Tag: Mark Wahlberg

Thanksgiving Movies
/ julie

MOVIES TO SEE (& Some to Avoid) OVER THANKSGIVING BREAK

Hope you got some time off for Thanksgiving because the past 2 weeks have gifted us with a cornucopia of highly anticipated flicks. Not all of them are worth the hefty ticket price, though. I’ve seen all of the new releases (OK, most of them) and can tell you which ones to see with your family, which ones to see with your drunk, adult friends, and which ones you should dodge like a bullet. Here are the Julie Says So Movies to See Over Thanksgiving (and which ones to AVOID). I even put them into nifty categories to make it easy for you.

THE SEQUELS

Fantastic Beasts 2
Scoot over, so I can get a better look at Dumbledore.

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald feels like a J.K. Rowling fever dream. She packed it with everything she thinks we want to see in a Fantastic Beasts follow-up (loving shots of Hogwarts, surprising family trees and, of course, fantastic beasts), but she also had to tell about 20 other stories in the process. You’re left with a four-hour-long mess (OK, it’s just 2-hours-long but it FEELS so much longer). My 11-year-old looked at me as the Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald credits rolled and said, “What? I’m so confused.” And that sums the whole movie up in 4 words. (D)
Best Part: Jude Law’s young Dumbledore is simply delicious.
Worst Part: Johnny Depp. Just any scene he’s in. Continue reading →

Instant Family
/ julie

MOMMY MOVIE REVIEW: Is “Instant Family” OK for Kids? (& a chat w/ Director Sean Anders)

The most important thing you need to know about Instant Family is that it’s far better than the trailer lets on. It led me to believe this movie would be a mediocre comedy about adoption. It’s actually more of a laugh-out-loud then tear-your-heart-out-while-you’re-still-laughing kind of film.
Instant Family is based on writer-director Sean Anders’ real-life experience of adopting three children, and he takes a warts-and-all approach to his story. That might explain the PG-13 rating, which the MPAA says is for “thematic elements, sexual material, language and some drug references.” I’m guessing the “thematic elements” might be in reference to a fairly graphic discussion about “d*ck pics,” among other things.
Yes, Sean Anders depicts the challenges of raising a family, adopted or biological, with true candor and Instant Family is a better movie for it. I think most ages will appreciate and relate to this movie (despite the occasionally salty subject-matter), which is why I’m recommending it to mature 11-year-olds and up. Instant Family is not only a great flick to see with your family over the holidays, it’s also the perfect way to celebration National Adoption Month! (A)
I got to sit down with Instant Family director Sean Anders recently, to talk about his movie and the challenges of adoption. I posted that below, so please watch it and stay through the end for a featurette with Sean and his real-life family.
Buy tickets to Instant Family & help support this website HERE:

Transformers
/ julie

FREE MOVIE PASSES: See “Transformers: The Last Knight” EARLY & FOR FREE

Before you roll your eyes and tell me the world doesn’t need another Transformers movie, do us both a favor and watch the Transformers: The Last Knight trailer below. I have no idea what the HELL is going on but it looks kind of…dare I say it…GOOD? It won’t matter either way if you get to see it EARLY and FOR FREE though, right? Continue reading →

Mark Wahlberg
/ julie

FREE MOVIE PASSES: See “Patriots Day” EARLY & FOR FREE

Are you broke? I am so broke right now. This is usually the time of year when I stay home and eat nothing but food that’s been sitting in the freezer for the past six months until I can financially catch my breath. We could still go to the movies, though! See, while I was on vacation PILES of free movie passes landed on my front porch and they’re all for movies we want to see, like Patriots Day. This one stars Mark Wahlberg and tells the true story of the Boston Marathon bombing and the manhunt that followed. It won’t be in theaters nationwide until January 13th but we get to see Patriots Day EARLY and FOR FREE! Just click HERE to grab your free passes, then watch the trailer below. Oh man, and bring boxes of tissues to this one.

Collage Masterminds, Queen of Katwe,Deep Water Horizons, Miss Peregrine's
/ julie / 2 Comments

Movie Review Round-Up: DEEPWATER HORIZON, MISS PEREGRINE’S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN, QUEEN OF KATWE & MASTERMINDS

Feel like heading to the movies this weekend but don’t want to spend 2 hours watching something you hate? I can help with that. Here’s what’s opening this weekend and whether or not it’s worth your time.

Deepwater Horizon – This movie is completely split down the middle for me. The first half introduces us to the crew of the offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, and informs us that something is horribly wrong. You won’t understand what that something horrible is (unless you have a background in drilling or maybe an Engineering Degree) and repeated attempts to explain it don’t help. Continue reading →

/ julie

PODCAST: Movie Chat With Trudi & Jim at WCSX in Detroit

I started reviewing movies for Trudi & Jim at WCXS in Detroit back in February when Fifty Shades of Grey came out. I love these guys because A) Trudi is awesome and because B) Jim lived in Plano & worked at KVIL for a while. He is awesome as well. I also love these guy because C) they will let me talk & talk & TALK. Any other radio stations I talk to keep my reviews under five minutes. This review is 14 MINUTES LONG! Lord knows, I could talk for DAYS if given the chance.
This week we discussed Magic Mike XXL, Ted 2, and your chance to see Trainwreck WITH Amy Schumer in NYC!
Thanks again to Trudi & Jim! Hope we can get cocktails together one of these days!

/ julie

PODCAST: Boozy Movies Reviews “Ted 2”

I watched Ted 2 with Sybil Summers and Richie Whitt last night. We were also lucky enough to have guest Film Critic, Mark Walters from Bigfanboy.com join us. In the process, I drank lots of wine and admitted to a Seth MacFarlane fetish that I am now more than a little embarassed about. We also had what Mark called “the most awkward ending” of any podcast EVER, which I tried to edit out but only managed to make it worse. Apologies in advance for that. Otherwise, here’s our review of Ted 2. Enjoy!