The Assassin

A 2015 released Chinese film that follows the story of a young assassin. She was sent to a monastery as a child and trained to be one of the best assassins. But while her skills and technique are unrivaled, her mentor questions her resolve. While I have not seen any Terrence Malick films, my preconceived notion about what his films look and feel like were manifested here. The film is set in 9th century China during a transition from the strength of an imperial dynasty to provincial independence. Our assassin has an assignment. While the story is strong, the presentation is lots of extended pans from a tree, across a lake, to another tree. It felt like B-roll of scenery. Or an actor close-up, a line delivered, and a 20 second silent pull out. It elevated the landscape and characters to a position above the story/plot. So beautiful, arty, slow. But the gravitas of the characters dilemma did not require this much time for the viewer to contemplate or struggle. 

2 stars (out of 5)

Beyond the Edge

A con-artist and high end gambler is just wrapping up a job that he has been setting up for 3 months. He is about to walk out of a game with 5 million euro. And his cards change before his eyes? And now he is discovered, his "earnings" walk out the door with another man, and he has 1 week to pay back the bill. To do so, he joins forces with some supernatural talent, who also happen to be individuals needing social guidance. The team is set. We get to follow this team through training, the development of the next con, implementation and failure and ... no spoilers here. Really this is a pretty fun con film with a plot device (the supernatural thing) that doesn't really get in the way or become the focus of the entertainment. It is a tool that is used to achieve an end. 

3 stars (out of 5)

The Adventurers

A wizard of the high end heist has just been released from jail and is immediately planning his next job. Mostly he is working to steal all three pieces of GAIA, a series of jewels that when put together form a priceless neckless set. In parallel, he is working to find out who double-crossed him and sent him to jail in the first place. And finally, he is pursued by a french detective who has been on his tail for years. In my viewing, this is a near perfect heist film. We see the planning and the execution of several jobs. We have the team chemistry factor that adds an element of unknown and humor into the story. We have the police, who are competent, but always just "not quite". And then the overriding plot that requires a few twists. Well done.

4 stars (out of 5) 

Kareem: Minority of One

Documentary on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Tells the story of his development as a basketball player and becoming the NBA all-time leading scorer. Since Kareem was involved, we get interviews with him and his perspective now that are juxtaposed with his on-camera persona throughout his career. It is a fascinating and interesting telling of the story of his basketball life. I wish that we could have delved into his life as an activist and writer post-basketball, but maybe that is needing its own 90 minutes.

4 stars (out of 5)

Pieces of April

Some films just need to be watched over and over, and they are good every time. This is one of those for me this decade (see original review).

5 stars (out of 5)

The Life Ahead

A Spanish film that follows Rosa, an aging former-prostitute, as she takes in kids of current prostitutes to help keep them off the street. The kid of interest is Momo, a Senegalese orphan who just needs something to care about and someone to care about him. Rosa and Momo both grow to need each other and find themselves saving each other. Even though formulaic and time-forced (not enough time passed to develop the depth of relationship we see), this is still a worthwhile watch. Reminded me in look and feel to Monsieur Ibrahim, which I vaguely remember to be better.

4 stars (out of 5)

Hard Kill

Full disclosure: I only saw the first 20 minutes. This is supposed to be an action thriller. My expectation for a 2nd tier action thriller is that is relies on the action. This spent the first 20 minutes "setting the story" with back story and character motivation and plot development. All with horribly pedestrian dialogue. I just couldn't even stick with it to get to any action.

1 star (out of 5)

The Queen's Gambit (serial)

A pretty fabulous limited series following a young chess prodigy in the late 1960's. Beth is an orphan who, while she learns chess from the janitor, is quite mentally disposed to solving the problems and seeing the logic of the game. As she grows into the game, she also learns to lean on a crutch of drugs to "loosen her mind" and escape fully into the game. The story pushes us to again see the struggles of being a woman in the 60's, of fighting for identity as a teen, of battling addiction, and of the long road of self-discovery. At times dark, but always good.

5 stars (out of 5)

The Courier

 A courier is a former special ops, got out of the business type of girl who discovers that something she is courier-ing is actually a bomb. She helps the intended target escape and draws the unwanted attention of a crazy crime-lord. This is not a good movie. It plays as a combination of The Transporter with the evil crime-lord opponent on a level of the Washington Generals. Just not good enough.

