Mini Movie Review: A Christmas Story (1983)

 

A Christmas Story (1983)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot: Ralphie has to convince his parents, teacher, and Santa that a Red Ryder B.B. gun really is the perfect gift for Christmas in the 1940s. 

When I think about what my favorite Christmas movie is there really is only one movie I keep coming back to.  That's A Christmas Story.  It's amazing to see how the popularity of this movie has grown over the years.  It was a sleeper hit back in 1983 in the box office and it took about fifteen years to obtain the reputation that it has now by playing over and over on TV during the holidays.

Mini Movie Review: Elf (2003)

 

Elf (2003)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot: After inadvertently wreaking havoc on the elf community due to his ungainly size, a man raised as an elf at the North Pole is sent to the U.S. in search of his true identity. 

I don't think that it is a secret that a lot of people just can't stand Will Farrell and his comedy.  I think I fall on the side of people who do enjoy his comedy although I also understand why people just can't laugh at his stuff.  Elf is a pretty funny movie, but I wouldn't say that it is Will Farrell's best work.

Mini Movie Review: Bad Santa (2003)

Bad Santa (2003)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot: A miserable conman and his partner pose as Santa and his Little Helper to rob department stores on Christmas Eve. But they run into problems when the conman befriends a troubled kid, and the security boss discovers the plot.

If you are tired of the ultra-happy Christmas movie and want something a little darker then Bad Santa is the movie for you.  Billy Bob Thornton does what he does best by playing a middle aged alcoholic loser who just doesn't care.  His character is a thief who accidentally befriends a troubled little boy who is played awesomely by child actor Brett Kelly. 

Mini Movie Review: The Ref (1994)

 

The Ref (1994)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot: A burglar is forced to take a bickering and dysfunctional family hostage on Christmas Eve. 

Denis Leary stars in this dark comedy as a burglar who holds a dysfunctional family hostage after a robbery goes bad.  I wouldn't exactly call Denis Leary a great actor, but he is a really funny stand up comic and can rant better than just about anybody.  As an actor he doesn't have a ton of range although I don't think it really matters especially when he plays pissed off ranting assholes like he does here.

Mini Movie Review: Eight Crazy Nights (2002)

 

Eight Crazy Nights (2002)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot:  Davey Stone, an alcoholic with a criminal record, is sentenced to community service under the supervision of an elderly referee. Davey is then faced with trying to reform and abandon his bad habits.

I have kind of a love-hate relationship with Adam Sandler.  Seeing how bad his movies have gotten I think it would be alright to say that I think most people have developed a love-hate relationship with him and his movies.  I'm not quite sure why, but I had never seen Eight Crazy Nights up until last week. I was only fourteen years old so I'm sure I would have enjoyed it, but I never really felt compelled to get up and go rent it.  Maybe I had some weird self-conscience premonition of the really horrible movies that were to come from Adam Sandler in the future.  Looking back now I think this movie was a bad sign of things to come.

Mini Movie Review: Home Alone 2

 

Home Alone 2 (1992)

 A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot: One year after Kevin was left home alone and had to defeat a pair of bumbling burglars, he accidentally finds himself in New York City and the same criminals are not far behind.
 

I can't say that I like Home Alone 2 as much as I like the first one, but I don't think it is a bad movie.  It does what a lot of sequels usually do.  It retreads the story in a much bigger way.  Usually for movies like this you automatically have to take points away for being unoriginal.  A good example of a recent movie that did this was The Hangover Part II (2011).

Mini Movie Review: Home Alone (1990)

 

Home Alone (1990) 

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot:  An 8-year-old boy, who is accidentally left behind while his family flies to France for Christmas, has to defend his home against idiotic burglars.

Throughout the '90s there was always one Christmas movie that I went crazy for.  That movie is Home Alone.  I just watched it again for the first time in years and although it is pretty goofy I still really like it.  The movie was written by John Hughes and starred Macauly Culkin as lovable smart ass eight year old Kevin McCallister. 

Movie Trailer: Stand Up Guys (2013)

 

Christopher Walken and Al Pacino star in this dramatic buddy gangster movie coming out this January.  It looks like it could be okay although watching the trailer it makes me think they should have called it Grumpy Old Gangsters.  I really like both actors so lets hope they brought their A-game to this one.

Watch the trailer below. 

Movie Trailer: Gangster Squad (2013)

 

I'm pretty sure most people have already heard about this movie, but I figured I'd put up the trailer anyway.  This was suppose to come out back in September, but it was pushed back to January of 2013 due to a scene showing gangsters shooting people in a movie theater.  From a publicity standpoint that was probably the right move considering the horrible event that happened in Colorado.

