Summer Rental (1985)   John Candy   5 Stars

 

August 14, 2016 - Superstar John Candy is a family man burned out at work, burned out with his life and feels he peaked at 18 years old. After being ordered to take some time off from his job, he decides to take the family on their first vacation to the beach where he has rented a house for the summer. The vacation starts with a blast as the family accidentally enters the wrong house then ends up being told to vacate their "summer rental". Set to beautiful beach scenery, the movie is full of laughs and makes you want to head to the beach on your next vacation. A true 'feel-good movie', Summer Rental easily earns five stars from Lomax Entertainment.

 

Silver Bells (2013)    5 Stars

 

UP Television Network has aired Silver Bells for a couple years now during the Christmas season. Starring Bruce Boxleitner and Antonio Fargas, the movie follows the story of a local TV news sportscaster who is all about "the win" in everything he does. He's such as driver that his push to win causes relationship issues at home with his wife and teenage son. After getting into an altercation at a basketball game, he is sentenced to community service with the Salvation Army, which humiliates the jock. Through the journey the driving dad learns lessons about God, Christmas, giving, relationships and life in general. While a typical Hallmark/UP "feel good" movie, it has excellent acting and a capturing story. Well written and directed, it gets 5 stars from Lomax Entertainment.

 

Walking Tall 1973    4.5 Stars

 

May 17, 2014 - In 1973 Walking Tall was released to theaters outlining the life of Sheriff Buford Pusser of McNairy County Tennessee. Walking Tall was followed by two sequels which continue from the original story until Pusser's death. Although brief nudity is shown in the movies (the original and sequels) the show rates 4.5 stars. Joe Don Baker plays Pusser in the original movie and Bo Svenson stars in the sequels portraying the true story of a simple country man who runs afoul of organized crime in the south and sets out to clean it up. Pusser ran for sheriff of the county, won, had strong support from his deputies and rid the county of mafia in spite of many hits and attempts on his life. The movie loses 1/2 a star for nudity but is a recommended watch. Heroes today are nothing like the heroes of old. Today's heroes tend to be people lacking character and principle. Lomax recommends Walking Tall (1973) and the sequels.

 

Uncle Buck: John Candy     5 Stars

 

March 22, 2014 - The 1980's has been called the "decade of decadence" by VH1, be in reality it was a decade of fun and adventure which is reflected by many movies of the era. Uncle Buck came out at the end of the 80s and has all the fund of the decade. Candy is at his best as the loveable Uncle Buck, who is called upon to babysit for his brother and nervy wife. Buck is a free spirit who does not hold as steady job, bets on horse races, smokes cigars and lives the irresponsible bachelor's life. His girlfriend puts pressure on him to get a job so they can marry and start a family, to which Buck is utterly resistant. But things change when his niece Tia continuously throws a monkey wrench in the works. Family fun and laughter with good, clean John Candy acting rates this a must see and a 5 of 5 stars.

 

Maximum Overdrive: Emilio Estevez, Pat Hingle  4 Stars

 

February 03, 2014 - From 1986 comes a fun, adventurous movie about machines coming alive and attacking mankind. Estevez plays the part of a parolee working as a cook at a local truck stop when chaos erupts. Tractor-trailers begin attacking drivers and an electric knife attacks a waitress. What follows is sheer fun for the imagination. While the move is very interesting and fun to watch it lost one star for a couple of reasons. First it does contain adult language and also portrays a Bible salesman as a womanizing nut. However it is a fun movie and recommended by Lomax. Happy watching MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE ! :)

 

Shooter: Mark Wahlburg, Kate Mara, Danny Glover    5 Stars

 

February 02, 2014 - After a reader requested we review this movie, a quick search of Amazon.com brought the DVD to our office. Wahlburg stars as Bob Lee Swagger, a patriotic American who had retired from the military as a sniper. While living in solitude at his mountain home, he is approached by a Colonel to help solve a plot to kill the President. Soon he finds that he has been set up to take the fall for the plot and ends up on the run to prove his innocence.

 

Joined by Kate Mara the movie is intense and keeps your attention throughout. One interesting scene near the end is when a sitting U.S. senator tells Swagger, "at the top there are no Democrats or Republicans; no sunni and sheites, only the Haves and Have-Nots; and there's only so many seats at the table." This statement is so telling of the globalist hierarchy.

 

The movie does contain some adult language and has violence, therefore Lomax recommends viewership of sixteen and up. However the movie is well made and keeps your attention for the entire time, giving it a 5 stars from Lomax.

 

FLAP: Anthony Quinn, Claude Akins 4.5 Stars

 

January 30, 2013 - A recent purchase from Amazon brought the 1970 movie Flap to our doorsteps. For the first time available on DVD the movie is a great comedic adventure of a modern-day Indian (oops, Native American) revolution. Starring Anthony Quinn as Chief Flapping Eagle - Flap - and Claude Akins as a sidekick, the picture is full of comedy mischief. Victor French stars as Sgt. Rafferty, a mean spirited, corrupt police officer who is always on the heals of Flap in his comedic adventures. The movie is a fun watch and rates 4.5 stars from Lomax. A 1/2 star knock-off is due to scenes of the men drinking and a couple of non-seductive scenes in the local bordello. The movie has been unavailable and unseen since the 1970's, but thanks to a made-to-order service from Amazon, in partnership with Warner, the movie is freely available. At 4.5 Stars it is worth the purchase of only about 19 bucks.

