Movie Review: Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit

Upon first glance, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is your typical action spy thriller movie, but this one manages to take those action movie clichés, make them, then break them leaving you with fresh twists that will surprise you.

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
Directed By: Kenneth Branaugh
Starring: Chris Pine, Kiera Knightly, Kevin Costner, Kenneth Branaugh, Colm Feore, David Paymer, Peter Andersson

Premise: After recovering from an accident in Afghanistan after 9/11, Jack Ryan is recruited as a financial advisor in the Financial Intelligence Unit of the CIA. While working an agency mole on Wall Street he uncovers a Russian terrorist plot to bring down the U.S. economy.

 

What I Liked About Shadow Recruit:

• It set up situations that could have easily veered into cliché territory: the girlfriend that makes stupid decisions, the damsel in distress, the mono y mono big bad battle, CIA mentor can we or can we not trust him? – Then it shattered those clichés executing the aftermath in creative ways that didn’t drag.

• The ending, like ultimate ending, was unexpected. Not in a “WHOA, I didn’t see that coming” way, but in a “Wow, that’s pretty cool” way. I like movies that have little surprises in them and this one had a few.

• Chris Pine. He knows his capabilities in this movie. He doesn’t try to be a hardcore fighter bad ass. He uses his smarts, his charm, his uncanny abilities to play an arrogant frat boy. And it works. He’s like a real guy with skill, who reacts to situations in way that seems plausible. These traits make the whole CIA operative super smart spy thing feel fresh.

• The movie was smart. It didn’t feel like the movie was dumbed down for the audience. It was layered and well-crafted and clever. But it was also smart in the way that it used the actors, which in part, is thanks to Kenneth Branaugh who has always been known as an actor’s director. The movie knew Chris Pine’s strengths, Keira Knightly was actually NOT annoying in this movie (I think her sporting an American accent was a good thing), and it actually used Kevin Costner instead of other movies that parade out it’s “big name” every act to say something witty or inspiring before sending them into off camera oblivion.

 

What I Didn’t Like

• The Big Bad wasn’t Bad Enough. (**minor spoiler alert here**) But the Big Bad could have been badder. And essentially the Big Bad wasn’t the Big Bad. He was just the Bad, not the Big. Does that make sense? I think it does, so moving on. Kenneth Branaugh is great at delivering tension. He has this intimidating way about him, but you get a sense through the movie that it’s all talk and no execution. And maybe that’s the point, but honestly, it’s also lame.

• We spent a lot of time getting to know Jack Ryan, but almost no time getting to know anyone else. Essentially the cast is pretty small, you have 4 “main” characters, and other smaller supporting characters, but the only one who really gets a backstory is Jack Ryan. Yes, he’s the hero, but you need to develop your other characters. It’s a reboot so essentially you’re starting over. It’s been a long time since, (The Hunt for the Red October, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger, and Sum of All Fears). Movies based on books need to equally play to the people who know the author’s work and characters, and to a new audience. (Also how do you have Colm Feore in a movie than severely underuse him? I mean seriously!)

 

Overall Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit an exciting and clever action movie, but with the sense that we’ve seen it all before. If you’re a fan of Chris Pine it’s definitely a movie to watch because we all need a little more of those piercing blue eyes in our life. The movie will keep you entertained and it has some substance to it, just don’t expect to be floored.

 

Rating: B

 

 

 

Movie Review: Iron Man 3 & Star Trek Into Darkness

I’ve been behind in my movie reviewing. I admit it. I’m a slacker but working 16 hours a day in a state that’s not your own living out of a suitcase.

So here are my reviews in a hurry, Part 1:

 

 

Iron Man 3
Directed By: Shane Black
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Jon Favvreau, Ben Kingsley, James Badge Dale

Review In A Hurry: After almost dying during Avengers, Tony has been suffering from PTSD. So when he finds himself being hunted by A new evil, The Mandarin, he is caught at a vulnerable time. He’s forced to be a stripped down version of himself, hiding in a small town while at the same time investigating how the Mandarin is causing such destruction. Teaming him up with a kid was a genius move, it not only made Stark relatable it also made him sympathetic.

Unfortunately the ending climax didn’t have enough heart to it, and a big plot point was basically looked over diminishing its emotional impact.

