Tag: 2015

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Movie Review

My All American (2015) Movie Review

My All American – ABC Film Challenge – High School/College Movies – M – My All Ameircan – Movie Review

My All American – ABC Film Challenge – High School/College Movies – M – My All Ameircan - Movie Review

Director: Angelo Pizzo

Writer: Angelo Pizzo, Jim Dent (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Freddie Steinmark, an underdog on the gridiron, faces the toughest challenge of his life after leading his team to a championship season.

Runtime: 1 Hour 58 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: My All American starts when underdog aspiring football player Freddie Steinmark (Wittrock) gets a scholarship to Texas University. Coach Royal (Eckhart) sees something in him and decides to give him this chance. It doesn’t take long for Freddie to make a major impact on the team as they reach the Championship season.

However, as the season unfolds, Freddie starts suffering from a knee injury. He doesn’t want to push for medical advice and fights through the pain. However, this comes at a price, when the injury becomes more serious than anyone could imagine.

Verdict on My All American

My All American is a sports drama following a college football who inspired a team to reach the championship. Only for his career to be put in doubt by an unlikely injury. Now, he must fight for his life, not just the team.

This is a moving story about a young man who inspired a whole college to succeed. It shows that sports can bring people together for the better. However, most importantly it shows that life can come at you pretty fast and you never know what the next chapter will hold. A sporting drama with a big heart that should be watched by anyone who respects the legends of the game.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – My All American is a moving sports drama.

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Movie Review

When the Sky Falls (2015) Movie Review

When the Sky Falls – Movie Review

"When the Sky Falls" features a fractured family battling a lightning storm, emphasizing personal issues amid disaster themes.

First Reaction – When the Sky Falls is an easy to watch late-night disaster movie.

Director: John L’Ecuyer

Writer: Renee St Cyr (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A fractured family, caught in a deadly lightning storm, is forced to come together to save their lives.

Runtime: 1 Hour 24 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: When the Sky Falls starts when fractured family Jamie (Dopud) and Charlotte (Huffman) look to follow a family tradition. Their children Liam (Mags) and Kylie (Whitzman) are growing out of the tradition, while Jamie brings his new girlfriend Megan (Bridges) on the trip.

Meanwhile, a deadly lightening storm sweeps across the country. With the family separated, they must reunite to survive the storm and prevent it from causing more damage to the rest of the country.

Verdict on When the Sky Falls

Recap

The movie follows a fractured family trying to follow a tradition. However, a deadly storm causes problems with their plans and they must put their differences aside to try and stop it spreading.

Best Parts

For a big disaster movie, we get a much calmer series of events, it puts more focus on the family and their problems. This works on certain levels because it doesn’t over complicate the reunion. The idea of the lightening causing the problems it does is interesting too.

Worst Parts

The opening sequence loses its shock factor by back tracking into previous events. Elsewhere, we fall into the typical family dynamic problems which don’t do enough for the story. While it is nice in some places for a calmer story situation. It could have had a few extra moments throughout the film.

Final Thoughts –When the Sky Falls is a typical late-night disaster movie.

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Movie Review

Mistress America (2015) Movie Review

Mistress America – ABC Film Challenge – Comedy – M – Mistress America – Movie Review

Mistress America – ABC Film Challenge – Comedy – M – Mistress America - Movie Review

Director: Noah Baumbach

Writer: Noah Baumbach, Greta Gerwig (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A lonely college freshman’s life is turned upside-down by her impetuous, adventurous stepsister-to-be.

Runtime: 1 Hour 24 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Mistress America starts when Tracy (Kirke) is struggling to fit into college in New York. She tries to get into different clubs, but eventually only has one person to turn to. Brooke (Gerwig), her soon-to-be stepsister who is older and lives in the big city.

As the two start bonding, Tracy gets to learn what has driven Brooke in her life. Brooke has been working to get her a restaurant open. However, when her funding gets pulled, they must go on an adventure to secure finance from a former set of friends.

Verdict on Mistress America

Mistress America is a comedy-drama following two soon-to-be stepsisters who meet and learn they have a lot more in common than they imagined. It follows the pair going on a road trip to figure out how to solve the problems in Brooke’s life.

This is an important life drama showing how life can hit you very quickly whatever your age. It shows that new friendships are difficult to find, and once things get going things can get out of hand. There is plenty going on to show the struggles in life can be extremely real. It puts the spotlight on learning to understand yourself in this world.

Final Thoughts – Mistress America is a wonderful coming of age story in New York.

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Movie Review

Heist (2015) Movie Review

Heist – Movie Review

Prepare for a thrilling heist in this action-packed movie, Heist. Watch as a father takes extreme measures to secure his daughter's medical treatment.

