Hanna 2011

    A teenage girl has been raised in remote Finland as an assassin, she has the strength, the stamina and the training of a soldier.  She is dispatched on a dangerous mission by her father who is a former CIA operative.  She looks like a typical young girl but she has spent her entire life preparing for one mission which is to take out a nearly unstoppable and cunning intelligence operative.
    This is good, how many times do you see a girl take down trained men and women plus escape from a remote detention center?  She is unprepared for the real world and has an overload experience with electricity and technology.  4* (I really liked this movie)

111 min, Action directed by Joe Wright with Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana, Tom Hollander, Olivia Williams, Jason Flemyng, Jessica Barden, Cate Blanchett, Jamie Beamish, Vicky Krieps, Paris Arrowsmith.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 7.0 out of 10, 71% critic 67% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Something Borrowed 2011

    Rachel is a 30 year old lawyer who always puts aside what she wants for the sake of her best friend since childhood, Darcy.  Darcy is marrying Dex but he was Rachel's study partner in law school and she has had a crush on him from the beginning of classes.  Dex discovers he may be marrying the wrong person and it should be Rachel but there is a lot of pressure for him to keep quiet and keep the wedding ball rolling.
    This is very predictable, Darcy never thinks about anyone but herself and she holds a higher standard for others than herself.  I can do to you but you better never do to me is her motto.  This is just not very good.  2 1/2* (This movie is so-so)

112 minutes, Romance directed by Luke Greenfield with Kate Hudson, Ginnifer Goodwin, John Krasinski, Colin Egglesfield, Steve Howey, Ashley Williams, Geoffrey Pierson, Jill Eikenberry.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 5.6 out of 10, 14% critic 49% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Cold Weather 2010

    Doug was studying forensic science at a college in the Midwest but after a few months his ambition ran out of steam, he left to move back to his hometown of Portland.  He's living with his sister and gets a job at an ice making plant which requires just a few active brain waves.  He had originally planned to work with the police because of his passion for classic detective fiction such as Sherlock Holmes.  Suddenly a real life case appears when his former girlfriend disappears.
    This movie is good if you are washing dishes, reading the newspaper, combing your hair, considering which came first, the chicken or the egg.  The camera shots are 5 minutes long (it seems) of scenic vistas and the plot is very thin.  I also did not like the ending.  2 1/2* (This movie is so-so)

96 min, Drama directed by Aaron Katz with Cris Lankenau, Trieste Dunn, Raul Casatillo, Robyn  Rikoon, Jeb Pearson, Brendan McFadden, Ben Stambler, Katy Rothert.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 6.2 out of 10, 74% critic 55% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Melancholia 2011

    Justine is an emotionally troubled newlywed, she is given a lavish wedding party by her sister Claire.  A stretch limo taking the bride and groom to the party can't navigate the narrow road to Claire and her husband John's home and they are two hours late.  There are a lot of conflicts because of this lateness and the guests history with each other.  Another element is there will be a possible collision between Earth and another planet.
    In the beginning it is difficult to figure out what is going on but it becomes clear later on in the movie.  Performances by Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg are excellent and they are not shy about showing their emotions on their faces.  This movie is very different from other films.  4* (I really liked this movie)

130 min, Drama directed by Lars von Trier with Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Kiefer Sutherland, Alexander Skarsgard, John Hurt, Charlotte Rampling, Stellan Skarsgard, Jasper Christensen, Cameron Spurr.

Note:  Blockbuster 2 1/2*, imdb 7.5 out of 10, 79% critic 75% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Special Note:  The camera style is shaky and has quick movements to the sides.  The color tones have a lot of sepia and the music is very dramatic.  This caused me to have motion sickness and I had to go outside for a short period to recover.  I felt very warm and nauseous, popcorn and perfume became very strong smelling, I could not figure out what was wrong for a while.  The ticket seller told me that others have left because of this reaction.  I found that setting in the back alone was much better, it was cooler, I could close my eyes when needed. 

