Captain America: The First Avenger

Directed By: Joe Johnston
Written By: Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely
Starring: Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Hayley Atwell, Tommy Lee Jones & Stanley Tucci
Rated: PG-13

MY RATING: C

This movie follows Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) who starts off as a thin, frail man with ambitions to join the military and fight for his country during World War II.  Steve Rogers is turned down over and over because of his size and health limitations until he meets Dr. Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) who sees past his physical appearance and puts faith in his character.  Dr. Erskine uses Rogers for a top secret research experiment that turns him into a Super Soldier.  With his newfound abilities Captain America must save the world from Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) and his followers.

Now for me I'm sorry but this film was just okay.  I believe it did the comic book justice for fans of Captain America (so I'm told) but for a novice looking for great action, a sexy hero and impressive special effects, I was disappointed.
I will say that I'm not a fan of war movies and being that this movie takes place during World War II and is a large focus, that could have something to do with it.
But aside from that I wasn't that impressed with Captain America's abilities.  I kept waiting for his shield to do more or for him to have some sort of fancy impressive vehicle but that didn't happen.  Also surprisingly Chris Evans didn't have that sex appeal that I usually look for in a super hero.  I don't know what was missing but it wasn't there for me.  He's no Thor (Chris Hemsworth) or Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.).
I think if this weren't a super hero movie it would've been better, meaning if it was just a drama about a man who suddenly gains strength and fights for his country  This movie had too much story and dealt with too serious of a topic for it to be lighthearted and fun the way comic book movies should be.  Also Red Skull (Weaving) wasn't that great of a villain either.  I hope there are better ones in the comic books.  I enjoyed the budding relationship between Rogers (Evans) and Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) but as usual it was rushed and not developed enough for me to feel for them.  I loved the beginning of the film and there's definitely a lot of humor but the action sequences were too cartoony for my taste.  I was still entertained but left wanting more and feeling like some things were missing. 
The Avengers movie is due out next summer which I'm definitely looking forward to and hope Captain America is more impressive next time around. 

So I'd say see it but there's no rush.

Insidious

Directed By: James Wan
Written By: Leigh Whannell
Starring: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Lin Shayne, Barbara Hershey & Ty Simpkins
Rated: PG-13

MY RATING: C-

This is the story of a family of five who move into a new house where mysterious things start happening.  Wife and mom Renai (Rose Byrne) starts to hear strange noises and notice things being moved around in the house.  But the strangest event happens to the family's son Dalton (Ty Simpkins) when he falls into a coma that no doctors can explain or understand.  After this horrible event the family's luck gets worse.  Renai (Byrne) sees people in their house and her husband Josh (Patrick Wilson) starts to stray from their home and all of the turmoil inside it.  They decide to seek help and uncover more than they ever bargained for.  Secrets are unlocked along with the key to saving their son.

Now this film had a strong start for me.  I was definitely in suspense when the mom (Byrne) would hear strange sounds and go to investigate dark, quiet rooms.  I was intrigued by what happened to the oldest child Dalton (Simpkins) and drawn into the dad's (Wilson) internal conflict.  Sometimes what you don't see is truly scarier than what is actually there.  Once we get to the second half of the movie and the plot is revealed more that's when the film started going downhill for me.  It turned into a poor, poor knockoff of Poltergeist.  The old paranormal expert Elise Reiner (Lin Shaye) who comes to save the family was disappointing and just weird.  I did not enjoy her character at all.  But the most disappointing things for me were the ghosts.  When I see a movie like this I want to be scared or at least haunted and I felt nothing.  I actually found all of the spirits to be silly and ridiculous and the script really fell apart for me at the end.  The father (Wilson) travels to an alternate realm called The Further to rescue his son Dalton (Simpkins).  Elise (Shaye) paints a picture of The Further as a place to be feared but I found it to just be strange and disappointing.  There was too much build-up and a lot of let down.  This part of the film didn't even hold my interest all the way through.  I figured out the resolution so I was just anticipating the end already.  Also there's supposed to be this big surprise element that you'll never guess and leave the film talking about ... I was talking about it all right, talking about how silly it was. 

The only reason this film wasn't all bad for me is because of the first half of it, that was really good but the rest was not scary at all. 

So I'd say you can check this out on t.v. around Halloween time if it's in the middle of some kind of marathon.

Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son

Directed By: John Whitesell
Written By: Matthew Fogel
Starring: Martin Lawrence, Brandon T. Jackson, Jessica Lucas & Portia Doubleday
Rated: PG-13

MY RATING: D-

Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son ... why oh why?!  Sometimes leave well enough alone. 
We don't always need a sequel, let alone sequelsss!  I love Martin Lawrence and enjoyed the first Big Momma's House but that's where the story could've ended for me.

