Category Archives: Jason Gregg

Hitchcock … The Story Behind the Story.

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

Ed Gien, do you know who he is? Serial killer, cross dresser, psychopath. Don’t feel bad, I didn’t know who he was either. His actions were the inspiration for the book Psycho which was in turn developed into the screenplay for the 1960 thriller of the same title. How did I find this out? The reincarnation of Alfred Hitchcock told me. Well not really, but a spot on portrayal by Anthony Hopkins began the movie Hitchcock by telling me this story. And, in classic Hitchcock form he delivered it with the driest of British wit and charm.

For the casual movie viewer not much is known about the inspiration and work that went into that black and white film from more than 50 years ago. What most people on the street could tell you is that it involved a slasher shower scene by a man with mother issues. What Hitchcock (directed by Sacha Gervasi Anvil, The Terminal) does is takes the viewer further into the how and why of this movie not only by Alfred Hitchcock but also by his determined wife Alma (played by Helen Mirren).

It is true that Ed Gien’s actions started the Psycho ball rolling; however it was Hitchcock’s desire to make it into a film after it had been passed upon by many other directors. But why? He just completed North by Northwest, a spy movie. Why change gears and focus on a dark subject like this?  He knew that with inside of all of us that we couldn’t look away when presented with the dark and demented. He knew the human psyche all too well and was able to be the man in the corner with a 35mm camera capturing it all.

As the audience we follow Hitch’s (that’s what everyone called him, even his wife) determination to live again by making films that he wanted to make, not films that he had to make for contractual obligations with the studios. He admits that in his last 30 years he has made some poor film decisions and this was his chance to redeem himself; he was 60 years old and by Hollywood’s standards past his prime. He needed Psycho to prove himself once again.

Alma chooses, as always, to support her husband. However, there is another man, Whitfield Cook (played by Danny Huston) who is after Alma for her script writing skills. Alma wasn’t some quiet house wife always agreeing with her famous husband. For her time she was a very domineering woman who was once Hitch’s boss.

While Alma is being pursued, Hitch is pursuing a blond bombshell, Janet Leigh (played by Scarlett Johansen) to play his leading lady. It turns out that Hitch has a thing for blond actress and once he gets them under his wing, he wants to control their every move. He also casts a mild manner (possibly gay) Anthony Perkins (played by James D’Arcy) who has mother issues of his own.  Lastly he casts Vera Miles (played by Jessica Biel), who was within inches of being made a star by Hitch but she chose motherhood instead.

While production is in full swing, Hitch is also having fantasy escapist moments where he is conversing with Ed Gien (played by Michael Wincott) while Ed is performing some of the murders that made him infamous. To top it off Hitch is battling the studio and the censor board not only on the shower scene but also on the toilet in the bathroom. Here’s a bit of trivia - Psycho was the first American film to show a flushing toilet.

All of this starts to spiral out of control when Hitch convinces himself that Alma is cheating on him and his film becomes still born. It’s flat and he doesn’t know why, not until he pleads Alma for help to bring his film to life.  Once that happens film history is made.  Well, not quite. Hitch also has to do his own marketing where he sends specific instructions to theater owners to hire armed guards keeping patrons from entering Psycho late.  How’s that for adding an extra touch of suspense?

Should you see this movie? Yes, but please see Psycho first. This is not a film that will ignite one’s interest in Psycho. There has to be some engagement on the viewer’s behalf to be vested in the film in the first place. This is not a film for a 17-year-old boy to take his best girl to in hopes of understanding Hitchcock. This film was intended for a mature audience who has most likely grown up watching his movies or TV series. This is for the fans who want to see one of the monumental directors reincarnated by an actor who has taken his role seriously.

Silver Linings Playbook Takes a Ride on the Bi-Polar Express

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

I am going to try to coin a new term and see if it catches on in the Internet world – “RomComDram.” I might have to hash tag it to see what happens. It might take some getting used to but it is the only word that I can think of to describe David O. Russell’s latest movie Silver Linings Playbook. It’s a little funny, a little romantic and a little dramatic.

The film doesn’t even start with opening credits, we start with Pat (played by Bradley Cooper) talking to himself in a mental institution. He is reciting lines aloud on how he is going to win his ex-wife back. We jump around to random events at the institution and out of nowhere his mother, Dolores (played wonderfully by Jacki Weaver) whisks him away, well along with his mental institution buddy Danny (played by Chris “Where has he been for the last 10 years?” Tucker), who is constantly trying to escape from the institution.

