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Death Wish (2018)
Death Wish (2018)
Why do we like vigilante justice? I think that it is because someone does exactly what we are thinking should be done or we would like to do, ourselves. Also, vigilante justice in the movies is often portrayed as sticking up for ones that cannot stick up for themselves. If you are like me, then you enjoy rooting for the underdog.
Death Wish is about a doctor who decides to take matters into his own hands after an attack on his family. He decides to find the men responsible and serve up his own form of vigilante justice.
The movie was directed by Eli Roth and the noteworthy cast includes Bruce Willlis, Vincent D’Onofrio, Elisabeth Shue, Dean Norris, Camila Morrone, Beau Knapp, Kimberly Elise, Len Cariou, Jack Kesy, and Ronnie Gene Blevins.
I am not usually one to be into remakes. It seems like Hollywood remakes or reboots just about everything these days. Often, I say leave well enough alone, but sometimes the right remake idea comes along and the right actor is cast in the lead role.
In this case, Willis was very fitting for the role in Death Wish. It was his best performance since Looper (2012). He has been making a lot of B-rated straight to DVD movies lately, so it is nice to see him return to his former glory. I am glad to see that he has not gone the way of Nicolas Cage (spitting out one piece of trash after the next). Death Wish is a one-man-show and Bruce was clearly up for the task.
This movie is a scary concept because of how realistic it is. What I mean by that is that it shows just how worthless the police department and justice system can be sometimes. Too often, it is the people that deserve to see justice be done, that are the ones stuck without any justice at all. It also goes to show just how vulnerable we all are.
The likable Dean Norris has quickly been typecast as the police or detective type thanks to the success of the television series Breaking Bad. His part in this movie is good, but it does quickly make you think of Breaking Bad.
There are a few noticeable gruesome scenes in this movie that had Roth’s signature all over it. So far, I believe that this film is Roth’s best work as a director. He did a terrific job setting the tone of Death Wish and sticking with it throughout.
It has been a very long time since I have seen the original Death Wish (1974), but watching this version has made me want to go back and watch the original sometime soon. The new film is a quality remake done with today’s technology. The original movie is now 44 years old and it shows its age.
This movie is a murky suspense/thriller with good old fashioned popcorn-popping action. Willis as the protagonist doing bad for good reasons will keep you on the edge of your seat hoping that justice gets done.
I rate this movie an 8 on a scale of 1-10.
If you liked this film then you might also enjoy:
Death Wish (1974)
Death Sentence (2007)
The Brave One (2007)
Man on Fire (2004)
The Equalizer (2014)
The Punisher (2004)
Sin City (2005)
Harry Brown (2009)
RED (2010)
John Wick (2014)
John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)
Defendor (2009)
Prisoners (2013)
Prisoners (2013)
Before seeing Prisoners, I guaranteed to people that it would be good. Sometimes it is as if I just know. I did not have any doubts about this movie at all. I am not narcissistic. I just sort of have a sixth sense. I am like Haley Joel Osment’s character in The Sixth Sense (1999). However, instead of seeing dead people, I see good movies.
Can’t you just hear me whispering softly? “I see good movies.”
Bruce Willis responds, “In your dreams?”
I shake my head no.
“While you’re awake?”
I nod.
“Good movies like, in graves? In coffins?”
“Walking around like regular movies. They don’t see each other. They only see what they want to see. They don’t know they’re good.”
Bruce Willis asks, “How often do you see them?”
I whisper, “All the time. They’re everywhere.”
Prisoners is about two little girls who go missing. Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) is the father of one of the girls. He will stop at nothing to find out who took his daughter and will do whatever is necessary to get her back.
The movie was directed by Denis Villeneuve and the rest of the noteworthy cast includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Terrance Howard, Maria Bello, Melissa Leo, Viola Davis, Paul Dano, Wayne Duvall, Len Cariou, David Dastmalchian, and Dylan Minnette.
