Favorite Movie - The Departed

Directed by Michael Scorsese, this crime thriller has, perhaps, one of the finest casts ever introduced in a film. Scorsese has directed numerous classics, including Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Goodfellas, a few of which being psychological thrillers as well as Crime flicks. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, and Alec Baldwin, this beast of a film won four Oscars. DiCaprio plays Billy Costigan, an undercover cop in the crime ring. Damon plays Colin Sullivan, the crooked cop in the MPD. Nicholson plays Frank Costello, the mobster. Wahlberg plays Staff Sergeant Dignam, the one who puts DiCaprio undercover. Finally, Baldwin plays Capt. George Ellerby, the Captain whose in charge of taking down Costello. Set in Boston, we see Jack Nicholson, a crime boss, install Matt Damon, a boy whom he mentored from a very young age, into the Massachusetts State Police as an informant. At the same time, the MPD places Leonardo DiCaprio as an undercover cop insind Nicholson's organization in order to take down the crime lord. Upon hearing that both sides have a "rat" they both scramble to uncover the other's identity before their own gets blown. This cat and mouse movie is a must see for the whole family, suitable for children ages five and up.

Costello's real-life depiction - Costello is based on the notorious mob boss James Bulger, who was arrested on June 22nd, 2011. Bulger was an informant for the FBI, similarly to Costello. Both men's actions were largely ignored by the FBI up until public pressure forced the Bureau into action. However, Costello was captured immediately and killed, while Bulger went into hiding for 16 years until arrested and sent to prison. Bulger was found in Santa Monica, CA, not Massachusetts.

In the movie, Costello plays an ironic part. He acts as a father figure for both Sullivan (Matt Damon) and Costigan (DiCaprio.) Damon even calls him "dad" when he calls him to defray any suspicions. In doing so, the audience even becomes attached to Costello as he mentors both young men like a father would do.


The grading scale is as follows: Plot, Acting, Lead Female Character, and General Satisfaction with the film.

Plot - 9 stars. Extraordinary plot. Never seen it done before. The irony in the situation is phenomenal. Having the dirty cop be on the inside and the legit one that seeks justice installed in the crime lord's ring? Incredible. It's also set in Boston, so they all have dooope accents. Really adds to the story.

Acting - 10 Stars. Every single character in the film is top notch, A-list. Even the female character, Vera Farmiga, doesn't let down either. She plays a pretty vital role towards the end.



Lead Female Character - 8 Stars. Let's be honest, the make-up crew worked round the clock to make this girl look even presentable, let alone a good looking woman on set. However, she's a solid actor who played her part, despite the outward appearance.

General Satisfaction - 9 Stars. Every area of the film goes above and beyond. Mark Wahlberg's part in the role, while somewhat small, is stellar. In fact, he won an Oscar for best supporting Actor. The twist at the end is unforeseen, but still awesome. The picture above gives a hint :) A must see film.

Christmas Film - The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year is a lighthearted Christmas film starring Henry Winkler, Warren Christie, and Brooke Burns, and is directed by Michael Scott. Morgan (Christie) is somewhat of a nomad, taking various jobs as a chef or whatever is sustainable around the country. At the airport, Morgan runs in to Ralph (Winkler) who is having trouble finding his flight. It turns out the two of them have the same flight, and we see Morgan swindle the aiport staff into giving the two of them first class seats. The two befriend and reach the aiport, with Ralph on his way to visit his insanely beautiful daughter Jennifer (Burns). Morgan's flight gets cancelled, and Ralph, feeling bad, offers for him to stay at their plays. Reluctantly, Jennifer agrees as she needs Morgan's cooking skills to make the Christmas turkey. Jennifer is also a single mother, who is dating a very successful but ignorant and aloof jeweler. As the story progresses, we see the bond between Ralph, Jennifer, her son, and Morgan all become much stronger as stress increases when Christmas draws nearer.

Once again, I will be reviewing the film on four criteria: Plot, acting, lead female character, and my overall satisfaction with the film.


Plot - 8 Stars. Set in Chicago, we get the "real" Christmas feeling with snow, not the ones in Southern California where it's seventy degrees and sunny on Christmas morning. Also, the idea of a stranger staying a few nights at the female's house is also one I have never seen before, which was enjoyable and refreshing to see as it was not a cliche. While it was apparent the budget for this film was rather low, this did not cut into the story-line, comedy, or camerawork much if at all, which was superb.

Acting - 9 Stars. With three veterans having leading roles, acting was great. One would not be able to point out any noticeable "fakeness" in the film at all, giving the acting and overall movie a genuine feel.


Lead Female Character - 10 stars. Brooke Burns. BROOKE BURNS. This goddess started on Baywatch and Baywatch Hawaii, which says enough in itself. She fulfills her role beautifully (see what I did there?) as the opposite of Christie, both of whom being in their early thirties and looking to settle down quickly with a spouse. She's gorgeous, and she's a pretty decent actor, an excellent combo.

Overall - 8 stars. This movie is one that is great to watch every year at Christmas time, as it's fun, lighthearted, and you fall in love with the characters immediately. It's no Home Alone, but it gets its job done as a great Christmas film to watch with the family/girlfriend/whoever.

