Mini Movie Review: Iron Man 3: ★★★

A nice addition to the Iron Man franchise, but Iron Man 3 didn't fully deliver as expected. A commendable attempt from writer/director Shane Black as took the reigns from Jon Favreau in this latest chapter of Marvel's big screen universe. But as usual with sequels of sequels, the film fizzles in comparison to the prior 2. I did like the movie however, and had a lot of fun in the theater, but it is definitely the weakest of the trilogy. If you are an Iron Man fan, I say you need to see this in theaters...and, as usual with Marvel movies, be sure to stay after the credits roll.

Mini Movie Review: Oblivion: ★★★½

Oblivion was a little predictable, I figured out the twist before it was revealed. The story had a few plot holes, but overall I really liked it!  Incredible visuals and decent performances.  The score was phenomenal! See this one in theaters if you get the chance.

Mini Movie Review: The Expendables 2: ★★★★

This is exactly what the first movie should have been.  A movie jam-packed with just about every muscle-bound action hero from the 80s AND their infamous one-liners.  Equally as funny as it is violent and loud, the Expendables 2 is the kind of movie you want to watch over and over again.  Only in my wildest adolescent dreams would I have imaged the likes of Schwarzenegger, Stallone, Van Damme and Bruce Willis teaming up in a film together.  The Expendables 2 not only makes that fantasy a reality, it hits it out of the park...and Chuck Norris is the cherry on top!  Go see this...DO IT NOW!!

Mini Movie Review: The Bourne Legacy: ★★½

Great action sequences built into an otherwise weak storyline. Clearly the marketability of the Bourne name was used to draw in a bigger audience.  Besides a microscopic tie in to the previous 3 films, I see no reason why The Bourne Legacy should even be associated with the Matt Damon trilogy.  In fact, I think this would would have been a much better film as a stand alone.  Regardless, Jeremy Renner is great, and there are a couple of sequences that will keep you on the edge of your seat.  Despite the negatives of this movie, I still enjoyed it, for the most part.  I would recommend you see this in the theater if you must, but you might get more for your money's worth if you wait to rent this.

Mini Movie Review: The Dark Knight Rises: ★★★★

Despite not being as good as "the Dark Knight," this third installment of the Christopher Nolan Batman saga makes for an excellent capstone to the prior two films. In my opinion, this is Nolan's worst movie to date, BUT that doesn't mean I think its a bad movie. I watched all three movies back-to-back in the theater making it unavoidable to compare and contrast the films. It was blatantly obvious that "The Dark Knight Rises" was the weakest of the trilogy. However, where the "the Dark Knight Rises" fails to live up to the hype behind it, the film succeeds in having THE best ending of the entire franchise...and what an epic conclusion! Nolan at his best. Regardless, this is a fun movie and Batman fans will find moments of greatness within it. Go see it!!

Mini Movie Review: Prometheus: ★★★½

Prometheus is one of those movies that I spent years looking forward to. It was to be Ridley Scott's triumphant return to Scifi, since his tent-pole films "Alien" and "Blade Runner" set the standard for great scifi. So Naturally, how could one not have extremely high expectations for Prometheus? Those high expectations are probably why I felt some form of disappointment when the credits finally rolled. Initially I walked out of the theater feeling more or less satisfied. But, I found that the longer I thought about what happened (or didn't happen) in "Prometheus" the more questions I had and the more I began to dislike the movie. Overall is wasn't a bad movie though, it just left WAY too many stones unturned, and didn't answer most of the questions raised in the storyline. (A sequel might change my opinion completely.) Definitely go see this movie, seeing it in 3D is worth the extra money too.

Mini Movie Review: The Avengers: ★★★★½

A movie this huge rarely lives up to the hype surrounding it, and one would even assume with so many well established characters and back stories coming together that the Avengers would be a recipe for disaster. But I am delighted to say that Marvel has put together quite possibly the best superhero movie to date. This one will probably break some records at the box office. The action is outstanding, as Marvel does best, and thanks to writer/director Joss Whedon the audience is treated to hilarious locker room banter between the hulking egos of the superhero team. Some interactions even settling the debate of "who would win if they went head to head?"

 There is no need to see this in 3D, but I do admonish you to get yourself to a theater and see this marvel of a film as soon as possible. I know I'm already looking forward to seeing it a second...and third time. Oh, and as most Marvel fans know already, make sure you stay until the final credit rolls.