The Girl in the Spider's Web

First Hit: Although darkly shot with an overly complicated story, it was moderately entertaining.

Lizbeth Salander has been played by three people; Noomi Rapace, Rooney Mara, and in this film Claire Foy. Each brought their own edgy darkness to the role. I will say that each of them was extremely watchable because of their unique intensity.

The film begins with a young Lizbeth (Beau Gadson) playing chess with her sister Camila (Carlotta von Falkenhayn). Their father is eerily controlling and sexually sadistic, especially towards a more willing Camila. The sisters are close, but their father controls Camila and although Lizbeth tries to save her sister from her father’s clutches, she fails.

After Lizbeth dramatically leaves their home, the film shifts to Lizbeth as an adult. She’s a computer programmer, and is constantly finding someone to help or save, for a price. The first person we see her helping is an abused wife by blackmailing the executive and moving all his money to with wife’s account. It's obvious that her father's behavior has her saving people being abused.

She takes on a job to steal software that can run all the nuclear missiles in the world. This is where the story is clouded. The NSA is after the software, so is the creator. After all of them are the Swedish police and secret service. Lizbeth is being looked for my lots of people.

Then Camilla (now played by Sylvia Hoeks) shows up and she becomes someone that wants the computer code along with vengeance towards Lizbeth for leaving her with her father.

The film dances through a fair number of action scenes with people trying to hurt Lizbeth and obtain the computer program she has. Lizbeth has befriended the son of the program's creator and she takes it upon herself to save the boy after his father is killed. What makes it more complicated, is that the there is a code required to get access to the software on the computer and only boy knows it.

All of this and more pieces are thrown together and some of it was interesting to watch, but the thing that made this film really difficult to watch was just how dim and dark, in color, the scenes were. Even the day scenes are dark in tone and color. I know this was to add to the darkness of the story, but when the whole film is like this, it can almost put someone to sleep.

Foy is strong as Salander and she brought her own unique darkness and strengths to this role. Sverrir Gudnason plays the writer Mikael Blomkvist was OK in a minor role as someone who makes his living writing about Lisbeth. Lakeith Stanfield playing Ed Needham the NSA agent trying to get back the code was one of the stronger actors in this film. Hoeks was strong as Lizbeth’s sister. Steven Knight wrote a confusing script. Fede Alvarez directed this film and unfortunately it was more confusing than interesting.

Overall: This will take its place as the worst of the three “The Girl…” films.

Hunter Killer

First Hit: As far as submarine-based films, it was OK, but the added ground team made it better.

My dad (who died 23 years ago today) loved submarine films. His favorite was the 1958 thriller Run Silent Run Deep. He’d sit there and watch it every time it came on television (after seeing it on the big screen) and recite the dialogue with the actors. Maybe it was because he loved the ocean, or that he was in the Navy, I don’t know, but when I see submarine films, I think of him.

In this movie, a U.S. submarine is, at close range, following a Russian sub under arctic ice in the Barents Sea. Then unknowingly, another Russian sub, hiding in a carve out slice of ice, torpedoes and sinks the U.S. Sub. Then there is an explosion and the Russian sub sinks.

Rear Admiral John Fisk (Common) with National Security Advisor Analyst Jayne Norquist (Linda Cardellini) advocates figuring out what to do and wants to send another submarine in to figure out what happened to the sub and if there are any survivors. Chief Joint Chief of Staff Charles Donnegan (Gary Oldman) is opposed to this and wants to gear up to start another world war against the Russians.

Meanwhile we get a short glimpse of SEAL Lieutenant Bill Beaman (Toby Stephens) and his team practicing maneuvers.

Then when Fisk sends the USS Arkansas sub commanded by newly inaugurated Captain Joe Glass (Gerard Butler) to find the previously sunk U.S. Sub, they also find the sunk Russian Sub.

They hear something on the Russian Sub and make a rescue of the captain and two other men. When Glass shows the Russian Captain, Sergei Andropov (Michael Nyqvist) that his Russian sub was sabotaged and sunk by someone on board, he realizes that something is going on with his country.

Sensing Russian problems, Beaman’s team parachutes into the Russian base to find the Russian President Zakarin (Alexander Diachenko) is being held hostage by Defence Minister Dmitri Durov (Mikhail Gorevoy) who is instigating a coup.

The plan is to have Beaman’s team kidnap the Russian President and escape by getting on board Glass’s sub which will be guided into the Russian base by Andropov. All this is to prevent an all-out war between the two countries.

I thought some of the scenes in the subs were well done. I loved when the men on the con were leaning as the sub dove. I thought the attitude of the SEALs was perfect. I enjoyed the sharpshooting by the youngest member of this team. I enjoyed the grit and determination shown by Captain Glass, especially when he was challenging Andropov to help him.

