Iron Man on DVD Today!!

One of the best movies of the summer is finally on DVD!  

After surviving an unexpected attack in enemy territory, jet-setting industrialist Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) builds a high-tech suit of armor and vows to protect the world as Iron Man.  Straight from the pages of the legendary comic book, Iron Man is a hero who is built -not born- to be unlike any other!

This movie isn't just the best Super-Hero Origin story, it was the second best Action Adventure movie of the summer.  From the casting, which was perfect, to the directing (hard to believe this was done by the same guy who directed Elf, The Break Up, and Swingers) this movie was spot-on.  On top of it all, the movie is accessible to all ages and both genders.  

Iron Man is worth the purchase to have this one on your shelf.  With any luck, by the time you're burnt out on the movie, The Dark Knight should be on DVD.  Grade: A

Miracle at St. Anna

In 1983, Hector Negron (Laz Alanso) shot a man in cold blood.  A seemingly upright citizen and decorated war veteran, Hector does not seem to have any motive for the crime.  Cub reporter Tim Boyle (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) takes interest in the story especially after helping find a priceless artifact in Hector’s apartment.  This drives Tim to question Hector about the intriguing mystery, which began in 1944 Italy.

In 1944, four buffalo soldiers end up trapped in a small Tuscan villa during World War II after one of the soldiers risks his life to save an injured boy. 

The story is inspired by the August 1944 Sant'Anna di Stazzema massacre perpetrated by the Waffen-SS in retaliation to Italian partisan activity.  According to the Buffalo Soldier National Museum: 500,000 Blacks were stationed overseas, amounting to 4% of the 11 million Americans who served on foreign shores during World War 2. About 10% of blacks were in combat units. The all-black 92nd Infantry was in Italy, and had 616 killed in action and 2,187 wounded.

The movie was actually done fairly well and its lackluster performance in the box office is rather disappointing.  The movie is rather epic in scope and actually provides a point of view from all sides involved in the war.  Some moments occur where I thought, “okay Spike, I get it.  White people are racist…”  All in all however, I thought it was a pretty good war movie.  While it’s not Saving Private Ryan, Platoon, or Dirty Dozen, Miracle at St Anna is one of the better war movies I have seen in a while.  If you like war movies, I recommend giving this one a shot.  Just remember its rated R and leave the kids at home.

Grade: C+

Lakeview Terrace

A young, interracial couple move into what they believe to be the perfect starter house until they meet their new neighbor, Abel Turner (Sam Jackson).  Abel is a high strung LAPD beat cop.    After the couple decide to fight back against the odd behavior of their new neighbor, the situation quickly escalates beyond a simple difference of opinions.  

This movie seemed to wander back and forth between a thriller and narrative of difficulties an interracial couple seem to face.  Sam Jackson's character was rather interesting. At first, he just appears to be overbearing, over protective and narrow minded.  However as the movie goes on, Abel seems to have some serious issues.  Unfortunately, the other characters aren't as well fleshed out as Abel as they all felt fairly one-dimensional.  

In the end, Jackson devolves into just another psychopath chasing after the young couple.  I couldn't help but wonder if there was more there.   This is one where you won't be missing out if you decide to wait for a rental.  Grade: C-

My Best Friend's Girl

Smart, beautiful and headstrong, Alexis is the girl of Dustin's dreams. But after only five weeks of dating, the love-struck Dustin is coming on so strong that Alexis is forced to slow things down--permanently. Devastated and desperate to get her back, Dustin turns to his best friend, Tank, the rebound specialist. A master at seducing--and offending--women, Tank gets hired by freshly dumped guys to take their ex-girlfriends out on the worst date of their lives--an experience so horrible it sends them running gratefully back to their beaus. But when Tank works his magic on Alexis, he ends up meeting the challenge of a lifetime. Alexis is the first girl who knows how to call his bluff, and Tank soon finds himself torn between his loyalty to Dustin and a strange new attraction to his best friend's girl. Starring: Dane Cook, Kate Hudson, Alec Baldwin, Jason Biggs, Lizzy Caplan. Rated R for strong language and sexual content throughout, including graphic dialogue and some nudity.

This movie is just another in a long line of romantic "boy meets girl" comedies with a quirky premise.   Dane Cook has funny moments but he typically comes across as a beginner comedian who has come up with 30 minutes of material from a Taco Bell menu.  Jason Biggs seems perpetually doomed to play the "nice guy" schmuck who always happens to get caught in an embarrassing act.  

