Starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo,
Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Paul Rudd, Brie Larson,
Karen Gillan, Josh Brolin
Based on the Comic Book by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Jim Starlin
Written by Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely
Cinematography by Trent Opaloch
Edited by Jeffrey Ford, Matthew Schmidt
Produced by Kevin Feige, Jon Favreau, James Gunn, Stan Lee, Victoria Alonso, Trinh Tran
Directed by
Anthony and Joe Russo
Released by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Yup, I saw AVENGERS: ENDGAME again for the third time. So sue me!
Anywho, I thought it would be nice to take my girlfriend to see
it over at the AMC Saratoga 16 as an early Mother's Day night out. We'd
go see a movie, have dinner afterwards, so that was my plan. Now, since
we've been together, I've made it my mission to take her to see every
MCU film in the theaters, and tonight I lived up to my duties as
boyfriend.
But for tonight's screening, we saw the movie in IMAX!! Holy shit what a difference!!
Last year around this time, I took her to see AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR
at the same theater. Needless to say, she was pissed on how that film
ended. That whole week she just tore into that movie, yelling about how
it ended, that Thanos won, and its cliffhanger ending, yeah, she was
pissed. Truth be told, up until that point, I have never heard her cuss
more than see that movie.
After the screening, she was very relieved that everyone came
back, good triumphed over evil, Thanos was snapped out of existence, but
cried when Tony Stark died and his funeral. However, she absolutely
loved the movie! And after that, we had a nice dinner, had some alone
time together, and went home to be with our son.
AVENGERS: ENDGAME is playing in 2D, Real 3D, and in IMAX in theaters nationwide,
including at the AMC Theaters here in the Bay Area. To view
showtimes, visit their website at www.amctheatres.com.
So it’s official; I have seen AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR four times now. This historic event encapsulates my love of this movie. And since it will be coming out on Blu-Ray and DVD before you know it, I thought it would be nice to have my girlfriend finally see it, even though she was way behind seeing all the other MCU films.
So before I took her to see the movie, I had her watch some of the key films that lead into the third installment of the series: CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING, DOCTOR STRANGER, and THOR: RAGNAROK. I was disappointed that she didn’t get to watch BLACK PANTHER, but we ran out of time, and since we hardly ever have time alone, we had a very small window to go out to the theaters. Plus, she had gift cards to the AMC Theaters, so we headed over to the AMC Saratoga 14 to watch this soul crushing installment of the MCU.
*HEADS UP! SO I DIDN’T TELL MY GIRLFRIEND ANYTHING ABOUT THE MOVIE. SO, SHE HAD NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN. FOR MOST OF THE FILM, I WAS WATCHING HER FACIAL EXPRESSIONS AND ENJOYING HER BITTER HATRED FOR THANOS.*
When the movie ended and the screen went black and the credits started to roll, my girlfriend just sat there in her seat, repeating this phrase, "SHUT UP! SHUT UP!! SHUT UP!! THAT’ S HOW THE MOVIE ENDS?!? ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?" Needless to say, she was quite upset, especially since I had her watch all those other MCU films so that she can get to know the characters, storylines, and references. So I think she felt like she was cheated.
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR is playing in 2D, Real 3D, and in IMAX in theaters nationwide,
including at the AMC Theaters here in the Bay Area. To view
showtimes, visit their website at www.amctheatres.com.
Hello and welcome to 2018!! For my first movie of the new year, I decided that I would see a new horror movie! Gee, what a surprise, huh? Shocking, yes I know. But this was a horror movie I've wanting to see since the trailer was released some months ago. So today, I headed on over to the AMC Eastridge 15 to see INSIDIOUS: THE LAST KEY!
The film's official synopsis: In the supernatural thriller, which welcomes back franchise standout Lin
Shaye as Dr. Elise Rainier, the brilliant parapsychologist faces her
most fearsome and personal haunting yet: in her own family home.
