The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

Director:

 Wes Anderson

Writers:

 Stefan Zweig (inspired by the writings of), Wes Anderson (screenplay) |2 more credits »

Stars:

 Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham, Mathieu Amalric.

Storyline

GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL recounts the adventures of Gustave H, a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the wars, and Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy who becomes his most trusted friend. The story involves the theft and recovery of a priceless Renaissance painting and the battle for an enormous family fortune -- all against the back-drop of a suddenly and dramatically changing Continent. Written by Fox Searchlight Pictures

Box Office

Budget:

 €23,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

 $811,166 (USA) (7 March 2014)

Gross:

 $59,073,773 (USA) (22 August 2014)

User Reviews

A Grand Adventure

8 February 2014 | by corrosion-2 (United Arab Emirates) – See all my reviews

Wes Anderson is one of the most original film makers working today. None of his films can be categorized into any particular genre. His latest, The Grand Budapest Hotel, which opened the Berlin Film Festival, continues that trend. It is a tale within a tale within another tale. Whilst every shot has been meticulously arranged as though a work of Art hanging in a museum, story wise Anderson has let his imagination run wild. Though the tale (with Tom Wilkinson as the author of the story) and the tale within the tale (with Jude Law as the young author & F Murray Abraham as the mysterious owner of THe Grand Budapest Hotel) have straightforward narratives, the tale within the tale within the tale, which comprises the bulk of the film and is set in the years preceding the Second World War, is a wild uproarious train ride of story telling. It also boasts the cast of a life time: Ralph Fiennes, Tilda Swinton, Edward Norton, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson & countless cameos. It will delight Anderson fans but is more likely destined for Art house cinemas as it is too off center for mainstream audiences. The production design and music are outstanding and even the end credits are imaginatively done (and received another ovation from the audience).

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

STORY-LINE
Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, from his rise to a wealthy stock-broker living the high life to his fall involving crime, corruption and the federal government.

Director:

 Martin Scorsese

Writers:

 Terence Winter (screenplay), Jordan Belfort (book)

Stars:

 Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie 

User Reviews

The Wolf of Wall Street is Leonardo DiCaprio's Crowning Work

17 December 2013 | by Clayton Davis (Claytondavis@awardscircuit.com) (New Jersey) – See all my reviews

Martin Scorsese has done it again. His newest and most refreshing effort he's contributed to the world of cinema in years, The Wolf of Wall Street is a roaring thrill ride that is both absolutely hilarious and meticulously constructed. It also presents Academy Award nominee Leonardo DiCaprio in possibly his finest acting performance of his career. At one-minute shy of three hours, I was both engaged and hypnotized nearly the entire duration. A comedic epic that studies the behavior and cultures of a time in America, feels like the uncovering of a time capsule that was buried and dug up to give insight into our current financial crisis. Much more than just laughs, it turns on the dramatic elements early enough in the film to warrant considerable reactions about the choices of our key characters. Expertly paced with intelligent moral questions presented, The Wolf of Wall Street is one of the best films of the year.

Telling the story of Jordan Belfort, a young Wall Street broker that gets involved in drugs, money, and even more drugs during the 80's and 90's. In his tenure trading (and stealing), Jordan marries, divorces, does drugs, marries again, does even more drugs, makes solid friendships, and believe it or not, does a lot more drugs. Watching the destruction of Jordan acted as a documentarian's insight that felt like I was watching "Intervention" without the family that cares. The Wolf of Wall Street is a black comedy, giving hints of drama. Natural comparisons will fly to Oliver Stone's Wall Street which is accurate but you can see subtle hints of films like Trading Places, Glengarry Glen Ross, and even American Psycho. That's a testament to Scorsese's outstanding direction and Terence Winter's masterful screenplay. Scorsese keeps Wolf life-size, sprinkled with characters that are both geniuses and morons, but functioning morons. They're like the frat pack group that sat in a corner on my college campus, being loud and obnoxious, and made terrible life choices that they still aren't aware of until this day. Scorsese puts together an all-star cast to inhabit these beings that includes DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie, Matthew McConaughey, Jon Bernathal, and Kyle Chandler. All of which seem to be having the time of their lives.

