Category Archives: Car Chase

2016, Acceptable for children, Based on true facts, Black History, Car Chase, Civil Rights, DO NOT MISS, Feel Good For All, Human spirit, Interest in automobiles, Lawyers, Netflix DVD, Race Relations, Racism, Slow, Supreme Court, Thought provoking, True Story

Loving (2016)

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From IMDB:

The story of Richard and Mildred Loving, a couple whose arrest for interracial marriage in 1960s Virginia began a legal battle that would end with the Supreme Court’s historic 1967 decision.

Netflix sent me a DVD for this film.

Not only was the topic of historic importance, but the film was done beautifully. Jeff Nichols wrote and directed and, I assume, chose the perfect actors. Wikipedia gives much information, especially a discussion of the characters of Richard Loving, Mildred Loving, and a very understanding description by Nichols of the sheriff. And yes, my own family and friends also included many racists.

Ruth Negga was fine as Mildred Loving, but to it was Joel Edgerton’s presentation of Richard Loving that was so perfectly matched to a description in the Wikipedia article:

“Richard Loving was indeed as stoic as Nichols and Edgerton portray him; the small rural Virginia community in which they lived was (and is) highly racially integrated; Mildred Loving really did write directly to Robert Kennedy, and her letter is still in the Kennedy collection; and the Lovings lawyer really did, per Richard’s request, relay his words before the Supreme Court that “I love my wife.””[

Sad to tell, I was especially tense watching the film, although there is no violence. At any moment I was sure some KKK thug was going to somehow attack the family. When the film came to such a happy conclusion, I breathed a sigh of relief. Be sure to read the concluding screen postscript.

DO NOT MISS!

2016, Action Film, Action Hero, Ambiguous Conclusion, Based on a Book, Black Ops, Car Chase, Chase film, CIA, Computer geeks, Conspiracy, Contract Killing, Ethical struggles, Father-son relations, Mayhem, Revenge, Suspense, Torture, Uncategorized, Violent

Jason Bourne (2016)

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From IMDB:

The CIA’s most dangerous former operative is drawn out of hiding to uncover more explosive truths about his past.

Our British Airways flight to London gave me the chance to see this latest installation in the Bourne saga.

Because the very beginning is just noise and chasing I almost gave up watching. But in time the plot was interesting and current enough to warrant continuing to the end. Also on our BA flight I watched “I.T.”  which really shares a theme with “Jason Bourne” in the sense that both stories feature the threatening tendency in this 21st century for intelligence agencies and individuals wanting to eavesdrop on every detail of our lives. In other words, the theme is the War on Privacy. In this regards you can also read Dave Eggers book “The Circle” and watch certain episodes of the TV series “Dark Mirror.”

Acting is a secondary consideration in this production. Tommy Lee Jones as CIA Director Robert Dewey grunts through his scheme to establish a new torture black ops program as well to force the equivalent of Apple Corporation to give the CIA a back door into everyone’s smartphone.  Notice how often in films the CIA is the wicked enemy.  Matt Damon plays his usual unemotional role as Jason Bourne.  For a man of 47 years, Matt Damon has kept in good physical condition. Of course his face has aged to a middle age presence. Tommy Lee Jones at 71 years looks considerably older.

Because of the way the ending is constructed, there could be sequels. But this film in the series was enjoyable enough to have us consider yet another future installment.

2005, 2008, 2010, 2012, Bloody scenes, Bullying, Car Chase, Corruption, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime, Crude Talk, Detective, Drug Dealers, Forensics, French Detective Series, Gangs, Gay theme, Grisly, Homophobia, Lawyers, Murder Investigation, Netflix Streaming, Occasional gore, Police Culture, Police Politics, Pornographic Scenes, Prison, Prostitutes, Psychiatrists, Rape, Revenge, Sadism, Sociopath, Spousal Abuse, Suicide, Suspense, Thriller, Torture, Unscrupulous drive to power, Various Romances, Violent, Vulgar, Wife Beating

Spiral (2005)

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From IMDB:

Follows criminal investigations in Paris from all the different points of view of a criminal investigation.

Netflix streaming brings you 4 seasons of this French TV series:

  • Season 1: 2005    8 episodes
  • Season 2: 2008    8 episodes
  • Season 3: 2010 12 episodes
  • Season 4: 2012  12 episodes
  • Season 5: 2015  12 episodes
  • Season 6: 2016  12 episodes

Season 7 is currently being produced in France. Spoken French with optional English subtitles.

“Engrenages” is the French title which means “gears”, the theme being how intertwined are the lives of criminals, police personnel, lawyers (honorable or prostituted by greed), ambitious (and seemingly entirely corrupt) politicians and innocent civilians. Various crimes (murder, spousal abuse, drugs, prostitution, gun running) are investigated.  Actors are matched flawlessly to their characters.

