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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Geostorm (2017) in Movies

Jun 19, 2019

Geostorm (2017)

2017 | Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi

6.4

(29 Ratings)

Movie Rating

I have written many times in the past how the Disaster movie has long been a staple of Hollywood. We had the Irwin Allen classics of the 70s that were loaded with stars and in recent years, we had Volcano and Asteroids to contend with along with a new wave of monsters and alien invasions.

In the new movie “Geostorm” we are given a threat lifted directly from the headlines, the weather. It is revealed that a series of natural disasters ranging from flooding, heat waves, and climate change have left humanity in serious peril. As such the leaders of the world agree on a costly and ambitious plan to save humanity.

The resulting program is called “Dutch Boy” and it is the brainchild of Jake Lawson (Gerard Butler), and his team of international scientists and technicians.

The project is a global satellite system that controls the weather, and when a threat is detected, it is able to stop it in its tracks.

All has gone well for years under the program and humanity is now safe from weather related threats and continues on as usual. Jake has run afoul of the politicians overseeing the project and is removed from it by his brother Max (Jim Sturgess), who is tasked as his replacement.

Years later as the U.S. prepares to hand over control of Duty Boy to the international community, a series of odd things happen from unexplained weather incidents to an accident on the space station overseeing the system.

With the clock ticking before the handoff and Election Year politics playing a factor, Jake is tasked with going to the space station and getting to the bottom of the system issues.

The film cleverly switches gears at this point as it soon becomes clear there is a conspiracy at work that wants the system to fail and when it is learned that this may result in a mega-storm called a Geostorm, Jake and Max must put aside their differences and find out who is turning the salvation of humanity into a weapon of ultimate destruction.

The film has some really good effects and the weather disasters bring out some impressive visuals as do the scenes set in space.

The film does take some serious leaps of logic and science that requires the audience to simply follow along for the good of the story, but the strong cast and winning effects make the film more enjoyable than I expected it to be and I was entertained from start to finish.

http://sknr.net/2017/10/20/geostorm/

Kudos

BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Bringing Up Baby (1938) in Movies

Apr 4, 2020

Bringing Up Baby (1938)

1938 | Classics, Comedy, Romance

8.8

(5 Ratings)

Movie Rating

The Perfect Example of a "Screwball Comedy"

It's always a bit of a crap-shoot when one shows an 82 year old, black and white film to a couple of college age students. But, with a film as crazy/zany as the 1938 Howard Hawks screwball comedy BRINGING UP BABY, the odds are in your favor.

The college students loved it.

Starring Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn - in their screwball comedy best - BRINGING UP BABY tells the story of a paleontologist (Grant) who is looking to land a $1 million donation, but ends up crossing paths with a wealthy heiress (Hepburn) - who marches to the beat of her own drum.

Told at breakneck speed by Hawks - a trademark of screwball comedy - BRINGING UP BABY is smart, witty, wacky and very, very funny. I was surprised at this viewing just how fast-paced this film is - you do not come up for a breath throughout the entire film. It's a bit exhausting - and exhilarating - kind of like hanging onto a wild roller coaster ride.

Remembered more for their dramatic roles, Hepburn and Grant are marvelous as the 2 leads of this film, they banter back and forth - quickly - throughout the film, they have tremendous chemistry with each other and their patter is a hallmark of these types of films and I was amazed at the dexterity and timing of these 2 pros. They make the dialogue work by not commenting on the comedy of it, but just moving onto the next scene, the next line, the next situation.

The supporting cast - featuring such rubber faced character actors as Charles Ruggles, Barry Fitzgerald, Fritz Feld and Leona Roberts - are just as good and add to the insanity that is seen on the screen. All corralled beautifully by one of the greatest Directors of the Old Hollywood era (the era before 1960), Howard Hawks who would end up directing a few years later the epitome of the screwball comedy - HIS GIRL FRIDAY - but who also Directed such classics as SCARFACE, THE BIG SLEEP, TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT and GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES as well as quite a few John Wayne westerns like RED RIVER, RIO BRAVO and EL DORADO.

Oh...and did I mention...the 3rd leading performer of this film is a Leopard?

If you are looking to introduce someone (or maybe yourself) to a film type of a bygone era - you could do worse than BRINGING UP BABY - a screwball comedy that clips along in 102 fast-paced minutes.

Letter Grade: A-

8 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(OfMarquis)