Blu ray movie review of Cop Out

While I’m not a huge fan of Kevin Smith, I did enjoy some of his earlier movies like Clerks and Chasing Amy. His more recent movies like Jersey Girl and Zack And Miri Make a Porno was not as good as the earlier movies. The Cop Out is somewhat different movie from Kevin Smith. The buddy cop genre is something different from the Chasing Amy director. Given that I’m a big fan of Bruce Willis, I gave it a shot. The movie turned out to be one long SNL skit involving Tracy Morgan. Bruce Willis has always done very good comedy within his action films. While it’s not gut busting funny, I always got good chuckle out of his comedic chops. However, Cop Out was just painful to watch.

The plot is paper thin and not all that original. It’s about long time partners Jimmy and Paul at NYPD. They have been long time partners and good friends. Facing an astronomical wedding bill for his daughter, Jimmy decides to sell a rare baseball card. However, during the transaction, the collector’s shop gets robbed by two bumbling thieves. Jimmy and Paul eventually track down the two thieves and learn that baseball card has been turned over to a drug dealer. One thing leads to another and both cops find themselves involved in bigger crime.

Half of the movie is filled with Tracy Morgan’s antics. The other half is a bland cop comedy. Both are painful to watch. I can understand Tracy Morgan doing this movie. But, I can’t understand why Bruce Willis would do this awful movie. I would have rather seen another mediocre Die Hard film. And, Tracy Morgan shows no range as actor. He plays the same SNL character he has played in his entire career. I’m not asking for Shakespearean stuff but at least do something different in the comedic field. The over the top comedy gets old by the middle of the movie. Overall, I can’t honestly recommend this film to anyone.

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Blu ray movie review of The Bounty Hunter

After string of bad movies, Jennifer Aniston makes another stinker in The Bounty Hunter. In all fairness, she did have Gerard Butler’s help in making this movie. While both are undoubtedly great actors, they seem to go out of their way to make bad movies for some reason. Aniston has enjoyed great success on television sitcom as well as some movies. However, she has failed to star in a decent movie in for a while. I’m not sure who is forcing her to star in these terrible movies. For Gerard Butler, he should stick with action/drama movies. While P.S. I love You was barely watchable, The Ugly Truth and The Bounty Hunter were both terrible romantic comedies.

Like the movie name suggests, the movie is about a husband chasing down his ex wife. Milo is a former cop who works as a bounty hunter for his friend’s business. When his ex wife, a reporter, jumps bail to chase down a lead, he jumps at the chance to bring in his ex wife. Murder cover up serves as a rather boring back drop to the story. The murder cover up is only convenient ploy to showcase the interaction between the two leads. The simple case of hunting down his ex wife turns out to be little more complicated as the two go at each other over their failed marriage and the current situation.

The trailer looked funnier than the actual movie. The stupid murder cover up was not all that intriguing. The film maker banked too much on the star power of Aniston and Butler. Even they couldn’t save this ridiculous movie. There were some funny moments but not enough to carry this movie. Overall, I cannot recommend this movie to even the hardcore fans of Aniston and Butler. Avoid this movie.

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Blu ray movie review of Green Zone

An action movie starring Matt Damon should have been a box office hit. Instead, Green Zone barely made any noise at the box office. This is despite mostly good reviews from the critics. On an estimated budget of $100 million, Green Zone only managed to bring in $35 million domestically and $58 million in foreign box office. In today’s market place, it is hard to actually lose money when both domestic and international box offices are added together. According to the rumor, the studio green lit this film even though it didn’t like the script just to lure Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass to do the 4th installment of Bourne film. After watching Green Zone, I can definitely see why it failed at the box office. The overall plot and tone of the movie is so anti-Bush and Republicans that the film effectively cut out half of the domestic audience. You can see why studios usually shy away from very political movie.

