elvylanda Reviews

Me Time (2022)

Kevin Hart entering that very dangerous road of an Adam Sandler lazy movie career.

[5/10 · 30 August 2022]

Me Time is a comedy starring Kevin Hart and Mark Wahlberg as long time buddies who reunite after a few years of not seeing each other to have another adventure together celebrating Hart's character birthday. Wahlberg plays Huck while Hart plays Sonny. Sonny gets depressed knowing that he's a Mr. Mom, stay at home dad, while his wife, played by Regina Hall, is an up and coming architect. As a result, Sonny gets depressed that all he is a super dad who directs school talent shows. This is where Huck comes in, and Huck being the crazy, wild child, they automatically get into trouble and adventure that results in Sonny and Huck destroying things and saving one another from a loan shark.

Overall, I liked it. It had a few funny moments. Wahlberg and Hart worked really well together despite being an odd pairing for a comedy but both guys are pretty good actors. Wahlberg is a very good, underappreciated, actor that can do anything. Hart himself is a good actor as well and very likeable in every film that I've seen him in.

The negative part and this is where my headline comes in. Hart is entering that dangerous Adam Sandler route of lazy movie making with a very glossy comedy, a lot of sex jokes, a celebrity appearance, over the top storyline, zany antics but no real story or heart to their film. Me Time felt like an Adam Sandler film from I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry and every film after that. Just a lazy film. And this one was too lazy and zany like a Sandler film and Hart shouldn't be doing these types of films just yet as he is still in his prime as an actor.

Overall, Me Time is a fun flick but won't be a memorable film. Just something to watch and enjoy on a boring day. Also, you just hope Kevin Hart doesn't steer too close to these types of films for awhile.

The Gray Man (2022)

Fun action film that is rescued by Chris Evans.

[8/10 · 26 July 2022]

Saw ads for The Gray Man and didn't know what the heck it was about and was kind of confusing. They mixed their marketing with a watch company which made it incredibly confusing for me.

Anyway to the film itself. The Gray Man is basically just another action movie with no real pulse to it. It's fun. It exciting. Lots of good scenes. Just lacked a story and a heartbeat in a way. I like Ryan Gosling but he felt flat in his role as Six. Chris Evans steals the movie as the main villain and I think the producers should have forced him to take the role of Six and let Gosling be the villain because that would have made more sense after Evans' performance. Other than that, The Gray Man is a fun, well, paced, action film filled with cool shoot outs, car chases, explosions. So, definitely something you can check out on a boring day. I've watched the film several times which for me always means I liked it a lot. The only thing it did lack was a good story, the acting was flat from everyone except Evans.

Overall, The Gray Man was a cool action flick but lacked some heart. Still worth checking.

Spiral (2021)

Chris Rock Can Be A Serious Actor!!!

[9/10 · 5 July 2021]

Spiral was totally fun, scary, film. I didn't have high expectations but my curiosity was definitely there with Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson in the leads for this movie based on the SAW movie franchise.

Spiral was fun, kept me glued the entire time, had good swerves and those swerves paid off at the end. It was a very good film.

Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard (2021)

Leave Your Brain At Home.

[1/10 · 4 July 2021]

This is sequel to the surprisingly successful Hitman's Bodyguard and felt like a filler film to be honest.

Not that it is bad film. This is totally a fun film filled with lots of action. So, just go to theaters for that and you won't be disappointed.

The big 3 of Samuel L Jackson, Ryan Reynolds and Salma Hayek (who is STILL incredibly beautiful) were clearly hamming it up in the film and did this for the easy paycheck which I do not mean as a bad thing but it felt like good friends making a film with no pressure on them because they have nothing to prove anymore and are established legends.

The storyline is all over the place; felt like a Quentin Tarantino film with how chaotic it was and running in so many circles.

Again, Hitman's Wife Bodyguard was a plain, fun, action film that lacked any importance.

Would have been curious how different this film is if the 3 leads were headed by young actors still trying to establish themselves in Hollywood instead of veterans already successful.

F9: The Fast Saga (2021)

Cheesy Yet Still Fun.

[8/10 · 31 May 2021]

Well, Fast 9 finally debuts in theaters after being delayed for a year due to the Covid 19 pandemic. The past couple of Fast and Furious films have been very confusing and absurd in storylines due to director Justin Lin not being behind the camera directing and not having the late Paul Walker anymore.