One redeeming feature is Kate Hudson and Dane Cook work well off each other.  The best parts of the movie are the scenes showing Cook being the worst wedding date in history. (Including telling the infamous priest and rabbi joke to an actual priest and rabbi during the reception)  

My advice is hold off for this one until it runs repeatedly on TBS or Comedy Central in 8 months.   Grade: D

Heroes Returns Monday Night!!

10 Reasons to catch the 2 hour premier of Heroes Monday night

1. Who shot Nathan? He was left bleeding out during his press conference when we last saw him, but did he survive?

2. As for survival, Ali Larter is in the preview, does that mean her character survived the house fire?

3. Another tease in the trailer shows HRG and Sylar working together. WTF?

4. We get another jump to a bleak future.

5. Will Hiro really leave Adam in a grave for eternity?

6. Newcomer Brea Grant

7.Diana Ramirez

8. Ali Larter

9. Hayden Panettiere 

10. and Last but Definitely not least, Kristen Bell!

Burn After Reading

An ousted CIA official's memoir accidentally falls into the hands of two unwise gym employees intent on exploiting their find. Starring: George Clooney, Frances McDormand, Brad Pitt, John Malkovich, J. K. Simmons. Rated R for pervasive language, some sexual content and violence.  

In this spy movie farce,  a series of random events and misunderstandings by a collection of idiots slowly turns into a potential international incident of meager proportions.  George Clooney and Brad Pitt give fantastic performances.  This movie is sure to provide scenes that will have most people rolling.  This is one movie that is definitely worth catching in the theatre.  (if only to share a laugh with dozens of people during key moments)

For those that can't get enough of the Cohens' dark humor, try: The Big Leboski, Raising Arizona, The Lady Killers, Intolerable Cruelty, Fargo, or O Brother Where Art Thou.  

Grade: B

Bangkok Dangerous

Synopsis: The life of an anonymous assassin takes an unexpected turn when he travels to Thailand to complete a series of contract killings. Joe (Nicolas Cage), a remorseless hitman, is in Bangkok to execute four enemies of a ruthless crime boss named Surat. He hires Kong (Shahkrit Yamnarm), a street... The life of an anonymous assassin takes an unexpected turn when he travels to Thailand to complete a series of contract killings. Joe (Nicolas Cage), a remorseless hitman, is in Bangkok to execute four enemies of a ruthless crime boss named Surat. He hires Kong (Shahkrit Yamnarm), a street punk and pickpocket, to run errands for him with the intention of covering his tracks by killing him at the end of the assignment. Strangely, Joe, the ultimate lone wolf, instead finds himself mentoring the young man while simultaneously being drawn into a tentative romance with a local shop girl. As he falls further under the sway of Bangkok’s intoxicating beauty, Joe begins to question his isolated existence and let down his guard …just as Surat decides it’s time to clean house.

This movie should be renamed to "Bangkok Ridiculous".. It's definitely an hour and twenty minutes of your life that you'll never get back.

Since seeing this movie I've been trying to go back and find ANY redeeming quality of this movie and there's nothing.. The acting was horrible, the script was horrible, and the pace of the movie was horrible. What I want to know is how anybody that saw this movie during the production stage would think that it would possibly make money. It's THAT bad. I've put Bangkok Dangerous on my list of "The Worst Movies of 2008".

If you missed our review of this movie on The Ray Lytle Show friday morning we talked about Nicholas Cage and how the only movie he's made in the last 5 years that made any money was "Ghost Rider" then we all came to the conclusion that it didn't matter who played the character of the ghost rider that it would have made money. Since then I've come home and checked out the almight IMDB to find what other movies Cage has done that MIGHT have made money.. Here's what I found. I'm not sure how we missed these movies but I think that the National Treasure movies MIGHT have made a few dollars. And also within the last 5 years there has been another great Nicholas Cage movie, the movie is called "Matchstick Men". It stars Cage as a traveling salesman/con man who finds out he has a daughter but before he can turn his life around he decides to get his daughter in on "one last con".. It's definitely worth checking out. Released in 2004 so it should be easily available at any video rental store.

If you're into movies about hitmen, DC recommends "Collateral" starring Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx.. I threw out that Timothy Olyphant in Hitman was tolerable, but one of my favorite "hitman" movies is "The Whole Nine Yards" with Bruce Willis, Amanda Peet, Matthew Perry, Natasha Henstridge and Michael Clarke Duncan.. great stuff!