Django Unchained

Hilarious spoof on the old spaghetti westerns. Jamie Foxx is a Texas slave in the 1880's who is freed by a German Bounty Hunter who trains him in the art of killing wanted people. Along the way Foxx is able track down where his wife, separated as a slave, is serving her master, Leonardo DiCaprio who is the perfect Southern Slave owner/villan. Almost 3 hours of non stop killing and mayhem make this a fun treat. Abundant use of the N word but done in such away as was proper at that time. Don't miss this Quintin Terrinto masterpiece. 3 1/2 bananas

Jack Reacher

My all time favorite author, Lee Childs, has finally come to the screen with his 6'5" hullking ex Army MP investigator. Unfortunately 5'7" Tom Cruise plays Reacher. If you can get over that, the movie is done very well and follows the book 'One Shot' where a seemingly innocent group of 5 people are shot down in cold blood in Pittsburg. The killer is caught and before he is beaten to a bloody pulp he writes down Jack Reacher, who no one knows but will find out shortly as he shows up to dispense his wisdom and justice. This sould become a series! 3 1/2 bananas

Guilt Trip

Seth Rogan and Barbara Streisand,mother and son, depart on a cross country car trip for Rogan to sell his newly invented moisture creame product to distributors. Stresiand plays the meddeling jewish mother who can't let her son be an adult. Some funny parts but to much Streisand. 2 bananas

Hitchcock

Throughly entertaining bio of Alfred during the time he selected the book Pyscho and the filming of the movie. Overfed and not at a loss for alcohol Hitchcock has some voyerism in him and defintely likes blondes as he settles on the script. Turns out he was somewhat of a shit to his wife Alma, played by Helen Mirram who could be looking at an Oscar. Scarlett Johanssen plays Janet Leigh. At times the delusional Hitchcock finds himself having conversations with the character, Norman Bates. This movie is to good to pass up. 3 1/2 bananas

Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Beaufully filmed in New Zealand with spectacular special effects. Hobbit is recruited by Dwarfs to help get back the dwarfs kingdom that was taken by a dragon. Epic journey encounters mayhem along the long slow hike to the Dwarfs stolen home. Movie is almost 3 hours long but moves quickly. Unfortunately it leaves you hanging for part 2. Not sure this is appropriate for children as the body count has to be in the hundreds if not thousands. 3 bananas

Playing for Keeps

Retired soccer plyer(Gerrard Butler)shows up in ex-wife's town and creates quit a stir as the little kids soccer coach. Divorced wifes and some not so much, flock to his love nest as he trys to build a father/son relationship and rekindle the love lost with his ex. Some funny, some touching moments but a lot of dead air. 2 1/2 bananas

Chasing Ice

Beautifully filmed over a period of time, what is happening to the worlds glaciers. 30 cameras are arranged to view, in time lapse sequencing, the withdrawal of the worlds mightiest glaciers. For all the naysayers of global warming and climate change this movie should be required viewing. Tragic is the only word that describes the destruction of the worlds ice ice/snow packs. One scene shows and area the size of lower Manhattan breaking away--just magnifient but unbelievable at the same time. Everyone should see this movie, it's a harbinger of bad things coming. 4 bananas

The collections

Gory, gruesome bloodfest. A team is assigned the task of retreiving a kidnapped daughter from a physo who has set up a house of horrors. Upon entering they find that they are the hunted in the most maniacial ways. If you liked the saw movies you'll like this one. 2 bananas

Lincoln

Well done slice of history is portrayed by Daniel Day Lewis as Abe Lincoln who fights to find a way to get the House of Re[resentatives to vote on and pass the 13th Amnendment to free the slaves. Terrific cast makes this one of the best movies of the year. Interesting timing in that Lincoln had to twist arms and make deals in order to secure enough votes for passage. A must see for anyone interested in our countries history. 4 bananas

Killing Them Softly

Brad Pitt stars as the hitman who believes his targets should be dispatched with haste thus Killing them softly. Movie moves at a snails pace as Pitt tracks down a couple of bunglers who have the stupiditly to rob a mob poker game. Movie got great reviews but not from me. 2 bananas

