4k-UHD/Movie Review: Jumanji - Welcome to the Jungle

 

This is the 2017 movie that is mostly a reboot and quasi-sequel to the 1995 movie, Jumanji, which starred Robin Williams. This version starts out with almost a vibe of the movie The Breakfast Club with four high school students named Spencer (played by Alex Wolff) who is a gaming and science nerd, Fridge (played by Ser'Darius Blain) who is a football star, Bethany (played by Madison Iseman), a self-absorbed hot chick, and Martha (played by Morgan Turner), an introverted loner, are assigned detention and forced to clean the school basement. They find an old video game that sucks them into the game when it boots up, with the twist being that they inhabit the bodies of the game characters, and find out they each have three lives with which to finish the game. Spencer becomes the leader Smolder Bravestone, (played by The Rock), Fridge becomes Smolder's sidekick, Mouse (played by Kevin Hart), Martha becomes Ruby Roundhouse (played by Karen Gillian), and Bethany becomes the cartographer played by Jack Black. 

The movie is about the video game characters playing people who are totally opposite themselves, so the Rock is a sickly nerd who suddenly becomes a 6'5" musclebound tank, Karen Gillian plays an introvert who basically becomes Laura Croft (inappropriate jungle attire included), Kevin Hart plays a football player turned into a 5'3" loudmouth, and Jack Black has to play a hot high school girl turned overweight middle-aged man. The movie is a good blend of action and comedy, and the cast all play off each other very well. There are some very funny moments, including Karen Gillian commenting on the short shorts she is wearing and Kevin Hart's character's inability to eat cake. There are some tie-ins with the original movie, including paying homage to Robin William's character from the original movie. The movie has to walk a fine line between honoring the original with doing its own thing, which it does well. 

For those who get the 4k set, the UHD disc just has the movie and then all of the extras are included on the regular blu-ray disc. The A/V quality of the UHD disc is very good, but it is not what I would call far beyond the a/v quality of the regular blu-ray disc. Both are pretty comparable. The extras include a gag reel, a music video by Nick Jonas (who has a role in the movie), and a handful of making-of and behind-the-scenes featurettes that vary in length from about four minutes to just under fifteen minutes. All totaled there are about 40 minutes, give or take, worth of extras if you like going through them.

Overall, the movie is very good. As I said above, it has a good blend of action and comedy, and all of the actors fit their roles very well. The Rock, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillian, and Jack Black all play their parts perfectly, and each of their characters get their moments to shine during the movie. It is definitely a more "adult" movie than the 1995 movie was and does include swearing and sex jokes. So, be aware that it is not as family-friendly as the original movie. That said, it is definitely worth watching. 

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Baywatch

 

Baywatch is a 2017 movie that partly pays homage to and partly spoofs the long-running 1990s TV show of the same name. The movie stars Dwyane Johnson (a.k.a. The Rock) as Mitch Buchannon, the leader of a team of lifeguards in Emerald Bay that includes veterans Stephanie Holden (played by Ilfenesh Hadera) and C.J. Parker (played by Kelly Rohrbach, taking over the role played by Pamela Anderson in the show). The team holds tryouts for three open positions, that ultimately are filled with characters played by Alexandra Daddario, John Bass (who is pretty much the comic relief of the movie), and Zach Efron, who plays a former Olympic swimmer named Matt Brody, and is the butt of Mitch's constant jokes.

The plot of the movie involves the team having to solve a murder that involves a wider criminal plot. The other cast members include Priyanka Chopra, Rob Huebel, Hannibal Buress, and Oscar Nunez, and does have cameo appearances by Pamela Anderson and David Hasselhoff. You can watch the rated/theatrical version or the unrated/extended edition (which does not really add much to the story, just has a few more jokes.

For those who get the 4k set, there are two discs, a UHD disc, which just includes the movie, and a regular blu-ray disc with the movie and the bonus material. The A/V quality of the UHD disc is outstanding. Both the picture and sound are great, especially if you have a large screen and a decent sound system. There are a handful of extras which include a 21-minute feature on the various characters, a 10-minute feature on a look at the show's legacy and how the movie tried to pay homage to that, a 10-minute feature on the stunts, and then about 10 minutes of deleted and extended scenes.

The movie is basically an action-comedy, with the comedy being on the more raunchy side. So, it is definitely not a movie that will appeal to everyone. It has a bunch of ridiculously good-looking people in it, which is really the main attraction. It is definitely not an award-winner by any stretch of the imagination. But, if you take it for what it is, and do not expect it to be more than what it is, it is enjoyable. 

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Fate of the Furious (F8)

 

The Fate of the Furious is the 8th movie in the "Fast" franchise. The plots of the movies have become crazier and more unrealistic over the course of time, and yes, this movie follows that trend (in this movie a missile is punched by The Rock) and you just have to go with it. If you cannot suspend your disbelief, these movies are not for you as the action sequences, which are fun, could never be pulled off in real life.

