V For Vendetta (2005)

We are taking a little break from watching Jean-Claude Van Damme films and we are checking out a film that I have been meaning to watch for a while now. Whenever it hits November 5TH on the calendar, my friends are always preaching, "Remember, remember, the fifth of November" which is a reference to the film I chose for today in 2005's V For Vendetta which was directed by James McTeigue (The Raven). It's the future and Great Britain is under tyrannical rule where the government has cut them off from the world, but there is one person who will not stand for it any longer. The mysterious shadowy figure simply known as V (Hugo Weaving) is the one who is challenging the tyranny that is ruining the country and he does it with the help of a young woman named Evey (Natalie Portman). The film also stars Stephen Rea (Interview With The Vampire) as Finch, Stephen Fry (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) as Deitrich, John Hurt (The Black Cauldron) as Adam Sutler, Tim Pigott-Smith (Quantum Of Solace) as Creedy, Eddie Marsan (Concussion) as Etheridge, Rupert Graves (Death At A Funeral) as Dominic, Roger Allam (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides) as Lewis Prothero, Ben Miles (Ninja Assassin) as Dascomb, John Standing (The Eagle Has Landed) as Lilliman, and Sinéad Cusack (Wrath Of The Titans) as Delia Surridge.

This was a magnificent film and what a lot of people may not realize is that this is technically a comic book movie that was a win for DC Comics as it's based off of the Alan Moore/David Lloyd comic of the same name. It proved that with a great script and a great team behind it you do need to have a film with superheroes and mutants to have it be an excellent film. All of the actors in the film did a terrific job especially Portman, Weaving, John Hurt, and Stephen Fry who played a closeted gay talk show host in the film. The action scenes are amazing and the fight choreography is pretty top notch as well as Weaving is exciting with all of V's moves and contraptions. The film definitely did not let you down as it kept you intrigued from the moment it started to the minute it ended and that again is due to the excellent writing by Lana and Lilly Wachowski. It's crazy to see how popular this film became and how the Guy Fawkes Mask literally took over revolutionist/anarchist culture especially in the US. That is the sign of a film that truly made an impact and it should tell you again how amazing written, acted, edited, and shot it was. The cinematography in this film is great and they did a great job capturing all of the action. That is why the film is joining the elusive A+ club because that is exactly the grade that it's going to get.

30 Day Movie Challenge: Day 16- Vice (2018)

One of my favorite types of films are biopics which are films whose stories are based on the life or works of a person or people so it's non-fiction. The task for today's 30 Day Movie Challenge was to watch a film that was based on a true story and I chose to watch the 2018 film Vice which was written and directed by Adam McKay (Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues). The film stars Christian Bale (The Dark Knight Trilogy) as former Vice President Dick Cheney in this film that follows him from his beginnings in Wyoming all the way to his controversial time in office as Vice President of the United States of America as well as some of the personal issues that plagued him. The film stars Steve Carell (Dinner For Schmucks) as Donald Rumsfeld, Sam Rockwell (Jojo Rabbit) as George W. Bush, Amy Adams (Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice) as Lynne Cheney, Eddie Marsan (The Illusionist) as Paul Wolfowitz, Justin Kirk (Angels In America) as Scooter Libby,  LisaGay Hamilton (The Sum Of All Fears) as Condoleezza Rice, Tyler Perry (Diary Of A Mad Black Woman) as Colin Powell, Jesse Plemons (The Irishman) as Kurt, Shea Whigham (Bad Times At The El Royale) as Wayne Vincent, Bill Camp (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)) as Gerald Ford, Lily Rabe (All Good Things) as Liz Cheney, and Alison Pill (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) as Mary Cheney.

If a lot of the facts in this film are true then Dick Cheney was definitely no slouch who knew exactly what he was up to and how to get things done. He involved himself with all the right people almost all of the time who he knew he could get the answers from if he needed them. Now I shouldn't have to say it because the caliber of the actor that he is, but for the sake of the review Christian Bale absolutely knocked this one right out of the park with the look and the way Cheney carried himself. It was absolutely amazing how much he added in weight just to be able to play the role of Dick Cheney. No fat suit needed for this guy because he nailed it. Out of all the actors that they chose, they definitely nailed the looks for Rumsfeld, Rice, and even Powell while Sam made a really good George W. Bush! There is this one point in the film and I have to five the director credit for this because he fooled me, but there is this point in the film where they make it look like it's over. I honestly believed that something was wrong as the credits begin to roll, but then they were ah we're just kidding and that is when the adventure begins. Some of the things they were able to get away with makes you wonder what else are politicians getting away with as they fool the American public. It's thanks to Dick Cheney and Co. that we have the division in television with CNN vs Fox News because before Reagan, you were not allowed to pick a side if you were a newscaster or news station. I thought it was a great film and definitely one to check out on HULU right now so I am going to give the film an A- for a final grade.

