Suspect Zero (2004):

Starring:

Aaron Eckhart - Thomas Mackelway

Ben Kingsley - Benjamin O'Ryan

Carrie-Anne Moss - Fran Kulok

Harry Lennix - Rich Charleton

Kevin Chamberlin - Harold Speck

Keith Campbell - Raymond Starkey

Chloe Russell - Loretta

Director:

E. Elias Merhige (Shadow Of The Vampire)

Synopsis:

Suspect Zero follows the disgraced FBI Agent Thomas Mackelway (Aaron Eckhart), who was transferred to a desolate area in Albuquerque, New Mexico as punishment for botching a procedure which ultimately led to the release of one of the most notorious criminals on the FBI's list. Mackelway is given an opportunity to redeem himself, however, when he is called in to investigate the strange murder of a traveling salesman. Mysteriously, the mark of a circle with a line through it is the only clue that the killer left behind. Before long, the prime suspect is identified as former agent Benjamin O'Ryan (Ben Kingsley), who is seemingly obsessed with hunting down serial killers and murdering them rather than turning them in to the proper authorities. Though Mackelway believes he knows the area where O'Ryan (Kingsley) is living, he has no idea what he looks like -- a problem that the rogue agent exploits with great success. Despite his brilliance, Mackelway finds himself caught in a psychological labyrinth of sorts, and is faced with an even greater quandary after learning that O'Ryan is looking for none other than Suspect Zero, a murderer of hundreds and the FBI's most wanted man.

Review:

Have you ever watched a movie, then a few days or a week later you completely have no memory of anything that happened in that film? We'll that was this one for me. I honestly could not tell you anything that happened in this. All I remember is thinking man Ben Kingsley & Aaron Eckhart are really mailing it in for the paycheck on this one. Either one of them seemed to give a shit about anything happening in the film. There was no pacing, tons of over reaction to everything. Just a garbled mess of a film. Very boring & slow moving. Bleck shit film.

Budget: $27,000,000 (I'm guessing was mostly Kingsley & Eckhart's salaries)

Box Office: $11,416,075

Profit: -$15,583,925

Rotten Tomatoes: 18%

Flixster: 42%

4%

Lead Acting: 0/15

Supporting Cast: 2/15

Plot: 0/10

Compared To The Genre: 0/10

Cinematography: 2/20

Intrigue: 0/20

Extra: 0/10 

Niaraga Motel (2006):

Starring:

Craig Ferguson - Phillie

Kevin Pollak - Michael

Anna Friel - Denise

Kris Holden-Ried - R.J.

Peter Keleghan - Henry

Damir Andrei - Boris

Wendy Crewson - Lily

Caroline Dhavernas - Loretta

Director:

Gary Yates (High Life)

Synopsis:

A handful of oddballs and misfits cross paths at a motel overlooking one of Canada's more recognizable landmarks in this independent comedy. Phillie (Craig Ferguson) is the alcoholic and deeply depressed manager of the Niagara Motel, a shabby inn a stone's throw from the Canadian side of the Niagara Falls. Phillie's guests at the moment include Michael (Kevin Pollak), a sleazy director and producer of porn videos who is attempting to persuade Loretta (Caroline Dhavernas), a pretty young waitress at a nearby diner, to star in his latest series of adult movies; Denise (Anna Friel) and R.J. (Kristen Holden- Reid), a drug-addled couple struggling to regain custody of their child; Henry (Peter Keleghan) and Lily (Wendy Crewson), whose marriage is already starting to crumble before temptation presents itself to Lily; and Boris (Damir Andrei), the Niagara's short-tempered owner. Over the course of their stays, the folks staying at the Niagara will witness an unplanned kidnapping, meet the motel's in-house prostitute, encounter a down-on-his-luck staple salesman, and get uncalled-for advice from a born-again social worker.

Review:

If I've said it once, I will say it again. I need to stop watching movie based on one specific actor (this time Craig Ferguson) who is in it. Especially if I know nothing at all about the film. I will say however that without seeing this film I would have never had the oppertunity to see Anna Friel, who believe it or not is one of my biggest Hollywood crushes, yeah obscure I know right? But without this film, would have never had the chance to see her topless. Even Kevin Pollak wasn't good enough to make this entertaining. Ferguson, was fine, had a much smaller role than I thought he was going to, but was fine in what he was on screen to do.

