A Most Violent Year

Jean, This is a very tense  and suspenseful film about New York in the year of 1981. (That year was one of the most violent in New York history.) A small business is trying to expand in the very competitive home heating oil delivery business. The two  business owners are Oscar Isaac and his wife in the movie,Christine Chasten. They are just excellent in their roles. Oscar Isaac reminds you of a young Al Pacino, say in the Godfather movies. Most of the violence is not shown but is beneath the surface. In the meetings of the main characters, much violence is clearly inferred.  One of the best atmospheric  movies to be seen in a long time. Dad

P.S. The previews were:

Leviathon
Clouds of Sils Maria
The Second Best Marigold Hotel
Red Army

Jupiter Ascending 3D

Jean, this is a soap opera with seemingly unlimited visual effects. It is another epic from the Wachowski brothers. What a confusing mish-mash of ideas. You are not disappointed with all kinds of quirky gadgets and life forms, however. You have anti-gravity boots for surfing in space, slow-motion bullets and projectiles, grotesque space ships, and gothic cities in space, lizards in uniforms, elephants at the space ship controls, war hammers against space ships and on and on. It is over 2 hours long. Acting in all this is Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum, Eddie Redmayne, Sean Bean,  among others. Singing behind this is  what sounded like the Red Army Chorus, as planets and and planets are destroyed. You come out of this visual effects vortex a little shell-shocked.  Dad

P.S. The Previews were:

Terminator: Genisys
Cappie
Spy
Run All Night
Focus
Insurgent

Kingsman, The Secret Service

Jean, This supposed to be a parody of all the past James Bond 007 movies. And for the first 30-40 minutes it does a fine job, especially the humor, due to the presence of Colin Firth. Then it descends into a mindless, non-stop series of hand to hand combat scenes and mass barroom brawls. It really becomes tedious with all the count down situations you endure, one after another.  This movie has an unusual large number of product placements as well, from MacDonalds, to specific beers and scotch brands. Wait for Netflix on this one.  Dad

P.S. The previews were:

Run All Night

Age of Adeline

Entourage, the movie

'71