Lowest 5 Rated Films
Noah-6.0/10
Transcendence-6.9/10
Hercules-7.1/10
The Expendables 3-6.9/10
Exodus:Gods And Kings-6.9/10
Worst Movie Of The Year
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Worst Film Of The Year 2014!!!!
There are always bad movies or films that under perform for the year, and 2014 was no different.
Lowest 5 Rated Films
Noah-6.0/10
Transcendence-6.9/10
Hercules-7.1/10
The Expendables 3-6.9/10
Exodus:Gods And Kings-6.9/10
Worst Movie Of The Year
Honestly once I saw Noah this year, I knew there would not be a movie that would get a lower rating from me, there may have been movies that i may have thought where worse but the score would not be as low,, the reason being is that I had such high expectations for this film and it failed in all categories top it off the film was almost 3 hours long and nothing happened.
Lowest 5 Rated Films
Noah-6.0/10
Transcendence-6.9/10
Hercules-7.1/10
The Expendables 3-6.9/10
Exodus:Gods And Kings-6.9/10
Worst Movie Of The Year
Best Film Of The Year 2014!!!!
2014 overall for me was a down year for films, I saw mostly okay./good films, but not many Great films, there where a few nuggets and lets see which one shown the brightest.
Top 5 highest rated films of the year
Non-Stop-8.1/10
Tie-Sabotage-8.0/10
Edge Of Tomorrow-8.3/10
Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes-8.3/10
The Equilizer-8.5/10
Tie-Interstellar-8.0/10
End Of Year Adjusted Ratings
Non-Stop-7.8/10 (Down From 8.0)
Sabotage-8.0/10 (Same)
Edge Of Tommorrow-8.3/10 (Same)
Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes-8.4/10 (Up From 8.3)
The Equilizer-8.5/10 (Same)
Interstellar-8.2/10 (Up From 8.0)
Overall Top 5
The Equalizer
Sabotage
Edge Of Tomorrow
Interstellar
Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes
Movie Of The Year
This is one of the times that my highest rated film before my adjusted ratings was till the best film I have seen this year, Denzel was awesome in this film and I recommend it to anyone who wants to see a great action film, that is acted well and has good pacing!!!.
Top 5 highest rated films of the year
Non-Stop-8.1/10
Tie-Sabotage-8.0/10
Edge Of Tomorrow-8.3/10
Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes-8.3/10
The Equilizer-8.5/10
Tie-Interstellar-8.0/10
End Of Year Adjusted Ratings
Non-Stop-7.8/10 (Down From 8.0)
Sabotage-8.0/10 (Same)
Edge Of Tommorrow-8.3/10 (Same)
Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes-8.4/10 (Up From 8.3)
The Equilizer-8.5/10 (Same)
Interstellar-8.2/10 (Up From 8.0)
Overall Top 5
The Equalizer
Sabotage
Edge Of Tomorrow
Interstellar
Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes
Movie Of The Year
This is one of the times that my highest rated film before my adjusted ratings was till the best film I have seen this year, Denzel was awesome in this film and I recommend it to anyone who wants to see a great action film, that is acted well and has good pacing!!!.
December 2014!!!
The last moth fo the year bring sd one movie to review "Exodus:Gods and Kings".
Plot
"The defiant leader Moses rises up against the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses, setting 600,000 slaves on a monumental journey of escape from Egypt and its terrifying cycle of deadly plagues.".
My Thoughts
I will say I didn't really know what to expect going in to see this film, I have some minor knowledge of the Moses story. After seeing this film, I will say this is the best biblical adaptation I have seen i recent memory. With that said I do not have much to compare it against, this was a solid film with solid acting all around and epic backdrop that really added to the "Epic" feel of the movie overall. The acting from, Christian Bale as the role of Moses was top notch, I have come to expect performances of this caliber from Mr.Bale over the last couple years and he delivered as I expected, my other mention goes to Joel Edgerton in the role as Ramses he showed a wide range of emotion that I really enjoyed and he was the standout in the film for me, he did a really good job, the rest of the cast was serviceable nothing spectacular but solid and did what was needed. The special effects in the film where some of the best I have seen in recent memory, during scenes that were obviously CG it was really hard for me to tell the difference. The epicness of some of the shots where breathtaking when the camera would do a wide pan of a Egyptian city coming to life m, it was truly beautiful and I have to say this film had some of the most breathtaking shots I have seen in a film this year beautiful cinematography, it really have me an idea of what a living breathing Egyptian city would have been like and that was a awesome thing to behold. once you get past the acting and the setting for the film, there where some aspects of the film that really let me down and irked me, first off the run time the film is about 2 hours and 30 minutes, which for a movie of this scale is around t he standards fare if the film keeps you engaged, there is a huge lull in the middle of the film that really in my opinion added nothing to the film and didn't flesh out any characters or back story which is what I assumed that part of the film was for, another aspect for the film I really didn't like was just the overall boring tone the film, I expected a truly "epic" re-telling of the story off Noah and bar a couple of early battle scenes mixed in with some horse racing, the film was pretty dull honestly and left me wanting more in terms of action, the movie had a good bit of substance, but you also need some pop for a movie of this quality. there is one more part of the film that I did like though, The 7 plagues where awesome to behold and stunning to see on the screen i have to give Ridley Scott credit for thee way he chose to portray them,, he did an awesome job and I really enjoyed that whole section of the movie. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 27% saying " While sporadically stirring, and suitably epic in its ambitions, Exodus: Gods and Kings can't quite live up to its classic source material". I somewhat disagree I felt the film followed the source material as close as possible but it lacked a bit of pop and just felt a little to boring and dry considering its run time and the epicness that is was supposed to have.
Rating
Beautiful film, acted very well, just to long and lacked action overall 6.9/10!!!
that brings an end to 2014 lets see what 2015 has to offer!!!
Plot
"The defiant leader Moses rises up against the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses, setting 600,000 slaves on a monumental journey of escape from Egypt and its terrifying cycle of deadly plagues.".
My Thoughts
I will say I didn't really know what to expect going in to see this film, I have some minor knowledge of the Moses story. After seeing this film, I will say this is the best biblical adaptation I have seen i recent memory. With that said I do not have much to compare it against, this was a solid film with solid acting all around and epic backdrop that really added to the "Epic" feel of the movie overall. The acting from, Christian Bale as the role of Moses was top notch, I have come to expect performances of this caliber from Mr.Bale over the last couple years and he delivered as I expected, my other mention goes to Joel Edgerton in the role as Ramses he showed a wide range of emotion that I really enjoyed and he was the standout in the film for me, he did a really good job, the rest of the cast was serviceable nothing spectacular but solid and did what was needed. The special effects in the film where some of the best I have seen in recent memory, during scenes that were obviously CG it was really hard for me to tell the difference. The epicness of some of the shots where breathtaking when the camera would do a wide pan of a Egyptian city coming to life m, it was truly beautiful and I have to say this film had some of the most breathtaking shots I have seen in a film this year beautiful cinematography, it really have me an idea of what a living breathing Egyptian city would have been like and that was a awesome thing to behold. once you get past the acting and the setting for the film, there where some aspects of the film that really let me down and irked me, first off the run time the film is about 2 hours and 30 minutes, which for a movie of this scale is around t he standards fare if the film keeps you engaged, there is a huge lull in the middle of the film that really in my opinion added nothing to the film and didn't flesh out any characters or back story which is what I assumed that part of the film was for, another aspect for the film I really didn't like was just the overall boring tone the film, I expected a truly "epic" re-telling of the story off Noah and bar a couple of early battle scenes mixed in with some horse racing, the film was pretty dull honestly and left me wanting more in terms of action, the movie had a good bit of substance, but you also need some pop for a movie of this quality. there is one more part of the film that I did like though, The 7 plagues where awesome to behold and stunning to see on the screen i have to give Ridley Scott credit for thee way he chose to portray them,, he did an awesome job and I really enjoyed that whole section of the movie. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 27% saying " While sporadically stirring, and suitably epic in its ambitions, Exodus: Gods and Kings can't quite live up to its classic source material". I somewhat disagree I felt the film followed the source material as close as possible but it lacked a bit of pop and just felt a little to boring and dry considering its run time and the epicness that is was supposed to have.
Rating
Beautiful film, acted very well, just to long and lacked action overall 6.9/10!!!
that brings an end to 2014 lets see what 2015 has to offer!!!
Saturday, November 15, 2014
November 2014!!!
The Month Of November brings one film to review, the first being "Interstellar" starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain.
Plot
"A team of explorers travel through a wormhole in an attempt to find a potentially habitable planet that will sustain humanity".
My Thoughts
Interstellar is one of the best films I have seen this year, is it the best I have seen, No it is not, but it is still a really good film that I highly recommend to anyone to see. Most people have t his as the best film of the year, and I can see why they would say that, the movie does almost everything well, The acting was some of the best I have seen in recent memory (Matthew McConaughey was awesome and really convincing in his lead role one of the best performances I have seen from any actor in recent memory), Anne Hathaway was very good in her as well, there is a cameo role in the film that totally caught me off guard and the actor did an awesome job in the cameo, the rest of the cast did an awesome job and I have to say thank you to the casting director, as they got some real top level supporting actors for this film(Micheal Caine, John Lithgow, Jessica Chastain and Casey Affleck), Visually this was one of the most beautiful films that I have ever seen, some of the space shots are just breathtaking, especially those shots of the planets in the other galaxies, just beautiful, the shots of theoretical events that we as humans have never seen (Black Holes, warp speed, event horizon) were gorgeous this film was up there with "Avatar" visually which is the highest praise I can give a film in that department, congratulations to the special effects team on t his film, they did a masterful job. When i first heard about this film I did not know what too initially expect, the pacing of the film was very good and flowed well together, the run time for this film was 2 hours and 45 minutes and I can honestly say that it didn't feel that long at all and honestly the film could have ran over 3 hours and I would have been totally okay with it, this film really drew me in and was very engrossing. While this film was very good there are a few aspects of the film that really irked me, first and foremost the ending, the final 30 minutes of the film where just discombobulated and disjo9nted and to me just did not make a lot of sense, if you step back and say that this is a sci-fi film and some things are obviously not going to be feasible in real life and its fantasy, which is true but for me most of the ending just didn't really work well together and it took away from the film as a whole, the ending for me just didn't work. Another problem I had with the film was not a huge part of the film but little minor things that would happen in the film that I would notice and as they happened I would think to myself "that makes no scene how this is working"?, I will not pinpoint once specific issue but this happened to me quite a few times during the movie and the parts that this happened on weren't parts of the film that where fantasy it was practical situations that happens in everyday real life, which really caught me by surprise as to why this happened in that fashion.overall the film had very few flaws but thew one big flaw for me totally changed how I thought about the film once it ended. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 74% saying " Interstellar represents more of the thrilling, thought-provoking, and visually resplendent film making moviegoers have come to expect from writer-director Christopher Nolan, even if its intellectual reach somewhat exceeds its grasp". I agree mostly with this there film was very good but certain aspects of tit just didn't all fit correctly, still a very good film though and one of the bests I have seen this year.
Rating
very good film, acting was great, visual effects some of the best I have ever seen, just fell flat with the ending which really irked me 8.2/10!!!!
Plot
"A team of explorers travel through a wormhole in an attempt to find a potentially habitable planet that will sustain humanity".
