Action Movie For The Day - BLOWN AWAY (1994): Expect lots of fireworks...

A movie most appropriate for the July 4th weekend is 1994's Blown Away which centers on a mad Irish bomber named Ryan Gaerity (Tommy Lee Jones) who escapes prison and comes to America to wreak havoc on the city of Boston and in particularly a cop named Jimmy Dove (Jeff Bridges). It seems years ago that Jimmy and Ryan were partners but once Ryan started killing innocent civilians with his bombs, Jimmy had enough and fled Ireland to come to America, leaving Jimmy to rot in prison. Tommy Lee Jones plays the unhinged bomber to the tee and crafts some wicked bombs that Jimmy must use all his considerable knowledge to diffuse.  And let me tell you something, Ryan definitely puts Jimmy through his paces. Damn! Jimmy looks exhausted pretty much the whole movie. Blown Away came out a few weeks after Speed and was seen as a carbon copy. And while Speed is the better and more enjoyable film, Blown Away does deliver all the bang you could want in an action movie. Co-starring Forest Whitaker, Suzy Amis and Lloyd Bridges (Jeff's real life dad). Check out the explosive trailer below.

TRON - LEGACY takes it to a new level...

The long delayed sequel to the 1982 cult classic film Tron arrives in cinema and it's awesome. The sequel picks up with a flashback to the original as game designer/genius Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) is talking to his young son Sam before taking off and never being seen or heard from again. Fans of the original Tron know that Flynn got sucked into the game world he created and had to battle against the Master Control Program. Flash forward 20 years when Flynn's now grown son (played by Garrett Hedlund) ventures into the digital world called The Grid to find out what happened to his father. When arriving he is quickly captured and forced to participate in gladiator type games where the loser is killed. Sam manages to survive and meets the ruler of this world named Clu (also played by Bridges but de-aged thru digital effects to look about 30 years old). Clu wants to track down Flynn as well but for his own personal reasons and Sam is caught in the middle. He is aided by Quorra (Olivia Wilde in a terrific performance) a woman who has been Flynn's protector. The storyline is ok but it does get a little talky and bogged down at times. And the character of Clu's appearance is unsettling. Some times it looks good, other times it looks really fake. That's about my only gripe about this visually stunning film. Well also Bridges as Flynn is a little too much at times. Like he's channeling his character The Big Lebowski for the most part. Hedlund is good as Sam though. But it's Wilde who gives the best performance. She may remind you of Trinity from the Matrix films, except Quorra is a lot more fun and even human, despite being a program, more or less. Wilde infuses Tron with some personality. Of course the visual effects are the main draw of this film and they do not disappoint. The digital world of Tron is a sight to behold. And the action scenes are thrilling from the combat games to what I believe to be the best sequence in the film, the light cycle chase. It just takes hold of you and carries you along for the ride. The thumping music score by Daft Punk is another plus. It positively drives the film with all the beats and pulsating sounds. Tron Legacy is a bold new film that will please fans of the original and bring in newcomers as well. It's a must see.
B

TRON:LEGACY is almost here...

The much anticpated sequel Tron: Legacy is almost here. The film hits theatres next Friday in IMAX 3D. If there is any movie worth seeing in IMAX 3D, it looks to be TRON. Starring Jeff Bridges and Olivia Wilde.