Once at home we discover that Pat Sr. (played by Robert De Niro) has lost his job and is now a bookie. We also discover that Pat Sr. has a bit of OCD; in fact, everyone in the whole darn cast has some kind of mental issue. Pat probably has it the worst with his bi-polar disorder and violent tendencies.  He is on a mission to win his ex-wife back, who has a restraining order against him. This proves his mission a little more impossible. It also makes the movie a lot more dramatic. He refuses to take his meds and believes that she will take him back if he shows her that he can improve on his own while keeping physically fit. Without his meds, he becomes more and more violent.

Pat takes up running to keep fit and runs into an old friend who invites Pat to dinner. His friend isn’t necessarily crazy, but he works a job he hates to please his wife and buys her nice things even though he feels the weight of the world is suffocating him (which on a side note could be considered a bit crazy). At the dinner party, Pat is introduced to the foul mouthed sister-in-law Tiffany (played by Jennifer Lawrence) who is just as crazy as Pat. They get into a quick discussion about all the different meds they have been put on over the years.

Pat and Tiffany do not hit it off right away; he is still convinced that he is married to his ex-wife.  Tiffany, a recent widow, wants to sleep with him, but the lights have to be off.  Sounds like the making of a romantic movie. They could have gone their separate ways but of course being a “romcomdram”” (copyright pending), they are drawn back together when Pat’s psychiatrist helps him realize that Tiffany can get a message to his ex. As with most “romcoms” (“romantic comedy,” that one was already established years ago) to bring the two potential lovers together, there has to be a pushing off point where they need to work on something uncomfortable together. And that something is, wait for it….a dance competition. Yep, in this pop cultural world of “Dancing with the Stars” and “So You Think You Can Dance” TV shows, Russell gives us an unoriginal story about dance competitions.

While Pat is preparing for the big dance, Pat Sr. wants to spend time with him because he has good juju for the Philadelphia Eagles. He even goes out a limb and bets his life’s savings on one game where Pat blows up at a game and the Eagles lose. Now Pat Sr. is in trouble, so he goes double or nothing plus a parlay where Pat and Tiffany need to get a score of 5 at the competition. Being a “romcom” I am sure you can guess how this all ends.

Should you see this movie? Ehh…maybe. If you have someone in your life that has a mental illness this might speak to you on some level. It’s pretty predictable on the romantic endeavor front considering what will happen between the two co-stars who hate each other at first but fall for one another after working on their dance moves.

Russell tried very hard with camera techniques to zoom in and out and make quick shots that turned most of the film into just that - a film with lots of quick, unnecessary zooms in and out. But, similar to his last film The Fighter he does have a great ear for solid music to set the scenes, using Stevie Wonder, Johnny Cash/ Bob Dylan, The White Stripes and Led Zeppelin to the film’s advantage.

Skyfall – This Time It’s Personal

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

After 22 previous Bond feature films, how much more can be said about the Double O agent? The man has saved the world countless times from super villains, slept with numerous women and probably has drunk enough martinis to intoxicate a Blue Whale several times over. So, what is left to tell? With the release of Skyfall we find that James Bond is still a complex character after 50 years of storytelling.

The first half of Skyfall (directed by Sam Mendes American Beauty, Road to Perdition) begins like any other Bond film that you might have seen before. James (played by Daniel Craig) is in Turkey chasing after a bad guy who has just killed several other agents and has stolen a hard drive. This hard drive contains information on several MI6 operatives who are currently infiltrating terrorist cells around the world. It is imperative that Bond receives this data. There is a car chase that leads into a motorcycle chase that leads into a train chase, all within the first few minutes. While fighting the bad guy atop a moving train, Bond’s back up agent, Eve (played by Naomie Harris) is forced to take a long range sniper shot. The orders are given directly by the MI6 Director - M (played by Judi Dench).  The agent misses and after Bond falls to his supposed death, we are given the traditional Bond opening credits.

Three months later M is in danger of being forced into retirement due to the loss of the hard drive. All along everyone thinks Bond is dead, while he is drinking himself into oblivion in a coastal village. On her way back to the office there is an attack on MI6 where six agents die. Bond sees this on the news. He comes back to save the day, but it is not so easy. In his three month hiatus, he lost his aim and strength. The agency reluctantly reinstates him to follow the trail of the hard drive. He is introduced to a new Q (played by Ben Whishaw) for new high tech goodies. But being 2012 the exploding pen is no longer needed; he receives a high tech hand gun and a radio transmitter. How is he supposed to save the world with that?

Bond makes his way to Macau (I had Google Map it too) where he gets closer to his final target through a beautiful woman (typical Bond right?).  Of course, only after a few hours of the two meeting, Bond is in a steamy shower on a yacht with his new found female companion. She leads him right to the villain, soft spoken Silva (played by a blonde Javier Bardem). Bond knows of Silva; he used to be a MI6 agent who turned into a bad guy.

