Limitless

Limitless available on Blu-Ray and DVD is a story about a down and out aspiring writer who is given a drug called NZT-48 which allows him to access 100% of his brain's capacity.

I thought this was a pretty cool concept that made for an exciting movie until I saw how the character Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) sqandered his ability in the selfish pursuit of wealth.  While the motives of the character are baffling and often disappointing, the movie shines in its artistic cinematography. It is a bold kaledescopic journey through the juxtaposition of washed out drab color and vibrant vivid hues.

Before NZT

After NZT

The regular world, the way we see it, without being on NZT, and using only a portion of our brain is washed out, greenish in tint.  On NZT it is vibrant, colorful, with every aspect popping out in startling detail.

Eddie's first order of business on the translucent tablet known as  NZT, is to finish his book he had, up to this point, written nary a word. That in itself is understandable.  Using his new brain power to accomplish a task that previously had remained out of his grasp. It is worth noting that Eddie completed the entire novel in 4 days.

Finishing a novel on NZT

But from there the plot gets a little murky. You have to ask yourself, if you had the full use of your brain, wouldn't you do something other than make yourself rich? Not Eddie and his self-centered pursuits.  He embarks on a journey to conquer Wall Street and make millions. Having been poor and down and out most of one's life, aspiring to make money isn't far fetched, but being one of the most brilliant people on Earth, wouldn't you use your intelligence for greater things?  Like helping other people.  Curing disease, advancing technology, coming up with alternate sources of energy? Those things in itself would earn him billions.  I'm not sure if the limitations of Eddie's ambitions were due to the character or the screenwriter.

As with most drugs there are side effects.  In this case, black outs, time distortion, incapacitating illness, premature aging, frailty and death. How would you like listening to those side effect if this were an FDA approved drug available by prescription? However, NZT is an illegal black market drug and Eddie is horrified to find out the consequences of taking it well after injesting the substance, even doubling it, for quite some time.

Balancing out the journey between dullness, brilliance and insanity is Lindy, Eddie's on again off again girlfriend, played beautifully and amazingly by Abbie Cornish.

Robert De Niro also plays an important role as Carl Van Loon a business mogul who is possibly Eddie's greatest ally or greatest adversary.

The film does end on a positive note and the possibilities for the character are well... limitless. Artistically speaking, and a sucker for psychological movies, I loved Limitless.
Out of five fingers I'd give Limitless 3.5. 

X-Men: First Class

I know I’m in the minority here, but I found X-Men: First Class to be a very disappointing movie. I approached the movie with open acceptance saying that it takes place in an alternate reality.  The producers for whatever reason chose to feature mutants who weren’t the original X-Men from the comics.  Beast was the only standout that survived the transition to this new film.  That’s okay.  I could live with that. The true original X-Men: Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Ice Man and Angel are gone. Instead we’re given Havok (Cyclops younger brother Alex Summers), Mystique, Banshee, Angel (a different female character with insect wings who can spit fire) and Darwin (I’ll get back to him in a bit). I was on board for the “All-new, All-different” X-Men and looked forward to the movie.

Giving credit where credit is due, I liked the 60s setting, the instrumentation and the fashion (even though I’m not a fan of movies that take place in the past, I thought this was a nice touch. It distinguished this movie from the rest of the X-Men franchise.

But where my exception began was "Agent" Moira Mactaggert played by Rose Byrne (who did an excellent job of playing the wrong character).  In this imagining of X-Men Moira Mactaggert is an American CIA agent.  A CIA agent…and an American. Are you kidding me? (Notice I'm only using one question mark out of politeness rather than "???" which would be more appropriate).   

The Moira Mactaggert that X-Men readers know and love is  "Doctor" Moira Mactaggert and she’s Scottish.  From the Marvel wiki: “Moira forged a brilliant career as a leading geneticist, earning a Nobel Prize, and founded a Mutant Research Center on Muir Island off the coast of Scotland.” I was outraged when this CIA version said she needed to consult a geneticist on mutation when she should have been the expert.  Rather than destroy the character why couldn’t they have just introduced another woman played by Byrne who was a CIA agent? Dr. Moira Mactaggert could have been introduced in a sequel in her rightful role. Now who is Charles going to consult with about genetic mutation?

"Men call me...Magneto"

With the exception of Magneto played by Michael Fassbender, the rest of the cast seemed like one dimensional cardboard cut-outs. They were horribly under-developed and had little or no personality. The movie barely scratched the surface of their characters. It was more show (off special effects) rather than tell (who these characters were).  

