TWIN CITIES LIVE--October 10, 2014

TWIN CITIES LIVE
October 10, 2014

This week we had three very different movies that talked about the power of family.

1. THE JUDGE, Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Robert Duvall, Very Farmiga
2. ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY, Starring: Steve Carell, Jennifer Garner, Ed Oxenbould
3. NEIGHBORS, Starring: Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, Zac Efron, Dave Franco

Here's the video:



Video courtesy of Twin Cities Live/KSTP



You can find all of my past segments HERE.

As always, thank you so much for watching and your continual support. I truly appreciate it!

Movie Review: THE JUDGE

THE JUDGE
Director: David Dobkin
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Robert Duvall, Vera Farmiga, Billy Bob Thornton, Vincent D'Onofrio, Jeremy Strong, Dax Shepard, Leighton Meester, David Krumholtz, Ken Howard

Tony Stark vs. Tom Hagen. Robert Downey Jr. vs Robert Duvall. They lead an all-star cast in the family legal drama, The Judge. Hank Palmer is that hotshot big city lawyer that never loses a case. As you’ve seen in the trailer, he’s so cocky he pees on his assistant (Krumholtz). Just before they are about to hear a verdict, he gets the dreaded phone call informing him that his mother has passed away. He drives back to his small hometown to be with his brothers (D’Onofrio and Strong) and their father Judge Joseph Palmer (Duvall).

Hank’s trip back home takes another turn when his father is accused of allegedly hitting and killing a man with his car. The man just happens to be someone he once presided over in court. There is blood on his car and all the evidence points back to him directly, but Judge Palmer has no recollection of the incident. Despite the fact that Hank and his father have a very fractured relationship, he takes on the task of being his father’s lead attorney. It’s a huge case that could kill and destroy the strong reputation his father once had as being the top judge in the city. To make matters worse, Judge Palmer has been hiding the fact that he has stage four cancer. Hank is going through his own issues as he is in the early stages of getting a divorce from his wife.

This film has all the right ingredients to be a powerful story, but it falls so flat that it’s a real wonder why such a dynamic cast signed on for such a lousy script. It’s co-written by first timer Bill Dubuque and Nick Schenk (Gran Torino). There’s a very generic wash over it that feels like they wanted to do a legal drama but didn’t have enough experience with the law or the court to write it with some intelligence behind it. I felt like they watched some old episodes of Law & Order just to get some of the basic legal jargon down. I’ve seen better writing on an hour-long TNT drama. At a very long run time of two hours and twenty minutes, there is an abundance of characters and side stories that completely over stuff the movie and take away from the father/son conflict at its core. Hank is the only character that seems to be given this massive back story that doesn’t really serve a purpose. He has a wife that he is divorcing and a daughter that he brings with him back home. There is also the old flame (Farmiga) and a bartender (Meester) that come into play. I love Vera Farmiga dearly, but her storyline with Downey is a prime example of a sub-plot that takes up too much time. Dax Shepard plays the dim-witted attorney that is also working on the Judge Palmer case. Again, there are scenes and bits with him that take up too much time. His sole purpose seems to be just to provide some laughs as the “much needed” comedic character. It’s a script that’s bursting with clichés and not-so-surprising revelations that many of these supporting characters fall victim to this and feel like generic characters you would find in a “how to write a family legal drama” manual.

The Judge is the first film for Robert Downey Jr.’s new production company Team Downey. It’s evident that he wanted to tackle a different character than Iron Man or Sherlock Holmes as he has been stuck in those franchises for the past decade. While I applaud the effort and desire, I couldn’t help but feel like he was just playing Tony Stark (Iron Man’s alter ego) the whole time. This character is another arrogant and hot-tempered individual like Stark.  I could hear him reverting back to old vocal cadences he’s used as Stark. He’s not the only character like this in the movie. Robert Duvall and Vincent D’Onofrio have their bullheaded moments as well. Too many hot tempers flare up with too many father/son meltdown scenes when it just feels like forced drama that is easy to write to create tension. David Dobkin is trying to stretch his range into dramatic territory as he has primarily directed comedies before with Wedding Crashers, Fred Claus, and The Change-Up. He seems a bit out of his league here, and I wish he would have been able to see these actor traits coming out and really challenge Downey and Duvall to try something different.  Instead, he probably just trusted their instincts and took a more back seat approach to shaping some of the scenes.

