jimlacy2003 Reviews

The Many Saints of Newark (2021)

Sterotyped garbage, no Sopranos here

[2/10 · 2 October 2021]

At first the movie looked good; the setting was good.

But soon it was obvious this movie is hot garbage.

First of all the idea of Italians was way over the top, stereotypical and bad acted.

To much making fake characters of a characterization.

Not only an insult to Italians, but an insult to any one above a double digit IQ.

Also historically, most actual mobsters were pretty good familymen. They would overall treat their family members well, but then when they left the house they were all business. This dynamic is totally lost in this film. The whole thing is very unbelievable. They didn't do even the modicum of research.

And why have so many actors that are obviously not even close to Italian play Italians? Whomever made this movie sees you, the audience members, as a cabbage head.

And then the race thing. As predictable as any weak minded Hollywood movie, they got to push race narratives. Had to make so much of this movie about race, and how bad all those terrible "white" people are.

And this movie is NOTHING of what made the Sopranos good. Not even close to the same spirit, intelligence, etc. Night and day difference. This mess of a movie is just capitalizing off the "Sopranos" name.

Save your brain cells (you can literally feel your IQ points dropping by the minute watching this) and instead go back and watch your favorite, decent, mob movie or go watch the actual Sopranos over again..

Absolute Proof (2021)

Compelling reasons to audit election

[8/10 · 20 February 2021]

First of all good look trying to even find this movie. Had to find it on an video upload site that is not that mainstream popular one.

First of all why does imdb (that was bought by the other tech giant) allow fake users. I notice a bunch of the '1' start reviews are accounts created in the same month to post a single review bashing this documentary (check for yourself). I wonder if any of these people even watched it..

Anyhow let's cut to the chase what this is about. Mike Lindell makes very compelling arguments in this film that there were some voting shenanigans in the 2020 election.

And he is not the only one. How come there were 353 counties in 20 states with Voter Registration rates over 100%? Also many professional statisticians pointed out very anomalous stats from the election.

I as a US citizen wonder why in the hell do we hand off our elections to multinational corporations? Why don't we handle our own election voting (including the voting machines) completely inside the USA like we used to? And why do we share our citizen voter data with other countries? Makes no sense other than stupidity and greed.

If there is nothing about this, why is it being so censored and attacked so much? And why would so many make fake reviews here to shoot this film down, etc., if it didn't mean anything? Ask yourself these questions. It does matter.

In my own check between three friends we noticed a problem. Two of us showed that we did have a vote record for 2020, yet there is no record of a ballot. The 3rd had not even a record of her voting at all!

There is plenty of enough evidence to warrant proper audits. Audits done by independent parties (don't let the people that ran the election audit themselves). That's all he is asking for. Us USA citizens have much win from this or so much more to lose. I'd rather know, if there were mistakes, if something was horribly mismanaged . or worse if there was actual voter manipulation going on, rather than not knowing. I'm not an ostrich (don't bury your head in the sand), I'm a USA human being citizen.

Finally anyone gaslighting you, trying to tell you there is nothing wrong, trying to manipulate you for their gain is not your friend, they are actually your enemy.

The 2020 election is over. But lets proper 3rd party audits everywhere there is contention, and everywhere the citizens want one to happen!

The Stand (2020–2021)

Nothing to Stand on..

[1/10 · 1 February 2021]

Going into this I didn't have high expectations. In particular a few months ago it was pointed out that some major male characters were changed to females, and some races were swapped as well. I suspected it was going to be one giant woke fest but I gave it chance anyhow.

It turns out Wokeness is the least of it's problems. The worst is this very strange time frame swapping thing. Instead of starting that beginning like the book, like the 1994 movie adaption, like the graphic novel does, they decided in some brilliant artistic vision to start 70% into the story. And then it jumps around forward and backwards haphazardly. The result is confusing mess. It's like listening to a story told by someone with severe head trauma that can no longer put their memories in chronological order. The only reason I could make some sense of was because I already knew the story so well.

