The film that I chose for today was one that always peaked my interest, but I never pulled the trigger because I was always weary of Jim Carrey (Ace Ventura: Pet Detective) doing anything other than comedy. Nevertheless, the film I chose for today is The Number 23 and Carrey plays dog catcher Walter Spearow. One day, Walter’s wife Agatha (Virginia Madsen) buys him a mysterious book simple called Number 23 for his birthday. After reading deep into it, Walter starts becoming obsessed with the number and starts to find that just about everything equals the number 23. Walter then begins to suspect that there could be some correlation between the book and real life so he sets out to find the author to figure out the answers. The film also stars Danny Huston (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Isaac French/Dr. Miles Phoenix, Logan Lerman (The Perks Of Being A Wallflower) as Robin Sparrow, Lynn Collins (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Suicide Blonde, Rhona Mitra (Underworld: Rise Of The Lycans) as Laura Tollins, Michelle Arthur (Fun With Dick And Jane) as Sybil, Ed Lauter (Trouble With The Curve) as Father Sebastian, Patricia Belcher (Jeepers Creepers) as Dr. Mortimer, Corey Stroll (Ant-Man) as Sgt. Burns, and the film was directed by Joel Schumacher (Batman Forever).
This was definitely an interesting film and an interesting role for Jim Carrey to take, but it was definitely a cool role for him. He definitely stepped it up in this film and proved that he could do films that were not comedies. The concept of the actual number 23 in the film was interesting, but to become obsessed with it is one for those that believe in conspiracy theories. What I loved about the film was how most characters portrayed two characters in the film when Jim’s character reads the book and he narrates. The story that you see unfold in front of you is actually a very cool one that has that detective crime story feel to it that definitely kept me glued. The real part of the story that was the best for me was the very end when all about the origin of the book is finally revealed to you onscreen. It was a text book thing that I should have seen coming, but I actually didn’t. It was just sitting there in front of my face and then it gets revealed and my reaction was of course it was. The tone of the film is very dark with lots of reds and out of focus shots that help tell the eerie story as it unfolds in front of us. I couldn’t believe that the film is less than a decade old it cause it seems like it came out forever ago, but I think if you’re a fan of mystery thrillers like this then you should give it a shot. I am going to give the film an B for a final grade.
Without looking at a synopsis for a film, I honestly thought when I saw the title Mystery, Alaska that we were going to get a film like Fargo for example. I thought maybe it would be a town with a dark secret, but that is definitely not the case. In Mystery, Alaska, they pride themselves on their ability to play hockey in a town that has sub zero temps almost all year round. One day a former townee (Hank Azaria) returns from New York with news that NHL hockey powers the New York Rangers want to challenge the team to a traditional pond hockey game. The town accepts the challenge with some doubters, but they’ll soon have to realize that there are a lot more internal problems they’ll need to solve before they take on the hockey power. The film stars Russell Crowe (Robin Hood) as John Biebe, Burt Reynolds (Smokey And The Bandit) as Judge Burns, Mary McCormack (Private Parts) as Donna Biebe, Colm Meaney (Con Air) as Mayor Pitcher, Lolita Davidovich (Gods And Monsters) as Mary Jane Pitcher, Maury Chaykin (Entrapment) as Bailey Pruitt, Ron Eldard (Sleepers) as Skank Marden, Kevin Durand (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Tree, Scott Grimes (Robin Hood) as Birdie Burns, Rachel Wilson (The Glass House) as Marla Burns, Adam Beach (Flags Of Our Fathers) as Galin Winetka, and the film was directed by Jay Roach (Trumbo).
This was actually a very good film that has the feel of The Mighty Ducks and the look of every other sports film released in that time frame. It’s the true underdog story of a small Alaskan hockey team that does the impossible by playing a pro team. The thing that is unique about this film is the challenges a lot of the actors face in the film like infidelity, corporate takeover, as well as other social issues. Russell Crowe was great, Burt Reynolds was very good, and just about everybody in the film did a great job. I loved the cinematography in the film especially during the big hockey game. These kinds of ideas make you wonder if a game like this would be possible, but I honestly doubt it. The players union would probably never approve of it in the first place. The idea of a spot uniting a town is not so far fetched as sports is a common thread for people and various towns all over America. One of my favorite things about the film is the cameo from Mike Myers (Shrek) who plays a character that is a parody of hockey commentating legend Don Cherry. That was definitely a highlight for me to see him in this film. I know Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 38% rating, but I really enjoyed the film because it was more than just a hockey film. That is why I have decided to give the film an B+ for a final grade.
