The Wolf of Wall Street Movie Review by Ari Dassa

 

By Ari Dassa

Maybe it’s New York that woke Scorsese up.

The Wolf of Wall Street brings him back to his beloved city, the first time he’s set a film there since Gangs of New York in ’02. It’s his best work since then, and great to see him firing on all cylinders as a director.

The Wolf of Wall Street has the sense of urgency that’s been missing in his recent films. It’s darkly comic, sick, vile, excessive and dares you to like the people it presents. The audience is encouraged to laugh at the crazy antics on display even though what they’re doing isn’t actually funny. Everyone is intensely dislikable and Scorsese doesn’t shy away from it. It’s his nerviest film in a long time, and a striking reminder that Scorsese made his name with provocative, edgy filmmaking that pushed limits and pushed buttons. Martin Scorsese can fascinate and demand your attention while showing you something repellent or ludicrous.

As with some of his gangster films, The Wolf of Wall Street is filled with information and loaded with storytelling – sometimes stories within stories, or situations that seem to end one way only to be corrected a few moments later to biting comedic effect.

Leonardo DiCaprio hasn’t been this off-the-wall since the 3rd act of The Beach, taking every sequence here to its coked-out extreme. It’s not really a nuanced performance (everything is out of control), but it’s something to see and he jumps into each scene fearlessly. Airplane orgies, comical quaalude overdoses, fevered offices speeches, the Candle In The Ass scene…..Leo’s on fire in this film.

Scorsese has certainly done more complex character pieces in the past, but The Wolf of Wall Street is still a vicious, brilliant return to form.

 THE WOLF OF WALL STREET stars Leonardo DiCaprio , Jonah Hill , Margot Robbie , Matthew McConaughey , Jon Favreau , Kyle Chandler , Rob Reiner , Jean Dujardin , Pj Byrne , Kenneth Choi. The film is directed by Martin Scorsese.

Ari Dassa is an independent filmmaker who has written and directed several short films and a documentary. He was the founder of a film review website called ‘The Aspect Ratio‘, active between 2006 – 2011.

Interstellar – Official Movie Trailer 2014

 

The trailer for arguably one of the most anticipated films of 2014 has just been released.

Interstellar is the latest film from writer and director Christopher Nolan of The Dark Knight movies fame. The film is reportedly a star-studded science fiction action /drama focusing on the use of a wormhole for space travel.

The trailer doesn’t reveal much in terms of story. It just gives us a flavor of the tone of the film. Obviously, this is just the beginning of the marketing campaign for the film considering that the movie is scheduled for release almost a year from now. But we shouldn’t expect to find out much more considering the secrecy which usually accompanies his projects.

What we can expect is something probably pretty great.

Interstellar stars Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Ellen Burstyn, John Lithgow, Michael Caine, Casey Affleck, Wes Bentley, Bill Irwin, Mackenzie Foy, Topher Grace and David Gyasi. The film is directed by Christopher Nolan and is written by Jonathan and Christopher Nolan. Interstellar is scheduled for release November 7, 2014.

Official Synopsis:

Intersteller chronicles the adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.

 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Trailer Reaction

 

Is more better?

That’s a question that’s going to come up a lot for comic book movie fans in the immediate future. With the success of The Avengers movie studios seem intent on overloading their superhero films with more iconic characters. The upcoming X-Men Days of Future Past, and the high profile Batman vs. Superman features multiple heroes, not to mention The Avengers 2. Not wanting to miss out on the trend is the second installment of The Amazing Spider-Man. The first film was an under-rated character piece focusing on the formative years of Peter Parker. It appears, judging by this latest trailer, that the time for character building is now over for this franchise. This franchise seems to be now in full blown spectacle and villain overload mode with no less than 3 villains facing off against the title character. We have seen this kind of approach play out before with disastrous results. Notably with Batman & Robin and most recently with Iron Man 2. The Dark Knight Rises,however, featured several nemesis for Batman and it was able to pull off a some what bloated, but satisfying conclusion to the trilogy.

 

The argument for more villains is, obviously, it gives more spectacle and scope to the film. The argument against is that valuable character work gets lost in trying to cram so many elements into the story. I, for one, would prefer the action to be supported by a tight and strong plot and fleshed out characters.

 

Is it possible to present this many characters without cheating on giving the film a well rounded story?

 

We’ll have to wait and see if this all translates to a good movie. But there is some justification for some concern.

 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx, Dane DeHaan, Paul Giamatti, Chris Cooper and Sally Field. The film is directed by Marc Webb. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is scheduled for release May 2, 2014.

  

Official Synopsis:

We’ve always known that Spider-Man’s most important battle has been within himself: the struggle between the ordinary obligations of Peter Parker and the extraordinary responsibilities of Spider-Man. But in The Amazing Spider-Man 2™, Peter Parker finds that a greater conflict lies ahead.

It’s great to be Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield). For Peter Parker, there’s no feeling quite like swinging between skyscrapers, embracing being the hero, and spending time with Gwen (Emma Stone). But being Spider-Man comes at a price: only Spider-Man can protect his fellow New Yorkers from the formidable villains that threaten the city. With the emergence of Electro (Jamie Foxx), Peter must confront a foe far more powerful than he. And as his old friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), returns, Peter comes to realize that all of his enemies have one thing in common: OsCorp.

The Raid 2 Trailer Reaction 2013

 

Arguably, one of the best action films in recent memory was the martial arts film The Raid: Redemption directed by Gareth Evans. Although thin on plot, the film featured breathtaking action and awe-inspiring fight choreography. What made the film even more refreshing and impressive was the little to no reliance on any CGI and minimal special effects.

So it’s not surprising to learn that a sequel for the critically acclaimed hit film, is on it’s way. The sequel reportedly picks up a few hours after the conclusion of the first film. The setting will also change expanding on a bigger world and cast of characters.

This first trailer hints at the scope of the film, as well as showcases some of the unique martial arts action that we have come to expect from director Gareth Evans.

Needless to say we can’t wait to check this out. The Raid 2: Berandal is scheduled for release in 2014

Raid-2

The Raid 2: Berandal stars Iko Uwais, Tio Pakusadewo, Putra Arifin Scheunamann, Julie Estelle, Alex Abbad and Roy Marten. The film is directed and written by Gareth Huw Evans. The Raid 2: Berandal is scheduled for release in 2014.

 

Official Synopsis:

 

Picking up right where the first film ends, The Raid 2 follows Rama (Uwais) as he goes undercover and infiltrates the ranks of a ruthless Jakarta crime syndicate in order to protect his family and uncover the corruption in his own police force.

Captain America The Winter Soldier – Official Movie Trailer reaction 2014

When last we saw the character of Captain America he was riding off in his motorcycle after defeating Loki in the film Marvel’s The Avengers. The assumption was that he would explore the new time period and was now comfortable with his surroundings.

It turns out that not only is he comfortable, he is now working hand in hand with the super secret defense group Shield as an agent. Unlike the other Marvel Universe films, Captain America: The Winter Soldier will seemingly tie in more closer to the events from The Avengers film. Feeling more like a sequel to that film. The story even features several other characters from the Avengers film including Black Widow, Nick Fury and Maria Hill. Conspicuously missing from the story is Shield Agent Hawkeye. I guess we can assume he’s off on his own little adventure.

Perhaps the most surprising casting in the film is that of screen legend Robert Redford. Seeing the award winning actor in a comic book film will take a little getting used to. But it’s refreshing to see the actor appearing in such a mainstream adventure film ,instead of his usual art house, indie film fare.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier stars Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Cobie Smulders, Emily VanCamp, Anthony Mackie, Hayley Atwell and Robert Redford. The film is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo. Captain America: The Winter Soldier is scheduled for release April 4, 2014.

