Django Unchained

Django Unchained

Django Unchained

I really liked Django Unchained, or as I like to call it: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence right through the eyeball and then the bullet continued through about 7 other torsos, shot out from a guy's belly button bringing a plume of intestines with it, ricocheted off someone's jugular vein, then snapped the cord holding up a chandelier causing said chandelier to plummet like a lead balloon, crushing the skulls of various evil varmints and polecats and then plunging into an occupied outhouse where the dynamite was also stored, causing the outhouse to explode in a crimson rain of blood, guts and offal.

But I guess all that wouldn't fit on the poster.

Django has everything you'd want in a movie, action, humor, suspense, drama, and even some romance, all washed down with gallons of blood. Did I mention some beautiful western vistas? it's got those too. And there are plenty of refernces to some of the geat westerns of the past, some of them only visual so pay attention. There is the trade mark Tarantino dialogue as well.

I'm sure other reviewers will talk about racial-political implications and social commentary and such. I'm not that smart. I just thought this was a fast paced and satisfying film for movie fans from beginning to end. Leonardo Di Caprio makes for a great villain, keeping himself just this side of over-the-top. Jamie Fox played Django as quiet waters that ran deep but Christopher Walz steals the show, although Samuel L. Jackson almost beat him to it.

Django Unchained

The Lincoln Lawyer

The Lincoln Lawyer

The Lincoln Lawyer

How far would you go to correct a wrong? After agreeing to take on a case he assumes is an easy win Mickey (McConaughey) soon learns appearances are deceiving. When he finds out the truth and tries to expose it his friends and family are put at risk. I have to admit I actually think McConaughey is very good at playing parts like this. As in "Time To Kill" and "Two For The Money". The smooth man pushed to the edge. Saying almost anything about the movie will give too much info away but I will admit that after being in the "Movie Business" for over 10 years I've seen enough that it's very hard for me to be surprised at a movies ending. The twist at the end of this one had me totally thrown and I love when that happens. I had high expectations for this and it surpassed them all. Watch this movie, you will not regret it. I loved it. As a plus this is a movie that exposes the flaws in the justice system, which will make you mad, and at the same time make you wish more lawyers are like Mickey Haller. I love this movie. I say A+.

Would I watch again? - Absolutely, Im going to buy it!!!

The Lincoln Lawyer

3D Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

3D Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

3D Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

Hovering half-way between being serious and being funny--and enjoying every minute of its crazy balancing act--this is a great movie. A real movie.

Given the rarity of good films made in Hollywood these days, I had no reasonable expectations, statistically, for a good film here. So I went into the cinema and hoped for the best, but expected nothing.

Imagine my surprise when I found that "Abe Lincoln" is 1. a well-acted period film with great sets and costumes, 2. a wildly paced action special effects feast, 3. an effectively witty self-satirical historical rewrite and 4. a gruesomely graphic horror flick! I don't see this as a perfect film--it's got flaws. But the handful of flaws that bother me, I can ignore, because this is a film made with a joyous spirit, and the overall structure works well. I've seen this five times in the theatre at this point. I haven't seen a film that many times theatrically in over twenty years! I had read the book and enjoyed it, but had no idea what the film version might be like. As has been noted elsewhere, the book and the movie are two completely different things: The book delivers a more intellectual experience, and the film delivers a more emotional experience. Writer Seth Grahame-Smith has tailored his book into something simpler and less grim for the screen. I think the decision to make the film a fun action movie was a smart one. It's a wild ride.

History is transformed into mythic fantasy in this yarn detailing the never-before-told story of Lincoln's lifelong battles with supernatural evil. Indeed, the opening words of narration, "History prefers legends to men," express the awareness that events are altered in retrospection, to suit our thirst for myth, for purity of rights and wrongs. Read more ›

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (Blu-ray 3D / Blu-ray / DVD / Digital Copy) (2012)

3D Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

Killing Lincoln

Killing Lincoln

Killing Lincoln

KILLING LINCOLN (Narr./Hosted Tom Hanks, 2013, 120 minutes, for the History Channel and National Geographic) is a deeply enjoyable reenactor's fondest dream. With a stunningly handsome fellow portraying John Wilkes Booth, this documentary lays out the most complex issues leading up to Booth's assassination of our 16th president skillfully.

Tom Hanks offers an almost academic, pitch-perfect narration seated near a nice old table, the way Alastair Cooke used to do Masterpiece Theater introductions. (No fireplace though.) With reenactments and commentary by scholars, this is actually a well rendered educational work. I do not care for education-via-reenactment, as I state every time I get a chance. I think it is tawdry, stupid, badly done, nothing more than a stepping stone for whatever it is stepping on the stones.

