Sebastian Maniscalco: What's Wrong with People? (2012)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Manny Rodriguez

Cast: Sebastian Maniscalco

Running Time: 75 minutes

In this show, recorded live from Santa Ana, California, Sebastian Maniscalco discusses his roots as an Italian-American. He also talks about such topics as people waiting in line in restaurants not being able to make up their mind and people not wanting visitors in their home anymore. The bit about company coming to your house is the strongest one here, but there are many other good jokes. There are a few weaker ones, but, overall, this is solid.

Rating: ««««

Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press (2017)

Genre: Documentary

Directed by: Brian Knappenberger

Running Time: 95 minutes

This 2017 Netflix documentary discusses the impact of money from rich people on journalism. The main focus is on two cases, which are Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against the website Gawker for revealing the content of a sex tape the former wrestler was involved in and the purchase of the Las Vegas Review Journal by casino owner Sheldon Adelson.

In the first case, it was quite hard to feel bad for Gawker, though they tried hard to play the victim. They tried to liken themselves to the journalists who revealed the Watergate thing, but they were mostly sleazy bullies with no money who pissed off the wrong people. The whole thing was still interesting, very freakshow-like.

The case of the Las Vegas Review Journal was very interesting. As a former journalist, I found the whole thing very compelling.

Rating: «««

Rambo: Last Blood (2019)

Genre: Action / Thriller

Directed by: Adam Grunberg

Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Paz Vega, Sergio Peris-Mencheta

Running Time: 89 minutes

Over a decade after the events in Burma, John Rambo is back in Arizona, managing his father’s ranch, that he inherited, with the help of a friend, Maria, and her granddaughter Gabrielle. Rambo considers Gabrielle like a niece. Against the wishes of the two main adults in her life, Gabrielle travels to Mexico to reconnect with her estranged father. Things do not go well, and, at a dance club, later that night, the girl is taken by members of a drug cartel to be sold as a sex slave. Rambo will have to wage war again in the hope of saving the only family he has left.

This film was savagely destroyed by critics and by the author who created the Rambo character. As for me, I loved this movie. Sure, it is not as profound and great as First Blood, but, to me, it is the second best Rambo movie of the franchise. The acting was very good and the story was compelling. It felt more personal. Rambo was not just fighting on principle, he was fighting for family.

One line still resonates with me: I haven’t changed, I just tried to put a lid on it. A man like Rambo cannot change. He is a killing machine with too much baggage. In the last fight scene, you can feel all that baggage on Rambo’s face as he closes in on the vulnerable enemy. Stallone did a fine job here looking both strong and vulnerable at times. I also adored the choice of Five To One, by The Doors, at a pivotal moment in the film.

I love the Rambo character. I don’t know if this is the end, but, if it is, I am fine with a strong ending like this. If you have some anger, this film is a great way to work it out.

Rating: ««««

Baby Driver (2017)

Genre: Action

Directed by: Edgar Wright

Cast: Ansel Elgort, Lily James, Kevin Spacey, Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx

Running Time: 113 minutes

Baby is s young man suffering from tinnitus following a car accident in his childhood that killed both his parents. To block the constant sound in his ears, he listens to music all the time. Baby is a getaway driver for an influential criminal, but he is looking for a way out to start a life with his new love Debora.

This film, written and directed by Edgar Wright, was a clear success, with great reviews. But, I do not get it at all. The acting was subpar, which is a travesty considering the talent involved, the characters were uninteresting, the plot was empty and the story just plodded along until it was finally over. A few good action scenes saved me from total boredom.

Rating: ««

Rambo (2008)

Genre: Action / Thriller

Directed by: Sylvester Stallone

Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Julie Benz, Paul Schulze

Running Time: 91 minutes

John Rambo is living in Thailand, away from his past, as a small boat driver. A group of missionaries from Colorado arrive, asking Rambo to bring them on his boat to Burma, a war zone. Rambo initially refuses, saying it is too dangerous for them and that they should just go home, but he finally accepts. Shortly upon his return from the trip, that did not go without a hitch, Rambo finds out that the group was captured, so he goes back, with a group of mercenaries, to rescue them.