Budget: $8,000,000

Rotten Tomatoes: 36%

Flixster: 35%

32%

Lead Acting: 6/15

Supporting Cast: 5/15

Plot: 2/10

Compared To The Genre: 0/10

Cinematography: 4/20

Intrigue: 5/20

Extra: 10/10 

The Vanishing (1993):

Starring:

Kiefer Sutherland - Jeff Harriman

Jeff Bridges - Barney Cousins

Nancy Travis - Rita Baker

Sandra Bullock - Diane Shaver

Park Overall - Lynn

Maggie Linderman - Denise Cousins

Lisa Eichhorn - Helene Cousins

George Hearn - Arthur Bernard

Lynn Hamilton - Miss Carmichael

Director:

George Sluizer (The Vanishing 1988)

Synopsis:

George Sluizer's 1992 English-language remake of his 1988 Dutch thriller The Vanishing follows the same plot-line as the original film, yet with one important difference. The film details a young man's (Kiefer Sutherland) search for his girlfriend (Sandra Bullock), who disappeared at a gas station after the couple had a fight. Where the original film didn't reveal what happened to the girlfriend until late into the movie, the 1992 version opens with her kidnapper (Jeff Bridges) plotting his abduction. Over the course of the film, Sutherland's search for Bullock is intercut with footage of Bridges that illustrates his mental illness and his repeated attempts to abduct women.

Review:

I've read quite a few reviews on this version of the film, with everyone saying to "watch the original, it's better". Well that might not be very hard considering this one wasn't very good at all. A very interesting choice of character portrayal by Bridges who plays the character very all over the place. Kiefer, pre-24, does a lot of the same things he does in a lot of his more action-ish roles. Lots of yelling, lots of sporadic movement that ultimately is over reacting & unnecessary. I feel like if they hadn't revealed so much about Bridges character throughout the film it would have been much more interesting & left me to be more invested & interested in the film. But since you already knew the end game, it took away a lot of it.

Budget: $23,000,000

Box Office: $14,543,394

Profit: -$8,456,606

Rotten Tomatoes: 47%

Flixster: 50%

20%

Lead Acting: 6/15

Supporting Cast: 2/15

Plot: 7/10

Compared To The Genre: 0/10

Cinematography: 5/20

Intrigue: 0/20

Extra: 0/10 

Mr. Baseball (1992):

Starring:

Tom Selleck - Jack "Mr. Baseball" Elliot

Ken Takakura - Uchiyama

Aya Takanashi - Hiroko Uchiyama

Dennis Haysbert - Max "Hammer" Dubois

Toshi Shioya - Yoji Nishimura

Larry Pennell - Howie Gold

Scott Plank - Ryan Ward

Director:

Fred Schepisi (Roxanne; Six Degrees Of Separation)

Synopsis:

When has-been baseball player Jack Elliot (Tom Selleck) is signed by a Japanese team, he is initially reluctant to take the game seriously. Elliot is very successful, though, as he teaches the team about American chutzpah, and they remind him of the value of respect. He must fight his way out from under a slump to show that he deserves the title of "Mr. Baseball".

Review:

Seriously LOVE this movie. Sure maybe it's a cheesy 90's baseball movie starring a whole bunch of Japanese actors that no one outside of Japan has heard of, but Tom Selleck was in his prime & whether your a fan or not, he is quite a hilarious man. Not to mention he has the best god damn mustache this side of Ron Swanson. Everything you want from a comedic white man in Japan baseball movie. Silly slap stick. Clashing cultures. Interracial love. Silly customs. Overall it's an awesome movie!!! Allan Creasy will agree with me. Absolutely love the scene where Selleck is filming a Japanese commercial. I will say that the only down fall is that, although I understand that it was important to the story & detrimental to the developing relationship between Selleck's character & his traditional Japanese manager I felt like they spent way too much time on the Hiroko/Jack storyline. Way too many conversations etc. between the two.

