YOUNGER... is more an attitude than a number

Spring has arrived and with it a new bunch of possibilities, but with it comes a price, timing, clock is ticking and no way to go back so as they say, we are not getting younger, so we better start doing stuff and stop planning, more doing and less talking right? Because when you less realize you will be a middle age and even is not the end of the world things start changing, new perspectives will come and also new regrets or new challenges. But also a clash of generations will arise and it's been a while since last time we felt such a big gap between generations, from the millennials and the generation X. How things have changed in just a decade or two? How one or the other are dealing with the same issues from two very opposite and different points of view? Well if you really want to know and start some actions about it while having a fun time, this is for you: "YOUNGER" (2015-current), a refreshing comedy show, that has launched it's network TVLand  to new horizons thanks to it's increasing popularity where generations have found a place to relate to while having a fun time and some romance but mostly exposing this clash of generation and age crisis that concerns basically to everybody that when young want to feel like grown ups and mature people and middle age ones just want to look and feel young again. Why can't we have it all?

The story follows Liza, a recently divorced woman, looking to take back her career now that her daughter is going to college  and she finds herself in a life that is not what she had for the last two decades. Sadly, once she goes back looking for a new opportunity, she realizes that there are no more option for her after she's being just a mom and no her experience is past due for the current market, one that has suffer a make over from technology and a high demand from young people looking for the same opportunities with more updated information and tools to face the challenges and demands out there. So what's left for those that are not fresh from college or young anymore? Well before giving up she decided to use her looks in advantage. Once she can pass by a 26 year old woman, thanks to some make up and wardrobe update, her confidence gets a boost and finds an opportunity as an assistant or an editor in a well known publishing company. And things can't go better for her. Everyone loves her at the office. Her boss loves how things are done with this old fashion touch and a very professional style, like old school, she feels energized and confident as things are coming back and not feeling rusty anymore is definitely pushing her career forward very fast, which starts to make thing crumble as it's all based on a lie. She is not a young girl but a middle age woman, and she is not acting like her new best friend and co worker, she's more mature and she is not partying anymore.

But living a lie is no fun. But what can you do if have no other option. And basically you are proving you are worthy and capable but just because a number or a paper doesn't say so you have to settle? But usually one lie brings more lies and from the sudden it has become a snow ball coming down hill. And when is fun watching it from the outside definitely not so much when you are the one inside. As she soon realizes when all she wanted is to go back to work and re take a career that she left to become a housewife. But this new image and life is bringing the best out of her. And soon she will find love again. Not that she was looking for it but that's how it always happen, the less you look after it, it will come to you, but for her will come in form of a young artist, that owns a tattoo store and is trying to become a musician playing with his band at any gig possible to get some attention of the industry. And even this young folk is so different from her, that's exactly what makes it work for both. They complement each other at the same time that challenges them to try new things. For her, to embrace an adventurous and energized side that most grown ups forget to settle on a comfort zone and for him, to put his shit together and his feet on the ground but at the end they love each other and make a good couple, until truth may surface. Would you still love someone if there is something not real about that person that won't change anything but still was a lie? Or is it ok to lie if for a good reason or there's a good explanation about it?

So all the fun about this show is to join Liza and her friends in her struggle to find love, be successful, look glamorous and enjoy life while she embraces this new phase of her, mixing her past life with her roommate and best friend, a lesbian business woman of her age that is the only one that knows the truth and what's going on with her, and her new life at work, with her new friend and colleague, a young girl  struggling with that hunger for success and lack of experience but full of knowledge about what to do and not knowing how to do it.Her boss, another woman of her age that actually likes her for her attitude not knowing that might be an age relation to that. And also she'getting some attention from her widowed boss,one of the owners of the company that sees her potential and also feels some sort of attraction to her but not b her looks but her maturity and shared commons. How many times we close doors because feeling too old for trying new things? And why we like to judge by a number, being labeled as a check list that must be follow by order according to the number on our ID? Who says we can't do otherwise?  And why older people can't do stuff that young people like, but they can and are pushed to act like grown ups? How many things we can learn from each other if we get the chance to open our minds and change our attitudes towards age, if comes just to the number. It's all about how you represent that number, right?

