Movie-Scene-by-Temo

A man nearing the centenarian mark in age, broke and losing his house to foreclosure, estranged from family, is offered a job that he can do and would enjoy: delivering packages by car across state lines. Asking no questions, he does as he is paid well to do, only later finding out that he is hauling large, record-breaking quantities of cocaine for a Mexican cartel and unbeknowst to him the DEA wants to meet him, the drug mule famously called Tata.

Hits:

Clint Eastwood (Gran Torino, Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby) playing drug mule Earl Stone, friendly, generous to others but not it seems to family, is believable. Bradley Cooper (A Star is Born (2018), American Sniper), Laurence Fishburne (The Matrix, Madiba) and Michael Pena (American Hustle, Million Dollar Baby) play the DEA agents who're after him. Cooper carries off the role, but for some reason its getting harder for me to decipher what he says, same problem I had watching him in A Star is Born. The rest of the also multi-awarded cast are equally exemplary at their jobs, including Dianne Wiest (The Birdcage, Bullets Over Broadway) and Andy Garcia (Oceans Eleven, The Godfather), seasoned veterans who without apparent effort easily play everyday people living everyday lives. Okay, maybe not Garcia.

Directed by Eastwood, it's an elegant re-enactment of a real life event.

Eastwood doesn't shy away from the aging process. Earl Stone is affectionately nicknamed Tata (grandfather), a reflection of the natural respect and care for the aging that is seen in Mexican or other world cultures, and is shown being taught how to text by the machine gun toting criminals.

At a time when we're inundated by franchised or re-told movies it's good to watch one that's original. The script from Nick Schenk (Gran Torino, The Judge) is based on a New York Times article by Sam Dolnick on "Leo Sharp, the most prolific drug mule that regional law enforcement had ever tracked."

Eastwood managed to address the alarming statistic of death by patrolman, particularly for men of colour.

Eastwood continues a long career as a story teller, doesn't let age stop him by creating a platform for himself. Because he still can.

Shows Mexican-Americans on both sides of the law, DEA agents versus drug dealers.

Misses:

Doesn't show the anxiety, panic, sadness or humbling that Earl, a hardworking Korean War veteran and celebrated Day Lily horticulturalist, experiences when he loses his house and farm, doesn't have money to survive and has to seek help from estranged family.

Doesn't show the legal defense preparation and the reason the judge ruled as he did.

Let's Take a Moment:

Not too long ago there were articles online on "how to travel the world for free" by becoming a courier. On the face of it, it may have been innocent in many cases. Nowadays it's the digital nomad lifestyle where you work from anywhere in the world and source jobs via online job sites. Who's to say that the Blue Daisy drug cartel can't hire you in Bora Bora and offer you what seems like an innocent IT job, but you're in actuality creating the cornerstone of a digital drug empire? Sometimes you just do what you have to do, if we all were to investigate employment leads before taking the job, the job would be long gone and bills would still be waiting.

If you were a 90-year-old man or woman, broke, living out of an old, dilapidated pickup truck only held together by prayer and sunshine, would you take a well-paying job, questions unasked, from a stranger? At that age you can't go back home to momma (probably in home care or deceased) until you get back on your feet. So yes it seems plausible to me that he took the job, didn't question the source, because he needed to eat.

Historically there was a man named Vlad or Dracula, who as a lad was given by his father, a Transylvanian ruler, to the Turks as allegiance to be brought up in Islamic ways and trained in warfare. The Turks created a killing machine, the ultimate warrior whose name was enough to turn enemy armies on their heels. His signature stamp was the impaling of thousands. Vlad returned to rule his (Christian) country in 1462 Transylvania, modern day Romania.

