Crated, 2020

TRAILER

A group of six teenagers in their 18 years, were kidnapped and wake up in crates in the middle of nowhere, it seems that is in the African coast, that's what was showed in the end of the movie. 

Their memory of how they got there is somehow wiped from their minds with the exception of their names and the group is left to question who put them there, and why.

One of them find a book with all the names of the kidnapped. They are 6. 2 of them are of the black race, 2 of the Caucasian and two others from  mixed. 

Alex, Julia, James, Brianna, Jake and Self. Interesting to note, in their profile they wrote something like adjectives of them, like intelligent... 

Has one bird singing... this is the main clue. Has a forest surrounding the area, they try to scape after Alex had discovered the code to open the door,  but the men are inside the forest and take all of them in a spaceship to a coast. 

Alex trying to figure out the password 🔑

They point their fingers to the sky to show the spaceship that is coming. The men covered their faces with a black fabrics. 

Here it is the spaceship that leaves all of them there, to multiply...

6 intelligent Adam and Eve left without any technology apparently, they had their cellphones but without battery. In a distant future they can receive a visit from some spaceship for use of many purposes...

See you! 

⚔️🪦🪤

After Effect, 2012 - Students, Low on Cash?

💉💉💉💉It's a Wrap!💉💉💉💉

💉💉💉💉Calm down Monkey💉💉💉💉

🎥When college students sign up for what seems a simple paid research study, they soon realize their lives are in danger. Unfortunately they've unknowingly volunteered their bodies as human collateral in an ongoing U.S. Military experiment.🎥

A group of 8 students participated in an experiment of a medication in a laboratory. A building full of rooms without exit. They were observed with hidden cameras. 

They were all there for the money, but we'll intentioned. 

So, when the chemical started the effect in their bodies, one of them called Amanda had hair loss and the nails started to break, she became violent and almost killed her boyfriend Carter. 

Their eyes had alterations of the color, became Lila and they became to be aggressive and started to kill each other. When the Police discovered they invaded the local but was too late, only two were alive, they killed the last one that was attacking them. 

So, who will gonna pay for their lives? One eye for one eye, right? 😉 God is always on time.

In the real life, only one survived apparently. I could find only one profile on Instagram, Jeremy Kahn. In the IMDB has only five pictures (Mattew, Keisha, Kristina, Zak and Jeremy). Seems that the aggressors/criminals, succeeded to scape. 

They ad at the University. 😉 So, with the number it's possible to know the location. 

Lacie Donavan (Tuckie White) and Killian Morgan (Mattew Lucki)

Keisha Jackson (KaMillion) 

Ty (Zack Hawkins)

Jake (Jake Hames)

Riley (Kristina Cole Geddes)

Amanda (Lily Hex) and Carter (Jeremy Kahn)

One Solomon question to you.

"Do you think your life is worth more then theirs?"

Till next time. ☀️☀️☀️

The heart Stone, 2023

Rachel Stone is an intelligence operative, the only woman who stands between her powerful global peacekeeping organization and the loss of its most valuable -- and dangerous -- asset.

The film stars Gal Gadot, Jamie Dornan, Alia Bhatt (in her Hollywood debut), Sophie Okonedo, and Matthias Schweighöfer.

Rating: 10 Stars

Paradise, Sci-fi, Mystery & thriller 2023

 

Premise

Trade years of your life for money!  We’re in Berlin, in the not-too-distant future, where a method of transferring years of your life from one person to another has changed aging completely.  For those who can afford the procedure and have a match willing to donate years. If they donate years of their life, they are compensated rather generously. However, these DNA matches also tend to be found within communities where people are already in dire need of money.  The biotech start-up AEON is a billion-dollar pharmaceutical company at the forefront of this technology, but the CEO has yet to find her own DNA match. As a rule, you can no longer look at someone and know how old they are.  Someone can be 18 years old (the age when one can start donating years), but look 20 years older because they’ve donated two decades to afford the life of their dreams. Another may look 25, but really be 60 years old and have simply received (or bought) extra years from their match.  Age is now “chronological age” or your practical age based on whether you’ve given or received years.   It truly is a brilliant setting and right off the bat, there’s a focus on both the good and the bad. Or rather, the possibilities for humans and the danger in how humans can misuse this new technology.

