The Lincoln Lawyer

Lincoln Lawyer is a thrilling drama about a cocky and smooth defense attorney Mick Haller, played by McConaughey, who represents a high-profile client on charges of attempted murder. But as new evidence continues to pile on, Mick starts to grow suspicious that perhaps his client isn't telling him everything. With twists and turns at every corner, Lincoln Lawyer keeps you guessing till the very end.

With the help of that distinct country voice and southern charm, McConaughey takes the movie to another level with this portrayal of the fast-talking lawyer. With the role of Mick, McConaughey is actually given a chance to show off a range of emotions that will truly surprise viewers. Mcconaughey doesn't carry this alone, Lincoln Lawyer gets some great acting from the likes of William H. Macy, Michael Pena, John Leguizamo, Josh Lucas, and Marisa Tomei. The only black sheep of his movie comes from the alleged murderer Louis Roulet, played by the ever wooden Ryan Phillippe. The only thing I find amazing from Phillippe's attempt at acting is his unique talent to deliver every line of dialogue without moving a single muscle on his face.
The tension and intensity that begins to engulf Mike as the case continues is stellar. Lincoln Lawyer really pushes Mike to edge as his whole world becomes begins to collapse due to his Attorney-Client relationship. This is where Lincoln Lawyer really comes alive and delivers a must see movie experience. The court room scenes are some of my favorite scenes in the movie and there are plenty. The approach they took to portraying the lawyer aspect of the film feels accurate and realistic. The plot is solid and keeps you invested right from the beginning and keeps the grip tight throughout the movie. The movie keeps a good pacing and the dialogue is smart and witty. The film's color and camera work gives a very raw feel although at times it can be a little too unstable. The story and characterization is done well but there are a few things that should have been given more focus, like Mike and Maggie's relationship and more insight as to why they got divorced. The movie touches on the idea with a scene or two but never really reveals too much. We also never really get too much on Mike's relationship with his daughter. My biggest problem with the film was the underwhelming ending that really had everything necessary to end the movie with, but still felt lackluster when it came. However, don't let these few problems sway you. I strongly recommend this film and promise you that you will leave satisfied.

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Salt

Storyline 

Evelyn Salt is a CIA agent and highly respected by all, including her boss, Ted Winter. Out of the blue, a Russian spy walks into their offices and offers a vital piece of information: the President of Russia will be assassinated during his forthcoming visit to New York City to attend the funeral of the recently deceased U.S. Vice President. The name of the assassin: Evelyn Salt. Concerned about the safety of her husband, who she cannot contact, she goes on the run. Winter refuses to accept that she is a mole or a double agent but her actions begin to raise doubts. Just who is Evelyn Salt and what is she planning? 

Review 

Salt claims this is absurd, but seeing the looks on the faces of her boss (Liev Schreiber) and Secret Agent Peabody (Chiwetel Ejiofor), Salt realizes that they are going to keep her at the agency and question her. Desperate to reach her husband for fear he's been liquidated, Salt breaks out and escapes. What follows is a breathless chase that has Salt scaling buildings from the outside, jumping onto trucks, blowing up offices, and killing.

Directed by Phillip Noyce and written by Kurt Wimmer, this is an incredible action film on the same level as one of the "Bourne" movies, done at a lightning fast pace. Jolie, who did most of her own stunts, is remarkable as a tough, clever, resourceful, and athletic agent.

The film moves so quickly that one is tempted to overlook some of the plot holes. If I like a movie, as I did here, I let them slide, as I will now, but I need to point them out because they're pretty glaring. The first one is, how is it possible that the CIA, for corn's sake, has no idea that Orlov, the spy who wants to defect, has a knife hidden in his shoe? The second one is far worse -- when Peabody tells Salt that no one will believe her story of what happened in the activation room, one wonders how this is possible. There are cameras in the hallways, the elevators, in the deepest recesses, yet in a room where an activating device for a nuclear attack is located, and where the President of the United States has to be to put in the code -- no cameras? No way to see what went on? Please! I'm sure there are others, and I realize the entire story is preposterous, but for me, this was a little too much dramatic license. I did love it, and I can't wait for the sequel. I hope there is one.

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The Tourist

Storyline 

Elise (Angelina Jolie) sits next to an American tourist, Frank (Johnny Depp), on a train going to Venice. She has chosen him as a decoy, making believe that he is her lover who is wanted by police. Not only will they need to evade the police, but also the mobster whose money her lover stole. 

Review 

The Tourist stars Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp in what appears to be a very promising plot. Jolie plays Elise, a beautiful and mysterious woman who ensnares spy-fiction fan Frank Tupelo (Depp) into his very own web of international crime and intrigue. Under the orders of Chief Inspector Jones (Timothy Dalton) Scotland Yard's John Acheson played by Paul Bettany (The Da Vinci Code, A Beautiful Mind) tries his best to keep up Elise and the man he believes she is connected to…Alexander Pearce.

For what sounds like a fantastic plot on paper, the execution of it all leaves a little something to be desired. Perhaps the problem is with expectations. As stated before, the premise and the trailer and two actors who typically take on fairly meaty roles suggests that The Tourist would at least have hints of substance, instead the audience is left with a beautiful and…fun movie that is essentially summer action fluff – think The Italian Job meets Knight and Day.

The problems with the film almost assuredly were the result of apparently several casting and directorial issues during pre-production. Depp's role was reportedly originally slated for Tom Cruise, who was replaced by Sam Worthington who dropped out over "creative differences" and ultimately was replaces by Johnny Depp. Angelina Jolie's character was also apparently intended for someone else…none other than Academy Award winning actress Charlize Theron. The director, German born - Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (Director of the Academy Award winning film The Lives of Others) also was a replacement and who he himself dropped out at one point, only to resume his directorial role later on. It seems that for whatever reason, no one wanted to be a part of this film.