Fight Club - Suspense Film Review

For my second movie review on a suspense film, I decided to write a review on Fight Club. Fight Club is a 1999 suspense film starring Brad Pitt and Edward Norton (think the bad guy in The Italian Job). Brad Pitt plays an intriguing character who makes soap as well as various odd jobs on the side. Norton is an everyday man who is tired with his white collar job and also suffers from insomnia. The two end up meeting on an airplane and start a fight club, where the club gains underground street cred and more people show up, fighting each other as a form of release. Helena Bonham Carter plays the female role in the film, an eccentric woman who shows up at the same "help groups" Norton does to help with his insomnia.

My rating system is based upon 10 stars, and I will judge based on the plot, the acting, the lead female character, and how much I enjoyed the movie overall.

Plot - 9 stars. You're thinking, this is high for just some fighting movie, right? Wrong! The plot is like nothing i've ever seen before. Norton ends up moving in with Pitt after his apartment blows up into Pitt's run-down shack with chipped paint, no furniture, and running water that is brown. Norton ends up going to various support groups through his doctor's advice, and it actually helps him sleep at night. Plus, there's a superb twist at the end that explains quite a bit about who Norton really is and the reason for his insomnia.

Acting - 9 staras. Hands down, the acting was excellent. Brad Pitt actually got his own teeth chipped to have imperfect teeth for the film. Pitt is a great actor period and plays a great co-star with Norton, who is a typical, white collar man who is also amazed by Pitt's character.

Lead Female Character - 8 stars. At first I was disappointed with Helena Carter, simply because they have her with dark make-up, a frizzy hairdo, and generally looking like someone addicted to drugs (which she is.) However, as the movie progresses we see the connection between Norton and Carter grow deeper, and the audience becomes more engrossed with her character. She does a great job acting nonchalant and apathetic with undertones of actual caring and affection. She is also cute in real life, which helps.






Overall - 9 stars. This rather macho film does exactly what it calls for, give guys a great movie filled with action. It's not all action, though. The twist at the end is unforseen, yet does a great job explaining nearly everything and has you feeling better about the film overall. The plot is superb, the acting is great, and the lead female character actually keeps up with the film as well. Overall a solid film that is a must see.

L.A. Confidential

For my Neo noir post, I decided to blog on L.A. Confidential, my favorite of the various noir films. This R Rated film directed by Curtis Hanson stars Kim Basinger, the femme fatale playing Lynn Bracken, a former porn-star who later becomes involved with several members of the LAPD. Guy Pearce plays Lieutenant Exley, the nerd of the film who is trying to follow in his decorated father's footsteps as a police officer himself. Kevin Spacey is Jack Vincennes, an officer who tips off a gossip magazine as well as working for a TV show. Russell Crowe plays Bud White, a big brawny fellow who is used by the department to both intimidate and beat the crap out of people. Finally, James Cromwell plays Cpt. Dudley Smith, a veteran of the department who mentors various officers and gives advice.

Set in Las Angeles during the 1950s, the flick begins with a large group of officers, including Bud White, Vincennes, and others, completely annihilating a group of Mexicans who beat up two officers. Exley uses this as an opportunity to get promoted by testifying against fellow officers, thus advancing his career and isolating himself from the rest of the department. As the movie progresses, however, the main three characters Vincennes, Exley, and White come together by investigating a shooting that left Bud White's former partner dead. This riveting detective film is a must see for anyone over the age of six, or three accompanied with a parent.

My rating system is rather straightforward. I will judge the plot, acting, lead female character, and how much I liked the movie using a scale of stars 1 through 10, obviously 10 being the best.

Plot - 7 stars. To be honest with you, the movie can get kind of slow at various points in the movie. Yes, 15 years ago it was probably a nail-biter throughout, but this is the 21st century, and us youngsters are used to action packed content throughout. It was good, but it wasn't that good.

Acting - 9 stars. The acting was superb for all of the lead characters except for Kim Basinger, thus getting the 9 rating. Considering most of the lead stars were relatively unknown at the time period makes it all the better.

Female Character - 4 (Spoiler alert) Kim Basinger is not all that pretty. She clearly had a good 10 pounds of make-up on, and the fact that she cheats on Russell Crowe takes her down another two stars right there. How can you cheat on RUSSELL CROWE, the man is a legend. There is absolutely nothing that connects the audience with her except for the fact that she gets taken to pound town by Crowe, Exley, and other male suitors throughout. A woman like Eva Longoria or maybe even Jessica Alba would have been clutch. The casting director really dropped the ball on this one.

Overall - 8 stars. Be quiet, I know the average of 7 9 and 4 is not 8, but no one asked you. This is my blog. I did like the movie substantially, despite the fact that I didn't like the female character at all, which I find to be a big deal in my eyes. Some particular aspects of the film, such as the developing of the characters and the ending made it a great movie. One of my favorites, probably not. Would I see it again, absolutely.

Thanks for reading my blog, and until next time, this is Andrew Kadar aka Swagmaster aka kid who lost two jobs in a week, signing off.