Movie: The Passengers

Name: The Passengers
Year: 2016
Director: Morten Tyldum
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt, Michael Sheen
Genres: Adventure, Drama, Romance
Language: English
Country: USA
Time: 116 min

Outline of the movie:
The spaceship, Starship Avalon, in its 120-year voyage to a distant colony planet known as the "Homestead Colony" and transporting about 5 thousand people has a malfunction in one of its sleep chambers. As a result one hibernation pod opens prematurely and the one person that awakes, Jim Preston (Chris Pratt) is stranded on the spaceship, still 90 years from his destination.
 
My thoughts: 
     Loved. Loved. Loved! I know there is so many technical and plot misfits. I guess any person with a strong knowledge of mathematics and physics will tear this movie apart, but I just loved it due to its originality, style, good development pace and characters. This movie had everything - love, drama, philosophical/existential questions, and incredibly suspenseful moments. The acting was great (I was pretty skeptical about Jennifer Lawrence), the pacing was good, and the visuals were amazing as well. Also the trailer didn't spoil the movie at all, which was nice; it actually provided misleading information and finding out a quite unique plot twist was a small and pleasant surprise.
     I adored the moral part of the movie: the person is to decide if he dares condemn another human being to the slow and almost isolate death in order to save yourself from insanity and loneliness. I guess it is even more difficult to live with the consequences of the murder since the victim is living by your side.
      My only gripe would be about the ending, which was still acceptable. But I have so many options to finish the movie, unfortunately I cannot write them down here as it will be a huge spoiler, but oh my! how many development paths it can be!

Rating: 

    5/5 

April 2017| most anticipated movies

April is going to be a poor month for new movie releases.

6 April 2017
Name: Power Rangers
Cast:  Elizabeth Banks, Bryan Cranston, Becky G.
Time: 124m
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Country: Canada, USA
Language: English

High school outcasts stumble upon an old alien ship, where they acquire superpowers and are dubbed the Power Rangers. Learning that an old enemy of the previous generation has returned to exact vegenance, the group must harness their powers and use them to work together and save the world.

Name: The Fifth Ship
Cast:  Vanessa Szamuhelova, Matus Bacisin, Katarina Kamencova
Time: 90m
Genres:  Drama, Family
Country:  Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary
Language: Czech, Slovak

The story of a child's adventure. It's a story of children who feel safer in the streets than at home, about children seeking out sturdy lifeboats that cross between the world of fantasy and the harsh reality of life. Jarka is one of these children. Ten years-old, and living with a mother who is not yet ready to be a Mum, Jarka spends most of her time alone. Pushed by her desire for love and to form a fully functional family, she finds herself substituting a "mother" to two babies.

27 April 2017
Name: The Salesman
Cast: Taraneh Alidoosti, Shahab Hosseini, Babak Karimi
Time: 125m
Genres:  Drama, Thriller
Country: Iran, France
Language: Persian, English

Forced to leave their collapsing house, Ranaa and Emad, an Iranian couple who happen to be performers rehearsing for Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman" rent a new apartment from one of their fellow performers. Unaware of the fact that the previous tenant had been a woman of ill repute having many clients, they settle down. By a nasty turn of events one of the clients pays a visit to the apartment one night while Ranaa is alone at home taking a bath and the aftermath turns the peaceful life of the couple upside down.

March 2017| most anticipated movies

I am a little behind the schedule but still I need to post this list to keep an eye on the recent releases.

2 March 2017

Name: Logan
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Dafne Keen
Time: 137m
Genres: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Language: English, Spanish

In the near future, a weary Logan cares for an ailing Professor X in a hide out on the Mexican border. But Logan's attempts to hide from the world and his legacy are up-ended when a young mutant arrives, being pursued by dark forces.

9 March 2017

Name: Kong: Skull Island
Cast:  Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, Brie Larson
Time: 118m
Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Country: USA,Vietnam
Language: English

It's 1971, a team of explorers with a company of soldiers are following myth ,legend to the island where creatures both prehistoric and monstrous are supposed to live. Skull Island, the very island of lore and legend. The creatures they soon come across make the soldiers and explorers running for their lives. Will they survive to tell their story?

16 March 2017

Name: Beauty and the Beast
Cast: Dan Stevens, Emma Watson, Luke Evans
Time: 129m
Genres: Family, Fantasy, Musical
Country: USA
Language: English

Disney's animated classic takes on a new form, with a widened mythology and an all-star cast. A young prince, imprisoned in the form of a beast, can be freed only by true love. What may be his only opportunity arrives when he meets Belle, the only human girl to ever visit the castle since it was enchanted.

23 March 2017

Name: Løvekvinnen
Cast:  Lara Braukmann, Sara Braukmann
Time: 126m
Genres: Drama
Country: Norway
Language: Norwegian

The title means "The Lion Woman" in English, a book by Norwegian writer Erik Fosnes Hansen. Film and book describe the early years in the life of Eva, a girl born with an illness which makes hairs grow over large parts of one's body. Eva is examined by doctors in humiliating ways, and bullied in school. In her teens, Eva travels in a theater group together with other folk who suffer from rare diseases.

