Happy Thanksgiving

A big thank you to everyone, who takes the time to read my reviews, other posts, and in some cases, long rants on here, because I write to entertain and hopefully make you laugh every now and then. And thanks to everyone, who enjoyed Horror Month on here. My traffic got a big bump during October, and for those of you, who constantly follow my movie reviews, you know I'm a big fan of all things horror, and Horror Month will make a return in 2014.

Kicking off December with The Wolfman (2010), but for now, I hope everyone enjoys the holiday, and again, thanks for taking the time to follow my work on here.

MMR

Character Spotlight- Bill Robinson- Maximum Overdrive (1986)

**This post contains spoilers**

Possessed machines are taking over the world! Who's going to lead the charge to stop them? Batman? Nope. Superman? Nah. Spider-Man? Not a chance. Instead, a small band of survivors from the Dixie Boy truck stop trust Bill Robinson as the savior.

Who is Bill Robinson? Well, he didn't inherit a vast fortune, and he's not swinging around New York City. Bill is a parolee, who's forced to suffer the wrath of his tyrannical boss, Bubba Hendershot. But after a rogue comet transforms every machine on Earth into a lethal weapon, Bill has to ignore his feud with Bubba, and Bubba's scandalous policy to force all parolees to work hours off the clock, so he can save money with the payroll.

Emilio Estevez received a Razzie nomination for Worst Actor as Bill Robinson, but I still get a kick out of watching his performance in Maximum Overdrive. Estevez is a cocky Average Joe with a thick southern accent, who refuses to back down from a fight. Of course, every hero needs a partner or a sidekick, and Laura Harrington's Brett was the ideal female counterpart for Bill. Brett is a feisty and bold fighter, who won't hesitate to use her switchblade on any sleazeballs, who step out of line.

After Hendershot's death, Bill officially takes command, leading Brett and the others to the local marina to find a boat for safety. At the marina, Bill uses Hendershot's rocket launcher to destroy the menacing Green Goblin truck. Need a visual?


                           



Bill Robinson is a rootin'-tootin' live-wire, and he's an unlikely hero, who leads the fight in a bizarre and hostile takeover. Plus, Bill has a few moments as a smooth Casanova during his scenes with Brett. Seriously, it's hard to hate a guy, who fights evil trucks and bulldozers to save the world. And he's able to snag the most beautiful woman at the Dixie Boy? Yep. Bill Robinson is one cool dude.

Follow this link to read a spoiler review for Maximum Overdrive (1986)- http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2013/05/maximum-overdrive-1986.html

The Mist (2007)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no major twists, big reveals, or character deaths**

After the Drayton family survives a fierce and devastating thunderstorm, David (Thomas Jane) takes his young son, Billy (Nathan Gamble) to the local supermarket to buy supplies and food. David leaves his wife, Steff (Kelly Collins Lintz) at the house to sort through the mess, and David prepares himself for a tense confrontation with his rival next neighbor, Brent Norton (Andre Braugher), a pompous New York lawyer, who continues to hold a grudge against David for property damages. But David is willing to ignore any bitter feelings, and he allows Norton to tag along for the ride to the supermarket.

At the supermarket, a harmless day of shopping turns into a chaotic fight for survival, when a bloodied Dan Miller (Jeffery DeMunn) runs through the front doors. Dan warns everyone about a malicious threat within the oncoming thick cloud of mist. In the receiving area of the supermarket, David, Myron (David Jensen), Jim (William Sadler), and a bag boy named Norm (Chris Owen), investigate a problem with the supermarket’s generator. Here, the group discovers a deadly monster.

David urges everyone to remain calm with some support from local residents. Amanda (Laurie Holden), Dan, Irene (Frances Sternhagen), and the supermarket’s assistant manager, Ollie (Toby Jones) join David in his fight to maintain civility and peace, but panic complicates the situation, when different species of monsters from the mist threaten the survivors. As the self-proclaimed prophet,  Mrs. Carmody (Marcia Gay Harden)  uses her influence over those, who choose to follow her as a deadly weapon, so David and the others are forced to work on an exit strategy before it’s too late.

After a close call from an attacking group of monsters, David pushes Private Wayne Jessup (Samuel Witwer) to reveal the hidden details behind the mist and the monsters. David believes Private Jessup is apart of a botched military experiment, and the failed experiment unleashed the monsters. But Private Jessup is more concerned with fixing a failed relationship with Sally (Alexa Davalos), Billy‘s babysitter, and Sally works as a cashier at the supermarket, and a barrage of problems complicate the life-or-death dilemma. Ollie doesn’t receive the necessary support from Bud (Robert Treveiler), the store manager, David’s rivalry with Norton resurfaces, and a woman (Melissa McBride) with two children at home begs for an escort through the mist.

With their backs against the wall, David and his group are restricted to two unsavory choices. For the first choice, David and his group can stay inside the supermarket, with the hopes of outlasting the disaster, while taking some very slim chances on evading Mrs. Carmody’s wrath. The second choice? David can take a deadly chance to save Billy and reunite with his wife, but he needs his car in the parking lot. Will David risk everything to save Billy?

Thomas Jane is a competent leading man, and The Mist features an overall solid cast, but Marcia Gay Harden delivers the best performance here. Mrs. Carmody is a self-righteous and delusional nutcase. Harden pulls everything together with an eccentric and kooky performance, and Harden brings a believable nasty side to Mrs. Carmody. There’s a scene where Amanda catches Mrs. Carmody in the bathroom, and she’s praying for help, so Amanda reaches out to her as a friend. Mrs. Carmody’s cold response? “When I need friend like you, I’ll be sure to s*** one out.”


The Mist tugs on the viewer's “What would you do?” thought process. At first, you get the impression the survivors will constantly dismiss Mrs. Carmody as an annoying loon, but things change as the story progresses. After a series of attacks from the monsters, certain survivors are noticeably petrified. They fear for their lives, so they need someone to believe in. Enter Mrs. Carmody. Mrs. Carmody slowly convinces her followers to believe in divine intervention, because they’re looking for answers. They’re looking for anything to ease the pain, or calm their fears.

There’s a scene, where Ollie goes into an explanation about Carmody’s followers. Ollie says if you can scare people enough, they’ll believe in anything to make the boogeyman go away. The “Do you believe?” arguments provide some good food for thought. Considering the bizarre and deadly situation, you can understand the perspectives from different characters. When it comes to Carmody’s supporters, you can understand the need for them to trust and follow every word from their protector. On the flip side, you can understand the motivations for David’s constant pleas for peace. He’s just a father, who wants to protect his son, and ensure the safety of EVERYONE in the supermarket, because Mrs. Carmody handpicks the condemned and those worthy of survival.

The Mist is an eerie and frightening sci-fi/horror film, with a malevolent sense of wonder. There’s enough bloody gore, and disgusting gruesomeness to pull a reaction out of you, and The Mist delivers a hard gut punch with one of the most shocking and devastating finales you’ll ever see. Strap yourselves in for a mysterious, haunting, and bloody ride, because The Mist is an engrossing film, and it‘s one of the rare Stephen King adaptations that’s worthy of remembrance.

Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

The Mist (2007)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

After the Drayton family survives a fierce and devastating thunderstorm, David (Thomas Jane) takes his young son, Billy (Nathan Gamble) to the local supermarket to buy supplies and food. David leaves his wife, Steff (Kelly Collins Lintz) at the house to sort through the mess, and David prepares himself for a tense confrontation with his rival next neighbor, Brent Norton (Andre Braugher), a pompous New York lawyer, who continues to hold a grudge against David for property damages. But David is willing to ignore any bitter feelings, and he allows Norton to tag along for the ride to the supermarket.

At the supermarket, a harmless day of shopping turns into a chaotic fight for survival, when a bloodied Dan Miller (Jeffery DeMunn) runs through the front doors. Dan warns everyone about a malicious threat within the oncoming thick cloud of mist. In the receiving area of the supermarket, David, Myron (David Jensen), Jim (William Sadler), and a bag boy named Norm (Chris Owen), investigate a problem with the supermarket’s generator. Here, the group discovers a deadly monster.

David urges everyone to remain calm with some support from local residents. Amanda (Laurie Holden), Dan, Irene (Frances Sternhagen), and the supermarket’s assistant manager, Ollie (Toby Jones) join David in his fight to maintain civility and peace, but panic complicates the situation, when different species of monsters from the mist threaten the survivors. As the self-proclaimed prophet,  Mrs. Carmody (Marcia Gay Harden)  uses her influence over those, who choose to follow her as a deadly weapon, so David and the others are forced to work on an exit strategy before it’s too late.

