THE JUDGE REVIEW

"The Judge," stars Robert Downey Jr, Robert Duvall, Vincent D' Onofrio , Jeremy Strong, Dax Shepard, Vera Farmiga, and Billy Bob Thorton. It's a court room drama, directed by David Dobkin.("The Wedding Crashers.") When I saw the trailer I got really excited. I have been a big fan of court room dramas since "A Few Good Men."  But I have to admit was a little worried about the mixed reviews for "The Judge." Would it be good or bad? Well here's the story.

"The Judge," tells the story of a lawyer named Hank Palmer. A top Chicago criminal lawyer, he never loses cases until one day, in court, he gets a call from his brother saying his mother has had a heart attack and died. Against what he knows is better judgement, he choses to go back home for her service, where he knows he will encounter his father Joseph, the local town judge. While home, he is reminded constantly of why he left, namely his fathers cold and crass attitude towards him. However before he can leave, his father is accused of killing a man with his car. And it's not just any man, but a former defendant in his court that particularly affected him. Now it's up to Hank to defend him, and try to right some of the wrongs that they both did to eachother over the years.

I have to say i really enjoyed this. The movie's two and  a half hours long and I never got bored.I loved the performances, especially by that of Duvall and Downey, and D'onofrio, who really lead the cast in how to make a "decent," script much better. That being said, even though I think the script was just decent, and some of the dialogue cheesy, it was a classic father son story. There were just one or two things within it that made it a little...implausable.

THE VERDICT
The Judge may not be perfect but its entertaining and has terrific performances. I give The Judge a B+.

THE EQUALIZER REVIEW

Denzel Washington has a set of skills, Oh wait thats Liam Neeson, and the wrong movie, but I kid, I kid! This just proves to you that we need a movie where its Denzel Washington verses Liam Neeson.

The Equalizer is directed by Antwon Fuqua ( "Training day," and "Olympus Has Fallen" ), and it stars Denzel Washington,  Marton Cosaks, Chloe Grace Moretz, Melisa Leo, and Bill Pullman. It loosely based off the eighties tv show starring Edward Woodward. Like with "Gone Girl," when I saw the trailer for this I got very excited, and kept saying, "this looks great, it could be the best action movie of the year." Now how do I feel? Well here's the story.

 Denzel Washington plays Bob Macall, a man with a past he would like to forget, but it keeps haunting him every day. Bob is just that ordinary man, that everyone likes. He works at a HOME DEPOT in Boston and keeps to himelf.  But when the Russian Mob sets events into motion that hurt his friend (Moretz) he is forced back into action.

I liked the movie.... I really did. But it is super ridiculous in some parts. Macall goes into a room filled with men half his age and with knifes and guns. He miraculously, takes down all of them, despite the fact he is clearly in his late 50's. I get he's playing a special ops marine, but it just seemed a little to much. There are a couple of scenes where Fuqua uses slow motion that made me audibly speak out because they were... predictable and cheesy.   The acting belongs to Washington and Martin Cosaks who plays Teddy the villain if the movie.

Really I guess since Washington  brings justice to Boston, he's like Batman. A mix between "Man On Fire," "Taxi Driver," And "Law & Order," I never was bored. The action is very good, and all the directing and editing is done very well. Its entertaining in most respects, but as I said, ridiculous in others. Think of it as a slighlty better Expendables.

THE VERDICT
The Equalizer may be cheesy at times, but its action is well done and the main peformances are terrific. I give The Equalizer a B+.

THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU REVIEW

"This Is Where I Leave You," stars.... wait for it...... Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Jane Fonda, Corey Stoll, Adam Driver,  Rose Bryne, Dax Shepard, and Timothy Olyphant. It's based off a very successful novel written by Jonathan Tropper. How is the movie you ask? This is my review.

