THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

Comedy, adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS

Tom Wilkinson: a well known author

Jude Law: the author as a younger man

F. Murray Abraham: Mr. Moustafa, the hotel owner

Ralph Fiennes: Monsieur Gustave, the hotel concierge

Tony Revolori: Zero, the hotel lobby boy

Saoirse Ronan: pastry chef Agatha

Tilda Swinton: the very wealthy Madame D

Adrien Brody: her son Dmitri

Edward Norton: Inspector Henckels

Willem Dafoe:  Dmitri’s pal J. G. Jopling

Harvey Keitel: prisoner Ludwig

Bill Murray: Monsieur Ivan

Owen Wilson: Monsieur Chuck

REVIEW

Once more Ralph’s Rule of Redundancy applies:

“Any film where one person takes on more than two key positions has a major shortcoming: the absence of independent critical judgement that results in something less than it might have been.” In this case Wes Anderson is Writer, Director and Producer and the film suffers from it.

Depending upon what you find funny, this story of a concierge and a lobby boy could be hilarious (as was the case with two ladies in the audience who laughed at almost everything) to one provoking the odd smile. For me, it was the latter.

But it is not a easy story to follow as there are all kinds of twists and turns. The effort to keep things sorted out was just too much for me.

CLASSIFICATION

 for language, some sexual content and violence.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY

• Modern CPR methods for non-medical personnel came out in the 1960’s, some 30 years after these events took place.
• When viewed from the front, the strap of Zero’s bag is diagonally across his chest but seen from the side it hangs down vertically.

P.S.

The painting substituted for the Boy with Apple is in really poor taste and has no business in a comedy of this sort. Having to rely on a crotch-grabbing image to get a laugh is a sign of desperation.

MUPPETS MOST WANTED

Musical comedy adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST or VOICE MEMBERS

Steve Whitmire: Kermit the Frog and Rizzo the Rat

Eric Jacobson: Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal and Sam the Eagle

Dave Goelz: the Great Gonzo and others

Matt Vogel: Constantine and others

Ricky Gervais: Constantine’s sidekick Dominic Badguy

Ty Burrell: Jean Pierre Napoleaon, a French Interpol inspector

Tina Fey: Nadya, a Russian GULAG officer

REVIEW

Pretty good. That in a nutshell is how I feel about this latest sequel. The gags and one-liners are few and only provoke a smile rather than merriment and at almost two hours, it is too long. The children around me were fidgeting (when was the last time that happened during a Muppets movie) and not once was there a real outbreak of laughter.

All the while there are cameo performances by artists such as Tony Bennett, Sean Diddy Combs, Lady Gaga, Celine Dion, Salma Hayek, Ray Liotta, Stanley Tucci and others who add little if anything to the endeavour.

CLASSIFICATION

for some mild action.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY

The Interpol Inspector’s tie clip moves from one scene to another.

ALL IS LOST

Adventure 

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS

Robert Redford: a solo sailor in the Indian Ocean

REVIEW

Fans of Robert Redford who cannot get enough of him will just love this one: there is no one else to watch. This rather unusual film has just one star, no dialogue and apart from the initial voiceover, very few spoken words.

As with all survival movies there is a certain amount of tension as events unfold leading up to the big question “Will he/she make it out alive?” Along the way Redford has a daunting task: to convey the entire range of emotions only through his facial expressions and body language. He cannot verbalize his interior feelings because he is all alone. It is quite some task but Redford proves he is up to it.

 CLASSIFICATION

 for brief language (point of clarification: one word!)

SKYFALL

Action and adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS

Daniel Craig: James Bond, agent 007

Judi Dench: his boss, M, head of M.I.6

Naomie Harris: field agent Eve Moneypenny

Ralph Fiennes: Gareth Mallory, Chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee

Ben Whisaw: Q, the M.I.6 quartermaster

Bérénice Marlohe: Sévérine

Javier Bardem: Raoul Silva, former MI6 agent

Helen McCrory: Claire Dowar, chairwoman of the public inquiry

REVIEW

The action sequences are nothing short of spectacular with some of the “traditional” elements clearly in evidence (think fruit stands) which pretty well sums up this latest version of the series: a mix of the old and the new.

Beautiful locations which are a trademark of the series include Istanbul, London, Shanghai, Macau and the Scottish Highlands. The beautiful girls (another Bond staple) are there as well. The acting is uniformly good with less tongue-in-cheek than in some earlier editions. To me, this is the best Bond yet in part because of the strong cast along with the work of Sam Mendes as Director and Roger Deakins in charge of cinematography.