Larry Crowne 2011

    A Navy veteran loses his job after ten years at a big-box store because he doesn't have any college education.  He decides to take some classes at his local community college.  Things begin to change for him, he meets new friends, gets a part-time job, he's doing well in his classes and he begins to like his speech professor.
    This movie is like a TV movie and not up to the acting range of the lead actors.  It's predictable, sappy fluff and lightweight. 2 1/2* (This movie is so-so)   

99 min, Drama directed by Tom Hanks with Julie Roberts, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Cedric the Entertainer, Taraji P. Henson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Wilmer Valderrama, Pam Grier, Rami Malek, George Takei.

Note:  Blockbuster 3*, imdb 6.0 out of 10, 34% critic 46% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

An Invisible Sign 2010

    An adaptation of Aimee Bender's novel An Invisible Sign of My Own.  Mona Gray is a young girl who uses mathematics as a means of dealing with a her father's devastating mental illness.  She begins to eliminate everything in her life that she enjoys as a sacrifice to somehow make her father well again.  Later, she becomes a teacher and tries to help her students deal with their own personal issues.
    Appearance can convey a lot about a character but that can't convey everything and be the only method of expression.  No one seems to know what they are doing with this movie or what they are trying to show?  The viewer can relate more to the children in the class and they are are far more interesting than the adults.  2 1/2* (This movie is so-so)
   
96 min, Drama directed by Marilyn Agrelo with Jessica Alba, Chris Messina, J.K. Simmons, John Shea, Bailee Madison, Sonia Braga, Blythe Auffarth, Ashlie Atkinson, Ian Colletti, Sophie Nyweide.

Note:  Blockbuster 2 1/2*, imdb 4.8 out of 10, critic 0% audience 37% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Super 8 2011

    In the summer of 1979 a group of young friends are filming a Super-8 movie when a pickup truck drives into a moving train.  The train cars detail one after the other resulting in a huge disaster.  The Air Force comes to clean up the site since all the cars on the train are their property.  The film team is worried that the Air Force will come looking for them since they took casts of their tire tracks at the scene.  Strange things start to happen in the nearby town, people start to disappear and all the dogs ran away to towns surrounding this town.
    This movie is a combination of Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Transformers.  I really wonder if one pickup truck could make all the cars derail on a train?  Some of the ideas are hard to grasp also since strange things have to be in dark areas so you can't see too many details.  The young actors are good, it's the adults that need work.  3* (This movie is OK)

111 min, Sci-Fi directed by J.J. Abrams with Kyle Chandler, Elle Fanning, Joel Courtney, Gabriel Basso, Noah Emmerich, Ron Eldard, Riley Griffiths, Ryan Lee, Zach Mills.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, 7.3 out of 10, 82% critic 78% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Sarah's Key 2010

    Adapted from a novel by Tatiana de Rosnay about the tragic and shameful moment in French history when Parisian Jews were rounded up in 1942.  Sarah Starzynski was ten years old when the Nazi-affilliated Vichy government came to arrest them, she tried to protect her brother by locking him in a bedroom closet.  Her parents were sent to Auschwitz but she escapes the holding camp with another girl to rescue her brother.  An American writer living in Paris discovers Sarah's story when her architect husband begins a remodel on the apartment originally owned by Sarah's family.
    This is very good and really pulls you into the story of Sarah and also of the American writer Julia.  Sarah and her family are representatives of so many other families killed during this time by the Nazi machine.  1942 carries over into our time period through the ownership of the apartment.  4* (I really liked this movie)

111 min, Drama directed by Gilles Paquet-Brenner with Kristin Scott Thomas, Melusine Mayance, Niels Arestrup, Frederic Pierrot, Michel Duchaussoy, Dominique Frot, Natasha Mashkevich, Gisele Casadesus.

