"You can't handle the truth"

In a sick and disparaging world, we can but only hope to discover the truth so cleverly concealed by deception.  We desperately attempt to accomplish this feat, simply because we believe that in doing so, we will somehow be set free.  But is this really the case?  Is the apprehension of knowledge always the coveted alternative.  The movie I will be writing about today explicitly communicates this message.

Today I will be blogging on yet another one of my favorite movie genres.  (If you have not figured it out yet, I am pretty much open to all movie genres.)  With that being said, I will be critiquing "A Few Good Men", a rare jewel in the courtrom drama ganre. "A Few Good Men" was released in the early winter of 1992, directed by Rob Reiner and written by Aaron Sorkin(who also wrote "The Social Network" and "Moneyball").  This movie is centered on two marines who have been accused of murdering a colleague.  It has been arranged for Kaffee(Tom Cruise) to be their attourney.  Kaffee is portrayed as a lazy and cocky, but well-educated young navy lawyer who is known for being able to set up plea bargains.  However, he discover evidence that these two marines(James Marshall and Wolfgang Bodison) may actually be innocent, so he decides rather to take it to court. 

This movie is amazing for several reasons.  First let's look at the main actors.  We have Tom Cruise(Kaffee), Demi Moore(JoAnne Galloway), Kevin Bacon(Cpt. Jack Ross), Kiefer Sutherland(Lt. Jonathan Kendrick), Kevin Pollack(Lt. Sam Weinberg) and of course Jack Nicholson(Col. Nathan Jessup).  Need I go any further critiquing?  Did you see the last name I mentioned......Jack Nicholson??  If any of you out there are Nicholson fans, you will not be disappointed by watching this movie.  Now needless to say, Nicholson is not, by any means, the only reason to watch this movie.  He certainly does not steal the film, meaning he does not separate himself from the other actors and what is going on.  Rather, he in only an insignificant number of scenes, seems to suffuse, or permeate the production with authority. 

Another reason this movie is excellent is becuase it pleads the viewer to ask a serious question.  Is knowledge always the coveted alternative?  This movie will definitely cause you to think hard and long on this question, even after the credits roll.  I love intellectual movies like this one.  If you are the same, then this movie is a must see!

Since I am fair and impartial, I will share with you a reason why some people do not like this film.  The reason is that, this movie is one of those movies which "tells you what it's going to do, does it, and then tells you what it did."  Now this is for sure a good reason to not like a movie.  However,  I personally do not think this causes the movie to lose any flavor, or vitality.  I am simply telling you how some others view it; but you must see this movie for yourself.  It does not detriment the film whatsoever, in my opinion. 

From time to time, I will be sharing a rather lengthy quotation from a movie, because I feel that it may genrate a desire in some of the reluctant ones out there.  Those, who are not sure whether they should give a certain movie a venture.  This time is one of those times.  Before reading on I want to inform you that this quote does contain some mild language.  So I  would like to apologize for any of those out there that may be offended upon reading it. 

"Jessep (Jack Nicholson): You want answers?
Kaffee (Tom Cruise): I think I'm entitled to them.
Jessep: You want answers?
Kaffee: I want the truth!
Jessep: You can't handle the truth! Son, we live in a world that has walls. And those walls have to be guarded by men with guns. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Lt. Weinberg? I have a greater responsibility than you can possibly fathom. You weep for Santiago and you curse the Marines. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know: that Santiago's death, while tragic, probably saved lives. And my existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves lives...You don't want the truth. Because deep down, in places you don't talk about at parties, you want me on that wall. You need me on that wall.
We use words like honor, code, loyalty...we use these words as the backbone to a life spent defending something. You use 'em as a punchline. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom I provide, then questions the manner in which I provide it! I'd rather you just said thank you and went on your way. Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a weapon and stand a post. Either way, I don't give a damn what you think you're entitled to!"

This quotation is towards the climax of the movie, and I will not share any futher information, as to avoid ruining the movie for those who have not yet had the opportunity to watch it.  This excerpt rewards you with a glimpse into the amazing character Jack Nicholson so brilliantly portrayed in this movie.

As I conclude this article I would like to again go back to the question I posed in the beginning of this article.  Is is the apprehension of knowledge always the covteted alternative?  Well, that is for now; until next time.  I hope you have enjoyed this article on one of my favorite courtroom dramas!  Please share your thoughts on this movie.  I would love to hear from you!

