Rules of Engagement (2000)

Samuel J and Tommy Lee Jones deliver solid performances in this "A Few Good Men" and "Courage Under Fire" hybrid. Battle scenes in the first half of the movie are followed by courtroom drama in the second half. Flashbacks are utilized as well. Not much stands out in this by the books drama.

Rating: C

Felon (2008)

I need to just start seeing everything Val Kilmer has done and will do. The guy has transformed himself into one of the coolest actors of our time. Something nobody could see coming after such movies as Weird Science in his early years.

Anyway, Felon sounds like a remake of that classic Tom Selleck film An Innocent Man. Yes, Tom Selleck used to make classic films. Felon is much more than that. It's a realistic look at what might happen to an everyman sentenced to do hard time, with harder criminals--how he survives, what happens to his family on the outside, and a side plot about guards running their own gladiator fights.

Could be terrible in the wrong hands? It's not. Camera work is excellent. Pacing is right on. Acting by leads Val and Stephen Dorff are terrific. Realism is pumped up very high. It's an intense film without coming off as a Van Damme knockoff. Check out this overlooked gem.

Rating: B+