Briefing-A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier.  They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.

My Take-Talk about a complete film in a lukewarm summer season. Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes is truly electrifying cinema and delivers on the promise of the original, Rise of The Planet of the Apes. This sequel delivers storytelling, action, age old morals and high wire thrilling filmmaking from director Matt Reeves.

I think it would primitive to go ahead and hand an Oscar of some kind to Andy Serkis for his amazing motion capture work as the leader of the apes, Caesar. Look, it’s not as easy as stepping into a green room with a tight speedo outfit on and creating emotion. You have to make it look great and connect all the dots of a character that won’t be finished and fully realized for months after your work is over. Serkis brings Caesar to life through movement, memorable facial expressions and a deep voice that will command your attention when you hear it.

The cast is aces across the deck. I remember the fantastic Jason Clarke from Showtime’s brilliant series Brotherhood, but many will recognize him from Zero Dark Thirty. He plays the everyman here to has to work with the Caesar in bringing order back to the world. Keri Russell is co-starring on the FX hit The Americans right now but she is strong and believable here as the doctor and wife of Clarke’s scientist/researcher. Gary Oldman is the tireless emotionally fried military honcho desperate to end the suffering for his country. After the events of the first film, a virus was unleashed on the human race and much of the population across the world has been wiped out. Women, kids, and families. Before we are quick to label Oldman’s old lion a fatalist, you will respect his reasons and grow a bit closer to him. Reeves and the screenwriting team(Mark Bomback, Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver) do a great job of developing every character and making you feel for them in the 130 minute running time. There’s something unique about a summer action film that dares to be provocative and not just deliver the thrills and leave us alone.

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I like Chris Hemsworth and think the Thor character he portrays is an entertaining one. The man was born to play the part. Chalk him up on the list of men I will say in public is good looking and I had a gun to my head I would smooch to be set free. Hemsworth is a talented actor who slums it as this rather stoic blank slate hero who hopelessly defends his planet, Asgard, and romances Natalie Portman. There could be greater troubles in real life than this man has in these movies.

Here’s the problem. I find the bad guy or bad brother, Tom Hiddleston’s Loki, a lot more interesting than I do Hemsworth’s hulky Thor. It’s not a matter of who is the better actor. It is a matter of the better part and how it’s written. Loki is cool, sly, funny, and cunning. Hiddleston acts the shit out of the part and has fun. Hemsworth is stoic, strong, and lacks a second facial expression. The best parts for Thor are when he smiles like David Ortiz does after a walk off home run after smashing a large monster made out of stone. It’s cool and show a different side to this very serious hero. It’s too bad they happen once or twice a film.

Anthony Hopkins and Rene Russo are back as the mom and pop of this Asgard operation. Idris Elba has one real face to face scene as a noble warrior but otherwise looks funny in a big costume and helmet. Portman is the damsel in distress and Kat Dennings is her sidekick friend who puckers her lips for the entire film.

Thor: The Dark World or as I call it, Thor 2, is just okay. It’s entertaining and funny at times, but it never comes close to the sheer coolness of the Iron Man films or the depth of the Captain America stories. Alan Taylor(known for directing many episodes of The Sopranos) tackled the sequel after Kenneth Branagh handed off the duties from the first film in 2011. While The Dark World is better than that dull fish out of water ride, the end result is still less than appetizing.

This movie is like a chewy steak that looked great on the menu. Colorful characters. Action. Big muscle bound beach blonde lock hair carrying dudes  and bad people trying to steal the world all in one movie and it’s Marvel! Once I cleared my plate, I basically shuck my head and left.

Thor is better off sharing a part of the Avengers movies. Like the Incredible Hulk, they haven’t figured out a way for an entire movie to be complete and great yet. There isn’t enough depth to the character of Thor and I find myself wanting more Loki and less stoic bland blonde Conan. Sorry ladies. It’s all eye candy here.

This was worth the 1.67 at the Redbox near you but it won’t be a film I highly recommend. Save for the final scene of the movie and maybe the bonus credits sequence, it’s kind of forgettable.