30 March

Name: Ghost in the Shell
Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Michael Pitt, Juliette Binoche
Time: 120m
Genres: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Language: English

Based on the internationally acclaimed sci-fi manga series, "Ghost in the Shell" follows the Major, a special ops, one-of-a-kind human cyborg hybrid, who leads the elite task force Section 9. Devoted to stopping the most dangerous criminals and extremists, Section 9 is faced with an enemy whose singular goal is to wipe out Hanka Robotic's advancements in cyber technology.

February 2017| most anticipated movies

16 February 2017
Name: Silence 
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, Liam Neeson
Time: 181 min
Genres: Drama, History
Country: USA, Taiwan, Mexico
Language: English,  Japanese, Latin

The story of two Catholic missionaries (Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver) who face the ultimate test of faith when they travel to Japan in search of their missing mentor (Liam Neeson) - at a time when Catholicism was outlawed and their presence forbidden.

Name:  T2 Trainspotting
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller
Time: 117 min
Genres: Drama
Country: UK
Language: English

A continuation of the Trainspotting saga reuniting the original characters.

Name: A Cure for Wellness 
Cast: Dane DeHaan, Jason Isaacs, Mia Goth
Time: 146 min
Genres: Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, Germany
Language: English

An ambitious young executive is sent to retrieve his company's CEO from an idyllic but mysterious "wellness center" at a remote location in the Swiss Alps. He soon suspects that the spa's miraculous treatments are not what they seem. When he begins to unravel its terrifying secrets, his sanity is tested, as he finds himself diagnosed with the same curious illness that keeps all the guests here longing for the cure.

23 February 2017

Name: John Wick: Chapter 2
Cast:  Ruby Rose, Keanu Reeves, Bridget Moynahan  
Genres: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Language: English 

The continuing adventures of former hitman, John Wick. After returning to the criminal underworld to repay a debt, John Wick discovers that a large bounty has been put on his life.

Name:  A Street Cat Named Bob
Cast:  Luke Treadaway, Bob the Cat, Ruta Gedmintas
Time: 103 min
Genres: Biography, Comedy, Drama
Country: UK
Language: English

Based on the international best selling book. The true feel good story of how James Bowen, a busker and recovering drug addict, had his life transformed when he met a stray ginger cat.

Name:  Bába z ledu aka Ice Mother
Cast:  Václav Neuzil, Alena Mihulová, Petra Spalková
Time: 106 min
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: Czech Republic, Slovakia, France
Language: Czech

After her husband's death, Hana lives on alone in the family villa. Her two sons visit her with their families, but these visits frequently end in quarrels. When Hana meets Brona, a hardy fellow, inured to winter swimming, a new world opens before her. Brona's team-mates absorb her into their team and Hana gradually learns to overcome her fear of icy water. Her relation with Brona grows into love.

Movie: The Great Wall

Name: The Great Wall
Year: 2016
Director: Yimou Zhang
Cast: Matt Damon, Pedro Pascal, Willem Dafoe
Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Rating: PG-13
Time: 103 m

Outline of the movie: A mystery (the myth as they put it) centered on the construction of the Great Wall of China.

Not a masterpiece for sure, but yet really enjoyable.

        First of all, this movie does a lot of things right. The costume designs are impressive; the set designs are very convincing, the story worked out well. As a constant film goer I was really impressed with this film. It was entertaining.

         I was not expecting too much from the movie from the start; I did not check the reviews and ratings beforehand and now I really do not understand all the criticism about it.

         The story is about a legend. And it was wonderful to just sit back and let someone tell a really good and captivating story. And they told it beautifully! What I liked the most is a great number of beautiful people. It was a pure delight. The nature shots and battles – everything seems to be balanced and not too overloaded: a little of romance, none of the tear-shedding.  So at this point, I did not care anymore about plot holes or historical inaccuracies, because I came to cinema to see a fantasy, a Chinese legend with monsters and heroes. And there it all was: a war story, filled with elements of the old Chinese culture, surrounded by exceptional warriors, beautiful landscapes and bloodthirsty monsters. 

        The only minus I can point out is that due to the multiple plot twists, the audience never has enough time to get emotionally invested in the characters. Nevertheless, it is not a bad movie. I was entertaining and spectacular.

Rating: 

    5/5   

January 2017| most anticipated movies

It does not seem that so many new movies are coming out in January. Well it means more time for books.

12 January 
Name: Passengers
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt, Michael Sheen
Time: 116 min
Genres: Adventure, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Language: English

The spaceship, Starship Avalon, in its 120-year voyage to a distant colony planet known as the "Homestead Colony" and transporting 5,259 people has a malfunction in two of its sleep chambers. As a result two hibernation pods open prematurely and the two people that awoke, Jim Preston (Chris Pratt) and Aurora Dunn (Jennifer Lawrence), are stranded on the spaceship, still 90 years from their destination. 