"Cry Havok!"  I almost did when I saw him using his powers like a hula hoop.

Magneto is the only mutant we see in flashback when his mutant powers first emerge.  None of the other characters are given this exposure. None! Xavier seems to have already embraced his telepathy when we see him in flashback and Mystique (played by Jennifer Lawrence) just shows up, pardon the pun—out of the blue. 

They even look like cardboard cut-outs

With no depth or substance I couldn’t identify with the mutants or care to.  Which is sad given that the movie was over 2 hours long.  As an origin story it wasn’t quite as agonizing as some, but for me the movie didn’t really pick up until the final 30 minutes.

**SPOILER ALERT**

Now, back to Darwin played by Edi Gathegi.  Let me start off by saying that most people know the X-Men is a story about tolerance, diversity and accepting those who are different--even though they are hated and feared by mankind. Why violate those ideals by lowering this film to the offensive proclivity of killing off the token black male character? If the intent was to introduce a character to be killed, why couldn’t they have been white or Asian?  Why is it always the black man? Why? (Again I'm cutting back on the question marks). Some have speculated that it was apropos given the movie took place in the 1960s to carry on this racially insensitive tradition. 

Why is this black man in this film?

I was passed some new information on Darwin that his “reactive evolution” ability should include the transformation into pure energy--a natural counter to Sebastian Shaw’s attack.  Perhaps Hollywood can redeem themselves by bringing him back in a sequel.

Professor X and Magneto during a quiet moment

**END OF SPOILERS**
Due to lack of character development it was a put-off to see these new X-Men screaming like school girls when they were first attacked by the Hellfire Club. 

Speaking of which, I liked Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw, the leader of the Hellfire Club. Not only were his abilities awesome and clearly depicted energy absorption, I thought he played the character with outright malice. However, January Jones as Emma Frost--The White Queen was a letdown.  The White Queen from the comics is a sultry, sexy, telepathic siren. This version of the White Queen had all the sex appeal of a Barbie doll.

Barbie, is that you?

Although Emma could turn into diamond form, could someone explain to me how a diamond, one of the hardest substances on Earth, could be cracked by the metallic constraints of Magneto? There's only one explanation: in her younger days she could only transform into cubic zirconia. 

The White Queen in "zirconia" form. I bet there are lots of flaws.

The Black King and The White Queen

Overall, to me, X-Men: First Class was more offensive and insulting than entertaining. I can't recall being awe-struck by any of the special effects like in other superhero movies such as Thor. Most of them were already shown in the trailers which is truly a sign of a bad movie. Sadly, it wouldn't be much of a stretch for me to call X-Men: First Class an atrocity. In fairness, for those not familiar with X-Men comics and their lore, and don’t care about Hollywood stereotypes, this could possibly be one of the better movies of the summer. I, on the other hand, can only hope that the sequel, if there is one, will fix everything that went horribly wrong in the first one.  Out of 5 fingers, I’m giving this movie 2.

Thor

Thor was a refreshing and pleasant surprise. In the back of my mind I was thinking this was going to be a boring, stuffy movie filled with stodgy Norse Gods speaking in stilted prose. I also feared that Thor wouldn't be depicted as he appears in the comic books. I was wrong on both counts.  Thor was extremely faithful to the comic book and filled with not only jaw-dropping action, but humor laced throughout.

I wasn't expecting him fly but he did. I wasn't expecting him to whirl his hammer and call down lightning, but he did.  Basically, whatever Thor does in the comics, he did in this movie. Often the result was incredibly awesome and filled with a grandeur that only a Norse God could possess. 

I enjoyed the fact that the movie didn't involve a long drawn out origin story.  The back story is quickly told by Odin in a fable to a young Thor and his half-brother Loki. 

The casting was quite good.  I don't know where they found Chris Hemsworth, but he made the perfect Thor right down to the arrogance, golden locks and blue eyes. I liked also Anthony Hopkins as The All-father Odin. 

It was a nice touch to show him vulnerable and needing the legendary Odin sleep to replenishing his waning powers. This ritual seemed to happen quite often in the comics. The only thing missing was his proclaimation when he woke up: "The Odin Sleep has ended.  Let the world tremble at my awakening!"  The casting for the Warriors Three was also good. Josh Dallas who played Fandral looked just like the character from the comics. Natalie Portman was also an excellent choice to play the role of Jane Foster.