Budget: $25,000,000

Box Office: $20,883,046

Profit: -$4,116,954

Rotten Tomatoes: 13%

Flixster: 37% 

77%

Lead Acting: 12/15

Supporting Cast: 10/15

Plot: 10/10

Compared To The Genre: 8/10

Cinematography: 12/20

Intrigue: 15/20

Extra: 10/10

Idle Hands (1999):

Starring:

Devon Sawa - Anton Tobias

Seth Green - Mick

Elden Henson - Pnub

Jessica Alba - Molly

Vivica A. Fox - Debi LeCure

Christopher Hart - "The Hand"

Fred Willard - Dad Tobias

Connie Ray - Mom Tobias

Kelly Monaco - Tiffany

Director:

Rodman Flender (Leprechaun 2; Conan O'Brien Can't Stop)

Synopsis:

Anton Tobias wakes up Halloween morning to discover-after watching some TV and perusing the contents of the fridge, oblivious to the pool of blood on the floor-that his parents have been turned into a couple of headless Halloween decorations. After hanging out with his equally irresponsible friends, Mick and Pnub, Anton discovers that his right hand has a very bloodthirsty mind of its own, and it's hell-bent on wreaking deadly havoc with or without him. Will the gates of Hell open wide at the high school Halloween Dance and drag an innocent soul into eternal damnation? They just might in IDLE HANDS, when the forces of good and evil face off in a showdown full of diabolical comedy and bloodcurdling terror.

Review:

I remembered this movie being a lot more fun when it first came out. Now I'm just mad that I wasted part of my evening on a Devon Sawa movie... There was enough comedy to make it OK but even for a comedic horror movie it had some fucking brutal acting. I honestly can say that I hate Devon Sawa. Jessica Alba couldn't even save this stupid movie. I will say that Seth Green & Elden Henson were funny, which is hard to say because I dislike Seth Green & his stupid ginger face.

Budget: $25,000,000

Box Office: $4,152,230

Profit: -$20,847,770

Rotten Tomatoes: 15%

Flixster: 56%

26%

Lead Acting: 0/15

Supporting Cast: 5/15

Plot: 5/10

Compared To The Genre: 0/10

Cinematography: 8/20

Intrigue: 6/20

Extra: 0/10

Before The Devil Knows Your Dead (2007):

Starring:

Philip Seymour Hoffman - Andy

Ethan Hawke - Hank

Albert Finney - Charles

Marisa Tomei - Gina

Aleksa Palladino - Chris

Michael Shannon - Dex

Amy Ryan - Martha

Sarah Livingston - Danielle

Brian F. O'Byrne - Bobby

Rosemary Harris - Nanette

Director:

Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men; Dog Day Afternoon; Network)

Synopsis:

Andy, an overextended broker, lures his younger brother, Hank into a larcenous scheme: the pair will rob a suburban mom-and-pop jewelry store that appears to be the quintessential easy target. The problem is, the store owners are Andy and Hank's actual mom and pop. When the seemingly perfect crime goes awry, the damage lands right at their doorstep. In the meantime, Andy's trophy wife is having a clandestine affair with Hank, and the family patriarch, who is intent on pursuing justice at all costs, is completely unaware that the culprits he is hunting are his own sons.

Review:

I'm going to need to prepare you for something right off the bat. The film opens with the most outright, straight forward & possibly most disturbing sex scenes you will probably see in a main stream film. Not because it shows anything vulgar or obscene. But because it's ole fat Philip Seymour Hoffman doggy styling Marisa Tomei.....Now with that out of the way, this film was incredibly gripping, powerful & intense. I don't want to give away anything else about this movie than I already did in the synopsis, but it plays with so many emotions from every character throughout the films as they all individually interact with one another. PYH not necessarily at his best in this one, but Ethan Hawke picks up the slack hardcore. Then as the films progresses Albert Finney becomes the star of this film & steals it. You should probably watch this film.