Rating: 10 Stars

The Portable Door, 2023

 The Portable Door is a 2023 Australian fantasy adventure comedy film directed by Jeffrey Walker and starring Patrick Gibson, Sophie Wilde, Sam Neill, and Christoph Waltz. The screenplay by Leon Ford is based on the 2003 novel of the same name, the first in Tom Holt's J.W. Wells & Co. series. A co-production between The Jim Henson Company and Story Bridge Films, the film was released theatrically in Australia on 23 March 2023 by Madman Entertainment, before streaming on Stan from 7 April 2023.

Paul Carpenter and Sophie Pettingel are lowly, put-upon interns who begin working at the mysterious London firm J.W. Wells & Co., and become increasingly aware that their employers are anything but conventional. Charismatic villains Humphrey Wells, the CEO of the company, and middle manager Dennis Tanner are disrupting the world of magic by bringing modern corporate strategy to ancient magical practices, and Paul and Sophie discover the vast corporation's true agenda.

War of the Worlds, 2005

War of the Worlds is a 2005 American science fiction action thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Josh Friedman and David Koepp, based on H. G. Wells' 1898 novel, The War of the Worlds. Tom Cruise stars in the main role alongside Dakota Fanning, Miranda Otto, and Tim Robbins, with narration by Morgan Freeman. It follows an American dock worker who must look after his children, from whom he lives separately, as he struggles to protect them and reunite them with their mother.

Rating: 10 Stars

Eternals, 2021

Eternals is a 2021 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics race of the same name. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the 26th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The film was directed by Chloé Zhao, who wrote the screenplay with Patrick Burleigh, Ryan Firpo, and Kaz Firpo. It stars an ensemble cast including Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Don Lee, Kit Harington, Salma Hayek, and Angelina Jolie. In the film, the Eternals, immortal alien beings, emerge from hiding after thousands of years to protect Earth from their ancient counterparts, the Deviants.

TRAILER

PLOT

In 5000 BC, ten superpowered beings known as Eternals—Ajak, Sersi, Ikaris, Kingo, Sprite, Phastos, Makkari, Druig, Gilgamesh, and Thena—are sent to Earth by Arishem, a Celestial, on the starship Domo.

They are charged with exterminating invasive entities known as the Deviants. The last Deviant is killed in 1521 when the group's opinions differ over their continued relationship with humankind. Over the next 500 years, they mostly live apart, waiting for Arishem's orders. 

In the present day, Sersi and Sprite live together in London. After Sersi's partner Ikaris left her without explanation centuries earlier, she is now in a relationship with human Dane Whitman who works at the Natural History Museum. When the trio is attacked by the Deviant Kro, Ikaris arrives and chases the creature away. 

The three Eternals travel to South Dakota to reunite with their leader, Ajak, only to find her dead. Sersi is posthumously chosen by Ajak as her successor, granting her the ability to communicate with Arishem.  Sersi learns that the Eternals' mission was actually to prepare Earth for the Emergence of a new Celestial. Arishem explains that, for millions of years, he has been planting Celestial seeds inside planets where the energy from large populations allows new Celestials to be born.

The Deviants were sent to destroy the apex predators of each planet to ensure the development of intelligent life, but when they evolved and began hunting the planets' native populations, Arishem created the Eternals to counter them. 

With the recent end of the Blip restoring Earth's population, humankind has reached the necessary size to allow the Celestial Tiamut to be born, which will result in Earth's destruction. 

Hoping to delay the Emergence, the Eternals reunite. At Druig's residence in the Amazon rainforest, they are attacked by the Deviants. They kill them all except for Kro, who kills Gilgamesh before fleeing. Phastos proposes they use the Uni-Mind, a connection between all the Eternals that would give Druig enough power to put Tiamut to sleep with his mind-control abilities. 

However, Ikaris is loyal to Arishem and refuses to help stop the Emergence. He reveals that Ajak wanted to stop the Emergence and save humanity, so he led her to the Deviants and allowed them to kill her. Sprite joins Ikaris due to her unrequited love for him while Kingo chooses to leave.  

Makkari locates the place of the Emergence, an active volcano in the Indian Ocean, where Ikaris and Sprite attempt to stop them. Druig knocks out Sprite, and Phastos restrains Ikaris. Kro arrives and is killed by Thena. 

