10s Movie Review - The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Director: Francis Lawrence
Genre: Science Fiction/ Action/ Drama/ Dystopian
Runtime: 146 minutes
Year: 2013
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Lenny Kravitz, Elizabeth Banks, Donald Sutherland, Stanley Tucci, Toby Jones, Sam Claflin,, Jeffrey Wright, Amanda Plummer, Jena Malone, Philip Seymour Hoffman

Description: Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) become targets of the Capitol after their victory in the 74th Hunger Games sparks a rebellion in the Districts of Panem.

Review: The first film in “The Hunger Games” franchise was a huge success and was really good. The second movie gets a new director, Gary Ross steps down and makes room for Francis Lawrence. 
Instead of getting in to the action right away, Lawrence takes time to look back on the happenings from the first film. The surprising climax of the 74th Hunger Games has changed a lot and it’s not over for Katniss and Peeta just yet. Together they have to visit all the districts for a victory tour, something they both don’t like doing. The people love Katniss and president Snow is anything but happy about it. 

Plutarch Heavensbee is the new game maker and decides to make the 75th Hunger Games into something unforgettable. Together with president Snow they decide to let former winners from each district fight it out in the arena. Because Katniss is the only female winner from district 12, she has to enter. And Peeta joins her again, when he volunteers after Haymitch was chosen. 

“The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” is a case of bigger and better. But also visually it brings us more. No shaky cam here, which make the actions scenes even better. And the new arena brings a lot more variation and new dangers. The story is very true to its source material. 

It takes some time before the actual battle starts, but the movie never bores. This is also a big thank you to Jennifer Lawrence, who shines once again as Katniss. A tough heroine, who can also be vulnerable and it’s easy to identify with her. This franchise separates itself from other young adult films that were based on books. The film also adds some great new characters, like Finnick, Beetee, Plutarch and Johanna. 

“The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” was already my favorite book in the series, it’s a fantastic film as well.

Rating: 5 / 5

10s Movie Review - The Hunger Games

Director: Gary Ross
Genre: Adventure/ Action/ Dystopia/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 142 minutes
Year: 2012
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Lenny Kravitz, Stanley Tucci, Wes Bently, Donald Sutherland, Toby Jones

Description: Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) voluntarily takes her younger sister's place in the Hunger Games: a televised competition in which two teenagers from each of the twelve Districts of Panem are chosen at random to fight to the death.

Review: The plot of the by Suzanne Collins written book is promising. Lead character is Katniss Everdeen, who lives in Panem, the new name for the completely destructed North America in a near future. Panem is divided in districts, where the 13th district is already gone. As a punishment, the twelve districts have to deliver one boy and girl to attend the Hunger Games. In this battle only one will come out alive, everyone will literally fight ‘till the death. When Katniss’ sister Primrose is the chosen one for the 74^th Hunger Games, Katniss volunteers to go herself.

All the tributes are dropped in a forest and the people of Panem are watching them every move. The Hunger Games are a big event. It all starts even before the games, where all the tributes have to win over the audience in order to get sponsors.

Jennifer Lawrence is a worthy leading lady and she carries this film easily. She is an underdog, yet a fantastic heroine. Katniss doesn’t want to be a hero though, she is just as afraid as everyone else. But she chooses to fight for her life, without having to kill everyone in sight.

The plot is pretty cruel, but it’s softened a bit to make it more appropriate for a broader audience. That’s okay, because the film’s story is still pretty disturbing.

“The Hunger Games” is a good book to movie adaptation and a great start to a strong franchise.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Like Crazy

Director: Drake Doremus
Genre: Romance
Runtime: 86 minutes
Year: 2011
Starring: Anton Yelchin, Felicity Jones, Jennifer Lawrence, Charlie Bewley, Alex Kingston, Chris Messina
Description: A British college student (Felicity Jones) falls for an American student (Anton Yelchin), only to be separated from him when she's banned from the U.S. after overstaying her visa.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2025 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 14: A FILM WITH JENNIFER LAWRENCE
 
Review: We meet Anna and Jacob when there are in college. The fall in love and spend every waking hour with each other. When Anna’s visa expires, she is forced to go back to England, leaving Jacob behind in the US. They try to make it work long distance, but both of them soon realize that it might be better to see other people. How strong is their love for each other really?