The movie picks up at this point in which Vlad (Luke Evans) has ruled in peace for 10 years, when Turkish leader Sultan Mehmed (Dominic Cooper) sends a demand that the Transylvanians pay jizyah, a head or poll tax that early Islamic rulers demanded from their non-Muslim subjects, plus 1,000 youths for his army. Vlad's people are horrified and outmanned, and Prince Vlad is forced to seek alternative means of satisfying the Turks. He offers himself in place of the boys, the Sultan refuses and demands Vlad's son in addition. Negotiations have failed, and Vlad is forced to seek alternate means to vanquish the Turkish armies that will no doubt fall upon them. The means has to be monumental. Vlad the Impaler, son of Dracul, transforms himself (temporarily) into a one-man unstoppable force and self-proclaimed Son of the Devil: the ultimate vampire (founded on Bram Stoker's 1897 novel 'Dracula') who can transform, fly, and has super sensory perception. But can a man, loving husband and father and protector of his people, ever come out ahead by making a pact with evil?

70 million dollars invested in a set of first-timers-feature director Gary Shores and writers Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless-has paid off big time. Evans (The Hobbit, Fast & Furious 6, No One Lives, The Raven, Immortals) plays the charismatic, compassionate hero with style and grace, and his commanding good looks are well suited to the beast transformations and restrained eroticism as is his use of voice. But it is questionable whether someone who grew up committing inhumane atrocities can really allow himself to be as vulnerable and expressive as Evans in the constantly conveyed love for his wife and son, or the smouldering tension in some scenes. His wife is played by Sarah Gadon (Mutant X, Life with Derek, Flashpoint), as Mirena, who has little to do but stand by her man. Cooper (Need for Speed, Fleming (TV Mini-Series), Reasonable Doubt, Mamma Mia!, Sense and Sensibility (TV Mini-Series)) as Mehmed the Conqueror is disappointing: he sounds and acts as he did playing Saddam Hussein's son Uday and body double Latif in The Devil's Double (2011). However, Oscar awarded costume designer Ngila Dickson (The Lord of the Rings, Blood Diamond, Xena: Warrior Princess) does not disappoint.

Brilliant cinematography, the animations are epic with strategic bat swarms forming at the hand and command of their master, Dracula. The sky darkening and changing that are so necessary for preserving Dracula's strength are suitably gripping. The sound effects are rich: deep rumbling, growling, earth moving. The historical connections are interesting. The editing may have been better, some scenes were too short or under developed to allow the full emotional effect, I presume this was to keep the movie within the PG 13 range.

Having watched numerous versions of Dracula, this is one of the best, and the change from rampaging, blood-thirsty, unfeeling, sex-consumed creature to a thoughtful, militarily strategic, loving hero is novel. It is entertaining and a movie worth watching. My hope is that it being the first in the Universal monster franchise revamp rollout, its impact is not diluted with the expected crossover into the upcoming series of movies.

The NFL, America's largest football (and sports) league, an estimated $9.5 billion/year industry, has a secret. A secret the league office and Management Council have been reluctant to investigate too deeply and one they've wished would go away quietly: former football stars, men still in their healthy years, are suffering from memory loss, insomnia, hearing voices, seeing double, blinding headaches, raging and destructively violent outbursts-leaving them debilitated and incapable of carrying out their normal lives.

Dr. Julian Bailes, a trusted former team doctor cannot understand why his ex-football player patients are having these symptoms and not responding to medication. "Is there something that I'm missing?" he asks in frustration when all tests seem normal for iconic, former Pittsburgh Steeler and inductee into the Hall of Fame, "Iron" Mike Webster now living on the streets and sleeping in his trash-strewn pickup truck. Not too long after, the former titan on the field, like several other ex-players, kills himself and his body arrives at the Coroners', forensic neuropathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu. Alive the body revealed nothing, but in death the answers can be found.

Former conflict and investigative journalist (read "A Woman's Work," New York Times, September 15, 2002), awarded painter and now director Peter Landesman specialized in following gritty stories on trafficking (human, sex, drugs, weapons, art and refugee) and so his portrayal of the NFL tactics against Nigerian-immigrant Dr. Omalu to keep the research results buried, which include threatening his employment and immigration status, are very realistic and current and the use of live footage throughout the movie keeps the tension well-paced and building.