Shark Week has finally come to an end or at least on my blog it has come to an indefinite end. So, for the last day, I wanted to once again check out a film that I hadn’t seen and so I chose the Australian film Bait for today’s film. Everything seems to be going as usual in a coastal Australian supermarket, but in reality it’s far from the truth. During a hold up in the supermarket, something terrible in the form of a tsunami is about to hit the coast and it floods the supermarket trapping everyone inside. That however isn’t the only problem that these people are about to face today. They are apparently trapped in the store with great white sharks and now they’ll have to fight for their lives if they want to live to see another day. The film stars Richard Brancatisano (Power Rangers Mystic Force) as Rory, Xavier Samuel (The Loved Ones) as Josh, Sharni Vinson (You’re Next) as Tina, Julian McMahon (Fantastic Four) as Doyle, Phoebe Tonkin (The Originals) as Jamie, Alice Parkinson (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Naomi, Daniel Wyllie (Chopper) as Kirby, Damien Garvey (Daybreakers) as Collins, and the film was directed by Kimble Rendall (Cut).
You are probably going to surprised by what I’m about to say when it comes to the film, but it’s how I felt. I thought that this was actually a very good film despite a little confusion in the beginning, but after that it was smooth sailing for the most part. The story was actually a very well structured and the acting was superb from almost everyone. I was very surprised to see the better Victor Doom (McMahon) in the film who plays a robber with a conscious who realizes that he has done wrong, but he had a good reason for it. The film had plenty of suspense with the sharks (yes plural), but don’t mistake it for scary. The film wasn’t scary per say, but it had its moments. Usually these films prey on your fear of shaark attacks since we all pretty much are afraid of these gigantic beasts. The only thing that was typical and predictable to see was the love story aspect. You know the kind, guy was in love with girl, something tragic happens, they don’t see each other for years, she moves on, and they run into each other again. Running into each other strikes up the emotions again and they end up failing in love again. That was the only part that was so predictable about the film, but you have to expect it because it’s a good subplot. Alright with all of that being said, I am going to give the film an B-/C+ for a final grade.
I am about to go on a Oscar Isaac binge and for good reason I might add. He is an incredible actor who is slowly becoming one of my favs after roles as Poe Dameron in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Nathan in Ex Machina, Blue in Sucker Punch, and he is about to be Apocalypse in X-Men: Apocalypse. In today’s film, Robin Hood, he plays King John in this origin story about Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe). King Richard (Danny Huston) was killed in battle and it’s up to his most trusted friend to return the crown. The only problem is that he is killed in an ambush and Robin agrees to bring his sword back to his father. Once Robin returns the sword to Sir Walter Loxley (Max Von Sydow), he is asked to pretend to be his son while England boils away in turmoil due to a traitor to the crown. The film also stars stars Mark Strong (Kingsman: The Secret Service) as Godfrey, Cate Blanchett (The Monuments Men) as Marion Loxley, William Hurt (The Incredible Hulk) as William Marshal, Mark Addy (The Full Monty) as Friar Tuck, Matthew Macfadyen (Frost/Nixon) as Sheriff Of Nottingham, Kevin Durand (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Little John, Scott Grimes (American Dad!) as Will Scarlet, Alan Doyle (State Of Play) as Allan A’Dayle, and the film was directed by Ridley Scott (Gladiator).
You should know going into a film like this that you can guarantee that it’s going to be well made when it’s Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe. A team that looked to repeat the success of Gladiator some ten years or so before it. As I said above, this is the origin story so it’s pre-steal from the rich and give to the poor Robin Hood. It explains how he became who he would eventually become in the story we loved as children. One of my favorite things about period pieces like this (because it is after all) are the sets, costumes, and the cinematography. You know that the costumes are going be done very well leading you to believe that you are in the 14th century or whenever this takes place. The sets are going to be showing you a time you were like where are the streets, Chipotle, and the shopping malls? Oh yeah because this takes place in the medieval times so those didn’t exist yet and not for a heck of a long time. The cinematography was absolutely amazing showing you the lush green of England and some of the shots of the ocean when the French are coming. Oh yeah, then there’s that thing called acting and it’s pretty phenomenal in this film especially Oscar Isaac as the mad and immature King John. The film may not be as amazing as Gladiator, but it’s hard to repeat the exact magic of a film and so there is no point in fretting over it and just watch the film. I am going to give Robin Hood, an A for a final grade.