This is easily one of my most anticipated movies to come out in January.  It has a very similar plot to an older movie called Mulholland Falls (1996).  Both movies are loosely based on true events surrounding the infamous LAPD "Hat Squad".  Mulholland Falls starred Nick Nolte as the leader of the squad.  This time around in Gangster Squad though Nick Nolte plays the police chief.  Seeing Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, and Ryan Gosling in the cast gives me a lot of hope for this movie.  

Watch the trailer below.

Movie Trailer: A Haunted House (2013)

 

There is probably some broke writer sitting in a cheap apartment in a ghetto of Los Angeles right now writing very artistic and amazing screenplays.  Meanwhile Marlon Wayans is getting paid millions to write fart jokes in a hack parody movie.  Hollywood sucks.  The trailer is below if you really care.

Movie Review: Dredd (2012)

 

Dredd (2012)

A Movie Review by Dave Randal

Genre: Action | Crime

Cast: Karl Urban, Rachel Wood, Olivia Thirlby,

Director: Pete Travis

Writers: John Wagner and Carloz Ezquerra(characters), Alex Garland(screenplay)

Studios: DNA Films, IM Global, Reliance Entertainment

Distributed by: Entertainment Film Distributors, Lionsgate

Release Date: September 7, 2012

Plot: In a violent, futuristic city where the police have the authority to act as judge, jury and executioner, a cop teams with a trainee to take down a gang that deals the reality-altering drug, SLO-MO.

  

I was curious when I first heard that they were creating a new Dredd movie.  I wasn't all that impressed by the Sylvester Stallone version from the mid-'90s.  Once I saw the preview it was still really hard to tell if it would be any good.  My first opinion of the trailer was that it looked cool and violent, but if there is no story then it will be very mediocre.  It turns out that it's not a bad movie at all.

Mini Movie Review: Judge Dredd (1995)

 

Judge Dredd (1995)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

It's been quite a few years since I've seen this and it is about how I remember it. Stallone made two futuristic sci-fi movies almost back to back. First there was Demolition Man (1993) and then this movie.

Movie Trailer: Texas Chainsaw 3D

 

Here is the trailer for the upcoming Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013). I'm really not sure what to think of this movie.  For starters it isn't a good sign when they have to put 3D in the title.  Then again it is being marketed as a sequel to the original.  The look of the movie from what you see in the trailer looks alright and I like the music, but I won't get my hopes up for it.

I've seen all the previous Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies and I'll be sure to put up Mini Movie Reviews of those the same week this comes out.

Watch the trailer below.

Mini Movie Review: Blade Runner (1982)

 

Blade Runner (1981)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot: Deckard, a Blade Runner Unit cop, has to track down and terminate 4 Replicants who hijacked a ship in space and have returned to earth seeking their maker. 

I first saw Blade Runner around the year 2000 when I was twelve years old.  It wasn't quite what I was expecting.  It was really slow and seemed kind of long although even at twelve years old I could tell that it was a very good movie.

Mini Movie Review: I, Robot (2004)

 

I, Robot (2004)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

 Plot: In the year 2035 a techno-phobic cop investigates a crime that may have been perpetrated by a robot, which leads to a larger threat to humanity. 

I'll start this off by saying that I enjoy Will Smith in his popcorn action movie roles.  Although they have flaws I think Independence Day (1996) and Men in Black (1997) are decent big blockbuster action movies.  I, Robot almost does it for me in the same way as those two movies, but the convoluted script just doesn't allow me to like it as much.

Movie Review: The Grey (2012)

 

The Grey
A movie review by Dave Randal
January 28, 2012

Genre: Action | Adventure | Drama

Cast: Liam Neeson, Dallas Roberts, Frank Grillo, Dermont Mulroney, and Joe Anderson

Director: Joe Carnahan

Writers: Joe Carnahan(screenplay), Ian Mackenzie Jeffers(screenplay and short story "Ghost Walker")

Release Date: January 27, 2012 (USA)

Plot: In Alaska, an oil drilling team struggle to survive after a plane crash strands them in the wild. Hunting the humans are a pack of wolves who see them as intruders.

Want to know more about this movie?: The Grey(2012) IMDb Page

Liam Neeson may be pushing 60 years old, but the guy can still come off as a complete badass. I always knew of Liam Neeson, but I didn't realize he could play a really tough character until I saw him in the movie Taken(2008). The sequel for that movie comes out later this year and Neeson has a lot of other big movies coming out this year as well. He lives up to the badass image in his first movie of the year here with The Grey.

