cult film freak: ryan reynolds

Showing posts with label ryan reynolds. Show all posts

Written by James M. Tate / 4/19/2016 / No comments / 2016 , gary oldman , kevin costner , ryan reynolds , thriller , tommy lee jones

KEVIN COSTNER & RYAN REYNOLDS IN CRIMINAL

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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Costner resembling an aged Travis Bickle <u>RELEASE YEAR</u>: 2016</td></tr>
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Lately, within private circles and treadmill conversations, Cult Film Freak has been accused of writing posts that are long. Not <i>too</i> long, mind you, just... long.<br>
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Well that doesn't concern reviews but "articles" about old classic films since it's downright ludicrous to, at this point where any "old school" motion picture has their own dedicated following with books and websites and just about everything else, making just another review about them, just another review: But we'll keep this one, like most of the new release write-ups, short and to the point even though the movie itself doesn't seem to have a point, followable plot, or purpose. Just a few otherwise talented old actors and one young A-list star who recently got his mojo back as the sarcastic superhero DEADPOOL (while ironically, MAN OF STEEL didn't hurt a fledgling Costner). And where Ryan Reynolds fits within the Kevin Costner vehicle is as mysterious as Kevin's own role as a really bad dude, sounding a cross between Kurt Russell's ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK anti-hero Snake Plissken and the man Snake's based on, Clint Eastwood. And yet, by the plot summary alone it's clear that Ryan's an FBI agent whose memories are placed into Costner's CRIMINAL mind, and from this point he and the audience slowly learn that... prepare for a shock coming from Hollywood... the CIA is as crooked as a barrel of venomous rattlers: Seriously, at what point does a Revelation become a timeworn cliché?<br>

2016, gary oldman, kevin costner, ryan reynolds, thriller, tommy lee jones

KEVIN COSTNER & RYAN REYNOLDS IN CRIMINAL

Costner resembling an aged Travis Bickle RELEASE YEAR : 2016 Lately, within private circles and treadmill conversations, Cult Film Freak...

RYAN REYNOLDS IN DEADPOOL

2016, ryan reynolds

RYAN REYNOLDS IN DEADPOOL

Ryan Reynolds as the fast-talking DEADPOOL doing an imitation of the 1970's hey-day magazine pic of Burt Reynolds Hollywood stars of...

RYAN REYNOLDS & BEN KINGSLEY IN SELF/LESS

2015, ben kingsley, ryan reynolds, science-fiction

RYAN REYNOLDS & BEN KINGSLEY IN SELF/LESS

2015 rating: ***1/2 Modern Science-Fiction needs only a simple everyday word or term to make an impossibly far-fetched premise believabl...

Written by James M. Tate / 4/06/2015 / No comments / 2015 , helen mirren , ryan reynolds

HELEN MIRREN & RYAN REYNOLDS IN WOMAN IN GOLD

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnLUY-57Qn7Pe28WrBhI0ysh9OOFwfz9zH6PlcLYWLT3PXTXS9YJ5xL8prbzgFClkmE44sVv0EsJtMZa2TsgNGfszyzgEBP4XMPszgb6ylNmRnsMOOXbNJAzk7PZfBDb-1M-62aEbvASM/s1600/Picture+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnLUY-57Qn7Pe28WrBhI0ysh9OOFwfz9zH6PlcLYWLT3PXTXS9YJ5xL8prbzgFClkmE44sVv0EsJtMZa2TsgNGfszyzgEBP4XMPszgb6ylNmRnsMOOXbNJAzk7PZfBDb-1M-62aEbvASM/s320/Picture+1.png" width="198" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015 rating: ***</td></tr>
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Based on a true story, WOMAN IN GOLD is named after a family-owned painting taken by the Nazis right at the goose-stomping heels of World War II, and in Adolf Hitler’s origin country, Austria…<br />
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The piece itself looks somewhat tacky. What’s universal is the concept of a historic yet personal right being wronged, something GOLD handles with breezy precision despite trying too hard to make both leads a bickering odd couple that eventually, and predictably, connect.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjckKa7SqBwFpGNwWT5ScaAa27nL4fvIBxzKhU_eVMiSyd4QRwMXACxdn0qtuMPlkR-tMk4TXAwfCyatBHM94EPCDTmC4ebcZ4nnMJaLi9kI5E7pkTjpcb3kUaTGjoHjrqoQENjbkVYlQI/s1600/Picture+2.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjckKa7SqBwFpGNwWT5ScaAa27nL4fvIBxzKhU_eVMiSyd4QRwMXACxdn0qtuMPlkR-tMk4TXAwfCyatBHM94EPCDTmC4ebcZ4nnMJaLi9kI5E7pkTjpcb3kUaTGjoHjrqoQENjbkVYlQI/s320/Picture+2.png" width="161" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Titular Artwork</td></tr>
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Helen Mirren’s Maria Altmann, a surviving Jew whose aunt was the painting's subject, and Ryan Reynolds as young American lawyer Randol Schoenberg, struggle to get along during filler moments bridging a globe-spanning court battle ending up in Washington DC. Meanwhile, flashbacks showing the young Maria, played by a fitfully vulnerable yet equally determined Tatiana Maslany, provide a few suspenseful scenes: one in particular involving a foot chase throughout the overtaken city, where, years later, Mirren's Altmann feels very uneasy, and for good reason. <br />
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Sometimes too catered for mainstream audience reactions, other times genuinely thoughtful and always lightly entertaining, GOLD shines more in the past than present. Which doesn’t mean our two leads aren’t capable. Mirren is always good, and wields an endearingly stubborn persona to ultimately counter-balance a more subtle Reynolds, ultimately proving himself worthy in a role that takes the entire film to deliver.