Official Synopsis:

 

After the cataclysmic events in New York with The Avengers, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” finds Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, living quietly in Washington, D.C. and trying to adjust to the modern world. But when a S.H.I.E.L.D. colleague comes under attack, Steve becomes embroiled in a web of intrigue that threatens to put the world at risk. Joining forces with the Black Widow, Captain America struggles to expose the ever-widening conspiracy while fighting off professional assassins sent to silence him at every turn. When the full scope of the villainous plot is revealed, Captain America and the Black Widow enlist the help of a new ally, the Falcon. However, they soon find themselves up against an unexpected and formidable enemy.

Grudge Match Trailer Reaction

Wanna see Rocky Balboa fight the movie version of Jake LaMotta?

That’s pretty much the loose premise of this comedy starring Sylvester Stallone and Robert De Niro. Sure they aren’t really playing those characters in the movie…but the actors who played them are.

Yes…it’s a stretch and a bit of a one trick pony.

But for whatever reason, based on this trailer it seems to work…well almost work. This movie is Hollywood fluff. I don’t think anyone involved would argue against that. The movie is obviously going to have Rocky and Raging Bull inspired jokes sprinkled throughout and it’s fun to see Stallone and De Niro bounce off each other in a Grumpy Old Men sort of way. It’s also great to throw Kevin Hart and Alan Arkin in there to stir things up. But what sort of surprised me about the trailer is the themes of living a fulfilling life into your later years.

It seems, at least to me, that it was just yesterday when we watched a buffed up Rocky Balboa fight Ivan Drago in Rocky 4. And even sooner when we saw a ripped up De Niro terrorize a family in Scorsese’s Cape Fear.

Where did the time go?

Seeing an older Stallone and De Niro square off only seems to drive home the point that

time is flying by.

When did Stallone and De Niro become Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau?

I know the easy thing would be to criticize this movie as a shameless money grab. Which it is. But a part of me is looking forward to seeing these two actors confront the themes of aging.

The truth is it won’t be long when they’ll be gone and we’ll be wishing we had the chance to see these two acting legends in just one more thing…anything…even something as harmless and mainstream as this.

Grudge Match stars Robert De Niro, Sylvester Stallone, Alan Arkin, Kevin Hart, Kim Bassinger and Jon Bernthal. The film is written by Tim Kelleher and Rodney Rothman. Grudge Match is directed by Peter Segel and is scheduled for release December 25, 2013.

Official Synopsis:

 

Award-winning movie legends Oscar® winner Robert De Niro (“Raging Bull,” “Silver Linings Playbook”) and Oscar® nominee Sylvester Stallone (the “Rocky” films, “The Expendables”) star as old boxing rivals who come out of retirement for one final match. De Niro and Stallone play Billy “The Kid” McDonnen and Henry “Razor” Sharp, two local Pittsburgh fighters whose fierce rivalry put them in the national spotlight. Each had scored a victory against the other during their heyday, but in 1983, on the eve of their decisive third match, Razor suddenly announced his retirement, refusing to explain why but effectively delivering a knock-out punch to both their careers. Thirty years later, boxing promoter Dante Slate Jr., seeing big dollar signs, makes them an offer they can’t refuse: to re-enter the ring and settle the score once and for all. But they may not have to wait that long: on their first encounter in decades, their long-festering feud erupts into an unintentionally hilarious melee that instantly goes viral. The sudden social media frenzy transforms their local grudge match into a must-see HBO event. Now, if they can just survive the training, they may actually live to fight again.

Secret life of walter mitty Trailer Reaction

There are few films more beloved than The 1947 film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty starring Danny Kaye.

Although the advancement of special effects would make the story a prime candidate for a remake, filmmakers have hesitated to take up the challenge.

So it comes as a bit of a surprise that comedian Ben Stiller has decided to tackle the project. Although, a versatile performer and director his resume doesn’t draw many comparisons to the affable Danny Kaye.

Based on the trailer this looks like a sensitive and ambitious take on the original short story and less the the Danny Kaye film. The use of special effects are prevalent in the trailer. But there is also a sensitivity and quirkiness which may draw comparisons to the works of Michel Gondry or Spike Jonze.

In any event, it appears like Ben Stiller is nailing the tone. I can see the film having a profound effect on audiences who can relate to the life affirming hopes of the working class. Much like the film Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray.

But the release date clearly points to a more ambitious goal then a modest performing cult comedy. It’s being released right in the wheelhouse of prime awards season consideration. Christmas day in fact.

It’s hard to say if the film will garner that kind of attention. This year is shaping up to be a very competitive awards season with films such as 12 Years a Slave, All is Lost, The Monuments Men and American Hustle already garnering significant buzz.

But it’s an exciting opportunity for Ben Stiller. Although his works are admittedly silly and over-the-top comedies which are successful and enjoyable. It’s great to see Stiller stretch his artistic wings a bit like he did in his early work in independent films.

THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY stars Ben Stiller, Kristen Wiig, Adam Scott Kathryn Hahn, Shirley Maclaine and Sean Penn. The film is directed by Ben Stiller and is written by Steve Conrad and James Thurber. The Secret life of Walter Mitty is scheduled for release December 25, 2013.

Official Synopsis:

Ben Stiller directs and stars in THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY, James Thurber’s classic story of a day-dreamer who escapes his anonymous life by disappearing into a world of fantasies filled with heroism, romance and action. When his job along with that of his co-worker (Kristen Wiig) are threatened, Walter takes action in the real world embarking on a global journey that turns into an adventure more extraordinary than anything he could have ever imagined.

12 Years a Slave Trailer reaction

  

A movie sure to make waves this Awards Season is the film 12 Years A Slave starring Chiwetel Ejiofor and directed by Steve McQueen.

The piece tells the true-life, period story of Solomon Northup. A free man from New York who was kidnapped and forced into slavery for plantation owners in the South.

Pretty much the most disturbing nightmare ever to come to life.

Without watching a single frame of the film, I can tell the reader this is going to be a tough sell to mainstream audiences.

No matter how anyone tries to spin this, watching a story of a man forced into slavery is not traditional mainstream entertainment. Of course that’s not its intention. The piece is supposed to be a thought provoking piece of art. Nevertheless, it will still be incredibly disturbing for mainstream audiences to watch.

Director Steve McQueen is no stranger to sharing challenging stories of thought provoking subject matter. McQueen previously directed the films HUNGER, about a hunger strike by IRA prisoners, and the critically acclaimed SHAME, about a man’s sexual addiction.

But this is a whole other ball game.

Tarrantino’s Django Unchained explored this material last awards season. But 12 Years a Slave is a brutal, unflinching, true story, while Django Unchained was a violent, cathartic, hip, revenge thriller.

To combat an audiences hesitancy to watch a film with this subject matter, McQueen has filled out his cast with an ensemble of acting all-stars. The cast includes performers Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, Sarah Paulson, Alfre Woodard and Brad Pitt. In the title role is the extremely affable Chiwetel Ejiofor, who has an uncanny ability to convey grace, dignity, and touching emotional availability. It’s no wonder that he’s already considered a lock for an Oscar nomination.

Director Steve McQueen is widely credited for introducing actor Michael Fassbender to general audiences. But he also has a reputation for a vision of uncompromising, harsh, realism. Not exactly a recipe for mainstream box office success.

Not that there is anything wrong with that. Box Office success is not the be all and end all.

But many would argue that art is most effective when it’s witnessed. And viewed by the masses.

Although McQueen’s work is widely, critically acclaimed. He hasn’t been able to find mainstream box office success. Maybe this will be the film to do it for him. Although rare, movies with disturbing, historical, subject matter have had success. Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List springs to mind.

The trailer for 12 Years A Slave accurately conveys the heartless brutality Solomon Northup was forced to endure. The trap for the filmmakers would be to hold back in showing any of the challenges Northup experienced. In order for the film to succeed it has to be almost unbearable to watch. If there’s even a hint of hesitancy in the performances or in the director’s vision the film will be criticized for being untruthful, and even worse Hollywood fluff. 

So basically, it’s almost a no-win scenario. Hold back and critics will rip it for being soft. Make it too brutal and mainstream audiences may stay away.

Like I said. A tough sell.

