I know I'm about a year and a half late on this, but I decided to let you know how my rating system works. (BTW: I am coming out with more reviews soon, sorry for the delay.)
5 stars= Pretty much perfect (A Clockwork Orange, 2001, Rocky, Django Unchained, Pulp Fiction, Requiem for a Dream, Goodfellas, The Empire Strikes Back), or at least really, really entertaining (The Avengers, Skyfall, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Dark Knight, Iron Man, Kill Bill).
4.5 stars= Really fantastic, but not quite perfect. (Man of Steel, The Pianist, The Town, Inception, Memento, The Prestige, Reservoir Dogs, Star Trek, Return of the King, Return of the Jedi, Star Wars, American Psycho, The Truman Show, District 9, Trainspotting, Finding Nemo, Batman Begins, Aliens, Robocop)
4 stars= Extremely enjoyable, don't miss out on it. (Spider-Man, Trance, Dredd, Looper, The Terminator, X-Men, Enter the Dragon, First Blood, Superbad, Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Saving Private Ryan, The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Primal Fear, Identity)
3.5 stars= A very enjoyable film, catch it in theaters if you can. (RED, Die Hard 2, Devil's Advocate, Moonrise Kingdom, Avatar, Now You See Me, Superman: The Movie, Kick-Ass, Saw, Insidious)
3 stars= A good time, has issues, but overall a good movie. Not necessarily a "fun movie", but has to be at least decent. (Con Air, Live Free or Die Hard, Hot Tub Time Machine, The Butterfly Effect, The Rock, Friday the 13th, Signs, The Great Gatsby, 8 Mile, American Pie, Batman, House of 1000 Corpses, Home Alone)
2.5 stars= Not something you need to catch in theaters, but is fair enough. Not a lot of love, not too much hate. (The Purge, After Earth, The Amazing Spider-Man, Paranormal Activity 3, The Expendables)
2 stars= Not the best, pretty disappointing. (Men in Black II, Batman Returns, Batman Forever, The Hunger Games)
1.5 stars= Pretty damn awful. (Big Momma's House, Scary Movie 4, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III, Grown Ups, That's My Boy, Norbit, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen)
1 star= Despicably terrible. (Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Scary Movie V, The Smurfs, Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star, Silent Hill: Revalation, Showgirls, Supergirl, A Good Day to Die Hard)
0.5 stars= Sickeningly bad. (Batman and Robin, Meet the Spartans, Jaws: The Revenge, Howard the Duck, The Zookeeper, Master of Disguise)
0 stars= Legendarily horrible. (Catwoman, Freddy Got Fingered, Plan 9 From Outer Space, Battlefield Earth, The Room, Robot Monster, Troll 2, Disaster Movie, Epic Movie, Jack and Jill, Movie 43)
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Gaming News: Arkham Origins Updates 2
In recent news, WB Games Montreal has announced some more stuff for Batman: Arkham Origins, the fourth of the eight assassins has been revealed as Copperhead. In the original comics and animated series, Copperhead was a male villain in a snake suit. In the recent New 52 comics, he has been transformed into a mutant assassins: a snake man. In this new game, the assassin is a female, snake-like mutant. Batman, in the official teaser trailer for the character, notes that the files on the villain "list a male, not a female", hinting that the Copperhead of the comics may have existed before the events of the game, and this female is his protégé. She appears to be a fast, stealthy, agile assassins, and appears to be an interesting challenge for the Dark Knight. At E3 and Comic-Con, the team behind the game revealed a new skin: "Worst Nightmare", which is the version of Batman criminal see: a dark creature who roams the night, which can be unlocked by completing the game 100%. They also showed off the demos for the main game and it's portable follow-up: Batman Arkham Origins: Blackgate. This portable game will take place after the story mode of the main game, and will feature Batman's first encounters with Catwoman, and will be a 2-D platformer. In the recent issue of Official Xbox Magazine USA, new screenshots were released, including those of "Wonderland". This issue revealed that The Mad Hatter will appear in the "Most Wanted" side missions, but he will play a much larger role than he did in Arkham City, which featured him in a very short side mission. He will have hypnotized thugs in rabbit masks, similar to the last game, and Batman must save a girl he has kidnapped, who he sees as the incarnation of Alice from Lewis Carroll's works (this aspect of Hatter's personality was explored in the Hugo Strange interview tapes from Arkham City). The demented Wonderland hallucination will feature dilapidated towers and buildings, hypnotized thugs, strange locations, and surreal imagery. Here is a video on the mission that goes into detail on the locations and has some spoilers as to the ending of the mission: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JCrgZfuHGI. If you preorder the game at GameStop, besides getting the ability to play as Deathstroke, you can get 2 exclusive Black Mask challenge maps, but it has not been confirmed if you can play as the masked mobster. There's been a rumor floating around that Ron Perlman (Hellboy, Cronos, City of Lost Children, Beatuy and the Beast series, Tangled, Blade II, 1000 Ways to Die, Drive, Sons of Anarchy, Pacific Rim) will reprise his role as Deathstroke/Slade Wilson from the Teen Titans animated series, where he was referred to as "Slade". That would be awesome. That's all the news so far, Arkham Origins hits stores October 25, 2013, in just about 3 months. I'm excited to hear more news and experience the game for myself. Thanks for reading.
Note: Nolan North voices The Penguin in Arkham City and Origins, as well as many other classic game characters such as Desomnd Miles from Assassin's Creed and Nathan Drake in Uncharted. He is also known for voicing the video game and animated inarnations of Deadpool. What's interesting about North appearing in both this game and the Deadpool games is that Deadpool is somewhat of a homage/parody of Deathstroke, even having a similar name (Slade Wilson and Wade Wilson), despite being a classic character in his own right.
(Images: myxboxlive.com, gamersyde.com)
Note: Nolan North voices The Penguin in Arkham City and Origins, as well as many other classic game characters such as Desomnd Miles from Assassin's Creed and Nathan Drake in Uncharted. He is also known for voicing the video game and animated inarnations of Deadpool. What's interesting about North appearing in both this game and the Deadpool games is that Deadpool is somewhat of a homage/parody of Deathstroke, even having a similar name (Slade Wilson and Wade Wilson), despite being a classic character in his own right.
(Images: myxboxlive.com, gamersyde.com)
Thursday, July 25, 2013
The Conjuring: James Wan's latest frightening film is based on a true horror story
Today, I look at the latest supernatural horror film from director James Wan.