Druig is unable to put Tiamut to sleep, and Sersi instead attempts to turn him into marble. Ikaris breaks free of his restraints and goes to kill Sersi, but is unable to due to his love for her. Both he and Sprite join with the others in the Uni-Mind, and Sersi gains enough power to turn Tiamut into marble. Guilt-ridden, Ikaris flies into the Sun. Sersi uses the remaining Uni-Mind energy to turn Sprite into a human, ending her permanent childlike state.  

Thena, Druig, and Makkari depart on the Domo to warn Eternals on other planets of the Emergences. Whitman professes his love for Sersi and is about to reveal a secret about his family history when she, Phastos, and Kingo are lifted into space by Arishem.

Displeased with their treason, Arishem says he will spare humanity if the Eternals' memories show that humans are worthy of living. He vows to return for judgment and takes the trio into a singularity.  In a mid-credits scene, Thena, Makkari, and Druig meet the Eternal Eros and his assistant Pip the Troll. In a post-credits scene, an unseen person questions whether Whitman is ready to wield the Ebony Blade.

Rating: 8 Stars.

Stella in love, 2022

 

Stella discovers the famous Parisian club, the Bains Douches, the 80s and its crazy nights. Her friends are just studying, her father has left with another woman and her mother is depressed. She works, she studies and she fell in love. This year will decide her life. 

Rating: 10 Stars

Heaven will wait/ Le Cielo attendra, 2016

Heaven Will Wait (French: Le Ciel attendra) is a 2016 French drama film directed by Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar. It was selected to be screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.

TRAILER

Crosscutting between three storylines that come together in the final act, Mention-Schaar and co-writer Emilie Freche (The Jews) follow two young protagonists who experience the call to Jihad in mirroring narrative strands. On one side we follow Sonia (Noemie Merlant), a born-again Muslim arrested for trying to pull off an attack in France, after which she goes through a long detox process that slowly transforms her into the girl she once was. And on the other hand there’s Melanie (Naomi Amarger), a studious cello player, 16 years old, lives with her mother who meets a Islam recruiter online and gradually falls into his clutches. The movie shows their tactics to kidnap these girls to their country.

These teenage girls might be called Anaïs, Manon or Leila, and one day they all might go some way down the recruitment process. But can they ever come back from it?

Rating: 10 Stars 

The movie is super interesting, even in France with a high level of education, young girls can be trapped in the terrorism recruitment. An alert to parents. 

Patti Smith Electric Poet (2022)

 

TRAILER

"Patti Smith: Electric Poet" is a documentary that delves into the extraordinary life of Patti Smith, the iconic poet, actress and musician. 

Synopsis: The film explores Patti Smith's childhood, her artistic aspirations, and her multifaceted career. She once expressed, "I wanted to be someone special. I felt distant, not just from other children, but from the whole world. I spent my childhood thinking i was an alien. "Growing up in a rural New Jersey with a Jeovah's Witnessess upbringing, Smith eventually broke away from the movement to pursue her unique artistic path. 

Rating: 10 Stars

10 Christmas movies for the entire family

Here are 10 carefully selected suggestions that the entire family will enjoy for sure. Keep up the spirit. Merry Christmas you all! 

1 

Christmas with the Kranks, 2004 (So much fun)

Christmas with the Kranks is a 2004 American Christmas comedy film directed by Joe Roth, screenplay by Chris Columbus, based on the 2001 novel Skipping Christmas by John Grisham. It stars Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis in the leading roles. The film also stars Dan Aykroyd, Erik Per Sullivan, Cheech Marin, Jake Busey, and M. Emmet Walsh.

The story tells of a couple who decide to skip Christmas one year since their daughter is away, much to the chagrin of their neighbors until their daughter decides to come home at the last minute.

2

 Spirited, 2022 (Good moral lesson, interesting)

Spirited is a 2022 American Christmas musical comedy film directed by Sean Anders, and written and produced by Anders and John Morris. It is a modern retelling of Charles Dickens's 1843 novella A Christmas Carol and a satire of the various adaptations since. The film stars Will Ferrell, Ryan Reynolds, Octavia Spencer, Sunita Mani, Patrick Page, Marlow Barkley, and Tracy Morgan. In the film, The Ghost of Christmas Present is nearing retirement, which would mean a return to Earth. He sets his sights on an "unredeemable" man named Clint Briggs, who ends up helping the Ghost come to terms with his own past.