Will Smith (Fresh Prince of Belair, Men in Black, Ali) Oscar and Grammy winner among numerous other awards, portrays the numerous degreed and prolifically (medically) specialized Omalu in a way that is quiet, somber, reflective, distinguished and earnest. The new immigrant from Kenya for whom Omalu provides room and board at the request of his pastor, and who he later marries, is Aga Khan Hospital, Nairobi, registered nurse Prema Mutiso portrayed by Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Jupiter Ascending, Beyond the Lights, Belle) African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) and Black Film Critics Circle award winner among others. Their relationship seems too restrained and unemotional, except when Omalu shows her the site of the home he intends to build, part of the fruition of his American Dream. In fact more passion is shown by the ex-NFL player Justin Strzelczyk (by Matthew Willig) who, with one hand, lifts his wife up by the throat in front of their children, and tells her that the voices in his head are ordering him to kill her. Alex Baldwin (30 Rock, The Cooler, It's Complicated) Oscar and BAFTA nominated, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild and Primetime Emmy recipient, gives a wonderfully realistic portrayal of a doctor (Bailes) who wishes to help his patients but knows that any negative publicity to the image of the NFL will be extremely dangerous.

Smith and Mbatha-Raw accents are not easily identifiable as Nigerian or Kenyan, but definitely inform the viewer that the speaker is not American-raised. The dialogue is impactful: Omalu, as he prepares to splice the brain of one of America's most beloved sports figures, responds to those who see his efforts as over-zealous, "the dead are my patients" and reminds them that he is bound to be thorough by the Hippocratic Oath.

This real life medical mystery, David and Goliath story, is very realistically presented. An important docudrama of a significant finding by an African-born doctor researching an American institution, the death of a champion ("Iron" Mike Webster brilliantly portrayed by David Morse) from the team with the most Super Bowl championships (the Pittsburgh Steelers), it's a shame it was not nominated for an Oscar 2016, but has been awarded elsewhere none the less. As Webster in his Hall of Fame acceptance speech said, "banging heads is not a natural thing"... the world waits to see if 'Concussion' has any effect on high-impact contact sports.

We all have the right to a life of dignity... but what about the right to death with dignity?

Financial wizard, Will Traynor is a quadriplegic (paralysis from the shoulders down) who's living at home with his parents in a castle that lies on the edge of a small English village. He's been paralyzed for 2 years and despite all his efforts at physical therapy only has movement in his thumb plus facial muscles. His parents have created a safe environment for him: a conversion of their large castle's stables into a comfortable home, a male nurse to feed, clean, bathe and change him and now a friendly, quirky companion in Lou Clarke. Unspoken is Traynor's mother's prayer: Clarke will dissuade Traynor from his self-made appointment with death in six months.

Director Thea Sharrock (The Hollow Crown, As You Like It) effectively handles the introduction of this heated, controversial subject in this light romance by giving us the perspective of one life... a life that could go on into the distant future with heavy medical involvement, a life that could continue to contribute to society, a life that could perhaps find satisfaction in this "lesser" state. The mostly new-to-feature film director, writer and young leading cast, are well-supported by a cinematographer with decades of experience, Remi Adefarasin OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) (Match Point, About a Boy, Elizabeth).

Sam Claflin (Snow White and the Huntsman, The Hunger Games) plays the quadriplegic Traynor, the romance male-lead, with Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones) his companion. They both have faces that are great for screen closeups, important when bodies can't move. Clarke, famously known for playing Daenerys Targaryen, Mother of Dragons, has a face so mobile her eyebrows seem to do acrobatics far removed from her stoic face in Game of Thrones. She also has a lot more to say in a candid, quirky manner, which soon brings out the mischievous side of Traynor, always up for a dare and adventure. The movie is carried by the two and they do a good job interacting.

Me Before You could have been set anywhere in the world, but the castle-village setting suits-if you have a Lord of the Manor character, why not give him one, with the young, naïve love interest played by a village girl. Also to emphasize the wealthy lifestyle is the private jet they use to go on holiday-very fairytale, Mills & Boon romance, a formula that has worked for decades.

