‘Crime’ Archives
Taken
This is a fast paced action/thriller starring Liam Neeson, who is retired CIA agent Bryan Mills, whose daughter is kidnapped during a trip in Europe. At the beginning we meet the characters in a very awkward way, exposition is painful and feels forced. They ram the fact that his ex-wife hates him, but she and her daughter also think that he's [...]
High and Low
Akira Kurosawa is favorite director of mine, but I'm ashamed to admit that I have only watched 1/3 of his movies. Here's me trying to remedy that. High and Low is not a samurai movie, instead it is a contemporary crime story about the kidnapping of a boy. The first part is all about Toshiro Mifune's character struggling with his [...]
Inglourious Basterds
This is the latest Tarantino movie, which is always an event for me. I have to admit though, when I first heard that he was working on a war movie I was disappointed, since I'm not a huge fan of war movies. But if that's a reason why you're not watching this movie, don't worry about it. This is NOT a typical war movie. It's definitely a typical [...]
The Brothers Bloom
Ryan Johnson's first movie (Brick) is one of my favorite little movies of the past few years, so I went into this follow up with high expectations. Luckily I was rewarded (or maybe I'm just too biased). This is a con movie, but more importantly it's a movie about con movies. The difference here is that the con is all about the characters and [...]
Duplicity
This is a nice spy-thriller/romance movie, light but at the same time clever. The two leads are very charismatic ones, so I think they did a good job in casting this movie. The spy plot is very interesting and has many twists and turns. First we think that Ray (Clive Owen) and Claire (Julia Roberts) meet by chance a few years after their first [...]
Point Blank
This is a 1967 movie that is an adaptation of the novel The Hunter. I was interested in it because it was highly recommended by comic writer Ed Brubaker, and there's also a comic adaptation by Darwin Cooke, so I wanted to compare the two (though I don't have the comic yet). I don't know what I expected, but I wasn't into it. I can't really [...]
The Dark Knight
I enjoyed Batman Begins a lot and Christopher Nolan is one of my favorite directors. So it's no surprise that I had high expectations for the sequel. Luckily they were all met. People mentioned this a lot, but this movie didn't feel like a superhero, more like a crime movie. All the technology used by Batman is based on realistic technology, [...]
Batman: Gotham Knight
Everyone will compare this DVD to Animatrix. The concept is similar, a series of short stories animated by famous Anime production companies, direct to DVD to bridge the gap between two successful movies. The difference here is that Batman is a very well known character, and there have been many stories about him. So there isn't anything new in [...]
Sweeney Todd
If it weren't for Johnny Depp's nomination for the Oscars, I wouldn't have watched this movie. Nothing against the Burton/Depp pairing, I've actually liked their work together, but I've had enough of musicals. After Once, I don't think any other musicals will compare. The problem with songs in movies is that I don't understand what they're [...]
In the Valley of Elah
I am not a big fan of writer/director Paul Haggis, his Crash was the most overrated movie of that year's Oscars. So I didn't expect much from this new movie. Luckily I had a good time. This is mainly a crime/mystery drama, where Hank (Tommy Lee Jones) is trying to find his son back from Iraq. We follow him investigating his disappearance, with [...]
Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead
I must admit I have heard both good and bad reviews about this film, but what prompted me to watch this movie is the cast. Hoffman is always good, Albert Finney has been a favorite of mine since Erin Brokovich, and I have a soft spot for Marisa Tomei. Ironically Marisa Tomei was the worst performance. I don't think it's really her fault, she [...]
No Country for Old Men
No Country for Old Men (2007): Violence and mayhem ensue after a hunter stumbles upon some dead bodies, a stash of heroin and more than $2 million in cash near the Rio Grande.My expectations for this movie were very high, and they were met. This is a very simple story, the plot is not at all complicated and there are not many dialogs. But what’s [...]
Gone Baby Gone
Gone Baby Gone (2007): Based on the Dennis Lehane novel about two Boston area detectives investigating a little girl’s kidnapping, which ultimately turns into a crisis both professionally and personally.This is the directorial debut by Ben Affleck, who does not appear in this film at all. Instead his brother Casey is the lead, and both brothers [...]
3:10 to Yuma
3:10 to Yuma (2007): A small-time rancher agrees to hold a captured outlaw who’s awaiting a train to go to court in Yuma. A battle of wills ensues as the outlaw tries to psych out the rancher. This is a well done western with a very charismatic villain and many good performances. The plot is simple, but I would say that the focus of this film [...]
Shoot ‘Em Up
Shoot ’Em Up (2007): A man named Mr. Smith delivers a woman’s baby during a shootout, and is then called upon to protect the newborn from the army of gunmen.This is a pure fun action movie that plays on the action genre of its conventions. The plot is simple, though there is a little bit of mystery about the motivations behind these [...]
Eastern Promises
Eastern Promises (2007): The film follows the mysterious and ruthless Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen), who is tied to one of London’s most notorious organized crime families. I really liked A History of Violence, so I was curious to watch director David Cronenberg’s new collaboration with Viggo Mortensen. This is a pretty straight forward [...]
American Gangster
American Gangster (2007): In 1970s America, a detective works to bring down the drug empire of Frank Lucas, a heroin kingpin from Manhattan, who is smuggling the drug into the country from the Far East. This movie can be considered an epic gangster movie. This story is divided between good cop Archie (Russell Crowe) and drug lord Frank Lucas [...]
A Fish Called Wanda
A Fish Called Wanda (1988): In London, four very different people team up to commit armed robbery, then try to double cross each other for the loot. I watched this movie as a kid, and I remember laughing really hard. However I didn’t remember much about the plot, so I thought I’d watch it again as well as showing it to my wife. The [...]
Death Proof
Death Proof (2007): Two separate pairs of voluptuous women are stalked at different times by a scarred stuntman who uses his "death proof" cars to execute his murderous plans. This is the single release extended version of Death Proof, longer than the one showed in the Grindhouse double feature. I've always been a fan of Tarantino, and this new [...]
The Big Sleep
The Big Sleep (1946): Private detective Philip Marlowe is hired by a rich family. Before the complex case is over, he's seen murder, blackmail, and what might be love. This is another big complicated mystery that revolves around a murder and Det. Marlow, played by Humphrey Bogart. The love interest this time out is played by Lauren Bacall, whom [...]