12 Years a Slave stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, Lupita Nyong’o, Sarah Paulson, Alfre Woodard and Brad Pitt. The film is directed by Steve McQueen and is written by John Ridley. 12 Years a Slave is scheduled for release October 18, 2013.

Official Synopsis:

12 YEARS A SLAVE is based on an incredible true story of one man’s fight for survival and freedom. In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery. Facing cruelty (personified by a malevolent slave owner, portrayed by Michael Fassbender) as well as unexpected kindnesses, Solomon struggles not only to stay alive, but to retain his dignity. In the twelfth year of his unforgettable odyssey, Solomon’s chance meeting with a Canadian abolitionist (Brad Pitt) forever alters his life.

 

Gravity – Movie Review by Ari Dassa

 

It seems like every year a new movie is hyped as being a “game changer” because of new technological advancements with digital cinema, CGI and 3D, but the reality is that very few of these movies live up to their promise. This year Alfonso Cuaron’s survival-in-space thriller “Gravity” is the center of attention, but unlike so many pretenders, this film delivers something unique and extraordinary and feels like the first movie where 3D is not just a gimmick, but something that feels essential to the full experience.

It’s difficult to discuss what happens in “Gravity” without spoiling the film because the story is very thin on plot and very focused on situations and set-pieces, one after another, escalating in tension and suspense and drama. The situation that sets-up the bulk of the film’s 90 minute runtime is a stunning one-shot opening where astronauts, mainly Ryan (Sandra Bullock) and Kowalsky (George Clooney) are working in space until some debris unexpectedly hits them and destroys their shuttle. The rest of the movie is about how they try to survive the perils of space as they attempt to reach a station and return to Earth.

Cuaron’s digital (a better word might be “virtual”) cinematography is the visual genius of the film that will surely change how people approach CGI VFX in future movies. You can almost say “Gravity” is an animated movie, because 95% of it is damn near photo-realistic CG. Since it’s set in space, the camera is not bound by gravity or the technical rules traditionally found in movies. Cuaron’s virtual camera freely floats around in lengthy continuous shots as it follows the characters in their struggle to safety. Zero-G cinema. Some shots take on a 1st person POV, which Cuaron uses at very specific moments to enhance the visual experience of a sequence without making it feel like a videogame.

The excellent sound design and score play a huge role in how the tension builds throughout the film. “Gravity” uses the silence of space as a way to create horror – there are no big explosion sounds when destruction happens. It’s all subtle musical cues and the nervous, terrified voice of Sandra Bullock that gets to you (this IS NOT a sci-fi film, just to be clear. It’s a survival thriller set in space. There is nothing sci-fi about it). Speaking of Bullock, it’s amazing how much emotion she brings to this role as she desperately tries to find her way back home. The moment she accidentally catches a radio signal from Earth and listens to it has an emotional impact that sneaks up on you.

The 3D in “Gravity” is remarkable. The extra dimension adds a terrifying sense of depth and disorientation to outer space (if you get motion sickness easily, this might not be the best film to watch), but it also creates an uneasy sense of claustrophobia when the camera is locked on a close-up of one of the actors. The film is a marvel of digital cinema and will leave you walking out of the theater wondering, “how the hell did they film that?”. Or, as one lady said in the lobby, “I need a drink after that movie!”.

GRAVITY stars Sandra Bullock, and George Clooney. The film is written by Alfonso Cuaron and Jonas Cuaron and is directed by Alfonso Cuaron. GRAVITY is scheduled for release October 4, 2013. It will also be presented in 3D.

Ari Dassa is an independent filmmaker who has written and directed several short films and a documentary. He was the founder of a film review website called ‘The Aspect Ratio‘, active between 2006 – 2011.

 

All is Lost Trailer Reaction

Perhaps the surest thing this Awards season will be an Academy Award nomination for movie star Robert Redford.

 

Surprisingly it will be only the second time in his career that Redford has been nominated for an acting performance. The first time being for his work in the classic film The Sting.

Despite the lack of recognition by the Academy for his performances, Redford continues to be a perennial critical darling. Besides that, this award season he has the opportunity to perform in an actor’s dream showcase with what is essentially a thrilling and suspenseful one man show.

The film titled All Is Lost tells the story of a man in the latter stages of his life, alone, lost at sea after an accident and storm. The script by writer/director J.C. Chandor reportedly is only 30 pages long and features very little dialogue.

Think Cast Away without a volleyball to talk to.

It’s a bold move by both director and star. And arguably, only an actor of Redford’s stature could pull something like this off.

And reportedly the results have been impressive. With Oscar buzz already being generated after a screening at this year’s Cannes Film festival.

The only question remaining is will audiences embrace All Is Lost. The film has an obvious independent film sensibility. There is no leading lady. No co-stars. And only incidental dialogue. The film is also directed by a relative newcomer. Director J.C. Chandor is best none for his Academy Award nominated film Margin Call. That movie was noted for its minimalism as well. But All Is Lost will challenge mainstream audiences with hardly any dialogue and only one performer.

Of course it helps that the one performer is the mesmerizing Robert Redford.

All is Lost stars Robert Redford. The film is written and directed by J.C. Chandor. All is Lost is scheduled for release October 18th 2013.

Official Synopsis:

 

Academy Award winner Robert Redford stars in All Is Lost, an open-water thriller about one man’s battle for survival against the elements after his sailboat is destroyed at sea. Written and directed by Academy Award nominee J.C. Chandor (Margin Call) with a musical score by Alex Ebert (Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros), the film is a gripping, visceral and powerfully moving tribute to ingenuity and resilience. Deep into a solo voyage in the Indian Ocean, an unnamed man (Redford) wakes to find his 39-foot yacht taking on water after a collision with a shipping container left floating on the high seas. With his navigation equipment and radio disabled, the man sails unknowingly into the path of a violent storm. Despite his success in patching the breached hull, his mariner’s intuition, and a strength that belies his age, the man barely survives the tempest.

Dallas Buyers Club Trailer reaction 2013

 

Will this be the year of Matthew McConaughey?

 

Already receiving award season buzz for his work in the independent film Mud McConaughey also is receiving praise for his supporting role in the film The Wolf of Wall Street and his latest film Dallas Buyers Club. It’s the latter film that will probably net him the most serious consideration since his performance features a stunning physical transformation as well as an affable, inspiring subject matter.

 

Based on a true story, McConaughy stars as Ron Woodroof, a man diagnosed with HIV and given 30 days to live. Woodroof uses the time he has left to track down alternative treatments which result in groundbreaking personal and legal success.

The first thing audiences will notice from the trailer is McConaughey’s physical transformation. He reportedly lost 38 pounds to convincingly play a man dying of AIDS. He wasn’t the only performer in the film who underwent a physical transformation. Co-star Jared Leto lost 30 pounds to play a transgender character in the film.

Without sounding too cynical. These are the kind of performances catered for award season recognition. It would be hard to see McConaghey and Leto not receive nominations from their performances. With Jennifer Garner also getting a nod for her supporting role.

As for the actual film, that might be a little harder to pull off, considering the dark subject matter and independent film sensibility. But it is based on a true story, and has an crowd pleasing, important message. Which is a recipe for award season success.

 

The Dallas Buyers club stars Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto and Jennifer Garener. The movie is directed by Jean-Mar Vallee with a screenplay by Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack. The film is scheduled for release November 1, 2013.

 

Official Synopsis:

 

Matthew McConaughey stars in DALLAS BUYERS CLUB as real-life Texas cowboy Ron Woodroof, whose free-wheeling life was overturned in 1985 when he was diagnosed as HIV-positive and given 30 days to live. These were the early days of the AIDS epidemic, and the U.S. was divided over how to combat the virus. Ron, now shunned and ostracized by many of his old friends, and bereft of government-approved effective medicines, decided to take matters in his own hands, tracking down alternative treatments from all over the world by means both legal and illegal. Bypassing the establishment, the entrepreneurial Woodroof joined forces with an unlikely band of renegades and outcasts – who he once would have shunned – and established a hugely successful “buyers’ club.” Their shared struggle for dignity and acceptance is a uniquely American story of the transformative power of resilience.

