MOVIE - Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

PG-13 (2:14)

Wide release 11/16/18

Viewed 12/18/18 with Tristan
IMBd: 6.8/10

RT Critic: 38  Audience:  60
Critic's Consensus:  Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald has glimmers of the magic familiar to Harry Potter fans, but the story's spell isn't as strong as earlier installments.

Cag:  2.5

Directed by David Yates

Warner Bros. Pictures

Written by J. K. Rowling

Johnny Depp, Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law

My comments:  Okay, I admit it, I didn't know what in hell was going on most of the time.  The funny thing was, when I discussed it with Tristan afterwards, he got most of the stuff I didn't, and I had to fill him in on the stuff I got but he didn't!  It was fun watching him love this movie.  He's becoming a huge Harry Potter fan, but loves the fantastical beasts the best.  There weren't too many of them in this movie, however.  I was actually quite bored....

RT/ IMDb Summary  At the end of the first film, the powerful Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Depp) was captured by MACUSA (Magical Congress of the United States of America), with the help of Newt Scamander (Redmayne). But, making good on his threat, Grindelwald escaped custody and has set about gathering followers, most unsuspecting of his true agenda: to raise pure-blood wizards up to rule over all non-magical beings. In an effort to thwart Grindelwald's plans, Albus Dumbledore (Law) enlists his former student Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends and family, in an increasingly divided wizarding world.

MOVIE - Black Mass

R (2:02)

Wide release 9-18-15

Viewed 10-1-15 at ElCon with Sheila and Connie

RT Critic:  76  Audience:   76

Cag:  5/Loved it 

Directed by Scott Cooper

Warner Bros. Studios

Based on the true story of Jimmy "Whitey" Bulger,  South Boston crime lord

Johnny Depp, Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Kevin Bacon, Dakota Johnson, Julianne Nicholson....and even Peter Sarsgaard

My comments:  This was a good one.  A true story I could relate to (being "from" Boston) - excellent story retelling and super actors.  Enjoyed every minute.  Interesting to watch the goodness in someone collide with the badness and watch a psychopath become crazier.  And then there's corruption.  Cops.  I grew up in the 60s and cops have always given me the heebie-jeebies, my 60s residue.  This movie reminded me of so much - especially Southie vs. the North End.....

RT Summary:  In 1970s South Boston, FBI Agent John Connolly (Joel Edgerton) persuades Irish mobster James "Whitey" Bulger (Johnny Depp) to collaborate with the FBI and eliminate a common enemy: the Italian mob. The drama tells the story of this unholy alliance, which spiraled out of control, allowing Whitey to evade law enforcement, consolidate power, and become one of the most ruthless and powerful gangsters in Boston history.

MOVIE - Into the Woods

PG (2:04)

Wide release 12/25/15

Roadhouse Cinema Friday 1/9/15 with Cyra

RT Critic: 72   Audience:   58

Cag: 2/It was okay....

Directed by Rob Marshal

Walt Disney Pictures

Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Johnny Depp, 

My comments:  Well, I loved being at the Roadhouse.  I enjoyed the music, the set, and the costumes.  But the story, the plot, the way it all went together just didn't do it for me.  You were expected to know the stories (Cinderella, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk...and I'm still not sure about the baker, his wife, and the witch) so that big important chunks were only discussed after the fact.  The interlude with the baker's wife and Prince Charming (Chris Pine nailed this)????   (My favorite scene was the one between Prince Charming and his brother, Rapunzel's beau, at the waterfall.) What happened to the witch at the end...and why?  Interesting to note:  Some of the audience broke into applause at the end (and the ending stunk).

Google Summary:  As the result of the curse of a once-beautiful witch (Meryl Streep), a baker (James Corden) and his wife (Emily Blunt) are childless. Three days before the rise of a blue moon, they venture into the forest to find the ingredients that will reverse the spell and restore the witch's beauty: a milk-white cow, hair as yellow as corn, a blood-red cape, and a slipper of gold. During their journey, they meet Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and Jack, each one on a quest to fulfill a wish.
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MOVIE - Public Enemies

Johnny Depp was great

Released July 1, 2009

R (2 hrs. 23 min.)

Reel Pizza Thurs 8/6 with Fran

RT: 67% cag: 88%

Director: Michael Mann

This machine-gunning love story had humor and great acting. John Dillinger - Public Enemy # 1 in the 30's, recreated by Johnny Depp and Michael Mann - was interesting and entertaining. The violence and mahem were expected, the smirk on Depp/Dillinger's face was beautiful, of course you were rooting for the bad guys....and the ending was perfect. Yes, it was indeed a love story. And how much of this was true? Was he really so smart? Was he really so cheeky? (Walking into the Chicago Police station and strolling into the Dillinger unit!) Or was he really just lucky? Between the book I'm currently reading and this movie, I am more-than-ever convinced that the FBI is, for the most part, ummmmm....... ineffective???

I'm really glad I saw this. Hadn't been planning to. Good movie.