Prisoners was gripping. It did not take long to pull me in to the disturbingly chilling story. It’s the next day and I’m still thinking about the film.
It should go without saying that it’s not exactly a feel good movie. Two little girls disappear. There is nothing good about that. Because of the subject matter, some aspects of the film are hard to like. However, the film was so well-made that it doesn’t pull any punches, and rightfully so. You have to see the bad in order to appreciate the good.
The movie is brutally violent and gory. There is plenty of language and blood. It captures the eeriness of the twisted plot perfectly.
Jackman plays a broken man who does not hesitate to do whatever is necessary to get his daughter back. His performance was excellent. It might be his best and more realistic role yet. It is Hugh Jackman unplugged like you haven’t seen him before.
Gyllenhaal plays the detective on the case. He is obsessed with his job and has solved every case that he has been assigned to. He is not about to fail now. This movie is equally Gyllenhaal’s movie as much as it is Jackman’s.
The rest of the supporting cast all play their parts well and Leo stands out among them.
The film is just over two and a half hours long, but I was so in to it that I did not notice. Time flies when you’re have fun, or watching a good movie. Prisoners never gets boring. It absorbs you and keeps you guessing until the end.
Jackman, Gyllenhaal, and Leo all gave Oscar worthy performances and the film itself is the best movie that I have seen so far this year.
I rate this movie a 9 on a scale on 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
If you liked Prisoners, then you will probably enjoy:
Mystic River (2003)
Bullet to the Head (2012)
Bullet to the Head (2012)
This is another movie that I skipped seeing in the theatre because I was uncertain that the aging main character could make the movie worth watching.
The senior action movie stars keep making movies and I think that audiences are beginning to question whether or not these old guys are just too old for the parts that they are playing. In this case, Sylvester Stallone is the main character.
Earlier this year Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger were in similar situations respectively; Willis in A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) and Schwarzenegger in The Last Stand (2013) .
I respect my elders, and these guys rule! However, if they keep making action films, I will probably keep waiting until those movies are released on DVD before I watch them. (Bruce Willis is the younger of the mentioned bunch, but can still be questionable.) There are always exceptions, but right off the bat, their old age is not working in their favor.
Stallone has had the right idea by bringing all of the old geezers together for his Expendables movies, but in this day and age, if there is one old headliner then it better be in the right movie.
All 3 movies mentioned lost a lot of money:
The Last Stand (2013) lost 18 million dollars.
A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) lost 25 million dollars.
Bullet to the Head (2012) lost 46 million dollars.
Bullet to the Head is about a ruthless hit man (Sylvester Stallone) who goes on a rampage tracking down the men responsible for the murder of his partner in crime. He is a one-man wrecking ball out for revenge. Along the way, he teams up with a cop who happens to be tracking the same people.
The film was directed by Walter Hill and the rest of the noteworthy cast includes Sung Kang, Jason Momoa, Christian Slater, Jon Seda, Sarah Shahi, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Holt McCallany, and Brian Van Holt.
Like the title suggests, Bullet to the Head brutally gets to the point early on and the graphic violence continues throughout.
The film is fast-paced and loaded with tons of great and for the most part, believable action.
The movie very much deserves the R-rating as there is a lot of language, nudity, and very realistic blood and guts. There are in fact, many people that end up taking a bullet to the head and or the rest of their body.
As with most action movies, not all of the characters get fully developed, but the action and witty dialogue make up for what is missing.
The film accomplished what it set out to do and that was to be explosive.
Even at his age, Stallone carries himself well in perhaps his most gruesome role yet. He is a stone cold, no nonsense, sarcastically funny killer. It’s almost like he flipped a switch and became somebody else. The rest of the cast is likable, but Stallone takes over and makes it a one-man show.
