IDES OF MARCH (Oct 7, 2011)

Starring:  Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Paul Giamatti, and Philip Seymour Hoffman

Director: George Clooney

Rated: R  -  Runtime: 101 min
Genre: Drama

Hey, didn’t I tell you Ryan Gosling had the potential to be a great actor?  Yep, this is a far cry from how we saw him in “Drive”.

The portrayals of the characters by Gosling, Giamatti, and Hoffman were excellent. 

I did however, see areas in Clooney’s part that didn’t seem to match up with the intense situations.  In my estimation Clooney’s part was much too subdued.

Gosling (Stephen Myers), plays the part of the young, energetic, dynamic aide, Hoffman (Paul Zara), Stephen’s somewhat pompous superior, Clooney (Gov. Mike Morris), the Governor headed for greatness in the upcoming election, and their nemesis Giamatti (Tom Duffy), the oppositions campaign chief. 

The story opens with the Ohio Primaries to see who can win the the necessary votes in the mid-west to continue on.  From there, the story escalates  to deception, lies, cover-ups, firing’s and hiring’s of internal staff etc.  

And of course, what piece of political history wouldn’t be without it’s dirty laundry and we have it here as well.  Almost makes me think of the Bill and Hillary regime, how about you?

Watch for it, it's a great one liner !!! “You broke the one law you can’t, you can lie, you can cheat, you can steal, but you can’t fuck the interns” 

Great movie, good writing, and excellent casting, overall, a great flick!  “Go See This One”

I Rate it:  4 mugs of Guinness!

If this movie doesn’t get the Oscar nod who’s gonna be the scapegoat?  Hmm; let’s look.
Producer: George Clooney
Director: George Clooney
Co-Writer/Screenplay: George Clooney
Actor: George Clooney
Got the picture?  

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AZ-Tom

WHAT’S YOUR NUMBER? (Sep 30, 2011)

Starring:  Anna Faris, Chris Evans, and Ari Graynor

Director: Mark Mylod

Rated: R  -  Runtime: 106 min
Genre: Comedy | Romance

Anna Faris, well simply put I enjoy seeing on the screen.  She is the personification of the actor who brings to the film all she has.  You might think of her as the dumb blonde, but this is the part she is playing.  If you see her speak off screen, she is well versed, and doesn’t give off that “dumb blonde” facade.

This film is no different, Anna (Ally Darling) has made the film what it is!  It's funny from the moment you set down, some slapstick comedy, nonetheless she has delivered for your enjoyment a magnificent acting job.  

Just a few parts I want you to watch for; 1) the scene in the bar with her sister and girlfriends where she declares her quest of “no more sex”, 2) the interaction she has with her old boyfriend from England, this one scene from meeting him on the street to the scene in the bar, is one of the funniest, 3)  the scene with the ex-lover who is the puppeteer, and finally 4) the scenes with Chris Evans (Colin), throughout the film they work great together.  

I really want you to go see the film, if you don’t walk away with a great laugh, you better see a doctor.... 

Something’s wrong with the part of your brain that controls humor.  It’s called “humor-tumor”

I Rate it:   3 1/2 Mugs of Guinness 
Oh hell, I was laughing still, so I drank the rest of the 4th mug, you might as well too.

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AZ-Tom 

50/50 (Sep 30, 2011)

Starring:  Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anjelica Huston, and Anna Kendrick

Director: Jonathan Levine

Rated: R  -  Runtime: 100 min
Genre: Drama | Comedy

This is a very light hearted film, but starts out with a different appearance.  This is a period of time in Adam's (Levitt) life, after being told he has cancer, that could have been very difficult.  Soon you will find yourself laughing at even some of the parts that if you look back, may have been a bit on the dark side.  

This is where the comedic approach of Kyle (Rogen) takes over.  What could have been subjective, is now humorous.

As the plot unfolds you find yourself amidst the quirkiness of Adam and his oh so very young phycologist, Katherine (Kendrick), bantering back and forth as the movie progresses.

