I was searching endlessly for a movie to watch today and I came across one that instantly peaked my interest. Judd Nelson (The Breakfast Club) was one of the coolest bad asses in the 80’s and so I decided to watch him in From The Hip for today’s film. Robin Weathers (Nelson) is a trial lawyer in Boston who is sick and tired of taking those types of cases. He wants to be a full fledged defense attorney, but he can’t do so at his firm. That is until he starts to be a rebel rouser in the courtroom which brings him lots of attention and a big win. After that big win, he is given a huge promotion at the firm despite others not wanting him to so they set him up with a murder case they feel he is guaranteed to lose. The film also stars John Hurt (V For Vendetta) as Douglas Benoit, Elizabeth Perkins (Big) as Jo Ann, David Alan Grier (In The Army Now) as Steve Hadley, Darren McGavin (A Christmas Story) as Craig Duncan, Dan Monahan (Porky’s) as Larry, Nancy Marchand (The Sopranos) as Roberta Winnaker, Allan Arbus (Coffy) as Phil Ames, Ray Walston (Fast Times At Ridgemont High) as 1ST Judge, Edward Winter (Porky’s II: The Next Day) as Raymond Torkenson, and the film was directed by Bob Clark (Porky’s).
This film in my opinion is actually two different movies in one and obviously I’ll explain it to you. The film starts off as this outrageous comedy about a jokester using the system to get ahead by fooling his peers. Then the film turns into an serious crime drama for the second half of the film as he ponders whether what he is doing is right or wrong. I am and always have been a huge fan of Judd Nelson and he definitely does not disappoint in this film, but the real dynamic of this film goes to John Hurt. Hurt absolutely raises the bar for Judd Nelson in this film with his brilliant performance which brings out the brilliance in Judd Nelson. John Hurt’s performance in the film is actually exhilarating for a film that otherwise is trying to find it’s identity. The other thing that bothered me about this film is that it takes place in Boston, but was filmed in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina. So, I am assuming for the most part that the picture above is not the city of Boston. The only thing that was authentic to the city of Boston was the Boston Celtics memorabilia and the New England Patriots sweatshirt he wears. There are barely any outside scenes shot for this film other than on the roof of Nelson’s roof which is OK, but I love shots of the city of Boston. Don’t however hold that against the film because it is enjoyable to watch. I am going to give the film an B for a final grade.
There are times when you have too many movies to watch that you miss one at the cinema every now and again. Today’s film, Jane Got A Gun is certainly an example of a film that didn’t last long at the box office and I missed my chance to see it then. Jane (Natalie Portman) is trying to live her life like any normal woman in post civil war New Mexico with her husband and daughter. Things get very complicated for Jane when her husband returns home with several gunshot wounds from a past that has finally caught up to them. In order to protect her injured husband and make a stand, Jane will enlist the help of an ex-lover (Joel Edgerton) to help against the man bringing all the havoc. The film also stars Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting) as John Bishop, Noah Emmerich (The Truman Show) as Bill Hammond, Boyd Holbrook (A Walk Among The Tombstones) as Vic Owen, Rodrigo Santoro (300: Rise Of An Empire) as Fitchum, James Burnett (Maze Runner: The Scorch Trails) as Cunny Charlie, Sam Quinn (Transcendence) as Slow Jeremiah, Alex Manette (Lee Daniels The Butler) as Buck, Jenny Gabrielle (Employee Of The Month) as Whore, and the film was directed by Gavin O’Connor (Pride And Glory).
I want to start this off by saying that Joel Edgerton is becoming one of my favorite actors in Hollywood. I have yet to be disappointed by anything that he has put out whether it was a film he strictly starred in or had something to do with the story, etc. Joel Edgerton was one of the screenwriters for this film and I have to say that it’s kind of an unorthodox western in which the back story is being told while the story is unfolding. One thing that I thought was cool was that I had no idea that Ewan McGregor was in the film and he is the antagonist of the film. He does such a great job playing the villain in the film and in fact I thought everyone from Portman to even a person with a minor role did a fantastic job. The last western I watched didn’t make the top 25, but this one definitely has a chance because I liked everything about it. The difference between westerns today versus the days of Eastwood and such is that the kills look a lot more realistic with the abilities we have now. The story structures and the subplots are all the same as they were before, but now they get a little more creative. To make the story even more of a happy ending, they throw a little twist at the end that was a little lame (I’ll admit), but it didn’t bother me at all. The film is available at Redbox now so if you love westerns then give this one a chance. I am going to give the film an B for a final grade.
365moviesin365dayschallenge 