Spirited was released in select cinemas on November 11, 2022, before its streaming release on November 18, 2022, by Apple TV+. The film received positive reviews from critics, who praised its original songs and the performances and chemistry of Ferrell and Reynolds, but was criticized for its lack of improvement over previous adaptations of the novella.

3 

A Christmas history 2, 2012 (Gather the family)

A Christmas Story 2 is a 2012 American Christmas comedy film directed by Brian Levant and starring Daniel Stern and Braeden Lemasters. The film is a direct sequel to the 1983 film A Christmas Story and ignores the events of the 1994 film My Summer Story. The film, set six years after the original, follows fifteen-year-old Ralphie as he wishes for a 1939 Mercury Eight convertible for Christmas, but crashes the car before he even owns it. Now, Ralphie and his friends, Flick and Schwartz, must find a way to raise enough money to fix the car before Christmas.

4

Christmas on Mistletoe farm, 2022 (kids will love it)

Christmas On Mistletoe Farm is a 2022 British Christmas comedy musical film, written and directed by Debbie Isitt. It was released on Netflix on 23 November 2022.

Matt Cunningham, a widowed father of five, finds out he has inherited a farm. After some persuasion, he leaves his London home for the farm to use it as a retreat to get a pitch that his boss is hampering him for completed on time. However, when he arrives, his farm hand Beano along with his kids and the village people have other idea.

5

Santa Mi Amor, 2023 (To preserve children's belief in Santa Claus). 

Lucía is a single mom so devoted to her Christmas-obsessed little daughter Leo that she has essentially shut herself off to the idea of romance. But when she agrees to go on a blind date with dreamy chef Sergio, the spark is undeniable and they enter in a big Christmas adventure to help Leo to continue to believe in Santa Claus. A great and emotional history. 

6

A Christmas Mystery, 2022 (kids and parents)

When her best friend's dad is falsely accused of stealing the town's prized jingle bells, but a young amateur sleuth and her friends must find the real thief before Christmas.

7

 Christmas at the Chalet, 2023 (For the adults)

Ex-TV host Lex finds herself spending Christmas in a chalet with her son, ex-husband, and his new girlfriend. As she couldn't find a room because the hotel is full booked, she volunteers to work as Chalet girl, all while documenting it for her new followers.

8

Your Christmas or mine?, 2022 (For adults)

Hayley and James are young and in love. They decided to go on vacation with their families in a hotel in the mountains. There they get in a misunderstood and almost break up. With their family's help, Hayley and James resume dating and get engaged. 

9

The Art of Christmas, 2022 (Romance for adults)

After her latest gallery exhibition literally goes up in flames, struggling artist Liv James accepts a teaching job at a local elementary school to make ends meet.

10

Get Santa, 2014 (for kids and parents)

Get Santa is a 2014 British Christmas comedy film directed and written by Christopher Smith. The film stars Jim Broadbent, Rafe Spall, Warwick Davis, Stephen Graham, Jodie Whittaker and Kit Connor.  Steve (played by Rafe Spall) has just been released from jail and is determined to stay out of trouble. However, when his young son Tom insists that the real Santa (portrayed by Jim Broadbent) has crashed his sleigh and is hiding in their garage, Steve finds himself drawn into an unexpected adventure.

11 Christmas movies this year🌟

In times of war it’s important to warm the heart to not lose hope in humanity. Here are some nice Christmas movies for you that for some reason will celebrate Christmas at home watching tv. Enjoy it! 

1. "My family Christmas tree", 2021 

When Vanessa receives the results from her Family Tree DNA test, she discovers a family she didn't know existed and travels to their home for Christmas.

2. "Hats off to Christmas", 2013

Mia is a hardworking manager  a Christmas hat shop. Complications arise when her boss tells her to train his son for an upper-management position that she had desired.

3. "Destined at Christmas", 2022

It's a heart-warming TV movie that tells the tale of Kim and Theo. They cross paths during the frenzy of Black Friday shopping, and a spark ignites between them. However, fate intervenes, and they become separated in the chaos. Armed with only scant information about each other, they embark on a quest to reunite. Can destiny weave its magic and bring them back together in time for Christmas

The film’s premise is both charming and suspenseful. Imagine two souls, connected by a chance encounter, trying to unravel each other’s identities. As they navigate near misses and unexpected twists, their hearts remain tethered across the holiday season.