And then they took a bunch of creative liberties. Changing some characters in major ways, embellishing, adding their own details that we not even implied in the book, etc. In particular one thing that stands out from the beginning is one of the main female characters. Everywhere else cannon she is a sweet down to earth girl, while in this version they made her some annoying vapid person. In another scene they decided to remove a major device that really set the tone. Without it really weakened the premise of the scene.

I have a feeling they just didn't want to make another "The Stand" film, and thus went off on tangents to "make it better".

Already fastwording, I only made it episode two before I realized it was a complete waste of time.

Skip this horrible distorted bad version of the story and read, listen to an audiobook version, read the Graphic Novel version, or better yet watch the 1994 TV movie instead.

Jonestown: Terror in the Jungle (2018)

Have people forgotten the lesson?

[9/10 · 2 January 2021]

I was a little kid when this happened and I still remember it well. At least what was said of it in the media at the time.

In this documentary you watch it along with some of the people who were there from the beginning to the tragic end. So it's a different, more factual, and realistic view vs the more entertainment driven reenactment documentaries shown previously.

It's painful to watch, to revisit again, but maybe it should be required watching for students to learn from.

The lesson is us human beings haven't change that much in the last 70 years or so. There are evil minded that learn how to manipulate people. Know the human nature tricks of how to condition and train them with fear, anxiety, and lies. To combat this we know how to recognise the characteristics of cults, the psychopaths, and don't let them gain a position of power.

Be Water (2020)

Be Woke

[1/10 · 1 November 2020]

This is a Bruce Lee documentary the social justice, woke version. I could only stomach 15min until I was tried and disgusted of the nonsense and being preached to.

First of all, it's sad to see Shannon Lee got infected by the SJW - Critical Race Theory (CRT) cult. In particular this bugs me because I'm a 3rd generation BL student. Ted LucayLucay (RIP, Guru in the Filipino arts in his own right) was my teacher, then he from Dan Inosanto who was BL's protégé. There was never talk of racism in JKD circles, at least that I never experienced.

Some people are always looking for some excuse, someone to blame for their own failures in life.

Here is realty, the truth. Sure there is/was some racism. Some people just flat out hate some other group, class of people, etc., but this does not mean everyone is inherently racist that the SJW movement is claiming.

Consider if you are in Africa do you expect to see mostly Africans in a African produced show, or some other skin tones? Who would be in the staring roles most of the time?

It's mostly about acceptance. This is true all over the world. If you are a foreigner someplace, you might stand out. You might be unfamiliar to people. You are to a greater or lessor degree "unknown".

Furthermore, look at BL's first movie "The Big Boss". It was a 99% a Chinese made movie with 99% Asian people in it. Was this racism?, of course not!

Maybe America in the late 60's early 70's was not ready for an Asian super star. But BL made it happen.

I wish these shows would stop attacking people based on their race in the supposed name of anti-racism.

Unless you want to be insulted by this low IQ silliness, skip it.

The Walking Dead: World Beyond (2020–2021)

Twilight + Hunger Games + TWD = Awful

[3/10 · 1 November 2020]

This series is so cringey and low quality it's painful to watch.

I can see what they are going for. Some sort of the Twilight, plus The Hunger Games, mix in a little Stranger Things kind of feel. The whole teenage angst thing, etc.

Looks like something concocted by a bunch of corporate suits, advanced media degrees in hand, thought it would be a great idea to somehow include the success of series Stranger Things, etc., and incorporate it into the TWD universe. And the result is this awful tripe. Please leave the "creating" to the creative people.

I stopped watching TWD several seasons ago when there was no doubt anymore it jumped the shark. Stuff like keep Negan, a murdering psychopath, alive? Yea the only reason is because it's just about the last ratings they can squeeze out of it..

And this horrible new show will certainly not bring me back.

Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich (2020)

Fascinating yet overly sensationalized and spun. Another president hit piece.

[5/10 · 26 July 2020]

Fascinated at first. In particular I had no idea of the scope of the debauchery.

There was a pattern to a lot of Women interviews that were a lot the same: "I thought I was going to get paid $200 to do a message.. then then he abused me!" "...so next week when they called me and I went back to do it over again." "and then again an again for around four years."

Per the definition this is factually "prostitution". The majority of the ones interviewed went back and stayed with him for years and enjoyed the lavish lifestyle he offered. Take as it is, this is the facts. Just obviously downplayed past the forced narrative.

I'm not saying the guy wasn't a scumbag, nor that the majority of these women where not "victims" in one way or another, but the narrative is really cutting it thick. And it was obvious a lot of the interviewed Woman were really over the top bad acting it. Now, no doubt Netflix paid them for the interview. An omitted fact that many of the ladies got paid settlements by Epstein's attorneys (and signed a non-disclosure agreement). And the way to get compensation now (if even possible since Epstein put his money offshore) is to really ham up the victim hood angle.

This "documentary" tells you A story, not THE story.

Another thing, of the majority of the the documentaries on Netflix since 2016 has been President Trump hit pieces. They follow a similar pattern. First establish and make an explosive story, tugging at your emotional strings. Then try to establish some connection between the president and the pain. Often saying "Oh incidentally this wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for Trump!", or "You see, you see? Trump is involved!"

Fact is Epstein did go to the Mar-a-Lago Club, but when Donald Trump found out about an incident with an underage girl he banned him. This is the truth, people at the club confirm it. And unlike Clinton (who flew on Epstein's private jet dozens of times) you don't see any newer photos of Trump together since the late 90's since he was actually banned. Trump has photos with thousands of people, fanciers, celebrities, etc. There is this any many other glaring omissions in the painfully obvious spun Netflix Epstein documentary.

Devs (2020)

Great, has substance

[8/10 · 15 May 2020]

Interesting show, unusual, stands out among the usual mass produced garbage. At least somewhat thoughtful and intelligent. Maybe some assumption for an audience that has an IQ above the moronic level. Sounds arrogant I know, but it's just the facts of the majority of what is being produced.

The lead character "Lily Chan" was annoying. She is supposed to be smart, but then for the majority of the time she is incredibly whiny and clueless.

One of the most interesting things about the show is the socialist/social-justice movement angle. What the left side of silicon valley is pushing. Sort of a "what if" epitome that some claim would be the ideal society. I'm not sure if this is irony, or pushing of these beliefs, or maybe writer/creators were incredibly smart to do this to get acceptance/approval to get it developed.

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)

Not another art film

[1/10 · 5 August 2018]

I don't get it. The movie started out interesting but took some very strange turns. I realized it was so supposed some kind of parody, deliberately being over the top and non-nonsensical.

In the end I just didn't get it and didn't have the patients for it. Maybe it's a movie that appeals to some people, but thought it was garbage.

Finding Oscar (2016)

Horror of the Dos Erres massacre, but don't blame it on Reagan

[7/10 · 24 June 2018]

Interesting and well done documentary about the "Dos Erres massacre". Apparently one of several massacres and atrocities committed in Guatemala in the late 70's to the early 80's. Story of yet another genocide in modern times. In this case the Mayan people were deemed subhuman by some of the Guatemalan government and military.

One thing not touched upon much in the movie that I found out from other sources was the sheer barbarity of the incident, comparable to the Asian and Jewish Holocausts.

One thing though that put me off about the documentary was blaming the USA. In particular blaming President Reagan. After all he was instrumental in bring down the Berlin wall and helping what was once the USSR become a democracy. We can't get his side of the story now, and it appears there was no effort to interview anyone from his administration or otherwise get a reasonable view of his policy and dealings with Guatemala. Maybe he was fooled as everyone else was. Furthermore how much can the USA (and the president) fix with all the many problems going on at the time? And for that matter what is blindly overlooked here in the equation is why is it and how was it the job of the USA to fix the world to begin with?