Although a tad long at 2 hours and 23 minutes, there are very few slow spots that could be left on the editing floor.

CLASSIFICATION

for intense violent sequences throughout, some sexuality, language and smoking.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY

• Bond gets hit on the right shoulder but later when he attempts to extract the bullet it’s now in his left shoulder.
• During the assessment of his shooting skills, Bond fires off 8 or 9 rounds but when he checks the target there are twice as many bullet holes in it.
• The night security man in Macau was shot approaching the ground floor door not at the top of the escalator where Bond walks around him.
• Bone describes the dress worn by Bérénice as backless but it is not: the back of the dress is a sheer fabric encrusted with sparkles.
• Silva says he survived the cyanide capsule which is patently impossible given the deadly nature of the substance.
• When the tube train plunges off the tracks the interior lights remain lit; once the train leaves the rails that carry the electricity the train would have been in darkness.
• When M is being questioned by the panel her watch shows it to be 3:37 but it is 3:00 according to the clock on the wall and moments later on Bond’s watch we see it to be 3:50.
• Big Ben shows it to be 5:30 when Eve gets to the rooftop but seen over Bond’s shoulder it is almost 6:00 o’clock.
• When Bond falls through the ice we can see it is only 2” thick. Thin ice like that cannot support the weight of a grown man. Ice of at least 4” thick is safe to walk on; 3” or less … keep off!

 P.S.

Although there are a number of songs and books that have remained popular for years, this is the 50th year of the franchise which is a remarkable achievement in cinema.

SAFE HOUSE

Action/adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Denzel Washington: ex-CIA agent Tobin Frost
Ryan Reynolds: low level CIA agent Matt Weston
Brendan Gleeson: his boss David Barlow
Liam Cunningham: MI6 operative Alec Wade
Vera Farmiga: Catherine Linkater
Sam Shepard: CIA Director Harlan Whitford
Robert Patrick: CIA interrogation squad team leader Daniel Kiefer

REVIEW
They have squandered the talents (and good looks) of an A-list cast with a clunker. What a mess, literally, because it’s shot almost entirely with a hand-held camera resulting in jerky indistinct images flitting by. The editing it seems was done trying not to have any one scene appear for more than two seconds, three at most.

Despite this meat-cleaver style of editing too much has been left in with the result it goes on for almost 2 hours. That’s far too long for a movie that has very little in the way of a script with hardly any character development relying instead on non-stop action. It simply charges ahead at breakneck speed without much regard to telling a story, one that’s been done better by others many times before. Typical of this genre, it’s purposely confusing so you wind up scratching your head wondering “what the heck was that all about?”.

One more thing: bring ear protection because everything is loud, really loud and if you have something to say to your neighbour be prepared to shout. Better still: skip the whole thing and don’t waste two hours of your time.

CLASSIFICATION

for violence and profanity.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
Matt winds up with a scratch that looks like railway tracks near the temple on the right side of his face. Throughout the film it changes from a single scratch to a double one.

THE GREY

Action/adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Liam Neeson: John Ottway, an oil refinery sharpshooter
Frank Grillo: oil rig worker John Diaz
Dermot Mulroney: a co-worker Talget
Dallas Roberts: another employees Pete Hendrick
Nonso Anozie: Burke
Jacob Blair: Cimoski

REVIEW
This “one-note” survival tale soon becomes repetitive: action then interlude, action then interlude. The entire thing is déjà-vu with its motley group of men reminiscing about better times while waiting for the inevitable.

The only thing that sets it apart from similar movies are the great shots of the Alaskan winter landscape.

CLASSIFICATION

for violence, disturbing content including bloody images and pervasive language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
• A drilling rig is a work-only environment; there are no amenities on site such as a bar.
• Just prior to taking off a passenger gets up and changes seats: that is not allowed on commercial airlines and he would have been told by the flight attendant to return to his assigned seat.
• John’s abrasion on his left cheek changes shape and location throughout the film.
• The Alaska Air National Guard would conduct a coordinated search to locate an overdue commercial aircraft and the 210th Rescue Squadron helicopters with two “Guardian Angels” would provide any necessary medical intervention so nobody in their right mind would leave a downed aircraft. But then we would not have a movie would we?
• Ottway explains that Burke is suffering from hypoxia: in fact hypoxia occurs in healthy people when they ascend to high altitudes (above 12,000’) but in this instance they not even above the tree line, the first visible indication of higher altitude.
• The plastic used for miniature bottles of alcoholic spirits does not shatter with jagged edges like a glass bottle would.

