Win Passes to the Kansas City screening of “God Bless the Broken Road”

 

Media Mikes has teamed up with their friends at Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures to give (35) readers and a guest the chance to be the first to see their latest film, “God Bless the Broken Road,” which will be screened on Wednesday, September 5th at the B&B Lee’s Summit Theatre.  The screening will start at 7:00 pm.

All you have to do is click HERE.  The first (35) readers to do so will receive a pass for (2) to attend the screening.  This is a first come/first serve giveaway.  Once the (35) passes have been claimed, the giveaway has ended.  GOOD LUCK!

GOD BLESS THE BROKEN ROAD

Wednesday, September 6, 2018 – 7:00 p.m.

B&B Lee’s Summit Theatre, Lee’s Summit, Missouri

 

@gbbrmovie #BlessAVet #GBBR

#BlessAVet is a huge initiative for this film launched in partnership with Disabled American Veterans, Fandango, and the film God Bless the Broken Road where people can contribute to give a veteran a night out to dinner and to go see God Bless the Broken Road in theaters this September. Visit http://bit.ly/BlessAVetGen for more information!

 

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“Maximum Impact” wins big at the Action on Film 2018 MEGAFest

 Russian Film Star and Action Legend Alexander Nevsky won big at the Action on Film 2018 MEGAFest over the weekend.  MAXIMUM IMPACT which Nevsky produced and stars in won “Best Action Film of the Year” along with wins for “Best Action Sequence” and “Best Special Effects.” 
 
In addition, Nevsky received the festival’s “Breakout Action Star of the Year” Award and co-star Matthias Hues received the festival’s Icon Award.

“MAXIMUM IMPACT is the biggest film in my career and I’m so glad it was recognized in such a great way! I’m also happy to receive the “Breakout Action Star Award” and would like to thank “Action on Film International Film Festival” and Mr. Del Weston for this honor. But I couldn’t be here without my idols Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ralf Moeller and Matthias Hues so I would like to thank them too for all the inspiration and support over the years!” said Nevsky.

 
Nevsky received his Awards from Dr. Robert Goldman and Michael DePasquale Jr at the star studded MEGAFest Award Shows which were held at the RIO Hotel Las Vegas and other area venues.

 
MAXIMUM IMPACT will be released in theaters September 28, 2018, and On Demand and Digital Video on October 2, 2018

 

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Film Review: “The Happytime Murders”

THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS
Starring:  Melissa McCarthy, Elizabeth Banks and Joel McHale
Directed by:  Brian Henson
Rated:  R
Running time:  1 hr 31 mins
STX Entertainment

It’s been almost exactly 35 years since I met Jim Henson.

In September 1983 I was at the World Science Fiction Convention in Baltimore, where one of the films being promoted that year was “The Muppets Take Manhattan.”  Knowing Mr. Henson was going to be in attendance I took a couple photos with me.  One of him and Kermit the Frog taken behind the scenes of “The Muppet Movie” and one from “The Dark Crystal.”  I tracked him down and he very graciously signed both.  I got lucky because he happened to be walking around with Gary Kurtz, who produced “The Dark Crystal,” so I got his autograph also.  He was very friendly and, in speaking with him, I could tell he had a great sense of humor.  Which tells me he would love his son’s latest film, “The Happytime Murders.”

(Ominous voice) “In a world where humans and puppets live together….”

Meet Phil Phillips (voiced by Bill Barretta).  He’s a former puppets cop turned private detective.  Actually, he’s been the ONLY puppet cop.  Due to a mishap that led to the killing of an innocent bystander, Phil was fired and a law was put into place forbidding puppets to be police officers.  One day Phil is hired by a mysterious lady-puppet.  His leads take him to an adult bookstore, where he runs into Bumblypants, one of the puppet characters of the popular 80’s kids show “The Happytime Gang.”  As Phil investigates another part of the shop, Bumblypants is murdered.  Soon, other members of the cast are also brutally murdered and the finger points at Phil.  Can he clear his name?  Maybe.