I wanted it to be a better movie than it was, but at times it felt like a jumbled mess. Though it took some interesting twists and turns, in the end, the villain just wasn’t that terrifying. While it got Tony Stark right, it seemed to get a lot else wrong.
Rating: 3 Stars

 

 

 

Star Trek: Into Darkness
Directed By: J.J. Abrams
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Benedict Cumberbatch, Anton Yelchin, Bruce Greenwood, Alice Eve

What I didn’t like:

• Sometimes I wish the villain you think is the villain is the actual villain because unless its done right, often times the true force behind everything isn’t very exciting. Plus this thematic repetition gets old seeing it in movie after movie. (See Iron Man, White House Down The Dark Knight Rises).
• Kirk is becoming unlikable. I know he has to grow up. I know that’s the moral to the story, but in this movie I found him annoyingly arrogant. I want to see him be more of a leader than whiny teenager. Self pity is not appealing.

What I liked:

• J.J. does character so well. No matter what you think of the characters, he gives each of them a developmental arch. Even the smallest of characters. This why you not only care about them because you know them, you care about them because you do.
• Great emotional beats. I shed a tear nearing the end of the movie. And the twist to the original version was pretty damn cool.
• Visuals – I like JJ’s lens flares. I do. I think his camera work is so great. And he works well with the 3D with out making it cheesy. Those arrows coming at you in the opening sequence were genius whether you watched it in 3D or 2D.

Star Trek was an overall top-notch movie that I need to see again. JJ took a new twist on an old classic that was fun and fresh at the same time.

Rating 3 1/2

 

 

 

My Review: Rise of the Guardians

Rise of the Guardians
Starring: Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin, Isla Fisher, Jude Law, Hugh Jackman, Dakota Goyo

I remember when I was little staying up at night with my sister whispering at her from across the hallway about what Santa was going to give us for Christmas. I remember absolutely hearing those sleigh bells ring from that massive sled of his and running to my window to look out for Rudolph’s red nose. One night I forced myself to stay up to catch Santa in the act, maybe share a cookie or two with him, but suffice it to say, I caught someone else in the act.

At some point in our lives we stop believing in certain things. Sometimes it’s a person that spoils it, and sometimes it’s just the fact that we’ve grown up. Rise of the Guardians manages to teach us to never stop believing (I guess Journey tried to tell us that as well).

Premise: As long as children keep believing, Santa Claus, The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy, and other similar beings will still exist. Children will still maintain their innocence and all will be right with the world. Protecting that innocence are the Guardians, chosen Man In The Moon. Sensing the rise of Pitch, a villian hell-bent on instilling fear and darkness into the hearts of children everywhere, the Man in the Moon chooses another Guardian to help Santa, Bunny, Tooth, and the Sandman. He chooses Jack Frost, an outcast in more ways than one (he’s invisible to children because they don’t believe in him). Jack is defiant, reckless, desperate to find out what his purpose is and desperate to be noticed. The Rise of the Guardian is Jack’s adventure at finding a place to belong and something to believe in.

My Review: I liked Rise of The Guardians, and I say it like that because I’m surprised at the amount of reviews saying how contrived it seemed while at the same time being more serious and less fun. I thought this movie was actually quite creative and beautiful with themes both relevant to kids and adults. For me, it reminded me how great it was to be a child and experiencing wonder all the time. Now, those moments are hard to come by. There are things I believed in as a child that I don’t so much now, but I do believe in other things as well. I do believe in that fairy tale ending, happily ever after life for me, and as long as I keep believing it, it still exists. That’s what the movie taught me. Don’t give up on your dreams, and don’t let fear stop you.

Jack was relatable, the movie scene by scene was creative and gorgeous, and the fantasy of it all felt very human. Rise of the Guardians is definitely not your typical animated film, but that fact makes it all that more magical.

Rating: 3 ½ stars.

 

 

 

The Red Box Files: The Lucky One and People Like Us

The Red Box Files:

Since I’ve had some extra time on my hands…and by extra time I mean, I’m unemployed at the moment, I’ve been renting some movies at Red Box. Check out my thoughts on some of the movies I’ve rented.

 

The Lucky Ones
Starring: Zac Effron, Taylor Schilling, Blythe Danner, Jay R. Ferguson, Riley Thomas Stewart

Premise: U.S. Marine Sgt. Logan Thibault is finding it hard to adjust to life after returning home from his third tour in Iraq. Haunted by a picture he found that saved him from a bomb, Logan sets out to find the girl that “rescued” him.

My Review When watching a movie based on a Nicholas Sparks book, you have to expect a certain amount of melodramatic themes. I liked the idea of Logan moving somewhere away from his concerned and overbearing family and finding peace in busy work.  But I’m not sure I believed everything that was happening. While I appreciated they let the romance between Logan and Beth gradually build, Taylor Schilling (who is a 28 and gorgeous) unfortunately looked 10 years older making her hook-up with the young looking Zac Efron less believable and more creepy uncomfortable. I also didn’t like what they did with the ex-husband character. He was just too much of a jerk for me to feel any compassion for him even when I was supposed to. All of these details distracted me from the story which was actually an interesting concept.

