Posts tagged agents
“The Heat” Good Enough to Reheat
Jul 6th
“Good Enough to Reheat”
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
The Heat is another comedy about buddy cops, but the difference in this case is that the two buddy cops are both women.
In fact, I have read that this is the only film this summer in which the two stars are women, and yet it is definitely not a chick flick.
Sandra Bullock stars as Sarah Ashburn, an FBI agent who is slim, prim, and grim, so much so, in fact, that none of her fellow agents like to work with her.
Melissa McCarthy stars as Shannon Mullins, a Boston police detective who is rude, crude, and lewd, and whose unorthodox methods make her very successful.
After Shannon captures one criminal, she tells him, “It’s not about luck, Pal. It’s not about luck.”
Now, Sarah’s boss is going to be moving up and out, and Sarah wants to be promoted and to take over his job. So, she is transferred temporarily to Boston to find and capture a drug lord, and if she is successful, her boss tells her that they will talk about the promotion.
Well, Sarah is forced to partner with Shannon on the case, even though neither of them wants to, but again Sarah’s boss tell her that she has to show that she can work with Shannon before they will talk about her promotion.
Shannon tells Sarah that Shannon is intuitive and says what she feels, especially when they go undercover into a nightclub and they change Sarah’s appearance to make her more attractive in order to get close to a criminal that they are after.
Shannon also isn’t afraid to use Russian Roulette in order to get a suspect to talk during an interrogation.
Naturally, there will be times for Sarah and Shannon to go out socializing together, and naturally they will all be funny.
Shannon also has occasion to take Sarah home to meet Shannon’s family, which is interesting because the family doesn’t like Shannon for what she did to her brother, but ultimately funny in the discussion between “narc” and “na’c.”
You can imagine that Sarah and Shannon are successful in catching the drug lord, and you can also imagine that a sequel to this very funny film might already be in the works.
The Heat is good enough to see again, especially if the second time is Part II.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
“This Means War” Has Four Ridiculous Endings
Feb 27th
“Four Ridiculous Endings”
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
This Means War starts off with an excessive beginning like a typical James Bond movie and then quickly turns into a romantic comedy with two men trying to woo the same woman, except that in this case the two men are agents for the CIA.
The woman is Lauren Scott, played by Reese Witherspoon, and when she meets her old boyfriend on the street with his fiancee, she lies to them about her own boyfriend, even though she doesn’t have one.
However, when she tells her friend Trish, played by Chelsea Handler, about her encounter, Lauren says, “I’m going out. I’m dating. I’m meeting friends.”
Meanwhile, the two agents have been grounded by their superior for botching the mission that we saw at the beginning of the movie, and out of boredom, they both sign up for an online dating service.
One is FDR Foster, played by Chris Pine, and the other is Tuck, played by Tom Hardy, and not only are they partners, but they are also best friends.
Well, you can guess it. Trish signs Lauren up for the same dating service without Lauren knowing it, and FDR and Tuck eventually discover that they have both picked Lauren as the woman they would like to get romantically involved with and start dating to see where it leads.
When they find out that they are both dating the same woman, even though they make a gentlemen’s agreement to let the better man win, with all the resources of the CIA at hand, what do you think they will do to interfere with the other one’s chances?
And so we see FDR and Tuck date Lauren and watch the shenanigans that they both pull with supposedly spy equipment and expertise, and we are supposed to believe that the events could actually happen and that they are supposed to be funny.
This is where the movie starts to get really ridiculous.
And, of course, there is still some unfinished business from the botched mission at the beginning of the movie that keeps interfering with the romantic-comedy half of the story.
In other words, there are no surprises in this movie.
There is, however, a ridiculous ending.
No, make that two ridiculous endings.
No, make that three ridiculous endings.
This Means War is a no-surprises movie with four ridiculous endings.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
“Safe House” Is Next to Nothing
Feb 19th
“Next to Nothing”
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
Safe House is a bang-bang, shoot-’em-up, run-run-run, bang-bang, shoot-’em-up-some-more action thriller that is the very epitome of a movie with more style than substance.
It stars Denzel Washington as a rogue CIA agent who has been on the run for nine years and Ryan Reynolds as an inexperienced CIA agent who is in charge of a safe house run by the CIA in Capetown, South Africa.
Matt Weston has been in charge of the safe house for only 12 months, but hasn’t seen any action or activity at all in that year.
In fact, at the beginning of the movie, when he checks in with his superior at CIA headquarters, Matt says, “I’m dying here. What happened to the post in Paris?”
And then everything changes drastically for Matt. A team of agents bring rogue agent Tobin Frost to the safe house for questioning.
Frost is so notorious that even inexperienced Matt recognizes him.
However, during the interrogation, a team of men break into the safe house and start killing everyone, and only Matt and Frost are able to escape, leading to an unbelievable car chase through the streets of Capetown.
Frost is in handcuffs, and he tells Matt that the men want Frost alive, but they will kill Matt if they can.
Back at CIA headquarters, they are aware of what is happening in South Africa, and they admit that Matt is all they have to keep Frost in custody, and so they relay directions to another safe house out in the country and tell Matt to take Frost there.
However, before Matt can get Frost there, they are still being chased by the men intent on killing Matt and capturing Frost, and Matt also has to worry that someone in the CIA set everything up and is directing the chase.
So, whenever Frost escapes from Matt, Matt has to track him down and capture him again, dodge the bullets from the men trying to kill him, and still get Frost to the new safe house.
Oh, and all the action takes place over only two days, there are surprises in store for the audience, but you might be able to guess the final surprise.
Safe House is full of sound and fury, signifying next to nothing.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”