AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (2018) – My rating 9.5/10

Avengers: Infinity War is a Superhero film based on the Marvel Comics Superhero team, the Avengers.  It’s produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Motion Picture Studios. It is the nineteenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). It’s the sequel to 2012’s The Avengers and 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, while also picking up plot points from many other MCU movies, most notably Captain America: Civil War, Thor: Ragnarok, Doctor Strange, and the two Guardians of the Galaxy films. Infinity War is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, and features an ensemble cast.

Avengers: Infinity War opens with Thanos and his henchmen (Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian, Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive), intercepting the ship carrying survivors of Asgard’s destruction.  Thor, Loki, Heimdall and Hulk are powerless to prevent the extraction of the Space Stone from the tesseract (an energy that holds the stone).  The Guardians of the Galaxy respond to a distress call from the Asgardian ship and rescues Thor. Thanos’ goal is to obtain all six Infinity stones (Power, Space, Time, Mind, Reality and Soul), which would make him the most powerful in the universe.  Thanos will be able to snap his fingers to kill, destroy or to achieve anything he wants.  The goal of the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy, is to stop Thanos from collecting all six Infinity Stones.

Hulk crash-lands at the Sanctum Sanctorum in New York City, reverting to Bruce Banner. He warns Stephen Strange and Wong about Thanos’ plan to kill half of all life in the universe, siting the world has become over populated. In response, Strange recruits Tony Stark to join the team. Two of Thanos’ men, Maw and Obsidian arrive to take the Time Stone from Strange. A battle breaks out, drawing the attention of Peter Parker/Spiderman. Maw is able to capture Strange, but is unable to take the Time Stone due to a spell. Stark and Parker team up and pursue Maw’s spaceship while Banner contacts Steve Rogers/Captain America. Vision offers to sacrifice himself by having Maximoff destroy the Mind Stone in his forehead to keep Thanos from retrieving it. Rogers suggests they travel to Wakanda, which he believes has the resources to remove the stone without destroying Vision.  They surmise Thanos seeks the Reality Stone, which is in the possession of the Collector at Knowhere.  Thanos kidnaps Gamora, his adoptive daughter, who reveals the location of the Soul Stone to save her captive, adoptive sister Nebula from torture.

In a post-credits scene, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) transmits a distress signal using a device that displays a star insignia on a red-and-blue background. UHM!

I found this version of Avengers: Infinity War exciting and well acted.  I loved how all the Superheros came together to fight the good fight.  Each character displayed their talents and never lost who they were.  In a production like this, with so many characters, individual personalities tend to get lost or become a non-entity.  I especially liked the comedic side of this adventure and the attention the director paid to detail.  The surprise ending, everyone is talking about, may or may not leave a very sour taste in your mouth but hang in there viewers, good things are coming.  What I didn’t like was the endless credits at the end before we got to see the very last scene of the movie.  So who did that distress signal go out to?  We can guess but we won’t know for sure until part 2.  Until then, watch this one over and over once it hits DVD / Blu-Ray.  Avengers: Infinity War was brilliant and has the biggest twist ever.  Check it out!

Below are the cast members and who they are. 