2015, helen mirren, ryan reynolds

HELEN MIRREN & RYAN REYNOLDS IN WOMAN IN GOLD

year: 2015 rating: *** Based on a true story, WOMAN IN GOLD is named after a family-owned painting taken by the Nazis right at the goose...

Written by James M. Tate / 7/18/2013 / 1 Comment / action , comedy , cop , james hong , jeff bridges , kevin bacon , mary-louise parker , ryan reynolds , science-fiction , team-up

RYAN REYNOLDS & JEFF BRIDGES IN R.I.P.D.

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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2013 rating: **1/2</td></tr>
</tbody></table><p>While it really does resemble MEN IN BLACK in both style and structure, especially within the busy and bizarre offices of The Rest in Peace Department… home base for dead cops to find and arrest the undead lurking amongst the city masses… R.I.P.D. is more of a cross between GHOST and GHOSTBUSTERS...<br />
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We begin with two crooked detectives, one played by Ryan Reynolds as Nick and Kevin Bacon as Hayes – but Nick is good deep down and pays the price for having doubts about stealing gold at a drug raid. Upon being killed right after a cool looking shootout, our anti hero descends upward into… not exactly heaven, hell, or purgatory but the Department where little of the film actually takes place.<br />
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Much of the action occurs on the city streets as Nick endures his stubborn partner, a veteran “lawman” originally from the Wild West named Roy. Jeff Bridges fits the part so well he forgot he's not Rooster Cogburn in TRUE GRIT. With a slurred alum-tongued speech pattern and stock world-weary gruffness, Bridges makes a good Oscar to his Felix-partner Reynolds, who, surprisingly enough, can also play rough n’ tumble pretty well. After all, Nick has more to fight for – his wife’s being visited by his nefarious ex-partner... here’s where GHOST comes in...  and eventually the stolen gold connects to an otherworld plot where, like GHOSTBUSTERS, the undead could paint the town all sorts of bad colors. Some of the funniest parts show Nick and Roy the way humans see them: Roy’s a sexy blonde chick and Nick’s an old Chinese man. At times you’ll want more of the avatars present since Bridges and Reynolds, while likable enough, eventually play second-fiddle to the cartoonish special effects: whenever the dead show themselves in true form they bloat into monstrous Hulk-like beasts.<br />
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Thankfully the movie's so short the flaws don’t really matter, and there’s a pretty decent balance of action and comedy, yet the humor doesn’t rely on one-liners as much as Roy's perpetual reluctance to accept Nick – and vice versa. But the best thing about R.I.P.D. is the direction, flowing like an edgy crime flick on its own right with a jazzy/funky soundtrack and a fun, gritty undertone reminiscent of GET SHORTY and OUT OF SIGHT.</p>

action, comedy, cop, james hong, jeff bridges, kevin bacon, mary-louise parker, ryan reynolds, science-fiction, team-up

RYAN REYNOLDS & JEFF BRIDGES IN R.I.P.D.

year: 2013 rating: **1/2 While it really does resemble MEN IN BLACK in both style and structure, especially within the busy and bizarre o...

