Law Abiding Citizen

1 pipe out of 4

This is a terrible movie because it had me rooting for the bad guy through the entire film. The story begins with Clyde Shelton (Gerard Butler) witnessing the brutal murder of his wife and daughter only to see the successful attorney Nick Rice (Jamie Fox) cut a deal with the leading man who flips on his partner. You feel for Clyde because he cannot understand why Rice would not prosecute both men to the fullest of the law. It appears that Rice only wants to get a conviction and not do the right thing. In this first part of the movie it appears that Clyde is the protagonist and Rice is the antagonist but suddenly they switch when Clyde takes the law into his own hands and begins killing everyone involved in the case that saw the man who butchered his family get only three years in prison. So apparently the viewer is supposed to feel for Rice now but for me I continued to want Clyde to win because he brought up all the things that are wrong with our system he was trying to fix it. Granted he went about fixing it in the totally wrong way but he still was showing us that we let killers and rapists free on plea deals every day. Law Abiding Citizen was not a total waste of my time because it had decent suspense and I genuinely thought that Clyde might win. There were also cool explosions and it had Gerard Butler as a total BAMF.

All The Pretty Horses

1 pipes out of 4

This movie is just a random series of events with a very general plot of two boys trying to find a better life only to find their way back home. The story follows John Grady Cole (Matt Damon) and Lacy Rawlins (Henry Thomas) as set off in search for better ranches in Mexico as ranching in the U.S. is going down in the 1940’s. They run into a boy named Jimmy Blevins (Lucas Black) who is also looking into the better life of ranching. Once they get a job on a Ranch Cole falls in love with the Rancher’s Daughter (Penelope Cruz) and Blevins makes a huge mistake. This movie jumps from scene to scene with little explanation about what is happening. Case in point, Lacy Rawlins is stabbed repeatedly in prison and you are made to believe that he is dead until John Cole is stabbed and then released from prison and we find Rawlins waiting for him on the outside with no explanation on how he lived and how they got out. It is explained how they got out of prison later on in the movie but it is never explained how Rawlins lived other than they pumped a liter of Mexican blood into him. All The Pretty Horses is also an incredibly depressing movie with a depressing but deep message and that message is the only reason that I can see Matt Damon signed on to this Billy Bob Thorton directed atrocity. That message is human’s are cruel to each other, as demonstrated by the scene where a Mexican police captain drags Blevins out into the desert and shoots him even after the person who paid to kill Blevins himself refuses. This is just a depressing movie with no fantastic acting or fight scenes to rationalize the brutality.

Battle: Los Angeles

2 ½ pipes out of 4 

This is another alien invasion movie and may seem predictable. That is where you’re wrong because this movie is not as predictable as you might think. The director throws a nice right hook to all other alien invasion films that figure out how to kill the aliens and wrap up their defeat in ten minutes or less. Battle: LA follows Sergeant Michael Nantz (Aaron Eckhart) and a group of marines that he is leading into the battle zone and behind enemy lines in Los Angeles during an Alien invasion to rescue civilians trapped in a police station. The Aliens are said to be invading for our resources and the first rule of colonization is to eliminate the indigenous population. Nantz clashes with the 2^nd Lieutenant William Martinez (Ramon Rodriguez) who is a month out of officer’s school and incredibly inexperienced. You may remember Rodriguez from his comedic role in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen as Shia Labeouf’s quirky roommate but in this movie takes a drastic shift from that role being much more serious. The topic of the military is very close to my heart because I have a brother in the military so I can always picture him in these types of situations. Battle: LA can be quite depressing at times because a lot and I mean a lot of people die. There are several holes in the plot of this film such as if a Forward Operating Base has been destroyed and the marines can’t contact anyone on the radio during most of the movie, how is it that when they need and air strike called in they get right through and the missiles come without delay? There are more like this but the movie does have you on the edge of your seat from the first 15 minutes to the closing credits. There is nonstop action all throughout this film so there are not a whole lot of places to insert great acting scenes. If you are looking for a great acting and great action film like District 9 you won’t find it hear but if you’re just looking for a great action film with small moments of good acting than this is the movie for you. 

The Fighter

3½ out of 4 pipes

Mark Wahlberg has had a lot of hit or miss movies. The Fighter is one of his hits. It is one of the best movies of the year and that is saying a lot with movies like Inception, Black Swan and The Kings Speech. It is an inspirational true story that follows the life of boxer Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) and his brother Dick Ecklund (Christian Bale). Micky is a boxer who has always dreamed of becoming world champ but has had a series of bad fights set up by his mother and brother. Dicky is former boxer that turned crack addict who still tries to live in his  minute of fame when he knocked down Sugar Ray Lenard and his mother (Melissa Leo) is unwilling to accept see it so Micky takes the brunt of his mothers neglect. He finds redemption through a bartender named Charlene (Amy Adams) until his family threatens to tear itself apart with his apparent betrayal and this could derail his dream of one day becoming world champion. The Fighter deals with some serious issues such as drug use and serious family dysfunction and for that reason, as well as extensive swearing, is rated R but for the adults out there this is a must see movie. It will have you jumping up and down in your seats and cheering with every punch. The one problem with the movie is that there is no specific main character. Micky Ward is supposed to be the main character but he is out performed by his supporting cast of Christian Bale and Melissa Leo who both won Oscars for their performances. Amy Adams also steals the spotlight from Wahlberg with her not type casted role. Normally Adams plays the innocent good girl but here she goes against her usual image to be a hardened bartender who deals with drunks on a daily basis and it earned her an Oscar nomination. The Fighter will keep you on the edge of your seat all the way through on an emotional rollercoaster and realistic fights.

The Adjustment Bureau

3 pipes out of 4

If you are heavily religious person and not comfortable with seeing movies that question or are about god do not see this movie. Everyone else should defiantly see it. Matt Damon has done it again giving his adoring public another thriller. But don’t go expecting another Bourne because this one focuses more on the relationship between a New York congressman and a ballet dancer. The story follows David Norris (Matt Damon), a prominent bad boy New York congressman who chance runs into the girl of his dreams Elise Sellas (Emily Blunt) in a men’s bathroom. Was it Chance or fate? David has a checkered past and has lost both his parents and his brother before even getting to high school. He has become the youngest New York Congressman at age 24 and is now running for a Senate seat. Once after bumping into Elise, a group called the adjustment bureau says they are never supposed to see each other again which poses David and Elise with the question do they want to fight fate to stay together? At first glance, The Adjustment Bureau looks like an action packed thriller but actually is more of a romantic drama with big thrills thrown in throughout with a big finish. I have not found a movie that Damon has attached himself to that has not either done very well had a powerful message. He reunites with The Bourne Ultimatum screenwriter George Nolfi who makes his directing debut with this wonderful film.  Nolfi has shown that he is a talented screenwriter with such screenplays as The Bourne Ultimatum, The Sentinel and Oceans Twelve and he delivers again. This movie will leave you with thoughts in your head that you didn’t even know existed and question whether life is predestined or if we have a choice.