It's a beautiful story, on paper. But I didn’t really enjoy this film. I never really believed Anna and Jacob; Felicity Jones and Anton Yelchin were missing the chemistry. And I felt like, especially Jacob, was happier in the other relationship.

Jones and Yelchin were good in their roles. And Jennifer Lawrence didn’t really have a lot to do in her role as the other woman. But then again, together Jones and Yelchin never managed to convinced me.
It’s not even an hour-and-a-half long, but it felt much longer. And that is never a good sign. I did not hate “Like Crazy”, but I didn’t particularly enjoyed it either.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

20s Movie Review - No Hard Feelings

Director: Gene Stupnitsky
Genre: Comedy
Runtime: 103 minutes
Year: 2023
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Andrew Barth Feldman, Matthew Broderick, Laura Benanti, Natalie Morales, Scott MacArthur, Kyle Mooney

Description: On the brink of losing her home, Maddie (Jennifer Lawrence) finds an intriguing job losing: helicopter parents looking for someone to bring their introverted 19-year-old son (Andrew Barth Feldman) out of his shell before college. She has one summer to make him a man or die trying.

Review: When Maddie Barker’s car is repossessed, she can no longer work as an Uber driver and is in danger of losing her home. She finds an ad from two overprotective parents, asking for a girl who can bring their awkward 19-year old son Percy out of his shell. In exchange, they promise her a car with which she can pay of her debts to save her childhood home.

“No Hard Feelings” is marketed as a romantic comedy. The supposed romance in this film is cringeworthy, it feels wrong. The comedy is more present, even though that’s not its strongest suit either. It has its moments, but it’s mainly two very opposite people getting into awkward situations.
Jennifer Lawrence plays Maddie. She is mess, very outspoken, really unlikeable at the start of the film. A lot of clichés come in here. Her trying to romance a young 19-year-old guy still feels weird, but their eventual friendship does work.

Not that great, not Lawrence’s best work by far. But funny enough for the time being.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - X-Men: Dark Phoenix

Director: Simon Kinberg
Genre: Action/ Science Fiction/ Adventure
Runtime: 114 minutes
Year: 2019
Starring: Sophie Turner, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Evan Peters, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Jessica Chastain

Description: Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) begins to develop incredible powers that corrupt and turn her into a Dark Phoenix, causing the X-Men to decide if her life is worth more than all of humanity.

Review: “X-Men: Dark Phoenix” is reportedly the end of the film series, that started about 20 years ago. But it doesn’t feel like a traditional epic end, with a satisfying ending and closure for all the storylines and characters.
The “X-Men” series never had reboots or remakes and it blew new life into the series with the prequels, starting with “X-Men: First Class”. It never repeats itself or reuses storylines, until “X-Men: Dark Phoenix”. Where we see again how Jean Grey becomes bigger than her powers and finds a darker side to herself. This also happened in “X-Men: The Last Stand”. Because of “X-Men: Days of Future Past” Jean Grey could start with a clean sleight, but this film doesn’t use it for the best. There was a great chance her, but they missed out.
The best part of “X-Men: Dark Phoenix” is the acting. This is strong, solid and convincing. And Sophie Turner, who plays Jean Grey, has enough power to stand strong between big names like James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence.
Jessica Chastain plays the villain role, which she does well. But there is no backstory to her and her group and her meeting with Jean should lead to something bigger. But it never really goes anywhere. This storyline is almost disposable because it’s written so poorly.
I also had issues with the timeline. This happened because of “X-Men: Days of Future Past” and it makes everything a lot harder to follow. And overall the film is really bland and dull.
“X-Men: Dark Phoenix” is by no means a terrible movie, but it’s probably not one I will ever rewatch.

Rating: 2,5 / 5

Movie Reviews - Red Sparrow

Director: Francis Lawrence
Genre: Drama/ Thriller
Runtime: 140 minutes
Year: 2018
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton, Matthias Schoenaerts, Charlotte Rampling, Ciarán Hinds, Joely Richardson, Bill Camp, Jeremy Irons, Thekla Reuten, Mary-Louise Parker

Description: Ballerina Dominika Egorova (Jennifer Lawrence) is recruited to 'Sparrow School,' a Russian intelligence service where she is forced to use her body as a weapon. Her first mission, targeting a C.I.A. agent (Joel Edgerton), threatens to unravel the security of both nations.

