Author: Gerardo Orlando

“A Man Apart” is a revenge story set against the futile war on drugs. Vin Diesel plays Sean Vetter, a DEA agent working to topple the powerful head of a Mexican drug cartel. After the drug kingpin is captured, Sean’s beautiful wife is murdered in an attack on his home, and a new force in the drug underworld using the name “Diablo” starts to brutally take control of the drug trade. Naturally, Sean wants revenge as he takes aim at bringing down Diablo. Sean and his partner came from the streets and they use all their resources to track him…

John Travolta plays Tom Hardy, a DEA agent investigating the disappearance of an Army ranger drill sergeant (Samuel L. Jackson). Hardy was once a ranger who served with and hated the sergeant. The Chief Warrant Officer (Timothy Daly) brings in Hardy because of his excellent interrogation skills, which naturally upsets Lt. Julia Osborne (Connie Nielsen), who is responsible for the investigation. The interaction between Hardy and Osborne is predictable but the chemistry between Travolta and Nielson works well. Much of the story is told through flashbacks, as different witnesses give conflicting accounts of what happened. There are a number of…

I’m a huge Chris Rock fan. His stand-up routines are hilarious and rival some of the best stuff from Eddie Murphy and Richard Pryor in their prime. His movies, however, have not lived up to the same standard, and “Head of State” is not an improvement. Just before screening this film I caught one of Rock’s HBO specials from the late 1990s on the tube. I laughed the whole way through. Unfortunately, there were more laughs in the last couple of minutes of that special than there were throughout this entire film. In “Head of State” Chris Rock plays Mays…

“Dreamcatcher” is based on a book by Stephen King that follows four men on a cabin trip. The men share a psychic bond developed from their experiences as childhood friends and their relationship with an extraordinary child they called Duddits. The first part of the film is actually very interesting as these characters are introduced and we begin to learn about their interesting relationship. Unfortunately, “Dreamcatcher” breaks down once they encounter a sick hunter who finds their cabin. An interesting story about personal relationships turns into an alien/monster/save the world story with some really gross scenes. Instead of building on…

When you throw Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn and Luke Wilson onto a movie set together and hand them a script like the one Todd Phillips wrote for “Old School,” good things are bound to happen. Add naked wrestling, a dart gun and Snoop Dogg to the mix and suddenly you’ve got one of the year’s best comedies on your hands. “Old School,” set to open nationwide on Friday, Feb. 21, is destined for box-office success thanks to its hilarious script, memorable scenes and magnificent cast. Ferrell (Frank), Vaughn (Beanie) and Wilson (Mitch), starring as three 30-something guys who start a…

The story in “Old School” revolves around three friends in their early 30s who are dealing with the issue that most guys face at one point in their lives. Is it time to grow up or do you still want to act like a kid in college? The three characters are very different. Luke Wilson plays Mitch, a real estate lawyer who discovers at the beginning of the film that his girlfriend has been engaged in some serious extra-curricular activities. Will Ferrell plays Frank, a nice guy who is getting married at the beginning of the film. He thinks he’s…

The story in this excellent film revolves around Hank Grotowski (Billy Bob Thornton), a white man who has grown up in the Deep South with many of the prejudices one might expect to see in a man with his background. Hank, however, also has issues with his family that begin to boil over as the story unfolds. Hank works as a corrections officer with his son, Sonny (Heath Ledger). Hank’s father, played brilliantly by Peter Boyle, also used to work as a corrections officer. Hank and Sonny help to carry out the execution of a black man, played by Sean…

I’ve ragged on Hollywood when it churns out formulaic romantic comedies (see “Two Weeks Notice”), so it’s only fair to point it out as well when it applies to the movies guys usually like. Here we have a couple of formulas wrapped into one film. First, no surprise, it’s basically a vehicle for Martin Lawrence to run his schtick. They’ve also thrown in the cop/buddy formula as well. Parts of the story are fairly clever. Lawrence plays Earl Montgomery, a wise-cracking security guard who really wants to be a cop. After he gets thrown out of the police academy, he…

Denzel Washington makes his directorial debut with “Antwone Fisher” and shows why he will remain a force in Hollywood for years to come. Denzel has always cared about his craft, and here he has chosen a moving drama of a troubled young man who is forced to confront his violent behavior and traumatic youth. The film is receiving Oscar buzz because of the well-told story and the excellent performances of the young, unknown cast. The story is inspired by the real life experiences of Antwone Fisher, who also wrote the script. The movie begins with Antwone in the Navy, where…

Gerardo Orlando and Jamey Codding recently sat down with other members of the press to talk with Derek Luke (pictured below, left, with co-star Denzel Washington), the star of Fox Searchlight’s upcoming film, “Antwone Fisher,” written by Cleveland native Antwone Fisher and set to open nationwide on Christmas Day. Derek, who just won the Best Breakout Performance Award from the National Board of Review, brilliantly portrays the title character in his first film appearance, and after speaking with him it’s obvious this up-and-comer is thoroughly enjoying the excitement the movie and his emotional performance are generating. And be sure to…