My Review of Gold

        So I recently watched Gold and I'm here to bring you my review. So without further ado...............







        Kenny Wells (played by Matthew McConaughey), a prospector desperate for a lucky break, teams up with a similarly eager geologist and sets off on an amazing journey to find gold in the uncharted jungle of Indonesia. Getting the gold was hard but keeping it is even more difficult, sparking an adventure through the most powerful boardrooms of Wall Street.

       

        This film has a really cool story to learn about, but the story is pretty boring. The film is based off a true story about Bre-X and how they were able to get away with fake gold and sell it for profit and forcing the price of gold to skyrocket to new heights it had never seen before. As mentioned before, it's something cool to learn about being that it's not mentioned much when it comes to massive scandals but it still holds a place in history and this film would've been better as a documentary. For this they had to change the name of the actual people involved and that right there just lets you know that you're not getting the full product. The performances however are great and McConaughey continues his upward trend as a very reliable and viable actor that you want in your films. Edgar Ramirez is perfect in main supporting role and he himself his becoming a better actor with each and every film. The film really struggles with what it wants to be as it transitions between both a comedy and a drama and when it does that it tends to be serious when it should be funny and it tires to be funny in serious moments. One of the big contributors to that is director Stephen Gaghan who is making his first film in over a decade and it really shows just how rusty he is in trying to make this film. Overall this film has a great concept and some great performances, but overall it has just some really poor execution and not knowing what it really wants to be hurts as well. I give Gold a 3 out of 10.

        So ladies and gentlemen what did you think of Gold, what would you rate it and what did you think of my review? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.

                                                                                                                           Jonah Sparks

Weekend Box Office Review 1-27-17 to 1-29-17/ Weekend Preview

        Here are the weekend domestic box office results for the weekend of 1-27-17 to 1-29-17 as well as my 5 key takeaways, as well as my predictions for the top 5 films at the box office this weekend. So without further ado...

Box Office Totals courtesy of boxofficemojo.com

TW	LW	Film	Studio	Weekend	# of Theaters	Total Domestic Gross	Weeks
1	1	Split	Universal Pictures	$25,655,440	3,199	$77,385,530	2
2	-	A Dog’s Purpose	Universal Pictures	$18,222,810	3,059	$18,222,810	1
3	3	Hidden Figures	20th Century Fox	$14,003,275	3,351	$104,024,969	6
4	-	Resident Evil: The Final Chapter	Screen Gems	$13,601,682	3,104	$13,601,682	1
5	5	La La Land	Lionsgate	$12,233,928	3,136	$106,693,300	8
6	2	xXx: The Return of Xander Cage	Paramount Pictures	$8,601,858	3,651	$33,839,608	2
7	4	Sing	Universal Pictures	$6,408,210	2,702	$257,599,585	6
8	6	Rogue One: A Star Wars Story	Lucasfilm/ Walt Disney Pictures	$5,274,513	2,049	$520,200,086	7
9	7	Monster Trucks	Paramount Pictures	$4,177,101	2,496	$28,212,248	3
10	-	Gold	Weinstein Company	$3,471,316	2,166	$3,471,316	1

1. Split had another solid weekend as it was able to hold onto the number 1 spot for back to back weeks.

2. Despite the controversy surrounding it, A Dog's Purpose was able to have a solid opening weekend by making over $18 million.

3. Gold had an absolutely terrible weekend

4. The biggest loser of the weekend was xXx: The Return of Xander Cage as it made 57.3% less than it did last weekend and the biggest winner of the weekend was La La Land as it made 45.2% more than it did last weekend.

5. I went 0 for 5 on my predictions.

Predictions
1. Rings $23 Million
2. Split $19 Million
3. A Dog's Purpose $13 Million

4. Hidden Figures $10 Million
5. The Space Between Us $7 Million

        So ladies and gentlemen what do you think of this weekend's box office totals and what are some of your takeaways? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.

                                                                                                                           Jonah Sparks

My Review of XXX: Return of Xander Cage

        So i recently watched XXX: Return of Xander Cage and I'm here to bring you my review. So without further ado...







