city. He snaps when the fast food restaurant refuses to make him breakfast at lunch time.

Meanwhile, with a wife constantly calling to remind him, officer Prendergast (Robert Duvall), counts down the hours of his last days on the job. Replaying his somewhat boring future in his head, Pendergast picks up on clues other detectives have missed. It's important to him to solve this last case. When Foster and Pendergast confront each other, both men have nothing to loose.

Warner Bros Pictures
Director: Joel Schumacher
Writer: Ebbe Roe Smith
Producers: Herschel Weingrod, Timothy Harris, Mike Jackman

I viewed 1/08

Whiteout (2009) R - 3 Stars

I have mixed emotions about this movie. It wasn't a great movie at all but something kept me drawn and somewhat nearing the edge on my seat a few times. Maybe it was just a good job of feeling the freezing blizzard or perhaps the uncertainty of a killer on the loose, hacking his way through what's left of the crew. But that's when it also got a little cheesy to me as this killer was really a bad shot. I think I counted at least 12 hacks toward Marshall Stetko, while never striking her once. If nothing else, it gives a pretty realistic feel to what it must be like to live and work at the North or South Pole.

U.S. Marshall Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale), has been reassigned a position at Antarctica's South Pole research base after her partner turned on her and she had to shoot to kill. The betraying images still haunt her nightly so she prefers this solitude of misdemeanor crimes rather than deal with who she can trust. When a body is discovered on the snow away from base, her investigative instincts quickly return as it's apparent the man was murdered.

Dark Castle Entertainment, Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution
Director: Dominic Sena
Writers: Jon Hoeber, Chad Hayes, Erich Hoeber
Producers: Susan Downey, Joel Silver, David Gambino

I viewed 2/10

Body Heat (1981) R - 4 Stars

Great suspenseful story starring Kathleen Turner and William Hurt. In Turner's first film debut, she is outstanding playing Matty Walker, a greedy relentless and sexy wife to a very wealthy man. She wants her husband dead and will stop at nothing to see her plan through. She tries to convince Hurt, also fabulous in his role, to kill her husband.

The musical score can't work any better to enhance the suspense. Just when you think you've been handed the last plot, you'll be surprised there's still more. If you're looking for a extremely seductively and enticingly sexy movie, this should wet your whistle.

Ned (William Hurt), is an attorney living in a coastal town of Florida. He meets Matty (Kathleen Turner), who seductively lures him into the thought of killing her very rich and much older husband (Richard Crenna). Matty figures with all the expertize Ned has in the legal field, it can insure they can carry out their plan get away with it. Ned is so taken to Matty that he instinctively follows her every wish. Just when it seems they can now be together, Matty has one more surprising twist up her sleeve.

Ladd Company, The Panavision, Ltd., Technicolor
Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Writers: Lawrence Kasdan, Milan Steindler, Vaclav Matejka
Producers: George Lucas, Fred T. Gallo, Lawrence Kasdan

I viewed 11/11

Boot Camp (2008) R - 2½ Stars

Aka Straight Edge, this movie tells a decent tale of romance while revealing the story of terror at some teenage boot camps. Based on a true story, this tough love camp goes way overboard when it comes to teen rehabilitation. Though I jokingly say I know a few "at-risk" teens who could benefit from a trip to this island, places like this really exist and troubled teens are sent to these environments every year. Mostly from rich parents who don't care or can't be bothered and involved in their child's life. If and when they do eventually return, most are worse off then when they left. Mila Kunis does a good job in her role as Sophia making you feel her contempt and pain. The story is about a teen boy who sacrifices his own well being to be sent away to rehabilitation camp in order to find his girlfriend, who's already a member. At this camp, the punishments can be as rough as doing jail time. These young inmates have less rights than prisoners on death row.

When drug addicted Sophia (Mila Kunis), gets sent away by her parents to rehabilitation camp on a tiny island in Fiji, she has no idea what's in store for. Camp Serenity, run by Dr. Arthur Hail (Peter Stormare), runs his island more like a penitentiary than a rehab and young teens are treated as if they were in jail. Dr. Hail's prison like setting operates by a strict set of rules filed with brainwashing and ultimately breaking down these teens spirits.
Sophia's straight laced boyfriend Ben (Gregory Smith), finds a way to get himself into trouble sending him straight to the island. His goal is to find his girlfriend and get her out of there. They both soon learn that Logan (Tygh Runyan), enforces the laws Dr. Hail sets forth and Ben and Sophia though determined to escape realize they are surrounded by water.

Metro Goldyn Mayor, Nomadic Pictures, Edgey Productions
Director: Christian Duguay
Writers: John Cox, Agatha Dominik
Producers: Christian Duguay, Michael Frislev, Chad Oakes

I viewed 1/12