Fresh from the frigid confines of Theater 6 at The Landmark Theaters in West L.A., I had the opportunity to see the critically-acclaimed nuclear weapons documentary, Countdown to Zero. Much of the movie spends it’s time in “What if…” mode. What if terrorists got their hands on nuclear technology? What if they figured out how … Continue reading
Category Archives: Movies
Dissecting Bond… James Bond. Part 4
So we’ve reached the final chapter of the Bond breakdown. In this section, I’ll rate the different actors who’ve portrayed Bond as well as include some of my favorite Bond Girls. 1. Sean Connery – This is almost a default rating, though not because he was the first Bond or anything like that. I always … Continue reading
Dissecting Bond… James Bond. Part 3
OK, so here we go. Top five. The creme de la creme. 5. On Her Majesty’s Service: George Lazenby’s one and only turn as the British ladies man turns in one helluva performance. It’s such a pivotal chapter in the Bond series too. The only film (so far) where Bond ends up married and the … Continue reading
Dissecting Bond… James Bond. Part 2
So now we enter the collection of Bond movies that weren’t all that bad, but at the same time, not all that great. The mediocre bunch, although once we get into the Top 10, it’s hard to call any of these movies mediocre. Anyway, here is #14-#6. 14. Casino Royale: Daniel Craig’s first outing as … Continue reading
Dissecting Bond… James Bond. Part 1
For the past two months, I’ve been watching the entire series of James Bond films from the very first (Dr. No) to the most recent (Quantum of Solace). As the topic is much too expansive to be contained within one posting, I’ve divided them up into four sections. I have ranked the movies from least … Continue reading
Beware of “The Cove” and the spicy tuna sushi
It must really suck to be Rick O’Barry. Here is a case of damned if you do, damned if you don’t. O’Barry helped create the multi-million dollar dolphin-centered entertainment business when he served as lead trainer for the mid-60’s family show, Flipper. Then, ten years later, one of his dolphins who played Flipper, died in … Continue reading
The 442 Legacy on Full Display
I’m not a huge fan of war documentaries. The basic rule with me is, the older the war, the less interested I am. As a wonderful paradox, I love war movies. Saving Private Ryan, Hamburger Hill, Rescue Dawn, bring it on! Earlier this month, I viewed the Afghanistan war documentary Restrepo (on the Fourth of … Continue reading
Why You Should “Get Low” with Robert Duvall
Yesterday evening, I had the privilege of checking out Robert Duvall‘s latest movie, Get Low, at Sony Studios. I’m sure anybody who’s watched movies has some clue of how good the legendary actor is (keeping Kicking & Screaming and Lucky You blissfully omitted from memory) and those of us who are cinemaniax pretty much have … Continue reading
Three Great… Kate Mara Movies
UPDATE: Considering this was written five years ago to the date, I felt it was time to update it, especially with the way that Kate’s career has taken off during that time. You of course probably know her from recent films like 127 Hours, Transcendence, Ironclad as well as TV series stints in House of … Continue reading
The Next Three… Movies I’m Looking Forward To Seeing
“I’m not a hero. I just killed a lot of people.” Such is one of the many iconic and sobering quotes that will proliferate throughout the upcoming premiere of 442: Live with Honor, Die with Dignity. Directed by Junichi Suzuki, fresh off his excellent Japanese-America internment camp documentary, Toyo’s Camera, 442 tells the story of … Continue reading
Vampires, Minions and Inception
The past three weeks have seen a number of big-time movies hit the spolight. In this consolidated review, Twilight Eclipse, Despicable Me and Inception. The Love Triangle Deepens This is the best of the three Twilight movies thus far. But that’s not saying much. Granted, the action sequences are better but the dialogue is still … Continue reading
Ichi (2008)
SYNOPSIS – Ichi is a blind woman who roams about town searching for her father Zatoichi with her shamisen (a three-stringed Japanese guitar), but she has exceptional sword skills with which she fights off yakuza and other villains. SPECS: Running Time – 2 hours Language – Japanese with English subtitles Rating – R < REVIEW … Continue reading
Cinemaniax 