Even the light ton of the show makes you feel like watching a funny teenage drama, the current issues that you see very subtle managed by all it's  characters, makes it the perfect excuse to expose how these so called millennial generation faces hings like relationships in an era where a smartphone is more value than a friend or were communication is based in emoji's and things come as easy as they go, these young folks don't know how to deal with stress and commitment as the past generations did and turning the table we can appreciate how close minded was society regarding race, gender, social status when now it all seem and are treated the same opening the market to globalization and new ways for business, and social behavior has evolved the same way any sci fiction movie we grew up with did. So no matter what destiny has awaiting for Liza and her new gang, we can't but relate to any of them and keep rooting to make it through lies when lives are expose through social media in a way that there's few room for secrets but at the end everything is a big fake stage that we created to show the world the best of us and the one we want to become, and at the end that's what youth give us, a full stack of possibilities that we need to take action on instead of just contemplate and become in a new, fresh, reloaded version of us even the number keeps going up.

T2 TRAINSPOTTING... addictive to nostalgia?

Have you ever noted that the older we get, the more we look into the past? While we were young we only care about the future and all that bunch of possibilities awaiting for us, something happens a long the way that the more you live and get far from those young moments full of experiences and risks, excitement and dreams, the more you start looking back at them and a new feeling arises... nostalgia. And nostalgia is a bitch. As much as can get you in a good mood and look at things from a good perspective of what you wanted to do and what you've done, it also can bring you down, wondering what happened with that life and those moments full of live, specially if feeling like your present life sucks. Or missing people that has gone in separate ways, either family that you grew up with, friends that are now part of that past and those moments, or a past lover that made you feel like life is worth of any risk and full of new sensations and emotions, or simply tough you how to love and what love means. What happened with you though all those years from youth to a grown up? What have you turned into? While if you were escaping from a terrible life ad trying to move on and re invent yourself, looking back could be a sign of relieve and proud for all what you'd achieved but if you moving in the opposite direction and now feeling like your life is stock and going nowhere or just lacking those dreams and purpose, nostalgia will hit you as a way to shake up things or just get trapped in memories from all those experiences making you want to go back.

There are moments in life that define us and most of them happened  while we were young, when we were brave and willing to take risks in order to pursue our dreams and ideals. But sometimes the lack of experiences got us in trouble and sometimes we moved on leaving some open resolutions that need to be addressed and get some closure and when growing up and getting more settle and mature, feels like a need in order to fully move on and find some piece and conscious. And for all of you having a moment of Nostalgia and mixed feeling about your first two decades of life, specially thanks to a new invasion of the entertainment industry, willing to make us spend our money as junk addicts craving for that feeling of going back to that place when that moment happened while listening a song or watching a movie, there for we get "T2 Trainspotting" (2017), a long due sequel for all of those fans of the first film and movie goers that mad the original a cult movie, telling the story of a group of friends trapped in their small town, lacking of opportunities and immerse in their boring simple lives, just to find an escape through the new best thing around, heroine, and with that trip and adrenaline that any drug brings, a new idea and opportunity to change their life presents, by stealing some money and running away to London.

But for all of you, already know how did that go. Renton, played the by a young unknown Ewan McGregor, betrayed his friends and business partner, by taking all the money and running away by himself to London to start a new life leaving the rest at mercy of the authorities and stuck in their shitty town with now an even worse life. Yes, we might blame drugs for their decisions and the consequences but still doing something like that to your best friend can't let you sleep at night for long. So after suffering a sort of heart attack, and now in his mid 40's and after being fired from his job and going through a divorce, just seems right to start making amendments and get his life straight back, meaning going back where he ran away 20 years ago. And that won't be a pleasant ride as his old friends are not specially excited to see him back. Prud is trying to commit suicide. His best friend sick boy is scamming public serves with kinky taste, and Begbie is trying to escape prison. So even he is trying to make amendments will all of them, he stole more than just money, but trust, and hope, and all their opportunities for a better life. But nostalgia is a bitch and once he agrees to help them to get more money back so they can start a new business, things start going smoothly between them. Remembering their childhood together and all those things they share in common, and made them friends in the first place.

