American Hustle

I had no idea what to expect heading into this movie except tat it is getting Oscar buzz and was set in the 70's.  The hairstyles (feathering and perms/rollers) and costumes were fun to watch and the one scene dancing at Studio 54 was also fun.  If you like mafia/hustler movies and like thinking while watching movies to follow the plot and/or try to figure out who's hustling whom then this is your movie.  Christian Bale envelopes himself in the role of Irving by gaining weight and using a hairpiece along with wonderful acting.

Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence are my two favorite young actresses in movies.  

Amy's repertoire  is so diverse as she can act successfully in any role and continues that trend in this movie.  On a side note, she didn't wear a bra throughout the movie which was distracting to me.  I wouldn't consider this one of her best though, it felt like she was doing this for a friend not for the role--except for one scene where she and Jennifer exchange evil eyes at each other which was priceless.

Jennifer takes any role and plays strong characters so well, everyone remembers her afterwards even in a supporting role such as this one.  She also appeared to really enjoy herself in this role which made to enjoyable to watch too.

Overall, I give this a one and a half thumbs up in enjoyment, great ensemble acting and interesting story--even at over 2 1/2 hours, it didn't drag out.

12 Years A Slave

This movie is based on the true story of Solomon Northup, a man born in upstate New York and raised as a free man whom was later kidnapped and drugged then sold into slavery.  Chiwetel Ejiofor stars as Solomon and portrays Solomon as scared, smart and strong.

I can't even imagine the fear and loneliness from being taken from your family (in this case, his wife and two children) and thrust into a world where you property instead of a person.

This is an amazing story that in my humble opinion, more accurately depicts the plight of the black man in our nation's history than Django Unchained and The Butler combined.  This movie has "stars" (Brad Pitt, Paul Giamatti, etc.) but the story is strong enough that you may recognize an actor but it doesn't pull your attention away from the movie.  Speaking of Brad Pitt, that was the only negative thing in this movie as it felt like he was there to lecture rather than to be a real character in the movie.  I did like his message though.

There are a few graphic violent scenes but everyone from high school age and above should see this movie and learn from it.  There is no good reason for slavery to ever have existed and oppression still goes on today.

I give this two thumbs up to recognize our need to celebrate our differences and respect that each one of us are unique individuals who deserve to be treated equally no matter the difference in race, creed, gender or sexual orientation.

Philomena

This movie based on the Martin Sixsmith book, "The Lost Child of Philomena Lee" stars the incomparable, Dame Judi Dench in the title role.  She is an amazing actress in ANY film that she acts.

Steve Coogan co-wrote the screenplay and stars as the reporter Martin Sixsmith.  He is a political journalist who doesn't write human interest stories but somehow gets intrigued about Philomena's story.

Philomena is a widow woman and devout catholic with a grown daughter who cannot stop thinking about her son that was taken from her when she was a young girl living in an Ireland convent.

The story is masterfully done with good comic bits and drama without being melodramatic.  The chemistry between Steve Coogan and Judi Dench was amazing to watch; they obviously are friends off-camera.  This movie really makes a person think about the power that the Catholic church has at orphanages and convents. The way the Catholic church arguably thinks more about making money than caring about the individual person and historically speaking, the lesser-class women of society makes for an interesting conversation to come out of seeing this movie.

I give this a one and a half thumb up in praise for all things Dench.

Honor Flight

What a great way to spend Veteran's Day, watching a documentary about the start-up of an honor flight in Milwaukee.  A lot of the World War 2 veterans, are dying off and a group of people join together to raise money to fly them free to Washington DC to see the WWII memorial before they pass.  This shows the dedication of the volunteers and the sacrifices of the servicemen and their families.

This was poorly publicized and therefore had a poor turnout.  This should have been a sell-out, as the least we could do for the men laying their lives and livelihood on the line for our freedom.

I was moved to tears more then once watching this film from 2012.  I appreciate more then I can express in words all of our veterans, especially my paternal uncle who was able to fly on the Badger honor flight on 5/18/13 in recognition for his service in the Korean War.

I whole-heartedly give this two thumbs up in honor, appreciation and love for all the serviceman and women (and their families) who make this country the great United States of America.

Jackass: Bad Grandpa

Yes, I paid money to watch this movie.  Yes, I actually have watched and enjoyed the other Jackass movies too.  I feel that watching these type of movies and the idiotic stunts that these "actors" put themselves through provide just as much entertainment as any of the so-called reality shows so prevalent on TV.

Bad Grandpa is different than the other Jackass movies in that this actually has a plot.  It follows a grandpa trying to get his grandson to the boy's father so that he can date after his wife dies.  OK, I never said the plot was great, just that there was one.

This movie has funny scenes and the typical Jackass crass scenes but it was an interesting way to film a movie with limited actors and mostly real people in fake situations.  Jackson Nicoll shows that he is an up and coming actor at the tender age of  10 even in scenes that are arguably too old for him.

I give this one thumb up for the IQ needed by the viewer to watch this movie.

The Shining

Twenty three years ago, Stanley Kubrick co-wrote and directed The Shining, based on the legendary horror author, Steven King's book.  I have not read the book nor seen the movie until now.  I typically do not watch horror movies.  The Shining seems to be on many top movie lists including one of the top movie quotes, "Heeere's Johnny!" so when Sundance offered a chance to watch this movie on the big screen, I couldn't pass it up.

When you are watching a movie and commenting about pay phones, cigarette machines and other items from 'way back in the 80's' instead of being sucked into the story of the movie, it does not bode well.  Jack Nicholson is a wonderful actor but Shelley Duvall is a better supporting actress (see the movie Roxanne) than lead actress as she is in this movie.  To digress, NOBODY could have played Olive Oyl better in the film Popeye the same year as The Shining, so I retract the comment about not being a good lead actress.  Danny Lloyd plays the son who famously utters another top movie quote, "redrum, redrum" is even a better actor.  Scatman Crothers plays arguably the best character in the film.

As supposed classics go, I didn't feel scared at the horror except perhaps the one scene (SPOILER) where Scatman dies.

I give this two half thumbs up to run to the library to grab the original book by Steven King to read instead of watching this movie.

Enough Said

This ended up being James Gandolfini's last film and what a film to conclude a too-shortened career. He stars with Julia Louis-Dreyfus as a couple exploring a relationship.  I never watched Seinfeld nor The Sopranos so was not a huge fan of either actor.  They were both wonderful.  James was like a big teddy bear who can be gruff if pushed to the edge while dealing with an ex-wife and daughter about to go away to college.  Julia was not the comedian that I have come to expect but was lovely in her portrayal of a woman also about to enter the empty nest part of her life.  The supporting cast was wonderful except for the character of James' daughter, who was a b***h then tried to be nice too quickly and too late.

I give this a one and a half thumb up pointing to James in heaven, possibly being nominated for a posthumous Oscar?!!?