Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Nerds of the world unite!  Another Star Wars movie smashing box office records is upon us, and its not disappointing!  If you are confused, and not sure of the order of these films, let me simplify it for you.  Part one is actually number 4 then stems into 2 sequels.  Rogue one isn't part of the actual original trilogy but takes place between part 3 (actually number 4) and just before part 4, number 1.  The film that came out just before this one was actually part 7, which catches us up in chronological order if you don't include Rogue One (part 3 1/2).  See, easy and clear.  This movie was really good and the way it tied up a number of loose ends was excellent.  The story was a little more involved than most of the others but had a great pay off.  Good acting and characters with some cool depth and some open ended avenues they can go.  I would give you some theory's but don't want to get killed by the purists.  I did think there were a few parts that were a little slow, but WOW, did Darth Vader save the day!!!!  The few scenes he was in were absolutely outstanding.  If you like any part of the Star Wars saga, check this one out.  It will be well worth it.

FYI:  Actors cut from casting: Joel Edgerton, Taylor Kitsch, Dominic West, Sam Worthington, and Gerard Butler.  Budgeting???

***1/2

Sing

Calm down, its a cartoon!  Not only is it a cartoon, but a really light hearted one at that.  The comments I have heard about this movie being too kid friendly, or to subjective with twerking animals, or being ruined by the shy, introverted character, or the crime aspect, bla, bla, bla.  Seriously?!  Have you watched a recent big screen animated movie lately?  If the answer is no, well okay then, go back to the nursing home.  This movie was actually really good.  The songs were assembled in a great way using the popular songs of today and throwing in some alternative and classics to feel well rounded.  The characters were great and you will find yourself tying to decide which one was your favorite.  I had a hard time recognizing the voices only to be pleasantly surprised during the credits.  The kids loved it and I was hung over watching it and still had a good time, so mission accomplished.  If you like animated blockbusters, this is pretty close to as good as it gets.

FYI:  There are at least 2 references to Back to the Future.  Can you find them?

****

The Good Neighbor

Old man Jenkins from across the street is at it again, and this time the Mystery Machine is no where to be found!  We all have that grumpy old neighbor who yells, "Get off my lawn!"  Well, next time you better think twice about giving him the stink eye because he may have more than just moth balls hiding in his closet.  This was an awesome hidden Netflix gem that I passed over a number of times before giving it a shot.  Outstanding surprise here, with a movie that should have been more than predictable but is written with some mature professionalism.  Two high school kids with a serious lack of parental monitoring decide to experiment on the old man across the street.  So with a high level of intelligence for kids, they pirate buy a bunch of mini surveillance equipment and stash it at the old mans house in an attempt to make him think his house is haunted for their "experiment".  There are many skeletons in this old dudes house and they find that they get a lot more than they bargained for.  Good movie with a cool idea to back it up.  Give it a shot, and stay the hell off my property!

FYI:  James Caan limited himself to very little sleep during this to seem older and tired.

****1/2

The Autopsy of Jane Doe

Who says the dead tell no tales?  Well, probably nobody but I thought it was a great tag line for the beginning of this review.  By the title, I am sure you already know the premise of this insane horror flick.  Spoiler alert, its about an autopsy!  Local Father/Son Morticians seem to be the only game in town when entering their creepy mortuary comes unknown dead hottie, Jane.  She seems to be "Mostly Dead" but no apparent evidence of how.  Let the autopsy begin.  They find a number of creepy clues and evidence as to why and how but cant seem to put the pieces together.  That is when the shit hits the fan!  This movie will keep you on the edge of your seat and throw some serious horror at you.  I ahve read a few reviews of it being boring but I am pretty sure that they are 15 years old and have the attention span of a flea.  If you like suspense, horror, thriller and great acting watch this movie.  It may be one of the best of the year.  Hirsch and Cox have some great chemistry and the acting duo was very real.  Now grab some popcorn, your going to want to watch this while eating!

FYI:  Martin Sheen was originally cast at the father but scheduling conflicts cast Brian Cox.

*****

No Escape

Pack up the family truckster, we are moving to Southeast Asia!  All the rice you can eat and karaoke as far as the ears can handle!  Unfortunately, this poor family just touched down in the middle of a rebel uprising against any foreigners and having blond hair and blue eyes is a bit of a give away.  The tale of the tape is a down on his luck out of work engineer is hired to help with purified water treatments in Southeast Asia.  Once there with his wife and two small girls, he immediately finds that something isn't quite right.  His company hasn't contacted him and the place is on edge and extremely tense.  It turns out that the war has begun and the rebels are quickly moving through the city killing any foreign man, woman and child.  The family has to escape a number of near impossible situations and the actions keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire movie.  Great acting and awesome tense situations.  Yes, some unbelievable and some probably more impossible than not but wow, hidden gem by far.  This is one of the better "under the radar" movies I have found, even if it does have Pierce Brosnan in it ;)  Watch it soon, or just before going traveling through Asia.

FYI:  This movie actually raised some uproar with Cambodia after the trailer was released showing lettering upside down.  This is an insult and the movie was immediately banned.

*****

The Disappointments Room

If you were ever told to go to your room as a child and thought to yourself you hate your parents, count your blessings that it was just your bedroom and not the Disappointments Room!!!  Stupid title and rather stupid premise for this movie.  Here is the scoop; way back in the day these old Victorian type houses had "Disappointment Rooms" where prestigious families who had a mentally challenged or deformed child could hide them away from the world.  The child would usually spend its entire life there with no contact to the outside world.  Well it just so happens that this city family movies into a house like this, finds the room and low and behold, its haunted by the ghosts of the past, or is it?!  The movie itself was pretty predictable with some good parts such as, "drunk host at a dinner party", and "I almost killed my kid".  The very best part of this movie is Kate Beckinsale, who seems to never age and stay super hot!  The real disappointment of this movie was the lack of her showing some skin!  Give it a shot if you like the thriller genre, and if you have nothing else to do, its entertaining at the least.

FYI:  The first movie by Relativity Studios since declaring bankruptcy in 2015.  Oops!

**1/2

PET

Not a dog person?  Well try this on for size.  Step one, become obsessed with an old classmate from High School.  Step two, creep her out and stalk her.  Step three, build cage in a dingy old basement no one goes in anymore.  Step four, trap said girl in the cage until she falls in love with you.  That about sums it up, with these simple four steps its all that easy!  Although with this film, there is much more than what the viewer thinks behind every corner.  The manipulation in this movie between a couple of psychopaths is incredible.  Dominic Monaghan plays your typical lonely, anti social creepo who thinks he is justified in most of his crazy actions.  Ksenia Solo plays the super hot, troubled, girl with a dark past and some secrets that reveal themselves throughout the film.  Once captured this physiological thriller unravels into a really good film.  At first it has a bit of a made for TV feel to it but becomes so much more.  If you like the thriller, horror genre, definitely watch this movie!

FYI:  This film debuted in one theater grossing $70!

****