4. "Destined to Christmas 2, Once More, 2023

In this sequel, Theo (Elliott) continues to miss connecting with his girlfriend, Kim (Robbins) as he attempts to propose at Christmas.

5. "A crafty Christmas Romance", 2020

Mandy Page, the owner of a used book store, loves Christmas. When she finds a touching letter to Santa stuffed between the pages of an old book recently donated, she decides it would be fun to answer it. But playing Santa might prove difficult since the letter is dated 70 years earlier. Mandy tracks down where the book was donated from, and meets Joe Canton, who agrees to help her play Santa and track down the mystery writer. As they get closer to finding the letter writer, they find themselves growing closer together too. And with Christmas fast-approaching, the identity of the mystery writer and love might be the best gifts Mandy can receive. The movie was filmed in Provo, Utah, 2020.

 6. Christmas in Vienna, 2020

Jess, a concert violinist whose heart just isn't in it anymore, goes to Vienna for a performance. While there, she finds the inspiration she has been missing, and a new love.

7. "Christmas Angel", 2009

Ashley has been on her own all her life. She feels even more alone this Christmas as she searches fruitlessly for a job. The seasonal cheer around her only rubs salt in her wounds as she scrapes by to support herself and her dog, Dash. But her neighbor, Nick, knows exactly what to do. He offers her a job, to be his assistant in the best work-helping others. There's one catch that Ashley must honor though-she can't tell anyone that her new boss is a sort of Secret Santa, helping others anonymously. Through her new job, Ashley meets Will, a writer for a business magazine who uncovers what Ashley is doing, and more importantly, Nick's involvement in her. As Ashley and Nick help people in need, Ashley tries to protect Nick's secret from her, and her own heart from her, while Will must weigh the consequences of what he does.

8. "Hot Chocolate Holiday", 2021

Colette runs a coffee shop that is known for her famous secret-recipe hot chocolate. When Marcus, a new dessert-shop owner, starts to draw in her customers, selling the same hot chocolate recipe, she is determined to expose him.

9. "A brush with Christmas", 2022

Over the week leading up to Christmas in the coastal town of Bayside, Charlotte tries to capture her own unique style in the local art scene while also helping her mother, Elizabeth, run the family restaurant. Disheartened and struggling to find time for her art, Charlotte throws out her latest painting, only to discover that it has been anonymously submitted to the Christmas art festival. It turns out that Wyatt, a visiting metalwork artist, stumbled upon her discarded work and is now using the festival’s exposure to find its mysterious creator who has stolen her heart with her craft.

10. "A dash of Christmas", 2023

To apply for her dream job at a foodie startup, an executive must learn to bake. When she recruits a handsome baker to help her, she inadvertently ends up in a Christmas Bake-off.

11. "My Norwegian Christmas, New from Hallmark, 2023

JJ, grieving the loss of her grandmother and seeking dissertation inspiration, stumbles upon an unexpected holiday destiny. Meeting Henrik, a Norwegian from Bergen, their connection deepens when he discovers she has a troll figurine from his hometown. To explore the troll's history and her grandmother's ties, JJ agrees to join Henrik on a journey to Norway. In Bergen, they're drawn into Henrik's family Christmas and wedding traditions, with his sister's wedding the day before Christmas Eve. JJ embarks on a holiday adventure, uncovering the troll's origins and finding her own path to healing, love and family.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 🎄🎁

Xoxo 💋

Journey to the Center of the Earth, 2008

 Journey to the Center of the Earth (also promoted as Journey to the Center of the Earth 3-D or Journey 3D) is a 2008 American 3D science fantasy action-adventure film directed by Eric Brevig and starring Brendan Fraser in the main role, Josh Hutcherson, Anita Briem, and Seth Meyers. Produced by New Line Cinema, it is an adaptation of Jules Verne's 1864 novel (which had previously been adapted multiple times, most notably in the 1959 film of the same name), and was released in 3D theaters by Warner Bros. Pictures on July 11, 2008.