That being said, it could have been worse. It could have been Dear John.

Rating: 2 Stars

 

People Like Us
Starring: Chris Pine, Elizabeth Banks, Olivia Wilde, Michelle Pfeiffer, Mark Duplass, Michael Hall D’Addario

Premise: When Sam’s estranged father dies, the fast-talking, stubborn salesman, must return home to settle his father’s estate. As a stipulation of the will, Sam’s father asks his son to deliver $150,000 to a sister and her son that Sam never knew of. While Sam struggles with the decision to tell Frankie, his half-sister, about the money, he feels an unexpected connection with her.

My Premise: I liked this movie a lot more than I thought I would. The trailers were severely misleading, setting the movie up like a romantic comedy…which it is not, *wipes brow*, because that would just weird…and gross. Instead, People Like Us smartly weaves a web of complicated feelings. Written by Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, & Jody Lambert, Chris Pine and Elizabeth Banks brought the script to life playing unknown siblings struggling to come to terms with their father’s death and complicated relationship with him. Their performances are subtle and genuine making this film likeable instead or schmaltzy.

Rating: 3 Stars

 

 

 

 

Movie Review: This Means War

I wasn’t so sure about This Means War. Tom Hardy and Chris Pine fighting over Reese Witherspoon in a wannabe action, spy flick/romance combo? This had all the makings to be a disaster. Well I was pleasantly surprised it wasn’t. It actually really funny, sweet, and cute, with a little action in between.

This Means War

Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Tom Hardy, Chelsea Handler, Angela Bassett

Premise: Tuck (Tom Hardy) and FDR (Chris Pine) are best friends first and CIA Operative partners second. They find have fallen for the same woman (Reese Witherspoon) and decide to compete in a “may the best man win” competition over her. The only difference between this and other rom-coms? Tuck and FDR have the backings of the entire CIA resources behind them, flashy spy toys ARE included.

My Review: Let’s just get this out of the way…Chris Pine’s eyes are an shade of blue, and that dude is tall! My friend and I were arguing who we’d pick, Chris Pine or Tom Hardy. I voted for Chris while my friend chose Tom, but honestly I wouldn’t turn either of them down. The slight edge went to Chris only because there’s this amazing shot of him backlight, with a leather jacket looking all James Dean and my heart melts for the blue-eyed hottie. But enough of that, now onto my review…

This movie was adorable. Really. And it comes close to being a classic. (I said close. Maybe not While You Were Sleeping Quality, but along the lines of Sweet Home Alabama and Wedding Planner.) It was a smart movie and really fun to watching making me forget the real vs. not real. Usually I tend to get distracted by things that seem unbelievable or implausible. But I just had fun and went along for the crazy, insane ride it took me on.

Tuck and FDR — unfortunate character names aside — hold this movie together with their weird bond. In fairness, Tuck finds Lauren first, from a dating site. The two get along right away. Tuck is sweet and kind and charming and it’s all just very easy. But when Lauren meets FDR they don’t hit it off. She can see right through him, but there are undeniable sparks immediately. Lauren, a seemingly normal girl, decides to give both guys a chance, turning their friendship into a rivalry…involving guns…and explosions…and fast cars.

Though the whole spy thing could be seen as a gimmick, Tuck and FDR’s friendship, brotherly rivalry, and fierce chemistry are what make this movie good. And adding Reese Witherspoon to the mix is just extra icing on the already delicious cake. Who doesn’t want to see a girl decide between two unbelievably hot men? (We all wish for it and if we can’t have it at least we can watch it – but if I’m wishing for things I’ll just wish for the ONE man, thank you.)

I saw this movie at a sneak preview on Valentine’s Day and it was the perfect movie to see. It wasn’t overly romantic or cheesy or “boo-hoo, how come I’m single on Valentine’s Day?”. It was light, and breezy and had it all. Chris Pine has the devilishly good looks, Tom Hardy has the sweet, British charm, and Reese Witherspoon rounds it out as the neurotic but sparky beauty bringing out something different in each of these men. See it for a laugh. See it for a good time. It’s safe to bring a guy, a best friend, a stranger across the street. And one thing you can take away from it, “just because he’s the best guy, doesn’t mean he’s the right guy.” We learn something new every day.

 

Rating: 3 ½ (possibly 4 stars).