Category Archives: true stories

“Thank You For Your Service” Trailer, Featurette, Interviews

based on a book, drama, true stories, , , , , , , , , ,

Directed by Jason Hall, Thank You for Your Service follows a group of U.S. soldiers returning from Iraq. They struggle to fit in with a “normal” life, such as being with family and living in general civilian life. It is the memories of a war that threatens to destroy them long after they’ve left the battlefield.

The story is told with a strong ensemble cast led by Miles Teller, Haley Bennett, Amy Schumer, Joe Cole, Beulah Koale, Scott Haze, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Brad Beyer, Omar J. Dorsey, and Jayson Warner Smith. The story is based on the bestselling book by Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and author David Finkel.

This is Jason Hall’s directorial debut. He received recognition for his screenplay American Sniper. He also wrote the script for this heart-wrenching drama.

The trailer and featurette with an in-depth interview with Jason Hall are awesome and touches on the battle our service men experience when they return home. Let’s help them by thanking them for their service and using green mental health treatments, not psychotropic drugs, because they are not the answer.

“American Made” Trailer

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Tom Cruise makes movies that are worth watching because there is so much that happens in his movies, and he works with the best in the industry. He has said in interviews he likes to entertain his audience. That he does.

Directed by Doug Liman, American Made follows Cruise’s character as he juggles in this international escapade based on the outrageous (and real) exploits of a hustler and pilot unexpectedly recruited by the CIA to run one of the biggest covert operations in U.S. history.

Based on a true story, Liman and Cruise worked together on Edge of Tomorrow, the movie co-stars Domhnall Gleeson, Sarah Wright, E. Roger Mitchell, Jesse Plemons, Lola Kirke, Alejandro Edda, Benito Martinez, Caleb Landry Jones, and Jayma Mays.

Liman other credits include The Bourne Identity and Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Watching this trailer, I know this movie is going to be a rocket ride, never a dull moment. Just too much fun with lots of talented people in front of and behind the camera.

“Tommy’s Honour” Trailer and Clips

based on a book, legend, true stories, ,

Directed by Jason Connery, golf lovers will enjoy this movie and probably have heard of this true story.  Tom and Tommy Morris, father and son, pioneers of professional golf, relied on skill, business acumen, and working-class street smarts to make Tommy one of the world’s first sports superstars and found the modern game of golf.

Jack Lowden, Sam O’Neill, and Peter Mullan look grand in this movie.

“All Eyez On Me” Trailer

drama, true stories, , , , , ,

Directed by Benny Boom, All Eyez On Me follows the true, untold story of a prolific rapper, actor, poet and activist, Tupac Shakur. The movie begins with Shakur from his early days in New York City to his evolution into a successful and well-known rapper before his untimely death at the age of 25.  Shakur odds were against him, but raw talent, powerful lyrics, and a revolutionary mindset propelled him to become a cultural idol with a legacy that grew after his passing.

The trailer looks good, but as most trailers do, it tells the whole story of the movie. Shipp should look like Shakur, and I am impressed.

“The Zookeeper’s Wife” Trailer and Clips

based on a book, drama, true stories, ,

Directed by Niki Caro, The Zookeeper’s Wife stars Jessica Chastain as Antonina and her husband, Dr. Jan Żabiński, played by Johan Heldenbergh. They are the keepers of the Warsaw Zoo, one of the largest and most prolific zoos in 1930s Europe.

In 1939, Antonina opened the zoo gates as a crowd had gathered to view the many species on display. Her husband Jan, recently appointed the director of the Warsaw Zoo, faces the scornful yet envious advances of Dr. Lutz Heck, played by Daniel Brühl, the head of the Berlin Zoo, as “Hitler’s zoologist.”

Shortly, Antonina and her son Ryszard, played by Timothy Radford and later Val Maloku, are shocked to witness the aerial bombardment of Warsaw as German forces storm Poland. The zoo is not to be spared, and bombs destroy the cages and kill many of the animals. As Polish resistance collapses under overwhelming odds, Dr. Heck arrives at the zoo, beseeching Antonia to let him save the “prize” specimens, which she reluctantly grants, but then learns that his motives are suspect.

