Spring 2014 Micro Movie Reviews

---

At Middleton | ★★★★★★★
An interesting look at the strong emotions that surface when your only child prepares to leave the nest. Strong performances by Andy Garcia and Vera Farmigia.

The Book Thief | ★★★★★★★
Heartwarming tale of the influence that an adopted father can have on a child and how a mother's unexpressed love can run so deep. Love the way that it showed courage in the young and the old in a setting of Nazi fundamentalism.

Cypher | ★★★★★★★
This techno-thriller was surprisingly good. Liked the mix of tension and intrigue imbedded in the plot. I did figure the mystery out but so enjoyed the experience.

Dr Zhivago | ★★★★★★
Yes, I finally saw the (ancient) film interpretation of the Boris Pasternak book. Like many older movies my expectations were higher than my experience. Liked the allusion to the history of the times but was not that impressed with the acting or plot.

Enough Said | ★★★★★★★
This was one of James Gandolfini's last movies and it was a good one. He played such a tender part and the chemistry between him and Julia Louss Dreyfuss was great.

The Fifth Estate | ★★★★
Very disappointing when you consider that the lead was played by an actor that I very much like (Benedict Cumberbatch). A bleak story of a narcissist that may have been better to have left untold. Small wonder Julian Assange did not want it made.

The Hunger Games :: Catching Fire | ★★★
Gave the original 8 stars. This seemed to be a disaapointing ripoff of the first. Not much to recommend about it.

The Internship | ★★★★★★★★
Did not see this one coming and was blown away that this was a movie about mentorship, teamwork and camaraderie. Expected a Vince Vaughn / Owen Wilson "Wedding Crashers" flick and got a heartwarming one instead.

Jobs | ★★★★★★
I am a ancient nerd who used punched cards to program computers. I wanted to like this movie. I simply could not see Ashton Kutcher as Steve Jobs. His personality came through in every scene. He was just too big of a celebrity to play a lesser celebrity. They would have been better to use a lesser known actor to play Mr Apple.

Labor Day | ★★★★★★★
The story line started out pretty slow but picked up about 30 minutes in. I especially enjoyed the scene where the dad apologized to his son. Thought that the acting was pretty good. Good story with a few tense scenes.

Monuments Men | ★★★★★★★
Loved the rich history and war realism included in this movie. The Nazis were really deranged. The movie posed the question of whether lives should be risked to preserve sacred and secular images. Did enjoy seeing geezers in uniform.

Rush | ★★★★★★★
If you like Formula One racing you will probably enjoy this one. I liked the tension between the two main drivers, thought it was well directed by Ron Howard but felt it could have been edited down a bit.

Saving Mr Banks| ★★★★★★
Tom Hanks as Walt Disney both worked and didn't. I think that it is hard to portray a man that many of us once had a bit of exposure to. And I really did not care all that much about Mary Poppins as a movie to begin with.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty | ★★★★★★★★
One of the best flicks I have seen this Spring. Loved the way that Ben Stiller played the lead role. So related to the shy every-man. Great directing by Stiller of a compelling plot that slowly builds to such a great crescendo.

Stuck in Love | ★★★★★★
Love it when a movie surprises me. Like the way that this one showed how parents are often role models (good and bad) and how often it is to forgive familial sins.

The Three Stooges | ★★★★★★
If you loved them as a kid, I think that you will like this movie. I would not have seen it if not for a Netflix recommendation. It was silly and heartwarming. Good for a few laughs with the kids.

The Way Way Back | ★★★★★★
A coming of age movie about a young boy and his mom struggling to find their identity while on vacation at a resort town. Interesting to see Steve Carrell play a bad guy. Reminded me of a vacation when I was a young teen.

The Wolverine | ★★
What is my attraction to action hero movies? This one was a total rip off of the many iterations of this character and lacked any redeeming value at all. Here's hoping this will be the last one (at least for me).

---

Catch my other mini-reviews by selecting the Movies link in the menu bar above.