It is exciting to see Downey and Duvall in their first movie together. Both carry a strong screen presence that should have been exhilarating to watch. With Billy Bob Thornton, Vera Farmiga, and Vincent D’Onofrio joining them, there could have been the potential for it to be a touching movie that really resonated with moviegoers. Instead there is nothing fresh or original at hand when it’s painfully obvious that it’s trying really hard to be just that.

Is It Worth Your Trip to the Movies? No. So many talented actors in such a long, drawn out movie.

RATING: 2 out of 5 TICKET STUBS

Movie Review: CHEF

CHEF
Writer/Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Jon Favreau, Sofia Vergara, Emjay Anthony, John Leguizamo, Bobby Cannavale, Dustin Hoffman, Scarlett Johansson, Robert Downey Jr., Amy Sedaris

Jon Favreau got his big break when he wrote and starred in 1996’s indie hit Swingers. Lately he’s been found in the director’s chair with huge movies like Iron Man, Iron Man 2, and Elf. With Chef, he seems to be returning to his roots by writing, directing, and starring in a film that is far smaller in scale and budget compared to those films.

Favreau sharpens his knife skills as Carl Casper, the head chef at a fine dining restaurant. Carl is starting to lose his creative edge after having to cook the same menu for the last ten years. When a famed foodie blogger (Platt) decides to review the restaurant, Carl wants to try a new menu to liven the place up. The restaurant’s owner (Hoffman) forbids him from changing the menu as this is the menu the customers come to the restaurant for. They don’t come for culinary experiments or highbrow tricks. Carl abides and cooks the standard menu with the help of his sous chef (Cannavale) and line chef (Leguizamo). He receives a scathing review and decides to quit his job at the restaurant.

When you have a passion for something, you don’t let one critic ruin it for you. During a trip to Miami with his ex-wife (Vergara) and son, he decides to reinvent his brand and image by starting a food truck selling Cubanos sandwiches. The food truck goes on the road and becomes a bonding experience for him and his son. Carl teaches him about food, cooking, and living out your passion in life.

Sometimes when you watch a foodie movie, it can be quite apparent if the actors don’t really know how to cook or if they aren’t believable as chefs. Favreau looks quite comfortable with his chef’s apron and knives. He trained under Chef Roy Choi who also served as the inspiration behind the story. He is thought of as one of the founders of the food truck movement. Foodies will love all of the scrumptious shots of all of the food used throughout the movie. I love to cook and bake, so I had audible gasps numerous times and promptly wanted to cook when I got home.

There’s more to the story than just a passionate chef who takes his job seriously. There is a father/son element to it that was really endearing. I give kudos to Favreau for not making Carl a deadbeat dad. So many times when we see a divorced couple that share custody of their child, the dad is usually some loser who can’t take care of the kid, shows up late, forgets a birthday, etc…Carl makes mistakes at times, but there is no denying that he loves his kid. This element of the plot really comes into play when Carl takes his son on the road trip to get the food truck off and running. The film also provides an interesting commentary on the power of social media and the power it has over a business, brand, and image. I wouldn’t be surprised if Twitter and Vine were sponsors of the film for how often they come up in the movie and the impact they have on Carl’s businesses.

The movie is a bit too long and could have trimmed the fat at times. There are many transitional scenes and moments that are unnecessary, especially in the third act once we get into the traveling food truck portion of the story. This tends to happen when people pull double or even triple duty if they are acting, directing, and writing the movie. A good editor needs to come in with a fresh eye. Despite that, Favreau has a wonderful supporting ensemble, many of which he has worked with before. Scarlett Johansson pops up as the restaurant’s waitress. Amy Sedaris is as funny as always in a scene-stealing role as Sofia Vergara’s publicist that could help get Favreau’s career back on track. Favreau’s buddy Robert Downey, Jr even cameos as Vergara’s ex-husband. It’s one of those smaller films that doesn’t have a huge marketing budget and relies on good word of mouth to get people to see it. I hope it becomes a little sleeper hit that doesn’t get lost amongst all of the huge blockbusters that are out. It’s an endearing film for those that couldn’t care less for those superhero movies out there.