The movie still movies in the same pace as the original, thanks to it's visionary director Danny Boyle, re taking the story and knowing how to make it move forward twenty years without losing it's essence, and having the original cast back, definitely helps as all of them fit back into their characters as if they were doing it for the last two decades. The humor is still there and having the gang back together can't but trigger that nostalgia addiction of looking back to  the moment where we met them, and now they seem to go back to where they were just looking and feeling not so young, and avoiding hard core drugs but still trapped in some addiction but now as grown ups they need to man up and face their realities with family and relationships. What is missing is that innovating feeling that the original brought to cinema. It's music defined a generation and their performances and their characters were raw in a way that we haven't seen before, but by now feels so familiar that even we are more than happy to welcome this reunion, it just doesn't make memorable anymore. Definitely we get a deeper story with more real issues underneath now as all are having a mid crisis life rather than struggling to fight for a better one when still young but what defined it's predecessor was a new look and take of the drug addiction in young low income kids and the translation of that world and their experiences out of it to the screen. Here we just got what would be just a smoke after trying all other kinds of narcotics.

But that's not a bad thing at all. For all who ever wonder what if, or what happened to those familiar faces when the going to the movies and credits start rolling, specially after having such an enjoyable and thrilling ride, we always crave a hungry for more, and this opportunity is perfectly full fill by bringing some characters with some pending issues back together in a different setting in life. And who couldn't relate to that? We all move from one stage to other through years, from high school to college, from one job to other. from one relationship to other. always meeting new people, making new friendships, sometimes relocating, and at each phase we try to re invent ourselves, learn from the past and make this new opportunity better, but usually at the same time, leaving behind projects, plans, and people that we get close to and we influence and get influenced by, but some other times we just get stuck and seems like no way out, feeling miserable and like wasting our time living another's life but ours. Only blaming other but us for our lack of will to fight and take risks to achieve more, because we deserve more, and we are so entitled to just wait for things to happen and when not, we fall into some addictions that will bring that exit to all those feelings and bring some new, like nostalgia, love, excitement, confidence, but will be just a rush and when starts fading out we fall apart, needing always more, blocking us from reality and living in the past or looking only to a future that will come as fast as will go, but how good does it feel!

SKULL ISLAND... the next lost paradise

Why do we keep thinking this planet belong to us? Why  we feel o entitled to believed that we deserve every inch of land and space around the globe as part to expand out territory to places we haven't been before? History repeats and the same way our ancestors start travelling and exploring foreign land and we came to realize about 5 continents plus multiple islands, in a new century when we want to look up to space as the new frontier we still wonder about new unexplored places somewhere in Earth. Our curiosity and hungry for knowledge seems insatiable. We need more, more challenges, a new reason to lead some kind of expedition and come back as Christopher Columbus with glory and a world wide recognition for a new discovery that will change everybody else lives. But why? Why we can settle for what we have? And most important, to take care of it, instead of exploiting it . We call ourselves civilized but we act like savages, trying to win a race that will bring more business to ourselves and some recognition and popularity but why? Why human race has been defined as conquerors, consumerist, greedy always looking for the next best thing using the fact of a need for new challenges as the way to keep moving instead of settling and taking care of what we have, including natural resources. We embrace as part of our culture new research and a need of knowledge but the price for that will include destroying what comes on our way.