A lot of the credit of the film's overall success has to be awarded to Leonardo DiCaprio. I've never seen him truly "go for it" in a way that he exhibits as Jordan Belfort. In his breaking of the fourth wall, to his long but completely engaging monologues about life, money, and greed, it's the most assured and compelling work by the actor to date. When DiCaprio unleashed his talents in the mid-90's in What's Eating Gilbert Grape? and later stole the hearts of tween girls everywhere in Titanic, who knew this is the role he'd been gearing up to play. This is the role of his career and something that the Academy Awards should look to for his long overdue recognition. It's a charming and adventurous turn that presents a conundrum to the audience as we find ourselves both enamored and loathing the pure essence of Jordan. A sequence of DiCaprio crawling on the floor will probably be the scene of the year. This is DiCaprio's crowning achievement.

As the magnetic and cheesy-minded right-hand man, Jonah Hill's performance as Donnie Azoff is another great turn for the 30-year-old actor. He's allowed to explore some of his comedic ticks and beats that he may not have ever had the opportunity to explore in films like Superbad or 21 Jump Street. In Wolf, he relies on his own instincts, and his chemistry with DiCaprio, which has helped him before for his Oscar-nominated work in Moneyball opposite Brad Pitt. Matthew McConaughey, is one scene shy of winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. While his work in Dallas Buyers Club will bring him the acclaim and recognition that he deserves, The Wolf of Wall Street is a prime example of what he should be doing when he's not working or seeking out the strong, independent features that are geared for awards recognition. Stealing every frame and focus from DiCaprio in his ten minute screen time, McConaughey utilizes all his charm and spunk as Mark Hanna, the mentor to young Jordan as he started out.

Like any great Scorsese film, the women are in full-force and given the opportunity to shine like the others. Cristin Millotti, a toned down and tragic version of Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny, is sensational in her brief appearances on screen. Beautiful and sympathetic, she offers much needed serious and dramatic elements to Jordan's outrageous antics. In the end, a star is born in the gorgeous and vivacious Margot Robbie as Naomi Lapaglia, Jordan's second wife. Whoever was going to be cast as Naomi, had to be an actress of considerable talent and had the ability to really be the sexy kitten but still warrant an emotional reaction from the audience when called upon. Margot Robbie was the perfect choice and she'll need to owe Scorsese royalties for years to come with the roles she'll be offered following this. Robbie is pure magic and is everything she's required to be. She's the more elusive, compelling, and more thought out version of Scarlett Johansson's character in Don Jon.

I loved every second of The Wolf of Wall Street. Terence Winter's script is a natural and well-oiled machine that produces the words of a demigod. You couldn't make these things up. Thelma Schoonmaker is the utmost professional and continues to shine film after film. You won't find another dedicated and glossed editing work this year. The other supporting actors do sensational work especially Kyle Chandler, who has a very well-constructed exchange on a boat with DiCaprio, has us asking more and more, why is this guy not helming his own films on a consistent basis yet?

DEADPOOL(FULL MOVIE)

DEADPOOL(FULL MOVIE)

STORY-LINE

A former Special Forces operative turned mercenary is subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers, adopting the alter ego Deadpool.

Director:

 Tim Miller

Writers:

 Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick | 2 more credits »

Stars:

 Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, T.J. Miller |

MOVIE Reviews

Dirty, funny, sexy, violent and unabashedly romantic: Deadpool has arrived!

12 February 2016 |   (wherever good films play) – 

I really, really liked Deadpool. And you know what? I didn't expect to. Seriously, I was never a fan of the character (in the sense that I hardly knew anything about him) and the humor as well as the violence seemed forced and overdone in the trailers. Still, I remained interested in the film, I just never expected it to actually be good - until the reviews arrived. After most critics unexpectedly showered this newest superhero movie with praise, I went in cautiously optimistic (but still fully prepared to hate the film).

The first thing I noticed was how inventive the storytelling is. The film throws you into the action from the first moment (literally: the very first moment) and then it goes back and forth in brilliant and unexpected ways to slowly unspool the story of this insane - but oddly charming - antihero. Flashbacks and fast-forwards can be annoying as hell, but when done right, they can help render even a somewhat simple story fresh and exciting. And that's exactly how Deadpool felt to me right from the start: like a fresh (if somewhat dirty) jolt of energy.

The action itself is beautifully designed, employing playful visuals and using pretty much every camera technique available; it never feels repetitive and the pacing is close to perfection. But, and that was probably the key to me liking the film so much, there's a beating heart underneath all the action and carnage, and that has a lot to do with how brilliantly Ryan Reynolds portrays the character and the great chemistry he has with co-star Morena Baccarin. What came as a complete surprise to me was how unabashedly romantic Deadpool is. The love story in this film is probably the most sincere I've ever seen in a superhero movie and it gives the film the strong emotional core which so many of these movies lack.