A fun combination of live-action and puppets, “The Happytime Murders” is an outrageously raunchy look at what life may have been like on a certain “Street” if that show had taken place in the worse part of the worse town ever.  In the world of “Happytime” humans and puppets co-exist, though the puppets are often horribly treated.  Call it “Apuppethied.”  Phil’s former police partner, Detective Connie Edwards (McCarthy) is called in to investigate the case and must reluctantly team up with Phil before the entire cast of the show is murdered.  Along the way they must deal with a world full of sex, drugs and violence.  This isn’t your parent’s “Street.”

Let me say this up front (or in the middle):  THIS IS NOT A KIDS MOVIE.  Don’t be fooled by the puppets and the bright lights.  Taking a child to this film will traumatize them for life.  So, again, unless you want to see a puppet re-enactment of Sharon Stone’s famous reveal from “Basic Instinct,” or want to explain to your little one what an eight-armed reach-around is, leave them home.  That being sad, THIS IS AN ADULTS MOVIE.  The jokes are funny, the visuals outrageous and the overall mood of the film will put a smile on your face.  The combination of human and puppet characters is well portrayed, and as the film goes on, you forget your watching puppets.  They become believable characters, which is what you need to make a film work, especially a comedy.  Like “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?,” the melding of human and non-human characters is seamless.  Well, except for the seams on the puppets.  J

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Win Passes to the Kansas City screening of “Searching”

Media Mikes has teamed up with their friends at Sony Pictures to give (50) readers and a guest the chance to be among the first in Kansas City to see the new film “Searching.

All you have to do is click HERE.  The first (50) readers to do so will receive a pass for (2) to attend the screening on August 23rd at the AMC Studio 24 Theatre in Olathe, Kansas.  This is a first come/first serve giveaway.  Once the allotted (50) passes have been claimed, the giveaway has ended.  Good Luck!

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Attention Florida Friends: Joel D. Wynkoop needs your vote!!

Over the years, Media Mikes has mentioned Joel D. Wynkoop.  A long time Tampa friend of mine, Joel is known for his locally produced horror films and is quite the cult hero in (and beyond) the Sunshine State.  He also has his own magazine that not only promotes his work, but the work of other aspiring actors in Florida.

The on-line site Creative Loafing Tampa Bay is compiling votes for its 2018 BEST OF THE BAY contest and Joel has been nominated in the category of Best Actor.  I’m hoping you readers will click HERE and, in the category of Best Actor, cast a vote for Joel.  For some reason, nominees are listed alphabetically by FIRST name, so look for Joel under the “J’s.”

For a look at some of Joel’s work, click HERE

Thanks!

 

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Win Passes to the Kansas City screening of “The Happytime Murders”

Media Mikes has teamed up with the friends at STX Entertainment to give (50) readers and a guest the chance to be the first to see the new outrageous comedy “The Happytime Murders.”

The film will be screened on Wednesday, August 22nd at the B&B Overland Park Theatre and will start at 7:00 pm

All you have to do is click HERE.  The first (50) to do so will receive a pass for (2) to attend the screening.   This is a first come/first serve giveaway.  Once the (50) passes have been claimed the giveaway has ended.  Good Luck!!

“The Happytime Murders” opens on Friday, August 24th.

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Film Review – “BLACKkKLANSMAN”

BLACKkKLANSMAN
Starring:  John David Washington, Adam Driver and Topher Grace
Directed by:  Spike Lee
Rated:  R
Running time:  2 hrs 15 mins
Focus Features

Spike Lee and I go way back.

The movie theatre I managed in Baltimore was in an urban area.  I proudly showed “She’s Gotta Have It” and “School Daze.”  I was (and still am) angry that “Do the Right Thing” wasn’t nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award and I was thrilled to meet him and speak for a few minutes in Washington D.C. while he very graciously signed my “Malcolm X” script.  I should also mention that I silently cursed him when he shot a reel of his film “Crooklyn” in the widescreen format but intentionally didn’t adjust it, giving the film a look that caused many customer complaints and passes given out.  He’s made more good movies than bad and this week he’s here with one of his best.

