DOUBLE REVIEW!!! Tintin and Dragon Tattoo: NR #13 & 14

Happy late Holidays!!! Sorry for not reviewing anything last week, but I feel you can forgive me since it IS Christmas. To make up for it, I'm going to review my two most anticipated mainstream movies that, strangely, have a lot in common. They both are based on literature that are HUGE in Europe, both authors are dead, both already have some form of media in their home country, both were released on the same day in America, and both have great performances from Danial Craig. I'm of course talking about...

      

Let's Begin

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

PLOT

Mikael Bloomkvist is a Swedish journalist who has just lost a libel case to a billionaire industrialist. Because of this his magazine, Millennium, is quickly going under. He is hired by Henrik Vanger, CEO of the large Vanger corporation, to solve a 40 year old murder case that has Henrik's niece as the victim. Mickael is having a hard time finding clues and hires a goth research assistant named Lisbeth Salander, who has a mysterious and obviously troubled past. They soon discover they've gotten themselves into something more dangerous then they thought. 

PROS

I'm going to start off with a personal pro of mine. Do you remember the first trailer for "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" that had the badass cover of Led Zeppilan's "Immigrant Song"?

    

Well that song gets a moment to shine as the song playing over the extremely creative and jarring opening if you never read the book or seen the movie before. Also, if you liked that song you can buy it off of iTunes right now!

The acting is this movie is great. Danial Craig does a great job as Bloomkvist and everyone else does a good job too.

The one stand out is Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander. While I haven't seen it, I've heard that whoever played Salander in the Swedish film didn't that good of a job capturing the spirit of Salander from the books. Well I'm happy to say that Mara pulls off this performance flawless. She really shows off how frail and weak she looks, but mess with her, and you'll regret it. It's actually very scary.

This film is a near perfect adaptation of the book, not just in content, but in pacing and spirit as well. What I mean is that the first half of the movie is slow and mainly focuses on Bloomkvist and Salander's scenes are way too short, just like in book. It also picks up right where the book picks up. It has the same tone as the book, isolation, dark, and disturbing. Even when they have to leave out a part of the book or do it differently they do it with flying colors. I haven't seen an adaptation like this since last years "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World".

The movie seems just as graphic as the book but doesn't show it. Basically, whenever it's about to get too graphic, Fincher makes the smart decision by implying most of the graphic scenes rather than show them. It makes it more disturbing because your imagination fills in the blanks, that's why some of the best horror movies are the ones that follow the rule of  "Less is More".

The score done by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is, as always, amazing. The funny thing is Trent and Atticus did the soundtrack for David Fincher's last film, "The Social Network" and it's completely different from that one. I found myself zoning out from what was going on on the screen and focusing all of my attention to the music.


CONS
You know how I said how well the movie follows the book? Well it also follows its flaws. Bloomkvist, while having a great performance from Craig, is still just as uninteresting as he was in the book



CONCLUSION
This is a near perfect movie, especially if you've read the book. While not as fast paced and action-packed as most thrillers or how the trailers made it seem, it's still a must see and another great movie under Fincher's belt.


RATING
RUN TO

The Adventures of Tintin

PLOT

Tintin is a young journalist who discovers a secret involving a model pirate ship. With the help of his dog Snowy and the alcoholic Captain Haddock, who's ancestors sailed on the pirate ship, they race to stop the evil Sakharine from discovering the secret before they do.

PROS

The motion capture animation is the best its ever been. You know how in movies like "The Polar Express" and "Beowulf" the characters seem really strange and look like lifeless puppets? Well that's something we like to call the Uncanny Valley, and it's always in the eyes. Well I'm happy to say this is farthest from the Valley they've ever gotten. The characters look great and never seem creepy or lifeless.

The 3D is amazing. It really immerses you in Tintin's world, and they barley use cheap pop-out tricks, but it's still really cool whenever they do. One scene where it's raining, it looks like the rain is falling into the theater! A must see in 3D

The action in this movie is the best action I've ever seen in any form of entertainment, period. They are just so ridiculous and fast paced that it leaves you at the edge or your seat and your jaw firmly on the floor. Most of them are all in one take, barley cutting away. Things are moving and reacting all over the place it all seems so seamless and smooth, which is thanks to Peter Jackson's animation team.  The 3D only makes these scenes even better. 

The #1 reason the action scenes work is Spielberg"s direction. It felt like a kid in a candy shop. The camera  never stops moving and never cuts, most scenes are one long take changing characters in real-time. One great example is a scene where Tintin is being kidnapped and Snowy needs to find a way out. At that point, the camera is just barley above the floor and following Snowy running up stairs, jumping out of windows or onto to moving cars.

Most actors are unrecognizable. This may not seem like a good thing, but it really shows how good of an actor  someone is when you can't even tell it's them. Daniel Craig plays as the villain Sakharine, but you would never know. He sounds nothing like himself and you could only know it was him by reading the credits. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost play as two bumbling detectives named Tomson and Tompson who, once again, are impossible to tell apart. 