P.S.
I don’t know why they bury an important piece of the plot in the end credits. But they do.

THOR

Science fiction action adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Natalie Portman: astrophysicist Jane Foster
Stellan Skarsgård: the authority on Nordic legend Dr. Erik Selvig
Kat Dennings: intern Darcy Lewis
Anthony Hopkins: King Odin, ruler of Asgard
Chris Hemsworth: his son Thor
Tom Hiddleston: Thor's adoptive brother Loki
Idris Elba: Asgard’s gatekeeper, Heimdall
Colm Feore: Laufey the Frost Giant King
Clark Gregg: Agent Coulson of SHEILD

REVIEW
Unquestionably geared to the comic book and superhero loving crowd this
tale about gods and man and the battle between good and evil is entertaining enough but a tad too long at almost 2 hours. In part because of the too frequent battles that I felt very detached about, not really caring one way or the other about the outcome.

There are a few brief moments of comic relief but for the most part it zips along at a pretty frantic pace in a computer driven CGI world. The acting, what there is of it, won’t make the short list of Academy Award performances. In fact the acting won’t make the long list either.

CLASSIFICATION
for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence.

RED

Action/adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Bruce Willis: former black-ops C.I.A. agent Frank Moses
Mary-Louise Parker: social security claims officer Sarah Ross
Morgan Freeman: 80-year old former C.I.A. agent Joe Matheson
John Malkovich: former C.I.A. agent Marvin Boggs
Helen Mirren: former MI6 agent Victoria
Ernest Borgnine: C.I.A. records keeper Henry
Karl Urban: C.I.A. super agent William Cooper
Brian Cox: former KGB spy Ivan Simanov
Richard Dreyfuss: private defense contractor Alexander Dunning

REVIEW
For reasons that are not entirely clear (at least to me) bad guys are out to kill nice guy Frank Moses. So he rounds up some of his old cronies to put an end to their endeavour. Along the way there is lots of car chases, guns and explosions, snappy dialogue and crisp editing.

Not a bad premise but it drags on too long and becomes repetitious serving only to allow cameo performances for a half dozen well known actors, many of whom we’ve not seen for some time. In fact the cast reads like a Who’s Who of Hollywood.

CLASSIFICATION
for intense sequences of action violence and brief strong language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
• Frank has an early morning cup of coffee. The kitchen clock shows it to be 6:59 whereas his wristwatch says it’s 5:00.
• Frank heats up some bullets that eventually explode. That’s not how it works at all.
• While in the airport control tower the middle of three blinds is almost completely pulled up but in the following scene just before the attack, it is down like the others although no one touches it.
• Frank punches a hole in the dry wall and proceeds to open the locked door. Once inside there is no damage to the wall.
• Alexander has a white bit of fuzz on his right shoulder but in the next scene it’s gone.

KNIGHT AND DAY

Action adventure romantic comedy

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Tom Cruise: Roy Miller
Cameron Diaz: June Havens, a vintage car restorer
Peter Sarsgaard: F.B.I. Agent Fitzgerald
Marc Blucas: firefighter Rodney, June’s ex-boyfriend
Paul Dano: boy scientist Simon Feck
Jordi Molla: Antonio, an international arms dealer
Viola Davis: F.B.I. Director George

REVIEW
It scores on all four counts: lots of action, limited adventure, plenty of romance and a sprinkling of comedy. The action sequences are short and sweet so you won’t get bored with them and the cinematography takes advantage of the locations so it is almost a travelogue as well.

The acting is fine, the story has the mandatory twists and turns but unlike most of this genre the plot is not too convoluted so it’s not too taxing.

CLASSIFICATION
for sequences of action violence throughout and brief strong language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
• The flight attendant completely ignores passengers walking about the aircraft despite the fact the seat belt sign is on.
• While driving on the motorcycle Roy and June encounter the famous running of the bulls. Trouble is that takes place in Pamplona, not Seville.
• Cape Horn, Chile is approximately 11,105 km distant from Los Angeles not 3,976 as indicated on the beach sign post.

P.S.
The little souvenir Roy purchases in the airport gift shop accounts for the first half of the movie title but I have no idea what the “Day” part is all about.

PRINCE OF PERSIA

Action/adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Ronald Pickup: King Sharaman of Persia
Jake Gyllenhaal: the King’s adopted son Prince Dastan
Richard Coyle: the King’s eldest son and heir Prince Tus
Tony Kebbell: the King’s second son Prince Garsiv
Ben Kingsley: Nizam, the King’s brother and most trusted adviser
Gemma Arterton: Princess Tamina
Alfred Molina: Sheik Amar, an ostrich race promoter

REVIEW
This big-budget fantasy adventure is an action-oriented romp through ancient lands. There's never a dull moment despite the fact a lot of what transpires makes little sense. Trying to keep track of the good-guys and bad-guys takes some effort as does the time-travel aspect from the mystical dagger.

