The Wolf of Wall Street (December 25, 2013) R

Starring:
Leonardo DiCaprio (The Departed, Shutter Island, Gangs of New York)
Jonah Hill (This is the End, 21 Jump Street, Moneyball)
Margot Robbie (About Time, Vigilante)
Kyle Chandler (Early Edition, Zero Dark Thirty, Super 8)
Jon Bernthal (Snitch, The Walking Dead, Mob City)

One of the best movies of 2013, some of the best acting I've seen, and definitely Jonah Hill's best acting I've seen to date.

Jordan Belfort (DiCaprio) and coworkers midget-tossing in the office
(Photo taken from au.movies.yahoo.com)

This movie was as explicit as it was histerical.  I've been calling it "the Goodfellas of Wall Street movies".  The similarities it shares with Goodfellas are many and describing them would spoil key plot points.

DiCaprio's acting was up to the DiCaprio bar that he's set with excellent movies like Gangs of New York and Shutter Island, but his excellence was frequently overshadowed by Hill's performance.  The scenes between Hill and Bernthal were highlights to me; their chemistry, how much their characters hated each other, it was all perfect.

This movie wasn't made to be a comedy, but I difinitely laughed harder in this than in Anchorman 2.

Donnie Azoff (Hill) having a genius break-through 

with Jordan Belfort (DiCaprio)
(Photo taken from postgradproblems.com)

Factoid: The Wolf of Wall Street has 508 f-words (at 3 hours in length that's 2.8 f-words per minute), the second most of any movie ever released on the big screen.  The #1 spot goes to a documentary about the widely used f-word simply titled "Fuck" starring Drew Carey.

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (January 17, 2014) PG-13

Chris Pine is the new Jack Ryan, filling
the shoes of Harrison Ford and
Ben Affleck before him
(Photo taken from geektyrant.com)

Starring:
Chris Pine (Star Trek, This Means War, Carriers)
Keira Knightley (Atonement, Pride & Prejudice, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl)
Kevin Costner (Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Mr. Brookes, Dances With Wolves)
Kenneth Branagh (Valkyrie, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Wild Wild West)

Despite the unoriginal plot and lack of surprises and twists, I enjoyed watching this spy thriller.  It would have been a "nothing movie" if not for the excellent acting of Chris Pine.

There was good character development in the beginning, but it did more to explain how Jack met his girlfriend rather than explaining how Jack had such incredible spy abilities.

The villian was nothing new, typical Russian who hates America and was going to destroy the United States similarly to how Al Queda did in 9/11.

Thoughts: The fact that Jack Ryan has a sub-title suggests that there will be sequels.  The character Jack Ryan has been in other Tom Clancy movies such as Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, and Shadow Recruit is a prequel to those movies even though it takes place today in our time.  It is blatantly and deliberate post-9/11, and yet it's prequel to movies from the 90s.

Jack Ryan meets his future mentor, Thomas Harper
(Photo taken from joblo.com)

I think the producers are going to treat the Jack Ryan character like James Bond.  We'll see multiple actors play him, and his stories could go on forever.

I'm Still Here (September 16, 2010) R

Funniest comedy of 2010. Will be blogged soon.

Starring:
Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator, Her)
Casey Affleck (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Out of the Furnace)

January 22, 2014:
I figure I should say something about this movie.  It's been years since I've seen it, but I still remember laughing really, really hard.

Joaquin Phoenix during his famous 2009 interview
with David Letterman
(Photo taken from nydailynews.com)

This was that "Is it real?  Is he really quitting acting to be an actor?" documentary movie starring Joaquin Phoenix, directed by his good friend Casey Affleck.

This film also contains that famous interview with Phoenix when he was on Letterman.  Best. Interview. Ever.

This movie is ridiculous, and only see it if you are a huge Joaquin Phoenix fan or else you'll be bored, even though it's histerical.

Factoid: This was Casey Affleck's directorial debut.

