Posts tagged Michael Bay
MOVIE REVIEW: War for the Planet of the Apes
MOVIE REVIEW: War for the Planet of the Apes

A significant shift in attention and investment has occurred in this series.  Our hearts and allegiances swayed from rooting for the madness of our own mankind to the superior traits of humanity exhibited by Caesar and his ape brethren.  A transformation of empathy like that is downright miraculous.  War for the Planet of Apes is a full-bodied epic of glory and pain that matches and then exceeds the moving importance and heart this rebooted franchise has established in two previous knockout films.

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2017, 5 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanShowPlace ICON X at Roosevelt Collections2017, 2017 Summer Movies, Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, War for the Planet of the Apes, Best of 2017, Andy Serkis, Caesar, Pixar, Toby Kebbell, Woody Harrelson, Ty Olsson, Terry Notary, Karin Konoval, Amiah Miller, Steve Zahn, Spartacus, Jurassic World, Michael Giacchino, Jerry Goldsmith, Lost, Matt Reeves, John Williams, Mark Bomback, Michael Bay, Transformers, The Batman, The Lord of the Rings, Gollum, Toy Story, Star Wars, The Godfather trilogy, Christopher Nolan, Peter Jackson, Special Achievement Oscar, Special Achievement Academy Award, Academy Award, Academy Award hopeful, film review, movie review, movie commentary, film commentary, life lessons, life lessons from film, life lessons from movies, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Star Wars trilogy, Movie trilogies, trilogies, superior sequels, sequels, reboot, remake, Reimagining, Donald Shanahan, Don ShanahanComment
MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on YPA Reviews' "The Cinephrauds"
MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on YPA Reviews' "The Cinephrauds"

Mike Crowley's YPA Reviews was soliciting for participants and topics for a video series of discussions highlighting guest-chosen overrated films, performers, and filmmakers.  I nominated myself and the highly regarded auteur of Terrence Malick and a meeting and a rant on camera was born.  Enjoy both the refined and uncut versions of our enlivened talk below!

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2017, Editorial, Media Appearance, Social Media, VIDEO REVIEWDon Shanahan2017, Media Appearance, Media, social media, social media platform, YouTube, Video Essay, movie discussion, video discussion, interview, Mike Crowley, YPA Reviews, You'll Probably Agree, YPA, Facebook, Twitter, uncut, full discussion, Chicago, Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle, CIFCC, The Cinephrauds, Leo Brady, AMovieGuy.com, Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life, Knight of Cups, Song to Song, Christian Bale, Michael Bay, Transformers, Laugh Factory, movie rant, rant, overrated movies, overrated actors, overrated, overrated directors, overrated filmmakersComment
MOVIE REVIEW: 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
MOVIE REVIEW: 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

The subject of "13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi" is the tepidly-reviewed non-fiction book written by Mitchell Zuckoff about what transpired during the September 11-12, 2012 attacks on U.S. government facilities in Libya.  Zuckoff's book and the film is told from the point of view of the security contractors that worked for the CIA at that time.  The book sought to tell the harrowing story without siding with any politics.  Michael Bay's film cannot help itself from taking brotherhood-fueled sides and blow everything up.

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2 STARS, 2016, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, MOVIE REVIEWDon Shanahan13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, 13 Hours, Michael Bay, John Krasinkski, James Badge Dale, Mitchell Zuckoff, Libya, Benghazi, Films affected by 9/11, 9/11, War on Terror, Movie about terrorismComment
EDITORIAL: The 10 best movies set in Hawaii
EDITORIAL: The 10 best movies set in Hawaii

Let's look at the best films set in and about Hawaii, its people, citizens, and history.  To make this list, the film has to actually be about and predominantly set in Hawaii.  Any movies that start or end somewhere else, where Hawaii is purely a side trip or vacation, are not good enough.  Here are the top ten as they stand before the arrival of "Aloha" this weekend.  Can that film crack this list?  We shall see.

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10 Best, 2015, Column, EditorialDon ShanahanBest Hawaii-set films, Hawaii, Hawaii-set films, Hawaii-set movies, Editorial, Column, Don Shanahan, Donald Shanahan, Every Movie Has a Lesson, The Descendants, From Here to Eternity, Soul Surfer, Lilo and Stitch, Blue Hawaii, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Blue Crush, A Perfect Getaway, Diamond Head, In Harm's Way, Hawaii (1966), Pearl Harbor, 50 First Dates, Adam Sandler, Michael Bay, Charlton Heston, George Clooney, Frank Sinatra, Kate Bosworth, Chris Hemsworth, Elvis Presley, Jason Segal, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis, Disney classicsComment
GUEST CRITIC: Transformers: Age of Extinction
GUEST CRITIC: Transformers: Age of Extinction

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me.  As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, sometimes a simple sentence or two from a friend says it all.  Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy.  Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering.  In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for quick-hit movie reviews.

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2014, 4 STARS, 5 STARS, GUEST CRITIC, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanGuest Critic, Jason Williams, Danielle Simonetti, Guest Critic series, Every Movie Has a Lesson, Donald Shanahan, Don Shanahan, Transformers: Age of Extinction, Transformers, Transformers film franchise, Transformers franchise, Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, Marky Mark, Transformers: Age of Extinction movie review, Transformers: Age of Extinction film review, Transformers: Age of Extinction review, Chicago, Grimlock, Michael BayComment