But Justin Lin is back for F9 and he tries to connect the storylines from the previous Fast and Furious films into a cohesive film for F9. Since Justin Lin is back at the helm, it means the return of one of his favorite actors / characters from Tokyo Drift. In fact, there are a few characters from Tokyo Drift that make an appearance in F9. Amazing how Lin has gotten the most out of a film like Tokyo Drift that - not being commercially successful and only average reviews - paved the way for the rest of the Fast and Furious universe for years to come.

Well, with F9, Lin tries to connect the absurdity of the storylines from the previous films where Dominic and company are subcontracted agents for the government of sorts. And he does it by giving you a backstory to Dominic which goes back to his teenage years along with a younger brother named Jakob (played by John Cena). And this prequel of sorts, he gives you a perspective of the Dom character, the relationship with his younger brother and what went wrong and why they remained apart which leads into the main plot of the story as Jakob is rogue / bad guy working for a previous enemy that killed the mother of Dom's son. And that is your basic plot for the film which is brother vs brother.

Now, you don't watch Fast and Furious for the acting and storylines. You watch it for the action and F9 has plenty of action with car chases, explosions, crashes and all around excitement which is the nook and cranny of every Fast and Furious film and F9 gives you plenty of an adrenaline to rush as a viewer.

I liked F9. Cheesy but always fun and to the people that keep complaining about the franchise, when people stop paying money to watch the films, they'll stop making it. It's as simple as that and F9 is an easy like and watch and it will probably be successful as well.

Two thumbs up.

Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017)

Lacks the charm of the first film.

[6/10 · 7 February 2021]

Kingsman: The Golden Circle as a sequel lacks the charm of the first film and added way too many unnecessary stars. The movie is very long at over 2 hours. It sucks when the sequel of a movie cannot live up to the same quantity of its predecessor. The first Kingsman film was a surprisingly fun, cool, movie while this sequel was too flashy, big budget and added too many stars like Halle Berry and Channing Tatum who were probably not needed. And the special effects / CGI were really awkward and stood out like a sore thumb.

Overall, an average movie that is a bit long and doesn't match the charm of the first Kingsman movie.

Skippable.

Extraction (2020)

Wonderful Action Film.

[9/10 · 31 January 2021]

Extraction is an intense, edge of your seat, action film starring Chris Hemsworth. Overall, if you love old school 1980's action movies, Extraction is an ode to those movies. Hemsworth kicks butt accompanied by a crazy car chase and wesome fight scenes.

Extraction is an adrenaline rush of a movie that is never boring.

Extraction is awesome. Watch it.

Outside the Wire (2021)

Very dull Sci-Fi movie

[4/10 · 18 January 2021]

I like Anthony Mackie as an actor but I don't think he's a leading man type. Outside The Wire is pretty dull, lifeless Sci-Fi movie where is it seems like the plot resembles a Will Smith movie. Either I Robot or Gemini. Has that same vibe.

The co star is awful. Damson Idris is awful and just adds nothing to the film.

The film itself is pretty confusing. Cyborgs vs Mackie cyborg. Why is Mackie a cyborg? The intro quickly explains it but could have built it up.

The action is nothing special; neither are the special effects.

Avoid. Two thumbs down.

The Cold Light of Day (2012)

Wasn't that bad, don't listen to the negative reviews.

[6/10 · 18 January 2021]

This is why you have to watch for yourself. The Cold Light of Day was not a bad movie at all. It had action, suspense, cat and mouse chase. It was a quick film. At best, it's a 90 minute movie and the first 30 minutes are used for the acting and build up. After that, it gets going and the action starts.

The Cold Light of Day is a good movie worth checking on a boring day and you won't regret it.

Higher Learning (1995)

A little dry and all over the place.

[3/10 · 18 January 2021]

Higher Learning came after Boyz N The Hood from director John Singleton. After the critical acclaim and success of Boyz N The Hood, Singleton became a hot and in demand director, so here comes Higher Learning. Higher Learning is definitely a huge step up production wise as it is clear more money was in the budget for this film with the talent in it and location than the gritty nature of Boyz N The Hood.

And that is the only advantage Higher Learning has over Boyz N The Hood. Everything else from great characters, good acting, emotion belongs to Boyz N The Hood.

Higher Learning is a mish mosh of confusion and goes everywhere with it's characters. Michael Rapaport is the odd, white kid who ends up as a Nazi skinhead, Kristy Swanson is the shy student, victim of sexual assault on campus, who is bisexual or lesbian (not sure because, well, the film didn't really tell me), Omar Epps is angry and feels he is being held back because of the color of his skin, Ice Cube is just angry.