Trying to reinvent the monsters genre, and bringing some kind of deepness into it while adding some conscious about our environment  and trying to build some culture related to taking care of natural resources in a time where global warming is happening in rush time and some still want to blind themselves about it, the idea fits perfect for a colossal big budget spectacle. And what better than bringing back one of the most iconic monsters of all time and a cinematic celebrity: King Kong, the biggest ape of all time. But we know the story. We have a beloved classic that reinvented cinema and created a new genre. And we got sequels of course. None of them worthy but with new technology it was about time to get a remake so it happened last decade but now is time for a new story. There's more to uncover about this character and it's own world. We know just a little about him, other than you can find him anytime when you visit the Empire State building in NYC but that's just his more iconic scene and  one that is now part the of cinematography archives. But what else? What else should we know about him and why do we really need to know more?

For all that and more we got "Skull Island" (2017), a new blockbuster that will take us this time to the ape's hometown so we can get in more trouble and figure out some of those questions that have been around our heads since we saw him for the first time almost a century ago. But this movie is a new, fresh start. Has no relation with what we've seen before. The story follows a group of explorers and scientist that came to realize of the existence of a new island in the Pacific Ocean that has been hidden due to a weather system that for some reason cleared up for a few letting us to catch it. But this is the 70's. So a war just ended. And one that the Americans lose so they are not happy, specially militia spirit is down so when they are assign to an expedition to explore the new island, the opportunity to prove themselves they can do better couldn't be in a better timing. But as part of this research we will drop some bombs to the area so we can be able to track earth movements, or maybe just to provoke the natives and bring everyone out, no matter the natural impact  we can cause to that eco system, again we are as selfish as we can to get our own agenda done and who ever crosses our way will pay the consequences. But this time we will pay for actions, finally!

The response will get, becomes in a shape of a giant ape that acts like king of the island. We fights to preserve a balance in the island, so what would you expect if to come hostile to others home? Well you better be ready to fight back because this land doesn't belong to you, and again things can be predictable as we've seen this event happening along centuries of human history, when trying to colonize new places and locals fight back trying to defend their land. But this time the menace is bigger but maybe as big as our egos when comes to a group of defied solders that won't take another loss on their count. But this group  also  has another soldier, a strategist one performed by actor Tom Hiddleston, a photographer played by awarded actress Brie Larson, and the group of explorers and scientists, and none of them want to die so they will split and try to survive realizing the damage they have caused and learning that this land is nothing compare with home, everything here is 10 times bigger than usual. and for a change we have been hunted in a no mans  land, putting to a test all our survival skills and realize that with nature there are no secret agendas but just survival instinct. We love to complicate things and mess with the natural order. We can'l live in harmony or even work together, no matter if our lives are on stake we keep acting selfish and looking after our own. Sometimes we should learn from what is outside there rather than destroy it.

The movie works as a perfect spectacle. You will get what you paid for and even the story lacks of originality and takes a lot of references from other movies from the genre to please crowds, it's very well done and the fact that they try to make it as real as possible focusing on the story as much as they do on the visuals, feels refreshing and keep it's pace going for a non stop thrill, but definitely it's still missing than human factor that will add deepness to the story, maybe analyzing more about all this group of people, that we barely get to know and for that instance we can care less who will be the next victim, like in another films where the monsters represents a metaphor for some of our fears and treats, this one just want to make an ecological conscience that will work better if we could truly understand the motives behind the actions and relate to what we are looking at so one the light are on we can't stop thinking about it, forcing us to discuss it with other and that's how pop culture transforms society but maybe just for this time we'll settle for fun time at the movies and a A-list cast that only add some pedigree to attract the audience to see what might be also a genre in danger of extinction.

BEFORE I FALL.... YOLO

So when someone says you only live once, we roll our eyes as a sign of facing another cliche or our parents preaching us to make something with our lives or make the best of them, specially when we are young and see a full life ahead us, seems natural to take for granted a long lasting life full of opportunities and learning experiences so why to worry now, better to have fun while we can, right? Well sounds like something most of us fall for but never is to late to actually stop and realize how wrong we can be when trying to enjoy and experience life. Trapped in social commitments and personal ideals of how we cant our life to be we blind ourselves from what is really happening around is. What kind of people are we letting in and who are we pushing away just by trying to follow others rules instead of actually follow ours. What about all those simple moments that are overshadow by this pursue of happiness while sometimes it is already there and we are just trying to find in a different presentation. How many times we look after what we don't have instead of what we already got? Why we try to pretend we are content with the acceptance and validation from others as a sign of happiness instead of actually embrace what we really like and what we truly believe until might be too late? Why we move towards complexity when most of the things are as simple and present in every day that we need to go out and try to find them elsewhere.