My Thoughts
Interstellar is one of the best films I have seen this year, is it the best I have seen, No it is not, but it is still a really good film that I highly recommend to anyone to see. Most people have t his as the best film of the year, and I can see why they would say that, the movie does almost everything well, The acting was some of the best I have seen in recent memory (Matthew McConaughey was awesome and really convincing in his lead role one of the best performances I have seen from any actor in recent memory), Anne Hathaway was very good in her as well, there is a cameo role in the film that totally caught me off guard and the actor did an awesome job in the cameo, the rest of the cast did an awesome job and I have to say thank you to the casting director, as they got some real top level supporting actors for this film(Micheal Caine, John Lithgow, Jessica Chastain and Casey Affleck), Visually this was one of the most beautiful films that I have ever seen, some of the space shots are just breathtaking, especially those shots of the planets in the other galaxies, just beautiful, the shots of theoretical events that we as humans have never seen (Black Holes, warp speed, event horizon) were gorgeous this film was up there with "Avatar" visually which is the highest praise I can give a film in that department, congratulations to the special effects team on t his film, they did a masterful job. When i first heard about this film I did not know what too initially expect, the pacing of the film was very good and flowed well together, the run time for this film was 2 hours and 45 minutes and I can honestly say that it didn't feel that long at all and honestly the film could have ran over 3 hours and I would have been totally okay with it, this film really drew me in and was very engrossing. While this film was very good there are a few aspects of the film that really irked me, first and foremost the ending, the final 30 minutes of the film where just discombobulated and disjo9nted and to me just did not make a lot of sense, if you step back and say that this is a sci-fi film and some things are obviously not going to be feasible in real life and its fantasy, which is true but for me most of the ending just didn't really work well together and it took away from the film as a whole, the ending for me just didn't work. Another problem I had with the film was not a huge part of the film but little minor things that would happen in the film that I would notice and as they happened I would think to myself "that makes no scene how this is working"?, I will not pinpoint once specific issue but this happened to me quite a few times during the movie and the parts that this happened on weren't parts of the film that where fantasy it was practical situations that happens in everyday real life, which really caught me by surprise as to why this happened in that fashion.overall the film had very few flaws but thew one big flaw for me totally changed how I thought about the film once it ended. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 74% saying " Interstellar represents more of the thrilling, thought-provoking, and visually resplendent film making moviegoers have come to expect from writer-director Christopher Nolan, even if its intellectual reach somewhat exceeds its grasp". I agree mostly with this there film was very good but certain aspects of tit just didn't all fit correctly, still a very good film though and one of the bests I have seen this year.
Rating
very good film, acting was great, visual effects some of the best I have ever seen, just fell flat with the ending which really irked me 8.2/10!!!!
Monday, September 29, 2014
September 2014!!!!
The Month Of September has one film to review and that film is "The Equalizer" Starring Denzel Washington,Chloe Grace Moretz and Martin Csokas.
Plot
"A man believes he has put his mysterious past behind him and has dedicated himself to beginning a new, quiet life. But when he meets a young girl under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters, he can't stand idly by - he has to help he".
My Thoughts
To be honest so far 2014 has been for me a letdown in terms if quality films, there have been some good films that I have seen this year, but nothing that I could say was a great film,. That has all changed since I saw "The Equalizer". I will be the first to say that I am a huge Denzel Washington fan, there are not many of his films that I have seen that I would say was a bad film, has he made not great films Yes but most of his film i enjoyed. Before I really go into this review I want to say for anyone who has not seen "Man On Fire" which was a Denzel Washington film that came out in 2004 I highly recommend to see t hat film, to me Denzel Washington's performance in that film was so invigorating and visceral and one of his best performances I have ever seen. Onto the equalizer, when I first saw the trailer for this film it hooked me right from the start, I love to see Denzel Washington films where he plays his Lone wolf role and goes after the bad guys, while he himself may not even be the good guy in the film. What I really liked about this film was the set up, it wasn't just Denzel shows up and kills people, there is actually a period of the film that build a connection to Washington's character which really helped with the flow of the movie and connecting with the the character overall. The plot of the film was actually very good and flowed really well together, it basically starts off as Denzel's character coming to the aid of teenage Prostitute (Played By Chloe Grace Moretz in a limited role) and that is basically the kick off point of the film once Washington's character sets his sights on defending Moretz character the movie takes a great turn and Denzel Washington was awesome in this light. The villains in this movie are primarily Russian gangsters that are led by Martin Csokas who plays the character as Teddi, and I must say he played a great villain for Washington's character in the film they played off each other extremely well and it was nice to see the kind off cat and mouse game they played with each other. Another part of the story that I also really liked was the mysteriousness of Washington's character, you never knew who he worked for in his past all we the audience knew was that his character had highly skilled military training, it was funny to see in the film when Washington's character would execute something to hear one of the guys say "Who are you?" . Overall there was not much that I did not like about this a few minor quibbles would be the length honestly the movie was 2hrs and 15 minutes and I wanted it to be a bit longer, I rarely say that but this movie had me so engaged that I felt a little more time added to the film may have helped to flesh out Washington's character background maybe a little bit more, this is a minor concern, one more minor thing about this film, that irked me just a little was the whole Russian angle with all of the problems going on over seas with Russia I found it a little bit "mundane" that they chose Russians as the bad guys, there where even some moments where generalizations of the Russians as a whole in an negative light where used, not a huge problem but it would have been nice if they where going to use Russians as the antagonist don't be so cliche about the whole thing. Overall this was a great film and I can say the best I have seen this year so far. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 61% saying "Critics Consensus: The Equalizer is more stylishly violent than meaningful, but with Antoine Fuqua behind the cameras and Denzel Washington dispensing justice, it delivers". I agree the violence was very stylized and not really "gritty" but I liked the way everything was done about the film and I recommend it greatly for anyone who wants to see a good action film with a decent story and very good acting all around by the cast.
Rating
Best Film I have seen all year so far, Denzel Washington channels "Man On Fire" in this film and I love it 8.6/10!!!!
Plot
"A man believes he has put his mysterious past behind him and has dedicated himself to beginning a new, quiet life. But when he meets a young girl under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters, he can't stand idly by - he has to help he".
My Thoughts
To be honest so far 2014 has been for me a letdown in terms if quality films, there have been some good films that I have seen this year, but nothing that I could say was a great film,. That has all changed since I saw "The Equalizer". I will be the first to say that I am a huge Denzel Washington fan, there are not many of his films that I have seen that I would say was a bad film, has he made not great films Yes but most of his film i enjoyed. Before I really go into this review I want to say for anyone who has not seen "Man On Fire" which was a Denzel Washington film that came out in 2004 I highly recommend to see t hat film, to me Denzel Washington's performance in that film was so invigorating and visceral and one of his best performances I have ever seen. Onto the equalizer, when I first saw the trailer for this film it hooked me right from the start, I love to see Denzel Washington films where he plays his Lone wolf role and goes after the bad guys, while he himself may not even be the good guy in the film. What I really liked about this film was the set up, it wasn't just Denzel shows up and kills people, there is actually a period of the film that build a connection to Washington's character which really helped with the flow of the movie and connecting with the the character overall. The plot of the film was actually very good and flowed really well together, it basically starts off as Denzel's character coming to the aid of teenage Prostitute (Played By Chloe Grace Moretz in a limited role) and that is basically the kick off point of the film once Washington's character sets his sights on defending Moretz character the movie takes a great turn and Denzel Washington was awesome in this light. The villains in this movie are primarily Russian gangsters that are led by Martin Csokas who plays the character as Teddi, and I must say he played a great villain for Washington's character in the film they played off each other extremely well and it was nice to see the kind off cat and mouse game they played with each other. Another part of the story that I also really liked was the mysteriousness of Washington's character, you never knew who he worked for in his past all we the audience knew was that his character had highly skilled military training, it was funny to see in the film when Washington's character would execute something to hear one of the guys say "Who are you?" . Overall there was not much that I did not like about this a few minor quibbles would be the length honestly the movie was 2hrs and 15 minutes and I wanted it to be a bit longer, I rarely say that but this movie had me so engaged that I felt a little more time added to the film may have helped to flesh out Washington's character background maybe a little bit more, this is a minor concern, one more minor thing about this film, that irked me just a little was the whole Russian angle with all of the problems going on over seas with Russia I found it a little bit "mundane" that they chose Russians as the bad guys, there where even some moments where generalizations of the Russians as a whole in an negative light where used, not a huge problem but it would have been nice if they where going to use Russians as the antagonist don't be so cliche about the whole thing. Overall this was a great film and I can say the best I have seen this year so far. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 61% saying "Critics Consensus: The Equalizer is more stylishly violent than meaningful, but with Antoine Fuqua behind the cameras and Denzel Washington dispensing justice, it delivers". I agree the violence was very stylized and not really "gritty" but I liked the way everything was done about the film and I recommend it greatly for anyone who wants to see a good action film with a decent story and very good acting all around by the cast.
Rating
Best Film I have seen all year so far, Denzel Washington channels "Man On Fire" in this film and I love it 8.6/10!!!!
Saturday, August 2, 2014
August 2014!!!!!
The Month of August Brings with it three more films to review the first being "Guardians Of The Galaxy".
Plot
"n the far reaches of space, an American pilot named Peter Quill finds himself the object of a manhunt after stealing an orb coveted by the villainous Ronan".
My Thoughts
I want to start by saying neither this film or "The Avengers" are what I would call the best film by marvel, that Honor in my opinion goes to X2, most people have guardian's now or avengers as 1-2 in the rankings for best marvel films. Now getting that out of the way, my expectations for this film i can honestly say I had none I went into this film with an open mind not sure what to expect, I knew nothing about guardians of the galaxy characters or the plot when I I first saw the trailer, after viewing the trailer I did a little background research on all of the characters, just to have a better understanding on what may potentially go on during the film, after viewing the film my initial thoughts on the film was that it is a very good film one of the bets films I have seen this year. What I unexpectedly liked about this film was the humorous approach that it took especially Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) was extremely funny and I really liked the aspect that he brought to the film, the other members of the guardians all complimented each other well (my second favorite character would have had to been Drax who was played by Bautista, some of the lines that he said in the movie where just so random that all i could do was smile about it) the other three members of the group filled their roles very well also (I didn't really find Zoe Saldana's character that funny but her character was more of a serious one which made a good balance). The story of the film was a weak point in my opinion, it maybe due to the fact that I do not know much of the back story of the Guardians Universe, but I just felt it was not a strong plot but luckily the Movie and the acting was enough to overcome a weak plot/story. The special effects where top notch I really like the designs of the planets in the guardians Universe and the character designs as well where very good. There was not much about the film i disliked the pacing was good I mentioned it had very good acting by the entire cast, the special effects where top notch the movie didn't feel long at all despite the fact the film was over two hours, which is always a plus, Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 92% saying "Guardians of the Galaxy is just as irreverent as fans of the frequently zany Marvel comic would expect -- as well as funny, thrilling, full of heart, and packed with visual splendor". I agree with the review the guardians universe is an obscure one that only the hardcore marvel fans will know much about but after seeing this film I look forward to the next installment in the series (judging by the box office number sit will be happening), This in my opinion is not the best marvel movies ever but it is in my top 5, and I recommend it to anyone whoa wants to see a great summer blockbuster that does not take itself to seriously it is lighthearted fun and it does a good job doing that.
Rating
Great Film, had loads of laughs and was action packed, looking forward to the sequel that can expand on the guardians universe 7.9/10!!!!!
The next film up for review is "The Expendables 3" Starring Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham and Harrison Ford.
Plot
"Barney augments his team with new blood for a personal battle: to take down Conrad Stonebanks, the Expendables co-founder and notorious arms trader who is hell bent on wiping out Barney and every single one of his associates".
I was a big fan of the first two expendables films especially the second film I really enjoyed the film, when I heard they where making a third film I was really excited to hear that all of the main cast from the first two films would be in the third film, Once I saw the trailer and it mentioned in the trailer that this could potentially be the last film, I was somewhat disappointed I really like this series and feel that it can continue as long as the villains (Such as Van Damme in the second film he was an awesome villain) stay interesting and the locations that they visit are also just as exciting and interesting for the viewer. I also noticed in the trailer that they had added a few new members such as Ronda Rousey and Victor Ortiz and Kellen Lutz where some of the new additions, I was somewhat skeptical about these new additions as I felt they where not needed, I did appreciate the addition of Wesley Snipes (always been a fan of the first two blade films and maybe one day well see a 4th film in the series after the disappointing third film). After watching the film I can say that my fears where realized the new members (besides snipes and Kelsey Grammer they where both nice additions to the cast and I really enjoyed both off them in this film ,I did miss Bruce Willis presence in this film but greed will cause problems for anyone ) Rousey,Lutz, Ortiz and Powell where not needed in this film and the acting by the four was pretty bad to say the least (Especially Rousey the faces she made in this film were very uncomfortable and I wonder what she was thinking about when she made those faces. I honestly would have preferred if the film did not go the route of trying to instill a new blood as the new blood really clashed with the old blood if a forth installment id ms made hopefully they either better integrate the new team or scrap them all together. Other than the new actors the remaining members play the roles as well as they had in the previous two films (I wish Jet Li had a bigger role I really love the banter between him and Dolph Lundgren). Mel Gibson was a smooth Criminal by that I mean he had a certain charisma about him that was just awesome he was a really good villain, I would not put him over Van Damme but he is easily my second favorite villain in the series so far, unlike the two previous films this film had a PG-13 rating and this was another concern any film in this series should be rated R its bloody, violent, fun and with a PG-13 rating you cannot have the same feeling, and my fears where realized this film had a tame feeling to it in comparison to the first two films, I really with it was made R. Rotten Tomatoes gave this film a 34% saying "Like its predecessors, Expendables 3 offers a modicum of all-star thrills for old-school action thriller aficionados -- but given all the talent assembled, it should have been a lot more fun". I agree somewhat this film could have been so much more but couple a PG-13 rating with a lackluster addition to the cast and I ultimately felt disappointed.