If you have just visited my site, you are probably wondering what it is all about.  My name is Josh and I am using this blog as a site where readers can receive movie buzz and plugins for movies and share their opinion on those movies. I would love to hear your opinion on whether or not the director and actors did a good job and what could of made the movie better.
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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104257/

"Life is the most spectacular show on Earth"

Since I have all ready caved in and confessed my passion for all sorts of movie genres, I will continue to share my variety by critiquing yet another movie excluded from the category of action and thriller.

The movie I will be blogging on today is "Water for Elephants."  This movie was released on April 22, 2011 under the direction of Francis Lawrence and adapted from the novel "Water for Elephants"  written by Sara Gruen.  First of all, I would like to be able to say that I have read the book.  But, unfortunately I have not, so I can not compare and contrast the two.  If you are not familiar with Francis Lawrence, he also directed "Constantine" and "I am Legend"  The screenplay was done by Richard LaGravenese, who also created the screenplay for "Horse Whisperer." 

Before I share my critique/plugin, I would to share a short summary for the movie with mild "spoiler alerts."  Jacob(Robert Pattinson) decides to venture on a "do not where I am going, but need to go somwhere other than here" journey after the sudden death of his parents.  He finds himself on a train which happens to be none other than a circus train.  The menacing and proud ring leader of this circus,August(Christopher Waltz), threatens to toss this young schoolboy off the train. But he finds out that Jacob is learned in vet medicince.  Realizing this could be a great service to his circus, and perhaps save it from despair, he decides to let the boy travel with them.  As he travels with the circus, Jacob begins to establish a love for August's wife Marlena(Reese Witherspoon).  During the movie, August realizes that the circus is struggling to receive a steady income. So, he decides to buy off an Elephant to become the new mascot and circus act.  And of course, the love for Marlena is swelling up within Jacobs heart all along.  Will the jealous August allow this?  Does he even notice it?  Does the Elephant act succeed?  Well, I guess you will just have to discover this for yourself!

As mentioned in the summary the lead roles are played by common actors, Witherspoon("Legally Blond"), Waltz("Inglorious Basterds"), and Pattinson("Twilight").  Now let me get off track here for just a moment.  Please do not disregard this movie due to Patttinson being a lead role just because you may of disliked him in "Twilight".  This is a entirely differnt movie with an entirely differnt role.  Okay, now lets get back on track.  I think what makes this movie great in my eyes is the fact that it actually has a plausible set and is sort of old-fashioned.  Now do not get me wrong.  I love action movies; if you have all ready read some of my blogs, you will know that.  I think it is relaxing and benefical every once in a while to entertain the mind with a movie that has real-to-life characters and a conceivable sotryline.  But, as always, this is my opinion; feel free to disagree. 

From the beginning to the very end, this movie is embossed in colorful imagery.  And of course, if you love animals, you will clearly love this movie, seeing that is centered around an Elephant.  However, I do have to say that I think the lead roles could have had a better chemistry amongst each other.  I mean, the separate roles were incredible, and I believe, highly targeted what people were going through in the early 1930's.  But amongst each other, there could been more of a harmonious connection.  Even with this minute flaw, I love this movie and would recommend it to anyone out there who is dying to see a conventional romance story.  A conventional romance meaning one differnt than what Hollywood is promoting nowadays. 

If you have seen this movie, I would love to know your thoughts behind it.  Was the movie successful?  Could there of been a stronger chemistry between the actors?   Did "Water for Elephants" successfully depict its time period?  If you have not seen this movie, I would encourage you to watch it and then share your opinion. 

If you have just visited my site, you are probably wondering what it is all about.  My name is Josh and I am using this blog as a site where readers can receive movie buzz and plugins for movies and share their opinion on those movies. I would love to hear your opinion on whether or not the director and actors did a good job and what could of made the movie better.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1067583/

"Is it productive to leave the here and now to find a better place?

"There is no place like home; there is no place like home"  By that first sentence, can you guess what I will be blogging about today?  Well if you guessed the Wizard of Oz, you are absolutely wrong!  Just kidding.

If you have all ready visited my site prior to todays blog, you might have been given the misleading impression that I am only a  fan of suspense/thriller movies.  Well, I have decided to remove that idea far from any of your minds by taking a complete 180 and blogging on a entirely different genre of movie.