Budget: $25,032,129

DVD Sales: $3,382,414

Profit: -$21,649,715

Rotten Tomatoes: 88%

Flixster: 69%

87%

Lead Acting: 12/15

Supporting Cast: 14/15

Plot: 10/10

Compared To The Genre: 10/10

Cinematography: 15/20

Intrigue: 18/20

Extra: 8/10   

The Brothers Bloom (2008):

Starring:

Rachel Weisz - Penelope

Adrien Brody - Bloom

Mark Ruffalo - Stephen

Rinko Kikuchi - Bang Bang

Robbie Coltrane - The Belgian

Maximillian Schell - Diamond Dog

Ricky Jay - Narrator

Zachary Gordon - Young Bloom

Max Records - Young Stephen

Andy Nyman - Charleston

Noah Segan - The Duke

Nora Zehetner - Rose

Director:

Rian Johnson (Looper)

Synopsis:

The Brothers Bloom are the best con men in the world, swindling millionaires with complex scenarios of lust and intrigue. Now they've decided to take on one last job - showing a beautiful and eccentric heiress the time of her life with a romantic adventure that takes them around the world.

Review:

A very weird romantic comedy which features Adrien Brody playing the same character he practically plays in every movie, Mark Ruffalo playing practically the same character he plays in most of his movies & Rachel Weisz playing the same character she plays in about half of her movies. Robbie Coltrane was great in his supporting role. The plot & story were fun, easy enough to follow. Had some good laughs, maybe tried slightly too hard to be serious when it didn't work. Rinko Kikuchi had almost zero lines yet had some of the best parts in the movie. It was an entertaining watch. Maybe a little too quirky for some people's tastes but none the less still a decent movie to watch.

Budget: $20,000,000

Box Office: $5,530,764

Profit: -$5,530,744

Rotten Tomatoes: 66%

Flixster: 61%

68%

Lead Acting: 12/15

Supporting Cast: 12/15

Plot: 8/10

Compared To The Genre: 6/10

Cinematography: 12/20

Intrigue: 12/20

Extra: 6/10

The Woodsman (2004):

Starring:

Kevin Bacon - Walter

David Alan Grier - Bob

Eve - Mary-Kay

Kyra Sedgwick - Vicki

Benjamin Bratt - Carlos

Carlos Leon - Pedro

Michael Shannon - Rosen

Kevin Rice - Candy

Mos Def - Det. Lucas

Hannah Pilkes - Robin

Director:

Nicole Kassell (First Feature Film)

Synopsis:

After twelve years in prison, Walter arrives in an unnamed city, moves into a small apartment across the street from an elementary school, gets a job at a lumberyard, and mostly keeps to himself. A quiet, guarded man, Walter finds unexpected solace from Vickie, a tough-talking woman who promises not to judge him for his history. But Walter cannot escape his past. A convicted sex offender, Walter is warily eyed by his brother-in-law, shunned by his sister, lives in fear of being discovered at work, and is hounded by a suspicious local police officer, Detective Lucas. After befriending a young girl in a neighborhood park, Walter must also grapple with the terrible prospect of his own reawakened demons.

Review:

What I would deem as a very realistic look into the world of convicted child molesters & how they are trust back into a world to which they cannot control their own inner demons & desires. At first I was thinking that this movie gives almost a positive look into the world of it because you shouldn't want to cheer for Walter yet you find yourself hoping that he will be able to control his urges & change his life. Disgusted that I was forced to see Kyra Sedgwick naked though.... Gross. Anyways Kevin Bacon is incredible in his portrayal as he struggles with what he wants even though you get the feeling that he wants to change & become accepted again into the world he once knew. His relationship with his sister's husband (played by Benjamin Bratt) adds an awkward human quality to him. Has a pretty awesome ending too which I enjoyed. And the one scene where he comes to a major realization about his past & what he is was a pretty powerful thing.

Budget: $2,500,000

Box Office: $4,500,000

Profit: $2,000,000

Rotten Tomatoes: 88%

Flixster: 73%

90%

Lead Acting: 15/15

Supporting Cast: 12/15

Plot: 10/10

Compared To The Genre: 10/10

Cinematography: 16/20

Intrigue: 20/20

Extra: 7/10