After a close call from an attacking group of monsters, David pushes Private Wayne Jessup (Samuel Witwer) to reveal the hidden details behind the mist and the monsters. David believes Private Jessup is apart of a botched military experiment, and the failed experiment unleashed the monsters. But Private Jessup is more concerned with fixing a failed relationship with Sally (Alexa Davalos), Billy‘s babysitter, and Sally works as a cashier at the supermarket, and a barrage of problems complicate the life-or-death dilemma. Ollie doesn’t receive the necessary support from Bud (Robert Treveiler), the store manager, David’s rivalry with Norton resurfaces, and a woman (Melissa McBride) with two children at home begs for an escort through the mist.

With their backs against the wall, David and his group are restricted to two unsavory choices. For the first choice, David and his group can stay inside the supermarket, with the hopes of outlasting the disaster, while taking some very slim chances on evading Mrs. Carmody’s wrath. The second choice? David can take a deadly chance to save Billy and reunite with his wife, but he needs his car in the parking lot. Will David risk everything to save Billy?

Thomas Jane is a competent leading man, and The Mist features an overall solid cast, but Marcia Gay Harden delivers the best performance here. Mrs. Carmody is a self-righteous and delusional nutcase. Harden pulls everything together with an eccentric and kooky performance, and Harden brings a believable nasty side to Mrs. Carmody. There’s a scene where Amanda catches Mrs. Carmody in the bathroom, and she’s praying for help, so Amanda reaches out to her as a friend. Mrs. Carmody’s cold response? “When I need friend like you, I’ll be sure to s*** one out.”

 After a while, David realizes escape is the only viable option for survival. Using his car, David plans to burn every drop of gas in his tank for a long drive. Clinging to a fool’s hope, David plans to drive until the group is clear of the mist. Mrs. Carmody convinced her followers to sacrifice Private Jessup to the monsters after a savage attack. Mrs. Carmody is holding a grudge against Amanda for a slap across the face, and Mrs. Carmody knows David is forming a group against her, so Mrs. Carmody plans to eliminate the opposition with more sacrifices to the monsters. During a frantic struggle, Ollie shoots and kills Mrs. Carmody with Amanda‘s gun. Mrs. Carmody’s death (and the gun) give David and his group a clear path to exit the store.

David eventually discovers Steff’s corpse entangled in the monster’s web at the house. David is distraught, but he can’t afford to waste any gas, so he continues the search for a safe haven. But David’s car runs out of gas, and the group is stuck in the mist. Inside the car, Billy is sleeping in Amanda’s arms, and the group can hear loud rumblings outside. Mind you, all of this is happening after the group spotted a gigantic monster with tentacles. Collectively, the group agrees on a mercy killing, because they can’t handle the thought of a torturous death……but there’s a big problem: The gun doesn’t have enough bullets to finish off everyone. The gun is one bullet short, so David agrees to be the trigger man. David fires three shots, and as Billy opens his eyes, David shoots and kills Billy.

Devastated and distraught, David leaves the car, screaming. He doesn’t care anymore. David is tired of running, and he’s ready to die. David is waiting for the next monster to finish him off, but instead of a monster, David spots a passing military convoy. That’s right. The rumblings came from an army of approaching soldiers, not a monster. A vast army of soldiers accompany the convoy, and the woman from the supermarket, who went into the mist alone to save her children is safe and sound with her children, as a passenger on one of the convoys. The soldiers use their flamethrowers to kill the creatures and clear the mist, and a broken David drops to his knees in agony.

Thomas Jane did a good job of selling David’s heartbreak in this scene. It’s an earth-shattering shocker, because everyone had a chance to live, if David waited a few more minutes. David murdered his own son and three other people, because he believed he was doing the right thing, but he needlessly killed everyone before the long awaited rescue. It’s a gutwrenching and stunning finale, and I can honestly say The Mist features one of the best shockers I’ve ever seen.

The Mist tugs on the viewer's “What would you do?” thought process. At first, you get the impression the survivors will constantly dismiss Mrs. Carmody as an annoying loon, but things change as the story progresses. After a series of attacks from the monsters, certain survivors are noticeably petrified. They fear for their lives, so they need someone to believe in. Enter Mrs. Carmody. Mrs. Carmody slowly convinces her followers to believe in divine intervention, because they’re looking for answers. They’re looking for anything to ease the pain, or calm their fears.

There’s a scene, where Ollie goes into an explanation about Carmody’s followers. Ollie says if you can scare people enough, they’ll believe in anything to make the boogeyman go away. The “Do you believe?” arguments provide some good food for thought. Considering the bizarre and deadly situation, you can understand the perspectives from different characters. When it comes to Carmody’s supporters, you can understand the need for them to trust and follow every word from their protector. On the flip side, you can understand the motivations for David’s constant pleas for peace. He’s just a father, who wants to protect his son, and ensure the safety of EVERYONE in the supermarket, because Mrs. Carmody handpicks the condemned and those worthy of survival.

The Mist is an eerie and frightening sci-fi/horror film, with a malevolent sense of wonder. There’s enough bloody gore, and disgusting gruesomeness to pull a reaction out of you, and The Mist delivers a hard gut punch with one of the most shocking and devastating finales you’ll ever see. Strap yourselves in for a mysterious, haunting, and bloody ride, because The Mist is an engrossing film, and it‘s one of the rare Stephen King adaptations that’s worthy of remembrance.

Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

About The Most Recent Episode Of Family Guy.......

**Warning! This post contains a MAJOR spoiler for the most recent episode of Family Guy** 

So last night on Family Guy, we all saw the end of Brian Griffin. After another close call with Stewie's time machine, Stewie made the tough decision to destroy it once and for all. After crushing the time machine in a trash compactor, a hockey net at the dump is used as a take-home present. Sounds like a harmless decision, right? Well, Brian was the victim of bad timing. In the blink of an eye, Brian was struck by a speeding car.

At this point in the show, I was expecting Brian to comeback somehow. Remember that episode, where Meg and Chris injured Stewie during Stewie's trip to the imaginary grocery store? Stewie had a NASTY head wound. The entire storyline revolving around Meg and Chris focused on both of them trying to cover up an unconscious Stewie's injuries, until Peter found a way to pin Stewie's injuries on Lois (i.e. throwing a lifeless Stewie underneath the car, so Lois could take the blame for injuring Stewie).

I was waiting for a similar scenario last night. Brian has to come back. Stewie will find a way to fix the time machine, or he'll build another one. There's no way they could kill him off. But the veterinarian made the grave announcement, Brian said his final good-bye to the entire family, and Brian's life came to an end on the operating table. 

Family Guy pulled off a LEGIT shocker last night. Brian isn't Greased Up Deaf Guy or the Kool-Aid Man. We're talking about a member of The Griffin Family, who's been there since day one. For me, it's a bigger surprise than Maude Flanders unexpected (and bizarre) demise. I haven't  been a die hard Family Guy fan recently, because my interest in the show fades every now and then, and I've missed a few episodes (although, I caught up eventually) over the years. But Brian's death pulled me in again. Why? Because I have to see how things will unfold in the future.

Of course, Brian (with some help from his arch nemesis, Quagmire, and kudos to Family Guy for honoring the rivalry, with Quagmire watching a Red Sox game during Brian's funeral) was exposed as a pretentious phony over the years, and well, he was kind of jerk sometimes. Remember Brian using Cheryl Tiegs to stick it to Quagmire during his "Learn How To Pick Up Women" class?

Still, Brian Griffin delivered plenty of great moments. Who could forget all the memories from the Road To (**insert destination here**) episodes with Stewie? On top of that, Brian and Stewie provided a ton fun and laughs during their hilarious adventures together. Yeah, things with Jillian didn't work out, but Brian can still brag about "Wish It. Want It. Do It."

As for Vinny as a replacement, I'll reserve judgement for now, because it's hard to make a fair assessment after one episode. Hopefully, we'll all have a chance to pick up a copy of "Faster Than Speed Of Love" to honor Brian's memory. 

Only God Forgives (2013)(Minor Spoilers)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no big twists or reveals**

With some help from his brother, Billy (Tom Burke), Julian (Ryan Gosling) owns and operates a Muay Thai fighting gym in Bangkok. Together, the brothers use the gym as a front for their true source of income: Julian and Billy smuggle and sell heroin and cocaine, and Julian receives the utmost respect as a powerful force in Bangkok’s criminal underworld.

One night, Billy is murdered after raping and beating a sixteen year old prostitute to death. Lt. Chang (Vithaya Pansringarm) allows the father of the young girl to dismember and savagely beat Billy to death, and the situation becomes more complex, when Julian’s mother arrives in Bangkok to identify Billy’s corpse. Crystal (Kristin Scott Thomas) wants blood for her son’s death, but Julian refuses to kill the father of the prostitute after learning the truth about Billy’s despicable crimes.