In my opinion, the Wizard of Oz is the most classic movie of all time because it successfully targeted audiences of all ages(young and old).  I would like to begin my critique by mentioning that if any of you out there have not seen this movie, there is simply no reason or excuse!  In fact, you should stop reading this blog right now and go find a copy!

All right.  "Wizard of Oz" was released in late August of 1939.  The director of this movie was Victor Fleming, who won an oscar for it.  If you are not aware of who this director was, you might be delighted to know that he also directed perhaps a movie on your top movie lists("Gone With the Wind" which won Best Picture Oscar).  Judith Garland(Dorothy) Ray Bolger(The Scarecrow), Frank Morgan(The Wizard), Bert Lahr(The Cowardly Lion), and Jack Haley(The Tin Man), co-star in this movie.  The chemistry between these actors, especially the four friends that embark down the yellow brick road, is incredibly remarkable to say the least. 

An interesting theme that this movie portrayed is the powerlessness of man.  In most movies, the guy is the hero. Think of "The Hulk", "Ironman1 &2", "Batman"(all of them), Thor,and too many more to count.  You get the picture.  Whereas in this movie, all the men seem sort of powerless, unable to control their own fate.  Even the Wizard seems weak in his own way.  The power figures in the movie are Dorothy, Glinda, and the Witch.  In fact there are several themes in this movie, but for sake of avoiding pain in my hands due to the laborious typing, I will refrain from delving in too much.  I will leave it up to you to share what you think the important themes are. 

I think that what makes this movie so amazing in my mind was the director's genuine ability to relate to the audience's imagination.  There are no special effects in this movie, like "Transformers" or "Super 8".  What you do see in this movie, if you were to call it "special effects" merely depict the framework or skeleton of the movie.  Victor Fleming leaves the rest to the imagination of the viewer.  This then allows the viewer to create his/her idea of the movie.  As I have all ready mentioned before, this movie has the ability to both enchant children and adults. If you think about it, Disney borrowed this idea for its animated pictures("Beauty and the Beast" "The Little Mermaid")  It is this aspect of incorporating a dose of comedy, adventure and catchy soundtracks together.  "Wizard of Oz" laid the groundwork for all of these movies to come.  It was the first of its kind!

I will avoid summarizing this movie, just in case, for some very peculiar reason, some of you have not yet had the opportunity to be captivated by its beauty and wonder.  But, I will say that in the beginning of the movie, Dorothy wanted nothing to do with where she was.  But, as she walked down the yellow brick road with her friends, the only thought that enraptured her mind was how she could get back home.  This irony leads me back to the question I chose to title my blog with, "Is it productive to leave the here and now to find a better place?"

Is is productive?  What are some other themes you saw as important in this movie?  Do you think the journey down the yellow brick road to meet the Wizard was all just a dream, or was it actually reality?  What could Fleming of done better? 

If you have just visited my site, you are probably wondering what it is all about.  My name is Josh and I am using this blog as a site where readers can receive movie buzz and plugins for movies and share their opinion on those movies. I would love to hear your opinion on whether or not the director and actors did a good job and what could of made the movie better.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032138/

"Do not let a child's seemingly innocent nature fool you!"

If you have ready any of my prior blogs, you will be aware that I have been writing critiques and sharing plugins for movies.  However, my previous blogs have all been positive in the sense that I have enjoyed the movie.  Therefore, the review I gave it was a positive one.  This blog will be entirely different in nature, as I will giving a particular movie a bad rating.

I simply do no want my viewers to think that I just like all movies and therefore, am a biased movie critiquer.  Now, do not get the wrong impression either.  I do love most movies for a plethura of reasons, but there are those very few that stick out as "could of been better", "just downright awful", or "if only that actor had been it" type of movies.

Well, now that I have you on the edge of your seats(which of course is right where I want you), the movie that I will be writing about is "Hanna".  Now mind you, before I share my negative thoughts towards the movie, let me admit to you that the trailer did look appealing. I was excited to see this movie.  Before I get started, let me warn you that this editorial does contain "SPOILER ALERTS!" 

