Shakefire.com - Simon Pegg

I honestly thought that Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation was the biggest the franchise could get, but clearly I should never underestimate Tom Cruise. Like an adrenaline-fueled Benjamin Button, the older Cruise gets, the more insane his stunts become, no doubt sustaining him until the next installment in the franchise. Rogue Nation’s Christopher McQuarrie returns to direct Cruise in Mission: Impossible - Fallout, delivering the best the franchise has to offer in a non-stop thrill ride that is action in its purest form.

Following a mission gone bad in which Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) failed to recover three plutonium cores, Hunt and the rest of his IMF team are put under the careful watch of CIA Special Activities operative August Walker (Henry Cavill) as they attempt to fix their mistake and recover the cores before they can be made into nuclear bombs. In order to gain the trust of arms dealer White Widow (Vanessa Kirby) however, they must break out former Syndicate leader Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) from police custody. As his motives come under questioning, Hunt must convince both the heads of the IMF and the CIA that they’re still on the same team, and save the world from potential nuclear fallout.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout has about 15 or so minutes of exposition in the beginning and then it takes off into non-stop action. It can be somewhat confusing at first because there are so many players in the field. There’s the IMF team consisting of Hunt and the now solidified members Luther (Ving Rhames) and Benji (Simon Pegg) led by Alan Hunley (Alec Baldwin), but now the CIA is also involved. To further complicate things, Rogue Nation’s Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) returns and has a mission of her own so that she can clear her name with MI6. Of course there’s also plenty of deception and double-crossing involved, but honestly all of it doesn’t matter because Fallout is so damn entertaining.

Tom Cruise once again outdoes himself and delivers one incredible action scene after another. Whether he’s jumping out of a plane from 35,000 feet, running across the rooftops of London, or hanging from the payload of a helicopter, Cruise will no doubt do whatever it takes to get the perfect shot. And yes, that includes breaking his own ankle. Fallout is the longest film of the franchise and yet it also goes by the quickest mostly because McQuarrie knows exactly how to film Cruise doing what he does best. It’s absolutely exhilarating to watch. Tom Cruise is hands down the best action star working in Hollywood today, period.

The Mission: Impossible franchise has only gotten better with age, and Fallout is the best one yet. No other action movie comes close to capturing the thrill and excitement, not to mention the sweaty palms you’ll have throughout. It’s because when you see Cruise dangling from a helicopter you know he’s actually dangling from a helicopter, and it’s not some CGI or green screen trickery. That is what makes him and the franchise so captivating. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to see this Mission: Impossible - Fallout!

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (Trailer #2)

Matt Rodriguez — Wed, 16 May 2018 11:40:41 +0000

The best intentions often come back to haunt you. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - FALLOUT finds Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team (Alec Baldwin, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames) along with some familiar allies (Rebecca Ferguson, Michelle Monaghan) in a race against time after a mission gone wrong. Henry Cavill, Angela Bassett, and Vanessa Kirby also join the dynamic cast with filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie returning to the helm.

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Ready Player One

Matt Rodriguez — Fri, 30 Mar 2018 18:11:06 +0000

When the creator of a virtual reality world called the OASIS dies, he releases a video in which he challenges all OASIS users to find his Easter Egg, which will give the finder his fortune.

Ready Player One

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Mar 29, 2018

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140 minutes

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PG-13

Ready Player One

Maria Jackson — Fri, 30 Mar 2018 18:08:40 +0000

Ready Player One

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Theatrical

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2.20

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Hotly anticipated by gamers and calculated within an inch of its life to tap directly into the nostalgia vein of anyone over 25, many have been holding their breath for Ready Player One.

Some, in a wildly confident, yet supremely incorrect fashion, dared to call it Black Panther for geeks.

Any dork hating on Ready Player One stems from jealousy since Ernest Cline seems to be living the ultimate geek make a wish. But his follow up novel proves he's not a one wish pony.

Geeks should rejoice in Ready Player One, this is their Black Panther.