TRAILER

PLOT

In 2007, Trevor Anderson is a Bostonian volcanologist whose 13-year-old nephew, Sean, is supposed to spend ten days with him. Trevor learns at work that his brother's lab is being shut down because of a lack of funding. Trevor has forgotten that Sean is coming until he receives several messages from Sean's mother Elizabeth. When Sean's mother drops him off, she leaves Trevor with a box of items that belonged to Max, Trevor's brother and Sean's father, who disappeared 10 years before. Sean suddenly takes interest in what Trevor has to say after he tells him about his father, whom he never really had a chance to know. In the box, Trevor discovers the novel Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne. Inside the book Trevor finds notes written by his late brother. Trevor goes to his laboratory to find out more about the notes. There he realizes that he must go to Iceland to investigate for himself.

He intends to send Sean back to his mother, but relents at Sean's protest and brings Sean to Iceland with him. They start by looking for another volcanologist. When they get to that scientist's institution, they meet his daughter Hannah, who informs them he is dead. She also tells them that both her father and Max believed that Jules Verne's books were factual accounts. However she offers to help them climb up to the instrument that has suddenly started sending data again. While hiking the mountain, a lightning storm forces the three into a cave. The cave entrance collapses, trapping them, so they have no alternative but to go deeper in the cave, which turns out to be an abandoned mine.

Trevor, Sean, and Hannah investigate farther into the mine until they fall into a deep hole, taking them to the "Center of the Earth". They all continue until they discover a cave-dwelling that Max lived in. Trevor and Sean find Max's old journal. Hannah and Trevor discover Max's dead body and bury him. Trevor reads a message from Max's journal that was written on Sean's 3rd birthday (8.14.97). Trevor continues to read Max's journal until he realizes from his notes that they must quickly leave, as the temperature is steadily rising.

Trevor figures that they must find a geyser that can send them to the surface. They must do this in 48 hours or all of the water to create the geyser will be gone. They also figure that they must get out before the temperature rises past 135 degrees. They start building a raft to cross the underground ocean, and then the two adults become separated from Sean. Sean's guide is now a little glowing bird who has been present since the trio entered the center, and it takes him towards the river. However, he encounters a Giganotosaurus, and Trevor – who desperately is searching for him – saves him. When they arrive at the geyser it is all dried up. All the water is on the other side of the walls.

Trevor uses a flare to ignite the magnesium in the wall and causes a geyser to shoot them through Mount Vesuvius in Italy. When they destroy the home of an Italian man, Sean gives him a diamond that he had found earlier. Trevor sees that he has many more in his backpack, and he uses them to fund his brother's laboratory. Throughout the adventure, Hannah and Trevor gradually become so attached to each other that they share a kiss. On the final day of Sean's visit with Trevor (and now Hannah), he is leaving their new home, which was purchased with some of the diamonds Sean took from the cave, and Trevor hands Sean a book titled "Atlantis", suggesting they could maybe hang out at Sean's during Christmas break.

Rating: 10 Stars

Love Again, 2023 - Romantic comedy on Netflix

“Love Again” is a 2023 American romantic comedy-drama film directed and written by James C. Strouse. The movie is an English-language remake of the 2016 German film “SMS für Dich”, which is based on a novel by Sofie Cramer . The movie stars Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Sam Heughan, and Celine Dion, in her first feature film, portraying a fictionalized version of herself . The movie was produced by Screen Gems, 2.0 Entertainment, and Thunder Road Films and was released in the United States on May 5, 2023, by Sony Pictures Releasing.

TRAILER

Cast

Priyanka Chopra as Mira Ray

Sam Heughan as Rob Burns

Celine Dion as Herself

Sofia Barclay as Suzy Ray

Russell Tovey as Billy Brooks

Lydia West as Lisa Scott

Steve Oram as Richard Hughes

Omid Djalili as Mohsen

Nick Jonas as Joel

Celia Imrie as Gina Valentine

Arinzé Kene as John

RATING: 10 STARS

Love in the Villa, 2022

Love in the Villa is a 2022 American romantic comedy film written, directed and produced by Mark Steven Johnson. It stars Kat Graham, Tom Hopper, and Raymond Ablack.

Plot

A third-grade teacher Julie is fascinated with Verona because it's a setting for William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet. As she is getting ready for her long-awaited trip to Verona, her boyfriend Brandon abruptly ends his relationship with her and now Julie must therefore travel alone.