Here it is done with panache and respect for Lincoln. While I know this is a total tie-in for Steven Spielberg's Lincoln, and I do not begrudge anyone that advantage, this documentary has a zest and accuracy that I really enjoyed. I even loved the man who reenacted the presidential photographer Alexander Gardener, who is the same man who reenacted him in a couple of other Lincoln documentaries from this year and last year.

It was just a bit disappointing that the actor who did Lincoln for all of NatGeo's documentaries wasn't in evidence here ... at least I don't think that was him. But then the emphasis is totally on Booth, not on Lincoln at all. If you wish to see the truth as well as know it, or hear it spoken as they probably did at the time, this is your documentary. It ought to be shown at schools, and Tom Hanks deserves some kind of Emmy for his presentation/narration.

Killing Lincoln

Les Miserables

Les Miserables

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Les Miserables

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Les Miserables

I saw this movie a week before it came out because I won advance screening tickets and I have known the song I Dreamed A Dream my whole life but I have never seen the musical on stage or any of the adaptations before. I went into this with no expectations at all. At first I thought the movie started off kind of fragmented and I figured because it had to introduce everybody and I was right. The film ended up as it went on drawing me in more and more and making me fall in love with it and by the end i was mesmerized with how wonderful and amazing the movie is. I believe they picked perfect roles because after i saw the movie i listened to the broadway soundtrack and i believe they did very well on picking out the cast for their vocal ranges and capabilities. I think anyone who loves the musical or is a musical person should definatly see this movie because they will not be disappointed one bit by how amazing it is. 

Les Miserables

New Lincoln (Four Disc Blu-ray / DVD + Digital Copy) (2012)

New Lincoln (Four Disc Blu-ray / DVD + Digital Copy) (2012)

New Lincoln (Four Disc Blu-ray / DVD + Digital Copy) (2012)

Not when there are already dozens of reviews, some excellent, some abysmal. Not when the subject involves so many antecedents and complexities. I couldn't imagine doing the film, or myself, justice within the scope of a few hundred words. However, an amazon friend, a citizen of Germany working in China, has sent me a request to explain why I found this film so successful. Here's my answer, which I might as well share:

"You might need to have spent some of your youth celebrating Lincoln's birthday, or noticing Lincoln's picture on the penny, or reading some of the pop boys' books about the War. You might need to have read Walt Whitman's Civil War poetry, especially "When Lilacs Last etc", and more than once. Lincoln is a powerful shamanic totemic figure in the American mind, and seeing him made human by DDL is like being told yes, there is a heaven for pets or yes any child can become president. But the film handles the assassination with the greatest cinematic subtlety. Of course I've know about the assassination in great detail all my reading life. Of course I know the Gettysburg Address by heart (though generations younger than I am probably don't). Well, there came that moment in the film when the capstone had been placed, when the passage of the 13th Amendment had been achieved -- and any blathering fool who still argues that "the War was not about slavery" should have his mouth taped shut as teachers used to do in the USA in 'the good old days' -- that moment when in effect Lincoln had become immortal morally, and at that moment I sat in the theater agonized by foreknowledge, horrified by anticipating the next scene, which could only be the assassination. Oh no! No! Not now! let the Glory wave a short while! Read more ›

New Lincoln (Four Disc Blu-ray / DVD + Digital Copy) (2012)

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

Other Formats & Versions			Amazon Price		New from	Used from
	Multi-Format	3-Disc Version	$22.49		$13.99	$10.07
Expand	Blu-ray	1-Disc Version	$13.10		$8.65	$4.39
Expand	DVD	1-Disc Version	$7.99		$4.25	$2.09

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter explores the secret life of our greatest president, and the untold story that shaped our nation. Visionary filmmakers Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov (Director of Wanted) bring a fresh and visceral voice to the bloodthirsty lore of the vampire, imagining Lincoln as history's greatest hunter of the undead.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

Many modern genre movies have developed a worrisome postmodern tic, often rushing to point out their own ridiculousness before the audience even gets a chance to get swept up and taken in. The historical monster mash Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is profoundly silly--even sillier, possibly, than the title suggests--but it conducts itself with an admirably straight face. Seth Grahame-Smith's script (based on his own novel) finds the Young Mr. Lincoln (Benjamin Walker) set on a path of righteous vengeance after watching his mother get fatally fanged. As he studies the law and woos the ravishing Mary Todd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) by day, the nights find him throwing down with an unending army of the undead. When he discovers the plot of a master vampire (the excellently dry Rufus Sewell) to conquer the United States, he makes the fateful decision to throw his hat (and silver-bladed ax) into the ring of national politics. Director Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted, the Night Watch series) brings a wide-eyed fervor to the material, offering tantalizing hints of a larger mythology while also glorying in the wonky kineticism of the plentiful action sequences. (He's aided in his mission by legendary cinematographer Caleb Deschanel, who gives the images an old-timey View-Master texture.) Scholars of the historical record may well develop the vapors, but for susceptible viewers, the film's wink-free approach and exceedingly game performers make it frightfully easy to sit back, switch off, and bask in its poker-faced outrageousness. Many movies have had somebody thrown by a horse; this movie has a bad guy pick up a horse and throw it at the hero. Brothers and Sisters, there is a difference. --Andrew Wright