Movie Review: Haywire (2012)

 

Haywire 
A movie review by Dave Randal
February 15, 2012

Genre: Action | Crime | Drama

Cast: Gina Carano, Channing Tatum, Michael Angarano

Director: Steven Sodorbergh

Writers: Lem Dobbs

Release Date: January 20, 2012 (USA)

Plot: A black ops super soldier seeks payback after she is betrayed and set up during a mission.

Want to know more about this movie?: Haywire(2012) IMDb Page

Steven Sodorbergh is an interesting director. Sometimes he will do a big Hollywood movie like Ocean's Eleven(2001) and then next he will do a more odd movie like Solaris(2002). Other times he will just make an odd big Hollywood movie like The Informant!(2009). I usually always find something interesting in a Sodorbergh movie and his newest movie, Haywire, is no different.

Movie Review: 21 Jump Street (2012)

 

21 Jump Street

A movie review by Dave Randal

March 28, 2012

Genre: Action | Comedy

 Cast: Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, Ice Cube

Director: Phil Lord, Chris Miller

Writers: Michael Bacall(screenplay and story), Jonah Hill(story), Patrick Hasburgh and Stephen J. Cannell(TV series)

Studios: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Original Film, Lord Miller Productions, Relativity Media

Distributed by: Columbia Pictures

Release Date: March 16, 2012 (USA)

Plot: A pair of underachieving cops are sent back to a local high school to blend in and bring down a synthetic drug ring.
Want to know more about this movie?: 21 Jump Street(2012) IMDb Page

About two years ago I watched the first four seasons of the 21 Jump Street series. I first heard about it a couple years ago when they brought it up on a VH1 pop culture show. A lot of people today say it was just a cheesy show, but it actually wasn't that bad at all. It featured a young Johnny Depp and had a nice mix of drama and a little bit of comedy. The scenarios for the episodes were good in that they didn't just feature young looking cops going under cover into high schools, but they also featured a lot of serious political and social topics which surprised me. I can't say the same thing for this updated movie, but that isn't exactly a bad thing.

Movie Review: The Woman in Black (2012)

 

The Woman in Black
A movie review by Dave Randal
March 26, 2012

Genre: Drama | Horror | Thriller

Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Janet McTeer, Ciara Hinds

Director: James Watkins

Writers: Susan Hill(novel), Jane Goldman(screenplay)

Release Date: February 3, 2012 (USA)

Plot: A young lawyer travels to a remote village where he discovers a vengeful ghost.

I have always liked classic haunted house movies. They are usually really good at mixing the film genres of mystery and horror together. In good haunted house movies they will first set up the mystery surrounding the house and then it is when the protagonist goes into the house to investigate that he runs into all the creepy things that come with a cool haunted house. The Woman in Black is sort of a throwback to the classic haunted house movies of the 60s and 70s. That actually makes sense because the story is actually adapted from a novel published in 1983 and it had already been adapted before as a TV movie in 1989.

Movie Review: Red Dawn (2012)

 

Red Dawn (2012)

A Movie Review by Dave Randal

Genre: Action

Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Josh Peck, Josh Hutcherson

Director: Dan Bradley

Writers: Carl Ellsworthy(screenplay), Jeremy Passmore(screenplay), Kevin Reynolds(novel)

Studios: ContraFilm

Distributed by: FilmDistrict

Release Date: November 21, 2012

Plot: A group of teenagers look to save their town from an invasion of North Korean soldiers.

Many people remember the original Red Dawn (1984) as being kind of ridiculous.  To a certain extent they may be right. There were some flaws in the movie and it probably could use a remake.  Unfortunately the 2012 remake we got was ten times worse.  MGM developed this movie a few years ago until it went bankrupt.  It was shelved and lucky for the new distributors FilmDistrict, them the star of the movie, Chris Hemsworth, became a huge star playing Thor in the movies Thor (2011) and The Avengers (2011).

Mini Movie Review: Red Dawn (1984)

 

Red Dawn (1984)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

IMDb Link

Plot:  It is the dawn of World War III. In mid-western America, a group of teenagers band together to defend their town, and their country, from invading Communist forces. 

I first saw this movie about thirteen years ago not having a clue what it was about.  The opening scene with the paratroopers landing in front of the school is still really cool in my book.  I won't tip toe around the obvious.  A lot of people think this movie is absolutely ridiculous.  In some ways I don't blame them.  It is really hard to believe that anything like this could happen in the U.S.

Mini Movie Review: Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)

 

Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

IMDb Link

Plot: A man must struggle to travel home to Chicago for Thanksgiving, with an obnoxious slob of a shower ring salesman as his only companion.

