THIS MEANS WAR

Plot:


Tuck (Hardy) and Franklin or FDR (Pine) are two CIA field operatives that are not only co-workers, but the best of friends willing to take a bullet for each other at any given time. FDR a wild partying playboy who is afraid to commit to a monogamous relationship and Tuck who after a failed attempt with his baby mama is looking to move on to a steady affair. When the two get sidelined from active duty following a botched effort to apprehend a high profile criminal played by Til Schweiger who is looking to get revenge on the pair for the death of his brother, they take time to help Tuck try to find a date mate. After accepting a date from an internet service assigned Lauren who is an all work and no play type of girl, forced by her girlfriend to date Tuck, which she does but eventually bumps into FDR who she soon becomes interested in dating as well. Well when the two studs find out that they are both pursuing the same woman, the gloves come off and their friendship is in jeopardy as they abuse the company’s resources to each gain an edge advantage on winnig the affection of the clueless Lauren.


Reel Talk:


Remember those black and white animated spies from the Mad magazine that are always attacking each other with outlandish stunts? Well in this action comedy Pine and Hardy are the real version. The extent of the pranks they use on each other to attract Reese’s attention will have you laughing. But the hilariously funniest moments come at the hands of scene stealer Chelsea Handler as Reeses’s best friend. She is truly off the hook funny. This is a very good, exciting, funny, action packed (although a little over the top) movie that is worth the weekend admission with you wondering to the very end which one she will choose. To find out go out and see the movie……LOL!

Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Tom Hardy, Til Schweiger, Chelsea Handler and Angela Bassett
Directed by: McG
Rated: R

I give it 3 corn dogs

By: Corn Dog – The Reel Hustler

SAFE HOUSE

Plot:


When a file incriminating some of the world’s influential organizations gets placed into the hands of the CIA’s legendary top agent Tobin Frost (Washington), they will stop at nothing to get that file back. Frost allows himself to be captured and taken to a safe house which is hosted by a young up and coming agent Matt Weston (Reynolds). Intent on doing a great job, Matt is put into a compromising situation when his safe house is overtaken by terrorist intent on killing Frost and the very company that he works for may be behind it all. Not knowing who to trust or what to believe he has to team up with Frost so that the two can live to sort things out.


Reel Talk:


Man!!! I thought I was watching the super soul brother version of The Bourne Supremacy….lol. Great combination in Washington and Reynolds, both delivered excellent poise to their characters. Where this movie offers tons of action and intrigue, it is also pretty predictable. Without revealing the spoiler let’s just say the ending could have been a whole lot better, considering Denzel is suppose to be this super agent. You will have to stay focused because some of the scenes are quite fast, if you blink you will miss something. Still this is a very entertaining movie worth going into your pockets.

Starring: Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds, Vera Farmiga, Brendan Gleeson, Sam Shepard and Ruben Blades
Directed by: Daniel Espinosa
Rated: R

I give it 3 and a half eaten corn dogs.

By: Corn Dog – The Reel Hustler

JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND

Plot:

Josh Hutcherson plays Sean, a rebellious teenager who believes that he was sent a coded message from his long lost treasure seeking grandfather Alexander (Caine). While trying to decipher the code he gets some unwanted but much needed help from his step dad Hank (Johnson) by using some old Jules Verne’s novels to put them on track. Reluctantly Hank joins Sean on this quest to find his grandfather and this mystery island, enlisting the services of a rag tag helicopter pilot Gabato (Guzman) and his beautiful daughter Kailani (Hudgens). Eventually the group gets pulled into the storm that lands them onto the mysterious island, taking them on an adventure of a lifetime where they encounter giant insects and animals as well as become witness to some of the legends as told by Jules Vernes in his books.


Reel Talk:


This is going to be a great family movie, a combination of A Journey To The Center Of The Earth and 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Just what the children need to spark their minds with some old school imagination. This is an ideal fantasy movie, but with some of the cheesiest acting! I understand that Dwayne Johnson wanted to or even had to do some family oriented movies but come on, let’s get back to some hardcore action movies. Isn’t the era where muscle massed men pacifying kids over yet? Oh well like I said, this is a very entertaining and visually impressive 3D movie that the families will enjoy. You can’t help but enjoy the comedic efforts of the silly Luis Guzman who supplies most of the humor.

Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Michael Caine, Josh Hutcherson, Luis Guzman, Vanessa Hudgens and Kristin Davis
Directed by: Brad Peyton
Rated: PG

I give it 2 and a half eaten corn dogs

By: Corn Dog – The Reel Hustler

THE VOW

Plot:

What would you do if the person that you love unconditionally and they love you the same way gets amnesia and no longer remembers you? Well this film which is inspired from true events is about Paige (McAdams) and Leo (Tatum), who from their first encounter are madly in love and when they get married they vow to forever maintain that love for each other. But their lives will soon change after they are involved in an auto accident that leaves Paige without any memories of her life with Leo. With only memories of her family and ex-fiance she limits her recovery with her husband to spend the time with them leaving Leo frustrated and confused because he stills loves his wife who now views him as a stranger.


Reel Talk:


I must admit that I was impressed with this awkward love story. I even felt some of the ice melt away from my stone cold heart. Tatum was so believable that you can literally feel this man’s pain and frustration while McAdam's role was just overly bitchy. I mean he proved with all types of evidence that they were married and she still treated him like a stray dog. Sam Neill and Jessica Lange put in good performances as Paige’s parents. I liked the premise for this movie, the bliss of true love, giving hope to even me. This movie is a good date movie worth seeing for those who know or would like to know the real meaning of the vows of love.

Starring: Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum, Scott Speedman, Jessica Lange and Sam Neill
Directed by: Michael Sucsy
Rated: PG-13

I give it 3 corn dogs

BIG MIRACLE

Plot:


This film is based on the true events that happened during the late 80’s in a small town within Alaska. While out on a lame assignment, aspiring local newsman Adam Carlson (Krasinski) notices three gray whales surfacing for air through a hole in the thickly frozen ice on the Artic Circle. The whales would have normally migrated but are now trapped because it is now an impossible 5 mile journey under the thick ice with no way to surface for air, meaning they will drown. Carlson then teams up with his ex-girlfriend Rachel Kramer (Barrymore) who is the head of the Greenpeace program, which she begins shaking things up to the point that she involves the President, the National Guards, major oil companies and you can say the world because even the Soviet Union gets in on it. People from all over lend their hands in an attempt to save the whales from an icy watery death as time winds down on them.


Reel Talk:


Right off let me say this is a good feel good movie about saving the whales and how we can all get involve with doing our part to save the world, touching! But with that said, this was some of the corniest acting from a very well seasoned cast. There were a lot of unbalanced reactions to scenes that required a more dramatic delivery than was given. But I think my biggest problem about this movie is that the Eskimos whose livelihood is hunting whales, wanted to kill the whales for food but changed their mind because they didn’t want the bad publicity, but heck the same whales that millions of dollars were spent to save will only be hunted later to be killed and eaten by the same people saving them. Just can’t quite understand that logic. Still this is a good movie that can be enjoyed by the entire family.

Starring: John Krasinski, Drew Barrymore, Ted Danson, Kristen Bell, Vinessa Shaw and Dermot Mulroney
Directed by: Ken Kwapis
Rated: PG

I give it 2 and a half eaten corn dogs

By: Corn Dog – The Reel Hustler