A New Direction, Brooklyn's Finest Review

I'd like to take this blog in a slightly different direction. Tin Can Cinema will be here more for reviews, than for movie news. But don't get me wrong, you'll still be able to find news on in development projects from time to time. I just feel that's where I should take Tin Can Cinema.

So until after the weekend, I only have one DVD review for you.

Brooklyn's Finest
Director - Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Tears of the Sun)
Cast - Ethan Hawke, Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Wesley Snipes

I talked about this film a little bit earlier in the week when I gave a list of all the newest DVD releases for this week. I've been quite busy and haven't gotten around to seeing the other releases, but I promise you that I will have them to you shortly.

Brooklyn's Finest was surprisingly better than I though it would be. I'm a huge fan of all of the actors in this film and I feel that they each complimented the story respectively. Ethan Hawke who plays the 'desperate dad/cop' quite well, gets a good portion of the screen time. He really brings you into the story and does a good job of having you picture how life is in his shoes, which was something that I really enjoyed.



I have never been a big fan of Richard Gere's films. But he didn't do too bad in this one. He has worked in a lot of recent romance films; it was nice to see him step out into something a little gritty.



Don Cheadle is one of my favorite actors. I was extremely disappointed that he did not get enough screen time that I would have liked to see. I'm sure that the producers of the show could have found someone else to play this role instead of paying Cheadle's quote. I'm not denying his role in the movie, just that it could have easily been portrayed with someone else for half of the money.





Wesley Snipes. Going into this film, I was extremely excited to see Wesley Snipes pull out a solid 'gangster role' and steal the show. It just wasn't there. I wake up every morning hoping that Wesley Snipes would get more roles, but he just doesn't. As much as I hate to say it, Wesley just didn't do it for me this time.

Overall, I enjoyed the flick. It was not one of my favorite cop films (Training Day and The Departed), but it was not something that I couldn't sit through. There was more 'outside of the office cop drama' that I feel is really good to see in cop movies. Without, the movie becomes bland and boring.

Go out and rent/buy/ Brooklyn's Finest.

Rating - 7/10

DVD New Releases for Tuesday July 6, 2010

I'll do my best to keep an updated list of all the brand new releases that hit DVD every week. Even I can't make it to the theaters to see everything, so I rely a lot on DVD releases for my viewing pleasure. Netflix has made that incredibly simple for me.


The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

The Swedish did a pretty good job with this project. This was originally a book (like a lot of movies), but the film was in my opinion, a lot stronger than the content of the novel by Stieg Larson. A lot like most of international films, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo didn't do too hot at the US box office.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is the story of a journalist and a broken down tech-hacker who are hired investigate a 40 year old disappearance of a young girl. Further investigating into this incredibly dysfunctional family leads the pair down a path full of murders, disappearances and Nazis. This is definitely one of the films that is visually capturing and can have you calculating outcomes in your head.



Brooklyn's Finest

Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Tears of the Sun, Shooter) brought a fantastic screenplay to life. Brooklyn's Finest did not get a whole lot of attention at the box office due to huge overshadowing films (Shutter Island). But if you love a dark, violence heavy, drug induced film, this one's for you.

Ethan Hawke, Don Cheadle, and Richard Gere all play 3 Brooklyn Cops that come from different backgrounds. Richard Gere is pushing close to retirement and ready to pull the pin. Don Cheadle works undercover as street security protecting a drug lord played by Wesley Snipes. Ethan Hawke has a pregnant wife at home with 2 children and trying to balance everything that comes along with a family. This film is a 2 hour story of 3 Brooklyn cops from different backgrounds who end up at the same place working the same job.



A Single Man

An Oscar nominated film, this is my favorite for the week. Tom Ford's debut as a director with a phenomenal cast lead by Colin Firth is a knock-out. If you have the choice to take one movie home this week, take this one.

Colin Firth plays an English Professor, George Falconer, who is battling with a recent loss of his life partner Jim. The entire film takes place over the course of one day. He spends the day planning to commit suicide. He takes time to plan all pre-suicide and post-suicide events and to ensure all measures are accounted for. Throughout the day, George comes into contact with a few friends who seem to have some sort of impact on his decision to end his life.