Review: “Red Sparrow” is an old school spy story, filled with betrayal, twists and strange accents. The film is almost completely set in Russia and Eastern Europe, but all characters are portrayed by non-Russians taking on a Russian accent. It doesn’t have the nuance of a John Le Carré film, but it’s a simplistic and entertaining spy thriller.
Jennifer Lawrence plays Dominika Egorova, a promising ballet dancer who is part of the Bolsjoi ballet. She has lived for dancing all her life, but due to a certain turn of events, has to end her career. Manipulated by her uncle Vanya Egorov, she starts working for him. He is an important man working for the SVR, the Russian CIA. Dominika is trained to become a Sparrow, special spies who use their bodies as a weapon.
“Red Sparrow” is an interesting spy thriller, that has more to offer than some cheesy and cliché twists or typical spy operations filled with betrayal and lies. But it doesn’t have the substance that movies like “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” have.

Rating: 3,5 / 5

10s Movie Review - Passengers

Director: Morten Tyldum
Genre: Drama/ Science Fiction/ Romance/ Fantasy
Runtime: 116 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: Chris Pratt, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Sheen, Laurence Fishburne, Andy Garcia

Description: A spacecraft traveling to a distant colony planet and transporting thousands of people has a malfunction in its sleep chambers. As a result, two passengers are awakened 90 years early.

Review: There are always those film projects, that take a long time to make. “Passengers” has been waiting on the shelves, when it was eventually picked up to be directed by Morten Tyldum.

The film starts with an introduction to the Avalon, a spacecraft traveling to a distant colony planet and transporting thousands of people in order to start a new civilization. The people are all in hibernation. As a malfunction, two of the passengers wake up 90 years early.
The first act of the film is the most impressive. It sets an intriguing atmosphere. We meet Jim and Aurora and how they are trying to deal with the fact that they woke up 90 years too early. How they explore the ship. Especially Chris Pratt gets a lot of room to develop his character. And the opening also has amazing special effects. After the first plot twist, it all fades a little bit.
There is supposed to be an emotion spectrum. Themes like loneliness and romance have a lot of potential here. But Jim and especially Aurora are a bit too superficial as characters to make this combination of drama and romance work to the fullest. And although Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence are two of the most beloved actors working today, the two don’t have the on screen chemistry we were all hoping for. Pratt’s character gets a bit more substance, because of his solo scenes at the start of the film. But Lawrence’s character misses that. They perform great, very solid, don’t get me wrong. But I expected them to be better together.
On paper, “Passengers” had everything to become a hit. The fantastic actors, the visuals and an interesting story. It all feels a bit mediocre, pretty predictable and without the chemistry we hoped for. A fun popcorn film, certainly not bad, but it could have been so much more.

Rating: 3 / 5

100 Movie Challenge 2017 - # 125: Mother!

Director: Darren Aronofsky
Genre: Drama/ Horror/ Thriller
Runtime: 121 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, Michelle Pfeiffer, Brian Gleeson, Domhnall Gleeson, Kristen Wiig

Description: A couple's relationship is tested when uninvited guests arrive at their home, disrupting their tranquil existence.

Review: “Mother!” starts pretty conventional: a couple lives a calm and peaceful life in a beautiful house. Their life changes when they provide shelter for two stranger. The husband (the characters don’t have names) feels okay about it, it’s his idea. But the wife feels uncomfortable and thinks it’s strange to simply invite strangers into their house. She does everything to make their house a home, when she sees intruders destroy it. But he loves the adoration he gets from them.
Director Darren Aronofsky builds up to ultimate chaos, with two trumps: leading lady Jennifer Lawrence and the house it’s set in. Aside from some shots of the house from afar, the camera stays indoors and is only a few feet away from Lawrence. Wandering through the halls, rooms and stairs her character’s feeling of being lost and helpless grows.
Aronofsky always gets the best from his actors and Jennifer Lawrence is no exception. It’s one of her strongest roles. The fact that she is the only character that responds to the situation the way we all probably should, you get the impression that there is more going on than we eventually led to believe. This is definitely not a movie for everyone, especially when we go towards the climax of the film. It’s pretty fucked up actually. But you have enough to talk about after seeing “Mother!”.
“Mother!” is original, unconventional, a bit disturbing and very well done.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 105: X-Men: Apocalypse

Director: Bryan Singer
Genre: Action/ Adventure/ Fantasy/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 143 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Oscar Isaac, Rose Byrne, Evan Peters, Sophie Turner, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Olivia Munn

Description: After the re-emergence of the world's first mutant, world-destroyer Apocalypse, the X-Men must unite to defeat his extinction level plan.