There is a far amount of suspense in the film, but it does have an obviousness that we know how it will end. Thought that Donnegan’s character was over the top and don’t know if that was direction or just Oldman being over the top.

Butler was excellent as the come up from the ranks Captain of the USS Arkansas. There was a certain amount of grittiness in his approach that worked for this role. Common seemed a little out of his element in this role. He didn’t quite exemplify a Rear Admiral. Oldman's character was unprofessional, for the position, in the ranting he showed. Nyqvist was excellent as the closed mouth long time professional sailor. Diachenko was OK as the Russian President. He didn’t quite come off as being strong. Gorevoy was a poor choice as someone to pull off a coup. His character felt fearful and weak most of the time. Stephens was great and exemplified a Navy SEAL leader, rough, demanding and with a heart underneath. Cardellini was good as a NSA Senior Analyst. Arne Schmidt and Jamie Moss wrote a good script. Donovan Marsh did a good job of directing this film. Some of the scenes in the sub were fantastic as were some of the on-land scenes. However, really thought that Oldman’s role was a big downfall as was the war room scene with the US President.

Overall: An OK thriller but it will not go down as an all-time great submarine-based film.

Bad Times at the El Royale

First Hit: An oddly strange, yet engaging, film.

The El Royale is a hotel that is split down the middle between the Nevada and California borders. There is a red line that runs through the parking lot and through the middle of the lobby with some rooms in Nevada and the remaining rooms in California. The rooms in California are more expensive because they’re in California.

Father Daniel Flynn (Jeff Bridges) arrives just as Darlene Sweet (Cynthia Erivo) is parking her car. He introduces himself and assists her carrying two very large blanket covered foam rolls into the lobby.

In the lobby we have Laramie Seymour Sullivan (Jon Hamm) waiting for someone to come to the front desk so that he can check in. The three of them make some light chatter until Darlene bangs on a door and out comes Miles Miller (Lewis Pullman) who is the desk clerk and appearing to be the only hotel employee.

They each select a room. In the rooms each person does something that tells you why they’re at the El Royale. Sullivan is removing bugs previously planted there by the FBI. Flynn is really a bank robber from years ago and his partner brother stashed a bag full of money under the floor of a room. Sweet is there with foam to cover the walls so she can practice singing before heading to Reno for a gig. And Miller? He's a junkie.

The El Royale has a single access hallway behind all the rooms. Miller can view and listen in to each room from this hallway. For sound there is a switch under a one-way mirror that is in each room. There is a camera and we learn that Miller used this camera to film people for blackmail purposes.

However, Sullivan learns of this secret hallway and watches, through the one-way mirror, as Emily Summerspring (Dakota Johnson) checks into one of the rooms dragging her sister Rose (Cailee Spaeny). Tying her sister up in a chair, he’s puzzled.

Rose gets away and calls her cult leader boyfriend Billy Lee (Chris Hemsworth) who is a Charles Manson like leader that pontificates what he believes to be the truth. He drives up to collect Rose and find out why Emily kidnapped his prize pupil.

With all seven players engage, the story is about how everyone learns about each other’s reason for being at the El Royale.

Bridges is good as Father Flynn. However, the voice he uses is much like the voice he used for Hell or High Water. It’s sort of a gruff slurring voice that isn’t pleasing at all. Hamm is, at times, hilarious playing up the role as traveling salesman. Pullman is wonderful as the only hotel employee who is looking for absolution for the horrible things he’s done in life. Erivo is fantastic as the singer who is also clearly on her path with purpose. She suffers no fools and I enjoyed her singing – a lot. Hemsworth was strong as the cult leader who felt empowered by his good looks and charisma. Johnson was excellent as the protective sister who wanted to steer Rose away from Billy Lee’s clutches. Spaeny was excellent as the younger sister caught up in Billy Lee’s belief system and his good looks. Drew Goddard wrote and directed this film. His story was oddly interesting and engaging and use of 1960’s music was sublime.

Overall: It was interesting how the disparate reasons for each person in this ensemble  to be at the El Royale worked into a single storyline.

Peppermint

First Hit: I enjoy a well-acted and thoughtful revenge film and this one fits the bill.

Riley North (Jennifer Garner), her husband Chris (Jeff Hephner) and their daughter Carly (Calley Fleming) are a happy family except money is always an issue. Chris and  his co-worker Mickey (Chris Johnson) hatch a plan to steal a drug dealers loot. But Chris thinks twice and calls Mickey to tell him he wants out, that he cannot risk himself and his family's well being.

However, the dealer learns of the plot, kills Mickey and sends gang-bangers to kill Chris. They find Chris with his family enjoying an amusement park for Carly's birthday. When they kill Chris they do it with automatic weapons and not only kill Chris, they kill Carly and Riley is shot and injured. After mourning her family and getting nowhere with the police investigation, she disappears for five years. Riley leaves the country and upon her return, she’s transformed herself from supportive housewife to killing machine. While away she's learned martial arts, how to stalk people, how to kill with guns and her bare hands, and new she's back and wants revenge on the whole gang who killed her family.

