- Director M. Night Shyamalan

The film begins as a continuation of the last movie where the crew retreats to their respective places to enjoy the spoils of war with the FBI. Although they are forced to live outside of the U.S., they all appear to living the good life. Roman (Tyrese Gibson) ventures to exotic lands with an entourage of beautiful women. Tej (Ludacris,) settles in Costa Rica where he makes it rain with cash for the locals. Han (Sung Kang) and Gisele (Gal Gadot) make plans to solidify their relationship in Tokyo. Dom (Vin Diesel) and Brian (Paul Walker) retreat to the Spanish Canary Islands with Elena (Elsa Pataky) and Mia (Jordana Brewster.)

In comparison to previous films from the series, the comic relief is reminiscent of the “Bad Boys” films. Ludacris’ encounter with a party coordinator is a comic highlight. In general, the parts of the script where Roman and Tej interact are the funniest.

Of the fighting scenes, two are in competition for the greatest showdown of the movie. The first occurs in an airport and the second happens when Letty and Riley seek revenge for their unfinished fight in the airport. The first cat fight makes the surprise twist in the plot even more dramatically personal and gives the audience a valid reason to anticipate the sequel to the showdown.

Overall, “Fast and Furious 6” is a must-see romantic action-flick intended for responsible audiences of ages18 and up. There is one warning to the anticipating movie-goer, hold on to your seats. You will need to brace yourself for this one. 5 of 5 stars.

All of the original packers are present in “The Hangover 3”- Allen (Zach Galifianakis ,) Phil(Bradley Cooper,) Doug (Justin Bartha) and Stu (Ed Helms). Instead of a bachelor party, the gang assembles as an effort to successfully lead Allen through a rehabilitation program after the death of his father. They are confronted by Marshall (John Goodman) who forces them to find Chow (Ken Jeong) when he discovers that Chow stole a considerable amount of gold from him. That, ladies and gentlemen, is as deep as the developing plot gets. No conniving monkeys. No luring transvestites. No tigers and babies in hotel rooms. That is it!

It’s clear from the opening scene that Todd Phillips and the rest of the production crew ran out of ideas. Without going into too much detail, the incident with the wild animal is neither clever nor comical. However, it does help to deceive the audience into thinking that the upcoming scenes will hold a candle to the first film.

Similarly to its predecessors, “Hangover 3” is a messy string of events all stemming from the careless, drug-induced decisions that Allen makes. Marshall targets the Wolf Pack because he knows of Allen’s pen-pal relationship with Chow while Chow was incarcerated in Bangkok. They all end up in Las Vegas where Allen meets Cassie (Malissa McCarthy) of “Bridesmaids” and “Identity Thief.” It’s natural to assume that as the two of them share the screen, it would be difficult to control the laughter. However, their jokes may cause a chuckle here or there but by no means will it cause belly-aching laughter.

In conclusion, “The Hangover Part 3” is a disappointment for anyone looking for a funny movie. Look again or wait until the film hits Red Box. It’s just not worth seeing in the theaters. ¼ stars.

Director J.J. Abrahms (“Super 8”) begins the film aboard the Enterprise ship in a foreign planet where Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) is faced with a major decision. Should he follow Admiral Pike’s orders to leave Spock and avoid being identified by the natives or should he stay to rescue Spock (Zachary Quinto), his ship mate, friend, and favorite Vulcan? At first glance, Spock has a striking resemblance to Drake but that’s neither here nor there. Following this power struggle, a star fleet officer named John Harrison, orchestrates a bombing in London, which only begins his terroristic campaign. The movie takes a while to reveal the purpose for his attacks yet once uncovered, the pace doesn’t slow down for a second.

“Star Trek: Into Darkness” is a must-see for Star Trek fans and outsiders alike. The film in 3-D makes the experience come to life both on and off the ship. 4/4 stars.

In Iron Man 3, Robert Downey Junior returns to face The Mandarin, the “Most Wanted” terrorist responsible for killing thousands of people with human-exploding bombs.  The plot thickens when Pepper, Starks’ love interest and assistant, is approached by Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) to join forces with his brain-altering project, AIM.  Suspicious of the projects’ motives, Pepper declines to participate just as Starks did 13 years earlier.  However, he is forewarned by a former colleague that Aldridge is working for Mandarin.  Mandarin’s character is multi-dimensional to say the least.  Without revealing too much, Mandarin is not what first meets the eye.  This may indeed be one of the films’ flaws.  Mandarin in his original version is much more believably terrorizing than the true Mandarin.

Iron Man is challenged on a new level when he discovers that the love of his life is in danger.  He utilizes the help of a witty teenager who helps him assemble the tools he needs to capture Mandarin and Aldrich.  This leads to the most unbelievable part of the movie, Pepper’s macho-fighting rage.  For some reason, this just doesn’t fit her easy-going persona and takes away from the Iron Man’s mojo.  To be honest, the suits here are marvelous in all their grandeur, but they should be worn by Iron Man and “War Machine” also known as “Iron Patriot” (Don Cheattle.)

Overall, the explosives and action of the film are awesome.  The plot is okay but suffers from a few originality challenges.  “Iron Man 3” does not live up to the first two installments but it is still a great watch.  3.5 of 5 stars.

However, when he is abducted by international terrorists and forced to create a bomb, he realizes that many American lives are taken with same weapons meant to protect them.  He chooses to create a super resistant suit/weapon and manages to burst his way out of captivity with an explosive bang.