Crystal is disgusted by Julian’s lack of loyalty, so Crystal instructs Gordon (Gordon Brown), Julian’s Lieutenant, to order a hit on the man, who killed Billy. But the father’s death isn’t enough for Crystal. Crystal pushes Gordon to order a hit on Lt. Chang, because he’s the man, who allowed Billy’s execution. Gordon warns Crystal about the dangers of targeting a high ranking official in Bangkok’s police department, but an obsession for vengeance clouds Crystal’s judgment.

Julian is torn between morality and the need to satisfy his overbearing mother, as he struggles with the decision to confront Lt. Chang for a one on one fight. Will Julian do the right thing, and look the other way? Or will Julian succumb to Crystal’s never ending requests for vengeance?

Kristin Scott Thomas is amazing as Crystal. Crystal is a nasty, cruel, and merciless tyrant, who constantly berates Julian with no sympathy whatsoever. The dinner scene with Crystal, Julian, and Mai (a prostitute, who shares a close and trusted relationship with Julian) is a good example. Crystal is beyond furious at Julian’s moral stance and unwillingness to extract revenge for Billy’s death, so she trashes and insults Julian in front of Mai. And Crystal doesn’t hesitate, when it comes to pulling any punches. Nothing is off limits for Crystal’s wrath, including comparisons between Julian’s penis size and Billy’s penis size. Thomas has the perfect cold demeanor for Crystal, and her unapologetic and fierce performance is something to admire here.

Julian is a conflicted character, who’s torn between doing the right thing, and honoring his mother’s wishes, as a submissive and loyal son. Gosling’s performance isn’t bad at all, and Gosling’s strong effort is admirable, but Julian is a dazed drone most of the time, who loses control with brief bursts of rage every now and then (i.e. choking Mai after the dinner), so it’s kind of hard to form an emotional connection with this character. Billy doesn't last long here, but Tom Burke is genuinely scummy and repulsive in his short screen time as Billy.

Pansringarm is a menacing  antagonist. There’s an unsettling sense of panic and dread, when Lt. Chang, flanked by his loyal men, steps into the picture with the worst intentions. Using his trusty sword to deliver punishment, Lt. Chang hacks and chops through the opposition with no remorse, and you get a chance to see Chang’s brutal hand to hand combat skills during the fight with Gosling.

Only God Forgives works as a violent and fierce crime thriller. Yeah, the unwavering and brooding tone might annoy or bore some people, but I‘m not in that crowd. Only God Forgives is an eccentric and bloody tale of revenge, trust, and family, featuring brutal violence and a series of nasty death scenes. Nicolas Winding Refn’s precise work behind the camera is superb, and Refn creates the perfect gloomy atmosphere for Only God Forgives. Gosling deserves credit for a strong effort in the leading role, but he’s upstaged by Kristin Scott Thomas. It’s not as good as Drive, but Only God Forgives is another successful and enjoyable collaboration between Ryan Gosling and Nicolas Winding Refn.

Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

Only God Forgives (2013)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

With some help from his brother, Billy (Tom Burke), Julian (Ryan Gosling) owns and operates a Muay Thai fighting gym in Bangkok. Together, the brothers use the gym as a front for their true source of income: Julian and Billy smuggle and sell heroin and cocaine, and Julian receives the utmost respect as a powerful force in Bangkok’s criminal underworld.

One night, Billy is murdered after raping and beating a sixteen year old prostitute to death. Lt. Chang (Vithaya Pansringarm) allows the father of the young girl to dismember and savagely beat Billy to death, and the situation becomes more complex, when Julian’s mother arrives in Bangkok to identify Billy’s corpse. Crystal (Kristin Scott Thomas) wants blood for her son’s death, but Julian refuses to kill the father of the prostitute after learning the truth about Billy’s despicable crimes.

Crystal is disgusted by Julian’s lack of loyalty, so Crystal instructs Gordon (Gordon Brown), Julian’s Lieutenant, to order a hit on the man, who killed Billy. But the father’s death isn’t enough for Crystal. Crystal pushes Gordon to order a hit on Lt. Chang, because he’s the man, who allowed Billy’s execution. Gordon warns Crystal about the dangers of targeting a high ranking official in Bangkok’s police department, but an obsession for vengeance clouds Crystal’s judgment.

Julian is torn between morality and the need to satisfy his overbearing mother, as he struggles with the decision to confront Lt. Chang for a one on one fight. Will Julian do the right thing, and look the other way? Or will Julian succumb to Crystal’s never ending requests for vengeance?

Kristin Scott Thomas is amazing as Crystal. Crystal is a nasty, cruel, and merciless tyrant, who constantly berates Julian with no sympathy whatsoever. The dinner scene with Crystal, Julian, and Mai (a prostitute, who shares a close and trusted relationship with Julian) is a good example. Crystal is beyond furious at Julian’s moral stance and unwillingness to extract revenge for Billy’s death, so she trashes and insults Julian in front of Mai. And Crystal doesn’t hesitate, when it comes to pulling any punches. Nothing is off limits for Crystal’s wrath, including comparisons between Julian’s penis size and Billy’s penis size. Thomas has the perfect cold demeanor for Crystal, and her unapologetic and fierce performance is something to admire here.

Julian is a conflicted character, who’s torn between doing the right thing, and honoring his mother’s wishes, as a submissive and loyal son. Gosling’s performance isn’t bad at all, and Gosling’s strong effort is admirable, but Julian is a dazed drone most of the time, who loses control with brief bursts of rage every now and then (i.e. choking Mai after the dinner), so it’s kind of hard to form an emotional connection with this character. Billy doesn't last long here, but Tom Burke is genuinely scummy and repulsive in his short screen time as Billy.

Pansringarm is a menacing  antagonist. There’s an unsettling sense of panic and dread, when Lt. Chang, flanked by his loyal men, steps into the picture with the worst intentions. Using his trusty sword to deliver punishment, Lt. Chang hacks and chops through the opposition with no remorse, and you get a chance to see Chang’s brutal hand to hand combat skills during the fight with Gosling (more on that later).

So Gordon’s hit on the father, who killed Billy is a success. The assassin opens the father’s throat with a knife, but Lt. Chang? That’s another problem. Gordon orders a small group of hitmen to assassinate Chang with machine guns, but Chang escapes the attack. Afterwards, Chang and his men interrogate one of the hitman for answers, and the confession leads Chang to Gordon. After murdering the hitman with his sword, Chang tortures Gordon by driving a bunch of needles into his legs and hands, and of course, Chang eventually kills Gordon.

Now, we’re waiting for Julian’s next move. Julian decides to challenge Chang to a fight inside the Muay Thai gym. His motivations for challenging Chang to a fight aren’t 100% clear. Maybe Julian had a change of heart about defending Billy’s death? Maybe he’s trying to please his mother? After all, Crystal is heartbroken over losing her favorite son, so there’s a chance Julian sees an open opportunity to be number one in Crystal’s heart? Or is Julian trying to test his skills against Chang? Because Julian is a loose cannon with a bad temper. His motivations are unclear, but I appreciated the blunt approach to Julian’s challenge. He simply walks up to Chang, and says “Wanna fight?” and Chang accepts. No over the top drama or any wild shenanigans at all. Julian issued the challenge, and Chang accepted.

But Chang dominates Julian during the fight. Chang was the superior fighter by a long shot, and he defeated Julian with ease. When it’s all said and done, Julian walks away with a swollen, bruised, and bloody face. Julian VS Chang caught me off guard for a number of reasons. First, I expected a more competitive contest between the two. Throughout the movie, Julian has visions of Chang during his daily activities, and for obvious reasons, Julian has more than enough motivation to fight Chang. But Julian’s best wasn’t enough to defeat (or challenge) the master.

Second, I was expecting Chang to kill Julian after the fight was over, but he didn’t. Instead, Chang walked away. I have to believe Chang spared Julian’s life out of respect. Julian didn’t try a cowardly sneak attack on Chang. No, Julian approached Chang like a man to issue his challenge. Only God Forgives threw a pleasant and genuinely surprising curveball at me here, because I expected a dismembered Julian to leave the gym in pieces. 

With her back against the wall, Crystal persuades Julian to ambush Chang at his home with some help from another hitman. Unbeknownst to Julian, Crystal ordered the hitman to kill Chang, the nanny, and Chang’s young daughter. The htiman murders the nanny, but as the hitman prepares to murder Chang’s daughter, Julian shoots the hitman to death at the last second, and Julian quietly walks away from the messy scene. The final moments of the movie show Julian and Chang standing together outside. Julian willingly offers his hands to Chang, and as Chang prepares to cut off Julian’s hands, the movie cuts to Chang singing for his troops at a local bar (oddly enough, Chang singing for his troops is a reoccurring scene throughout the movie).