Captain Phillips Trailer reaction

  

It wouldn’t be a real award season without a Tom Hanks film.

The latest film starring Tom Hanks is based on the 2009 true story of Captain Richard Phillips, who was Captain of a ship that was hijacked by Somali Pirates. The film is directed by Academy Award nominee Paul Greengrass. Who is best known for his work on the action films The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum and the action Drama Green Zone. Based on the trailer, this latest film titled Captain Phillips looks like more of a drama than an all out action film, but it still features Greengrass’s trademark thrils.

The trailer definitely looks to be a well rounded examination of the real-life events. It even appears to have a hint of sympathy at the financially strapped pirates, who are looking to simply make a better lives for themselves with these actions.

It will be interesting to see if audiences will respond to the film. A Tom Hanks fronted film in the past usually meant big box office as well as critical kudos. But his latest films Cloud Atlas and Larry Crowne under performed at the box office and underwhelmed the usually gushing critics. 

Captain Phillips stars Tom Hanks, and Catherine Keener. The screenplay is written by Billy Ray and the film is directed by Paul Greengrass. Captain Phillips is scheduled for release October 11th, 2013.

Official Synopsis:

Columbia Pictures’ action-thriller Captain Phillips stars two-time Oscar® winner Tom Hanks in the true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the US-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years. The film is directed by Oscar® nominee Paul Greengrass, from a screenplay by Billy Ray and based upon the book, A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALs, and Dangerous Days at Sea, by Richard Phillips with Stephan Talty. The film is produced by Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti, and Michael De Luca.

 

The Monuments Men Trailer Reaction (2013)

 It must be great to be George Clooney.

Not only does he get to live a glamorous personal life, he has put himself in a position artistically to produce and tell the most interesting stories. And he gets to do it with an independent film sensibility, while working with a blockbuster film cast and production value.

So pretty much a life of awesome.

Hot on the heels of his Academy Award win for Best Picture for the film ARGO. George Clooney’s Award Season submission for this year is the film The MONUMENTS MEN. The impressive cast features Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Cate Blanchett and Academy Award winning actor Jean Dujardin.

The story chronicles the efforts of a small group of military personal tasked to protect art pieces from Nazis who are bent on destroying the art in an effort to take away the historical culture of what the art represents.

A noble task if ever there was one.

Obviously, this film is earmarked for some big awards season consideration. With its crowd pleasing subject matter, and affable cast it would be hard for the film to miss. The only drawback, if you can really call it a drawback, is probably George Clooney’s directorial style. He tends to direct his films in a breezy, witty, bare bones, non-sentimental way. The trailer has an obvious Steven Soderbergh/Ocean’s 11 influence and vibe. Which usually doesn’t translate well to the crusty, older, awards season crowd. But maybe it’s time to change all that. I can’t think of many more actors more liked by the Hollywood community than George Clooney. Maybe it’s time for Clooney to earn award season kudos as director now. To add to his trophy case as an Academy Award winning actor and producer.

Like I said, must be great to be George Clooney.

The Monuments Men stars George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, Jean Dujardin, Cate Blanchett, Bob Balaban and John Goodman. The film is written by George Clooney and Grant Heslov. The Monuments Men is directed by George Clooney. It is scheduled for release December 18, 2013.

Official Synopsis:

Based on the true story of the greatest treasure hunt in history, The Monuments Men is an action-thriller focusing on an unlikely World War II platoon, tasked by FDR with going into Germany to rescue artistic masterpieces from Nazi thieves and returning them to their rightful owners. It would be an impossible mission: with the art trapped behind enemy lines, and with the German army under orders to destroy everything as the Reich fell, how could these guys—seven museum directors, curators, and art historians, all more familiar with Michelangelo than the M-1—possibly hope to succeed? But as the Monuments Men, as they were called, found themselves in a race against time to avoid the destruction of 1000 years of culture, they would risk their lives to protect and defend mankind’s greatest achievements.

 

Only God Forgives Movie Review 2013

 

Only God Forgives is a stunning misfire from writer / director Nicolas Winding Refn. It’s a work that is so substandard that it forces the viewer to rethink Nicolas Winding Refn’s critically acclaimed work in the films Bronson and Drive. The movie’s characters and plot oozes such self hatred, literally and figuratively, that one wonders why anyone associated with the film would even bother to tell the bleak story.

 

The razor thin plot of the film concerns a drug smuggler in Bankok named Julian, played by Ryan Gosling. Julian is dealing with the repercussions of the killing of his murderous, psychopathic older brother. When his brother’s death is tied to a vigilante, ex-champion, muy thai boxer, cop, played by Vithaya Pansringarm, Julian struggles to take action in the face of his moral conscience, as well as the pressures of his vengeful mother. (A wasted solid performance from Kristin Scott Thomas.)

The temptation is to point the blame on the weakness of the script. The dialogue is stylistically sparse. Laughably thin. Gosling’s character rarely speaks at all. His character arguably speaks less than fifty words in the entire film. One can theorize that he’s the strong, silent type but his character is not the only one which fails to talk. There is so little dialogue in the piece that one is tempted to call the film a silent movie. Most of the story is told through longing looks and unflinching stillness.

But to single out the script as the main weakness of the film would be unfair . There is plenty of blame to go around. There is also the uninspired performances, snail pace, unlikable characters, lack of humor and absurd, stylized movements.

The only redeeming qualities of the film is the gorgeous cinematography and scenic design. But even that can’t be enjoyed when the hyper-violence and brutality make the events taking place in the story almost un-watchable. I’m not oppossed to violence in film. But this movie features unjustified and excessive graphic violence which turns the proceedings into almost a satirical joke of brutality in film. And when there is no violence taking place in the movie, the performers move in such a measured, paused, stylized way, which brings to mind bad Japanese Kabuki, that it turns the blocking into something absurd. The inspiration is obviously Kubrick, but it comes off as laughable and ridiculous to the point of almost parody. Even the sound design can’t be spared of ridicule. The frequent unsheathing of the cop’s machete is so indicating that it comes off as excessive and unintentionally humorous.

Of course the film’s failures isn’t much of a surprise. Considering that the buzz of the film coming out of Cannes was that it was arguably the worst movie of the year. Critics and audiences have almost universally dismissed the film as an unmitigated disaster.

A sentiment that I can’t argue with. But the film is such a mess that one can’t help to think that there might be some method to this misfire.

One wonders if Only God Forgives is a creative exercise in finding an artistic rock bottom. The film’s story features not one redeeming character. There is no humor in the piece and there is no joy in any of the performances. The movie feels like the work of a self hating artist trying to reinvent himself. A director desperately trying to carve out a clean slate for himself. An artist attempting to free himself from the pressures of his previous critically acclaimed work in order to find his true voice.

 

Of course that’s just a working theory. Sometimes bad is just bad. Only God Forgives is all kinds of bad and a monumental disappointment from a seemingly talented and gifted young filmmaker.

Seeing the finish line...

Note from Ray: This is a legacy post from my personal archives (pre-2024). For my latest Movie Reviews and Highlight Reels, click here.

One of the many questions I've asked myself during this trying time was "Why did this happen?"

Of course the simple answer would be "Why not?"

But to put things a little more in perspective. Testicular cancer is considered to be a very rare form of cancer. Only 1% of cancers in males. Even more rare for Asian-americans. Overall 1 in 270 males have a chance to acquire the disease and almost half of all cases happen to men between the ages of 20 and 34.

So...lucky me?

After being diagnosed, my thoughts and memories often turned to all the loved ones that passed away from cancer.  I mourned their loss again. I longed for their counsel. I shared in their fear.  I'm sure there were moments in their diagnosis where they felt similar to me.

Feelings of fear, turning to sheer terror,  alternating with hope, then eventual acceptance.

How did they feel and what did they think as they reached the finish line of life?

I admit I still have fears and worries, but I'm finding them increasingly manageable as the days go by.

I guess if people were on the outside looking in at my situation,  if there is a  kind of cancer to get, the preferable one would be the one with an over 90% survival rate.