Warsaw becomes the scene of a monstrous upheaval with Jews first identified and their stores and shops looted. Jan and his wife decide to help a Jewish friend hide from the Nazis. The Zabrinskis devise an elaborate plan to spirit away Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto, even as it is being devastated by a relentless, murderous Nazi juggernaut. Snatching children and adults from the ghetto, over 300 “guests” inhabit the Zabrinski’s home on their way to freedom, with new identification papers and, sometimes, even a wig and a makeover to fool the Nazis.

Watching Chastain in the trailers and clips shows so much talent. She is so talented and from my hometown.

Films directed by Niki Caro:

Whale Rider

McFarland, USA

North Country

“The Lost City of Z” Trailer

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Written and directed by James Gray and based on author David Grann’s nonfiction bestseller, The Lost City of Z tells an unbelievable true story of British explorer Percy Fawcett, played by Charlie Hunnam, who journeys into the Amazon in 1906 and discovers evidence of a previously unknown, advanced civilization. During the two-year Royal Geographical Society expedition, Fawcett and his aide-de-camp Henry Costin (Robert Pattinson) map uncharted territory in Bolivia and, with the help of local tribesmen, trace the legendary Rio Verde upriver to its breathtaking source. Deep in the heart of the rainforest, Fawcett discovers weathered pottery shards which seem to offer proof of a lost city.

During the two-year Royal Geographical Society expedition, Fawcett, and his aide-de-camp Henry Costin, played by Robert Pattinson, map uncharted territory in Bolivia and, with the help of local tribesmen, trace the legendary Rio Verde upriver to its breathtaking source. Deep in the heart of the rainforest, Fawcett discovers weathered pottery shards which seem to offer proof of a lost city.

When Fawcett returns to England and proclaims his belief in an ancient South American civilization he calls the Lost City of Z, he’s ridiculed by members of the scientific establishment who regard indigenous populations as “savages.”

Fawcett also confronts the toll his adventures have taken on his spirited wife Nina, played by Sienna Miller, and their young son, who was born in his absence. With Nina’s help and encouragement, Fawcett defies the skeptics and organizes a second expedition that includes wealthy adventurer James Murray, played by Angus Macfadyen.

The rest of the movie is adventurous and eye-opening in what a person will go through to make a true discovery.  The tale continues and the ending you should know if you are up on famous explorers.

“A United Kingdom” Trailer

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Directed by Amma Asante, A United Kingdom follows the lives of two very extraordinary people during a time of significant change in South Africa. Based on the true story of the forbidden love of King Seretse Khama of Botswana, played by David Oyelowo, and Ruth Williams, played by Rosamund Pike, a white woman from London, which caused an international uproar when they married in the late 1940s just as apartheid was being introduced into South Africa. It was a decision that altered the course of African history.

It’s good to see Pike in this role. Definitely, it is a unique role from Gone Girl. Asante directed Belle, another true story about crossing the racial line.

Interesting and Absolutely Lowest “Patriots Day” Teaser Trailer

drama, thriller, true stories, , , ,

Directed by Peter Berg, Patriots Day is about the after-effects of an undefinable act of terror. Police Sergeant Tommy Saunders, played by Mark Wahlberg, joins gutsy survivors, first responders, and investigators in a race against the clock to hunt down the bombers before they attack again.

The movie interlaces the stories of Special Agent Richard Deslauriers, played by Kevin Bacon, Police Commissioner Ed Davis, played by John Goodman, Sergeant Jeffrey Pugliese, played by J. K. Simmons, and nurse Carol Saunders, played by Michelle Monaghan. This a horrendous story that chronicle captures the suspense of one of the most high-level manhunts in law enforcement history and the strength of Boston’s people.

Based on a true story, so it is enticing. The cast is brilliant and guided by a true to the core director who worked with Wahlberg on Deepwater Horizon.

“Hidden Figures” Official Trailer

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I saw the first trailer in the movie theaters about two weeks ago and thought, why hasn’t this story been told yet? It is priceless, and everyone needs to see it.

Theodore Melfi’s Hidden Figures is the inconceivable, not surprising, true story of Katherine G. Johnson, played by Taraji P. Henson, Dorothy Vaughan, played by Octavia Spencer, and Mary Jackson, played by Janelle Monáe.

The movie follows a brilliant African-American woman working at NASA who was the brains behind one of the greatest operations. That is the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation’s confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big.

The movie is entertaining, if not educating. I hope to see more movies like this one.