Silver Lining

2 totally messed up adults(Bradley Cooper & Jennifer Lawrence) living in Philadelphia help each other find their way. But the real story is all the wacko family and friends associated with them. Robert De Niro is terrific as the father who moonlights as a bookie as well as a superstitious Eagles diehard football fan. This drama/comedy has it all. Great acting. 3 1/2 bananas

Red Dawn

Stupid remake of the early 80's movie. Instead of Russians invading the East Coast, now we have North Koreans invading the West Coast(which we should probably just give them). Group of teenagers led by a GI home on leave take up arms against North Korean Army. Not sure who wins as movie ends with the bad guys still here. Miss this movie. 1/2 banana

Life of Pi

Beautifully filmed story of an Indian boys survival when the ship transporting his family and zoo animals to America sinks and he alone survives with a tiger in a life boat for many weeks. Story is told years later to a writer thru the grown boy's eyes but what is real and what isn't, is the real story. Probably worth the extra money to see in 3-D. A definite must see. 4 bananas

Twilight Sage: Breaking Dawn part 2

Bella has vampire/human baby named Isabella. Other sect of vampires see's this as threat to their being. Vampires and wolves converge for one last confrontation. Bella makes nice with bad vampires. Everything gets back to normal. End of story, HOPEFULLY!! 2 bananas

SkyFall

2 1/2 hours of great enjoyment. James Bond is up against an ex 00 who is out to kill M. Not a lot of techy stuff or hot babes but the first half hour has enough action to fill 5 movies. Daniel Craig is becoming the best of the bonds and Javier Barden is one bad ass as he seeks revenge on M and her Dept as she gave orders for his death years earlier. 3 1/2 bananas

The Man with Two Iron Fists

Throughly entertaining spoof on all the asian kung foo, kick ass movies. A Quentino Tarantino directed movie so you expect the wild action and unbelievable mayham that ensues. Russell Crowe and Lucy Lieu star in this blood bath that uses sub titles at times to get you in the mood of a foreign film. Fun,Fun,Fun!!! No oscar here but see it if you like action and don't mind seeing arms and legs being severed cleverly. 3 bananas

Flight

WOW!! You may never fly again after watching the first 15 minutes of this heart pounding movie. Denzel Washington, a pilot , makes a miraculous landing of a plane that is literally falling apart at 30000 feet. But that isn't the story, unfortunately. Denzel is a severe alcoholic and cocaine addict who thinks he doesn't have a problem. Another great performance by Denzel. 3 1/2 bananas

The Sessions

Multiple acadamey award possibilities here. Smart, frank, warm and funny. 35 year paralyzed man seeks to have his first sexual encounter. He turns to his priest, William Macy, who tells him to go for it. Helen Hunt a sexual therapist is hired and it just keeps getting better and better. Terrific performances by all. Not at all what I was expecting; a must see movie. 4 bananas

Silent Hill

This horror movie which is almost impossible to explain belongs in your garbage bin. So many stupid and unbelievable happenings make this a diaster. Our heroine when she reaches 18 starts having weird dreams that come to life and drag her to Silent Hill an old deserted town where she has to fight for her fathers life. Forget this one. 1/2 banana

Sinister

Author, who moves into houses where murders have occured, finds that he has biten off more than he can chew in this lame movie. He discovers an old projector with reels of mass killings in his attic but does he go to the police, no he subjects his family to the unkown with the usual results. Let this dog lie. 1 banana

Alex Cross

James Patterson should be proud of how his character, Alex Cross, has been portrayed in Film. Detroit dectective Tyler Perry(Cross) is up against a sadistic killer who loves to inflict pain on his victims and things really go south when Cross's wife is in the killer's crosshairs. Movie is true to the book and leaves the door open for future Patterson's books to film. 3 bananas

Seven Psychopaths

Alcoholic screen writer(Colin Ferrel)with the help of two dognappers(Sam Rockwell & Christopher Walken) team up to help write a screen play called Seven Pyschopaths based mostly upon their fantasies but also some real experiences. They also run amuck with tough guy Woody Harrelson from whom they steal his Shitzew dog. Screwball action/comedy that if you stick with it makes sense and is very funny. 3 bananas