Compared to The Last Stand and A Good Day to Die Hard, in my opinion, Bullet to the Head is the better film. Ironically it lost a lot more money than the other movies and it was probably the most underrated of the bunch. Stallone also gave a better performance than Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
If you enjoy rooting for the bad guy, then this film is for you.
I rate this movie an 8 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent or run? Buy.
A Good Day to Die Hard (2013)
A Good Day to Die Hard (2013)
I had not heard any good things about this film prior to watching it. However, I started watching the movie without any high expectations. I heard people say that it was the fakest movie in the whole series. I heard people say that it was the worst Die Hard yet. My question that I have for those people is what did you expect? This is the fifth Die Hard movie. It’s the fifth one! To put that into perspective, the original Die Hard (1988) was 25 years ago. I was 2 years old when that came out and Ronald Reagan was the President. It was 2 years until they made the second film. The next film was 5 years later, then 12, and now 6 years after that. Willis has played the same character for 25 years and you wonder why A Good Day to Die Hard was not as good as the others?
In this fifth installment of the Die Hard Series, John McClane (Willis) travels to Russia to confront his troubled son Jack, (Jai Courtney) whom he doesn’t know is an undercover CIA agent on a mission. John unknowingly ruins Jack’s mission and the two are forced to work together to try to repair the damage done.
The film was directed by John Moore, and the rest of the noteworthy cast includes Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Yuliya Snigir, Rasha Bukvic, Cole Hauser, and Amaury Nolasco.
Over the last 25 years, Die Hard movies have become an American tradition. They are filled with action so far-out, intense, and convenient that it’s unbelievable. However, the beautiful destruction, explosions, slow-motion debris dodging, and endless one-liners from Willis is enough to keep us entertained.
A Good Day to Die Hard follows in the footsteps of its ancestors, sort of. The action is just as incredible, but far more convenient and therefore way less realistic. The destruction is pretty, but not as glorious. There are still explosions and tons of debris and Willis still has the best one-liners.
Besides Willis, the film lacks credible big name stars. It felt like the movie was made just to make another Die Hard film. Everyone just kind of went through the motions and parts of the movie felt like a satire of itself. The McClane family kept referring to how they do this stuff all of the time. The film made fun of itself and all that succeeded in doing was to help bring the movie down a notch.
With the addition of Courtney, the film is a father and son shoot-em-up adventure that is still worth the rental, if only to carry on the Die Hard tradition. It’s good for a few chuckles. Besides self-destruction, the movie still has some entertaining gun fights and plenty of stuff blows up.
I rate this movie a 6 on scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Rent.
If you liked A Good Day to Die Hard, then you will probably enjoy:
Red 2 (2013)
Red 2 (2013)
After how awesome Red (2010) was, I thought for sure that Red 2 could never live up to its predecessor.
Frank Moses (Bruce Willis) is a retired CIA agent who cannot seem to stay retired from mayhem. In this sequel to Red (2010), Moses bands together with a group of friends who also happen to be misfit murderers, in order to try to track down a missing nuke.
The film was directed by Dean Parisot and the rest of the noteworthy cast includes John Malkovich, Mary-Louise Parker, Helen Mirren, Anthony Hopkins, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Byung-hun Lee, Neal McDonough, David Thewlis, Tim Pigott Smith, and Brian Cox.
In Red (2010) Malkovich completely stole the show. He was quirky and hilarious. He was the reason why the movie was so funny and probably the biggest contributor to its success. I assumed that I was in for a disappointment when I walked into Red 2. How could they possibly top the original? I think that I was not alone with this question because Red 2 did not do as well in theatres as it should have over the weekend.
Rarely does a sequel ever top the original and rarely is a sequel ever as good as the original. Well folks, I am here to tell you that Red 2 is almost as good as the original, if not as good. The acting was excellent, the action was thrilling, and the movie was hysterical.
I’m not sure how they pulled it off, but John Malkovich was just as funny in Red 2 as he was in Red. He might have even been funnier.
