IMAGINE THAT

Plot:

Eddie Murphy plays Evan, a high powered financial advisor that is in competition with co worker Johnny Whitefeather (Church) for the job of their resigning boss. The week that they are to provide presentations that will decide whether he gets the job, he must look after his daughter Olivia (Shahidi) who has a strong attachment to a blanket that allows her to talk to imaginary friends (due to the lack of attention from her father). When sHe draws and paste glitter on his work that he must present to his boss because she says her pretend friends told her to, he goes berserk and is expecting to get fired until his boss tells him that his projections were right on point with what see place on his assignment. He then begins to spend time with Olivia and her imaginary friends who continue to help him make successful projections for his job until he becomes obobsessedith the blanket himself.

Reel Talk:

This is the second movie (first being Meet Dave) that my assumption of Eddie Murphy was like what are you doing because most of his kid movies bomb. But just like Meet Dave which did bomb, this was a decent family movie. While Murphy's performance was a combination of a bunch of character roles from some of his past movies, his co-star Yara Shahidi who plays Olivia was so charming that you just gotta love her. Thomas Haden Church as Whitefeather was hilarious and the scene where he is with his son is insanely funny.
Overall this is a good family movie and should have been promoted around Father's Day. But now Eddie please get back to making successful action movies.

Starring: Eddie Murphy, Yara Shahidi, Thomas Haden Church and Nicole Ari Parker
Directed by: Karey Kirk Patrick
Rated: PG

I give it 3 corn dogs

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler

THE TAKING OF PELHAM 123

Plot:

In this remake of the 1974 film The Taking Of Pelham 123 , Denzel Washington plays transit coordinator Walter Garber who is under investigation for bribery charges. While working as the chief dispatcher for the subways he receives a call from someone who calls himself Ryder (Travolta) who has taken hostages on the train Pelham 123. Demanding that the Mayor (Gandolfini) fork over 10 millions or he along with his three assistants will begin killing the hostages. Ryder, enjoying the conversations with Garber, eventually demands that Garber brings the money down to the subway to him as chief negotiator Camonetti (Turturro) try to figure a way to foil the gangs criminal intent.

Reel Talk:

Director Tony Scott who is no stranger to action thrillers and who has worked with Denzel on a few films, brought his masterful touch to this remake. The action is intense and with the combination of Washington and Travolta, this is a good movie. Travolta being the great actor he is, seems to really put in his best work a villain He has played several bad guy roles and he does not hold back in this portrayal as Ryder. Luis Guzman as henchman Phil Ramos is always a character that will provide a few laughs.This is a good action thriller with a great cast. I just caught the original version with Walter Matthau and it was also good but it will help you appreciate the more updated remake.

Starring: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, Luis Guzman, John Turturro and James Gandolfini
Directed by: Tony Scott
Rated: R

I give it 4 corn dogs

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler

THE HANGOVER

Plot:

When Phil (Cooper) and Stu (Helms) arrange to take their buddy Doug (Bartha) to Vegas for his last few days as a single man and they invite Doug's soon to be weird brother in-law Alan (Galifianakis), little do they know that they are in for one wild adventure. They set out on the road trip in a classic customized Mercedes Benz loaned to them by Doug's future father in-law with instructions that Doug be the only driver. Upon their arrival to Vegas the guys toast and take a drug given to them by Alan that they believe is Ecstasy but is instead a memory loss drug. They wake up the next morning and their luxurious expensive suite is a wreck, hookers are leaving, there is a tiger in the bathroom and Doug is missing and they have no recollection of what took place. The trio set out to backtrack to try and figure out what happened and how to find their friend. But they run into the most craziest circumstances along the way from Chinese gangsters to Mike Tyson that impedes them from finding Doug, so that they can make the wedding on time.

Reel Talk:

The Hangover is the funniest movie so far this year. I thought it was going to be a cheesy corny comedy but I was truly surprised. It will have you laughing pretty much the entire movie. And Zach Galifianakis as Alan will have you rolling with laughter as he plays the idiot role to the max as well as Ken Jeong as Mr. Chow, they are the most hilarious characters in the film. And of course the cameo appearance of Mike Tyson is funny as hell.
This is a must see hilarious movie that will have you leaving feeling good and ready to take a flight to Vegas.

Starring: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Justin Bartha, heather Graham, Ken Jeong and Mike Tyson
Directed by: Todd Phillips
Rated: R

I give it 5 corn dogs and a soda

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler

THE BROTHERS BLOOM

Plot:

Two alienated orphaned brothers Stephen (Ruffalo) and Bloom (Brody), who only got the love for each other between them, set out to become the ultimate con men.But as they become older, the younger brother Bloom longs for the one thing he always wanted which is to be loved by a woman, so he sets out on his own, seeking to find his way. Stephen the older of the two, along with his new sidekick Bang Bang (Kikuchi) , seek out his brother to help him with what he calls theirs last big score. The mark is an eccentric young rich girl named Penelope (Weisz) who has been sheltered for many years, so when she takes up with the crew she falls right into the con, but things become complicated when Bloom and Penelope fall in love with each other and the brothers are being tracked by one of their former mentors, Diamond Dog (Schell), who is trying to kill them.

