Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

In this sequel to the box office hit Sherlock Holmes we find Dr. Watson is about to get married, and Sherlock Holmes is on the trail of a conspiracy of one Professor James Moriarty. Holmes believes Moriarty is behind assassinations and bombings around the world; however, he cannot prove it. Moriarty has proven himself to be a crafty individual who is able to cover his tracks. Sherlock Holmes catches a break when he runs into his lover Irene Adler. Holmes intercepts a package that Ms. Adler possesses and that clue leads him to a Gypsy fortune-teller whose brother has been missing for some time. Holmes and Watson attempt to assist the fortune-teller in finding her brother while also searching for a way to catch Professor Moriarty before he can do any more damage.

As with the first film, A Game of Shadows is a fast-paced film that keeps you on your toes trying to figure out all the clues by the end before Holmes and Watson can. It reminds me of the old mystery movies where you actually had to watch closely if you wanted to know what was going on. The action sequences were well done also, reminded me of the Matrix trilogy with the slow-motion sequences. Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law are at the top of their game as Holmes and Dr. Watson. There is so much packed into A Game of Shadows that you need to see it several times to feel like you're not missing anything. I've seen it twice and I realized there was a ton of things I was missing the first time.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

In Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, the fourth film in the Mission Impossible franchise, we find Ethan Hunt on a mission to stop a Russian terrorist from getting his hands on a satellite that would enable him to gain control of nuclear missiles. This time around Ethan is joined by a team of IMF agents to help him out. Before they can accomplish their goal, an unknown assailant blows up the Kremlin. The Russians think the IMF agents are responsible, so the U.S. government disavows IMF and initiates Ghost Protocol so as not to start a conflict with Russia. It's not entirely clear what that means, but we find out that at least the agents in Hunt's team are the only ones left. The agents have to race against time and Russian police who are pursuing them in order to stop the terrorist from firing the nuclear missiles and starting World War III.

For a sequel, Ghost Protocol is actually very entertaining. I was a little worried that this wouldn't live up to the first three films, but it held its own. To be honest though, MI2 is still my favorite. Tom Cruise still fits the role of Ethan Hunt perfectly. Jeremy Renner is fast becoming one of my favorite action stars. I have yet to see a movie I haven't liked with him in it. Simon Pegg is hilarious as the IMF tech agent. MI4 is still the stereotypical spy flick, with a bunch of explosions, fight scenes, car chases, etc.; but despite that Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, and Paula Patton made this one an entertaining popcorn flick. It's one to at least see once, maybe a couple times.

Boondock Saints

Boondock Saints is the story of two brothers who, while living in Boston, get into trouble with the law by accidently killing a couple of thugs. When they are let out of jail, the brothers feel a calling from God to rid Boston of any and every criminal. An FBI investigator begins to follow the brothers' progress to catch them, but as he continues to investigate he feels compassion for what the brothers are trying to do.

I will probably be the only person I know of that says this, but I personally did not care for Boondock Saints. I couldn't get past the fact that just about every character drops the f-bomb (among other curse words) in what felt like every other word. I know with a rated-R film there was going to be a little bit of harsh language, but dropping the f-bomb that many times is extremely unnecessary. There were also a couple of instances where a character or two let out racist jokes. I did bust out laughing at a few parts, but those instances were marred by the rest of the movie with its vulgar humor and language. Since this is an action movie, the entire movie is filled with graphic images of people being shot with anything from handguns to shotguns to also being blown up. Some of the graphic killings you can somewhat tell are fake because of the blood squirting out of the bodies, but there are instances of individuals being shot in the back of the head that are quite disgusting. Overall, Boondock Saints could have been a great action film with a lot of great acting from the lead actors, but the language, vulgar humor and violence turns it into a horrible film that is not worth your time.

Courageous

Courageous is the fourth film from Sherwood Pictures, the Sherwood Baptist based Christian film company who created Fireproof, Facing the Giants, and Flywheel. Alex Kendrick (one of the producers of Courageous) plays a Albany, GA police officer named Adam Mitchell who struggles to balance his work and his home life. At work he has to deal with a rise in drug trafficking and gang wars, while at home he has a son who he can't seem to connect with, a daughter who he cares for more than anything, and a wife who tries to help Adam see that he needs to be a better father. He spends his time chasing down criminals at work, and then on the weekends hanging out in the back yard with his police force buddies grilling steaks and just talking. On the outside things seem to be ok. Not great, but at least not unbearable. That all changes one day when Adam's daughter gets in a car accident on her way home from a birthday party and dies in the hospital. Devastated by the loss of their daughter and sister, Adam and his family try to make sense of why something like this would happen to them. Adam reaches out to God for answers. As a result he is convicted that he hasn't been the father that he needs to be for his family. He makes a resolution that from that day on he would strive to be the man that God called him to be for his family. Adam's partners on the force see his commitment and also make the commitment for themselves and their own families.