I think I have mentioned before that I usually do not like to watch films that are based on movies, but what can you do when Chloë Grace Moretz (Kick-Ass) stars in the movie. The movie that I chose for today is called The 5TH Wave and it follows a young girl named Cassie (Moretz) as she recounts each horrific wave of the alien takeover. You see one day the aliens showed up and they slowly began taking over the earth trying to eliminate the humans. All Cassie has left in the world is her little brother Sam (Zackary Arthur), but Sam was taken away by the military who said they were there to help. All Cassie wants to do is get back to Sam before it’s too late. The film also stars Gabriela Lopez (Million Dollar Arm) as Lizbeth, Nick Robinson (Jurassic World) as Ben Parish, Ron Livingston (Office Space) as Oliver Sullivan, Tony Revolori (Dope) as Dumbo, Liev Schreiber (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Vosch, Maria Bello (Prisoners) as SGT. Reznik, Maika Monroe (It Follows) as Ringer, Talitha Bateman (Life Grows On) as Teacup, Alex Roe (The Calling) as Evan Walker, and the film was directed by J Blakeson (The Disappearance Of Alice Creed).
Most of the teen aimed book films that we have seen never deal with what has happened, you just assume that some bad things happened. This film deals with what happened and it moves through the different waves which is pretty much everyone’s fear. Giant waves as one of the waves, losing electricity to make us act like animals, and so on and so forth. I have to be perfectly honest and say that this actually wasn’t that bad of a film, it was actually pretty good. Chloë Grace Moretz was as good as you would expect her to be, but for me Maika Monroe was awesome as the bad ass chick that you don’t mess with. I had been waiting to see her in a film since I had seen her amazing performance in It Follows. The movie also has all the things you would want as far as the story is concerned with the twists (I never read the book) and the paranoia of who is human and who is an alien pretending to be human? The cinematography is great especially during the flooding scenes and the acting was very good. Now as far as a second film is concerned, I have no idea because I don’t remember if this film did well in the theaters or not to warrant a second film. I actually would love to see what happens next to our protagonists. So, I am going to recommend this film cause it’s worth at least a watch. I am going to give the film an B+ for a final grade.
I never got the chance back in the day to check out the film Smokin’ Aces which looked like a bad ass movie. That is until today and that is why I am presenting it to you guys as today’s challenge film. Buddy Israel (Jeremy Piven) was a wannabe gangster Las Vegas performer who decides to turn snitch for the FBI against a rival crime family. Now he needs protection because a hit has been put on his life to make sure that he never gets the chance to snitch. The hitmen are coming from everywhere and anywhere to try and collect on it, but the FBI has to get to him to get him out before the hitmen come. The film also stars Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool) as Richard Messner, Ray Liotta (Goodfellas) as Donald Carruthers, Joseph Ruskin (The Scorpion King) as Primo Sparazza, Ben Affleck (Dogma) as Jack Dupree, Peter Berg (Collateral) as “Pistol” Pete Deeks, Martin Henderson (The Ring) as Hollis, Common (Run All Night) as Sir Ivy, Andy Garcia (The Godfather Part III) as Stanley Locke, Alicia Keys as Georgia, Taraji P. Henson (Date Night) as Sharice, Chris Pine (Star Trek) as Darwin Tremor, Kevin Durand (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Jeeves Tremor, Tommy Flanagan (Sons Of Anarchy) as Lazlo, Joel Edgerton (The Gift) as Hugo, and so many more.