So that’s it for me telling you how this is a typical Bond film, now it gets dark.

During the interrogation we discover that Bond’s nemesis might or might not be gay. We also discover that Bond might have had or not had a homosexual encounter in his past. That’s new. We also see Bond capture his arch nemesis half way through the movie. So, all is good, right? Bond got the girl and the bad guy, what is left? Quite a bit.

It turns out that this was all an elaborate plan for Silva to get caught and be brought face to face with M. We start questioning the stern M and her motives for MI6. Can she be trusted, is she really for Queen and Country? From this point forward, this is Silva’s personal vendetta for M.  She sold him out years ago and now it is time for revenge.

In the escape, Bond goes old school with us. He pulls his famed Aston Martin from the days of old and we go low tech. Fans of the older films will catch onto the subtle jokes.  Ending up at Bond’s childhood farmstead there is a last fight for Bond and M. There are no fancy gadgets to help him this time, not even a high power arsenal. He has no choice but to rely on a hunting shotgun and whatever he can scrounge together around the farm. Silva on the other hand has a small army. Bond is beaten down to his last hope to save himself and M.

Should you see this movie? Yes, it has given a new story to a 50 year old character. You don’t have to watch all 22 movies to enjoy this one. It will keep most audiences engaged as he globe trots to find his enemy. With Silva though we don’t see a villain who wants to take over the world or make millions of dollars. All he wants is his final revenge on the person who betrayed him.

“Looper” Fights for the Future

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

If you had the chance to go back in time to eliminate Hitler or Hussein or Bin Laden before they took power, would you? Well, that’s a dumb question most people would say yes. What about this – if you had a chance to go back and eliminate any of those terrible people when they were still children, would you? Not a dumb question now, is it?

In a way that is the question the new time travel movie “Looper” asks of its audience. Looper’s are run-of-the-mill hit men working for the mob in Kansas, the year is 2044. What makes these hit men different is that their mob bosses are living 30 years in the future.  In vague terms when the mob boss needs a guy whacked in the future they send their victims back in time to a guy like Joe (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who is waiting in a corn field to kill whoever shows up without question. The reason behind this is that are new tracking methods in the future so it is hard to kill a guy without getting caught.

Killing is Joe’s business and business is good. He kills during the day and gets high at night with other Looper’s. This is a good life for a street thug. Their victims also come with the Looper’s pay, silver bars, attached to their bodies. No muss no fuss.

This would be an ideal job for any street thug except the problem is that the mob retires these Looper’s when they are done with their services. It is called closing their loop. We see a live example where Seth (played by Paul Dano) has to kill his future self. The mob sends the Looper’s own self back to 2044 to be killed, quick suicide that has a 30-year lifespan. The Looper gets paid in gold and spends the next 30 years having an idea of how his life ends.

With Seth, a simple screw-up turns the system on its head and his older version of himself escapes. The 2044 mob eventually tracks him down after Joe turns his buddy over to the mob boss Abe (played by Jeff Daniels).

This part of the story could go on forever; Joe is planning on retiring soon and going to France.  However, 30 years in the future there’s a boss called “The Rainmaker” who is eliminating the Looper program. In the 30-year time span, Joe made the wrong people upset and he soon becomes his own victim back in 2044. Old Joe (played by Bruce Willis) is zapped to 2044 but escapes the deadly blast of Young Joe. The chase is on between Young and Old Joe.

The past and present Joe’s finally meet up. Like most time travel movies, it is hard to really explain time travel. The best explanation that I can think of is when Doc Brown hit his head in “Back to the Future”” and invented the Flux Capacitor. Simple and to the point. Old Joe makes light of the physics behind his arrival and the chase continues. Old Joe is on a “Terminator” style mission to destroy “The Rainmaker.”

In a scuffle, the two Joe’s tear apart a map and it leads Young Joe to a farm not too far away (luckily all these events that take place 30 years in the future lead back to a 100-mile radius in Kansas). On the farm is a young, attractive, foul-mouthed mother named Sara (played by Emily Blunt) and her son Cid (played Pierce Gagnon). While Young Joe is hiding out here, Old Joe is hunting down The Rainmaker who is only 6 years old now (should be an easy target). While Joe is hunting the kid, the mob is hunting both Joe’s.

The story starts to climax when we discover who The Rainmaker is and how dark Old Joe can really be on his quest for his revenge. We also see what a street thug like Young Joe is willing to do to maintain or change the future for humanity.