Courageous is a very powerful message to fathers that they need to step up and be Godly men and lead their families to follow Christ. When you see it, make sure you have a box of tissues, because you are definitely going to need it. You will laugh, cry, and have a whole bunch of other emotions come over you. One of the funniest parts is a prank that Adam and his partner play on a criminal they just apprehended. Courageous is similar to Real Steel in the message it is trying to convey to viewers, but unlike Real Steel, Courageous provides an answer on exactly how to be a father/husband for your family.

Before seeing it, I had heard mixed reviews about Courageous. The majority of them were in favor of it, but there were a few that didn't like it. The few that didn't like it argued that it was poorly made with bad acting and a bad script. I've heard people wish that Christian filmmakers would put more effort into their projects like the mainstream ones we see in Hollywood because they would have a bigger impact. These same people have argued that you can watch a well-made mainstream film and still have all the 'Christian' elements. Some have even argued that Christian films don't portray real life very well because there's no cursing, no (onscreen) drug use, among other elements that would happen in real life. I'm just going to be honest, I partially agree with all of these arguments.

With the argument of bad acting and script: You know, I'll actually agree with this argument. I will say though that these films do get better with each effort. You can't expect any film to be perfect. These aren't professional actors or screenwriters or anything like that. The script may be bad and it might not be the best acting on the planet, but it could (and in the case of Courageous it did) still do a good job on getting it's point across.

In response to the argument that Christian filmmakers need to put more effort and care into their projects like Hollywood: I'll agree with this argument up to a certain point. For the most part these films might make a bigger impact if they had a bigger budget, better script, and better actors. However, that doesn't meant Christian films don't make an impact at all. Take Courageous for example: it opened at #4 at the box office. Since Courageous didn't have the budget that mainstream films do, nor did it have the professional acting or script, how do you explain the fact it opened at #4? I would argue it's because these types of films are able to connect to the viewers on a deeper level that mainstream films can't .

The people who have made the previous argument have also argued that you can have a mainstream film and still have Christian elements spread throughout the film. Again, I partially agree with this statement. However, there is just one thing wrong with this argument: With mainstream films, it's all about entertainment. There are a few exceptions, but overall most films don't have a message they're trying to teach their vewiers. All they care about is trying to create the best film out there and get a little gold statue during an awards ceremony. Also, I would challenge people to name at least one, maybe more, movies that they actually went into the theater wondering what kind of lessons they were going to learn. I personally can't think of a single one. There have been multiple times where I've thought about a movie several days later and pondered on the lessons that the movie possibly had, but I've never done that going into one. Again, mainstream films are all about entertainment, nothing more.

Others have argued that they don't like the fact that Christian movies don't portray real life accurately. Yet again, I partially agree with this argument. It would be nice every once in awhile to see a movie that accurately portrayed how a person would react in a given situation. This what I liked about the movie To Save a Life. It still had the message of Christ's love for us and how we should follow Him, but it portrayed how most of us would react in that particular situation. However, I would argue that it is nice to see a film that doesn't have all the violence, sexual situations, drug use, and other negative content that most other films have.

Despite all these arguments against Christian films, I still firmly believe that we should support the people who create them, because I don't see Hollywood making an effort to make any films like Courageous or To Save a Life. I've seen a couple of exceptions, such as Chairiots of Fire, but they're in the minority. Besides, if we don't go and see them, then they won't be able to raise money as easily to continue to produce films and continue to get better at it.

The Motorcycle Diaries

The Motorcycle Diaries chronicles the events that led the famous Che Guevara to become the rebel leader of the Cuban Revolution. Che and his best friend Alberto Granado set out on a cross country motorcycle trip to make it from one side of South America to the other side before Alberto's 30th birthday. Along the way Che and Alberto encounter many different cultures and people that ultimately shape Che Guevara's philosophical, political, and spiritual ideals.

The Motorcycle Diaries is a film that will make you think. It challenges its viewers to look at themselves in the mirror and figure out what their purpose in life is, then go and fulfill that purpose. Instead of sitting on the couch watching TV or playing videogames, go out and help at a homeless shelter or visit the patients at a nursing home or in the ER. Whatever it is, The Motorcycle Diaries challenges you to make a difference in your community and ultimately the world.

Real Steel

Real Steel is the story of a man named Charlie Kenton, a former boxer whose career gets sidelined when human boxing is banned and robot boxing is put in its place. Charlie is reduced to hauling around old robots that have passed their prime to small-town fairs and other underground circuits to make a little cash. This life suits Charlie just fine until he gets a call that his former girlfriend has just passed away and he has to take care of their son. He tries to get out of fatherhood responsibilities by accepting an under the table deal with his son's aunt and uncle that would let them take his son off his hands after the end of the summer. As the summer goes by though, Charlie begins to rethink his decision and starts to believe that he may be cut out to be a father after all.

