Attack the Block is SO MUCH FUN I had to use caps to describe it. The folks across the pond have been ripping things up lately and Attack the Block is now one of my favorite movies of the year.

It’s an average night in south London when a group of teens are out running ammock in their neighborhood. From the sky an alien invasion begins, with the group of friends confronting and killing the first visitor. The rest of the night the kids defend the block, and the world, from these not so friendly monsters!

First, the cast of kids rule. Every single one of them is believable and funny. Most of them have little to no credits to their name, but it never shows. John Boyega plays the main character, Moses, and I hope this is just the start of a long career. I was really impressed with his work. Moses is a dick, but he’s fiercely loyal, brave as hell and can admit when he’s wrong. Strong characters are always the best to watch. I can’t recall ever thinking “Don’t do that you idiot!” It avoids a lot of bad horror traps while relishing in great set ups that lead into great moments of suspense. The pace is quick, the direction very sharp and clear. Excellent use of CG, audio cues and camera tricks. It moves a long with a great beginning, middle and end. The movie is just really well made, every dime of the estimated $13 million budget can be seen om screen. I love the creature design that harkens back to a few 80’s creature flicks with a cool modern technical spin. I’d say more but I think seeing them for the first time makes the greatest impact.

Some great set pieces, fantastic and smart uses of gore that I can only sing praise to. So many smart decisions in this movie. I really loved everything about Attack the Block, I wish I helped make it.

It’s always fun to see something new and with the way Hollywood has been working the passed few years, that’s getting harded to get these days. In Time presents us with a world where a life is the currency. Humans are genetically engineered to grow until age 25. At that birthday, your death clock (which is a bio-lumen clock on your left forearm) begins to tick down it’s final year. You can earn more time by working, gambling, taking loans and even stealing from others. It’s a very simple exchange, a slightly modified handshake motion and you can take and give from your own clock. In the case of banks, the time is held in a devise that looks a bit like a bar code reader. Hold it to your wrist and time is taken or given away. Now, once that timer hit zero, you drop dead (sickness and injuries are still a threat). It’s a constant fight for live for most, where “Many must die for a few to live forever,” is the motto of the rich.

In the current economical climate this premise seems all the more fitting. The “top 1%” that is constantly beratted in the headlines these days are well accounted for here. The main character, Will (played by Justin Timberlake) helps someone out who has a lot of time on his hands. He’s gifted more than a century of life, which immediately makes him a target. No one in the ghetto gets that much time with out stealing it, according to those who know “best.” The rest of the movie is an attempt at balancing the scales between the rich and the poor. There’s plenty of money to go around, the rich are just hoarding what they are ultimately stealing.

Timberlake does a fine job, it’s hard not to see him as anything but JT, but a lot of actors have that problem so I can’t really hold that against him. There’s a good cast around him too, I always like Cillian Murphy, Amanda Seyfried makes a great love interest and partner in crime. Very little is explained, no real geographic location is given, no year, how and why the life currency system began (it’s been in effect for around 100 years from what I could put together). That all works for me as the social ramifications are really what is on display here. The threat is always the clock so that made any chase scenes seem a little less daring. There are many times when Will could have and probably should have been shot and killed, but I guess the time he holds through the movie is worth more than a shot to the head.

I liked it for the most part. There’s some silly dialog here and there and the plight of the poor is always the most important. Some fleshing out of the world could have been a plus, but the movie works pretty well as is. I’d call it a good rental.

When I was really into comic books, Thor never looked interesting so I never picked up any of his stories. So going into the movie, I arrived with zero expectations. It’s a fun, if slightly dull movie.

It does everything well. The cast is good, along with the acting. A simple story that gets through the origin of Thor over with quickly. In fact, the movie is really well paced. Thor is a bit of a blow hard at the start and when he’s banished to Earth for his over zealous antics, he goes on a personal transformation. When Earth is threatened by Thor’s own brother, Loki, Thor steps up as Earth’s protector. What action scenes there are, are all done well. Nothing that exciting though, for some reason that feeling stuck with me through the whole movie. I can’t really pin down why, I guess because I don’t really care for Thor. The movie actually made me thing more of him, so in that respect it worked. He’s a part of The Avengers movie that comes out next year, so this is good warm up (rental) to get on board next summer’s tentpole release. Until Batman shows up to embarrass all other super hero movies at least.

