THUNDERBOLTS* Review

Like many fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe lately, the heroes of Thunderbolts* have felt unfulfilled. Yelena (Florence Pugh), Bucky (Sebastian Stan), Walker (Wyatt Russell), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and Red Guardian (David Harbour) don't have much in common besides the loneliness that being assassins, science experiments, and super soldiers has led them to yet somehow (and somewhat ironically) this shared strand of abandonment is what brings them together. This film in particular finds itself at a crossroads of a moment where the MCU is both trying to redefine itself as well as figure out what direction it goes after being lost in the void of content inundation that has occurred since Endgame. Again, not unlike this band of "disposable delinquents" who are unclear where they fit into the grand scheme of things in a post-blip world where the Avengers are no more, Thunderbolts* seeks to carve a new path forward by essentially attacking the anxieties of the heroes, and by default - the fans, head on. The good news is that this is a strong step in the right direction. 

I’m sure there's a solid analogy to be drawn around how once and current Disney CEO Bob Iger, in the Valentina Allegra de Fontaine role, tried to lock these characters that debuted under Bob Chapek (sans Bucky) away in a Disney vault somewhere but ultimately decided to reverse psychologize by pushing them to the front of the next phase in a Guardians of the Galaxy/Suicide Squad-style team-up that he then sells as “the first and best example” of the studio’s new focus on quality over quantity, but I don’t know that I have the energy to investigate beyond those surface parallels. The point being, it feels pretty bold to make the biggest issue your biggest cash cow is facing not only the main theme of your Avengers re-brand, but the villain itself as Eric Pearson (a Marvel vet) and Joanna Calo (a frequent TV writer) more or less literalize the depression and loneliness these characters (and by extension, the audience members) are feeling through the existence of Lewis Pullman’s Robert Reynolds character. What Pearson and Calo’s screenplay does so deftly though, and I’m sure it is aided by director Jake Schreier’s execution, is how clearly and directly it addresses these subjects without ever making it feel heavy-handed.

GRAN TURISMO Review

Commercials are meant to convince and are often made to be compelling in order to do so. I've been emotionally affected by plenty of life insurance ads over the years, but Gran Turismo takes things to another level in what is essentially a two hour and fifteen-minute endorsement of the Sony, PlayStation, Nissan, and Gran Turismo brand as a whole. To dismiss this as little more than an advertisement would be a mistake though as Gran Turismo is arguably the way in which Hollywood should be operating and approaching tentpole films in 2023. Utilizing the brand as an excuse to hire interesting directors such as Neill Blomkamp (District 9, Elysium, Chappie) who can handle the logistics of these large productions while adding his unique stamp and essentially earmarking a genre movie around said brand is a win/win situation. In this capacity, not only do all of these companies get to slap their names all over everything in justifiable ways, but the creatives are given license to do things like take a shot at making their own sports movie that, while still adhering to the hallmarks of the genre, is not only well-executed, but more importantly - both convincing and compelling. 

And Gran Turismo is very well-executed. The visual prowess and scale of the film not only sell the stakes and intensity of the sport in question, but also on Blomkamp's skill as a director in what is easily his best film since his 2009 debut. Josha Stradowski is immediately set-up as the villain and main adversary of the piece as the former employer to David Harbour's once promising racer, Jack Salter. Orlando Bloom is a Nissan marketing guy who comes up with the scheme to pull in the best simulator racers to see if they can compete in real-world scenarios. Bloom's character hires Salter as the gamer's trainer which introduces us to Jann Mardenborough (Archie Madekwe) a dedicated GT player who has a complicated relationship with his father (Djimon Hounsou) regarding his passions. All of these elements putting in play the underdog arc, the mentor/student relationship that slowly builds to an unbreakable bond, the father/son reconciliation, and hell - they even throw in a romantic interest (Maeve Courtier-Lilley) for good measure.