Dialogue does flow and is well matched to the accompanying actions, not surprising as author Jojo Moyes also wrote the screenplay. The challenge of showing the life extreme-sports-devotee Traynor had before becoming a quadriplegic is easily and effectively solved when Clarke finds a short video (set to James Bond music) of Traynor doing many athletic feats-diving off cliffs into the sea, water skiing, bungy/sky jumping-narrated by a group of his admiring friends. Traynor definitely craved and loved physical adventure and his body was very toned and fit. Cut to his life now, immobile, needing assistance even to lift his head off his pillow or sitting, staring fixedly out of the window at the flat, colourless countryside, the only thing still agile being his mind and slowly recovering sense of humour.

The right to a dignified life for all is cemented in most constitutions across the globe. To choose when to die is something only provided for in some places, and only for those who have reached the hospice state of care when the doctor certifies that the patient only has a short period of time left to live, that death is inevitable from illness, disease, or injury, and that there are no medical interventions that can change this. At such a time the patient can choose death assisted by medical staff. But what if one is stuck in between: a diminished physical life that cannot improve but continues with high medical care and cost and still an acute mental ability. If such a person decides against living, are there ethical, social, moral, religious, spiritual, personal rights to be observed? Protected? Should that person too be allowed to choose death, or is it "murder" as one of the support actors states.

This is one of several books, movies and documentaries I've seen recently on the right to choose death, something many with the means have been doing for a time now. Well worth a watch, the viewer can take from it what they choose: the light-hearted fare of a chick-flick or the deeper philosophical discussion.

In Extortion, a fisherman, Kaba, comes across the Riley family-husband, wife and 6-year-old son-stranded on an Island in the Caribbean while on holiday. They'd hired a boat for three hours to go sailing, decided to explore a small, unoccupied island on the way out, but ran into engine trouble and couldn't get back to the main island where they are staying. When Kaba happens upon the family several days later, they are barely conscious.

Kaba can rescue them for $1 million, after all he reasons, Riley is a doctor. The man has no option but to agree and although he doesn't have it, will do his best to get it. So leaving wife and son on the island, they set off to the main island to get the ransom money. The doctor manages to collect slightly less than $200,000 (Kshs. 20,000,000) transfer it to the off-shore account given and they set off back to pick up his family, but the intention is actually to kill him at sea. He survives but now the race is on to find his family before they die of dehydration, as he also faces the scrutiny and investigation of the local Detective. There are hundreds of possible islands where mother and child might be, a search will take weeks to complete.

Kaba is played by Barkhad Abdi, Somali-born, refugee in Yemen and now U.S. resident. A former limousine driver, Abdi showed up for a casting call, got the part and history was made when he scored the role of Abduwali Muse, Somali pirate in 'Captain Phillips' (2013). For his role he received the Bafta award for Best Supporting Actor, a Black Reel Award, was nominated for a SAG and Golden Globe award and as cast-member, was nominated for six Academy Awards among others.

Previous to his acting career Abdi had several brushes with the law for drug possession and credit card fraud, and at one time was briefly imprisoned at the Black Hawk County Jail (see historical drama movie 'Black Hawk Down' (2001)). Abdi's life-story would make a great movie; in this role of the stone-cold extortionist he is very believable.

Established Hollywood actor Danny Glover (Beyond the Lights, Dirty Grandpa, Lethal Weapon), a veteran actor, producer and director, much awarded and recognized as a political and humanitarian activist is the skeptical Detective Constable Haagen. We've seen him as a detective before in Lethal Weapon, and here again he plays a man who's heard it all, but will give the main suspect the benefit of the doubt-for now. Eion Bailey (Band of Brothers (TV), Ray Donovan (TV), Law and Order (TV)) plays the father, Kevin Riley, realistically: we understand his frustration as he finds himself in a world where the normal and expected rules don't apply.

Director Phil Volken (Garbage), better known for comedy projects, takes on the adventure, crime genre with a good eye for timing, camera angle and beautiful use of the island scenery. Yes, ugly crime does take place in idyllic paradise, and the two are well juxtaposed. Mostly expertly scripted, there is a confusion of language when Kaba speaks to his accomplice, a fellow fisherman, however the viewer is not left in doubt as to the meaning of the words. An entertaining movie, full of adventure, beautiful sights and suspense.