The Conjuring:
Ed and Lorraine Warren were true-life paranormal investigators back in the 60's and 70's, they investigated thousands of disturbing and creepy cases, including the infamous "Haunting in Connecticut" (which was made into a film in 2008) and the atrocious "Amityville Horror" (another famous horror story turned into a film, which is alluded to at the end of this film). One case, the case of the Perron Family of Rhode Island, was so traumatizing and distressing they have kept it a secret... until now. What entities did the Perrons see in their home? I'll let you see the film for yourself for the answer to that question. Although not as creepy and spine-chilling as Wan's earlier film Insidious, or last year's Sinister, The Conjuring still manages to pack quite a punch. The film came under controversy because the MPAA rated the film R, not for gore or sex or violence or swearing, but merely for it's scare factor. Wan attributes this to the fact it was based on a true story, elevating it. And there is no doubt, this actually happened. The ending credits show newspaper clippings and photos of the Warrens and the Perrons, as well as the places and things the Warrens investigated, including a very disturbing doll. Lorraine Warren makes a brief cameo in the film, and she even visited the set, and the Perrons were interviewed in promos for the film. The main cast od an excellent job. Patrick Wilson (who starred in Wan's film Insidious, and appeared in Little Children, Watchmen, Hard Candy, The Alamo, The Ledge, The A-Team, Prometheus, and The Phantom of the Opera) and Vera Farmiga (The Departed, Up in the Air) do a great job as the likeable couple Ed and Lorraine Warren. They're kind, decent people, and also have a young daughter to take care of, which makes you really care for them, and hope nothing bad happens to them. Lili Taylor (Six Feet Under, Ransom, The Haunting, I Shot Andy Warhol, Say Anything, Mystic Pizza) and Ron Livingston (Office Space, Sex and the City, Band of Brothers, Standoff, Defying Gravity) are good as the loving parents of the Perron family. Taylor especially is great during the scenes in the latter half of the film, which require a great deal of physical commitment, and often are tough on the body. The kid actors, including Joey King (Oz the Great and Powerful, Ramona and Beezus, New Girl, Jericho) do a fantastic job, similar to Ty Simpkins in Insidious, as their emotions feel very authentic, and not forced. Even though this is a true story, so you know nobody actually dies, the tension is still really great. You really feel tense wondering what's going to happen to the characters, and feel extremely on edge when they are in peril or in the presence of spirits. The musical score, while a bit too similar to Insidious (it is scored by the same composer), still is very effective in creating a mysterious and chilling atmosphere. Fun fact: Joseph Bishara, composer for this film and Insidious, plays the main antagonist, an evil ghost named Bethseba. He also played the main evil entity in Insidious. Another strange thing, in both those films the terrifying old women spirits are actually male actors in drag, as Wan says it gives them a very unsettling look, and that you can't quite tell what gender it is. Because it's based on a true story, it's not as stylized as Insidious, but it is still able to deliver quite a few tense moments and great scares. Since it is set in the 70's, it employs practical effects and old-fashioned scares, with little gore and tons of great, intense buildup. This is somewhat of a trademark in Wan's films, as even in the first Saw film (the only one that he wrote and directed), there's actually very little gore, and it's all about the story, performances, and suspense. That's something I really enjoy about his horror films, and films from Scott Derrickson like Sinister, they're actually scary and original concepts, and have some great actors in them. Similar to both Insidious and Sinister, this film has an excellent sound design, although I still think Sinister has the best music and sound design out of the three, with Insidious at a very close second. The Conjuring is a scary, entertaining, suspenseful, nail-biting horror-thriller, with great performances and some fantastic scares. James Wan, you've done it again! Honestly, if you're reading this, I feel you are one of the most underrated directors working today. 4/5 stars
Note: It is odd to see a horror film released in the middle of Summer, during blockbuster season, which not only shows the studios trust Wan to make movies people enjoy and want to see, but realize that horror can be successful year-round, no matter the competition.
If you wish comment below: list, from least to greatest, which of these three you found scariest: The Conjuring, Insidious, or Sinister. Or these three: Haunting In Connecticut, The Amityville Horror (original), or The Conjuring (all based off cases the Warrens investigated) (Those are the order I have them in, I'd love to see yours.)
A review I liked:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aD-3j_BnZAE
(Image: Wikipedia)
The Conjuring:
Ed and Lorraine Warren were true-life paranormal investigators back in the 60's and 70's, they investigated thousands of disturbing and creepy cases, including the infamous "Haunting in Connecticut" (which was made into a film in 2008) and the atrocious "Amityville Horror" (another famous horror story turned into a film, which is alluded to at the end of this film). One case, the case of the Perron Family of Rhode Island, was so traumatizing and distressing they have kept it a secret... until now. What entities did the Perrons see in their home? I'll let you see the film for yourself for the answer to that question. Although not as creepy and spine-chilling as Wan's earlier film Insidious, or last year's Sinister, The Conjuring still manages to pack quite a punch. The film came under controversy because the MPAA rated the film R, not for gore or sex or violence or swearing, but merely for it's scare factor. Wan attributes this to the fact it was based on a true story, elevating it. And there is no doubt, this actually happened. The ending credits show newspaper clippings and photos of the Warrens and the Perrons, as well as the places and things the Warrens investigated, including a very disturbing doll. Lorraine Warren makes a brief cameo in the film, and she even visited the set, and the Perrons were interviewed in promos for the film. The main cast od an excellent job. Patrick Wilson (who starred in Wan's film Insidious, and appeared in Little Children, Watchmen, Hard Candy, The Alamo, The Ledge, The A-Team, Prometheus, and The Phantom of the Opera) and Vera Farmiga (The Departed, Up in the Air) do a great job as the likeable couple Ed and Lorraine Warren. They're kind, decent people, and also have a young daughter to take care of, which makes you really care for them, and hope nothing bad happens to them. Lili Taylor (Six Feet Under, Ransom, The Haunting, I Shot Andy Warhol, Say Anything, Mystic Pizza) and Ron Livingston (Office Space, Sex and the City, Band of Brothers, Standoff, Defying Gravity) are good as the loving parents of the Perron family. Taylor especially is great during the scenes in the latter half of the film, which require a great deal of physical commitment, and often are tough on the body. The kid actors, including Joey King (Oz the Great and Powerful, Ramona and Beezus, New Girl, Jericho) do a fantastic job, similar to Ty Simpkins in Insidious, as their emotions feel very authentic, and not forced. Even though this is a true story, so you know nobody actually dies, the tension is still really great. You really feel tense wondering what's going to happen to the characters, and feel extremely on edge when they are in peril or in the presence of spirits. The musical score, while a bit too similar to Insidious (it is scored by the same composer), still is very effective in creating a mysterious and chilling atmosphere. Fun fact: Joseph Bishara, composer for this film and Insidious, plays the main antagonist, an evil ghost named Bethseba. He also played the main evil entity in Insidious. Another strange thing, in both those films the terrifying old women spirits are actually male actors in drag, as Wan says it gives them a very unsettling look, and that you can't quite tell what gender it is. Because it's based on a true story, it's not as stylized as Insidious, but it is still able to deliver quite a few tense moments and great scares. Since it is set in the 70's, it employs practical effects and old-fashioned scares, with little gore and tons of great, intense buildup. This is somewhat of a trademark in Wan's films, as even in the first Saw film (the only one that he wrote and directed), there's actually very little gore, and it's all about the story, performances, and suspense. That's something I really enjoy about his horror films, and films from Scott Derrickson like Sinister, they're actually scary and original concepts, and have some great actors in them. Similar to both Insidious and Sinister, this film has an excellent sound design, although I still think Sinister has the best music and sound design out of the three, with Insidious at a very close second. The Conjuring is a scary, entertaining, suspenseful, nail-biting horror-thriller, with great performances and some fantastic scares. James Wan, you've done it again! Honestly, if you're reading this, I feel you are one of the most underrated directors working today. 4/5 stars
Note: It is odd to see a horror film released in the middle of Summer, during blockbuster season, which not only shows the studios trust Wan to make movies people enjoy and want to see, but realize that horror can be successful year-round, no matter the competition.
If you wish comment below: list, from least to greatest, which of these three you found scariest: The Conjuring, Insidious, or Sinister. Or these three: Haunting In Connecticut, The Amityville Horror (original), or The Conjuring (all based off cases the Warrens investigated) (Those are the order I have them in, I'd love to see yours.)
A review I liked:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aD-3j_BnZAE
(Image: Wikipedia)Movie News: Spiderman 2, Insidious 2 trailer, Man of Steel sequel, Avengers 2
More movie news today:
The Amazing Spider-Man 2:
I'm a bit late on this, but Marvel showcased a pretty cool 30-second teaser for Electro at Comic-Con this year, but, in a strange turn of events, Marc Webb has decided to drop Shailene Woodley (who was set to play Mary Jane Watson, with publicity pics to boot) from the film altogether, saying it would take away from Gwen Stacy (played by Emma Stone) too much, and he'll probably save her for the third film. This decision, to me, is stupid, as that will probably cause many story/editing/continuity conflicts in the story and final film. My theory, since there have been hints of the Green Goblin, that Gwen will be killed, just like in the comics, and MJ will be her replacement in the third film. Now, I can understand cutting back on the role, but I felt that introducing MJ in this film would be great, so they could establish a relationship between her and Peter before setting them up together in the third, it would feel more natural, and dropping her altogether is kind of disappointing.
