Let me start by saying that Robert DeNiro is not, by any means, my favorite actor. In fact, as I've stated in another review (I think it was Sleepers), I think he's a macho wind-bag. Still, the concept of this movie intrigued me -- so I went.
I'm glad I did.
Ronin tells the story of a group of mysterious strangers who are hired by an unkown individual to secure a briefcase, the contents of which remain undisclosed. Upon obtaining the briefcase, they are to deliver it, intact, after which they will be paid a handsome sum of money. These people perform their job quite admirably, but after a double-cross, the briefcase falls into the wrong hands -- namely, not the team's. The job then becomes to track down this new possessor and retrieve the case, all the while trying not to miss their deadline.
For all it's impressive action and detailed plot, the movie left me partially dissatisfied. DeNiro, Jean Reno (Godzilla), Jonathan Pryce (Tomorrow Never Dies), and the rest of the cast were superb (though I did find the semi-romantic subplot between DeNiro and Natascha McElhone-- who looks somewhat like Jane Seymour, if you ask me -- forced and out of place), but still I was left wondering several things... for one, what was so important in that briefcase that people were willing to kill to get it? Money? Secret Government Plans? Who knows?
Even though I left the theater wondering which way was up, I was very much impressed with the vast majority of the movie. DeNiro's Sam was the laid-back kind of character that I like in movies of this nature. Nothing seemed to phase him most of the time. The plans that the team made, the detail and foresight (even with such limited information) was "wow"-ing. The subtlety with which they carried out portions of this plot made me just have to grin. It was as if they and I were sharing a secret that the enemy didn't know.
However, though I do like a good plot twist, this one had too many. From the initial stealing of the briefcase, to a showdown in an Olympus-like arena, to the chases through France, I came out of the theater with whiplash. It played out in places like a bad Scooby Doo episode, where they rip off one mask, only to discover the villain is wearing several others. I got antsy after a while, wondering, "Is this really the end, or are they playing me again?"
Despite this, I found Ronin to be a highly enjoyable movie, at times to the point of being downright exciting.
This movie is rated R for violence and language. Not for young children.
SCORE: 8 Solid performance, excellent action, and they weren't even afraid to kill the occasional innocent bystander! Though some of the chase scenes ran a bit long for my tastes, and it hit a few too many "what the--"s, the end result is still a movie you'll thrill to. Recommended!
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As events unfold, Lee discovers that an old enemy thought defeated is behind the kidnapping, and (with the resurgence of the deadly JunTao) the stakes become much higher.
I have somewhat mixed feelings on this movie. On the one hand, it is uproariously funny -- and with Jackie Chan, it's bound to be loaded with action. (Incidentally, this is my first Chan movie, and he lived up to the hype.)
Unfortunately, the movie fell victim to formula. Worse yet, it fell victim to cliche. At first Carter doesn't like Lee because he's a foreigner. Lee doesn't trust Carter because Carter is a jerk. By the end of the movie, though, the two are best friends. (Lethal Weapon springs immediately to mind.) Also, the "official" investigators are trying to keep them out of it, and they're the ones who end up "cracking the case".
As much as I'm opposed to Political Correctness, I also took umbrage at the many racial slurs and stereotypes that the film went into. Tucker, after Chan has turned the car's radio to a Beach Boys song, screams "Don't ever touch a black man's radio!" He refers to the Asian characters in demeaning terms, and is just plain disrespectful of the other culture.
On the positive side of Tucker's character, I did like his sense of style. He moves with grace that made him endearing in The Fifth Element, though I find his voice somewhat grating. Chan's moves were equally impressive. I especially enjoyed the sequence where he was trying to prevent the breakage of an ancient Chinese vase while fighting off some bad guys. Graceful.
Resolutions left much to be desired. I thought that the build-up far exceeded the conclusion -- especially in the case of Sang. The "twist" as to JunTao's identity was similarly cliche.
All in all, though, if you want action with a kick -- and an action star who always does his own stunts (and what impressive stunts they are!), Rush Hour is for you!
This movie is rated PG-13 for violence and language.
SCORE: 7 Despite its impressive array of fight sequences, the movie suffers from lapses of taste and imagination. It's a good buddy cop outing, but it's nothing special. Favorable, but not recommended.
Brace yourselves, boys and girls, this one is tough to watch. It's not confusing, it's not boring-- quite the opposite. It's one of the best movies I've ever seen. It's tough to watch, because child abuse is always a difficult subject-- for me, at any rate.
Elijah Wood and Joseph Mazzello star in this drama about two boys who, in essence, use a Radio Flyer wagon for escapism. It's told as a flashback from the perspective of Mikey (Wood). A recently divorced mother of two (Lorraine Bracco) moves the family to California, where she meets a man who likes to call himself "The King" (Adam Baldwin). Mikey and Bobby (Mazzello, in a startlingly realistic performance-- he was seven at the time!) distrust him from the beginning. Of course, as they say, love is blind, so Mom marries him anyway.