Zeta-Jones, Hopkins, and McDonough were all nice additions to the already spectacular cast.
The chemistry between Willis and Parker was priceless. There is a lot more humor between the duo now that their characters are an established couple.
The film was fast-paced and everything flowed nicely. It was all quick and to the point with never a dull moment. It might just be the action/comedy of the year.
If you thought that Red was great, do yourself a favor and go out and see Red 2. As sequels go, this one does not disappoint.
I rate this movie a 9 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
If you liked Red 2, then you will probably enjoy:
Trailer for Red 2 (2013)
Red 2 (2013) (Click on the title for my full review.)
Frank Moses (Bruce Willis) is a retired CIA agent who cannot seem to stay retired from mayhem. In this sequel to Red (2010), Moses bands together with a group of friends who also happen to be misfit murderers, in order to try to track down a missing nuke.
The film is directed by Dean Parisot and the rest of the notable cast includes John Malkovich, Helen Mirren, Mary-Louise Parker, Anthony Hopkins, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Neal McDonough, and Byung-hun Lee.
If Red 2 is half as good as Red, it will be worth seeing. It should be full of laughs and plenty of good action.
The film is set to release on 7/19/13.
Top 13 Disappointing Current Redbox Movies
Top 13 Disappointing Current Redbox Movies
There are many terrible movies out there. I have avoided renting movies at the Redbox just because they looked bad. You know which ones that I’m talking about. The ones that rip off movies that are actually popular by giving them similar titles and making the cover art look remarkably alike, but are actually knock offs that nobody should have to suffer through. That being said, there are probably worse movies at the Redbox than what are on my list. My list however, is a compilation of movies that actually looked like they could be good in one way or another. Something about these movies made me go to the theatre and watch them, or go to the Redbox and rent them. I made this list to save you time and money. Don’t get duped like I did. They might have a good cast. They might look funny. They might look scary. They might look intense and full of good action. They might look like they have a nice touching story. They are none of those things (well, sometimes except for the cast). They are poor excuses for movies. Stay far away from these awful creations.
With my list I have included the cover art to the movies, so that you know exactly what to avoid. I have not posted any trailers, because you don’t even want to waste your time with those. They will trick you. I have also listed my ratings of each movie. My ratings are on a scale of 1-10. My full review will be available for some of the movies. If the title is highlighted, then you can click on it for my full review.
I do not claim to have seen all of the movies that are currently available to rent at the Redbox, but I have seen 76 of them. Of those 76 movies, my Top 13 Disappointing Current Redbox Movies are:
1. V/H/S (2012) My rating: 1
4. Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012)
6. The Man with the Iron Fists (2012) My rating: 3
7. Silent Hill: Revelation (2012) My rating: 3
8. Deadfall (2012) My rating: 4
10. The Liability (2012) My rating: 4.5
11. Lay the Favorite (2012) My rating: 4.5
12. The Cold Light of Day (2012) My rating: 4.5
13. That’s My Boy (2012) My rating: 5
Now that you know what movies to avoid, Check out my other Redbox related material. Click on the links below:
Current Redbox Movie Reviews September 2013
Current Redbox Movie Reviews August 2013
Current Redbox Movie Reviews July 2013
Top 13 Current Redbox Movies Vol. 2
Top 13 Current Redbox Movies Vol. 3
Top 13 Current Redbox Movies Vol. 4
Are you a fan of Netflix? Click on the following links below for Netflix related material:
Netflix Watch Instantly Movie Reviews September 2013
20 Best Drama Movies Based on Real Life Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
20 Best Classics Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Mind-bending Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Comedy Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Romantic Comedy Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best War/Military Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Gritty Action/Thriller Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
Happy Movie Watching!
Top 13 Current Redbox Movies Vol. 2
Top 13 Current Redbox Movies Vol. 2
If you are thinking about renting a movie from the Redbox, you might want to read this list to help you decide exactly which movie to rent.