It’s the 1970s.  Ron Stallworth (Washington) is a black police officer in a time where, if you’re the first one on the scene of a crime, your fellow officers may think YOU are the perp.    One day, while reading the newspaper, Ron comes across an ad for the local chapter of the KKK.  As a joke, he sends in for his membership card and is delighted to get it.  When Ron is invited to meet the membership, he agrees, sending fellow officer Flip Zimmerman (Driver) in his place.  Zimmerman is Jewish and has to learn to keep his emotions to himself when surrounded by the idiot gang he finds himself a part of.  As Ron/Flip get deeper into the group, they soon find themselves chatting up David Duke, then the first Grand Wizard of the KKK, today pretty much a punchline.  When Duke is scheduled to come to Ron’s town, things go from comical to serious as the groups true goals are announced.

Powerful and pertinent, “Blackkklansman” is a film that deals with both the past and the present.  Director Lee and co-writers Kevin Willmott, Charlie Wachtel and David Rabinowitz have created a world that anyone over 21 will recognize.  There is humor but then there is horror.  Not violent horror, but the horror at the spoken word.  Can people truly be this vile?  Sadly, yes.

As with many of Lee’s films, a great cast has been assembled.  I was surprised to learn that leading man Washington is the son of Denzel.  If this performance is any indication, Pop better keep an eye on the rear view mirror.  He plays Stallworth with the dignity required, something that wasn’t easy to display in the early 1970s.  Driver is equally good here.  This is the first thing I’ve seen him in since the last two “Star Wars” films and – SPOILER ALERT – though as a filmgoer I will never forgive him for killing Han Solo, I will continue to recognize him as an actor to watch.  As David Duke, Grace is pitch perfect.  He doesn’t scream out his hatred, like his dimwit followers.  He oozes it, like the politician he would later become.

“Blackkklansman” took home the Grand Jury Prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and I look for it to be a front runner when the Oscar nominations roll around.  Do you hear that, Academy?  I don’t won’t to get angry again!

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Win Passes to the Kansas City Advance Screening of “ALPHA”

Media Mikes has teamed up with their friends at Sony Pictures to give (50) readers and a guest the chance to be among the first in Kansas City area to see the new film “ALPHA” at an advance screening to be held on Tuesday, August 14th.

All you have to do is click HERE.  The first (50) people to do so will receive a pass for (2) to attend the screening.  This is a first come/first serve giveaway.    After the allotted (50) passes have been claimed, the giveaway has ended.

The screening will be held at the AMC Towncenter 20 Theatre in Leawood, Kansas and will start at 7:30 p.m.

Good luck!

 

ALPHA opens in theaters August 17th.

CAST: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Natassia Malthe, Leonor Varela

DIRECTOR: Albert Hughes

SYNOPSIS: An epic adventure set in the last Ice Age, ALPHA tells a fascinating, visually stunning story that shines a light on the origins of man’s best friend. While on his first hunt with his tribe’s most elite group, a young man is injured and must learn to survive alone in the wilderness. Reluctantly taming a lone wolf abandoned by its pack, the pair learn to rely on each other and become unlikely allies, enduring countless dangers and overwhelming odds in order to find their way home before winter arrives.

OFFICAL SITE: http://www.alpha-themovie.com/site/www/#/

RATING: PG-13

RUNNING TIME: 96 Minutes

 

 

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Film Review: “The Meg”

THE MEG
Starring:  Jason Statham, BingBing Lee and Rainn Wilson
Directed by:  John Turtletaub
Rated:  PG 13
Running time:  1 hr 53 mins
Warner Bros.

If you’ve learned anything about me over the years, you know that “Jaws” is my favorite film.  That being said, every time a new shark themed film shows up (“Deep Blue Sea,” “Open Water,” “The Shallows,” etc) I have to put my blinders on and do my best not to compare the film to “Jaws.”  However, when the film in question steals whole sequences from the film, I may bet a little testy.