While this film does not have the same depth as the first movie of the franchise, it was a really good way to bring this series back on track. Acting-wise, was was well done. The action was fast-paced and kept the viewers on the edge of their seat. Some complained about the violence. Yes, it was very violent, but it goes with the territory with this type of movie. This is wildly entertaining.

Rating: ««««

Bill Burr: Paper Tiger (2019)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Mike Binder

Cast: Bill Burr

Running Time: 67 minutes

In his latest comedy special, recorded in The Royal Albert Hall, in London, Bill Burr tackles such subjects as outrage culture, cultural appropriation, robot sex and much more. As usual, the Massachusetts-born comic does it without any fear about who he offends. I absolutely loved this show. Burr expressed out loud many of the things I am thinking about these days. I laughed out loud many times over the course of the 67 minutes it lasted. The sensitive souls might want to steer clear.

Rating: «««««

Rambo III (1988)

Genre: Action / Thriller

Directed by: Peter MacDonald

Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Kurtwood Smith

Running Time: 101 minutes

Col. Trautman visits John Rambo in Thailand to recruit him for a mercenary mission to help the Afghan anti-Soviet fighters in the Soviet-Afghan War. Tired of fighting, Rambo turns him down, so the mission goes down without him. Upon learning that Trautman was captured, Rambo undertakes a solitary mission to rescue his friend and former commander.

This is the weaker film in the Rambo franchise so far. The acting is okay and it offers entertaining action, but the requirement of disbelief suspension was major. One man, with very little help, taking down a whole flank of the Russian army. That is quite something.

Nonetheless, the film is quite entertaining. I have always found it so easy to root for Rambo, so kudos to Stallone for pulling off one these characters that we truly care for. This would be Richard Crenna's last appearance as Trautman, before his passing.

Rating: «««

It Chapter 2 (2019)

Genre: Horror

Directed by: Andy Muschietti

Cast: Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Bill Hader

Running time: 169 minutes

Still based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, Chapter 2 of the It story picks up 27 years after the events of the first Chapter. Upon realizing that Pennywise is back in Derry, Maine, causing mayhem, Mike Hanlon, the only member of the group of losers who stuck around town in adulthood, tries to get his friends from the past together again so they can try to eliminate this evil force once and for all.

First off, visually-speaking, this is a spectacular film. Really well done. The acting is also very solid throughout. But, all things considered, this second chapter was not as scary as the first one. So much levity was added to the dialogues that, even in the moments that ought to have been scary, I was laughing. A few brief moments made me jump a bit, but I was mostly laughing. They could have cut this film a bit, as it started dragging in some places.

All of that being said, while this horror film did not fulfill its natural mandate of scariness, it still really entertained me. That Stephen King cameo was really cool, I must say.

Rating: ««««

Youngblood (1986)

Genre: Drama

Directed by: Peter Markle

Cast: Rob Lowe, Patrick Swayze, Cynthia Gibb

Running Time: 110 minutes

Dean Youngblood is a 17 years old farm boy from rural New York who dreams of making it in the NHL one day. Against his father’s wishes, Dean travels to Canada to play with the Hamilton Mustangs. The young man might be a good skater and scorer, but he lacks the physical grit.

This was a film that I loved as a kid. As a hockey fan, I could relate to that dream, though I, myself, had no talent for that sport. Looking at this film today, I must say it has not aged as badly as some others from that era. Sure, there is some cheesiness, some predictability and some creative shortcuts. But, the acting was pretty good. And there was nudity on Cynthia Gibb’s part, which we loved then and I appreciate now.

Rating: «««

House of Cards (2013-2018)

Genre: TV / Thriller

Cast: Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright, Michael Kelly

Number of Seasons: 6

When this show starts, Frank Underwood, played brilliantly by Kevin Spacey, is a democratic congressman who is power hungry and devious enough to do anything to achieve his goals. When he is passed over as Secretary of State, Frank devises a plan, with his wife Claire Underwood by his side, that will eventually lead them to the White House. Claire, using her husband’s connections for her own agenda at the same time.

I loved the early seasons of this show. At that point, it was five stars for me. By season 5, it started losing steam. Season 6 was the straw that broke the camel’s back. By then, Spacey had been fired due to the sexual misconduct accusations laid against him (accusations that would later be dropped).