Written by James M. Tate / 3/22/2013 / No comments / 2013 , action , adventure , cloris leachman , computer animated , emma stone , fantasy , nicolas cage , road movie , ryan reynolds , science-fiction

THE CROODS

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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="color: #073763;"><b>year: 2013 voices: Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds rating: ***1/2</b></span></span></td></tr>
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Grug is a caveman who successfully protects his family in a cave providing, when the sun goes down, shelter and bonafide safety from the dangerous elements outside. But he’s got a huge problem, and it’s not just the hungry wildcat lurking in the moonlit exterior. His curious teenage daughter wants to explore beyond the boundaries of “normal life.”<br />
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Thus begins our tale centering on a quirky clan of Neanderthals. The action begins as they strategically hunt for food, not an easy task. You’d think there would be a better (more natural) selection than a giant egg. That’s because the Croods exist in a barren landscape where opportunities haven’t opened up… but they’re about to. Boy are they ever.<br />
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After the teenage daughter Eep sees a strange glow outside the closed cave, she ventures into the night and meets a bitchin’ explorer dude named Guy, who’s discovered a thing called Fire. He also has a premonition, and anyone who saw ICE AGE 4: CONTINENTAL DRIFT will get major déjà vu: The land as they know it is about to break apart.<br />
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So when the initial destruction occurs, the Croods discover an inner-world so colorful and vibrant, Sam Raimi’s OZ seems like a plain paper sack in comparison. Within this creature-saturated jungle are even more dangerous elements, including a hovering flock of ravenous birds, man-eating plants, and a bigger, hungrier wildcat. But for Eep at least there’s cool stuff to discover. And we now have a destination: giant mountains in the distance where possible safety awaits. <br />
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Grug and family “capture” the progressively minded Guy, who knows how to hunt bigger game, make shoes and, unlike the cranky patriarch, always looks forward to something called Tomorrow. And eventually, as the gang treks toward their goal, encountering various bizarre hybrids that screech out of the woodwork, an impatient Guy asks The Croods if they know of any pace faster than “wander.” But for a movie that takes its time, allowing each obstacle to move the story along, “wandering” does this entertaining journey just fine.<br />
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The voices of Nicholas Cage and Ryan Reynolds, as Grug and Guy, eventually sound less like themselves; Cage even breaks from his breezy, shuffling tone to bring the Early Man grump-turned-hero to life. But it’s Emma Stone's Eep that really shines through, providing a flawed character with an important (and evolving) arc that will glue everything, and everyone, together.

2013, action, adventure, cloris leachman, computer animated, emma stone, fantasy, nicolas cage, road movie, ryan reynolds, science-fiction

THE CROODS

year: 2013 voices: Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds rating: ***1/2 Grug is a caveman who successfully protects his family in a ca...

Written by James M. Tate / 2/17/2012 / No comments / action , denzel washington , ryan reynolds , suspense , thriller

SAFE HOUSE

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<b>title: </b>SAFE HOUSE<br />
<b>year:</b> 2012<br />
<b>cast: </b>Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds<br />
<b>rating:</b> *1/2<br />
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If there wasn’t so much expository about how formidable Denzel Washington’s rogue agent Tobin Frost is, maybe he wouldn’t have to live up to all that infamy once the story's underway: beginning with a botched heist in South Africa where Frost turns himself in to the C.I.A. and is taken to the first of three Safe Houses, where he’s watched by young agent Weston played by an extremely serious Ryan Reynolds... But there are a lot of really nasty people who want him dead, and the first of several bombastic action scenes, practically impossible to view as the camera rocks back and forth without ceasing, leads to Weston, with Frost as his prisoner, taking to the streets – till Frost shakes his tail and… <br />
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When the duo meet again, and we realize the bad guys are supposed to be the good guys (like in every Hollywood film involving the C.I.A.), it’s a desperate fight for both agents: now teamed up to stay alive. Washington turns in a surprisingly bland performance as a character who, like a Hannibal Lector, is supposed to get into people's minds; and for an agent of his legendary caliber, he seems more confused than cunning. Reynolds holds onto a one-note scowl, and a side story with his put-upon girlfriend means absolutely nothing. But it’s that ever-shaky camera that really sinks this  clichéd thriller.<br />
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So take plenty of sea sick pills before getting on this ride, and prepare to blame America all over again. It's getting awfully tiresome, and worst yet, downright predictable.

action, denzel washington, ryan reynolds, suspense, thriller

SAFE HOUSE

title: SAFE HOUSE year: 2012 cast: Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds rating: *1/2 If there wasn’t so much expository about how formi...

