Nerd in the 'Noke

Captain Marvel (2019), PG-13, 2h 4min - I saw this film a couple weeks back on opening weekend, but a crazy schedule has kept me from getting this review together and posted until now.  At this point, most everyone with any interest in it has likely seen it as it has dominated the box office over the last two weeks.  Captain Marvel is the twenty-first entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and more importantly, is the first focused on a female lead.  It also happens to be the first MCU film that acts as a prequel as opposed to continuing the current timeline. Captain Marvel is set in the late 1990's and introduces us to Vers/Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), a Kree warrior who finds herself on Earth while in pursuit of fleeing Skrulls (alien shapes-hifters) after her unit's mission - to rescue a Kree asset before it falls into the hands of the Skrulls - falls apart.  Once on Earth, she begins regaining slivers of memories, leading her to question her experie...

Darkest Hour (2017), PG-13, 2hr, 5min - I was able to knock Darkest Hour off of my 'Movies from 2017 I Still Want to See' list last week, just a couple of hours after publishing my Top 10 of 2017 post.  This film has been nominated for six Oscars this year, and if I had seen it a day earlier than I had, I likely would have paired it with Dunkirk  a number nine on that list (more on that in a bit). Darkest Hour is set in the early to mid-1940's during World War II.  Nazi Germany's forces have made significant advances across Europe towards the Atlantic Ocean.  The resignation of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain (Ronald Pickup) is being called for as he has not provided the authority in leadership that Great Britain needs in order to fend off Germany's impending invasion attempt.  Chamberlain resigns, and Winston Churchill (Gary Oldman), who has a spotty political record but has proven to be correct in his beliefs that Adolf Hitler is a danger to e...

Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014), PG-13, 150 minutes - Generally I really enjoy sword and sandal 'epics'. And generally I enjoy films directed by Ridley Scott, especially when they boast a strong cast. Unfortunately, an extremely poor 3D screening severely limited any enjoyment that could have been had with this film. I tend to avoid 3D when at all possible, but on this occasion it was the only showing that fit my schedule. At first I thought that my eyes just had to adjust. I hadn't sat through a 3D film since earlier this summer when I saw How to Train Your Dragon 2 (which happens to be an example of 3D done right). After a few minutes, nothing had changed. A person or object would be clear, but the rest of the picture still looked fuzzy as if I weren't wearing the 3D glasses at all. It didn't seem to be bothering anyone else in the theater so I figured it was just my eyes. I put up with it, disappointed but determined to try and enjoy whatever I could of ...

The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), R, 140 minutes - Back in 2010, Derek Cianfrance, who had previously directed television documentaries broke through with the critically acclaimed film Blue Valentine.  Now he is back with his latest project: The Place Beyond the Pines, which just so happens to be generating its own fair share of acclaim. I first saw the trailer for Pines a couple of months ago and was instantly interested.  I was curious to see what came next from Cianfrance, especially considering the cast he was working with: Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes, Ray Liotta, Rose Byrne, Bruce Greenwood.  All have been in films that I've really enjoyed.  As I learned more about the film, I found out that it is set in Schenectady, New York.  A good friend of mine grew up in Schenectady and I had the chance to visit there when I went to his wedding a few years back.  That's a fairly small tie to a place I know, but it still added to my interest in ...

Killing Them Softly (2012), R, 97 minutes - Killing Them Softly is a film that I saw on a whim a week or so ago starring Brad Pitt, Scoot McNairy, James Gandolfini, Richard Jenkins, and Ray Liotta. I didn't know much going in other than who was in it and that it involved the mob or organized crime in some way.  Having had a few days to try and process my thoughts, I'm still not sure what to make of it. Here's what I do know: Killing Them Softly is well acted.  Pitt, McNairy, and Jenkins are the best of the bunch.  Gandolfini does well too, he just plays a character that is about impossible to like and Ray Liotta does his usual mob movie thing.  I'm not real familiar with him, but Ben Mendelsohn was pretty entertaining as well as one of the two small time crooks who knock over an underground poker game.  Liotta's character (Markie Trattman) runs the poker game.  A couple of years before, he had the brilliant idea of having someone hit his own game becaus...