Rating
Could Have been so much better I hope if a fourth film is made that some changes are made to ensure a much better film. 6.8/10!!!!
The next film up for review is "Sin City: A Dane To Kill for" starring Jessica Alba, Mickey Rourke and Josh Brolin.
Plot
"Some of Sin City's most hard-boiled citizens cross paths with a few of its more reviled inhabitants".
My Thoughts
I was a huge fan of the first Sin City (One of the few films that I actually have bought, and considered a classic in my book ) One of my favorites aspects of the first film (besides Alexis Bledel) was just the artistic style of how the movie looked, it really reminded me of a comic book or graphic novel (which is what the series is based on). Like many people who saw the first film, I eagerly anticipated a sequel that never came just years and years of rumors and speculation, fast forward 9 years and wee finally have a sequel, while i agree it was about 4-5 years late to the party nonetheless I am just happy we get another film, After seeing the film one word came to mind Letdown, where do i begin. the style of the film just did not look the same as the first film, some parts of the film especially during the action scenes it looked the characters where lagging and when some of the characters would run it looked like they where not really moving, like they where running in place, some of the characters where re-casted (Josh Brolin took over for Clive Owen as the the character Dwight, Jamie Chung too Devon Aoki's role as Miho). Jamie Chung's part was not very influential to the story so i did not mind her being cast in place of Devon Aoki, now onto Josh Brolin who i consider to be a solid actor , I did not like his role as Dwight it just did not work for me he did have the same presence as Clive own did in the original and I felt he should not have been cast, One actor who thankfully came back was Mickey Rourke as Marv he was awesome in the first film and was just as good in this film he plays this role perfectly (I feel about him as Marv as I do for Robert Downey Jr as Tony stark and Hugh Jackman as Wolverine). Eva Green was cast as the "Dame To Kill For" and honestly her entire story line in the film was not interesting to me at all (maybe it had to do with her main story arch involving Josh Brolin's character as well) ,her acting was okay nothing great or horrible but the entire story arch for the two characters I felt was boring and not very interesting (and do not get me started on the Jessica Alba Story line Terrible, felt like a waste of time though it did continue from the first film still horrible story arch that consisted of too much stripper dancing and self pity and not much else). One last actor I want to mention in a good light was Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Johnny he is one of my favorite actors and he was great in his role, another part of this movie that i did not like was the disjointed story in the first film all of the stories interconnected very well,m in this film not so much it just felt like they threw some stories together that had nothing to really do with each other couple in that some of the story lines where very boring and you get a recipe for disaster.Overall this film just Let me down and there was not much bar Mickey Rourke and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's performances that I really felt where worth mentioning , I hoped for much better considering the amount of time between the first and second film but unfortunately that was not the case. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 45% saying "A Dame to Kill For boasts the same stylish violence and striking visual palette as the original Sin City, but lacks its predecessor's brutal impact". I agree this film was just missing something that the first had and that missing element really made for a bad movie.
Rating
Waited 9 years for a sequel and this is what we get, maybe they can make a 3rd film that will rebound from this, hopefully it doesn't take 9 more years 6.5/10!!!!!
Plot
"n the far reaches of space, an American pilot named Peter Quill finds himself the object of a manhunt after stealing an orb coveted by the villainous Ronan".
My Thoughts
I want to start by saying neither this film or "The Avengers" are what I would call the best film by marvel, that Honor in my opinion goes to X2, most people have guardian's now or avengers as 1-2 in the rankings for best marvel films. Now getting that out of the way, my expectations for this film i can honestly say I had none I went into this film with an open mind not sure what to expect, I knew nothing about guardians of the galaxy characters or the plot when I I first saw the trailer, after viewing the trailer I did a little background research on all of the characters, just to have a better understanding on what may potentially go on during the film, after viewing the film my initial thoughts on the film was that it is a very good film one of the bets films I have seen this year. What I unexpectedly liked about this film was the humorous approach that it took especially Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) was extremely funny and I really liked the aspect that he brought to the film, the other members of the guardians all complimented each other well (my second favorite character would have had to been Drax who was played by Bautista, some of the lines that he said in the movie where just so random that all i could do was smile about it) the other three members of the group filled their roles very well also (I didn't really find Zoe Saldana's character that funny but her character was more of a serious one which made a good balance). The story of the film was a weak point in my opinion, it maybe due to the fact that I do not know much of the back story of the Guardians Universe, but I just felt it was not a strong plot but luckily the Movie and the acting was enough to overcome a weak plot/story. The special effects where top notch I really like the designs of the planets in the guardians Universe and the character designs as well where very good. There was not much about the film i disliked the pacing was good I mentioned it had very good acting by the entire cast, the special effects where top notch the movie didn't feel long at all despite the fact the film was over two hours, which is always a plus, Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 92% saying "Guardians of the Galaxy is just as irreverent as fans of the frequently zany Marvel comic would expect -- as well as funny, thrilling, full of heart, and packed with visual splendor". I agree with the review the guardians universe is an obscure one that only the hardcore marvel fans will know much about but after seeing this film I look forward to the next installment in the series (judging by the box office number sit will be happening), This in my opinion is not the best marvel movies ever but it is in my top 5, and I recommend it to anyone whoa wants to see a great summer blockbuster that does not take itself to seriously it is lighthearted fun and it does a good job doing that.
Rating
Great Film, had loads of laughs and was action packed, looking forward to the sequel that can expand on the guardians universe 7.9/10!!!!!
The next film up for review is "The Expendables 3" Starring Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham and Harrison Ford.
Plot
"Barney augments his team with new blood for a personal battle: to take down Conrad Stonebanks, the Expendables co-founder and notorious arms trader who is hell bent on wiping out Barney and every single one of his associates".
My Thoughts
I was a big fan of the first two expendables films especially the second film I really enjoyed the film, when I heard they where making a third film I was really excited to hear that all of the main cast from the first two films would be in the third film, Once I saw the trailer and it mentioned in the trailer that this could potentially be the last film, I was somewhat disappointed I really like this series and feel that it can continue as long as the villains (Such as Van Damme in the second film he was an awesome villain) stay interesting and the locations that they visit are also just as exciting and interesting for the viewer. I also noticed in the trailer that they had added a few new members such as Ronda Rousey and Victor Ortiz and Kellen Lutz where some of the new additions, I was somewhat skeptical about these new additions as I felt they where not needed, I did appreciate the addition of Wesley Snipes (always been a fan of the first two blade films and maybe one day well see a 4th film in the series after the disappointing third film). After watching the film I can say that my fears where realized the new members (besides snipes and Kelsey Grammer they where both nice additions to the cast and I really enjoyed both off them in this film ,I did miss Bruce Willis presence in this film but greed will cause problems for anyone ) Rousey,Lutz, Ortiz and Powell where not needed in this film and the acting by the four was pretty bad to say the least (Especially Rousey the faces she made in this film were very uncomfortable and I wonder what she was thinking about when she made those faces. I honestly would have preferred if the film did not go the route of trying to instill a new blood as the new blood really clashed with the old blood if a forth installment id ms made hopefully they either better integrate the new team or scrap them all together. Other than the new actors the remaining members play the roles as well as they had in the previous two films (I wish Jet Li had a bigger role I really love the banter between him and Dolph Lundgren). Mel Gibson was a smooth Criminal by that I mean he had a certain charisma about him that was just awesome he was a really good villain, I would not put him over Van Damme but he is easily my second favorite villain in the series so far, unlike the two previous films this film had a PG-13 rating and this was another concern any film in this series should be rated R its bloody, violent, fun and with a PG-13 rating you cannot have the same feeling, and my fears where realized this film had a tame feeling to it in comparison to the first two films, I really with it was made R. Rotten Tomatoes gave this film a 34% saying "Like its predecessors, Expendables 3 offers a modicum of all-star thrills for old-school action thriller aficionados -- but given all the talent assembled, it should have been a lot more fun". I agree somewhat this film could have been so much more but couple a PG-13 rating with a lackluster addition to the cast and I ultimately felt disappointed.
Rating
Could Have been so much better I hope if a fourth film is made that some changes are made to ensure a much better film. 6.8/10!!!!
The next film up for review is "Sin City: A Dane To Kill for" starring Jessica Alba, Mickey Rourke and Josh Brolin.
Plot
"Some of Sin City's most hard-boiled citizens cross paths with a few of its more reviled inhabitants".
My Thoughts
I was a huge fan of the first Sin City (One of the few films that I actually have bought, and considered a classic in my book ) One of my favorites aspects of the first film (besides Alexis Bledel) was just the artistic style of how the movie looked, it really reminded me of a comic book or graphic novel (which is what the series is based on). Like many people who saw the first film, I eagerly anticipated a sequel that never came just years and years of rumors and speculation, fast forward 9 years and wee finally have a sequel, while i agree it was about 4-5 years late to the party nonetheless I am just happy we get another film, After seeing the film one word came to mind Letdown, where do i begin. the style of the film just did not look the same as the first film, some parts of the film especially during the action scenes it looked the characters where lagging and when some of the characters would run it looked like they where not really moving, like they where running in place, some of the characters where re-casted (Josh Brolin took over for Clive Owen as the the character Dwight, Jamie Chung too Devon Aoki's role as Miho). Jamie Chung's part was not very influential to the story so i did not mind her being cast in place of Devon Aoki, now onto Josh Brolin who i consider to be a solid actor , I did not like his role as Dwight it just did not work for me he did have the same presence as Clive own did in the original and I felt he should not have been cast, One actor who thankfully came back was Mickey Rourke as Marv he was awesome in the first film and was just as good in this film he plays this role perfectly (I feel about him as Marv as I do for Robert Downey Jr as Tony stark and Hugh Jackman as Wolverine). Eva Green was cast as the "Dame To Kill For" and honestly her entire story line in the film was not interesting to me at all (maybe it had to do with her main story arch involving Josh Brolin's character as well) ,her acting was okay nothing great or horrible but the entire story arch for the two characters I felt was boring and not very interesting (and do not get me started on the Jessica Alba Story line Terrible, felt like a waste of time though it did continue from the first film still horrible story arch that consisted of too much stripper dancing and self pity and not much else). One last actor I want to mention in a good light was Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Johnny he is one of my favorite actors and he was great in his role, another part of this movie that i did not like was the disjointed story in the first film all of the stories interconnected very well,m in this film not so much it just felt like they threw some stories together that had nothing to really do with each other couple in that some of the story lines where very boring and you get a recipe for disaster.Overall this film just Let me down and there was not much bar Mickey Rourke and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's performances that I really felt where worth mentioning , I hoped for much better considering the amount of time between the first and second film but unfortunately that was not the case. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 45% saying "A Dame to Kill For boasts the same stylish violence and striking visual palette as the original Sin City, but lacks its predecessor's brutal impact". I agree this film was just missing something that the first had and that missing element really made for a bad movie.
Rating
Waited 9 years for a sequel and this is what we get, maybe they can make a 3rd film that will rebound from this, hopefully it doesn't take 9 more years 6.5/10!!!!!
Friday, July 11, 2014
July 2014!!!!
