Arrival. Movie review.

Arrival is a great movie. From the beginning you would think that it is about alien invasion, that the science fiction genre will completely take over. But the film is not about that, it is more about human relationships, emotions faced by ordinary people in such extraordinary circumstances.

Despite the genre and the events in the movie there is a sense of realism and vitality. The film is about a female translator, played by Amy Adams. Her life is a boring and painful nightmare. She lives alone, teaches at the University and she is a very strong expert in the realm of translation and languages. She worked with the government before and still has an access to classified data. So she was asked to translate alien language , when they arrived. This whole situation is presented to the viewer from an unexpected point. First days of arrival are shown only from Louise Banks(Adams) point of view. She is like everyone in the world doesn't know what is happening and the movie makes it clear that it's emotional and great. Then we see a military camp, where she was taken with Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) by Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker). It is full of scientists of every sort. The government is trying to understand, why they arrived and a lot more. This is why they needed a translator.

The tone is very realistic, even it is a science fiction genre. Since there are another twelve alien ships, the whole world is getting nuts. Everyone is doing their own research and everyone has different results in understanding, what the aliens want. So, this is a more like a social experiment for the mankind. There are so many messeges and issues in the movie, directed by Denis Villeneuve, that it should work for the audience as an art. In my oppinion, the movie is very well shot and put together. The soundtrack by Johann Johannsson is amazing, it brings a stunning feel to the movie. Arrival is not similar with Sicario in every way. It is such a different movie, so this is a brand new masterpiece from Denis Villeneuve.

Don't Breathe (2016) movie review.

Don't Breathe is a horror thriller, which this in summer was received very good by critics and was loved by the audience. The movie is not like other horror movies that came out this summer, as The Conjuring 2 and Light Out. It is not based on mystery stories or demon fiction. It could be an entirely true story. Everything that happens in the film is absolutely possible. The story itself starts with the fact that there are three young robbers, who use one of them - Alex, whose dad is working for a security company and owns the keys for the houses they rob. The other guy is Money - the usual bully who lived all his life in a fraudulent way, robbing and selling drugs. And the third member of the gang, the girl, Roxanne, Money's girlfriend. They rob houses to escape from Detroit, which is now more like a ghost town. 

Once they find a new house for potential robbery. There lives a blinded war veteran, played by Stephen Lang(Avatar).They hardly break in, disable the alarm, but they have underestimated the Blind Man. He is able to hear and smell much better than the average person. He kills Money and now the remaining two must get out of this damned house. 

I really wanted to love this movie, which was filmed very well, but I liked it more as a thriller, not as horror, because there was nothing scary in it. The main disappointment I have with the movie is the Blind Man, to whom I wanted to sympathize, but he was a real monster and freak, so I hated him even more then main characters. I also didn't like that the Blind Man was unstoppable. Also there was nothing exceptional about the movie. Tough and realistic relationships between the characters, very dark and gritty settings also make the tone a bit more suitable, but overall the movie doesn't have a lot to offer for the audience.

The whole point of the movie is that the characters must be very sneaky as the old Man hears everything: any rustling, squeaking, rapid breathing. Brilliant performance by Stephen Lang is the only thing that I liked in the movie, although the setting is very nice: one house, with a basement and second floor, blind old man with the Magnum, and need to get out of this, locked with the many locks, house.

'Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them' movie review.

It is a spin-off to the films about Harry Potter, 'Fantastic Beasts, And Where To Find Them'. After a five year break we have the first movie in the Potter universe not about Harry Potter but based on another series of books, written by J. K. Rowling. The events for a new and exciting franchise take place in 1920th, over 70 years before the events of the first book about Harry Potter . 

The story about kicked out from Hogwarts Newt Scamander(Eddie Redmayne) and his visit for a couple of days to New York. Newt was kicked out of Hogwarts for the unfortunate incident that occurred through the fault of one of the beasts, which Scamander keeps in his suitcase, which due to the magic able to fit anything. Despite the title, the movie is not focused only on the creatures in the Newt's suitcase. The attacks on muggles, who in US are called 'no-majs', are happening in the world by the evil wizard Grindelwald. 

