Deadpool 2 is over-the-top with surprising depth

Movie Title:       Deadpool 2

Grade:   B+

Rating: R, 119 minutes

In a Nutshell:   Marvel is on a roll.  The X-Force team assembles under the guidance of the most disrespectful, irreverent superhero ever, Deadpool, played expertly by Ryan Reynolds.

As Ryan Reynolds says in the movie, “The Academy’s watching.”  The sequel is definitely bigger....is it better than the first?  Umm....probably not.  Did it make me laugh?  Definitely.  

                                    

Tips for parents: 

• Deadpool says in the beginning, “Believe it or not, Deadpool 2 is a family movie.”  Nope.  Not true.  This is a true rated R movie.  If you set filters on VidAngel to delete profanity, violence and gore, this would be a 20 minute movie. 
• Crude language and TONS of F-bombs.  I hate it when kids swear especially, which Julian Dennison does as Russell.
• Scoutmaster pervert joke.  Ouch.  I have 4 sons.
• Lots of severed limbs and brutal, gory deaths.
• Lesbians
• You see a bottomless little kid’s junk full Winnie the Pooh style and a man’s naked rear end.
• Super high body count, destruction, violence, crude gestures.
• Guns.
• Some fun music, but other songs with very crude lyrics.

Uplifting theme: 

• “We all need that sense of belonging.  We all need a genuine sense of home.” – Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds)
• “Kids – they give us a chance to be better than we are…better than we use to be.” – Vanessa (the beautiful Morena Baccarin)  
• Family
• Sacrifice for others
• “Pain teaches us who we are.” – Blind Al (Leslie Uggams)
• “No child is hopeless.” - Blind Al

Things I liked:

• The trailer was hilarious. I loved the crack about Superman’s mustache in the trailer, referring to when DC had to use CGI to remove Henry Cavill's mustache in the movie Justice League.   
• I got a kick out of the opening credits.  Most of the time, we just ignore them, but read them this time!
• This is the year of Josh Brolin as the evil villain.  He voices a fantastic Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War
• Great action sequences.  As Deadpool says, “Big CGI fight coming up.”  Yep, LOTS of them.
• Tons of fun jokes and visual gags, all lightning fast.  You’ll have to see the movie again in order to catch everything.
• We learn a lot more about Wade Wilson, making his character development more deep and grounded.
• You’re going to get a kick out of some new twists.
• Keep watching after the credits for a couple more fun scenes, but there’s nothing at the very, very end of the music.
• The Logan music box in the very beginning scene got the audience I sat with to immediately start laughing.  There is a running gag about Logan during the entire movie.  So funny.  For example, both films played the same music during the death scenes.  Ha ha
• Tony Robbins.  Love that guy.
• Wade and his girlfriend watch the movie Yentl  I always loved that movie and the music.  Deadpool points out that the song, “Papa, can you hear me?” is the same tune as Frozen’s “Do you want to build a snowman?” I never noticed that!
• X-Men – trainee!  Ha ha
• I like Dub Step too.  Ha ha
• Several Canadian jokes.  A lot of locations in Vancouver were actually used in the movie. 
• At the end of the movie, it says that 15,000 jobs were created to make the movie.  The stunt work was amazing.  Sadly a stunt woman, Joi Harris, died while filming one of the stunts on a motorcycle. Production stopped for two days.
• Tons of fun Easter eggs.  For example, Deadpool refers to Cable, played by Josh Brolin, as "One Eyed Willy", which was a character in the 1985 movie The Goonies which starred Josh Brolin.
• Tons of movie, song, and pop culture references.  One of the movie posters shows Deadpool in a Flashdance pose on a chair with bullets raining down on him.  He definitely takes a beating in this film.

                                                      

Things I didn’t like:

• This is the first Marvel film to NOT give Stan Lee a cameo performance!  Drats!  I always look forward to those little moments.  Instead, you can see him in a quick picture montage.  Definitely not as good.
• Sometimes trailers are deceiving.  In an earlier trailer for DEADPOOL 2, Deadpool says, "Pump the hate brakes, Thanos," referencing Josh Brolin's role as Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, but in the actual movie, he's talking to two lesbians and he says, "Pump the hate brakes, Fox and Friends."
• I don't read the comic books, but Domino's character and alliances are much different there than in this movie, as well as her color and eye circle.  It certainly didn't bother me, but some fans might be annoyed.  Zazie Beetz did a fantastic job.
• SPOILER:  Have you seen The Terminator?  Yeah, that's this plot.