On arrival at the reserved villa, she finds the villa has been double-booked and she must share the place with a wine expert named Charlie. As they spend time together, they begin to fall in love.

Cast

Kat Graham as Julie Hutton

Tom Hopper as Charlie Fletcher

Raymond Ablack as Brandon

Laura Hopper as Cassie

Sean Amsing as Rob

Emilio Solfrizzi as Silvio D'Angelo

Vincent Riotta as Carlo Caruso

Saverio Sculli as Amore Airline Passenger

Rating: 8 Stars

Before we go 2014 starring Chris Evans helping Brooke get home

“Before We Go” is a 2014 American romantic drama film directed by Chris Evans in his directorial debut. The film stars Chris Evans and Alice Eve as two strangers who are stuck in Manhattan, New York City, for the night. The film had its world premiere in the Special Presentations section of the 39th Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2014 . The plot of the movie revolves around a woman named Brooke Dalton who misses her train to Boston and is left stranded in New York City. She meets a street musician named Nick Vaughan, played by Chris Evans, who helps her during the course of the night and the two form a romance . The movie was released on video on demand on July 21, 2015, and had a limited theatrical release in the United States on September 4, 2015.

TRAILER

PLOT

While busking in Grand Central Terminal, Nick Vaughan (Chris Evans) sees a woman, Brooke Dalton (Alice Eve), drop her phone while running to catch a train. She misses the train and returns to the station where Nick returns her broken phone. When he finds her standing outside the terminal she confesses that she has just been robbed and is trapped in the city. He offers to pay for a cab to take her to Boston but his debit card is declined and his credit card has expired. When he tries to call a friend to come lend him the money he finds his phone has died. Nick offers to try to pay for a room for Brooke for the night, but she insists that she needs to reach Boston by morning.

Nick decides to help Brooke find her missing purse. They are able to track it down at a sweatshop that deals in stolen purses. Nick heads inside to retrieve the purse while Brooke uses a payphone to call her husband. After using the phone, she then gets a couple of police officers passing by to investigate the building Nick is in. The sweatshop owners get spooked, punch Nick, and run out along with the bag. Nick and Brooke then head for the wedding of a friend of Nick's, hoping to borrow money. Along the way, Nick and Brooke open up more about why they're in New York. Brooke had just sold a painting and was going to surprise her husband by coming home early. Nick has an audition for a band that he has wanted to play with for a while. Instead of ending up at the wedding, they stumble upon an event where they are mistaken for members of the band. Nick and Brooke perform "My Funny Valentine" and flee when the real band shows up. After their last-ditch attempt to get a bus to Boston fails for lack of funds, Brooke borrows a man's phone, calls a friend, and begs her to retrieve a letter she has left for her husband that she does not want him to read.

Elated that her problem is now solved, Brooke offers to go to Nick's friend's wedding and pretend to be his girlfriend in front of his ex, Hannah. At the reception, Nick sees Hannah, but after being introduced to her new boyfriend, he leaves abruptly. Outside, Nick tells Brooke that this was the first time he had seen Hannah since she rejected his marriage proposal and broke up with him six years ago. At Brooke's insistence, Nick goes back to speak to Hannah and discovers that she is pregnant and that their relationship is truly over. Wandering around the city, the two find a psychic who is still open. After he reads her future, he allows Brooke to use his phone and she learns her friend could not get into her home to retrieve the letter.

After they leave the psychic, Brooke reveals to Nick that she discovered that her husband was cheating on her. Though he ended the relationship, she discovered that he was going to see his mistress again. Devastated, she wrote him a letter ending the marriage and went to New York for work. However, during her trip she received a phone call from her husband saying he was coming home early, and she realized that he had ended the relationship with his mistress for good.

At a restaurant, Nick tells Brooke that her husband will most likely understand why she wrote him the letter and that if he doesn't, that's that. Brooke, worried about the possible end of her marriage, sneaks out the back of the restaurant and tries to hail a cab to the airport to fly to her mother's in Indiana. Nick appears, frustrated that she tried to bail on him, and they argue about their relationships. They then go to Nick's friend's hotel room. Together, they unwind from the night's adventures. They then share a kiss, write on the back of paintings in the room (a reference to an earlier encounter with a painting with erotic writing on the back of it) and reflect on their night.