I'm still a bit worried that because of the kind of insurance coverage that I have. I won't have access to premium services. Short cuts might be made in my case when in other situations they wouldn't. Just getting my tumor removed required a bit of jerry rigging of the system. The specifics I rather not disclose. But I have to trust my doctors. They have covered for me this far.

At this point. I'm feeling positive about my prognosis. My tests all came back clean. CT scan showed no abnormalities. X-rays were clear. Blood tests were negative. The mass is now removed and no longer in my body. I'm hoping that it stayed isolated. I have a follow up with my urologist in a couple of weeks to discuss my treatment options.

My next step is possibly one dose of chemotherapy and or a radiation treatment, then I will have to observe and have periodic checkups every three months.

The drawback is that this will be for the next 5 to 10 years.

The most prominent issue I'm dealing with now is dealing with the loss of a testicle. Some occasional nausea. I spent so much time focusing on survival, I didn't really stop to consider the idea of losing a physical part of me. An important part of me.

Men spend their lives protecting that area. It's ingrained in us since we are little. Even wearing a cup in little league and a jock strap in sports to support that area. It's comical to think about the idea but it's true.

That area represents a man's virility, health and sexuality.

Does losing a testicle make me less of a man? Will my testosterone be too low? Will my sexual performance suffer? Will my peers view me differently knowing that I only have one testicle?

It's funny when you consider these things out loud. Of course the answer to all these concerns are probably no.

At least I hope they are.

But these are my honest fleeting thoughts. They were especially prominent before my surgery.

Post surgery, physically I feel fine.  I admit that there exists a strange feeling now. To have an empty space where there used to be something. Nerve endings that weren't previously exposed are now touching each other. I find myself adjusting often. Hopefully I won't do this too much unconsciously in public.

It's also clear I'm also gonna have to transition from boxers to boxer briefs. I'm acutely more conscious about what is going on down there now. I'm promising myself to not procrastinate about physical ailments.

Which brings us back to HOW did I get this disease? The traditional causes of cancer are not part of my lifestyle.  Cancer is not in my immediate family. I don't smoke. I rarely drink alcohol anymore. Don't experiment with drugs. It's been years since I've even had a hit of Marijuana. I like to think I live a relatively stress free lifestyle, although the idea of having four kids under the age of 7 may seem stressful to others.

I was able to come up with three possibilities. As far fetched as it sounds.

My first theory is my fondness for junk food. Erin is a supporter of this theory. And she is using this as an opportunity to change my diet and lifestyle. She's been after me for years to be more conscious of my diet and often has encouraged me to exercise more.

It's time to take up her flag. I can't fight her on this anymore. The truth is getting cancer has given her all the ammunition she needs.

Theory 2:  Radiation from Japan's Nuclear disaster.

Yeah... I know it's absurd. But I'm clutching at straws here.

And my final theory... radiation from my cellphone.

I keep my cellphone in my right front pocket. I've been doing it for years. I've observed  my phone overheating in the past while in my pocket and I've often wondered what harmful effects that the overheating and low level radiation may cause. Maybe whatever causes cancer was in me already and the overheating and radiation just triggered it?

I know it sounds ridiculous. As I said, it's a theory.

Whatever the cause of my my testicular mass. The truth is it doesn't matter.

I have had it in me, it's been removed and I will continue to fight the effects from it. My life will never be the same again.

And that's not necessarily a bad thing.

If there is a positive to take away from all this it's that this has made me more conscious of how precious life is.

It's made me see the finish line.

At the risk of sounding overly sentimental. It's made me appreciate my life more. My friendships. My family. I hug my kids a little tighter now. Made me more appreciative of Erin and our relationship.  I'm trying to not sweat the little things as much.  I'd like to think that it's given me a sharper perspective on what's important.

I know that this is just the beginning of this cancer challenge. But I can see the finish of this chapter. I'm confident I will beat this.

I'm also hoping it makes me a better person at the end. And lead to an overall better life for me and my family

I admit... I'm still scared. But I can see the finish line.

Not the scary kind of finish line though. The kind that features a victory celebration at the finish with all my friends and family.

Here are a couple of Testicular cancer facts I want to share. Hopefully it will inspire someone to take action. Maybe save someone some anxiety.


Most lumps or bumps down there are relatively harmless and tend not to be cancer. Some of the more common causes for testicular pain or swelling are infections, hernias, hydroceles and varicoceles.

The symptoms for testicular cancer also don't appear to be alarming at first. Many times there is no pain. The most common symptom is a painless lump. Sometimes it can be accompanied by a heavy or aching feeling in the lower belly or scrotum.

I can confirm that the feeling that I experienced was not alarming. In fact if it wasn't for straining my back moving a kiddie pool of water, I probably wouldn't have suspected anything. I actually  thought that my symptoms pointed to my condition being a hernia.

Some of the risk factors which contribute to testicular cancer are an undescended testicle, family history of testicular cancer,  HIV infection and carcinoma in situ. But since testicular cancer is so rare there isn't really an effective study which reveals notable risk factors.

Remember according to citations from Wikipedia:

Testicular cancer has one of the highest cure rates of all cancers: in excess of 90 percent overall; almost 100 percent if it has not spread (metastasized). Even for the relatively few cases in which malignant cancer has spread widely, modern chemotherapy offers a cure rate of at least 80%.

Don't wait! The sooner you deal with it the better! 

The Purge – Movie Review by Jonathan Harris

By Jonathan Harris

The central conceit in The Purge is that humans are very much not like humans. In this world, we are all maniacal killers at heart, and would murder indiscriminately, men and women alike, if only it was socially acceptable. This, of course, is not true. There are sociopaths and killers, sure. But, the reason incidents like Aurora and Sandy Hook shake us so fundamentally is that they confront our very ideas of humanity, that most of us are decent enough people just trying to get by, and that even the rude and inconsiderate among us are still not capable of such atrocities that occurred in those shootings.

In The Purge, however, we are all James Holmes and Adam Lanza. Oh, if only murder were legal, just for 12 hours! I would get it out of my system then and be myself again, surely. All this is to say that the film has a mountain to climb right off the bat. It attempts to get us on board by presenting us a family that we would identify with. The Sandins are well-off and live in an affluent community somewhere in America in the year 2022. James Sandin (Ethan Hawke) sells home security systems that are only used during the Purge, the 12 hours during the year when anything is legal. I’d give more details about the family, but the film forgot to provide them. So much for giving the audience something to identify with!

Lena Headey plays the mother, Mary Sandin. She is a mother and loves her kids and husband and that’s pretty much it. She’s scared when she needs to be scared and motherly when the script needs that as well. The two kids, Charlie and Zoe Sandin, are generally disgruntled teenagers. Charlie keeps track of his heart rate for some reason and Zoe wishes her ambiguously older boyfriend could be a more open part of her life. No matter.

The day of the Purge, James Sandin has learned that he’s the top-seller of security systems in the district and wishes his neighbors a “safe night” on his way home. Most of his neighbors have bought the security system as well, and they all seem ready to hunker down for the long 12 hours when, apparently, 90% of Americans decide to go and kill each other. I’m not exaggerating that this is what the Purge is all about. An opening sequence shows us gun murder after gun murder, all on security footage. We are reminded by a television doctor that it is in our very nature to kill each other, and that this annual practice serves as a “release” for these murderous instincts, bestowed upon us by the “New Founding Fathers.” Do people rob banks during the purge? Score drugs? Run over the border from Mexico? Doesn’t look like it. The world The Purge inhabits is full of demented thugs, except for the Sandins.

Oh, they openly support the Purge, sure, but their children can tell that they have moral issues with it. After all, if they support it, why don’t they go out and kill people every year? Unlike successful films about a dystopian future, the game of The Purge is so unreasonable as to be almost impossible to represent in humanity. Though it involves supernatural connections, we can at least believe that pre-crime, as presented in Minority Report, would be acceptable to a large section of the American population. If it was possible to see the future, of course we would want to prevent murders before they happen! The ingenuity of that film is nowhere here. It is merely a setup for disgusting terrorism and carnage.