We meet Jonas Taylor (Statham) as he and his rescue team are trying to save the crew of a submerged vessel.  However, just as you think they’re all going to survive, they are attacked by “something,” causing Taylor to leave behind a couple teammates, who inevitably die.  Fade to black and jump ahead a few years.

Welcome to the bottom of the ocean, inside the Mariana Trench.  A bizarre philanthropist (Wilson) has financed an expedition to the trench with the purpose of trying to go deeper.  The idea is that it’s so cold at the bottom of the ocean that maybe you’re not on the ocean’s floor.  Maybe you’re just blocked.  Crazy guy arrives at his sea platform, which is full of scientists and a cute Chinese family (older father, daughter and granddaughter).  The mission is a success, but while down below their sub is attacked by “something.”  Only one person can help them…someone whose life was changed by “something.”  But what?

With a few good special effects shots and a cast that’s trying way too hard, “The Meg” is passable entertainment.  A giant shark that can actually eat people whole is kind of cool, though the filmmakers can’t seem to decide on how big it is.  When it’s out to sea it’s HUGE, knocking over boats and gobbling up people like cocktail peanuts.  But when it comes close to shore, where hundreds of people are bathing, it easily swims by, not one person noticing the 60 foot monster that just passed by.

Director Turtletaub has directed four films since 2004, three of them starring Nicolas Cage, the master of over-emoting.  He would have made a fine substitute to Statham, who has proven himself in other films.  The slow parts between shark appearances start to add up, and the film feels every bit of its almost 2-hour run time.

To steal (and paraphrase) from Woody Allen in “Annie Hall,” a film is like a shark.  It has to keep on moving or it will die.  And what we’re dealing with here…is a dead shark.

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Win Passes to the Kansas City screening of “Mile 22”

 

Media Mikes has teamed up with their friends at STX Entertainment to give (50) readers and a guest the chance to be among the first to see the new Mark Wahlberg film, “Mile 22.”

All you have to do is click HERE.  The first (50) people to do so will receive a pass for (2) to attend the Kansas City advance screening on Wednesday, August 15th at the AMC Studio 28 Theatre in Olathe, Kansas.  The screening will begin at 7:00 pm.

This is a first come/first served giveaway.  Once all (50) passes have been claimed, the giveaway has ended.

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Film Review: “Christopher Robin”

CHRISTOPHER ROBIN
Starring:  Ewan McGregor, Hayley Atwell and Jim Cummings
Directed by:  Marc Foster
Rated:  PG
Running time:  1 hr 44 mins
Walt Disney Pictures

Why do we have to grow up?

I’m 57 (58 next month) and as my childhood gets further and further away, I miss more and more the things of that time.  I think most of us do.  To forget out childhood, and our childhood friends, seems like an impossibility.  But not to Christopher Robin.

When we meet young Christopher (Orton O’Brien), he is being honored at a going away party by his best friends in the Hundred Acre Wood.  As stories are told and gifts exchanged, it is his stuffed bear, Winnie the Pooh (voiced by Cummings) that says what everyone is thinking:  “I wish this could go on forever.”

A film that melts your heart in its first five minutes, “Christopher Robin” follows the title character (McGregor) into young adulthood, where he goes off to school, falls in love, goes to war and then settles down to raise a family.  Now a working-class family man, Robin’s daily duties include cutting costs at the luggage manufacturing company he works for and ducking his Gin Rummy-crazed next door neighbor.  He has long ago put away his drawings from childhood, where he and his friends would have adventures.  His latest adventure – breaking his promise to his daughter and sending she and her mother off on holiday alone.  Another weekend working.  Oh, bother.

A perfect blend of live action and CGI, “Christopher Robin” brings back to life such cherished characters as Tigger (also voiced by Cummings), Eyore (Brad Garrett), Piglet (Nick Mohammed), Rabbit (Peter Capaldi) and Owl (Toby Jones).  Along with Pooh, they do their best to convince a dubious Christopher that you can’t lose the past if you don’t want to.  “Did you let me go,” Pooh asks softly.  Christopher can only ponder the question.