Atlas Shrugged 2

Picks up where part 1 left off. Our Government is nationalizing all business and spreading the wealth to a few. Few are rising up but there is one, the owner of a specialized steel company refuses to go along. Somewhat disjointed adaptation from the very popular book. Unfortunately we have to wait another year(for the last in the trilogy) to find out how bad things really are. 2 bananas

Argo

Very intense true life drama of how the CIA smuggled 6 US citizens out of Iran after the 1980 uprising. With the help of the Canadian Embassy, where the 6 fled to after the Iranians over ran the US embassy, the CIA hatches an intricate plot to serve as a vehilce for escape. Entertaining and heart stopping. Ben Affleck stars as the CIA mastermind. 3 1/2 bananas

The Paperboy

Bizzare mystery murder with an all-star cast. Newspaper writer from Miami(Matthew McConaghy) comes back to his Florida backwoods home to try and prove that a person in prison(John Cusack) did not kill the local sheriff; meanwhile sexy slutty(Nicole Kidman) has been corresponding with the jailbird who she only knows through newspaper clippings. Many twists and turns in this very interesting and steamy 1960's era movie. All time best sexuall scene, without contact, ever filmed. 3 1/2 bananas

House at the end of the Street

What I thought was going to be just another gore fest turned out to be a pretty good mystery. Mom and daughter move next door to a house where the parents had been killed 4 years earlier by their daughter. College age son still lives there and strikes up a relationship with the newly arrived next door neighor. Then things start to unravel with a pretty slick ending. 2 1/2 bananas

Taken 2

Liam Neeson once again has a bad day over seas as the Man whose son he killed in Taken 1 is out for revenge. Neesom's wife and daughter are targeted as payback but don't they know, you can't screw with Neesom and get away with it. If you saw Taken 1, it's more of the same, killing on roof tops. Beautiful scenery but the plot is pretty bad. 2 bananas

Arbitrage

Money, Money, Money and he who has the most usually wins. Richard Gere owns an Investment business but has come up short due to a bad investment while trying to sell his business. To complicate matters he is involved in a steamy romance that ends tragically. Put all this togeher and you've a a great story. Sussan Sarrandon stars as Gere's wife. You find yourself in Gere's corner. 3 1/2 bananas

Intouchables

Best Dam Movie of the year. French made but an utter delight as two men, one black with a shady past and the other white who is a quadradplalegic find each other and help each other grow through their problems. You'll want to see this a second time. Great acting and a great story that happens to be true. 4 bananas

Trouble with the Curve

Clint Eastwood is an over the hill baseball scout who is losing his vision but can't give up the game. Amy Adams, Eastwoods lawyer daughter steps up to help the old man scout a particular high school player. While the theme of the movie is baseball most of the movie is centered around the father/daughter relationship or lack of one. Eastwood and Adams at their best. Feel good movie. 3 1/2 bananas

The Master

How to start a cult, get a few follwers who believe anything and you got 'The Cause', a religious(?) Cult led by Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master, who travels the country spuing his righteous crap and trying to convert Joaquin Phoenix ,a non-believer, who himself has much baggage to contend with. Amy Adams plays the faithful wife but is she the true Master! Terrific performances all around, definitely an Oscar contender. 3 1/2 bananas

Looper

Loopers are assassins 30 years in the future.They are trained to kill people from the present who are sent to the future. One looper is assigned a kill but when he discovers that the kill is himself played by Bruce Willis, the plot thickens. Story jumps around and is confusing but still enjoyable. 2 1/2 bananas

Premium Rush

Who'd thought that you could enjoy 1 1/2 hours of bike messengers racing through the streets of Manhattan. There's a story as well but just the video of dodging traffic is enough to want to see this movie. A messenger is tasked with delevering an envelope that a corrupt cop needs. The chase is on in NYC as mutiple parties become involved in getting the envelope to its proper place. Engaging fun. 2 1/2 bananas