It's the usual story: a gravesite is found of Egyptian origin, an unknown figure encased within a sarcophagus that is guarded by foreboding figures, opening the casket unleashes an evil force intent on taking over the world unless a small group of (under the radar, highly connected and financed) soldiers stop it. The only thing different this time is that the man who unleashes the evil force is Tom Cruise as character Nick Morton and this film launches the beginning of a new era in film at Universal Studios: Dark Universe.

Universal Studios ('Fast and Furious' franchise their current top grosser) is unleashing its monsters and gods from its vaults, some first portrayed in the movies in the 1920s, smartening them up for 21st century audiences and creating new campaigns around them. Millions of dollars is going into this project which began with the unveiling of the new logo and music theme. We can expect to see from Universal's catalog Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Wolf Man (1941), Dracula (1931), Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), Phantom of the Opera (1925), Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) and the Invisible Man (1933). The Mummy was first seen in 1932.

Universal is not alone in doing this, we have seen Disney studios create franchises around its Marvel characters (The Avengers) and Lucasfilm (the Star Wars saga) while Warner Brothers has DC Comics (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman). With that in mind, reportedly we will have Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Edward Scissor Hands) as the Invisible Man and Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men, Skyfall) as Frankenstein.

Director Alex Kurtzman (People Like Us, New Day (TV)) had at his disposal a catalog whose characters will most likely be overlapping other Universal franchise stories as decided by the studio writers. In The Mummy he cleverly mashes the "Mummy" story with "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" although the character "Dr. Henry Jekyll" is in public domain, and not owned by anyone/organization. Unfortunately, originality ended there.

Russell Crowe (Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind) plays Dr. Henry Jekyll head of Prodigium, an organization with the mandate to track, study and destroy evil that cannot be controlled-he himself can barely control his own alter-ego. Imprisoned and released Egyptian Princess Ahmanet is well played by Algeria's Sofia Boutella, (Kingsman, Star Trek Beyond). Tom Cruise (Mission: Impossible, Jerry Maguire) known for bringing it 100% is underused, or the script seriously lacking. This is the case for Crowe as well. Those defining moments when one can say, "Only Tom/Russell could have done that," are seriously missing. The role of Egyptologist, anti-evil secret agent Jenny (Annabelle Wallis of X-Men, the Tudors, King Arthur), could have been left out entirely if it were not to create a love triangle, which may be further developed in future movies: the Princess wants Morton and Morton wants Jane.

Originality there isn't: we have seen the little scarab beetle crawl across the floor, the desert, to climb into an ear and kill, the dust storm with the face of evil, the attack by a cloud of birds, the crusader tombs, the soul and life draining kiss/mouth lock that produces ghouls. What Universal Studios promised is that the new franchises would be global-new locations, new influences. As a very casual salute to this in the movie are the opening scene "Iraqi insurgents" shooting the faces off ancient statues and Morton, a U.S. solder on a tour of duty, using his time to find and steal ancient artifacts much to the annoyance of his superior officer, Colonel Greenway played by Courtney B. Vance (Terminator Genisys, State of Affairs (TV)).

This movie is disappointing despite its star-power. Nothing is concluded: there are scenes where both Nick Morton and Dr. Jekyll (and Hyde) battle the evil within themselves signaling further franchise creation and cross-use with the two and the Mummy herself. Two hours come to naught or little. We await the 'Bride of Frankenstein' with a projected release of February 2019-let it be current, interesting and thought provoking.

He grew up being a fearless boxer in betting street fights because what he faced at home was worse if he didn't win-brutal, inhumane beatings by his father. Not surprising Jake LaMotta ended up in juvenile detention for attempted theft, and under the tutelage of a catholic priest learned how to take his raw boxing talent to a competitive level. LaMotta turned pro at 19 and the iconic Raging Bull, also known as the Bronx Bull, was officially launched on the world.