Review: With “X-Men: Apocalypse”, director Bryan Singer concludes the second X-Men trilogy. It’s Singer’s fourth X-Men film, but the first final film in a series. And Singer delivered a great superhero film.
This time the world’s first mutant comes back and wants to destroy mankind. The X-Men have to join forces again to try to defeat him.
Eventhough “X-Men: Apocalypse” is the final film in the trilogy, started by Matthew Vaughn, the story takes some time to introduce new characters. Well, not really new, because we already knew Jean Grey, Scott Summers and Nightcrawler. We meet their younger versions and how it started for them. This way it doesn’t only feel like a great finale, it’s also a fresh start.
James McAvoy is really good as Charles Xavier and Jennifer Lawrence can exploit her character more in this film. Oscar Isaac is villain Apocalypse and is doing a solid job. Bt none of the actors ever reach Michael Fassbender’s level, who plays Magneto.
“X-Men: Apocalypse” is an entertaining and action packed conlusion in a good trilogy. The movie is over two hours long, but the time passes really quickly. That’s a good sign. I really enjoyed “X-Men Apocalypse”.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

Top 5 Thursday: Characters from "The Hunger Games" Series

I love “The Hunger Games” books and the movies. I wanted to take a look at the characters and rank them. Here are my five favorite characters from “The Hunger Games” franchise.

5. Johanna Mason

Johanna Mason won the Hunger Games for District 7, when she pretended to be a weakling. When only a few tributes were left, she showed her true skills. Johanna was send to the Quarter Quell to protect Katniss.

 

 

4. Haymitch Abernathy

Haymitch is Katniss and Peeta’s mentor in the preparation of the Hunger Games. He won the games himself ones, he was the first winner for District 12. Haymitch is a drunk cynic and he doesn’t have faith in Katniss at first.

 

 

3. Beetee Latier

Beetee doesn’t look like the biggest threat, but his intelligence is something to watch out for. He is very skilled with a wire, which eventually saves him and his allys in the Quarter Quell.

 

 

2. Finnick Odair

Finnick was the winner of the 65th Hunger Games and the youngest ever to win. Katniss was hesitant to make Finnick her ally in the Quarter Quell, but he proved to be valuable. Finnick is a key person in the rebellion.

 

 

1. Katniss Everdeen

Off course Katniss, she is every girls heroine. Katniss doesn’t want to be a hero though, she just wants to survive these awful games. She is very loyal to her family and friends and often fights for them instead of herself.

 

 

They Almost Made the Top 5: Cinna, Rue, Effie Trinkett, Gale Hawthorne, Plutarch Heavensbee, Mags

100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 154: Serena

Director: Susanne Bier

Genre: Drama

Runtime: 109 minutes

Year: 2014

Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, Toby Jones, Sean Harris, Rhys Ifans

Description: In Depression-era North Carolina, the future of George Pemberton's (Bradley Cooper) timber empire becomes complicated when he marries Serena (Jennifer Lawrence).

Review: In “Serena” we see the perfect marriage between George and Serena. Both have a similar background and because he married Serena, George now has a wife and a business partner. Not everyone is happy with Serena and their marriage is also tested.

The movie has an excellent cast and gorgeous cinematography. The images of the beautiful landscapes are great. The story sounds interesting, good cast, pretty images. But the movie doesn’t completely satisfy.

Jennifer Lawrence has proved her talent several times. In “Serena” her performance is solid, not extraordinary.

The movie is very slow and in the beginning somewhat boring. I don’t mind a slow tempo, but this movie is sometimes a bit too slow. And that’s a shame, because a good story like this doesn’t need that.

Not a bad film, but I expected more. It’s an easily forgettable film.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

Top 5 Thursday: Badass Female Movie Characters

I always love a strong female character, especially when they are really badass. Here I will be counting down the most badass female movie characters.