The issue is, Higher Learning, fails to connect all these characters into one big storyline and main plot. Also, way too many useless characters like Busta Rhymes (The film spells his name as Busta Rhymez for some odd reason). Busta at the time, was a hot rapper, and as a result, like Ice Cube or any hot rapper that sells lots of albums, they get placed in movies whether they have the talent or not. Some do, like Cube and Ice-T. Some don't, and Busta was useless in this film.

Anyway, Higher Learning isn't a bad film but clearly John Singleton was given a lot of toys to play with and it didn't really click as a film and also a waste of Laurence Fishburne as a professor.

If you love Boyz N The Hood like I did, the only cool thing was the reunion of a lot of the actors from that film that appear in Higher Learning: Laurence Fishburne, Regina King, Ice Cube, Morris Chestnut in an uncredited role, even the guy who played Dookie was in a few scenes here.

Higher Learning was average and worth a one time watch only for the love scene between Kristy Swanson and Jennifer Connelly.

Menace II Society (1993)

A bit dry, hard edged film that lacks heart.

[5/10 · 16 January 2021]

Comparing Menace 2 Society versus Boyz N The Hood. The nod easily goes to Boyz N The Hood. It had a charm and very likable characters that you felt sorry for and rooted for.

Menace 2 Society offers neither which makes it difficult to really enjoy the film. The lead actor's character is not very likable and had no redeeming values. Larenz Tate plays a psycho with no care. A young Jada Pinckett Smith shines in the movie.

Menace 2 Society is just a simply a depressing and disturbing film that focuses on the negativity and violence of living in the ghetto in the 90's.

Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)

Very dull sequel rescued by Chris Pine.

[3/10 · 28 December 2020]

Yeah, Wonder Woman 1984 was just a very dull movie that dragged on forever. This definitely needed to trim 30 minutes of useless scenes.

Kristen Wiig added nothing to her character except looking hot. But that's it. Don't quite understand her appeal. The film builds up her villain character only to forget about her half way through the movie and then returns to her Cheetah character in a bland fight with Wonder Woman.

The special effects / CGI in this film is horrendous. Just awful.

Chris Pine rescues the film with his charm and chemistry with Gal Gadot. They should work together more often.

Gal Gadot did her best but she had nothing to work with.

Felt like two movies in one. They dealt with one villain (Wiig) forget about her and moved on the other villain.

Lack of action. Only two real good action scenes in this movie.

Yeah, on a boring day and nothing to do, check out Wonder Woman 1984. Overall, very dull.

Cagefighter (2020)

Very Boring Film.

[1/10 · 16 December 2020]

How can an MMA film be so boring? Nothing is going on here. Main actor is not very good or believable. No emotion. The only guys trying are Chuck Liddle and Jon Moxley. Should have given Jon Moxley the main role so that at least you have someone do the physicality since he is a wrestler for the second rate promotion known as AEW.

Avoid.

21 Bridges (2019)

Intense, awesome, action!!!!!!

[9/10 · 27 November 2020]

Late great Chadwick Boseman left us with 21 Bridges. And he blessed us with an intense, awesome, never a dull moment, keeps you on the edge of your seat, action thriller.

It's a quick film at 90 minutes and it breezes by. Basically, two guys attempt to get 30 pounds of cocaine but it falls through and they end up on a killing spree of cops that left several dead and now run from the law. This is where Boseman's character comes in as a smart detective who has the mission of finding them.

Intense, fast paced, swerves. JK Simmons is in this film as well and any movie JK Simmons is in is automatically awesome.

Watch it and appreciate the acting skills of Chadwick Boseman.

Playing with Fire (I) (2019)

I love John Cena but this movie was terrible.

[3/10 · 27 November 2020]

A kids movie but even of it is a kids movie there should be some laughs that everyone can enjoy. Not this one. Just overall dull and only one funny scene. Being a big wrestling fan, I support John Cena but this was simply not very good. I honestly believe even if I myself were a kid right now, I wouldn't have found this funny. And this film had no real plot. 3 kids run away from home but why? That never got explained. It needed a villain chasing the kids for John Cena's character to be a hero.

And, finally, there are 3 kids in the movie: a teenage girl, a little boy and a baby girl.

The baby girl is absolutely annoying in this film. Cute but annoying in the loud and I mean LOUD yelling and crying she does in the film for her character. So, if you are a parent and want to watch this with your kid, wear ear plugs.

Traitor (2008)

Very Well Done Film!!!