The Illusionist (2006)

One of my favorite actors to emerge in the 1990's was the one and only Edward Norton (The Score) who impressed me tremendously with American History X. It is very rare to find an Edward Norton picture that doesn't live up to the hype, but there are also a lot of films that have slipped through the cracks and today's film is one of them. Tubi, a free app presented the opportunity for me to see the 2006 film The Illusionist which was adapted for the screen and directed by Neil Burger (Limitless). The film stars Norton as Eisenheim the Illusionist, a man who abilities to do things that are dazzling people in turn of the century Vienna, Austria. It dazzles them so much so that he is able to secure the long lost love of his life (who is above his social class), but it comes with as very deep cost. The film also stars Jessica Biel (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) as Sophie, Paul Giamatti (Private Parts) as Inspector Uhl, Rufus Sewell (A Knight's Tale) as Crown Prince Leopold, Eddie Marsan (The Gentlemen) as Josef Fischer, Jake Wood (EastEnders) as Jurka, Tom Fisher (The Mummy Returns) as Willigut, Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Avengers: Age Of Ultron) as Young Eisenheim, Eleanor Tomlinson (Jack The Giant Slayer) as Young Sophie, and Karl Johnson (Hot Fuzz) as The Doctor.

I don't think this was my favorite Edward Norton film and it 's not even because of his performance because that was absolutely amazing. I just thought that while the story was cool it wasn't super exciting or on the edge of your seat kind of stuff. I think the first half of the film is great and the pacing is wonderful as you see him do all of these amazing tricks and the story to get the girl is great, but the last half of the film was just a little slow. The whole time, you were wondering what was going to be his way to get revenge on this evil crown prince guy and you do not find out the juice until the very end of the film. Your left with the notion of how clever it was, but in the back of your mind you sort of had an idea that was what was going to happen. As I said before, Edward was absolutely fantastic in this film as he took total charge of the film and camera time with confidence. He is only rivaled by one man in the film and that was definitely Rufus Sewell who played a very good asshole in the film making him the perfect villain for this film. I loved the sets and I loved the overall tones of the film which were kind of medieval or primal if that makes any sense. You sense the fact that everything was lit by candlelight in those days so it has that tone to it. The film as I said before is available on Tubi, but it is also available to watch on IMDB right now as we speak. So, I definitely think you should check this one out and I am going to give it an an B+ for a final grade.

The Gentlemen (2020)

Before Guy Ritchie had a project bomb at the box office (King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword) and before he dived into a Disney classic (Aladdin), he exploded on to the scene with a couple of amazing British crime comedy films in Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch. Those films were absolutely classic and now in 2020 he is back with another crime comedy in The Gentlemen. Hugh Grant (About A Boy) plays Fletcher, the best undercover reporter in the UK who happens to break in to the house of the Consigliere to the biggest weed dealer in all of the UK in Ray (Charlie Hunnam) to spin the tale of how he knows what his boss has been up to for ransom money. Ray will though listen to the tale that Fletcher spews because it's one hell of an interesting tale of betrayal, greed, and how they are still some Gentlemen out there. The film stars Matthew McConaughey (Dazed And Confused) as Mickey Pearson, Michelle Dockery (Non-Stop) as Rosalind Pearson, Colin Farrell (In Bruges) as Coach, Jeremy Strong (The Judge) as Matthew, Henry Golding (Last Christmas) as Dry Eye, Eddie Marsan (Sherlock Holmes) as Big Dave, Chidi Ajufo (The Widow) as Bunny, Tom Wu (Hobbs & Shaw) as Lord George, Jason Wong (Solo: A Star Wars Story) as Phuc, Franz Drameh (Edge Of Tomorrow) as Benny, and Eliot Sumner (No Time To Die) as Laura Pressfield.

First you cannot talk about the film without talking about the performances first because there is such an amazing cast here and that is worth talking about. First thing I will say is that this may not be the most over the top performance from Matthew McConaughey that we are used to in my most roles, but this is A Time To A Kill, Lincoln Commercials, We Are Marshall, etc. kind of a role where he lets his natural charisma just take over. After watching this, I could believe that he was the biggest drug dealer in the UK, but right up there with him was the brilliant Charlie Hunnam who as I said plays his calm cool, and collective consigliere. Then to top it all off, you throw in the brilliant Colin Farrell who was tailor made for that role of the coach as he brought some of the best comedic moments in the film like he did for In Bruges and so much more. That is just the tip of the iceberg because there were so many working parts and so many people did a fantastic job so the acting was top notch. I definitely loved the story that was being told and the way it was told was very different. Fletcher is telling Ray this story as if he were pitching a movie idea and we watch the events unfold before our very eyes which was great. The cinematography was great and the tone of the film matched that of England, always gloomy, grey skies for them. This may not be an Oscar contender, but this film was the definition of fun. Nothing more and nothing less, but just a fun film to watch which is why I am going to give the film an A- for a final grade.