Dredd

Pretty good action movie based in the future when law enforcers are judge, jury and executioner. Our hero Dredd, who you never see as he is fully enclosed in helmet and bullet proof clothing,goes into a 200 story high rise to clear out a drug dealing gang. Non stop killing all the the way to the top floor. Entertaining! 3 bananas

End of Watch

Daily life of 2 South Central L.A. cops becomes very dangerous when they uncover a Mexican human trafficing ring. This is Southland(great TV cop program) on sterroids. If you liked Training Day, you'll like this. 3 bananas

Odd Life of Timothy Green

Young married couple can't have a child, put a love list in the ground and during a thunderstorm young dirty Timmy comes calling from the ground. Sweet heart tugging story that is totally unbelievable but you want it to be true. 3 bananas

Resident Evil: Retribution--9/19/12

On going series has our heroine battling the baddies under Russian ice cap. To bad she never dies. 1 banana

The Imposter--9/18/12

13 year old boy diasappears and reappears 3 years later with many unanswered questions. Based on true story. 3 bananas

Cold Light of Day--9/17/12

Family goes on sailing trip only to be kidnapped as a mysterious brief case becomes the center for return of family. Bruce Willis is killed off early as he should be, 1 1/2 bananas

Lawless --9/4/12

Based on true story of moonshiners in Kentucky going up against the law. 2 1/2 bananas

The Expendables--8/19/12

Every OLD action hero is in this. Stupid plot but fun to see things blow up. 2 bananas

The Bourne Legacy--8/16/12

New killing machine takes over this terrific brand. Look forward to more. 3 bananas

Dark Knight Rises--7/26/12

Last of the BatMan series. Not as good as the first two but plenty of action. 2 1/2 bananas

Best Exotic Marigold Hotel--7/19/12

Best movie of the year so far. Great English cast buy a down trodden hotel in India. 3 1/2 bananas

Savages--7/12/12

Bloody good shootem up when Mexican cartel messes with the wrong guys from the USA. 2 1/2 banas

Prometheus--6/12/12

Good action Sci-Fi. 3 bananas

Chernobyl Diaries--6/5/12

Group of young adults sneek into the closed site with predictable results. 2 bananas

Snow White and the Huntsman

Newer version of the old story with Charzie Theron the evil witch casting spells as she tries to stop her aging. Interesting in how all the original characters and plots are assembled in this production. Great special effects. Well worth the 2 1/2 hours. 3 bananas

Men In Black 3

Terrific sequel to the last MB2 of 12 years ago. Will Smith must travel back in time in order to kill an alien who will kill his partner Tommy Lee Jones. Josh Brolin who is the younger version of Jones, does a fantastic job of imitating Jones mannerisms. Fun, Fun, fun movie still has all the crazy alien characters but delivers. 3 1/2 bananas

The Dictator

Sasha Baron Cohen again ,in a lampooning political Comedy. Cohen is the Dictator of a small African country who comes to speak to the UN but is kidnapped and learns what democracy is all about. Some very funny moments but they can't cut the stupidity of the movie. 1 1/2 bananas

Bernie

Jack Black is hilarious in this true life story of an East Texas assistant mortican who gives his all to his community. Story plays out as the locals recall all his good deeds that lead to his downfall. Shirley McClain is the local elderly wealthy spinster who creates Jacks problem. What makes this such a fun movie are the local citizens who are a hoot as they give off glowing endorsements of their hometown favorite son. 3 1/2 bananas

Battleship

Dumb but entertaining movie that could be the prequel to the first Alien movie. Government has devised a away to contact a distant planet which in turn serves as a beacon for aliens to invade Earth. Some great special effects as the two sides duke it out but bringing the Missouri Battleship out of mothballs with loaded barrels is beyond belief. Fun after the boring first half hour! 2 bananas

Dark Shadows

Johnny Depp gives his usual terrific acting performance but it isn't enough to save this slow moving vampire rebirth. Depp who has had a witch cast a spell on him and buried for 200 years, rises from his coffin to create havic with his disfunctional heirs. At times amusing but overall a clunker. 2 bananas

Five-Year Engagement

Sometimes very funny more often boring and tooo long story of how an engaged couple can't find time to get married. Emily Blunt has a fine butt and that is my main attraction. The ending can't come soon enough. About 45 minutes to long. Not worth the time or the money; did I mention Emily's tush! 1 1/2 bananas

Avengers

Fun, fantasy action movie starring most of the Marvel comic book action heroes. Samuel Jackson leads his super secret group of special powered heroes against alien invaders set on destroying our world. Great special effects and non-stop action provide over two hours of cool fun. Jackson's base of operation is one slick operating system. See this movie for the entertainment not the acting. 3 bananas.