Note:  Blockbuster 4*, imdb 7.3 out of 10, 75% critic 85% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Diary of a Whimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules 2011

    Second Wimpy Kid movie, Greg is in the 7th grade now and still facing school and home problems.  His parents want Greg to get along with his older brother Rodrick with mixed results.   
    This is funny, torment in school, liking the cute girl but they never like the social misfit boy.  Caught in the middle, older brother tormenting and younger brother always getting away with everything because he's "just 3 years old."  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

99 min, Comedy directed by David Bowers with Zachary Gordon, Devon Bostick, Rachael Harris, Steve Zahn.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 5.9 out of 10, 47% critic 64% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Battle: Los Angeles 2011

   Meteors hitting the water near large cities are found to be alien invaders, humans along the beaches are being killed.  A Marine platoon is dispatched to save Los Angeles.  Rescue civilians is their mission and they have only three hours to complete their task before the Air Force begins bombing the area.
  This is filmed like Marines in a combat zone at war with other people but these are aliens and their ships.  It just seems too unrealistic and doesn't capture your attention like it could or should.  Michelle Rodriquez, aren't there any other roles for her?  3* (This movie is OK) 

116 min, Sci-Fi directed by Johathan Liebesman with Aaron Eckhart, Ramon Rodriquez, Will Rothhaar, Cory,C. Hardrict, Jim Parrack.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 5.9 out of 10, 34% critic 50% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

The Waiting City 2009

    A couple from Australia travel to India to adopt a child.  Once they arrive, they discover that processes move very slowly in India.  The stress of the waiting causes tension, anger, resentment, dissatisfaction in their relationship.
     This movie is a tough sell, the characters are not very likable and the circumstances so uncomfortable.  Definitely not a welcome tourist travel guide to India or how to adopt a child.  3* (This movie is OK)
 
107 min, Drama directed by Claire McCarthy with Radha Mitchell, Joel Edgerton, Samrat Chakrabarti, Isabel Lucas, Barum Chanda, Tanushree Shankar, Tillotama Shome.

Note:  Blockbuster 2 1/2*, imdb 5.6 out of 10, 73% critic 45% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Ceremony 2010

    Zoe is engaged to marry a successful but colossally arrogant director.  Sam wants a second chance at love but Zoe isn't sure there was ever any love in the first place.  Sam persuades his best friend Marshall to join him for a trip to Long Island to crash Zoe's weekend long wedding festivities and to convince her that he's the right man for her.
    I don't know why Uma Thurman took this role but she's the only brightness in this movie.  The men seem like dolts and the plot is so weak and unfunny that I wonder why it's called a comedy?  2* (I didn't like this movie)

90 min, Comedy directed by Max Winkler with Michael Angarano, Uma Thurman, Reece Daniel Thompson, Lee Pace, Jake Johnson, Brooke Bloom, Harper Dill, Rebecca Mader, Natalie Love.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 5.7 out of 10, 40% critic 31% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Bad Teacher 2011

    She's a seventh grade teacher who drinks, smokes pot, swears and wants to get out of the classroom for good by marrying a rich substitute teacher.  She's not the only one looking at this prize, a cute perky fellow teacher is causing him to have a huge crush.
    This is funny, Elizabeth is a terrible teacher until she finds out she can get a large check if her class does the best on testing.  She goes from a movie every day teaching to all out teaching.  Amy is the "best" teacher but she becomes the biggest tattletale.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

92 min, Com directed by Jake Kasdan with Cameron Diaz, Justin Timerlaker, Jason Segel, Lucy Punch, Molly Shannon, John Michael Higgins, Erick Stonestreet, David Allen.

Note:  Blockbuster 3*, imdb 5.8 out of 10, 44% critic 39% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Beginners 2011

    Oliver has not had success in relationships, he meets Anna and things are going well until he starts to believe that it cannot last.  He has had sadness in his life recently, his mother passed away and then he took care of his father during his last days.  He has his father's Jack Russell dog Arthur living with him now.
    This is like a Woody Allen movie about relationships but not wonderful like his recent ones in Spain and France.  I expected this to be good with the reviews it has received but I just did not like it.  Everyone seems cut out with cookie cutters and living in a fog.  An example is how can Oliver make a living drawing when he can't relate to what a client would want and his idea is not practical for the application?  The best actor is Arthur the dog!!  3* (This movie is OK)
   
104 min, Drama directed by Mike Mills with Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Melanie Laurent, Goran Visnjic, Kai Lennox, Mary Page Keller, Keegan Boos, China Shavers, Melissa Tang, Amanda Payton.

