Silver Linings Playbook - Review

Pat Solitano seeks to reunite with his estranged wife after a brief stint in a mental institution by moving back in with his parents only to come in contact with a young widow named Tiffany. Her own problems and desires make his journey back to marriage and sanity more challenging in Silver Linings Playbook.


I had wanted to see Silver Linings Playbook, but seeing that I live in a lousy city for limited releases I was forced to wait until the DVD release. I had some minor issues with the ending but overall I thought this was a great movie. Jennifer Lawrence's Oscar was well deserved and I would go far enough to say Robert De Niro deserved Best Supporting Actor over Christoph Waltz and Bradley Cooper should have been taken more seriously. Hell, the entire movie should have been taken more seriously.

As far as the plot goes, I really loved the general basis of the movie. I thought the concept of him being committed into a mental hospital after a fight rather than being put in jail was an interesting twist. Most of the time Hollywood just puts the "sick" in mental wards for being depressed or attempting suicide. I also loved how Bradley Cooper portrayed Bipolar Disorder. His character Pat Solitano was a man who knew what he wanted and was very analytical in expressing why he does the things he does and why he says what he thinks out loud. He was happy but lacking what he thought made him the happiest. It was great.

For acting... Jennifer Lawrence was just in another category. Her character Tiffany was sad, hilarious, and powerful all at the same time. Tiffany recently lost her husband Tommy in a freak accident and was searching for something, or someone, to fill the gap that Tommy had left. She recruits Pat by bribing him into thinking she would help him break the restraining order his wife had placed on him after his fight. She was deceitful but it worked.
Don't get me wrong, everyone was good in this movie. Even the minor characters played by Chris Tucker and Jackie Weaver were great. I just think Jennifer Lawrence carried the movie and gave it heart.

The only gripe I had was with the ending. I thought it was a little too abrupt and predictable. It was a classic ending that we have seen a million times so that I wasn't too happy with, but again... it worked.


Overall I think Silver Linings Playbook was great. I don't really get why people were calling this movie a comedy, but whatever floats your boat. I recommend it!

Emma Roberts joins American Horror Story: Coven

One thing I will give American Horror Story credit for... they manage to attract semi-popular film actors to do television. That is rare.

Emma Roberts, aka Julia Roberts' niece, has joined the cast for the third installment of American Horror Story. Roberts is evidently going to play the role of a self-centered party girl. The third season, called Coven, is centered around a coven of witches. Others set to star are Kathy Bates, Gabourey Sidibe, Frances Conroy, Taissa Farmiga, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, and Lily Rabe.

Roberts has been seen in Scream 4, It's Kind of a Funny Story, Celeste & Jesse Forever, and The Art of Getting By. If you saw Scream 4 you know she is capable of playing the crazies.

Is Jurassic Park 4 a reboot? Maybe.

This whole thing is starting to get a bit flaky. Jurassic Park 4 has been put on an indefinite hold by Universal for now and producer Frank Marshall assured Collider that the film is a fourth installation and not a reboot. However, Sam Neill has something else to day about the project.
He told the Dominion Post that he didn't think he was going to be part of the fourth Jurassic Park film due to the fact that he was told it is "a bit reboot, a total re-jig." Whether this is true or a classic case of Hollywood miscommunication, this is a valid point to raise.

The thing that makes this a little more suspect is the fact that the indefinite hold has been put on Jurassic Park 4. Are they waiting for enough time to pass so a reboot would be better or were there enough problems on Universal's timetable that they had to postpone it? Only time will tell.

Just saying, if they reboot Jurassic Park I will not see it. The idea of that is absurd.

First look at Jennifer Lawrence for X-Men: Days of Future Past

Pretty self explanatory.

Disney launches Star Wars Rebels, a new animated series

Well... we all knew this was coming.

Disney announced the launch of a new animated series to be called Star Wars Rebels that will air on Disney XD. Shortly after the acquisition of Lucasfilm, Cartoon Network's show Star Wars: The Clone Wars was canceled and pulled due to the fact that it existed before the new ownership. Star Wars Rebels seems to be Disney's answer to the kid's cartoon show. It will take place in the 20 years between Star Wars Episode III and Star Wars Episode IV to show how the Empire secured their grip on the new galaxy.

Star Wars Rebels is currently in production for a 2014 premiere on Disney XD.

Star Trek Into Darkness - Review

Star Trek Into Darkness follows Captain Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise as they go on a manhunt for one-man weapon of mass destruction named John Harrison. Little to they know that the problem may not just lie with John Harrison, but with Starfleet itself.