Picking up where INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 3 left off, the film once again is a prequel to the first film. Here, we learn more about Elise's early upbringing, her family and her special gift. We are exposed to some really awful truths that prove that monsters do exist in the real world. We learn that her special gift had dire ramifications that took an ugly turn for the worse, which lead to the untimely death of her mother
Audrey (Tessa Ferrer) to her running away from her home and leaving her younger brother Christian (Bruce Davison) to deal with their abusive father Gerald (Josh Stewart). Later in the film, we are introduced to Christian's two daughters
Melissa (Spencer Locke) and
Imogen (Caitlin Gerard), the later who might also be blessed with the same special gift as Elise. Add her two dorky co-workers Tucker and Specs (both Angus Sampson and Leigh Whannell reprising their roles, respectively) as comic reliefs, and you have one of the best casts for a horror film fans of the franchise could ask for! Credit goes to our lead actress Lin Shaye, who at 75 years old, is carrying this series all on her shoulders. That doesn't happen ever in Hollywood, but we in the horror community think she is one hell of an actress! Just think about it: an elderly woman is our main character in a multi-million dollar franchise!! Baffles the mind to those in Hollywood, but Blumhouse (and Jason Blum to some degree) believe in Shaye's acting abilities and believe that this series wouldn't have lasted this long or succeeded as it has without her. And she is just fantastic in the film! Shaye conveys such conviction and believability as Elise that you're invested in her emotionally right from the start of the movie. One of the the most underrated actresses of all time, Lin Shaye deserves an honorary Oscar!! Credit also goes to screenwriter Leigh Whannell for writing a smart, emotional and frightening script. Whannell has written the last movies and directed the third one as well. I really enjoyed the film's story: it had a great, origin story set-up, a great blend of both supernatural and real world scares, and ends it with a very intense and completely horrifying finale. Also, the ending ties in directly with the first film, trying all the loose ends up nicely. To quote the great Sith Lord Darth Vader, "The circle is now complete." Even though the film was only released on Friday, January 5th, the film grossed a staggering $29.268 million over its opening weekend!! It did better than INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 3, which did $22 million in its opening weekend back in 2015. While there's a rumbling about a possible fifth movie, it feels like this was the final one for the series. It ended how it should have and I hope it is left alone. Overall, INSIDIOUS: THE LAST KEY is a supernaturally scary finale to the series and fans will no doubt enjoy it from start to finish! It contains fun and interesting characters, fantastic performances and all the things that make you afraid of the dark! 4 out of 5 stars!! Recommended viewing!!
INSIDIOUS: THE LAST KEYis now currently playing in theaters nationwide, including at the AMC
Theaters here in the Bay Area. To view showtimes, visit their website at
http://www.amctheatres.com.
When one thinks of modern day cult classics, there's one film that rises above them all: THE ROOM. Written, produced, directed and starring Tommy Wiseau, his infamous 2003 work of art is both hilariously awful and deeply personal. It is considered one of the worst films ever made, which sparked midnight screening all across the country. It has gained an almost mythical cult classic status in the last ten years, propelling Tommy Wiseau into a mythical character. To this day we still don't know who he is, how old is he, where does he come from and where he got the money for the movie. It was only a matter of time before Hollywood became interested in this mystery man, and the one responsible of tackling this subject was none other than James Franco. Along with his younger brother Dave Franco, Seth Rogen, Ari Graynor, Paul Scheer, and Alison Brie, his latest film THE DISASTER ARTIST tells the tale of the making of THE ROOM and all the drama that went on behind the scenes.
The film's official synopsis: With THE DISASTER ARTIST, James Franco transforms the tragicomic
true-story of aspiring filmmaker and infamous Hollywood outsider Tommy
Wiseau—an artist whose passion was as sincere as his methods were
questionable—into a celebration of friendship, artistic expression, and
dreams pursued against insurmountable odds. Based on
Greg Sestero best-selling tell-all about the making of Tommy's
cult-classic disasterpiece THE ROOM (“The Greatest Bad Movie Ever
Made”), THE DISASTER ARTIST is a hilarious and welcome reminder that
there is more than one way to become a legend—and no limit to what you
can achieve when you have absolutely no idea what you're doing.