Should you see this movie? Yes. It has action; it has heart. It was well planned out from the beginning (just don’t over think the theory of time travel too much and how one minor event in the past can change the future). This is a sci-fi film that doesn’t try to wow its audience with flashy futuristic designs or flying cars. With most of the cars in the film they just slapped some solar panels on the hood and called it a day. Abe makes light of Young Joe’s clothes which looks like they are 30 years out of date. The director, Rian Johnson, wanted us to see the future is not at all it is cracked up to be.

Mostly see this film for Pierce Cagnon’s performance, for being a child he dominated the screen when put up against a long-time actor like Gordon-Levitt. Cagnon was funny yet intimidating at times and borderline scary. This kid seems to have years of experience when it came to owning his character.

“Trouble with the Curve” Throws a Sinker.

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

I am not going to do it. There is no way that I am going to review the new Clint Eastwood movie and force my dear readers’ attention to anything mentioning an empty chair or make sly Republican jokes (I am not that clever). So, don’t expect it. I am jumping right into the review, tell you about the movie and if it’s worth your $10. I am a better reviewer than that (at least I think so).

“Trouble with the Curve” a Robert Lorenz directorial debut tries to generate on screen chemistry between mega-stars Clint Eastwood, Amy Adams and Justin Timberlake. Each actor having had success with movies like “Million Dollar Baby,”  “The Fighter” and “The Social Network,” it would seem like an easy home-run (I promised I was not going to make any chair references I never said anything about not making baseball references).

Lorenz had trouble revving up the film’s pace in time for us to deeply care about the father- daughter relationship between Eastwood’s and Adams’ characters. We are introduced to Gus (played by Eastwood), an aging baseball scout for the Atlanta Braves, as he tries to urinate with intense trouble then hits the fridge for a can of Spam. Most of the first 30 minutes is setting the agenda of how old Gus is and how out of touch he is with technology as he still relies on instinct and experience to draft young men into the majors. We also experience Gus’s eating habits from eating Spam to pizza for breakfast to burnt hamburgers.

Gus has a strained relationship with his 33-year-old daughter, Mickey (played by Adams).  She is an emotionally unavailable, yet successful attorney up for a partnership position at her firm. She sees her old man infrequently and they have nothing in common.  They argue often, she storms off and he acts like nothing is bothering him. He drifts into his typical Eastwood grunting style of acting.

Gus heads to North Carolina to scout a high school home run prodigy, Bo Gentry, an arrogant little brat that you just want to hit over the head with a chair (not the chair). Gus, being in his eighties, is having eyesight issues so his reluctant daughter skips out on a very important case at her firm to help dad.  While in North Carolina they run into one of Gus’s old recruits, Johnny “The Flame” (played by Timberlake). When you have two attractive people on the same screen, there should be some on screen chemistry. Right? Well, there is and there isn’t. Timberlake and Adams seem to jive but it’s nothing that jumps out off the screen and says this is a good thing. They go out drinking and quiz each other on baseball history,  while the audience can easily see Johnny will soon be stealing second (wink, wink) but not without Mickey giving the stay on first signal.

After their relationship is established, we are giving an insight to Mickey’s trouble past with her dad. Her mom died when Mickey was 6 and Gus had trouble raising her as a single dad. At age 13, he ships her off to boarding school without speaking to her for years. Gus is around 80, which means he must have been about 60 years old when he shipped his kid off so he can focus on being a scout. How can we feel sympathy for this man’s decision? What 60-year-old is too busy or too uncertain of his parenting abilities to raise a teenager?

The movie finally picks up speed when draft day is upon us and Gus uses his old instinct on draft choices. It causes trouble for everyone involved but luckily the lady attorney with some baseball experience comes into save the day. She drafts her own prodigy to the Braves. Really? Someone who has no professional affiliation with Major League Baseball gets to draft an unknown player. After a long movie, it felt as if the Hollywood ending was given to us in a neat package with a bow on top.

Should you see this movie?  Are you over the age of 60? Are you an avid baseball fan that can pick up on obscure baseball trivia? If yes, then this will be a good movie for you.  I don’t see how young viewers would relate to Gus’s problems as an old man. This movie had a demographic in mind when it was written – anyone with daddy issues; that has a great love for the sport; or is experiencing old-age issues. There is some heart here and some funny Eastwood one-liners, but not enough to cover up the slow pace of the film.

“The Campaign” …It’s a Mess.