The Tourist certainly has its strong points. The visuals are simply stunning, whether that describes the beautiful European vistas, lavish homes and hotels or the lead actors, there is definitely eye candy everywhere. The action scenes are exciting and even the dialogue has some charm. However it seems that for every peak there is a valley. The Tourist like its pre-production story seems to have a bit of an identity crisis. At times the film feels intense and brooding, other times it feels like a carefree romp through the waterways of Venice. The dialogue and script have their moments of wit and charm while other parts feel like a reject Bond script. The Tourist is by no means a perfect film, however going in with realistic expectations; it may be just the way to end your night or your week.

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Wanted

Storyline 

A young man finds out his long lost father is an assassin. When his father is murdered, the son is recruited into his father's old organization and trained by a man named Sloan to follow in his dad's footsteps. 

Review 

Basically we're in a world of superhero assassins where their abilities are right out of The Matrix. The film borrows heavily from things like Bulletproof Monk (I don't actually think there's a single original idea in the whole movie) and viewers are expecting to suspend way too much belief.

The film has too much action (yes, you read that right! Too much!) and suffers in the same way Bad Boys 2 did, just having action scenes for the sake of it because there was no plot or script to follow so they'd just engineer an action sequence for no reason at all than seeing the hero or the other assassins use their magical powers.

We're following Wesley Gibson, a nobody who is dragged into the world of the assassins and trains to become one to kill the man who killed his father. Except thats not the case, the man he kills IS his father and the guy in charge of the assassins (Morgan Freeman in possibly his worst movie role ever) has started to create targets for his own profit.

The film is truly awful, ignore the plot because it's nonexistent. Enjoy looking at Fox (Angelina Jolie) until she decides to kill herself near the end of the film. Terrance Stamp is woefully underused & his character could have done much more.

If you can ignore the ridiculous special effects, CGI and over the top action sequences then you might get a bit of pleasure from watching this. Personally I hated it and if you've seen the trailers then you've seen the best bits of the movie as it really doesn't get any better than the trailer.

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Changeling

Storyline 

Los Angeles, 1928. A single mother returns from work to find her nine-year-old son gone. She calls the LAPD to initiate a search. Five months later, a boy is found in Illinois who fits the description; he says he's her son. To fanfare and photos, the LAPD reunite mother and son, but she insists he's not her boy. The cops dismiss her as either a liar or hysterical. When she joins a minister in his public criticism of the police, they in turn use government power to silence and intimidate her. Meanwhile, a cop goes to a dilapidated ranch to find a Canadian lad who's without legal status; the youth tells a grisly tale. There's redress for murder; is there redress for abuse of power? 

Review 

Eastwood has paved the way to acting honors for Penn, Freeman, Swank, Hackman, and others that were continuously ignored by the Academy. There is no denying the power of their performances in Eastwood's movies, and that leads to the center of this film: Jolie. I read recently that her performance has been attacked as being affected and the attempt of a star to look normal. Putting aside those silly and biased remarks, let's state something clearly, the lady has given us a fantastic tour de force, proving that she can be both a star when looking at the other cameras, but that when she is working for a director, she gives her best, regardless of what our perception of her private life might be. If you are a critic with a personal disapproval of that persona, keep it to yourself, concentrate on the film and the work of the performer.

As the mother who desperately wants the truth about her child, Angelina is flawless. We can read the pain in her eyes, the determination and the disturbing reality that her obsession might be having unexpected results, but one thing is clear, there is a drive that won't quit, and it's admirable for those of us who want her to be reunited with her child, and it's quite inconvenient for the people who have other interests at hand.

Her battle with the folks at LAPD is of epic proportions, and it is amazing that she held on to her goal of exposing the corruption that she encountered as she searched for her missing boy. There are some horrific moments in the film, as we relieve some of the injustices and Gothic horror of places like the hospital in this film. There are also some background scene that might or not reveal what really happen. There are moments when one is a bit exhausted from all the information the film delivers, but every moment is worth it. It is all framed with an expert hand, and it is anchored by the very powerful work by Jolie and the rest of an amazing cast that brings to life emotions such as madness, anger, pain, sorrow, and many times, disbelief that humans can be capable of such terrible actions.

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Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Storyline 

John and Jane Smith are a normal married couple, living a normal life in a normal suburb, working normal jobs...well, if you can call secretly being assassins "normal". But neither Jane nor John knows about their spouse's secret, until they are surprised to find each other as targets! But on their quest to kill each other, they learn a lot more about each other than they ever did in five (or six) years of marriage. 

Reviews 

John Smith (Brad Pitt) meets Jane (Angelina Jolie) while both are in danger of being exposed in a foreign country, while working. They are both experienced assassins at the time and go with the flow, and eventually falling for each other. Neither tells the other what they actually do for a living.

Needless to say, they find each other out and both agencies who they work for, give the order to kill the other within 48 hours. Thus, the hijinx ensue. Both are vying for control and to discover how much the other actually knows. Upon finding that they both know everything, a full on mini-war begins.

This movie has a little bit of everything. The Smiths are not without their humorous sides, especially Brad Pitt. Also, there are a few good fight scenes, between The Smiths along with some others. There are a few nice weapons to be admired here, as well as some very nice eye candy (I am talking about Miss Jolie, but I hear the ladies are fond of Brad, also). Also, I would like to give an honorable mention to Vince Vaughn as Eddie. I feel his performance was funny, but too small for this movie.

This movie is a fun little romp through the house with some nice action scenes. Recommended if you would like a somewhat toned down True Lies. 8/10

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