Insidious Chapter 2:
The recent trailer for James Wan's next horror film, a sequel to his hit 2011 indie film Insidious, has been slightly edited. The theatrical version I saw included less scares and less creepy imagery than the Internet version I had previously viewed. I'm not sure why, but it just was. Insidious Chapter 2 is set for release September 13, 2013 (yes, Friday the 13th), I'm excited, and I hope it's good, because this will be his last horror-thriller for a little bit, as he's moving on to more action and sci-fi projects, such as the seventh Fast & Furious film.
Man of Steel 2:
This year at Comic-Con, one of the biggest pieces of news for fans was that Warner Bros. and the team behind Man of Steel revealed the sequel, set for release in 2015, will be a crossover with Batman. It will not be set in the Nolanverse (which kind of upset me), but it may take inspiration from The Dark Knight Returns somewhat, as the logo features a Bat emblem similar to the one worn by Frank Miller's Dark Knight. YouTubers such as Jeremy Jahns (his channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/JeremyJahns) theorized that Lex Luthor might make an appearance as a business partner of Bruce Wayne, and due to the source material, may include a scene where Batman kicks Superman's ass, or at least, teaches him a lesson. I'm excited for this, and to see more superhero films coming from DC (including a remake of Green Lantern).
Avengers 2:
Since the announcement of the ABC TV show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., fans have been speculating what will Marvel do next? Some fans thought they might do a reboot of the Mandarin, and theorized that there might be a real Mandarin who comes from revenge against the phony Mandarin of Iron Man 3 for mocking his name and image. Marvel has released several more "one-shots", or short features, including one following Cap. America's love interest Agent Carter. Meanwhile, the Avengers sequel got itself an official title: Avengers: Age of Ultron, which suggest the robotic supervillain Ultron will be the main villain, or be significant to the plot. Producers and writers also have thought they may expand on Thanos in this sequel, but save his big attack for a third film, which will follow Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, and possibly The Incredible Hulk 2 and Iron Man 4.
That's all for now, thanks for reading, I'll be posting a review of The Conjuring soon.
(Images: Wikipedia, newsarama.com, technologytell.com)
The Amazing Spider-Man 2:
I'm a bit late on this, but Marvel showcased a pretty cool 30-second teaser for Electro at Comic-Con this year, but, in a strange turn of events, Marc Webb has decided to drop Shailene Woodley (who was set to play Mary Jane Watson, with publicity pics to boot) from the film altogether, saying it would take away from Gwen Stacy (played by Emma Stone) too much, and he'll probably save her for the third film. This decision, to me, is stupid, as that will probably cause many story/editing/continuity conflicts in the story and final film. My theory, since there have been hints of the Green Goblin, that Gwen will be killed, just like in the comics, and MJ will be her replacement in the third film. Now, I can understand cutting back on the role, but I felt that introducing MJ in this film would be great, so they could establish a relationship between her and Peter before setting them up together in the third, it would feel more natural, and dropping her altogether is kind of disappointing.
Insidious Chapter 2:
The recent trailer for James Wan's next horror film, a sequel to his hit 2011 indie film Insidious, has been slightly edited. The theatrical version I saw included less scares and less creepy imagery than the Internet version I had previously viewed. I'm not sure why, but it just was. Insidious Chapter 2 is set for release September 13, 2013 (yes, Friday the 13th), I'm excited, and I hope it's good, because this will be his last horror-thriller for a little bit, as he's moving on to more action and sci-fi projects, such as the seventh Fast & Furious film.
Man of Steel 2:
This year at Comic-Con, one of the biggest pieces of news for fans was that Warner Bros. and the team behind Man of Steel revealed the sequel, set for release in 2015, will be a crossover with Batman. It will not be set in the Nolanverse (which kind of upset me), but it may take inspiration from The Dark Knight Returns somewhat, as the logo features a Bat emblem similar to the one worn by Frank Miller's Dark Knight. YouTubers such as Jeremy Jahns (his channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/JeremyJahns) theorized that Lex Luthor might make an appearance as a business partner of Bruce Wayne, and due to the source material, may include a scene where Batman kicks Superman's ass, or at least, teaches him a lesson. I'm excited for this, and to see more superhero films coming from DC (including a remake of Green Lantern).
Avengers 2:
Since the announcement of the ABC TV show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., fans have been speculating what will Marvel do next? Some fans thought they might do a reboot of the Mandarin, and theorized that there might be a real Mandarin who comes from revenge against the phony Mandarin of Iron Man 3 for mocking his name and image. Marvel has released several more "one-shots", or short features, including one following Cap. America's love interest Agent Carter. Meanwhile, the Avengers sequel got itself an official title: Avengers: Age of Ultron, which suggest the robotic supervillain Ultron will be the main villain, or be significant to the plot. Producers and writers also have thought they may expand on Thanos in this sequel, but save his big attack for a third film, which will follow Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, and possibly The Incredible Hulk 2 and Iron Man 4.
That's all for now, thanks for reading, I'll be posting a review of The Conjuring soon.
Friday, July 19, 2013
Pacific Rim: Guillermo del Toro's sci-fi action movie from the studio that brought you Man of Steel, 300, Watchmen, and The Dark Knight
Today, I look at Spanish filmmaker Guillermo del Toro's sci-fi action film about robots fighting monsters.
Pacific Rim:
In the near future, humanity has been raging a war against destructive monsters called Kaiju (Japanese for "strange creature" or "giant monster") for years. Kaiju are alien beings from another dimension who travel to Earth via a strange portal in the Pacific Ocean. At the start of the war, the militaries of the world banded together to form a machine defense force: the Jager (German for "hunter") Program. Jagers are humongous machines that are designed to battle the Kaiju, basically giant robots vs. reptile monsters, or Gundam/Megazord vs. Godzilla (Funny enough, Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros., who made this film, are making a Gojira reboot that is coming out next year.) Jagers also require two pilots, who are mentally connected through a Jager's computer system. A washed-up Jager pilot named Raleigh is brought back into the program by his former commanding officer Stacker Pentecost. Raleigh is partnered with Mako, a young Asian woman who's family was killed in a Kaiju attack when she was just a child. Unfortunately for the military, time is running out, as more and more Kaijus rise from the Pacific portal. It's up to the remaining Jager pilots to figure out to put a stop to the Kaiju attacks once and for all, before Earth's defenses are completely overwhelmed. Now, despite the film looking a bit cheesy, like a rip-off of Transformers and the American Godzilla, that could not be farther from the truth. It is far better than Michael Bay's abysmal robot films, and far better than the American version of the Japanese monster. The cast are great. Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy, Queer as Folk, Undeclared, Green Street Hooligans) plays Raleigh. He's not the best lead ever, but he is a good actor, and is able to pull it off quite well. Rinko Kakuchi (Academy Award-nominee from Babel) plays Mako. She makes for a good lead, and del Toro specifically wrote the character to be a strong female lead, not a damsel-in-distress like Pepper Potts in Iron Man 3 or a "sex kitten" like Megan Fox or Rosie-Huntington Whiteley in Transformers. She did a good job, and was a slightly more interesting character than Raleigh. British actor Idris Elba (The Wire, Luther, The Office, The Big C, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Thor, Prometheus, The Losers, Takers, American Gangster) plays Stacker. He's a good supporting character, and gives a bad-ass speech near the climax (which is partially shown in the trailer) about cancelling the Apocalypse. Elba is a great actor, and is able to make even a supporting role like this very memorable. Comedian Charlie Day (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Horrible Bosses, Monsters University) is great as always, here playing a comic relief character Dr. Newton Geiszler. Day is a bit over-the-top, but that's his character. del Toro purposely wrote him with a bombastic personality, and cast him based on an episode of Sunny in Philadelphia. Day is also one of the best parts of the movie. Burn Gorman (Torchwood, The Dark Knight Rises, Bleak House, Red Lights, Johnny English Reborn) plays Geiszler's introverted partner, Dr. Hermann Gottlieb. He's a bit of an over-the-top cartoon character as well, but he works. He also provides comic relief, and he has some good funny moments, just not as many as Day. Max Martini (Saving Private Ryan, Level 9, The Great Raid, The Unit) and Robert Kazinsky (EastEnders, Dream Team) play the Australian father-and-son Jager duo of Herc and Chuck Hansen. Chuck is the stereotypical douche character, while Herc is more of a nice guy. Clifton Collins, Jr. (The Replacement Killers, Capote, Star Trek) plays Tendo Choi, the head of the Jager technician team, and an old friend of Raleigh and Stacker. Ron Perlman (Sons of Anarchy, Hellboy, Teen Titans, 1000 Ways to Die, Drive) plays Hannibal Chau, the head of a Kaiju black market in Hong Kong. He's a smaller role, but he's still a bad-ass, as usual. Perlman has worked on del Toro on several films, from starring in the Hellboy films to appearing in Blade II, he also co-starred with Hunnam in Sons of Anarchy. Voice actress Ellen McLain voices the Jaeger AI, which is funny, because her most famous role is the evil AI GLaDOS in the Portal game series. The special effects are incredible, and you really feel the size and scope of the monsters and robots, and see the destruction they cause in their battles. There's no shaky cam or "in your face" action, which is good, because you actually can tell what's happening in the fights. Speaking of which, the fight scenes are extremely entertaining and satisfying. They feel real, and there's some real damage done to both the Kaiju and the Jagers, and the cities, now that I'm thinking about it. The designs of the Kaiju and the Jagers are very original, and the Kaiju resemble reptiles, amphibians, and sea animals, as well as resembling creature from Lovecraftian lore, and Lovecraft is something del Toro loves to incorporate into his movies, which is funny, because this isn't typical del Toro. del Toro said he didn't want the movie to be too cynical, or try to be too deep, just be a fun, somewhat light-hearted summer action movie, which it accomplishes quite well. This is the best summer blockbuster since Man of Steel, it's even better than World War Z and This is the End. I saw it in the XD format, which is basically Century Theater's answer to IMAX. It's not as good as IMAX, and the 3D didn't do too much for me, but it was still pretty enjoyable, and the sound system kicked ass, but the screen wasn't nearly as large as typical IMAX. Pacific Rim is a fun action movie, but it is smart, and is pretty original, all things considered. It's funny, exciting, and awe-inspiring. Props to you, Mr. del Toro. 4.5/5 stars.
Notes: Hunnam, Perlman, and Day are all featured on FX shows. Also, wait until the middle of the credits, there is a post-credits scene you won't want to miss.
Another review I liked, no spoilers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_H3iv8T9SfU
(Image: Wikipedia)
Pacific Rim:
In the near future, humanity has been raging a war against destructive monsters called Kaiju (Japanese for "strange creature" or "giant monster") for years. Kaiju are alien beings from another dimension who travel to Earth via a strange portal in the Pacific Ocean. At the start of the war, the militaries of the world banded together to form a machine defense force: the Jager (German for "hunter") Program. Jagers are humongous machines that are designed to battle the Kaiju, basically giant robots vs. reptile monsters, or Gundam/Megazord vs. Godzilla (Funny enough, Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros., who made this film, are making a Gojira reboot that is coming out next year.) Jagers also require two pilots, who are mentally connected through a Jager's computer system. A washed-up Jager pilot named Raleigh is brought back into the program by his former commanding officer Stacker Pentecost. Raleigh is partnered with Mako, a young Asian woman who's family was killed in a Kaiju attack when she was just a child. Unfortunately for the military, time is running out, as more and more Kaijus rise from the Pacific portal. It's up to the remaining Jager pilots to figure out to put a stop to the Kaiju attacks once and for all, before Earth's defenses are completely overwhelmed. Now, despite the film looking a bit cheesy, like a rip-off of Transformers and the American Godzilla, that could not be farther from the truth. It is far better than Michael Bay's abysmal robot films, and far better than the American version of the Japanese monster. The cast are great. Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy, Queer as Folk, Undeclared, Green Street Hooligans) plays Raleigh. He's not the best lead ever, but he is a good actor, and is able to pull it off quite well. Rinko Kakuchi (Academy Award-nominee from Babel) plays Mako. She makes for a good lead, and del Toro specifically wrote the character to be a strong female lead, not a damsel-in-distress like Pepper Potts in Iron Man 3 or a "sex kitten" like Megan Fox or Rosie-Huntington Whiteley in Transformers. She did a good job, and was a slightly more interesting character than Raleigh. British actor Idris Elba (The Wire, Luther, The Office, The Big C, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Thor, Prometheus, The Losers, Takers, American Gangster) plays Stacker. He's a good supporting character, and gives a bad-ass speech near the climax (which is partially shown in the trailer) about cancelling the Apocalypse. Elba is a great actor, and is able to make even a supporting role like this very memorable. Comedian Charlie Day (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Horrible Bosses, Monsters University) is great as always, here playing a comic relief character Dr. Newton Geiszler. Day is a bit over-the-top, but that's his character. del Toro purposely wrote him with a bombastic personality, and cast him based on an episode of Sunny in Philadelphia. Day is also one of the best parts of the movie. Burn Gorman (Torchwood, The Dark Knight Rises, Bleak House, Red Lights, Johnny English Reborn) plays Geiszler's introverted partner, Dr. Hermann Gottlieb. He's a bit of an over-the-top cartoon character as well, but he works. He also provides comic relief, and he has some good funny moments, just not as many as Day. Max Martini (Saving Private Ryan, Level 9, The Great Raid, The Unit) and Robert Kazinsky (EastEnders, Dream Team) play the Australian father-and-son Jager duo of Herc and Chuck Hansen. Chuck is the stereotypical douche character, while Herc is more of a nice guy. Clifton Collins, Jr. (The Replacement Killers, Capote, Star Trek) plays Tendo Choi, the head of the Jager technician team, and an old friend of Raleigh and Stacker. Ron Perlman (Sons of Anarchy, Hellboy, Teen Titans, 1000 Ways to Die, Drive) plays Hannibal Chau, the head of a Kaiju black market in Hong Kong. He's a smaller role, but he's still a bad-ass, as usual. Perlman has worked on del Toro on several films, from starring in the Hellboy films to appearing in Blade II, he also co-starred with Hunnam in Sons of Anarchy. Voice actress Ellen McLain voices the Jaeger AI, which is funny, because her most famous role is the evil AI GLaDOS in the Portal game series. The special effects are incredible, and you really feel the size and scope of the monsters and robots, and see the destruction they cause in their battles. There's no shaky cam or "in your face" action, which is good, because you actually can tell what's happening in the fights. Speaking of which, the fight scenes are extremely entertaining and satisfying. They feel real, and there's some real damage done to both the Kaiju and the Jagers, and the cities, now that I'm thinking about it. The designs of the Kaiju and the Jagers are very original, and the Kaiju resemble reptiles, amphibians, and sea animals, as well as resembling creature from Lovecraftian lore, and Lovecraft is something del Toro loves to incorporate into his movies, which is funny, because this isn't typical del Toro. del Toro said he didn't want the movie to be too cynical, or try to be too deep, just be a fun, somewhat light-hearted summer action movie, which it accomplishes quite well. This is the best summer blockbuster since Man of Steel, it's even better than World War Z and This is the End. I saw it in the XD format, which is basically Century Theater's answer to IMAX. It's not as good as IMAX, and the 3D didn't do too much for me, but it was still pretty enjoyable, and the sound system kicked ass, but the screen wasn't nearly as large as typical IMAX. Pacific Rim is a fun action movie, but it is smart, and is pretty original, all things considered. It's funny, exciting, and awe-inspiring. Props to you, Mr. del Toro. 4.5/5 stars.
Notes: Hunnam, Perlman, and Day are all featured on FX shows. Also, wait until the middle of the credits, there is a post-credits scene you won't want to miss.
