Vintage

Hereafter (2010) . There Before After.  Not sure that is quite witty, but wit is needed when pondering this plodding sentimental thought of a movie, of which the best part happened literally before the movie ever got started.

The tsunami scene in the opening of the flick was pretty awesome and compelling.  If that scene does not capture what is likely the horror of being swept away in a tsunami, I don't think any film can. 

In fact, for that scene alone, this film gets a queen.  If not, we are talking a Jack.  In fact, that scene alone might be worth watching the whole flick, but there again we live in the age of YouTube.

• Link to YouTube Hereafter Tsunami scene (embedded disabled by request - means we can't stick the video on our site)

Okay, now that you have seen the best part of this film, I will explain where the plot got swept away with the impressive wave.  You see we have Matt Damon as a psychic who can communicate with the dead.  He is just about the most boring dude you could imagine.  I am not sure why everyone in this film had to be boring, introspective, and pondering.  Even the boy actor in the film was for some reason boring.  Yes, it was compelling that his mother was an addict and he had a special need to not let his older brother go, but i don't know, just a boring kid.

The biggest problem with the film is it is too slow to develop and disjointed. There are three stories going on in sort of a Crash (2004) format of separate but equal stories.  We are waiting for them in Hereafter to come together, but it takes too long and for some reason, it seems contrived when it does happen.  I also was "wowed" by the idea of the film.  The French chick, quite hot, journalist pretty much gave up her career to write a book about the conspiracy of silence surrounding the hereafter.  Hmm.  I guess it has nothing to do with most such people that live for the hereafter and not the before-now are simply wacko weirdos.

Clint Eastwood directed this film and like most Eastwood directed films it is well directed.  He does have a knack for framing a shot.  I will give him that.  As for framing the hereafter?  I think he should make a film about a tsunami. 

Money Never Sleeps is worthy follow up to the classic Walstreet (1987) a movie now iconic in its capturing of the 1980s greed-zeitgeist.  I don't think Money Nevber Sleeps will be for the 2000s what Wall Street was for the 80s, but it is a decently cool movie.  It contains a lot of money, fabolous wealth, ritzy high rises, hot broads - what more do you need?

You gotta love Douglas as Gekko.  Nobody ever really forgot about Gordon Gekko, the character that forever will be remembered as one of Michael Douglas' finest.  In fact, we needed Gekko to come back and remind us that greedy bastards are still among us.

The film is not without its flaws.  Perhaps missing is something to do with the explosion of the Internet.  I guess becuase despite how big companies like Google are, it is really hard to say how much money they make or how they make it.  I thought Douglas look really old too, when they slicked back his hair toward the end of the film.

There is much I enjoyed about this flick.  Charlie Sheen poked his head in this film for a scene or two.  I thought this was a nice touch.  It is kind of ironic that in real life, Sheen is about a big as a sleezebag as there are nowadays.  Saddly, this brief cameo was the best bit of acting Sheen has done since the original film.  The original was the best movie Sheen was ever in and will likely remain that way.  Josh Brolin was a greedy bad ass.  Shia LeBeouf was a good picis for the new updated version of Bud Fox.  For a change, the girl in the flick was more than eye candy.  Gekko's daugther played an integral role in the plot of the film, of which, was exceptionally strong.  I liked the pacing.  I liked the look of the flick.  I even liked all the overlayed finanical graphics and numbers, etc. It worked well.

This movie is not an Ace.  A king for sure. You can bet your money on it.  Lastly, money may never sleep, but you can give it a rest, and look for this flick in your RedBox. It will make for a good evening of money well spent.