The Avengers stars Robert Downey Jr. and Scarlett Johansson.
Looks like the summer blockbuster movies are starting already and it's only May. Well, it is starting to feel a bit like summer here so I guess that's fair.
Titanic 3D is still here and the new
Avengers movie sounds very good. There is also a strange little movie that sounds like fun.
The Hunger Games in English is almost gone so if you were planning to see it you should hop to it. There will be no film for Mazatlán Film and Theater this week as the school is again closed for a holiday this Tuesday.
Opening this week:
Marvel's The Avengers (Los Vengadores) –At all the theaters in Maz
Yes, it's another comic book superhero movie but the critics are all saying that this one is very entertaining and well worth your time. Good dialogue, fun action and character development as well. It all sounds like good fun. There's a good cast on board with Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans and others. There's a plot but it's the usual save the world thing – but still it sounds worth it so get your popcorn and go to the movies.
View the trailer:
Troll Hunter (Trol) – Cinemex Mazatlán
Shot in a vérité style, Troll Hunter is the story of a group of Norwegian film students that set out to capture real-life trolls on camera after learning their existence has been covered up for years by a government conspiracy. A thrilling and wildly entertaining film,
Troll Hunter delivers truly fantastic images of giant trolls wreaking havoc on the countryside, with darkly funny adherence to the original Norwegian folklore. Now this one sounds like a cult classic in the making but because it's good. If you like strange little movies, this sounds like one of them.
Machine Gun Preacher (El Rescate) – Cinépolis, Gaviotas
With a title like that it has to either be bad or a cult classic in the making. It is largely the former but not nearly bad enough to be a cult classic. Based roughly on a true story (which generally means don't believe a word of it) it tells the story of an ex biker who decides to do something good and goes to Africa. He ends up leading a militia to rescue kids kidnapped by warlords. Sounds like it could be good but I gather it is quite muddled and unsatisfying (according to the large majority of critics).
Continuing this week:
Titanic 3D – Cinépolis,
The now iconic film in 3D. Apparently it is worth seeing if you are a fan of the big ship and the big film. Personally I'm a sucker for the spectacle and the melodrama – both done with consummate skill and now in 3D. I will be there to see it as soon as I get the chance. I admit that most 3D stuff is not much more than a gimmick but to see history brought to life like this is a worthwhile effort.
The Grey (Un Día para Sobrevivir) – Cinépolis, Gaviotas, Both Cinemexes
Liam Neeson leads an unruly group of oil-rig roughnecks when their plane crashes into the remote Alaskan wilderness. Battling mortal injuries and merciless weather, the survivors have only a few days to escape the icy elements—and a vicious pack of rogue wolves on the hunt—before their time runs out. The film has some spectacular sequences and cinematography, good performances and ruminations on mortality and faith. Sounds like a full meal movie to which most critics were favorably inclined.
Gone (12 Horas) – Both Cinemexes
This is a thriller with Amanda Seyfried that was not screened widely for critics because the producers knew it was pretty bad from the get-go. It sounds like an interesting enough plot involving a woman who kills a serial killer who captured her but years later gets committed to a mental institution. Critics say the whole thing is pretty lame but I guess if you have nothing better to do this weekend you could always check it out.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Tan Fuerte y Tan Cerca) – Gaviotas
This movie created some buzz and was nominated for an Academy Award but gained a reputation as the worst reviewed movie ever to be nominated for an Oscar. It stars Tom Hanks and has a really good performance by a Thomas Horne, a young boy at the center of the action and the great Maz Von Sydow who was also nominated for Best Actor. The whole thing revolves around 9-11 and the death of the boy's father (Hanks). It all sounds like it should be terrific but the truth of the matter is that gradually becomes extremely long and incredibly boring.
The Artist (El Artiste) – Gaviotas
Winner of the Academy Award for Best Film of the Year and well deserved. A highly original concept—a largely silent film in black and white. It is funny and touching with marvelous performances all around. Go the movies to celebrate the golden years of movie making.
American Reunion (American Pie – El Reencuentro)– Cinépolis, MiCine, Gaviotas, Cinemex Mazatlán
A nostalgia trip for fans of the American Pie franchise. Unfortunately it doesn't really accomplish anything very clever or funny according to the critics who were not impressed. The familiar stars are all here ten years later as they gather for their high school reunion and find out how much has changed but how friendships endure.
Safe House (Protegiendo al Enemigo) – Cinépolis, Cinemex Mazatlán
Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds star in the action-thriller Safe House. Washington plays the most dangerous renegade from the CIA, who comes back onto the grid after a decade on the run. Nothing really new here apparently but Denzel is always a reliable performer and he does well here. The script apparently is nothing much but it is juiced up with a lot of fancy high-action editing making everything seem breathless and exciting. Mixed reviews on this one.
The Hunger Games (Los Juegos del Hambre) –Cinemex Toreo (dubbed at other theaters)
A thrilling, fast paced rendition of the popular novel set in a future North America where pairs of teenagers each year must compete against each other until only one survivor remains. The wonderful young actress Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone) stars and is terrific in this well produced film. This one is well worth seeing and is the first installment of a trilogy so fasten your seat belts for more.
Mazatlan Film and Theater is on Tuesday nights only at the School for the Arts next to the Angela Peralta Theater. Cinemex Toreo is the one on Rafael Buelna and Cinemex Mazatlan is the one off Insurgentes and Ejercito Mexicana, Gaviotas is on Camaron Sabalo in the GZ. Xtreme Cinema is on Ejercito at Plaza de las Americas in Centro. Cinépolis is at the Grand Plaza. MiCine is at the Sorianna Santa Rosa Plaza on Luis Donaldo Colosio Avenue.
Websites for show times are:
Mazatlan Film and Theater: www.mazact.com
Cinepolis Gran Plaza and MiCine Santa Rosa: www.cinepolis.com
Xtreme Cinema: www.extremecinemas.com
Gaviotas: www.cinemasgaviotas.com.mx
Cinemex Mazatlan: www.cinemex.com/cines/124
Cinemex Toreo: www.cinemex.com/cines/123