5. Black Widow (“Iron Man 2”, “The Avengers”, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”, “Avengers: Age of Ultron”)

Black Widow, aka Natasha Romanoff, is a woman who stands strong in a man’s world. And she is very badass, who can easily keep up with her male co-workers.

 

 

4. Katniss Everdeen (“The Hunger Games”, “Catching Fire: The Hunger Games”, “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1”)

Katniss is forced into a world of violence, but no one thought she would fight back. Katniss is a force to be reckoned with and someone who would do everything for the people she loves.

 

 

3. Sarah Connor (“The Terminator”, “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”)

From a student wanting to make it through college, to a strong woman fighting for survival. That’s the story of Sarah Connor’s life. She has seen it all, the good and the bad. One thing is sure, you don’t want to be on Sarah Connor’s bad side.

 

 

2. Ellen Ripley (“Alien”, “Aliens”, “Alien 3”)

Ripley is one of the best heroes in movie history and she helped transform the identity of an entire genre of film. Ripley expresses no fear in times of chaos.

 

 

1. The Bride (“Kill Bill: Vol. 1”, “Kill Bill: Vol. 2”)

Revenge is always personal. This is also the case with Beatrice Kiddo, aka The Bride. When everyone is killed at her wedding and she ends up in a four year coma, all she wants is revenge when she wakes up. The Bride is a woman you really don’t want to mess with.

 

 

They Almost Made the Top 5: Rita Vratanski (“Edge of Tomorrow”), Hit Girl (“Kick-Ass”)

Top 5 Thursday: Actors/ Actresses of 2014

I'm still looking back to 2014 and all the great actors and actresses of that year. Some stood out more than others. Here are my favorite actors and actresses of 2014.

5. Jennifer Lawrence

Nominated for an Academy Award again for her role in “American Hustle” and she was in “X-Men: Days of Future Past”. She played Katniss Everdeen again in the third installement of “The Hunger Games” series and she got a hit with the song “The Hanging Tree”. And and didn’t even mention all the other awesome stuff she said and did in interviews and talk shows.

 

 

4. Rosamund Pike

Finally she got the role she deserved. In “Gone Girl” she nailed it, she was definitely the best bit of the film.

 

 

3. Michael Fassbender

He was in “12 Years a Slave” and I really wanted to whip him. His performance was so good, he played a convincingly good bad guy. Then there was “Frank” and off course “X-Men: Days of Future Past”. He’s had a pretty good year.

 

 

2. Matthew McConaughey

Okay, I used to be critical. I didn’t think much of McConaughey, he made some bad movies. But ever since “The Lincoln Lawyer” I started to like him more and more. Now, I think he was one of the best actors of his generation. In 2014 he won an Acadamy Award for his wonderful performance in “Dallas Buyers Club” and also hit theaters with “Interstellar”. But for me the highlight is “True Detective”, what an awesome show!

 

 

1. Chris Pratt

He had a small role in “Her”, voiced for the awesome “The Lego Movie” and finished of with the coolest movie of 2014: “The Guardians of the Galaxy”. Chris Pratt is also coming with “Jurassic World” in 2015, so Pratt is without a doubt my favourite star of 2014.

 

 

They Almost Made the Top 5: Keira Knightley, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 156: X-Men: Days of Future Past

Director: Bryan Singer

Genre: Action/ Adventure/ Fantasy/ Science Fiction

Runtime: 132 minutes

Year: 2014

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Halle Berry, Nicholas Hoult, Ellen Page, Peter Dinklage, Shawn Ashmore

Description: The X-Men send Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) to the past in a desperate effort to change history and prevent an event that results in doom for both humans and mutants.

Review: In “X-Men: Days of Future Past”, Wolverine is send back in time to stop mutants from going under. The X-Men are threatened by Sentinels, robots who have to exterminate mutants. Many mutants have lost the battle against them and all hope is set on Wolverine. His goal is to stop the inventor from going through with his plans. Wolverine gets help from a young Professor Xavier and Magneto.

Bryan Singer returns as a director, he also directed “X-Men” and “X2”. He doesn’t stay close to the original source material, which could bother fans. Yet “X-Men: Days of Future Past” was very well received by the audience and is so far the highest rated movie in the series.

