St. Vincent - Bill Murray SHINESI

"St.Vincent is an old Vietnam vet whose stubbornly hedonistic ways have left him without money or a future. Things change when his new next-door neighbor's son, Oliver, needs a babysitter and Vince is willing enough for a fee. From that self-serving act, an unexpected friendship forms as Vincent and Oliver find so much of each other needs through each other. As Vincent mentors Oliver in street survival and other worldly ways, Oliver begins to see more in the old man than just his foibles. When life takes a turn for the worse for Vincent, both them find the best in each other than no one around them suspects." - Written by Kenneth Chisholm 

St. Vincent is rated PG-13

It's a rare thing to have a free Sunday AND a husband agreeing to see a movie - but that is just what happened last weekend.  I gave him two choices - St. Vincent or Nightcrawler.  I told him one was a comedy and one was a "cop drama".  He chose St. Vincent.  About 20 minutes in I knew I was wrong about it being a comedy.

I know Bill Murray's choices are not always predictable - but I was still betting on a laugh out loud comedy - especially since the hilarious Melissa McCarthy was his co-star.

Murray plays Vincent McKenna, a crotchety, drunk New Yorker with a stripper girlfriend from Russia.  (By the way, Naomi Watts was outstanding!) 

We soon meet his new neighbors - single mom Maggie (Melissa McCarthy) and her son Oliver (Jaeden Lieberher).

Like a scene straight from Gran Torino, his new neighbors wreak havoc on his daily life.  He is broke and Maggie needs a babysitter, so you know things are about to get crazy.

Just as it starts to feel predictable, something unexpected happens, making you fall in love with Vincent in ways you would never have expected.

Don't get me wrong - there are plenty of laughable moments. It has lots of happy spots.  But let me put it this way;  as we left the theater - two teenage boys were waiting to clean up.  They said, "why is everyone crying?"   It seems they were as shocked as the rest of us.

Whether on a first date or looking for something to pass the time, you won't be disappointed in St. Vincent.  There is something for everyone - I highly recommend.

Date Night With My Momma - The Sapphires

The who?  That's what I said when I got the screening invite to watch The Sapphires...  

This movie wasn't on my radar, but it looked like a better option than sitting at home on a Monday night. 

Once I watched the trailer and realized the event was about a mile from my Mom's house, it was a no-brainer to invite her along.  She is a push-over for feel good movies especially if they are from the 60's and include good music. 

Me and my momma: we had a blast! 

Check out the trailer: 

It doesn't take you long to understand why this movie received a ten minute standing ovation at last year's Cannes Film Festival. 

Dave Lovelace is an alcoholic emcee (played convincingly by Chris O'Dowd) who meets four Aboroginal girls from Australia singing country music.  Even though the girls come from extremely humble surroundings; even though they face racism and hatred every day of their lives, they have this determination and absolute belief they are destined to be stars. When they see a newspaper ad seeking "musical acts to entertain the troops in Vietnam", they enlist Dave to help them get there.



One of my favorite scenes; Dave teaching the girls how to put a little soul in their serenade: (about 1:30 into this clip)

There are quite a few laughs and a handful of scary moments.  The scenes shot in Vietnam were beautiful; the vulnerability of the girls very believable.

I think you will be quite surprised by the ending - I know I was.  I think you will find yourself dancing in your seat - I know for sure Mom was.

No,  its not a blockbuster, but it is a fun, uplifting little film.

Olympus Has Fallen..and so have I...for Gerard Butler

Whether you want an action movie (think Die Hard) or you simply like eye candy (Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Dylan McDermott are totally delicious), this movie won’t disappoint.

Director Fuqua (Training Day et al) doesn’t waste any time bringing the viewer to the edge of their seat – within 10 minutes we are rooting for Special Agent Mike Banning (Butler).  Forced to make a life or death decision for the President of the United States, he knows his own life will never be the same.

Fast forward a year, Banning watches something so horrific unfold outside his “desk job” window he can hardly believe his eyes. He suddenly becomes “the best hope we’ve got” at taking back the White House and freeing the President who has been kidnapped by terrorists – hundred sof them, who were hiding in plain sight. Walking and working among the landscape of Washington DC, completely unnoticed.  His chance for atonement was our darkest hour.

I stared in shock as I watched tourists become terrorists and trash trucks explode.  I couldn’t help but think “could this really happen?”  Because Olympus was shot over a year ago, it seemed surreal to watch the White House crumble at the hands of North Korean terrorists.  That hit a little too close to home in our current political environment.

Lots of carnage & fantastic special effects abound.  

Gerard Butler carries the movie with all the self sacrifice you would expect from  a true Secret Service Agent.

Olympus makes you proud to be an American.   No one shouts patriotism louder than Oscar winner Melissa Leo as our Secretary of Defense, who says “The Pledge of Allegiance” as she is being dragged through the dead bodies of her colleagues.

The only criticism I have is the casting of Morgan Freeman as Speaker of the House.  He seemed too old and too tired.  I wish Fuqua would have brought Denzel Washington along for the ride.  

I felt a little skittish walking to the car when it ended.  I nervously avoided strangers, actually wondering if someone was about to pull out an assault rifle.  In other words, I found the movie pretty believable.

Intense

Brutal

Worth It

I give this a 7 out of a 10 (I don't like silly jokes in the middle of a terrorist takeover, and I really REALLY dislike seeing people stabbed in the eyeball)