I get behind in my movie reviews when I post other things. Here's three recent action films I saw, and the only one of the three I really liked much was RED. The movie titles link to trailers.
The hope with any movie is that it is
going to be a treat, especially if the trailer really sells it. It’s why we pick ‘em! Yet the trailer here oversold it a bit. This looked like a Hitchcockian tale of a
bike messenger caught up in some sort of espionage or super-spy plot and using
all his bicycle skills to stay one step ahead of them all. There was a bit of this feeling here, and
Joseph Gordon-Levitt was agreeable in this role, as usual, but in the end, it
was revealed to be something quite a bit less than espionage or secret agent
shenanigans, and some of the bike stunts by then came off as B-movie stunt
work, like we were watching a sequel to that really old Nicole Kidman Australian bike flick. We could call it BMX Bandits,
Part 2: Trouble in New York.
Winner of the 2008 Oscar for Best Picture,
director Kathryn Bigelow became the first female winner of the Best Director
award. What’s more, I really like the
actor Jeremy Renner, a pug-ish actor on the short side who is all muscle and attitude,
reminiscent of the new James Bond Daniel Craig.
It’s no coincidence they’ve been using him to add some macho spice to
the latest Bourne movie, Bourne Legacy, the Mission: Impossible sequels, The
Avengers (as Hawkeye), and Hansel
& Gretel: Witch Hunters.
Yet
I don’t quite understand all the accolades.
I didn’t hate The Hurt Locker, of course. It was quite good actually. But Best Picture and Best Director? Is it really that good? Does
it even really compare with other acclaimed war films such as Platoon and Saving Private
Ryan? Personally, I don't see it. This one didn’t reach me
emotionally like some of these other war pictures did. I just don’t understand why it was such a hit
at the Oscars, especially when its competition was Avatar, the groundbreaking sci-fi film from Bigelow’s ex-hubby
James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious
Basterds, and my favorite among them, The
Blind Side. I even liked Pixar’s Up more, which was also nominated for
Best Picture. After having seen it, it
still leaves me scratching my head, questioning, “Just what is up with this
film?” Maybe the critics can appreciate
its searing look at life and death, but other films struggle with this theme as well -- like Brothers -- and especially war films. Just what does this film have that these other films don't. I still don't see why it garnered such award buzz.
I had resisted watching this one, for I
thought “Helen Mirren with a machine gun?
What will they think of next?”
But several friends told me it was good, and had some humor, so I tried
it. In this case, I’m glad I did. I wasn’t disappointed. It’s not the best action movie I’ve ever
seen, but it wasn’t the worst either, and Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren, John
Malkovich, Morgan Freeman, Brian Cox, and Mary Louise-Parker were all quite
good, though Richard Dreyfuss didn’t bring a whole lot as the main villain, and
neither did Julian McMahon as the deceitful Vice President who gets what’s
coming to him. However, the big surprise
here was Karl Urban as William Cooper, a devout agent and loving family man who
pursues this RED team (which stands for “Retired: Extremely Dangerous”) with a
dogged determinism, until he uncovers exactly why the CIA wants them
eliminated, and then he turns out to be one of the good guys. After seeing him in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and then as Dr. Leonard McCoy in the
two latest Star Trek movies, and now
this, I’m certainly a fan!
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