Another review I liked, no spoilers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_H3iv8T9SfU
(Image: Wikipedia)Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Grown Ups Films
These are the comedy movies that almost nobody likes, even Sandler fans... (I'll be referring to the actors by their names in this review, not by character names, as their characters aren't too developed, so it's kind of pointless.)
Grown Ups:
Five childhood friends reunite one summer for the funeral of their basketball coach's funeral and take their families to a lake house for the weekend. Shenanigans ensue. This film is pretty bad. Adam Sandler, Kevin James, David Spade, Chris Rock, and Rob Schneider star. The film seems more like they just wanted a paycheck and a nice vacation to a lake house. Chris Rock, what happened? You were one of the great stand-up acts, you were an edgy, hilarious, controversial comedian. Seriously, why are you in this movie? Although, Rock and Tim Meadows share one of the only funny moments in the film, near the end. I feel bad for James, as his character is one huge fat joke, and it's funny for like one second, and then it gets really, really irritating, and you feel bad for the guy. Another actor you begin to feel bad for is Rob Schneider. You feel bad because he can get slightly irritating in the film, but he's a nice, albeit odd and over-the-top guy, and the rest of the comedians use him as an emotional and physical punching bag, it's not funny, it comes off as just mean-spirited. It goes above friends just messing around, and seems like they genuinely want to hurt him and his feelings. Sandler is the worst of all. Again, he basically makes himself out to be the greatest guy ever. He's rich, successful, has a couple of extremely annoying children, has a really hot wife who is eons out of his league, and everybody is either jealous or admires him, even though he's kind of an asshole. Spade is a ladies' man. That itself is enough to convince any viewer this is pure fiction. Although I don't dislike Spade, and think (like Sandler and Rock) his earlier work was genuinely funny, I just don't imagine him scoring with the ladies too often. James appears like he's filling a role that Chris Farley would have filled if it had been the mid-to-late 90's. The wives of these guys (with the exception of Schneider, who's wife in the film is elderly, and Spade, who has no wife in the movie) are way out of their league. Salma Hayek with Adam Sandler? Yeah right! Maria Bello with Kevin James? Probably not. (James actually has a very beautiful wife in real life, which may surprise a few people.) Maya Rudolph with Chris Rock? More believable, honestly. Joyce Van Patten plays Schneider's friendly, but slightly odd, elderly fiancée. The supporting cast include other SNL cast members such as Norm Macdonald and Colin Quinn (Rudolph, Meadows, Schneider, Spade, and Sandler are all former cast members, as well.) Madison Riley, Jamie Chung, and Ashley Loren plays Schneider's three daughters from previous relationships, the first two are used as eye candy for the guys in the audience and in the film, the third actually resembles Schneider. Jake Goldberg, Cameron Boyce, Alexys Nycole Sanchez, Ada-Nicole Sanger, Frank and Morgan Ginegrich, Nadji Jeter, and China Anne McClain round out the main cast as the ever irritating kids of the friends, Sandler's boys are so spoiled and pampered in the movie that they don't know about TV boxes or tap water. Ebony Jo-Ann appears in a small role as Maya Rudolph's mother, who hates and berates her son-in-law Chris Rock. Director Dennis Dugan (who has worked with Sandler on tons of projects) and Dan Patrick make cameos in the film. Steve Buscemi, doing his regular Sandler cameo, is Wiley, an extremely pale rival of the guys, who you really feel bad for, as he takes an extreme beating in the movie. That brings me to one of the main problems with this film, which is a problem with many recent Sandler films (with the exception of Punch-Drunk Love and Funny People), tons of mean-spirited and immature jokes targeted at pre-teen boys punctuated with moments of contrived and forced sappiness that make you want to vomit. There's also a forced message about being a good parent and teaching your kids or something. Another major problem is the lack of plot or conflict, all conflicts are resolved in a second, and everyone forgives each other with few consequences. The wives in this film are basically "perfect", they always forgive their husbands and give them free passes despite the husbands being out of line or stupid. I could go on about this for days, so I'll just say this: Grown Ups is a lazy summer comedy, which barely tries to do anything new or funny, and when it does try, it fails...badly. The jokes are immature and stupid, the characters bland and irresponsible, and the plot... oh wait, there really isn't one. 1.5/5 stars.
Grown Ups 2:
Lenny (Sandler) has moved his family back to his home town three years after the first film. On the last day of school, the "grown ups" are accepting their children are growing up, and are learning from their kids this time, all while preparing for the summer. Shenanigans ensue. Now, this film is actually not worse than the first. How so? Well, it somehow, despite having less of a plot, got a few more laughs out of me, but that's not too many. Like the first, I still got a few chuckles here and there, but overall, it's terrible. Sandler, James, Rock, Spade, Rudolph, Hayek, Bello, Meadows, Quinn, Buscemi, and the kids all reprise their roles here. Buscemi expands upon his and becomes more of a nice guy. Rock is still the best part of the movie, despite not having much to do. Jake Goldberg and Nadji Jeter are nearly unrecognizable due to how much they've, well, grown up in three years. Alexander Ludwig (Cato from The Hunger Games) plays Spade's somewhat crazy estranged son Braden, probably the only character who's somewhat funny to watch because he starts off so crazy. There are more celebrities in this film. Nick Swardson, Steve Austin, Shaquille O'Neal, Peter Dante, director Dennis Dugan, Allen Covert (known for his work with Sandler), Aly Michalka, and Dan Patrick all have either cameos or supporting roles in the film. Taylor Lautner, Milo Ventimiglia, David Henrie (That's So Raven, How I Met Your Mother, Wizards of Waverly Place), and Patrick Schwarzenegger play these insane, steroid-taking, cultist-like frat boys who are the younger rivals of the "grown ups" and spark an all-out war at a party. These could be impersonators, but I believe The J. Geils Band make an appearance. The Lonely Island, Bobby Moynihan, Taran Killam, Paul Brittain, and Will Forte (all from SNL, a few from previous Sandler vehicles) appears in cameos as male cheerleaders. Jon Lovitz (from SNL and other comedic work) appears in a cameo a perverted janitor. Sandler's real-life children make cameos in the film as well. April Rose appears as a sexy dance instructor, who is Austin's girlfriend in the film. Cheri Oteri makes a cameo as Buscemi's wife, who works for Hayek and has a fixation on Sandler. Bill Hudson (Kate Hudson's brother, who appeared in Rules of Engagement) plays the wives' object of affection Kyle, their exercise instructor. Now that the cast is out of the way, I would like to point out something odd. Near the end of the film, I pointed out to my friend who was with me that Rob Schneider wasn't in it, something that I had just realized then and was shocked by. I felt some element was missing from this film, and that was him. I'm unsure why he didn't appear, but I thought he would at least make a cameo or be mentioned, nope. It's like he never even existed. Weird. The kids, especially Sandler's daughter in the film, are still very annoying. The teens aren't as bad, though, but Meadow's son in the film is very irritating. Lautner wasn't too bad, though, and there was a funny moment in the theater where I heard some teenage girl just say completely out loud "So hot..." There was one moment that had me chuckling near the opening where Sandler points out that he always has wives that are too hot for him in all his films. One of the problems with the movie, at least for the first two-thirds, is that many characters are either extremely stupid, extremely mean, or just insane. They do eventually change, but Sandler starts out hard to like because he's kind of a dick to his friends and family, and many of the guys starts off pulling mean and somewhat hurtful pranks on people. The kids aren't any better, now Adam's young son is basically a prodigy who can throw footballs at a college level accuracy and speed. One thing it did tone down was Spade's status as a ladies' man, he does sleep around, but with less young, hot girls and girls more his age, and even made a joke about the woman he actually chooses as his girlfriend: an extremely masculine woman wit anger issues. The wives still forgive their husbands for everything they do (even when Sandler yells at his wife for wanting another kid at one point), hell, Bello rewards her husband with a cheerleader carwash for lying to her, which backfires. As for the humor, it's better, but there are way more gross-out gags and sex jokes. There's even a joke early on about Sandler's older son jerking off in the shower to a girl he likes, which the younger son mentions at the dinner table of all places with his mom and younger sister present. Some jokes from the original, such as the "peeing in the pool" gag make a return, and there's one joke about rolling in a tire, which incorporates the most fake-looking CG ever. I know it's a comedy, so special effects aren't the priority, but come on! It looks like a YouTube video! A few odd plot things here, too: like the entire town showing up for Sandler's 80's party, or, again, never mentioning Schneider! (MILD SPOILERS): While this is not really too much of a spoiler, still, I warned you. At the end of the first film, Sandler allowed his rivals to be the victors on purpose they could have a taste of what it feels like to win, as opposed to always losing and Sandler always winning, a nice thing to do. Here, Sandler's muscular childhood bully lets him win in a fight on purpose as not to embarrass him in front of the whole town, another nice thing to do. Sandler tells his friends about it, but otherwise goes along with it. (END OF SPOILERS) Grown Ups 2 isn't as bad as it's predecessor, but it's no classic either. It's got lame jokes, stupid characters, and no plot, but hey, it's Grown Ups 2, what did you really expect? 2/5 stars.