I was excited for Star Trek Into Darkness, despite the dumb title, for the sheer fact that I have grown up watching Star Trek. I wouldn't describe myself as a "trekkie" but I do know the storylines and have seen just about every TV show and movie thanks to my father. I also really enjoyed J.J. Abrams' first Star Trek film back in 2009. I chose to avoid a majority of trailers and teasers for the sheer fact that buzz about the plot and characters started very early. There were rumors circulating about exactly who John Harrison was starting directly after the Super Bowl teaser if I remember correctly. I just didn't want the crap so I chose to stay away from it the best I could. This is one case where I am happy I did because from the trailers I did see, they focus on the first half hour or so of the movie and ignore the best parts and I loved that.

And just to say, this will have spoilers so beware. The big reveal of who John Harrison is was in the trailer and people called it, but you might want to skip this if you haven't seen Star Trek Into Darkness yet.



So in case you know nothing about Star Trek, didn't catch it in the trailer, or whatever else... John Harrison is Khan.

In case you didn't know or need some catch up, Khan is a genetically engineered tyrant who escaped a 15-year exile by Captain Kirk and returned to seek revenge. The history according to Star Trek Into Darkness is he was the leader of a genetically altered race who tried to conquer Earth and wipe out whoever they deemed inferior. The plot of the 1982 film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan basically followed the USS Enterprise in an attempt to stop Khan from acquiring Genesis, a powerful terraforming device. The Wrath of Khan is generally referred to as the best of the Star Trek films and is credited with renewing interest in the Star Trek story after a lackluster Star Trek motion picture in 1979.

Now back to business... This story arc for Star Trek Into Darkness is a bit confusing and I had to talk to my dad after the movie was over. It basically takes you before the "Space Seed" episode where Khan first appeared or just shifts into an alternate Star Trek universe and replaced "Space Seed."
Basically we start as Captain Kirk is relieved of his duties as Captain of the USS Enterprise after compromising Spock's life and defying Starfleet protocols. After an attack on a Starfleet archives building in London, Kirk is shifted to Captain Pike's command as First Officer of the Enterprise and Spock was ordered as First Officer to another ship. While in a meeting in San Francisco, the fugitive known as John Harrison opens fire on Starfleet Headquarters and kills Captain Pike. Admiral Marcus then reinstates Captain Kirk and instructs him to take his crew and the Enterprise to hunt down Harrison on the Klingon planet of Kronos and basically start imminent war by shooting photon torpedoes to kill Harrison. Kirk follows orders and takes the crew to Kronos where their engines are damaged and they are forced to move on a small transport vessel where they are ambushed by Klingons. Harrison arrives and immediately surrenders after discovering how many torpedoes the Enterprise holds.
This is where it got good, imo. When Harrison is on the ship he is subject to a blood sample and a short interrogation by Captain Kirk and Spock. He entices Kirk to listen despite Spock's warnings and Harrison reveals himself as Khan. He elaborates on a plan to rescue his people, who are frozen in the torpedoes, and says Starfleet has imprisoned him and tortured him because he was the only one who awakened from the cryogenic sleep. Just as soon as you feel sympathy for Khan, Spock decides to contact himself (aka, Leonard Nimoy) where he explains that Khan is the most dangerous man he had ever encountered and advised his younger self against dealing with him. Spock asks his older self if he was able to defeat him and the only information we hear is that it was at great cost. In case you didn't know, in The Wrath of Khan Spock is killed by Khan while trying to save Kirk's life. In this instance, Kirk is killed while attempting to save his ship and entire crew and Spock goes after Khan to seek revenge for killing his friend. In other words, Spock was using his half-human side for a bit.

The thing that I did like about Khan is how they made him seem like an asset despite never losing his madness. When he made it onto the Starfleet warship with Admiral Marcus is when Captain Kirk truly realized that they had just helped Khan and he in fact did not help them at all. I also think Spock makes one badass captain and definitely outsmarted Khan in the end by using full logic and truth. I think that Benedict Cumberbatch was by far one of the best villains I have ever witnessed on film. The way he played the character was incredible. The way he played off the other actors was just a joy to watch.


There were some problems, though. They are pretty small and from what I have seen on the internet so far a majority of die hard Star Trek fans do not like Star Trek Into Darkness. Here is what I noticed:

1. Why did Chekov get promoted to Engineering? Why not promote a crew member who is actually in Engineering?

2. Why not just beam Spock into the volcano in the first place? Actually while we are at it, what was the point of that entire first scene? If it was just to show that Spock was willing to die to get the job done they could have done that another way without these weird crusty looking creatures on a planet with red foliage.

