Fading Gigolo

 

 

 

Jean, This is a gentle comedy, very gentle. (There are not a lot of laughs.) It was written and directed by John Turturro, but Woody Allen acts in many, many of the scenes.The story revolves around of Woody coming up with the idea of having his former employee works as a high priced male prostitute in Manhattan. It also stars some glamour girls like Sharon Stone and others . There is a lot of ethnic society customs shown, mostly hasidic Jewish rabbis. If one is interested in a convoluted story line, acted out in the ethnic neighborhoods of Manhattan, then this is their movie. Look for more social commentary from Woody in his stuttering , stand-up comedy  manner, but more pedantic than humorous.  Dad

The previews were:

Wish I was Here

Palo Alto

The Most Wanted Man

The Immigrant

Obvious Child

Boyhood

Godzilla

Jean, This is an example of..if something is good then more is better. They give you such a long series of mindless scenes of monsters tramping on skyscrapers, bridges and even themselves. You have to wait a long time before you even see the star. Godzilla, but they serve up a new monster, the MUTO meaning Massive, Unidentified, Terrestrial, Organisms.  I immediately thought of the monsters in Spielberg's "War of the Worlds". This movie is too long at just over two hours and I did not see Godzilla enough. But I am afraid that I will get another chance to see him in the future.  Dad

The previews were:

The Rover

Edge of Tomorrow

Into the Storm

22 Jump Street

A Most Wanted Man

The Signal

Noah

Jean, This is one big, sweeping movie on the big screen. It is quite impressive as they bring into the Bible story some new characters and imaginative creatures to make the story work. The location shots done in Iceland are very scenic and add authenticity. Russell Crowe is back in his Gladiator mode and carries his role of Noah off impressively. The shots of the animals, including the birds and the snakes are quite starling to see.  The ark being built and then on those wild ocean waters looks very realistic and scary.I was surprised how you were drawn into the personal life of Noah and his family. Some of the folks entering the theater were asking the ticket taker if they were going to get  wet. On coming out of the movie,  there were many of those viewers with teary eyes. It worked for them and it worked for me as well. It was one audacious bit of story telling that worked.  Dad

P.S.  The previews were:

Transformers: Age of Extinction

Heaven is for Real

Draft Day

The Maze Runner

 Hercules

Transcendence

Captain America 2 - The Winter Soldier

 Jean, This was a big time action/adventure movie with a brain. It was an intelligent approach to a current event issue with great visual effects. Chris Evans really seemed so relaxed and comfortable in his role this time. He and Scarlett were a good team when on screen together. I did not realize what a large role Robert Redford would play in not only a speaking role but also some action as well. There were a number of surprises and it reminded me in part of "Three Days of the Condor" with the changing of sides within the intelligence bureaus. The final climax was not a blast of explosions but the continuation of a continuing  plot while the horrendous air battle over Washington was played out. The battle itself as well as the carnage and destruction of the falling space ships into the high-rise office billings is something to see.  I enjoyed this film very much.  Dad

P.S. The previews were:

The Expendables III

Maleficent

The Amazing Spiderman 2

X-Men: Days of Future Past

Godzilla

Guardians of the Galaxy

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