Is it worth your trip to the movies? Anyone that loves to cook will enjoy this movie.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 Ticket Stubs

TWIN CITIES LIVE--May 28, 2014

TWIN CITIES LIVE
May 21, 2014

I had an absolute blast today on Twin Cities Live with Elizabeth Ries and guest co-host B.T. from KTWIN.

Here are today's movies and links to my reviews of each film.

1. Chef, starring Jon Favreau, Sofia Vergara, John Leguizamo, Scarlett Johansson
2. X-Men: Days of Future Past, starring Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence
3. Inside Llewyn Davis, starring Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Justin Timberlake, John Goodman

Here's the video:




Video courtesy of Twin Cities Live/KSTP

You can find all of my past segments HERE.

As always, thank you so much for watching and your continual support. I truly appreciate it!

Movie Review: IRON MAN 3

IRON MAN 3
Director: Shane Black
Starring: Robert Downey,Jr., Don Cheadle, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Kingsley, Guy Pearce


Tony Stark (Downey Jr.) should really start keeping tabs on all of the people he may have crossed or ignored in the past. Then again, that list may get way too long. His previous foes, including Obadiah Stane and Ivan Vanko, were previously connected to Tony and his father. Back in 1999, Tony met Aldrich Killian (Pearce) at a New Year’s Eve party but brushed him off and neglected to join him in his business venture, Advanced Idea Mechanics, A.I.M for short. Killian is a scraggly, disabled, and worn down man working with the Extremis virus which gives strength and regenerative treatments to humans.

In present day, Tony is out of sorts often suffering from panic attacks and a lack of sleep due to the alien invasion in New York (see Marvel’s The Avengers for this story). His girlfriend Pepper Potts (Paltrow) who is now the CEO of Stark Industries is worried about him and is growing tired of the consequences of him being Iron Man. To make things even worse, a terrorist by the name of The Mandarin (Kingsley) is sending threatening videos of the destruction he intends to inflect on the United States. It is probably no coincidence that he bears a resemblance to Osama bin Laden. An attack outside Grauman’s Chinese Theatre leaves Tony’s bodyguard Happy (Favreau) badly injured and hospital bound. Tony sends a pretty ballsy message to The Mandarin saying he is not afraid and goes so far as to give his address out over live TV threatening that he is ready for whatever The Mandarin has to offer. The Mandarin sends his team to Tony’s gorgeous Malibu residence and destroys the place. With the help of a ten-year old boy and his friend James Rhodes (Cheadle), who is also suiting up in his own gear as Iron Patriot, Tony sets out to destroy The Mandarin and find out the connection between him and Aldrich Killian.

Black takes over the director’s chair from Jon Favreau who helmed the first two. The series needed a boost of fresh air after Iron Man 2. Fans left quite disappointed as the second film was weak and quite boring compared to the energy of the first one. Downey and Black previously worked together in the noir hit Kiss Kiss Bang Bang so it was reassuring to hear that collaboration would be back as Downey would be particular about who would sign on board for the third entry. Black wrote the film with Drew Pearce and they definitely know how to play to the strengths of these characters and actors. Each actor has great moments to shine without ever feeling like they are wimpy supporting characters in Downey’s movie. There are a few clever little twists thrown in to up the ante for the series and what is to come in the Marvel universe. The film also boasts the addition of the best villain in the series. Ben Kingsley is no stranger to playing the bad guy, but his take on The Mandarin is diabolical, sadistic, and dare I say funny at times. Each of the action sequences and special effects are top notch and impressive. The Iron Man suit alone comes flying onto Tony in various parts that connect all together once they hit his body.

These movies would be nothing without Robert Downey, Jr. I cannot think of another actor that would have taken on this role and given him the dimension he has been able to use with playing Stark. He can play the cocky comedic one-liners in one moment, kick serious ass in the next, and then have touching dramatic scenes with Pepper in an another scene. I would not be as big of a fan of the Iron Man character if it was not for Downey. If this was the last stand-alone Iron Man film, it would end on a high-note. I hope Downey comes back for The Avengers 2, but that will most likely be the last time he dons the Iron Man suit.

