Review: ‘The Tax Collector’ loses its money maker too soon.

SYNOPSIS: David (Bobby Soto) and Creeper (Shia LaBeouf), are “tax collectors” for the crime lord Wizard, collecting his cut from the profits of local gangs’ illicit dealings. But when Wizard’s old rival returns to Los Angeles from Mexico, the business is upended, and David finds himself desperate to protect what matters more to him than anything else: his family.

As a fan of Narcos and Cocaine Cowboys, I had incredibly high expectations for The Tax Collector. The slick editing in the beginning, that mixes voiceover and time-jumping violence immediately drew me in. Soto plays David with strength and a conscience. This felt like a fresh take on the typical gang genre. While there is a family angle that is different from the usual fare, it was the introduction of Shia LaBeouf‘s character Creeper that locked me into this particular narrative. He is an unexpected maniac. In reality, it should have come as no surprise because that’s LaBeouf’s schtick; he embodies any role with frightening ease. It was his role that kept me watching The Tax Collector because the idea of Creeper going nuts, simply based on a very brief intercut scene had me salivating for his character’s abilities to take shape. Then, it was a bit of bait and switch. While Bobby Soto was entertaining enough, and the rest of what feels like an ensemble cast is strong as well, LaBeouf’s character disappears and I lost most of my emotional investment. With the aspect of religion Vs religion used in a kind of silly way, I only watched until the end after some serious violence for violence’s sake occurs and thought, “Well, I’ve made it this far. How does this end now?” It’s pretty brutal (this is me warning you now) if you’re at all squeamish. After some truly senseless deaths, and ironically, one that not satisfying enough, the movie sort of just ends okay. That final shot though, come one now. Which is something I actually said out loud at the screen. Admittedly, I thought LaBeouf was the best part of this film. Show up for the genre, the music, the color choices, stay for Shia and The Tax Collector may just keep you in your seat.

RLJE Films will release the thriller THE TAX COLLECTOR, In Theaters, On Demand and Digital on August 7, 2020.

THE TAX COLLECTOR stars Bobby Soto (The Quarry, “Narcos: Mexico”), Cinthya Carmona (“East Los High,” “Greenhouse Academy”), George Lopez (“George Lopez,” Valentine’s Day) and Shia LaBeouf (Honey Boy, The Peanut Butter Falcon). The film was directed and written by David Ayer (director and writer of Suicide Squad, Fury, End of Watch and the writer of Training Day).

Netflix News: New trailer for ‘Bright’ with Will Smith, Joel Edgerton & Noomi Rapace from the director of ‘Suicide Squad’

Set in an alternate present-day, this action-thriller directed by David Ayer (Suicide Squad, End of Watch, writer of Training Day) follows two cops from very different backgrounds.  Ward, a human (Will Smith), and Jakoby, an orc (Joel Edgerton), embark on a routine night patrol that will alter the future of their world as they know it.  Battling both their own personal differences as well as an onslaught of enemies, they must work together to protect a deadly, thought-to-be-forgotten relic, which in the wrong hands could destroy everything.

The Netflix original film stars Will Smith, Joel Edgerton, Noomi Rapace, Lucy Fry, Edgar Ramirez, Ike Barinholtz, Enrique Murciano, Jay Hernandez, Andrea Navedo, Veronica Ngo, Alex Meraz, Margaret Cho, Brad William Henke, Dawn Olivieri, and Kenneth Choi.  The film is directed by David Ayer and written by Max Landis.  David Ayer, Eric Newman, and Bryan Unkeless serve as producers. The Netflix original film will be released on Netflix on December 22, 2017.  www.netflix.com/bright

Prepare to enter the world of Bright: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

#BrightMovie

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Review: Suicide Squad

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Warner Brothers are off to a rough start in creating their DC Cinematic Universe with the overwhelmingly negative reception of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but they’re hedging their bets that David Ayer’s Suicide Squad can right the ship. With movie superstar Will Smith, the live action debut of beloved character Harley Quinn and the return of the Joker, this movie is set up to be a home run, but with early screening responses trending negative and word of back stage issues, could we possibly be seeing strike two for the movie studio or will fans embrace this rouge group of bad guys doing good and usher in a new successful comic book franchise to the ever growing genre.

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It is a world post Superman and Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) is a government official who doesn’t plan on sitting back and waiting for an apocalyptic event to occur. Her plan is to assemble a task force consisting of a group of dangerous criminals with the intent of controlling them to do her bidding if a threat to this nation arises. She receives the approval to move forward and, along with military man Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman), and samurai Katana (Karen Fukuhara) she selects her team consisting of Deadshot (Will Smith), the deadliest hitman on Earth, Harley Quinn (Margo Robbie), former psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum and current crazed super-villain who happens to be the love of The Joker’s life, Boomerang (Jai Courtney), a rugged, unpredictable and mouthy criminal who utilizes deadly boomerangs, Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), a super-villain with the features of a crocodile, and El Diablo (Jay Hernandez), a gang member who has powers that allow him to summon flames.

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Together they must take on Enchantress (Cara Delevingne), an ancient evil force that awakens to find a world where she once ruled has adopted new gods to worship. Enchantress beings to assemble a machine that will destroy the city, but it’s the Suicide Squad that is activated to take on the threat, but Enchantress isn’t the only threat to these anti-heroes. Harley Quinn’s boyfriend, The Joker (Jared Leto), the biggest criminal in Gotham is out to get his girl back and he’ll stop at nothing to get her back. Around each corner, a new threat lurks, can this team find a way to coexist or will the deeds from their past hinder their chances of success?