A review of the first film I enjoyed: http://blip.tv/film-brain/bad-movie-beatdown-grown-ups-5022011
(Images: Wikipedia)
Grown Ups:
Five childhood friends reunite one summer for the funeral of their basketball coach's funeral and take their families to a lake house for the weekend. Shenanigans ensue. This film is pretty bad. Adam Sandler, Kevin James, David Spade, Chris Rock, and Rob Schneider star. The film seems more like they just wanted a paycheck and a nice vacation to a lake house. Chris Rock, what happened? You were one of the great stand-up acts, you were an edgy, hilarious, controversial comedian. Seriously, why are you in this movie? Although, Rock and Tim Meadows share one of the only funny moments in the film, near the end. I feel bad for James, as his character is one huge fat joke, and it's funny for like one second, and then it gets really, really irritating, and you feel bad for the guy. Another actor you begin to feel bad for is Rob Schneider. You feel bad because he can get slightly irritating in the film, but he's a nice, albeit odd and over-the-top guy, and the rest of the comedians use him as an emotional and physical punching bag, it's not funny, it comes off as just mean-spirited. It goes above friends just messing around, and seems like they genuinely want to hurt him and his feelings. Sandler is the worst of all. Again, he basically makes himself out to be the greatest guy ever. He's rich, successful, has a couple of extremely annoying children, has a really hot wife who is eons out of his league, and everybody is either jealous or admires him, even though he's kind of an asshole. Spade is a ladies' man. That itself is enough to convince any viewer this is pure fiction. Although I don't dislike Spade, and think (like Sandler and Rock) his earlier work was genuinely funny, I just don't imagine him scoring with the ladies too often. James appears like he's filling a role that Chris Farley would have filled if it had been the mid-to-late 90's. The wives of these guys (with the exception of Schneider, who's wife in the film is elderly, and Spade, who has no wife in the movie) are way out of their league. Salma Hayek with Adam Sandler? Yeah right! Maria Bello with Kevin James? Probably not. (James actually has a very beautiful wife in real life, which may surprise a few people.) Maya Rudolph with Chris Rock? More believable, honestly. Joyce Van Patten plays Schneider's friendly, but slightly odd, elderly fiancée. The supporting cast include other SNL cast members such as Norm Macdonald and Colin Quinn (Rudolph, Meadows, Schneider, Spade, and Sandler are all former cast members, as well.) Madison Riley, Jamie Chung, and Ashley Loren plays Schneider's three daughters from previous relationships, the first two are used as eye candy for the guys in the audience and in the film, the third actually resembles Schneider. Jake Goldberg, Cameron Boyce, Alexys Nycole Sanchez, Ada-Nicole Sanger, Frank and Morgan Ginegrich, Nadji Jeter, and China Anne McClain round out the main cast as the ever irritating kids of the friends, Sandler's boys are so spoiled and pampered in the movie that they don't know about TV boxes or tap water. Ebony Jo-Ann appears in a small role as Maya Rudolph's mother, who hates and berates her son-in-law Chris Rock. Director Dennis Dugan (who has worked with Sandler on tons of projects) and Dan Patrick make cameos in the film. Steve Buscemi, doing his regular Sandler cameo, is Wiley, an extremely pale rival of the guys, who you really feel bad for, as he takes an extreme beating in the movie. That brings me to one of the main problems with this film, which is a problem with many recent Sandler films (with the exception of Punch-Drunk Love and Funny People), tons of mean-spirited and immature jokes targeted at pre-teen boys punctuated with moments of contrived and forced sappiness that make you want to vomit. There's also a forced message about being a good parent and teaching your kids or something. Another major problem is the lack of plot or conflict, all conflicts are resolved in a second, and everyone forgives each other with few consequences. The wives in this film are basically "perfect", they always forgive their husbands and give them free passes despite the husbands being out of line or stupid. I could go on about this for days, so I'll just say this: Grown Ups is a lazy summer comedy, which barely tries to do anything new or funny, and when it does try, it fails...badly. The jokes are immature and stupid, the characters bland and irresponsible, and the plot... oh wait, there really isn't one. 1.5/5 stars.
Grown Ups 2:
Lenny (Sandler) has moved his family back to his home town three years after the first film. On the last day of school, the "grown ups" are accepting their children are growing up, and are learning from their kids this time, all while preparing for the summer. Shenanigans ensue. Now, this film is actually not worse than the first. How so? Well, it somehow, despite having less of a plot, got a few more laughs out of me, but that's not too many. Like the first, I still got a few chuckles here and there, but overall, it's terrible. Sandler, James, Rock, Spade, Rudolph, Hayek, Bello, Meadows, Quinn, Buscemi, and the kids all reprise their roles here. Buscemi expands upon his and becomes more of a nice guy. Rock is still the best part of the movie, despite not having much to do. Jake Goldberg and Nadji Jeter are nearly unrecognizable due to how much they've, well, grown up in three years. Alexander Ludwig (Cato from The Hunger Games) plays Spade's somewhat crazy estranged son Braden, probably the only character who's somewhat funny to watch because he starts off so crazy. There are more celebrities in this film. Nick Swardson, Steve Austin, Shaquille O'Neal, Peter Dante, director Dennis Dugan, Allen Covert (known for his work with Sandler), Aly Michalka, and Dan Patrick all have either cameos or supporting roles in the film. Taylor Lautner, Milo Ventimiglia, David Henrie (That's So Raven, How I Met Your Mother, Wizards of Waverly Place), and Patrick Schwarzenegger play these insane, steroid-taking, cultist-like frat boys who are the younger rivals of the "grown ups" and spark an all-out war at a party. These could be impersonators, but I believe The J. Geils Band make an appearance. The Lonely Island, Bobby Moynihan, Taran Killam, Paul Brittain, and Will Forte (all from SNL, a few from previous Sandler vehicles) appears in cameos as male cheerleaders. Jon Lovitz (from SNL and other comedic work) appears in a cameo a perverted janitor. Sandler's real-life children make cameos in the film as well. April Rose appears as a sexy dance instructor, who is Austin's girlfriend in the film. Cheri Oteri makes a cameo as Buscemi's wife, who works for Hayek and has a fixation on Sandler. Bill Hudson (Kate Hudson's brother, who appeared in Rules of Engagement) plays the wives' object of affection Kyle, their exercise instructor. Now that the cast is out of the way, I would like to point out something odd. Near the end of the film, I pointed out to my friend who was with me that Rob Schneider wasn't in it, something that I had just realized then and was shocked by. I felt some element was missing from this film, and that was him. I'm unsure why he didn't appear, but I thought he would at least make a cameo or be mentioned, nope. It's like he never even existed. Weird. The kids, especially Sandler's daughter in the film, are still very annoying. The teens aren't as bad, though, but Meadow's son in the film is very irritating. Lautner wasn't too bad, though, and there was a funny moment in the theater where I heard some teenage girl just say completely out loud "So hot..." There was one moment that had me chuckling near the opening where Sandler points out that he always has wives that are too hot for him in all his films. One of the problems with the movie, at least for the first two-thirds, is that many characters are either extremely stupid, extremely mean, or just insane. They do eventually change, but Sandler starts out hard to like because he's kind of a dick to his friends and family, and many of the guys starts off pulling mean and somewhat hurtful pranks on people. The kids aren't any better, now Adam's young son is basically a prodigy who can throw footballs at a college level accuracy and speed. One thing it did tone down was Spade's status as a ladies' man, he does sleep around, but with less young, hot girls and girls more his age, and even made a joke about the woman he actually chooses as his girlfriend: an extremely masculine woman wit anger issues. The wives still forgive their husbands for everything they do (even when Sandler yells at his wife for wanting another kid at one point), hell, Bello rewards her husband with a cheerleader carwash for lying to her, which backfires. As for the humor, it's better, but there are way more gross-out gags and sex jokes. There's even a joke early on about Sandler's older son jerking off in the shower to a girl he likes, which the younger son mentions at the dinner table of all places with his mom and younger sister present. Some jokes from the original, such as the "peeing in the pool" gag make a return, and there's one joke about rolling in a tire, which incorporates the most fake-looking CG ever. I know it's a comedy, so special effects aren't the priority, but come on! It looks like a YouTube video! A few odd plot things here, too: like the entire town showing up for Sandler's 80's party, or, again, never mentioning Schneider! (MILD SPOILERS): While this is not really too much of a spoiler, still, I warned you. At the end of the first film, Sandler allowed his rivals to be the victors on purpose they could have a taste of what it feels like to win, as opposed to always losing and Sandler always winning, a nice thing to do. Here, Sandler's muscular childhood bully lets him win in a fight on purpose as not to embarrass him in front of the whole town, another nice thing to do. Sandler tells his friends about it, but otherwise goes along with it. (END OF SPOILERS) Grown Ups 2 isn't as bad as it's predecessor, but it's no classic either. It's got lame jokes, stupid characters, and no plot, but hey, it's Grown Ups 2, what did you really expect? 2/5 stars.
