Week 3 Films

This Friday, Captain Philips sails into theaters. Starring Tom Hanks, this thriller is based off of the real-life events of the Maersk Alabama hijacking in 2009. The film tells the tale of Captain Richard Philips, whose ship is taken hostage by pirates off the coast of Somalia. The release of this film has inspired us to review some of our favourite Tom Hanks’ films. This week we will take a look Cast Away and Catch Me If You Can.

Cast Away stars Tom Hanks as a FedEx employee who becomes stranded on an island after his plane crashes in a violent storm.

In Catch Me If You Can, Tom Hanks stars as FBI agent tasked with capturing an elusive con man played Leonardo DiCaprio. The film is based off of the life of Frank Abagnale, a former con man turned security consultant.

Tweet us your thoughts @moviereviewclub, and let us know your favourite film with Tom Hanks! See you Tuesday!

What's New?

Released on DVD this Tuesday

Tuesday, October 8

The Hangover 3

After the death of Alan’s father, the Wolfpack head out on a road trip. But when one of their own is kidnapped by an angry gangster, they must track down Mr. Chow, who has escaped from prison and is on the lamb.

After Earth

A crash landing leaves Kitai and his father stranded on Earth, a millennium after events forced humanity to escape. With his father injured Kitai sets out on a perilous journey to signal for help, facing uncharted territory, evolved animal species, and an unstoppable alien creature that escaped during the crash.

The Purge

An intruder breaks into the Sandin’s gated community during the yearly lockdown, a 12-hour period in which any and all criminal activity is legalized. A sequence of events begins that threatens to tear the family apart.

Coming To Theatres Next Friday

Friday, October 11

Romeo and Juliet

In the fair city of Verona, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, teenage children of two feuding families, meet and fall deeply in love. In spite of the deep contempt their families have for each other, Romeo and Juliet steal away and are secretly married. But before long, a chain of events tragically changes the lives of both families forever.

Captain Phillips

The true story of Captain Richard Philips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the US container ship Maersk Alabama, the first American ship to be hijacked in 200 years.

Machete Kills

Machete is recruited by the U.S. Government for a seemingly impossible mission to fight his way through Mexico to debilitate a dangerous cartel leader and an eccentric billionaire arms dealer who has a plan for global anarchy.

The Right Kind of Wrong

Leo, a failed writer, is made famous for his many flaws and shortcomings in a blog written by his ex-wife. He then meets the girl of his dreams on the day she is marrying another man. 

Throwback Thursday - The Net

Ellie – The Net is a 1995 thriller starring Sandra Bullock as Angela, a computer programmer whose life is literally erased from existence after she stumbles onto a secret technological conspiracy.

Cody- It was quite interesting to see the changes that Angela had to go through during the events of the film. At the beginning of the film, technology dominates Angela’s life. She is seen utilizing her computer to do everything, from socializing with friends, working, ordering pizza, and purchasing airplane tickets. After Angela encounters the Gatekeeper program, her life is turned upside down. The technology that was previously her ally becomes her enemy, erasing her from existence. We were too young to remember this movie when it came out, so we asked Ellie’s mom what she thought of the cyber thriller when it was originally released.  

Mama Bond- This movie made me anxious and had me on the edge of my seat- at least it did in 1995! I'm sure it does not have the same impact today as we are surrounded by technology but this movie was frightening because it preyed upon our fears of the new and unknown. The internet was still in its infancy and our entire lives were now on the computer. Everyone was afraid of how vulnerable we had become to someone violating our privacy and gaining access to our personal information.

Cody- It is quite understandable that The Net had a significant impact on the viewing audience in 1995. At the time, technology was not as prevalent as it is today. There was a belief at the time that the events in The Net could occur in real life, and the panic associated with that realization is understandable. However, in the present day the entire premise of the film seems a lot less dramatic. Today technology is involved with everything we do, and there is no longer a fear that we could realistically be erased from existence.