This was such a great movie!! James was so believable as the enigmatic Tommy Wiseau! In fact, I only saw Tommy Wiseau; I couldn't find James Franco at all!! Not only was performance was fantastic, but he's directing was absolutely incredible!! His re-creation of several key scenes from THE ROOM was spot-on perfect!! Not only that, he is able to keep the laughs coming while injecting drama within the movie frames. Franco has become a force to be reckon with within the Hollywood community. His resume is very eclectic and personal, taking on roles and projects that really reflect his diverse interests of subjects.
And I cannot forget to mention his younger brother Dave Franco, portrays Tommy's best friend and fellow actor Greg Sestero. Now I have to admit that when I first saw him on the ninth season of the tv series Scrubs, I thought he was a decent actor, but he wasn't as talented as James. Now all these years later, Dave killed it as Greg! He's vulnerable, sympathetic and unsure of himself at times. Dave really nailed all these faults as well as all of Greg's attributes. Together, both James and Dave brought a sence of realism and absurdity to the film, which elevates it from great to Oscar worthy!! So far the film has grossed $22 million worldwide against it's budget of $10 million. It has garnered acclaim from both critics and fans, especially fans of THE ROOM. It's been nominated for several awards, which is again ironic since we're talking about a film that is about the making of one of the worst films ever made!
THE DISASTER ARTIST is one of my favorite films of 2017!! The film just sucks you in and doesn't let go until its beautiful conclusion! If this film wins any awards this coming year, it would be richly deserved and poetically ironic since THE ROOM won't win any!! 5 out of 5 stars!! Highly recommended!!
THE DISASTER ARTIST is now currently playing in theaters nationwide, including at the AMC
Theaters here in the Bay Area. To view showtimes, visit their website at
http://www.amctheatres.com.
With the dismal returns from THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2, Sony Pictures proved that they no longer had the ability to make any good Spider-Man movies. Then the unthinkable happened: Sony struck a deal with Marvel Studios and allowed our favorite wall crawler to become part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The result of this extraordinary deal lead to Spider-Man appearing in last year's summer blockbuster CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR. For this third incarnation, Marvel Studios recruited English born actor Tom Holland to don the red and blue spandex suit and both critics and fans were enthusiastic with this decision. They also returned Peter Parker to his comic book roots: that of a 15 year old high school student who has to deal with ordinary everyday teenage issues. Now Sony Pictures, Marvel Studios and Tom Holland return to theaters with SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING, which I finally got around to seeing this week!
The film's official synopsis: A young Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland), who made his sensational
debut in CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, begins to navigate his new found
identity as the web-slinging super hero in SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING.
Thrilled by his experience with the Avengers, Peter returns home, where
he lives with his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei), under the watchful eye of his
new mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.). Peter tries to fall back
into his normal daily routine – distracted by thoughts of proving
himself to be more than just your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man – but
when the Vulture (Michael Keaton) emerges as a new villain, everything
that Peter holds most important will be threatened.
Fans have finally got the Spider-Man movie that we've all been waiting for! Tom Holland was absolutely perfect as our Peter Parker/Spider-Man. He was able to capture the character's personality perfectly. He looks and acts like a teenager; dealing with all the issues that a teenager faces, such as school, being picked on and put down, having a secret crush on the school's most popular girl and hanging out with his best friend. But add on his responsibilities as our Wall Crawler and his desire to become an Avenger and trying to thwart the super-villain Vulture. The casting of Holland has totally revived the franchise!
