Trailer Review: THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU

Do we control our own lives?

This is often something that I think about, being a writer, having an interest in various conspiracy theories, and of course the big kahuna; Aliens; why not, think that I'm not control of my own life. Movies that try to make this the main plot of their story are always very appealing to me, good or bad, because there are so many movies that are similar, that its interesting to see what new features can be added to the already established canon.

Director George Nolfi directs Matt Damon and Emily Blunt in a story about a congressman who falls for a ballerina. But that supposed to happen or was it? This is Nolfi's first directing credit he's written movies such as Ocean's Tweleve, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Sentinel, and Timeline. So obviously Nolfi has experience writing such thrillers, make sense that his directorial debut would be one as well. The movie is based off a Philip K. Dick short story called "Adjustment Team". Yes I like Bureau better too.

We all know Matt Damon pulls a good performance in ANYTHING we see him in and I'm really happy the world is getting more and more Emily Blunt; she's awesome. I think the parring of these two fits well and the on screen chemistry looks very believable. The movie co-stars John Slattery and Terence Stamp as two men of the Adjustment Bureau. These characters also bear a certain but more sophisticated resemblence to the tall, top hat wearing "adjusters" in Alex Proyas' Dark City. Who if I'm correct were aliens of some sort, the joy of that movie is part of me is still figuring it out. Also the idea of adjusting and even changing an event for the better or possibly worse has also been explored in another Philip K. Dick adaption; Steven Speilberg's Minority Report.

I know its kinda terrible to compare movies but with even similar looking characters is very difficult not to. The all around look and feel of the movie has a gritty undertone to it, there's texture and it adds to the environment we are in. While the chemistry looks great between Damon and Blunt, my only fear is that the movie will be hijacked by their fight to be and love one another. From the trailer, obviously it looks like the entire plot of the movie and I hope that the stakes to be together are very high. So high that it possibly makes their efforts completely futile by the end of the movie. That sense of never escaping and that realism would be great and I hope it goes somewhat in that direction.

As mentioned before I'm definitely going to see this movie. It appeals to the theorist in me and just looks like a really good Twilight Zone-esque thriller.

As always the final review will be when the credits roll and the house lights go up.

The Adjustment Bureau tries to secretly alter out lives on March 4th 2011


Dueces!
StuntmanBob

PLAY BY PLAY

Well the super bowl has just finished up and I've decided to introduce a new featured post that will pop up occasionally; aptly title "Play by Play".

If your as hyped about all the upcoming movies and their trailers as I am, I'm sure you go through the trailers with a fine tip comb, well that's exactly what play by play is. I'm gonna go through the entire trailer wether its :30 sec or 2min and just dissect the shit out of it.

Look for Play by Play's of some of the Super Bowl spots, such as, Captain America, Thor, Rango, Fast Five, and Transformers: The Dark of the Moon, this week.

Dueces!
StuntmanBob

Sanctum Trailer Review

I am most certainly on a James Cameron high.

Sanctum is the "inspired by true events" story of a bunch of cave divers getting trapped in a cave and trying to escape/survive. Pretty simple, right? But if your going to have anybody behind this movie it had better be James Cameron.

A few weeks ago I just finished reading the book The Futurist: The Life and Films of James Cameron, by Rebecca Keegan. Aside learning more about Cameron's famous and groundbreaking movies I was surprised to learn what he did in his off time. Going on deep sea dives to the Titanic and of course his journey to shoot his infamous Abyss, really opened my eyes to the explorer he really is. His brother and him also hold quite a few patents on new camera's and diving equipment that they designed, so Cameron could shoot under water. Impressive; I recommend the book if any of you are interested.

I'm looking forward to Sanctum for a couple reasons. Richard Roxburgh and Ioan Gruffudd are two of those reasons. The latter is mostly known for playing Mr. Fantastic/Reed Richards in the Fantastic Four movies and in a great indie movie called The TV Set as a tv exec. I caught wind of him in the movie King Arthur where he played a new incarnation of Lancelot. Richard Roxbugh has always been a favorite of mine, he's hammed up Dracula for Stephen Sommers in Van Helsing, battled it out with Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible 2, and played the Duke in Baz Lurhman's Moulin Rogue. Both actors are incredibly versatile and I'm glad they are getting a movie to shine in, like this.

The size and scope are another reason, this movie just looks big! But really came in under the radar in terms of advertising and such. Of course they are using the fact that Cameron is producing as a marketing tool. But I must hand it to director Alister Grierson and just the cast and crew for pulling off an awesome looking flick, which I'm sure was without its problems. Movies like this really show you the joys and lows of filmmaking. You have a team of cave divers (filmmakers), going where no one has explored before and trying to make it out alive and in one piece. Same as a film crew; everyone must pull together to make an great and entertaining movie and survive in the process.