McGregor is perfectly cast as a young husband and father, trying to provide for his family and not realizing that, the more he tries, the further they are drifting apart.  Atwell is just as strong as Christopher’s wife, Evelyn, and young Bronte Carmichael is sadly sweet as their daughter, Madeline.  The special effects are flawless and, if you’re not too careful, you too might find yourself talking to stuffed bears and planning age-old adventures.

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Win an Autographed DVD of the new film “ASTRO”

Media Mikes was proud to be the first site to review the film “ASTRO” immediately after it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival.  Now, we have teamed up with our friends at Avail Films to give (2) lucky readers a chance to win an autographed DVD copy of the film.

All you have to do is let us know below what has been the best “under the radar” film you have seen this year.  (2) random entries will be selected and they will receive a DVD which has been autographed by the film’s director, Asif Akbar.

This giveaway runs through Sunday, August 12, 2018 at 5:00 pm CST.  To read MovieMike’s review of “ASTRO,” click HERE

Good luck!

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Kansas City Theater Review: “Hairspray – the Musical”

“Hairspray – the Musical”

Starlight Theater – Kansas City, Missouri

July 27, 2018

 

I spent 13 years living in Baltimore.  As a movie theatre manager I was very fortunate to manage the theatre of choice of local filmmaker John Waters.  He was a frequent guest and, when I asked, would stop by the office for a few minutes after his film just to talk about what he had coming up.  Of course, I was glad to play the original film “Hairspray,” and am proud to be friends with some of the local talent used in the film.  Years later, Mr. Waters took the film to Broadway, where, 15 years ago, the musical version earned 13 Tony Award nominations, winning 8, including Best Musical.   This week, the fun and energy you can only find in Charm City is on display at the Starlight Theater as “Hairspray – the Musical” arrives.

Baltimore 1962.  Like many cities in America, civil rights are on the front burner.  We meet Tracy Turnblad (an outstanding Jessica Alcorn) as she greets the day, and the audience, with the bouncy “Good morning, Baltimore.”  Tracy is a fan of the Corny Collins afternoon dance program on television and secretly dreams to not only be a dancer on the show, but to end up in the arms of the show’s best male dancer, Link Larkin (Eric Geil).  Tracy lives at home with her parents.  Mother Edna (Brad Oscar) takes in washing and hasn’t been outside the apartment in years.  Her father, Wilbur (Bruce Roach), runs a joke shop called the Har-Har Hut.  Tracy has a friend named Penny, who encourages her to follow her dream.  And so she does.

First off, I must comment on the energy the entire cast brought to the show.  It’s always a plus when you can sense that the cast and crew WANT to be there.  The musical numbers were infectious.  If you knew the words (guilty) you quietly sang along.  If you didn’t, you were dancing in your seats.  As Tracy, Ms. Alcorn soars.  She is the heart and spirit of the show and she shines in a role that a lesser actress could easily dilute spirit-wise.  Supporting roles played by Katie Karel (Penny), Cathy Barnett (Velma Van Tussle) and Erin Riley (Amber) stand out here, as does Regina Levert whose Motormouth Maybelle steals the scenes she is in.

And I would be remiss if I didn’t note that Kansas City audiences are having the rare treat of seeing a true Broadway legend in Brad Oscar.  Ever since Harvey Fierstein first originated the character, Edna has been played with dignity.  Mr. Oscar continues that tradition here.

“Hairspray – the Musical” plays at Starlight through August 2nd.  For tickets to those shows click HERE.

