Strategic Air Command 1954

     Robert (Dutch) Holland is a third baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals.  He is with the team for spring training and he sees a B-36 fly over the field.  Dutch is recalled to duty and he leaves for MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa Florida.  He also serves at Lowry Air Force Base in Colorado and Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.  Dutch had recently wed Sally and she is distressed that he will remain in the Air Force and they will not return to St. Louis.  Every time the phone rings, she is petrified that something has happened to Dutch on a mission.  Dutch does go down with a B-36 in the Arctic but he is rescued.  All of the crew members bailed out except Dutch and the radar navigation officer.  They stayed with the plane until it was too late to bail and a rescue helicopter arrived for them later. 

     Everything about this film seems very authentic and the aerial photography of the planes is spectacular.  A special citation by the American National Board of Review was awarded for the aerial scenes.  This film had the full cooperation of the United States Air Force to maintain accuracy.   The planes need a lot of thrust and torque to get into the air and their structure seems too massive to lift!!  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

112 min, Action directed by Anthony Mann with James Stewart, June Allyson, Frank Lovejoy, Barry Sullivan, Alex Nicol, Bruce Bennett, Jay C. Flippen, James Millican, James Bell, Rosemary DeCamp, Richard Shannon, John McKee.

Note:  Imdb 6.4 out of 10, 51% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.7* out of 5* with 606 reviews, Leonard Maltin 2.5* out of 4* user rating 4.5* out of 5*.

Special Note:  James Stewart was a B-17 instructor pilot, B-24 squadron commander and a bomb group operations officer.  He completed 20 combat missions and he was promoted to brigadier general.  He continued to fly in his later years and he did Operation Arc Light missions in Vietnam as a non-duty observer aboard a B52F.  Stewart’s character is based on the real-life military career and an actual mission flown by Brigadier General Clifford Schoeffler.  He crashed his plane on an Arctic mission.  A Boston Red Sox legendary player also inspired the character of Dutch.  Ted Williams was a WWII veteran recalled for Korean War service as a Marine Corps aviator at the height of his baseball career.

My Cousin Rachel 2017

     This film is based on a novel by Daphne du Maurier.  Philip was an orphan and his cousin Ambrose raised him.  They lived in Devon and Ambrose was a landowner.  Phillip loved Ambrose like he was his father.  Ambrose started to have some health issues and his physician advised him to move to a warmer climate.  Ambrose leaves for Tuscany and he meets his half-Italian cousin Rachel.  Ambrose and Rachel get married but Ambrose dies soon after.  Philip is in shock and he wonders what happened?  Rachel comes to live with Philip in the house previously owned by Ambrose.  Phillip has inherited the property owned by Ambrose.  On the fringe are Philip’s godfather and estate lawyer Nick Kendall and his daughter Louise.

     The scenery of this area is very beautiful and so are the horses.  There is some confusion in the script about what is going on and I was uncertain for a moment about the ending?  Philip starts out with a love hate relationship with Rachel and then he starts ignoring any advice from his lawyer?  3* (This movie is OK)    

  

106 min, Drama directed by Roger Michell with Rachel Weisz, Sam Claflin, Holliday Grainger, Iain Glen, Pierfrancesco Favino, Simon Russell Beale, Tim Barlow, Bobby Scott Freeman, Tristram Davies, Andrew Havill, Vicki Pepperdine, Poppy Lee Friar.

Note:  Imdb 6.0, 76% critic 46% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 1*, Amazon 3.7* out of 5* with 399 reviews, Metacritic 63 out of 100 with 34 critics 6.1 out of 10 with 31 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Devon, Surrey, Cornwall, England, UK; Anghiari and Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy.  The white horse rode by Rachel Weisz was trained for the TV series Game of Thrones of 2011.  The horse was trained to play dead when the rider tugged hard on the left rein.  Weisz was unaware of this quirk and she was partially trapped under the horse’s left side for a brief period.  This must have been a surprise to everyone?  Filming took place near the Cornwall border but Director Roger Michell avoided filming in Corwall.  This city is featured in the period TV drama Poldark of 2015.  Weisz is 16 years older than Sam Claffin.  This is a remake of a 1952 movie with Olivia de Haviland and Richard Burton. 

A Family Man 2016

     Dane Jensen works for a headhunter company owned by Ed Blackridge.  Ed is thinking of retiring and tells Dane and his work partner Lynn Vogel that there will be a competition between them.  Ed wants to see who can make the most money each month.  The winner will take over as the manager of the firm.  Dane and Lynn arrange jobs for engineers and each team has several workers.  Dane is very driven and determined to win this position.  Elise is his wife and they have three children.  Elise begins to question the amount of time Dane spends at work versus family time.  Dane and Elise receive a real shake up when their ten-year-old son Ryan is diagnosed with leukemia. 