The police and FBI pick up on the trail of bodies she leaves behind, including the three bodies hanging upside-down on the Ferris wheel at the amusement park where she was shot and her husband and daughter died five years earlier.

Riley is being hunted by the FBI, L.A. Police Department, and the gang. Will she win in the end? What price will she be willing to pay?

Garner is fantastic as Riley, a revenge filled killing machine. Her skills in body movement, and the belief in her eyes, had me rooting for her all the way. Hephner was good in his small role. Fleming was excellent in her role as well. Juan Pablo Raba as drug lord Diego Garcia was very strong. John Gallagher Jr. as Detective Stan Carmichael was excellent. John Ortiz as a seasoned Detective Moises Beltran was perfect. Annie Ilonzeh as FBI Agent Lisa Inman was very good. Chad St. John wrote a strong revenge script. It was this script, Garner’s acting and Pierre Morel’s direction that made it all work.

Overall: This was a excellent revenge film and sometimes a woman’s revenge is best.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout

First Hit: Holds tension and action throughout, however it is long and we all know the ending.

I’ve said this many a time, what I like about Tom Cruise (here as IMF Agent Ethan Hunt) is that he’s always all in for the characters he chooses. As Ethan Hunt he’s one with the role. What is always disappointing is that we always know how the film is going to end. For instance, my previous review of the film Blindspotting, I had no idea how the movie would end, that’s what partly made it great. Watching Mission, I know that Hunt is going to save the day in the nick of time and he doesn't fail.

Despite that, this film is action packed from the very beginning and creates tension by delivering on some hair-raising predicaments and stunts. One of the nice touches was how the film began. Playing the Mission: Impossible theme music, it showed brief pictures of was to come, just like the television show use to do. The cast is solid, especially Hunts team of Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) and Benjamin “Benji” Dunn (Simon Pegg). Their chemistry of working together on previous Mission films makes the impossible missions more possible and believable to the audience – they are pros.

The plot has Hunt attempting to obtain three plutonium devices that are on the black market. The US Government want to keep them out of the hands of terrorists. Hunt makes the choice to save the life of Luther over obtaining the devices.

Solomon Lane (Sean Harris), who Hunt previously captured and put into prison, is attempting to obtain the devices through surrogates. He wants to use the devices to make a point that the world must suffer greatly if it is to get better. His former organization, The Apostles, want the weapons as well.

One of the plot devices is to have CIA agent August Walker (Henry Cavill) join the team to protect the CIA’s interest in IMF’s plot to re-obtain the devices. Walker is directly under CIA Director Erica Stone (Angela Bassett). The twist is that Walker is also playing John Lark who is an enemy of the CIA and IMF.

Hunt and his team are under the direction of former CIA Director Alan Hunley (Alec Baldwin) who now leads the IMF task force. The film shows the tension between the CIA and IMF because the CIA doubts that the IMF can get the job done.

Another twist to this plot is the MI6 agent Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) who has to redeem herself to her organization, therefore she must also obtain the plutonium devices.

Lastly, trying to broker a sale of the devices the story has the White Widow (Vanessa Kirby). I'm not totally sure why this part was needed but it worked.

What the film has is a number of different groups trying to get control of;  the plutonium, a captured prisoner, or Hunt.

There are plenty of gun battle scenes, lots of chases (cars, motorcycles, running, and helicopter), and plenty of costume changes that the Mission: Impossible team is noted for. Everything is done very well, and the cliff hanging scene is simply a great cliffhanger. Lastly, one of the highlights for me was the different ways the theme song was used throughout the film.

Cruise always puts everything into his action roles. He can be funny, self-effacing, and believable all at the same time. Cavill is good as the agent with dual identity. Rhames is fantastic as part of the IMF team. He shows smarts, affability, and is fully believable in his role. Pegg is spot on as the one always questioning whether a plan Hunt has devised will work or not. In the end, he does his part and is often the one who figures things out. Ferguson is excellent as one of two women Hunt admires and loves. As an agent of MI6 she’s excellent. Harris is good as the slightly off-base mastermind who wants to teach the world a lesson or two. Bassett is good as the CIA Director that is elusive about her commitment to the IMF team. Baldwin was very good as Hunt’s immediate boss. Kirby was good as the White Widow, but I found it difficult to buy into why she held so much sway. Michelle Monaghan was excellent as Hunt’s former wife who is in jeopardy at the end of the film. Christopher McQuarrie wrote and directed this adventure with complete idea of what he wanted and with a knowing how to build tension to the end.

Overall: This was a fun filled film although it was a bit long.