Review of film: "UNSTOPPABLE" (about a runaway train loaded with toxic chemicals )

                                                 Review of film "UNSTOPPABLE "

Twentieth Century Fox has been putting a good deal of money into running trailers on TV for this Tony Scott movie.  They make the film appear exciting--  but the reality is, it’s even BETTER than the teasers make it look!...

…  The story starts out in a train yard in Pennsylvania.  While some of the workers there are diligent, others are at times SLACKERS--  & one of those makes a number of screw-ups that cause a freight train to not have its AIR BRAKES connected & to not even have its ENGINEER on board…

…  It turns out that the “fail-safes” end up being more FAILURES than safe, & the train starts barreling down the tracks at an increasingly high speed around the countryside.  A female schedule-controller named Connie (ROSARIO DAWSON) tries to find a way to STOP the train--  but she has to deal with oblivious “big-shot” higher-ups like Galvin (KEVIN DUNN) & certain others who are either overly-concerned with the financial “bottom-line” or simply can’t properly get the job done…

…  In time, the scene shifts to some other rail workers handling another train, in the form of long-time train engineer Frank (DENZEL WASHINGTON) & his new comparatively-young assistant Will (CHRIS PINE) who’s having marital troubles that distract his attention…  Their train happens to be on the same track as the RUNAWAY train, & those two elements start to interact & shall-we-say “COLLIDE” with each other…

…  It’s bad enough having a train out of control, but it’s at least doubly bad when it happens to have a number of its cars containing TOXIC CHEMICALS.  As Rosario points out, it’s like having a traveling guided “MISSILE the size of the Chrysler Building”…  Clearly, the train needs to be stopped (lest it risk badly injuring the populace near the train tracks)— but HOW?!...

…  Those working in the train industry -- including another engineer named Judd Stewart (DAVID WARSHOFSKY) & safety inspector Wemer (KEVIN CORRIGAN) --  keep trying to come up with a SOLUTION to the problems:  Can they stop the train by getting someone ONTO it?...  Can they somehow CONTROL it?...  Can they DERAIL it in a way that there won’t be massive damage to the area?...  Can other train ENGINES be used to somehow affect its speed?... 

…  The movie is a wonderful THRILL RIDE of various attempts to fix the problems.  You can bet that DENZEL & CHRIS will be involved, but it’s handled with exceptionally superior expertise:  a friend of mine, whose father used to work in rail yards, commented that his dad would have LOVED seeing the film, since it does such a fine job in consistently giving you a feeling of the SPEED & POWER of the trains involved & what can go wrong if they’re not handled properly…

…  It’s a FINE adventure, with well-constructed & highly-delineated characters, first-rate acting, an intriguing action-filled story, & I’d rate it 8.5 out of 10 stars…    

Review: "MEGAMIND" animated film in 3-D ( about 2 competitive alien creatures )

Review:  "MEGAMIND” animated 3-D film

Animated films have been very prolific this year, & they increasingly are using 3-D to enhance their financial return (& sometimes even their quality).  “MEGAMIND” is the latest entry in that “sweepstakes”…

…  As our story begins, two different “alien” civilizations have launched a BABY into space.  They both “chance” to end up in the SAME general place, & immediately become OPPONENTS to each other (mainly because of the jealous actions of one of them):

…  The creature eventually called “METRO MAN” (voiced by BRAD PITT) is very handsome, charming, bright, powerful & WELL-LIKED.  He has various super-powers such as flight, & the populace soon begins to view him as a HERO (& builds a “monument” to him)…

…  More along the “ZERO” line is a somewhat klutzy character with certain other super powers.  His main ability seems to be in using his intelligence to concoct various unusual mechanical & other DEVICES to achieve prominence & power.  This blue-colored being is called “MEGAMIND” (& is voiced by WILL FARRELL), while his strange animal-like companion Minion (voiced by DAVID CROSS) tries to help him in his increasingly-evil intentions…

…  The alien creatures are conspicuously COMPETITIVE.  As they try to win the hearts & minds of the populace, we meet various side characters who either help or hinder the “stars”--  the creature Tighten (with JONAH HILL doing the voice), Roxanne Ritchi (TINA FEY), Bernard (BEN STILLER), and others…

…  The animation was decent, the 3-D was nothing very “special”, &, at most, I found the film just “DIVERTING”:  despite what the ads might claim, it’s NOT very funny (much less clever), &, in certain respects, I’m tempted to rate “MEGAMIND” as “NEVER mind” with a 6.5 star rating out of 10…

Review: "THE NEXT THREE DAYS" ( with Russell Crowe )

Review:  “THE NEXT THREE DAYS”

The workplace is not always a “HAPPY Spot”.  That’s shown by discussions at a dinner being attended by John Brennan (RUSSELL CROWE) & his wife Laura (ELIZABETH BANKS) who speaks about how she had a big fight with her female boss earlier… His brother Mike (TYRONE GIORDANO) & Mike’s woman Elaine (NAZANIN BONIADI) join in an argument about whether it’s better to have a male or female boss…

…  After the dinner, we see school-teacher Russell & office-worker Elizabeth have a cute blond-haired son Luke (mostly played by TY SIMPKINS), & they all seem very close--  until the POLICE bust in & take Olivia off to JAIL with a charge that she KILLED her boss that she’d had the fight with!...

…  The film by Paul Haggis (based on a French movie “POUR ELLE”) then tells the story of how Russell works to try to prove Olivia’s INNOCENCE, & how the failure of that effort leads him to consider using “FORCE” to get her out of her situation…  

…  As the story evolves, we meet Russell’s parents including his quiet dad George (BRIAN DENNEHY), a man named Damon (LIAM NEESON) whom he briefly consults about the prison system (since he has some “legally IN-correct” thoughts at one stage), various drug-dealers (concerning the “money” side of his potential plans), & others…

…  Because Russell eventually begins to feel “patience” is NOT a virtue concerning his wife’s circumstances, his actions ultimately start to involve various POLICE authorities including Detective Quinn (JASON BEGHE) & Lt. Nabulsi (LENNIE JAMES)…

…  There are some impressive “TWISTS & TURNS” in the story, which lead it into the “THRILLER” category…  Did Elizabeth have anything to DO with the crime for which she’s jailed?... Will Russell’s  tactics get DERAILED as various CHASES start to ensue?...  Will he be able to SUCCEED in his elaborate plans?...    Is there a special reason for me to describe this as a “BREAK-OUT” hit (& if so, why)?...

…  Since the “pot” will “boil” tonite, I found this an unusually EFFECTIVE action – suspense story, with some very good acting & clever plot devices & surprises assisting an ever-growing momentum to the film.  I’d rate it 8.25 out of 10 stars…