Teaser Trailer for BLACK WIDOW Starring Scarlett Johansson

Though it still feels somewhat odd still that Phase IV of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will kick-off with what is-as far as we know-a prequel one has to imagine that in a decade or so the current generation too young to see these early phases in theaters will pay little mind to the actual order in which these films were released and simply watch them chronologically instead. And so, while the MCU might be making good on some things it probably should have done much sooner with the release of Black Widow next summer it would seem this little facet of the films existence will soon be forgotten in favor of either how good or bad the film is. In this first teaser, Scarlett Johansson's Natasha Romanoff is heading back to "where it all started" in an adventure that would seem to take place after Civil War, but before the events of Infinity War. Maybe we'll find out how she came into that blonde hair? Either way, Agent Romanoff is on the run and returns to Russia where she is reunited with "family" such as Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova, a character who eventually adopts the Black Widow title, David Harbour as AKA The Red Guardian and Rachel Weisz who is said to be playing another Black Widow, but one who has been through the training and active duty cycle numerous times. Cate Shortland (Berlin Syndrome) directs with the screenplay written by Ned Benson (The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby) and Jac Schaefer (The Hustle). If one is to take away anything from this first look at the film it's that the ensemble seems like a lot of fun and hopefully the more grounded, hand-to-hand combat style of the action outweighs that of what Marvel is clearly baking on for their third act which features a multitude of characters falling through the sky while fighting which looks to be...a little silly, honestly. All of that said, it's hard not to be intrigued simply by the nature of the beast, but it will be interesting to see how much the studio, Shortland and Johansson can convince people to still invest in a character they already know is gone. Black Widow also stars O-T Fagbenle, William Hurt, Ray Winstone and opens on May 1, 2020.

HELLBOY Review

While one might expect a single-word description of how they feel coming out of something called Hellboy to be along the lines of "bewildered" or "curious" or even "confused" what it actually feels like coming out of Neil "The Descent" Marshall's 2019 re-boot of the Hellboy comic character is "numb". There is so much happening in this desperate (zero-sense making) attempt to bring Mike Mignola's comic back to the big screen in hopes of launching another new franchise that it doesn't seem anyone involved stopped long enough to actually consider what that franchise might need to look like given the context of its existence. Instead, screenwriter Andrew Crosby is throwing as many characters, subplots, flashbacks, and countless other things at the audience at once that it's overwhelming to the point of feeling nothing. That is to say, this new Hellboy fits squarely into the cliché of "everything and nothing all at once". If one were to describe Hellboy and everything the film contains it would be almost ignorant to think that what was about to come your way couldn't potentially be one of the greatest albeit most ridiculous things ever concocted while in reality it turns out to be nothing short of the definition of incoherent. And despite so much going on, nothing lands, nothing to make you-the viewer-care about anything or anyone on screen. Yes, there is technically a narrative here, but this is mostly just an excuse to exercise some cool practical make-up and prosthetic techniques as strung together through blandly executed action sequences (except for the final, epilogue scene-where is that full version of Hellboy at?!?!). It’s not all bad as David Harbour (Stranger Things), taking over for the much-loved Ron Pearlman who previously dawned the sawed-off demon horns in Guillermo del Toro’s two original films, is seemingly having a lot of fun and making the most out of having the opportunity to play the character, but his vigor isn’t near enough to justify sitting through an extended two-hour runtime for a movie that could have been streamlined into ninety-minutes of pure, horror/action schlock. This version of the comic is what it seemed Marshall wanted to make given he was granted an R-rating, but even the leaning into of the restricted rating is wasted on an excess of blood rather than being capitalized on with more creatively gruesome endeavors.