Real Steel is a pretty powerful story about redemption and the bond between father and son. Hugh Jackman does a very good job as the dead-beat dad who doesn't want fatherhood responsibilities. Newcomer Dakota Goyo plays Charlie Kenton's son Max, and he does a phenomenal job. One scene that stuck out to me was where Max and Charlie just had an argument, Charlie exclaims "You deserve better than me"; then Max looks tearfully up at Charlie and says "I want you to fight for me! That's all I ever wanted." That scene begins Charlie's journey to redemption and make up for all the mistakes he had made by not being there for Max and his mother. My only issue with Real Steel was the language. Even Max lets out quite a few curse words and Charlie doesn't reprimand him for it. Despite the problem with language, Real Steel is definitely worth checking out.

The Fighter

The Fighter tells the true story of Mickey Ward, a man from a small town who has always wanted to be like his half-brother Dicky, an ex-pro boxer who fell out of the spotlight when he became addicted to drugs. Mickey asks his brother to train him so he can make the most of the chance to become a champion, a chance that Dicky never had.

Both Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale give astounding performances as the half-brothers. I almost didn't recognize Christian Bale as Dicky, he gets so immersed into his role that at first I thought he really was a drug addict. The Fighter is a difficult movie to watch, mainly because of the scenes where Dicky is doing drugs. Part of me wants to recommend The Fighter to everyone, but because of the subject matter of Dicky's drug addiction, and the amount of language in The Fighter, I wouldn't recommend it to younger audiences.

The One

Jet Li plays several variations of his character in this sci-fi thriller about a prison escapee from the future who travels to different dimensions to kill different forms of himself so he can ultimately become invincible and destroy anyone who stands in his way. Jason Statham and Delroy Lindo are two cops from a different dimension who attempt to stop Jet Li on his quest for immortality.

I'm a fan of Jet Li, Jason Statham, and Delroy Lindo but The One was horrible on so many levels. The acting was horrible, the story itself was so far-fetched it was kind of hard to keep track of who was good and who was evil, among some other issues. The One never grabbed my attention or made me care for any of the characters, even when one character has a tragedy happen to them. I wouldn't recommend seeing The One.

True Grit

True Grit is the remake of the John Wayne classic that tells the story of a girl named Mattie Ross who is searching for her father's murderer during the 1800's in the Wild West. She follows his trail to a town where she meets a U.S. Marshal named Rooster Cogburn and she attempts to hire him to help capture her father's killer. Rooster doesn't want to take the case at first but then ultimately decides to go ahead and go after the man. Along the way Rooster and Mattie run into a Texas Ranger named LaBoeuf who is trying to catch the same killer because he shot and killed a Texas Senator. The two lawmen and Mattie form an unlikely friendship as they make their way across the desert in search of the killer Tom Chaney.

When I first saw the previews for True Grit I wasn't too thrilled about seeing it, mainly because it was a remake of one of my favorite John Wayne movies, and most remakes (with a few exceptions) don't live up to how good the original was. Once I saw it though, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I've heard True Grit described as a 'dark' and gritty film. I have to disagree with that description. Movies like The Dark Knight I would consider 'dark' because of the subject matter and other things within the movie. I would say that True Grit is more of a light-hearted, sometimes comical, action/western film. It has its moments that I would consider 'dark' but overall it is not that way.

A lot of people have said that both the latest Coen brothers' version and the John Wayne version are so different from each other that they can't really be compared. I partially agree with that statement. They are very different in the way the story is portrayed since the Coen brothers' version stays more true to the book rather than to John Wayne's version; however, they are basically the same story so I think you can compare the two. With that said, while I loved this version of True Grit and I recommend that everybody go see it if you haven't yet, I still prefer John Wayne's version. Let's face it: You just can't beat The Duke.

Hanna

Hanna is the story of a young teenage girl who is raised by her father in the harsh wilderness of the Arctic Circle training to become an assassin. When she feels she is ready, she begs her father to let her go and experience the world outside of their home. Her father reluctantly agrees knowing that she cannot complete her training until she has faced the dangers of the outside world. That danger includes a ruthless government official who has been searching for Hanna's father and her since she was a child. Hanna must make her way across Europe with the government official hot on her trail if she has any hope of survival and to complete her training.

Hanna is an amazing work of art in the world of film that is part action thriller and part coming-of-age story. It is a film that keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire movie. Saoirse Ronan did a fantastic job as the teenage assassin. Eric Bana plays Hanna's father, and even though he only shows up in the beginning of the movie and for a couple scenes in the middle and towards the finale, he still did a phenomenal job. Cate Blanchett gave me chills with how well she portrayed the cold-hearted government official. If I had to find one thing wrong with Hanna it would have to be that the camera shakes like crazy through most of the movie. There is one scene where it is almost impossible to tell what is happening onscreen because the camera is shaking so badly.

If you are looking for an action movie that is totally different than the normal shoot-'em-up action movies out there, I recommend seeing Hanna. You won't regret it.