3. Bones (Karl Urban) was nothing but comic relief.

4. Lack of real importance for Sulu other than his brief acting Captain moment.

5. How did Admiral Marcus keep the giant combat ship and Khan and his frozen pals a secret from his own organization?

It is things like this that could potentially ruin the movie for people and I can see and understand that. I chose to not turn into a total sci-fi nerd and just enjoy the movie and I really did. Star Trek Into Darkness is a great sci-fi movie, but I can see where the problems lie and that J.J. Abrams was basically playing house with the characters he had at his disposal without really paying attention to the rather extensive library of Star Trek episodes and movies that have already happened. I kind of fear what he will do with Star Wars Episode VII now.

Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch confirmed for Avengers 2

Joss Whedon (The Avengers) has confirmed that the brother-sister team that will be included in The Avengers 2 will indeed be Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch.

There was a potential legal issue with these characters as they are intertwined with X-Men seeing as they are both mutants and their father is Magneto. The concern was since Fox owns X-Men they could potentially own these characters as well. However, Whedon assured everyone that the characters are available for them to use and they intend to do so.

If you know nothing about Quicksilver or Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver has a power of super speed. Scarlet Witch can cast hexes which can alter probability, alter reality, and chaos magic. The siblings also have several years worth of story arcs so it isn't possible to really predict exactly which arc Whedon is targeting for The Avengers 2. There is also a rumor that Saoirse Ronan is in the running (aka, the prototype) for Scarlet Witch, but that is pretty preliminary.

[RUMOR] Christopher Nolan approached for Bond 24

Daily Mail has reported that initial talks and offers have happened between Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson and Christopher Nolan, the director of The Dark Knight trilogy. The producers initially tried to bring Sam Mendes back to direct Bond 24, but he declined the project. The original plan was to have Bond 24 released within three years of Skyfall, so that will put Bond 24 by (at least) 2015. The clock is ticking so they need to at least find a director.

However, Christopher Nolan has already committed to Interstellar which is slated for release on November 7, 2014. Given that commitment it is truly unlikely Nolan will be able to direct Bond 24. At least not to make a 2015 deadline. If there are talks that are happening between Nolan and the Bond producers it is most likely not for Bond 24, but for a future Bond project.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon getting a sequel

Yeah, I know.

The Weinstein Company announced its plans to move forward with a sequel to Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. It will be without director Ang Lee and most of the original cast. The only return we know of right now is Michelle Yeoh. Yuen Wo Ping will take over the director's chair and the title will be Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon II - The Green Destiny. This sequel is coming 14 years after the release of the original.

I personally never liked the movie and I don't think I still to this day have seen the entire thing. I remember falling asleep about halfway through it and I never had the desire to finish it. With that said, I don't think I will be running to see the second one. It's just ridiculous.

Toy Story of Terror will air this October

Disney/Pixar announced a new Toy Story short film along with a new image. The new 30-minute short titled Toy Story of Horror will air this October on ABC. It takes place during a road trip where Bonnie's car happens to break down and she and the toys stay in a spooky motel. One of the toys goes missing and the rest have to unravel a mystery before it's too late.
Executive producer Galyn Susman mentioned that the short will focus more on Jesse (Joan Cusack) but will feature other favorites including Mr. Pricklepants and Trixie from Toy Story 3. It also will show the relationship Bonnie has developed with her new toys (aka, Andy's toys).

One thought going around people's minds, including my own, is if this new television short will be a lead into a potential Toy Story 4 or character spin-off film. I think it's more plausible to continue Toy Story this way with various short films, but they surprised us with a third full-length movie. There is nothing stopping them from making a fourth.

Catching Fire poster shows Katniss on top of the world

Well... actually she is just on top of a mountain.

There is something odd about this poster to me. I don't know if it just doesn't look real or whether it's the fact that they gave Katniss angel wings. In reality I think it just looks a little too retro for the logo and for the film itself. It takes away from the feeling the first poster gave us.

Luke Evans to star in The Crow

After courting Alexander Skarsgard, Tom Hiddleston, and James McAvoy it appears that The Crow finally has its new Eric Draven.

Luke Evans (Fast & Furious 6, The Hobbit) has evidently beat out the rest and landed the role. Evans will juggle The Crow with the rest of his schedule which includes The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, and press for Fast & Furious 6. He also signed on for a lead role in Dracula: Year Zero. Relativity Media has agreed to push filming back until early 2014 to accommodate his schedule.

I have to admit that I have never heard of Luke Evans nor have I seen him in a movie before. While looking at his IMDB page I realized that I haven't seen any of the movies he has been in. I have absolutely no idea what to expect and would have rather had Tom Hiddleston. I'm back to being completely uncomfortable with this whole thing.