In this third installment of the Big Momma's House films Martin Lawrence returns as FBI agent Malcolm Turner.  This time his stepson Trent is a senior in high school and played by a new actor, Brandon T. Jackson.  Trent ends up witnessing a murder so he and Malcolm go undercover at an all-girls performing arts school where evidence is hidden that could put away the bad guys and save Trent's life.
Sound ridiculous?  Well it is.
I mean don't get me wrong, I chuckled here and there at some of the scenes with Big Momma but overall this movie is definitely more for kids.  The humor was just way too ridiculous for me and the all-girls performing arts school element was a poor version of FAME.  Faizon Love plays Kurtis Kool and thank goodness he was there for some additional humor.  There were some funny scenes between Kurtis Kool (Love) and Big Momma (Lawrence).  But I didn't enjoy Brandon T. Jackson's acting at all as Trent.  Sadly he was better dressed in drag as his undercover character Charmaine, but not by much.  There were a couple of funny scenes involving Charmaine trying to hide Trent's masculinity.  Also there was a little bit of heart in the best character in the movie, Haley, played by Jessica Lucas.  Of course Trent (Jackson) ends up falling in love with her while he's dressed as Charmaine.  What a surprise.  From the beginning this movie was predictable and not that funny.  All in all I hope they're done making Big Momma's House movies for good. 

I say this is not worth your time at all. 

RED

Directed By: Robert Schwentke
Written By: Jon Hoeber and Erich Hoeber
Starring: Bruce Willis, Mary-Louise Parker, Karl Urban, John Malkovich, Helen Mirren & Morgan Freeman
Rated: PG-13

MY RATING: C

Retired and mostly dangerous.

This film opens with Frank Moses (Bruce Willis) living a retired extremely boring life.  He's in the suburbs of Ohio with no wife, girlfriend, pets or friends.  His only excitement comes from calling the customer service agent Sarah (Mary-Louise Parker) who works at his pension office in Kansas City.  They obviously like each other and Frank even tells Sarah that he plans to visit her in a week.  But Frank is caught off guard one night when assassins are sent to his house to kill him.  Now instead of the romantic first meeting he had hoped for, Frank is forced to kidnap Sarah for her safety and they go on the run in the hopes of finding out who's trying to kill them.  Along the way Frank rounds up his old friends who are also marked RED and together they look for the person responsible for the hit on Frank (Willis).  But of course it can't be that simple.  CIA agent William Cooper (Karl Urban) is after Frank Moses too so the hunts are on.

This movie was pretty fun to watch, nothing extraordinary though.  John Malkovich steals the show (as always) as Marvin, a paranoid conspiracy theorist and he is hilarious.  I wouldn't necessarily consider him dangerous though.  Bruce Willis as Frank Moses however is a bad ass and I'd say the only "Extremely Dangerous" one of the group.  Karl Urban ("William Cooper") is definitely a match for him as he relentlessly stays hot on his trail.  There's even a great fight scene when Cooper (Urban) and Moses (Willis) finally collide.  I also love that Helen Mirren shows that women can kick butt too!   
There's lots of action and plenty of comedy but I wasn't in love with the storyline.  It was pretty simple to follow but just a little boring.  There comes a point where the plot is fully revealed and they start working towards a resolution and I was ready to speed things up a little.  I guess I was just a little disappointed.  You have all these big name actors but it was really a Bruce Willis and John Malkovich movie.  Morgan Freeman barely had a part so I'm not even sure why they added him.  With all that said I was still pretty entertained for most of the film.  I wouldn't say I'd rush to watch it again but it was worth watching once.  Bottom-line if you're into action movies then this is worth putting on your list but not necessarily at the top. 

I'd say see it but there's no rush. 

