When a zombie pandemic begins sweeping the globe, retired U.N. special agent Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) finds himself in the unenviable position of trying to stop it.

A lesser man would point out that facing down ravenous undead hordes was most emphatically not in the original job description. But Gerry’s better than that. He may not be the best man for the job, but he’s probably the best man alive for the job - and he’s willing to take a shot at saving humanity if it secures his family refuge aboard a U.S. aircraft carrier.

Within hours, he’s on a flight to Camp Humphreys, a military base…

What would happen if you took the fun and joy, the emotion and heart out of a Superman film and simply filled it full of nerd details? Well you would have a film released in 2013 called Man of Steel, that’s what.

This is not the Superman film I wanted and it’s not the Superman film we deserved.

Man of Steel would like for us to forget what came before and consider the film as its own thing, but that is pretty much impossible to do. Therefore, I will need to step into my DeLorean… sorry, wrong franchise… I’ll need to do a few loops around the earth in reverse orbital rotation and go back in…

I’m trying to imagine the pitch for Monsters, Inc. when Pete Doctor first decided it should be a thing. Maybe it went something like this: “Hey fellas, I’ve got an idea. Why don’t we make a movie about monsters who scare the living nightlights out of children, and then harvest the screams as a kind of natural energy to power their world? Families will love it.”

Crickets.

Funny thing is, families did love it. They still do. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that Monsters, Inc. is widely regarded as one of Pixar’s finest offerings. So with a sequel (Monsters University) scheduled to hit…

Magic is fun. Movies are fun. Combining the two to make a movie about a group of magicians who rob a bank? Even more fun! With a premise like that, Now You See Me, sets itself up from the start to be one heck of a ride - and quite an entertaining one at that!

The Magical Plot

Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, and Dave Franco star as four magicians of varying abilities who work alone. As we are introduced to each magician performing his/her solo act, we notice a hooded figure  in attendance at each performer’s show. Soon, the four are brought together, each having received a…

I’ll admit, I went into the theater to watch this film with low expectations. Maybe it’s the fact that the production company and guys behind the story were also behind the likes of Ice Age, Robots, Rio, and more. It did not instill confidence. And the trailers failed to inspire me. Couple those things with the entirely lackluster promotional campaign and one did not get the sense that this film would be any more than a bit of drivel peppered in amongst the big summer tent polls.

I was therefore exceedingly shocked to walk out of the theater at the end of the credits having thoroughly…

So just what is it that makes a good Star Trek film? I’m sure I don’t fully and completely understand the magic that makes any film a really good film, but I will say that most of it is wrapped up in Star Trek Into Darkness. Not only is it a good Star Trek film, but it’s a good film. For me, this is a turn around from J.J. Abrams’ 2009 installment, simply titled Star Trek. I did not feel that film was a good film, nor did I feel that it was a good Star Trek film.

A word about Spoilers

You should be forewarned that I cannot write this review without spoilers. I simply cannot. If you have…

In 2009, director Kathryn Bigelow gave us The Hurt Locker, a tour de force Iraq war film that blew the socks off audiences and critics alike. Her latest film, Zero Dark Thirty, is generating a similar buzz. Tense, intelligent, and well acted, this compelling dramatization of the decade-long hunt for Osama bin Laden has earned Ms. Bigelow a heaping of praise – and some controversy to go along with it.

“You’re Going To Kill Him For Me.”

Jessica Chastain leads the cast as Maya, a young CIA operative dedicated to uncovering the whereabouts of bin Laden. With an elite team of intelligence…

The opening rap lyric of “Fast & Furious 6” professes that “Only God can judge,” which is as fitting a mantra for the entire “Fast” series as you’ll find this side of a NASCAR track. For really, what is there to judge? The cars go extremely fast, the (non-supporting) ladies traipse around in skimpy outfits, and the stunts somehow get bigger and badder each and every time out of the gate. Plausibility? Uhh, no thanks. Realistic aerial physics? Ha, good one! Jocular humor combined with death-defying action? Well, sure, yes please, and drive through safely. This is a franchise entirely…

“I wouldn’t ask too much of her, you can’t repeat the past”

“Can’t repeat the past? Why of course you can!”

Let me make a confession old sport: I have not read the book, the only thing I know about the story is from the 1974 film version staring Robert Redford. I really, REALLY did not like that film. But let me be clear, unless there are some fundamental differences between the book and both film portrayals I have seen thus far, I really do not like the story, or rather, the perspective that the story represents. It’s a rather subtle thing, actually. But before I get to that, let me…