What with all the running around and fighting, acting really takes a back seat amidst all the special effects. It is a moderately entertaining time out from reality although the target audience of young teens would certainly disagree.

CLASSIFICATION
for intense sequences of violence and action.

IRON MAN 2

Action/adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Robert Downey Jr.: Tony Stark, CEO of Stark Industries
Garry Shandling: Senator Stern, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee
Gwyneth Paltrow: Stark’s personal assistant Virginia “Pepper” Potts
Scarlett Johansson: Stark Industries new hire Natalie Rushman
Mickey Rourke: Russian physicist Ivan Vanko
Sam Rockwell: Justin Hammer, CEO of Hammer Industries
Don Cheadle: Stark’s best friend Lt. Colonel James “Rhodey” Rhodes
Samuel L. Jackson: Nick Fury, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.

REVIEW
There are a few good one-liners - I especially liked the one by Stark about the interview he gave for a magazine - and these double entendres make it a surprisingly funny script at times.

Unless you are a committed fan of the series you will probably find it too long with a running time in excess of 2 hours. Although the beginning and end move along at a good clip, things bog down in the middle because of the complex plot and lots of dialogue that goes nowhere: there are too many words, not enough action.

As would be expected the special effects are nothing short of spectacular. For the most part the acting is top notch except for Cheadle. He is an excellent actor but this part just isn't right for him; most of the time he looks out of place and uncomfortable with what he’s doing.

CLASSIFICATION
for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence and some language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
• Lt. Colonel Rhodes and the Air Force base commander should not have saluted when they terminated their discussion in the hanger as saluting is not required when indoors, except when reporting to an officer or when on duty as a guard.
• While being interviewed Ivan’s white undershirt is sometimes much in evidence and in other shots his black vest-like shirt completely hides it.

THE LOSERS

THE LOSERSAction, adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Jeffrey Dean Morgan: Colonel Franklin Clay, leader of an Elite Special Forces team
Chris Evans: other members of the team Jake Jensen
Idris Elba: William Roque
Columbus Short: Linwood “Pooch” Porteous
Óscar Jaenada: and Carlos “Cougar” Alvarez
Jason Patric: rogue CIA agent Max
Zoe Saldana: Aisha al-Fadhil

REVIEW
I’ll tell you who the losers are: anyone who forks out good money to go see this clunker.

It is loud and violent, seriously in need of some real acting and confusing. In a word it is a big waste of time. I should have walked out.

CLASSIFICATION
for sequences of intense action and violence, a scene of sensuality and language.

GREEN ZONE

War action\adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Igal Naor: Iraqi Republican Guard General Al-Rawi
Khalid Abdalla: Freddy, a native Iraqi
Matt Damon: U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller
Amy Ryan: Wall Street Journal foreign correspondent Lawrie Dayne
Michael O'Neill: the units commanding officer Colonel Bethel
Brendan Gleeson: C.I.A. Station Chief Martin “Marty” Brown
Greg Kinnear: Defense Intelligence Agent Clark Poundstone

REVIEW
Set during the early months of the Coalition occupation of Bagdad it starts slowly enough but once the action begins it hardly ever stops. The main question being raised is whether the stated justification for the war, the elimination of weapons of mass destruction, was an honest mistake or was there a more sinister explanation?

The extensive use of hand-held cameras conveys the almost out-of-control energy of the action sequences but the quick cuts often make it difficult to understand exactly what is going on. Fortunately the narrative structure at the end of the action clues you in to what has transpired.

The acting is uniformly good and the pacing fine although they could chop a half hour or so from the running time without losing a lot.

CLASSIFICATION
for war violence and language.

FROM PARIS WITH LOVE

Action\adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Jonathan Rhys Meyers: James Reece, personal aide to the U.S. Ambassador in France
Richard Durden: Ambassador Bennington
Kasia Smutniak: James’ girfriend Caroline
John Travolta: Charlie Wax, special CIA agent

REVIEW
Things start off deceptively slowly but once Charlie Wax shows up it is virtually non-stop action as he one-handily takes on a variety of bad guys who come across his path including terrorists, drug dealers and the like.