The interaction with Adam’s mom Diane (Huston), and Adam seem to be as it would be in everyday life, “mom’s gonna take care of her children” but that’s not how Adam wants it.  In the end, ............. Nah, I’m not gonna give that away, go see the movie and then you can report back on what you thought!

I Rate it:  3 1/2 mugs of Guinness 
Worth the money to step out and see!

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AZ-Tom

DREAM HOUSE (Sep 30, 2011)

Starring:  Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz, and Naomi Watts

Director: Jim Sheridan

Rated: PG-13   Runtime: 92 min
Genre: Drama | Mystery | Thriller

There isn’t much I can say about this film that won’t give away what I consider to be an excellent plot.  Most films now pretty much give away the entire plot and ruin any twists that come into play during the film, but this one takes a twist that is not ever mentioned or alluded to during any of the trailers.  

You are going to like this one if you enjoy a film which has that special twist that sets it apart from the others!  It kept me guessing throughout the movie which way it was going to play out.  That’s the kind of movie I think we are all looking for.  So many times the final scenes in the movie are already expected simply for the fact that with the release of all the damn trailers, they tend to give it away.

Excellent job by the cast and writers, cudo's to you all !!!

Well, this one is different!  That’s a promise.  If you disagree, please let us know.

I Rate it:   4 1/2 mugs of Guinness 
Strongly recommend seeing this one.

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AZ-Tom

ABDUCTION (Sep 23, 2011)

Starring:  Taylor Lautner, Lily Collins, and Alfred Molina

Director: John Singleton

Rated: PG-13  -  Runtime: 106 min
Genre: Action | Drama | Mystery

I’m not gonna pull any punches here, I’m gonna tell it like I saw it (but the nice thing about this is it’s just one movie goers opinion, your’s is what counts!) 

I don’t think Taylor Lautner has the stuff that’s going to make him the star he has been made out to be by some critics along with movie goers.  

His performance lacked the luster of an actor taking on the persona of the character he portrays.  Meaning, I don’t think his heart is in the role.  It is almost like he has taken the script, read it, remembered it, and when given his cue simply repeated line for line the words.  It takes very few acting skills to read from a piece of paper.  He needs to become the person in the role he takes on, this is missing in this film! 

Perhaps as he matures his skills may improve, but if you look at the movies he’s been in, “Yes” even Twilight, he has a great demeanor about him, but he lacks becoming one with the person he is portraying.  

In Twilight I believe he was cast for the looks more than the acting skills, and once the first twilight movie was released, how the heck can you get rid of # 3 in a relationship without them going over the deep end..... (Charlie Sheen for example, the star of the show 2 and a half men.) Yah so much for that...

As for his co-star Lily Collins, she made the part more believable, acting out with commitment the role given her.  (fyi- for those of you not knowing this, she is Phil Collins daughter).

I thought the writing and acting of the parts played by the CIA agents, along with the foreign counterparts were a little overdone and quite unrealistic.  Really?, they are going to come into his home, slaughter the parents, and blow up the entire house.  But when they caught Karen (Collins) on the train the guy ties her up in a room and leaves?  Come on now writers, you could have done better....

The ending was in my estimation the best part of the film.  

I Rate it:  2 mugs of Guinness (no more, no less)

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AZ-Tom

DOLPHIN TAIL (Sep 23, 2011)

Starring:  Winter (the dolphin), Nathan Gamble, Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd, and Harry Connick Jr.

Director: Charles Martin Smith

Rated: PG  -  Runtime: 113 min
Genre: Drama | Family

This one is a great movie to take the kids to, don't miss this one!

Nothing I can say can or will take the place of actually seeing this movie.  It is an inspiration to all animal lovers.  It’s is based on a true story about as dolphin surviving an accident with the help of a group of marine biologists.  I like to look at the real star of the movie as being the dolphin herself (Winter - named for the season in which she was found).  Nathan Gamble, Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick Jr, Ashley Judd play great roles in the film and the reenactment of the recovery and miracle of this story.

I Rate it:  4 mugs of Guinness (for the adults), 5 cups of hot chocolate (for the kids)!

See the full story on Movie Talk, click here to view it.

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AZ-Tom