Funny lines:

• “Forgive me for being late.  I was busy gathering all the gluten in the world so it can not NOT hurt us.” – Deadpool
• “That is why the man bun is just the Millennial mullet.” – Deadpool
• “So dark.  Are you sure you’re not from the DC Universe?” – Deadpool
• “Mission accomplished?” – Dopinder (Karan Soni)

“Well, in a George W. sort of way.” – Deadpool

• “Every family film starts with a vicious murder…Bambi. Lion King. Saw 7.” – Deadpool
• “It’s time to get back on LinkedIn.” – Weasel (T.J. Miller)
• Vanisher….ha ha  IMDB shows his face listed as Brad Pitt!  The studio actually wanted Brad Pitt to play Cable, but he had to decline that role due to scheduling conflicts.
• “Never underestimate a man with a mustache.” – Deadpool
• “I have no idea what’s happening.” –  Blind Al

“It’s probably best.” - Deadpool

Interesting lines:

• “Family was always an F word for me.” - Deadpool
• “You are not your father.” – Vanessa
• “I fight for what’s right.” – Deadpool

                                           

                                           @trinaboice

Breaking In is timed perfectly for Mother's Day

Movie Title:     Breaking In

Grade:  C-

Rating: PG-13, 
     88 minutes

In a Nutshell:  Just in time for Mother’s Day, Gabrielle Union does a good job showing us what any mama bear will do to protect her cubs.  

Unfortunately, the action-thriller movie is predictable and even toned down to earn the PG-13 rating.

Tips for parents: 

• While I was glad there weren’t a lot of F-bombs (there is 1), it was a bit odd to hear one of the bad guys use the word “friggin.” The intensity of peril at that point becomes laughable.  There is some other profanity.
• You see two people get run over by a car.
• The teenage daughter’s boyfriend makes her a playlist full of sex songs, but the mom brushes it off like it’s nothing worth talking about.  Parents, please talk to your kids about the consequences of sex as a teen.
• Teach your kids how to pick a lock.  Just sayin…
• Attempted rape, although you don’t see anything.  I would have gone full psycho revenge on that bad guy for that one act alone.
• Violence and deaths.

                                     

Uplifting theme: 

• Family
• Motherhood
• Tenacity

Things I liked:

• Gabrielle Union is the capable protagonist, as well as one of the producers of the movie.
• It’s refreshing that most of the decisions made were smart, rather than the usual dumb choices characters tend to make in this genre.
• Richard Cabral’s character is crazy bad, giving us the only real sense of urgency and peril that we want to see.
• Ajiona Alexus has such beautiful eyes.

Things I didn’t like:

• While I enjoyed the other action thrillers that writer Ryan Engle created, like Non-Stop and The Commuter (I'm a Liam Neeson fan), this film doesn’t bring anything new to the genre.
• The talented director of V for Vendetta, James McTeigue, doesn’t give us a clever, deep movie that we know he’s capable of; that movie was a masterpiece.
• Billy Burke’s character comes off looking bored during the entire movie.
• The characters were not really developed.  You never learn much about any of them.  One character shows up towards the end of the movie and you’re like, “Wait!  What?  Where did He come from? I thought…."
• A lot of the scenes are in a dark house or at night, so this movie might be hard to watch on a TV or computer monitor when it QUICKLY goes to the cheap DVD bin at Wal-Mart or online streaming.
• Lots of scampering around the house scenes.
• You’d think that if the dad built all of those security measures into the house that he would have hidden some guns somewhere.  Just sayin…
• "Payback" in the movie poster isn't quite the right word for what happens in the movie.  The mom gets mad and just wants to protect her kids, but she doesn't get crazy or seek revenge, like the movie poster promises.

Interesting lines:

• “Fear I can manage.  Desperation is a whole other thing.” – Eddie (Billy Burrke)
• “Moms don’t run (away).” – Eddie
• “You’re an impressive woman.” – Eddie

“No, I’m not.  I’m a mom.” – Shaun Russell (Gabrielle Union)

A better movie in the same genre is:

                  

                                         

                                              @trinaboice

Avengers: Infinity War packs a punch in Marvel's longest movie to date

Movie Title:    Avengers: Infinity War

Grade:  A

Rating: PG-13, 156 minutes  (the longest Marvel film to date)

In a Nutshell:  Starring…well….EVERYONE!  All of your favorite Marvel superheroes get spotlighted, a difficult task that the Russo brothers capably tackled.