In the morning, they return to the train station where they are about to part. Nick picks up a phone from a phone booth and, like an earlier joke, uses it as a "time machine" and pretends to call himself in the past, saying that he will meet a woman and "you will need her more than she needs you". They share one last kiss and finally depart. On her way home, Brooke finds a guest service paper that she and Nick filled out at the hotel. On the bottom it says, "Turn over". After reading what was on the back, she smiles.

Rating: 10 Stars

Demolition, 2015 starring Jake Gyllenhaal

 Demolition is a 2015 American comedy-drama film directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by Bryan Sipe. The film stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Naomi Watts, Chris Cooper, and Judah Lewis. The film opened the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival and was theatrically released on April 8, 2016, by Fox Searchlight Pictures.

TRAILER

PLOT

Davis is a successful Private Equity Investor at a firm founded and run by his father-in-law Phil. His wife, Julia, is driving them when they are struck by another vehicle, killing Julia. Recovering in the hospital, he attempts to purchase some candy from a vending machine which malfunctions. Davis drafts a complaint to the vending machine manufacturer that includes some venting of his personal experiences. This leads to a series of conversations with a customer service representative, Karen Moreno, in which they end up sharing details of each other's life burdens. Karen appears to be the only one he talks to, though he tells his stories in an understated and unemotional style. He brings this same unemotional process to work, which he has returned to much earlier than anyone expected. Davis does tell one other person, a fellow commuter train rider, that he realizes that he didn't love Julia because he doesn't feel "...sad, or pain, or hurt...". When the commuter prompts the question, "What do you feel?" Davis abruptly stops the train.

Davis's changing emotional state causes him to behave erratically. He notices that he is being followed by a green station wagon. The only thing Davis seems to connect with is trying to understand what's inside things, using a small toolkit to dismantle his household appliances, his work computer, a bathroom stall—eventually telling Phil that he has an urge to dismantle a 120-year-old grandmother clock in Phil's office.

Karen follows Davis, talking with him on his commuter train without revealing her identity. She mistakenly leaves some identification, and Davis is sufficiently moved to track her down at home, where she lives with her boyfriend and boss, Carl, and her 15-year old troublemaker son, Chris. When Carl goes on a long business trip, Davis bunks at her house, where they develop a deep platonic friendship. Chris initially dislikes Davis, but later grows not only to like him but to help Davis cope, while Davis becomes his mentor in return.

Davis joins his in-laws in funding a foundation in Julia's name that will award an annual scholarship; during interviews, Davis behaves disrespectfully towards one of the award candidates, and Phil asks him to sign a transfer of his beneficiary rights in Julia's $2.6 million life insurance policy to the scholarship fund in her name. Davis purchases demolition tools from a hardware store (and, later, a bulldozer) and, with Chris's assistance, destroys his house. When Davis finds an ultrasound of Julia's from the previous year, he is devastated that she failed to inform him.

A climactic night impacts everyone. Davis brings Karen to the party for the scholarship winner, greatly troubling Julia's parents. A young man makes an inappropriate advance on Karen, and she later laughs out loud when he is introduced as the scholarship winner. Davis announces to everyone that Julia had been pregnant and kept it secret. Julia's mother tells him his wife was seeing someone else, the child was not his, and she had an abortion. Returning to Karen's house, Davis finds Carl has returned and is reading the letters Davis wrote to Karen. Carl assaults Davis, while Chris receives a brutal group beating after coming out as gay.

Davis visits his wife's grave and the green station wagon arrives; a man carrying flowers gets out of the car. He turns out to be Michael, the driver of the car that killed Julia. Davis forgives Michael and he experiences flashbacks of his wife and him together and he finally cries, bringing closure.

Davis has turned a corner. He reconciles with Julia's parents, asking Phil to contribute to refurbishing a carousel – destined for demolition – as a memorial for Julia.

Davis receives a letter from Chris saying that he is recovering from his beating, his mother has left Carl, and Davis must be at Pier 54 at a particular time, which results in Davis witnessing the demolition of some waterfront buildings across the Hudson River. Chris watches Davis through binoculars from a nearby vantage point. In the final scene, Davis joyously joins a bunch of kids running as he races ahead accomplishing his childhood memory and desire for winning a race since he always used to lag behind in his childhood.

Rating: 10 Stars