Crystal? Yeah, Chang eventually cornered Crystal in her hotel room. After a brief chat, Chang murders Crystal by driving his sword into her throat. In the end, Crystal’s greedy blood lust was her downfall. Think about it like this, you already got the man, who killed your son. He’s dead. Just let it go. But no, Crystal HAD to go after Chang. Keep in mind, this is after Gordon gave Crystal a serious warning about killing cops in Bangkok. Crystal had the chance to escape with her life, but she’s full of foolish arrogance, because you know, she has to make a statement. And it’s kind of hard to feel sympathy for Crystal’s death, because she was a cold-hearted and vicious human being.

Only God Forgives works as a violent and fierce crime thriller. Yeah, the unwavering and brooding tone might annoy or bore some people, but I‘m not in that crowd. Only God Forgives is an eccentric and bloody tale of revenge, trust, and family, featuring brutal violence and a series of nasty death scenes. Nicolas Winding Refn’s precise work behind the camera is superb, and Refn creates the perfect gloomy atmosphere for Only God Forgives. Gosling deserves credit for a strong effort in the leading role, but he’s upstaged by Kristin Scott Thomas. It’s not as good as Drive, but Only God Forgives is another successful and enjoyable collaboration between Ryan Gosling and Nicolas Winding Refn.

Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

Escape Plan (2013)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no character deaths, big twists, or major reveals**

As a modern day Houdini, Ray Breslin (Sylvester Stallone) is a former prosecutor, who studies and escapes from maximum security prisons to exploit any weaknesses in the system (the guard’s routine, security cameras, keypad locks, etc.). Abigail (Amy Ryan) and Hush (Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson) work together as Ray’s support team, and Lester Clark (Vincent D’Onofrio) is Ray’s manager.

Ray is widely regarded as a precise expert with a flawless track record, but things change, when Ray ponders a lucrative proposal for a new mission. CIA agent Jessica Miller (Caitriona Balfe) promises Ray and his team a five million dollar pay day, if Ray agrees to infiltrate The Tomb, an impenetrable and hi-tech top secret prison used to contain the most vile criminals on Earth. Abigail and Hush are uneasy about the sketchy and vague details, but Clark is more concerned about missing the once in a lifetime opportunity to collect a five million dollar paycheck, so after some prodding from Clark, Ray accepts the mission.

At The Tomb, Ray is confused, when he meets Warden Willard Hobbes (Jim Caviezel), because Ray was expecting Warden Roger Marsh, but Warden Hobbes reassures Ray Warden Marsh doesn’t exist. And the situation becomes more complex, when Hobbes dismisses Ray’s fake evacuation code.

With no one else to turn to, Ray teams up with Emil Rottmayer (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a fellow inmate, who promises to help Ray escape The Tomb. Emil uses his influence as the head honcho within the prison to provide Ray with the necessary resources, and using morality as the basis for his arguments, Ray reaches out to a reluctant and fearful Dr. Kyrie (Sam Neill) for help.

Ray must endure taunting and savage beatings from Drake (Vinnie Jones), Hobbes’ Chief Of Security, and time is running out, as a suspicious Hobbes vows to derail Breslin’s plans for an escape, with the promise of imprisoning Breslin in The Tomb until his final breath.

Schwarzenegger and Stallone share easy chemistry, as a duo of grizzled tough guys, who are looking for a good fight. The approach of using Schwarzenegger as the muscle and Stallone as the brains of the operation really works, because having both men portray lethal ass-kicking machines would’ve been a counterproductive move. Constantly watching a barrage of scenes featuring Arine and Sly breaking necks and firing large guns every five minutes? Yeah, the onslaught of thuggery would reach a “too tiresome” point after a while, but with Arnie doing most of the dirty work (Sly isn’t afraid to roll up his sleeves and fight every now and then), and Stallone pulling the strings, you get a chance to see more variety, when comparing and contrast the personalities between Breslin and Rottmayer. Plus, Arnie and Sly provide some good laughs during their sporadic back and forth arguments, and Arnie is hilarious in a handful of scenes without Sly (i.e. the waterboarding scene, and the scene in the box with Hobbes, where Rottmayer spouts random nonsense to give Ray more time with his plan).

Jim Caviezel is a nice fit for the primary antagonist. Warden Hobbes is a cocky and ruthless dictator with no mercy, and Caviezel brings the essential commanding presence to this character. Vinnie Jones is solid, as the grimacing hard-ass, Amy Ryan isn’t bad as Abigail, but her screen time is limited to sporadic appearances, and 50 Cent is harmless as Hush. And Vincent D’Onofrio is believably pompous as Clark.


In a lot of ways, Escape Plan caught me off guard. I was expecting a loud and over the top action flick with a bunch of explosions and cheesy one-liners from Arnie and Sly (well, you’ll hear some one-liners, but they never reach the point of overkill). Instead, Escape Plan is a crafty prison-break thriller with a few satisfying twists, and the action sequences are enjoyable. The duo of Stallone and Schwarzenegger should provide the necessary nostalgia kick for action fans, because I had a good time watching the old warhorses team up for a risky fight. It’s hard to ignore the eye rolling preposterous moments here, but if you’re looking for some good fun with two action legends, Escape Plan won‘t disappoint you.

Rating: 7/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

Escape Plan (2013)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

As a modern day Houdini, Ray Breslin (Sylvester Stallone) is a former prosecutor, who studies and escapes from maximum security prisons to exploit any weaknesses in the system (the guard’s routine, security cameras, keypad locks, etc.). Abigail (Amy Ryan) and Hush (Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson) work together as Ray’s support team, and Lester Clark (Vincent D’Onofrio) is Ray’s manager.

Ray is widely regarded as a precise expert with a flawless track record, but things change, when Ray ponders a lucrative proposal for a new mission. CIA agent Jessica Miller (Caitriona Balfe) promises Ray and his team a five million dollar pay day, if Ray agrees to infiltrate The Tomb, an impenetrable and hi-tech top secret prison used to contain the most vile criminals on Earth. Abigail and Hush are uneasy about the sketchy and vague details, but Clark is more concerned about missing the once in a lifetime opportunity to collect a five million dollar paycheck, so after some prodding from Clark, Ray accepts the mission.

At The Tomb, Ray is confused, when he meets Warden Willard Hobbes (Jim Caviezel), because Ray was expecting Warden Roger Marsh, but Warden Hobbes reassures Ray Warden Marsh doesn’t exist. And the situation becomes more complex, when Hobbes dismisses Ray’s fake evacuation code.

With no one else to turn to, Ray teams up with Emil Rottmayer (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a fellow inmate, who promises to help Ray escape The Tomb. Emil uses his influence as the head honcho within the prison to provide Ray with the necessary resources, and using morality as the basis for his arguments, Ray reaches out to a reluctant and fearful Dr. Kyrie (Sam Neill) for help.

Ray must endure taunting and savage beatings from Drake (Vinnie Jones), Hobbes’ Chief Of Security, and time is running out, as a suspicious Hobbes vows to derail Breslin’s plans for an escape, with the promise of imprisoning Breslin in The Tomb until his final breath.

Schwarzenegger and Stallone share easy chemistry, as a duo of grizzled tough guys, who are looking for a good fight. The approach of using Schwarzenegger as the muscle and Stallone as the brains of the operation really works, because having both men portray lethal ass-kicking machines would’ve been a counterproductive move. Constantly watching a barrage of scenes featuring Arine and Sly breaking necks and firing large guns every five minutes? Yeah, the onslaught of thuggery would reach a “too tiresome” point after a while, but with Arnie doing most of the dirty work (Sly isn’t afraid to roll up his sleeves and fight every now and then), and Stallone pulling the strings, you get a chance to see more variety, when comparing and contrast the personalities between Breslin and Rottmayer. Plus, Arnie and Sly provide some good laughs during their sporadic back and forth arguments, and Arnie is hilarious in a handful of scenes without Sly (i.e. the waterboarding scene, and the scene in the box with Hobbes, where Rottmayer spouts random nonsense to give Ray more time with his plan).

Jim Caviezel is a nice fit for the primary antagonist. Warden Hobbes is a cocky and ruthless dictator with no mercy, and Caviezel brings the essential commanding presence to this character. Vinnie Jones is solid, as the grimacing hard-ass, Amy Ryan isn’t bad as Abigail, but her screen time is limited to sporadic appearances, and 50 Cent is harmless as Hush. Vincent D’Onofrio is believably pompous as Clark, and D'Onofrio's character takes a slimy turn (more on that later) as the story progresses.