 

Captain Phillips: Tom Hanks  3.5 STARS

 

January 25, 2014 - This evening we had a chance to view the newest release starring Tom Hanks as Captain Phillips. The docudrama is very intense and will keep your attention throughout the film.

 

Hanks stars as Captain Phillips, who in real life was a captain for Maersk Lines driving a freighter off the coast of Somalia. Pirates hijack the ship what follows is a dramatic take on what news reports around the world stated. The movie shows life in maritime service aboard freighters and brings to light the dangers of modern day piracy. However, one point that drew the Lomax star count downward is the fact that, like most of Hank's films, there is an attempt to humanize the bad guy under the guise of presenting "both sides" of the issue at hand. Unfortunately there were moments that could cause some to sympathize with the pirates that were responsible for the hijacking. The captain of the hijackers and a much younger lieutenant ware presented in the light of being humble followers without options. The film is very intense and will keep your attention throughout the movie. Hanks does fine acting, however the humanistic sympathizing of murderous vandals such as Somali pirates gives the movie a 3.5 Star rating.

 

Mr. Destiny: Jim Balushi, Jon Lovitz  5 STARS

 

January 21, 2014 – Tonight the FLIX network aired this memorable movie from 1990 starring Jim Belushi and Jon Lovitz. Also starring were Linda Hamilton, Rene Russo, Michael Caine, Jay O. Sanders and Bill McCutcheon.

 

The movie starts with family man Larry Burrows who is facing the usual middle-aged struggles; bills, work and life are all in conflict. Driving home from work on his birthday, his clunker-car breaks down in front of a closed bar, but suddenly all the lights go on. He enters the bar to call for a tow truck and the bar tender offers him a drink called “the spilled milk”. That is when he goes for the trip of his life. All the things he wished he’d had through the years comes true. He is given the executive job with all the perks (and misery that usually accompanies), an unhappy marriage and few friends. He even experiences the stab in the back from usual office politics. In the last minute, he realizes how fortunate he really was in his true life.

 

The movie is a good watch for anyone facing difficulties or just the day-to-day hustle and bustle of life. Having a great cast helps, but the plot is excellent, giving this memory 5 of 5 stars.

 

Stalag 17: Old Favorite, Great Watch  5 STARS

 

September 2, 2013 - One night just after Thanksgiving in the mid-1980s a brief warming spell came which caused a dense fog to settle as a new, local independent TV station aired Stalag 17. This was the first time I had ever seen the film and that night I watched it from beginning to end with my father and mother. It quickly became one of my all-time favorite war films. The Lomax Report has included a review of this movie because it is a classic, and if you’ve never seen it, it rates 5 of 5 stars.

 

The movie is set in a German POW camp housing American pilots and soldiers during World War Two. William Holden plays the focal character who is a trader and scrounger. Holden’s character draws the wrath of fellow prisoners because he trades cigarettes and other bartered items to the Germans in order to get food and occasionally special treatment. Eventually he is accused of giving information to the enemy, which at one point causes the death of two prisoners. Following the accusations railed against him he is beaten by the fellow prisoners, but then sets to find the real culprit.

 

Co-starring Neville Brand, Robert Strauss, Richard Erdman, Peter Graves and a host of others, the movie is a fun watch for any family. Set at Christmastime the movie is a recommended holiday watch. Filled with intrigue, action, comedy and tension the movie keeps your interest from beginning to end. Stalag 17 rates 5 of 5 stars from Lomax. So sit up and get a copy of Stalag 17 and join the Christmas merriment with all the Stalag 17 gang.

 

 

Disorganized Crime: Blast From The Past Good Fun Watch  4.5 STARS

 

September 1, 2013 – Revisiting an old DVD that was recorded from a television airing of the movie Disorganized Crime, the crew had a fun watch the night before Labor Day. A classic hash of country cat versus city mouse, Corbin Bernsen is a New Jersey screw-up in a small Montana town casing the bank. He calls for backup from his old crime budies (Fred Gwynne, Lou Diamond Phillips, William Russ and Ruben Blades) and ends up on the run from police while his pals make plans for the heist.

 

The movie is set in beautiful scenery from Montana and really gives you the small, hometown feel, the sort of Mayberry style where everyone knows everyone. Although there are a few bombs of bad language the story is fun, funny and contains adventure. There are a few police chases, mishaps from the criminals and at times you’ll be pulling for the bad guys with a chuckle. And after watching the movie you’ll probably want to spend your vacation in Montana looking for filming locations.

 

While not a major block-buster, the move is a good, fun watch and rates 4.5 of 5 stars and is a recommended watch from Lomax.

 

 

 

Trivia - Andy Griffith: started as Sheriff in 1955 and Barney was his cousin. In the 1960 episode “Runaway Kid” Barney calls Andy ‘cousin’ and he also said he’d been parking in front of the courthouse for about five years now. That would put Andy starting in as sheriff in 1955.