Such a long-running series will, of course, require many actors. But several stand out:

  • Grégory Fitoussi is the honest lawyer Pierre Clément.
  • Audrey Fleurot  is the greedy, amoral, beautiful lawyer Joséphine Karlsson who specializes in defending the scum of the earth for large sums of money.
  • Caroline Proust is the extremely competent, tough, but constantly embattled police detective Laure Berthaud.
  • Philippe Duclos is Juge Roban, an honest judge who has to constantly fight to stay honest.

Because of its variety of characters and their interactions, the many tense situations, the constant battle between corruption and honesty, this series has been immensely popular. Sometimes the many car chases border on boring. But this is NOT your average detective show. Call it a soap opera if you wish, nonetheless it remains compelling.

FIRST WARNING: Each season will end with a cliff hanger enticing you to watch the next season.

SECOND WARNING: You must have a strong stomach to watch these often brutal, violent, sadistic, and bloody episodes.  Tension runs as constantly high in this series as in any I have seen.

2015, Australian, Australian Aborigine, Barely Acceptable Trash, Bloody scenes, Cancer theme, Car Chase, Corny at times, Ends in Cliff Hanger, Fantasy, Gay theme, Love Story, Made For TV, Medical Theme, Mediocre, Motorcycles, Murder, Netflix Streaming, Police Culture, Revenge, Sci-Fi, Sex Scenes, Small Town, Sometimes seems silly, Violent, War, War Veterans, WWI

Glitch (2015)

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From Netflix:

James and Elishia keep the Risen under wraps while they try to make sense of what’s happening, and James makes a second shocking discovery.

From Netflix you can stream the 6 episodes of season 1 of this Netflix original.

At least 6 people climb out of their graves and interact with the living for 6 episodes. Mostly this is a mystery story which tries to solve not only how this resurrection is possible but also how each person died. It takes a character as many as 6 episodes to make that self-discovery, often to their great unhappiness. Curiosity kept me watching this mediocre, maudlin, barely acceptable piece of trash.

Surprisingly, this new production offers the audio and subtitles in many languages. Because the dialog is simple and basic, this is a good opportunity to use languages other than English. HOWEVER, the written scripts do not match the spoken scripts, which has been a flaw prevalent in many films for many years.

WARNING: Episode 6 ends with a huge cliff hanger. Just when you think you will learn the answers, the season ends.  Wait, I suppose, for a second season.

2016, Acorn TV, B-movie, Bad Acting, Barely Acceptable Trash, British, Car Chase, Corny at times, Detective, Family Conflict, Father-daughter relations, Incest, Mediocre, Murder, Not Recommended, Police Corruption, Terrible acting

Winter (2016)

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From Acorn TV:

Rebecca Gibney (Packed to the Rafters) stars as Detective Eve Winter in this gripping Australian murder mystery series.

“Gripping” it was NOT!  From Acorn TV you could suffer while you stream 6 episodes of this cliché-ridden, poorly written, embarrassingly acted detective series.

DO NOT BOTHER!

2015, Action Film, Action Hero, Amputee, B-movie, Barely Acceptable Trash, Bloody scenes, Car Chase, Confusing Plot, Drugs, Frenetic, Invincible Hero, Mayhem, Motorcycles, Not Recommended, Nudity, Revenge, Ridiculous plot, Satirical ultra-violence, Sci-Fi, Somewhat ridiculous plot, Somewhat trashy, Unusual, Violent, Vulgar

Hardcore Harry (2015)

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From IMDB:

Henry is resurrected from death with no memory, and he must save his wife from a telekinetic warlord with a plan to bio-engineer soldiers.

Seriously in the running for “Most Mindless Film Ever Made”,  there is not a single non-violent scene (more exactly, moment) in all hour and a half of this bizarre form of entertainment. Only because of one unique feature  does this film deserve a review: You never see Harry. Instead you watch the entire sequence of (did I mention “violent”?) events through Harry’s bionic eyes. In fact, just about everything of Harry is bionic. So naturally he is physically super-capable, never misses a shot, is amazing at fist fighting. leaps over tall objects, escapes burning vehicles, and just never gives up. When the film started with a chase sequence I thought “Oh, the usual gimmick to get my attention at the beginning”. But the chase sequence NEVER ENDS.

Possibly there is a plot in there somewhere, but darn if I could figure out just exactly what was happening.

You do get the opportunity to put yourself in Harry’s place and be surrounded for possibly 10 minutes by  voluptuous, ample breasted,  naked women. Probably not a film for children.

You should have some time to waste before watching Harry (who cannot speak) do his thing. Isn’t it great to be a retired film watcher!

2014, Action Film, Action Hero, B-movie, Barely Acceptable Trash, Bloody scenes, Car Chase, Digital Effects, Drug Dealers, Drugs, Mayhem, Often downright silly, Psychedelic Visual Effects, Ridiculous plot, Strange Ending, Violent

Lucy (2014)

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From NetFlix:

In this action-thriller set in Taiwan, a young woman forced to become a drug mule for the mob develops superhuman abilities when the narcotics she’s carrying in her stomach accidentally leak into her system.