This movie is probably known as many people's favorite Thanksgiving movie.  I find it a little odd that there aren't all that many Thanksgiving movies, but I'm guessing it is due to the fact that it is so close to Christmas.  In this movie Steve Martin plays the annoyed straight man who is going home to his family in Chicago for Thanksgiving after a business trip.  Some how he gets caught up with an annoying shower ring salesman played by John Candy.  Just about everything you can think of goes wrong as they try to get home to Chicago for Thanksgiving.

Mini Movie Review: Car Wash (1976)

 

Car Wash (1976)

A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot: A day in the life of the employees at a Los Angeles car wash.

I caught this on Netflix streaming because it was a movie I had never heard of before.  The picture on Netflix has Richard Pryor and George Carlin on the box so of course I assumed that they were the stars.  Well that isn't the case at all.  Their parts are basically nothing but cameos and they don't even appear on screen together.  I guess Netflix and whatever dumbass company is trying to trick people into watching this with that deceiving picture.  Good thing I'm here to tell you not to watch this piece of crap movie.

Mini Movie Review: Get the Gringo (2012)

 

Get the Gringo (2012)

 A Mini Movie Review by Dave Randal

Plot: A career criminal nabbed by Mexican authorities is placed in a tough prison where he learns to survive with the help of a young boy. 

If you have missed the classic action movie Mel Gibson that you use to get in movies like Lethal Weapon (1987) then Get the Gringo should be right up your alley.  In the movie Mel Gibson plays a career criminal and gets caught by Mexican authorities and thrown into prison.  The cool thing about this prison though is that it is unlike any prison you have ever seen.  

Movie Review: The Expendables 2 (2012)

The Expendables 2 (2012)
A movie review by Dave Randal

Genre: Action | Adventure
Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Terry Crews, Randy Couture
Director: Simon West
Writers: Richard Wenk(story and screenplay), David Agosto(story), Ken Kaufman(story), Sylvester Stallone(screenplay), Dave Callaham(characters)
Studios: Nu Image, Millennium Films
Distributed by: Lionsgate
Release Date: August 17, 2012
Plot: Mr. Church reunites the Expendables for what should be an easy paycheck, but when one of their men is murdered on the job, their quest for revenge puts them deep in enemy territory and up against an unexpected threat.

In 2010 Sylvester Stallone gave us a film with an ensemble cast of action movie icons. That movie was The Expendables. It was exciting to see so many action movie stars on the big screen, but creatively it fell very short. It did great at making a lot of money though and Stallone almost immediately began work on a sequel called The Expendables 2. I'm glad to say that this movie was much more satisfying than it's predecessor.

Movie Review: Killer Joe (2012)

Killer Joe (2012)
A movie review by Dave Randal

Genre: Comedy | Crime | Thriller
Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Thomas Haden Church, Juno Temple, Gina Gershon
Director: William Friedkin
Writer: Tracy Letts(play and screenplay)
Studios: Voltage Pictures, Worldview Entertainment
Distributed by: LD Entertainment
Release Date: September 8, 2011(Venice Film Festival), July 27, 2012(United States)
Plot: When a debt puts a young man's life in danger, he turns to putting a hit out on his evil mother in order to collect the insurance.

If you are looking for an NC-17 rated white trash dark comedy film noir that might make you want to take a shower afterwards, then I think Killer Joe is for you. If you are easily offended this movie is not going to be an easy watch. In fact, if you are easily offended you may not even want to touch this movie with a ten foot pole. I watched another movie a few weeks ago that was very dark and disturbing called Oldboy (2003). Oldboy was really edgy, but I think Killer Joe gives it a great run for it's money.

Movie Review: Contraband (2012)

Contraband 
A movie review by Dave Randal
February 19, 2012

Genre: Action | Crime | Drama

Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Ben Foster, Giovanni Ribisi, Kate Beckinsale

Director: Baltasar Kormakur,

Writers: Aaron Guzikowski

Release Date: January 13, 2012 (USA)

Plot: To protect his brother-in-law from a drug lord, a former smuggler heads to Panama to score millions of dollars in counterfeit bills.

Want to know more about this movie?: Contraband(2012) IMDb Page

I usually like watching movies with Mark Wahlberg. A lot of people will critique him as just being a muscle head who can't act, but I think he has a lot more depth as an actor than people think. In his new movie Contraband though I think he comes off pretty bland.

Contraband is about a man named John Bryce who was a former criminal who would smuggle things back into the country on a ship that he was apart of the crew of. He has since cleaned up his life starting a family and a security business. His young brother-in-law gets into some trouble after botching a smuggling job for some drug dealers and needs John's help to do one last job to pay off his debt.