This movie has a wild and crazy collection of a cast that includes a mix of 80’s, 90’s, and the stars of today all rolled into one awesome cast. Matthew Fox plays the head of security of the casino/hotel, Jason Bateman plays a weird lawyer, Curtis Armstrong who played Booger in Revenge Of The Nerds is in this movie as well. Chris Pine plays an insane character who belongs in a Mad Max movie which shows you how over the top insane and awesome this film was. One thing is for certain, you never have to question Jeremy Piven and his performance because he is a top notch actor that delivers. Ryan Reynolds doesn’t really open up in the film until the last half of the film, but when he does he also delivers. He certainly does in this film as a drugged out paranoid wannabe mob boss. The action in the film at one point becomes non stop as double crosses and hots just keep coming. I will say one thing if you have never seen the movie you may think it’s over at one point, but the ending of the film may shock you. There is a lot that is revealed and of course I will not spoil it for any of you. I really liked this movie and I have to be honest and say that I went into it with no expectations and it paid off. It was tough to decide a grade for this film because it lies on the B+/A- border and that’s how I’ll keep it.
I have been waiting so long to see this movie ever since Fox announced that it was making a Deadpool movie with Ryan Reynolds (X-Men Origins: Wolverine). The film Deadpool is the perfect marriage as Reynolds plays the role he was born to play as Wade Wilson a.k.a. Deadpool. The film explores the origins of Deadpool and how he became the Merc with a mouth. Everything is going great for the mercenary as he found the perfect girl for him in Vanessa (Morena Baccarin). That is until Wade finds out that he has terminal cancer and things start to fall apart for him until a man (Jed Rees) tells him that he can cure him. Wade goes for it, but because of the treatment and what Ajax (Ed Skrein) does to him leaves him disfigured. Now, Deadpool is out for revenge and he is looking for Ajax and maybe a cure for his disfigured body. The film also stars Michael Benyaer (Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen) as Warlord, Stefan Kapicic (Tears For Sale) as Colossus, Brianna Hildebrand (First Girl I Loved) as Nagasonic Teenage Warhead, T.J. Miller (Cloverfield) as Weasel, Gina Carano (Fats & Furious 6) as Angel Dust, and the film was directed by Tim Miller in his first feature film as a director.
Spoiler Alert: if you do not want to know what happens in the film then do not read any further because I may give information away. I am just going to go ahead and say that this is one of the best superhero movies out there that was not done by Warner Brothers or Marvel/Disney. I am so glad that they made the film rated R because it added so much and it allowed Deadpool to be Deadpool in all the ways we want him. My favorite thing about the film is how he breaks the fourth wall with us and he knows that he is in a film. He cracks so many jokes in the film and he pokes them at Fox, Marvel/Disney, etc.which is just awesome. There is so much action and blood shed in the film to satisfy any fan of action and superhero movies. The soundtrack to the film is pretty awesome as well with a huge mix of so many types of pop culture. I also loved how in an idea Colossus represents Marvel and DC in a way symbolically. Think about it, they don’t really want people dying in their films and that is what Colossus is constantly preaching in the film. Deadpool told all you parents out there and I am saying that if you can’t handle nudity, strong language, and violence then don’t be an idiot and do not bring your kids to see the film. We do not want you complaining about all of those things. This is our movie and we want to enjoy every second of it and the sequel as well which has been announced. Stick around for the last scene because Deadpool tells you whose going to be in it. Check the movie out because it is totally worth it. I am giving the movie an A+ for a final grade.
For today’s Ass Whoopin Wednesday film, I chose a movie that had gained a lot of buzz in the underground world and horror magazines. The name of the film was Turbo Kid and it was directed by François Simard, Anouk Whissell, and Yoann-Karl Whissell. The film stars Munro Chambers (Degrassi: The Next Generation) as a kid in a post apocalyptic wasteland in 1997. Everyone in this world has to fend for themselves and the kid is essentially a scavenger just trying to make it by. His life gets complicated when he run into a very eccentric girl named Apple (Laurence Leboeuf). Together the two will be hunted by a very aggressive overlord named Zeus (Michael Ironside) so they’ll have to ride their BMX bikes and stick together in order to survive. The film also stars Edwin Wright (Underworld: Rise Of The Lycans) as Skeletron, Aaron Jeffery (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Frederick, Romano Orzari (Punisher: War Zone) as Bagu, Anouk Whissell as The Mother, Tyler Hall (RoboCop) as bounty hunter, Orphée Ladouceur as female guard, and Yves Corbeil (Afterglow) as Turbo General. To read the rest of the review, check out the article 
365moviesin365dayschallenge 