Here is another edition of my top 13 current Redbox movies, back by popular demand.
Click on this link to read Current Redbox Movie Reviews September 2013
Click on this link to read Current Redbox Movie Reviews August 2013
Click on this link to read Current Redbox Movie Reviews July 2013
Click on this link to read Vol. 1 from 2/10/13.
Click on this link to read Vol. 3 from 4/21/13.
Click on this link to read Vol. 4 from 5/9/13.
I have updated the list based on all the movies that are currently available to rent at the Redbox as of 3/14/13. They will change some of the titles weekly, but the list should still be pretty accurate for a while and hopefully be able to help you find a good movie to rent. I have included the DVD covers and previews. If a movie doesn’t have a cover or preview above it, simply click on the title for my full review of the movie along with the poster artwork and preview.
I do not claim to have seen all of the movies that are currently available at the Redbox, but I have seen 67 of them. Of those 67 movies, here is the list of my top 13 Current Redbox movies:
1. What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993) My Rating: 10
3. Ted (2012)
4. The Dark Knight Rises (2012) My Rating: 9
5. The Raid: Redemption (2011)
8. Looper (2012) My Rating: 8.5
9. Titanic (1997) My Rating: 8.5
11. Flight (2012)
12. Sinister (2012)
13. Moneyball (2011) My Rating: 8
You really can’t go wrong with any movie on this list. Next time you’re going to the Redbox, I recommend consulting this list. They are in my opinion, the best current Redbox movies.
Now that you have seen my recommended Redbox movies, check out my list of movies to stay away from. Click on the link below:
Top 13 Disappointing Current Redbox Movies
Are you a fan of Netflix? Click on the following links below for Netflix related material:
Netflix Watch Instantly Movie Reviews September 2013
20 Best Drama Movies Based on Real Life Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
20 Best Classics Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Mind-bending Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Comedy Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Romantic Comedy Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best War/Military Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Gritty Action/Thriller Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
Top 13 Current Redbox Movies
Top 13 Current Redbox Movies
Having trouble deciding which movie to rent at the Redbox? This list just might help you make a good decision on what to rent. Hopefully it will save you from wasting your money renting a bad movie.
Along with my list, I have given my rating and a “Quickie” review.
Quickie review = A film review in 13 words or less. If a title does not have a quickie review then you may click on it for my full review.
I cannot say that I have seen all of the movies that are currently available at the Redbox, but I have seen 62 of them. Of those 62 titles, here are my top 13 favorite movies that are currently available at the Redbox:
Rank Title 13movies Rating
1. What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? (1993) 10
Quickie: Johnny Depp excellent! Young Leonardo DiCaprio maybe even better. Fun, touching, drama. Great!
2. The Machinist (2004) 10
3. Ted (2012) 9
4. The Dark Knight Rises (2012) 9
Quickie: A grand final chapter in the Christopher Nolan directed Batman Trilogy. Epic film.
5. The Raid: Redemption (2011) 9
6. Looper (2012) 8.5
Quickie: Joseph Gordon-Levitt + = Bruce Willis in a time travel thriller puzzle.
7. Titanic (1997) 8.5
Quickie: Who hasn’t seen this? Ship sink. Dreadful historical event. Well made recreation. Iceberg.
8. Frankenweenie (2012) 8.5
9. Flight (2012) 8
10. Moneyball (2011) 8
Quickie: Brad Pitt spectacular performance! Jonah Hill proves acting capable. Interesting, solid baseball story.
11. Men in Black 3 (2012) 8
Quickie: As good as 1. Josh Brolin as Tommy Lee Jones. Will Smith reloaded.
12. Total Recall (2012) 8
Quickie: Colin Farell in updated Schwarzenegger role. More fun than original. Kate Beckinsale badass!
13. Lawless (2012) 8
Quickie: Shia LaBeouf gets big. Tom Hardy tough. Jessica Chastain shows, proves herself. Bootleggers.