The carnage begins shortly after “lockdown.” The Sandins are behind their metal walls, James and Mary are having some wine, Zoe has gone off to sulk, and Charlie sits in his father’s security suite, watching the neighborhood through a series of cameras. A black man runs down the street, screaming for help, looking for safe haven from an angry mob that’s after him. Charlie, poor sympathetic Charlie, disarms the security system to let the man in. Once James sees this and rushes to his son, the black man (and I call him that because he is the only one in the film) disappears somewhere in the giant home. Oh, and Zoe’s boyfriend is mad that they can’t openly date, so he tries to kill James. Whatever.

The mob chasing the bloody stranger is a group of 20 or so masked prep school kids. (Why are they masked if this is all legal? Probably because director James DeMonaco thought it would look scary.) The only unmasked mob member is the “Polite Stranger,” as he is credited, played by Rhys Wakefield. He explains to the security camera (to which we are fortunately listening), that the man they are harboring is a “homeless swine” and that he must be released to them in short order. If they don’t comply, the mob has some “equipment” on the way that will help them break in and kill not only the swine, but the Sandins as well.

Thus begins a solid 45 minutes of people walking slowly down dark hallways. Occasionally something jumps out and the non-diagetic sound informs us that this is meant to be scary. Why are all the hallways dark? Because Rhys Wakefield has decided to cut the house’s electricity, despite being repeatedly told by James that the homeless man is somewhere in the house and they are looking for him. Logic be damned, says DeMonaco! We need dark hallways in which our vacant characters will walk slowly, to be frightened when things jump out at them!

We are plagued by logistical questions throughout The Purge. If this angry mob are normal citizens 364 days a year, and they murder just to get it out of their systems, will one helpless man really be enough for them? Would they not be better served just leaving the gated community and stopping at the closest Denny’s? With the arsenal these guys are carrying, they could take out dozens of people in a matter of minutes.

Oh! Oh! And I haven’t even started talking about the flaws in the security system yet. This is truly amazing. After Wakefield informs the Sandins that they have equipment on the way to break into their house, Mary seeks reassurance from her husband. “They can’t get in here, right?”

James Sandin’s response is an inexplicable mess about how no security system is perfect and that they could tunnel in or get a battering ram, and on and on. What are we to make of this? Is this a comment on how none of us, with all of our laws and safety precautions, are ever truly safe? Or, is it just a poorly written monologue? The social commentary in The Purge is so haphazard that I’m not sure DeMonaco really means anything at all. The concept resembles nothing that exists in our current lives, that the metaphor is lost on me. I would really like to see a film, even a short film, that deals with this concept as it might exist in reality. DeMonaco seems to think that his characters don’t need to act like actual human beings and that this is okay. Even in the most outlandish of futures, good characters do what we might really do in their position. Harrison Ford in Blade Runner, Tom Cruise in Minority Report, Clive Owen in Children of Men. 

The Purge has no time for such trivialities. Its dark hallways lead to its cruel and gruesome conclusion. This is not a fun movie, it is not a thoughtful movie, it is not a scary movie. Much like the Purge itself, I see no reason for it to exist.

Sleeping with the television on...

Note from Ray: This is a legacy post from my personal archives (pre-2024). For my latest Movie Reviews and Highlight Reels, click here.

I sleep with the television on.

I've been doing it ever since I could remember. I suspect that maybe it started as a kid being afraid of the dark. But now it's not about that anymore.

As an adult, I need the television on to distract me from my thoughts so I can finally fall asleep. My thoughts aren't usually dark. Most of the time it's just trivial stuff. Funny memories. Tasks that need to be done. Thoughts about my friends and family. Ideas and regrets from the day.

I need the sounds from the television to keep my thoughts quiet.

Maybe it's also about being in a room that's alive while I'm asleep. To remind me there's a world waiting for me to wake up.  It took awhile for Erin to get used to it. She likes the television off when she sleeps. In fact, I still don't think she's used to it.

If the television is on while I'm sleeping and someone turns it off I'll wake up in a panic.

The silence can be deafening.

It's been hard getting some sleep lately.

Part of the obstacle is that I work graveyard shift. 12:00 am to 8 am. Not that I mind that. In fact, I rather enjoy it. It gives me more time to be with the kids and Erin. But combined with the visit to the E.R. and the day of tests, which I have experienced these previous two days, I've only been able to get maybe four hours sleep... total.

Today with nothing on the schedule I tried to get some winks.

It didn't work out so well.

My thoughts are running away with me.

It's exhausting.

I keep wondering what the hell is going on inside my body. Is the cancer growing? Is it multiplying?

This morning after breakfast Evie wanted to play her favorite game, Zombie with me. The game basically consists of me chasing her around the backyard till I catch her, tickle her and nibble on her body parts.

Evie will play this game with me for hours if she had her way. It's a game that only daddy can play with her. It's not the same with mommy.

She especially loves it when big brother Brayden joins in because she uses him as a human shield. They will often run away holding hands. They hide in places together and will protect each other when I catch one of them. Now that Bohdan is older he has joined in on the fun. Except he squeels in delight when I catch him. And cries when I get distracted and won't chase him.

He'll get the hang of it.

Nolan doesn't like it when daddy plays zombie. He's happy watching the action from inside the house within earshot of mommy. So that he can run to her in case I should turn my unwanted attention towards him through the window.

This morning while chasing Evie. I started experiencing phantom pains. I got winded after a few minutes. I felt like my stomach was cramping. Back was stiffening. I felt a little light headed. I became acutely aware of the air in my lungs and my ribs expanding.

My thoughts were....crap these are the advanced signs of cancer.

The game ended early to Evies' disappointment.

I shared my thoughts with Erin and she pointed out that likely I was just fatigued from lack of sleep.

Not to mention that I'm also a computer nerd that's old and out of shape. Cancer or not.

I decided to try and catch some winks.

I got maybe a couple of hours rest when my thoughts and fears took over. After awhile I got up angry. Pissed that there was nothing I could do. And completely ignorant about what was happening to me.

I want to fight but I don't know who the enemy is yet.

The thing that continues to haunt me is that I waited too long to share my concerns about the mass. I decided to research the symptoms that Tom Green and Lance Armstrong experienced before they finally got help.

Apparently Tom Green experienced similar symptoms. He was actually misdiagnosed at first and waited before he got a second opinion. He was actually experiencing pain down in the scrotum for awhile before he got help.

I don't have any pain. Just a heaviness down there.

Lance Armstrong however waited till he had blinding headaches and was coughing up blood. Blood!  His cancer spread to his brain and lungs and were in advanced stages.

I'm nowhere near that point.

Even with all those odds against him. He had four rounds of chemo-therapy and was able to beat it.

Granted I'm not a world champion athlete. But I like to think I have more will to survive than Lance did. I have four little reasons why I NEED to live.

I shared the info with Erin and she assured me that everything would be okay. She was confident that I would be fine.

She was sure of it.

 I was comforted by her resolve and determination.

I could use some more of that confidence not from just her but from myself.

I need to convince myself that everything is going to be fine. That this operation is going to be as routine as the surgery I received when I was getting my appendix out last year.

Noticing that I was up and awake, Evie requested we play more zombie.

This time we played until SHE got tired and ran out of gas.

A day of tests...

Note from Ray: This is a legacy post from my personal archives (pre-2024). For my latest Movie Reviews and Highlight Reels, click here.

I get off of work and the first thing I want to do is go to the hospital. 

I don't want to wait till 2pm for my appointment with my primary care physician to be referred to a urologist. I decide I will go to the ER of the UCLA affiliated hospital that my ER doctor recommended that will accept medi-cal.

I've waited and procrastinated long enough. 

Erin forces me to eat breakfast before I go. I hear Brayden open up the back door to go outside. Nolan jumps on my lap asking to watch YouTube videos. Evie is already asking if I could push her on the swing in the backyard. Bohdan points at my computer screen and says "Hulk". 