Pretty leftist slants. I doubt if there was a left/democrat administration at the time the president would have never been mentioned in it.

Anyhow despite the blame thing, it was a decent educational documentary.

Fahrenheit 451 (2018)

Fizzled out mess. Oh the irony..

[2/10 · 20 May 2018]

Another TV movie that didn't have to me made.

The brain trust at HBO decided: "Hey you know that great book by Ray Bradbury?", "And you know the 1996 version was pretty successful right?" "Lets make a jazzed up modern version!" Executive #2: "Sounds like a plan!"

Nope, this was horrible. It was so bad it's as if they tried to make it so.

Ray Bradbury was an artistic genius (whom I was lucky to meet in the early 80's); his written words flow like poetry. This mess is a a complete disservice to Ray, other than maybe, hopefully, it will get a few more people to actually the real book, or watch the superior 1966 out of disgust for this thing.

Ironically, this was sort of the dumbed-down social justice warrior revisioning of the book. The irony is so thick it's palpable..

The End of the F***ing World (2017–2019)

Okay for a while. Again drawing a story out way too long..

[6/10 · 11 January 2018]

This dark show, sort of grew on me for a while. Felt sort of like a newer version of "Natural Born Killers".

I liked it up until around episode 6 until it I felt it "jumped the shark". In particular the moment when a certain someone joined the two somethings (avoiding spoilers). This episode was turned it into cheese fest. As if the author ran out of good ideas (as many do) and had to fallback to stereotypes and clichés.

In particular "oh they just happened to be bad guys, and deserved it" cliché got old fast.

Really the same problem with most of TV/movie series today. In yesterdays TV it was cram as many commercials into a show as you could and try to keep it interesting enough for people to keep watching (the adds). Now it's we make our money from subscriptions. If people are happy with what they can watch then they'll keep paying their $15 a month or what ever. This behooves the makers of these shows to stretch them out ad nauseam.

If they would have just concentrated on the story, making it move maybe a little faster and just a mini-series it could have been much better.

Star Trek Beyond (2016)

Trek dumbed down to the submoronic for mass apeal

[7/10 · 6 November 2016]

First of all I'd say the movie is entertaining. That's the most important thing for a movie, but in the end it left me disappointed.

The story was ridiculously simple, formulaic, all too convenient, and lacked any real depth. For instance: Oh hey need a spaceship? Hey no problem, happen to have this one here on the planet that's been ready to fly with simple repairs.

What made Star Trek good was it was a thinking persons show. A lot of "what ifs" plus it presented real social issues (at least of the time in the 60's) in counter view points; human interest stories. This move has none of that. For the most part just a simple predictable plot for mindless mass-market appeal.

Then there is what I call a lot of "tipping the hat". Scenes meant only to appease and acknowledge. Like "Hey we're liberal Hollywood!". Lets have an obligatory gay reference, no problem got you covered - lets show Sulu married (and with child, apparently immaculately conceived or adopted). Even George Takei (who's openly gay and married to a man) didn't like the idea when asked saying it changes the character. Need to emphasize strong women, great there is one on the planet to join us, and so on..

And really as much as I loved Leonard Nimoy, one reference/tribute is enough. Showing a photo of the original cast in the movie made no sense at all. Are we supposed to be looking at Spock the dad, an alternate timeline, or??

Apparently off of J.J. Abrams success they let the writers of this one have free reign of what Star Trek was really about and lost a lot of it on the way.

If you can catch this for free fine, but not worth the ticket or rental..

Steve Jobs (2015)

Unnecessary, rehash, tried, redundant, pointless..

[2/10 · 25 September 2016]

The movie hit the online provider circuit so I thought I'd give it a shot. I sat through about 15 minutes of wondering what was I watching, looking for something entertaining or new; for that matter what the hell it was even about..