Salt (July 23, 2010) PG-13

Starring:
Angelina Jolie (Wanted 2008, Cleopatra 2013)
Liev Schreiber (X-Men Origins: Wolverine 2009)

There were original elements in this movie, yes, but the entire plot was enabled only by the incompitance of the entire government body and the complete lack of self-defense skills of every single Secret Service agent that Salt came in contact with. Government incompetence, sure I can get behind that, but are men who are so highly trained really so helpless?

Overall, I did not enjoy this movie. There were one or two "wow" moments, but there wasn't enough good stuff to compensate for where the movie lacked.

This is NOT a must see. Ever, even on DVD.

Factoid: Angelina Jolie actually had a "Spy Advisor" (click here http://morrisonworldnews.com/?p=22021 for the complete story) named Melissa Mahle who educated Jolie about disguises, adopting multiple personae, and living the act...

Charlie St. Cloud (July 30, 2010) PG

Starring:
Zach Efron (17 Again 2009, The Lucky One 2012)
Charlie Tahan (Nights in Rodanthe 2009)
Amanda Crew (She's the Man 2006, Repeaters 2011)
Ray Liotta (Smokin' Aces 2006, The Son of No One 2011)

I hate to admit, I liked this movie.

Now, I'm not saying I liked this movie, cause I didn't. But I liked it. I enjoyed it.

Now I'm not saying I enjoyed it, but it was pleasant and enjoyable.

Pleasant, but immature in its simplicity. I thought the story would be original...

Basically, Amanda Crew is hot, and I hope to see more of her.

My favorite part, however, was the new kid on the block: Charlie Tahan. He plays Charlie's little brother, and he's histerical.

Factoid: Zach Efron and Charlie Tahan had to learn how to sail in order to do the opening scene of the movie.

The Expendables (August 13, 2010) R

Starring:
Sylvester Stallone (Judge Dredd 1995, The Zookeeper 2011)
Jason Statham (Crank 2006, Pretty, Baby, Machine 2011)
Randy Coutor (Invincible 2006)
Steve Austin (The Condemned 2007, The Boxer and the Kid 2011)
Jet Li (Hero 2002, New Dragon Gate Inn 2011)
Dolph Lundgren (Masters of the Universe 1987, Universal Soldier: The New Dimension 2011)
Charisma Carpenter (Angel 1999-2004, The Human Factor 2011)
Eric Roberts (The Dark Knight 2008, The Wayshower 2011)
Giselle Itei (The Mystery of Sintra 2007)
Terry Crews (Gamer 2009, Lottery Ticket 2010)
Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler 2008, Pretty, Baby, Machine 2011)

I hoped for something incredible and unbelievable. I got EXACTLY what I wanted.

And how could you go wrong with the above-mentioned cast?! Terry Crews must be counting his blessings for having landed the role he got with the cast he worked with. He had the coolest gun of all, too... That gun freaked me out the first time. I was out of my seat.

And the action was like nothing I'd ever seen before.

Jet Li wore heavy combat boots that, I believe, slowed him down so he wasn't his usual quick, nimble self. Watching him fight was like watching a short white martial arts expert--it almost wasn't Jet Li. I liked seeing something different (for once) from Li.

And Stallone has still got it. Still ripped, still grabs your attention, and still has a few tricks up his sleeve.

The plot? Perhaps it's the simplicity of the plot that I loved so much.

This is a MUST SEE in theaters, and is NOT FOR THE FEINT OF HEART...

Factoid: Stallone is talking about a sequel...

The Other Guys (August 6, 2010) PG-13

Starring:
Will Ferrell (Stepbrothers 2008, Everything Must Go 2010)
Mark Wahlberg (We Own the Night 2007, The Fighter 2010)
Eva Mendes (We Own the Night 2007, Southbound 2010)

While Will Ferrell was his usual hilarious, predictably unpredictable self, it was Wahlberg who got the hard laughs out of me in The Other Guys. His anger and impatience made for histerical chemistry with Ferrell. It was new and unique.

Also, Eva Mendes was WAY hot.

Factoid: Rob Riggle gives tazers to school children in this movie. He did the same thing in The Hangover.