Though Robin Wright offered the best acting performance of her career as Claire Underwood, she could not carry the load of that last season by herself. The whole thing felt rushed together. The plot made no sense, the characters became caricatures of themselves and the acting performances suffered. Even that breaking of the fourth thing, that felt so fresh and interesting in the first seasons, was driven into the ground to the point of becoming a creepy farce. When I finally reached the last scene, it was a mixed feeling: I was disappointing by the product, but glad it was finally over.

Rating: ««

Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985)

Genre: Action / Thriller

Directed by: George P. Cosmatos

Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Charles Napier

Running Time: 96 minutes

John Rambo is released from prison by federal order to take part in a special recon mission in exchange for a pardon. The vet must go back to Vietnam to document the presence of POWs. The higher ups are secretly hoping that Rambo will find nothing, so the issue can be swept under the rug, but things are about to get messier than they are expecting.

Stallone was again very good in the role of Rambo. He managed another poignant little speech towards the end, though you could smell the formula at this point. Richard Crenna was much better here as Trautman. His performance was less wooden.

Considering the action to cover, this second installment in the Rambo franchise felt rushed at 96 minutes. The filmmakers took some shortcuts that took away from the end result, though, as an action film and thriller, this was entertaining.

Rating: «««

Happy Gilmore (1996)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Dennis Dugan

Cast: Adam Sandler, Christopher McDonald, Julie Bowen

Running Time: 92 minutes

Happy Gilmore has always dreamt of being a hockey player, but he is a crappy skater and his short fuse keeps getting him into trouble. All he has going for him is the power of his slap shot. After his grandmother’s house gets seized, due to unpaid taxes, Happy turns to golf, hoping to cash in on the power of his shot and save the house in which he was raised.

I decided to revisit this title after not seeing it for years. It is still funny. This is back before Sandler’s act got old and tired. Shooter McGavin, played perfectly by Christopher McDonald, is the guy you love to hate. And you cannot help rooting for Happy Gilmore, in spite of his flaws. That fight scene with Bob Barker is still a classic.

This is a very entertaining movie. In the stupid comedy genre, it is well done.

Rating: ««««

First Blood (1982)

Genre: Action / Thriller

Directed by: Ted Kotcheff

Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Brian Dennehy

Running Time: 93 minutes

Based on the David Morrell novel of the same name, First Blood tells the story of John Rambo, a discharged Vietnam vet and Green Beret who decides to visit a former comrade only to find out he passed away from cancer after the war. As he leaves on foot, Rambo crosses the little town of Hope, Washington. He is intercepted by local sheriff Will Teasle, who takes the veteran for a vagrant. After being subjected to abuse at the police station, Rambo snaps and starts waging war on the little community.

While he may not be the best actor of all-time, Stallone has had a knack for picking some characters that would maximize his strengths. In the process, he made us care about these characters, be it the ultimate underdog Rocky Balboa or the killing machine John Rambo.

First Blood, the first title in the Rambo franchise, did a solid job of exposing the life that awaited many Vietnam veteran after that war. Those lines delivered by Stallone, in character, towards the end were quite powerful. Brian Dennehy was the perfect choice as the abusive sheriff who finds himself way over his head. On the other hand, Richard Crenna’s performance felt wooden and false.

In my book, First Blood remains a classic that I love to watch again and again.

Rating: ««««

Dave Chappelle: Sticks & Stones (2019)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Stan Lathan

Cast: Dave Chappelle

Running Time: 65 minutes

In his latest comedy special, Dave Chappelle truly pulls no punches. He tackles such issues as drugs, the Me Too movement, LGBTQ, Michael Jackson, pedophilia, R. Kelly, Louie C.K. and much more. To fully appreciate this corrosive work of art, one needs a keen sense of humor and a solid notion of the second degree in comedy. I loved this show. Chappelle has a habit of laughing a lot at his own material, which will irritate me sometimes, but the stuff he wrote is solid. I am not offended easily, and I almost felt bad for laughing at some of this material, but I did laugh…out loud…and a lot.

Rating: ««««