• Robert Downey Jr. plays Tony Stark / Iron Man:
  The leader and benefactor of the Avengers who is a self-described genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist with electromechanical suits of armor of his own making.
• Chris Hemsworth plays Thor:
  An Avenger and the king of Asgard based on the Norse mythological deity of the same name.
• Mark Ruffalo plays Bruce Banner / Hulk:
  An Avenger and a genius scientist who, because of exposure to gamma radiation, transforms into a monster when enraged or agitated. 
• Chris Evans plays Steve Rogers / Captain America:
  A fugitive superhero and leader of a faction of Avengers. A World War II veteran, he was enhanced to the peak of human physicality by an experimental serum and frozen in suspended animation before waking up in the modern world.
• Scarlett Johansson plays Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow:
  A highly trained spy, and former Avenger and agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Benedict Cumberbatch plays Stephen Strange:
  A former neurosurgeon who, after a car accident that led to a journey of healing, discovered the hidden world of magic and alternate dimensions and became a Master of the Mystic Arts.
• Don Cheadle plays James”Rhodey” Rhodes/War Machine: A former officer in the U.S. Air Force who operates the War Machine armor and is an Avenger. Following his paralysis during the events of Civil War, Rhodes is given an apparatus by Stark to walk again.
• Tom Holland plays Peter Parker/Spider-Man: A teenager and Stark’s protegé who received spider-like abilities after being bitten by a genetically-modified spider.
• Chadwick Boseman plays T’Challa / Black Panther: The king of the African nation of Wakanda, who gained his enhanced strength by ingesting the Heart-Shaped Herb.
• Paul Bettany plays Vision:
  An android and Avenger created using the artificial intelligence J.A.R.V.I.S., Ultron, and the Mind Stone.
• Elizabeth Olsen plays Wanda Maximoff  /  Scarlet Witch: A member of Rogers’ faction of Avengers, who can harness magic and engage in hypnosis and telekinesis.
• Anthony Mackie plays Sam Wilson / Falcon:
  A member of Rogers’ faction of Avengers and former pararescue man trained by the military in aerial combat using a specially designed wing pack
• Sebastian Stan plays James “Bucky” Barnes/Winter Soldier: An enhanced assassin and Rogers’ ally and best friend.
• Tom Hiddleston as Loki: Thor’s adoptive brother based on the Norse mythological deity of the same name.
• Idris Elba plays Heimdall: The all-seeing, all-hearing Asgardian former sentry of the Bifröst Bridge, based on the Norse mythological deity of the same name.
• Peter Dinklage plays Eitri: King of the Dwarves of Nidavellir, and weaponsmith, based on the Norse mythological deity of the same name.
• Benedict Wong plays Wong: One of the Masters of the Mystic Arts, tasked with protecting some of Kamar-Taj’s most valuable relics and books.
• Pom Klementieff plays Mantis: A member of the Guardians of the Galaxy with empathic powers.
• Karen Gillan plays Nebula: An adopted daughter of Thanos who was raised with Gamora as siblings.
• Dave Bautista plays Drax the Destroyer: A member of the Guardians and warrior in search of vengeance against Thanos for killing his family.
• Zoe Saldana plays Gamora: A member of the Guardians who is an orphan from an alien world who seeks redemption for her past crimes. She was raised by Thanos. Ariana Greenblatt portrays a young Gamora.
• Vin Diesel plays Groot:
  A member of the Guardians who is a tree-like humanoid.
• Bradley Cooper plays Rocket:
  A member of the Guardians who is a genetically-engineered raccoon-based bounty hunter and mercenary and is a master of weapons and battle tactics.
• Gwyneth Paltrow plays Pepper Potts:
  Stark’s fiancée and the CEO of Stark Industries.
• Benicio del Toro plays Taneleer Tivan / The Collector: One of the Elders of the Universe who is an obsessive keeper of the largest collection of interstellar fauna, relics, and species of all manner in the galaxy.
• Josh Brolin plays Thanos:
  An intergalactic despot from Titan who longs to collect all six of the Infinity Stones in order to impose his will on all of reality, wanting to “re-balance the universe”.
• Chris Pratt plays Peter Quill / Star-Lord:
  The half-human, half-Celestial leader of the Guardians who was abducted from Earth as a child and raised by a group of alien thieves and smugglers called the Ravagers.

SEVERAL OTHER ACTORS REPRISED THEIR MCU ROLES:
Danai Gurira is Okoye, the head of the Dora Milaje;
Letitia Wright is T’Challa’s sister Shuri;
William Hurt is Thaddeus Ross, the Secretary of State;
Kerry Condon is the voice of Stark’s A.I. F.R.I.D.A.Y.;
Winston Duke is M’Baku, leader of Wakanda’s mountain tribe, The Jabari; Florence Kasumba is Ayo, a member of the Dora Milaje;
Jacob Batalon is Ned, Parker’s friend;
Isabella Amara is Parker’s classmate Sally;
Tiffany Espensen is Parker’s classmate Cindy;
Ethan Dizon is Parker’s classmate Tiny.

 

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI: (2017) – My rating: 9/10

Star Wars: The Last Jedi is an American epic space opera written and directed by Rian Johnson. It is the second installment of the Star Wars sequel trilogy and the eighth main installment of the Star Wars franchise, following Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015).  The Last Jedi is produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and includes an all star cast, including the late Carrie Fisher who past in December of 2016.  Star Wars never gets old.  I still find the series to be just as refreshed and interesting as the first.  The battle for the reign of the Empire is just as existing and just as much of a struggle as any two countries fighting for control of territory, Star Wars is just more modern and more futuristic.  May the Force be with them!