Speaking of the Vulture, who else can bring this beloved character to the big screen other than the great Michael Keaton? He was phenomenal as our antagonist and brings a lot of layers to his character; a criminal worthy of Spider-Man's attention but adds a touch of madness and evil that elevates him to one of the greatest villains in the Spidey Universe. Also by adding Downey as Peter's mentor and hero Tony Stark/Iron Man, Tony's lovable Happy Hogan (played once again by actor/director Jon Favreau) and Marisa Tomei as our new Aunt May, everything came together beautifully! Credit also goes to Jon Watts, who did an incredible job of directing the film. Watts captured the look and spirit of the comic book while providing moviegoers a visually satisfying film complete with amazing set-ups and compositions, sweeping camera pans and nice close-ups to give us the ability to get in touch with the films' characters. This was Watts third feature film and the man knocked it out of the park! He has signed on to direct the sequel and I hope he'll be able to capture lightening twice! SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING is the best Spider-Man film of all time!! I can't even get over on how much fun the movie was!! Sony, along with Marvel, have brought the character back to his comic book roots and fans are enthusiastic about this!! This is what we have been wanting and now we finally have it!! 5 out of 5 stars!! Highly recommended!!
SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMINGis now currently playing in theaters nationwide, including at the AMC
Theaters here in the Bay Area. To view showtimes, visit their website at
http://www.amctheatres.com.
In December of 1978, my mom took me to see director Richard Donner's SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE. I was five years old and it changed my life forever. From that moment on, I believed that a man could very well fly. Star Christopher Reeve literally flew out of the movie! Since then I've been a huge Superman fan. I started reading the comics at a feverish pace. Eventually I soon saw the sequels as they were released to theaters. Unfortunately, each one was worse than the previous. Shorty thereafter, Superman disappeared from the silver screen. Then in 2006, he returned to the big screen in SUPERMAN RETURNS, which was directed by Bryan Singer (X-MEN, X-MEN 2, and THE USUAL SUSPECTS). While the film had good intentions, it received a lukewarm reception from moviegoers and mixed reviews from critics. These factors caused the film to fail in relaunching the franchise. It looked like Superman's future at the movies was over.
Then in 2010, it was announced that director Zack Snyder (300, THE WATCHMEN, DAWN OF THE DEAD) and producer Christopher Nolan (director of the DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY) were teaming up to reboot the franchise and bring the last son of Krypton back to the big screen. Fans around the world waited in anticipation, myself included. Which brings me to this past Wednesday, where I was standing in line at the AMC Saratoga 14 with my fellow film buff and screenwriter Danny Rubio to attend a very special advanced screening of MAN OF STEEL in 3D!
It's interesting to see in this reboot just how much the filmmakers used several ideas and references from the comic book. Unlike the cold, icy planet of Krypton as depicted in Donner's 1978 classic, this Krypton is a perfect hybrid of organics and alien creatures as well as hi-tech battleships and cities. It's here that we are introduced to Superman's parents: scientist Jor-El (Russell Crowe) and wife Lara (Ayelet Zurer). History repeats itself as Jor-El stands before the council about the impending doom of their home planet, but this time we get to see an event that was only mentioned in the 1978 film: the nefarious attempt to overthrow the council by the evil General Zod (Michael Shannon). Once again he and his army are thwarted and they are sentenced to spend forever in the Phantom Zone. But during this attempted coup, Jor-El sends his infant son to the far reaches of space. Soon after, Krypton explodes and Kal-El reaches Earth.
What Nolan and Snyder do differently is that we don't see young Kal-El aka Clark Kent (Henry Cavill) grow. Rather we see him in his youth in a series of flashbacks, like what Nolan used in the DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY. In fact, the beginning of the film features Clack trying to figure out who he is and to find his place in the world. What's this your asking? Superman is suffering from self doubt and ponders his existence in the world? Well, yes. Here we have our lead, our hero, dealing with the issue of self doubt and self discover, which makes him more relatable. However, let's not forget, this is an action packed superhero movie, and when he finally dons his costume, he then becomes Superman. Cavill portrays both Clark Kent and Superman with such convection, strength, and vulnerability. Truly this man was born to wear the suit. He brings a new dimension to this iconic superhero.