Official Trailer for HELLBOY Starring David Harbour

In the category of things you didn’t know you needed, but are getting anyway (something Hollywood is admittedly good about) Summit Entertainment and Lionsgate have officially (and finally!) released the first trailer for the Hellboy re-boot starring Stranger Things star David Harbour. That feels rather odd to say given Harbour has been such a reliable character actor who’s been working for so long in what, at least in retrospect, feel like strong, adult dramas, but good on the guy for taking his new found fame and banking on it in a lead franchise role. By the time this latest incarnation of Hellboy hits the screen it will have been a decade plus a year since director Guillermo del Toro produced his well-reviewed, but overshadowed sequel: The Golden Army. I can’t say I wasn’t an offender of TGAs as it came out the week prior to The Dark Knight in the summer of 2008 and I was busy going to see Christopher Nolan’s sequel upwards of ten times in theaters, not giving TGA a cinematic outing until it reached my local dollar theater (RIP). The point being, when I did finally get around to seeing TGA I was genuinely surprised by how great it was and how much I found myself immersed in the world and mythology given I could take or leave del Toro’s initial film. And while it seemed for a long time in that decade in between then and now that we’d eventually, somehow end up with a third del Toro/Ron Perlman Hellboy movie, we did not...and here we are. Harbour looks like he’s having a ton of fun with the role if this trailer is any indication and I’m really digging the irreverent tone of the whole thing (director Neil Marshall made the 2006 underground hit The Descent and has directed A LOT of TV you’ll know), but as for what will differentiate this from the previous films story-wise remains to be seen though it should be noted the comic's creator, Mike Mignola, opted for this re-booted R-rated take rather than finishing out the del Toro/Perlman trilogy. A friend who has read a few of the Hellboy comics cited The Wild Hunt-which this film is said to be based on-as one of his favorites as it sees Hellboy getting the opportunity to wield Excalibur...so, good enough for me! Hellboy also stars Ian McShane, Daniel Dae Kim, Milla Jovovich, Sasha Lane, Brian Gleeson, Sophie Okonedo, Penelope Mitchell, Allstair Petrie, and opens on April 12th, 2019.

SUICIDE SQUAD Review

Don't believe everything you hear. That would be the first thing I would tell people if they were to ask what I thought about the latest entry in the DC Comics extended universe as funded by Warner Brothers. Don't believe everything you hear in that Suicide Squad isn't nearly as terrible as those early reviews have made it out to be, but don't believe everything you saw in those trailers that made you think this might be a new super hero masterpiece either. Suicide Squad has its flaws. Plenty of them in fact-the biggest perpetrator being the convoluted  story that ultimately does so many circles around itself that it becomes a pointless exercise in power for Amanda Waller (as played by the wonderful Viola Davis). Suicide Squad also has its fair share of highlights as well-most of them concerning the effort the cast is putting into making this group of misfits feel like a family when the script gives them little to work with. This is all very disappointing mind you as writer/director David Ayer (who wrote Training Day and who wrote and directed the likes of End of Watch and Fury) clearly has a knack for these types of characters and putting such characters in high-stakes situations that bring out qualities and traits viewers will find endearing and affecting despite potentially being revolting. The issue here is that Ayer seemingly felt the need to include so many characters that he let his storytelling techniques get away from him and instead decided to give us an introductory hour where we are presented with each of the ten (count 'em ten) main characters as well as how they all ended up together and walking into the plot device that is both meant to unite them and that could have also been completely avoided if the idea to bring them together was rejected in the first place. There is interesting ideas aplenty here and the film very well could have explored the difference between bad and evil and how many bad things one has to do or ends up doing before they cross that line. Instead, Ayer uses this opportunity to bring together his comic book version of the Dirty Dozen and expose them at face value, for what they are, and how they work together. Just so we're all on the same page-that would have been fine. I don't have an issue, especially at this stage of the game, with a DC film not leaning too hard on the philosophical stuff and instead focusing more on simply having fun, but even in doing this Ayer's story does itself no favors by making everything interconnected to the point the film renders itself irrelevant when all he really needed to do was give these usual foes a formidable one of their own.

THE EQUALIZER Review

It seems that just last week I was talking about the lengths in which Liam Neeson takes to prove his badassness, how he uses his credibility as an actor to up the quality of what would otherwise be B-movie action thrillers and how he sometimes uses his new reputation to his advantage (such as luring folks into A Walk Among the Tombstones which is more noir than pulp). In the wake of such power it seems he's started a trend. I discussed this when Kevin Costner (so desperately seeming) tried to replicate this kind of success earlier this year with 3 Days To Kill, while folks such as Tom Cruise and Guy Pearce have completed a version of these excursions in hopes of carving out their own character with a particular set of skills. All of this is to say that Denzel Washington didn't necessarily need a character of his own (much less one that he resurrected from an 80's television show) but it wouldn't hurt to try and so he did and so we have the feature film version of The Equalizer. On that note, this is a movie made in a manner that is extremely content with itself; from the marketing (those horribly plain posters) to the over-used slow motion and standard score (seriously, this soundtrack is pretty awful) and it clearly feels very little need to be more than this because it has Mr. Washington at the center of it and his presence alone garners it all the dignity and solemnity it needs to be taken more seriously than it actually is. Having said all of that, I rather enjoyed myself in the slow paced, but precise thriller that allows Washington to develop a more singular character than he has since maybe Frank Lucas. That isn't to dismiss the work he has done in between (he certainly deserved his nomination for Flight), but we all watch a Denzel Washington movie to see Denzel Washington and while he still plays that card to good effect here he also isn't the typically charismatic, well-rounded human being we are accustomed to seeing him portray. He is a man supposedly cut off from emotion or sentimentality, but who can't help but feel if he has the power to do something right, he should do it. No, The Equalizer isn't a great film, but like so many Liam Neeson and Tom Cruise features it does what it's supposed to do and it does it well enough that we'll take the sequel with open arms when it comes around.