Where is The Tomb? Ray’s an expert and Rottmayer has connections, but if they’re going to plan an escape, they NEED to know where they are. Rottmayer is able to cause a distraction after a calamity in the solitary confinement cells. Meanwhile, Ray is able to climb a ladder that leads to the outside. And what does Ray see outside? Water. Lots of water. Why? Well, The Tomb is a prison on a freighter ship, and the freighter ship is currently located in the Atlantic Ocean.

A nice shock. It’s almost impossible to pinpoint the location of The Tomb. A few times, I thought I was near “Getting warmer” territory, but The Tomb being on ship? Yeah, I didn’t see that one coming. And to add the icing on the cake, there’s a zooming out shot of Stallone standing on the deck by himself with this hopeless and devastated look on his face. Good stuff.

With some help from Rottmayer’s connections, a volunteering inmate (Javed, portrayed by Faran Tahir), and Dr. Kyrie, Ray and Emil finally escape The Tomb in a helicopter. Ray manages to fire series of shots into a group of oil barrels to kill Hobbes, while clinging to the broken ladder on the helicopter. Hobbes burns to death in the oil fire, and together, Ray and Emil safely land on a beach in Morocco. Here, Ray learns the truth about Emil: Agent Miller is Emil’s daughter, and she used the cover of a CIA agent to fool Ray and his team. Emil’s real name is Victor Mannheim. Long story short, Mannheim was supposed to be Emil’s boss/primary connection for help on the outside, so Emil as Rottmayer was just a cover. And Miller gave Ray the codename “Portos” to alert Mannheim of Ray’s presence as an ally.

Rottamyer as Mannheim is a surprising twist, but I wouldn’t call it shocking. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not going to sit here and pretend I saw this coming, because I didn’t. BUT after all the trickery and clever deception, I was expecting a bigger bang for Escape Plan’s final set of twists. I was hoping for a lobster dinner with steak on the side, but instead, I got fresh pepperoni pizza.

Remember Clark? Clark was offered an annual five million dollar salary to keep Ray stuck in The Tomb for the rest of his life. Of course, Clark hid this information from everyone else. Towards the end, Clark tries to escape with all the money, but Hush catches him in a parking garage. Hush is able to capture Clark, and he locks Clark in his car………and the car is stuck in a container on a departing cargo ship. The last moments of the movie feature a desperate and frantic attempt at an escape from Clark, while Clark is cursing Ray’s name. This scene put a smile on my face. Why? Because Clark was a snaky, backstabbing little weasel, and he finally got what he deserved in the end.

In a lot of ways, Escape Plan caught me off guard. I was expecting a loud and over the top action flick with a bunch of explosions and cheesy one-liners from Arnie and Sly (well, you’ll hear some one-liners, but they never reach the point of overkill). Instead, Escape Plan is a crafty prison-break thriller with a few satisfying twists, and the action sequences are enjoyable. The duo of Stallone and Schwarzenegger should provide the necessary nostalgia kick for action fans, because I had a good time watching the old warhorses team up for a risky fight. It’s hard to ignore the eye rolling preposterous moments here, but if you’re looking for some good fun with two action legends, Escape Plan won‘t disappoint you.

Rating: 7/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

The Night Flier (1997)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no major reveals, plot twists, or character deaths**

Richard Dees (Miguel Ferrer) is a veteran reporter, who works for Inside View, a paranormal and exploitative tabloid. Merton Morrison (Dan Monahan), Richard’s editor-in-chief, pushes Richard to accept a story about a murderer, who uses a private plane to kill helpless victims in small towns. Using a black Skymaster draped in thick curtains, Dwight Renfield (Michael H. Moss) quietly swoops into select communities at night to massacre everything in his path. The body count rises with each passing night, and gruesome evidence suggests Dwight could be a vampire.

Richard has to deal with some tough competition from Katherine Blair (Julie Entwisle), an ambitious and energetic newcomer, but Katherine can’t compete with Richard’s personal airplane and pilot’s license. Richard nicknames Dwight “The Night Flier,” but the investigation takes a dangerous turn for the worst after a series of foreboding warnings written in fresh blood………

Miguel Ferrer delivers the best performance here. His portrayal of this scummy and miserable creep is spot on, and Ferrer brings the essential shameless presence to the Dees character. Dees will stop at nothing to be the top man at Insider View, and his despicable actions include photographing fresh dead bodies (i.e. Dees snapping pictures of deceased victims after a tragic car wreck). Dan Monahan is good for a few laughs as the slimy and perverted boss, and kudos to Julie Entwisle for a noteworthy performance. Katherine is the only ray of sunshine in a backstabbing and merciless snake pit. It’s easy to feel sympathy for Katherine, because Entwisle’s vibrant and perky performance as this harmless newcomer is very convincing.

The Night Flier could’ve been a lot better. Unfortunately, some noticeably poor production values really hurt this one, because you get the feeling you’re watching a bargain basement made for TV movie. Still, The Night Flier is one of the more respectable Stephen King adaptations. It’s a creepy and ghoulish vampire flick, featuring a handful of eerie and unsettling nighttime scenes, and I can’t forget about the nail-biting series of events during the finale. Plus, there’s more than enough nasty gruesomeness and blood to satisfy the gore fiends, and The Night Flier delivers some genuine gross-out moments.

Rating: 6/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

The Night Flier (1997)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

Fed up with censorship and having to report on dead end garbage, Richard Dees (Miguel Ferrer) is looking for his next big story. As a veteran employee, Richard works for Inside View, a paranormal and exploitative tabloid, and Richard is tired of picking up the scraps to make a living, but a new story could change Richard’s fortunes.

Merton Morrison (Dan Monahan), Richard’s editor-in-chief, urges Richard to report on a new story about a murderer, who uses a private plane to kill helpless victims in small towns. Using a black Skymaster draped in thick curtains, Dwight Renfield (Michael H. Moss) quietly swoops into select communities at night to massacre everything in his path. The body count rises with each passing night, and gruesome evidence suggests Dwight could be a vampire.

Richard refuses to accept the story, until Katherine Blair (Julie Entwisle) comes into the picture. Katherine is the newest employee for Inside View, and Morrison is impressed by Katherine’s ambitious and energetic persona, so Morrison gives the story to Katherine. But Richard has a change of heart after he considers the potential for a headline, and  Katherine can’t compete with Richard’s personal airplane and pilot’s license. Using the urge for a long-awaited return to the front page, Richard goads Morrison into changing his mind. Richard is assigned to report on the story, and against her will, Katherine is forced to relinquish her research to Richard.

Richard uses “The Night Flier” as a nickname for Dwight, and Richard’s sleuthing into the mystery behind the vampiric murderer reveals a dark past. As Richard inches closer to exposing the secrets behind the brutal murders, The Night Flier forces Richard to reconsider his investigation with a series of foreboding warnings written in fresh blood………

Miguel Ferrer delivers the best performance here. His portrayal of this scummy and miserable creep is spot on, and Ferrer brings the essential shameless presence to the Dees character. Dees will stop at nothing to be the top man at Insider View, and his despicable actions include photographing fresh dead bodies (i.e. Dees snapping pictures of deceased victims after a tragic car wreck). Dan Monahan is good for a few laughs as the slimy and perverted boss, and kudos to Julie Entwisle for a noteworthy performance. Katherine is the only ray of sunshine in a backstabbing and merciless snake pit. It’s easy to feel sympathy for Katherine, because Entwisle’s vibrant and perky performance as this harmless newcomer is very convincing.

During his scandalous search for the truth, Dees is stuck in an unbearable frustration point every now and then, because he’s always one step behind The Night Flier. Towards the end of the film, Dees finally catches the big break he’s looking for with some help from Katherine (long story short, Katherine agrees to form a team with Dees to work on the story together). Of course, Dees wants all the glory to himself, so he double-crosses Katherine by locking her in the closet of a motel room.

Dees takes his personal plane on one last trip to confront The Night Flier at a rural airport in the middle of nowhere. Dees arrives at the airport, but instead of running into The Night Flier first, Dees is horrified at the sight of scattered and mutilated dead bodies in the lobby. Eventually, Dees meets The Night Flier in the bathroom. Here, The Night Flier forces Dees to handover his only form of proof (a roll of film in the camera).

The Night Flier destroys the roll of film, but it’s not over yet. Dees begs for one last chance to see The Night Flier’s face (throughout the movie, we never see a full or clear shot of The Night Flier’s face, and if you need a visual, just look at the movie poster). The Night Flier reveals himself to Dees, and The Night Flier forces Dees to drink blood from his wrist. After tasting The Night Flier’s blood, Dees is thrust into a nightmarish vision of the murdered victims in the airport coming to life as vampires. Out of fear, Dees grabs an axe to hack and slice anyone in front of him.