Name: Live by Night 

Cast: Zoe Saldana, Ben Affleck, Chris Sullivan

Time: 128 min

Genres: Crime, Drama 

Country: USA

Language: English

Boston, 1926. The '20s are roaring. Liquor is flowing, bullets are flying, and one man sets out to make his mark on the world. Joe Coughlin, the youngest son of a prominent Boston police captain, has long since turned his back on his strict and proper upbringing. Now having graduated from a childhood of petty theft to a career in the pay of the city's most fearsome mobsters, Joe enjoys the spoils, thrills, and notoriety of being an outlaw. But life on the dark side carries a heavy price. Beyond money and power, even the threat of prison, one fate seems most likely for men like Joe: an early death. But until that day, he and his friends are determined to live life to the hilt. 

19 January
 Name: Monster Trucks
Cast: Jane Levy, Lucas Till, Rob Lowe
Time: 104 min
Genres: Animation, Action, Adventure
Country: USA
Language: English

Looking for any way to get away from the life and town he was born into, Tripp (Lucas Till), a high school senior, builds a Monster Truck from bits and pieces of scrapped cars. After an accident at a nearby oil-drilling site displaces a strange and subterranean creature with a taste and a talent for speed, Tripp may have just found the key to getting out of town and a most unlikely friend. 

26 January
Name: Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
Cast:  Milla Jovovich, Ruby Rose, Ali Larter
Time: 106 min
Genres: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Germany, Australia, Canada, France
Language: English

Picking up immediately after the events in Resident Evil: Retribution, Alice (Milla Jovovich) is the only survivor of what was meant to be humanity's final stand against the undead. Now, she must return to where the nightmare began - The Hive in Raccoon City, where the Umbrella Corporation is gathering its forces for a final strike against the only remaining survivors of the apocalypse. 

December 2016| most anticipated movies

Are you kidding me?? 3 movies with Marion Cotillard! I love her since the "Taxi" came out and now three movies in a row. It is going to be a nice month)

1 December

Name: Allied 
Cast: Brad Pitt, Marion Cotillard, Jared Harris
Time: 124 min
Genres: Action, Drama, Romance, Thriller, War
Country: USA/UK
Language: English
     In 1942, an intelligence officer in North Africa encounters a female French Resistance fighter on a deadly mission behind enemy lines. When they reunite in London, their relationship is tested by the pressures of war.

Name: From the Land of the Moon
Cast: Marion Cotillard, Louis Garrel
Time: 120 min
Genres: Drama, Romance
Country: France, Belgium, Canada
Language: French, Spanish
       Gabrielle (Marion Cotillard) comes from a small village in the South of France, at a time when a dream of true love is considered scandalous. Her parents marry her to José (Alex Brendemühl), an honest and loving Spanish farm worker. Despite José's devotion to her, Gabrielle vows that she will never love José and lives like a prisoner. One day she is sent away to a cure in the Alps to heal her kidney stones. There she meets André Sauvage (Louis Garrel), an injured veteran, who revives the passion in her.

 8 December 2016

Name: Underworld: Blood Wars
Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Theo James, Lara Pulver
Genres: Action, Horror
Country: USA
Language: English
     The next installment in the blockbuster franchise, UNDERWORLD: BLOOD WARS follows Vampire death dealer, Selene (Kate Beckinsale) as she fends off brutal attacks from both the Lycan clan and the Vampire faction that betrayed her. With her only allies, David (Theo James) and his father Thomas (Charles Dance), she must stop the eternal war between Lycans and Vampires, even if it means she has to make the ultimate sacrifice.
    It is just a tradition to match all Underworld movies. So i expect some good action and a lot of inter clans' confrontation.

15 December 2016 

Name: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Cast: Felicity Jones, Mads Mikkelsen, Forest Whitaker
Time:  133 min
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Language: English
      Jyn Erso, a Rebellion soldier and criminal, is about to experience her biggest challenge yet when Mon Mothma sets her out on a mission to steal the plans for the Death Star. With help from the Rebels, a master swordsman, and non-allied forces, Jyn will be in for something bigger than she thinks.
     I really do not know what to expect from the new Star Wars. The last one from 2015 was really disappointing. So I guess no further expectation and it might turn out all right.

29 December 2016 

Name: Assassin's Creed
Cast: Marion Cotillard, Michael Fassbender, Essie Davis 
Genres:  Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Country:  UK, France, Hong Kong, USA
Language: English, Spanish
Through a revolutionary technology that unlocks his genetic memories, Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender) experiences the adventures of his ancestor, Aguilar, in 15th Century Spain. Callum discovers he is descended from a mysterious secret society, the Assassins, and amasses incredible knowledge and skills to take on the oppressive and powerful Templar organization in the present day.
     The idea is just fantastic! The ability to activate genetic memories, that might be a real hit. Let's see how the movie director managed to put it to life.