Iron Man 3 - Review

Iron Man 3 follows Tony Stark after the events in New York City as he tries to rebuild his life. While trying to improve his Iron Man technology, a new business competitor and villain comes in his way and it is up to Tony to either cause trouble and protect himself or those he can't live without.


If you read my blog at all you know that I love the superhero movies in general and was excited for Iron Man 3. I stayed away from a majority of the previews and clips and promo pictures because I wanted to go in as fresh as I could. I am glad I did because this is one that really relies on the element of surprise. It also relied on action and lots of it.
Now... I enjoyed Iron Man 3. Does that mean I absolutely loved it and overlooked the flaws? No. I would say the keyword for me is "enjoyed." It was very funny, silly, and action packed. That is really about it. I expected it to be more in depth character-wise with Tony Stark and with his struggle since the events in The Avengers. It was very odd that those events were not really discussed. Whenever someone mentioned The Avengers or New York City he would have a massive anxiety attack and then it would go to another scene. Any potential seriousness was placed on the back burner so we could have action scenes, explosions, and several prototype Iron Man suits that Tony had been building in his spare time. That was pretty much what Iron Man 3 was.

In terms of the plot, I feel like it could have been better. When the villain was announced to be Mandarin I got excited and was expecting so much, especially after Ben Kingsley was cast. Mandarin kind of faded a bit once you got the big reveal of exactly who he was (which I will mention below in spoilers). You have this badass villain and you get excited until you have that one moment where you laugh and go, oh really? It was funny but not really taken seriously.
As far as the script goes I think it had similar problems like the plot did. They sacrificed good plot points for humor and just moved on. Naturally you have to include Tony Stark's smartass demeanor but they took it a little too far.
The cast had the potential to be great and came off as just alright. For me personally the best ones, aside from Robert Downey Jr. (duh), were Guy Pearce and Ben Kingsley. They played the characters great and delivered the dialogue they were given very well. I appreciated the hell out of those two. I thought Jon Favreau was a bit ridiculous and I don't know what happened with Gwyneth Paltrow in this, but Pepper Potts came across very barky and bland to me. It was like they were aiming for her to be concerned about Tony but she didn't quite make it seem that way. She came across angry and bitchy. [random: I also realized where I had seen the kid (Ty Simpkins) before. He was Dalton in Insidious!]
The main character in this movie is truly the action. People are not kidding when they said this movie is action-packed. Practically from start to finish something is getting blown up or tweaked with or crashed or melted or whatever. In my opinion they sacrificed what could have been a great, character driven movie about post-NYC Tony Stark for an action flick. It is enjoyable and funny, but I expected more.

I won't say Iron Man 3 was terrible because it wasn't. It just could have been so much better. Easily a 7/10. But hey, at least is was better than Iron Man 2. 


Now for some spoilers! If you haven't seen Iron Man 3 yet I would skip reading this portion. Trust me, you don't want the spoilers.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies resurrected... sort of

Panorama Media acquired the book adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies not too long ago and some changes for the seemingly doomed project have been made. First of all, the movie will now be called Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies. They dropped the first "and" to make it easier to say, I guess.
Also announced is that Lily Collins (Mirror Mirror) is apparently in talks to play Elizabeth Bennet and Burr Steers (Charlie St. Cloud) is attached to direct.

Collins comes after a long list of female leads who have either been attached and later dropped or passed on the project entirely. That list includes Natalie Portman (she is still producing) , Blake Lively, Emma Stone, Anne Hathaway, Scarlett Johansson, and Mia Wasikowska.

Bradley Cooper drops out of Jane Got a Gun

I'm starting to feel like Jane Got a Gun is the next Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. So much bad keeps happening.

Bradley Cooper is the latest casualty of the upcoming (maybe) Western starring Natalie Portman. She seems to be the only cast member who has remained attached since the beginning. So far Michael Fassbender, Jude Law, director Lynne Ramsay, and now Bradley Cooper have all exited the project.
However, this time around Cooper was forced to drop due to scheduling issues. After the Boston bombing, American Hustle was delayed as filming was taking place in Boston. Due to the filming reschedule it clashed with Jane Got a Gun so Cooper couldn't be involved anymore. Cooper was set to play the lead villain in the film.

Now production is looking at a shortlist of actors which includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Hiddleston, and Tobey Maguire. Cast members besides Portman who have remained involved are Joel Edgerton and Noah Emmerich. Gavin O'Connor (Warrior) is still set to direct if the film ever happens.