The Shallows

The Shallows

Rating 7 out of 10

I love to scuba dive and love the ocean.  So this movie was right in my wheelhouse.  Pretty blonde girls in bikini's don't hurt either.  Expectations were on medium with this movie so I wasn't expecting Jaws.  Just a good tension movie.  On that level I feel it delivers.  On a double date with the Hottie and friends this was a good way to start a Saturday evening.

Nancy (Blake Lively)  is a recent medical school drop out coping with the recent death of her mom to cancer.  She goes to Mexico with a friend to visit a magical beach that was special to her mom.  It's a very secluded beach kept secret from all the tourists.  When her friend bails she motors on without her to do some surfing.  Except for a couple local surfer dudes she has the whole area to herself.  When the guys leave she plans to do one more good ride on her surf board before heading back to the hotel.

That's when bad things happen.  A great white shark big enough to make Sheriff Brody run back to Amity for a bigger boat shows up and takes a nip out of her leg.  She is a good ways from shore and the only place she can go to is a small group of rocks visible due to low tide.  She plans to stick it out there until help arrives until she realizes when high tide comes in she will be in trouble.

The shark is very determined to eat this skinny blonde.  Blake Lively is pretty much the whole movie here and she does a good job.  A bit of a hokey ending keeps this from being a very good movie.  As is if you keep expectations on the lower side.

Independence Day: Resurgence

Independence Day: Resurgence

Rating 6.5 out of 10

For those of us old enough we find it hard to believe it's been twenty years since the original Independence Day.  I was not a big fan of the original when it first came out, but it did grow on me over the years watching it on cable.  I didn't like the way it mixed serious with slapstick goofball comedy.  While this movie has a some of the goofball it's better than the first one.

Since we last defeated the evil aliens twenty years ago Earthlings have come together in peace and harmony.  No more wars.  No hard feelings.  Everyone loves each other and working hand in hand to prepare for the next alien adventure.

Now on the eve of the twenty year celebration they are back.  They are bigger and badder than ever before.  We have a station on the moon and space ships with hyper drives that can make it to Earth in a matter of minutes.  A young group of hot shot pilots.

When they show up in stealth mode and plow through our defenses they are intent on sucking our core from the center of the planet leaving earthlings to die.  The alien ship can make it from the moon to Earth in 20 minutes.  Our heroes have mere hours to stop them before all is lost.

I guess Will Smith was busy or too expensive, but most of the rest of the original cast is back.  Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Judd Hirsch, Vivica A Fox.

This movie is mildly entertaining.  I don't think it will hold up as well as the first one.  I went to an early show and feel I got my six bucks worth.

Central Intelligence

Central Intelligence

Rating 6 out of 10

Can't go wrong with the Rock and Kevin Hart can you?  Well you can't if you set the bar low enough.  This is a movie that puts all it's eggs in the star's basket.  Don't waste time and money with any time of story.  Throw those two together and people with be entertained.  For the most part they are correct.  This is more like an SNL skit extended to 114 minutes with a good cast.

If you have seen the trailers you know that at a pep rally everyones favorite Calvin Joyner (Hart) has his acceptance speech interrupted when some bullies throw a naked and very fat Bob Stone (Duane Johnson) onto the gym floor.  Calvin is the only one to befriend him.  Flash forward 20 years to the eve of the HS reunion.  Calvin's day starts off with a friend request on facebook and gets progressively worse.

Stone is the goofy sensitive one while Calvin is the stern serious one.  It works, sometimes.  By far the funniest part of the movie is the outtakes at the end.  You have to stay for that.  Otherwise this would make a cute rental. I was mildly entertained.  I used my new Movie Pass so in my mind it didn't cost me anything except for my medium diet coke.

Finding Dory

Finding Dory

Rating 7 out of 10

I like everyone else on the planet liked the Finding Nemo movie from 2003 (can it really have been that long ago?).  I didn't love it like some did but was highly entertained and did look forward to this one.  Had a fun date planned with some of my kids and most of my grandkids to celebrate an early Fathers Day.

This movie takes place a couple years after Nemo.  The cute little clown fish has been found and now Nemo is wondering what happened to her parents as her short term memory comes and goes.  She hears her parents are across the ocean at a place in California.  Dory sets out with Nemo and her dad to find her parents.  For a fish with bad memory she quickly finds her way right to the Sea World type place in California.  There she befriends an octopus (Ed O'Neil) who steals the show.

