“The Town” is a superbly acted, and well-scripted action thriller, that joins the great tradition of heist movies like “Heat,” and “The Bank Job.”

Director, and Leading Man Ben Affleck, a native of Cambridge, Massachusetts, brings the hidden nature of Charlestown to life brilliantly through a dark, and gritty portrayal of the city that is very reminiscent of his last film, “Gone Baby Gone.”

In “The Town,” Affleck uses sweeping cinematography, along with his first hand knowledge of the Boston area, to introduce us to a city known as the robbery capital of America…a place where professional criminals are bred…and robbing banks is a way of life.

The plot focuses most of its attention on the relationship Affleck’s character Doug MacRay, develops with a woman, (Rebecca Hall), his band of thieves kidnapped during a job.

With the FBI hot on their trail, the team tries to plan their next major heist, while dealing with the possibility that their former hostage might be able to identify a member of the tight-knit crew.

Ultimately, MacRay finds it hard to balance his life as a bank robber, and keep his secret from the woman he now has strong feelings for.  He knows if his gang isn’t careful, everything will come crashing down around them.  Through his eyes we see how short the life of a professional thief can be, and how their actions affect everyone they love.

Despite being the punch line of a few “bad acting jokes,” Affleck brings his A Game to “The Town, ” and the rest of the cast follows his lead.

Jeremy Renner’s excellent dramatic turn as the career criminal, James “Jem” Coughlin, could earn him a best supporting actor nod, and Rebecca Hall delivers a strong performance that reminded me of her roll in the “Prestige.”

“The Town” has everything, and is without a doubt, one of the best movies of the year.  I will warn you though…after seeing this movie, some of you might consider robbing a bank…

M. Night Shyamalan finally writes a story that harkens back to the groundbreaking films that made him famous.  If you like “Unbreakable,”  “The Sixth Sense,” and “Signs,” you’ll know what I’m talking about…but fans should be prepared, while the core elements of this story might spark some moments of nostalgia, the actual plot is traditional horror.

“Devil” begins with a group of strangers getting trapped in an elevator, in a big city skyscraper.  At first it all seems random, until we realize no one on the outside understands why the elevator is stuck.  Meanwhile, inside the elevator, a series of bizarre events is taking place that leads each person trapped to assume someone in the group isn’t who they say they are.  Each twist reveals the evil among them, and as the story progresses, and the mysterious incidents continue, the audience begins to see the darker side of each character.

In the end, “Devil” isn’t an over the top scary movie, it’s more of a psychological play on fear…even though there’s an evil force present in the elevator keeping the group trapped, that’s no reason for anyone to over react…is it?

M. Night Shyamalan uses the evil in “Devil” to send a message to his audience about the pitfalls of everyday life, and the randomness of the situations we might find ourselves trapped in.   In his world it’s dangerous to assume anything, and even on an ordinary day, the past can come back to haunt you.

The movie takes you into the stunning life of Secretariat. The films cinematography was amazing with the way they show what its like riding on the horse during a race. They also use slow motion shots to show the grace and beauty at which a race horse runs. One of my favorite scenes is when they show Secretariat running out of fog which shows a magical force within the horse. Diane Lane delivers a powerful performance as Penny Tweedy/Chenery. Her scenes with the horse really shows a connection between the horse and her. John Malkovich plays the trainer Lucien Laurin and he really took the role in stride with a nice blend of sincerity and humor which makes the character very likable.

The film was directed by Randall Wallace who is known for more action packed movies such as We Were Soldiers and The Man in the Iron Mask. Even though he is known for action he delivers a heart warming tale of compassion, love, and a following your heart in what you believe in. The film delivers on so many levels, with its acting, its cinematography, and just overall presentation of the film.

The movie is rated PG and doesnt have anything in the movie that would upset any parents if their child saw the movie. it also has a nice amount of humor that all ages will enjoy. All kids and adults will love the movie.