Ellie- I do understand how dated it seems, but I also still find it entertaining! Angela said our entire lives are on the computer, and that has never been truer than today. But those of us that have grown up with the technology do not have such sensationalized fears of the digital world. The most wonderfully horrifying part of this movie was the dramatic sound of the dial-up connection! Talk about a throwback! It is crazy to see just how much technology has changed (for example, Angela’s brick of a cell phone) and I also love that the fate of the world is stored within a floppy disk!

Cody- The film is still susceptible to a few plot holes. When Angela first meets Jack on the beach, she acts very cold to him, only being as friendly as she has to be. This is not unexpected, as Angela is not portrayed as a sociable person throughout the beginning of the film. She orders her pizza online, does not talk to her neighbors and is in general very anti-social. However, soon after meeting Jack she is seen at the beach bar being very friendly with Jack. This sudden change in character is quite hard to believe, as there is no significant reason for this abrupt change in Angela’s behavior. She goes from being quite anti-social to flirting with a stranger at a bar. Jack and Angela later engage on a walk on the beach, where a robber steals Angela’s purse. Jack chases off in pursuit, and it is revealed the robber is working for Jack. Jack kills the man to maintain the secrecy, and then promptly cuts his hand. For what reason, the viewer doesn’t know….he could have simply told Angela the man got away, or that he tripped and fell; the cut to the hand seemed very unnecessary.

Ellie- I do acknowledge that there are some plot holes, but I don’t agree with Cody’s analysis of them. For starters, Angela is on vacation for the first time in six years, on a beautiful beach in Mexico, and is being seriously flirted with by a seriously attractive man! That’s enough to help bring any girl out of her shell! Though I do agree that he did not need to cut his hand open after pursuing the purse snatcher. I think they were trying to prove that Devlin was a real tough guy, both to the audience and to Angela, but it is a bit excessive. The two major problems I had with the movie was that the first person Angela asks about the Pi symbol (Cyberbob) knows all about the Praetorians. It seems a little too easy for me. I also found it very farfetched that Angela would find the floppy disk containing the virus she sent to Dale while rifling through her imposter’s desk. However, it did make for an appropriate climax- the virus saves the world! Angela must also be commended for defeating her adversaries with very little outside help. She not only figured out what exactly the Praetorians were up to, but also how to stop them and save herself!

Cody – Ultimately The Net does not age well. Its holes become too apparent, and its subject matter becomes less intriguing throughout time. While there is no doubt the film was better received at the time of its release, I don’t believe it is fair to expect it to hold the same impact when viewed today.

Ellie- The Net was successful enough to spawn a spinoff TV series and a direct-to-video sequel- neither of which Sandra Bullock was a part of. Even though I did enjoy this movie I am not interested in watching the show or the sequel. The main appeal of this movie is the nostalgia of the 90's paired with Sandra Bullock’s wide-eyed charm. The movie is by no means a cinematic masterpiece, but I found it genuinely entertaining and fun.  

Our Ratings:

Ellie- 8/10

Cody – 5/10

The Ocean's Trilogy

The Ocean’s trilogy consists of three films: Ocean’s Eleven, which is a remake of the 1960 film of the same name, and its subsequent sequels Ocean’s Twelve and Ocean’s Thirteen. The films star George Clooney as Danny Ocean, a thief who enlists Rusty Ryan, played by Bad Pitt, and a group of criminals to participate in various heists throughout the three films. The criminal team, known as Ocean’s Eleven, is composed of an ensemble cast of celebrities including Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, and Bernie Mac.

One of the appeals of Ocean’s Eleven is the strength and complexity of the plot. The heist plan is never revealed in its entirety until the very end of the film. At various points of the film (such as Saul’s apparent death), the plan crafted by Danny Ocean and his associates seems to be unraveling. However, the plan is never truly in jeopardy, as the team has evidently planned for any possible occurrence. The film continues at a break-neck pace, never staying at any one moment too long and revealing too much. The viewer is constantly left in the dark regarding certain plot elements, allowing them to try and figure out the ending for themselves.

