100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 108: The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

Director: Guy Ritchie
Genre: Action/ Comedy/ Adventure/ Crime
Runtime: 116 minutes
Year: 2015
Starring: Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer, Alicia Vikander, Hugh Grant, Jared Harris

Description: In the early 1960s, CIA agent Napoleon Solo (Henry Cavill) and KGB operative Illya Kuryakin (Armie Hammer) participate in a joint mission against a mysterious criminal organization, which is working to proliferate nuclear weapons.

Review: Since his Sherlock Holmes movies were a success, director Guy Ritchie looks like someone who can bring back old franchises. This time it’s “The Man from U.N.C.L.E., based on a televions show from the 1960s. And although the film isn’t as memorablem “The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is definitely a very entertaining comedic espionage.
During the cold war, the American CIA agent Napoleon Solo joins forces with the Russian KGB agent Ilya Kuryakin. Not very surprising is their rivalry at the beginning of the film. During an action packed opening, Solo manages to escape Kuryakin, together with the beautiful car mechanic Gaby. Gaby is the daughter of a nuclear scientist who is missing and she is probably the only clue to a potential conspiracy.That’s the reason why the two agents decide to work together.
Of course working together is not going to go smoothly, because of the differences between the two. And the interaction between actors Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer is fun to watch. Cavill works his charm as womanizer Solo and Hammer is more physically present. But it’s Alicia Vikander who steals the show as Gaby.
The atmosphere and the look of the film is great. It’s like we are really in the sixties. The location, sunny Rome, is perfect and the costumes are beautiful.
“The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” isn’t as surprising as espionage rival “Kingsman: The Secret Service” was, but certainly entertaining and enjoyable.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 107: We Bought a Zoo

Director: Cameron Crowe
Genre: Drama/ Comedy/ Family
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 2011
Starring: Matt Damon, Scarlett Johansson, Thomas Haden Church, Colin Ford, Angus Macfadyen, Elle Fanning, Patrick Fugit, John Michael Higgins

Description: Set in Southern California, a father (Matt Damon) moves his young family to the countryside to renovate and re-open a struggling zoo.

Review: Director Cameron Crowe is mostly known for his film “Almost Famous”. “We Bought a Zoo” is his first family film, based on a true story where a widowed man and his two kids move and buy a struggling zoo.
Benjamin Mee doesn’t have a lot of experience as a parent, because for his job as a journalist he was on the road a lot. He quits his job writing and eventually finds a beautiful house that comes with a zoo. And he buys it.
Matt Damon plays the lead and I loved his character. It’s really easy to relate to him, a man just trying to deal with his wife’s death and his kids. Especially his son, who he just can’t seem to reach. Him buying a zoo is part of the process Benjamin is going through. Scarlett Johansson is also good in this film, I also sympathized her character a lot. And the little girl Rosie, so adorable!
“We Bought a Zoo” is such a great film, very underrated. Okay, it’s bittersweet, but who cares. I loved the film and I think everyone should see it sometime. It put a big smile on my face in the end.

Rating: 5/ 5

Movie Trailer Sunday (250)

Here are this week's trailers.

Rules Don't Apply
Director: Warren Beatty
Description: An unconventional love story of an aspiring actress (Lily Collins), her determined driver (Alden Ehrenreich), and the eccentric billionaire (Warren Beatty) who they work for.
Starring: Lily Collins, Haley Bennett, Alden Ehrenreich, Alec Baldwin, Matthew Broderick, Chace Crawford, Paul Sorvino, Annette Benning, Ed Harris, Candice Bergen, Warren Beatty, Steve Coogan, Martin Sheen
Trailer: Trailer "Rules Don't Apply"
Comment: Another Howard Hughes story.

The Girl on the Train
Director: Tate Taylor
Description: Rachel (Emily Blunt) takes the train every day to her imaginary job every morning and night at a specific time because she got fired when she drank way to much on a lunch and yelled at a client and lost the company their business...
Starring: EMly Blunt, Haley Bennett, Luke Evans, Justine Theroux, Rebecca Hall, Alisson Janney, Laura Prepon, Lisa Kudrow
Trailer: Trailer "The Girl on the Train"
Comment: A new trailer, it got me even more excited for this film. Can't wait!