The Raven

John Cusack stars as Edgar Allen Poe in this 1800's mystery. A serial killer is on the loose and is using Poe's book themes as the method of his kills. Things get nasty when Poe's girlfriend is entombed. The search for her ultimately leads to Poe's demise and supposedly explains why he was found dead on a park bench. Not a bad 2 hours. 2 1/2 bananas

Safe

My favorite kick ass action hero, Jason Statham, does just that in this non-stop shoot-em up. A young chinese girl, with a photographic memory, is used to transfer information that is wanted by The Chinese Mafia, The crooked NYPD and the Russian mob. Statham, a retired/disgraced NY cop comes to the girls rescue and the body count explodes. Nothing stops my super hero as he single handedly metes out his own form of justice. If you like action with a decent plot, this is for you. 3 bananas

Bully

Depressing quasi documentary of how kids in grade/high school are bullied by their peers. Also a very stern indictment of how our school systems and the parents turn a blind eye to this very serious problem. Hopefully this film is required viewing by all school systems, large and small, as bullying is out of control in our school systems; with many suicides as a result. You won't feel better after seeing this movie but you should have a better understanding of what many of our younger children are going through. See it whether you have children, grandchildren or no children, as you are the ones who can help fix this terrible problem. 4 bananas

Chipanzee

Beautifully photographed DisneyAdventure movie starring a family of Chipanzees in the wild. One in particular Chimp, baby Oscar, loses his mother and is adopted by the lead male of the pack, which apparently is never done. Filmed over a period of time, movie gives a stunning visual as to how chimpanzees exist and battle over territories in the jungle. It is amazing how close they are to us.If you wonder how this film was shot, stay around for the credits. 4 bananas

Cabin in the Woods

This is the most bizare, bloodliest horror film I've seen. After viewing, all I can say is "WTF" just happened! 5 college kids go for a weekend to a cabin in the woods and are systematically killed off by a highly computerized organization that is apparently in competition with other forces. I haven't a clue as to what the hell happened at the end but the movie was fun to watch. For creativity I'll give it: 3 bananas

The Three Stooges

Slap stick comedy but not anywhere as good as the original three. The 3 stooges are intent on saving the orphanage that they grew up in with the usual disasterous results. See it if you must but you are better off dialing in the original series on TV or DVD. 2 bananas

Lockout

Futuristic action movie takes place in 2079 when a world wide jailing system is developed in space to hold the bad of the bad; unfortunately the US President's daughter goes there on a fact finding trip and the prisoners escape from their cells. Guy Pierce who has issues of his own is sent in to rescue the daughter. Pretty bad story but fun as far as the action is concerned. 1 1/2 bananas

Jeff Who Lives at Home

Lame comedy/drama stars Susan Sarrandon as the single mother of two dysfunctional adult sons; one a jobless guy who lives in her basement who has visions;the other brother has multiple married issues. Somehow everyone's problems work themselves out in a really dumb ending. Miss this one. 1 1/2 bananas

American Reunion

Cast from American Pie reunite for their high school's 13th reunion. Some very funny, though intense language, scenes play out as the crew brings mayhem to the screen. If you liked American Pie see this but it's not as funny as it's always harder to make the 2nd movie better or funnier. 2 1/2 bananas

Kid with a bike

Foreign French film in English sub-titles evolves around a boy who has been placed in a juvenile home due to lack of committment by his father. The boy retreives his bike from their abandoned apartment and then tries to connect with his father; along the way he finds a helpful woman and some menacing local bad boys. Has played to good reviews though I found it somewhat dull. 2 bananas