Now there's another interesting twist that the filmmakers have made to the film which involves the famous Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane (Amy Adams). Here, she is a Pulitzer prize investigating reporter, and in the film, she does something that the other previous incarnations have never done. Now I don't want to spoil the surprise, but this change was a welcome surprise. For the past 75 years, Lois never put the pieces together to deduce that Clark Kent was Superman, and that made her look a little stupid. Well, Nolan and Snyder has remedied this problem, and I thought it was a brilliant move. Also Kudos to Adams, who turns in a great performance and has great on-screen chemistry with Cavill.
General Zod has never been so evil, and that due in large part to Michael Shannon. Now nothing against Terence Stamp from SUPERMAN II, but Shannon goes over the edge and really makes our antagonist just simply cold, a calculating vicious individual. But in his mind, what he and his minions are doing to the Earth is logical. His mission is to preserve the legacy of Krypton, and he does that with extreme prejudice. Truly one of cinema's greatest villains! Currently as I am writing this, the film has broken records for the month of June, but there is also a backlash to the film, which surrounds the climatic finale between Superman and General Zod. So before I go any further, let me now issue a MAJOR SPOILER WARNING!!! STOP READING THIS IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE MOVIE YET!! STOP READING THIS RIGHT NOW!!!!
OK, let's discuss the ending, shall we? In case you haven't heard let me just say this outright: Superman breaks General Zod's neck. And he does this because Zod was about to zap a bunch of people and Superman comes to the realization that he had no other way to stop him. So he snapped his neck like a twig and let's out a horrendous scream. Now when I saw the film, and I saw what happened, I will admit I was pretty shocked by that. But then I realized something: In SUPERMAN II, Superman strips General Zod's superpowers, then crushes his hand, picks him up and tosses him to the bottomless pit of the Fortress of Solitude. Plus in the 1980s, Superman used green kryptonite to kill a General Zod from the "Pocket Universe." And let's not forget he was fighting to the death with the creature called Doomsday in the comics back in 1993. So he has killed, but very rarely. A lot of fans and critics are gripping big time about this incident, but remember the SUPERMAN II Hypocrisy!! How was that different than this film?!? END OF SPOILER ALERT!!! END OF SPOILER ALERT!!! END OF SPOILER ALERT!!!
OK now that's over, let me state that I really enjoyed MAN OF STEEL! It was an excellent film, full of superhero action, romance, some humor, alien invasion, and one heluva super battle finale!! After 75 years, it looks like there's no slowing down for this iconic comic book hero!! 4 1/2 out of 5 stars!! Highly recommended!!
MAN OF STEELis now currently playing in theaters nationwide, including at the AMC
Theaters here in the Bay Area. To view showtimes, visit their website at
http://www.amctheatres.com.
So far 2013 is shaping up to be an interesting year for horror films being released to theaters. Some look very promising while others look bad. And then there are others that I wonder why they made in the first place. Case in point; Lionsgate's latest release THE LAST EXORCISM PART II is an unnecessary sequel to the film THE LAST EXORCISM.
Picking up exactly where the first film left off, Nell Sweetzer (Ashley Bell) is found in a home somewhere in rural Louisiana. After being in a state of catatonic, she awakens with no real memory about what happened to her in the past several months. She's then sent to Frank's home for girls. Nell's condition is improved and is no longer having the "bad dreams" that has plagued her. She has a job as a maid in a hotel and even has a new boyfriend. But soon her nightmares become a reality once again the evil force that once possessed her returns. As a result, Nell's last exorcism wasn't the last after all.
So where to begin with this movie. Well first, off it was so damn dull and boring. Nothing happens in this film. Literally, nothing happens here. We basically see Nell wake up from being catatonic, she works at the hotel, she meets a guy there, she sleeps, works at the hotel, begins to float in her sleep, works at the hotel, etc. Nothing really happens until the third act, but even then it's a let down.
The film builds up to this climatic exorcism and all is revealed about the evil spirit and why it wants Nell, but when the actual exorcism occurs, we don't get to see the conclusion of it AKA the good part! I felt very cheated about that! The whole point of the movie was to see the exorcism and we don't get to see it!
