Bond James Bond- Spectre- A Movie Review

I'll be the first to admit that I love seeing movies that have a lot of media hype.  James Bond movies are not a usual pick for me, but they always seem to draw in movie goers, so it isn't surprising that I get sucked in as well.  I was a tad concerned as the total run time indicated 150 minutes.  That's a long movie.

When we last saw James, he lost an integral person in his career.  Even with her passing, she left him with a clue so he could finish what she started.  The cryptic video was a message from her telling him to find a man and kill him.  Killing isn't exactly a new thing for James, but he knew nothing of the significance of his newest victim.  After research and tracking, James is on a forbidden mission.  The double 0 program is in question and threatened with a new technology in which to wipe out the need of double 0's.  James is told several times to lay low and end his mission, but if you have seen any James Bond movie, you know that simply won't happen.  James gets deeper and deeper into the heart of Spectre; a group involved in terrorism with new technology that could host all information across the world.  It is all run by one man James assumed to be dead a long time ago.  He soon finds out this man is not only alive, but has been the shadow behind every loss James has dealt with throughout his life.  James will not only fight for his own life, but also the life of the woman who could finally have his heart.

Obviosuly this was an action packed movie, but even with that, it wasn't outlandish.  Things weren't blown up just for effect.  The scenes were appropriate and raw especially when James fights a guy twice his size with no apprent reaction to pain.  You get a strong sense throughout that James is near the end of his career whether that be in death or moving on.  It isn't until the end of the movie that you figure out which.  Some of the scenes when his promiscuity get the best of him are a bit cheesey in that they were really just placed to get the full James Bond feel.  Overall it was entertaining and suspensful.  The villain was under utlized as my husband pointed out, but still played well by Christoph Waltz. I don't have to tell you that Daniel Craig still plays an excellent James Bond. For the James Bond fanatics and action movie goers, you won't be disappointed.

Burnt: A Movie Review

I can't think of one movie I haven't liked that Bradley Cooper has starred in.  This is not because I have some celebrity crush on him.  In fact, to me, he looks arrogant and like he will defintiely cheat on whomever he is with.....sorry Bradley, maybe it's from your roll in He's Just Not That Into You.  Back to my point.  I had high hopes for this movie as Bradley, to me, has proven himself to be a good actor.    Based on my persecptions of him as well as my new interest in movies about chef's (100 Foot Journey was amazing), I was pretty pumped to see this.

Adam Jones, a 2 Michelin star chef has come back from the dead.  After leaving the restaurant business to rid himself of drugs, alcohol, and women, he is ready to reclaim his talent in London.  This is not easy, as he has to gain the trust of many he burned just a few short years ago.  Foruntately, he is able to do so and opens a new restaurant.  His goal is to earn his 3rd Michelin star.  He seems confident that he will make this happen and that his new restaurant will be successful.  What he soon realizes is that he can't do it all on his own. He must let go and relenquish some duties to his team.  Screaming, throwing plates, and downgrading his staff are all methods he learns to get away from as he almost takes this new restaurant down.  After a major disloyal act from a so-called friend, getting dismembered from some bad people whom he owes money to, and one of the lowest points of his career, is when he is able to rely on others as he really has no choice.  It is at this point that the members from Michelin pay his restaurant a visit and Adam finally trusts his chefs and staff to help him.  Will his trust be accurate and will he receive the 3rd star?  You'll have to see to find out.

The character development in this movie was compelling.  Adam suffered what I feel many suffer when they have success and don't know what to do with it.  When people rise to the top, temptations are prevalent which makes it hard to not cave in to it all. What comes next is the decision to make the needed changes and stick to them or continue to fall to the bottom.  Adam chose the former but the viewers were able to witness the challenges along the way.  The performance of Sienne Miller and Bradey Cooper were exceptional as well as the other actors.  A definite must see!

Goosebumps: A Movie Review

When you see movies as often as I do, sometimes you have to accept that some weeks will have dry spells in which you are forced to see movies you may not typically fancy.  The postive side of this is that it expands your movie viewing experience and  the other aspect is that you may end up seeing something you'd rather wish you hadn't.  The night I saw Goosebumps was in fact a night where nothing else was out and the movie start time worked perfectly with my schedule.  I knew Jack Black was in it so it could go either way.  I would either love it or hate it.

Zach and his mom are forced to move due to her new Vice Principal job at a high school.  Zach is less than impressed with his surroundings but tries to make the best of it.  He discovers he has a neighbor close to his age.  She seems interesting and reaches out to him within a day of moving in.  There friendship begins and consists of meeting in between their houses to talk.  She is homeschooled so this is really the only time they have to see one another.  Soon enough, Zach meets her controlling father who forbids Zach from seeing her anymore.  Luckily for Zach, Hannah has no interest in listening to her father so she continues to sneak over and eventually the two venture off into an intriguing place she disocvered in the woods.  Upon return, Hannah's father is livid and sends her inside then threatens to move.  Zach later hears screams and thinks Hannah is in trouble.  Once the police arrive and find nothing out of ther ordinary, Zach is left confused and worried as Hannah is nowhere to be found.  Her father lied to the police and explained she was out of the country with her mother.  Finally, Zach can't take it anymore so he sneaks over to find Hannah's whereabouts.  What he finds are books upon books that are locked.  With the help of his friend, curiousity gets the best of them and they open a book.  Before you know it Hannah has arrived and yells for them to close it, but before they can help it, a large and scary character literally comes out of the book.  You see, her dad is none other than R.L. Stine and his books are locked in order to keep the deep, dark characters in.  Their story gets more complex as other books are accidentally opened and all of the characters are loose and reaking havoc in town.  It is up to Zach, Hannah, and her father to get them all back.  Eventually they find out, the only way to do this is for R.L. Stine to write another book, which is hard to do when characters are setting fires and destroying the town. Zach is then given another twist in his life when he finds out Hannah is a character herself.  R.L. Stine created her and never told her or anyone else she wasn't real.  What is Zach to do now?  The characters are too difficult to capture and the girl he is falling for isn't real even though she is very real to him.

Some movies meant for children are still enjoyable for adults.  I am affraid this wasn't the case for Goosebumps.  It reminded me of a less impressive Jumanji.  The characters from the books were scary so I wouldn't recommend it for younger children, but can see 8-10 year olds enjoying it depending on their sensitivity.  I enjoyed the popcorn and that was about it.