In reality, Dees is just cutting into a bunch of lifeless corpses, and Dees becomes a victim of bad timing, because during his crazed frenzy, two police officers and Katherine burst through the doors of the airport. Two policeman walk in, they see a pile of decapitated dead bodies, and this deranged man covered in blood is wielding an axe, so guess what happens? They shoot and kill a disorientated and dangerous (yeah, Dees had the worst intentions with that axe) Dees. Unbeknownst to the policeman, Katherine spots The Night Flier quietly walking away from the scene of the crime in the storm outside, and a speechless Katherine watches The Night Flier escape in his plane.

Instead of telling the police the truth, Katherine taking Dees advice from a rude pep talk during the early stages of the movie, submits a story to Morrison about Dees being The Night Flier. On the front page for the latest edition of Inside View, Katherine’s picture is next to the story, with “Jimmy” (Dees constantly referred to Katherine as a Jimmy throughout the movie as an insult for Katherine being a clueless and naïve newbie) as her middle name.

A nail-biting series of events for this finale. Dees was so close to walking away with his life and health intact, but in the end, his obsession with The Night Flier got the best of him. Earlier, Dees gave Katherine a warning about the dangers of Insider View consuming a stressed and tortured soul. Dees told the story of Dotty Walsh, a former employee. Dotty’s work at the Insider View drove her to insanity, and Dotty eventually committed suicide by wrapping a plastic bag around her head in a bathtub full of water. The same thing happened to Dees. His unnatural obsession with The Night Flier drove him to madness, and you can sense some pitiful sympathy from Katherine, as she takes one last disappointed look at Dees’ corpse.

The Night Flier could’ve been a lot better. Unfortunately, some noticeably poor production values really hurt this one, because you get the feeling you’re watching a bargain basement made for TV movie. Still, The Night Flier is one of the more respectable Stephen King adaptations. It’s a creepy and ghoulish vampire flick, featuring a handful of eerie and unsettling nighttime scenes. Plus, there’s more than enough nasty gruesomeness and blood to satisfy the gore fiends, and The Night Flier delivers some genuine gross-out (i.e. a reflectionless Night Flier peeing blood into a urinal, and Dotty Walsh’s head exploding) moments.

Rating: 6/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

Unbreakable (2000)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no plot twists, big reveals, or major surprises**

Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson) was subjected to a life of loneliness and misery after an abnormal birth. Frightened at the sight of her broken baby, Elijah’s mother (Charlayne Woodard) learns the truth about Elijah’s crippling condition: Elijah suffers from a rare (and potentially fatal) degenerative bone disease. As a child, Elijah receives the nickname “Mr. Glass.” Elijah chooses a life of seclusion out of fear for more broken bones, but Elijah’s mother puts an end to her son’s self imposed exile from the outside world by promising him a new comic book every week. The catch? Elijah must go outside, and pick up the comic book under a park bench.

As an adult, Elijah owns and operates Limited Edition,  a gallery featuring comic book art. Out of paranoia and a devoted mission to locate his counterpart, Elijah embarks on a mission to find a real life superhero. Elijah’s search leads him to David Dunn (Bruce Willis), an ex football star, who chose a life as a security guard after a near fatal car accident in his twenties. David’s wife, Audrey (Robin Wright) and David’s son, Joesph (Joseph Treat Clark) have different reactions to Elijah’s beliefs of David being a superhero. As a young child, Joesph is awestruck at the possibility of his father being a real life superhero. On the flip side, Audrey believes Elijah is a lonely and bitter man, who views David as a reason to fill the many voids in his life.

David tries to balance a troubled relationship with Joesph, a broken marriage with Audrey, and the puzzling dilemma of being the sole survivor in a horrific train accident, while deciphering Elijah’s riddles about the supernatural and the unknown. David is left with two options during his journey towards the truth. He can ignore Elijah’s proclamations, or David can take a chance to test Elijha’s theories by assuming the identity of an anonymous crime fighter……..

When it comes to the acting department, the chemistry between Samuel L. Jackson and Bruce Willis is the driving force, without a doubt. Character wise, they’re perfect foils for each other. Willis’ Dunn is this Average Joe, who’s content with his normal life as a security guard at a football stadium. But Jackson’s Elijah is this eccentric and jaded man, who pushes Dunn to go the extra mile, and find the answers to the curious questions that continue to plague his life. As far as the quality for Willis/Jackson collaborations go, I still believe we all witnessed the best from these two in Die Hard With A Vengeance, but the tandem of Elijah and David is a forced to be reckoned with.

Unbreakable is an absorbing and mysterious thriller with a majestic sense of wonder, featuring a truly shocking finale that’s guaranteed to leave you speechless. On top of that, Unbreakable features an unconventional superhero tale, because Willis isn’t flying around and smashing buildings, while using a bunch of fancy gadgets to fight the bad guys, and he’s not spouting a bunch of random and crony one-liners in every other scene. No. Instead, you’re engrossed in the story of this ordinary man, who’s trying to figure out his purpose in life, and as the story unravels, a common man is thrust into a threatening life-or-death situation, where he’s forced to confront the possibility of possessing an extraordinary gift.

Although, I have to admit, with hindsight as my ally, Unbreakable is a bittersweet film for me. M. Night Shyamalan’s career took a noticeable nosedive after The Village. Yes, he had Signs after Unbreakable, but it’s kind of hard to ignore the abominable disasters that followed Signs. The Village, Lady In The Water, The Happening, The Last Airbender, and After Earth more recently. Shyamalan committed career suicide, and I think it’s safe to say he’s in a deep hole right now. Yeah, there’s always a chance he can dig himself out, but we’re talking about about a guy, who’s almost solely responsible for a plethora of widely panned train wrecks.

Also, Shyamalan is someone, who needs a leash. Having so much creative control isn’t a good thing for him, especially when you consider his awful habit/obsession of trying to deliver a SHOCKING twist, because nine times out of ten, the “twist” doesn’t live up to the enormous expectations, or the intended shocking finale is a laughable embarrassment (i.e. The Village, and in all seriousness, there aren’t enough words in the English language to describe my hatred for The Village). When you consider all the potential, watching an Unbreakable, Signs, or Sixth Sense is a big letdown, because I’m reminded of a man, who was on the right track to becoming the next big thing in Hollywood.

Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

Unbreakable (2000)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson) was subjected to a life of loneliness and misery after an abnormal birth. Frightened at the sight of her broken baby, Elijah’s mother (Charlayne Woodard) learns the truth about Elijah’s crippling condition: Elijah suffers from a rare (and potentially fatal) degenerative bone disease. As a child, Elijah receives the nickname “Mr. Glass.” Elijah chooses a life of seclusion out of fear for more broken bones, but Elijah’s mother puts an end to her son’s self imposed exile from the outside world by promising him a new comic book every week. The catch? Elijah must go outside, and pick up the comic book under a park bench.

As an adult, Elijah owns and operates Limited Edition,  a gallery featuring comic book art. Out of paranoia and a devoted mission to locate his counterpart, Elijah embarks on a mission to find a real life superhero. Elijah’s search leads him to David Dunn (Bruce Willis), an ex football star, who chose a life as a security guard after a near fatal car accident in his twenties. David’s wife, Audrey (Robin Wright) and David’s son, Joesph (Joseph Treat Clark) have different reactions to Elijah’s beliefs of David being a superhero. As a young child, Joesph is awestruck at the possibility of his father being a real life superhero. On the flip side, Audrey believes Elijah is a lonely and bitter man, who views David as a reason to fill the many voids in his life.

David tries to balance a troubled relationship with Joesph, a broken marriage with Audrey, and the puzzling dilemma of being the sole survivor in a horrific train accident, while deciphering Elijah’s riddles about the supernatural and the unknown. David is left with two options during his journey towards the truth. He can ignore Elijah’s proclamations, or David can take a chance to test Elijha’s theories by assuming the identity of an anonymous crime fighter……..

When it comes to the acting department, the chemistry between Samuel L. Jackson and Bruce Willis is the driving force, without a doubt. Character wise, they’re perfect foils for each other. Willis’ Dunn is this Average Joe, who’s content with his normal life as a security guard at a football stadium. But Jackson’s Elijah is this eccentric and jaded man, who pushes Dunn to go the extra mile, and find the answers to the curious questions that continue to plague his life. As far as the quality for Willis/Jackson collaborations go, I still believe we all witnessed the best from these two in Die Hard With A Vengeance, but the tandem of Elijah and David is a forced to be reckoned with.

So, is David Dunn a real life superhero? Well, through a serious of tests (including Joseph testing David’s limits on a bench press in the garage by adding more weights with each set) and teasing, we get the answer we’ve been waiting for towards the end of the film. Dunn takes a chance to test his powers by saving the victims of a home invasion. Although, David runs into a BIG problem, when he encounters his only true weakness: Water. David is drowning in the victim’s pool, but he’s rescued by the children at the last second. David returns to catch the killer in a chokehold. The killer struggles to break free, but David’s super strength is too much for him, and Dunn is able to kill the perpetrator……but it’s not over yet.