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

It’s all too easy for Will Ferrell when he can walk on comedic water. After several movies of poking fun at NASCAR, news anchors, soccer coaches and basketball players, he has turned his sights on politicians. The guy has had some hits with his brand of outlandish humor, but this time out he has slipped in the polls quite a bit.�
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The Campaign, directed by Jay Roach (Meet the Parents, Dinner for Schmucks), takes a comedic look at how money runs elections. Cam Brady (played by Ferrell) has had four terms as a North Carolina Congressman based on three words – “America, Jesus and Freedom.”  Those words have lost all meaning to him, he just wants to play politician for a fifth term. Before he runs for office again he has some personal issues to overcome. He misdials a phone number and leaves a sexually laced message for his mistress on a Christian family’s answer machine.  Even running unopposed, this means bad news forCam.   

In the meantime, two entrepreneur brothers Glen (played by John Lithgow) and Wade (played by Dan Aykroyd) are trying to get a politician to support their initiative to bring a Chinese sweat shop to Cam’s North Carolina district. They need to find a patsy to run for them.  Luckily their patsy comes in the form of Marty Huggins (played by Zach Galifianakis).  Galifianakis and Ferrell didn’t have to invent new characters to earn their paychecks this time around.  Ferrell used his George W. Bush impersonation from his Saturday Night Live days.  While Galafianakis used his alternative “is he gay or is he just a really nice, affectionate man” Galifianakis character from Live at the Purple Onion and Between Two Ferns.�
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Marty is too nice to win at dirty politics. So, the brothers hire Tim Wattley (played by Dylan McDermott) to be the tough guy campaign manager.  He whips Marty and his family into shape to become a lean, mean politicizing machine.  They take Cam on full force using a little bit of dirty pool to get the job done.�
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While Marty is gaining in the polls through his nice guy turned tough guy routine using his slogan “…it’s a mess”  to clean up congress Cam is slowly slipping after making several mistakes such as punching a baby, getting arrested for driving drunk and punching Auggie, the dog from the movie The Artist.
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Well … that’s enough; the jokes started off strong, using tons of cursing and forced sexual content to get the show started; but punching a baby and a dog from a totally unrelated movie?  C’mon guys. It seemed as if the writers got to a point and just started throwing darts at a board hoping something would stick. It seemed all over the top for a few giggles. The story stopped being a political satire and started to become a sophomoric comedy of hit and miss jokes.  

Marty does something totally unexpected for a politician and tells the truth about himself on Election Day then loses the election. But there is a twist at the end to make everyone happy.

Should you see this movie?  Skip it. Ferrell is now stealing from his own movies; in this case, it was Talladega Nights.  He took the formula of a celebrity’s fall from grace and his redemption to get back on top. We have seen it before, just like we have seen kids cursing up a storm at the dinner table and Ferrell’s screaming tantrums. 

If you have not seen a Will Ferrell movie yet this might get more laughs from you. For the rest of us there is nothing new here folks, go cast your vote for another candidate to make you laugh.

“The Dark Knight Rises” Beyond Expectations

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

Christopher Nolan has some pretty big shoes to fill – his own. After his directorial success of “The Dark Knight” four years ago, he now needs to live up to the new superhero movie standard that he set in place. Because of Heath Ledger’s Oscar performance as the Joker, everything in “The Dark Knight Rises” will be compared in great detail. This will have most moviegoers asking themselves if his latest epic (and I do mean epic, clocking in at 164 minutes long) is going to be as good as “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight.”

Beginning eight years after Harvey Dent’s death in “The Dark Knight,” we are introduced to our villains pretty quickly. First with Bane (played by Tom Hardy), who is a muscle-bound mercenary being transported by the CIA via plane. His team of fellow mercenaries rescues him by a high altitude heist and he is off to Gotham City for vengeance. An important note here – Bane has a breathing issue where he needs a respirator over his mouth. This proves a difficult task to understand every word he says. 

Meanwhile, in Gotham City, there is a small celebration for Harvey Dent Day at stately Wayne Manor. Our hero Bruce Wayne/ Batman/The Dark Knight (played by Christian Bale) is a bit of recluse; he has hung up his cape and cowl. During the dinner party a maid, Selina Kyle (played by Anne Hathaway) is sneaking around the manor looking for a few items to make her own. She is a woman and she is a cat burglar, but the writing team of Christopher and Jonathan Nolan never once had anyone refer to her as Catwoman.  

Soon Bane is in town, starting his revolution; he is on a mission from the League of Shadows, which was set in motion from “Batman Begins.” While hunting Bane down, Commissioner Gordon (played by Gary Oldman) is hospitalized which forces a good cop, John Blake (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) to seek out Batman/Bruce Wayne. Wayne reluctantly moves back into his old Batman days to help his friends. Batman finally makes his appearance when Bane robs the Gotham Stock Exchange, ending in an exciting motorcycle chase and introducing us to the airship simply called “The Bat.” 

