Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: While piloting a commercial airliner from Orlando to Atlanta, Captain Whip Whitaker experiences severe mechanical issues that force him to fly the plane inverted until he is able to crash land in a field. His heroic piloting results in only six of the 102 passengers and crew losing their lives. However, Whitaker has a problem. He had been flying with both alcohol and cocaine in his system, including vodka he was drinking in the cockpit. As a result, even though the crash was clearly caused by a mechanical issue, he faces possible prison time. Who's in it? The movie stars Denzel Washington , Kelly Reilly , John Goodman , Don Cheadle and Tamara Tunie. Review: My wife and I saved Flight to our library a couple weeks ago but held off watching it to take a break from Denzel Washington. We finally gave it a try this weekend and it ended up being not what we expected but also still a good choice. The plot of the movie is intriguing. Whitaker (Washington) performs some near-...

Synopsis: Low-budget horror movie producer Lawrence Woolsey comes to Key West during the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis and uses both the heightened tensions and a bunch of gimmicks to make his film, Mant , a lot scarier. However, not everything goes as planned, leading to lives being put in danger. Who's in it? The movie stars John Goodman , Cathy Moriarty , Simon Fenton , Omri Katz , Lisa Jakub and Kellie Martin . Review: I had some free time yesterday afternoon while my daughter finished up her homework and, after coming across this movie, decided to watch it. At first, I didn't think it would be a film I would enjoy and figured, at best, it would be background noise while I did something else. However, the movie was actually somewhat surprising. There are a couple things I found I really liked about this film. One of the main ones was the movie-inside-a-movie, Mant. The funny thing is, had that been a real film from the 1960s, I probably would have found the time to...

Synopsis: An aspiring young chef in jazz era New Orleans dreams of fulfilling her deceased father's dream of owning a restaurant despite having an economic disadvantage. Her efforts are put on hold when a visiting prince is turned into a frog and her attempts to break the spell with a kiss result in her being changed into a frog as well. Who's in it? The animated movie uses voices from Anika Noni Rose , Bruno Campos , Keith David , Jennifer Cody and John Goodman . Review:  My youngest daughter insisted on having some family movie time on Sunday so, after searching several options on Netflix, I wound up settling on this Disney film, mostly because it was a movie she hadn't seen yet. I remember watching this movie not long after it first came out and not enjoying it all that much. However, for my daughter's sake, I was willing to give it the benefit of the doubt and watch it a second time. Unfortunately, as it turns out, I still found I didn't enjoy this f...

Synopsis: Journalist Rebecca Bloomwood dreams of writing for the fashion magazine Alette and, as part of a master plan to land that dream job, applies for and accidentally lands a job at its sister publication, Successful Savings . Her financial advice column is a big hit. There's just one problem, she's secretly a compulsive shopper, has more than $16,000 in credit card debt and is being hunted down by bill collectors. Who's in it? The movie stars Isla Fisher , Hugh Dancy , Krysten Ritter, Joan Cusack , John Goodman and Robert Stanton . Review: I had a pretty full day on Saturday, spending most of the day at my youngest daughter's dance recital (she had two shows) before volunteering for a couple hours at the ice rink's open skate. As a result of this, even though I did manage to get a few chores done on Sunday, I was pretty drained and, between that and the weather, wound up spending a good chunk of the day watching movies with my wife. This is a f...

Synopsis: As the Vietnam War comes to a close, a monster hunter convinces a U.S. Senator to back an expedition to a newly-discovered island. Escorted by a US helicopter squad and guided by a former member of the British Special Air Service, his team of scientists penetrates the perpetual storm that hides the island only to find their lives in danger from a giant ape and the reptilian creatures it is at war with. You can read my review here: https://wizzley.com/movie-review-kong-skull-island-2017/

Synopsis : A dramatic re-telling of the life of George Herman "Babe" Ruth, starting with his life at a reform school through his final days as a professional baseball player. Who's in it? The movie stars John Goodman , Kelly McGillis , Peter Donat , Bruce Boxleitner , Trini Alvarado and James Cromwell . Review: Even though this movie came out when I was still in high school, I never actually took the time to watch it before. However, it happened to be on one of our movie channels last night and my wife and I ended up watching it while waiting for the kids to go to bed. After seeing it, my opinion of it was mixed. Ironically, one of the main reasons why I avoided watching this movie before is the fact I'm not a big John Goodman fan. As it turns out, he was actually the best part of this movie and did an excellent job playing the title character in a way that humanized him. Unfortunately, outside of Goodman, there really isn't much about this movie I tru...