The plot involves the aftermath of the second Iraq war. Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller is tasked with finding the WMD left behind by the Iraqi army. When each intelligence fails to pan out, Miller is suspicious of the “evidence” provided. Miller gets suspicious and starts asking questions. CIA operative named Marty is also suspicious about the existence of WMD in the first place. Together, they piece together clues that point to massive lies and cover up that initiated the second Iraq war.

Without giving away the main plot, it is fairly obvious what the overall point of the movie is. That is to blame the previous administration for going to war Iraq. While the movie is very good speculation on what might have happened, it will polarize the audiences with the heavy political message. On a very objective level, the movie is quite good painting a picture of what could have happened that led to President Bush going to war with Iraq. Overall, if you were expecting a Bourne type of movie, you will be very disappointed. Instead, this is more of a political movie than an action movie.

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Blu ray movie review of The Book of Eli

The Book of Eli doesn’t disappoint the targeted audience. The post apocalyptic western film is as advertised. The plot isn’t really original. It’s your standard post nuclear war movie where civilization has taken a giant step back into chaos and anarchy. Small pockets of communities exist with warlords controlling the population. Murder and rape is rampant and food and water shortages persist throughout the World. This is the setting where Eli is on a mission to deliver a book to the western part of the United States. It is the year 2043 he is nearing his goal of reaching California. However, there is mad warlord in a town that is searching for a specific book. It wouldn’t be a big spoiler to mention that the book is in fact the Bible. There is not very subtle hint about the war and the cause. It seems that Bible was burned along with other books in the aftermath of the war.

The movie’s strong point isn’t the philosophical ideals. Instead, it is the action that makes the movie enjoyable. There is a deeper meaning the directors are trying convey. But, it is very thin and overly employed in other movies. It feels like they tried to thrown in religious angle where it was not needed. This isn’t to say that it detracts from the film. In fact, it does have the uplifting feeling once the credits roll. All that aside, the action is very slick and well choreographed. If you are a fan of the post apocalypse genre, you will be right at home with this film.

Danzel Washington is perfect as Eli, the wandering warrior with mission. Gary Oldman once again plays the villain. It seems like Gary Oldman was made to be a villain in most movies. Perhaps it’s because he does it so well. You really can’t argue with Oldman playing a villain. The Mila Kunis character seems to be an afterthought. Her character isn’t really needed or serves any purpose except to have attractive female cast. Even so, she is a terrific actress and does her role without any problem. Overall, the film was enjoyable and well worth the purchase.

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Blu ray movie review of Shutter Island

The trailer for the Shutter Island was little misleading about the overall plot of the movie. While people that read the book would recognize the story, the rest of us would think it is a little super natural mystery. Never the less, you usually can’t go wrong with Martin Scorsese films. This psychological thriller seems to have combined great elements from previous films like Silence of the Lambs and other great psychological thriller movies. You get hint of Hitchcock’s influence in suspense and overall atmosphere. This isn’t to say Scorsese ripped off other great works. It just feels like a very well constructed film.

Without giving away the twist, the plot involves a U.S. marshal named Teddy Daniels. In 1954 he is assigned to investigate the disappearance of a patient from a mental hospital located on Shutter Island. He has personal reason to want this assignment. The rumors or crazy experiments and cruel treatment of mentally ill patients propel him to further his investigation of the disappearance. Once at the island, he pursues the missing patients as well as a man related to his past. While on the Island, a hurricane cuts off communication with the mainland forcing him to extend his stay and finally figure out the mystery behind Shutter Island.

After watching the movie, I felt I had similar experience watching the Sixth Sense. After you watch the film, you want to rewind and watch each conversation and each interaction between the main character and everyone around him. You know the twist is coming from a mile away. You just don’t know which side is on the sane side. You get nothing less than a stellar performance from the lead and the legendary director.

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Blu ray movie review of Outlander

Released in 2008, Outlander had limited release and didn’t receive too much attention. It was a shame more people didn’t get to watch this very entertaining movie. I recently had chance to watch this film in Blu ray and because I didn’t know too much about this movie, I expected B grade movie. Instead of SyFy channel grade movie, Outlander turned out to be very well made science fiction movie. It had high production feel to it as well as very good acting.