Even in the beginning scenes, I can convey several reasons for disliking the movie.  The father is seen leaving the house in the dead of winter in blizzard wearing just a suit!  Yes, just a suit.  Now, that might not bother some of you, but it really irritated me.  He is seen in an earlier scene with a huge warm winter coat on.   But in the process to embark on a journey during a blizzard, of course all you need is a suit on.  Later on Hannah, played by Saorise Ronan, is seen taking down two highly trained and armed CIA agents with her fists!  She then surrenders, but the rest of the agents do not shoot her.  She just killed two of your own agents, and you have guns pointed at her.  Can you use them please, or do you need me to show you how to you use it? Delving further into the movie Hanna is seen breaking out of a CIA headquarters with relative ease.  She is shown having the knowledge to destroy security cameras, whereas later on in the movie, she is  terribly afraid of a television set because she has no experiecne with electronics whatsoever. Do you remember where she came from?  She has never left her humble abode and has known no one except her father.  But, of course, she can easily break free from a maximum security building.  Hanna's kill count is at least ten plus in this movie! Well, I am done with all the ranting.  These are just a few of the reasons why I did not like this movie, but I simply do not want to bore you with any more.

Before I conclude this critique, I do want to inform you that I disagree with several people out there who dislike this movie because Hanna is too young to be able to be violent or deadly.  Have you lived by yourself with just your father in the middle of nowhere, performing physical training every day?  Well, neither have I, so I guess we will never know for sure.

Let me finish this blog by saying that I believe that this movie had great potential.  I did not dislike the plot or central idea.  Even some of the actors did a good job.  What I dislike are several of the impossible events that took place in this movie.  I also do know that everything I commented about has to do with the realism aspect of the movie.  The director's goal could very well of been to portray other aspects instead of realism.  And that is fine with me, I realize that.  It just irritated me is all.  I did, however enjoy the cinematography and soundtrack, if that counts for anything!

Now that I am off my soap box, I would like to hear from those of you who have also seen this movie.  Did you like it?  If not, how come?  Do you agree with what I had to say?

If you have just visited my site, you are probably wondering what it is all about.  My name is Josh and I am using this blog as a site where readers can receive movie buzz and plugins for movies and share their opinion on those movies. I would love to hear your opinion on whether or not the director and actors did a good job and what could of made the movie better.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0993842/

Don't take from a father what is dearest to him, or else!

Have you ever been bitter or held a grudge against someone in your life?  Has that anger evolved into a strong desire to enact revenge towards that person?

Well this is exactly the case in the movie "The Taken."  In this blog I will sharing a short summary of the movie, my personal critique, and a plug in for it as well.

Liam Neeson plays  the role of a Central Intelligence Agent who has recently retired so he can live closer to his beloved daughter who is played by Maggie Grace(who has played minor roles in both "Lost" and "Knight and Day."  The daughter invokes on a trip to Paris on a trip with friends where she is then kidnapped.  Do not be alarmed.  This is not a spoiler alert(Look at the title of the movie)  This movie portrays the love, devotion, and courage of a father who takes dangerous risks to try everything in his might and power to bring his daughter back.  Does he do so?  I guess you will just have to find out.

I enjoyed this movie from beginning to end.  In fact I have watched this movie four different times in different states in the span of one week.  Does that give you any insight into my love for the movie?  I enjoyed the cast chosen for this movie;  I am a big Liam Neeson fan(A-Team, Star Wars anyone?)  The director of this movie is Pierre Morel(also director of the "transporter" movie series), who in my opinion conveyed the theme perfectly.  The theme of this movie has been done several times before, but not as intense as conveyed in this movie.  Neeson digs deep into his role and can be seen throughout the entire movie. His devotion for his daughter can be seen in all of his emotions.  This movie is a must see for all audiences, but especially for you fathers out there.  Unfortunately since this article is designed as a plugin as well as for sharing my opinion, I can not reveal any more information, as to avoid "spoiler alerts."  But I will leave with you a short quote from Neeson's character as to possibly entice you to watch this movie at some point.


"If you let my daughter go now, that'll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don't, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you."

If you have seen this movie please share your thoughts  Did you like Liam Neeson and how he portrayed his character?  Is this just another one of those  "been done same way before" movies, or is this a fresh new look at the theme?  Should the development make a sequel?  If you didn't like "The Taken, please share why!



If you have just visited my site, you are probably wondering what it is all about.  My name is Josh and I am using this blog as a site where readers can receive movie buzz and plugins for movies and share their opinion on those movies. I would love to hear your opinion on whether or not the director and actors did a good job and what could of made the movie better.




http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0936501/