Of course the casting was not without controversy. The Council of Conservative Citizens proposed a boycott of the movie due to Idris Elba being cast in the role of Heimdall, the guardian of Bifrost, the rainbow bridge.  It was galling for them to see a black man in the role of a white Norse God. Although seeing a him in this role (after years of collecting comics) was a bit disconcerting, I thought Idris did an amazing job.  His performance was powerful, understated and well...god-like. 

I especially liked the golden eyes which accentuated his ability to see across the cosmos and into different realms and dimensions. Despite all the protests of Idris and threats to boycott the movie, I see no one complained about the role of Hogun the Grim (Tadanobu Asano) being played by an Asian actor. 

Hollywood could have done a better job with multi-racial casting if they showed other Asgardians of different races and colors. Instead these two actors come across as token characters trying to fill some equal opportunity quota.

I thought Loki (Tom Hiddleston) was portrayed in an interesting and unexpected way. Rather than a character of pure mischief and malevolent evil, he started off as a meek, soft-spoken character who was vulnerable and misunderstood. Fortunately he grew into the evil character I expected him to be.  

I also liked the way the rainbow bridge was explained and depicted in scientific terms. Its not just some long multi-hued expanse, but a wormhole into different dimensions. What a thrill it was to see the rainbow bridge in action for the first time. The movie was the perfect blend of magic and science. I especially liked the way Odin placed the enchantment on Thor's hammer so that only someone worthy could lift it. 

He may look worthy, but he isn't

I missed notable characters such as Baldur The Brave, The Enchantress, The Executioner, The Norn Queen, The Valkyries and Hela. I'm sure showing all these characters may have been too much for the uninitiated but it would have been a nice touch for "true believers" to see them in cameo appearances. Hopefully, if there is a sequel, they will be in it.

If you do go and see Thor at the theater, make sure you sit through the credits for the bonus scene at the end. I thoroughly enjoyed Thor and I'm giving this movie 5 out of 5 fingers.

Source Code

Source Code is a movie about time travel. It is comparable to Groundhog Day, Daybreak, Vantage Point, Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Cause And Effect" and Quantum Leap. It's one of those movies that keeps repeating the same events over and over again. The first pass through you're shown everything in purposeful agonizing detail which is a clear sign that these events will repeat themselves.

Source Code stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Capt.Colter Stevens, Michelle Monaghan as Christina Warren,Vera Farmiga as Colleen Goodwin, and Jeffrey Wright as Dr. Rutledge. The story is about a soldier (Gyllenhaal) who is tasked with a mission to travel back in time to the last eight minutes before a horrific terroristic bombing aboard a crowded Chicago passenger train. By using technology to shift his consciousness inside an unsuspecting male passenger he must find out who the bomber is to stop this from happening again. 

Each eight minute trip to gather clues about the bombing causes events to play out a little differently than before. The filmmaker attributes these time excursions to creating a series of alternate timelines each time Stevens is sent back. But on the surface, its just a movie repeating itself over again.

To add depth to what is seemingly an ordinary time travel story there are a few surprises about Colter Stevens' "condition" and the creation of alternate timelines and what is perceived to be "real" when Stevens isn't traveling through time. These things do set this movie apart.

In the typical Hollywood tradition, Stevens manages to cultivate a love interest during his multiple eight minute time travels with fellow commuter Christina Warren. It's one of the more heart-warming elements of the story.

Still I had hoped for something a little less mundane. While it was interesting seeing Capt. Stevens fit the pieces of the puzzle together and solve the crisis and cause the movie to end in an unexpected way, I was really hoping the movie was about more than just stopping a terrorist bombing. From the secrets being kept from Capt. Stevens I was looking for him to be mankind's last hope of survival and having to repeatedly go back in time to prevent not just the bombing but the destruction of the human race.  Nothing so grand as that but the implications of the movie were nearly as deep.

I'm not a fan of watching stories repeat themselves over and over again. Yet the twists in Source Code do redeem the movie somewhat. Out of 5 fingers I'm giving Source Code 3.

I Am Number Four

"Three are dead.  I Am Number Four." Quite the dramatic beginning. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Pittacus Lore. It's the story of teen-aged "John Smith", an alien from the planet Lorien. He and eight others like him are being hunted down and killed by another race of aliens called the Mogadorians. I have not read the novel so my commentary is based solely on the film.