Note:  Blockbuster 4 1/2*, imdb 7.4 out of 10, 84% critic 81% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

 

Broken Hill 2009

    An Australian teen tries to leave behind his rural roots in the Outback to become a musician.  He gets distracted by a new American student at his school,  hey get arrested for a prank and assigned to community service as a team.  His father is not very supportive and doesn't believe his son has what it takes.
    This is good, both teens hear the music inside themselves but it's a tough sell to teach jail inmates to sing and play instruments.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

102 min, Drama directed by Dagen Merrill with Luke Arnold, Timothy Hutton, Alexa Vega, Peter Lamb, Andy McPhee, Che Timmins, Rhys Wakefield, John Clarke, Leo Taylor, George Kapiniaris, Ebony Ween, Luke O'Loughlin, Adam Grocke.

Note:  Blockbuster 3*, imdb 5.4 out of 10, 50% critic 67% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Win Win 2011

    Mike Flaherty is an attorney but he's struggling to keep his practice in business.  He thinks he's found a new money source by becoming the legal guardian of an elderly client until the man's grandson shows up looking for a place to stay.  Mike is also a part-time wrestling coach and he finds out Kyle was a wrestler and he's good.  Kyle's mother shows up and she wants to move her father to Ohio where she live and also take her son.  The big draw for her is her father's money.
    Of course Paul Giamatti is a sad sack but he's better this time, he makes a bad decision, thinks he will get away with it but does the right thing finally.  3* (This movie is OK)

106 min, Com/Drama directed by Tom McCarthy with Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan, Bobby Cannavale, Jeffrey Tambor, Alex Shaffer, Melanie Lynskey, Burt Young, David Thompson, Margo Martindale.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 7.4 out of 10, 94% critic 86% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Queen to Play 2009

    Helene is a middle-aged housekeeper at a posh Corsican hotel with few prospects.  She is a devoted and diligent wife and mother but she has nothing to call her own in her life except her family.  She watches a couple staying at the hotel playing chess on the deck and she is very interested.  She buys an electronic chessboard to give her husband for his birthday.  She tries to teach herself and tries to teach him but her husband doesn't like the game.  She cleans for an eccentric, reclusive American and she asks him to mentor her in the game.
    This is good, finding something she is very passionate about separates Helene from her family and they begin to resent the intrusion.  The townspeople begin to gossip about the time she spends with the American and this doesn't help her family feel better about her choices.  4* (I really liked this movie)

97 min, Drama directed by Caroline Bottaro with Sandrine Bonnaire, Francis Renaud, Jennifer Beals, Valerie Lagrange, Alexandra Gentil, Alice Pol, Elisabeth Vitali, Dominic Gould, Daniel Martin, Kevin Kline.

Note:  Blockbuster 4*, imdb 6.6 out of 10, not listed on Rotten Tomatoes.

Little Sparrows 2010

    Three sisters, Christine a med student, Anna an actress, Nina a widow with two young children.  At the center is their mother Susan who has a return and spread of breast cancer.  Each sister is trying to resolve the problems in their lives but deal with the fact their mother is dying.
    This is not a light or uplifting movie but the characters do not draw you in so you care enough to be involved with their struggles.  I felt totally on the outside of this and barely able to identify who was on screen in each scene.  3* (This movie is OK) 

89 min, Drama directed by Yu-Hsiu Camille Chen with Nicola Bartlett, James Hagan, Nina Deasley, Melanie Lyons, Arielle Gray, Scott Jackson, Nick Candy.

Note:  Blockbuster 2 1/2*,  imdb 5.2 out of 10, not rated by critic yet, 50% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Horrible Bosses 2011

    A workplace comedy about three frustrated employees who hatch a plan to kill their micromanaging bosses.  Nick hates his boss because his hours are long, a minute late is a crime and he's blackmailed so he can't quit.  Dale hates his dentist boss because of her unwanted advances.  Dale likes his job but his boss dies and is replaced with his psycho son.
    There is a lot of gross-out humor, obscenities and coarseness.  Only funny at times.  A different role and look for Jennifer Aniston, I'm not a Kevin Spacy fan so I can see him as a horrible boss!  3* (This movie is OK)

98 min, Comedy directed Seth Gordon with Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Spacy, Jamie Foxx, Colin Farrell, Donald Sutherland, Julie Bowen, Isaiah Mustafa.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 7.1 out of 10, 69% critic 73% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Crazy, Stupid, Love 2011