The month of July brings with it 4 films to review there first being Deliver Us From Evil Starring Eric Bana, Edgar Ramirez and Olivia Munn.
Plot
"NY police officer Ralph Sarchie investigates a series of crimes. He joins forces with an unconventional priest, schooled in the rituals of exorcism, to combat the possessions that are terrorizing their city".
My Thoughts
When I first saw the trailer for this film it instantly piqued my interest and I wanted to see it, what initially caught my interest was just he whole set up of the film a demonic force being released upon the life of a hardened NYPD detective who obviously will be a non believer in all of the happening going on around him until it hits "home" for his eyes to finally open. Before I go any further I want to give a special mention to Edgar Ramirez for his portrayal of Mendoza the priest I have only seen him in a few films previously (Clash/Wrath of the titans and Domino) while he was serviceable in those films he was more a supporting character with not much dialogue speaking for him, in this film he really stood out and he stood out from the rest of the cast, Eric Bana is one of my favorite actors (Really liked his role in Hanna) and he did a really good job in the role of Sargent Sarchie the NYPD detective caught into this holy struggle between good and evil, The one character i have to say that didn't really add to the film was Olivia Munn in her portrayal as Eric Bana's characters wife, i felt she was the obligatory "wife character to make the main character more sympathetic to whose with families" After viewing the film i honestly felt the film would have been the same if here character was not in the film and if it was just Bana's character and his daughter. The plot like I mentioned in the beginning caught my eye and after watching it unfold on screen I still hold most of the same enthusiasm I had before AI saw the film, my real gripe would be the beginning of the film it was kind of slow paced and didn't really set up well with the rest of the film, though it does connect with the rest of the film I just felt it was a little disjointed but overall it was a solid plot that kept me interested through out the viewing of the film. there was not much of CGI which i felt for this film was a good choice it added to the grittiness and dark tone of the film perfectly felt much more real. there was not much i did not like about this film the running time of 1 hour and 57 minutes to me was a good a length and the film didn't feel to long or drawn out the pacing was good. the film had a good amount of jump scares if you are prone to fall for these moments be warned, I liked them and it added a little to the film in terms of keeping you on your toes. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 30% saying "
Plot
"NY police officer Ralph Sarchie investigates a series of crimes. He joins forces with an unconventional priest, schooled in the rituals of exorcism, to combat the possessions that are terrorizing their city".
My Thoughts
When I first saw the trailer for this film it instantly piqued my interest and I wanted to see it, what initially caught my interest was just he whole set up of the film a demonic force being released upon the life of a hardened NYPD detective who obviously will be a non believer in all of the happening going on around him until it hits "home" for his eyes to finally open. Before I go any further I want to give a special mention to Edgar Ramirez for his portrayal of Mendoza the priest I have only seen him in a few films previously (Clash/Wrath of the titans and Domino) while he was serviceable in those films he was more a supporting character with not much dialogue speaking for him, in this film he really stood out and he stood out from the rest of the cast, Eric Bana is one of my favorite actors (Really liked his role in Hanna) and he did a really good job in the role of Sargent Sarchie the NYPD detective caught into this holy struggle between good and evil, The one character i have to say that didn't really add to the film was Olivia Munn in her portrayal as Eric Bana's characters wife, i felt she was the obligatory "wife character to make the main character more sympathetic to whose with families" After viewing the film i honestly felt the film would have been the same if here character was not in the film and if it was just Bana's character and his daughter. The plot like I mentioned in the beginning caught my eye and after watching it unfold on screen I still hold most of the same enthusiasm I had before AI saw the film, my real gripe would be the beginning of the film it was kind of slow paced and didn't really set up well with the rest of the film, though it does connect with the rest of the film I just felt it was a little disjointed but overall it was a solid plot that kept me interested through out the viewing of the film. there was not much of CGI which i felt for this film was a good choice it added to the grittiness and dark tone of the film perfectly felt much more real. there was not much i did not like about this film the running time of 1 hour and 57 minutes to me was a good a length and the film didn't feel to long or drawn out the pacing was good. the film had a good amount of jump scares if you are prone to fall for these moments be warned, I liked them and it added a little to the film in terms of keeping you on your toes. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 30% saying "
Director Scott Derrickson continues
to have a reliably firm grasp on creepy atmosphere, but Deliver Us from
Evil's lack of original scares is reflected in its shopworn title". I disagree with most of what was said here this film was solid and met my expectations.
Rating
Solid film met what i expected 7.6/10!!!!
The second film for the month of July is "Dawn of the planet of the apes" Starring Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke and Gary Oldman.
Plot
"A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors".
My Thoughts
I was a really big fan of Rise of the planet of the apes, the film really caught me off guard with the approach it took. it was a much more interesting and bold approach than the Tim Burton film from 2001 that starred Mark Wahlberg, that film to me was more comedic with its approach of having the actors in costumes. When the sequel was announced I was eagerly anticipating and knew from the beginning that I would see this film as soon as possible. After seeing the film I will say that this was a very good film, Unlike most critics I am not so quick to say it is exponentially better than the first film, this film was different than the first film, i say that because in the first film we had to see the set up for Caesar to see how the events in his life help shape him into the ruler he is destined to become, in this film which is set about 10 years after the events of the first film, we see that the apes have banded together and built a society for themselves to live in peace away fro m the remaining humans, I will say that the CGI in this film was superb the facial animations on the apes and the way that they moved was very well done and some of the best CGI I have seen since ""Avatar", the acting overall from the apes down to the humans was very good all around and I had no complaints in that regard, I do want to give special mention to Andy Serkis his performance was phenomenal whenever Caesar was on the screen he just oozed authority and presence and your eyes were glued to Caesars every move outstanding Job, I want to mention one other performance the character of Koba was also brilliantly done and I really enjoyed his scenes as well , the anger and rage he had toward the human race was very real and projected on the screen very well. I know most critics reviews rate this film over the first film and having seen both I will say that both films where very good and both will go down as some of the better films i have seen in their respective years But if I had to choose the better film I would break it into two categories for action I will give the nob to this film (the ending battle was epic and visually was beautiful) but from an emotional sense my nod goes to the first film, the pain and anguish that Caesar had to endure whole being locked up in that cage to me was harder to watch than anything he had to go through in this film, Like I said earlier both are great films and honestly i would be splitting hairs to say one is better than the other. There was not much I did not like about this film, I will say that the pacing in some parts was a little slow but for a film set up like this that isn't necessarily a bad t hing as a low buildup helps build character connections for the audience, One last thing I want to ad this film also did a great job conveying the suffering going on for both sided after the virus epidemic you feel for both he humans and the apes having to go through a world destroyed and mostly desolate. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 91% saying "With intelligence and emotional resonance to match its stunning special effects, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes expands on its predecessor with an exciting and ambitious burst of sci-fi achievement. I agree with everything they said this was a very good film and easily one of the best I have seen this year.
Rating
One of the bests films I have seen this year, really good film 8.3/10!!!!
The Third film for the month of July is "The Purge:Anarchy" Starring Frank Grillo, Carmen Ejogo and Zach Gilford
Plot
"A young couple works to survive on the streets after their car breaks down right as the annual purge commences".
My Thoughts
The very first purge film had such a great premise but was poorly executed, the setting for the whole "Purge" is really interesting and it was something new and fresh to the movie world, with an idea that to me really got me enticed, like many after seeing the first film I was hugely disappointed, not with the plot just with how restricted the film felt, the family stayed in the house the entire time and I really wanted to see an in your face approach to how people out there during the purge acted. Fast forward to this film and once I saw the trailer and saw that this film would be predominantly done with the main cast being outside and try to fight for survival I knew I was hooked. after seeing the film I can say wholeheartedly that his film outclassed the first film in every way possible and if t this is the trajectory for the rest of the films if any more in this series I hope the films keep the current format. It was so refreshing to see how people who could not afford to protect themselves try to handle this situation and fight for survival, the cast all did an excellent job in their roles (Special mention to Zoe Soul for her portrayal as Cali) she was the standout amongst a solid Cast (one more special mention to Micheal K. Williams in his portrayal as Carmelo), the one member of the cast that I did not really like was the character Liz she got really annoying after a while, the character of her husband was also annoying a overall I did not like the couple in the film . I honestly really loved the p[acing of the film and the backdrop that it had, the political aspect of this film really expands the chance for sequels in the future, I really hope another film delves deeper into the political issues with the film. Overall I did not dislike much about the film, the biggest issue was as i mentioned earlier the couple whose characters just rubbed me thee wrong way,the only other major gripe that I had with the film was the ending there is a certain tasks that one of the main characters went through the whole movie to complete and when the moment finally appeared it wasn't done and I felt that ruined the ending. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 55% saying "Gritty, grisly, and uncommonly ambitious, The Purge: Anarchy represents a slight improvement over its predecessor, but it's still never as smart or resonant as it tries to be". I disagree, I think the film was a huge improvment over the first film and look forward to the next film if they decide to make it, if you want to see a good action film with some suspense, a little humor and a political undertone to it this film was very good ,solid film.
Rating
Solid film much better than the first film 7.4/10!!!!
The fourth and Final film for the month of July is "Hercules" Starring the Rock, Ian Mcshane and John Hurt.
Plot
"Having endured his legendary twelve labors, Hercules, the Greek demigod, has his life as a sword-for-hire tested when the King of Thrace and his daughter seek his aid in defeating a tyrannical warlord".
My Thoughts
I am a huge fan of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, most of his films that I have seen I have enjoyed (one of my favorites from last was Snitch). When this film was announced I was highly intrigued to see the Rock play Hercules, after seeing the trailer I knew this was a film that I was going to see, After now having viewed the film I can say that I wasn't disappointed but confused. The reason I say this is t hat the film has a "Bait and Switch" feel to it, most of the scenes in thee trailer lead you to believe one thing about thew film and after seeing it a lot of the film was completely different than the trailer, sometimes that can be a good thing ass it can lead to unexpected and good shocking moments, this for the most part wasn't the case. The acting was solid The Rock did very well in his leading role and the rest of the cast did a good job and complimented him well. One element of the film I did like is the satirical way they viewed some of the ancient ways people over exaggerated things they saw when in reality it was nothing out of the ordinary, I really liked that play by the director and the writers. The fighting scenes where done really well and I also liked how they portrayed Hercules in the film it was different than some of the other adaptations I have seen in recent memory. The major problem I had wit this film was the real lack of a considerable villain in this film it again goes back to the whole bat and switch element this film had it shows you one way then out of nowhere curve ball and for me when it came to having a main villain it just didn't work and I did not like the final result in that regard. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 61% saying "Hercules has Brett Ratner behind the cameras and Dwayne Johnson rocking the loincloth -- and delivers exactly what any reasonable person reading that description might expect". I somewhat disagree going by the trailers I had an idea of what to expect but the film just did a complete 180 with how the plot.story played out and for me it took away from the overall experience. Overall this film was confusing and not what I expected, the rock was solid in his portrayal of the legendary hero and if you are a fan of his like I am oi recommend to see the film just go in with no expectations or expect anything to play out by how the trailers had showed.
Rating
Not what I expected, The Rock was solid if you are a fan of his I recommend to see it 7.1/10!!!!
The second film for the month of July is "Dawn of the planet of the apes" Starring Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke and Gary Oldman.
Plot
"A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors".