Reel Talk:

Although this film falls short of being a great con movie like such classics - The Sting, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Diggstown and even Heartbreakers, it was still an ok movie. It's the characters that holds your interest in the movie, not all of them just a few. Like Mark Ruffalo as the card dwindling con artist, his charm works for the mindless scheme that is hashed out and then Rinko Kikuchi as Bang Bang, the explosive happy mute Asian woman, who although her parts were not big, but they are very impressive. Brody's laid back, ho-hum attitude fits the role for his character where as Weisz performance was drab. The Brothers Bloom falls short on the con but is a good brotherly love film at best.

Starring: Rachel Weisz, Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo, Rinko Kikuchi and Maximillian Schell
Directed by: Rian Johnson
Rated: PG-13

I give it 2 corn dogs

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler

DRAG ME TO HELL

Plot:

Christine Brown (Lohman) is one of two people being considered for an assistant manager position at the bank that she works at. Having been told that she is not aggressive enough and is afraid to make the tough calls by her boss, she sets out to prove him wrong by denying an elderly Mrs. Ganus (Raver) another extension on her mortgage loan, forcing her to plead and beg Christine so that she wont be evicted from the home. Christine continues to deny her causing the older women to place a curse on the banker that will send a soul taking demon after her within three days. Christine along with her non-believing boyfriend Clay (Long) are soon tormented for the three days leading up to her demise, searching for options in avoiding the visit from the demon, including attending a ritual that is suppose to drive it back to hell without her soul.

Reel Talk:

Ok I'm still one of the biggest advocates for a good scary movie, so going into the screening for this movie I didn't know what to expect because the trailers were pretty exciting and it was directed by Sam Raimi (the Evil Dead series, Dark Man and the dark Spider-Man 3, just to name a few of his classics). Well although my void still has not been filled, Drag Me To Hell was an entertaining film. It's not scary at all, but offers more grossed out scenes that may turn a stomach or two. The story was so predictable that it left no room for the surprise element of fear. Still it made for a decent movie, that will simmer die hard horror fans' blood, but not boil it.

Starring: Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Lorna Raver, Dileep Rao and David Paymer
Directed by: Sam Raimi
Rated: PG-13

I give it 3 corn dogs

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler

ANGELS AND DEMONS

Plot:

In this follow up film to The Da Vinci Code Tom Hanks reprises his role as Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon who has been recruited by the Vatican to assist in solving mysterious events surrounding the death of the Pope and the stalling of the conclave to assign the successor to the position. With all the possible clues indicating that the demised underground organization The Illuminati has resurfaced and has kidnapped 4 priests, threatening to kill them one at a time on the hour starting at 8pm and the complete destruction of the Vatican by 12am. Langdon must also team up with scientist Vittoria Vetra (Zurer) who is searching for the stolen powerful anti-matter that will be used to blow up the Holy City. The two are taken on a wild chase, following clue after clue so that they can prevent the disastrous events from taking place.

Reel Talk:

Ron Howard, the producer and director for this film did a much better job of putting this thriller together than his previous effort with The Da Vinci Code. Even the story was a lot more believable than it's predecessor. Tom Hanks as the ever so clever Langford, well it's not much to say, he is Tom Hanks. Ewan McGregor puts in a solid performance as Camerlengo Patrick Mckenna, serving as the interim until the conclave picks the new Pope, as well as Stellan Skarsgard portraying the clueless head of the Swiss Guard. If you read the book or you are one that's intrigued by Biblical mysteries than you'll really get into this movie, but others may get lost along the way trying to follow Langdon on his quest to save the Vatican.

Starring: Tom Hanks, Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, Stellan Skarsgard and Armin Mueller-Stahl
Directed by: Ron Howard
Rated: PG-13

I give it 3 corn dogs

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustle

NEXT DAY AIR

Plot:

Donald Faison plays Leo, a disgruntle worker for NDA or Next Day Air (a spoof of of UPS). His mother Ms. Jackson (Allen) who runs the company is just about to fire him because of the constant complaints she is receiving about him delivering packages smelling like weed, until she gives in to his persistent begging to maintain his job. After being given another chance he turns around and starts right back to smoking weed and hanging out with fellow co-worker Eric (Mos Def) who cracks open packages helping himself to valuable items. After getting so high he delivers a package of drugs that was sent from Puerto Rico by drug kingpin Bodega (Rivera) to the wrong apartment in Philadelphia, whose residents happen to be a couple of wanna be thugs who are looking for a come up. The thugs, Guch (Harris) and Brody (Epps) can't believe their unexpectant gift and so they contact Brody's drug dealing cousin Shavoo (Hardwick) and his henchman who is only known as Buddy (McCrary) to to sell the product to them. Eventually the Puerto Rican drug dealers search for Leo in an attempt to retrieve their drugs from the apartment that he mistakenly drop the packaged off at.