2 stars (out of 5)

Momentum

Olga Kurylenko is a member of a heist team that steals some diamonds from a super high tech bank. During the heist, her face is shown to some witnesses and she needs to get out of Dodge. On the way out, she and her team discover that the diamonds they stole came with a device that has implications for world peace, and the owner (a U.S. Senator) wants it back. With this premise, the storyline is really about Kurylenko being a badass operative who is always one step ahead. While you may not be exactly sure what she is planning, I appreciate that we know she will succeed, and that her plans are not fantastical, but are just clever enough to be realistic and fun.

3 stars (out of 5)

Mile 22

Mark Wahlberg is a special operator in the Overwatch program (that doesn't exist of course). He is the best at what he does, and is a product of personal trauma at a young age, so everyone is worried if he will go over the edge. His current assignment is to deliver a defector from a South American country to an extraction plane while every hired gun in the country is trying to stop him. Sometimes filmmakers drop hints throughout a storyline so that afterwards you say "wow, I should have seen that coming but I didn't... cool". Other times, they openly foreshadow so that you can see what is coming and enjoy the development, as an insider for the reveal to the characters. The problem in this case is that we aren't sure which it is. The story plays out, and the big surprise at the end is revealed, as if it should be a big surprise. But it isn't, and it isn't slowly revealed intentionally for me to gain the satisfaction of knowing more than the character. 

2 stars (out of 5)

The Good Witch (serial)

 5 seasons

A Hallmark TV series set in the small town of Middleton. In many ways this is classic, feel-good TV. Cassie Nightingale is the key figure who "has feelings" about things, with the unofficial nod being that she is magical. Sort of a Gilmore Girls meets Once Upon a Time. What is kind of fun is that the magic is never explicit throughout the entire series. Just a feeling here, and a suggestion there to make everything alright for those around her. Charming and pleasant. Only by the end does the knowing smile, or the friendly head tilt get wearing. And the cheesy acting is balanced by just enough quirky town characters to make this an easy diversion. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Holidate

OMG, this is awful. Two single people meet by chance, agree to be each others date for holiday events that need a plus one. They meet up for 10 or so different events, with the movie trying to show a natural chemistry develop, so that they can realize that they are perfect for each other. I couldn't...

1 star (out of 5)

Colombiana

Zoe Saldana is a traumatized young woman who, as a child, watched her Colombian drug cartel participating parents get killed. From that minute, she set her path to become a killer and rain death and vengeance on the cartel boss. She becomes a fabulous assassin with training from her Chicago based uncle and works her way through a series of low level cartel members to attract the attention of the boss, drawing him out from his protective status as a CIA informant. She is subtle, precise and focused in her work which (unfortunately, because she is an assassin) makes it fun to watch. She suffers great loss again and again, and in the end (as we all know) probably does not find satisfaction, even having gained what she sought.

3 stars (out of 5)

Underworld: Blood Wars

 In this final entry, Selene's daughter is hidden way - inaccessible with her fabulous blood. Marius is a new and powerful Lycan seeking the blood (since he has had a taste of it from Michael) and his plan is to destroy all vampires to get it. Which moves the story to the arctic north and a battle with the pacifist vampires who have retreated there. Um...

2 stars (out of 5)

Underworld: Awakening

Set 12 years in the future, we open to Selene being awaken from a frozen prison in some sort of high tech lab. She escapes (of course) and finds that she has some strange connection with another escaped prisoner. Her daughter (she didn't know she had). Right at the last minute, before departing the lab she sees yet another frozen specimen and triggers that persons escape. The hint is that it might be Michael. Turns out that Selene's daughter has special blood like Michael and is therefore in high demand. In addition, humans now know about vampires and Lycans, so add the humans-want-to-kill-us storyline. This seems a little bit like a reboot - using the bare structure of the Underworld world.

3 stars (out of 5)

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans

Episode 3 is an origin story of the Lycan/Vampire feud. No Kate Bekinsale/Selene here, but marginally interesting as a backstory film. Reveals some of the history to justify the actions in the first two movies, but does nothing to motivate (as we will see later) the future of the storyline. 

2 stars (out of 5)