My Thoughts
I was a really big fan of Rise of the planet of the apes, the film really caught me off guard with the approach it took. it was a much more interesting and bold approach than the Tim Burton film from 2001 that starred Mark Wahlberg, that film to me was more comedic with its approach of having the actors in costumes. When the sequel was announced I was eagerly anticipating and knew from the beginning that I would see this film as soon as possible. After seeing the film I will say that this was a very good film, Unlike most critics I am not so quick to say it is exponentially better than the first film, this film was different than the first film, i say that because in the first film we had to see the set up for Caesar to see how the events in his life help shape him into the ruler he is destined to become, in this film which is set about 10 years after the events of the first film, we see that the apes have banded together and built a society for themselves to live in peace away fro m the remaining humans, I will say that the CGI in this film was superb the facial animations on the apes and the way that they moved was very well done and some of the best CGI I have seen since ""Avatar", the acting overall from the apes down to the humans was very good all around and I had no complaints in that regard, I do want to give special mention to Andy Serkis his performance was phenomenal whenever Caesar was on the screen he just oozed authority and presence and your eyes were glued to Caesars every move outstanding Job, I want to mention one other performance the character of Koba was also brilliantly done and I really enjoyed his scenes as well , the anger and rage he had toward the human race was very real and projected on the screen very well. I know most critics reviews rate this film over the first film and having seen both I will say that both films where very good and both will go down as some of the better films i have seen in their respective years But if I had to choose the better film I would break it into two categories for action I will give the nob to this film (the ending battle was epic and visually was beautiful) but from an emotional sense my nod goes to the first film, the pain and anguish that Caesar had to endure whole being locked up in that cage to me was harder to watch than anything he had to go through in this film, Like I said earlier both are great films and honestly i would be splitting hairs to say one is better than the other. There was not much I did not like about this film, I will say that the pacing in some parts was a little slow but for a film set up like this that isn't necessarily a bad t hing as a low buildup helps build character connections for the audience, One last thing I want to ad this film also did a great job conveying the suffering going on for both sided after the virus epidemic you feel for both he humans and the apes having to go through a world destroyed and mostly desolate. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 91% saying "With intelligence and emotional resonance to match its stunning special effects, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes expands on its predecessor with an exciting and ambitious burst of sci-fi achievement. I agree with everything they said this was a very good film and easily one of the best I have seen this year.
Rating
One of the bests films I have seen this year, really good film 8.3/10!!!!
The Third film for the month of July is "The Purge:Anarchy" Starring Frank Grillo, Carmen Ejogo and Zach Gilford
Plot
"A young couple works to survive on the streets after their car breaks down right as the annual purge commences".
My Thoughts
The very first purge film had such a great premise but was poorly executed, the setting for the whole "Purge" is really interesting and it was something new and fresh to the movie world, with an idea that to me really got me enticed, like many after seeing the first film I was hugely disappointed, not with the plot just with how restricted the film felt, the family stayed in the house the entire time and I really wanted to see an in your face approach to how people out there during the purge acted. Fast forward to this film and once I saw the trailer and saw that this film would be predominantly done with the main cast being outside and try to fight for survival I knew I was hooked. after seeing the film I can say wholeheartedly that his film outclassed the first film in every way possible and if t this is the trajectory for the rest of the films if any more in this series I hope the films keep the current format. It was so refreshing to see how people who could not afford to protect themselves try to handle this situation and fight for survival, the cast all did an excellent job in their roles (Special mention to Zoe Soul for her portrayal as Cali) she was the standout amongst a solid Cast (one more special mention to Micheal K. Williams in his portrayal as Carmelo), the one member of the cast that I did not really like was the character Liz she got really annoying after a while, the character of her husband was also annoying a overall I did not like the couple in the film . I honestly really loved the p[acing of the film and the backdrop that it had, the political aspect of this film really expands the chance for sequels in the future, I really hope another film delves deeper into the political issues with the film. Overall I did not dislike much about the film, the biggest issue was as i mentioned earlier the couple whose characters just rubbed me thee wrong way,the only other major gripe that I had with the film was the ending there is a certain tasks that one of the main characters went through the whole movie to complete and when the moment finally appeared it wasn't done and I felt that ruined the ending. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 55% saying "Gritty, grisly, and uncommonly ambitious, The Purge: Anarchy represents a slight improvement over its predecessor, but it's still never as smart or resonant as it tries to be". I disagree, I think the film was a huge improvment over the first film and look forward to the next film if they decide to make it, if you want to see a good action film with some suspense, a little humor and a political undertone to it this film was very good ,solid film.
Rating
Solid film much better than the first film 7.4/10!!!!
The fourth and Final film for the month of July is "Hercules" Starring the Rock, Ian Mcshane and John Hurt.
Plot
"Having endured his legendary twelve labors, Hercules, the Greek demigod, has his life as a sword-for-hire tested when the King of Thrace and his daughter seek his aid in defeating a tyrannical warlord".
My Thoughts
I am a huge fan of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, most of his films that I have seen I have enjoyed (one of my favorites from last was Snitch). When this film was announced I was highly intrigued to see the Rock play Hercules, after seeing the trailer I knew this was a film that I was going to see, After now having viewed the film I can say that I wasn't disappointed but confused. The reason I say this is t hat the film has a "Bait and Switch" feel to it, most of the scenes in thee trailer lead you to believe one thing about thew film and after seeing it a lot of the film was completely different than the trailer, sometimes that can be a good thing ass it can lead to unexpected and good shocking moments, this for the most part wasn't the case. The acting was solid The Rock did very well in his leading role and the rest of the cast did a good job and complimented him well. One element of the film I did like is the satirical way they viewed some of the ancient ways people over exaggerated things they saw when in reality it was nothing out of the ordinary, I really liked that play by the director and the writers. The fighting scenes where done really well and I also liked how they portrayed Hercules in the film it was different than some of the other adaptations I have seen in recent memory. The major problem I had wit this film was the real lack of a considerable villain in this film it again goes back to the whole bat and switch element this film had it shows you one way then out of nowhere curve ball and for me when it came to having a main villain it just didn't work and I did not like the final result in that regard. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 61% saying "Hercules has Brett Ratner behind the cameras and Dwayne Johnson rocking the loincloth -- and delivers exactly what any reasonable person reading that description might expect". I somewhat disagree going by the trailers I had an idea of what to expect but the film just did a complete 180 with how the plot.story played out and for me it took away from the overall experience. Overall this film was confusing and not what I expected, the rock was solid in his portrayal of the legendary hero and if you are a fan of his like I am oi recommend to see the film just go in with no expectations or expect anything to play out by how the trailers had showed.
Rating
Not what I expected, The Rock was solid if you are a fan of his I recommend to see it 7.1/10!!!!
Saturday, June 7, 2014
June 2014!!!!
The month of June brings with it three films to review the first being "Edge Of Tomorrow" Starring Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt and Brenden Gleeson.
Plot
"An officer finds himself caught in a time loop in a war with an alien race. His skills increase as he faces the same brutal combat scenarios, and his union with a Special Forces warrior gets him closer and closer to defeating the enemy".
My Thoughts
Do you ever see a really good movie and everything is going so well until the ending just completely ruins the experience for you, that was Edge Of Tomorrow in a nutshell, first off I am not a huge Tom Cruise Fan (Oblivion was solid again except for the ending). First all of the good this was a very good film one of the best I have seen this year hands down, Tom Cruise did a really good job and Emily Blunt was great in her role as the female lead, they had really good chemistry and worked well together. The acting from everyone else in this film was also very good ( Special Mention to bill Paxton for his role as master Sargent Farrell). The fighting scenes were top notch and some of the battle scenes with Cruise and Blunt were visually stunning and very well done. The plot of the film was a very interesting idea to me, from the moment that I saw the trailer I knew this was a film I would regardless of Tom Cruise being the lead character. The premise behind him dying and repeating the same day over and over gain but gaining more knowledge along the way to learn from his previous life to me was really unique and the film had a good pace and it ran smoothly while watching. honestly there was nothing really wrong wit the film I t had some funny moments thrown in there to break the constant action tone that was set early on in the film, I f I had to pic k a gripe other than the ending I Would say that I felt some character development for some of the other supporting roles would have been nice, but my caveat tot hat in my own head was that the day was relived by Cruise so many times that you do kind of get desensitized to all of the death and destruction just cause it happened so many times. Now onto the only huge flaw with the film that really just had me leaving the theater feeling really disappointed, I cant say anything without giving it sway but the ending when it is all said and done almost ruined the film for me , it just did not make any sense with the flow of how the movie had played out and I really wished that they had done something different (when you see the movie the scene before the ending finally happens would have been the perfect ending in my opinion). Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 89% saying "Gripping, well-acted, funny, and clever, Edge of Tomorrow offers entertaining proof that Tom Cruise is still more than capable of shouldering the weight of a blockbuster action thriller". I agrree with everythinhg here if not for the ending this film would probably have gotten a a really high 8 maybe 9 from me.
Rating
Very good film one of the best Tom Cruise films i have seen (very small sample size admittedly) the ending just ruined an otherwise great experience 8.3/10!!!!!
The next film for the month for June is "22 Jump Street" Starring Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum and Ice Cube.
Plot
"After making their way through high school (twice), big changes are in store for officers Schmidt and Jenko when they go deep undercover at a local college".
My Thoughts
As with many comedy film reviews I do this review will be short and to the point, Is the film funny Yes is it more funny than "21 jump street" I have to say no. The film had its moments but overall it just was not as funny as the first film which isn't a bad thing as the first film was pretty funny and enjoyable, this film was also,Most of the jokes and interplay between Tatum and Hill where veery funny and when Ice Cube had a larger role in the second half of this film the film did get much funner as a whoel for me. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 83% saying "Boasting even more of the bromantic chemistry between its stars -- and even more of the goofy, good-natured humor that made its predecessor so much fun -- 22 Jump Street is the rare sequel that improves upon the original". I disagree =that this film was better than the first I would put the original slightly ahead of this film but overall both films do that they are supposed to do majke you laugh and anyone who wants to see Hill and Tatum partner up for more laughs should see this.
Rating
Does what it is supposed to do solid comedy film 7.7/10!!!!
Plot
"An officer finds himself caught in a time loop in a war with an alien race. His skills increase as he faces the same brutal combat scenarios, and his union with a Special Forces warrior gets him closer and closer to defeating the enemy".
My Thoughts
Do you ever see a really good movie and everything is going so well until the ending just completely ruins the experience for you, that was Edge Of Tomorrow in a nutshell, first off I am not a huge Tom Cruise Fan (Oblivion was solid again except for the ending). First all of the good this was a very good film one of the best I have seen this year hands down, Tom Cruise did a really good job and Emily Blunt was great in her role as the female lead, they had really good chemistry and worked well together. The acting from everyone else in this film was also very good ( Special Mention to bill Paxton for his role as master Sargent Farrell). The fighting scenes were top notch and some of the battle scenes with Cruise and Blunt were visually stunning and very well done. The plot of the film was a very interesting idea to me, from the moment that I saw the trailer I knew this was a film I would regardless of Tom Cruise being the lead character. The premise behind him dying and repeating the same day over and over gain but gaining more knowledge along the way to learn from his previous life to me was really unique and the film had a good pace and it ran smoothly while watching. honestly there was nothing really wrong wit the film I t had some funny moments thrown in there to break the constant action tone that was set early on in the film, I f I had to pic k a gripe other than the ending I Would say that I felt some character development for some of the other supporting roles would have been nice, but my caveat tot hat in my own head was that the day was relived by Cruise so many times that you do kind of get desensitized to all of the death and destruction just cause it happened so many times. Now onto the only huge flaw with the film that really just had me leaving the theater feeling really disappointed, I cant say anything without giving it sway but the ending when it is all said and done almost ruined the film for me , it just did not make any sense with the flow of how the movie had played out and I really wished that they had done something different (when you see the movie the scene before the ending finally happens would have been the perfect ending in my opinion). Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 89% saying "Gripping, well-acted, funny, and clever, Edge of Tomorrow offers entertaining proof that Tom Cruise is still more than capable of shouldering the weight of a blockbuster action thriller". I agrree with everythinhg here if not for the ending this film would probably have gotten a a really high 8 maybe 9 from me.
Rating
Very good film one of the best Tom Cruise films i have seen (very small sample size admittedly) the ending just ruined an otherwise great experience 8.3/10!!!!!
The next film for the month for June is "22 Jump Street" Starring Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum and Ice Cube.
Plot
"After making their way through high school (twice), big changes are in store for officers Schmidt and Jenko when they go deep undercover at a local college".
My Thoughts
As with many comedy film reviews I do this review will be short and to the point, Is the film funny Yes is it more funny than "21 jump street" I have to say no. The film had its moments but overall it just was not as funny as the first film which isn't a bad thing as the first film was pretty funny and enjoyable, this film was also,Most of the jokes and interplay between Tatum and Hill where veery funny and when Ice Cube had a larger role in the second half of this film the film did get much funner as a whoel for me. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 83% saying "Boasting even more of the bromantic chemistry between its stars -- and even more of the goofy, good-natured humor that made its predecessor so much fun -- 22 Jump Street is the rare sequel that improves upon the original". I disagree =that this film was better than the first I would put the original slightly ahead of this film but overall both films do that they are supposed to do majke you laugh and anyone who wants to see Hill and Tatum partner up for more laughs should see this.
