There are actors in the world that when I see that they star in a certain film, I will watch it whether I know what it is about or not. That is definitely the case nowadays when it comes to Jake Gyllenhaal who I have become a huge fan of and which is why I picked up his film Demolition. Davis Mitchell (Gyllenhaal) is a successful investment banker who seems to have it all until his wife is tragically killed in a car accident. The event turns Davis’s life upside down until he receives a phone call from a customer service rep named Karen (Naomi Watts). With the help of her and her very eccentric son (Judah Lewis), Davis will try to rebuild his life, but he has to demolish the old memories in order to move on. The film also stars Chris Cooper (The Bourne Identity) as Phil, C.J. Wilson (The Magic Of Belle Isle) as Skip, Polly Draper (Side Effects) as Margot, Debra Monk (The Bridges Of Madison County) as Davis’s Mom, Heather Lind (Mistress America) as Julia, Wass Stevens (House Of Cards) as Jimmy, Blaire Brooks (Half Brother) as Amy, Brendan Dooling (The Carrie Diaries) as Todd, and the film was directed by Jean-Marc Vallée (Dallas Buyers Club).
The first thing I want to talk about is obviously the performance of Jake Gyllenhaal which was absolutely brilliant. You literally see a guy without a care in the world go to a complete wreck before he is brought back to life again right before your very eyes. Jake absolutely nailed the role as he captured the essence of what the character was going through. While the dynamic of Gyllenhaal and Watts relationship was interesting, it was actually his relationship with her son in the film that is even more interesting. He has no intention of being a father figure to this wayward teen, but he ends up becoming a very good friend to him. You see the relationship bloom right before your very eyes and Judah’s character learns to be free. One of my favorite scenes in the film is a couple of them that go together. Judah’s character goes into the garage and starts jamming out to a track which is followed by Gyllenhaal joining him. The other one is Gyllenhaal running through the streets of New York dancing to the music that has just been downloaded. Usually I would think those scenes were corny, but they actually served a purpose. It’s the start of the budding of their relationship and it’s apart of a phase for Gyllenhaal when he is starting to let things go. If you are a fan of cinema and independent films then this is definitely one to pick up and watch. The cinematography, editing, and the acting were all great. I am going to give the film an A- for a final grade.
When it comes to creature features and wonders of the world of fiction, there have been none greater than the likes of King Kong since his debut in 1933. He definitely began the world’s obsession with larger than life creatures and characters. In 2005, Peter Jackson (The Lord Of The Rings) would direct this remake that starred Jack Black (Orange County) as director Carl Denham. Carl needs to create a movie that is unlike anything the world has seen, but the studio doesn’t believe in him. Naomi Watts (The Ring) stars as struggling actress Ann Darrow who is just looking for a big break. The two will eventually run into each other and she is hired to star in his film. The only problem is that the film is to be filmed on an island that no one has been to and they bite off more than they can chew when the eight wonder of the world shows up. The film also stars Adrien Brody (The Jacket) as Jack Driscoll, Thomas Kretschmann (Wanted) as Captain Englehorn, Colin Hanks (Orange County) as Preston, Andy Serkis (Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes) as Kong, Evan Parke (Django Unchained) as Hayes, Jamie Bell (The Fantastic Four) as Jimmy, Kyle Chandler (The Wolf Of Wall Street) as Bruce Baxter, and John Sumner (District 9) as Herb.
I still have yet to see the original 1933 classic that actually has King Kong listed as an actor in the film. The only other version I have seen is the 1976 version that starred Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange. The one thing you can guarantee when it comes to watching this film is that the special effects are going to be amazing compared to any other version before it. The CGI alone makes this a version worth watching because they can do so much more with the film then they were able to do in the past. One of my favorite things about this film is when they are actually on Skull Island because that is where the fun and adventure is in this film. From the crazy looking natives to all the creatures that inhabit Skull Island like giant spiders, dinosaurs, and so much more creepy crawlers. The fight scene between Kong and the three T-Rex’s is absolutely amazing and one of my favorites. This is actually one of many films where Jack Black flexes his acting abilities and shows us he doesn’t have to be an imbecile all the time on screen to entertain people. Adrien Brody does a terrific job in the film as well as Naomi Watts, the beauty that kills the beast. They have the iconic climbing of the skyscraper scene in this film and it’s superb as well as other iconic shots. This was definitely a cool movie that I enjoyed and I can not wait for Kong: Skull Island to come out in 2017. I am going to give the film an A- for a final grade. Check it out on Showtime or Showtime Anywhere right now.
365moviesin365dayschallenge 