Tuesday, February 17, 2015

"John Wick" (2014)

Starring Keanu Reeves, Alfie Allen and Michael Nyqvist
Written by Derek Kolstad
Directed by Chad Stahelski and David Leitch
Rated R - Violence, nudity, strong language
Running Time: 101 Minutes
Trailer

John Wick (Keanu Reeves) grieves the loss of his wife (Bridget Moynihan). Not long after her funeral, a package arrives at his door — a small puppy named Daisy, a gift from his wife so that John will have something to love and won't have to grieve alone. Unfortunately for John Wick, his bad luck is going to continue. Iosef Tarasov (Alfie Allen), the spoiled son of the mobster John used to work for, takes a liking to John's car — a 1969 Ford Mustang. When John refuses to sell it to him, Iosef gathers his buddies and breaks into John's home in the night. They beat John, kill Daisy and steal his car.

Big. Mistake.

Because John Wick, as Iosef's father Viggo Tasarov (Michael Nyqvist) explains, was the Boogeyman — an assassin so good, and so feared, that killing him will be next to impossible. Viggo is not unsympathetic to John's plight, but he certainly can't allow him to simply kill his son. And so, Viggo puts a contract out on John Wick... and prays someone will get lucky.

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

"The Frozen Ground" (2013)

Starring Nicolas Cage, John Cusack and Vanessa Hudgens
Written and directed by Scott Walker
Rated R - Language, violence, drug use, nudity
Running Time: 105 Minutes
Trailer

In Anchorage, Alaska, in 1983, a young prostitute named Cindy (Vanessa Hudgens) claims that Robert Hansen (John Cusack) abducted, raped and held her captive in his home. But since Hansen is an upstanding member of the community with a wife and kids, the police won't even bother investigating him. One officer, however, thinks more is going on here than meets the eye and hands the case over to the Alaska State Police, catching the attention of Jack Halcombe (Nicolas Cage) who is investigating a series of bodies found strewn throughout the Alaskan wilderness.

Halcombe begins to suspect that Hansen might be a serial killer, and attempts to connect him to more than a dozen murders across more than a decade. Even as the evidence mounts, however, Halcombe discovers that it may not be enough to catch the meticulous and overly-cautious Hansen. And when Hansen discovers that Cindy is helping the police, she becomes his next target -- the one that got away.