This movie sees Dom (Vin Diesel) as the bad guy, seemingly turning his back on the team/family. Of course, not everything is as it seems, as there is a larger plot that plays out throughout the course of the movie. The action sequences are crazy and there is some humor mixed in (including Hobbs and Shaw having to protect a baby while kicking ass). This is the movie that really set the stage for the Hobbs and Shaw spinoff as there are several entertaining sequences that include Jason Statham and The Rock. For the most part, the rest of the main cast returns, including Ludacris, Tyrese, Michelle Rodriguez, and Nathalie Emmanuel. Jordana Brewster does not return as her character, Mia, was written out to be off with Brian who retired after Paul Walker passed away. Kurt Russell reprises his role as Mr. Nobody, and the new cast members include Scott Eastwood and Charlize Theron. 

The 4k set is a two-disc set with just the movie itself on the UHD disc and the movie and all the extras on a regular blu-ray disc. The A/V quality of the UHD disc is very good. Probably a tick under "reference quality" video, but for anyone other than a total A/V wonk, it will be fine. The extras include an 8-minute featurette on shooting in Cuba, a four-part featurette about the main characters, a three-part featurette on the car racing culture, a three-part featurette on the stunts, and extended fight scenes. There is a director's commentary on the movie that is included both on the UHD disc and the regular blu-ray. All totaled, the bonus content runs about an hour, give or take. 

Ultimately, if you like the prior movies, you will probably like this one. If you do not like the prior movies, especially the movies after Tokyo Drift, then you will not like this one. It is totally unrealistic and over-the-top, but that is cooked into the series at this point. Charlize Theron is awesome in her role and definitely seemed to be having fun in this role. This was the movie in which the battle between The Rock and Vin Diesel came to a head, with The Rock refusing to do any more of the "main franchise" movies.  If you don't take it too seriously it is a good, fun, action movie.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Furious 7

 

Furious 7 is definitely a turning point for the Fast & Furious franchise, in large part because of the tragic death of Paul Walker that occurred during the production of the movie. The movie, finally, deals with Han's death in Tokyo Drift, which on film occurred years earlier, but Sung Kang kept appearing in the subsequent movies always hinting that he would get to Tokyo. In this movie, it is revealed that Han was killed by the brother of Own Shaw (Luke Evans), Deckard, played by Jason Statham. The movie is essentially about the team trying to track down Deckard. The movie has the typical over-the-top action that has become the staple of the film series, especially after all the main actors returned to the franchise after Tokyo Drift. There are a lot of tongue-in-cheek absurd moments, like The Rock flexing out of a cast and leaving the hospital to get back into the fight after he is sidelined most of the movie. The movie also introduced the character Mr. Nobody, a covert ops leader played by Kurt Russell, and has a cameo appearance by Rhonda Rousey who is basically in the movie to have a throwdown with Michelle Rodriquez.

For those who get the blu-ray set, the movie looks and sounds great in HD. Of course, there are a ton of special effects used throughout the movie, and everything looks wonderful and seamless. There are two versions of the movie, the theatrical and an extended edition that adds about a minute to the theatrical version. It is so inconsequential that it was really not worth making an extended edition. Then, there are about six minutes of deleted scenes, seven making-of and behind-the-scenes featurettes that range in length from about six minutes to just over thirty minutes. Then there is a feature on the Race Wars festival, the music video "See You Again" from Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth, and a feature on the Fast & Furious-themed ride at Universal.

Overall, the movie is good. Probably the last really good movie of the franchise before it got completely ridiculous. I am sure most people know how the movie handled Paul Walker's death in terms of Brian's storyline. I will not spoil it for the handful of people who don't know, but I think it was very well done. The movie is 95% action, 5.9% tongue-in-cheek comedy, and .1% drama. The franchise has found the formula that works for it and stays in that lane. It does not try to be a best-picture candidate, so if that is what you are looking for, this is not it. But if you want to watch a fun action movie with a bunch of car chases and cool stunts, this is a good one.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: G.I. Joe: Retaliation

 

This movie is kind of a sequel to the first GI Joe movie, Rise of Cobra, continuing part of that storyline and then branching way off of it, so it then mostly becomes a reboot. Some of the cast members from the first movie do make an appearance, but most of them amount to extended cameos. Some roles were recast, and some of the characters, such as The Baroness and Destro were not used in this movie. This one stars The Rock as Roadblock and Adrienne Palicki as Lady Jaye, the two main Joe characters (along with Snake Eyes, played by Ray Park). The bulk of the story involves the plot by Cobra to use Zartan to impersonate the President of the United States and bring down GI Joe. There is a large parallel story that involves Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow and goes into their rivalry.

The A/V quality of the Blu-Ray is very good. The picture looks great, and the special effects are seamless. The extras include a commentary track on the movie by the director and producer, then there are just over an hour's worth of making-of and behind-the-scenes featurettes, as well as a few deleted scenes. So if you like watching the bonus material there is a decent amount.

Overall, the movie is a good action movie, but not great. Not even as good as the first movie (in my opinion). I would have liked more of the characters to come back and not just have small roles. I am fine using the additional characters but I would have liked more of a conclusion to Duke and Baroness' storyline and bring back characters like Scarlett and Ripcord. I also think that expanding the role of Cobra Commander with Joseph Gordon Levitt and bringing back Christopher Eccleston as Destro would have been a wise move. Obviously, like the first movie, this is not an academy award-winning drama. It is a summer blockbuster action movie, and it most definitely stays in that lane. But, if you are looking for an action movie with tons of explosions and great fight scenes, this is definitely a good one.