That was good, I'll give you that one. (Spenser Confidential 2020)

281.

Spenser Confidential

7.5/10

Not too many movies left on my Netflix list now and we head into S with Spenser Confidential. The only real things I knew about this movie was that it starred Mark Wahlberg, he is a cop of some sort and there's a cameo from Post Malone. This is a Netflix original and adds to the list of movies that the streaming service is dishing out. Going into this one with no expectations other than expecting Wahlberg to be the same cocky guy that he portrays in 90% of his movies, leaves me with an open mind. 

The movie starts pretty deep as Spenser, played by Wahlberg, heads to his Captain's house with his partner to question why a murder isn't being looked in to. Whilst entering the door, we see that the Captain's wife has taken a beating and Spenser drags the Captain named Boylan, outside before unleashing a few rights. Spenser is found guilty and sentenced to jail where he studies to become a truck driver. On his last day, he is set upon by a prison gang led by Post Malone's character and is warned to leave Boston. 

Spenser is then picked up after release by his friend Henry who will be giving Spenser a place to stay. At the house, Spenser is met by his old partner Driscoll and also finds out he has a roommate named Hawk, who is played by Winston Duke. Duke also plays M'Baku in Black Panther. 

Now the movie takes a massive turn as Boylan is murdered and Spenser is the man at the top of the suspect list. Driscoll has to ask the questions but with some alibis, we are fine. Once a young cop is pinned with a murder-suicide, Spenser knows something up and the pedal is pushed down as we speed through the twists and turns of the story that comes. Now I don't want to go deep into the movie's storyline due to the number of spoilers. The amount of corruption that Spenser has to work through as dirty cops, politicians and even gang involvement for a payday from a drugs run is crazy. There are massive cover-ups but if you are in tune with the movie, you can work out who is involved and where the story is truly going. We know that Spenser will be able to come to the aid of the town, clear people's names and even gain the respect of others that he lost when he was sent inside. It was always going to be the happy ending but it's the journey that you take to get there that makes this movie.  

The movie was made better by the cast of this one. Wahlberg once again let his mouth run and if he plays that character the best, then keep with it. To be paired with Hawk, played by Winston Duke, complimented the character choices as Hawk was a quiet, serious guy but also had a no-nonsense approach. When we needed a different direction for the story, one of our characters would therefore shine through. Moving through to the side characters, a few were around for the comedic aspects of the movie and as things got a little darker, they would drag the movie back from the brink. We should also mention Bokeem Woodbine who plays Driscoll and you'll understand on watching.

The movie contains plenty of action scenes whether they involve gunfights or fistfights, there is never a dull moment and Spenser puts himself in some pretty compromising positions to simply just get ahead but this is only a good thing for the audience. If you're a fan of Wahlberg, a fan of a gritty crime movie with some plot twists or even a fan of a little comedy with an action movie, I think there is something for almost everyone in this couple of hours of viewing. With it being a Netflix movie, it will probably be around for a while so this would be recommended for a Saturday night without fail. It may be something that you've felt you've seen before but if it's a winning formula, why not follow the blueprint. 

No man can walk out on his own story (Rango 2011)

280.

Rango

7/10

Finally, I am back watching some movies and typing up so maybe a couple of people have a read. Carrying on with the Netflix A-Z and we hit Rango at R. Between some laptop issues and no spare time, it is nice to relax and watch some movies again. Rango is a movie that has never been on my radar and I'm surprised considering the cast that has been brought on board for this animation. Johnny Depp is playing Rango, who I have just witnessed sailing the seas as I made my way through the Pirates of the Caribbean movies once again. The other interesting aspect is the director Gore Verbinski who was also involved with the first three Pirates movies. Clearly, Gore and Depp enjoyed working with each other and have also brought on board Bill Nighy, who was in the swashbuckling franchise. With Isla Fisher and Ray Winstone adding some more voices, this isn't a bad line up.

We are introduced to the story by 4 singing birds, narrating our first few minutes before we then enter with Rango, who is still unnamed. Rango is in the back of a car travelling across the desert as something causes a sway and his tank flies out of the back window. This Charmeleon, which I hadn't mentioned yet, has also fancied himself as a kind of actor but now thrust into the wild, it's time to act tough.

 He meets an armadillo which has initially become roadkill but ends up being some sort of spirit guide and sends the lizard on his way. He makes his way to a town, pretending to be some sort of vigilante from the west and takes everyone by shock with his stories of killing famous outlaws. He is quickly thrust into action and takes down a bird, mainly by luck, but the population of this small town named Dirt only see success. This town has been short of water for a long time and the mayor soon makes Rango, who has now named himself after a drink company, the town's Sheriff.

 You know that this Mayor is a little dodgy, you've seen enough movies to make that assumption. We follow this journey that feels all too familiar as Rango first has success, is then challenged and outed as a fake before he meets his spirit guide once again and heads back to town to win the day. There must be around 5 or 6 movies that follow this narrative and it's always a success. This is no exception here and as the movie ends, we get the town with what it needs and more importantly, Rango has a name and a belonging. 

The cast did not fail to impress and Depp really can play every role put in front of him. The excentric figure was on show at times with the lizard's nervousness and false confidence until this then changed to a unique hero shining through and the tone of voice changing. If I hadn't read that the female lead was played by Isla Fisher, I would still not know right now. The actress played a country girl who was a far cry from anything else that I have seen her in in the past. The final cast member I would like to mention is Bill Nighy. After watching him as Davy Jones, I would have liked to have seen his character in this movie a lot more. There were little side villains that didn't last long, along with the Mayor who was our main antagonist but Nighy played a rattlesnake who was mentioned a few times in the movie before only making it in towards the end and the scenes weren't exactly the longest. A missed opportunity in my opinion. 

I'm a little disappointed in myself for leaving the viewing of this movie for so long considering it came out in 2011. It was a goofy animation with some adult undertones which makes it stand up a little higher than other animations in my opinion. With some innuendoes and even an Easter egg of another Depp's movie as he landed on the windshield of the car from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. It was interesting to learn that rather than recording their voices at different times and them all being added to the movie, the cast actually all came on set and voiced alongside each other. This helped with the chemistry of the cast and I suppose left some room for improvisation. This would be a movie that I would have come about when it is on TV one time and had probably no intention of investing in at that point. It was a good choice to add to the list as it was quite an enjoyable watch.