The film is a complete 180 from the previous installment. THE LAST EXORCISM was shot in that "found documentary style" that's so popular. With this, the movie was shot in the traditional style of filmmaking. So right away it looks and feels like a totally different movie. Not that it's an improvement over that last one.
The only saving grace of the film was Ashley Bell, whose performance is outstanding as usual. Now I had the pleasure of meeting Miss. Bell during the Cinequest Film Festival here in San Jose last month (it was Day Four, March 1st of the festival to be precise). It was after the screening of SPARKS, which she played the incredibly beautiful and bad ass super heroine Lady Heavenly. After the screening, I was chatting it up with Ashley and told her that I was a fan of hers. She said thanks and told me that I should check out her other new movie that was coming out soon. Turns out it was this film she was talking about. Bells' performance in the first film was legendary, however I feel that her talent was wasted here.
All in all, THE LAST EXORCISM PART II is an unwanted, unimaginative, and unnecessary sequel that doesn't even come close to living up to the standard set in the first film. Best to skip this one altogether. 2 out of 5 stars!
THE LAST EXORCISM PART II is currently playing in theaters nationwide, including at the Camera
Cinemas here in the Bay Area. To view showtimes, visit their website at www.cameracinemas.com.
Hello everybody and welcome back! So this past Saturday I attended an extraordinary event! For one day and one day only, at select AMC Theaters, there were having an INDIANA JONES MARATHON! That's right people! How cool was this?!? With the release of the INDIANA JONES: THE COMPETE ADVENTURES Blu-Ray Boxset coming out on September 18th, Paramount Pictures teamed up with AMC Theaters to have all four films shown one last time on the big screen! And yours truly wasn't gonna miss out on this major movie event. So I showed up at the AMC Mercado 20, bought my movie pass (it was the shape of the idol from the first film!), received a cool collectable poster, bought a ton of food at the snack bar, found an excellent seat, and had the best damn Saturday of my entire life!
All four films were directed by Steven Spielberg, produced my George Lucas, and starred Harrison Ford and all four films were screened in their original theatrical order: 1981's RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, 1984's INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM, 1989's INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, and 2008's INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL.
Usually I like to give a brief synopsis of the films I see, but everyone has seen the INDIANA JONES series. Now if by chance, you have NOT seen any of these movies yet, then GET OUT OF THAT CAVE YOU HAVE BEEN HIDING IN! These films are some of the best action/adventure films of the past twenty years! And now with the Blu-Ray boxset coming out, you have no reason for not seeing these films!
THE INDIANA JONES: THE COMPLETE ADVENTURES will be released on September 18th. To purchase a copy for yourself, visit your local retailer of on the Amazon website at www.amazon.com.
So during Labor Day weekend, Disney re-released THE AVENGERS back in theaters one last time before they release it on Blu-Ray and DVD on September 25th. So this past Friday night, my good friend and fellow film buddy Jennifer and I decided to head out to the AMC Mercado 20 to catch the late screening of the film!
I have now officially seen the film four times! And it's keeps getting better folks! Plus seeing how that this would be the last time I get to see the film on the big screen, I didn't want to miss this opportunity to relive the excitement one last time! So don't you folks miss out on seeing it in theaters again! Go out now and see it the way it was meant to be seen!
THE AVENGERS is currently playing at select theaters
nationwide, including at the AMC Theaters here in the Bay Area. To view
showtimes, visit their website at http://www.amctheatres.com.
Yup, I saw THE AVENGERS again. But this time I headed on over to the AMC Mercado 20 Theater in Santa Clara, where I saw it in IMAX 3D!! That's right folks!! This film looked incredible! To see it in IMAX 3D is a cinematic experience that everyone should participate! It's on the pricey side, but I went during matinee hours, so it was about $15 total. And it was worth every penny! So make some time out of your busy schedule, and go see this film before it gets pulled. THE AVENGERS in IMAX 3D is currently playing at select theaters nationwide, including at the AMC Theaters here in the Bay Area. To view showtimes, visit their website at http://www.amctheatres.com.