First Reaction – Heist is a wonderful late night action movie.

Watch Heist Here

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ABC Film Challenge – Favourites – H

Director: Scott Mann

Writer: Stephan Cyrus Sepher, Max Adams (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A father is without the means to pay for his daughter’s medical treatment. As a last resort, he partners with a greedy co-worker to rob a casino. When things go awry they’re forced to hijack a city bus.

Runtime: 1 Hour 33 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Heist starts when Luke Vaughn (Morgan) faces crippling debts to save his daughter Riley. He turns to mob boss Francis ‘The Pope’ Silva (De Niro) for help but gets refused. Meanwhile, a new employee Jason Cox (Bautista) turns to him with an offer to rob The Pope.

The two put together a team and steal from the Pope. They complete the job and hijack a bus to escape. However, The Pope refuses to let it get out of hand and looks to close up the loose ends before the police get their hands on the money.

Verdict on Heist

Recap

The movie follows a desperate man who agrees to help a thief steal from a ruthless gangster. However, the job goes wrong, and he finds himself needing to control the situation on a hijacked bus.

Best Parts

The action is non-stop and it keeps everything contained in the bus for the criminal team. It is welcome to take a chance on something outside the normal and leaves us with plenty of twists and turns. This fits the perfectly late-night action movie, and the runtime helps make it enjoyable.

Worst Parts

It is going to be easy to compare this to Speed, and it is easily nowhere near that standard. Certain sequences feel too safe and the action can be held back more than it needs to. We also end up going in a direction you can believe certain twists will happen.

Final Thoughts – Heist is late-night action 101.

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Movie Review

Hell House LLC (2015) Movie Review

Hell House LLC – Movie Review

Uncover the chilling mystery of Hell House LLC in this movie review. Find out what really happened on the fateful night of the Halloween haunted house tour.

ABC Film Challenge – Horror – H

Director: Stephen Cognetti

Writer: Stephen Cognetti (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Five years after an unexplained malfunction causes the death of 15 tour-goers and staff on the opening night of a Halloween haunted house tour, a documentary crew travels back to the scene of the tragedy to find out what really happened.

Runtime: 1 Hour 33 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Hell House LLC starts in the aftermath of a tragic event at a Halloween haunted house. 15 people died and nobody knows the truth about what happened. It leads to the crew being given the footage from one of the survivors.

The team start watching the crew Paul (Abrams), Alex (Bellini), Tony (Prescott) and Sara (Jones). It follows their journey to the location and preparations made to turn it into the now infamous location. The team move in to set up their event and soon strange things start happening around the building.

Verdict on Hell House LLC

Hell House LLC is a found footage horror movie following the events at a tragic event in a haunted house. It follows a documentary filmmaking crew trying to learn the truth and how things spiralled out of control. However, no police reports have recorded what happened and the new footage reveals the terror.

This movie takes what can make found footage movies bad and runs with it. It relies on a previous tragic event that remains unanswered and people want to find out the truth. This also dives into the love of Halloween and wants to celebrate it in a party-like haunted house way. It keeps you guessing as to what the horrors will be and leaves you shocked by the events that unfold.

Where to Watch

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Final Thoughts – Hell House LLC brings to life the shock and horror in found footage movies.

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Movie Review

Fathers and Daughters (2015) Movie Review

Fathers and Daughters – Movie Review

Pulitzer-winning writer grappling with being a single father in Fathers and Daughters. Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried, star.

Director: Gabriele Muccino (Seven Pounds)

Writer: Brad Desch (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A Pulitzer-winning writer grapples with being a widower and father after a mental breakdown; 27 years later, his grown daughter struggles to forge her own connections.

Runtime: 1 Hour 56 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Fathers and Daughters starts when Jake Davis (Crowe) is involved in a fatal accident with his wife and child Katie (Rogers). It leaves him widowed and a single father, however, it is his mental health which suffers the most.

In the second part of the story, an adult Katie (Seyfried) has a career in social services helping children. However, away from work, she doesn’t let anyone into her life. As the two stories play out, we see how the broken relationship between the two changed both their lives. With the battle to try and fix things is more challenging than Katie can handle.

Verdict on Fathers and Daughters

Fathers and Daughters is a drama following the lives of two people affected in different ways after a tragic accident. One suffered a slow mental breakdown and the other never got the treatment to deal with the loss. We follow both lives as they try to do the right thing.