The tag line of “Beowulf meets Predator” is a very apt for Outlander. The story takes place in Viking kingdom of Herot in 709 BC. A spacecraft crash lands in the middle of the Viking kingdom. The sole survivor of the crash, Kinan, does not know that one of the fierce alien life form called Moorwen has secretly hitched a ride with him. Moorwen are a creature that inhibited a world that Kinan’s race took over for mining purpose. In a fierce battle, Moorwen destroyed the colony and left Kinan as sole survivor. Kinan tried to go home but crashed on Earth without knowing that Moorwen was on board. Once he lands on Earth, he befriends the local people and to find his way home. But, Moorwen starts to kill off the inhabitant one by one. Determined not to let Earth fall victim to Moorwen, Kinan decides to help the Vikings kill Moorwen.

This is without a doubt a great science fiction movie. The lack of wide release in 2008 is puzzling as it should have seen a wide release. The movie is simply too good to be released in limited basis and go straight to DVD/Blu ray. James Caviezel and Sophia Myles as the two main characters are pretty amazing together. The ancient setting for a battle between advanced civilization alien and some type of Alien monster is a fantastic idea. Every science fiction fan should watch this movie. The lack advertisement and promotion does not mean a B grade movie.

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Blu ray review of Invictus

Two Hollywood legends team up to tell the story of Nelson Mandela’s involvement with Rugby match. In Invictus, Clint Eastwood directs Morgan Freeman in the story about Mandela’s drive to bring the country together through the 1995 Rugby World Cup. To be honest, I did not need any prodding or selling to watch this film. I would watch a movie about paint drying if Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman were involved. It’s no secret Eastwood wanted to direct a story about Nelson Mandela. However, there are so many chapters of Mandela’s life that it would be close to impossible to tell life story of Mandela in a movie. So, Eastwood settled on Mandela’s involvement in the 1995 Rugby World Cup.

Based on true story, Invictus tells story of Nelson Mandela and the captain of South Africa’s Rugby team to unite the newly formed government in South Africa. After finally achieving a free election, President Mandela faced a tough task of bringing together the divided country in the wake of apartheid. Even with the end of apartheid, the mistrust between minority whites and majority blacks were just as prevalent. To bridge the gap, Mandela decides to push for the unity via backing of the South Africa’s national rugby team in the upcoming Rugby World Cup.

As stated earlier, the life story of Nelson Mandela couldn’t possibly be told in one movie. But, Clint Eastwood does admirable job of telling the overall story. While focusing on the Rugby World Cup, Eastwood does not forget the background setting. While you are interested in the Rugby World Cup, there is no mistake what the real story is. It is about Mandela and his drive to forgive and forge a new nation. You get glimpse of Mandela’s past and his marital problem. Eastwood does not shy away from both subjects. While there were some changes made from the real story, the overall story and plot does not stray far from the actual event. Overall, it’s a definitely a must see film.

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Blu ray movie review of Avatar

James Cameron’s last film, Titanic, was the highest grossing film in the history. Cameron’s latest film eclipsed Titanic at the box office. Taking in over 2 billion dollars, Avatar has become the highest grossing movie of all time. Like Titanic, the big budget and overly hyped, Avatar had some worried that it might bomb at the box office. However, like Titanic, Avatar raked in massive amounts of money across the globe. James Cameron waited over 10 years since his last film to work on Avatar. As soon as you watch Avatar, you understand why he waited so long. 10 years ago, technology didn’t exist to create all the effects shown in Avatar. More than half of the movie is done purely on computer generated form. In the past, you could tell CG from reality in distinct form. Watching Avatar, you forget that you are watching CG.

