Real Movie Review-Movie Reviews, Movie Quotes, Movie Trivia

Director: Albert and Allen Hughes

Starring: Larenz Tate, Keith David, Chris Tucker, Freddy Rodriguez, Rose Jackson, N’Bushe Wright

This action drama was the second film by the movie-making twins, Albert and Allen Hughes. The two started their careers with the urban drama, Menace II Society, and this effort has a 70s urban setting. The style and skill of these talented filmmakers is immediately apparent and the script which they co-wrote with Michael Henry Brown
has well-developed characters and great tension along with explosive action scenes framed with an engrossing small scale story. The acting is excellent, but the real star here is the Hughes direction which is cool and inspired.

Larenz Tate is Anthony Curtis, a good-natured high school kid in 60s New York who is enjoying life with his girlfriend, Delilah and good friends, Skip (Chris Tucker in an early role) and Jose (Freddy Rodriguez) and running numbers for a local tough guy, Kirby (Keith David). Those days are not to last, however, as all three of the young friends end up in Vietnam. Following a fairly lengthy and well-done segment in the ‘Nam, all three end up back in the old neighbourhood, where Anthony finds adjusting to civilian life difficult. Soon (and rather suddenly), the whole bunch of them are planning an armoured car heist, and ohhhh boy, what a heist it turns out to be.

This is a great action/drama film that combines impressive urban scenes with a great Vietnam lead in. For fans of thinking-man action, like Heat or inner-city features like Boyz In The Hood, this forgotten gem is worth digging up.

Director: Martin Scorsese

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Vera Farmiga, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Ray Winstone, Alec Baldwin

This was a best picture winner, which was most likely repayment of an ‘I owe you’ to Scorsese for all of his great work over the last thirty years. Don’t get me wrong. This is a very good movie with excellent dialogue delivered by a top-notch cast. The basic idea of the story is good and based on a Japanese film, but a couple of the characters presented in this version, just don’t work for me and hurt the movie’s credibility. Still a very good film with four more Oscars than I have.

Leonardo DiCaprio is great as Billy Costigan, a bad tempered trainee for the Boston State Police, with an attitude problem, when he is pulled out to go undercover in the Irish mob of Frank Costello, played by the master, Jack Nicholson. Now, Frankie Costello doesn’t just count on all the blessed saints to keep his Irish ass safe. Just to be sure, he has his ‘Statie’s’ detective in the form of the ambitious Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon proving himself as an excellent actor once again), who has been in Costello’s pocket since he was old enough to take comic books as payment. Costigan’s handlers are Capt. Queenan (Sheen) and Sgt Dingnam (Walhberg), whose character has the personality that would make it impossible to hold a job as anything, but a doorman at a skid row bar. Soon, both Costigan and Sullivan are getting pressured to find out who is giving info from the inside. They must both be idiots, however, since this doesn’t seem like it should be that big of a challenge; particularly with Costigan. Let’s see if I were a gangster who just found out that he has a cop in the pack and I have just recruited an ex-cop trainee, I don’t think I’d be scratching my head for too long, before I shot the new guy to see if he bleeds blue. If this were not enough, they both end up chasing the same girl, Madeline (Farmiga), whose character also doesn’t make sense. I don’t buy her unfaithful psychiatrist role and find her relationship with the volatile Costigan without sufficient basis. Anyway, all this keeps the tension level high and is backed up by a great soundtrack.

So, maybe I have to stand alone on this one (what else is new?), but I say this is an enjoyable, but flawed movie, that got ‘Best Picture’ as a sympathy award for the great Scorsese. Its still worth seeing, and maybe even owning, but weren’t they any good pictures that years that didn’t have any ‘what the hell?’ moments?’

Director: Gary Yates

Starring: Kevin Pollack, Liane Balaban, Jonas Chernick, James Tolkan, Aleks Paunovic, Babs Chula

I love a good scam flick. From the Sting to The Grifters and Matchstick Men, this is a genre that I really enjoy. Seven Times Lucky, from writer/director Gary Yates, is a dark addition to this genre. The twist-filled script, here, however, lacks any snap to the dialog and the characters, while professionally portrayed all seem too subdued and lack the fire the fire to engage an audience, even through its short, 85 min run time. The basic story is clever and it works, but Yates could have used some help on the dialog, and could have used more charismatic actors in the lead. Pollack, while a good character actor, lacks the charisma to carry a film.