Again the movie is filled with beautiful special effects, but I did miss the more emotional and personal touch that “X-Men: First Class” had. The focus is on Wolverine, but also on Charles Xavier and Magneto. The connection between Hank McCoy aka Beasy and Mystique, that was a storyline in the previous film, is never spoken of. Actors Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender do work well together and it’s a joy to watch them together.

Although I enjoyed watching “X-Men: Days of Future Past”, it didn’t live up to my expectations. It’s a good looking movie, but it lacked depth.

Rating: 3/ 5

In the Picture: The Characters from "American Hustle"

“American Hustle” is a movie filled with interesting characters. Seductive, sleezy, crazy, sly, beautiful, you name it. So this movie is perfect for my item “In the Picture”. Here are the characters from “American Hustle”.

Irving Rosenfeld

Played by: Christian Bale

Irving Rosenfeld is a con artist. He is married and has adopted his wife’s son Danny. Even though he once loved his wife, his heart lies with Sydney.

Sydney Prosser

Played by: Amy Adams

Sydney Prosser is also a con artist and she works together with Irving. Sydney has improved Irving’s scams. She loves Irving, even though he isn’t the best looking man. Sydney is smart and she can be seductive to get what she wants. She also tries to manipulate Richie, distancing herself from Irving.

Richie DiMaso

Played by: Bradley Cooper

Richie is an FBI agent and catches Irving and Sydney in a loan scam. He offers to release them if Irving can line up for additional arrests. Richie starts working with Irving and Sydney and get a bit overeager.

Rosalyn Rosenfeld

Played by: Jennifer Lawrence

Rosalyn is Irving’s wife. She doesn’t work and is a bit crazy. Rosalyn has threatened Irving to tell everything to the cops if he ever left her. She know Irving has a thing for Sydney, but believes he would never leave her for Sydney.

Mayor Carmine Polito

Played by: Jeremy Renner

Carmine Polito is the Mayor and he befriends Irving. What he doesn’t know is that he’s being set up by him, Sydney and Richie. Carmine is a real family man and has never done anything to hurt his family.

 

 

Favorite Character: Carmine Polito

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 95: American Hustle

Director: David O. Russell

Genre: Drama/ Crime

Runtime: 132 minutes

Year: 2013

Starring: Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Jennifer Lawrence, Louis C.K., Alessandro Nivola, Robert De Niro

Description: Con man Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) and his seductive partner Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) are forced to work for wild FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper). He pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia.

Review: This film by David O. Russell is full of crown jewels: rags and riches, beauties and beasts, charm and crime. All set in the sumptuous seventies and with a bit of slapstick. And then the great cast: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence and Jeremy Renner. “American Hustle” is filled with sexiness, scams and talent.

“American Hustle” grabs the audience, like Sydney Prosser gets her men. Together with Irving Rosenfeld she misleads people into making big investments. But then they are caught in the act by FBI agent Richie DiMaso. They are forced to work together.

The story is narrated by various characters, but as a viewer your attention is easily drawn to Irving Rosenfeld. Christian Bale is impressive in his role, with his beer belly and strange hairdo, he shows us again how he can get lost in a role. Amy Adams is very provocative in her role as Sydney Prosser and I enjoyed her performance. Together they are the ‘beauty and the beast’ of crime. Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, who stole the show and your hearts in Russell’s previous film “Silver Linings Playbook”, aren’t as impressive. They are not bad, but they are standing in the shadows of Bale and Adams. Jeremy Renner on the other hand, as mayor Carmine Polito, is excellent.

This film succeeds and pictures the seventees very well. “American Hustle” is a movie with a great cast, interesting story and some wonderful acting by especially Bale, Adams and Renner.

Rating: 4/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 61: X-Men: First Class

Director: Matthew Vaughn

Genre: Action/ Drama/ Adventure/ Science Fiction

Runtime: 132 minutes

Year: 2011
Starring: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Rose Byrne, Nicholas Hoult, Kevin Bacon, January Jones, Oliver Platt

 

Description: In 1962, the United States government enlists the help of Mutants with superhuman abilities to stop a malicious dictator who is determined to start world war III.

 

Review: “X-Men: First Class” is a so called origin story, that explains how the lead characters from this well-known series became the people they are now. It’s not based on the comics, so the fans might be disappointed.