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Film Review: “Mission: Impossible – FALLOUT”

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT
Starring:  Tom Cruise, Henry Cavill and Ving Rhames
Directed by:  Christopher McQuarrie
Rated:  PG 13
Running time:  2 hrs 27 mins
Paramount

I’m curious if Tom Cruise has in his contracts a clause that says he must run in his films.  In early films like “Taps” and “The Outsiders” he ran with others.  He was constantly running to school in “Risky Business.”  “Legend.”  “The Firm.”  He raced Robert Duval at the end of “Days of Thunder.”  Hell, even though he spends most of the film in a wheelchair, he found time to run in “Born on the Fourth of July.”  But none of these films can prepare you for the mileage he covers in his latest adventure as Ethan Hunt: “Mission: Impossible – FALLOUT.”

The film begins with Hunt (Cruise) and his Impossible Mission Force (IMF) attempting to retrieve three pieces of hardware needed to outfit nuclear bombs.  However, when one of his force-mate’s life is put in jeopardy, Ethan chooses them over the success of the mission and the hardware is absconded with.  Cue the music!

Not only the best of the “Mission: Impossible” films, “FALLOUT” is also one of the best films of the year.  After an introductory scene that would have made the opening moments of most James Bond films seem tame, Hunt and company are soon introduced to CIA Agent August Walker (Cavill, out of his Superman uniform but just as bad-assed), a no-nonsense kind of guy who certainly would have let a member of his team die and not give it a second thought.

There are so many twists and turns here that to go into too much detail about the rest of the film would give away some nice plot points.  Suffice it to say that Cruise easily covers a few miles by way of his fleet feet.  Run, Ethan, run.

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Film Review: “King Cohen”

KING COHEN

Starring:  Larry Cohen, J.J. Abrams and Michael Moriarty

Directed by:  Steve Mitchell

Rated:  Not Rated

Running time:  1 hour 49 mins

Darkstar Pictures

 

As a teenager there were two film trailers shown on television that not only scared the hell out of me, but that I still remember vividly to this day.  One was for the film “Magic,” featuring Anthony Hopkins, Ann-Margaret and a dummy named Fats, who would look into the camera and recite, “Hocus, pocus…we take her to bed.  “Magic” is fun.  YOU’RE DEAD!”  The other one began like this:  “There’s only one thing wrong with the Davis baby.  IT’S ALIVE!”

 

“King Cohen” is an excellent documentary about filmmaker Larry Cohen, whose films, including “It’s Alive!,” “The Stuff”  and “Q” have a devoted following of fans, including such successful directors as J.J Abrams, John Landis and Martin Scorcese.  All three of these men face the camera and expound on the effect Cohen has had on their own projects.  Abrams recalls a time when he was fifteen years old and running into Cohen on a Los Angeles street.  Cohen was lost and the young man pointed him in the right direction.  Decades later, when the two meet again, Cohen remembers Abrams as the kid who gave him directions.

 

Cohen grew up like many people in show business…wanting to be in show business.  He broke into television in the 1960s, writing for such shows as “Surfside Six,” “The Fugitive” and “Branded.”  Occasionally Cohen was ahead of the times.  A script he wrote for the show “Naked City” was turned down for being to “rough” for the times.  30 years later, Cohen sold the script to “N.Y.P.D. Blue.”

 

The film looks at the various films in Cohen’s career, with Cohen and others talking about his filmmaking process.  Cohen was often a true guerilla filmmaker, often putting a cameraman up on a fire escape and filming the passerby’s reactions.  For one film, he required a parade of 5,000 New York City.  To get the shot, he dressed Andy Kaufman up as a cop and had him join the rest of the boys in blue in marching across the city.  While filming a film dealing with J. Edgar Hoover in Washington D.C., Cohen learns the address where the former F.B.I. director lived and films a few scenes on the front lawn.

 

This film covers pretty much Cohen’s filmography, focusing more on the most popular films, especially “Q” and “The Stuff.”  Interviews with fellow filmmakers, crew members and actors such as Michael Moriarty and Eric Roberts gives the viewer every possible look at Cohen’s process.

 

All in all, “King Cohen” is one of the best documentaries about Hollywood to come down the pike in a very long time.  Now, if I could only get that Davis baby out of my head!

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Filed Under: Film Reviews Tagged With: cohen, film, king, review
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