He likes watching Hulk smash things in the Marvel movies. I'm in the mood for it too. 

I kiss Erin goodbye before I leave. I start to breakdown. Erin comforts me.

I debate whether I really want to share my venting post from my initial diagnosis. 

I share the post on Facebook before I step out the door. 

While driving I hear the encouraging chimes of Facebook notifications I'm getting on my phone from my friends. 

The E.R waiting room is ridiculously crowded. There are a lot of sick people in the room. Lots of lines. Lots of doors. Lots of filled chairs. Lots of waiting. 

I move from check-in, then to two different nurse evaluation stations. 

Both times their initial question haunts me. "When did you first notice the mass?" I shake my head no in ignorance.

I don't remember. 

I'm approved for urgent care. 

After several hours I finally see the doctor. He reads me a checklist of symptoms.

I don't have any of them. At least I don't think I do. 

He physically checks my limp nodes and body for lumps. 

All clear.

He exams the testicle. Confirms it's a mass and says he'll schedule an appointment with the urologist. 

"It's cancer. But there are alot of different kinds of cancer."

I don't think there's any good kind.

One thing is for sure. The thing is coming out. So they could send it away to be analyzed.

Good riddance. 

"Please schedule something as soon as you can. I'm freaking out."

He comes back and says the urologist will see me "within the week."

My heart drops. 

But he also states that I will get a round of tests today. Blood tests. X-Rays. Another sonogram and then a C.T. scan.  

It's more than I expected. At least today will be productive. 

I wait.

Each testing station has a waiting room. I'm constantly reminded there are a ton of other sick people in this world too. I overhear a young lady say she was diagnosed with breast cancer. 

She can't be over 22.

I can't get reception in the hospital. Occasionally, it breaks through and I'm able to read some Facebook comments from my post. I'm profoundly touched whenever I read a new one. I get emotional several times throughout the day while reading.  I'm sure it looks weird. 

When I can't get reception. I look at family pics on the phone. I miss Erin and the kids. 

I watch the blood as they draw it from me into the vials. 

Are there cancer cells swimming around in there? 

The x-ray room is dark. Comically, I start to undress. And the guy tells me to keep everything on. I remember it's still unusual for people to see me naked.  He then has me contort into a weird standing position. Arms in the air. Chin up. Back straight. Chest out. Shoulders touching the platform. I'm wearing what feels like a bulletproof apron around my waist. He points the x-ray machine at me. Back and side x-rays. I hope this thing doesn't give me cancer. 

As I leave the room. I try to peek at the x-rays. Not sure what I'd be looking for. I know from watching movies that if I see black spots that's probably not a good sign. I don't see anything in the split second I peek.

When it's time for the sonogram I'm comforted by the fact that I already know the results of that test. But doubts start to creep in. What if they find more? I over-analyze everything.

He asks my favorite question. "When did you first notice the mass?"

He leaves the room for a bit. I realize I'm laying down with everything covered and only my scrotum exposed. Must be a funny sight. 

The doctor catches me in the hall. Two of your blood tests came back negative. Waiting for a third. He walks off.

Negative for what? I already know that I have cancer. I realize he means for other kinds of cancers. At least I think that's what he means.

More waiting.

It's been three hours since my last test. I'm still waiting for the C.A.T. Scan. They need to do another blood test for my kidneys to be sure it's safe to use the iodine during the test. 

The guy sharing the waiting room with me is a victim from a stabbing. Got stabbed seven times. He has a piss bag. He's having complications from the surgery. He shares that he has fluid in his lungs.

I picture one of my kids his age. How do I prevent something like that happening to one of them? What if that happens to me? What if I was ever in the wrong place at the wrong time? What would happen to my kids? 

Doctor comes over to me. The blood tests came back negative.  I ask him what that means. He tells me that they test for different levels to determine kinds of cancer. 

"So basically  it's some good news right?"  He confirms its good. 

I walk into the CT scan room and the operator is saying a prayer. Is he praying for me? That's a nice gesture. Or maybe he's just talking to himself with his eyes closed holding his hand over a book.   

I lay down on the CT scan gurney. "You might get a warm feeling from the iodine in your blood."  

Scary thoughts run through my head. 

This is likely the test that will determine if the cancer has spread. 

The voice prompts me. Take a breath....hold it....and breath. The gurney slides into the center of the circular machine ominously. I see something in the machine spinning. Is something going to come out? 

The machine focuses first on my chest, then my head, than my groin. 

The guy running the test comes in. "Raymond, What are you being tested for? What is your ailment?" I tell him about my mass in my testicle. "But no pain anywhere right?"  I confirm that is correct. 

He leaves. I think ...does that mean he didn't see anything? Maybe.... it means he saw too much. 

He does another pass on my groin. 

I ask when will I be able to discuss the results with a doctor. The nurse informs me that the urologist will go over it with me. 

"When will that be? "

Sometime in the week I should get a call. If I don't hear anything I have to call or come back to urgent care again. 

Holy. I think to myself. They might not get back to me within the week? A whole week? I'd really get lost in the system like that?  Seriously?

So...like it or not...it's the waiting game.  

I really wish I could find out the results sooner. I wish I could know what was in the results.

I'd give up my right nut to find out. 

I have cancer... and I'm scared

Note from Ray: This is a legacy post from my personal archives (pre-2024). For my latest Movie Reviews and Highlight Reels, click here.

Yesterday, after a visit with the doctor they confirmed that I have a mass in my right testicle.

I'm scared.

I'm also angry at myself because I waited longer than I needed to. I keep beating myself up about that. What was I thinking?

So stupid.

Obviously, a part of me was in denial. I'm the poster child for procrastination. I'm not sure it's productive to keep beating myself up about it. But I can't help it.

Thoughts of the cancer spreading is keeping my mind racing. A big part of me just wants to go to the kitchen counter, grab a knife and cut the mass out myself. I hate that it's inside me.

My next step is to have my primary care practitioner refer me to a urologist. I have an appointment today.  But another option is to go to another hospital that the ER doctor recommended from UCLA and hope their referral will get me to see a urologist sooner.

I don't have insurance. I have medi-cal or whatever they are calling it now.

I hope I don't slip through the cracks.

I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm writing this.

I read on The Testicular Cancer Society page that I should start a page on the subject. To keep loved ones "updated". But I suspect it's more about venting.

Which I admit IS helping me right now.

Keeps me out of my head. Keeps me from pacing. Keeps me from imagining the worst case scenarios and from beating myself up too much.  I decided to write this post here on my old blog, Ray's Lucky 13. Maybe it will bring me some luck. It's been awhile. Maybe nobody will read it. I don't know.

I have been working on my entertainment blog mostly nowadays. But I don't think this subject is appropriate for that site.

I don't think ball cancer qualifies as entertainment.

I keep thinking of cancer movies.

50/50 with Joseph Gordon Levitt and Seth Rogen has a happy ending. But more often than not cancer movies don't end well.  I know Tom Green had testicular cancer and is alive and well. So is Lance Armstrong. In fact according to stats, recovery is very high for testicular cancer. On average over 90%.

I hope I'm not in the minority.

I'm scared my kids are gonna grow up without a father. I'm scared Erin will have to raise them alone.

I don't want to die.

Kids are asleep right now. I just want to hug them so hard that I'm inside of them. Like a warm blanket.

I know people will say don't worry. Everything will be fine.

But will it?

I'm scared.

I'm tired of reading cancer information sites.

Best case scenario is surgery. Chemotherapy. Radiation.

Fun.

I keep thinking I'm experiencing advanced signs of the cancer. Back pain. Stomach pain. Fevers. Headaches.  It's probably just in my head.

Probably.

To be honest,  I didn't really have many signs besides the hard feel of my testicle and the heaviness down there. I strained my back moving the kiddie pool a couple of weeks back. So a part of me thought that the groin pain was because I pulled something.

I was hoping it was a hernia.

I guess I also felt fatigue. But I work graveyard shift and I don't really get to sleep well, so I'm sort of always tired. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't suspect something sooner. I kept waiting for another symptom. To get me going.