His language is peppered with expletives intended to intimidate his foe but can become obnoxious. The mayhem is relentless: shooting people and blowing things up are interspersed with wild car chases though the City of Love. Guess that’s where the title comes from because there ain’t no love from this guy.

Now don’t go cancelling anything important (like picking up your things at the dry cleaners) but if you have a hour and a half to kill (get the pun?) then it’s worth seeing. Otherwise you could easily skip it and not lose any sleep over it. And save yourself a couple of bucks.

CLASSIFICATION
for strong, bloody violence throughout, drug content, pervasive language and brief sexuality.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
With a break in the action James takes a moment to wash his face and get rid of the splattered blood. He misses two spots, one above his right eye and another below his left ear. But in the very next scene (and for the rest of the movie) these have conveniently disappeared.

SHERLOCK HOLMES

Action/Adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Robert Downey Jr.: Sherlock Holmes
Jude Law: his faithful sidekick Dr. John Watson, surgeon and war veteran
Mark Strong: Lord Blackwood, practitioner of human sacrifice
Kelly Reilly: Watson’s girlfriend Mary Morstan
and others no doubt

REVIEW
Instead of being the cerebral detective, Sherlock Holmes has been transformed into some sort of action hero like Bruce Lee, an expert in the martial arts quite adept at the brutal, violent pummeling of an opponent. Holmes also comes across as an arrogant slob lacking social graces like any lowly thug.

Purists will feel cheated by this character assassination. Some of them, like me, will walk out.

CLASSIFICATION
for intense sequences of violence and action, some startling images and a scene of suggestive material.

THE ROAD

Adventure\drama

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Viggo Mortensen: the man with no name
Charlize Theron: his wife
Kodi Smit-McPhee: their son
Garret Dillahunt: a gang member
Robert Duvall: an old man
Michael Kenneth Williams: a thief

REVIEW
This story of survival in a post-apocalyptic setting is a rather bleak affair. In no way is it a “feel-good” movie despite the brief flashbacks to an earlier life. It does raise the question about being human but under much different circumstances than today.

The paucity of dialogue provides little opportunity for the cast to do more than slog it out while keeping the emotional level in check.

The running time is almost two hours but doesn’t have to be since there are quite a few scenes that are either repetitive or simply too long. The film editor should have exercised his prerogative and done something about that.

CLASSIFICATION
for profanity and violence.

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

War action/drama
Portions in German or French with English subtitles

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Christoph Waltz: Colonel Hans Landa of the Waffen-SS
Denis Menochet: French dairy farmer Perrier LaPadite
Brad Pitt: U.S. Army Lt. Aldo Raine, commanding officer First Special Service Force
Eli Roth: Sgt. Donny Donowitz, one of the squad
Mélanie Laurent: Emmanuelle Mimieux, owner of a Parisian cinema
Daniel Brühl: German sharpshooter Private Frederick Zoller
Michael Fassbender: British Army Lt. Archie Hicox
Diane Kruger: German movie star Bridget von Hammersmark
Alexander Fehling: German Cpl. Wilhelm Wicki
August Diehl: SS Major Deiter Hellstrom
Jacky Ido: Emmanuelle’s assistant Marcel

REVIEW
“Once upon a time ... in Nazi-occupied France,” the title card informs us so right away we know that what follows may not be consistent with fact. What we get instead is a fast paced, exciting, action adventure war movie. Told in five chapters at times often utilising the spaghetti-Western technique(especially the music) including some very clever dialogue.

The performances are uniformly good (although Waltz’s is the best), the costumes and cinematography top notch.

One word of caution: there are quite a few grisly scenes that may require you to avert your eyes. Generally these can be anticipated but some will catch even the wary off guard.

Although at two hours and 35 minutes it is longer than most films, the time passes so quickly I was surprised when the end credits began to roll. I was not surprised with the applause.

CLASSIFICATION
for strong graphic violence, language and brief sexuality (very brief: about 3 seconds worth)

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
• Moving at a pretty good speed the two motorcycles and car approaching the farm house would travel much farther than they do during the cutaways to LaPadite and his daughters.
• Col. Hans Landa says the Bubonic Plague was caused by rats. This infection of the lymphatic system resulted from the bite of an infected flea, not from its host.
• Colonel Landa fills his pen from the small ink well which remains in place at first in bright light, then in shadow and back again to bright light.
• Although we hear the ticking throughout Col. Landa’s visit, the hands of the clock remain stuck at 11:40.
• The card Major Hellstrom sticks on his forehead changes positions even though he doesn’t touch it: sometimes it’s vertical or at a slant at eyebrow level and other times it’s part way down the bridge of his nose.