Multi-talented, numerously awarded filmmaker and Grammy nominated music producer, Argentinian-born director Martin Guigui (9/11, Beneath the Darkness) brings his musical, acting, writing expertise to this project. There is a rich use of music to enhance the message plus set the era in the audiences mind, well accompanied by setting design and camera focus. For many this movie is seen as a complement to the Academy Award-winning film Raging Bull starring Robert deNiro which portrays LaMotta's life as a fighter. The Bronx Bull is about LaMotta after the ring: many marriages, dysfunctional relations with his children and father, good friendships and financial hardship.

The young Jake is played brilliantly by Iranian-Australian Mojean Aria (Aban & Khorshid), a man who is creating a career around conscious and progressive acting; the older, retired LaMotta is played by a screen veteran of dark, threatening roles, William Forsythe (Hawaii Five-O, Check Point, The Untouchables (TV)). LaMotta's uncompromising dictatorial father is Paul Sorvino whose authoritative figure is seen in major Italian Mafia films (Goodfellas, Once Upon a Time in Queens) while life-long best friend, street-fight-arranger and later porn film producer among other businesses is played by Joe Mantegna (The Godfather: III, Criminal Minds (TV)). Despite his vast contribution to LaMotta's career, we see too little of the priest Father Joseph, played by Ray Wise (X-Men, Star Trek, Mad Men (TV)).

An engaging biographical movie on sports history which humanizes a person whose face in the public was one of violence, but whose intentions were not. LaMotta's mercurial temper out of the ring put him in trouble with the law and the people around him, but his sense of humor and conversation skills put him in a good place with the ladies and audiences as a comedian and speaker later in life. He is known as one of the few who stopped the legendary Sugar Ray Robinson, although it took six matches to eventually do so, by which time LaMotta jokes he'd almost developed diabetes. Ninety-six now, the former World Middleweight Champion with an impressive career record of 83 (wins)-19 (losses)-4 (draws) with 30 knockouts, lives with his seventh wife and is still coherent and quick witted.

35 years ago Stephen King began the seven book series The Dark Tower with the sentence and paragraph, "The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed." That novella was The Gunslinger and director Nikolaj Arcel (A Royal Affair, Truth About Men) had the daunting task of writing the screenplay summarizing several of the widely loved books and comics and presenting them on screen. As the man who wrote the screenplay for another book series with fanatical followers, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, he was well up to the task.

The Gunslinger, Idris Elba of Sierraleonian and Ghanaian parentage (Beasts of No Nation, Mandela, Luther (TV), The Wire (TV)) and The Man in Black, Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey (Interstellar, Dallas Buyers Club), are two giants in the acting world. Elba is commanding in his performance with dramatic action sequences and provides occasional humorous retorts, but McConaughey's talents are definitely underused. There is nothing threatening about him and his handsome face rarely changes expression. As the most psychically advanced of the three, the film would have been served by portraying him with dark, menacing, dramatic audio visual effects. The young Jake is realistically played as a teenager not aware of the full extent of his abilities and how to use them.

The movie is partially filmed in South Africa's Karoo desert and interiors in an old shopping mall in Cape Town. As in The Mummy, starring Tom Cruise, which was filmed in Namibia's Namib Desert, the desolateness of the environment goes a long way in providing mood and contributes to the hardship we know the characters must go through to achieve their goals.

The Western as a genre speaks to individualism and pioneering, a world where government/social law do not apply. Westerns have largely given way to sci-fi films which are modern day Westerns set in "other worlds." Seemingly, the sci-fi genre is leading us to the "final frontier" which is the mind and "the supernatural." The movie is a mash-up of horror, the supernatural and sci-fi, but each protagonist uses one thing, their mental abilities, even The Gunslinger who shoots physical bullets by mental control following The Gunslinger creed:

"I do not aim with my hand. He who aims with his hand has forgotten the face of his father. I aim with my eye. I do not shoot with my hand. He who shoots with his hand has forgotten the face of his father. I shoot with my mind. I do not kill with my gun. He who kills with his gun has forgotten the face of his father. I kill with my heart."

It encompasses the Hermetic Law, "As within, so without, as the universe, so the soul" and also several metaphysical and spiritual principles on the ability of mind over matter. Beyond this it's an entertaining movie. Go watch and leave entertained and perhaps with food for thought.