Ocean’s Twelve really strays from the strengths that made Ocean’s Eleven so great. The plot never reaches the speed and intricacy of the first film, and takes too long to actually get to the heart of the film. In the first film, each member of the team was given a specific job, and their involvement was essential to the success of the heist. Every character was relevant to the overall plot and their contributions were necessary for the team to have success. Ocean’s Twelve strays from that ideal as the story becomes more focused on Danny Ocean and Rusty Ryan, instead of the group at large. In particular, the characters of Frank and Saul, played by Bernie Mac and Carl Reiner respectively, are for the most part non-factors throughout the film, and the rest of the team is likewise put on the back-burner. The film also played too much on its comedic attributes, focusing on Julia Robert’s likeness to….well, Julia Roberts, and elements such as Bruce Willis’s cameo and Don Cheadle’s accent.  Ocean’s Twelve tried too hard to be funny and quirky, instead of focusing on the intricate plot that made the first film great. Instead, at the end of the film they introduce a plot element that essentially makes the last half of the movie meaningless. 

Ocean’s Thirteen improves greatly on the second film, but does not do enough to ultimately live up to the level of Ocean’s Eleven. The plot moves at a much quicker pace than the previous film, and actually begins to feel like Ocean’s Eleven – the team members are all crucial and the plot is actually exciting. However, the characters are given no development whatsoever, haven’t been properly expanded on since the first film. Additionally, the film still suffers from a few plot holes – namely the Seismograph camera used to spy on the antagonist Banks, and the drill used to fake the earthquake at the end of the film. The viewer is required to suspend his belief that Banks would most surely dispose of a seismograph that he had no interest in keeping, and that no one in the entirety of Las Vegas would notice the installation of a drill large enough to create an earthquake. While the film is still an enjoyable experience and helps cover up some of the disappointment of the previous film, it ultimately does not live up to the great expectations set by Ocean’s Eleven.

The Ocean’s trilogy is not your typical crime-thriller. It stays away from the guns and violence, and sticks primarily to mind games. The Ocean’s Trilogy also excels in its scene transitions and creativity with its camerawork. The car scene from Ocean’s Eleven stands out, with its unique perspective on Danny Ocean’s and Rusty Ryan’s conversation during their drive through Las Vegas. This similar scene is repeated in Ocean’s Twelve with Danny Ocean’s adversary Toulour. Additionally, the train scene from Ocean’s Eleven where Linus (played by Matt Damon) steals from a fellow passenger is shot in slow motion compared to the rest of the movie. This scene helps emphasize the speed and efficiency of Linus’s work. One of the few strengths present through all three Ocean films is the distinctive and unique camerawork, and it really helps specific scenes stand out to the viewer and communicate their intention.

We love to watch the bad guys be the good guys, and even though they aren’t supposed to win, we cheer for them anyways. The Ocean’s trilogy is exciting and enjoyable, but don’t expect the movies to get better after the first film.

Ocean’s Eleven – 9/10

Ocean’s Twelve – 5/10

Ocean’s Thirteen – 7/10

Week 2 Films

This Friday, Gravity hits theaters. Starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock, this space-thriller chronicles two astronaut's attempt at survival after their spaceship is involved in an accident. To coincide with this film's release, this week we have decided to review one of George Clooney's most well known works - The Ocean's Trilogy.

The Ocean's Trilogy is a series of three movies (Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve, and Ocean's Thirteen), which depict the heists of a criminal team led by Danny Ocean, played by George Clooney. Ocean's Eleven is a remake of the 1960 film of the same name. All three films possess large ensemble casts, which include the likes of Brad Pitt, Don Cheadle, and Matt Damon.

Tweet your thoughts @moviereviewclub and join us on Tuesday for our review!