Rush

So now I finally see what all the fuss was about Rush.  It's a superb Ron Howard film that chronicles the true life of iconic car racers Niki Lauda (David Bruhl) and James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) during their competitive years.  Now I don't have much interest in car racing personally, but I quickly discovered that the racing aspect wasn't what the movie was really about.  It was about the approach to life of these two very different men and how they ultimately learned respect for one another.  The movie just has a great story with racing as a backdrop.  It never lags, thanks to the directing and editing.  Hard not to compare it to the classic Chariots Of Fire. 

The Wolverine

This long awaited film is good on many levels, but it's biggest detractor is that its been too long awaited and delayed.  It picks up where 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand left off, which is an inconveniently big shift given the more recent  X Men and Wolverine movies that have gone back to their origins, and can therefore get a bit disorienting.  In this film, Logan reluctantly goes to Japan at the request of a former Japanese soldier he saved in WW2, only to find himself quickly caught up in a treacherous war with ultimately a bit too many shifting alliances and revelations. There's more character exploration of Logan that's good and an intriguing international backdrop with interesting new characters, but the aforementioned problems with an over the top plot, delayed timeline between films, and some overdone cgi sequences, including a finale with too much obvious borrowing from The Transformers movies, diminish The Wolverine considerably to just entertaining. 

The Hunt

Scandinavian movies have been so interestingly good in recent years, and 2012's The Hunt is no exception.  It takes a look at the life of a schoolteacher (played by Mads Mikkelsen) in a small town dealing with the accusation of child molestation towards his student.  The nature of people and what it can morph into is examined.Even beyond the somberness the subject matter would suggest, is the unexpected tense and the masterful, suspenseful heights director Thomas Vinterberg elevates it towards combined with the superb acting of Mikkelsen and the rest of the cast.

2 Guns

Two undercover law enforcement officers of different agencies find themselves at great odds with each other, their respective agencies, a drug cartel, and the CIA. A great cast in Denzel Washington, Mark Wahlberg, Bill Paxton, Edward James Olmos, and others are one of the keys to elevating this movie to extremely fun to watch. Washington and Wahlberg both, of course have enough on-screen charisma and they seem to really be having fun in this action-comedy, Mexican standoff style.  That genuine combination of a cast having fun with comedy and action, is exactly what make 2 Guns enjoyable, as the improbable and excessive twist and turns in the plot aren't exactly its strong suit.

All Is Lost

A man alone tries to survive on his damaged boat in the middle of the ocean. The premise may not sound too exciting, but writer and director J.C. Chandor and a sole cast of Robert Redford really deliver well in this tale of survival and humanity.  I was really impressed at the real acting ability of Redford (hardly a line of dialogue) to portray a man alone trying to hold it together in the vast ocean.  The fact is that the movie not only held my attention for that long, but had me caught up in the character's plight and looking inwards.  Real acting in real quality movie, justify it's recent nominations.  Hard to believe Redford was 77 years old while making this.

Man Of Tai Chi

Keanu Reeves co-stars and makes his directorial debut, in no less than a traditional Hong Kong martial arts film.  It centers around a young tai chi expert (Tiger Hu Chen) who finds himself caught up in the ruthless world of underground fighting.  No surprise here at the premise. I think what really surprised me and perhaps many other fans of the martial arts genre/Reeves himself, was how un-Hollywood in budget or quality the film is.  After all, a union of Keanu Reeves and Hong Kong action, would seem to suggest that to one's expectations.  Well folks, The Matrix it ain't.   Let's just get that out of the way. Again, it's a traditional Hong Kong martial arts film and it suffers from many of the flaws in storyline and script. For a Westerner to debut directing a Chinese martial arts film would be challenging enough.  But to embark upon a film about the application of the elusive and mysterious nature of tai chi application, is quite another thing.  No, it's not the best martial art film or even the first to endeavor into tai chi.  (I have yet to view the Tai Chi Zero movies myself) What the filmmakers do a decent job of, is conveying those concepts inherent in tai chi, onto the screen in an entertaining and meaningful way. There is much heart in the endeavor and it shows. I was pleasantly surprised at this, because my expectations had fallen quite a bit, upon viewing the trailer after being really intrigued and excited like everyone else  at the initial prospect of Keanu and the subject of tai chi.  

Man Of Steel

The latest film incarnation of the classic Superman story, gets a much needed fresh take thanks to director Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen) and writers David Goyer and Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight Rises). So it goes without saying that Man Of Steel certainly has an impressive epic like feel to it, anchored by the performances of many of Hollywood's heavy hitters, including Amy Adams, Russel Crowe, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne, Kevin Costner, Michael Shannon, and Henry Cavill.  The story focuses on the origin of Superman (Cavill) and the destruction of his planet Krypton, that ultimately leads its former military leader General Zod (Michael Shannon) to earth in an attempt to rebuild that world.  Throughout the film, I was really most  impressed with Shannon's stellar performance at portraying this formidable and complicated villain of Superman, which given his previous work is really no surprise.  A fresh take is also given to the role of love interest Lois Lane as an integral part of the story, though the onscreen chemistry of the couple wasn't present.  But I reiterate in giving much credit to writers Goyer and Nolan for the shift in focus, that take into account the traditional old school fans of Superman and the more contemporary fan base that grew up watching Smalleville.  After the very successful Marvel franchises of Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor that culminated into the spectacular game changing The Avengers or the equally impressive Transformers franchise, it was time for DC to step up after the conclusion of their Batman trilogy and failure with no less than Green Lantern.  I won't say that Man Of Steel was the best, but Nolan, Snyder, and Goyer certainly saved Superman, resurrecting him from the ashes of 2006's Superman Returns and making him cinematically relevant to today's audience.  It was the least DC could do.  It's true that there are so many plot parallel's that damn near mimic the identical action plots of the Transformers or Marvel films.  If costumes and characters were changed, it could easily be one of those films.  But it certainly does work in an undeniably enjoyable and watchable way.  The strong epic and contemporarily relevant story,  infuse Man Of Steel with just enough substinance to keep DC afloat.