Many folks are still a little fuzzy about Rough One.  Some questioning why it even existed.  It almost seemed as if it was an after though or a fill in because of the disconnection from the rest of the Star Wars story and crew.  Questions like where did Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) come from and where are all the other familiar characters we have all grown to know and love?  When all was said and done, we were no closer to the answers than we were before Rough One began.  Finally, Star Wars: The Last Jedi arrived.  But as we take a long hard look, all the old characters have died, except one.  I’m not so sure this was the way to go but this is the way it went so now we are faced with a whole new era of Star War characters leaving the likes of  Mr. Yoda (Frank Oz), Luke Ski Walker and Darth Vader only briefly able to appear when needed.  There’s now only 1 hint of a female Jedi and a limited amount of the Resistance left with nowhere to live. In the Last Jedi, the Resistance fighters are led by General Leia Organa, who I figure will take her leave as well or be replaced by someone new to play her part since the beloved actress is no longer with us.  The characters from Star Wars: Rogue One are not a part of Star Wars: The Last Jedi and it’s still not clear why that whole story was presented or why they were brought into the fold.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi focuses on Rey (Daisy Ridley) traveling to the Planet Ahch0-To in order to confront Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and convince him to return to the Resistance, which is in dire need of help to survive and fight the First Order.  Rey must also complete her Jedi training to help the Resistance.  Of course Luke is resistant, stubborn and uncooperative, refusing to even talk to Rey who is equally as stubborn, camping out at his door everyday.  Eventually, after several incidents, the two come to an understanding.  Rey receives Jedi training from Luke Skywalker in hopes of turning the tide for the Resistance in the fight against Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and the First Order. Kylo is also the mysterious Supreme Leader Snoke’s (Andy Serkis) disciple, who is strong with the dark side of the Force and leader to the Knights of Ren.  Meanwhile, Kylo Ren and Rey have a telepathic meeting of the minds where Kylo tries to sway Rey over to the dark side while capturing her mind even though they are in separate locations.

Later, in a memorable battle, the Resistance fighters are forced to evacuate their base upon arrival of a First Order fleet. Following an effective but costly counterattack led by Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac), a high-ranking X-wing Resistance fighter pilot introduced in The Force Awakens. Resistance fighters manage to destroy a First Order dreadnought, before the Resistance vessels jump into hyperspace to escape, but the First Order pursues them using a tracking device. Kylo Ren who has already killed his father, Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and is also General Leia Organa’s (Carrie Fisher) son, destroys the Resistance support fighters, but hesitates to fire at the lead Resistance ship, after sensing his mother’s presence on board. However, TIE fighters destroy the bridge of the ship, killing several Resistance leaders and incapacitating Leia, who only survives by using the Force. Command falls to Vice Admiral  Amilyn Holdo (Laura Dern. Disapproving of Holdo’s passive strategy, Poe, Finn (John Boyega), the former Stormtrooper of the First Order who defected to the Resistance, BB-8 (controlled by puppeteers, Dave Chapman and Brian Herring), and mechanic Rose Tico (Kelly Marie Tran), works in maintenance but ends up becoming much more, saving many lives and appears as a possible love interest for Finn — embark on a secret plan to disable the tracking device. In the meanwhile, Kylo invites Rey to rule the galaxy with him, but Rey refuses. Using the Force, they struggle for possession of Anakin Skywalker’s lightsaber, which splits in two.

As you can see, The Last Jedi is long and complex.  I’ve told much of the story but not nearly a quarter of what makes up this great story.  I suggest you check it out as soon as you can.

[Star Wars: The Last Jedi is Oscar nominated for Best Visual Effects]

 

SICARIO (2015) – My rating: 8.8/10

Sicario has gotten a lot of buzz as an Oscar front runner. The movie deals with a Mexican drug cartel, the FBI (International and Domestic divisions) and other law enforcement agencies. Sicario is brutal and shows us drug enforcement from a different perspective. Deceit and dangerous procedures, along with cleaver legal maneuvers were incorporated to achieve common goals. Admittedly, whatever we’ve been doing in the past has been an unworkable disaster. The amount of drugs coming into the US, via Mexico, is astounding. In Sicario, several FBI agents come together to break the pattern and make a difference, even if they all are not on the same page.