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

New Lincoln (Two Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack) (2012)

Lincoln (Two Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack) (2012)

 

Lincoln (Two Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack) (2012)

Well done, enjoyed the final days accounts and activities of our great president who really had a clue during his time I had a feeling I wasn't going to like this movie, but after hearing about how great it was and seeing that it was nominated for academy awards in several categories, I decided to take a chance and buy it. That was the wrong decision. I had to quit watching after an hour because it was so boring! It would have been so much better if they would have made the movie about Lincoln's whole life instead of focusing on the last 4 months of it. I can't comment on the whole movie because I only watched it for an hour but I see by reading other reviews that the whole movie is as boring as the part I saw. Maybe I'll try to watch the whole thing some day. As of now, I don't understand how this movie got such rave reviews.

Lincoln

Historians will enjoy. Fictional portrayal as real as it can get. Lincoln, the man & his troubles in the last days. Spielberg sprays his magic wand glitter over every aspect of this film.
Cast is outstanding;
cinematography is spellbinding in itself,
the music period precision,
costuming exacting right down to the sweat and body odor.
Story is compelling and edgy.
However, I found myself laughing heartily during strange moments at very funny lines mixed into the dialogue of late Civil War days. It points to just how much of the black prejudice story has remained constant. Congress fights with words and actions, with little based on ethic . . . sound familiar. I don't know if the screen play/book writers deserve that credit or did Spielberg touch those aspects too?
I'll refrain from reviewing the book here. This is the film/DVD listing. This film adaptation will be a blockbuster.
DVD SUBTITLES in English, Spanish, and French.

Much will be said of the near perfection in stature and acting of Daniel Day-Lewis's portrayal of Lincoln. He plays the statesman, the angry husband, Christian, a manipulator, and a heart-wrenching depiction of loving father. Crawling on the floor to his sleeping son before the fire hearth brings a near tear.
Sally Fields gives what surely will be a nominated performance as Lincoln's wife, elevating her acting career to another new height.
The list of stars and significant performance highlights is endless. It's impossible to cover all that happens in this 2 ½ hour film that moves with such suspense and action that it seems less than half that length. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll beg for more when the credits roll. Read more ›

Lincoln

Tube. Duration : 149.93 Mins.

Lincoln
 
From DreamWorks Pictures and legendary filmmaker Steven Spielberg comes an epic film that chronicles the untold story of the final four months of the man regarded as America's greatest President. Featuring an all star ensemble cast led by Academy Award winner Daniel Day-Lewis in the title role, this movie explores Lincoln not just as the commander-in-chief of a country in chaos, but also as a man with moral courage and hope, a progressive thinker who chall.
Lincoln

Lincoln

Lincoln Argo (Blu-ray/DVD Combo+UltraViolet Digital Copy) (2013)

Lincoln Argo

Argo (Blu-ray/DVD Combo+UltraViolet Digital Copy) (2013)

"You might need to have spent some of your youth celebrating Lincoln's birthday, or noticing Lincoln's picture on the penny, or reading some of the pop boys' books about the War. You might need to have read Walt Whitman's Civil War poetry, especially "When Lilacs Last etc", and more than once. Lincoln is a powerful shamanic totemic figure in the American mind, and seeing him made human by DDL is like being told yes, there is a heaven for pets or yes any child can become president. But the film handles the assassination with the greatest cinematic subtlety. Of course I've know about the assassination in great detail all my reading life. Of course I know the Gettysburg Address by heart (though generations younger than I am probably don't). Well, there came that moment in the film when the capstone had been placed, when the passage of the 13th Amendment had been achieved -- and any blathering fool who still argues that "the War was not about slavery" should have his mouth taped shut as teachers used to do in the USA in 'the good old days' -- that moment when in effect Lincoln had become immortal morally, and at that moment I sat in the theater agonized by foreknowledge, horrified by anticipating the next scene, which could only be the assassination. Oh no! No! Not now! let the Glory wave a short while! I'm not a guy who cries in cinemas, but I couldn't stop myself from bawling as if a close friend or sib were dying in my arms. Lincoln's death became a personal tragedy for me, for the first brief time, at that moment in the film. My dry historical awareness of the tragedy will never be merely intellectual again. Wait! Not yet! Spare me the scene of his death! I WANT HIM TO LIVE!

Lincoln