A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES Review

At this point it's a matter of just how much of a badass Liam Neeson can be. As I said in my review for this years Neeson opener, Non-Stop, the guy has more than solidified himself as everyone's favorite action star by doing what Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger wish they could at his age and reaping the box office returns they desire. Why these aged action stars can't catch a break is probably because everyone saw them in their prime, knew what they were at the peak of their careers and lives and find it somewhat disheartening and sad, the reality of time. We never saw Neeson as a young action hero though, it took time for him to transcend the realms of serious and prestigious works to lighten up a little and deliver consistently in the B-movie genre, but that is likely a discussion for another time and another piece. Today, we talk about Neeson's latest turn as the man on the other end of the phone in A Walk Among the Tombstones. I had a strange idea of this film from the time the first trailer premiered and had yet to rectify that by the time it came time to sit down and enjoy the film. Knowing very little to nothing about the plot or types of characters involved I imagined it as a western (c'mon, that's a great title for a western) and from the few stills I'd seen hoped Neeson might be playing the scorned Sheriff who has to show the townspeople he still has what it takes or the outlaw with a moral compass that put him in a sticky predicament where he had to choose between his code and his life. That is neither here nor there though as what the film actually plays out to be is a detective story from the perspective of a retired police officer and now private detective that was once unable to resist the temptation of the drink and is now unable to resist a case where women have become the price paid for their husbands sins. It is a nasty little movie, one that doesn't break any molds or provide any new insight into the genre of film in which it resides, but it does what it is intended to do well enough while going on for fifteen minutes too long and resulting in a much less profound conclusion than it could have had it simply let the audience draw their own conclusions.

First Trailer for THE EQUALIZER

Folks, Denzel Washington will turn sixty years old this December, but lucky for us he shows no signs of slowing down as he continues not only to act in films and lead them, but to lend his name to high-octane, adrenaline pumping pictures that one would think more in line with what Jason Statham and Mark Wahlberg are looking to add to their resumes. To follow-up his fun-time team-up with the aforementioned Wahlberg in last years 2 Guns Washington has enlisted in a re-make of the hit 1980's show The Equalizer under the helm of his Training Day director Antoine Fuqua. As a child of the 90's who was born in the late 80's I have no real connection to the source material or know what the premise of it was besides a guy kicking ass and taking on missions, but if there were those worried the film adaptation might change things up there seems no reason to worry as the first trailer for Fuqua's film shows off little more than Denzel kicking butt and taking names. The thing of note here is the style in which all of this is done as Fuqua clearly has a consistent tone nailed down while seemingly borrowing from Guy Ritchie and his Sherlock Holmes films as Washington's Robert McCall visualizes his altercations before engaging in them while Fuqua's camera takes us inside his mind and shows us step by step what McCall plans to do to the bad guys in slow motion then allows the scene to play out in real time in which McCall utilizes his environment to brutal results. It is a technique we've seen before, but will likely work well because so much of it depends on the mind it takes place within and Denzel Washington, being one of the last real movie stars working today, is no doubt a charismatic and interesting place to be. Needless to say, I'm eager to see what this seemingly straight-up B-movie actioner has to offer. The Equalizer also stars Chloe Grace Moretz, Melissa Leo, Martin Csokas, Haley Bennett, David Harbour, Bill Pullman and opens September 26.