Kevin Pollack is Harlan, a middle-aged career conman, who is lucky enough to get hooked up with Fiona (Kiane Balaban), an attractive, young pickpocket, and unlucky enough to also have a screw up named Sonny in his little crew, as well. When Sonny finds himself in deep trouble and needs a big score, Harlan and Fiona step in to help. Well, they mainly help themselves, but that’s still a kind of help isn’t it? There are some valuable stolen watches, big debts to some really rough people, but at least they have friends they can trust…

Seven Times lucky is a mediocre crime effort, that will hold some appeal for viewers, like myself, who love the Hollywood con game, but will not likely hold much interest for those who are not already genre fans..

Director: Barry Levinson

Starring: Jason Patric, Kevin Bacon, Robert De Niro, Brad Pitt, Billy Crudup, Minnie Driver, Dustin Hoffman, Bruno Kirby, Ron Eldard, Joe Perrino, Geoffrey Wigdor, Brad Renfro, Jonathan Tucker

Barry Levinson’s screen treatment of Lorenzo Caraterra’s controversial book (he claimed it was based on a true autobiographical experience – this has never been confirmed nor disproved), is an engaging New York tale of the hard streets of Hell’s Kitchen, and the hard time of reform school. The dialog is well-written, and the large cast is universally strong, right from the stars to the smallest supporting role. The four youngsters, who handle the first hour of the movie are particularly impressive and it is no surprise that all are still acting today.

Four young friends are growing up in Hell’s Kitchen in the 1960s. The flavor of the city is so strong here, that you can almost smell the asphalt, and this authenticity gets the story, told by the narrating character, ’Shakes’ (Jason Patric), off to a strong start. Soon the boys get themselves in some serious trouble, despite Father Bobby’s (Robert De Niro) best efforts to guide them. The four find themselves shipped off to the Wilkinson Home for Boys, where guard supervisor, Sean Nokes’ (Kevin Bacon, who always seems to get these creepy villain roles), idea of punishment seems to involve more than incarceration. Years later, these events resurface with violence and lead to hard choices for all involved.

Sleepers is aptly named. It is one of those excellent New York stories, that seems to have been forgotten in the decade since. The strong writing, outstanding performances and Levinson’s real feel for the setting and the story make this an excellent motion picture. If you have enjoyed films like Mystic River and A Bronx Tale, then Sleepers is worth renting.

Starring: Jeremy Piven, Ben Affleck, Andy Garcia, Alicia Keys, Ray Liotta, Ryan Reynolds

Director: Joe Carnahan

I have to tell you , I think that this movie’s biggest flaw is that it got way too much pre-release press. It was also filled with a high profile ensemble cast and when you mix those two you end up with REALLY high expectations.
The basic premise of the movie is that lounge act turn mob wanna be, turn actually mobster , Buddy “aces” Isreal has pissed off the wrong Don. He was brought in and deemed honorary pizano and then pissed off the wrong people because he treated mob life like car roof surfing (cheap thrill, no real danger). The problem is that the people who truley live the life were being brought into the FBI spotlight by his antics. Now if you know anything about mob movies, and you should or GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE, (seriously, if you have not seen Goodfellas, Casino or at least one of the Godfathers, get the hell off my site) you know that this can only result in one thing, Aces must die. The big clincher to this is that they put a million dollar bounty on his head. The rest is obvious, the hitmen come out of the woodwork and lead filled mayhem ensues.

This movie because of its mish mash of elements comes off like a b-52 made of Donnie brascoe, The Usual Suspects and Rat Race. I have to be honest after a few beers, there is nothing wrong with a good b-52. There is enough action to keep the adrenaline junkies from falling asleep and enough fun characters to keep the snatch fans interested. There is actually a very short but very stellar performance by Jason Bateman who plays a coked out sexually confused bail bondsman. Where this movie truely falls short is that it really tries to hard to be like snatch and usual suspects with the multi storyline, culmitating collision plot and fills it with a couple too many “out there” characters that just don’t hit the mark. It is worth the time if you have it to spare, but I really want to tell Writer/Director Joe Carnahan sometimes less is more, you don’t ALWAYS need 11 unique characters to be as good as Ocean’s 11, you don’t always have to make that extra pass, just shoot, it might go in!

