Moroni's Review of "Oblivion"

It's been a while since I have reviewed a movie, and that's because it's been a long time since I have been to the  movies.  It's tough in this economy.  So my wife and I took a long-deserved date night and went to see "Oblivion", starring the megastar, Tom Cruise.

I went into this movie knowing absolutely nothing about it, and as a result, I absolutely loved it.  This is one of those movies that - like any M. Night Shyamala movie - depends on the element of surprise to sustain its plot.  Based on a graphic novel by Joseph Kosinski (who also wrote, produced, and directed the film), this is a sweeping, post-apocalyptic epic that will hold you glued to your seat.  About the best thing I can say about this film is that it is reminiscent of a Philip K. Dick story.

It is set several decades in the future after a devastating alien invasion by an alien race called the Scavs.  We won the war, but at a terrible cost. The earth is so badly damaged that it can no longer sustain life. Most of the human population has relocated to a moon over Saturn, and a small contingent of humans are left on Earth to "clean up", as an element of the Scavs remain on the planet floor.

The best aspect of this film was the visuals - and not just the special effects, which were extraordinary.  But the landscapes.  Never would one imagine that a post-apocalyptic earth would retain such stark beauty.

The performances were excellent.  Tom Cruise was Tom Cruise, just as Morgan Freeman was Morgan Freeman.  They are both established character actors.  Andrea Riseborough gives a striking performance as Tom Cruise's jealous wife, and Ukranian actress Olga Kurylenko plays the mysterious girl who haunts his dreams.

The  movie is action packed and does exactly what a movie is supposed to do - give one a couple of hours of escape.  It is rare to experience a riveting science fiction epic, and this movie is certainly not one to be missed.

Moroni's Review of "Rock of Ages"

It was Father's Day, and, after a kind of hard week, I was ready for some lighter fare.  So when the girls told me that they would take me to a movie, I picked "Rock of Ages".

I didn't regret it.

The movie is cheesy.  But it is funny - sometimes unintentionally so.  All in all, it is great fun.

It seems that "Glee" has changed the landscape of our entertainment culture, making a musical like "Rock of Ages" possible.  All of the songs are big-hair anthems that I grew up with in the 1980s, and I couldn't help but finding myself singing along.

Who cares about the story when you have got great music like this?  Based on a Broadway play, the story tells the story of two young aspiring musicians - Drew Boley (played by Diego Boneta) and Sherrie Christian (played by the annoying Julianne Hough) - who move to Los Angeles in a 1980s that barely resembles the '80s I knew and grew up in.  They both meet at a rock club on the Sunset Strip called the Bourbon Club, owned by two rockers played by Russell Brand and Alec Baldwin (both of whom stole the show).

The story is centered around the final show of Arsenal, an imaginary rock band headed by Tom Cruise as the Axl Rose-esque Stacee Jaxx.  Cruise's performance is beautifully incoherent.  (All my wife Temple could notice was Jaxx's abs.  LOL)  There is a fiendish plot by Jaxx's sleazy manager (in a brilliant performance by Paul Giamatti) to take all of the proceeds for himself, and the mayor's wife (played by Catherine Zeta-Jones) who believes that rock and roll is Satan's music and is bound and determined to clean up the Strip and close down the club.

Every other tune is a rock classic from the '80s, and the characters break into song every couple of minutes. However, to me, having grown up in the '80s, it seemed a bit incongruous.  When did headbangers ever belt out "We Built This City" with passion?  The rockers I knew would have puked at the thought.  And the story takes place in 1987.  Which rocker was into Foreigner by then?

There were a couple of cool things.  I fought back waves of nostalgia when one of the scenes took place in Tower Records, one of my inner sanctums as a youth.  Rather than paying attention to the movie, I looked at the vinyl collection in the background.  Some set designer placed such gems as Christian Death and Killing Joke in the background.

The other fun part of the movie were the mash-ups.  Rarely was an '80s anthem sung by itself.  It was brilliantly combined with another classic.  "Juke Box Hero" with "I Love Rock 'N' Roll".  "We Built This City" with "We're Not Gonna Take It".

And the best part of the whole movie - a duet between Russell Brand and Alec Baldwin singing "Can't Fight This Feeling".

This is a movie that laughs at itself.  Hence, it is fun.  My wives and I loved it.  A few days later, my wife Temple bought the soundtrack.