"The King" turns out to be abusive and alcoholic. He spent his evenings listening to Hank Williams records and drinking. Since Mom worked many evenings, she didn't see this side of him until it was too late. Mike discovers one night, while Bobby is tossing and turning in his sleep, that The King has been beating Bobby-- there are bruises all over his back. Thus begins an adventure using the wagon Bobby received for his birthday to escape the harsh reality at home.
In my review of The Cure, I said that one of Joseph's best traits was the ability to look into his eyes and see the emotion there. That is precisely what makes this a frightening movie. I don't believe for one minute that Joseph has suffered abuse at the hands of either of his parents (he speaks too highly of them in interviews), but the vacant look in his eyes in this movie is the same one that my brother once told me I had during the rough time in my own life.
This movie really hit home for me. I flashed back to that time in my life-- it was as if they were playing my own biography, despite the fact that the movie took place a few years before I was even born! Mikey was my brother, Bobby was me. I was older, so I wasn't quite as scarred as Bobby must have turned out to be, but the similarity was still very eerie.
Radio Flyer deals with the issue from the child's point of view, shows how frightening it can be for the child, and how totally clueless parents can be. The use of echo with the music in one disturbing scene was vivid and accurate. And the actors' performances! Wood and Mazzello, as have come to be expected by this reviewer, were excellent, Bracco was great (though I told her character on more than one occasion to open her eyes-- she listened to me about as much as my mother did...), and Baldwin was-- well, he was scary.
I know all I've mentioned of the movie was its dark side. There are many very light moments-- in fact, if you aren't careful, you get swept up in those light moments to the point where you forget what the boys are facing at home. And that is precisely the intent. Escapism for them. Masterfully written, directed, and acted. The ending was a touch more fantasy than I'd have liked in a film of this type, and you're left wondering "What ever happened to...?", but the rest of the movie more than makes up for it. It's very good. Rent it.
This movie is rated PG-13 for some brutal language and depictions of child abuse. Not for young children
SCORE: 9.5 Wood and Mazzello (especially the latter) are always a plus, and they had an on-screen rapport that hit the brother relationship right on the head: "I'll pick on you, maybe even beat the snot out of you, but don't let anyone else ever mess with you, or there is hell to pay!" The abuse scenes were disturbing, yet not graphic (for which I'm grateful), and the end product, when thought upon as a whole, is simply a remarkable piece of storytelling. Muchly muchly recommended!
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Mel Gibson... What can I say? My mother loves him, I admire him, fans everywhere clamor for anything by him. This latest outing proves that even a director can take direction as he stars in the Ron Howard-directed suspense thriller about an airline tycoon whose son is kidnapped for a $2,000,000 ransom. When the payoff goes awry, Gibson's character (after jumping through all of the kidnappers' hurdles) decides to offer the two mil instead to anyone who brings in the kidnapper.
From the opening scene, I was hooked. Partially because I also like Rene Russo, who plays Gibson's wife and the kidnappee's mother. The other part of it, though, is how well played the movie was. It could have quickly deteriorated into another Missing, which I despised (the latter kept saying "where is my son" over and over, and it got old). It didn't, though. Gibson artfully played a father teetering back and forth on the brink of insanity, despite the fact that it was causing friction between him and Russo. Despite the fact that at any moment his son could be killed.
On the other side of the film's spectrum, we have Gary Senise (Stepen King's The Stand) as the leader of the kidnappers. I'm used to seeing him as the good guy, so it was refreshing to know he could do a villain. Senise's character was also a cop, which made the premise even more chilling. Among the members of the kidnap crew was Liev Schreiber,whom I kept saying, "Where have I seen this guy?" until it hit me-- Mixed Nuts. Donnie Wahlberg (formerly of New Kids on the Block) and Lili Taylor round out the list of bad guys.
I must admit one thing... even I, super suspension of disbelief that I have, couldn't even fathom a father, if he loves his son as much as Gibson claimed to, ever ever ever risking his son's life like that, no matter what he was trying to prove, cover up, accomplish, etc. And Russo's reaction to that little revelation was, I'm sure, what mothers everywhere were saying.
Suspense builds superbly in Ransom. The twist near the end, where the bad cop "rescues" Sean for the upgraded reward of $4 million. It was absolutely chilling. Gibson and Senise worked well in this scene, the former seemingly having no clue as to the man's true identity, the latter gushing friendship yet still managing to relay his underlying intent to the audience. Then, as Gibson read certain clues (like Sean's reaction to the man), I actually heard the wheels clicking as he put the pieces together. Kudos, Mel!
This movie is rated R for strong language, brief nudity, and violence, though not excruciatingly harsh. Not recommended for children.
SCORE: 9 The cast works well together, and Howard's first foray into suspense was excellent! Russo and Gibson have chemistry, which is a plus. Other than my hesitation at believing a father would actually go against the kidnappers, it's an excellent movie. I highly recommend it!