CONS

The comedy could have been much better, considering the fact that two of the three writers, Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) and Joe Cornish (Attack the Block) have been involved in some of the funniest and just plain greatest movies and T.V. shows ever made. None of the jokes are laugh out loud funny. Most of them just got a chuckle out of me or a snicker. They never fall flat, but could have used some more work.

CONCLUSION

This is what the last Indiana Jones should have been. This is most fun I've had at the movies in a long time. It's a rollercoaster ride that is longer, less-expensive and a must see 3D experience that's fun for the whole family. If you want your kids to have as a good a time as you will, don't miss this. I really want this movie to do well and I'm afraid it won't since at the theater I went to, it was just me and one other family. 

RATING

RUN TO

             

 

  

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows: NR #12

I can think of no other way to start this off but by talking about trailers. Well, it's just one trailer, but one that is my MOST anticipated film of next year. THE DARK KNIGHT RISES!!!! I had no idea there was a longer more cohesive trailer out there, but here it was, showing off how awesome this movie will be. I would say go this just for that, but it's probably all over the internet at this point. Now, back to your regularly scheduled program, which is my review of...

Let's Begin...

PLOT

Holmes and Watson are back to solve a new case and out wit a new villain. But, this one is different, he is an intellectual mastermind that may be as smart if not smarter than Holmes, Professor Moriarty. As Holmes and Moriarty play a deadly game of wit, Holmes is simultaneously trying to prove and find out why Moriarty is behind a string of bombings and strange murders around Europe.

PROS

Robert Downey Jr. is, once again, great as Sherlock Holmes as is Jude Law playing Dr. Watson. Their chemistry is also back and better than ever.

The film is shot beautifully, especially during the slow motion heavy chase through the woods. 

The scenes between Holmes and Moriarty are amazing, all 3 of them. They are some of the most epic battles of wit I've ever seen. Well, they are the only ones I've ever seen. 

The film is a lot darker then the last one, and I'm glad they went in that direction. I just wish they had stuck with the bitter sweet ending they were going for.

CONS

In the middle of the movie, my sisters,  Evan Goodrich and Maggie Goodrich, both asked my what was going on and I could only tell what was going on at that moment in time, not the whole picture. This is a very confusing movie, only because of con number 2. Which is...

The movie is BORING! It goes on and on and ON with nothing note worthy or exciting happening. Every once in a while it'll do something that'll grab your attention, but those moments or too far apart to make a difference. My sister Maggie Goodrich fell asleep, and they both, Maggie and Evan, left near end they were so bored.

The last 15 minutes should have been the whole movie. In those last minutes, Holmes and Moriarty have that battle of wits using chess as a metaphor for whats happening. It's exciting and tense, it's what you've wanted to see for the whole movie. 

Moriarty is not in it enough. He shows up 30 minutes into the film, and you don't see for another hour, then again until the last 15 minutes.

They force a stupid and meaningless sub plot with this gypsy woman whose brother is missing. It serves no purpose but to have a cool scene near the end, and it's resolved very anticlimactically since you don't care about the gypsy

Slow-motion is used WAY too much. Do remember the cool scene in the first Sherlock Holmes where Holmes is fighting a guy twice his size and they use this to show how he thinks and solves problems? They use that at least 3 times. The one scene where it worked was, once again, in the last 15 minutes.  

They cop out at the end. They pull a card that would have followed the books (at least from what I've heard) and set up an interesting dynamic for the sequel. But they just cop out and end with, I kid you not, "THE END ?" 

CONCLUSION

I heard a critic compare this to Iron Man 2, and I think he's right. It's not as well made, the villain is barley there, and it's just disappointing. I'd say see it, but don't pay 10 bucks just to have a nap. Pay 2 bucks and sleep in the comfort of your home.

RATING

RENTABLE

   

  

Adult Content in Video Games: YMNK #2

Welcome to another YMNK. I've decided that this will show stuff that I like and want to get word out about. I'll also talk about topics I believe I need to get the word out about or that I really want to talk about. A great example is this new YMNK about a heated topic that stems from people not doing their research, I'm of course talking about

Adult Content In Video Games

 To find out why this is a problem, we must get to the root of the controversy. This all started in the early 90's when fighting games were all the rage thanks to Street Fighter II. The guys at Midway Games Chicago decided to get in on that game money with Mortal Kombat, but their game didn't have anything that made it stand out besides the realistic graphics (for the time). The solution? Add blood and guts. Once the game released it was a huge hit, because of the finishing moves. For those who don't know, when you depleted your opponent's health, a message would pop up famously saying "FINISH HIM/HER" and if you put in the right button combination, your character would kill the opponent in bloody gory ways. One of the most famous examples was when Kano pulls out his opponent's still beating heart. Kids and teens loved it, parents were horrified. It soon became known as one of the biggest controversial subjects of the year. The reason being that video games were still seen as a kid's toy, so when parents saw their innocent babies tearing peoples heads off, they went crazy. While I'm not saying this was not an important issue, this was an extremely overblown issue. A senator even blamed an increase in gang violence on Mortal Kombat.
As mature rated games became more common, the issue evolved as well, but not by a lot. Now it's more about selling the games to kids, not the content. I honestly think the argument about selling violent games to kids is hilarious. Because most kids stuff is violent,just not gory. Pokemon? that is pretty violent if you think about it.

