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Reviews
Den of Thieves (2018)
An action movie for those who like their action macho & entertaining
Den of Thieves knows exactly what it is. A testosterone-fueled action film with both the good guys & bad guys trying to outdo each other in how tough they are, how clever they can be, and how many one-liners they can deliver. Like a lot of early 1980's action films, the primary goal of Den of Thieves is to just be entertaining and in that goal, the film delivers.
The opening armored car heist has excellent tension, solid camera work (no shaky cam here), and an intense gunfire exchange. Gerard Butler plays a sheriff who isn't exactly all "good" as he muddles through personal problems while tracking a group of expert thieves. He's energetic in this and has some good one-liners along the way. Pablo Schreiber plays the bad guy's main leader and has enough intensity to match Butler's as they challenge each other along the way to the big bank heist.
If there was one main complaint, it would be that the subplot involving Gerard Butler's family struggles doesn't really go anywhere and is completely forgotten in the last act of the film. Though the scenes with his family do help to develop his character and let us understand him a bit better so it's not wasted screen-time. But the writers should have wrapped that part up better considering how much time was spent on it in the 1st & 2nd acts.
I was definitely entertained along the way, there were several twists I didn't see coming, and I was pleasantly surprised. We get few and far between action movies like this these days so this is one to check out if you like your action a little on the trashy side. (also kudos to the gun consultants on this film for getting a lot of the gun set ups & usage correctly - not all perfect but I appreciated that they were trying for realism in terms of gun recoil, reloading, and choices).
Molly's Game (2017)
One of my favorites of 2017
I was absolutely mesmerized by this tale of Molly, a woman who was obsessed at being the best at anything she did whether that was Olympic skiing or controlling the seedy underworld of high stakes Poker.
Jessica Chastain is incredible as Molly Chastain. She makes the character feel real, holds the camera's attention, and helps us to understand the underlying motivations behind Molly's actions.
I particularly liked the chemistry between Idris Elba (who plays Molly's lawyer Jaffey). Their scenes are some of the most electric in the way they play off each other's emotions and spar with the great dialogue barbs Aaron Sorkin wrote so wonderfully.
Speaking of Aaron Sorkin, for a first time director, he absolutely knocks this out of the park. He conferred with his friend & director David Fincher on strategies for shooting this film along the way and he go great advice because the innovative camera angles, control of time (a key sign that a director knows what they are doing), and assured pacing make this one of the most enrapturing and compelling dramas of 2017.
The Wizard of Lies (2017)
Insight into the man who let everyone down
De Niro plays Madoff as a man who, despite pleading guilty to all counts, never really came to terms with the consequences of his actions or accepted the gravity of his misdeeds.
It's nice to see De Niro putting a strong effort behind this role and he's spellbinding much of the time. This docu-drama delves into the unseen victims of Madoff's financial scams, beyond his "customers", we also see details of how Madoff destroyed his two sons and his wife in the process. He left an unrepairable trail of wreckage among nearly everyone that ever knew him. But beyond the financial losses, there's the inescapable sadness that his family struggles to deal with as they realize their idol, Bernie Madoff, was not the man they thought he was. And in many ways, that's more devastating than even the financial destruction.
The film is overly long (probably should have stayed under 2 hours to tighten things up) but the performances are excellent, especially Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer who are electric at times. And the story is compelling, sad, and thought-provoking. I appreciate that Madoff is not played sympathetically yet the film does a good job of helping us understand why he would do what he did, even if we disagree with the reasons. Another solid HBO docu-drama.