Munich

Rating: R

Movie Release Date: January 23, 2005

DVD Release Date: May 9, 2006

Plot 411: When Israeli athletes are slain at the 1972 Olympics, the Israeli government authorizes a secret group to eliminate those responsible for the massacre.

Review: Eric Bana plays Avner, a Mossad agent who was selected to lead an elite team of men to seek revenge for the killings in Munich. The men, who include a driver (Daniel Craig), a forger (Hans Zischler), an explosive expert (Mathieu Kassovitz) and a clean up man (Ciaran Hinds). One by one, targets are discovered through Avner's informant Louis (Mathieu Amalric). This movie is an intense revenge story based on true events that really gets you involved. At times, I found it hard to follow the plot. However, that's more my fault than anything else. I lack a full understanding of the events because a) I wasn't born yet and b) I'm just bad at historical stuff. The movie shows you how a battle can become sloppy due to highly explosive emotions. Fighting of any kind affects all players in significant manners that may not be fully realized during the experience and can only be recognized when it is too late. The psychological and emotional pressure the team felt is palpable and yet you understand their heated desires as well. Diplomacy would've been a welcome distraction I bet. I'm sure things didn't play out in real life as it did in the movie, but it's definitely gotta make you wonder about all the Black Ops happening in the world today. Do you really want to know about it?

Watch It: Because it's seriously really good.

Skip It: If you're one for historical accuracy. Steven Spielberg has apparently taken some liberties judging by the kinds of criticisms this movie has received.

The Time Traveler's Wife

Rating: PG-13

Movie Release Date: August 14, 2009

DVD Release Date: February 9, 2010

Plot 411: A story about a time traveler and the family he leaves behind each time he goes.

Review: I've got mixed feelings about this film and am not really sure where to begin. On a purely mushy and romantic level, the idea of a love that survives beyond all rational thought and across all forms of time is really inspiring. Even with the bittersweet knowledge that the love of your life cannot physically be with you for most of your lifetime, it's just really powerful to know that this person is still out there loving you completely. This kind of love is like something from a Jane Austen novel, where all the world is against you but love still prevails in the end. From a more technical standpoint, this movie is hell to follow because the timeline is so messed up. The plot is convoluted and confusing. You barely even get to know anyone besides the two main characters of Henry (Eric Bana) and Clare (Rachel McAdams). Even then, it's difficult to pinpoint what year they're in, how much time has passed and which Henry is from the present time. With all those issues, it's a wonder that you can get all that emotional stuff in there. Perhaps the emotion just comes from the audience's ability to walk in Clare's shoes? The plot is a simple one - a guy time travels uncontrollably and sometimes returns to places and times that are important to him. He meets a girl named Clare and continues to cross her path at random times throughout her life. They fall in love and she must deal with the fact that she never knows when he will leave or when he will return to her.

Watch It: For the beautiful cinematography. The shots of the meadow where Henry and Clare often meet are beautiful.

Skip It: If you're a sci fi geek that really follows the time/space continuum because this will probably just piss you off at how inaccurate it is.

Star Trek

Rating: PG-13

Movie Release Date: May 8, 2009

DVD Release Date: November 17, 2009

Plot 411: A prequel to the Star Trek mythology that portrays the lives of young Kirk and Spock.

Review: Romulans attack the USS Kelvin on the day of James T. Kirk's birth, killing his father. Kirk (Chris Pine) grows up as a wild child and is recruited into the Starfleet as a young man. Simultaneously, Spock (Zachary Quinto) is struggling with his half human/half Vulcan persona and unsure which characteristics suit him best. When an emergency calls Starfleet students into action, the flight crew gains support from Uhuru's (Zoe Saldana) linguistic aptitude, Sulu's (John Cho) piloting abilities and McCoy's medical training (Karl Urban). The bad guy in this film is Nero, played by Eric Bana. He attempts to hurt Spock in retribution for the hurt that Spock has caused him. Again, despite not being big on the sci fi genre I think this movie was pretty good. There was humor and action, a small love triangle and definite emotional beats. Even though I didn't really know a lot about the backstory of these characters, I was still able to follow along and not get too confused. I'm sure there were dozens of homage's to the TV series and other films that the fanboys caught that I didn't. The fact that the movie is accessible to both types of audience definitely helps its success. Quinto's performance as Spock is awesome. He completely pulls it off. The emotion he keeps in check due to his Vulcan side really comes through in the performance. Even better is Bana's portrayal of Nero. He is almost unrecognizable in this role. It's a real credit to his acting ability that the audience doesn't know who the hell he is. Another plus about this film is that Leonard Nimoy makes an appearance. This movie also stars Simon Pegg, Anton Yelchin and Winona Ryder.

Watch It: Of course if you're a Star Trek fan or if you just like action in general.

Skip It: If you're a physicist since you know you'll only get irritated at the inaccuracies of the film. And yes, they did incorporate sound in outer space . . . again.