Dunn takes a trip to Elijah’s exhibit at Limited Edition. Here, David thanks Elijah for pushing him to realize the true potential of his powers. But Dunn uses a newfound power to unravel Elijah’s shocking secret. Unbeknownst to David, he possessed clairvoyant powers for many years. David accidentally discovered this gift by bumping into various criminals (David’s clairvoyant powers only work, if he touches the evildoer) at a train station. After shaking Elijah’s hand, David is able to see every little detail in Elijah’s dark past. Elijah is the one, who caused the train accident, and Elijah orchestrated and committed various acts of terrorism throughout the United States. Why? Because Elijah was trying to force David out of hiding. Playing the role of David’s real life adversary, Elijah believes his acts of terrorism are justified, because the hero needs a villain to feud against. Of course, David reports Elijah to the police, and Elijah is forced to live out the rest of his days in an institution for the criminally insane.

A great twist. Willis did a wonderful job of selling the heartbreak and devastation  after discovering the truth behind Elijah’s alter ego as a real villain, and Jackson’s delusional pleas towards Wills as he leaves Limited Edition with his back turned are executed to perfection. You really get the sense Mr. Glass believed in the justified morality of his crimes to lure David out into the open. It’s a great shocker, because you can see David wanted to believe in his friendship with Elijah, but he’s crushed after Elijah reveals himself as the culprit.

Unbreakable is an absorbing and mysterious thriller with a majestic sense of wonder, featuring a truly shocking finale that’s guaranteed to leave you speechless. On top of that, Unbreakable features an unconventional superhero tale, because Willis isn’t flying around and smashing buildings, while using a bunch of fancy gadgets to fight the bad guys, and he’s not spouting a bunch of random and crony one-liners in every other scene. No. Instead, you’re engrossed in the story of this ordinary man, who’s trying to figure out his purpose in life, and as the story unravels, a common man is thrust into a threatening life-or-death situation, where he’s forced to confront the possibility of possessing an extraordinary gift.

Although, I have to admit, with hindsight as my ally, Unbreakable is a bittersweet film for me. M. Night Shyamalan’s career took a noticeable nosedive after The Village. Yes, he had Signs after Unbreakable, but it’s kind of hard to ignore the abominable disasters that followed Signs. The Village, Lady In The Water, The Happening, The Last Airbender, and After Earth more recently. Shyamalan committed career suicide, and I think it’s safe to say he’s in a deep hole right now. Yeah, there’s always a chance he can dig himself out, but we’re talking about about a guy, who’s almost solely responsible for a plethora of widely panned train wrecks.

Also, Shyamalan is someone, who needs a leash. Having so much creative control isn’t a good thing for him, especially when you consider his awful habit/obsession of trying to deliver a SHOCKING twist, because nine times out of ten, the “twist” doesn’t live up to the enormous expectations, or the intended shocking finale is a laughable embarrassment (i.e. The Village, and in all seriousness, there aren’t enough words in the English language to describe my hatred for The Village). When you consider all the potential, watching an Unbreakable, Signs, or Sixth Sense is a big letdown, because I’m reminded of a man, who was on the right track to becoming the next big thing in Hollywood.

Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

The Midnight Meat Train (2008)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no big reveals, plot twists, or character deaths**

Leon (Bradley Cooper ) is an aspiring and struggling photographer, who’s looking for his long awaited big break. Leon lives with his girlfriend, Maya (Leslie Bibb) in a big city, and with some help from Maya’s best friend, Jurgis (Roger Bart) Leon is introduced to Susan Hoff (Brooke Shields), a stern media proprietor, who’s known for her taste in pictures. Susan pushes Leon to be more bold and take a chance to capture a real captivating moment. Leon takes Susan’s advice, and he’s able to kill two birds with one stone. Leon captures a group of muggers during an attack, and in the process, Leon saves the victim, a young model.

The next morning, Leon pays a visit to Maya’s diner (Maya works as a waitress at the diner) for his routine morning chat with Maya, and her boss, but Leon notices the model in a missing person’s article in the newspaper. Leon’s investigation for the prime suspect leads him to Mahogany (Vinnie Jones), a silent and well-dressed man, who works as a butcher during the day. During the night, Mahogany lurks inside the subway station, waiting for the late train. Here, Mahogany brutally murders unsuspecting victims, using the subway train to store and carve the victim’s carcasses like mutilated cattle in a meat locker........

Bradely Cooper is a solid leading man. The Leon character is kind of dull at first. He’s the typical struggling artist, who’s trying to make it and find his way in the big city, while his girlfriend works a dead end job, and they’re staying in an apartment together. But Cooper shows off his talents during Leon’s descent into madness, as his obsession with Mahogany causes a distressed breakdown. Vinnie Jones is spot on as the primary antagonist. Mahogany is a silent and deadly killing machine, and Jones brings the necessary menacing and creepy presence to this character. Plus, Jones’ scrunched scowls really pull everything together.

Leslie Bibb is reliable as usual, providing a believable performance as the supportive girlfriend, who’s willing to do anything to help Leon and fight Mahogany. And it’s a shame Brooke Shields screen time is limited to sporadic appearances. Shields is fun to watch as this powerful and demanding businesswoman with a superior ego.

The Midnight Meat Train is an electric and tense horror film. Director Ryuhei Kitamura delivers a plethora of brutal and sickening violence, bloody and stylish gore, gross out scenes that are guaranteed to pull a reaction out of you, and Kitamura provides the perfect eerie atmosphere for The Midnight Meat Train. Leon’s investigation to uncover the truth behind the massacre concludes with a shocking and diabolical finale, as a gruesome tale of blood and guts ends with a sinister new beginning. Bottom line, if you’re looking for splattery blood-soaked mayhem and jaw-dropping kills, The Midnight Meat Train is a must-see.


Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

The Midnight Meat Train (2008)(Spoiler Review)

**This review contains spoilers**

Leon (Bradley Cooper ) is an aspiring and struggling photographer, who’s looking for his long awaited big break. Leon lives with his girlfriend, Maya (Leslie Bibb) in a big city, and with some help from Maya’s best friend, Jurgis (Roger Bart) Leon is introduced to Susan Hoff (Brooke Shields), a stern media proprietor, who’s known for her taste in pictures. Susan pushes Leon to be more bold and take a chance to capture a real captivating moment. Leon takes Susan’s advice, and he’s able to kill two birds with one stone. Leon captures a group of muggers during an attack, and in the process, Leon saves the victim, a young model.

The next morning, Leon pays a visit to Maya’s diner (Maya works as a waitress at the diner) for his routine morning chat with Maya, and her boss, but Leon notices the model in a missing person’s article in the newspaper. Leon’s investigation for the prime suspect leads him to Mahogany (Vinnie Jones), a silent and well-dressed man, who works as a butcher during the day. During the night, Mahogany lurks inside the subway station, waiting for the late train. Here, Mahogany brutally murders unsuspecting victims, using the subway train to store and carve the victim’s carcasses like mutilated cattle in a meat locker.

Leon’s cries for help are ignored by a local detective named Lynn Hadley (Barbara Eve Harris). Meanwhile, Leon unravels a history of brutal murders orchestrated by Mahogany during a killing spree dating back to the early 1900‘s. Fueled by frustration and paranoia, Leon vows to take matters into his own hands to put a stop to Mahogany’s crimes, but Leon discovers a darker secret beneath the subway station during a one on one final battle with Mahogany……..

Bradely Cooper is a solid leading man. The Leon character is kind of dull at first. He’s the typical struggling artist, who’s trying to make it and find his way in the big city, while his girlfriend works a dead end job, and they’re staying in an apartment together. But Cooper shows off his talents during Leon’s descent into madness, as his obsession with Mahogany causes a distressed breakdown. Vinnie Jones is spot on as the primary antagonist. Mahogany is a silent and deadly killing machine, and Jones brings the necessary menacing and creepy presence to this character. Plus, Jones’ scrunched scowls really pull everything together.

Leslie Bibb is reliable as usual, providing a believable performance as the supportive girlfriend, who’s willing to do anything to help Leon and fight Mahogany. And it’s a shame Brooke Shields screen time is limited to sporadic appearances. Shields is fun to watch as this powerful and demanding businesswoman with a superior ego. Oh, and a little message for MMA fans. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has a little cameo here. He plays some random thug, who insults Mahogany on the train with a Forrest Gump wisecrack. Guardian Angel (Jackson) taunts Mahogany with “Life is like a box of chocolates” (Mahogany has a striking resemblance to Gump, including his posture), and of course, Mahogany attacks him. Yeah, Rampage’s screen time might last three minutes before the conductor (more on that later) pops out of nowhere to kill Angel with a shot to the head.