This is the beginning for the new movie "Before i fall" (2017), a new teen drama based on the novel which also reminds another popular movie called Groundhog Day, but now set on Valentine's Day, where after an accident a young girl see herself trapped living exactly the same day over and over. The movie works pretty well in so many level even it's not able to avoid all the cliches of the genre, which seems playing against itself but it's the performance of her lead actress that puts it on a different level, where without trying to preach and mostly flirting with suspense to figure out what is happening in there, we get to realize a message that is hiding with so many echoes that can't but get out of the theater with more than one thought. What would you do if only have one day to leave and might not be the last one but is the only one you have? The movie and story manages to answer this but since the perspective of someone young, from that point of life where we feel like rebels and entitled for all what is about to come. But it's meaning resonates to anyone at ant age because even we grow up we get caught in different paths and follow similar patterns, and even this is a teen film, it might please people from any age of gender, and mostly is well done, directed, written, and performed so we'll totally buy it and in merge in this  paradox situation moving us from romance to anxiety back to drama and trying to find more clues to solve the puzzle that will change our and her life.

So basically we follow a young popular girl in high school, in what seems to be another regular day, or better said another traditional holiday, where as any girl, more than getting excited about Valentine's day and spend the day with friends and boyfriend, the man concern is to see how many roses will they get as a proof of how popular they are and all plans about the day focused on tonight's party. But what seems like a perfect life in general once is put under the loop, might take a different context. And that's exactly what happens when you get life over and over the same day. As any kid trying to learn how to ride a bike, routine will make it easier, but not in this case as our pretty and popular girl will feel trapped in a circle going over and over the same day, the same moments, like a deja vu, where you know the feeling of something that already happened. At the same time will try to figure out what happened that put her in a limbo as if all her life now will depend on answering that question. And for that she will go through different faces every day, same as we do every time we get up every morning and face a new possibility at a new day, and so she goes from anger to joy, trying to do her best of the day to simply doesn't care and be bold and careless, but seems like it's not about changing the course of events but to pay attention to what's underneath and turn thing up side down.

Are this people that we love and call friends, really good friends to me? bringing joy and making you feel special and be a better self, accepting you the way you are and embracing your path and ideas as their own, or they are simply there because you match their needs and they can use you for different purposes. How about family? Why sometimes we put other before them, and we assume they have to deal with us just because they have to, we never get the chance to enjoy them, to really get to know them, we just use them as a punch bag for our frustrations, and what about when comes to our relationships, when we are looking for love, for that special one that will complement us, make us feel special, and ended with the opposite just following stereotypes, like chasing the popular guy just because seems like the right to do, but never feels right until we give us a chance to discover other people and how they  can make us feel special and even without noticing them they are trying to impress us and sometimes know us better than we do because they can see the real you, the one that is hiding behind a mask or a costume pretending to fit in a world that might not belong to us but it's easier and let us forget about the real things and just enjoy giving us some confidence and access to more stuff that can be attractive until it's not.

As the story goes over ad over the same day and trying to do things differently and trying to solve the puzzle of your life, just instead of taking you a lifetime, imagine that you only have one day. It might sound cheesy and over rated the fact that we live unconscious of what we have and we are always looking for what is next and sometimes we miss the fact that the things that we like and we are looking for are already there just in a different form from what we expected, but things can be just the way we want right? And how shocking it is to realize and discover the true colors of all those people that are part of our life until we really give it a chance to understand their behavior and motives. And specially be aware of how our actions have an impact in people that we might haven't noticed but are there and sometimes we just start affecting people for no reason. Why did i get mad with my parents just because they say no? Why am i dating this person that only sees the outside of me but totally misses the real me? What do i have in common with these people i use to call friends if they are just not very nice people but insecure and popular? So why do we need this constant reminder of what matters in life and to  enjoy it at it's fullest making the best of everyday when should be a way of living instead of a topic for discussion or a reminder of what we are here for. proving that we like to complicate things and as social animals we follow tendencies instead of ideals getting lost in between, so wake up before you fall.