Smokin’ Aces **
Author:MMM
This movie reminds of a kid I knew in school who was alright, but he just tried so damn hard that after an hour with him, you just wanted to strangle him so he would shut the hell up. This movie is a Snatch wannabe that tries so hard to be stylish and action-packed that it is like a dessert with way too much sugar. It is loaded with style and crazy ass action on top of twists that go on and on. Action junkies will like it, and some fans of edgy Guy Ritchie, Quentin Tarrantino-like stuff will like it. I consider myself part of the second group but this one is too much for me.
Joe Carnahan wrote, and directed, this movie and found a large star-studded cast to tell his tale including Andy Garcia, with some kind of muddled accent, Ben Affleck showing some acting ability, as he does from time to time and Alicia Keyes in what I believe is her first movie role. The story here revolves around Buddy “Aces” Israel, well played by Jeremy Piven. Aces is an entertainer turned mobster who finds himself hunted by everyone but the French Foreign Legion (saving them for the sequel?). He holes up in hotel suite and hopes to stay alive, while trying to make a deal to turn government witness. Liotta and Reynolds lead the ‘good guys’ as FBI agents, while Keyes and others play hit squads. The pacing is way too fast here, and the whole movie plays like a climax and becomes wearisome. By the time things were explained at the end, I really couldn’t give a damn.
Too much for me, but it is loaded with spectacular gun battles, exaggerated characters and overblown scenes that will appeal to some viewers. It had a promising start for me, but in the end, Aces didn’t deal.

Starring: Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, Jodie Foster, Christopher Plummer, Willem
Dafoe, Chiwetel Ejifor

Director: Spike Lee

This is a great movie about a clever bank robber, an out of favor cop, a mysterious businessman and a manipulative lawyer, all of whom have their own agendas. I expected a pedestrian heist film, but I got much more than that.
Dalton Russell (Clive Owen) immediately grabs us and the movie begins as quickly as the robbery. Detective Frazier (Washington), a back up negotiator with internal affairs on his case, is put in charge, when the robbers hole up with hostages in the bank. More and more, Frazier suspects that there is more going on with this robbery, and he is soon proven right as more and more irons keep getting stuck in this fire.
This is a great story with solid acting and an impressive ending. Its one weak spot (and I never thought I would write this) is Jodie Foster’s weak role and overplayed performance, which is my only quibble with one of the best movies of 2006.

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken, Amy Adams,
Martin Sheen.

Director: Steven Spielberg

I read this book several years before the movie came out and remember thinking “Wow, this would make a great movie”. I was right, especially if Steven Spielberg takes the project, gets a fantastic script and fills it with great actors as he did with this effort. The pace is fast, the characters are well-developed and the result is one of the best movies of 2002.
The true story of Frank Abagnale is as fascinating as the movie. They actually had to leave out lots of good stuff, so if you feel like an easy, entertaining read, catch this one, but enough about the book. Frank Abagnale is a 1960s high school student who finds his life torn apart by his parents’ divorce. Unsure of how to conduct himself in this strange new world, he falls into a gypsy life of check forgery and impersonation to survive. He does considerably better than survival, with money and women filling his life like snow on my front sidewalk. Hanks plays Frank Hanratty, a FBI agent obsessed with catching this ‘paper hanger’.
This project comes together through the combined talents of many of Hollywood’s finest. The result is a don’t-miss flick that is one of my all-time favorites that has me gushing like a teenager at a Justin Timberlake fan meeting.