All in all Disney delivers a heart-warming tale that is great for all ages and a great family film. If you are a true race fan you will notice some differences with the story as in who won some of the races and how some of the owners were portrayed but the movie isn’t all about the historical accuracy, it’s about one of the greatest racehorses to ever live and overcoming the hardships that can face you in life. I loved the movie and give it a 9 out of 10 a must see.

The Real Secretariat

The Town is a movie that will keep you on the edge of your seat wondering if they will pull it out and what will they do next. The action sequences are truly immersive and puts you right next to the action. The camera rolls around the cars as if they aren’t there, which just brings the excitement to another level. The city of Charlestown is known as “The Bank Robbery Capital of America” is a very engrossing city that truly draws you in with the way they span the city with aerial views and street views.

Ben Affleck directed, acted, and was a screenplay writer on the film. Affleck delivered in all three phases. His acting in this film was arguably his best performance he has given. Jeremy Renner as James Coughlin, continues to show his remarkable acting from The Hurt Locker to a supporting actor in this film. He delivers as a menacing character who truly has nothing to lose. I felt that Rebecca Hall as Claire Keesey delivered as she showed true emotion throughout the film no matter what emotion was needed, whether it was sad, mad, happy, or caring all which were very believable.

All in All this movie truly is a rememberable movie that draws you in from the beginning to the end with remarkable acting, writing, and scenery.

8 out of 10

The thing I like most about this series, is the fact that Paul W.S. Anderson does a decent job of following the storyline established in the “Resident Evil” video games, and for the most part, “Afterlife” picks up right where the last movie, “Resident Evil: Extinction,” left off.

Diehard fans of the franchise will be pleased to see that a number of fan favorites from “Extinction” are back in “Afterlife.”  Ali Larter reprises her role as ‘Claire Redfield’, and Spencer Locke returns as ‘K-Mart,’ but as always, the star of “Resident Evil” is Alice (Milla Jovovich)…Face it, she’s the best woman for this role…Where would the series be without her?

The other star of “Resident Evil: Afterlife” is the action!  I’ll be honest, the action sequences in this movie, made the “The Matrix” trilogy look like a rough cut fresh off the first round of editing.  The battle scenes with Alice, and her allies fighting against their enemies, are visually stunning, and the use of slow motion capture, coupled with the same kind of 3D technology used in “Avatar,” adds a visual clarity that allows the audience to actually see the different muscles Alice and Claire are using during their intense fights.

With that said, there are a few scenes in the film where the lead up to some of the more critical moments, could have been explained in greater detail, but “Afterlife” is a take no prisoners action film, that doesn’t want, or need to slow things down, and risk taking away from the visual experience.

If you’re looking for a great action flick, with solid acting, and memorable effects, I recommend this one…And if you get the chance to see it in IMAX, do it!

8 out of 10

I’ve seen my share of Robert Rodriguez films, and the one thing that always stands out to me is the cast.  Good or bad, Robert Rodriguez movies always seems to have casts that include some of the best, and most respected actors and actresses in Hollywood. The cast of ‘Machete’ is no different…Career bad ass, Danny Trejo, leads an ensemble of A list heavy hitters that includes: Robert De Niro, Jessica Alba, Michelle Rodriguez, and Jeff Fahey, with appearances by Steven Segal, Don Johnson, Cheech Marin, and Hollywood’s latest in and out of rehab wild child, Lindsay Lohan.

Even with such a stacked cast, I expected unrealistic action, crappy dialogue, and bad acting, after all, ‘Machete’ is meant to be an homage to the exploitation films from the 1970’s, with a Mexican twist…but one hour and forty-five minutes went by, and I couldn’t believe Robert Rodriguez had actually taken the time to make this film.

Now for the Plot… Machete (Danny Trejo) is an ex-Federale who is betrayed by his boss, which leads to his wife being killed by a Mexican drug lord (Steven Segal).  What happens next is proof that the villains in these types of stories need to adopt a new modus operandi…Kill your intended target first, and worry about the wife and kids later.