SAM WORTHINGTON.... a clash of Titans

Para algunos la actuación es un sueno que parece imposible, para otros es una vocación, y para otros pareciera ser una señal del destino. Tambien hay algunos raros casos en los que estos tres casos aplican y Samuel Henry John Worthington, mejor conocido como Sam, es uno de ellos. Tambien pertenece a esta nueva oleada de actores Australianos que ha invadido Hollywood. Aunque nacio en el Sureste de Inglaterra, a tan solo meses de nacido sus padres se mudan a Australia, donde credio e la zona rural al su padre trabajar en una planta de energia electrica. En la Secundaria atendio a una escuela en el Oeste de Australia, especializada en las artes dramaticas pero no se gradua por lo que su padre lo obliga a mantenerse, llevandolo a recorrer el pais en trabajos como obrero, hasta que logra instalarse en Sidney donde audiciona para el instituto Nacional de Artes Dramaticas, obteniendo una beca para ingresar.Su debut viene con la cinta independiente "Somersault" (2004), un film Australiano que logro colarse al festival de Cannes, al contar la historia de una joven con problemas emocionales que al viajar a la casa de campo de su familia conoce a un granjero local con quien finalmente inicia una clase de relacion que la ayudara a explorar sus sentimientos a la par que el joven, interpretado por el actor, explora sus preferencias sexuales.Este rol le valio el premio AFI a mejor actor, lo cual lo empujaria en 2005 a Hollywood, donde solo lograria pequenos roles en cintas que desafortunadamente no lograron gran proyeccion.

Es hasta 2007, donde al protagonizar la cinta Australiana "Rogue", que las cosas cambiarían, a pesar de ser una cinta de terror, sobre un grupo de turistas atrapados en los pantanos de la region y acosados por un enorme y hambriento cocodrilo, la cinta gozo de excelentes criticas y puso al elenco en la mira de la industria nacional e internacional. Entre ellos caras ahora conocidas como Michael Vartan, Radha Mitchell y Mia Wasikowska. Curiosamente la cinta esta basada en hechos reales sobre un cocodrilo local que solia atacar botes en la region mas nunca ataco a ningun ser humano. Pero para Sam esto le valio la oportunidad de formar parte de "Terminator:Salvation" (2009), la cuarta entrega dela popular franquicia, y donde co protagonizaria a lado de Christian Bale, interpretando a un robot que de alguna manera se ha humanizado y desea ayudar al resto de la humanidad en su lucha contra las maquinas.La cinta recibio malas criticas en general pero la taquilla fue benigna al gozar de buen recibimiento para un blockbuster de su talla. Lo cual dislumbraba un futuro exitoso en la industria, pues a tan solo unos meses despues lo veriamos protagonizando la cinta "Avatar" (2009), el nuevo proyecto del director James Cameron, sobre la humanidad invadiendo un planeta que ofrece recursos naturales similares a la Tierra, Pandora, y la historia se centra en un soldado humano y su relacion con una alienigena local. La cinta se aprovecho del boom del 3D y se conviertio en la cinta mas taquillera hasta ese momento, rompiendo toda clase de records.