Like “X-Men”, this films starts in concentration camp Auschwitz. Young Magneto, who then is still Erik Lehnsherr, suffers under the cruel Nazi science of Dr. Schmidt. In another part of the world is telepath Charles Xavier leading a privileged but lonely life. Erik and Xavier meet each other as adults, in the sixties, where they develop a close friendship. They decide to join forces and form a group with young mutants to protect the world from Dr. Schmidt.

“X-Men: First Class” isn’t flawless. It starts out as a clear and solid story about Xaviers idealism versus a cynical Erik. Halfway through subplots develop and supporting characters are added, who aren’t all interesting enough. Take Emma Frost, who is literally a sparkling character but comes off a bit bland.  You only get  a more closer look at Beast and Mystique, who both struggle with their physical appearance.

It’s easy to forgive these shortcomings, because the movie is strong because of its dark humor, action and special effects. Michael Fassbender is cast perfectly as the charismatic and cynical Magneto. James McAvoy is a bit more timid in his performance, but has manpower enough to make Xavier the powerful and charming man that he is. Jennifer Lawrence is also solid as Mystique, who you see change throughout the film.

I really enjoyed “X-Men: First Class”, a good prequel to the series.

 

Rating: 4/ 5

Pic Spam: Favorite People of 2013

I did this back in 2011, so I decided to share with you my eight favorite people of this year. Pretty hard by the way, because I had to eliminate some of my favorites because they didn't do anything memorable this year. But here are my favorites of 2013.

Quotables: "Silver Linings Playbook"

I read the book and saw the movie and I love them both! It’s such an honest movie. I knew Jennifer Lawrence was great, but Bradley Cooper also showed us that he can act. Here are some of the best quotes from “Silver Linings Playbook”.




Tiffany: I was a slut. There will always be a part of me that is dirty and sloppy, but I like that, just like all the other parts of myself. I can forgive. Can you say the same for yourself, fucker? Can you forgive? Are you capable of that?

Pat: The only way you can beat my crazy was by doing something crazy yourself. Thank you. I love you. I knew it the minute I met you. I'm sorry it took so long for me to catch up. I just got stuck.

Pat: This is what I learned at the hospital. You have to do everything you can, you have to work your hardest, and if you do, you have a shot at a silver lining.

Pat Sr.: [upon arriving at the hotel and seeing the professional dancers on the night of the competition] Holy shit. Is this Dancing with the Stars?

Tiffany: Listen, I haven't dated since before my marriage so I don't really remember how this works.
Pat: How what works?
Tiffany: I saw the way you were looking at me, Pat. You felt it, I felt it, don't lie. We're not liars like they are. I live in the addition around back, which is completely separate from my parents' house, so there's no chance of them walking in on us. I hate the fact that you wore a football jersey to dinner because I hate football, but you can fuck me if you turn the lights off, okay?

Top 5 Thursday: Celebrities I Want as Friends

You really hardly see how they really are, but based on the things we see from them in interviews and such I made a list of celebrities I want as my friends. I know that sounds a bit desperate, and I can tell you nobody can top my two best friends Evelien and Irene, but it would be kinda nice to be friends with some celebrities. And not because they are famous, but because of their talents and personality.

5. Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer is so talented and I hope we can enjoy her in many more movies. In interviews she always seems very sympathetic and I can see she’s sincere. And I like her sense of humour.

4. Jason Segel
He seems like so much fun and he is super nice. And a Muppets fan like me. I never saw him angry or grumpy, I think Jason is always happy.

3. Seth MacFarlane
One of the funniest guys alive and filled with creativity. I like being creative as well, so maybe he can share it with me. And I always wished Seth’s voice would be the one in my head, so maybe he can narrate my life.

2. Ellen Degeneres
Ellen is such a kind, honest and funny woman, I would gladly invite her to my home and have her as my friend. She is fantastic!

1. Emma Stone
I already have a girl crush on her, but Emma Stone is such a fantastic woman. I would really want to know her and have her in my circle of friends.

They almost made the top 5: Joseph Gordon-Levitt (to risky, because I might fall in love), Amy Adams, Ellen Page, John Krasinski, Kristin Wiig, Billy Crystal