Fe-Fi-Fo-Fum

This weekend brought movie-goers three really good films. The first one I saw was Dead Man Down with Colin Farrell and Terrance Howard. 

I love mob movies and this one was excellent. It didn't have your typical mob movie storyline but it was all about revenge and double cross. Fans will spend the entire film following Colin Farrell's character as he tries to set a play in motion against members of an organized crime group that murdered his family. Like The Departed, this movie keeps folks on the edge of their seats wondering if and when Farrell will be found out and whether or not he'll make it out alive. 

If you're a fan of any of these kinds of films, you should check this one out for sure. 

I went and saw Jack the Giant Slayer next. Now, I must confess, I really wanted to see it for Ewan McGregors hair-do, boy looks good! But I was also interested in how Hollywood would run with this classic fairy tale. Would they over exaggerate everything like Hansel & Gretel? Would they underwhelm audiences like Snow White and the Huntsman? 

Thankfully, Hollywood got this one right! I felt this movie had a perfect blend of action, comedy and overall feel-good attitude. We all know the story of Jack and the magic beanstalk, but this time we get to see it all played out in giant splendor. The actors were great, the visuals were awesome and the plot kept you interested. I was also glad to see that it wasn't overly cheesy like these remakes can so often be. With a solid cast behind it, the story flowed seamlessly into a a film I think the whole family will enjoy. 

And finally, I returned to Oz.

Oz: The Great and Powerful, is the prequel to that classic film we all know and love only in this movie, no musical numbers-sorry music and theater geeks-you're just going to have to settle for a regular old awesome film. 

Another blockbuster packed with stars, much like Jack, this movie kept you entertained and waiting to see how everything would turn out. It was dark, it was light hearted, it was cute, it was scary, it was funny, and sometimes a bit sad; but all around the billion-or so people who saw it over the weekend left pleased with the film. 

I walked away happy as well and especially pleased to find that the writers gave a few subtle nods to the original Oz without actually being so obvious that they might as well have had a guy in the corner of the screen going "Hey! Remember when they had this in the first one?!". Subtly is key, less is more, and I think the writers on this one got it just right. 

The actors were all cracker-jacks as well. I won't give anything away but I will say Mila Kunis gave a decent performance. I wish I could go into further detail but I'm not in the business of spouting out spoiler alerts-I want you guys to enjoy these films as much as I did! So see it for yourself, I think you'll be glad you did.