The God Who Wasn't There (2005)
Godzilla (2014)
Kong: Skull Island (2017)
Kong: Skull Island rocks. Really fun action/adventure flick that demands to be seen on a big, big screen.
Kong Skull Island
8/10
A great monster animals movie and a terrific unique King Kong movie, and a decent ending.
Entertaining and great start to the end with a fast pace.
Marvelous foreshadowing for the sequel, unique flawed likable characters with conflicting objectives creating more drama and problems.
Fist Fight
8/10
A decent entertaining funny movie start to the end.
The fight is terrific plus very realistic, great exciting climax, problems get solved, funny lines and scenes, and character development for multiple characters.
No cliffhangers so no doubt the writer wants no sequel.
Hands of Stone (2016) 7/10
This one caught a lot of flack and was a box office disappointment, though personally I can't see why. Its true that the boxing scenes are the usual back and forth spectator-to-fighter perspective, but the film takes a Biopic approach in how they explore Roberto Duran's early life. We get to see how he grew up in Panama, his struggles with the pressures of fame, and his implosion and ultimate redemption after losing to Sugar Ray. Robert Deniro plays an excellent mentor role, and probably does his best acting at least in more recent films. The actor who played Roberto Duran was a great physical portrayal, and even though the sets for the fights seem a little discounted in comparison to the likes of similar movies (Latter Rocky films/Creed) this film is an underrated boxing movie that fans of Sports movies would like.
The Raid: Redemption (2011)- 6/10
Not much to say here as it was about what you'd expect with a foreign market Martial arts film. The fight scenes with Rama were well choreographed, and its easy to see the influence it had over the likes of MCU Daredevil. The plot is basic the cops go into bring down a criminal warlord, they lose a lot of their men and its a basic tale of survival. The dubbing was poorly done even with the micro budget they had, but not bad for less than 90 Minutes. I don't think I'll check out the sequel anytime soon though
Before the Devil Knows your dead (2007) 10/10
My girlfriend and I love a good and well written drama,and along with A Place Among the Pines/The Town this is about a robbery that transpires but with a lot of twists and turns. Two brothers played by Ethan Hawke/Phillip Seymour Hoffman (RIP), hatch a plan to make 600k from robbing a Mom and Pop jewelry store and find themselves in a mess of consequences. Without delving into spoilers, the perspective jumps back and forth, from Andy's to their fathers, back to the brother at different intervals after the crime. Its an emotional roller coaster where the brothers go on a downward spiral, involving murder, deceit, and betrayal. Phillip gives a commanding performance as a despondent banker who is losing control of his life, and Ethan is a ****up who botches the robbery. A beautifully acted and well written drama with a lot of twists for fans of the Town, A Place Among the Pines, Gone girl, and films of a similar nature.
The Ides of March (2011) 9/10
I don't normally do political dramas, but since I've been exploring Ryan Gosling's filmography (The Believer, Blue Valentine), I figured why the hell not. The movie stars an ambitious young Campaign Manager who discovers the ins and outs of a campaign. He learns of an illicit affair between the governor/a staffer, forges plans to move his own career ahead, all while trying to stay in the game. Gosling, Clooney, and Seymour Hoffman all give great performances, and overall it was a great political drama which is probably played out over and over again year after year in real life.
Shotgun Stories (2008) 8/10
Michael Shannon is another actor whose filmography always seems to produce a lot of gems. I love his physical acting, intensity, and down-to-earth presence in films like Take Shelter/Midnight Special/Nocturnal Animals, and this little indie film presents a much smaller take. Filmed on a microscopic budget of 250k, the movie takes place in a small Farming town and involves a feud of two families after stern words are said in a family funeral. The three brothers are set against a larger family, and there are losses on both sides as they seek retribution for past grievances. The Small town setting really hit home with me, and as always Michael Shannon plays an everyman almost perfectly. If you like small town dramas, you can't go wrong with this.