— Snacks coming at 12 o'clock (@Koutchboom) March 12, 2018

This statement is so busy erasing the existence of Black geeks it’s amazing that somehow it also simultaneously ignores vast amounts of film history. Marvel for the past decade, anyone? This claim reads more like someone who is upset at the Black Panther’s success and is hoping RPO will be able to take the throne and restore the white, male, patriarchal geek norm.

Every aspect of Black Panther brought something new to the table. There was creative control as we hadn’t seen in previous Marvel films, costuming, representation, music, characters and storyline that distinguished itself from its predecessors. BP elevated the idea of what a superhero film could discuss and accomplish. For RPO to do the same, it would have to be just as equally excellent and inventive.

Ready Player One is not that movie.

The visuals are rich and exciting, bursting with late 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s nostalgia. It is nearly impossible to feel anything but that fond flutter of happy recognition when your favorite cartoon or video character pops up. As someone who grew up watching Star Trek and Star Wars, playing Street Fighter 2 and who became a lover of the first six seasons of Gilmore Girls, the reverence for pop culture was made for me. The special effects do an amazing job at immersing the viewer into VR internet gaming world of The OASIS, and Spielberg's direction of the first race scene brilliantly communicates exactly how that world operates.

However, outside of The OASIS, the world building is thin. In 2045, Columbus, OH is the fastest growing city on earth. The world is ravaged by war and people have stopped trying to solve problems and are now trying to outlive them. How do they do this? What kind of jobs do they have? How are folks surviving in these ramshackle, stacked trailers? Why are the police totally absent for most of the film? Why do kids still attend a brick and mortar school when everyone has access to VR? Is The OASIS important to survival or is just a good time?

When the one of the creators of The OASIS dies, a quest for three keys hidden within begins. The one who solves the puzzles to win the keys will become exceedingly wealthy and maintain control of The OASIS. Our scrappy team races the clock against the greedy IOI corporation for gold, glory, and ethics (?).

However, there is nothing surprising about the story of RPO. Besides the winning the first race Wade/Parzival (Tye Sheridan) is rather mediocre. His motivation and skills are incredibly weak, especially when compared to Art3mis/Samantha (Olivia Cooke). Wade is in the quest for his own personal gain throughout much of the film, while Samantha is interested in supporting the (woefully unexplored) rebellion against the IOI, who ripped her family apart. Wade does solve the first/last puzzle and wins the first/last key, but from there on it’s either Samantha or Aech/Helen (Lena Waithe, a black woman who games!) who do the sleuthing and risk taking that makes his winning possible. All of which begs the question, why isn’t Samantha the main character?

Moreover, the men in the film treat women as romantic objects. The creator of the OASIS traps the digital version of his only love in a zombie dancing hell, because she failed to fall in love with him after he refused to express interest in her or respect her hobbies. Wade insists he’s in love with Samantha and when she pushes back that he doesn’t know the real her, he ignores her and she eventually gives in. It’s clear why Wade would be interested in Samantha, she is cute, brave, smart, and passionate but return of this affection isn’t given any rhyme or reason. It seems she returns his feelings because he exists. Wade declares that unlike the OASIS creator, he won’t be too afraid to kiss a girl and so he gets to.

It’s true Ready Player One was meant to celebrate all things past, yet still it is supposed to take place in the future. There’s no reason to continually repeat these tired and reductive tropes. While all things are derivative, it doesn’t mean we can’t go beyond simple copy and paste. We’ve all seen this storyline before, many, many times. Not all nostalgia is good and not everything in the past is worth reverence.

Ready Player One is a great ride, full of spectacle and worth the IMAX splurge, but lacking a core. It’s the delicious brain candy that won’t give your much to chew on. If you want to come for the king, you best not miss.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (Trailer #1)

Matt Rodriguez — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 13:02:28 +0000

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02:34

Star Trek Beyond

Matt Rodriguez — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 12:35:01 +0000

The USS Enterprise crew explores the furthest reaches of uncharted space, where they encounter a new ruthless enemy who puts them and everything the Federation stands for to the test.