    Instead of ordering off the restaurant menu, Cal's wife asks him for a divorce.  Cal gets instructions from Jacob how to drop his sad-sack persona and become a master of the modern dating scene.  He's brought back from the brink of drinking his nights away at a local pub with no hope.  He develops a distinct sense of style that sets him apart from the pack but he feels like something is missing from his life.
    This is good and funny.  Cal's son has a big crush on his babysitter, the babysitter has a crush on Cal.  Everyone hates the wife's boyfriend because he's the one who started this.  Even though Jacob always gets the girl, he's alone.  4* (I really liked this movie)

118 min, Comedy directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa with Steve Carell,
Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore, Emma Stone, Analeigh Tipton, Jonah Bobo, Kevin Bacon.

Note:  Blockbuster 4*, imdb 7.6 out of 10, 78% critic 82% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Copycat 1995

    Dr. Helen Hudson is a psychiatrist famous for her writings about serial killers.  She is almost killed by a man after one of her lectures, this causes her to retreat to her apartment because of extreme agoraphobia.  Detective Monahan and her assistant go to Helen for help but this draws her into the terrifying web of a new killer.
    I thought this was a new movie but it was newly released in 2009.  This is a good movie despite the dated hairstyles and clothing of the women.  I didn't know until after the movie that Harry Connick, Jr. played the disgusting killer in the opening scenes and a couple of the later scenes.  He still gives me the creeps!!  4* (I really liked this movie) 

12 min, Mys directed by Jon Amiel with Sigourney Weaver, Holly Hunter, Dermot Mulroney, William McNamara, Will Patton, Harry Connick, Jr., Bill Bonham, Terry Brown, Ron Kaell.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 6.5 out of 10, 75% critic 58% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Bill Cunningham New York 2010

    Bill Cunningham is a fashion photographer but he works the streets of New York looking for everyday people with style.  He has been a long time fixture in The New York Times in his Evening Hours column and On the Street.  He also attends events in the evening to capture fashion from this side of life.  He bikes around town, lives in a modest apartment, has his film processed at the corner store, keeps his personal life to himself and he's 80 years old.
    This is interesting, he's a very prolific man who is totally involved in fashion from the streets of New York to the Paris fashion week.  He's passionate about what he does and it's his life.  He tries to always be kind in his life and photography.  4* (I really liked this movie)

84 min, Doc directed by Richard Press with Bill Cunningham, Tom Wolfe, Anna Wintour, Carmen Dell'Orefice, Annette De la Renta, Mrs. Vincent Astor, John Kurdewan, Iris Apfel, Josef Astor.

Note:  Blockbuster 3*, imdb 8.1 out of 10, 98% critic 94% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

My Dog Tulip 2009

    Animated film adapted from J.R. Ackerley's 1956 novel about the 14 year friendship between the author and a German Shepherd.  Ackerley was looking for a friend, he didn't realize that the friend would not be human.  He rescued the dog from the original owners who worked long hours and the dog spent it's time only in a yard.  She didn't know what it was like out in the great outdoors, there was some trouble with this and obedience.
    I liked this movie, the characters, the dog, the man's feelings about the dog.  The animation is different, there are sections of fully drawn scenes, simple drawings, black and white line illustrations and quick notepad sketches.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

82 min, Animated, directed by Paul and Sandra Fierlinger with the voices of Christopher Plummer, Isabella Rossellini, Paul Hecht, Lynn Redgrave.

Note:  Blockbuster 4 1/2*, imdb 6.9 out of 10, 90% critic 75% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Jane Eyre 2011

    Young Jane is raised by her aunt Sarah after the death of her parents.  Because of perceived insolence she is sent to a stark boarding school with unusually strict regulations.  She finds work at 18 as the governess to the ward of Edward Fochester of Thornfield Hall.  Jane and Edward fall in love but a problem is revealed on the day of their marriage.  Jane runs away and is taken in by a clergyman and his two sisters.
    This has been filmed at least 8 other times before but this movie is very good.  Wasikowaska and Fassbender really draw you into the story and you feel their emotions.  Different casting of Hawkins in her role as the aunt.  4* (I really liked this movie)

