A Time to Kill

I enjoy film's from the 90's. The movie's from the 90's usually tell much better stories then newer ones. This is no exception, A Time to Kill is a classic. 

This film is an adaptation of John Grisham's novel, A Time to Kill. 

The story is set in Canton, Mississippi, and begins with two young, racist, redneck's raping a ten-year old black girl. The little girl, Tonya Hailey, is found and immediately taken to the hospital. Tonya's father, Carl Lee Hailey (Samuel L. Jackson), is enraged and plans to take the law into his own hands. While the two boys are being escorted up the courthouse staircase, Carl Lee comes from the building's basement with an assault rifle. He then opens fire, shooting and killing both of the men who raped and attempted to murder his virgin daughter. In the midst of Carl's rampage, he winds up accidently wounding deputy Dwayne Powell Looney (Chris Cooper), who he happened to grow up with. The deputy lives, but they doctor ends up amputating his leg below the knee. Carl is arrested at his home later that evening and driven to the police station. He then persuades Jake Brigance (Matthew McConaughey), an ambitious, young attorney to take on his case for minimal pay. Jake's opposition, District Attorney Rufus Buckley, (Kevin Spacey) makes light of the case; assuming it would be an easy victory. While preparing for trial, Jake's family and friends are threatened by the KKK several times. They burn crosses in front lawns, burn Jake's house to the ground and left Jake's brilliant assistant tied up(Sandra Bullock) to die. At the end of the trial and after a long and uncomfortable road, Carl Lee is proven not guilty by an all white jury. 

This flick is an emotional roller coaster, I found it a bit hard to swallow at times. It was directed by Joel Schumacher (8 Millimeter & The Number 23). The crime-thriller runs about two and a half hours and leaves you completely satisfied in the end. It's rated R for some violence and some graphic language. 

In closing, this is not a film to rent. After watching it once, surely you will want to see it a second or even third time. A must have DVD for any collection. I suggest going to your favorite movie house and purchasing this on DVD. I got my copy for under 10 bucks; best ten dollars I've spent in a long time. You will not be disappointed. 

Eastern Promises

I had the opportunity to see Eastern Promises a bit before it dropped on DVD. I briefly remember watching the trailer a few months back and I left wanting more. 

The film was directed by David Cronenberg (A History of Violence) and had a limited release this past September in the US. This crime-thriller was nominated for three Golden Globe Awards and won three others. 

Viggo Mortensen (A History of Violence, Lord of the Rings)  plays Nikolai, a furtive driver for one of London's most notorious organized crime families. He stands along side Kirill, french born Vincent Cassel (Oceans 12 & 13, Derailed), the arrogant, spoiled  son of the family boss. Kirill's involvement in Vory V Zakone crime family is well documented in the diary of a fourteen year old girl, Tatiana ; who dies giving birth to a baby girl. Anna, the wid-wife who helped deliver the baby, played by Naomi Watts (King Kong, 21 Grams, The Ring 1 & 2) takes the little girl in. She gives her a name, Christina, and eventually ends up keeping her. The movie revolves around Tatiana's diary and the chance that it might find it's way to the police. The head of the family, Semyon, played by Armin Mueller-Stahl (The Game, The West Wing TV series), takes the initiative to save his sons life by burning the only copy of the diary and clearing his name. 

It's got a nice side story to go along with the more obvious dilemma of the diary. The final twist at the end of the film is incredible, leaving you completely stunned this happened right in front of you. It's a bit graphic, some nudity and a viable amount of dirty words. Who doesn't love that, right? 

If you enjoyed A History of Violence, you will definately enjoy this one. It runs about 100 minutes and is rated R for brutal and bloody violence, some graphic sexuality, nudity and the naughty words. Bottom line, the acting was great, the story was interesting and it's got an overwealming amount of female Russian accents. Which always happened to turn me on. 

Technorati Post

Technorati Profile

Trade - Review

The film I've decided to review tonight is, Trade, directed by Marco Kreuzpaintner. The story written by Peter Landesman and screenplay done by Jose Rivera. 

First things first, when I sat down to watch Trade I wasn't quite prepared for what lied ahead of me. To begin with I was expecting a poorly written, directed and subtitled film. So it's safe to say my expectations were low right from the gun. What I wasn't expecting was a gripping, emotional and totally mind blowing crime thriller. 

It's fair to say that most wouldn't expect much from a relatively unknown director with mediocre acting. However, to my surprise it was a emotional roller coaster, full of ups and downs. Well, more downs then ups but thats beside the point. From the first scene to the last, it was nothing short of incredible. I found the entire thing somewhat hard to stomach, due to it's unbelievably realistic approach. No fancy CGI, no extremely well known actors or actresses... just a well written story and a director who obviously knew what he wanted.

Bottom line, this is one not to be overlooked at your local Blockbuster. Don't let the talent fool you, they did an incredible job. Nominated for two awards, this film will surely not let you down. 

At just under two hours in length and rated R, for sexual encounters with a minor... I rate this film a 8.5 out of 10.