Olympus Has Fallen

MOVIE DETAILS:                      

DIRECTOR: Antoine Fuqua

GENRE: Action, Thriller

RATED: R

CAST: Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman

SYNOPSIS: A terrorist group takes over the White House and has the President hostage. Disgraced former Presidential bodyguard, Mike Banning, finds himself stuck in the White House, fighting these terrorists alone. Banning is the only hope the national security team has of saving the life of the President and of the world.

PERSONAL COMMENTARY:                                                        

A true movie critic may find this movie boring and unoriginal, but as a part of the general audience, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie.

The plot and storyline was pretty well done, and although not outstandingly unique, it was above average and well-executed. The strong group of actors starring in the movie contributed well to building character and depth. There was a lot of action -- not the pointless action scenes in most other movies where people fight for the sake of action -- these actions scenes made sense as part of the plot. The timing and pacing of the entire film was also very good. From start to end, the pacing was fast and furious, engaging me every second. As a whole, it seemed like all of the elements in the movie were well-established.

Without thinking too critically, the movie was purely entertaining all the way through. It would definitely be an enjoyable watch at the theater. My rating would be a 4.2 out of 5. 

Dead Man Down

MOVIE DETAILS:                                                                                                       

DIRECTOR: Niels Arden Oplev

GENRE: Action, Crime, Drama

RATED: R

CAST: Colin Farrell, Noomi Rapace, Dominic Cooper

SYNOPSIS: Victor is rising in his position as a gang member, ruled by Alphonse, with vengeance in mind. Beatrice, Victor's neighbor, discover's Victor's secret and threatens to reveal the truth unless he helps her with her own revenge. Together, they devise a life-changing revenge.

PERSONAL COMMENTARY:                                                        

This movie was quite an entertaining watch. I think it was pretty different from the normal action movie.

The best thing about the movie is the story. It starts out kind of throwing the audience right into the middle of the story, and it reveals little by little. The storyline was engaging, and I thought the cast was pretty well put together, including the supporting cast of gang members. Along with that, there was good action and a decent (and kind of expected) amount of drama. 

One thing that really got my attention in the movie that I wanted to share was the song "Eblouie par la nuit" by Zaz. It played on Beatrice's stereo in the movie and during the credits, and I fell in love with it even though I have no idea what it means. 

In sum, it was a pretty great watch. Something a little different and twisted. It would be a good movie to watch in theaters, but not exactly necessary. I would rate it a 4.1 out of 5 (an extra ".1" for the wonderful song).

Jack The Giant Slayer

MOVIE DETAILS:                             

DIRECTOR: Bryan Singer

GENRE: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy

RATED: PG-13

CAST: Nicholas Hoult, Eleanor Tomlinson, Ewan McGregor

SYNOPSIS: Jack, a farm boy, finds himself in the middle of a legendary war between humans and giants. He fights for the kingdom and the love of the princess to do whatever it takes to take down the giants.

PERSONAL COMMENTARY:   

It hasn't been long since I have seen Nicholas Hoult in his role as a zombie in "Warm Bodies." In this movie, his character does not disappoint. I think the overall cast for this movie was solid, and each character was portrayed well. 

I have always loved the fantasy genre, and I was eager to see a modern twist on classic fairy tales. It was incredibly exciting and fun to watch, and my attention was captured by every second of the movie. There was one point where I thought the movie was going to be quite predictable, but there was an interesting twist. I loved that it kept the basic concept of the fairy tale while implementing some new ideas to the plot. 

The effects and scenes were amazing. The whole movie was filmed in such a creative way; it was literally a work of art. Everything about the visuals was so artistic and fantastical. 

In sum, I extremely enjoyed watching this movie, and I think an audience of all ages would enjoy it too. It would be a great family movie, and it is worth going to the theater to watch. My inner child wants to rate this movie close to a 5 out of 5.