All along there is an important side story where Miranda Tate (played by Marion Cotillard) is trying to acquire a fusion reactor from Wayne industries to use as clean energy for Gotham City. �
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Let’s hold up here, there is a lot happening in this movie‑ lots of issues concerning Wayne’s reluctance to become the Batman again and Bane’s own revenge scheme. And also Nolan’s own commentary on current issues such as the crash of the stock market and environmentalism.  Most moviegoers need to know that there is no over the top Joker performance and no roller coaster of high tension suspense. It’s a long detailed story of a city’s own rise against its captor.   

Now back to the rest of the story. With help from Selina, Batman locates Bane for their first hand-to-hand fight in the sewers of Gotham. Bane breaks Batman’s back and holds him in a prison on the other side of the world. 

With Batman out of the way, Bane is free take control of Gotham, using the fusion reactor as his power play. He plants explosives around the city and even is able to take control of professional football game after destroying most of the stadium. The city is run by marshal law for the next several months, while Wayne spends the time healing his back and trying to escape his prison. He is discovering more about himself. Again Nolan doesn’t treat him as a hero but as man with weaknesses just like any other man. 

Batman is soon back in town to save the city, but we see the city is already being saved by its own citizens and its real heroes – the Gotham City Police Department. Without giving too much away, the last 20 to 30 minutes of action and suspense make up for some of the lag time leading up to the end. 

Should you see this movie? Yes, of course; this completes Nolan’s trilogy that started out as superhero story and evolved into a mad man trying to destroy a city then ending with a city uniting to overcome its enemies. 

For the final installation, this ideal had very little to do with the actual Batman and had everything to do with the people of Gotham. This is not a flashy superhero movie like “Spider-man” or “The Avengers” where the victims are powerless. This is a movie where all the key characters are heroes, not just one guy in a cape.

“Ice Age: Continental Drift” Keeps the Franchise Afloat

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

How many is this now? 3 or 4? I guess it doesn’t matter, having only seen the first “Ice Age” movie, not much has changed. A few loveable, computer animated, prehistoric creatures have their differences and then bond together to overcome an obstacle at the end. The studio then makes a ton of money off the merchandising licenses. Seems like a pretty profitable idea.

We start a really, really long time ago, where a hyperactive, prehistoric squirrel Scrat is chasing an elusive acorn around the world. From what I remember of the first film this pesky acorn has been outsmarting Scrat for some time. Due to a slight ding on a mountaintop the entire tectonic plate separation begins.

For not having seen the last two “Ice Age” films I caught on pretty quickly. The wooly mammoth, Manny (voiced by Ray Romano) is having issues with his maturing teenage daughter, Peaches (voiced by Keke Palmer). She is hanging out with the less desirable teenage mammoths who all speak in a 2012 urban tongue.

During an argument between Manny and Peaches, the continent they are on splits in two. Manny along with his old partners, the saber tooth tiger, Diego (voiced by Denis Leary) and the spastic sloth, Sid (voiced by John Leguizamo) find themselves floating into an abyss and a terrible storm. Thus begins the journey for Manny to get back to his wife and daughter.

While on the high seas the trio, who soon become of foursome when they find Sid’s senile Granny (voiced by Wanda Sykes) stowed aboard, run into a pirate ship (actually it’s an iceberg). The pirates soon take the foursome hostage and there is the daring escape. While escaping they take on another saber tooth tiger, Shira (voiced by Jennifer Lopez).

The newly formed rag tag team makes a plan to steal another ship from the pirates; this plan forces them to make an alliance with gerbils on a neighboring island. These gerbils are aggressive and adorable and can put any Ewok to shame.

Soon the story leads back to Manny’s home continent where there is another fierce battle between the pirates and the rest of Manny’s clan. And at the end (as with most kiddie movies) each character resolves his or her problem and the audience leaves the theater feeling so good that they buy the first “Ice Age” stuffed animal that they see.

Should you see this movie? For ages 3-12 this is a solid movie with spot-on 3D animation. There are enough laughs, mostly due in large part to Wanda Sykes, and minor plot twists to keep most adolescents entertained. For those with a keen ear for classical music, the score was quite well done.

“The Amazing Spider-Man” Gets a Somewhat Amazing Reboot

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

Are the writers in Hollywood really out of original ideas? We have come to the point where Hollywood is now rebooting movies less than a decade from when the original hit the big screen.

Ten years ago we were introduced to Tobey Maguire who played the soft-faced Peter Parker in “Spider-Man.” He was good, the story was good; no one really complained. So, why do we have to sit through another two hours being reintroduced to the same super hero with a similar back story? One word – money. And lots of it.