In my last few post on trailers I've been very big on authenticity. I will echo that same feeling here. I love that this looks like they are in really tight spaces without the help of CGI. Granted there are some shots of CGI in there but the great wide shots of the area surrounding the cave hole is a great juxtaposition to the claustrophobic spaces of the cave itself.

I love an adventure, that's why we all go to the movies and from the looks of it so far, the desperation to survive at the end of trailer really makes me feel like this movie will deliver.

Sanctum dives into theaters on February 4th, 2011

Dueces
StuntmanBob

The Other Woman Trailer Review

Natalie Portman is everywhere and I'm loving it.

I like the trailer to this movie. When it first starts I honestly thought that it was going to sway into that same old cliche of a movie where the husband tries to have his cake and eat it too, but was pleasantly surprised when he actually marries the other woman. You'd think; maybe the ex-wife goes psycho and tries to kill them! But again, its about the other woman trying to figure out how to fit in. She sees it in the new life her and her husband have created and then sadly that is taken away from her. I've known people who have lost a child and I cannot imagine the feeling.

The trailer most reminds me of the Julia Roberts movie Stepmom. Only in the fact that Natalie Portman is trying to gain acceptance with her new husbands son. This feels like an un-official independent sequel to Stepmom. Aside from that interest, the authenticity of Portman's journey is truly poignant in the trailer. Here is woman who thinks that after she has a child of her own that everything is just right and her position as a the new wife and now, new mother solidifies her being there. But upon losing the child she delves into a mentality of there being no hope and that isn't true. She's now gotta do what she should have done in the first place and that is establish a common ground with the already established family she is now apart of.

Natalie Portman is again, everywhere and she's really blowing everything she does out of the water. While I didn't write a review for it, she was definitely the saving grace of the movie No Strings Attached. Having never been in a cliche movie like that before, she really showed her comedic talents to fullest.

In addition to the tears that will come from such an emotional movie, I fully recommend checking out this movie when it opens. There will be ups and there will be downs, but movies like this always show the hope at the end of that deep dark tunnel and sometimes you need a movie like that. Of course the final review will be when the credits roll and the house lights go up.

The Other Woman comes into your life February 4th, 2011

Dueces
StuntmanBob

The Eagle Movie Trailer Review

The Eagle is directed by Kevin Macdonald whose past movies are the American adaption of the BBC original State of Play and The Last King of Scotland. Both movies I highly recommend. My real beef is not with this movies director but with tone and feel of the trailer itself. There are so many same shot references to other swords and sandals movies, in this trailer, that you might as well put on those; i.e. Gladiator, King Arthur, Centurion, etc. I mean the opening shot is of our main character sitting in a tented area praying to a clay figure. That is a scene right out of Gladiator! C'mon now! We've all seen this movie before and nothing is really setting it apart from the other movies. The bit of history explained in the beginning might peak my interest a bit, but that's not saying much either.

On top of the tone and un-originality, the casting of Channing Tatum is a bit of a double edged sword. The first movie I can remember seeing Mr. Tatum in was Step-Up; yes I saw it, get over it. Now he went on to do other work in some romantic movies and such like She's the Man and Dear John. However the movies that really made him stand out to me were A Guide to Recognizing Your Saint's and Stop-Loss. I think Tatum is a really good actor he brings a visceral and authentic rawness to his roles. Well at least the ones where he's got to be and its a treat to see, for me at least.

A Guide to Recognizing Your Saint's and Fighting, both directed by Dito Montiel, really show this energy. I can only imagine this is one of the reasons he was chosen for this role. But sadly, the authenticity of the film will lay on his shoulders and in the few scenes he does speak he sounds like he's really trying to have this roman accent but his "twang" or whatever keeps getting in the way. That in itself really just takes me out of the entire world the movie is trying to build. Hopefully the energy I like is enough to keep me interested but I doubt it.

Jamie Bell and Donald Sutherland round out the supporting cast and I think Jamie Bell is going really shine here. Bell has been seen in Billy Elliot, Jumper, and Defiance. Each of these movies are really good and entertaining and Bell has stepped up his game in each one. Be sure to look out for him in the future. He'll next been seen in Steven Spielberg's The Adventures of TinTin

Overall I'm thinking this movie will get some moderate attention when its released. My advice if you have seen all the movies nominated for a Best Picture already then go ahead and check this out. It might be some harmless fun or it could end up being the worst movie in the world, which will then convince you to go home, put on Gladiator, and reclaim your sanity.

As always the final review of the movie happens when the credits roll and the house lights are up.

The Eagle, does a spread, on February 11th, 2011

Dueces
StuntmanBob