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Star Trek Beyond

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Jul 22, 2016

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120 minutes

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Star Trek Beyond

Matt Rodriguez — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 12:32:44 +0000

Star Trek Beyond

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Theatrical

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2.90

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2009’s Star Trek was all about Kirk (Chris Pine), and while its follow up, Star Trek Into Darkness, further explored the relationship between him and Spock (Zachary Quinto), it was still primarily the Captain Kirk show. Star Trek Beyond finally gets away from all the focus being on Kirk and learns what it means for a member of his crew. Despite a lackluster storyline, the film features the most developed characters of the reboot franchise thus far.

Beyond takes place right after Into Darkness as Captain Kirk and his USS Enterprise crew are halfway into their 5-year exploration mission in deep space. In their travels so far they’ve encountered new lifeforms and societies for Starfleet to form diplomatic relationships with, although Kirk’s success rate isn’t exactly top notch in that department. While on a brief leave at Starbase Yorktown, Kirk and his crew volunteer for a rescue mission in uncharted space. The mission quickly turns bad when it is revealed to be a setup by Krall (Idris Elba), a vengeful being hell-bent on putting together an ancient doomsday weapon and wreaking havoc across the galaxy. What was supposed to be a rescue mission for Kirk and his crew ends up with them being the ones who need rescue.

There’s rarely a time when the USS Enterprise isn’t on the brink of destruction and with Star Trek Beyond it finally happens; the ship is completely destroyed. With the crew stranded and separated from each other on a foreign planet with a madman after them, we get to see how everyone acts outside of the guidance of their fearless captain. It’s great to finally explore more of Bones (Karl Urban), Scotty (Simon Pegg), Sulu (John Cho), Uhura (Zoe Saldana), and Chekov (Anton Yelchin). They’re all different groups, the most entertaining of which is with Bones and Spock. The previous two films have showed how much Kirk is annoyed with Spock’s logic, and it’s hilarious to see how much it also irritates other members of the crew. There’s a lot more humor this time around, which can mostly be attributed to Simon Pegg’s script.

While the Enterprise crew and humor is great, the story itself isn’t nearly as strong. I was most disappointed by Krall himself, whose more like your stereotypical cookie cutter villain rather than someone who’s truly threatening. Idris Elba is highly underutilized in the role, and his dialogue is borderline atrocious. You don’t really get a sense for his reasoning behind what he’s doing until the absolute end, and by that time you just don’t care. The newly introduced Jaylah (Sofia Boutella) is handled much better, thankfully. She’s both a fighter and an engineer who helps out Scotty and the rest of the crew escape from Krall’s clutches. Here’s hoping we see her return in the fourth Star Trek film and not pull a Carol Marcus and just disappear after being welcomed to the team.

Star Trek Beyond manages to look beyond the nostalgic feels fans have for the franchise and makes audiences care for the other members of the USS Enterprise besides just Kirk and Spock. Its focus on the entire crew and not just its leader separates the film from its predecessors, although the story and villain could have used some more tweaking. Still, this is one deep space adventure you won’t want to miss. Beyond finally begins to pave its own path for the series rather than simply paying homage to the past.

Star Trek Beyond (Trailer #3)

Matt Rodriguez — Mon, 27 Jun 2016 13:57:54 +0000

"Star Trek Beyond," the highly anticipated next installment in the globally popular Star Trek franchise, created by Gene Roddenberry and reintroduced by J.J. Abrams in 2009, returns with director Justin Lin ("The Fast and the Furious" franchise) at the helm of this epic voyage of the U.S.S. Enterprise and her intrepid crew. In "Beyond," the Enterprise crew explores the furthest reaches of uncharted space, where they encounter a mysterious new enemy who puts them and everything the Federation stands for to the test.

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Star Trek Beyond Trailer #3 (2016) - Featuring "Sledgehammer" by Rihanna - Paramount Pictures

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01:48

Ice Age: Collision Course (Trailer #1)

Matt Rodriguez — Tue, 15 Dec 2015 14:10:01 +0000

Scrat’s epic pursuit of the elusive acorn catapults him into the universe where he accidentally sets off a series of cosmic events that transform and threaten the Ice Age World. To save themselves, Sid, Manny, Diego, and the rest of the herd must leave their home and embark on a quest full of comedy and adventure, traveling to exotic new lands and encountering a host of colorful new characters.

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