Rating
Does what it is supposed to do solid comedy film 7.7/10!!!!
Saturday, May 17, 2014
May 2014!!!!
For the month of may it brings one film to review "Godzilla" Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen and Bryan Cranston.
Plot
"The world's most famous monster is pitted against malevolent creatures who, bolstered by humanity's scientific arrogance, threaten our very existence".
My Thoughts
Ever since the 1998 "Godzilla" abomination I like many others have eagerly anticipating another film to get the thoughts and memories of that film from memory, When rumblings of this film being made I was very excited finally see another American adaptation of "Godzilla" being made. Now that I have seen the film I can honestly say that the film was "Solid" it was nothing spectacular but it was not a horrible film by any means. The special effects where top notch and I really enjoyed the monster battles (especially the final one in t he river epic finish to he fight). The acting for me was underwhelming with only Bryan Cranston sticking out among a sea of medicament, Elizabeth Olsen for me falls into the category of "Natalie Portman" in the "Thor" Films she was not needed in the movie and felt forced, she was only there for the main character to have a love interest just to have one, and fore me this took away from the film and made me dislike her character even more top that off with sub par acting from her and all in all she was forgettable. The film did do a good job of making the film just feel epic and have an epic scope to it the sweeping camera angles and wide shots really added to the whole "Giant" feel of the movie really well, Godzilla's appearance was one that I really liked it looked much better than in the 1998 film and obviously more realistic than the films from the 50's 60s and 70's Godzilla really looked, sounded and acted like a giant Monster and it was awesome to see him in action. One major gripe I had with this film and any other film that does this was the length the film was 2 hours and 3 minutes long, I do not mind if a film is that long as long as it needs to be that long to help better the story and add character development, this film to me should have been around 1 hour and 45 minutes and still would have arrived at the same result, this film was needlessly long and it took away from the overall experience for me with the long run time. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 72% saying "With just enough human drama to anchor the sweeping spectacle of giant monsters smashing everything in sight, Gareth Edwards' Godzilla satisfyingly restores the franchise's fire-breathing glory". I agree for the most part the film was solid and did many things well but in some key areas for me I felt it was slightly lacking , this was a solid movie overall and I would welcome more sequels in the future.
Rating
Solid Film, didn't do anything bad, had really good special effects solid film all around 7.4/10!!!!
Plot
"The world's most famous monster is pitted against malevolent creatures who, bolstered by humanity's scientific arrogance, threaten our very existence".
My Thoughts
Ever since the 1998 "Godzilla" abomination I like many others have eagerly anticipating another film to get the thoughts and memories of that film from memory, When rumblings of this film being made I was very excited finally see another American adaptation of "Godzilla" being made. Now that I have seen the film I can honestly say that the film was "Solid" it was nothing spectacular but it was not a horrible film by any means. The special effects where top notch and I really enjoyed the monster battles (especially the final one in t he river epic finish to he fight). The acting for me was underwhelming with only Bryan Cranston sticking out among a sea of medicament, Elizabeth Olsen for me falls into the category of "Natalie Portman" in the "Thor" Films she was not needed in the movie and felt forced, she was only there for the main character to have a love interest just to have one, and fore me this took away from the film and made me dislike her character even more top that off with sub par acting from her and all in all she was forgettable. The film did do a good job of making the film just feel epic and have an epic scope to it the sweeping camera angles and wide shots really added to the whole "Giant" feel of the movie really well, Godzilla's appearance was one that I really liked it looked much better than in the 1998 film and obviously more realistic than the films from the 50's 60s and 70's Godzilla really looked, sounded and acted like a giant Monster and it was awesome to see him in action. One major gripe I had with this film and any other film that does this was the length the film was 2 hours and 3 minutes long, I do not mind if a film is that long as long as it needs to be that long to help better the story and add character development, this film to me should have been around 1 hour and 45 minutes and still would have arrived at the same result, this film was needlessly long and it took away from the overall experience for me with the long run time. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 72% saying "With just enough human drama to anchor the sweeping spectacle of giant monsters smashing everything in sight, Gareth Edwards' Godzilla satisfyingly restores the franchise's fire-breathing glory". I agree for the most part the film was solid and did many things well but in some key areas for me I felt it was slightly lacking , this was a solid movie overall and I would welcome more sequels in the future.
Rating
Solid Film, didn't do anything bad, had really good special effects solid film all around 7.4/10!!!!
Friday, April 18, 2014
April 2014!!!!
The Month Of April brings with it one film to review that film is "Transcendence" the film stars Johnny Depp, Rebecca Hall and Kate Mara.
Plot
"As Dr. Will Caster works toward his goal of creating an omniscient, sentient machine, a radical anti-technology organization fights to prevent him from establishing a world where computers can transcend the abilities of the human brain".
My Thoughts
When I First heard about this film and its plot I was really excited to see it, the plot really interested me and caught my interest. I can say now after seeing this film that I was hugely disappointed wit the film overall. I will say before I go any further that Johnny Depp was solid in his role as Will Castor and I will give a special mention to Rebecca Hall in her portrayal of Evelyn Caster. That is where the good points end, overall this movie was just boring there was not much action or moments of exhilaration at all the movie was just flat. The plot while interesting was not executed very well in my opinion and could have been made a little more intriguing. The acting of all the other casts members was not that good (Morgan Freeman was okay , Paul Bettany to me didn't do a very good job). The special effects where good where nothing to write home about. the overall pacing of the film was just bland and lead to a feeling of boredom from me after seeing this film., It wasn't a bad film but it did nothing to leave a memorable impression on me. Rotten Tomatoes gave this film a 19% saying "In his directorial debut, ace cinematographer Wally Pfister remains a distinctive visual stylist, but Transcendence's thought-provoking themes exceed the movie's narrative grasp"I agree with the score but i disagree with he comments the movie for me wasn't very visually stimulating either it was just a movie that was average in ever y way. If you have nothing better to do and want to see a mvoie that isnt horrible but isnt greeat and are a fan of Johnny Depp then this maybe a good choice for you.
Rating
Expected more 6.9/10!!!!
Plot
"As Dr. Will Caster works toward his goal of creating an omniscient, sentient machine, a radical anti-technology organization fights to prevent him from establishing a world where computers can transcend the abilities of the human brain".
My Thoughts
When I First heard about this film and its plot I was really excited to see it, the plot really interested me and caught my interest. I can say now after seeing this film that I was hugely disappointed wit the film overall. I will say before I go any further that Johnny Depp was solid in his role as Will Castor and I will give a special mention to Rebecca Hall in her portrayal of Evelyn Caster. That is where the good points end, overall this movie was just boring there was not much action or moments of exhilaration at all the movie was just flat. The plot while interesting was not executed very well in my opinion and could have been made a little more intriguing. The acting of all the other casts members was not that good (Morgan Freeman was okay , Paul Bettany to me didn't do a very good job). The special effects where good where nothing to write home about. the overall pacing of the film was just bland and lead to a feeling of boredom from me after seeing this film., It wasn't a bad film but it did nothing to leave a memorable impression on me. Rotten Tomatoes gave this film a 19% saying "In his directorial debut, ace cinematographer Wally Pfister remains a distinctive visual stylist, but Transcendence's thought-provoking themes exceed the movie's narrative grasp"I agree with the score but i disagree with he comments the movie for me wasn't very visually stimulating either it was just a movie that was average in ever y way. If you have nothing better to do and want to see a mvoie that isnt horrible but isnt greeat and are a fan of Johnny Depp then this maybe a good choice for you.
Rating
Expected more 6.9/10!!!!
Saturday, March 8, 2014
March 2014!!!
The Month Of March brings with it three films to review, the first being 300:Rise Of An Empire starring Sullivan Stapleton, Eva green and Lena Headey.
Plot
"Greek general Themistokles leads the charge against invading Persian forces led by mortal-turned-god Xerxes and Artemisia, vengeful commander of the Persian navy".
My thoughts
300 for me was a really good action film, the art direction and style were very unique to the movie for the time, I thought 300 was a really good action film with really good battle scenes, and solid acting for what the film was. When I had first heard of a sequel potentially being made years ago I was really excited and anticipated the film greatly. When I read the plot originally I was under the impression that it would be prequel to the first film, and for me that led to huge disappointment,I really wanted to see what happened after the film not before the film. as time went by heard that there was a script change and that the film would take place before,during,and after the events of the first film, which intrigued me very much. After seeing the film I have to say it was a very solid film and a great continuation of the series. the acting was solid as was the case in the first scene nothing spectacular (Except I will say special Mention to Eva Green as the role of Artemisisa she was excellent and was the standout of all the other casts) everyone else did a passable job. The major aspect of 300 that for me stood out was the art style and the effects of the first film, this film continues that art direction and it did a great job with the battle scenes and the choreography , I could tell this film had 3D in mind (I saw the non-3D version) with a lot of the blood splatters and other aspects of the battle scenes, but nonetheless the battle scenes were very well done and a treat to experience,m I will say they may have overdone it a little with the slow motion cuts in certain parts of the film after a while it got slight annoying with so much slow mo. Another aspect of the film that annoyed me and I was glad was not tin the first film at all was the ship battle scene, for me it was very boring to see the ships just throw spears and shoot arrows at each other, I am sure it is somewhat accurate of how battle was done back then but for me it really slowed the pace down of a frenetic paced film.. A really big plus of this film that I liked was the continuation of the story and the integration it had, with his film taking place around the events of the first film, I really liked that they incorporated scenes from the first film and the characters from the first film as well, this was one of the few sequels in my opinion that did this extremely well and I have to commend the writing team for a great job of linking it all together. Rotten Tomatoes had this to say "it's bound to hit some viewers as an empty exercise in stylish gore, and despite a gonzo starring performance from Eva Green, 300: Rise of an Empire is a step down from its predecessor". I agree somewhat Eva green was excellent and I do agree that the first film was better, the film is an action movies and it mainly meant to have good special effects and good battle films, that was all i expected to see and the film delivered that perfectly; you have to adjust your expectations to what you expect to see , I did and I was perfectly pleased with this film.
Rating
If you enjoyed the first film and want to see a continuation of the series, See it, if you want to see a stylish, solid acted action film with great special effect, see it. 7.7/10!!!
The next film is "Sabotage" starring Arnold Schawrzengger, Sam Worthington and Terrance Howard.
Plot
"Members of an elite DEA task force find themselves being taken down one by one after they rob a drug cartel safe house".
My Thoughts
I am glad that some of the old guard of Hollywood action (Willis, Stallone and Schwarzenegger09 are coming back to Hollywood and making films again. While some of the films have been bad (A good day to die hard, Live free or die hard, the cold light of day) some I have thoroughly enjoyed (Both expendables films, The last stand and Bullet to the head, after seeing this film I can honestly say I really enjoyed it and I can say that it was one of the best Schwarzenegger films I have seen in recent memory. I will admit I was a bit skeptical about this film when I read about the plot a few months ago, those fears where quelled when I saw the trailer, I really liked the dark,gritty and violent look the trailer had imprinted in my head about this film. After seeing the film the trailer put me in the right frame of mind of what to expect from this film, it is non stop action, blood, violence and gore and I loved it. this film did not try to be something it was not if you want to see an R rated action film that puts the pedal to the metal this is the film for you. The cast all did a really good job for their roles (Schwarzenegger did a fantastic job as the grizzled veteran leader of his rag tag group of DEA agents also special mention to Sam Worthington for his role as ":Monster" and Mireille Enos as "Lizzy" they both stood out the most for me). The plot for this film was actually an interesting one and kept me engaged throughout the film and had some surprised to keep me from figuring the entire plot until the end. there was no cheesy special effects in this film which really helped with keeping to the true to life feel of this film.Rotten Tomatoes gave this film a 22% saying "Sabotage boasts one of Arnold Schwarzenegger's finer post-political performances, but it's wasted in a movie driven by grueling violence that punishes seemingly without purpose". I agree that this was one of Schawrzenegger's best performances in recent memory as I mentioned earlier in the review, I disagree as saying the violence as a negative I saw this as a huge positive and enjoyed every minute of the fast paced and non stop action of this film, If you are an Arnold Fan or just want to see a really bloody,violent and furious action film I recommend this highly.