"This Is Where I Leave You," is about the life of a man named Judd Altman (Bateman). His life is terrible: his wife cheats on him with his boss, played by Dax Shepherd, and as a result, he is newly unemployed. To top it off, his dad dies.  At his fathers funeral service, his mother (Fonda) says that his father's dying wish was for he and his siblings to sit Shiva for him. For those of you not jewish, Shiva is 7 days of mourning Jews go through when a loved one dies, a fact the Altman siblings immedietly tgry to get out of, by claiming they know jews who only mourn three days.  Judd, his two brothers, (Stoll and Driver,) and sister (Fey) begin their week of mourning with their mother in uncomfortable silence.  And over the course of seven days get to know one another again.
I really enjoyed the film. The actors played well together, the script was pretty funny and the direction decent. I didn't get some of the jokes, (however this may be a generational thing, as my mother laughed at all of them,) with the third act being somewhat predictable. But predictability may not be that bad when you have an ensemble as good as this one. I really enjoyed the relationship between Judd and his youngest brother Philip, played by Driver. They have the best two person scenes, remembering their father fondly. Olyphant is terrific with Fey, as once young lovers, torn apart by Olyphants car accident years before. Fonda and Stoll are both terrific, and I liked the cast of extra people around them. However there were quite a few things they left out of the book which were really funny and I wish they had left them in.

THE VERDICT

"This Is Where I Leave You," is a good family film, that is very heartfelt and funny. I'd give "This Is Where I leave You,"  a B+.

GONE GIRL REVIEW

Gone Girl stars Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Tyler Perry, Niel Patrick Harris, Kim Dickens, Patrick Fugit, and Carie Coone. Its directed by David Fincher, and written by Gillian Flynn, Who wrote the  novel. (Which is one of my favorite books.) When I saw they were making a movie, and saw the eventual trailer, I was so excited.  Heres the story.

Gone Girl is about how a man named Nick Dunne ( Affleck) is  framed for the dissaperance of his wife Amy. (Pike) Along the way the film talks about what Nick, his sister Margo (Coone) and his lawyer, ( Perry) must do to save Nick from prison. In the film we see flashbacks told from Amy's point of view, while the present is told from Nicks.  Now let me just say,  "Gone Girl" is in my top 10 this year. It is so far the best movie of the year. Affleck, Pike, and Perry are all excellent in the film. Finchers direction is amazing, full of color and crazy camera set ups. The rest of the actors are good as well.  It is a clever worded script, by Flynn, which is set with great music. I think this is a definate Oscar contender. I was never bored and this film runs at two and a half hours! Its a film, that you can see, even if you haven't read the novel.  I love this film so much, I highly recomend it to everyone.

THE VERDICT

Gone Girl has amazing performances, superb directing, and has a smart script . I give "Gone Girl," an A. 

A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES REVIEW

"A Walk Among  The Tomsbstones,"  stars Liam Neeson, and Dan Stevens. Its a film that is based off a novel, by Lawrence Block  thats a crime mystery thriller.  It's a mix between Silence of the Lambs and Law & Order. Now how is the film? Heres my review!

A Walk Among The Tombstones is about how a private investegator (Neeson) is hired by a drug kingpin( Stevens) to find the killers who murdered his wife. along the way, more chaos ensues. Now the film lies to you, it looks like an action packed movie when its actually less action and more story based. I did enjoy the movie, however, there is not real intensity till the final act. Also theres no real intensity till the final act. While the mniddle act, seems to go nowhere for the longest time. Thats frusdtrating. I liked the acting.  Liam Neeson, Dan Stevens, And Brian Astro Bradly,    The villians, played by David Harbour and Adam Thompson were very creepy and cruel. When the action scenes come, they are done well, and the sound is awesome.   The story is a decent, but it takes time. However, when you get there, you will be glad.

THE VERDICT

"A Walk Among The Tombstones," might not be as intense and action packed as I wanted it to be , But its still a very interesting film . I give "A Walk Among The Tombstones," a B+.