Movie Review: **** The Aviator (2004)

Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio) is really messed up.  At times he is able to control his mental illness, but his demons seem to come out again.  He is a genius and a money making machine; but sometimes genius gets him in trouble.  He also has drive.  He supplies planes for TWA, but eventually buys TWA.  He orers some new long distance planes, and wants to use them for flights to Europe, but the owner of Pan Am, Juan Trippe (Alec Baldwin) has the contract and a monopoly, and a senator, Senator Ralph Owen Brewster (Alan Alda) in his back pocket.  When he is brought before a senate hearing for misuse of public funds on airplane projects, he calls it the way he sees it, and informs the committee Trippe and Brewster work together and it appears the senator is influenced by Trippe due to money and donation.  Hughes in the end gets to move into Europe.  Managing his business affairs was Noah Dietrich (John C. Reilly).

Hughes is also a womanizer with a fling with Katherine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett) and a desire for Ava Gardner (Kate Beckinsale).  

Hughes was also a test pilot, and crashed a couple of planes, the second of which almost killed him and left him with PTSD and burn scars.

Very good biographical sketch of Howard Hughes.

Epic Historical Movie Review: **** Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007)

 This epic covers the Elizabethan period in England where they were waring with the Spanish.  Queen Elizabeth (Cate Blanchett) is single with no children nor prospects.  However she is attracted to Sir Walter Raleigh (Clive Owen), who has started a settlement in Virginia.  However Raleigh falls for her handmaiden, Bess Throckmorton (Abbie Cornish).  She becomes ;regnant so they marry.  Raleigh desires to return to America, but the Queen forbids him as she needs help with the Spanish who are coming to make war.  Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland (Samantha Morton) betrayed the queen in trying to have her assassinated by Thomas Babington (Eddie Redmayne).  The queen with the evidence orders her ezecution, giving Spain an excuse to come to war.  Spain had. been using Mary just for this purpose.  However things do not go well for Spain and the Spanish Armada, due to the weather, and due to firing the boats and the fire reaching the Spanish fleet.  

Enjoyable and interesting history, which I must admit I am not very up on European history, but good to see how it all fits in.  

Movie Review: ***The House With a Clock in its Walls

The House with a Clock in its Walls

A fun movie, but I found it lacking just a little.  I think it was that the main character were supposed to be weird, and at times it just came across a little too weird.  Lewis (Owen Vaccaro) goes to live with his uncle(Jack Black) after his parents die in an accident.  He meets his uncle's friend (Cate Blanchett).  Over time Lewis discovers that his uncle and his friend are both involved in magical pursuits, and that there is a clock hidden within the wall s of the house which is counting down, and portends some great tragedy will take place when it does.  At any rate, Lewis starts to learn magic, but is also manipulated by the former owners of the home, Isaac and Selena Izard (Kyle MacLachlan and Renee Goldsberry).  Isaac was involved in an experiment which killed him, and he had apparently killed his wife during the experiment.  However by manipulating the boy, they both reappear with the intent of ending the world where there is war.  It takes all the skills and wit of our little threesome to overcome this evil. 
Great Halloween movie with seed spitting pumpkins--they don't have teeth so can't really hurt you, and other spooky goblins. 

Movie Review: ****^Thor Ragnarok (2017)

Lots of interesting action in this movie, and lots of heroes.  Hela (Cate Blanchett) is back.  She is the oldest daughter of Odin (Anthony Hopkins), and served at his side during Odin's warring period.  However as Odin became more peaceful, and Hela wished to continue warring, she was confined.  Now she is back, and the first thing she does is destroy Thor's hammer and then banish Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston) to a throw away world.  There Loki takes up politics, and Thor becomes a gladiator and set to face The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).  The Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) of the games likes his champion and makes sure Hulk wins.  But the Hulk takes Thor to his room, where Thor plans his escape with Hulk and Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) his captor, who is also from Asgard.  They refuse, but he leaves anyway, towards Hulk's space ship to get off the planet.  Hulk follows him.  Hulk has been the Hulk steady for over two years, but in the spacecraft he hears the voice of Natasha Romanoff, and converts to Bruce Banner.  Then Loki and Valkyrie also show up, but they need a better vessel to get through a worm hole, and Loki helps them steal a vessel, but he has turning over Thor on his mind.  This is thwarted, and he is left with the escaping slaves of the planet.  Thor makes it back to Asgard, just in time, as Hela has control, and is about to wrest the sword controlling the bridge from Heimdall (Idris Elba).  This paves the way to a great struggle.  Hela is just too powerful, except for maybe against, Surtur, who according to prophesy will destroy Asgard.
This movie takes a plot change at the end, and desperate measure are needed to rescue the people of Asgard.
Tony and I saw this, and we had a good time.  Loved the action, and the characters, and also the banter between Thor and Hulk.

Marvel Universe

Movie Review: ***How to Train Your Dragon II (2014)

In the second movie we find out what happened to the Dragon Trainer's mother, who is not really a part in the first movie other than her absence.  Our dragon trainers and their friends face a much bigger challenge in this movie, as the dragons are being eliminated.  This movie has some intense moments of peril.

Movie Review: ***^Monuments Men

Talk about you all star cast.  This movie has Matt Damon, George Clooney, Bill Murray, John Goodman and Cate Blanchett.  However, I did not connect in a real internal way with this movie.  The story is about a group of Allies, art experts, trying to rescue art that has been stolen by the Nazis, before it is destroyed, or falls into the hands of the Soviets.  There efforts a thwarted on all sides, by the Nazis, and by the Allies, who are not interested in not bombing certain places because of the value of the art, they are interested in saving men.  This becomes the major theme of the movie, is saving art worth the loss of human life?  This movie is loosely based on the book by Robert Edsel The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History.  It was produced, directed, and script written by George Clooney. 

Movie Review: ****Robin Hood (2010)

This Robin Hood was not what I was expecting.  I am use to the story of Robin Hood stealing from the rich to feed the poor.  Instead this movie is a prequel to these events.  It shows Robin Hood coming to the defense of King John, and because he was liked of the people, he was declared outlaw.
This movie is very entertaining.  There are plenty of sparks between Robin (Russell Crowe) and maid Marion (Cate Blanchett) even though they are only pretending to be husband and wife, rather than actually being so.  So in this version, Robin Hood is Robin Longstride, whose father was executed for seeking freedom.  This movie is then a political movie, and the search for freedom.
Godfrey (Mark Strong) gives us the evil we need in this movie. He gains King John's confidence, but in reality is scheming with King Phillip of France to create unrest and weaken King John's support in England.  This almost works, but England is united when people realize what is going on.
This movie has a good battle scene, and it ends with King John's betrayal setting up sequels if they choose.