Rating
Exactly what I wanted to see and did everything I expected was a very good violent, gritty, fast paced action film. 8.0/10!!!!
The last movie for the month of March is "Noah" starring Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connolley and Emma Watson.
"A man is chosen by God to undertake a momentous mission of rescue before an apocalyptic flood destroys the world".
My Thoughts.
The first Epic movie of the year (for me personally), I had high hopes for this epic rendition of the story of Noah's Arc. Everything about this movie said to me it was going to be a good film from the cast (Russell Crowe, Anthony Hopkins, Ray Windsotone, Nick Nolte to name a few) the director (Darren Aronofsky) the Budget (well in excess of $100 Million). The expectations from me were very high, due to the fact everything looked to be going well for this film. After seeing the film I can say this is the worst film I have seen of the year so far and by a wide margin. I can honestly say this was one of the films that I after I saw it i said to myself "I want the 138 minutes of my life back". The movie just had such bad pacing and so little moments that actually caught my attention, this was a very boring film that did little to pique my interest. The action was dull and not choreographed very well in my opinion. The acting was lackluster for the most part (Crowe was the shining star he did a really well job playing the title role of Noah, he showed a lot of range for me and tried his best to save this film) unfortunately everyone else did not follow Mr.Crowe's lead the rest of the cast felt flat and were rather disappointing (Especially Jennfier Connolley and Emma Watson (who has yet to show me a good acting performance).I have a rule I go by when watching films, if the film is going to be long it better be enjoyable and engaging as to make the film seem shorter than it actually is, this filmed failed in the aspect horribly the film was slow paced and actually felt longer than the 138 minute run time. There was nothing other than the acting job By Russell Crowe and the visuals (which for a film of this budget I expected would be topnotch and they where) that I actually liked about this film, form the bad acting to the "Wacthers" ( I wont say anything but the whole way that situation of the film was done was laughable to say the least) to the last 25 minutes of the film which really added nothing much to the film but made thee run time longer, another problem I had with this film was that it tried to hard to be "Epic" and that I mean by that is that there where a lot of pan shots and wide landscaped shots to try and show the viewer that everything about this scene was supposed to be "Epic" and really important when the scene itself didn't need that affect to be add to it, just made the scene cheesy in my opinion. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 75% "With sweeping visuals grounded by strong performances in service of a timeless tale told on a human scale, Darren Aronofsky's Noah brings the Bible epic into the 21st century". I disagree completely with the score it was way to high in my opinion this film had the potential to be so good but in the end I do not know what happened but it got it all wrong on every level.
Rating
Worst Move I have seen this year so far, had such high expectations in the end they were not met in the least 6.0/10!!!!!
Plot
"Greek general Themistokles leads the charge against invading Persian forces led by mortal-turned-god Xerxes and Artemisia, vengeful commander of the Persian navy".
My thoughts
300 for me was a really good action film, the art direction and style were very unique to the movie for the time, I thought 300 was a really good action film with really good battle scenes, and solid acting for what the film was. When I had first heard of a sequel potentially being made years ago I was really excited and anticipated the film greatly. When I read the plot originally I was under the impression that it would be prequel to the first film, and for me that led to huge disappointment,I really wanted to see what happened after the film not before the film. as time went by heard that there was a script change and that the film would take place before,during,and after the events of the first film, which intrigued me very much. After seeing the film I have to say it was a very solid film and a great continuation of the series. the acting was solid as was the case in the first scene nothing spectacular (Except I will say special Mention to Eva Green as the role of Artemisisa she was excellent and was the standout of all the other casts) everyone else did a passable job. The major aspect of 300 that for me stood out was the art style and the effects of the first film, this film continues that art direction and it did a great job with the battle scenes and the choreography , I could tell this film had 3D in mind (I saw the non-3D version) with a lot of the blood splatters and other aspects of the battle scenes, but nonetheless the battle scenes were very well done and a treat to experience,m I will say they may have overdone it a little with the slow motion cuts in certain parts of the film after a while it got slight annoying with so much slow mo. Another aspect of the film that annoyed me and I was glad was not tin the first film at all was the ship battle scene, for me it was very boring to see the ships just throw spears and shoot arrows at each other, I am sure it is somewhat accurate of how battle was done back then but for me it really slowed the pace down of a frenetic paced film.. A really big plus of this film that I liked was the continuation of the story and the integration it had, with his film taking place around the events of the first film, I really liked that they incorporated scenes from the first film and the characters from the first film as well, this was one of the few sequels in my opinion that did this extremely well and I have to commend the writing team for a great job of linking it all together. Rotten Tomatoes had this to say "it's bound to hit some viewers as an empty exercise in stylish gore, and despite a gonzo starring performance from Eva Green, 300: Rise of an Empire is a step down from its predecessor". I agree somewhat Eva green was excellent and I do agree that the first film was better, the film is an action movies and it mainly meant to have good special effects and good battle films, that was all i expected to see and the film delivered that perfectly; you have to adjust your expectations to what you expect to see , I did and I was perfectly pleased with this film.
Rating
If you enjoyed the first film and want to see a continuation of the series, See it, if you want to see a stylish, solid acted action film with great special effect, see it. 7.7/10!!!
The next film is "Sabotage" starring Arnold Schawrzengger, Sam Worthington and Terrance Howard.
Plot
"Members of an elite DEA task force find themselves being taken down one by one after they rob a drug cartel safe house".
My Thoughts
I am glad that some of the old guard of Hollywood action (Willis, Stallone and Schwarzenegger09 are coming back to Hollywood and making films again. While some of the films have been bad (A good day to die hard, Live free or die hard, the cold light of day) some I have thoroughly enjoyed (Both expendables films, The last stand and Bullet to the head, after seeing this film I can honestly say I really enjoyed it and I can say that it was one of the best Schwarzenegger films I have seen in recent memory. I will admit I was a bit skeptical about this film when I read about the plot a few months ago, those fears where quelled when I saw the trailer, I really liked the dark,gritty and violent look the trailer had imprinted in my head about this film. After seeing the film the trailer put me in the right frame of mind of what to expect from this film, it is non stop action, blood, violence and gore and I loved it. this film did not try to be something it was not if you want to see an R rated action film that puts the pedal to the metal this is the film for you. The cast all did a really good job for their roles (Schwarzenegger did a fantastic job as the grizzled veteran leader of his rag tag group of DEA agents also special mention to Sam Worthington for his role as ":Monster" and Mireille Enos as "Lizzy" they both stood out the most for me). The plot for this film was actually an interesting one and kept me engaged throughout the film and had some surprised to keep me from figuring the entire plot until the end. there was no cheesy special effects in this film which really helped with keeping to the true to life feel of this film.Rotten Tomatoes gave this film a 22% saying "Sabotage boasts one of Arnold Schwarzenegger's finer post-political performances, but it's wasted in a movie driven by grueling violence that punishes seemingly without purpose". I agree that this was one of Schawrzenegger's best performances in recent memory as I mentioned earlier in the review, I disagree as saying the violence as a negative I saw this as a huge positive and enjoyed every minute of the fast paced and non stop action of this film, If you are an Arnold Fan or just want to see a really bloody,violent and furious action film I recommend this highly.
Rating
Exactly what I wanted to see and did everything I expected was a very good violent, gritty, fast paced action film. 8.0/10!!!!
The last movie for the month of March is "Noah" starring Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connolley and Emma Watson.
Plot
"A man is chosen by God to undertake a momentous mission of rescue before an apocalyptic flood destroys the world".
My Thoughts.
The first Epic movie of the year (for me personally), I had high hopes for this epic rendition of the story of Noah's Arc. Everything about this movie said to me it was going to be a good film from the cast (Russell Crowe, Anthony Hopkins, Ray Windsotone, Nick Nolte to name a few) the director (Darren Aronofsky) the Budget (well in excess of $100 Million). The expectations from me were very high, due to the fact everything looked to be going well for this film. After seeing the film I can say this is the worst film I have seen of the year so far and by a wide margin. I can honestly say this was one of the films that I after I saw it i said to myself "I want the 138 minutes of my life back". The movie just had such bad pacing and so little moments that actually caught my attention, this was a very boring film that did little to pique my interest. The action was dull and not choreographed very well in my opinion. The acting was lackluster for the most part (Crowe was the shining star he did a really well job playing the title role of Noah, he showed a lot of range for me and tried his best to save this film) unfortunately everyone else did not follow Mr.Crowe's lead the rest of the cast felt flat and were rather disappointing (Especially Jennfier Connolley and Emma Watson (who has yet to show me a good acting performance).I have a rule I go by when watching films, if the film is going to be long it better be enjoyable and engaging as to make the film seem shorter than it actually is, this filmed failed in the aspect horribly the film was slow paced and actually felt longer than the 138 minute run time. There was nothing other than the acting job By Russell Crowe and the visuals (which for a film of this budget I expected would be topnotch and they where) that I actually liked about this film, form the bad acting to the "Wacthers" ( I wont say anything but the whole way that situation of the film was done was laughable to say the least) to the last 25 minutes of the film which really added nothing much to the film but made thee run time longer, another problem I had with this film was that it tried to hard to be "Epic" and that I mean by that is that there where a lot of pan shots and wide landscaped shots to try and show the viewer that everything about this scene was supposed to be "Epic" and really important when the scene itself didn't need that affect to be add to it, just made the scene cheesy in my opinion. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 75% "With sweeping visuals grounded by strong performances in service of a timeless tale told on a human scale, Darren Aronofsky's Noah brings the Bible epic into the 21st century". I disagree completely with the score it was way to high in my opinion this film had the potential to be so good but in the end I do not know what happened but it got it all wrong on every level.
Rating
Worst Move I have seen this year so far, had such high expectations in the end they were not met in the least 6.0/10!!!!!
Friday, February 14, 2014
February 2014!!!!
The Month of February brings with it two films to review, the first being ":Robocop" Starring Joel Kinnaman, Micheal Keaton and Gary Oldman.
Plot
"In 2028 Detroit, when Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnaman) - a loving husband, father and good cop - is critically injured in the line of duty, the multinational conglomerate OmniCorp sees their chance for a part-man, part-robot police officer."
My Thoughts
I am sure most people have seen the original three "Robocop" films while they are for the most part regarded as classics or the very least cult film, for me the film where as a whole not very good overall. especially the special effects I know that the films where made in the late 80's/early 90's but the CG being so bad just made the films unwatchable for me. I did like the concept of the films though with a half-man/half machine element that allowed the machine to have a more "human" feel to it. When i first heard wind of the reboot of the series I was at first very skeptical (as for the most part Hollywood reboots are usually worse than the original) after seeing the film I can say that they did a relatively good job on rebooting the series. First off the CGI for the most part was much better than the original films (there where a few parts of the film that the CG really stood out and I could tell it wasn't done very well) overall though the CGI was done very well. The plot of this film was slightly different than the plot of the original film both plots arrived at basically the same scenario, the only difference that really stands out was the environment going on in the film (There was a highly political feel to this film with the nation seeming to be divided into to camps those that supported robocops and those that did not), Overall the plot was believable and worked well with the film. The acting for the most part was solid and passable there where no really standout performances (I will say I really enjoyed Samuel L. Jackson;'s character) , the rest of the coast did a solid Job (It was also nice to see Micheal Keaton in another role again haven't seen him act in so long). I didn't have huge expectations with this film but I will say the film was solid and if you are a fan of the robocop series and want to see a reboot of the series I suggest you see this film it meet my expectations and slightly exceeded them.Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 50% saying "While it's far better than it could have been, José Padilha's RoboCop remake fails to offer a significant improvement over the original". I have to say i slightly disagree I think this film was better than the original in every way I enjoyed the plot a little more, the acting to me was a little better and the special effects to me really made this film stand above the original.
