I really liked Wild Card, which is saying something for an action movie released in January. The movie was well-directed by Simon West, whose past work that includes The Expendables 2 and Con Air show that he knows how to film action. The actors in the movie were good too. Jason Statham just might be the best he’s ever been from a performance standpoint. The pacing might turn some people off, as it is very slow. The action scenes are few and far between, but they are brutal, entertaining, and very well-choreographed and shot. The slow motion is used sparingly and effectively. The plot did keep me interested for the most part, even though it was a little clumsy. I did find that it was difficult to pin-point the main plot of the movie, and some of the side-steps were a little jarring, and distracting. Certain actors had smaller roles than I expected, while others had much larger roles than I had expected. This is a movie I really would only recommend to hard core fans of Jason Statham’s movies (like myself) because they will surely find something in the movie to enjoy, whatever it is.
6 / 10
From the trailers of this movie alone, it looked like a hundred movies I’ve seen before. Watching this movie made me realize I was completely right. The pacing is off, and every actor is miscast in their roles, never coming off as believable. Everyone overacts, appearing as though they are in the Lifetime Channel movie of the week, and have zero chemistry together. I cannot bring myself to like any of the characters. Actor Ryan Guzman in particular, is horrible. His menacing dialogue is laughable and forced, as opposed to threatening and genuine. They are incredibly one-note, under-written, and cliched. For a movie within the erotic thriller genre, they actually play it relatively safe, I started willing the movie just end about half-way through because The Boy Next Door wastes even the “so-bad-it’s-good” potential. It commits the ultimate sin a movie possibly could. It wasn’t just bad, it was utterly boring. Rarely do I see a film that becomes more and more insulting the longer it goes on. I tried and failed to find something I liked. This is a movie that I hope isn’t a sign of things to come for 2015 movies.
0 / 10
Jupiter Ascending isn’t without its flaws, but I still found it to be an enjoyable guilty pleasure movie. I liked the actors in the movie, particularly Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum, and Sean Bean. The action sequences are entertaining and the visual look of the movie is gorgeous. The plot of the movie is a bit of a mess. Parts of the movie feel incredibly rushed, while other parts of the movie are confusing. The arc of the Jupiter character was interesting, but her budding love with Channing Tatum was cheesy and a little forced. Eddie Redmayne was entertaining in the movie. His acting was incredibly over-the-top, and it was clear that he relished the opportunity he was given. Yes, I did enjoy the movie. I do have to fault it however, for the weak script, predictable plot-lines, and bland score. I feel that this movie is somewhere in the middle between the greatness of Star Wars and the cheesiness of Flash Gordon. The end result is a fun popcorn movie that doesn’t quite stack up against some of the Wachowskis’s better movies, but is still a ton of fun in its own right, despite its weaker elements.
6 / 10
The Loft is one of the hardest movies I’ve ever had to finish. The movie is horribly written, dreadfully directed, and terribly acted. The characters have little to no development to them. The wives aren’t developed past being wives. The husbands cheating on them are horrible people that you absolutely hate. The dialogue in the movie makes it come off as though it were written by aliens. The pacing is painfully slow, making the movie feel like six hours when it was closer to an hour and a half. The plot twists that are revealed throughout the movie don’t help either. It’s supposed to elevate the movie, but only manages to sink it lower. The movie’s structure feels pointless because you don’t care about any of the reveals throughout the movie, mostly because you can never bring yourself to care or feel the excruciating and unlikable characters. The plot lines that are constantly revealed are never really all that shocking either, as you start to realize you know where everything is going to go. The Loft proves to be nothing more than a disgusting, loathsome movie that is easily one of the worst I have seen in my entire life.
0 / 10