Obviamente tras participar en dos exitosos blockbusters con millones en la taquilla global, era obvio su siguiente proyecto, otro blockbuster, ahora un remake, "Clash of the Titans" (2010), basado en la popular cinta de los 60's, tomando ventaja de los efectos de hoy en día, contando la historia basada en la antología griega, sobre un semi Dios que tendrá que enfrentar la lucha de los dioses Zeus, Poseidon y Hedes, que desatara una serie de eventos para los mortales. La cinta tuvo malas criticas al ser un mero espectaculo visual pero dado su elenco que ademas del actor incluye a Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Nicholas Hoult y Luke Evans, su taquilla fue un exito lo que dio luz verde a su secuela "Wrath of the Titans" (2012), donde ahora tras el hecho de que los humanos ya no creen o rezan a los dioses, estos estan perdiendo poder y pronto un Dios maligno que ha estado prisionado, sera liberado desatando caos en el mundo de los mortales. Sobra decir lo que sucede a continuacion y tal vez esta obviedad llevo a la cinta a un moderado recibimiento, pero mucho menos a su antecesora y ni mensionar que las pesimas criticas.

Pero no todo es acción y efectos especiales pues el actor aprovechando su presencia en pantalla opta por otra clase de proyectos como "Last Night" (2010), un melodrama sobre una joven pareja que tras un evento de trabajo de el, donde pasa la mayor del tiempo con una supuesta colega, de la que nunca antes había mencionado, despierta sospechas en su esposa y poniendo a prueba su relación, tocando temas sensibles de las relaciones modernas, como la fidelidad, monogamia, y el amor en el nuevo milenio. A pesar de un elenco que incluye a Kiera Knightley y Eva Mendes, la cinta obtuvo criticas mezcladas y una pobre taquilla dada su limitada corrida comercial. Tambien lo vemos en "The Debt" (2010), un remake de un thriller israeli, basado en la vida de tres agentes que se conocen en una mision alla en los 60's por tratar de asesinar a un lider aleman, y que al paso de los anos los mantendria unidos para reunirlos 30 anos despues en una especia de mision y venganza, que los enfrentara a un enemigo comun asi como a si mismos. Co protagonizan las actrices Helen Mirren y Jessica Chastain y gozando de buenas criticas y una decente taquilla, el actor quedo opacado por el talento de sus co protagonistas.

Posteriormente lo vemos en "Texas Killing Fields" (2010), si es que alguien tuvo acceso a la cinta, pues este thriller basado en varios casos de gente desaparecida en la carretera que une las ciudades de Houston y Galveston participo en el festival de Venecia pero tras malas criticas, su exhibición comercial fue muy limitada, mandándola al rincón del olvido a pesar de su talentoso reparto que incluye otra vez a la actriz Jessica Chastain, Chloe Grace-Moretz y Jeffrey Dean Morgan. En 2012 regresa con otro protagonico, ahora liderando el thriller "Man on a Ledge" , sobre un hombre que aparentemente intenta saltar de un edificio, pero esto es solo una distraccion para que su hermano logre robar el banco ubicado en la cuadra siguiente. Nuevamente logra reunir a un destacado elenco que incluye a Elizabeth Banks, Jamie Bell y Ed Harris, mas aunque no un fracaso, su taquilla apenas logro recobrar su presupuesto y nuevamente los criticas no gustaron de su propuesta, lo que lo llevaria a regresar a su natal Australia para regresar con "Sabotage" (2014), un thriller de accion que marcaria el regreso del actor Arnold Schwarzenneger a la pantalla grande, en una historia sobre un grupo de agentes especiales que tras una exitosa mision, empezarian a ser asesinados sin motivo aparente en lo que pareciera un acto de venganza o un medio para eliminar testigos.  La cinta tuvo una pobre taquilla y una peor reepcion por parte de la critica.