Instead of meager Maguire we now get chiseled face and focused Andrew Garfield to play Parker. We are rewarded with this Parker 2.0 version. Garfield took this role and adapted to it, he even studied the movements of spiders preparing for his portrayal. Garfield dominated every scene he was in and he brought a new level of intensity.

Parker’s love interest, Gwen Stacy (played by Emma Stone) is new. Gone is Mary Jane Watson from the original story line. Gwen is a pretty high school student who also interns at the largest scientific lab in town. She is the whole package – smart, attractive, confident, and funny. What high school boy wouldn’t want to date her?

Now examining the story, not much has changed. Parker is the weakling at his school – not many friends; his parents had to abandon him as a child so now he is living with his Uncle Ben and Aunt May (played by Martin Sheen and Sally Field). He is on a mission to find out who his parents were and why they left him. The mystery leads him to the lab where Gwen works and he meets his dad’s old science lab partner Dr. Curt Connors (played by Rhys Ifans).

Dr. Connors soon hires Parker for his boy genius algorithms. Here he is bitten by a radioactive spider. Parker starts adapting to his new found powers through a closed quarters subway fight on his way home.

A somewhat preventable tragedy befalls Uncle Ben and Parker makes his transformation into Spider-Man. He becomes a one man vigilante force hunting down his uncle’s killer. Unlike the original, the new Parker is more accepting of his superhero persona.

The movie moves along a good pace with plenty of amazing shots of the New York City skyline and first-person shots of Spider-Man zipping from rooftop to rooftop.

While Parker is developing his relationship with Gwen, Dr. Connors is developing a regeneration serum to grow back his missing arm and to help a mysterious man extend his own life. The serum takes over Dr. Connors and turns him into The Lizard. Spider Man soon has to swing into action to save NYC from this threat of a highly detailed, CGI lizard man. As in the first story, this is still another tale of a scientist whose own invention turns on him and Spider-Man has to save the day while still trying to save his scientist friend.

Should you see this movie? If you saw and liked the first the movie there is probably no need to see this one (unless you are one of those comparative analysis types that needs to see it to remind yourself why you liked the first one). If you have not seen any of the Spider-Man movies, this would be a good start to go in fresh and get a decent storyline with plenty of action, romance and a little humor.

“Ted” is an Equal Opportunity Offender

Reviewed by Jason Gregg

I counted 23; it may be more, may be less. But it’s still a lot. That is 23 references to the pop culture of the 1980’s. It is obvious that this is when Seth MacFarlane spent his formative years. MacFarlane is somewhat of a boy wonder for developing the animated series “Family Guy” in his early 20s. If you watch his show you will understand that Macfarlane loves his nostalgic trips back to the 1980s by paying homage to TV, movies, commercials and anything pop culture related to that time period.

With his new movie “Ted,” MacFarlane gives big love to his childhood decade and spends much of his time again paying homage to TV and movies from that era. With writing, producing and directing credits for the film, it seems like he controlled the creative process from the very beginning.

Starting in 1985 we are introduced to John Bennett as an 8-year-old kid who is a loner on Christmas with no friends. Not even the neighborhood bullies will let him help beat up the local Jewish boy. For Christmas John receives a teddy bear with a computerized voice. He loves his bear, Ted (voiced by MacFarlane), and makes a wish for the bear to be his friend for life. His wish is granted and Ted becomes a live walking, talking teddy bear, which scares the hell out of John’s parents. Wouldn’t you be freaked out if a teddy bear walked up to you and spoke?

Ted soon becomes a pop hit and rises to the top but over the years his popularity diminishes and he becomes a gruff, foul-mouthed, rude, inconsiderate son of a…. anyhow he turns into a ‘fall from grace’ archetype living with 35-year-old John (played by Mark Wahlberg). They still are best friends and drinking buddies but soon John’s steady girlfriend Lori (played by Mila Kunis) is giving him the ultimatum -“either the teddy bear goes or I go.”

Ted is forced to look for employment at the local supermarket. A job he despises, considering he had spent the last several years sitting on the couch smoking pot and watching “Flash Gordon.”

At an impromptu house party John reunites with his Teddy Bear along with a special guest star or two. Things get out of control with the drinking and drugs and an angry Chinese neighbor which leads to the break-up of John and Lori.

In order to win his girl back, John gets to perform a song from “Octopussy” at a Norah Jones concert. For having made fun of Adam Sandler in his TV show and in this movie, MacFarlane pulls a Sandler-esque move here. The story lags so they hire a famous musician to liven things up; much like Sandler does when he flaunts Dave Matthews. It was an uncomfortable break from the outlandish humor.