After the arrival of Newt Scamander in New York one of the beasts runs away from him . It was like a mole, with a beak of a duck that loves all that is precious and is constantly stealing these goods. It happens at the Bank where much gold and jewelry. This creature is crafty and clever, using his amazing abilities, able to sneak into strictly protected vault. Trying to catch the animal Newt meets no-maj Jacob Kowalski(Dan Fogler), who came to get a loan for a bakery. Kowalsky is a kind of a funny guy, it is a great thing to see a first muggle, who became one of the central characters in the movie in this franchise. A mess goes in the bank, Newt uses magic, which is not allowed in front of the muggle, and gets out from as it became a bank robbery. There is a law, which says that if a no-maj saw the magic craft, his memory about this must be wiped, so it would be against the law, if it wouldn't be done, as it happened, Kowalski knocked Newt out and run away. Now Newt Scamander is arrested by a mage-police, meanwhile Kowalski confused the case , which was identical with the case with the beasts. So he released some of them and Newt must to catch them. 

Newt sometimes is an annoying person, he has little friends, but he is kind and simple person. He loves his creatures, he collects them to help them or study them to write a book, which will be very popular in the future. 

In the other hand of the story we have Grindewald, who is actually played by Johnny Depp, but it is just a cameo. Grindewald appears on the newspapers or mentioned as a threat to society of magicians. The plot has three or four different ways of development, it is a big story, probably too big for this movie. It is going to be five of them in this franchise. 

The movie has familiar Harry Potter feel, but it always reminds, that it is happening in New York and 70 years before. The society is build pretty well, it explains about how everything stands in this universe. Mystery behind some mysterious attacks in New York investigated by Percival Graves, played by Colin Farrell, who is one of the strongest wizards in the movie. And it is more to it, so the story develops after these mysterious attacks. 

All the time the movie explores more and more about the universe and it is litteraly magical, it is super interesting to watch all familiar tricks and magic things, but from someone completely new. As I noticed, Newt Scamander is a powerful wizard, especially with help of some of his beasts. He is mostly unbeatable with them. You will understand what it means by it. Jakob Kowalski is a great as a no-maj. It surely the first time we see muggle to visit the ministry or have dinner with wizards. It is so nice to watch him reacting on all these magic stuff in the movie, he literally represents a little child, who saw Harry Potter movie for the first time as it was in real life. Joking or not, but Kowalski plays a huge emotional role in the movie. He is an important character the audience is supposed to care about. I kind of cared but I wanted the movie to focus on Scamander and the beasts more. So this was a little disappointment, because the movie is too unfocused. The story doesn't go anywhere, it stands where it is, until some another attack by mysterious forces. Later explained pretty well and created a new lore knowledge for this franchise. 

The point of the movie is to show by this beast lover, that it is necessary to care and protect the beasts, because some of them are nearly extinct. Another interesting point is why wizards must hide and stay unnoticed. Both of those issues are very well established. 

Optimally it is a good movie with a lot of great characters and new interesting facts and events and encounters. It was looking like Hobbit in The Lord of the Rings universe - smaller and less important, for now only. I certainly hoping that the following ones will develop the story and create a new important event is this universe. 

A new trailer for Jackie came out, which features Natalie Portman as the ex-first lady.

Check out a new trailer of Jackie(2016) which features Natalie Portman as the ex-first lady, wife of John F. Kennedy. Just from this trailer you can say, that she will be nominated this year for an Oscar. Her talent and genius are certain. She already has won one for "Black Swan" and now it seems that it will be another nomination for her this year. 

The tone that this movie presents perfectly fits for her 
performance. 

The trailer itself is well put together. I does make you interested in the movie. I think Jackie is worth seeing just because of Natalie Portman's performance.

The Martian(2015) movie review.

Another big blockbuster by Ridley Scott again named one of the best in the science fiction genre, along side Alien and The Blade Runner. The story of the astronaut Mark Watney(Matt Damon, who is so amazing in it), who turned up to be alone on an entire planet, when a group of scientists of the Mars-program Ares 3 were urgently evacuated , and Watney, who was hit by the big piece of antenna and left behind,  was presumed dead. 

He was in the team of outstanding astronauts-scientists: captain Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain), pilot Rick Martinez (Michael Peña), Chris Beck( Sebastian Stan), chemist Alex Vogel(Aksel Hennie ) and computer whiz Beth johanssen (Kate Mara). 