Movie Review: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
A movie review by Dave Randal
December 31, 2011

Genre: Drama | Crime | Mystery
Cast: Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Christopher Plummer, Robin Wright, and Stellan Skarsgard
Director: David Fincher
Writers: Steven Zaillian(screenplay), Stieg Larsson(novel)
Release Date: December 20, 2011 (USA)
Plot: This English-language adaptation of the Swedish novel by Stieg Larsson follows a disgraced journalist, Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig), as he investigates the disappearance of a wealthy patriarch's niece from 40 years ago. He is aided by the pierced, tattooed, punk computer hacker named Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara).
Want to know more about this movie?: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo IMDb Page

I heard a lot of great things about this novel and once I saw the trailer for the American remake I couldn't wait to see it. I first heard about the book about a year ago and all I really knew about it was that it was about a punk-looking girl who was a hacker. That immediately peaked my interest because a movie about computer hacking can be pretty good if done right. Little did I know that it was less about computer hacking and more about a complicated mystery that the girl has to help solve.

Movie Review: The Adventures of Tintin (2011)

  

The Adventures of Tintin 

A movie review by Dave Randal

January 7, 2012

Genre: Action | Adventure | Animation
Cast: Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost
Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Hergé(comic book), Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright, and Joe Cornish(screenplay)
Release Date: December 21, 2011 (USA)
Plot: Intrepid reporter Tintin and Captain Haddock set off on a treasure hunt for a sunken ship commanded by Haddock's ancestor.
Want to know more about this movie?: The Adventures of Tintin IMDb Page

I wasn't too surprised to find out that not too many people have heard of The Adventures of Tintin in the United States. The usual response I get from people when I ask them about this movie is "Do you mean the dog?". A lot of people over in Europe know it as a very famous comic book. I knew it as a cool cartoon TV show that aired on Nickelodeon in the early 90s. Being a young four or five year old kid I was just about the right age to really enjoy the cartoon of The Adventures of Tintin(1991).

Considering how somewhat obscure it was I was pretty surprised to hear that they made a movie about it. I think I underestimated the popularity it has overseas in Europe. It turns out that Steven Spielberg bought the rights to do a feature length movie based on Tintin way back in 1983. He also re-optioned them in 2002. Steven Spielberg first became a fan of the comic book series back when he read a review that was comparing Raiders of the Lost Ark to Tintin. The comparison makes a lot of sense, because there are a lot of similarities between the two series of stories.

The first thing you have to realize about this movie is that it is a kid's movie. If you can't stand a kid's movie with some of it's kid humor then this movie probably isn't for you. I myself as someone who watched the early 90s cartoon series could enjoy it not only from a nostalgia factor but also from getting into the storyline of the movie. Now even though it is a kid's movie I think it may be a little confusing for most young kids. The storyline isn't that hard to follow although I can see how it could be hard for a five year old to follow along.

I liked that they did this movie with motion capture rather than in live action. Doing it with motion capture reminded me of the cartoon series and I think it allowed the filmmakers to do really cool action sequences. As a live action movie I think it would have come off too cheesy for most people. Tintin is a very young boyish looking character and I think if the movie had been done in live action people would have been making Opie jokes.

I like the action in this movie, but one small complaint I have on the action scenes is that I think they are a little too long and maybe a tad over the top. This doesn't really ruin the movie or anything, but I just felt they could have done them a little differently. In the beginning of the movie there isn't that much action and it actually has a lot of patience for a kid's movie. It builds up the mystery and then goes from there into the action.

The Adventures of Tintin is pretty mature for a kid's movie. There are a few scenes that involve gun fire and it is neat to see Tintin have to deal with a very dangerous situations. They also have Captain Haddock drink alcohol quite a bit and that actually forms a pretty cool subplot within the movie. I'm not sure how the MPAA let this movie get away with a PG. The rating system has become so ridiculously arbitrary that I really don't give a rat's ass anymore. I'm just glad that the filmmakers made the decision not to tone it down too much.

When it comes to an animated kid's movie I have to say that The Adventures of Tintinis pretty top notch. There were very few things I could find to complain about. The movie has great adventure, action, and a really cool story. I don't believe enough effort is put into kid's movies these days like when I was a kid. I like it when filmmakers take their work seriously enough to make an above average kid's movie. This movie gets an easy Rock On! Rating(5 out of 5 Stars) from me.

Dave's Rating- Rock On!!!
Learn the Rating System

Damien's Star Rating-  ★★★★½(4½) out of ★★★★★(5)