Looks like it should have been some short stage play called "A day with Jobs" (giving it a lot more credit than it should).

It only serves to ask "Why another Jobs movie"?

I like Michael Fassbender but he looks nothing, nor talks, nor acts like Jobs.

Even the Ashton Kutcher version is better.

Really there is no, nor ever was a reason for this movie to exist - redundant, unnecessary, tired, rehashed, just pointless.

If you want to experience something entertaining and historic see the classic "Pirates of Silicon Valley" TV movie. It's the best Steve Jobs movie (along with a Bill Gates tie-in).

If you want to know about the real Steve Jobs and Apple history et al, read Job's autobiography, then Steve Woznia's autobiography "iWoz: Computer Geek to Cult Icon".

Skip this one, it's a complete waste of time..

Youth (I) (2015)

Too abstract

[4/10 · 9 August 2016]

Didn't know what to expect with this movie, but hey it had Michael Caine so I had to give it a go.

Obviously, it's an art film. That is pretty obvious right away. That being said, I don't like art films. Or rather, pompous films cry out "Hey I'm an art film!". Now Stanley Kubrick's are mostly art films but they are not pretentious. His movies are art in their delivery, not an art grandstand like this one.

The only saving grace were the titillating female nude scenes. But even then that was a little over the top, felt as if it was some kind of cheap exploit for lack of real story or substance.

Maybe it was trying to poke fun at the pretensions of Hollywood and/or of film making in general. Sort of laughing at ones self kind of thing. At any rate I found it too abstract and for the most part a waste of time, talent, and a bore.

Your better off going back and watching one of Micheal Caine's classics. Don't waste your time.

Amy (III) (2015)

Better than I thought, puts her in a good light

[7/10 · 3 June 2016]

First I am a fan of Amy Whinehouse music. I thought from the first time I've heard one of her songs that she was very talented.

Like everyone, I saw her kind of self destruct, and then not too surprisingly she was suddenly gone.

First of all I don't really sympathize with druggies. I always feel it is really their choice. All of these things (despite doctors trying to profit form them by calling them a "disease") it's ultimately the users choice.

At least watching this movie I understand better. At least another point of view from all the bad press and jokes. Maybe other factors lead to her self destruction. If nothing else that bum drug addict self-centered looser husband Blake and then her looser father appeared to have a big effect on her destruction. They just aided in it by either joining in the drug use with her and/or wanted to capitalize and spend her money. If they really loved her more than their pathetic selves, things might have been different.

At any rate a nice documentary that tells it like it is/was and highlights a lot of her talent. Not overly exploitative like a lot of similar movies in this class.

Jupiter Ascending (2015)

Not bad, I understood it

[6/10 · 27 May 2016]

This movie came out last year (2015) and has had overall bad reviews. But despite that I gave it a shot having low expectations.

I actually liked it. Sure it was rough in some places. The relationship between Mila Kunis and Channing Tatum didn't seem real (more like cold).

But you have to understand what they were shooting for. It's a very ambitious science fiction fantasy movie. It reminded me a bit of Dune (the book and movies). The special effects were great. A lot of action. It feels like it could have been great if there was real chemistry between the two and if they would have smoothed out a few of the rough spots.

Overall pretty entertaining.

Vacation (I) (2015)

Absolute trash

[1/10 · 27 May 2016]

You know a movie is going to be bad when it starts with every 5th word a four letter one. That is the best the weak excuse for a story, the amateur writers, could come up with. Even the theme song (not the original Vacation jingle, the 2nd one you here) is all F' words.

Since they call this a "Vacation" movie, the Griswold family and all, there going to be an inevitable comparison. This nothing at all like the original movies. Those were lighthearted, unassuming, and fun. This movie is absolute trash. Even if you looked at it not being a "Vaction" movie it would be even worse.