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Director David Ayer creates a chaotic world in which to drop his suicide squad into and sets them off like a time bomb. Much like DC’s animated movie Batman: Assault on Arkham, this is very much a search and destroy film taking from recent video game plots, mixing it all into Ayer’s world and relying on the strength of the actors to make the simplistic plot as intersting as possible for the audience. Viola Davis is amazing and embodies Amanda Waller with the exact amount of venom needed to bring this “take no crap” character to the screen. Will Smith brings his star power to the film and ultimately becomes a focal point of the movie. Deadshot’s back story and character arc embrace the human side of his character while attempting to prove that even bad guys can be good. Margo Robbie’s Harley Quinn is the other focal point and her portrayal of Quinn is perfection. Robbie adds sex appeal to Quinn’s bad ass persona and brings to life one of the most beloved characters with pure class. Jared Leto unearthed the clown prince and brought the the screen a new take on the Joker. Leto’s is a perfect companion to Robbie’s Harley Quinn and one that will be highly anticipated to watch as the character makes his way thru the DCU. My only wish is that the character was given a bit more screen time. The rest of the cast including Cara Delevingne, Joel Kinnaman and Jai Courtney were serviceable at best and really didn’t leave a lasting impression.

Overall, Suicide Squad is a highly enjoyable action film that will surely entertain fans of the comics. Will audiences embrace this movie? That’s a question for another time, but one thing’s for sure, form your own opinion and make sure not to allow the negative critical reaction from allowing yourself to see the film.

Stars:

3 1/2 out of 5

After Credit Scene?

Yes. Mid Credit

Trailer:

‘Suicide Squad’ Cast Photo and First Look at Will Smith as Deadshot!

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David Ayer has released two photo from the upcoming Suicide Squad movie. The first one (above) features the first look at most of the cast and the second one (below) features a first look at Will Smith in his Deadshot costume.

The DC adaptation also stars Joel Kinnaman (RoboCop) as Rick Flagg; Margot Robbie (Focus) as Harley Quinn; Jai Courtney (Divergent) as Captain Boomerang; Cara Delevingne (Anna Karenina) as Enchantress; Karen Fukuhara as Katana; Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Killer Croc; Jay Hernandez as El DIablo; and Adam Beach as Slipknot.

Missing from the photo are Ike Barinholtz, Scott Eastwood, Raymond Olubowale, Alex Meraz, Jim Parrack, and Common in addition to Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller and Jared Leto’s previously-revealed Joker.

A secret government agency run by Amanda Waller, named A.R.G.U.S creates a task force comprised of super villains, the “Suicide Squad”. They are assigned to execute dangerous tasks in exchange for shorter prison sentences.

Production continues thru the summer and the film will be released on August 5, 2016

 

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Suicide Squad Director David Ayer Tweets Photo of Jared Leto in a Familiar Pose

For those of us who saw the cast photo from the upcoming Suicide Squad film, many wondered why actor Jared Leto  was missing, well, director David Ayer latest tweet may shed some light on his whereabouts. Joker fans will instantly recognize the photo as an homage to the cover of Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s classic story “The Killing Joke.” You can view both the tweet and the cover below.

Released in 1988, Batman: The Killing Joke provided fans with an origin story for the Joker. It depicts the clowned prince as a failed stand-up comedian who agrees to aid a gang of criminals and is thwarted by the superhero Batman before being disfigured; in doing so he is driven insane and attains his supervillain persona.

No word on if this tweet is a foreshadowing as to what we can expect from Leto’s interpretation of the character in the upcoming.

Suicide Squad will hit theaters on August 5, 2016

[UPDATE] Tom Hardy Exits DC’s ‘Suicide Squad’ Movie

<> on July 13, 2010 in Los Angeles, California.

UPDATE: Variety reports that Jake Gyllenhaal has passed on the offer to play Rick Flagg. The search for a Tom Hardy replacement continues.

According to The Wrap actor Tom Hardy has been forced to drop out out of Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Entertainment’s upcoming Suicide Squad movie due to scheduling conflict, but word has it that David Ayer has reached out to his End of Watch star Jake Gyllenhaal to replace him. Hardy was slated to play Rick Flagg in the film. Read More →

DC’s Suicide Squad Movie Announces It’s Cast!

GalleryComics_1920x1080_20141112_NSS4_cover_R1_544ad88bafa086.84446057David Ayer (Fury) must’ve sold his soul to bring DC Comics’ super villain team to the big screen with such an all star cast. Greg Silverman, President, Creative Development and Worldwide Production, Warner Bros. Pictures announced just minutes ago that the cast has been assembled and here it is: Read More →

Warner Brothers Announces New DC Comic Book Movies Thru 2020!

justiceleagueIn what was the shocking announcement coming out of Time Warner Investor Day, Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara announced the future of the DC movie universe by unveiling nine DC properties coming to multiplexes, along with already in production Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, over the next 6 years. Read More →

Michael’s Review: ‘Fury’- Ensemble Cast Hits the Target

FURY_DOM_1SHT_TSRFilmmakers of World War II movies, one of Hollywood’s favorite subjects, have a difficult task when portraying the difficulties of war and depicting the sacrifices that each side had to endure. Many wartime films suffer in their portrayal because the filmmakers are either too afraid to go too far in showing the real gruesome nature of war or they scale back their depiction of the war and try to focus more on the toll that is taken on the soldiers fighting the war, but, at times, something seems to be missing. Fury is unapologetic in its tale of the horrors of war and equally focuses on the factors that deprive the characters of their humanity. Prepare yourself. Read More →