I’ve never really put much thought behind Ryan Gosling, but Drive has changed that. He’s awesome. I think the only other movie I’ve seen him in is Lars and the Real Girl which he was also really good in, but gad zooks. Mr. Gosling plays the Driver, a mysterious and stoic man that evokes some classic Clint Eastwood vibes.

“Driver” as he’s labeled in the credits is a Hollywood stunt driver that moon lights as a getaway driver. He’s got very simple rules: I’m only the driver. I don’t have a weapon, you tell me where to be and where you want to go and I give you 5 minutes from when I show up to get your business done. A second passed that and I’m gone. You make it into the car I’m with you until our trip is done.

With that set in place he becomes involved in a job with the boyfriend of his neighbor. It turns out to be a trap and Driver has to fight his way out of a contract that’s been put on his head. Gosling is just so good in this movie he carries this crazy world on his shoulders. Driver is one of my favorite characters in years. He’s really quite, he doesn’t look like much, but the confidence this guy has is just unnerving. He lives his life on a very narrow, but clear line. Anything that happens on that line is handled with zero hesitation. Very Dirty Harry, but without the gun.

Film nuts have to see this movie, it’s so well made it’s like a lesson in mise en scene. Insane care and thought was put into every frame that you see. Director Nicolas Winding Refn is one of my favorites after discovering his first movie, Pusher, about 5 years ago. He’s got the cinematic eye that crops up every couple of years. I really think he’s on the path to becoming a name like Tarantino, Scorsese and Kubrik. It’s shot in a very slow and methodical way, the composition and lighting carefully considered in every scene. The soundtrack is of Tarnatino quality, it all fits together perfectly. The ads make the movie look like an action flick, but it’s more of a drama. There’s a handful of action scenes and they’re pretty quick, but everyone of them is striking. The movie opens with Driver doing his night job and there is almost no dialog. You don’t know any of the characters or what they’re stealing, just that this driver is going to get them all out of hot water. The images are so clear and concise (major props to the editing as well) that just watching it all unfold in front of you is more story than dialog could convey in the scene. Sitting there I felt the tension of sneaking around the cops, avoiding both cars and helicopter pursuit. You never leave the car with Driver and his passengers, careful actions cut together with the responses of the passengers expressions work so well together it really made a mark on me. So much and yet so little of Driver is conveyed after this opening that it made my head spin.

The movie plays out like a roller coaster where you cruise through the valleys leading to long scenes that ratchet up the plot and tension. That leaves the apex of the scene to erupt in a torrent of violence that sends you rocketing down the other side. The violence is really intense, but it’s not gory for the sake of being shocking. It’s the punctuation of a scene that is so packed that it has to pop to move the plot forward. Drive takes place in a harsh world with people who don’t take no for an answer; it’s survival. The pacing is what makes this film not for everyone. The slower parts can feel like a drag, but there is so much to take in visually that I was totally engrossed through all of it. Driver’s awesome shiny jacket with the gold scorpion on the back is destined to be a icon. One of my favorite movies in quite some time.

It happened again, I’ve watched a bunch of stuff without writing about it so now it’s time to clear the cache with a Review Rampage.

Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy is easily the best documentary on the Elm Street series. It’s 4 hours long and covers every movie to Freddy vs Jason and the short lived TV series. There are some comments about the 2010 remake on the bonus disc, but it’s pretty much ignored since a completely seperate team made that movie. As a fan this is a much watch, there’s some great behind the scenes info, inteviews from almost the entire cast of the films and it’s very honest. Has re-inspired me to write a new Nightmare movie.

Rango is such a odd movie. It’s beautiful and ugly at the same time. Animation and world design are fantastic but some of the characters are just straight up ugly animals. It’s a heartfelt movie though that slips into some really trippy and surreal scenes. Johnny Depp has such a great voice and delivery, Rango fits him perfectly. You hear Depp in every syllable but you forget it’s him through the animation of his character. I don’t think I’d recommend it for kids though, it gets pretty intense.

Megamind rules. Such a great idea. I’m a fan of Will Ferrel so that helps my enjoyment a lot, he’s so damn funny. Taking the super villains’ perspective is really refreshing and it’s handled really well. He turns a good guy bad (great work by Jonah Hill too), he gets into and out of trouble in creative ways and the movie is basically gorgeous. The final confrontation has one of the greatest character entrances ever, it’s some impressive stuff. One of Dreamworks best animated movies, they’ve really been stepping it up in the past 3 years or so.