Way back in 1968 a certain subset of our population would ingest some psychedelic substance and sit for hours watching the flashing colors in the film “2001: A Space Odyssey.” But now welcome to the 21st century where you could do the same participant-watching with the mostly visual film “Lucy.” And it might as well be called a digital-visual adventure because the plot and many impossible action sequences are straight out of vaudeville.

Whatever was Morgan Freeman thinking? Scarlett Johansson at least has a history of appearing in strange films. For example, she was the voice of a computer (Samantha) in “Her”. Also she was a predatory alien in “Under the Skin.” Let us hope these actors made a lot of money while diminishing their reputations.

So why did I bother finishing the film? There are two choices: a) I was bored out of my mind, or b) I hoped that eventually the film would make sense, alas!

You probably don’t have the time for this psychedelic wonder.

2014, Acceptable for children, Action Film, Action Hero, Anti-terrorism, Based on a Book, Car Chase, Conspiracy, Flirting, KGB, Love Story, Mayhem, Military, Motorcycles, Russian Anti-USA Scheme, Spy Theme, Suspense, Terrorist Attack, Thriller, Violent

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014)

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From NetFlix:

CIA analyst Jack Ryan tries to thwart a terrorist plot to bring down the U.S. economy in this action-thriller helmed by Kenneth Branagh. Chris Pine plays the title character alongside an all-star cast that includes Kevin Costner and Keira Knightley.

Seen one, seen them all. But some action films offer at least something that is unique to the film. For me, seeing Kenneth Branagh (who also directed the film) as the Russian villain was a welcome novelty. Nor did it hurt having Kevin Costner and Keira Knightley in the film. Chris Pine as Jack Ryan presents a personality that is a new and more honest approach, namely: he does not pretend to be the perfect, invulnerable hero. Rather the whole espionage game is new and unwelcome to him. When the first attempt is made on his life, he is scared to death with trembling to match. Still, in the several unrealistic action sequences (but then, aren’t they all unbelievable ?) Jack Ryan would never have survived.

Who cares? Just sit back and enjoy the pandemonium.

2015, Action Film, Action Hero, Amusing banter, Car Chase, Chase film, CIA, Flirting, KGB, Mild Torture, Motorcycles, Spy Versu Spy, Suspense

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015)

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From NetFlix:

With both their countries threatened by a powerful global crime cartel, the CIA’s Napoleon Solo and KGB operative Illya Kuryakin must work together in this Cold War thriller inspired by the classic 1960s TV series.

Take two young studs (Henry Cavill as Solo and Armie Hammer as Illya) , throw in two beautiful young women (Alicia Vikander as Gaby and Elizabeth Debicki as Victoria) and some good action scenes and SHAZAMM! we can have a lot of fun. Especially well-crafted was the opening action sequence. Constant competition between Solo and Illya maintains the humor. Of course, you have seen all this before (nuclear warheads, double-crosses, “who is an agent for whom”) but some mixes work better than others and this mix worked for me.

And wasn’t it a surprise to see Hugh Grant cleverly disguised as an Englishman?

Not all the acting is great.

Best of all, this film is intended to be the first of a series. Let’s hope the writers can keep the momentum moving.

2012, Abduction, Bank Robbery, Car Chase, Child abuse, Clever Plot, Complicated, Conspiracy, Corruption, Detective, DO NOT MISS, Dutch, Dutch politics, Father-daughter relations, Father-son relations, Horses, Murder, Netflix Streaming, Orphans in Foster Care, Pedophilia, Police Corruption, Political Suspense, Revenge, Sociopath, Suicide, Suspense, Thriller, Violent, Well developed plot, Wonderful acting, WWII

Salamander (2012)

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From NetFlix:

As he investigates a bank robbery, a Brussels police inspector uncovers a complx conspiracy with the potential to bring down the nation.

On a par with Wallendar, House of Cards, etc. Tense, complicated but understandable, well-acted, you cannot go wrong watching this series as long as you can stand the suspense. We streamed all 12-episodes of this 1-season Dutch series from Netflix. There does not seem to be a DVD version.

Bank robbers steal the contents of exactly 66 safe deposit boxes from a prominent bank in Brussels. These 66 boxes contain the secrets of 66 well-placed individuals who achieved their status by being part of a powerful cartel called Salamander. In fact the bank robbers are masterminded by a rich former factory owner who is seeking vengeance on the members of Salamander because they were responsible for unjustly portraying his father as a World War II traitor. When an honest and determined policeman gets an inkling that something is amiss (the bank robbery was immediately hidden from the public), he doggedly continues to investigate despite dangers to himself, his family, and to lots of other people.

Read along with the English subtitles and have a wonderful, action-packed adventure. DO NOT MISS!