[9/10 · 14 July 2020]

You know, passing by my local used DVD shop Book Off, I always saw the movie Traitor with Don Cheadle available. Never had the impulse to buy it but after a long wait of quarantining, and being able to go back to the store after being closed for 4 months. I decided let me buy it and check it out at a cheap price. I was pleasantly surprised and I recommend anyone to check it out. It has swerve after swerve which I never saw coming in the film and surprised me and that is a good thing. Don Cheadle is the main star of the film and very underrated actor; still remember how good the film about Earl The Goat Manigualt was where he played a former great college basketball player. Basically, Cheadle plays a an undercover agent who is a bomber who befriends a terrorist bomber and they develop a bond and friendship until that friendship is put to the test when Cheadle has to arrest other bombers associated with his friend. Good film and you should check it out.

Running Scared (2006)

Odd, Cool, Film.

[8/10 · 14 July 2020]

Running Scared starring Paul Walker is a cool film and a bit odd. Walker play this mafia thug - which is strange seeing Walker playing a bad guy - and he gets into a big shooting mess where he and his crew end up shooting undercover cops in a deal gone bad. From that, we get Walker's character son and his buddy Oleg. I have that name Oleg stamped on my mind for how funny it is and for how the kid playing Oleg becomes the main catalyst of the film really. My only gripe is Oleg getting too much attention despite being a bit dull as a character and wanting much more Paul Walker. Not that Walker isn't in the movie. He is and is a main character but I enjoyed his character more than Oleg. Running Scared has plenty of insane violence which is awesome but don't watch it with young kids. Running Scared does go off on a bit of a weird lane when Oleg gets kidnapped by a weird couple and have two kids with them; and they do weird things with the kids. Nothing graphic but the perception I got was that the parents where molesters. Very odd scene that kind of ruined the pacing of the film. But it is still a cool film that you should check out. Warning, not for kids. There are some serious sexual scenes involving Walker and Vera Farmiga. Enjoy.

Cellular (2004)

Fun Awesome Film That Went Under The Radar!!!!

[9/10 · 14 July 2020]

This was a gem of a film. I never heard of this film when it came out, never saw a trailer at all. So, I don't think I ever heard of this film until I decided to pick it up based on reviews online. Man, I guess Cellular flopped at the box office? Which is too bad because it is a fun, energetic, edge of your seat movie that never gets dull, every scene is important and you cannot miss one scene. Cellular is an intense movie filled with car chases, explosions. The 3 main actors are Chris Evans who is the hero of the film, Kim Basinger is the female lead and heroine while Jason Statham is the main villain. Basically the film is Evans' character taking a phone call out of nowhere from Basinger's character. Thinking it is a prank call, Evans does not take it seriously until he hears screams and threats from the main villain played by Statham. And that is where it all begins with a terrific chase to rescue Basinger's character and her family before it is too late. Cellular is a fun film that went under the radar and I for one am ashamed that it took me 16 years to see this film. Watch it and you'll love it.

American Assassin (2017)

Ignore the negative reviews, this film is insanely awesome.

[9/10 · 9 March 2020]

The trailer for this film when I first saw it intrigued me but not enough to pay to watch it in the theater. Plus I knew nothing about the main actor and I've never seen his work; seems like an actor for the younger demo. And that probably explains why this movie did not do too well in the box office and that's a shame.

So, I saw this movie on DVD available for $5.99 at Book Off. So, I figured I was curious and at a cheap price let me check it out. Man, I was amazingly surpised how awesome this film is. It is basically a love song to Jason Bourne; same storyline or close to it where the main actor's girlfriend is killed and he now is set on revenge. If anything, it's their version of the Bourne Supremacy. I love Jason Bourne, I love the action, adventure espionage movies and that is what American Assassin is. Fun, action packed, intense. Michael Keaton is awesome as the ex-marine now serving as a teacher to Dylan O'Brien's Rapp character.

People slept on American Assassin. I wish for a sequel but again it won't happen because the film underperformed at the box office. But find the DVD, buy it, watch it. It is awesome.

The Italian Job (2003)

Still a very cool movie!!!

[8/10 · 30 January 2020]

Yeah, just started rewatching Italian Job after so many years and it still holds very well and is very entertaining. It has aged very well as a movie that was made in 2003. I don't care about plot or storyline I am an action movie fan; I consider this an action movie more than a heist film because it has car chases, guns, explosion. To me a heist film is more a who done it with mystery. Italian Job is clearly an action film and a very good one that is worth a watch on a boring cold day in the winter time. Anyway, someone from Fast and Furious must have watched this film because it's plot and characters are eerily similar to what Fast and Furious became beginning with FF4.

Hands of Stone (2016)

Very Disappointing With This.

