Real Steel (2010)

Poor Charley Kenton (Hugh Jackman) finds himself down on his luck and playing rodeo games with his prized possession robot, in a bull fight at a small county fair. He’s hoping to win enough money to repay debts and calm the sharks from breathing down his neck long enough so he can get his robot back into another boxing match.

I expected Ambush to take that bull down without a hitch, and he would have had Charley not been so busy gloating to the ladies in the stands. That short release of personal gratification cost him the fight, his robot and 20 Grand for which he knew he didn’t have.

Next he learns that his ex-girlfriend has died which means, his 11 year old son’s fate is now in the hands of a Family Court Judge. Charley can’t be bothered with a kid, so he shows up at court with the intentions of signing the boy over and being off on his merry way. But Charley is a con-man at heart, and as he gets a better glimpse of the situation, he realizes there could be a way to make some money off this custody venture. Sure enough, with an offer here and a secrete agreement there, Charley is soon to be Fifty thousand dollars richer as he becomes a summer babysitter for his son, and then another Fifty thousand dollars when he returns the boy to his rich Aunt and Uncle in August. After all is said and signed Charley is off once again with a refreshed ego and a new plan to, make more money. HA!

Charley returns to Tallet’s Gym where we get to meet his long time friend and partner Bailey (Evangeline Lilly), and his son Max Kenton (Dakota Goyo). Right away, cocky little Max is a ‘chip off the old block’. Like father like son, a lil con-man in the makings. Max surprises both Charley and Bailey when he seems to know a thing or two about robots and this day’s technology, as he shows off his talents with Charley’s new robot, Noisy Boy. As usual Charley has plans of making more money, but Max refuses to be left behind, so he cons dad into taking him along for the ride. A short ride into the big time with a hinted promise of easy money!

But Charley is like a little kid with a brand new toy that he really doesn’t know how to play with yet, and rather than take some time to learn this new toy, he rushes right in to the main event and destroys Nosey Boy. Then the two break into a junkyard where Max finds his own robot, and convinces Bailey to fix it up, Max adds a couple of tender tweaks. Now what was supposed to be a smooth short ride to riches with Nosey Boy, has turned into a serious summer long bumpy road where they are just trying to catch up and get back. The summer ends as Max’s toy ATOM boxes against the WRB undefeated champion Zeus, and is left standing as The People’s Champion.

Real Steel is sure to please all with comedy, drama and plenty of action.

MoneyBall (based on true events) - 2011

American League Division Elimination Series. NY Yankees vs Oakland A’s, Oct. 15, 2001. Yankees won.

After missing his own shot in the major league dug-outs, Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) has created a some what comfortable life and career as the Oakland Athletics’ General Manager. It’s a good life and a good job, but Billy isn’t satisfied with ‘Almost’ anymore, he wants to win the championship. The World Series.

But Billy has a problem, the team has been drastically gutted of it’s 3 top key players and now he has to replace them. The Oakland A’s are a low budget baseball club, and the owner can’t afford to buy star ballplayers. So Billy has to find another way to even the odds and bring this team to victory.

His obstacles : 1^st, a tried and trusted well experienced team of player scouts, who are all use to doing things by the look, the Old Fashion way. But tight funds can only buy certain looks. HA! And so goes the battle of the blackboard. And 2^nd, the team manager Art Howe (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who is also well experienced but threatened by the weakness of his short-term contract. Art is hell bent on managing the players as ,HE sees fit. And is willing to defy undermining direction in the wake of securing his own future.

Billy sets out to a meeting with Mark Shapiro (Reed Diamond) to negotiate the possible sale of replacement players. But to his surprise, he spots a far more valuable asset in Peter Brand (Jonah Hill), special assistant player analyst for the Cleveland Indians. Finally, someone who understands what Billy means but can’t seem to explain.

Billy buys Peter and together they upset and remold the Oakland A’s into a totally different team, by using analytical statistics generated by the players ability to get on base. The plan seems fool proof until Art refuses to use the new recruits. Now Peter’s strategy is publically failing as the A’s suffer early losses game after game and the critics begin to mock their every move. Billy decides to clean house by trading off the players that stand in the way of his vision, and force Art to use the new replacement players, which then sets them all on a totally different course. A winning road to victory. And a new Longest Winning Streak World Record of 20 consecutive games.

Moneyball is a Must See movie for young and old. It is a real life, never ending true story that has continued even into 2012.

Red (2010)

Life has become mundane for Frank Moses (Bruce Willis) as he forces himself to adjust into the calm and peaceful lifestyle of a common residential citizen. His greatest pleasure comes in the form of an occasional friendly phone call to his favorite service representative Sarah Ross (Mary-Louise Parker) who seems equally excited with his contact. But, what in this world could a retired U.S. Government Employee possibly have in common with a pretty young pension secretary?

Well, we are about to find out as Frank’s status somehow changes to RED.

I felt almost as bored at getting into this movie as Frank seemed at getting on with his everyday routine, but eventually the pace picked up as Frank thwarts an assassination attempt inside his home....

First lesson,,,, "Don’t Fuk with Grandpa!"

Now, his fantasy visit to Kansas City to meet Sarah in person, has become a personal rescue mission to save her and find out who is trying to kill them. But let’s face it, no girl likes a surprise visit from a stranger, inside her own home, even if he claims to be trying to save her life. HA!

Frank’s mission whisks us around the U.S. as he reunites with his former Black Op team. We get to meet Joe (Morgan Freeman), Marvin (John Malkovich), Ivan (Brian Cox), and Victoria (Helen Mirren) as they learn that Frank’s assailants are actually CIA Sanction and that each of their lives are in danger as well. Now it’s clear, the only way to survive is to break into CIA, meet Cooper (Karl Urban) Frank's replacement, find out who the target is, who the players are and how to take them down one by one. The problem is, it’s hard to tell who the bad guys really are.. Hard that is,, until you get them all together on the same floor face to face!

Although this movie starts out lost and dreadfully slow, stamina pays off with Duct-tape and Old Man ass kicking comedy and action.

The Ides of March (2011)

Cutting down to the wire. The Ohio Democratic primary pits Pennsylvania’s Governor Morris (George Clooney), against Arkansas’s Senator Pullman to determine who will become the next party candidate to run for president of the United States. Each man, a worthy opponent in his own right and within his own constituencies.

This film focuses in on behind the scene events and activities of Governor Morris’s campaign. You know the, ‘Keep him looking great’,’Make him look and sound even better’ and ‘Clean him up when he’s not looking so good’ kind of stuff.

We get to watch how reality effects the job and life of a dedicated yet young and naive assistant campaign manager, Stephen Myers (Ryan Gosling), who finds himself in the middle of scandals that could essentially end his career and forever change his life.

In politics, it is, All about the looks and impressions. See, we voters like to believe it’s all about us. All about what we value, believe in and want or need for our future. We voters like to believe we have a say in who is elected to become the next chief of our great nation. Well, it’s every campaign’s job to do what ever it takes to convince us that their candidate does stand for and will represent our values and deliver our wants and needs for the future. It’s also their job to do what ever it takes to keep us believing that, we do have a say.

Everyone knows, the good guys finish last, and some never finish at all. If you want to win, then you damn well better be the best or have the best crew working, behind the scenes.

...I do detest politics!

This movie is a good way to waste some time, if you have nothing else to do.