Director: Joel Cohen

Starring: William H. Macy, Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare, Harve Presnell, Frances McDormand, John Carroll Lynch,

Well, Geez, these Cohen fellas, they sure can write. Oh Yah, done alot of that directing stuff , too. You’re darn tooting, Yah, Oh Yah, geez! Okay, I think I’ve gone as far with that as I can. There is a great, unpredictable tale, typical of the twisted Coen brothers’ style, but this is their best project so far. The characters are wonderful, rife with the quirks that make movie characters stick with us and are brought to life with spectacular performances by all the lead actors. The Coens are noted for their natural dialog and that reputation is confirmed here as they catch the patois of Minnesota/North Dakota, though I found it exaggerated and distracting at first. This setting builds in incredible irony and allows a constant stream of subtle humor as all the characters from the area constantly strive to be polite and upbeat. New York, this ain’t. Years, and several viewings, later I wouldn’t have it any other way.

William H. Macy is Jerry Lundegaard, a man with a desperate to achieve financial success to escape the crushing oppression of his domineering father-in-law (Harve Presnell). He comes up with a shocking plan to have his gentle wife kidnapped and skim off the bulk of the ransom cash. He hires Carl (Steve Buscemi) and Gaear (Peter Stomare) to pull off the kidnapping, but their bungling soon brings about an investigation by clever, and very pregnant, sheriff, Marge Gunderson played by McDormand in an amazing, Oscar-winning performance. It is a tribute to the Coen’s genius that when McDormand told them she was pregnant, rather than re-casting, delaying shooting or using tricks to hide it, they wrote it into the script and made the story even stronger. The ending is wonderful, sensible and memorable.

This is an off-beat crime drama, apparently based on a true story, that is refreshingly unlike anything that pops into my head besides other Coen films, like Blood Simple or little known gems like Red Rock West and A Simple Plan. If you haven’t seen it, well, geez, thats just something that you are going to have to work on isn’t it? You’re darn tootin’!

Starring: Lillo Brancato, Robert De Niro, Chazz Palminteri, Francis Capra

Director: Robert De Niro

Robert De Niro’s debuts as director in this feature and he does a fine job with obvious Scorsese influence. This is an excellent small-scale movie with a good story and well-developed characters, some excellent performances, along with subtle directorial flair
In a lot of ways, movie this resembles a softer, gentler Goodfellas. The story revolves around Calogero Anello, a seventeen year old Italian growing up in a 1960s Bronx neighborhood played by Lillo Brancato. Calogero is befriended by the local mob boss (Palminteri) over the objections of his father (De Niro). And this movie tells the story of his coming of age in this environment. Capra does a fine job as a nine year-old Calogero, and Palminteri and De Niro show excellence at their craft. Brancato does a respectable job, but suffers from comparison.
This is a personal favorite of mine and I recommend it whole-heartedly. There are some wonderful scenes, strong dialogue and enough action to balance out the story and make this enjoyable by all kinds of viewers.

strong>Director: Martin Scorsese

Starring: Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Robert De Niro, Lorraine Bracco, Paul Sorvino, Gina Mastrogiacomo, Debi Mazar

Martin Scorsese took Nicholas Pileggi’s biography of Henry Hill and the two of them wrote a screenplay and turned it into one of the greatest gangster movies of all time. The characters are memorable and the casting is superb, enhanced by standout acting performances, particularly by Joe Pesci, who jumped from supporting roles to leading man with his unforgettable role of Tommy in this hit. The story is engrossing and is interspersed with sudden explosions of violence that catch the viewer off guard. Martin Scorsese’s direction was nothing short of inspired, here and combines with the other elements to create a masterpiece of modern motion picture-making.

Ray Liotta is Henry Hill, who narrates his exciting gangster life story right from childhood and his early fascination with the “guys at the cab stand”, through his ever-increasing criminal success. Along the way, Hill hooks up with Jimmy (Robert De Niro) and Tommy (Pesci) and the three pull jobs, and work with the mob, to extravagant lifestyles outside the law. Eventually, though, there is a price to be paid for the choices made and Hill’s idyllic life begins to spiral out of control. The use of period music and main character narration adds to the film’s appeal.

This is a fantastic movie, that only has to contend with the Godfather series for the title as the greatest gangster movie of all time. If you haven’t seen it, and are not worried about a high level of violence, then this a must see for movie buffs.