Blow Out (1981)

I have been hearing about this movie forever and it was finally available on Netflix. I can understand now what all the hullabaloo was about this is...it's quite good.

Jack Terry (John Travolta) is a B movie sound technician who just flies by the seat of his pants and doesn't take his work seriously. One night while recording natural sounds on a bridge, he sees a car fly into the water. Terry dives into the water and saves a woman trapped in the backseat. While at the hospital, a man tells Jack to forget everything that happened. The deceased driver of the car was a political bigwig and presidential hopeful. Jack wasn't sure what he was shutting up about, but he does until he finds something shocking. Jack determines the crash was no accident, and now all he has to do is figure out the how and why. While this is going on, a serial killer is on the loose who may or may not be working in conjunction with the cover-up. Jack and the woman are now in an unwitting fight for their lives.

Despite it's very 80s style and music, Brian De Palma directed a great psychological thriller that keeps you guessing. Maybe I should've picked up on the ending sooner, but the pace of the film really helps the audience stay in the moment. I'd read a lot of reviews talking about the ending being lackluster. Without giving anything away, I can understand the argument but I thought the film wrapped up precisely as it should. I love a good thriller, and this is one for moviegoers like me. Grade: A-

From Paris With Love (2010)

A good movie this was not, but I did have a mild amount of fun during the action scenes. John Travolta has the distinct ability to not pick out great plots for his movies, but he does have fun with them.

James (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) is a top aide to the US Ambassador in France but he's also trying to become a CIA operative at the same time. He lives with his fiance in Paris while trying to balance the job he has with the job he is passionate about getting. One day, the call comes to meet his new partner, Charlie (Travolta). Charlie is not the picture of CIA class. His clothes are as grungy as his crime fighting style. With both James and Charlie trying to adjust to each other and figure out if they can possibly work together, a problem keeps rearing its ugly head: Cocaine. The laws against drugs in France help lead the two towards a bigger problem and now they have to see if they can stop an assassination attempt. Maybe this is the thing that brings them together.

Like I said, the action was fun. It had some very unique and very intense action scenes that managed to use over-the-top violence with a balance of realistic fight scenes. Other than that, there was not a whole lot to offer. The plot was simple and been done to death. It's got some fun parts, but I can't really recommend this.

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009)

Tony Scott has a way of directing action thrillers that are just fun eye candy (see: Enemy of the State and Deja Vu). This movie is no exception to that rule.

Walter Garber (Denzel Washington) is a demoted subway dispatcher who starts his day like any other one, by directing trains throughout New York City. His day changes when Ryder (John Travolta) and his band of merry men hijacks the Pelham 123. Once the dispatch realizes there is a problem, they alert the proper authorities. The problem being that once Ryder talked to Garber, he was the only one he wanted to talk. Garber was then the go-between for Ryder, the police and the nameless NYC mayor (James Gandolfini). The hijacking took a lot of planning and Ryder wasn't going to go down without a fight.

This movie was nothing great, but it wasn't bad either. It was your fun, basic action thriller with a couple of nice plot surprises. The reasoning behind Ryder's heist was something new and refreshing. If you're just looking for solid movie, watch this.

Bolt (2008)

This completes the great year for animation that was 2008. Wall-E, Kung Fu Panda, and now Bolt. It had all the elements of a animated movie, with the heart of a live action flick.

Bolt is a dog who thinks the television show he works on with his owner/co-star Penny is completely real. Through one circumstance, Bolt thinks Penny's kidnapping is real and escapes to go rescue her. This leads him across the country, needing him to find his way back to LA. He takes in two new allies, the best being Rhino, the hamster who also thinks his show is true life. He faces some hard truths and lessons about life.

It was not better than the two animated movies mentioned earlier, but it was definitely worthy of the three spot it got at the Oscars. Whoever plays Rhino needs to get more voiceover work because he was fantastic.