This movie is cute.  Good animation that takes you from one scene to another.  Pretty basic story. Dory is about a notch below Nemo.  Entertaining for adults.  Kids will love it too.  I'm sure it will make a bazillion dollars and sell even more dvds at Christmas time.

The Conjuring 2

The Conjuring 2

Rating 7.5 out of 10

As I have said several times here I'm not really into "scary" movies.  The Friday the 13th part 7 with heads flying and buckets of blood don't bother me.  They bore me.  The last horror movie I saw and enjoyed was The Conjuring 1 three years ago.  I'm glad to say this movie was nearly as good as the first one and definitely has you setting up in your seats several times.

Like the first movie this is loosely based on the real life ghostbuster couple Ed and Lorraine Warren.  They have become the people you call when your ghost just won't go away and terrorize your family. Six years before they gained worldwide fame when they beat the ghosts out of an old Rhode Island farm house.  Lorraine is wanting to take a break as she is being haunted herself by a scary ghost in a nuns outfit.  When a family in England is being terrorized by an old man ghost they are pulled back into the game.

The Hodgson's are a single mom with four kids living in poverty in small town outside of London.  Dad ran off and impregnated the neighbor lady.  Strange things start happening.  Toys and furniture moved from one place to another.  The ghost steps it up and begins targeting ten year old daughter, Janet.  Things become violent.  That's when the Warrens arrive.  There are some true chills.  The movie is well acted with Patrick Wilson (rocking the lamb chop sideburns) and Vera Farmiga playing the Warrens.

While overall I was very entertained with this movie I have to ask the obvious question.  Why don't you MOVE???  I know times are tough but if my family is being tossed around like rag dolls by a mad ghost that want's me out you don't have to ask me twice.  My bags are packed.  Still I would recommend this movie and suggest seeing it on a weekend night with a theater full of screaming patrons.  That always makes a scary movie more scary.

Warcraft

Warcraft

Rating 3 out of 10

I haven't been a video game player since Pac Man and Defender.  I did not know that Warcraft was a video game until I saw some of the reviews.  I saw that it was getting pretty torrid reviews, but I thought often action type movies like this don't go over well with the snobby reviewers.  Sad to report the bad reviews were well deserved.  I can only guess if you were a big time player of the video game more of the film would make sense.

In this world there are humans and these huge grog looking people in bad need of dental work.  They have never got along yet have learned to stay away from each other.  That is until one of the bad grogs is overtaken by a bad spirit.  If he can take over enough human souls he can somehow open a portal that appears to have unlimited grog's on the other side that will allow them to kill everyone.  Or something like that.

The movie is all over the place.  Way too many characters with names so complicated it makes Game of Thrones characters seem like Bill, Ted and John.  There are good warlocks, bad warlocks and good warlocks that go bad.  I figured I'd enjoy it even if just for the effects.  Nah.  It does come across like a video game.  I was so bored half way through I started to walk out, but stayed hoping it would have a strong finish.

If you loved the Warcraft video game I'd say wait and rent.  If you have never seen the game keep on walking.

Me Before You

Me Before You

Rating 7.5 out of 10

When I first saw the preview for this movie I kinda rolled my eyes and put it down on my list. Then I realized Khaleesi the Mother of Dragons from Game of Thrones was the main star.  That is enough to get me in the seat.  She really does a great job here.  Nothing like her blonde GOT alter ego.

Emilia Clarke plays 26 year old Louisa Clark.  A kind hearted Englishwoman who is laid off from her waitress job in the beginning of the movie.  She desperately needs this job to help the family as her father is without work and jobs are scarce. The only job she can find is a caretaker of a bitter 30 year old man (William Trainer) paralyzed from the neck down.  He was a very active and athletic rich guy who can't accept his current situation.  Louisa's bubbly personality begins to wear him down.

This is most definitely a paint by the numbers movie, but it works.  Besides Clark being so good Sam Clafin is good as then paralyzed Trainer.  I enjoyed the English countryside as scenery.  I am not usually one to even notice a soundtrack.  This one is first rate.  In fact I haven't bought a films soundtrack since Grease was the word but I think I'll get this one.

You know what you are getting here.  No big surprises yet still a decent way to blow a couple hours.