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American Heist (2014)

American Heist (2014)

Here's a story of two brothers. One's doing OK. The other just got out of jail after ten hard years of time. The former blames the other. The other makes some stupid decisions, like teaming up with a pair of psychos to rob a bank. The former doesn't have a choice but to go along with it. There's a girl involved. She's a cop (well, a 'glorified operator'), and before you know it the two brothers and the duo of killers are involved in one big battle against the banks. A heist. It all goes wrong, but it doesn't all go wrong... but I'd better not spoil it all!

The realism in action is great, as is the filming. The actors (somewhat unknown to me, but definitely familiar) put on a great performance, occasionally adding some interesting Selfie-angled filming for particularly personal scenes. There's a car, there's a bar, there's a story, of fall and glory. It's a good movie but... not sure what it's doing for me. It's moody, melancholy, with hiphop music all leet. And I wrote a little rhyme for it but I can't find a tall beat. Good watch.

 rated 4/5: fo shizzle

Encrypt (2003)

Encrypt (2003)

War's have ravaged the Earth's atmosphere.

Survivor camps fight each other for whatever scraps of food remain.

The fate of the Earth will soon be in the hands of one man.

That's the text with which the movie starts, accompanied by gloomy music and a panorama view of burning cityscapes. At a first glance, it might seem like just one more post-apocalyptic science-fiction B movie, but the further it progresses the deeper into it you delve, until that stereotype scenario is but a small roadblock on a highway of inventive thinking.

It starts with a little girl getting chased by bad guys over a scrap of bread, one man (Garth) appearing from the shadows to kill them, taking her home, and soon getting scouted by a rich man who supposedly wants to expand his art collection by breaching the most impenetrable security system on Earth. Or at least it was before 'the fall'.

Together with a former adversary and a team of three other stereotypical soldiers - there's the girl, the tough guy and the philosopher - they venture to a mansion in search of artwork, overcoming obstacles and foes as they go along. They also meet Alice, a security system with a mind of it's own (Resident Evil, anyone?), and it becomes clear that it's really not all about art after all.

It's a moody movie, with the occasional gunfight and action scene a la 90's science fiction fighting, but between the fights there's philosophy, talks about life and death, past and future, and it turns out a pretty immersive venture despite the occasional flaws in acting and special effects. But the gadgetry and special effects overall do look good. Good movie.

 rated 3/5: not bad

Eraser (1996)

Eraser (1996)

Arnold Schwarzenegger plays John Kruger, AKA 'The Eraser', a special person in a special government department that specializes in giving people new lives. Witness protection kind of stuff. One special lady (Vanessa Williams) uncovers a sinister plot involving government officials, weapons (railguns!!) and the huge Cyrez Corporation conglomerate. What's supposed to be a simple case of keep-her-safe-until-testimony becomes something much more, and eventually escalates into an all-out war at the docks.

I've watched this movie before, at least once, but watching it again I wonder how I really got into the Anorld Schwarzenegger type of movies, because he really isn't that great an actor. Some might even say he's... not good. In the end the action scenes do make up for it though, and the railguns in particular - great mesh of special effects and actual explosions; other carnage. Only the Crocodile pit doesn't seem entirely authentic.

All in all it's a blast of action with an intriguing enough plot to match.

Good catch.

 rated 3/5: not bad

Read on...

WarGames (1983)

WarGames (1983)

What happens when a person is faced with a simulated order to launch a nuclear strike that could wipe out millions of people, that he doesn't know is not real? What happens when a teenage kid starts plays a game of Global Thermonuclear War with a military computer that doesn't know the difference between game and reality? What happens when the military command believes the computers Thermonuclear simulation to be the real deal?

An interesting movie, that's what happens!

Computers definitely looked different back in the eighties, but despite the differences in appearance and processing power, this is one of few computer-related movies from decades past (that I've seen) that's aged with style. It doesn't feel outdated even if the machines do, and behind the thick blast doors and strategical warfare machinima - with a little comedy romance on the side featuring Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy, there's a moral: that a Thermonuclear War is a game where the only winning move is to not play the game. Great watch.

 rated 4/5: fo shizzle

Knight & Day (2010)

Knight & Day (2010)

Same year as RED, this amazing movie came out, and the latter snatched all the attention! Just like it was with White House Down and Olympus Has Fallen in 2013, or how about Armageddon and Deep Impact in 1998. I guess these things happen time and time again... which is all the more reason to leave a review and let the world know about it!

Knight & Day is classed as a romantic movie, but it has plenty of action, and plenty of comedy, and two charming main characters: Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise - as Roy Miller and June Havens. The script is superb - it's simple, yet with plenty of twists. It's captivating, it's punchline poetic and easy to follow, and it goes full circle from start to finish. Just such small little details like the final: 'Some day'. Well, you'll get it when you watch it!

Romance isn't a genre I typically get into, not even when there's action involved, but every once in a while exceptions do appear. This one works. It doesn't get too cheesy or intimate, and as the character chemistry starts to bubble and brew we're dragged along on one exciting adventure. What's not to like? I've watched this movie a night and day now, enjoying every minute of it, and when it's all over it still gets me in the same great mood! Pondering if I should give it a 4 or a 5, but if I go for the former the only thing that might be holding me back is probably the choice of genre. Fo shizzle. Great watch.

 rated 5/5: friggin awesome

Enemy Of The State (1998)

Enemy Of The State (1998)

I watched this movie way back, a year after it first came out, back when I didn't know Thomas Seth Green was Selby, or Jack Black Fielder or even that Edward Lyle was Gene Hackman. Only person I did know was WIll Smith, and to be fair he still is the one guy that packs a great performance, but Hackman's close second. I've gained much respect for that guy in later watches.

This is a movie about a guy getting framed by the state, corruption on the highest level, monitoring, wire devices, censorship of freedom in its darkest form. Still as relevant today as it was 20 years ago! And still as great a watch now as the last time I saw it. Almost twenty years later, the devices still don't all look old and inefficient (the GB is one exception), the execution still seems professional, the chase still feels desperate and the paranoia still brews. Great watch.

 rated 4/5: fo shizzle

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