Briefing-An acclaimed writer, his ex-wife, and their teenaged children come to terms with the complexities of love in all its forms over the course of one tumultuous year.

Starring Greg Kinnear, Jennifer Connelly, Lily Collins, Nat Wolff, Kristin Bell, Liana Liberato and Logan Lermann.

Written and Directed by Josh Boone

My Take-This movie snuck up on me and knocked me on my ass. When you go searching into the depths of Netflix on a quiet Friday night, a wondrous cinematic experience isn’t on the docket. You are trying to find something to pick up you interest and hold it for a couple hours before you drift away. Stuck in Love floored me and did so because it was sharp and to the point, carried a great cast and a special script.

A movie about writers struggling to figure out the complexities of life and how it’s harder to convert a real moment with a girl in front of you than it is to write about it on a computer. Greg Kinnear is the accomplished novelist who is divorced from his wife and quietly reeling from the split. He spends his days moping around in his robe in a beautiful house off the coast and having guilty pleasure sex with a neighbor. His daughter is getting published for the first time yet stays as far away from true love as possible. The son is figuring how to talk to a girl that makes him hurt inside while searching for his own story. The instant you see these characters, you are convinced they’ve spent their lives together. That’s hard to find movie magic. Kinnear, Collins, and Wolff are excellent here as a complex, disconnected yet passionate family reeling from a few unfortunate events.

Josh Boone directed this film in 2012 from his own script before he was anointed the honor of adapting The Fault In Our Stars(along with Wolff) this summer. Boone seems to have framed the Kinnear character around himself, because famous novelist Raymond Carver is referenced and there are certain lines and moments in the film that seem true to life. The way a Thanksgiving turkey is made. The awkwardness of talking to your ex-wife who hasn’t let go of your heart yet. Connelly is so underappreciated in Hollywood and doesn’t work enough. She can play conflicted emotion with little effort and she’s great here as a mother who can’t reach his kids anymore due to the separation. Collins and Wolff are exceptional in roles that seem one note at first glance yet seem to develop as the running time climbs. Logan Lerman(Perks of Being a Wallflower) is very good in a smaller role as a fellow writer who makes a run for Collins.

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Ladies, eat your damn heart out! The Fifty Shades of Grey trailer is here and only gives a hint of the freaky naughty activity that will going on inside this film. Husbands and boyfriends across the world, think of this as a field trip without the name tags. You will accompany your wife to the film, and for once, won’t be subjected to boring melodrama that exists in the standard romantic dramas. This isn’t Nicholas Sparks. This is Real Sex Meets Pretty Woman with extra nudity. Let me run over the plot very quickly.

Innocent young bookworm Annabelle Steele(Dakota Johnson) meets Christian Grey(Jamie Dornan) and before you can check your watch, an attraction is built and manifested between the two people. She looks into those dreamy eyes and has no idea a certain brand of freak lies behind them. They have lots of sex. Talk a bit. Have more sex. Parents and siblings come into play. They probably have more sex after that. There is no distraction. If director Sam Taylor Johnson is smart she will stick to the sex and don’t disappoint in that area. I don’t mean to sound crude, but fans of the book didn’t read this thing for the intimate lovely fairy tale. They escaped to it for the erotic nature of the content. Anybody can write a boring sex novel about a playboy who toys around with a sweet young girl but very few can turn this story into something that sells 100 MILLION COPIES IN STORES!

Dornan and Johnson are relatively new and will be good for the roles because all you will associate them with is Annabelle and Christian. There is no need for Henry Cavill because he is superman. There is no need for Emilia Clarke because she is Queen of Dragons. In order to fully digest this wicked sex drama, all bets must be off once you enter the theater.

Expectations for this film have to be modest. Fans of the book must know that filmmakers can only go so far before they abandon the casual moviegoer. Money must be made if the rest of the series is to see the light of day at the cinema so don’t be disappointed if a few anal sex scenes and extreme parts of the book are left up to the imagination. I do see a hard R rating coming on here but nothing more than that. Fans of the book probably wished the film was made in Europe by an indie filmmaker who could go all out and show everything. That is not the case.

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