So stupid. No excuse.

Don't borrow trouble. Stay positive.

That's what Erin says and I keep telling myself.

It was hard telling Erin. Then telling my mom and sister. I felt like I let them down.

Not sure if I'm crying for them or for myself.

I'm not sure why I'm telling you. I don't really want the drama.

But I'm scared.

Keep happy thoughts. Stay positive.

Iron Man 3 Movie Review by Lon Harris

 

By Lon Harris

I know, I know, it’s been out for a week, it’s old news, everyone’s on to “Pacific Rim” or that one where Chris Pine gets hardcore Cumberbatched… but give me a break. I just saw it.

“Iron Man 3” is easily better than the deathly dull, plodding “Iron Man 2,” but I still didn’t LOVE it. A disappointment considering my general affinity for the work of co-writer/director Shane Black. Don’t get me wrong – there are some signature Black touches, particularly the droll, self-aware Robert Downey Jr. voice-over narration that’s a direct callback to the ingenious “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.”

In general, the film works best as a comedy. To give away the film’s Big Joke would be lame for anyone who hasn’t caught it yet, but I can talk about the rather brilliant rapport between Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark and a young fan from Tennessee who becomes essentially his partner-in-crime during the film’s midsection. This young actor, Ty Simpkins, is a real find; he genuinely holds his own alongside RDJ.

 

But this is, in a lot of ways, the Comic Adventures of Tony Stark more than an actual IRON MAN movie.

Black has rendered Stark so awkward and bumbling, he’s basically a different character than the one we’ve come to know from the first phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We sense the Tony Stark of “The Avengers” could basically dispatch these problems in an afternoon.

I mean, I know the appeal of these Marvel heroes is that they are vulnerable and relateable, but does Stark have to be such a – to use his own unfortunate phrase – “hot mess” from beginning to end here? He’s seemingly incapable of inventing a device that works properly, he takes an hour to solve a mystery that’s easily telescoped for the audience in the film’s first 10 minutes, he’s having anxiety attacks. Hell, the guy barely wears his Iron Man suit during the course of the entire movie. It’s always hanging half-off, with low power, restrained by a 20 ton concrete block.

It’s as if Black found the character quite simply over-powered. Rather than come up with adversaries that would truly challenge an army of Iron Men, he chose to constantly come up with reasons for the suit not to work. It becomes a tiresome device: 1 joke about Tony miscalculating something, leading to disaster, can be funny. 12 jokes about it violates something essential about the character. He doesn’t fuck up all the time. He’s a super-genius.

Stark can maybe be forgiven for not figuring out all the details of the Mandarin’s sinister plot though… because they make absolutely no sense. This has become something of a running theme in recent action/superhero blockbusters – evil plans presented as fiendishly intricate that don’t seem to follow any kind of consistent logic. (I’m reminded specifically of “The Dark Knight Rises” and “Skyfall,” two above-average films that would have been even better if they made any goddamn sense.)

Here, the villain’s main actions end up basically having no motive. When the film was over, I still was not quite sure what The Mandarin had hoped to gain, or what was meant to be the final outcome of all this killing. It’s a bit unsatisfying, to say the least.

So, all in all, I’d say this is far better than the loathsome “Iron Man 2” but not as essential a take on the character as the terrific first “Iron Man,” still the finest of the Marvel Studios adventures. I’d also say “Avengers” and “Captain America” are probably superior to this as well. It’s on a par with, say, “Thor.”

Star Wars Stand-Alone Films & the Future of the Franchise

 

Ever since George Lucas sold the Lucasfilm empire to The Walt Disney Co. for $4.05 billion last fall, there has been rampant speculation on the future of the Star Wars franchise.

We thought today would be a good day to take a look at all the recent developments regarding the beloved Star Wars Universe.

The most concrete news so far from new Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy was that a new trilogy of films, taking place sometime after the events of Star Wars Episode 6: Return of the Jedi was being developed. The first film in the new trilogy was being targeted for a hopeful, (yet unrealistic), 2015 release date.

As far as who would be directing those films, rumors were rampant with everyone from Steven Spielberg to Ben Affleck being attached as potential directors. Then the website THE WRAP broke the news that none other than J.J. Abrams would be directing Episode 7. Additionally it was announced that the screenplay was being penned by Michael Arndt (Safety Not Guaranteed), while Lawrence Kasdan (The Empire Strikes Back) and Simon Kinberg (Sherlock Holmes) would work as artistic consultants.

If all that wasn’t enough, in addition to the new trilogy, news began to trickle out that stand-alone films, which take place within the Star Wars universe was also being developed. An early rumor, which was quickly shot down, claimed that director Zack Snyder was developing a Star Wars film inspired by the classic Akira Kurosawa film The Seven Samurai. At the time the idea didn’t seem too far-fetched, considering Star Wars Episode IV was loosely based on Kurosawa’s film The Hidden Fortress.

Then more concrete news seemed to break out, when Harry Knowles reported at Aint-It-Cool-News that the first stand-alone Star Wars film was to focus on the character of Yoda. As far as what that story would entail it was still too early in the process to even speculate.

The idea of a Yoda standalone film makes sense considering that he is a character, which spans the entire six previous movies and he also has a substantial untouched back story, that can easily be explored without stepping on the toes of any of the potential future films. Plus Yoda is a computer generated character, so there is no pressure for an actor to step into the iconic role. At the very least, it was all an interesting idea. Anyone curious what a young Yoda would be like?

Meanwhile, around the same time Entertainment Weekly also reported that two other stand-alone films were also being developed, one about the bounty hunter Boba Fett and the other about Han Solo. Most likely the Han Solo film would be about his youth before he appeared in the famous Cantina on Mos Eisley. The Boba Fett film would be a bounty hunter / Japanese “ronin” inspired movie. (Again inspired by Akira Kurosawa.)

This morning, however, comes news from Deadline Hollywood that just the idea of stand-alone films, outside the Star Wars saga, was still only in the concept stages and nowhere near any real production development. Which sort of splashes cold water on the whole Star Wars stand alone film proceedings.

But the real question is do audiences really want stand-alone Star Wars films? Yes, they would most likely be sure-fire hits and make plenty of money. But as fun as it is to play within the Star Wars universe, some of the allure to characters like Han Solo, Boba Fett and Yoda is their mysterious back story. Do we really want to see Lando Calrissian lose the Millenium Falcon to Han Solo? Or Boba Fett in the middle of a Yojimbo inspired turf war? Or Yoda as a Padawan learning the ways of the force… from someone else?

Hopefully, the new development team at Lucas Film don’t become too preoccupied with the idea of making stand alone films, that that they don’t stop to think if they should. (Yes, I just threw in a Jurassic Park reference.)

As far as, J.J. Abrams taking over the helm of the new trilogy… I’m all for it.

It’s a safe pick considering that J.J. Abrams will be extremely careful not to step on any of the previous team’s toes and will likely (good or bad) keep the same tone and look of the previous films. Critics are focusing on his work with the Star Trek reboot as a marker for where he will likely take the new stories. Star Wars lens flare jokes already running wild across the internet. But the reality is, I think J.J. Abrams will not make as much of a dramatic tonal shift away from the original Star Wars films, like he did with Star Trek. It will not be a so-called reboot. Or some strange Star Wars version of his television show LOST. One need only look at his Spielberg tribute film Super 8 to realize the guy knows how to carry the torch when it’s handed to him. He proved in Super 8 he can spiritually, mimic the tone of Spielberg. I think he’ll do the same with George Lucas, all while adding his own unique touches and flair to the Star Wars universe.

In any event, it’s going to be really interesting going forward for the Star Wars Universe. Expect more news and rampant speculation in the coming months, even years. (Oh yay!…ummm…not really.)

So what do readers, think about all this news? Do you like the idea of stand-alone Star Wars films? What about J.J. Abrams directing the new trilogy? Do you dig a young Yoda movie? Han Solo begins? A Kurosawa inspired Boba Fett film?