X-Men : Apocalypse

X-Men Apocalypse

Rating 6 out of 10

I have enjoyed pretty much all the X-Men movies.  Love all the different powers the different mutants have and wondering which one I'd like to have if I could choose (either speed or the blue guy that teleports).  I think this is the seventh in the series (if you count all the Wolverine movies) since the original back in 2000.  They had to reboot the series in 2011 due to the mutants getting older and too expensive.  I have been entertained with the reboots but not nearly like the first ones.  Same goes with Apocalypse.  The effects have improved with the newer movies although the first one still holds up amazingly well.

This movie starts thousands of years ago with what is thought to be the first (and most powerful) mutant aptly named Apocalypse played by Oscar Issac (the best character actor working today).  He is able to take other mutants powers thus making himself stronger.  He is buried in a big pyramid a thousand years ago when a group finds a way to stop him.  Temporarily.  When a group of chanting guys find his tomb and somehow know just the right chant to resuscitate him the world is in trouble again.  He finds a few followers and is hell bent to do what else?  Yes, kill everyone else on the planet and flatten all the buildings.  Not sure why one would want to do that.  Have the whole planet to yourself. But it seems to be a theme with really bad guys.

The effects are very good.  You get to see most of the favorites from the last movie.  Professor X, Magneto (who tries being a nice guy for several years and doesn't like it), Raven,Beast, Jean Grey, ect.  They bring in a few new ones.  Quicksilver is very fast and adds humor. Psylocke (bad girl but played by Olivia Munn which makes her fun to look at). There is even a great cameo from one of the other X-men.

The problem with prequels in a movie like this is if you have seen the first one's you know who is still alive.  So you know which characters no matter how dire the circumstance are not going to die.  I have grown tired of the -we are only minutes away from the whole world being destroyed- plot lines also.  I saw X2 so I know the world was not blown up.  

Overall I like the genre and was entertained.  Out of the seven X-men type movies I'd rank this one forth or fifth.  Still far better than the latest Nicholas Sparks film.

The Nice Guys

The Nice Guys

Rating 5 out of 10

I was on the fence with this one when the trailers came out nearly a year ago.  One red flag was the movie was supposed to be released in February and it was pushed to mid-May.  That is rarely a good thing.  Another flag was how many different trailers they flooded the market with before it's release.  My experience has been unless it's a Star Wars or Batman the movies that have lots of commercials before the release it's because the movie is not that good and they are hoping for a big opening.  The movie has been getting amazing reviews (over 90% on RT) so I gave it a try.

The good.  Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling are good together.  They seem like they have known each other for ages instead of this being the first time they have worked together.  They play off each other well.  The young girl playing Goslings daughter (Angourie Rice?) is cute and likable.  They did a good job of transporting back to 1977 capturing the music, dress and hair.

The bad. The script is total nonsense.  Crowe's character is a self described thug that beats people up for a living.  He meets Gosling when a young girl Gosling has been paid to locate pays Crowe to beat him up and make him quit following her (thus the broken arm scene everyone has seen many times).  Then that girl turns up missing and Crowe realizes someone is trying to kill her he hires Gosling to help locate her.  The girl is a pampered ultra liberal rich girl who finds out her mom is white washing a deal with the big three automakers in Detroit to bypass clean air standards and save money while polluting the air.  How does she plan to expose her moms evil plans?  Make a porn movie where leaked discussions with car manufacturers are worked into the script.  I kid you not.  Everyone with the porn movie is turning up dead to keep this from getting out.

I don't enjoy slapstick movies as some do.  This movie as a feel like director Shane Blacks other movie Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.  Also has a goofball feel like O Brother, Where Art Thou.  People being shot right and left between Gosling and his daughter and they are cracking on each other about him smoking too much.  Some like those type movies much more than I do.  I have to mention Russell Crowe not being in Gladiator shape.  He looks more like John Goodman on Rosanne. Gosling smokes non stop in the movie.

I was mildly entertained with this movie but was hoping for more.  Probably would have thought it was funnier had I seen in a full theater instead of an early show with few in the audience. This would make a fair rental if you like these type movies.

Money Monster

Money Monster

Rating 6 out of 10

I really had no plans to see this movie.  It looked like a boring/predictable movie where Clooney gets to ham it up for the camera.  I was partly right even tho it was better than I thought it would be.  I had a friend tell me the movie was good and an Atlanta rain day with nothing else to do.  My rear was in the seat.