The nine Loriens are known as the "Garde" and they all have a unique "Legacy" along with other preternatural abilities. The teenagers are protected by a charm, which only allows them to be killed in a set order. John is Number Four. Each member of the Garde is accompanied by a guardian who's job it is to keep them safe.

I went to see I Am Number Four with a lot of preconceived notions. I wasn't sure what to expect based on others' comments. Was this another Twilight with aliens instead of vampires? Was it a re-imaging of Superman? 

The film makes no secret this is a story about aliens right from the very start. It's the type of story I enjoy because it excuses the audience from a boring, long, drawn-out origin story. You jump right in and witness the death of Number 3 and keep running. As far as being another Twilight movie, there are some similarities. It does involve teen romance. But I found this movie to be a lot cooler and packed with far more action than I have could possibly expected. Although John does fall in love during the story, I found the relationship between John and Sarah to be more "realistic" for an alien and a human and less "fantastically romantic" than Twilight.  

Another Superman? There were similarities here too. John Smith comes from an alien planet and tries to blend in and live a normal life. However, this alien is running for his life and didn't come to Earth to become a costumed superhero.

So much power!

Like superhero movies (Superman, Spider-Man) we are witness to the awakening of his preternatural abilities and the complications that come with them.  I thought I Am Number Four attempted to capture the loneliness and isolation one would feel if you were different from everyone else. It could have succeeded if John Smith wasn't cast as a wholesome, comely boy next door with the build of a star athlete. I suppose there's an irony there at being attractive and yet something of a social outcast.  It's a similar experience suffered by his love interest Sarah who is beautiful yet lives the life of an ostracized loner.

Sarah

Henri

I Am Number 4 stars Alex Pettyfer as John, Timothy Olyphant (Justified, Damages and Hitman) as Henri, Teresa Palmer as Number 6, Dianna Agron (Glee) as Sarah and Callan McAuliffe as Sam. 

I Am Number 6

The movie really takes off when the mysterious Number 6 makes her appearance. She teams up with John to fight back and take on the Mogadorians. The outright destruction from the collateral damage of the battle was staggering.

I Am Number Four sets the audience up for a sequel and I hope the movie does well enough at the box office so we actually get to see it. One of the unanswered questions on everyone's mind is where is Number Five? He isn't shown in the movie at all. I'm sure Number 7 and 8 are being saved for the sequel. 

Doesn't everyone wish they could do this?

The movie kept my attention from beginning to end. I found myself talking to the screen (much to the dismay of other theater-goers) at how incredibly awesome the powers were that Number 4 and Number 6 demonstrated. To be honest, the depiction of some of their powers reminded me of characters from my now all-time favorite video game Mass Effect(2). 

Number 6: walk softly and carry a heavy pistol

I Am Number Four features a blend of heavy weapons and special abilities like Mass Effect(2). Number 6 was a lot like the Vanguard with the Biotic Heavy Charge talent who could pass through solid objects and attack an enemy with a surge of irrepressible speed. One of John's abilities was a lot like the Heavy Throw of the Sentinel where he could deflect attacks with irresistible force. It is conceivable that the author of the book or the screenwriter was influenced by this game.

Is that the tell-tale glow of a biotic barrier?

The movie goes beyond the typical teenage love story and adds elements that appeal to a much wider audience. For the entertainment value alone I'm giving I Am Number Four 4.5 out of 5 fingers.

All-Star Superman

I wondered why this animated feature available on DVD and Blu-Ray was called All-Star Superman instead of something a little more catchy like The Death Of Superman Too. I did some research and found out it is based on a 12-issue comic book maxi-series of the same name written by Grant Morrison.

Launched in 2005 under DC's All Star imprint, these series are attempts by DC to allow major comics creators a chance to tell stories showcasing popular characters without being restricted by DC Universe continuity. I did not read the maxi-series, so my comments are on the animated material alone.

It's no secret from the very beginning that it is about the death of Superman. Exposed to a lethal dose of solar radiation at the heart of the sun, his cells begin to overload and break down. It's all a part of a sinister plot by his arch enemy Lex Luthor--and this time he succeeds. I know its difficult to believe, (and perhaps a little sad) but in this instance, evil triumphs over good.

