The Peanuts

Snoopy embarks upon his greatest mission as he and his team take to the skies to pursue their arch-nemesis, while his best pal Charlie Brown begins his own epic quest back home.

Nothing makes me feel like a kid again more than watching Peanuts anything and this movie delivers that same feeling in a big way, around 80'x40' depending on theatre size of course.  I dreamed of being able take off from my parents backyard as a kid using our dog house, but no matter how hard I tried I could never get it off the ground, even after putting wheels and a motor on it.  The gang stays young forever and that's what we all want, to see them playing in the snow,  skating on the pond, flying kites and all the hijinks we are used to from the kids.  We can learn a lot from these movies, especially from the tenacity of Snoopy who is determined to succeed at all costs, and not to mention he has the greatest imagination in the world.  Never to be left out, the one and only Joe Cool makes a great appearance.  Charlie Brown struggles to find the courage to talk to the new red head girl that moved across the street from him.  But with the help of his friends and finding the strength to keep going no matter what life throws at you, we learn that you can over come anything and that confidence is something we all need to face our fears.  This movie keeps adults engaged and has no trouble doing the same for the kids, no matter if this is their first Peanuts movie or their 100th, it will keep you entertained start to finish.   Pack up the kids and be prepared to feel young again as your children begin their journey with one of your favorite cartoons of all time. 

5 out of 5 block heads.

Spectre

A cryptic message from Bond's past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organization. While M battles political forces to keep the secret service alive, Bond peels back the layers of deceit to reveal the terrible truth behind SPECTRE. 

I am going to do my best to get through this review without gushing about how much I love this franchise, so without further adieu.  The movie opens with Bond in Mexico City during the Day of the Death Parade celebration with the streets bursting with people.  As we track bond through the streets with some fantastic camera shots that flow so well and make you feel like you are their with him. (Or it could have been the IMAX screen.) This leads to what all Bond fans know is going to be an incredible opening action screen before the main titles, sung by Sam Smith, begin.  Sam Mendes packed this movie with so much action, a little humor, and more throwbacks to Bond movies of the past that you must pay great attention to catch them all. We have a care chase in Rome with a prototype Aston Martin DB10 as well as a prototype Jaguar C-X75 through the streets of Rome and along the river banks with many fun call backs to the gadgets of old from the earlier movies, and they are done with fun and in a way that reminds you of how far this incredible franchise has come in 53 years.  Of course we see Bond seduce women but it's a perfect amount of seduction and interrogation that the women in the audience won't be shaking their heads in a 'whatever' fashion.   Spectre gives us back the fun banter of past between Bond and Q, yet at the same time we get to see some action from M who is fighting to keep the double 0 program operational while not knowing who to trust.  Every character is played to perfection while the action and fight scenes are not over done with people coming back to life after you've just seen them take a life stealing fall or get shot by an exploding bullet.  Christoph Waltz does an amazing job per usual while uncovering one of the best Bond stories to date as well as answering many questions from his past along with previous Bond movie stories. Big stunts, big cast, big fights, big chases, big story, all of this equals big fun and another fantastic Bond movie.  As I said before, I'm a huge Bond fan and I look forward to these movies more than a person should.  With that in mind I will say that Skyfall is a superior movie but trust me you won't be disappointed with Spectre as it has a feel of Skyfall with a touch of past Bond movies.  

1 Oscar Nomination

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Picture, Original Song - Sam Smith

Enjoy the show.  5 out of 5 Vodka Martinis