Legend

Legend, the latest film from writer/director Brian Helgeland is a highly entertaining biopic on the notorious Kray twins from the East side of England. There are moments of utter hilarity, violence, an heartbreak during the unfolding of the story and when you have those three ingredients along with fascinating subject matter and amazing acting, then that usually adds up to hit movie. That's what Brian Helgeland may just have on his hands and that's one of the reasons I'm giving Legend four and half buckets of Killer Korn.










The first time I really noticed Tom Hardy was in a crackling film entitled Bronson. He was so convincing in that movie, so magnetic that I went back and found him in previous movies that I had seen already and had no idea he was in like Star Trek: Nemesis and Black Hawk Down. His range was dynamic and his talents were so undeniable that I became a Hardy fan. I didn't think he'd be able to top himself after seeing this years Mad Max: Fury Road but it was his performance in that film that compelled me to see Legend. The movie is about the Kray twins, Ronald and Reginald who were gangsters back in 60's England. Reggie was the somewhat more level headed of the two, who saw himself initially as a businessman rather than a gangster. Ronald was the beast, a man prone to sudden acts of violence and anger so profound that you never knew what might set him off, a man who embraced the word gangster. Hardy captured these two distinct personalities in such grand ways that you cease to see him and instead you see the twins. It was, without any subterfuge an epic performance and one that will be talked about for years to come. That's not to say the movie was perfect, there were some holes in the story and a lot of underdeveloped characters buzzed around the twins but since Hardy dominates the screen in a myriad of ways (even his walk is a character) then you may find yourself not really caring about the Krays crew.

Now believe it or not there was some serious talent in this movie alongside Tom. Emily Browning plays Frances, the wife of Reggie, David Thewlis plays Leslie Payne, the Krays business advisor and money launderer, Chazz Palminteri plays Angelo Bruno, the middle man between the Krays and Meyer Lanski. Paul Bettany makes a frightening and funny appearance as does Sam Spruell who plays Jack "The Hat" McVitie. Taron Egerton, fresh off his turn as Eggsy in Kingsman also makes as much of his secondary character Mad Teddy Smith as possible. It's a talented lot to put it mildly but they all take a backseat to the man. If you are not a Tom Hardy fan, first I ave to ask,  what in the hell is wrong with you? Secondly do NOT see this movie as he's in virtually every shot being smug and menacing. I won't give any of the plot away (especially since you can read up on the Krays on their Wikipedia page for yourself) but Brian Helgeland's screenplay was adapted from John Pearson's book The Profession of Violence and if it's anything like the movie, it's a must read.

I've never been to London but I doubt any sets had to be built for Legend. Shot entirely in the UK I would imagine the hardest thing to come by production wise were the cars. The costume designers did an excellent job of dressing one man two different ways in order for him to portray two different personlities. I'm sure some pieces had to be made but it wouldn't surprise me if most of the clothes were purchased from second hand shops. Legend's look was also crafted by Oscar nominated cinematographer Dick Pope. The framing, the camera movement and placement were perfect and made you feel like you were very much a part of the action. The score by Carter Burwell was a jazzy soundtrack which surprisingly fit perfectly alongside the pop songs of the day. It was a nice light touch. I highly recommend Legend to everyone. It will convert you into a Tom Hardy fan if you aren't one by now and if you are a Hardy fan, than this is your early Christmas gift. Enjoy and I'll see you at the theater.

Spotlight

Spotlight, the latest film from writer/director Tom McCarthy is an intense, intelligent, and heartbreaking film that can leave you feeling a couple of ways, and none of them are good. The performances were stellar if not a bit cold and while the subject matter feels like it's ten years too late, Spotlight was good enough for me to give it three and a half buckets of Killer Korn.















I am just going to lay this out here, I am not a fan of Tom McCarthy's last film. The actor/writer/director's last work was the horrible Adam Sandler racist piece of crap entitled The Cobbler. After seeing the trailer for Spotlight however, I had no qualms about doctoring my popcorn just right and heading into the theater. I am not Catholic but I have known people who were and who hasn't heard of the scandal of the Catholic church and their priests and the child molestation accusations? Spotlight chose to discuss that madness in a way never approached in a film before. This film shines a spotlight (see what I did there?) on a team of reporters from the Boston Globe who investigated the Catholic priests and the abuse allegations in the predominantly Catholic population. They unearthed such rampant cases of abuse that while they initially buried the news when it came to light years before, it was just too much to keep hidden a second time around. Spotlight is a taught drama that highlights the overwhelming disbelief that this kind of sexual abuse was happening in parishes all over the city of Boston and the state of Massachusetts. It was like the reporters themselves had a hard time wrapping their brains around it.