The Magnificent Seven
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Description: Seven gun men in the old west gradually come together to help a poor village against savage thieves.
Starring: Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Haley Bennett, Vincent D'Onofrio, Peter Sarsgaard, Matt Bomer, Cam Gigandet
Trailer: Trailer "The Magnificent Seven"
Comment: A remake that I'm actually looking forward to seeing.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage
Director: D.J. Caruso
Description: Xander Cage (Vin Diesel) is left for dead after an incident, though he secretly returns to action for a new, tough assignment with his handler Augustus Gibbons.
Starring: Vin Diesel, Ruby Rose, Samuel L. Jackson, Nina Dobrev, Toni Collette, Rory McCann
Trailer: Trailer "xXx: Return of Xander Cage"
Comment: Do we really need him to return???

Dunkirk
Director: Christopher Nolan
Description: Allied soldiers from Belgium, Britain, Canada and France are surrounded by the German army and evacuated during a fierce battle in World War II.
Starring: Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Mark Rylance, Kenneth Branagh, Harry Styles, James D'Arcy
Trailer: Trailer "Dunkirk"
Comment: Just a little glimpse, can't wait to see a full trailer.

Top 5 Thursday: Movies I Watched for My Challenge (July 2016)

I didn’t watch a lot of (for me) new movies this month, but I did manage to make a top 5. Here are my favorite films for my Challenge and the month of July.

5. Jason Bourne
Not as good as the other three films in the series, but “Jason Bourne” did have a lot of action and of course a great performance by Matt Damon. But it was in fact Alicia Vikander with the best performance.

4. 300
A movie I never completed and this month I finally watched the entire film. “300” is a great looking movie, action packed, entertaining and spectacular.

3. Strangers On a Train
Alfred Hitchcock hardly ever disappointed us with his films. This thriller is again amazing, about two strangers that meet each other during a train ride and make a pact.

2. 10 Cloverfield Lane
A movie that was very secretive before its trailer was released. Most of the film takes place in an underground bunker with only three characters. A really good film.

1. The BFG
As a girl who grew up with Roald Dahl’s children’s books, I was super excited about “The BFG”. And it didn’t disappoint. It looks magical and fantastic and I loved mark Rylance as the BFG. And Ruby Barnhill as Sophie, so good!

They Almost Made the Top 5: Sexy Beast, Frankenweenie, Ghostbusters

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 106: Green Room

Director: Jeremy Saulnier
Genre: Thriller/ Crime/ Horror
Runtime: 94 minutes
Year: 2015
Starring: Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots, Alia Shawkat, Patrick Stewart, Mark Webber

Description: A punk rock band is forced to fight for survival after witnessing a murder at a neo-Nazi skinhead bar.

Review: A punk rock band accidentally witnesses a murder in a neo-Nazi skinhead bar. From that moment on, the group of musicians has to fight for survival.
I heard many things about this movie before seeing it, it made me curious. The setting is interesting and the movie is fast paced. There isn’t a lot of build up, although the story starts calmly. Director Jeremy Saulnier know what story he wants to tell, even before the characters say a word you know a lot. And there is no scene that feels it doesn’t belong there.
“Green Room” is not your typical horror. It’s more a thriller with horror elements. The violence in this movie is always sudden, shocking and confronting.
Patrick Stewart plays a strong role, but his talent is underused. Anton Yelchin, unfortunately no longer with us, is the highlight of the film. His performance is so intense and realistic.
“Green Room” is not a movie for the weak stomach. It’s pretty raw and graphic. But I think it’s a fantastic film, sadly it didn’t really get any attention in my country. A hidden gem.

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

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 104: Strangers on a Train

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Genre: Drama/ Thriller/ Crime
Runtime: 101 minutes
Year: 1951
Starring: Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, Leo G. Carroll, Patricia Hitchcock, Kasey Rogers, Marion Lorne, Jonathan Hale, Howard St. John, John Brown, Norma Varden, Robert Gist

Description: A psychotic socialite (Robert Walker) confronts a pro tennis star (Farley Granger) with a theory on how two complete strangers can get away with murder - a theory that he plans to implement.

Review: Guy Haynes, a famous tennis player, meets the eccentric Bruno Anthony during a train ride. They start a conversation and quickly they start talking about private issues. Guy is married, but also has an affair with an upper class woman. Bruno has a terrible relationship with his father. Bruno says he has the perfect solution for their problems: he kills Guy’s wife and Guy kills Bruno’s father. The perfect murder, because the police won’t be able to track the real killer.
“Strangers On a Train” is a typical example of why Alfred Hitchcock is such a great director. Everything is just right. The plot is inventive, original and executed very well. The settings are good and the film has some humor. The movie is never boring and its script is fantastic.
A classic, no doubt about that.

Rating: 4,5/ 5