     Dane is ruthless in his job and the bottom line is the numbers every month.  There are a LOT of times you want to shake Dane and tell him he only has one chance with his marriage and his children.  They are growing up every day and he’s not there to be a part of their lives.  How will Dane help Elise or Ryan struggle through the hospital treatments when all he does is work and sleep?  Dane needs to learn that honesty and an authentic life are very important.  3* (This movie is OK)

108 min, Drama directed by Mark Williams with Alison Brie, Gerard Butler, Willem Dafoe, Dustin Milligan, Gretchen Mol, Alfred Molina, Kathleen Munroe, Anupam Kher, Julia Butters, Mayko Nguyen, Mimi Kuzyk.

Note:  Imdb 6.5 out of 10, 13% critic 63% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2*, Amazon 4.2* out of 5* with 101 reviews, Metacritic 21 out of 100 with 7 critics.

Special Note:  Filmed in Chicago and Naperville, Illinois; Toronto, Ontario, Canada.  Gerard Butler used to spend summers as a teenager in Toronto.  He enjoyed working on this project and he thought about living there again.  Butler was also the producer of this film.  The original title was The Headhunter’s Calling.  Screenwriter Bill Dubuque was a corporate headhunter for 12 years.

King Aruthur: Legend of the Sword 2017

     Arthur was next in line to be the King of Britain but he grows up in the back alleys of the realm.  After the death of his parents as a young boy, he was sent away in a small boat and he arrived in Londinium.  His father was the previous King Uther Pendragon and the current King Vortigern is Arthur’s uncle.  King Vortigern killed Arthur’s parents in order to rule as King.  Vortigern has men searching though the male population of a certain age for a man who can pull Excalibur from the stone.  Legend states that this man will be the next King but Vortigern will do anything to prevent this from happening.  Arthur begins to command a group of disgruntled noblemen and men familiar with battle but not allied with the King.  The Mage is a young woman with magic skills she a representative for the wizard Merlin.  She aids the group in their battle with the King.

     There are a LOT of battles, a LOT of CGI but not much background about the actual King Arthur legend.  Many of the scenes are in darkness so you can’t see the real details.  Director Guy Ritchie doesn’t leave a moment of the film without action!!  In some ways, this is like Robin Hood and all the merry men plus thieves.  Everything doesn’t need to fall into place because it's all about the struggle!!  3* (This movie is OK)

126 min, Action directed by Guy Ritchie with Charlie Hunnam, Astrid Berges-Frisbey, Jude Law, Djimon Hounsou, Eric Bana, Aidan Gillen, Freddie Fox, Craig McGinlay, Tom Wu, Kingslely Ben-Adir, Neil Maskell.

Note:  Imdb 6.8 out of 10, 29% critic 69% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 1 ½*, Amazon 4* out of 5* with 1157 reviews, Metacritic 41 out of 100 with 45 critics 7.2 out of 10 with 493 reviews, The Guardian 3* out of 5* review by Peter Bradshaw.

Special Note:  Filmed in Wales, Scotland, England, UK and Fjaorargljufur, Iceland.  This is the first installment of a planned six-film series.  Ritchie was concerned about the 20 pounds Hunnam lost for the last season of Sons of Anarchy of 2008.  Hunnam told Ritchie he would fight the other two actors (Henry Cavill and Jai Courtney) vying for the role and the last one still standing would get the job!!  Felicity Jones, Elizabeth Olsen and Alicia Vikander auditioned for the role of the Mage.  Hunnam patterned his fighting style and bodybuilding after Ultimate Fighting Championship Irish featherweight Conor McGregor.  Hunnam’s personal record for pushups was 1,050 in one day.  The original title was Knights of the Roundtable: King Arthur.  Two other versions were started by other directors and actors but were not produced.  There is another film about King Arthur from 2004.

Falling for Vermont 2017

     Angela Young is a best selling author but she feels over her head with publicity and interviews for a movie based on one of her books.  She’s on set for an interview but she sneaks away and drives to Vermont.  She’s caught in a sudden thunderstorm, a tree falls in front of the car and she runs off the road.  She hit her head during the accident and a local Sheriff finds her walking down a road.  She doesn’t know who she is and he takes her to see Dr. Jeff Callan.  Dr. Jeff checks her out and offers her his guest cottage so she has a place to stay to recover.  Dr. Jeff has a daughter Wendy and a son Alex, he was married but his wife passed away two years ago.

84 min, Drama directed by David Winning with Julie Gonzalo, Larissa Albuquerque, Benjamin Ayres, Pewter Benson, Mark Brandon, Ava Grace Cooper, Arpad Balogh, Anthony Bolognese, Kristin York, Christian Michael Cooper, Cate Sproule.

