Edge of Tomorrow:  

Despite concerns that he can’t carry an action film any longer, Tom Cruise is perfect in this complex sci-fi thriller that involves alien wars against humanity, high-tech weapons, and a time-travel twist.  Cruise is Cage, a public relations man in the military, tasked with putting a positive spin on the losing battle that the humans are fighting.  Emily Blunt is Rita, a military commander with a hard edge.  Because Cage refuses to follow protocol and the party line with his story, he finds himself mustered in to embark on the front lines of battle.  He’s a suit, a desk man, not a soldier.  But soon he is … until he dies.  And finds himself reliving the day all over.  Forget Groundhog Day – this is far better, and it’s a thinking person’s film. Rated 14A.

Million Dollar Arm:   

John Hamm is JB, a sports agent whose career is going south when he loses a big client, in this based-on-actual events story.  A Jerry McGuire-type, he looks for another way to regain his position, and save his company, and it strikes him that cricket and baseball are similar, the Indian Subcontinent is full of people who play the game – what if he could recruit some Indians with good arms, teach them baseball, and save the day?  That’s what plays out in this Disney film, which makes it a gentler movie than it might otherwise be – excellent story, great characters. Rated PG.   

The Grand Seduction:

A Canadian setting in Newfoundland, a largely Canadian cast headed by native British Columbian Taylor Kitsch, and a universal story make this a quirky, fun picture that didn’t get much distribution and deserved better.  This quirky movie has Kitsch as Dr. Lewis, a guy who has to, in effect, perform some community service for bad behaviour, by becoming, for a time, the local doctor in a fishing outport.  It’s a rocky start, but soon he settles in, and is suddenly faced with a make-or-break decision that will impact the future of the fishing community forever.  Great characters, fabulous cinematography, and if you missed this in theatres, as you likely did, it’s a great choice now.  Brendon Gleeson also stars. Rated 14A.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011):  

An excellent reboot of the “Apes” franchise that depicts the origins of the rise of the Ape culture which would eventually swallow humanity, making mankind the hunted lesser beings and the great apes their masters.  James Franco stars along with Andy Sirkis doing his amazing depiction of Caesar, the ape that started it all.  The focus is on animal experiments and mistreatment of simians … and it’s just no wonder they revolted.  Good movie!  Rated 14A.

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014): 

Chris Pine takes on the role of Tom Clancy’s master spy previously played by Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, and Ben Affleck.  Pine’s portrayal is the weakest of the lot, in part because of an origins story that departs too far from Clancy’s original premise, in what seems to be an attempt to update it.  Ryan is an economist and an academic more than a spy, and that hurts the picture until the action kicks in.  Once that happens, it’s a good movie. Rated 14A.