Movie Review Madness - Huntsman: Winter's War

The Huntsman: Winter’s War is entertaining, but could use editing to tighten the story.  This is a prequel to Snow White and the Huntsman and thankfully does not have Kristen Stewart in it.  Eric and Sara are raised in ice Queen Freya’s army. Eric evolves into Chris Hemsworth (oh, he is mighty and beautiful),  and Sara is played by Jessica Chastain (lovely  and fearless). Queen Freya (Emily Blunt) is heartbroken from the death of her child and is frozen in hatred for the concept of love. She rules the north. Her evil sister, Ravenna (the gorgeous Charlize Theron) is trapped in the magic mirror.

Eric and Sara try to hide their growing love, but Queen Freya, aware of their plot to flee her kingdom manages to stop them and both think each other died. They then move, unaware, in fighting circles drawing ever closer to a huge battle between Freya and Ravenna. When they do encounter each other and join forces to nab the mirror from the ogres, there is still a lot of mistrust – abandonment issues. The final epic battle between fire and ice has some excellent special effects. This movie is full of eye candy and well done scenic richness.

The cast seems like they worked well together and enjoyed their roles. I think the writers could have upped the humor quotient a tad, but the drama overflowed. The Huntsman: Winter’s War is a good Saturday rental. Order your pizza, settle into your comfy lounge chair, and place your bets on Freya or Ravenna – ice or fire, or….?

Movie Review Madness - Crimson Peak

Crimson Peak is not normally my kind of movie genre – gothic romance/horror. However, the cast list is stellar and it is directed by Guillermo del Toro, who is a genius. Indeed, the film is lush and the settings are fabulous. The creepy house is worthy of an Oscar as it looms over a sparse countryside. Inside is another story – things go bump in the night and very dark misty ghosts haunt the corridor. Let’s just say, “Don’t drink the tea that’s served in the house.”  (spoiler alert – how much poison will kill you?)

So, Mia Wasikowska (a stellar young actress) falls hard for dreamy Tom Hiddleston’s  Baron.  Her father frowns and has a private investigator check into some shady dealings. It’s the late 1800’s and basically the father calls Thomas out at a ball. Well, alas, the dad ends up dead at his private club, Mia is an heiress, and she’s able to marry and move to the estate. Hoorah for true love. Boo for Dad’s death. Hoorah for true love. Boo for the creepy sister (a very severe Jessica Chastain) who comes with the house. Oh Mia – so naïve, so young, so eager to be friends with the sister and asks for a set of keys to all rooms.  What?  You dare to think you can roam this house freely and uncover its secrets?

Where money is involved, trouble follows, and Mia slowly figures out she’s a pawn in an evil game. The creepy factor is high and Crimson Peak offers a good scary ride in time for Halloween. Is it a tad predictable? Yes. However, I knew what I was in for when I paid my cheap matinee price. I was scared just right and came home to put on all the lights in the house. Rattle a key or two and explore the basement. You never know what bones will turn up.

Boo!

Movie Review Madness - The Martian

The Martian gets a huge thumbs up from me, and Matt Damon is excellent. We first meet our NASA team on Mars as they do their research jobs and live. Concern arises when ground control announces the arrival of a wicked dust storm. The crew is told to get situated and leave the mission a tad early. Jessica Chastain is the leader and it’s her call to lift-off after seeing Matt Damon (Mark) get hit by debris and knocked out. They assume he is dead, based on the situation. She did what she could and the team agrees, saddened by his passing.

Back on Earth, Jeff Daniels is the NASA head who has to announce the death of an astronaut. Meanwhile, back on Mars, the dust storm leaves and we hear a gasp and see movement as Mark regains consciousness. He’s injured, but alive. He manages to get back to their base, sew himself up, and assess his situation. He counts food bags, works on communications, and as a botanist he proclaims he needs to “Science the crap out of everything.” He’s rather matter of fact about the chance for death, but he plans to live as best he can for as long as he can. He has rover transportation, and figures out how to plant and grow potatoes to extend his nutrition.

Will he make contact with Earth? What happens then with NASA? Can he be rescued? What about his team who are flying home from Mars? Can they turn around? What about the Jet Propulsion Lab and math geniuses? Does the math work in regards to fuel and time calculations? And really….what could go wrong? (other than the only music Mark has is disco music left from Jessica)

The Martian does a great job with depicting the astronaut challenges for living.  Matt Damon brings such a nice manner to his role – he’s smart, funny, and very believable. He’s human and gives us the full range of emotions. The movie was a tad long – they could have tightened up some of the earth segments. But when Matt Damon is on screen, he holds our attention. 

 The Red Planet never looked so good.