[4/10 · 2 January 2020]

I was incredibly excited when I found out that there was a Roberto Duran movie coming out. Being a humongous fan of Duran and being a huge boxing fan of the 80's and 90's, I was looking forward to this.

Man, watching this film and I went in with so much excitment only to be terribly disappointed. It was awful, all over the place, forgettable acting, poor boxing sequences. The director took a whole bunch of creative license with Duran's life that I honestly don't know what was real or not. I honestly thought everything was made up and nothing was real.

So, Hands of Stone and Bleed For This both came out around the same year or close to it and both did extremely poorly at the box office which shows that real life boxing movies just don't do well in comparison to fictional boxing movies because fictional boxing movies allow for more, much more creative freedom.

Also, I did not need to see Usher's Butt cheeks on my TV screen. He played Sugar Ray Leonard in the film. Avoid.

The Next Karate Kid (1994)

Really Should Not Be Associated With Karate Kid Franchise

[2/10 · 28 December 2019]

The Next Karate Kid was a weird one. Hilary Swank would turn out to be one of the greatest actress in the past 25 years winning two Academy Awards for Best Actress. This was her first big role and as much effort she gives, it just does not work. She seems not to fit the role and her chemistry with Pat Morita is nowhere near the same as with Ralph Macchio and Morita.

Now with The Next Karate Kid. Just lazy. They did not know where to go with this one. They had a wanna be Cobra Kai but it's military students, a military instructor version of John Kreese. Swank's defending her love interest in the movie. Just all over the place. They should have kept it simple and made it as Swank wanting to compete in a karate tournament against men and being told no and Miyagi helps her get in and train and eventually win. Easy women's movement, pro-feminine deal.

Next Karate Kid is forgettable. Destroyed the franchise for over a decade until the Will Smith version came along.

Best of the Best II (1993)

Decent but not nearly as good as the first one.

[5/10 · 16 December 2019]

Best of The Best 2 is the sequel to the very likeable and cool Best of The Best that came out in 1989.

The big difference with this sequel is that it looks like it had a bigger budget than the first one and it didn't really help in my opinion. While the first one was a charming film with a storyline that everyone can relate to, the sequel struggles to explain the storyline.

Another big weakness for BoTB 2 is the top villains are terrible. Wayne Newton as a crooked promoter? And the actor playing Brakus was a stiff with no charisma. In a perfect world, those two roles would have and should have been given to Billy Drago and Bolo Yeung.

So, check it out if you can find it. Worth a look but nothing good comparable to first movie.

Best of the Best (1989)

A classic that many never saw.

[9/10 · 16 December 2019]

Best of The Best is an underrated martial arts movie that starred Eric Roberts, Chris Penn, James Earl Jones and Phillip Rhee along with a good supporting cast that includes the beautiful Sally Kirkland.

Anyway, this was a fun, cheesy martial arts film. When I say cheesy, I mean that in a good way. And this film was fun, had a lot of heart, a lot of likeable characters led by Roberts and Rhee and has tons of great action which includes a bar rool brawl and the main scene which was team USA national karate team versus team Korea. And that's what the movie is about. Eric Roberts and company are part of a team USA Karate team and they battle for the championship. But before they can compete for the championship of Karate, the team needs to battle the hurdles that will come their way from working as a team and personal family issues.

Best of The Best is a good, classic movie that is under the radar and it never got the true love it deserved when it first came out. Didn't help that 3 more Best of The Best movies were made with no real connection to what this one was about. Anyway, good film. Catch it and watch it.

Spawn (1997)

Has not aged well at all.

[3/10 · 7 December 2019]

Yeah, I just watched this just now on a boring Saturday afternoon and man it was rough to watch. I remember wanting to watch this so badly as a teenager but never finding the chance to see it. Many, many, years later I finally got a chance to watch this at home and unfortunately the film did not age well with poor special effects, sloppy graphics, poor costume. Seriously, it looks like Michael Jai White was wearing a hockey / Jason Voorhies mask. So, as a film, it looks incredibly awful which you would say, hey it's a movie made in the 90's, so the special effects will look cheap but Terminator 2 was made before Spawn and I have that on DVD and I can watch it and it still looks great. So, I ain't buying that excuse.

It's too bad with lead star Michael Jai White. The man had the look and athleticism and should have been a legit major movie star but this film did him no favors.

I think another reason why I wanted to see this film and it's only saving grace is the soundtrack. I remember buying and loving the Spawn soundtrack with tons of great songs on it that were amazing to listen to and quite frankly, were better than the movie.

Yeah, in short, Spawn the film has not aged well but still worth a look on a boring day.