As the 19^th film released by Marvel Studios in the past 10 years or so, with more to hit the Big Screen next month and into the summer of 2018, clearly, Marvel is the big boy at the Box Office.

I've been looking forward to this movie for a long time and I don't want to include a bunch of spoilers here, so this review will be, surprisingly, quite short!  I want you to be able to experience all of the fun excitement and heartbreaking drama for yourself. 

The one word that truly describes this movie is EPIC.

                                            

Uplifting theme: 

·    Hope and desperation

• Sacrifice for others
• Revenge
• Love
• The price of war
• Friendship, forgiveness, mending old wounds
• Genocide

Tips for parents: 

• Some profanity, but no F-bombs.
• LOTS of violence, sometimes with bloody, brutal deaths.  Super high dead body count.   
• LOTS of destruction and people in perilous situations.
• Some characters we have come to know and love actually die in this movie.  Your heart will break.  It’s a bit surprising and especially sad for people who really love these characters.
• Some creepy, scary monsters and characters.

                                                         

Things I liked:

• I loved it when the superheroes met each other for the very first time. The audience I watched the movie with especially howled with laughter when the Guardians of the Galaxy (my favorite Marvel characters) meet Thor.
• Josh Brolin as Thanos is awesome.  Thanos is a truly evil villain because of his motivation.
• The humor is perfect.  The characters play off each other really well with extremely entertaining banter.
• I’m not a fan of the “shaky cam” technique, so I was grateful that the Russo brothers were careful not to use it much.  There is, however, a LOT of action, so you'll want to sit towards the back of the theater in order to see it all without getting dizzy.
• Marvel’s storytelling has an unpredictability to it that makes it even more fun for viewers and fans. You just can't always predict what's going to happen.  
• Keep watching after the rolling credits for a final scene that hints at what’s to come.  The good news is that there is more to come! 
• I love it when Marvel gives Stan Lee a cameo spot.  It’s always so fun to see where they put him in the movies.
• Iron Man’s new nano-tech uniform was super cool.
• I adore Paul Betany and loved seeing him “not” red for a short time.
•  Fantastic fight and action sequences.
• Impressive CGI.  It's truly amazing what they can do in film nowadays.

Things I didn’t like:

• When you mix that many bigger-than-life characters, the film is bound to be crowded, busy, and uneven in tone.
• The ending is a bit vague and unfinished.  We don’t quite know what happened, but one thing is certain…there will be a grand finale!  It kind of feels like the Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, which was good, but somewhat unsatisfying because you knew you’d have to wait another year for the rest of the story.
• Quite a few Avenger-related characters were not present.
•  You really need to have seen all of the recent Marvel movies in order to understand the back stories of the characters and appreciate the many Easter eggs and jokes.

Funny lines:

• “Fun isn’t something one considers when balancing the universe, but this does put a smile on my face.” – Thanos (Josh Brolin
• “Hunk a Hulk of burning love is our favorite.” – Wong (Benedict Wong)
• He’s not a dude.  You’re a dude.  He’s a man.  A muscular man.” – Drax (Dave Bautista) talking about Thor.
• “It’s like a pirate had a baby with a angel.” – Drax talking about Thor
• Kevin Bacon joke.  Ha ha Love it.
• “I seriously don’t know how you fit your head into that helmet.” – Dr. Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to Ironman (Robert Downey Jr.)
• “You speak Groot?” – Rocket (Bradley Cooper)

“Yes, they taught it on Asgard.  It was an elective.” – Thor (Chris Hemsworth)

• “We do not want another single pop culture reference out of you during this trip.” – Ironman to Spiderman

Interesting lines:

• Why would I lie?” – The Collector (Benicio Del Toro)

“I imagine it’s like breathing for you.” – Thanos

• “Reality is often disappointing.” – Thanos
• “You’ve got some nerve.” – Secretary of State Thaddeus Ross (William Hurt)

“You could use some of that right now.” – Black Widow (Scarlett Johannson)

• “If life is left unchecked, life will cease to exist. It needs correction.” – Thanos
• “The hardest choices require the strongest will.” - Thanos

Movies you need to see to better understand this one:

      

                                                           

                                           @trinaboice

Rampage pushes the PG-13 line

Movie Title:   Rampage

Grade:   B

Rating: PG-13, 
1 hour 47 minutes

In a Nutshell:   My 4 sons used to play the 1997 Midway Rampage video game, so I was curious to see how well director Brad Peyton would adapt the game to a movie for the fans. 