Beastly

Directed By: Daniel Barnz
Written By: Daniel Barnz
Starring: Alex Pettyfer, Vanessa Hudgens, Neil Patrick Harris, Lisa Gay Hamilton & Mary-Kate Olsen
Rated: PG-13

MY RATING: C+

This is a modern day take on Beauty and the Beast for the teenagers of the 21st century.
In this version high school student Kyle (Alex Pettyfer) is very arrogant and egotistical and believes looks are everything.  He's the most popular in his school and treats everyone as a means to an end.  Despite rumors that one student named Kendra is a witch (Mary-Kate Olsen) he treats her like dirt anyway and she gets revenge.  At a school dance she puts a curse on Kyle (Pettyfer) that makes him "beastly" looking.  She tells him that he has one year to get someone to fall in love with him and tell him they love him or he'll be stuck with his new gruesome looks forever.  As a result Kyle goes into hiding.  He wanders the streets at night and one night spots a girl from school named Lindy (Hudgens) who he's suddenly taken with.  He follows Lindy home where she gets involved in an altercation between her father and two muggers.  Her father shoots and kills one guy and the other promises to have his revenge.  Kyle steps in and offers to hide and protect Lindy and her father agrees.  So Lindy (Hudgens) stays with Kyle (Pettyfer) believing he's a friend of her father's along with Kyle's maid (Lisa Gay Hamilton) and blind tutor (Neil Patrick Harris).  Now the clock is ticking for Kyle to get Lindy to fall in love with him before it's too late.     

This movie was predictable of course but it was also sweet, sappy and romantic.  I wasn't crazy about the beginning but luckily that didn't last more than 10 minutes into the film.  Director and Writer Daniel Barnz did a good job of quickly getting to the meat and potatoes of the story.  Beastly is like a watered down version of Twilight sans the vampires and werewolves of course.  Yes the reason for Lindy (Hudgens) to be trapped in the house with Kyle (Pettyfer) is pretty ridiculous but once you get past that you can enjoy this movie.   
Neil Patrick Harris brings humor and wit to the film as Will, Kyle's tutor but his blindness wasn't a hundred percent believable.  Sorry but he's no Al Pacino.  Same goes for Lisa Gay Hamilton, hit and miss.  She definitely delivers the heart and maternal guidance as Zola but her island accent went in and out.
Beastly was a little sluggish in the middle but other than that it was pretty good.  I loved the make-up job they did on Alex Pettyfer and I surprisingly liked a lot of the dialogue in the script. 

Overall I think tweens and teens will like this film and it has a good message.  Women who love romance novels and other sappy love stories will also enjoy this one.  Men if you're forced to watch this with your girlfriend or wife ... I'm sorry. 

This is one to catch on t.v.

Transformers: Dark of Moon

Directed By: Michael Bay
Written By: Ehren Kruger
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Josh Duhamel, John Turturro, Frances McDormand, Patrick Dempsey,Tyrese Gibson and John Malkovich
Rated: PG-13

MY RATING: D+

Okay so Transformers: Dark of Moon, a third sequel ... why oh why?  I must say I was disappointed with this one.

I will try to simplify this overly complicated story as best as I can.  In this third film, the Decepticons and Autobots are at odds again.  This time the Decepticons hope to use pillars, which have the power of teleportation, to bring planet Cybertron to Earth and build a new home where humans are the slaves.  Of course Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) is back, this time he's fresh out of college and (true to our economic climate) having a hard time finding a job despite his accomplishments as a "hero."  His former girlfriend (Megan Fox) is out and he's met someone new named Carly (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley).  He ends up landing a job at a company led by tyrannical boss, Bruce Brazos (John Malkovich).  While on the job he meets the over-the-top Jerry Wang (Ken Jeong) who ends up having secrets that could help Sam save the world.  So once again the Decepticons and Autobots battle it out and we're all caught in the middle.   

For me this film had an overly complicated script.  They spent too much time explaining the whole, pillars, The Ark spacecraft, planet Cybertron, moon, NASA, blah, blah, blah and not enough time on a tangible story with Sam Witwicky.  The first two films were all about Sam (Shia) which got us to care about him and in this third one not much time was spent on his character.  His parents return for no necessary reason and are nowhere near as funny as they were before.  Jerry Wang (Jeong) and Bruce Brazos (Malkovich) also weren't that funny and seemed out of place.  Then there's the new relationship between Witwicky and Carly which was not developed enough to create a connection to them.  I enjoyed them but I can't say that I was rooting for them throughout the film.  The focus was mainly on the transformers in this one so the human characters took a hit in their development.  I mean they tried to make Patrick Dempsey a bad guy.  Come on now!  Not McDreamy!  Sorry didn't work for me.   
Add in Michael Bay's over usage of the slow motion shot and you just have a big budget let down.  The best part of this film was the last ten minutes.  Great action there!

So I'd say if you're a man's man and love military, government conspiracy type films and you're a huge fan of the Transformers cartoons then this is the film for you.
Everyone else ... the first one was the best and you could actually skip this one altogether. 

(Note to Parents: A good deal of profanity so this is definitely for children 13 and up.)