Valentines Day

Summary:
More than a dozen Angelenos navigate Valentine's Day from early morning until midnight. Three couples awake together, but each relationship will sputter; are any worth saving? A grade-school boy wants flowers for his first true love; two high school seniors plan first-time sex at noon; a TV sports reporter gets the assignment to find romance in LA; a star quarterback contemplates his future; two strangers meet on a plane; grandparents, together for years, face a crisis; and, an "I Hate Valentine's Day" dinner beckons the lonely and the lied to. Can Cupid finish his work by midnight?

Review:
While I was certainly conned into watching this through a woman, it was released in 2010, I went in with the review in mind and watched it through. This is definitely your standard romantic comedy. The cast is well known throughout and in my opinion it was somewhat a waste of talent. There were certainly some laughs to be had throughout but there was nothing that made it rise above the rest. Just another romantic comedy men are suffered to sit through. It wasn't unwatchable by any means, just glad I didn't have to pay to see it in theaters. If you're being pestered to find a movie for the lady friend, it will work, but I'm sure there are better options out there.

The Losers

Summary:
A tale of double cross and revenge, centered upon the members of an elite U.S. Special Forces unit sent into the Bolivian jungle on a search and destroy mission. The team-Clay, Jensen, Roque, Pooch and Cougar -find themselves the target of a lethal betrayal instigated from inside by a powerful enemy known only as Max. Presumed dead, the group makes plans to even the score when they're joined by the mysterious Aisha, a beautiful operative with her own agenda. Working together, they must remain deep undercover while tracking the heavily-guarded Max, a ruthless man bent on embroiling the world in a new high-tech global war

Review:
Here was a movie I stumbled across simply because it had been released in 2010. This blog has me looking out for these kinds of things. I was pleasantly surprised when I made the dive into "borrowing" it and giving it a watch. "The Losers" is filled with B-list little known actors and actresses but they perform very well. The movie is not to be taken too seriously, and throws around a fair amount of humor throughout. There are a few moments in this movie where you cock your head to the side and drop a wtf? This was unsettling at first, but it was still overall highly enjoyable. The director, Sylvaine White has a short resume (only four movies previously) and I have not personally seen any of his prior work, however, I think he has found his niche and will produce some good films in the future.

Robin Hood

Summary:
Birth of a legend. Following King Richard's death in France, archer Robin Longstride, along with Will Scarlett, Alan-a-Dale and Little John, returns to England. They encounter the dying Robert of Locksley, whose party was ambushed by treacherous Godfrey, who hopes to facilitate a French invasion of England. Robin promises the dying knight he will return his sword to his father Walter in Nottingham. Here Walter encourages him to impersonate the dead man to prevent his land being confiscated by the crown, and he finds himself with Marian, a ready-made wife. Hoping to stir baronial opposition to weak King John and allow an easy French take-over, Godfrey worms his way into the king's service as Earl Marshal of England and brutally invades towns under the pretext of collecting Royal taxes. Can Robin navigate the politics of barons, royals, traitors, and the French?

Review:
Before watching this movie you have to set aside everything you know about "Robin Hood". This was quite a different take on the normal "Robin Hood" figure that we've all come to know over the years. I think it was still quite an enjoyable rendition of the story behind the name and well put together. Russell Crowe brings a strong sense of "Gladiator" to the movie in the action scenes which proved yet again to be quite effective at keeping the audience's attention. Crowe stands out from the other actors involved, however, Cate Blanchett plays a nice role as Marion Loxley, who proves to be a little rougher than previous renditions. This movie definitely had its downsides but overall very watchable and I certainly enjoyed it. I wouldn't throw it to the top of your Netflix queue but worth checking out if you're at a loss for movies. I still would prefer Robin Hood: Men in Tights - which should find its way to the top of your queue.

Unthinkable

Summary:
The story of a white american muslim, who claims to have planted three nuclear bombs in large cities of the US, threatening to kill millions. He is interrogated and tortured by an 'agent' who uses every possible mean to crack him into revealing the location of the bombs. It's a hard and brutal 'game', which challenges ever possible definition of right and wrong, as well as lawful versus criminal behaviours: how far would you go, based on a 1% chance the the bombs really exist and may kills millions, to protect those? And when even the most brutal acts of torture don't break your subject, what becomes the next 'unthinkable' boundary of human decency, which marks the difference between the terrorists and the order? Where do you stop? The movie goes really far in asking these questions and - correctly - leaves the answers to each viewer for him/herself.

Review:
I went into watching Unthinkable knowing absolutely nothing about it. I had never heard of it, nor ever intended on seeing it, but I am glad I did. Unthinkable may be a little harsh at times for some viewers as the torture scenes can be quite graphic, however, they are well portrayed. Samuel L. Jackson's character is absolutely phenomenal and they could not have chosen someone better to play the role. Samuel L. Jackson's character, H, shines out as one of the most complex yet straightforward involved in the situation. Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix) also plays a great role portraying the more humane side of humanity. Unthinkable throws some great plot twists in at the end of the film that pull the movie together as a whole. You find yourself choosing sides multiple times throughout constantly trying to figure out who really is the "bad guy" in the story. Unthinkable was a great watch, and I would recommend it to all.