In terms of plot, there isn’t too much to distinguish itself in originality. A lot of people have compared to Dances with Wolves and rightly so. The plot is not much different from Kevin Costner’s epic western movie. The story opens up with Jake Sully taking on a mission previously assigned to his twin brother. His twin brother was to go to Pandora on a project to get to know the natives through the usage of avatar. The natives, Navi, are resisting the mining company that intends to mine for a highly valuable ore. The avatars are made to look like the native Navi. The controllers are connected to their avatars and are able to control them. While getting to know the Navi, Jake Sully come to respect and love them. Thus, he sides with Navi to fight the evil corporation.

While not completely derivative, Avatar does borrow heavily from other movies. But, in terms of technical achievement, there is no equal. Even with known plot line, Cameron does excellent job of telling the story. The movie’s appeal is not just aesthetic, the story as well as the actors all make for a great entertainment. James Cameron’s patience has paid off. While we have seen some great CG effects in the past movies, none have come close to what Avatar has achieved. Avatar has blurred the line between real actors and computer generated actors. While real actors provide the basis, Avatar is one step closer to a completely generated actors on big screen.

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Minority Report Blu Ray Review

Released back in 2002, Minority Report is perhaps the second best movie based on Philip K. Dick’s novel or stories. I’m not sure if any movie can compete with the greatness of the Blade Runner. But, Minority Report gives it a good run as far as the overall story and acting. Combine great story, acting, and a legendary director in Steven Spielberg makes this a must watch for any science fiction fan. Like most of Philip K Dick’s stories, the movie makes you think long after the end of the movie. Also, like other Philip K Dick’s stories, the story involves the advancement of technology and how humans interact with the new technology. However, the story also involves little bit of super natural element outside of pure science.

In the year 2054 A.D. all of the crime is eliminated with the formation of Precrime unit. Precrime unit is able to see any crimes before they happen. Anyone caught by the Precrime unit are sentenced according to the crime they will have committed. To foresee the crimes, Precrime units use genetically altered humans called Pre-Cogs that have special power to see crimes in the future. Leading the Precrime unit is the John Anderton. The real story begins when Anderton is seen committing a crime in the future. Anderton goes on the lam and tries to figure out a way of his predicament.

The morality of predestination is the main theme of the movie. The movie asks question whether we have power to change the future if we know the one outcome. We see how John Anderton follows the trail of minority report and figure out the real purpose of his supposed murder. The trail leads to John’s sad past as well as the future of Precrime. This is one of the best science fiction films of the decade. Few science fiction films can match the action and plot. Steven Spielberg does masterful job of converting the short story into a very watchable and though provoking film. This is a must for any Blu ray movie collector.

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Apollo 13 Blu Ray Review

It’s always nice to see a great movie get the Blu ray release. Apollo 13 is a prime example of such release. Released back in 1995, Apollo 13 is one movie I’ve been looking forward to watching in high definition. Everyone can appreciate this human drama about space travel gone wrong. Even if you are not a science fiction or the history of space exploration, you should be able to appreciate the story. The film presents excellent performances and a very accurate portrayal of the events.

The movie is based on a true story about the 13th Apollo mission. The well known story is about the astronauts Lovell, Haise, and Swigert on the 13th Apollo mission that goes terribly wrong. The mission comes after several successful moon landing missions. The American public has grown little bored with the Apollo mission and has tuned out the latest one in the 1970. However, they are captivated and horrified when there is an accident aboard the space ship. The space ship has small accident which cripples the space vehicle. Stranded in space, the three astronauts must work together and somehow limp home.

Movies based on historical events tend to use a lot of dramatic license. The Apollo 13 stays very true to the original events. The director and everyone involved in the movie paid great tribute to these heroes by accurately portraying the events. No detail was too small to be included or over looked. The all star cast including Tom Hanks Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, and Ed Harris deliver solid performances. You can really feel the desperation by the astronauts as well as all the people involved in the mission. This is a must for any movie collectors. You can watch this over and over and not get tired of the story.

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