A review of the first film I enjoyed: http://blip.tv/film-brain/bad-movie-beatdown-grown-ups-5022011
(Images: Wikipedia)
The Lone Ranger: Disney's latest attempt at starting a new action franchise.
Today, I look at the first film based on "The Lone Ranger" character/series in 32 years. (Mild Spoilers)
The Lone Ranger:
Disney seems to be trying to make itself out to be a powerhouse for big action blockbusters, especially those based on other popular media. In the past decade they created an action-adventure franchise out of Pirates of the Caribbean, which was based on a dark ride in one of their theme parks, which spawned the popular character Jack Sparrow and made millions at the box office. They recently tried to restart the franchise with a fourth film, which took from the pirate novel On Stranger Tides, the film did decently at the box office but was a critical failure, and rightfully so. It didn't feel like a Pirates film, and took a lot of the fun out of the franchise. See this video, which is a half-hour rant/review for more details: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9zMx2m9BkA. Luckily, the next year Disney had a record-breaking hit, a little film called Marvel's The Avengers. The film not only broke box-office records, but was a success with audiences and critics, and was hailed by one critic at Fandango.com states it was "The Best Superhero Movie of All Time". This was actually the end of "Phase One" of a huge franchise, and the beginning of "Phase Two", the first of it's kind, the first huge, crossover franchise, based off the beloved and acclaimed comic books from Marvel. Disney now got Gore Verbinski (the man who directed the first three Pirates films , as well as the American remake of The Ring and the acclaimed animated western-comedy Rango) to direct a big-budget, action-packed adaptation/reboot of The Lone Ranger television and radio series. Unfortunately, in the past few weeks it's been met with critical scorn and less-than-fantastic box office results. The film version follows John Reid, a lawyer and ex-Texas Ranger, who travels back to his home town in the Wild West to see his Ranger brother Dan, Dan's wife Rebecca, and their son Danny. During a train robbery, the two encounter wanted cannibalistic criminal Butch Cavendish, the leader of a band of murderers and thieves. Later, Dan is killed (no surprised, there), along with John and the rest of a Ranger troupe, who were sent to catch Butch in a desert canyon. John is resurrected somehow by Tonto, a somewhat delusional and eccentric Comanche Indian who recruits John in his quest for vengeance against the band of killers. John dons a domino mask and Ranger uniform, and takes the identity of "The Lone Ranger" and sets out with Tonto to take down the thieves and uncover their evil plans. The film stars Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer. They do the best they can with the script handed to them, but Depp comes off way too over-the-top and weird, in a Jack Sparrow-type role as the eccentric oddball, he is a bit typecast in these roles, in my opinion, especially in big budget Disney films. I also felt they could have gotten an actual Native American, or somebody who resembles one, rather than getting somebody because of name alone. Hammer (who appeared in The Social Network, J. Edgar, and Mirror Mirror) is a bit of a bland action hero, and actually starts off the film as a bit of a pussy, no offense to the actor. They do their best though, and I admire them for at least trying to make the most out of the script. William Fichtner (Prison Break, Armageddon, The Perfect Storm, The Dark Knight, Blades of Glory, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas) plays Butch Cavendish. He is a good villain, but is a bit typical. There's nothing really special about him, except for the nasty fact he eats the hearts of his enemies. Tonto describes him as a "Wendigo", which is a famous Native American ghost story where cannibals becomes flesh-eating, demonic forest creatures/spirits. Tom Wilkinson (In the Bedroom, The Patriot, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, John Adams, Batman Begins, The Full Monty, Michael Clayton, The Gruffalo, Ghost Writer, Recount, and much more) plays Latham Cole, a respectable and friendly railroad tycoon. Ruth Wilson (Anna Karenina, Luther) plays Rebecca, John's love interest, she basically plays damsel most of the film. Helena Bonham Carter(who basically appears in anything Tim Burton or Johnny Depp does) plays Red, a somewhat attractive prostitute, who unfortunately is an amputee with a fake leg, which you think would be a turn off, but for some reason, a few characters in the film have this creepy amputee fetish and get off on it, which is weird for a Disney film. James Badge Dale (24, The Pacific, Rubicon, The Departed, Iron Man 3, World War Z) plays Dan, John's bad-ass Texas Ranger brother. Barry Pepper (Saving Private Ryan, Flags of Our Fathers, The Green Mile, *61, True Grit, The Kennedys, We Were Soldiers, 25th Hour, Unknown, Snitch) portrays Captain Jay Fuller, a US Cavalry officer who resembles George Custer. The cast all do good for what they were given, but overall they came off as mediocre, which sucks because this is a lineup of good actors, who have done great work before. There is a strange subplot involving a young boy (played by Mason Cook) in 1933 San Francisco (which resembles the 1910's more than the 30's) who is told the story of the film by an extremely old and kind of delirious Tonto, who is posing as a museum figure in a cowboy exhibit. The subplot is kind of weird, under-explained, and overall has no real pay-off, and could have been left out completely. The action sequences are pretty fun and enjoyable, but when you look at it from a logical stand-point, a lot of it is contrived and unrealistic (as with most action films). Even though most action films are over-the-top, this gets to a point where you just go "Really? You think I'm that stupid to buy this shit?" There's suspending disbelief, and then there's treating the audience like 2-year-olds. The CG is also pretty decent, but for a huge summer blockbuster, it's a bit lackluster. Now, I'm sure a ton of people are going "You say that treating the audience like 2-year-olds is stupid? But it's Disney, it's for little kids." Now, I would usually agree, but this film is not for 2-year-olds. I wouldn't have a problem taking kids to see it, but there is actually a good deal of violence in the film, including a human heart being eaten off-screen, and, as I stated before, some characters have a creepy amputee fetish, which I'm guessing doesn't appeal to kids very much. The film also may not hold little kids' interests, as, like the first three Pirates film, it's pretty damn long, about 2-and-a-half hours long. Although the film has some good humor, fun action, and some sequences with some stylized visuals, it probably won't hold your 2-to-5-year-old's interest for very long. But on the positive, the music is pretty interesting, reminiscent of a classic Western, but also kind of fresh and new. If you look past the major lapses in logic and reason, The Lone Ranger might be a fun action movie to bring your kids or pre-teens to. Teens might even enjoy it. To the average adult, I say check it out if you have a spare couple hours, go to a matinee, though. It's no Pirates of the Caribbean and it's definitely not The Avengers, but it's decent enough. Best of the year? Hell no. Worst of the year? Definitely not. It's just decent. But if you really want something great, I recommend you check out Man of Steel or Star Trek if they're still in a theater nearby, or check out Pacific Rim, which is a fun blockbuster, too. If you saw The Lone Ranger, leave a comment below, I'd love to hear what you, the readers, thought of it. Disney, a word to the wise: Don't base an action blockbuster on an old action TV show from the 50's and 60's, it didn't work for The Green Hornet (great show, bad movie), it's not gonna work for you. 2.5/5 stars.