Those Spotlight reporters were Mark Ruffalo, who was incredible as Mike Rezendes, Michael Keaton as Walter Robinson, Rachel McAdams as Sacha Pfeiffer, and Brian d'Arcy James as Matt Carroll. Alongside them was Liev Schreiber as Marty Baron, John Slattery as Ben Bradlee Jr. Stanley Tucci as Mitchell Garabedian, and Billy Crudup as Eric Macleish. It's a talented cast and they were all good but the stand out was Ruffalo. His portrayal of Rezendes was electrifying and he was the one I'm sure most viewers will gravitate to. He voices his anger in such an impactful and profound way about this story that it inspires others of his team to get off their hands and to even fall on their swords. I've always thought Mark was a solid to good actor, thanks to Spotlight he just became great in my opinion.

The movie eschewed any nice aerial shots of Boston, the camera work was nothing special, it wasn't a pretty film to look at. In fact it was almost drab but with this particular subject matter making this movie something visually interesting would have almost been inappropriate. Cinematographer Masayobu Takayanagi kept Spotlight visually close to the vest when you compare it to his previous film, Black Mass which visually arresting. The piano heavy score by Howard Shore was disappointing. This was a chance for a really dark melodic score considering the subject and instead what we received something that seemed rudderless. There was nothing memorable here and I know this Oscar award winning composer is better than this. As I said earlier the subject matter for Spotlight feels like it's ten years too late but when it comes to molested children at the hands of some of the most trusted men in the communities, stories like this never get old. That's one of the issues I have with recommending Spotlight, but if you do see it...brace yourself and I'll see you at the theater.

Spectre

Spectre, the latest film from acclaimed director Sam Mendes is a twisting, turning, action packed film filled with covert actions and flashes of violence. Spectre spans the world putting Bond in the harshest environments and pitting him against some of the most ferocious villains seen in Bond film is a very long time. If you're a fan of the Bond films then Spectre will most assuredly entertain and because of that I give it four buckets of Killer Korn.













I'm just going to put it out there, I thought Skyfall was a decent Bond film but I wasn't head over heels in love with it. It had some truly magical moments but I thought it could have been better in a lot of ways. It seems Sam Mendes felt the same way because he improved on the good things he did and discarded all the things that didn't work in Skyfall. Spectre is a throwback to Bond films of the Connery/Moore days and that was refreshing. Instead of going over the top with the villains and the toys from Q, Spectre brings a sense of brutal realism to the world of Bond. There's a menacing, hulking villain in Spectre that rivals the likes of Odd Job and Jaws that honestly makes you question what would happen to Bond if the two went toe to toe. I have been looking for  a weakness in this film since I saw it and I can't find one which is surprising after I read about all the major rewrites and reshoots of the third act. That's a testament to the skills of Sam Mendes as a director and his editing team but that may also be the reason why Spectre may be Daniel Craig's last ride as 007.

Starring alongside Daniel are the normal cast of talented actors from Skyfall. Ralph Fiennes as M, Naomi Harris as Moneypenny, Ben Winslow as Q, and Rory Kinnear as Tanner. This time around Christoph Wentz is the big bad guy who in typical Bond fashion for it's bad guys talks WAY too much. He plays Oberhauser and is the leader of the underground all powerful Spectre organization. Lea Seydoux plays the latest "Bond girl" Madeleine Swan who captures the dichotomy of fragility and fearlessness better than most Bond girls before her. At first she got on my nerves but eventually she won me over. Andrew Scott plays C, the man who seeks to shut down the double 0 program, Dave Bautista who plays the dangerous Hinx, and Jesper Christensen who plays the tragic Mr. White.
The chases were gripping, particularly the one in the Alps that made me absolutely giddy because it brought me back those incredulous Bond chases of the past. The fights were physical, frenetic, and just flat out awesome (yeah, I said it).

Spectre was a gorgeous film to watch. The sets, the mountains, and the framing of the shots were impressive. The cinematographer on this Bond film was the award winning Hoyte Van Hoytema who's last project was the Christopher Nolan space odyssey Interstellar. Thomas Newman was once again tasked to score his second Bond film and I have to say in my opinion, he did a vastly better job of it this time around. I was disappointed in his score for Skyfall but he hit all the right notes here. It was a job well done. I vociferously recommend this film for those looking to be entertained at the movies and even more so for Bond fans. Spectre will not disappoint in any way. I'll see you at the theater.