121 min, Drama directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga with Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Jamie Bell, Judi Dench, Sally Hawkins, Tamzin Merchant, Imogen Poots, Su Elliott, Amelia Clarkson.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 7.5 out of 10, 86% critic 78% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Water for Elephants 2011

    The parents of a veterinary student are killed in a car accident and he leaves school before taking the final exam.  He doesn't know what he's going to do, he's penniless, homeless and it's the depression.  He jumps aboard a train and finds there is an opportunity for him to join a traveling circus as their vet, what other choice does he have?  He instantly falls in love with the wife of the circus boss which can lead to very extreme consequences.  The boss is known for his violent temper and jealousy.
    The book that this movie is based on is so much fuller, richer and better than the movie.  The characters seem flat with not enough dimension.  Witherspoon is 10 years older than Pattinson and they just don't seem to blend in their romance.  Waltz is mean but just barely.  3* (This movie is OK) 
   
120 min, Drama directed by Francis Lawrence with Reese Witherspoon, Robert Pattinson, Christoph Waltz, Paul Schneider, Jim Norton, Hal Holbrook, Mark Povinelli, Richard Brake.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 7.0 out of 10, 61% critic 73% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Cars 2 2011

    The first every World Grand Prix is approaching, Lightning McQueen and his friend Mater have their passports and they head overseas.  Does McQueen have what it takes to win the race as the fastest car on Earth?  Mater isn't helping by getting sidetracked on a spy mission that takes him from Japan to Europe.
    This is funny, they aren't in Radiator Springs anymore!  Mater has a little trouble fitting in since he is not a "typical" tow truck.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

106 min, Animated directed by Brad Lewis with Owen Wilson, Larry the Cable Guy, John Turturro, Eddie Izzard, Michael Caine, Emily Mortimer, Bonnie Hunt, Tony Shalhoub, Cheech Marin, Brent Musburger, Joe Mantegna.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 6.5 out of 10, 38% critic 57% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Exporting Raymond 2010

    Television producer Phil Rosenthal flies to Russia to help them adapt Everybody Loves Raymond for Russian television.  Rosenthal won an Emmy for the show and it's based on his family.  The Russians don't seem to understand his sense of humor and they don't seem eager for his input.  There are cultural differences and creative differences between Russians and Americans.
    This is funny, Rosenthal is nervous about going to Russia and is worried that he'll be kidnapped but his interpreter says he does not look like the type to be kidnapped?  The costume designer wants the wife in the series to wear designer clothes but she is a homemaker cleaning the house and taking care of children?  Situations funny to us are inexplicable to them?  3 1/2*  (I liked this movie)

85 min, Doc directed by Phil Rosenthal with Stanislav Duzhnikov, Anna Frolovtseva, Boris Klyuyev, Konstantin Naumochkin, Aleksandr Zhigalkin.

Note:  Blockbuster 3 1/2*, imdb 6.6 out of 10, 71% critic 74% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

Kill the Irishman 2011

    The rise and fall of Danny Greene, a notorious Cleveland thug who earned a reputation in the mid-70's for his bold willingness to defy the Italian mob.  He gets his start as president of a longshoreman's local union but is charged with corruption and faces prison time.  He's recruited to become an informer but he passes on information that doesn't hurt those close to him.  He discovers he has the potential to become as powerful as any of his adversaries and he survives numerous assassination attempts.  He seems to be untouchable and he deals a devastating blow to the organized crime syndicates across the US.
    This has a lot of action, a crime boss war results in numerous car bombings, there were 36 bombings in Cleveland and it was called Bomb City, USA in 1976.  Bombs are blowing up cars and buildings all over town.  There are times when Greene seems to have gone over the edge and it's hard to not to dislike him plus some of the actors are from the Sopranos.  3* (This movie is OK)

106 min, Drama directed by Johathan Hensleigh with Ray Stevenson, Vincent D'Onofrio, Val Kilmer, Christopher Walken, Linda Cardellini, Tony Darrow, Fionnula Flanagan, Bob Gunton.

Note:  Blockbuster 3*, imdb 7.1 out of 10, 62% critic 68% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.