Written by James M. Tate / 12/24/2011 / No comments / comedy , jason bateman , olivia wilde , ryan reynolds , tens

THE CHANGE-UP

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhRlbYaavVSswj-YzGdJXGweU4Ngv5R_qyeaUFiwxaMNhpmO5TH31B5dYzhEGE_3eP-HFIprBfPfI2XGS12Tx31fIL1jr4xAeMlAvWjMXTQHJ0o1CmVoamFLCbN82f2Y3S5ukf9LknWccV/s1600/thechangeup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhRlbYaavVSswj-YzGdJXGweU4Ngv5R_qyeaUFiwxaMNhpmO5TH31B5dYzhEGE_3eP-HFIprBfPfI2XGS12Tx31fIL1jr4xAeMlAvWjMXTQHJ0o1CmVoamFLCbN82f2Y3S5ukf9LknWccV/s320/thechangeup.jpg" width="172" /></a></div><b>title: </b>THE CHANGE-UP<br />
<b>year: </b>2011<br />
<b>cast:</b> Jason Bateman, Ryan Reynolds, Olivia Wilde <br />
<b>rating: </b>**<br />
<br />
The FREAKY FRIDAY template is used in the raunchy comedy genre: involving a mild-mannered suburban father/workaholic lawyer Jason Bateman changing bodies with his womanizing actor best friend Ryan Reynolds. We don’t get to know each character’s contrary lifestyles, or personalities therein, to merit a significant <i>change</i> when it occurs (they both drunkenly pee in a fountain at the same time), which is important since the entire plot resides on how each guy reacts to living a different lifestyle. The jokes try too hard to push the how-far-can-we-go envelope, making each moment involving their uncomfortable circumstances – Bateman’s hunted by his sexy secretary while Reynolds changes diapers and lands deals in the office – seem secondary to the dialog's shock value. But while Jason Bateman never enjoys his “vacation” taking on the single man’s life he so whined about during the first ten minutes, Reynolds, after a while, does seem genuinely contented with his neglected wife. It’s when they switch back to normal, and the envelope is sealed, we realize the movie wasn’t completely pointless… these poor fellas went through hell and back, after all... but is it worth sitting through all over again?

comedy, jason bateman, olivia wilde, ryan reynolds, tens

THE CHANGE-UP

title: THE CHANGE-UP year: 2011 cast: Jason Bateman, Ryan Reynolds, Olivia Wilde rating: ** The FREAKY FRIDAY template is used in the ...

Written by James M. Tate / 8/10/2011 / No comments / action , comic book , danny huston , hugh jackman , marvel comics , ryan reynolds , tens , thriller

X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirqjlY_qKMJwWLyXSwMKS0E3tEReZSxwaD88aS8yAv4EafiSEo8zZjMCNMqtfjS1f-tnN7fjz0fjZB0TMyQlfsr53MSaddXZ8e17QcqmpRZ5qCGJqCmKjhkqetHJ8gZ3bC3g2X2eZoBx_5/s1600/wolverine-x-men-origins-ps3-game.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5639304425526136130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirqjlY_qKMJwWLyXSwMKS0E3tEReZSxwaD88aS8yAv4EafiSEo8zZjMCNMqtfjS1f-tnN7fjz0fjZB0TMyQlfsr53MSaddXZ8e17QcqmpRZ5qCGJqCmKjhkqetHJ8gZ3bC3g2X2eZoBx_5/s200/wolverine-x-men-origins-ps3-game.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; height: 230px; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 146px;" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">title:</span> X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE <br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">year: </span>2011 <br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">cast: </span>Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston, Ryan Reynolds <br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">rating:</span> ***1/2 <br />
<br />
Wolverine, the tough maverick from the X-MEN comics and films, gets his own flick, beginning with a darkly-lit prologue leading to an opening credit sequence where we see our hero, Logan, and his older brother Victor fighting in every American war: leading up to Vietnam where the real story begins, as the boys join a group of special-op mutants, led by the mysterious Stryker. As Logan aka Wolverine parts company with the troop, not wanting to partake in a pointless murder, he ventures alone to Canada, working as a lumberjack. Here’s where the best action resides as Wolverine dodges death by a quicker, more lethal adversary… who’s also his brother – and eventually gets the surgery to make him into the steely-gutted character we all know... thus his real troubles (and some terrific chase scenes) begin. Then, the third act is purely revenge-driven: as Wolverine seeks Stryker with the aid of the surviving members of his former troop. But Victor, played with venomous gusto by Liev Schreiber, wants his own closure, making him a great secondary villain, more action-based than the big boss played with haunting precision by Danny Huston, turning tricks up his sleeve and a plot to rid the world of mutants. Playing out like a fast-paced, gritty Western combined with a Steve McQueen-era war adventure, here's a lean rogue thriller that continuously delivers. And even when it basks in self-absorbed melodrama, it always returns to the kind of stuff comic book fans, or anyone who loves non-stop action, paid to see.