Finding himself alone on Mars, Watney begins to work to keep himself alive as long as possible. Soon NASA discovers that Mark is alive and organize a rescue mission. At the same time, Mark needs to think how to provide food and to solve all the problems to survive.

The atmosphere in the movie is very deep and optimistic, combined with serious drama and comedy. The humor of Mark Watney is very nice, his ability to make fun of serious problems inspire. The tone of the film is very pleasant, cinematography is very high quality, I received a huge pleasure watching the movie. Due to the light tone, it feels very comfortable to watch.

At the same time, there is also a great atmosphere in NASA. Director Teddy Sanders(Jeff Daniels) and the head of operations Venkat Kapoor(Chiwetel Ejiofor ) are trying to help Mark to survive. The performances of each actor are great, especially it's impressive how actors are perfectly cast for their roles. Overall the movie has no major weaknesses, it goes smoothly to the end, as if it were a classic masterpiece of the genre. I've never seen anything like this before, this movie is unique, so in my opinion it can be called a masterpiece.

First official "Beauty and the Beast"(2017) drops.

Today was released a new and first official trailer of the remake of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" (1991). Live-action film became possible after the success of The Jungle Book in April 2016. The idea to remake an animated version into a live-action now is a common idea. More projects like that coming up. The technology moved very far. For example in "The Jungle Book " (2016) there was only one human in the movie and all other animals were CGI. And everything was shot in the studio with the green screens. That sort of technology is not the only amazing thing, so these adaptations like Beauty and the Beast is now possible to make so it would look real.

Official Synopsis:  Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” is a live-action re-telling of the studio’s animated classic which refashions the classic characters from the tale as old as time for a contemporary audience, staying true to the original music while updating the score with several new songs. “Beauty and the Beast” is the fantastic journey of Belle, a bright, beautiful and independent young woman who is taken prisoner by a beast in his castle. Despite her fears, she befriends the castle’s enchanted staff and learns to look beyond the Beast’s hideous exterior and realize the kind heart and soul of the true Prince within. 

The film stars: Emma Watson as Belle; Dan Stevens as the Beast; Luke Evans as Gaston, the handsome, but shallow villager who woos Belle; Oscar winner Kevin Kline as Maurice, Belle’s eccentric, but lovable father; Josh Gad as Lefou, Gaston’s long-suffering aide-de-camp; Golden Globe nominee Ewan McGregor as Lumiere, the candelabra; Oscar nominee Stanley Tucci as Maestro Cadenza, the harpsichord; Oscar nominee Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, the mantel clock; and two-time Academy Award winner Emma Thompson as the teapot, Mrs. Potts.

Directed by Oscar winner Bill Condon based on the 1991 animated film, “Beauty and the Beast” is produced by Mandeville Films’ David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman, with eight-time Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken, who won two Academy Awards® (Best Original Score and Best Song) for the 1991 animated film, providing the score, which will include new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and Howard Ashman, as well as several new songs written by Menken and three-time Oscar winner Tim Rice. “Beauty and the Beast” will be released in theaters on March 17, 2017.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story new trailers and TV spots.

Over the past few days Lucasfilm began an active campaign in support of Rogue One. International trailers and TV spots were released. Each contains new footage and tells more about the events that will take place in the film. Marketing campaign for the movie is quite strong, but still a lot of people have no idea about the timeline in which the events take place.

The movie opens in theaters on December 16th. 

Synopsis: Jyn Erso, a Rebellion soldier and criminal, is about to experience her biggest challenge yet when Mon Mothma sets her out on a mission to steal the plans for the Death Star. With help from the Rebels, a master swordsman, and non-allied forces, Jyn will be in for something bigger than she thinks.

Director: Gareth Edwards

Staring: Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Forest Whitaker, Donnie Yen, Jiang Wen, Riz Ahmed, Alan Tudyk and Mads Mikkelsen.

Writer: Chris Weitz

Release Date: December 16, 2016. 

London Has Fallen(2016) movie review.

The sequel to the movie Olympus Has Fallen(2013). The first film was surprisingly not a piece of garbage, but it was so-so. The impression I got from it is positive because I felt the importance and sometimes the drama of the events. I must say the villain in the first movie was good. The ending captured me and I would give the first movie a positive rating. It's just a great pop-corn fest.