The humor, which I initially feared would just be non-stop juvenile wisecracks and soon become distracting, also works surprisingly well. Not every line or every joke lands - but that's the beauty of this character: they don't really need to. Deadpool can't help himself; as long as he's able to breathe he'll crack wise and make fun of himself and those around him. It's a clinical condition; he's not a stand-up comedian whose jokes need to land: he's a madman (albeit a very entertaining one) and the comedy in his case is born out of tragedy.

Despite all my praise, it's not a perfect film. The villain in this revenge tale could be more memorable and the story itself is a bit too derivative to really do its highly unconventional protagonist (he insists he's not a hero) justice: but it's a damn good first entry in a franchise that will hopefully explore the character and his world to a much larger extent in the sequel(s). And it's actually a very important film for another reason. If Deadpool is a financial success - which at this point is already clear it will be - this could play a vital role in how studios henceforth view the financial prospects of R-rated superhero films, and we'll hopefully see more of them in the future.

Many people might feel different - and I respect their opinion - but I've grown tired of the entirely bloodless CGI overkill in all those 200 million productions where even the most terrible villains talk like Mormon schoolgirls. I mean: there's a gigantic audience out there that is over the age of 18, loves to read comic books and can absolutely handle real-world language, real-world sex and real-world violence in superhero movies. This genre is so diverse; it's ridiculous to believe just because comic books have pictures in them all film adaptations - regardless of the material - must automatically be made for kids in order to be successful.

As it is, I think Deadpool - a dirty, funny, sexy and violent film which is decidedly NOT for kids - just proved my point perfectly. 9 stars out of 10.

Keanu (2016)(FULL MOVIE)

Keanu (2016)  100 min   -   Comedy   7/10  Metascore: 63/100 (33 reviews) Story-LINE  Friends hatch a plot to retrieve a stolen kitten by posing as drug dealers for a street gang. Director:  Peter Atencio Stars:  Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, Tiffany Haddish, Method Man. Movie Reviews 63 Metascore Based on 33 critic reviews 100 Hitfix Visceral action (including an opening sequence that masterfully sets the tone for the rest of the film); a sharply written and directed script; rich, dynamic characters; and, as promised, the world's cutest cat (other than yours if you have one) combine to create a gut-busting, endearing, salty-sweet, and highly re-watchable comedy. 70 The Hollywood Reporter John DeFore This may not be adequate compensation for the end of their series, which gave them so many more opportunities to try on new personalities and take one-gag ideas for a spin. But it will delight the show's fans while winning over others unlucky enough never to have seen it. 67 indieWIRE Eric Kohn Wildly entertaining in parts, Keanu overstays its welcome and just keeps going, showing the growing pains of sketch comedy drawn out to epic proportions. 67 Austin Chronicle Steve Davis With its unconventional take on pet sounds, Keanu is refreshingly silly, an unabashed mix of humor and violence topped off by a big dollop of cuteness. 67 Tampa Bay Times Steve Persall Keanu is raucous enough to satisfy the Hangover crowd, yet when compared to Key and Peele's trenchant tomfoolery on television, it needs focused anger, funnier tension. Or perhaps simply more kitty cat. 63 Movie Nation Roger Moore It's wildly uneven, rather like their TV series... And it is wincingly violent, with some of the John Woo-style slo-mo shootouts going on too long and spilling too much blood. But the chemistry is still there, the banter between the bald, bug-eyed, high-maintenance metrosexual Keegan Michael Key and the slow-burning Peele still zings. 63 USA Today Brian Truitt It's a sketch-type conceit stretched to movie length that wears thin at times. When the stars are on their game, though, they keep the laughs coming. 50 The Playlist Charlie Schmidlin After five incredible seasons of “Key & Peele” skewering black masculinity in its various forms, the duo here settle for an uninspired riff on Los Angeles gang culture, stringing together fish-out-of-water vignettes by using a stray kitten as thread. 40 Variety Justin Chang An initially amusing but fatally overstretched action-comedy that marks a lamer-than-expected big-screen outing for Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele. 40 The Guardian Nigel M Smith If there was a strong enough story to latch the jokes on to, Keanu might have worked. As it stands, it reeks of a grossly underdeveloped sketch extended to feature length.