action, comic book, danny huston, hugh jackman, marvel comics, ryan reynolds, tens, thriller

X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE

title: X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE year: 2011 cast: Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston, Ryan Reynolds rating: ***1/2 Wolverine, ...

Written by James M. Tate / 6/18/2011 / 1 Comment / ryan reynolds , superhero , tens

GREEN LANTERN

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzrY3E0TWYqJwYDLDQEILki6ws1CLr7mzo9aaWgH9sZFJxZv1JZAY-7QuISsmJ4b-o7p0iCVNgDtQxkoa8Gn9QHZPUni5FMaDt2tV97cJs8pjNoGPeOsh4_y2M-2MRrUpzuSiudTmc7N-l/s1600/GL.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="400" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619493463501762066" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzrY3E0TWYqJwYDLDQEILki6ws1CLr7mzo9aaWgH9sZFJxZv1JZAY-7QuISsmJ4b-o7p0iCVNgDtQxkoa8Gn9QHZPUni5FMaDt2tV97cJs8pjNoGPeOsh4_y2M-2MRrUpzuSiudTmc7N-l/s200/GL.jpg" style="float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 160px;" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2011 rating: *</td></tr>
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<i><span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="color: #073763;"><b>There are a few things a Superhero movie needs, that is, besides the superhero. The origin of power and how they acquire it, and a villain. This has neither. Well, not really... </b></span></span></i><br />
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The tale begins in outer space, introducing another world and a big nasty alien destroying it, making one of the good aliens… a superhero in his own right… escape with an important ring. He makes for the closest planet to pass on the power, and crash lands on Earth. Meanwhile, a cocky test pilot played by Ryan Reynolds who, like Tom Cruise in TOP GUN, is a handsome hotdogger with a dead dad to live up to and can’t be trusted because of his inevitable method of screwing things up.<br />
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Now for the origin of his superpowers: how does he become the Green Lantern? Much too easy. And what happens next? He’s transported to that other world (imagine if the Hulk owned a "Brite-Lite" discotheque) where he gets a quick history lesson, learns to use his powers, and then quits: all within the course of (what seems like) ten minutes. Then, upon returning to Earth as if he’d gone to a pizza parlor, he learns the Military has found the alien’s space ship, and a senator’s frustrated son, Peter Saarsgard lazily channeling John Malkovich, gains his own power – but on accident – from the same alien: turning him into a humanoid version of an overcooked pizza crust instead of a green-clad supermodel.<br />
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This is a difficult, if impossible, film to review. And yet, there’s really nothing to give away or spoil, since nothing really happens. While Reynolds isn't as awful as the script, his continuous disbelief about the situation at hand gives the impression we're watching, and he's experiencing, a parody instead of the real thing. And the only plus is his method of creating various objects, from race cars to machine guns to fighter planes, to battle and/or thwart impending forces: but who he’s fighting, and why’s he’s fighting, and what he’s fighting for, remains a complete mystery.<br />
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And as for the love interest: there's been deeper romances on Nickelodeon sitcoms. Better character-development too. (And now, some Ryan Reynolds for nostalgia fans, from the classic soap FIFTEEN.)<br />
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ryan reynolds, superhero, tens