Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit

 

Jean, This reminded me of the Jason Bourne movies. It has great location shots of different European cities as well as New York City and hand to hand combat, computer screens all over the place, car chases and solving a search for a subject using all kinds of clues by association. Chris Pine adds a youthful energy to the role of Jack Ryan in his very early years in the CIA. I can see him coming back in future movies. It was interesting seeing Kenneth Branagh as the Russian villain (and the director). At only 100 minutes, it was worth the time considering how long some of the other movies have been running lately.  Dad

P.S. The previews were:

NOAH

The Monuments Men

Non-Stop

3 Days To Kill

Labor Day

Draft Day

I, Frankenstein

Jean, This is a visual effects extravaganza of a comic book movie. It takes Frankenstein from his creation in some European snowy castle in 1793 to the present time, 200 years later. Frankenstein is played by Aaron Eckhart  who must have gone on a big diet and weightlifting program to look like he does without his shirt. (He is zero body fat.) In the modern time, he comes into the midst of a war going on between the good flying gargoyles of Queen Leonore and the bad demons of the devil Prince Naberius played by Bill Nighy in a Saville Row very tailored medium blue suit. After a chase to capture the notes of the original Dr. Frankenstein in the form of a book, you come to a epic final battle scene between the two forces that is really something to see. Is this the beginning of another franchise movie character? I wonder about that as the movie is more a run of the mill visual effects action film without much new to recommend it. Dad

P.S. Remember the creaky machinery they had in Young Frankenstein to get the monster to come alive? In this movie you have to multiply that rickety lash up by 1000 to get the contraptions they have for the viewers here.

P.P.S. The Previews were:

The Quiet One

Non-Stop

Cesar Chavez

Transcendance

NOAH

Labor Day

 

 

 

Jean, I expected to see some heavy breathing sex scenes and maybe some shoot outs with the police but this movie is a slowly developing romantic movie that could have  come from the author of "The Note Book". The three main characters, the housewife and mother, Kate Winslet, the escaped convict, Josh Brolin, and the young son, Gaitland Griffith , are all excellent. And there is a fourth character, a peach pie, or maybe many peach pies. Most of it takes place over a three day weekend, Labor Day, in a small New Hampshire town.  I enjoyed the romantic movie and how the writer gave us important background story points along the way and did not see coming, the ending he choose.  Dad

The previews were:

NOAH

Interstellar

Winter's Tale

Heaven is for Real

In Secret