Amrican Gangster

American Gangster

I was watching this movie kind of begrudgingly. From the previews it’s the kind of movie you have to be in the mood for. AS its been sitting on my shelf for about two weeks I thought it was time to give this move a look.

I was pleasantly surprised at how engaging the character were, usually you see a hard nose representation of the gangsters and you get little that bring you to feel anything for these characters. Denzel Washington did an outstanding job, I don’t think I have seen him in a role like this before and I was very impressed with his partial of this character. Russell Crow is also very good at making his character someone you genuinely feel for. I also liked Ted Levine he seems to be pulling of the Police chief kind of roll very well, he does this character on Monk and is great, quite a difference from when he was Buffalo Bill in Silence of the Lambs.

So to sum up I really liked this film and had a great time watching things unfold. It’s based on a true story so I was interested in it enough to go look up and read the article on this story. I regret waiting so long to watch it. This is just a testament to how good Ridley Scott can compose a visual symphony of story and character. It is not kid friendly by any means so watch it after the kids go to bed.

12 Angry Men (1957)

Let me first say that I have always considered myself a movie fan, but I am woefully inexperienced with the some of the older movies. So if you have any suggestions on movies let me know. I am open to all kinds of movies.

12 Angry Men

This movie was up on my Tivo I have a new season pass that is AFI 100 greatest movies; I have to thank my wife for finding it, this season pass puts lots of movies in this folder. So in there is a show called 12 Angry Men, directed by Sidney Lumet. This movie is about 12 jurors deliberating on a case. The cast has classic movie heavyweights as Lee J Cobb, E.G. Marshall, Jack Klugman and Henry Fonda. I have heard of this film in passing but I have never seen it, so I give it a look, thinking if I am interested I will keep it and watch it later. I turned it on and watched it completely through. I than sat my wife down, and had her watch it completely through and that weekend I purchased a copy for my collection.

The move starts out as the judge is giving the Jury its instructions before they go into the jury room. The rest of the picture takes place in the jury room, with all 12 men in this room they go over the case point by point to get to a decision. Each person in the room has a unique portion of the population represented and each of the actors do an excellent job of making them interesting. With the excellent camera work and shot composition it gives this movie tension and excitement from just one room.

I would recommend this film to anyone who enjoys a deep evolving story and great characters. I was on the edge of my seat and enjoyed this film from start to finish. Henry Fonda did an excellent job bringing this case through his journey of discovery and also played his part with little to no flare, the character did seem to be more interested in the facts. It’s a compelling story and shows our legal system at its best and almost its worst.


Movie Quote

Juror #3: You're talking about a matter of seconds. Nobody can be that accurate.
Juror #8: Well I think that testimony that can put a boy into the electric chair SHOULD be that accurate.

First Step

Hello Internet or as my co worker likes to call it the “internets”. I have always hated the written word through school English was always my worst subject. In an effort to better my use of my mother language and increase my typing skills I am going to be writing movie reviews. I will pick one move a week to review from either theater releases or DVD rental. I am an amateur film maker who hopes to get into films one day. I love this media and I have always used movies as an escape.

I have a wife and two kids (both boys 13 and 5). As you can guess my going to the movies time is limited, so me and Netflix have gotten to know each other really well. Well I will go watch a movie and tell you how it turns out. Please feel free to suggest a movie I should watch I am open to any genre.

Good watching.