(Image: Wikipedia)
The Lone Ranger:
Disney seems to be trying to make itself out to be a powerhouse for big action blockbusters, especially those based on other popular media. In the past decade they created an action-adventure franchise out of Pirates of the Caribbean, which was based on a dark ride in one of their theme parks, which spawned the popular character Jack Sparrow and made millions at the box office. They recently tried to restart the franchise with a fourth film, which took from the pirate novel On Stranger Tides, the film did decently at the box office but was a critical failure, and rightfully so. It didn't feel like a Pirates film, and took a lot of the fun out of the franchise. See this video, which is a half-hour rant/review for more details: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9zMx2m9BkA. Luckily, the next year Disney had a record-breaking hit, a little film called Marvel's The Avengers. The film not only broke box-office records, but was a success with audiences and critics, and was hailed by one critic at Fandango.com states it was "The Best Superhero Movie of All Time". This was actually the end of "Phase One" of a huge franchise, and the beginning of "Phase Two", the first of it's kind, the first huge, crossover franchise, based off the beloved and acclaimed comic books from Marvel. Disney now got Gore Verbinski (the man who directed the first three Pirates films , as well as the American remake of The Ring and the acclaimed animated western-comedy Rango) to direct a big-budget, action-packed adaptation/reboot of The Lone Ranger television and radio series. Unfortunately, in the past few weeks it's been met with critical scorn and less-than-fantastic box office results. The film version follows John Reid, a lawyer and ex-Texas Ranger, who travels back to his home town in the Wild West to see his Ranger brother Dan, Dan's wife Rebecca, and their son Danny. During a train robbery, the two encounter wanted cannibalistic criminal Butch Cavendish, the leader of a band of murderers and thieves. Later, Dan is killed (no surprised, there), along with John and the rest of a Ranger troupe, who were sent to catch Butch in a desert canyon. John is resurrected somehow by Tonto, a somewhat delusional and eccentric Comanche Indian who recruits John in his quest for vengeance against the band of killers. John dons a domino mask and Ranger uniform, and takes the identity of "The Lone Ranger" and sets out with Tonto to take down the thieves and uncover their evil plans. The film stars Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer. They do the best they can with the script handed to them, but Depp comes off way too over-the-top and weird, in a Jack Sparrow-type role as the eccentric oddball, he is a bit typecast in these roles, in my opinion, especially in big budget Disney films. I also felt they could have gotten an actual Native American, or somebody who resembles one, rather than getting somebody because of name alone. Hammer (who appeared in The Social Network, J. Edgar, and Mirror Mirror) is a bit of a bland action hero, and actually starts off the film as a bit of a pussy, no offense to the actor. They do their best though, and I admire them for at least trying to make the most out of the script. William Fichtner (Prison Break, Armageddon, The Perfect Storm, The Dark Knight, Blades of Glory, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas) plays Butch Cavendish. He is a good villain, but is a bit typical. There's nothing really special about him, except for the nasty fact he eats the hearts of his enemies. Tonto describes him as a "Wendigo", which is a famous Native American ghost story where cannibals becomes flesh-eating, demonic forest creatures/spirits. Tom Wilkinson (In the Bedroom, The Patriot, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, John Adams, Batman Begins, The Full Monty, Michael Clayton, The Gruffalo, Ghost Writer, Recount, and much more) plays Latham Cole, a respectable and friendly railroad tycoon. Ruth Wilson (Anna Karenina, Luther) plays Rebecca, John's love interest, she basically plays damsel most of the film. Helena Bonham Carter(who basically appears in anything Tim Burton or Johnny Depp does) plays Red, a somewhat attractive prostitute, who unfortunately is an amputee with a fake leg, which you think would be a turn off, but for some reason, a few characters in the film have this creepy amputee fetish and get off on it, which is weird for a Disney film. James Badge Dale (24, The Pacific, Rubicon, The Departed, Iron Man 3, World War Z) plays Dan, John's bad-ass Texas Ranger brother. Barry Pepper (Saving Private Ryan, Flags of Our Fathers, The Green Mile, *61, True Grit, The Kennedys, We Were Soldiers, 25th Hour, Unknown, Snitch) portrays Captain Jay Fuller, a US Cavalry officer who resembles George Custer. The cast all do good for what they were given, but overall they came off as mediocre, which sucks because this is a lineup of good actors, who have done great work before. There is a strange subplot involving a young boy (played by Mason Cook) in 1933 San Francisco (which resembles the 1910's more than the 30's) who is told the story of the film by an extremely old and kind of delirious Tonto, who is posing as a museum figure in a cowboy exhibit. The subplot is kind of weird, under-explained, and overall has no real pay-off, and could have been left out completely. The action sequences are pretty fun and enjoyable, but when you look at it from a logical stand-point, a lot of it is contrived and unrealistic (as with most action films). Even though most action films are over-the-top, this gets to a point where you just go "Really? You think I'm that stupid to buy this shit?" There's suspending disbelief, and then there's treating the audience like 2-year-olds. The CG is also pretty decent, but for a huge summer blockbuster, it's a bit lackluster. Now, I'm sure a ton of people are going "You say that treating the audience like 2-year-olds is stupid? But it's Disney, it's for little kids." Now, I would usually agree, but this film is not for 2-year-olds. I wouldn't have a problem taking kids to see it, but there is actually a good deal of violence in the film, including a human heart being eaten off-screen, and, as I stated before, some characters have a creepy amputee fetish, which I'm guessing doesn't appeal to kids very much. The film also may not hold little kids' interests, as, like the first three Pirates film, it's pretty damn long, about 2-and-a-half hours long. Although the film has some good humor, fun action, and some sequences with some stylized visuals, it probably won't hold your 2-to-5-year-old's interest for very long. But on the positive, the music is pretty interesting, reminiscent of a classic Western, but also kind of fresh and new. If you look past the major lapses in logic and reason, The Lone Ranger might be a fun action movie to bring your kids or pre-teens to. Teens might even enjoy it. To the average adult, I say check it out if you have a spare couple hours, go to a matinee, though. It's no Pirates of the Caribbean and it's definitely not The Avengers, but it's decent enough. Best of the year? Hell no. Worst of the year? Definitely not. It's just decent. But if you really want something great, I recommend you check out Man of Steel or Star Trek if they're still in a theater nearby, or check out Pacific Rim, which is a fun blockbuster, too. If you saw The Lone Ranger, leave a comment below, I'd love to hear what you, the readers, thought of it. Disney, a word to the wise: Don't base an action blockbuster on an old action TV show from the 50's and 60's, it didn't work for The Green Hornet (great show, bad movie), it's not gonna work for you. 2.5/5 stars.
(Image: Wikipedia)
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