While there were some action-packed sequences in the animated feature, I found that the story was all over place--most likely to condense a 12-issue comic book series into one 75 minute movie.  Rather than a fever-pitched action packed adventure, it was more a love story between Superman and Lois Lane during his final days. 

Lois Lane. Call her the 24-Hour Superwoman

Personally I found the All-Star Superman a bit bizarre. The things I did like: Superman allowing Lois to have a taste of what it means to be super for 24 hours--complete with costume no less. Superman's calculated use of The Gravity Gun. Superman's last heroic sacrifice.

The things I didn't like: How Lex Luthor supposedly has the greatest intellect on Earth and yet he can't tell that Clark Kent is Superman.  He even admits to liking Clark (but hates Superman). While Clark was interviewing Lex in prison,  the Parasite went on a rampage after syphoning Clark's powers. Lex didn't seem to notice Clark using his super powers to keep him alive. With Clark by Lex's side the whole time and the Parasite hunting them down, it would have been the only logical conclusion that Clark was the cause of the Parasite's insatiable hunger for energy since Lex obviously doesn't have any powers of his own. 

Another thing that didn't make sense was Clark rescuing the guards and flying them out of the prison to safety at super speed.  Then, rather than return to the prison as Superman to take on the Parasite, he resumes his disguise as Clark Kent.

I was underwhelmed by the feature as a whole and I read that it paled in comparison to the maxi-series itself. There were times when I was wondering--when is he going to die? When is this going to end? While it was different, I can't in good conscience recommend All-Star Superman to purchase. As a rental maybe.  Out of 5 fingers I'd have to give it 2.0.

The A-Team

The A-Team movie (now available on DVD and Blu-Ray) is actually a prequel to the 1983 TV series. If you never watched the TV series or don't remember it because it was 28 years ago, you'll be just fine. For those that have seen the series, here is where we see why The A-Team became the fugitives they were in the TV series.  The premise of the movie surrounds a group of Iraq War veterans (obviously updated for modern audiences) wanting to clear their names with the U.S. military, who accuse the four men of committing a crime for which they were framed.

Exciting, slightly suspenseful, humorous, and although peppered with action, there are also agonizingly boring moments which are just a bit too numerous for my taste. I found myself dozing off when the screen wasn't erupting with gun-fire and rumbling inferno-esque explosions.

The chemistry and comraderie between the characters was excellent with all the bantering and arguing you may have come to expect. I attribute this to great casting.  Liam Neeson stars as Col. "Hannibal" Smith, Bradley Cooper as Lt. "Faceman" Peck, Jessica Biel as Charissa Sosa, Sharlto Copley as Captain "Howling Mad" Murdock, and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson as Sgt. Bosco "B.A." Baracus.

Liam Neeson as Hannibal Smith

Jessica Biel as Charissa Sosa

Walk in stilettos and carry a deadly pistol

It was my fear that the actors would try to portray the actors such as the late George Peppard, Mr. T, etc. who played the original roles, rather than the characters themselves. But I think the actors were able to put their own stamp on the roles. 

The Original A-Team

It was also my fear that UFC Mixed Martial Arts champion "Rampage" Jackson, who had little acting experience, wouldn't be able to pull off the B.A. Baracus role at all. I'm happy to report that all the actors did an outstanding job bringing the A-Team back to life--or to life for the first time-- depending on your perspective. There were fleeting moments when I could close my eyes and believe it really was Mr. T on the screen reprising his role, as long as I ignored that horrible mohawk and the fact that "Rampage" Jackson looks nothing like him.  I couldn't tell if the mohawk on "Rampage" Jackson was real or a strip of rug glued to his head.  Either way, it was an eye-sore. Another area of complaint is the sub-plot with B.A. Baracus becoming impotent after a period of incarceration and swearing off killing and violent behavior.  He even ditched the trademark mohawk in favor of a nappy mini-afro that had to have been a wig. I'm still trying to decide which was worse, the impotence or the bad wig.

"Rampage" Jackson as B.A. Baracus

I Pity The Fool

I wanted to compare this movie to The Losers that featured soldiers in a similar situation, but The A-Team is a lot more light-hearted, familiar and fun.  While boring at points, The A-Team overall was entertaining. Rather than continue where the TV series left off, the film starts over from the beginning which I thought was an excellent idea given the passage of 28 years. The movie ends where the TV series began with the voice-over..."Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire...The A-Team".  I'm giving The A-Team 3 out of 5 fingers.