Those are in my opinion the best movies that are currently at the Redbox.
If you would like to read Top 13 Current Redbox Movies Vol. 2, click on this link. from 3/14/13
Click on this link for Vol. 3. from 4/21/13
Click on this link for Vol. 4. from 5/9/13
Now that you have seen my recommended Redbox movies, check out my list of movies to stay away from. Click on the link below:
Top 13 Disappointing Current Redbox Movies
Here is how the rest of the movies currently at the Redbox that I have seen rate:
21 Jump Street (2012) 8
Quickie: Hilarious Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill buddy cop comedy. One of funniest movies 2012.
The Grey (2011) 8
Quickie: Liam Neeson fighting wolves bare-handed after a plane crash in Alaska. Period.
Dark Shadows (2012) 8
Quickie: Johnny Depp as a vampire in a comedy. Rarely does he disappoint.
The Dictator (2012) 8
Quickie: Sacha Baron Cohen’s funniest movie ever. All levels of humor and raunch. Absurdity.
War of the Worlds (2005) 8
Quickie: Tom Cruise fighting aliens to try to save the world. Steven Spielberg directs.
.
The Bourne Identity (2002) 7.5
Quickie: Matt Damon gets amnesia. He gets chased not knowing why. He fights back.
Seven Psychopaths (2012) 7.5
Quickie: Sam Rockwell steals the show. Witty, dark comedy. Clever characters. Great dialogue!
Trouble with the Curve (2012) 7.5
Quickie: Amy Adams helps aging father Clint Eastwood try to keep baseball scout job.
The Bourne Legacy (2012) 7
Quickie: Jeremy Renner replaces Matt Damon in the series and is more qualified.
Safe House (2012) 7
Quickie: Ryan Reynolds tries to take fugitive Denzel Washington down. Good action. Good twists.
Paranorman (2012) 7
Quickie: PG Suggested. Delightful animated story about a kid who sees the dead. Amusing.
The Watch (2012) 7
Quickie: Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, hysterical buddy comedy about aliens at Costco.
A Christmas Carol (2009) 7
Quickie: Amazing animation retelling of a classic story and voiced by Jim Carrey.
Alex Cross (2012) 7
Quickie: Tyler Perry plays a game of cat and mouse with Matthew Fox.
Arthur Christmas (2011) 7
Quickie: Family friendly animated Christmas movie. Fun to watch around the holidays. Unique.
Seeking Justice (2011) 7
Quickie: Nicolas Cage wife assaulted. Guy Pierce help. Rift after favor not returned. Solid.
Brake (2012) 7
Quickie: Stephen Dorff kidnapped for information about the president. Won’t give up. Tense. Exciting.
Dredd (2012) 6.5
The Words (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Bradley Cooper plagiarizes a story and it comes back to haunt him.
The Campaign (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Will Farrell runs against Zach Galifianakis. Dirty politics and humor ensue.
The Expendables 2 (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Sylvester Stallone brings action hero friends back together for round 2 of battle.
Premium Rush (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Joseph Gordon-Levitt freestyle fast and furious bicycle messenger hide and seek
Wanderlust (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Jennifer Aniston, Paul Rudd turn into tree hugging hippies. Funny moments. Tacky moments.
The Raven (2012) 6.5
Quickie: John Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe investigating crimes that he wrote. Good enough.
The Ghost and the Darkness (1996) 6.5
Quickie: Michael Douglas and Val Kilmer try to slay lions while lions slay others.
Why Stop Now (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Jesse Eisenberg tries to drug free mother and get into music school. Laughs.
People like us (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Dysfunctional drama. Lost siblings try to find each other after father’s death.
Red Lights (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Robert De Niro has mind powers. Cillian Murphy Disagrees. Their minds tango.
American Reunion (2012) 6.5
Quickie: One sequel too many. Funny parts. Same old story. Slight variation. Decent enough.