PARKLAND Home Video Review

There has always been an intense amount of interest around the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and with good reason. It was a horrific event in which the President was murdered in front of countless people with any number of possible suspects, there was a race to get Kennedy to the hospital, the immediate man hunt for the suspected shooter and countless other avenues were followed that fateful November day. What writer and director Peter Landesman has attempted to do, in his directorial debut no less, is condense these events into a feature that runs a mere hour and a half long (including notes at the end and the credit sequence). There is not nearly enough time here to develop the several intriguing stories the film documents, much less get to know the the actual emotions felt by the people placed under these extraordinary situations. Parkland would be a film that justifies a run time of at least three hours, but it seems Landesman is keen on hitting the high points of these events and highlighting little more than small moments of that day in brief, almost news clip-like segments that intertwine to piece together November 22, 1963 and the subsequent days following as both the President and his suspected killer were laid to rest. I am a sucker for historically-based films and have read plenty on the JFK assassination, the investigations around this event and the countless conspiracy theories that continue to plague it nearly fifty years after it occurred. I also know better than to get my history lessons from the movies and so I approached this film with a sense of both optimism and caution as it seemed both ambitious while at the same time a balancing act of moments pulled straight out of the history books with little more intention that bringing to life how this death affected unsuspecting, regular citizens while adding nothing more to the story and having no particular point of view it was going to approach the subject matter with. Unfortunately, while the actual events of that day remain engaging as ever Parkland is only able to take us so far because it only gives its content so much attention before moving on and taking the audience, no matter if we have lingering questions or deeper interests, with it. I can admire the film for what it is trying to do and the dots its trying to connect, but ultimately this is more a failed experiment than anything else with an execution that doesn't come close to what it promised.

END OF WATCH Review

End of Watch is a great movie. It is as plain and simple as that. There could honestly be nothing more said about it and if, on that alone, you walked into a theater and experienced it for yourself you would come out nodding in agreement. It is a brutal, unflinching look at two cops in one of the most dangerous areas in the U.S. It centers around two partners and friends who are not related by blood but share the bond of family and hold it to be just as sacred. While there have been plenty of cop dramas in the last few years, and very good ones including this years Rampart, there is something fresh about this take on the day-to-day lives of two inner city cops. Maybe the fact this doesn't feature corrupt cops, cops getting in too deep undercover or any of the other typical situations we find our movie law enforcement officials getting into but instead are doing nothing more than going along for the ride. Watching End of Watch is like experiencing an in your face, real and raw episode of Cops. If Cops were to air on HBO this is probably what it would look and feel like. I didn't really know what to expect going into the film. Both leading men here have had their fair share of credible and award-worthy type films while also having starred in plenty of B-movies and nonstarters. This looked to naturally be in the former category for both actors but the same could also be said for writer and director David Ayer who has made a few films in this genre before. Sure, he wrote Training Day and directed the underrated Harsh Times, but he too has had a hand in a number of projects that attempted to capitalize on his successes that instead ended up being nothing more than generic. Do you remember Street Kings? Probably not. It is safe to say with End of Watch though that everyone involved has hit a home run.

Officer Taylor (Jake Gyllenhaal) and new girlfriend Janet
(Anna Kendrick) share a first date together.

From the beginning Ayer decided to keep it simple. Telling the story in its most basic form and not becoming overly worried or concerned with plot complications but instead allowing the characters and their interactions, their attitudes to do the work. Ayer has created two seemingly naturalistic characters on the page and Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena have taken those blueprints and fleshed them out to living, breathing people who we could see actually hanging out with were they not the most fearless guys on the force. They have an intimidation factor to them, as any cops on film with certain egos will, but these guys are not above bowing down to the system either. They know their place and know better than to test their limits. They are rewarded by the work they do even if they feel like every single day pushes them to the limit of what they might be able to handle. As Brian, Gyllenhaal exudes a confidence in knowing what he wants to do with his time. He is smart, capable, and eager to move up in the ranks thus is the reason he is going to Law school and in the process has to take an art elective where he lands on filmmaking. With this little (and unnecessary) tidbit we are given the handheld camera that re-defines the "found footage" film. There is no pretending this really happened, it isn't cast with unknowns, the technique isn't used as much for the gimmick as it is to make the audience feel they are actually right in the middle of the action. It works, for the most part though it does sometimes feel like a stretch that even the gangs so conveniently have cameras in the most crucial of times as well. This little qualm can be easily dismissed and forgiven as the feature grabs you from moment one and doesn't let go over its nearly two hour run time.

Actors Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena as Officer Zavala
give award worthy performances.