To his colleagues’ disdain, he returns from the abduction, and announces that he is no longer producing weapons.  His super-natural suit however, is accompanied by talking robotic gadgets and laser-shooting arm attachments.  His journey brings him back to his father’s memory.  The footage shows his deceased father in a holographic display of him learning his father’s true purpose for building the “Key to the Future.”  In turn, his motives for protecting the world intensify even though his life source is dependent upon the arc reactor.  Gwyneth Paltrow stars as Starks’ faithful assistant, Pepper who helps to keep him organized.  Terrance Howard is Lt. Colonel James Rhode, the officer who risks his life to rescue Tony when he is missing.  All of the supporting cast members, special effects, and jam-packed energy will keep audiences on the edge of there seats.

Iron Man 2:

Invite Your Facebook Friends!

Although Robinson plays himself in the 1950 film, it is clear that due to the era
 of the film’s release, Green faced many limitations when developing Robinson’s character. On the contrary, Chadwick Boseman plays Robinson in “42” and is able to express more of Robinson’s emotional responses to the torment he faced as a black man of the period.

“42” begins with a synopsis of America’s social tensions during the Post World

War II era told by Journalist, Wendell Smith (Andre Holland.) Early into the film, Jackie’s character is seen as a passionate proponent of segregation. This differs a great deal from the 1950 film where Jackie has a much more docile nature and abides by the social status quo without a second thought.

Skip the box office lines. Buy movie tickets in advance at Fandango.com.

Another stark yet appreciated difference between the two films is the role of Robinson’s wife, Rachel Robinson. In the 1950 production, Rachel is played by the late Ruby Dee during the early years of the historic icon’s career. Here, Rachel remains reserved and conforms around white people. However, Rachel’s role in “42,” is played by Nicole Baharie who unapologetically takes more risks around white people.

Jackie’s teammates file a petition to get him off the team yet his biggest antagonizer is Ben Chapman (Alan Tudyk.) The original film tip-toed around the verbal abuse Robinson endured but “42” put it all on the table through Chapman’s rants.

Just as in the original film, Branch Rickey, Owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, is the Robinson’s primary advocate amongst the skeptics. Rickey is played by Harrison Ford in “42” who delivers the role as a grandfather figure to Robinson. Rickey applauds the fact that Robinson is not a nonchalant supporter of segregation. The original film makes little to no mention of Robinson directly or indirectly standing up for himself.

If Jackie Robinson were alive to see this film, he would probably applaud the fact that it shows both vulnerable and heroic aspects of his personality in addition to his talents. The only challenge that the film faces is the fact that Jackie Robinson’s figure is so much larger than life. To condense it to two hours of cinema is bound to compromise certain areas of his life. I would have liked to see more scenes of Jackie hitting home runs for the sports enthusiast in me.

In terms of photography, the most impressive scenes are set in a dug-out where Robinson stands near the opening in front of bright sunlight. Rickey’s words of encouragement to Robinson during the scene create an angelic ora of him. The second scene is a slow-motion shot of Rachel as she walks with their baby’s carriage down a street in Brooklyn as the neighborhood rejoices in the Dodger’s victory.

Overall, the film successfully shows the world a glimpse of Jackie Robinson’s legendary life. People of all backgrounds can appreciate that the film is historically informative and entertaining. 5/5 stars.

Invite Your Facebook Friends!

“Temptation” stars Jurnee Smollett-Bell as Judith, a marriage counselor who forewarns a patient of the consequences of adultery by sharing a story about her “sister.”

Skip the box office lines. Buy movie tickets in advance at <a href=”http://www.anrdoezrs.net/click-7063716-10369448″>Fandango.com</a>.<img alt=”" src=”http://www.ftjcfx.com/image-7063716-10369448″ width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ />

His latest film, “Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor” falls among those with a more serious tone including; “Diary of a Mad Black Woman,” “The Family that Preys,” and “For Colored Girls,” to name a few.  In “Temptation,” Perry uses the marriage of two childhood sweethearts to show the dangers of taking loved ones for granted and to remind the audience that when it comes to relationships, the grass is not always greener on the other side.

She describes how Judith’s relationship with Brice (Lance Gross) began as they were kids and ultimately placed them in WashingtonD.C. to chase Brice’s dream of owning a pharmacy.  Judith aspired to be a marriage counselor but had to settle on a job working for a successful matchmaking firm ran by Janice (Vanessa Williams.)

Harley (Robbie Jones) comes to the firm looking to expand his billion-dollar internet empire by designing software based on a relationship questionnaire.   At first sight, he expresses interest in Judith and slowly inches across the line of their professional boundaries.  Wooed by Harley’s fancy cars and promises to advance her career, Judith begins to question her marriage to Brice who is already neglecting her.

As Judith’s habits stray farther from her Christian upbringing, her mother, Sarah (Ella Joyce) senses that Harley is trouble and finds her maternal instincts to be on point.  Brice gets solace in a friendship with Melinda, (Brandy) the new store clerk at the pharmacy he works at.  Melinda is in hiding from an abusive ex-lover who resurfaces in her life in a particularly disturbing way.

Parents may want their children to watch the film when they approach adulthood to show how easy it is to compromise rationality in the face of temptations.  Overall, “Temptation” is an eye-opening, raw reality check about the complexities of romance, sex, and marriage.