Lo que pareciera un cambio de aires, alejandose de los thrillers que mal le han sentado, lo vemos en el drama "Cake" (2014), un aclamado filme, que gozo de excelentes critics y recepción en varios festivales, contando la historia de una mujer, Jennifer Anniston, sumergida en la depresión tras la perdida de su hijo y que deberá aprender a lidiar con su pena con la ayuda de amigos y desconocidos. Apesar de las excelentes criticas, su corrida limitada no le favorecio en taquilla pero permitio el lucimiento de su protagonista asi como un gran elenco de reparto que incluye a Anna Kendrick, Chris Messina y Adriana Barraza. Siguiendo esta corriente de dramas independientes que pareciera sentarle bien forma parte de "The Keeping Room" (2014), un drama ubicado en plena guerra civil de EU, donde un grupo de jovenes mujeres intentaran defenderse de los soldados buscando refugio y provisiones que a su vez destruyen y acaban con lo que se cruze en su camino. La cinta debuto en el festival de Venecia con excelentes criticas pero ni eso le sirvio para ganarse una corrida comercial. Por lo que en 2015 regresa con una mezcla de drama y accion en "Kidnapping Freddy Heineken", basada en los hechos veridicos de un grupo de jovenes que tras quedarse desempleados buscaran obtener el dinero que necesitan y creen merecerse, secuestrando al empresario fundador de la famosa cerveceria. Co protagonizan Anthony Hopkins como el magnate homonimo y Jim Sturgess como el lider del grupo, mientras el actor lleva el papel de la conciencia del grupo. La cinta gozo de popularidad en Europa mas en America paso desapercibida con una limitada exhibicion y las tibias criticas no le ayudaron.

Pero mas tarde regresa en e blockbuster "Everest" (2015), contando una nueva historia sobre gente tratando de conquistar el punto mas alto del planeta y que termino en una tragedia tras ser atacados por una tormenta cuando se encontraban en la expedición. El actor juega un rol menor, interpretando a uno de los amigos de los experimentados guias tratando de sobre llevar esta expedicion para hacer dinero y dedcarse a otra cosa finalmente. Con un elenco multi estelar que incluye a Jake Gyllenhaal, Jason Clarke, Josh Brolin, Keira Knightley, Emily Watson, la cinta fue un exito aunque no de la talla como se esperaba, pero el actor ha sido relegado a papels de reparto. Tal es el caso de su siguiente proyecto: "Hacksaw Ridge" (2016), aclamada cinta, reciente nominada a los Oscares, contando la historia real de un soldado que fue a la guerra sin arma y aun asi sobrevivio y logro rescatar a cientos de sus companeros heridos y caidos. La cinta cuenta su vida en su natal pueblo, luego su ingreso a la milicia y su lucha por defender sus ideales de servir al pais sin portar un arma y su experiencia en plena accion. Bajo la batuta del actor/director Mel Gibson, la cinta rinde tributo a un heroe americano, pero la mayoria del casting son actores australianos, tales como Teresa Palmer, Hugo Weaving y Luke Bracey. El actor interpreta al general a cargo de este joven y que se pondrá de su lado al ver la valentía y fortaleza del joven por servir y luchar por su país. La cinta es obviamente ya un exito en critica y taquilla.

Por ultimo, este mes lo vemos en "The Shack" (2017), una cinta de tematica religiosa, contando la historia de un hombre que tras sufrir una dolorosa perdida necesitara de cierto apoyo para re encontrar su camino y el amor por la vida. La critica ha aplastado la cinta pero en taquilla ha probado que el gnero religioso esta aun vivo mas esta por vernes el alcance y el impacto del actor en su regreso como rol protagonico ya que la cinta ha sido promocionada por su co protagonista, la talentosa actriz Octavia Spencer recien salida de otra nominacion alos premios de la Academia. Y mas tarde este mismo ano lo veremos en "Hunter's Prayer" (2017), otro thriller ahora bajo la mano del director Jonathan Mostow, y donde el actor retoma el rol protagonico sobre un asesino que ayudara a una joven a vengar la muerte de sus padres y hermano. Co protagonizan Alicia Silverstone y Joel Kinnaman, asi que aun esta el aire el futuro de este actor que ha sido encasillado y cuyo talento ha sido opcado o talvez jamas expuesto, y ante una nueva generacion de actores tanto de su natal Australia como del resto del mundo, la competencia no la tiene facil y debera buscar ese rol que lo logre identificar entre la multitud y ponga su nombre y rostra en la mira de la industria y elresto del mundo.