Rating
If you are a fan of the series and event to see a reboot I recommend this film, In my opinion it was sightly better than the original in every way. 7.3/10!!!!
The second and last movie for the month of February for review is "Non-Stop" starring Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore and Scoot Mcnairy.
Plot
"An air marshal springs into action during a transatlantic flight after receiving a series of text messages that put his fellow passengers at risk unless the airline transfers $150 million into an off-shore account".
My Thoughts
Recently for me Liam Nesson has been really good in all of his roles I have seen (Taken,Taken 2, The Grey, even to a lesser extent Clash of the titans and wrath of the titans). This film didn't catch my eye till i was putting together my watch list for the year after reading about the plot and finding out that Liam Neeson was going to star in the film was all the motivation that I needed to add it to my watch list. After seeing the film I am glad that I took the time to see it on opening day, Liam Neeson did a really good job a federal Air Marshall struggling with alcohol abuse and other personal problems he was dealing with. The rest of the cast did a really good job (Julianne Moore did really well as did Oscar nominee Lupita Nyongo'o in a supporting role, special mention to Michelle Dockery as well). The pacing of the film flowed really well together and there was hardly a dull moment in this film. I really liked the idea behind this film with Liam Nesson's character being tasked with trying to find out who was threatening to kill passengers unless compensation was payed, I will say there are a lot of suspects in this film and and the ending depending on how close attention the viewer is paying during the film may or may not be a surprise, I liked the ending and felt it didn't deter to much from the field by being so far out in left field that it would not have made sense to the viewer at all. There was not a lot majorly wrong with this film and nothing really stood out to me that really hurt my viewing experience with the film. Rotten Tomatoes gave this film a 55% saying "While Liam Neeson is undoubtedly an asset, Non-Stop wastes its cast -- not to mention its solid premise and tense setup -- on a poorly conceived story that hinges on a thoroughly unbelievable final act". I disagree with this rating, I agree Liam Neeson shined really well in this film, but I disagree about the ending while a lot was going on the ending was not unbelievable if the viewer pays attention. Overall this was a really good action film with a nice, somewhat refreshing plot good actors especially Liam Neeson, Best Film I have seen this year so far (that is not saying much but still)
My Rating
Very good performance By Liam Neeson, very good film 8.1./10!!!!
Plot
"In 2028 Detroit, when Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnaman) - a loving husband, father and good cop - is critically injured in the line of duty, the multinational conglomerate OmniCorp sees their chance for a part-man, part-robot police officer."
My Thoughts
I am sure most people have seen the original three "Robocop" films while they are for the most part regarded as classics or the very least cult film, for me the film where as a whole not very good overall. especially the special effects I know that the films where made in the late 80's/early 90's but the CG being so bad just made the films unwatchable for me. I did like the concept of the films though with a half-man/half machine element that allowed the machine to have a more "human" feel to it. When i first heard wind of the reboot of the series I was at first very skeptical (as for the most part Hollywood reboots are usually worse than the original) after seeing the film I can say that they did a relatively good job on rebooting the series. First off the CGI for the most part was much better than the original films (there where a few parts of the film that the CG really stood out and I could tell it wasn't done very well) overall though the CGI was done very well. The plot of this film was slightly different than the plot of the original film both plots arrived at basically the same scenario, the only difference that really stands out was the environment going on in the film (There was a highly political feel to this film with the nation seeming to be divided into to camps those that supported robocops and those that did not), Overall the plot was believable and worked well with the film. The acting for the most part was solid and passable there where no really standout performances (I will say I really enjoyed Samuel L. Jackson;'s character) , the rest of the coast did a solid Job (It was also nice to see Micheal Keaton in another role again haven't seen him act in so long). I didn't have huge expectations with this film but I will say the film was solid and if you are a fan of the robocop series and want to see a reboot of the series I suggest you see this film it meet my expectations and slightly exceeded them.Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 50% saying "While it's far better than it could have been, José Padilha's RoboCop remake fails to offer a significant improvement over the original". I have to say i slightly disagree I think this film was better than the original in every way I enjoyed the plot a little more, the acting to me was a little better and the special effects to me really made this film stand above the original.
Rating
If you are a fan of the series and event to see a reboot I recommend this film, In my opinion it was sightly better than the original in every way. 7.3/10!!!!
The second and last movie for the month of February for review is "Non-Stop" starring Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore and Scoot Mcnairy.
Plot
"An air marshal springs into action during a transatlantic flight after receiving a series of text messages that put his fellow passengers at risk unless the airline transfers $150 million into an off-shore account".
My Thoughts
Recently for me Liam Nesson has been really good in all of his roles I have seen (Taken,Taken 2, The Grey, even to a lesser extent Clash of the titans and wrath of the titans). This film didn't catch my eye till i was putting together my watch list for the year after reading about the plot and finding out that Liam Neeson was going to star in the film was all the motivation that I needed to add it to my watch list. After seeing the film I am glad that I took the time to see it on opening day, Liam Neeson did a really good job a federal Air Marshall struggling with alcohol abuse and other personal problems he was dealing with. The rest of the cast did a really good job (Julianne Moore did really well as did Oscar nominee Lupita Nyongo'o in a supporting role, special mention to Michelle Dockery as well). The pacing of the film flowed really well together and there was hardly a dull moment in this film. I really liked the idea behind this film with Liam Nesson's character being tasked with trying to find out who was threatening to kill passengers unless compensation was payed, I will say there are a lot of suspects in this film and and the ending depending on how close attention the viewer is paying during the film may or may not be a surprise, I liked the ending and felt it didn't deter to much from the field by being so far out in left field that it would not have made sense to the viewer at all. There was not a lot majorly wrong with this film and nothing really stood out to me that really hurt my viewing experience with the film. Rotten Tomatoes gave this film a 55% saying "While Liam Neeson is undoubtedly an asset, Non-Stop wastes its cast -- not to mention its solid premise and tense setup -- on a poorly conceived story that hinges on a thoroughly unbelievable final act". I disagree with this rating, I agree Liam Neeson shined really well in this film, but I disagree about the ending while a lot was going on the ending was not unbelievable if the viewer pays attention. Overall this was a really good action film with a nice, somewhat refreshing plot good actors especially Liam Neeson, Best Film I have seen this year so far (that is not saying much but still)
My Rating
Very good performance By Liam Neeson, very good film 8.1./10!!!!
Saturday, January 18, 2014
January 2014!!!
The first month of the new year brings with it two films to review the first being "Ride Along" Starring Ice Cube, Kevin Hart and John Leguizamo.
Plot
"Fast-talking security guard Ben joins his cop brother-in-law James on a 24-hour patrol of Atlanta in order to prove himself worthy of marrying Angela, James' sister".
My Thoughts
With Comedy Films I only ask myself one question "Is the film funny" and the answer to that question for this film is Yes!!, I f you are a Kevin Hart fan you will thoroughly enjoy this film, Ice Cube was a good partner for him in the film they had good chemistry. Rottten Tomatoes gave the film a 17% and had this to say "Kevin Hart's livewire presence gives Ride Along a shot of necessary energy, but it isn't enough to rescue this would-be comedy from the buddy-cop doldrums". I agree for the most part Kevin Hart was really funny in this film, was the plot of the film not very good ? sure!, was the film cheesy in some parts sure, but overall for what it was I enjoyed it.
Rating
If you enjoy Kevin Hart and Comedy's you will enjoy this film 7.2/10!!!
The Second and last Movie for the month of January is "I, Frankenstein" Starring Aaron Eckhart, Yvonne Strahovski and Miranda Otto.
Plot
"Frankenstein's creature finds himself caught in an all-out, centuries old war between two immortal clans".
My Thoughts
I am a big fan of the Frankenstein story and have seen many of the adaptations of the story over the years. When I first read about this film I was excited to see what Hollywood would come up with, when I first saw the trailer my interest piqued even more. After seeing the film I can see that I was satisfied, the film met my expectations for what I expected to see. I expected to see a good action film with good CG, a not so great but believable story and have good action sequences. I can say the film met all of those points to a satisfactory level. I had the accidental situation of seeing this film in IMAX 3D and I will say that the 3D and the size of the IMAX screen actually increased the pleasure of my viewing experience.I have to say the CG ion this film was really good some of the best I have seen in recent memory it really added a touch of "Flair" to the film with ow good the CG was (especially when the demons where killed) the colors really popped and and stood out to me. The story was not all that believable but it worked well with what the film was trying to accomplish, the only gripe I would have is that Hollywood once again had to tack on the obligatory "love" interest that almost every movie nowadays seems to always have.The fight scenes where really well done they looked very fluid and the choreography was really good, these were some of the better action/fight scenes I have seen in a action film in recent memory. The acting overall wasn't anything special but it wasn't the worst that I have seen either, for what I expected of the film the entire main cast did a passable job at that they needed to convey. Overall for me this film did exactly what I expected of it and satisfied m,y expectations Rotten Tomatoes had this to say about the film "Loud, incoherent, and dramatically listless, I, Frankenstein is a remarkably dull fantasy adventure that fails to generate much excitement or interest in its characters". I agree with their points but that is what I was expecting from the movie to have loud explosions, not make much sense, have characters who are jsut there with not muc h backstory (I will say the film was not dull). If you sety yyour expectations to twhat they need to be you weill enjoy this film.
Rating
Exactly what I expected it to be 7.6/10!!!!
Plot
"Fast-talking security guard Ben joins his cop brother-in-law James on a 24-hour patrol of Atlanta in order to prove himself worthy of marrying Angela, James' sister".
My Thoughts
With Comedy Films I only ask myself one question "Is the film funny" and the answer to that question for this film is Yes!!, I f you are a Kevin Hart fan you will thoroughly enjoy this film, Ice Cube was a good partner for him in the film they had good chemistry. Rottten Tomatoes gave the film a 17% and had this to say "Kevin Hart's livewire presence gives Ride Along a shot of necessary energy, but it isn't enough to rescue this would-be comedy from the buddy-cop doldrums". I agree for the most part Kevin Hart was really funny in this film, was the plot of the film not very good ? sure!, was the film cheesy in some parts sure, but overall for what it was I enjoyed it.
Rating
If you enjoy Kevin Hart and Comedy's you will enjoy this film 7.2/10!!!
The Second and last Movie for the month of January is "I, Frankenstein" Starring Aaron Eckhart, Yvonne Strahovski and Miranda Otto.
Plot
"Frankenstein's creature finds himself caught in an all-out, centuries old war between two immortal clans".
My Thoughts
I am a big fan of the Frankenstein story and have seen many of the adaptations of the story over the years. When I first read about this film I was excited to see what Hollywood would come up with, when I first saw the trailer my interest piqued even more. After seeing the film I can see that I was satisfied, the film met my expectations for what I expected to see. I expected to see a good action film with good CG, a not so great but believable story and have good action sequences. I can say the film met all of those points to a satisfactory level. I had the accidental situation of seeing this film in IMAX 3D and I will say that the 3D and the size of the IMAX screen actually increased the pleasure of my viewing experience.I have to say the CG ion this film was really good some of the best I have seen in recent memory it really added a touch of "Flair" to the film with ow good the CG was (especially when the demons where killed) the colors really popped and and stood out to me. The story was not all that believable but it worked well with what the film was trying to accomplish, the only gripe I would have is that Hollywood once again had to tack on the obligatory "love" interest that almost every movie nowadays seems to always have.The fight scenes where really well done they looked very fluid and the choreography was really good, these were some of the better action/fight scenes I have seen in a action film in recent memory. The acting overall wasn't anything special but it wasn't the worst that I have seen either, for what I expected of the film the entire main cast did a passable job at that they needed to convey. Overall for me this film did exactly what I expected of it and satisfied m,y expectations Rotten Tomatoes had this to say about the film "Loud, incoherent, and dramatically listless, I, Frankenstein is a remarkably dull fantasy adventure that fails to generate much excitement or interest in its characters". I agree with their points but that is what I was expecting from the movie to have loud explosions, not make much sense, have characters who are jsut there with not muc h backstory (I will say the film was not dull). If you sety yyour expectations to twhat they need to be you weill enjoy this film.
Rating
Exactly what I expected it to be 7.6/10!!!!
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