It should probably go without saying that you should keep an eye out for the Stan Lee cameo and stay after the credits for the additional fun scene that is always tagged onto Marvel movies. Don’t worry. No spoilers from me on what it entitles! Just trust that it is well worth sitting through the names of hundreds upon hundreds of people involved with the digital effects of the film.

RATING: **** (4 out of 5 stars)

Movie Review: MARVEL'S THE AVENGERS

MARVEL'S THE AVENGERS
Director: Joss Whedon
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Downey Jr.,Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hiddleston

Going into Marvel's The Avengers you know you are in for one wild ride. It feels like one big party with all your best friends. A magical blue cube called The Tesseract is being housed in a research facility. It contains an energy source of unknown power as well as a portal to another universe. After the cube starts giving off extra activity, Nick Fury (Jackson) is flown in to assess the situation. He is the head of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, aka S.H.I.E.L.D. A portal door opens and Loki (Hiddleston), a god from the realm Asgard, appears in hopes to steal the Tesseract. He wants to use it for ultimate universal domination. Loki is Thor's brother and feels burdened with a glorious purpose and wants a world without freedom. He uses mind control over Dr. Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard) and Avenger Hawkeye (Renner) to use them in his plan with the Tesseract. Loki escapes with Selvig, Hawkeye, and the Tesseract leaving the research facility crumbling to the ground after a massive explosion. Nick Fury is able to escape in the nick of time and knows the world is in trouble. He calls upon the Avengers Initiative to try to track down Loki and the Tesseract.

The Avengers Initiative is the idea behind bringing in the best of the best heroes to make up one big team. Tony Stark/Iron Man (Downey Jr.), Bruce Banner/Hulk (Ruffalo), Steven Rogers/Captain America (Evans), Thor (Hemsworth), Hawkeye (Renner), and Black Widow (Johansson) are the chosen ones. Naturally, a room full of superheroes leads to a room full of big egos. They don't all know each other so there isn't a chummy bromance between any of them. Tempers easily flare, names are spewed at each other, and some teasing occurs. Iron Man and Thor have a fantastic battle in the forest which Captain America ends up breaking apart. Bruce Banner and Tony Stark do the initial research on where the Tesseract could be and what Loki's ultimate plan of action entitles. They realize that S.H.I.E.L.D is using the Tesseract's energy to build weapons of mass destruction which does not promote a peaceful environment that they seem to be promoting. After some jabs at each other, they join together and capture Loki, but the Tesseract is nowhere to be found. Capturing Loki is only the first step in defeating him.

There have been many movies adapted from comic books recently. Some have been more successful than others. Some of the Marvel movies with the Avengers characters themselves are hit or miss. The movie does not take it self too seriously that people not knowing the Avengers history could not follow or understand. It has a fairly simple plot that leaves enough room for all of the characters to shine throughout the movie. I've seen too many ensemble movies where there are too many characters used and none of them get their deserved screen time. Joss Whedon wrote and directed this smart and exciting adaptation. Being a comic book fan himself, he is a smart choice to take on such a challenging daunting task of assembling such characters together. The script is full of sharp wit with strong writing for each character. Many of the characters come from different time frames or planets, and the writing caters to the atmosphere and region they come from. Tony Stark's dialogue can be hysterically funny when he is being super cocky and arrogant. All but one of the actors has previously played their superheroes in other movies leading up to this one. Mark Ruffalo is the only actor new to his character. Eric Bana and Edward Norton have previously played the Hulk/Bruce Banner role in other movies. Ruffalo makes a fantastic Banner who plays the two sides to his character extremely well. It is a treat to see the CGI Hulk used well and not feel like a computerized monster. There is a humanity and sense of humor to the Hulk which we have not in the other two movies. Tom Hiddleston is another stand-out as Loki.

The ending is one hell of a treat. It is a huge epic finale bigger than most battle endings. I've seen too many action scenes were the camera work and editing is far too fast and muddled leaving you with a jerky feeling. Whedon and team have a way of making the action sequences clean, crisp, and easy to watch. The 3D seems to really pop in the finale as well. When you have smart writing, terrific character acting, and sharp action sequences, a comic-book movie transcends your normal standards of the genre and elevates the expectations for any Marvel or DC movie to come next.

RATING: ****1/2 (4.5 out of 5 stars)