Tangled is a retelling of the Rapunzel fairy tale by Disney. One of the best animated movies they’re done in some time, this one is great for all ages. Touching, some fun songs and it looks pretty amazing. Quality Disney stuff.

I Am Number Four is the story of an alien who is hiding out on Earth from not so nice aliens. Moving around the globe with his guardian (played by Tim Olyphant who I’m a fan of), John Smith is discovered after 3 of his kinship have been hunted down and killed. He’s next on the list and he has to do whatever he can to survive. It’s a fun movie, but the first half could have used some trimming. It takes a while for the movie to really find it’s grove and most of the action (which is really good) is packed into the last act. Solid film making, I’d be interested in seeing a sequel.

Green Hornetis an average movie. I think that’s my problem with it. It’s not bad but it’s not that good either. I think the problem I had was that Seth Rogan’s character Britt Reid is really just too much of a douchebag for most of the movie that it’s hard to root for him. Some cool visuals and action scenes make it tolerable though.

127 Hoursrides on James Franco’s shoulders and he’s more than up to the task. An amazing tale of the human condition and spirit, Franco continues to star in great and unique movies that push his versatility while director Danny Boyle continues to cement his spot as one of the best filmmakers working today.

Skylineis a demo reel for an FX company. That’s all it is. Some impressive special effects work that were said to be done for really cheap that surrounds a terrible script. It’s alien invasion with characters you could not care less about. When things get dicey and intense there is just no emotional attachment. The finale tries to build up some intense moments between the main characters that might have worked if everything preceding it had any soul.

13 Assassins is a great flick in the spirit of the legendary Akira Kurosawa film, Seven Samurai. When a brutal lord is seen quickly ascending the political latter, his goals and methods are deemed to be too evil to be left to grow any longer. A group of 13 samurai band together t to assassinate him. Directed by Takashi Miike, who is best known for his ultra violent and graphic movies, pulls his reins back to take us through this Samurai tale. While this movie is violent, it’s nothing like Miike’s previous gore fests. We don’t see many movies like this and 13 Assassins hits all the right notes in this genre. Check it out.

Hobo With A Shotgunis grindhouse done today. It’s an over the top vigilante picture that’s really well made. The team making it really know the roots of this genre and it shows. It looks like a ’70s exploitation romp but with some modern film making techniques. It’s vulgar and extremely gory and violent so it’s not for everyone. If you are familiar and down with this genre, take it for a ride.

Marvel Studios keep opening the doors on their catalog every summer and Captain America is the latest to enter the spotlight. The movie matched the superhero himself: average at best.

Not to sound like a hater, but the draw of Cap himself isn’t really that strong. He’s really a B level guy in the superhero world as far as I can tell. Average man Steve Rogers tries to join the army during World War II and is turned away multiple times for his physical inadequacies. A chance meeting with Dr. Abraham Erskine gets Rogers into the Super Solider program where all of those nagging little physical inadequacies are erased. Enter Captain America to fight for the side of good.

The movie is really well made. It looks fantastic, the backdrop of the US circa 194x is well established and very believable. Great use of color, it’s well shot and staged and the FX are all done very well. The cast is great to, I think this is Chris Evan’s best work. He makes Steve Rogers a very likeable and loveable guy and he makes great moves in the action scenes (Caps’ fighting style is pretty unique, probably the best part of him). Everyone surrounding him is very good too, he has very good chemistry with Haley Atwell who plays Peggy Carter. They get most of the laughs together and Howard Stark (Iron Man’s father) role was much bigger (and better) than I thought it would be. Hugo Weaving as the villainous Red Skull (who is so hardcore he doesn’t think much of Hitler’s efforts) is great too, the effects for creating him are a particular stand out.

The movie has a very long lead in, there’s a lot of character development and set up with most of the action in the last half hour of the movie. While that’s not necessarily a bad thing, it does make the pacing feel off. It’s a bit of a drag to be honest. After some time the first action scene comes and it’s pretty short, then a bit later there is a rescue scene and then when the good guys go on the offensive, we get a montage of Cap and some troops taking out some enemy bases. While what is shown is good, there’s really no reference to where they are or what they’re doing. Feels too broad, like it’s just a generalization. That decision didn’t sit well with me. While it’s a good movie, I don’t feel any need to see it again.