Historically, movies that take video games to the Big Screen are horrible.  Well, yeah.  This movie requires you to turn off your brain and not care.  If you just want to see some monsters destroy a city and watch the ROCK do his thing (he’s awesome), then this movie is for you.  If storytelling and character development is important to you, then you’re going to have trouble watching this.  The monsters look great; it’s the humans in the movie that feel more like they’re in a video game.

                                    

Tips for parents: 

• George , the silverback gorilla, flips the bird several times.
• There is a HUGE body count.  There are a lot of bloody bodies and some of the deaths are almost portrayed as a joke, which was a bit alarming.  Lots of blood splatter.
• Lots and lots of destruction and violence
• Some profanity
• People in perilous situations
• Talk of poachers.  You’ll need to explain to your little ones what poachers are and why they’re so bad.
• Cleavage
• Inappropriate joke at the end.

Uplifting theme: 

• Family
• Friendship
• Loyalty
• Animal protection

                                                  

Things I liked:

• Some humor, although there could have been more since the movie already feels like a cartoon.   
• According to IMDB, an original cabinet of the Rampage arcade game can be seen in Claire Wyden’s office.  That’s a fun Easter egg for fans, but it doesn’t make sense for her to have it. Midway Arcade Origins - Xbox 360
• The movie shows George, the gorilla, living in the San Diego Wildlife Sanctuary.  As far as I know, that doesn’t really exist, but the San Diego zoo is fantastic.  They actually have a really good gorilla habitat there.  About 40 minutes outside San Diego is the awesome Wild Animal Park.  I used to live in San Diego and can highly recommend both!
• I think Malin Akerman’s eyes are so pretty.  I hated her stiff hair that looked like plastic.  Her character, unfortunately, was ridiculous.  If you're a Billions: Season One fan, you'll like that she gets to finally play the boss.
• Well done CGI.  The monsters look really cool.
• You see Dwayne Johnson get out of some zip ties.  First of all, his biceps are soooo massive!  Second, you actually can do it and big biceps aren’t required.  A former CIA agent taught me how.  Make sure the zip lock thing faces up.  Then, lift up your arms above your head and quickly pull them down to your hips, pulling your elbows back as fast as you can.  Ta da!
• SPOILER: Jeffrey Dean Morgan does a bad guy so well.  He was so maniacal in The Walking Dead Season 7 [DVD] that I had to stop watching the show.  Seriously evil.  Luckily, he has a heart in this movie.
• You’ll actually learn a little bit of sign language.  My niece married a deaf man, so I’m always thrilled when sign language is used in movies.  Another movie that uses sign language and is currently in theaters is A Quiet Place.  I thought it was really good!  You can read my movie review of A QUIET PLACE by clicking here.
• I thought it was a respectful nod that the city rampage occurs in Chicago, the headquarters of Midway video games.

Things I didn’t like:

• There were quite a few differences in the movie and game, although George and Ralph keep their names in the movie.  Lizzie’s name is never mentioned as the crocodile.  George was never an albino in the game.  The biggest difference is that the monsters in the video game were mutated humans, not mutated animals.
• The villains are terrible, but not in a good way. 
• Some characters are introduced in the beginning, but completely disappear from the story.
• There are some really dumb details that could have been easily fixed if anyone working on the movie had been paying attention or cared.
• The young male gorilla that is new at the Sanctuary in the beginning of the movie looks totally fake.  George looks much better.
• Naomie Harris doesn’t really do anything, other than run around and rely on the ROCK to come up with a plan.
• The clip in the movie trailer that shows the gorilla crack the crocodile’s jaws open like King Kong does to the dinosaur in his movie didn’t actually make it into this movie.

Funny lines:

• “Of course the wolf flies!” – Davis Okoye (Dwayne Johnson) 
• “You know there are other ways of dealing with people, don’t you?” – Dr. Kate Caldwell (Naomie Harris)

“Of course I do, but that’s no fun.” – Davis

• “That’s a big arm.  Don’t fight it.” – Davis
• “Who are you?  Homeland? CIA?  Justice League?” – Dr. Kate Caldwell  
• “Girls love him.  I should shave my head.” -  Nelson  (P.J. Byrne)

         

  

                                        
                                         @trinaboice

Ready Player One celebrates video games over the decades

Movie Title:      Ready Player One

Grade:  A-

Rating: PG-13, 140 minutes

In a Nutshell:   The creator of the largest virtual reality world ever, called the OASIS, dies and leaves a challenge to anyone who can find three invisible keys that lead to a hidden Easter egg to win a fortune and ownership over the OASIS.  Directed by Steven Spielberg, it is full of imagination, fun, action, romance, humor, and a moral lesson.  Game on!