A Thousand Words (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Eddie Murphy shares life with tree. He speaks, leaves fall. Comical and stupid.
Being Flynn (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Robert De Niro, Paul Dano bad father son relationship. They both write.
Spider-Man (2002) 6.5
Quickie: Tobey McGuire and Kirsten Dunst are unpleasant. Spiderman is okay. Other cast helps.
The Avengers (2012) 6.5
Quickie: Cool Special effects technology. Robert Downey Jr. carries the movie on his back.
The Expendables (2010) 6
Quickie: Too many action heroes take away from plot. Fun to watch though.
Officer Down (2013) 6
Quickie: Stephen Dorff tries to repair his life after being a dirty cop. Mediocre.
The Three Stooges (2012) 6
Quickie: Great impressions of original stooges. Especially Curly. Humorous at times.
Get the Gringo (2012) 6
Quickie: Mel Gibson goes to Mexican prison. Trying getting out is the fun part.
Savages (2012) 6
Quickie: Benicio Del Toro and John Travolta make movie better.
The Liability (2012) 5.5
Quickie: Tim Roth is fun as a hit man. Film dwindles halfway through.
That’s My Boy (2012) 5
Quickie: Bad movie that gets better towards the end.
All about Steve (2009) 5
Quickie: Sandra Bullock is funny at times.
Tropic Thunder (2008) 4.5
Quickie: Robert Downey Jr. is a riot as a black guy.
Jeff, Who Lives at Home (2011) 4
Quickie: The title says it all and that’s about it.
In Bruges (2008) 2
Quickie: The only thing worse are the 2 movies below this one.
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012) 2
Are you a fan of Netflix? Click on the following links below for Netflix related material:
Netflix Watch Instantly Movie Reviews September 2013
20 Best Drama Movies Based on Real Life Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
20 Best Classics Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Mind-bending Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Comedy Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Romantic Comedy Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best War/Military Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
13 Best Gritty Action/Thriller Movies Available on Netflix Watch Instantly
Dredd (2012)
Dredd (2012)
Clever, yet cheesy and intriguing artistic special effects give Dredd a late 1980s or early 90s feel. This is fitting and obviously intentional because Dredd (2012) is sort of a remake of Judge Dredd (1995). The distant future in Dredd (2012) feels similar to what filmmakers in the 80s and 90s thought the distant future would be like. So, in a sense, the movie takes you back in time but to their future.
The entire film seems to be a satire on the action movie era during the time when Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis ruled the genre. No acting skills are necessary, only gratuitous amounts of bloody, gory violence, corny one-liners, and an endless supply of bullets. Of course, the main characters are severely outnumbered and always appear to be bulletproof, while countless numbers of bad guys get obliterated. It is absolutely a popcorn movie.
It was mildly humorous, but quite entertaining throughout to watch a movie that mocked it’s out genre. It’s almost as if the creators wanted to prove that they could do a better job at 80s and 90s filmmaking than the actual filmmakers of the 80s and 90s. Adding a little twist to that concept, the movie went back and forth between cheap special effects and present day awesome special effects.
The cheap technology was used during most of the very gruesome scenes and as a result, those scenes were easier for the viewer to watch because the overuse of blood and gore would make the scene look pretty fake. There was the occasional scene that looked awfully realistic and it would sort of sneak up on you.
The main character (Judge Dredd) was played by Karl Urban, but it didn’t really matter because he wore a mask the entire movie and you never saw his face. Anybody could have been under that mask. Urban did supply his character with a high-quality tough guy voice, to his credit. Have you ever heard of the guy though? Me neither. He is a character actor whom I would recognize, but has never been important enough to remember.
I think that Dredd is worth watching as long as you know what you are getting yourself into. Don’t expect much and you might be pleasantly surprised. It’s not great, but it is enjoyable.
I rate this movie a 6.5 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Rent.
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