What a waste of resources and talent (the writers excluded). All the F' words, lowbrow tasteless non-humor, couldn't save this trash heap they call a movie. Flat out lame! If I could give it a negative start I would.

I'm going to go back and watch one of the originals and pretend this one never happened.

The Seventies (2015)

Great but suffers the same like "The Sixties" series

[7/10 · 1 May 2016]

Overall liked the series. Entertaining as well as educational. Plus brings back some good memories from the 70's.

It focuses on a lot of the key social and historical events of the period.

I particularly liked the segment on the old television shows. For people not around in that generation realize we (most people anyhow) watched a lot of TV. There was no internet so that really limited your options. No cell phones, tablets, and personal computers really didn't come on the scene until the early 80's. There was only three main TV networks and some times in the late 70's or early 80's there were a few UHF stations if you were lucky. So you might relax and unwind watching your favorite TV show: Mash, All in the Family, Carol Burnett show, etc.

Now, the same complaint with the Tom Hanks and crew produced "The Sixties" series. It's too negative. At least it was a little more positive maybe but still the focus seemed to be mainly on the worst of the 70's. The terrorist, political, etc., stuff.

They skipped the 1976 centennial, that the Hippy stuff was still live and well at least until the mid 70's, the Star Wars movie phenomena, and so on. You get the idea that this series was written by a TV news journalist looking for shock and scandal.

Not a bad series but for those that didn't live through the 70's..it really wasn't all that bad, we had a lot of great times as well.

American Crime Story (2016– )

Step back in time, look at again from today

[9/10 · 9 April 2016]

I unexpectedly loved this series. If you would have asked me about a mini-series about the OJ trial I wouldn't have thought much of it. But once I saw the first episode I was hooked.

Keep in mind I was around at the time of the trial and watched parts of it on TV. In particular will never forget the final day when the verdict came out.

This series was both very entertaining and educational. And even my wife who was not old enough to see the original trial was fascinated with the show as well.

For the most part the show was done very well. High production values, the actors did a great job, etc. The only one I thought was a little off was Cuba Gooding Jr. Nothing wrong with his acting mind you, he actually did a bang-up job of it! But while most the actors looked really close to their real life counterparts, Cuba is probably just a little too small and didn't look athletic enough like OJ is/was. They could have done the usual thing (like they do with Tom Cruise, in Lord of Rings, etc.) and filmed him from a lower point, propped him up, etc. And he could have worked out to loose some body fat, etc.

A good thing about a show like this (although obviously dramatized and who knows how much untruths the filled in the blanks with) it gets you to think and reflect.

As I watched this, there is still something eating me that I observed from the original trial. Why did Judge Lance Ito let the prosecution walk all over court? He literally let them get away with murder (pun intended). He seem/ed to have little backbone at all. Now I'm sure he is supposed to be neutral in frame of mind, but he ignored the fact the prosecution was deliberately trying to drag everything out. And they abused the court time and time again. He totally lost control over the court. Plus he let political things going on outside the case effect his judgement, etc. It's as if he just wanted to bask in all the attention and media frenzy. I can only wonder would have happened if there was a better stronger judge instead..

Terminator Genisys (2015)

More Arnold, less Calleasy

[6/10 · 30 October 2015]

Didn't know what to expect from the movie, the trailer for it was horrible. It was Entertaining but disappointing at the same time.

I get the idea, but the story just didn't work. Note it's not much of a spoiler here since a lot of the basic plot was already descried in the media, including interviews with Arnold himself.

My biggest gripe was the whole love story part seemed really fabricated and unreal. There seems to be little to no connection be tween Kyle and Sarah.

We already knew these characters. It's inevitable that you are going to compare the two if you've seen the originals. They would have to be at least better actors. And they were not. Most of the supporting actors were miscast. This movie misses the magic.

While I like Emilia Clarke in Game of Thrones, here she was flat out horrible; not believable at all. She is not at all how one would envision Sarah after Linda Hamilton's powerful portrayal. It looks like most of the supporting actors realized it was going to be a stinker and gave up early on; like it was just a paycheck to them.