21 Jump Street

Fairly amuzing comedy with Tatum Channing posing as an undercover cop in high school , seeking out a drug dealer. Channing seems a bit old for this part as the movie itself is quick to point out in a couple of its scenes. Some very funny moments and yet some long moments of dullness. Overall worth seeing for its comedy but don't be taking your youngsters to this movie as the language is rough. 2 1/2 bananas

Raid:The Redemption

If you like non-stop action see this even though it has sub titles. Squad of kung fu police attack apartment building controlled by local gang lord. Battles ensue floor by floor with mayhem galore. Not many make it back. Creative ways to die after being pummeled silly are invented by both sides.2 bananas

Hunger Games

Entertaining but somewhat overrated. Civilization as we know it has ended and the world is divided into 12 groupings with each having to send a young male and female, each year, to the overseer of the 12 groups. The 24 contestants are then pitted against each other in a death to the end/winner takes all. Alice In Wonderland meets Rambo feeling to this movie. It's a stretch to give 3 bananas.

Wanderlust

Jennifer Anniston and Paul Rudd, NYC married couple, leave the city due to no income and find themselves at a commune in Georgia where just about anything goes. Commedy has some very funny moments but over all falls flat. See it if you've seen everything else. 1 1/2 bananas

The Artist

Delightful two hours of what old time black/white silent movies were all about. Story revolves around Silent picture star who doesn't want to adjust to the new wave of motion pictures,talking; and how he helps propel an unknown actress into stardom and then the favor is the returned.Great acting and dancing. This movie cleaned up at Oscar time--rightfully so. 4 bananas

Act Of Valor

Interesting movie in that it used real life Navy Seals for all the action shots. Movie takes place in the now, as Navy Seals are tasked with hunting down terrorists and extracting hostages. Terrific action scenes give vivid accounts of how the Seals work in their stealth environment. No names could be used as far as the Seals are concerned as many are still on active duty. 3 bananas

Safe House

Non-stop action thriller stars Denzel Washington as the baddie and Ryan Reynolds as the good CIA agent tasked with trying to keep Denzel alive as people of unknown origin are out to kill Washington and retrieve a file that has come into his possession.
Some great car chases and shootem up scenes. See it to be entertained. 2 1/2 bananas

This Means War

Dumb comedy that pits two CIA agents/best friends against each other,vying for Resse Weatherspoon's affection. To bad they don't kill each other off. Miss this one. 1/2 banana

Contraband

Mark Wahlberg stars as the guy who is trying to reform from being a smuggler but is forced to make one last run as his family is held hostage. Pretty good action movie. 2 1/2 bananas

Haywire

Action packed shootem up with smoking hot female type James Bond super spy. This girl kicks ass as she is being setup to fail by her boss. Movie is sometimes confusing as to what is going on but Kirk Douglas and Antonio Banderas help to make it enjoyable. The star of this double dealing smack down gets better looking as the movie progresses if that's possible. Only thing missing is her in a swimsuit. Fun entertainment, 2 1/2 bananas

A Dangerous Method

Jung and Freud match egos and therories in this somewhat true 1900 century story concerning one of Jung's clients who is suffering from a sexual disorder. As both docters psycho-analyse each other, Jung becomes involved with his patient who will eventually will become a world renown Russian psychologist. Switzerland and Austria backgrounds add to the beauty of this intense and sometimes hard to follow drama. 3 bananas

WarHorse

Can a horse win the best acting Oscar? If so, see this movie just to see this beautiful horse. Early 1900 English farm boy raises horse only to see him conscripted by the English army as it prepares for war with Germany. The horse spends time with both armies as well as other stops before the dramatic conclusion. Beautiful photography with two horses that steal the show,make this a prime candidate for Best Movie Oscar. 4 bananas

We Bought a Zoo

Matt Damon and his two kids buy a rundown zoo that comes with a house as they try to move past the recent death of his wife. Based on a true story, the plot centers around the conflicted son who is close to going off the deep end. Fortunately Scarlett Johansen comes with the zoo to add some stability to the Damon household. 2 1/2 bananas