        After coming out of self-imposed exile, daredevil operative Xander Cage (played by Vin Diesel) must race against time to recover a sinister weapon known as Pandora's Box, a device that controls every military satellite in the world. Recruiting a new group of thrill-seeking cohorts, Xander finds himself entangled in a deadly conspiracy that points to collusion at the highest levels of government.

       

        This is a very insane yet silly film to watch. In a film like this, you're not expecting a great story and you don't that. You more or less expect a pure action flick with a lot of scenes being utterly ridiculous due to the stunts performed and in the manner in which those stunts are performed. There are some really nice set pieces that will make you stare in amazement, but they just feel way to over the top and it just makes the film feel really stupid with the scenes being in there without any purpose. The performances are forced and the dialogue spoken just seems like a lot of gibberish and it's hard to see a guy like Donnie Yen who is so talented end up in a film like this where he is virtually given nothing to do throughout the entire film. There are a few funny moments in the film as well, but just everything else about the film, it's predictable and the humor is just too obviously noticeable. as mentioned before this film isn't meant to have a good story let alone a decent story, but this film has no story to it whatsoever and it honestly feels like the McGuffen (object the characters are striving to get) in the film is the same as is in every other film like this and really the film as a whole feels like it should've come out in the 90's. Overall this is just a sloppy film that has some great action scenes, but some pretty bad storytelling and dialogue just really make this film a terrible and dreadful piece of filmmaking. I give XXX: Return of Xander Cage a 1 out of 10.

        So ladies and gentlemen what did you think of XXX: Return of Xander Cage, what would you rate it and what did you think of my review? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.

                                                                                                                           Jonah Sparks

My Review of The Founder

        So I recently watched The Founder and I'm here to bring you my review. So without further ado...







        The true story of how Ray Kroc (played by Michael Keaton), a struggling salesman from Illinois, meets Mac (played by John Carroll Lynch) and Dick McDonald (played by Nick Offerman), brothers who were running a burger operation in 1950s Southern California. Kroc was impressed by the brothers' speedy system of making the food and saw franchise potential.

        Out of all of the bio-pics that have come out in recent years, this might be the one of the most compelling and unique ever brought to the big screen. McDonald's is a pop culture and food icon and it is running really strong to this day, but finding out the backstory of how it came to be is one of the more interesting things you'll ever hear. The film has a very Social Network feel to it in the sense it's about a guy who is taking an idea from a set of brothers and then turning into a global empire. After watching the film, you may never want to eat at a McDonald's ever again simply due to the fact that Ray Kroc is a crook and doesn't really deserve any of the credit he got for making McDonald's what it is. Michael Keaton is so good in this film and he makes Kroc look even more despicable and it really just continues to showcase the range Keaton has had his entire career. While the film does focus on much of an evil person Kroc is, it feels like an attack piece against him and there are several things left out of the film that really would change your mind on the decisions he made in the past. Overall this film is a mixed bag of tricks and while it does show the darker side of Kroc's life, there are some moments where you can actually sympathize with him on why he did what he did. I give The Founder an 8 out of 10.

        So ladies and gentlemen what did you think of The Founder, what would you rate it and what did you think of my review? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.

                                                                                                                           Jonah Sparks

My Review of Split

        So I recently watched Split and I'm here to bring you my review. So without further ado...............







        While the mental divisions of those with dissociative identity disorder have long fascinated and eluded science, it is believed that some can also manifest unique physical attributes for each personality, a cognitive and physiological prism within a single being. Though Kevin (played by James McAvoy) has evidenced 23 personalities to his trusted psychiatrist, Dr. Fletcher (played by Betty Buckley), there remains one still submerged who is set to materialize and dominate all the others. Compelled to abduct three teenage girls led by the willful, observant Casey (played by Anya Taylor-Joy), Kevin reaches a war for survival among all of those contained within him - as well as everyone around him - as the walls between his compartments shatter apart.