I am very surprised why they decided to make a second film because the first didn't do well in the box office. Gerard Butler definitely carries the movie from the beginning to an end along with Aaron Eckhart. They're both playing and showing their professionalism as action stars. 

Morgan Freeman is also in this movie, but this time he plays a much smaller role than in the first one. It certainly disappointed me as I expected more from the film as a whole. Much more I was disappointed about the plot, although in the middle of the movie it gets on the right trail. 

The villain in this movie was boring and cliched. His plan is petty and motivation is banal.

The plot tells about the same situation as in the first film. There's a terror attack and Gerard Butler's character has to save his President and friend. His character Mike Banning is very tired from all these troubles and just angry at these terrorists and terminates them with cruelty. I think it's good for the character and adds more emotions. The movie does not take itself completely seriously. Beneath serious situations lies a bit of humor and awareness that nobody takes seriously what is happening. The film doesn't have the same feel of thrill for main characters, as the film made it clear in advance that Mike would come and kick all the ass.

Turning to the advantages can highlight the action and great chemistry between Mike and the President. Gerard Butler and Aaron Eckhart perfectly interact with each other and do a great job in every scene. Action sometimes is good sometimes bad. So it's 50/50. The movie has one action scene that I was very impressed by. But, overall the movie felt inconsistent. Sometimes it is good, sometimes bad. So it can be categorized as "so bad it's good".

Robert Redford retiring from acting.

Robert Redford, whose acting career lasts nearly 55 years, said that he will retire from acting after last two movies. “I’m getting tired of acting. I’m an impatient person, so it’s hard for me to sit around and do take after take after take. At this point in my life, age 80, it’d give me more satisfaction because I’m not dependent on anybody. It’s just me, just the way it used to be, and so going back to sketching—that’s sort of where my head is right now.  So, I’m thinking of moving in that direction and not acting so much.” Redford said.

He became popular on his projects in the sixties: Inside Daisy clover(1965), This Property is Condemned(1966), Barefoot in the Park (1967) and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid(1969).
After the last two projects: Our Souls at Night and Old Man with a Gun Redford thinks to devote himself entirely to directing. He said: “Once they’re done then I’m going to say, ‘Okay, that’s goodbye to all that,’ and then just focus on directing,”.

Also Redford wasn't always wanted to be an actor and was more inclined for directing.
“I started out as an artist when I was 18 or 19 years old. I wanted to get out of this country and experience different ways of seeing the world. So I went to Europe, but I went as an artist. I was increasing my skill set and exploring storytelling through painting. Doing that, I realized how much I loved it. Later, when I became an actor, I suffered for four or five years not being sure I wanted to be in that business because I so wanted to be an artist. I just wanted to paint and sketch and tell stories by drawing. Then I realized: why can’t I combine the two?—which led me to be a director,” he relayed. 
His directorial debut was the film Ordinary People(1980), which won the Oscar for best picture. He explained it like that: “I didn’t know the technical language of film-making, so I said, ‘Okay, I’m going to do my own storyboard,’ because I had to explain to the crew and the technical people what I wanted. I knew what I wanted it to look like, so I would sit down and draw it for the cameraman or the production designer. Once I did that I realized: I’m not losing the artist side of me. I’m pulling it together with the performing side,”.
A true artist is talented in everything: art, acting, directing. Also Redford will continue to support independent films with his Sundance Film Festival.

DC finds a writer for a Harley Quinn/Birds of Prey spin-off.

DC and Warner Bros. found a female writer for their Suicide Squad spin-off that will feature Harley Quinn and the Birds of Prey. Today news says that Christina Hodson will write a script for the movie.   

After a huge success of Margot Robbie's Quinn among the fans this is not a surprise that this spin-off was announced even before Suicide Squad was released. The fact that WB decided to hire an unknown writer to make a script for one of their primary projects is intriguing in a way that we can see something completely new. 

There is also a report that Robbie is expected to produce the film. The project which was announced back in May still doesn't have a release date.  

The Birds of Prey debuted in DC comics in 1996 and tells a story about Black Canary and Oracle. The series became a success and opened doors for Huntress and Katana. It became a TV Series in 2002 and the CW now has Birds of Prey team-ups in Arrow.