Over the course of the film we become closer and closer to Officer Taylor (Gyllenhaal) and Officer Zavala (Pena) learning more about them and their tendencies as police officers. There is also a nice little community of officers that our two protagonists fit in with that is filled with small but merited performances of real value that are filled out by the likes of America Ferrera (Ugly Betty) Cody Horn (Magic Mike) and David Harbour as Officer Van Hauser. Beyond these small, but crucial roles in the believability of the atmosphere we also have Anna Kendrick (who is apparently the female Chris Messina) and Natalie Martinez as Taylor and Zavala's significant others. Talk of love, happiness and where to find these fill most of the conversations that our heroes have as they ride around patrolling the streets daily. There personal lives absolutely inform there day jobs and we see each of them develop in how much they allow what is going on outside of the patrol car inside it and what calls they decide to take, when they have the power to choose. As we are introduced to the two of them though they have a made a name for themselves by being legit street cops who don't take in the street criminals unless they absolutely have to. They don't abuse their power and they gain a reputation of respect among the locals who live in the decrepit houses on their block. That is of course until they stumble upon one too many cases involving a Mexican cartel that have taken over these neighborhoods. In doing this they uncover disturbing secrets upon more disturbing scenes. The in your face, unfiltered honesty of the piece mixed with the great chemistry that Gyllenhaal and Pena have make the movie not what you would traditionally call enjoyable entertainment, but it is inescapably engaging.

Mike Zavala and his wife Gabby (Natalie Martinez)
welcome a new addition to their family.

Though I didn't really know what to expect going into the film I certainly had high hopes after hearing such positive word of mouth. The film did not disappoint, if anything it surpassed anything I might have expected from another cop drama. That it is not just another cop drama allows it to stand out for defying the genre restrictions and by turning itself into a character study of the kinds of men it takes to wake up every day and go out there not knowing what they might face is exhilarating enough from a theater seat. I can't imagine the rush it must give these guys who enjoy such things. It is something I don't think I could ever do. It is made clear that not every police officer faces the day to day risk these guys do and that they pull their guns out more in one day than the majority would in an entire career. We understand this is specific to the region of LA it documents and it only makes the performances of the two lead actors all the more genuine in their portrayals. It shows how much they want it, how much they honestly couldn't live without it. No matter the story, the action or even the surrounding players, what it comes down to in the end that makes End of Watch not only so good as a film, but so exciting and real are the performances of Gyllenhaal and Pena. Their acting, their commitment is what raises the film above standard cop dramas that you might otherwise be able to catch on network TV any night of the week. As commanding and charming as Gyllenhaal is Pena could not have been a better match for him to feed off of and to make every scripted moment truly feel like the camera was catching two friends goof around while at the same time seamlessly slipping into moments of real meaning. The film will likely go unrecognized during the awards season for its standard premise, but End of Watch is something special, an experience not soon forgotten.

END OF WATCH Review

End of Watch is a great movie. It is as plain and simple as that. There could honestly be nothing more said about it and if, on that alone, you walked into a theater and experienced it for yourself you would come out nodding in agreement. It is a brutal, unflinching look at two cops in one of the most dangerous areas in the U.S. It centers around two partners and friends who are not related by blood but share the bond of family and hold it to be just as sacred. While there have been plenty of cop dramas in the last few years, and very good ones including this years Rampart, there is something fresh about this take on the day-to-day lives of two inner city cops. Maybe the fact this doesn't feature corrupt cops, cops getting in too deep undercover or any of the other typical situations we find our movie law enforcement officials getting into but instead are doing nothing more than going along for the ride. Watching End of Watch is like experiencing an in your face, real and raw episode of Cops. If Cops were to air on HBO this is probably what it would look and feel like. I didn't really know what to expect going into the film. Both leading men here have had their fair share of credible and award-worthy type films while also having starred in plenty of B-movies and nonstarters. This looked to naturally be in the former category for both actors but the same could also be said for writer and director David Ayer who has made a few films in this genre before. Sure, he wrote Training Day and directed the underrated Harsh Times, but he too has had a hand in a number of projects that attempted to capitalize on his successes that instead ended up being nothing more than generic. Do you remember Street Kings? Probably not. It is safe to say with End of Watch though that everyone involved has hit a home run.