       

        In something people thought they would never say about a M. Night Shyamalan film, this is a very thrilling and fun film to watch. M. Night Shyamalan's film over the past 15 years haven't really been the greatest in the world and he hasn't really capitalized on the success of The Sixth Sense and his films since then other than Unbreakable are films that you'll usually find on a variety of top 10 worst films of all-time lists. This film however may be the start of the comeback tour for him and it has a lot of vintage Shyamalan moments and it really just let you sit back and just remember how good this guy can actually be. James McAvoy is a very underrated actor and just everything he is in, he is just phenomenal and this film is no exception and the way he is able to seamlessly switch from one personality to another without missing a beat. Also there there is a very surprising performance from Anya Taylor-Joy who just delivers a fabulous performance that is truly heartbreaking once you farther and farther along in the film. Now with M. Night Shyamalan's films there is some sort of twist involved and this one comes after everything that goes on with McAvoy's character and to explain it here is something that is hard to do especially if you've seen his films before and you are able to automatically get so it won't be mentioned here,but do watch the film Unbreakable and then watch this film and you'll understand. One thing that isn't that great about the film is the horror or scary parts and there is really nothing creepy about this film other than how the personalities interact with each other. Overall this is a great return to form for M. Night Shyamalan and it's exciting to see what he'll do going down the road. I give Split a 9 out of 10.

        So ladies and gentlemen what did you think of Split, what would you rate it and what did you think of my review? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.

                                                                                                                           Jonah Sparks

Actor Spotlight of Michael Keaton

        With his new film The Founder being released in theaters recently, I've decide to spotlight Michael Keaton's career by listing the movies he has been in, my 3 favorite films he has been in, list of notable awards he has one as well as any future projects he has in the works. So without further ado...

Michael Keaton's Filmography

Year	Film	Role
1978	Rabbit Test	Sailor
1978	A Different Approach	Filmmaker
1982	Night Shift	Bill Blazejowski
1983	Mr. Mom	Jack Butler
1984	Johnny Dangerously	Johnny Kelly/Johnny Dangerously
1986	Gung Ho	Hunt Stevenson
1986	Touch and Go	Robert “Bobby” Barbato
1987	The Squeeze	Harold “Harry” Berg
1988	She’s Having a Baby	Himself
1988	Beetlejuice	Betelgeuse (Beetlejuice)
1988	Clean and Sober	Daryl Poynter
1989	The Dream Team	William “Billy” Caufield
1989	Batman	Bruce Wayne/ Batman
1990	Pacific Heights	Carter Hayes
1991	One Good Cop	Arthur “Artie” Lewis
1992	Batman Returns	Bruce Wayne/ Batman
1993	Much Ado About Nothing	Dogberry
1993	My Life	Robert “Bob” Jones
1994	The Paper	Henry Hackett
1994	Speechless	Kevin Vallick
1996	Multiplicity	Douglas “Doug” Kinney/”Two”/”Three”/”Four”
1997	Inventing the Abbotts	Narrator/Older Doug
1997	Jackie Brown	Raymond “Ray’ Nicolette
1998	Desperate Measures	Peter J. McCabe
1998	Out of Sight	Raymond “Ray’ Nicolette
1998	Jack Frost	Jack Frost
2000	A Shot at Glory	Peter Cameron
2003	Proco Rosso	Porco Rosso (voice)
2003	Quicksand	Martin Raikes
2004	First Daughter	President Mackenzie
2005	White Noise	Jonathan Rivers
2005	Game 6	Nicholas “Nicky” Rogan
2005	Herbie: Fully Loaded	Raymond “Ray” Peyton Sr.
2006	Cars	Chick Hicks (voice0
2006	The Last Time	Ted “Theodore”
2009	The Merry Gentlemen	Franklin “Frank” Logan
2009	Post Grad	Walter Malby
2010	Toy Story 3	Ken (voice)
2010	The Other Guys	Captain Gene Mauch
2011	Hawaiian Vacation	Ken (voice)
2012	Noah’s Ark: The New Beginning	Noah
2013	Penthouse	Hollander
2014	RoboCop	Raymond Sellars
2014	Need for Speed	Monarch
2014	Birdman	Riggan Thompson
2015	Minions	Walter Nelson (voice)
2015	Spotlight	Walter “Robby” Robinson

Top 3 Favorite Films
1. Birdman

2. Batman

3. Beetlejuice

Michael Keaton's Award & Nominations

Year	Award Type	Film	Win/Nomination
2014	Academy Award for Best Actor	Birdman	Nominated

Future Projects

2017- The Founder
2017- Spider-Man: Homecoming
TBA- American Assassin

        So ladies and gentlemen what do you think of Michael Keaton's acting career? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Jonah Sparks