Reel Talk:

Next Day Air, being Benny Boom's (famously known for directing videos for major rappers) first major film directorial, he comes out smoking in this gritty tale of money, greed, drugs and death. In a interview I had with comedian Mike Epps, he mentioned that he felt this movie was a little dark and he was concerned would his audience accept him for doing something different like this, because people are use to seeing him being funny, being the comic relief. Although this might be a twist from some of his other movies, he still makes his presence known, in a comedic way. But who I felt was the scene stealer, thou his part was small, was Mos Def, he is truly underrated as an actor. Now don't think that because this is a dark, gritty film that's its not good. It is actually a good and interesting movie, it will keep your attention. All the characters blended well also which helps in making this film work.

Starring: Donald Faison, Mike Epps, Mos Def, Wood Harris, Omari Hardwick, Emilio Rivera, Darius McCrary, Cisco Reyes, Debbie Allen and Lauren London
Directed By: Benny Boom
Rated: R

I give it 4 corn dogs

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler

STAR TREK

Plot:

In this adaptation of Star Trek which is directed by acclaimed director J.J. Abrams, it chronicles the orgin of James T. Kirk (Pine), a rebel who thrives on trouble and danger. But when a captain from Star Fleet, who was a big admirer of Jame's dad who sacrificed his life to save the lives of his entire crew while under attack, encounters the youngster and encourages him to apply to the academy sensing he has what it takes to be a captain. Once he is accepted, it begins his quest to become the captain of the USS Enterprise along with fellow enlisted crew members Spock (Quinton), Dr. "Bones" McCoy (Urban), Uhura (Saldana), Scotty (Peg), Mr. Sulu (Cho) and Pavel Chekov (Yelchin), who set out to stop the crazed Romulan captain Nero (Bana), who has a weapon that can devour an entire planet. Being their first assignment, they are put in the most dangerous situations possible, all while they must learn what it is to be a team and the value of being friends.

Reel Talk:

Other than watching the Star Trek series as a kid (only because television shows were limited back then - damn am I telling my age?), I never got into the Star Trek movies that followed. Just didn't seem too appealing to me I guess. But it was something about the trailers for the newest one that had me interested. And can I say I was not disappointed. I like the fact that it takes you to the beginning of the very existence of the would be captain and how the crew was formed , identifying with the characters that we came to love throughout the series, even down to some of the famous quotes. It also brings Leonard Nimoy back reprising his role as Spock in the future (I heard William Shatner was upset he wasn't in it), helping the young Jim save his planet.It took me awhile to realize that Eric Bana was the evil Nero, because his make-up was applied well for his role. I really enjoyed this movie, it is full of action and gives a few laughs too. J.J. Abrams did an excellent job directing what is sure to be one of this year's blockbusters. A must see!!!

Star: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinton, Eric Bana, Leonard Nimoy, Bruce Greenwood, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Peg, John Cho and Anton Yelchin
Directed By: J.J. Abrams
Rated: PG-13

I give it 5 corndogs & a soda on the side

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler

Evan Williams of Twitter @ TED Conference: What is your Side Project?

Interesting talk by Evan Williams of Twitter at the TED Conference where he talks about the unexpected uses of Twitter. The success of Twitter has been chronicled as it has hit the mainstream media. At this point in my life I couldn’t imagine going through the day without my laptop or blackberry to check the pulse of the world through the eyes of the Twitter community.What grabbed me the most about his talk was the fact that Twitter started off as a side project. The first word that comes to mind after watching the video is the word GRUSTLE.

GRUSTLE is the combination of a daily Grind (job) and a Hustle (your passion) and most people are caught between the two. Most peoples side project is their passion, which I believe fuels their success.

The average person is one side project away from their greatness. What side project are you working on?

FAST AND FURIOUS

Plot:

Having been reinstated back into law enforcement, Brian O' Connor (Walker) hits the streets trying to get a lead on the suppler of a major drug trafficker that uses supercharged cars to make the run from Mexico to LA. But what he didn't count on was crossing paths with his former target turn friend Dominic Toretto (Diesel) who is in town trying to find the one responsible for the death of his friend. Soon realizing that they are both after the same person they must work together, infiltrating the fast car driving drug dealing organization. With Brian trying not to be discovered and Dominic a fugitive, is trying not to get caught and the only person they can truly trust is Mia (Brewster) - Dominic's sister and Brian's ex-lover.

Reel Talk:

Wow it took Vin Diesel 8 years to finally decide to return to the character he portrayed in the first installment of The Fast And Furious series. In this film it brings back the original cast mates Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriquez and Jordana Brewster. Then you got John Ortiz who plays the drug dealing Campos and a cameo appearance from Detroit's own Brandon T. Jackson. You also got the turbo charged cars , rev-ed up and roaring across the screen. But none of these elements could save this movie. The story was so cheesy and the acting so corny that the fast paced auto scenes just didn't seem to matter. There was so much anticipation for this movie, but after seeing this one I wonder, is it a wrap for any other follow up Fast movies? Muscle car junkies may like it for the auto action stunts but that's about it.

Starring: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, Michelle Rodriquez, John Ortiz and Brandon T. Jackson
Directed by: Justin Lin
Rated: PG-13

I give it 2 and a half eaten corn dogs

By: Corndog - The Reel Hustler