The movie plays out pretty much like the trailers.  Lee Gates (George Clooney) is a way over the top entertainer with his own money market show on a popular cable station.  He gives out money advice mixed in with song and dance and crazy animated effects.  His producer (Julia Roberts) is always trying to reel him in.  When a big tech stock is having a down turn Gates tells his followers to go all in.  Unfortunately it soon tanks big time due to a "glitch" in some software and $800 million is lost.  When Kyle (Jack O'Connell) follows Gates advice and loses his life savings he takes it personal.  Works his way onto the show with a gun and a bomb determined to make someone pay.

Clooney and Roberts work well together.  To enjoy this movie though you have to be able to suspend belief and any knowledge on how the stock market works. That's not a strong suit for me.  Overall I was mildly entertained.  I think this would be a decent rental for people who love the cast.

Captain America: Civil War

Captain America: Civil War

Rating 7 out of 10

I was not that excited about this movie from the start.  Like the earlier Batman v Superman movie I'm not crazy about superhero's fighting each other.  There are plenty of bad guys out there without them fighting themselves.  Civil War was getting great reviews so I gave it a shot.  I was entertained yet this is no where near as good as the two Avengers movies.

The plot of Civil War is two tier.  Captain America is being difficult on both lands.  The genius politicians at the United Nations has determined the Avengers have become to big for their britches.  They show pictures of poor kids that died in the alien attack on NYC and act like the Avengers were to blame.  Did they not remember the bad guys that were intending on eliminating all humans?  They want the Avengers to sit on their hands until the 171 country UN takes a vote on whether they should save the day.  Tony Stark (Ironman) is feeling bad because a woman showed him a picture of her 10 year old son that died on one of his battles so he starts to agree with he UN idea.  Captain America says not a chance.

When a bombing kills many politicians a picture show the person setting it off is none other than Captain America's childhood friend Bucky Barnes (the Winter Warrior). Everyone on the planet is now out for Bucky.  Shoot to kill ask no questions.  Captain defends his friend and realizes he was brain washed by a bad guy so he is not really to blame.

This movie is entertaining in parts.  It's fun seeing all the characters come together.  There is a new character, the Black Panther that is very good.  Ant-Man joins the fight as does the new kid playing Spiderman.  There is a big battle at the airport that is fun even though you realize after a couple minutes that they really can't hurt each other.  They do make a mess of some nice planes.  For me the biggest problem is the directors use of the shaky cam.  Many of the early fight scenes has the camera shaking back and forth, in and out.  I had to look away.  The movie is also a little long at 2.5 hours.

You will be entertained with this movie.  Just don't go in expecting a movie of the year.  I liked Deadpool much better.

Mothers Day

Mothers Day

Rating 2 out of 10

I am in Chicago for work.  The hottie flew in with plans of catching a Braves vs. Cubs game at Wrigley Field.  Mother Nature felt otherwise as it started raining early and lasted all day.  Time for a movie before eating large quantities of deep dish pizza.

This is director Garry Marshall's third entry into the holiday movie following Valentines Day and New Years Eve.   I saw and enjoyed the first two.  They were poorly reviewed, a little on the corny side, but cute and wound around a story in a mildly entertaining way.

This movie is nothing like that.  I have to steal from another reviewers post when he said this is "the perfect movie to take your mother to if you hate her".  This movie is bad in so many ways it would be hard to list them all.  While it has several actors I like the acting is as bad as any movie I have ever seen.  The story is a mess. Many scenes appear as if the director looked at the actors with palms up and said I've got nothing. Ya'll see what you can do.

This movie has every stereotype in the book.  The ultra-racist grandparents from Texas driving an RV while grandpa chews on a chicken bone with the bucket right on the dash.  Two sisters living side by side.  One is gay with her wife and the other married to an Indian man. Both causing grandma to disown them. A divorced mom (Jennifer Anniston) secretly wishing her ex (Timothy Olyphant)  would want her back.  Instead he marries his hot very young model girlfriend.  You have the dad with two daughters still trying to cope with the death of his wife a year before (she was in the military).
Julia Roberts with one of the worst wigs in movie history as a Home Shopping Network star.

This movie is terrible on so many different levels.  If you read this and go see it anyway knowing Royce is always harsh on movies you will secretly admit I was right.  Otherwise you can just thank me for saving your hard earned movie dollars.