Kate Macer (Emily Blunt) and her partner Reggie Wayne (Daniel Kaluuya) have been going through the same routines with the same results — rounding up a bunch of dead hostages and victims of the drug war while the drugs are safely smuggled into the US. In the opening scene, over 30 bodies were discovered within the walls of a small house along with a bomb in the backyard that kills two officers. A big operation with little payout for the team. When Kate’s boss, Dave Jennings (Victor Garber), recommends her to Matt Graver (Josh Brolin), a CIA Special Activities Division officer who is undercover as a supposed US Department of Defense adviser, Kate volunteers to join forces, eager to make a difference. Their goal is to search for the men responsible for all those dead bodies and the murderer of the two officers, which includes cartel boss, Manuel Díaz (Bernardo P. Saracino). While on a plane to El Paso, Texas, Kate meets Matt’s partner, Alejandro Gillick (Benicio del Toro) who plays a major role in Sicario. She begins to learn that things are not what they seem and definitely not what she’s been told.

Sicario breaks all the rules and is intense, violent, bloody, thought provoking and well acted. The story is deep and demands your attention every step of the movie. As usual, I’ve left out most of the story, as not to spoil it — I think Sicario has been under the radar for the most part. You should try to see it before it goes away. It’s worth seeing on the big screen.

[SICARIO is nominated for Cinematography, Original Score and Sound Editing]

 

INHERENT VICE (2014) – My rating: 5.5/10

Perhaps Inherent Vice is over my head or maybe it was just  not my cup of tea or maybe it’s just a bad movie. I found it extremely hard to stay focused on it because the movie is all over the place with strange conversation.  Why it won or was nominated for anything is more than I can comprehend.

The movie takes place in the 70s and stars a huge cast.  Inherent Vice starts out with Shasta Fay Hepworth (Katherine Waterspoon) visiting her x-boyfriend, Larry “Doc” Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix) at his run down cabin.  Doc is a private investigator, a hippy and a serious drug abuser.  Shasta provides Doc with a new case involving her current rich boyfriend, Mickey Wolfmann (Eric Roberts).  It seems Mickey’s wife and her lover plan to abduct him, then commit him to an insane asylum.  Doc’s assignment is to stop this from happening.

Doc takes on 2 more cases which happen to be connected to the first case.  The second case involves finding mickey’s bodyguard, Glen Charlock (Christopher Allen Nelson).  Soon after taking on the second case and encountering many incidents, Doc takes on the 3rd case when he is hired by Hope Harlingen (Jena Malone) to find her missing husband, Coy (Owen Wilson).  There are so many twist and turns and actors like Josh Brolin, Benicio del Toro, Martin Short, Reese Witherspoon and Maya Rudolph, to name a few.  The dialogue is weird but the acting is great.

My 5.5 rating is mostly neutral.  I’m not saying Inherent Vice  is a bad film, just too different for me to truly enjoy.  This, of course is my opinion — you should see it to form your own opinion.  Inherent Vice is due to be released on DVD sometime in April 2015.

[INHERENT VICE is nominated for Costume Design and (Writing) Adapted Screenplay]

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014) – My rating: 8/10

I expected Guardians of the Galaxy to be an annoyingly bad movie.  I started hearing rumors that it was pretty good so I looked up it’s ratings and found the rumors to be true, according to thousands who bothered to rate it.  Each character brought significant abilities to the table and was brilliantly played by Zoe Saldana (Gamora), Chris Pratt (Peter Quill/Starlord), Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot, David Bautista (Drax), Bradley Cooper as the voice of Rocket, Lee Pace (Ronan), Djimon Haunsou (Karath), Glen Close (Nova Prime) and Benicio Del Toro (The Collector).  Guardians of the Galaxy focused on how they became a team and even, how they got their name.  The special effects were outstanding.  The plot involved the team trying to keep the evil Ronan from obtaining the “orb” that would give him the power to destroy any planet in the galaxy.  There were a few corny scenes, but for the most part, the movie was good.  I didn’t see the greatness that many others saw, but I do give it more than a passing grade.  I thought the movie was a combination of Star Wars and Star Trek.  The sound track allowed us baby boomers to go back in time and enjoy some of the better music of our era.  There were lots of action and lots of humor.  I found myself really laughing out loud.  This is a surprisingly descent movie worth seeing on the big screne.  Check it out, IMDB has listed Guardians of the Galaxy a rating of 8.7.

[GUARDIAN OF THE GALAXY is nominated for Makeup and Hairstyling as well as Visual Effects]