This is a drama which focuses on the lives of people who don’t know how to open up. On one side a mental breakdown is nearly impossible to understand and for a young child seeing their father change. Elsewhere, the adult version never dealt with it, believing she could never have happiness in her life. it has a powerful subject matter and shows the lasting effects. Both Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried are wonderful in their roles. Along with a strong supporting cast throughout the movie.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – Fathers and Daughters is a powerful drama focusing on damaged lives.

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Movie Review

True Deception (2015) Movie Review

True Deception – ABC Film Challenge – Female Directors – P (Pamela Romanowsky) – True Deception Movie Review

True Deception

Director: Pamela Romanowsky

Writer: Pamela Romanowsky, Stephen Elliott (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Elliot, a troubled former successful writer decides to write about a missing wife and the following murder trial of her husband.

Runtime: 1 Hour 27 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: True Deception starts as author Stephen Elliott (Franco) becomes obsessed with a murder trial of Hans Reiser (Slater). He has been struggling to find motivation for his latest book, which is what he saw in this case.

However, Stephen’s own past comes back to haunt him when his estranged father Neil (Harris) claims his books are a fraud. As Stephen looks to find a story, he continues his downward spiral into addiction.

Verdict on True Deception

True Deception is a thriller following a struggling author looking for fresh motivation. This sees him getting obsessed with a criminal case that reminds him of his own troubled childhood.

The movie gives us a story based on an author that made something for himself out of a personal story he saw through his own eyes. It looks to focus on his own self-destruction and what he needs to fix going forward. The story doesn’t feel like it does enough to keep us connected. There is no mystery about the case and by the end of the story, it is all about an author’s own problems.

Final Thoughts – True Deception is a flat thriller that never gets as interesting as it could.

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Movie Review

Barely Lethal (2015) Movie Review

Barely Lethal – Movie Review

Barely Lethal

Director: Kyle Newman

Writer: John D’Arco (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A teenage special ops agent coveting a “normal” adolescent fakes her own death and enrolls in a suburban high school. She quickly learns that surviving the treacherous waters of high school is more challenging than international espionage.

Runtime: 1 Hour 36 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Barely Lethal starts when teenage assassin 83 (Steinfeld) starts to question what she might be missing in growing up. While her instructor Hardman (Jackson) continues to put her on a mission, she decides to fake her own death. 83 becomes Megan and enters the high school system, trying to play into all the stereotypes.

Megan starts to get used to high school life, however, Hardman locates her. He agrees to let her stay for a limited time until their latest threat Victoria Knox (Alba) has escaped. Megan ends up putting her new friends’ lives at risk, but can her skills stop them from getting hurt.

Verdict on Barely Lethal

Barely Lethal is an action comedy that follows a teenage assassin that decides she wants to experience high school life. However, she finds high school more difficult than expected but adapts quickly. This is until her past starts to catch up with her leaving her facing a difficult decision.

The movie does a good job of twisting the environment. We are used to seeing somebody taken from a high school world and taught about a secret agent world, instead of an agent learning about high school. This gives the movie a refreshing feeling as Hailee Steinfeld is a natural in this role.

The negative comes from the fact that it never feels like they are facing a threat. Despite keep referring to Knox being dangerous, it never feels like she could do anything dangerous. The high school research is fun (Mean Girls, Bring It On and others), using movies through the years to hopefully fit in easily.

Final Thoughts –Barely Lethal is a fun action-packed high school movie.

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Movie Review

Truth (2015) Movie Review

Truth – Movie Review

Truth

Director: James Vanderbilt

Writer: James Vanderbilt, Mary Mapes (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Newsroom drama detailing the 2004 CBS 60 Minutes report investigating then-President George W. Bush’s military service, and the subsequent firestorm of criticism that cost anchor Dan Rather and producer Mary Mapes their careers.

Runtime: 2 Hours 5 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Truth starts when successful ambitious reporter Mary Mapes (Blanchett) starts investigating George W Bush’s military record. She gets to put a team together with 60 minutes anchor Dan Rather (Redford). As the investigation unfolds, we see how Mary can get people to talk.

However, once the story gets broken, Mary and Dan have their careers fire stormed with criticism. Mary must now lead a journey down a path to discover the real story and put the record straight.

Verdict on Truth

Truth is a historical drama following the producer and anchor that tried to break a story about President Bush’s military history. It follows the team putting together the story and the following backlash that came from it being questioned.

This is a movie that gets to explore how breaking a story can see a career pulled apart by people that don’t like the truth. It shows us how despite the story being true, most people who can prove it won’t talk. We see how the story tends to get forgotten over the truth behind everyone involved. It is an eye-opening story that showed the evolving style of journalism. The performances are great from Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford and the supporting cast.

Final Thoughts –Truth is an eye-opening story about how journalism changed.