     Right away, I must say that this is a Hallmark Movie.  I haven’t watched one of these in quite a while!!  There is are LOT of predictable scenes but easy to enjoy on a cold and rainy day.  Doesn’t take a lot of thought and doesn’t create any inner tension.  The scenery of this area in the fall is very beautiful.  3* (This movie is OK)

Note:  Imdb 6.8 out of 10, 50% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Letterboxd 3.1 out of 5* with 48 reviews

Special Note:  There is a mistake with the countdown clock for the TV interview.  When Angela leaves, the clock says 2 minutes and 30 seconds remaining until going live.  When it’s discovered that she is missing, the clock says 4 minutes.  Probably, the crashed car was within a short walk from where she was found but the Sheriff doesn’t go back to look for a car?

Wonder Woman 2017

     This film is based on a comic book character created in 1941 by William Moulton Marston.  Princess Diana has grown up on the utopian paradise island of Themyscira with the Amazon women on a sheltered island paradise.  The gods of Olympus created island.  As a young girl, she wants to start training like the women.  Just the idea terrifies her mother Queen Hippolyta.  Diana convinces Antiope to train her without her mother knowing.  Hippolyta is very angry when she finds Diana training.  Antiope convinces Hippolyta that her training is for the best for her future.  Pilot Captain Steve Trevor crashes on their shore and German soldiers follow him.  They use their guns to try to kill Steve and as many of the Amazon women as they can.  The arrows and spears used by the women are a poor substitute for the guns.  Diana talks her mother into letting her go with Steve to allow her see this war to end all wars that he talks about.  It is WWI between 1914-18.  Their first stop is London where they meet Steve's comrades. 

     This film is a LOT better than I expected.  It actually makes sense and it was interesting to watch.  I thought Gadot did a very good job in her role, she has a lot of power and she can fight!!  There isn't any bad feeling among the men when a powerful woman saves them??  One very good thing about this film is that it is not a bunch of costumed men scowling in place of acting!!  4* (I really liked this movie)

141 min, Action directed by Patty Jenkins with Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Connie Nielsen, Danny Huston, David Thewlis, Said Taghmaoui, Ewen Bremner, Eugene Brave Rock, Lucy Davis, Elena Anaya, Lilly Aspell, Lisa Loven Kongsli, Ann Wolfe, Ann Ogbomo.

Note:  Imdb 7.6 out of 10, 92% critic 88% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*, Amazon 4.3* out of 5* with 3422 reviews, Metacritic 76 out of 100 with 50 critics 7.8 out of 10 with 2170 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Italy, France and England, UK.  Gal Gadot was five months pregnant during re-shoots.  A green screen was placed around her abdomen and removed during post-production.  She trained for nine months prior to filming to gain 17 pounds of muscle.  General Erich Ludendorff was an actual person and he was the supreme commander of the German forces.  He authorized the use of mustard gas, a corrosive agent that melts tissue, inflicts temporary or permanent blindness and causes lasting lung damage.  He supported Adolf Hitler’s failed coup.  Elektra was the first female superhero film in 2005.

47 Meters Down 2017

     Lisa and Kate are sisters and they go together on a trip to Mexico.  Lisa is feeling very down because her boyfriend just broke up with her.  He said she’s too dull and boring?  The sisters meet Javier, Louis, Benjamin and later Captain Taylor.  The men offer to take the women to see sharks from a cage.  Kate is very nervous about this and she thinks it’s a bad idea.  Tourists were advised to book any trips through the hotel?  They take a small boat to the ship and they see that it’s old and rusty.  Two of the men go into the cage first and they have a successful viewing of sharks.  Next up are the two women.  They say they have experience as divers but Kate has never done this before?

     There are a LOT of scenes that would probably never happen and not all at once? There is a LOT of tension when anyone is out of the cage among the sharks.  I thought the ending was ambiguous?  Personally, being in a shark cage is one of the last places I would want to be?  Plus, stay out of the water if you don’t know what you are doing or what you are getting into!!  3* (This movie is OK)   

89 min, Adventure directed by Johannes Roberts with Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Matthew Modine, Chirs Johnson, Yani Gellman, Santiago Segura.

Note:  Imdb 5.7 out of 10, 55% critic 36% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2*, Amazon 3.3* out of 5* with 239 reviews, Metacritic 52 out of 100 with 24 critics, 4.7 out of 10 with 55 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in the UK and at Pinewood Dominican Republic Studios, Juan Dolio, Dominican Republic for the water tank scenes.  47 meters is equal to 154.2 feet.  The original title was In the Deep.  There is a mistake with the air readings.  At this depth there would be 15 minutes of air for the divers.  Both Moore and Holt had not used scuba gear before.  Finely chopped broccoli was used to replicate the organisms found underwater.  Over time, Moore said it was quite unpleasant and like filming inside soup.  The shark cage and the crane were built on a farm in Kent, UK.