The song doesn’t help and the two stay broken up until they have to work together to get Ted back from a creepy kidnapper, Donny (played by Giovanni Ribisi). The whole story comes to the climax at a famous Boston landmark where one friend has to save another. If you have seen any movies from the 1980s, you can probably guess how this all ends.

Should you see this movie? Are you a male age 17-40? This will probably be your movie, especially if you love the 80s the way MacFarlane does. Everyone from Boston girls to the Chinese to rich black people has a chance to be offended. Since it is a comedy, the off color remarks only hurt for a little while.

A word of advice, if you haven’t seen “Flash Gordon” yet, you better do so before you see this movie otherwise you won’t find 20 minutes of the movie too funny.

“Rock of Ages” Celebrates its Own Decadence
Reviewed by Jason Gregg

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.  It was 1987 in L.A. For those too young to remember (or those that choose to forget), 1987 was a very special time and place. It was about living life to the fullest … don’t let petty things like a feeling of shame or self-respect hold you back from having a good time. Grow out your bangs/ mullet, rip up your only pair of $100 Guess jeans, throw on your favorite cassette of Def Leppard, Foreigner, Poison or Journey, crank it up and rip the knob off, man. All before the 90s showed up to dress us in flannel, take us to Seattle and depress the hell out of us.

“Rock of Ages” is the latest musical/ comedy to let us relive the glory days of excess and pop rock.  Based on the Broadway musical and directed by Adam Shankman (who also directed the 2007 film version of “Hairspray”).  We start our journey on a bus traveling from Oklahoma to L.A.; one of the passengers is our lead starlet, Sherrie Christian (played by Julianne Hough).  She narrates her journey by singing “Sister Christian” by Night Ranger along with the entire ensemble of the bus. At this initial moment we see that this movie is not going to take itself seriously. Nor should it. The music of the 80s was about feeling good about ourselves.  

Once in L.A., Sherrie’s song morphs into “Just Like Paradise” by David Lee Roth then “Nothin’ but a Good Time” by Poison all introducing us to our cast – Diego Boneta, Russell Brand, and Alec Baldwin (with each actor having a singing part) working at the Bourbon Room, the popular club on the Strip.  

Of course, our lead star Drew (played by Boneta) helps Sherrie as soon as she gets off the bus and they start falling for each other.  It’s a simple formula but nothing about that era was overly complicated.

The Bourbon Room is having tax issues and the Mayor’s wife, Patricia Whitmore (played by Catherine Zeta-Jones) is trying to shut the entire Strip down based on its immoral behavior.  She breaks into “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” by Pat Benatar to vent her frustration.  

To paraphrase Bonnie Tyler – “We Need a Hero.”  And, that hero comes in the form of the alcoholic, bad boy Stacee Jaxx (played by Tom Cruise). Jaxx is the culmination of every big ego front man, from Axl Rose to Bret Michaels to Vince Neil.  I have a feeling that many people (including myself) are hesitant to see if Cruise can sing.  He actually spent several hours a day training with Axl Roses’ vocal coach preparing for this role. It paid off.

The managers of the Bourbon Room – Dennis Dupree (played by Baldwin) and Lonny (played by Brand) have booked Jaxx to play his last show with his current band before he embarks on his solo tour, therefore helping them to raise money for their tax problem.  The problem is that Jaxx is highly unpredictable, as with most big ego front men.  Jaxx and his sidekick, a baboon named “Hey Man” arrive and he is interviewed by a Rolling Stone reporter, she holds the proverbial mirror up to Jaxx’s ego and they break into Cruise’s powerful performance of “Wanted Dead or Alive” by Bon Jovi.  

The entire cast starts falling into their own problems: Sherrie breaks up with Drew after a misunderstanding with Jaxx; she is now on her own and has taken employment as a stripper; Jaxx is falling apart psychologically; and Drew partners with a bad manager who convinces him that rock is dead and (gulp) boy bands are the next big thing.     

As with most musicals, everyone finds resolution through singing and comes together for one last hoorah to give the audience a big-number conclusion as they all sing “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey.

Should you see this movie?  Well, that all depends on if you like to rock.  If you do, you need to see this movie.  You certainly do not have to be a fan of musicals to enjoy the story, the songs, and the humor.  It helps if you have an appreciation of music from that era.  Go ahead and watch videos from Warrant, Poison, and Bon Jovi; aside from their power ballads, they never took themselves too seriously.  They had fun with their music and that is exactly what “Rock of Ages” captured.