If you’re not into video games, this movie is probably not for you.  I don’t really play video games, but I still enjoyed it.  I have four sons who played video games for many years growing up, so I was exposed enough to most of the characters that make an appearance in this movie that I got a kick out of it all.  One of my sons is now living his dream as a 3D character artist for the hugely successful video game company Blizzard.

                                              

Tips for parents: 

·       Ready Player One is rated PG-13 for tons of violence, bloody images, partial nudity, profanity, and some suggestive material.  
   *  I was worried that the movie would glorify video games and encourage kids to plug into technology even more, but the message in the end is that we all need each other and real life.   I thought the ending was actually very sweet.

·       Some profanity and other crude language.

·       A character flips the bird.

·       It shows real people losing touch with reality as they play video games.

·       Several people have face and body tattoos.

·       The leading lady’s avatar (Art3mis) has a super skimpy outfit on.

·       You see the partial naked back side of a virtual reality woman. 
*   There is an important reference to “Rosebud” in the 1941 movie Citizen Kane that very few kids or even adults will catch.

·       

Uplifting theme: 

·       “People need to spend more time in the real world.” – Wade/Parzival

·       “It’s not about winning, but playing.” – Wade/Parzival

·       “As painful and terrifying as the real world can be, it’s the only place you can get a decent meal…because reality is real.” – Halliday

·       “No man is alone who has a friend.” – I-R0k

·       Illusion vs. reality

• Real world consequences

                             

Things I liked:

• The movie itself is classic Spielberg with absolutely fantastic action sequences and imagination.  
• The special effects are really well done and blend easily from virtual reality environments into scenes with people in reality. 
• The movie is overflowing with references that span several decades of movies, music, and pop culture, focusing mostly on the 1980’s.  While the main character (Wade Owen Watts) is looking for the grand prize, there are TONS of fun Easter eggs for the audience to look for and enjoy during the entire film.  At one point, there is a scene with a famous Anime motorcycle that Spielberg is notorious for having rejected 30 years ago, dismissing it as “unsalable” for film.  It’s fun to see how he now embraces and celebrates it on the big screen. 
• There is some humor and heart in the film with most of the comic relief provided by a scary-looking, yet hilarious character named I-R0k, voiced by T. J. Miller. 
• Alvin Silvestri offered an energizing and fun musical score.  Originally, Steven Spielberg’s favorite composer, John Williams, was going to tackle the project, but he had to step away to finish his work on another Spielberg film, The Post
• If you can, try to see the movie in 3D, but it’s still fun without the glasses and extra fee.  
• Climb Mt. Everest with Batman.  Ha ha
• I love Simon Pegg and Mark Rylance in anything.

Things I didn’t like:

·   Older folks will probably claim the movie is on sensory overload (they’re right), but the younger crowd will feel like they’re right in the middle of playing a video game.  A really old guy sitting near me in the theater got up and walked out.

• There are a LOT of exposition scenes that tell us what’s happening and the movie drags a little bit in the Third Act.  
• It’s a very long 2 hours 20 minutes flick, so Grandpa or Junior may fall asleep.
•  Sit farther back in the theater; otherwise, you won’t be able to focus on everything going on.  There is a LOT happening on the screen.

Funny lines:

• “There are only 3 things I hate in the world: Steam Punk, pirates, and Tabouli.” – I-R0k (T.J. Miller)
• “Am I being punked?” – Aech/Helen (Lea Waithe)
• “She wanted to go dancing, so we went to a movie.” – Halliday (Mark Rylance)
• “She could be a dude, a 300 pound dude who lives in his mother’s basement…and his name is Chuck.  Think about that!” – Aech/Helen
• “Voila….which is French for….” – I-R0k
• “Do you want it or not?” – Anorak (Mark Rylance)

Interesting lines:

• “People go to the Oasis for all the things they can do, but they stay because of all the things they can be.” – Wade
• “A fanboy knows a hater.” – Parzival
• “Things move forward whether you like it or not.” – Ogden Morrow (Simon Pegg)

If you loved it and want more, check out the book that it’s based on, Ready Player One ,written by Ernest Cline.  The movie adds to and deletes from the source material, frustrating true fanboys, but they both have something to offer.  Cline actually mentioned Steven Spielberg in the original novel.

     

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                                                              @trinaboice