Very disappointing...

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

If you're looking for a movie that... ?? Wastes time, demos bad acting, plot...umm, everything, this is it. I'm thinking Travolta owed someone a favor. Some high priced actors making a mockery of good movies. My sympathy for anyone who prides (directly) to see this.

Oliver Stone's directing and a tight screenplay is what made this movie a hit for me. Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Taylor Kitsch and Blake Lively - the 3 musketeers ;) lol, take you on a wild ride in this well cast film with great cinematography and editing. The winner here is the writing - a fantastic story of 3 very close friends that embark on a high-stakes business enterprise. Very impactful and entertaining. It's a 9/10 from me!

Oliver Stone, the amazing director behind the Vietnam War flicks Platoon (1986), Born on The Fourth of July (1989), and Heaven & Earth (1993), makes a credible return on his dark, gritty film style with this violent, grim crime-thriller showing a bleak portrayal of international drug exchanging set on the sun-soaked side of southern California. Aaron Johnson plays Ben, a soft and peace-loving entrepreneur who owns a pot-growing business, selling some of best marijuana in the world, with his best friend Chon (played by Taylor Kitsch), a former NAVY seal veteran with a less merciful and more ruthless character who is often involved in violent confrontations against drug lords, unlike Ben prefers to live a life without violence and brutality. These two share a smoking, hot girlfriend named O a.k.a Ophelia (played by Blake Lively). However, when the two receive a business offer from a sadistic Mexican drug lord Lado (played by Benicio Del Toro) and his partner Elena (played by Salma Hayek), O is kidnapped and held hostage by Lado and his henchman. Ben and Chon must come with the money to save her from the vicious drug cartel, with the help of a corrupt DEA agent Denis (played by John Travolta).This movie doesn't quite hike up the peak of Oliver Stone's previous films, but its still entertaining as it needs to be; despite some of its flaws. With this film set in a coastal city of Laguna Beach, California, the cinematography uses some very high saturation to give the environment a sharp, colorful look. The plot is starts off a pretty solid note as we are introduced the backgrounds of the main characters Ben and Chon with Blake Lively's character's narration, including the story of Chon acquired the seeds to grow the marijuana plants. After that, the development of the characters stops there. While the plot moves pretty well more most of the first half, it eventually descends into an inconsistent mess in the second half. From there on, the story leaves a few plot holes here and there. However, the film still manages to be compelling and gritty in a way that still keeps the plot going. As the film goes on, it gets darker and more sinister, and progresses into a very mean atmosphere. With their girlfriend held hostage, the main characters get involved gunfights against cartel members that get quite bloody and gruesome at times. There is also a horrifying torture scene with some grisly results. So the film can does a bit brutal and tough to watch, but is still entertaining for the least.Savages may not be one of Oliver Stones's best films, but it still manages to be captivating. Salma Hayek and Benicio Del Toro are great in this, as well as Aaron Johnson and Taylor Kitsch, even though their characters are a bit underdeveloped. However, this movie is extremely violent and brutal, and it is not recommended for those with weak stomachs.

Savages (2012): Dir: Oliver Stone / Cast: Taylor Kitsch, Aaron Johnson, Blake Lively, Salma Hayek, Benicio Del Toro: The title pretty much sums up the greed every single character in this film lives by. Taylor Kitsch and Aaron Johnson play two successful dope manufacturers who share a girlfriend. The three of them live in their own doped up illusion of paradise until a larger competitor desires to partner with them. Kitsch fought in the Iraq war and feels no threat, whereas Johnson desires to leave the business. When an agreement is not met, their lives are threatened with the kidnapping of their girlfriend. This is a brutal film echoing Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers or U-Turn. This becomes pointless with scenes of torture where eye balls dangle from sockets. This level of violence can reduce one's faith in the director's faith in his own material. Stone has an eye for detail and the screenplay examines these relationships effectively although the double climax nearly kills the film with its laughable impact. Kitsch and Johnson are effective. Kitsch is fearless and determined with confident military backing. Johnson is paranoid but focused during negotiations. Blake Lively plays the caged girlfriend, drugged yet manages to engage a dinner conversation with the ruthless Madam, played by Salma Hayek whose daughter detests her illegal lifestyle, and she sees an attachment with Lively. Benicio Del Toro plays Hayek's ruthless henchman whose methods are deplorable and brutal. The film demonstrates the reality of such business can resort, and the paradise delusion conceal its savage reality. Score: 8 / 10