So Mahogany is a cold blooded killer. It’s painfully clear after you witness the intro, but why is Mahogany hacking innocent people on a subway train to bits every night? During the final showdown between Leon and Mahogany, it’s revealed Mahogany possesses superhuman strength as a supernatural being…and there’s more. The conductor is helping Mahogany in his mission to murder every night. Why? Because as The Butcher, Mahogany must kill and feed his victims to cannibalistic creatures, who live beneath the subway station. Mahogany continues to feed the creatures, because without “meat,” the creatures will invade the real world to hunt and attack humans, so Mahogany is trusted to control the separation between both worlds in a never ending mission. And Detective Lynn Hadley is apart of the conspiracy, as a crucial key player, who conceals a lot of evidence.

As a helper, The conductor also possesses superhuman strength, and after the battle with Mahogany, the conductor forces Leon into an inescapable decision: Leon must take Mahogany’s place as the next butcher. After a hundred years of service, Mahogany can’t carry the burden with weakened powers, and after murdering Mahogany in the fight, Leon becomes “The Chosen One.” The conductor rips out Leon’s tongue, he bites and eats the severed tongue (groooossssss!), and the conductor rips out Maya’s (Maya joined Leon on the train to find Jurgis) heart in front of Leon. The conductor offers Maya’s beating heart to Leon, and during the final moments of the movie, we see Leon dressed in a suit. Leon resides in Mahogany’s old apartment, taking control of Mahogany’s signature ring, and Leon quietly boards the late subway train at night to start his new life, as the next butcher.

Great shocker. At first, you’re lead to believe Mahogany is this lone nut, who’s killing for fun, or a need to feed his sadistic desires. But as the film progresses, you can see Mahogany isn’t normal. He uncharacteristically runs out of gas (i.e. coughing up blood) during his fight with Angel on the train, and The Midnight Meat Train drops another suspicious hint, when the conductor pops out of nowhere as a helper to murder Angel. And the reveal of Hadley helping Mahogany and the conductor completely caught me off guard. After a while, you know there’s some big secret surrounding  Mahogany’s slaughterhouse, but it’s hard to guess or pinpoint the details behind the truth. Amazing swerve, because unless you’re a psychic (either that, or before watching the movie, you read the short story this film is based on, written by Clive Barker), it’s IMPOSSIBLE to guess the big surprise at the end.

The Midnight Meat Train is an electric and tense horror film. Director Ryuhei Kitamura delivers a plethora of brutal and sickening violence, bloody and stylish gore, gross out scenes that are guaranteed to pull a reaction out of you, and Kitamura provides the perfect eerie atmosphere for The Midnight Meat Train. Leon’s investigation to uncover the truth behind the massacre concludes with a shocking and diabolical finale, as a gruesome tale of blood and guts ends with a sinister new beginning. Bottom line, if you’re looking for splattery blood-soaked mayhem and jaw-dropping kills, The Midnight Meat Train is a must-see.


Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

The To Do List (2013)(Minor Spoilers Review)

**This review contains MINOR spoilers, no big reveals or plot twists**

It’s 1993, and after graduating high school, valedictorian Brandy Klark (Aubrey Plaza) vows to lose her virginity to the desirable Rusty Waters (Scott Porter). Living in Boise, Idaho, Brandy receives support from her friends Fiona (Alia Shawkat) and Wendy (Sarah Steele).

Before Brandy conquers her main goal of intercourse with Rusty, Brandy makes a checklist of mandatory foreplay activates to complete with hopes of enjoying her once in a lifetime experience with Rusty as a sexual expert. Along the way, Brandy tries to ignore relentless taunting from her sister, Amber (Rachel Bilson), and Brandy’s mother, Jean (Connie Britton) is more understanding and supportive for her daughter’s mission to explore her sexuality, but Brandy’s prudish father, Judge George Klark (Clark Gregg) doesn’t approve of Brandy’s plans.

During a summer job as the “newbie” lifeguard, Brandy has the perfect chance to catch Rusty’s eye, but she’ll have to endure some hazing from Rusty, the other lifeguards, and the manager, Willy (Bill Hader). Brandy plans to use her longtime friends, Cameron (Johnny Simmons), Duffy (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), and others as practice guys for the foreplay experiments. Brandy is willing to do anything to fulfill her selfish and desperate desires, but towards the end of her journey, Brandy is forced to answer one crucial question: Is Rusty Waters really worth it?

Aubrey Plaza continues to excel within her niche of being the quirky and dismal woman, who’s a real pain in the ass most of the time. And I can’t forget about Plaza’s signature cold and emotionless scowl. Although, Plaza is a more sympathetic character here. Brandy is a stuck up and bossy geek with a superiority complex, who idolizes Hillary Clinton, but you’ll see a softer side to this character in certain parts here. Underneath all the struggles to fit in and capture the key to Rusty’s heart (or his pants), Brandy is a lost teenager, who’s trying to find herself, and enjoy some careless fun before it’s too late.

Clark Gregg is a perfect fit for the old school father, who’s too uptight to embrace any changes. The To Do List puts more focus on Scott Porter’s physical appearance, so in the grand scheme of things, his decent performance as this California surfer dude is an afterthought. Bilson is good for a few laughs, as the promiscuous big sister, who enjoys bullying Brandy. Simmons and Mintz-Plasse are entertaining nerds, but I give the edge to Simmons for the better performance. He’s spot on as the more sensitive friend with a soft spot for Brandy. Mintz-Plasse isn’t bad, but I guess I’m just burnt out on his reoccurring shtick, as this delusional dork with an inflated ego as a lady’s man.

Bill Hader is hilarious as the nonchalant manager, Connie Britton is harmless as the supportive and understanding mother, and Sarah Steele is the funnier one in the duo of Wendy and Fiona, as the persistent and free spirited friend, who pushes Brandy to break out of her shell. And his screen time is limited to a brief appearance, but Andy Samberg’s Van put a smile on my face. Long story short, he’s the lead singer in this amateur band, who sports a grunge look, and there’s a scene with Brandy in the pool’s shower room that brought me to tears, because I laughed so hard.

The To Do List feels like something different at first. Unfortunately, this one succumbs to a familiar and formulaic through the motions pattern step by step, because twelve minutes into the movie, I could EASILY predict the entire story. I couldn’t shake a disappointed feeling throughout the movie, but I’ll give The To Do List some credit for avoiding the corny and clichéd “I’m sorry, and I love you!” speech for Brandy’s character.

Did you know The To Do List was set in the 90’s? Well, you’ll see and hear more than enough reminders throughout the movie. Look, I love nostalgia  more than anyone, and The To Do List features a very clever 90’s themed intro, but for the love of all things holy, I don’t need constant hints and winks to remind me I’m watching a movie set in 1993. Meg Ryan, Home Improvement, Zack Morris, Sleepless In Seattle, movie posters including Jurassic Park. You name it, and The To Do List will pull out a “Remember that!” reference for a nostalgia buzz. Sorry, but The To Do List passed the point of overkill for 90’s nostalgia, because everything feels way too forced after a while. Plus, I rolled my eyes at some dumfounding attempts to point out the 90’s setting. Need an example? I can clearly see a VHS tape on the screen, so I don’t need someone to tell me they rented a “VHS” tape. Seriously, I was waiting for the “Whoopsie!” Mortal Kombat guy to pop up on the bottom of the screen, but he wouldn’t shout his famous catchphrase. Instead, the Mortal Kombat guy would appear out of nowhere to say “Hey, did you know The To Do List is set in the 90’s?”

The To Do List won’t change the landscape for coming of age comedies, but it’s a satisfying entry in the already crowded sub genre. Aubrey Plaza shines in the leading role, providing the vast majority of laughs here, and Plaza is surrounded by a rock solid supporting cast. The raunchy hijinks are consistently funny, and the gross-out gags are guaranteed to pull a reaction out of you (i.e. Brandy mistaking a real piece of floating poo for a candy bar). Still, it’s a real shame, because without the familiar genre tropes, and a constant need to remind the audience they’re watching a nostalgic 90’s film, The To Do List could’ve been one of the all-time greats.

Rating: 8/10

Michael Jordan had another run with the Wizards after winning six championships. Brett Favre was one step away from earning a second ring with the Vikings.

As the world's definitive multi-talented superstar athlete, Trisha Bunrastar is taking an unexpected and shocking leap into a new career path. Assuming the identity of Freechelle Fantabulous, Trisha vows to fight crime and battle evildoers as a superheroine. Will she conquer her new mission? Find out more here! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

Or take a trip into my special world of madness that includes comedy, horror, and the supernatural in this collection of short stories- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U

Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1