After wandering around Texas for a while, Machete is hired by a crooked businessman named Michael Booth (Jeff Fahey) to kill a Texas Senator (Robert De Niro) who is backing immigration laws that are strangely similar to the reforms enacted in Arizona recently.  Of course this is all one big set up, and Machete is framed for a crime he never got to commit.  This time, however, Machete turns to old friends, and a few new allies to aid him in his fight for freedom.  End plot…

As much as I hate to say this, Danny Trejo isn’t convincing as a stone cold Ex-Federale, and Steven Segal is more like the ultimate cheese ball, than a ruthless Mexican drug lord.   I still can’t believe De Niro actually agreed to be in this film!  The Godfather clearly phoned in his performance as a senior Senator from Texas, with a nasty anti immigration platform.  Trust me, this one won’t go down as one of his best performances…I guess even the great Bobby D needs to laugh at himself every now and then.

The other A list appearances in this film are one long train of terrible overacting, and lack luster character execution.  Jessica Alba doesn’t sizzle as Agent Sartana, she’s just corny and annoying… surprise, surprise.  Lohan’s appearance seemed cheap, and contrived for the sake of having her spout off a few lines, and appear topless…Whoops, spoiler!  Jeff Fahey, Cheech Marin, and Don Johnson don’t even deserve mentioning.  Michelle Rodriguez’s portrayal of Luz, a.k.a. Shé, a gun toting taco stand lady, might be the only saving grace for this film, but at times even she seemed more like a cartoon commando than a true freedom fighting revolutionary.

5/10

Despite the lack of scary events in the film I thought the story line was good.  That is until the end came.  It leaves the audience with no idea of what happened and doesn’t’ even attempt to explain unanswered questions.  What I did get from this film is a plausible plot turned to rubbish when the film takes a trip to never going to happen land.

What could have been a good movie was unattainable because of the final fifteen to twenty minutes of the film.  This small but important segment takes away from the quality of the film as well as the viewer’s interest.

5/10

“The American” shows a more realistic side of the life an assassin leads.  George Clooney’s character, Jack (I’d say his last name, but unfortunately the characters in this film are so bleak that they are never given) lacks the ability to have personal relationships with anyone who he encounters, because there is no one who he truly trusts.  He spends countless hours alone and is cautious of every move made by himself and others for fear that someone is looking to either arrest or kill him.  He masters and fine-tunes all of the human senses.

“The American’s” slow-paced storyline reminded me of “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.”  A much slower paced storyline that truly looks into the life of the character.

Although the acting was performed well for what was called for in the roles, the movie is somewhat boring.  I understand the idea of film to show the life of an assassin, but that realization doesn’t make the film any less dreary.

6/10

The film is shot in a old style type of shooting with an over the top amount of blood, but in a way of making it funny and interesting because it is so over the top. The movie is meant to be a funny different type of action movie that is not supposed to be a serious type of movie just a movie that is very entertaining and it doesn’t fail to impress. Danny Trejo doesn’t have very many lines but that adds to the mystique of Machete.

All in all the movie is packed with lots of action and comical parts that makes the movie a very enjoyable movie to watch. I would give the movie a 7 out of 10.

7 out of 10

Don’t get me wrong “Dinner For Schmucks” had its funny moments, but not nearly as many as I had anticipated.

What funny parts there were in the movie came from Steve Carell’s character as Barry, and a few from Zach Galifianakis as his boss.  Considering that these two have both taken part in some comedic excellencies on film, it was somewhat disappointing.  I didn’t find Paul Rudd funny at all.  Going into the movie I thought there was a good line up of cast members, and considering that Jay Roach has directed the “Austin Powers” series, “Meet The Parents” and “Meet The Fockers,” one would think that this film would be hilarious.  It just didn’t meet expectations.

6 out of 10