I really liked Arnold, in particular back with his one liners. I think he should give up on this one though.

Come on Arny!, do a "True Lies 2" or something else with Tom Arnold et al. Do some new interesting projects, lets not try to squeeze anything else out of the Terminator world.

Entertaining if your into the Terminator, but you'll probably feel letdown in the end..

Air (I) (2015)

Air Pollution, What's that smell?

[1/10 · 7 October 2015]

Yes I do "enjoy sci-fi dystopia genre" but this movie was flat out horrible.

I could only stand about 20 minutes of it before I had to throw in the towel.

I really do like Norman Reedus, but I honestly don't know how he ended up in this horrible movie. For that matter it looks like he wasn't even trying.

First of all it look like they spent all of maybe $5000 to make this movie. Filmed in what looked like a basement. It looks like they raided the local E-waste dump to throw in a bunch of old electronics junk. Then they made a few cheap CGI cut scenes.

Sometimes there are movies like this, cheaply made, mostly in all one location, etc., and turn out great. This was not one of them.

If you like Sci-Fi or not, this is just a horrible movie all ways around..

Halt and Catch Fire (2014–2017)

Halt and Soap Opera

[4/10 · 28 August 2015]

For the first few episodes I liked the show.

Now understand, I was around in the 80's (70's even) so I liked the feel and it seemed to fit the period well enough.

Then for some reason they had to put major homosexual theme into the show.

Before anyone runs off and calls me a bigot, I have nothing against homosexuals. The point is, did this really need to be in there? It just doesn't fit, and ruined it for me. Sure there have been gay people around forever, but it really wasn't a thing in the 80's. You don't hear about anything gay about the computer revolution that started in the early 80's.

After awhile I started to see the writers of this show ran out of solid story ideas and went for the overly dramatic sensationalist soap opera style; taking a lot of cheap short-cuts along the way.

If I wanted to watch a brainless no story soap opera I would have watched one at noon. I couldn't stand this show after seeing the direction it was going..

Gutshot Straight (2014)

Better than expected

[7/10 · 13 June 2015]

I didn't know what to expect with this movie. Maybe having little expectation is why I liked it.

First of all it had a pretty good variety of good/known actors. Stephen Lang (Sargent guy from Avatar), Ted Levine (The Silence of the Lambs), even Tia Carrere and Steven Seagal have an appearance.

Although the hat was a little silly. Really who wears a hat like that these days? I know, I suppose it was to add character.

Not fantastic, but not that bad either. Definitely a notch above the average at least.

With out giving anything away, the film had a nice dark film noir feel to it. This movie might be sort of a sleeper, I bet it will gain popularity in a few years..

It might not have many reviews, and, a lot of them might not be great but I'd recommend it to anyhow who likes noir/mystery/dark style!

Once Upon a Time in Queens (2013)

Great, unexpected

[8/10 · 17 May 2015]

Without knowing much beforehand with the title "Once Upon a Time.." I first expected some epic sweeping three hour movie (like "Once Upon a Time in the West", "Once Upon a Time in America", etc).

What it was instead a nice drama and part mobster movie with a nice sprinkle of humor. I don't normally like dramas but I liked this one.

Being Italian my self I liked the nice positive sentiment it had about traditional Italian ways. Kind of nostalgic even.

In the movies, particularly in mobster/gangster ones, you see a lot of Italians being violent, uncaring, and generally acting pretty stupid. But nothing could be further from the truth. Most Italians in America from "the old country" (the previous generation or two) are some of the most kind, loving, and sincere people you will ever meet. It's not about the "me", it's about family, friends, and making sure your guests feel welcomed, etc.

With out giving anything away, I liked some of contrasts pointed out about the old and the new ways, etc.

It's a little slow at points maybe, but not a very enjoyable movie if your into the occasional drama.