 As the controversy of violence became less and less, the controversy of sexual content became bigger. The most recent and popular story was in Mass Effect. Mass Effect is an extremely good game with deep characters, fun and engaging gameplay, and choices that actually effect the story, I highly recommend it. The issue is about a scene near the end where you have sex with one of the three possible crew members after evolving your relationship with her/him. The most skin you saw was somebody's butt, maybe a little bit of side boob, but for just barley a second. Fox News decided to report on the story with the infamous headline "Se"xbox. They were claiming that the 2 minute scene was a graphic full nudity sex scene that showed women as just objects of desire. Geoff Keighley was the opposing voice to some women who wrote a book (that was her only qualification) and he tried to tell her how she was wrong and that she had no facts. She stated that a new study said that boys who play video games CAN'T repeat CAN'T tell the difference from what's on screen from the real world. Maybe for 7 year olds, but not boys in general. Geoff tried to defend the game as best he could, but was only talking to deaf ears. That is what I'm talking about. That woman didn't know her facts about the game, she knew questionable research, but not anything about the game itself. Geoff even asked her if she had played the game, she responded saying "No" in a "Are you serious?" tone of voice.

 I feel like games can be just as compelling as any other art form, be it film, music, or T.V. Each medium has had to endure some form of controversy to get the point they're at now. We need fight back the false claims and fight to the end, defending our medium at all cost, never backing down, never surrendering, always moving forward. We've had games that have tried and succeeded in telling a mature story. Games like The Witcher 2, Mass Effect 1 and 2, even the new Grand Thef Auto has had a crack at it. Parents, don't buy your kids M rated games until you think they are old enough. 14 or 15 seems like a good age to start in my opinion. Just don't everything at face value, do your homework.


 If you like this subject and want a more British view on it, look up LiamRproductions. He started doing video game reviews but as of late has done a lot of Unseen 64 and Monocle Wearing Rebuttals, where he commentates on news storys or poorly made documentaries about video game violence and addiction. Here is a link to his latest MWR

      
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLJVWzWBlp0&feature=channel_video_title
   

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil: CR # 14

Well, I was hoping to review Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy, but since our "Art house" theater would rather show other independent movies, I had to rent a movie. Well I'm glad I did, because I saw another highly anticipated movie of mine. I first heard about this back in Spring of 2010. This movie has gone through distribution hell. It even was distributed in Germany where it beat The Chronicles of Narnia, and it had fewer screens to show it on, yet it still didn't get pickup! Well it finally has a DVD release and I'm happy for it. This is...

Let's Begin

PLOT

A couple of dumb college kids go up to the West Virginian woods for a week-end full of weed, beer, and skinny dipping, But, those are the villains of our story. After the kids stop at a gas station (cleverly titled " Last Chance") we start following the story of two lovable rednecks fixin up their summer home. Meet Tucker and Dale, two of the sweetest, nicest, most innocent rednecks in the United States. One night while fishing, Tucker   and Dale see one of the girls from earlier fall and bump her head into the lake. When they try to save her, the idiot kids think Tucker and Dale are a bunch of psycho killer rednecks and that they just kidnapped their friend! Now the kids try to save Alison (the stolen/saved girl) from those evil rednecks, and kill themselves in elaborate ways in the process, leaving Tucker and Dale scared and confused.

PROS

The reason this movie works are the lead actors. Alan Tudyk and Tyler Labine play these characters great. You truly fall in love with these bumbling rednecks, especially Dale.   

The comedy is hilarious. It's a mix of parodying modern horror cliches, misunderstandings, and just plain craziness. I found myself laughing long and hard at a lot of scenes. The college kids are the funniest thing in my opinion. Just seeing how well each kid embodies a bad stereotype from bad scary movies and the crazy thoughts they come up with about what's going on is hilarious.

The movie has some cool gore moments, and they make some pretty good jokes with the gore as well. 

CONS

The last 3rd of the movie got a little too ridiculous in my opinion. I'm pretty sure that was the point, to make it extremely over the top and then some, but it didn't work for me.

CONCLUSION

I know this is a pretty short review but I really don't have that much to say, because I've already said everything I need to. I feel I've sold the movie as best I can. I love this movie. It has such a clever premise that I'm surprised no one has done this before. I highly recommend seeing this. It has comedy, action, gore, rednecks, and crazy college kids, what more can you ask for? I'm again surprised this was never sold to a mainstream audience, I know it could, and it should have. Oh well, hopefully my review can get some DVD sales.

RATING

RUN TO 

  

    

Howl's Moving Castle CR: #13

To be honest, I've never seen a Hayao Miyazaki film. For those who don't know, Hayao Miyazaki is the director and writer of some of the most critical acclaimed animated films in the world. He's worked on My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, and what is considered by many to be the best film, animated or not, of all time, Spirited Away. I've only seen bits and pieces of these films, and seen one of them at a young age and can barley remember it. So this was an exciting occasion for me.My first Miyazaki film, and defiantly not my last...

Let's Begin..

PLOT

Based on the book of he same name, Howl's Moving Castle takes place in a steam-punk world that is on it's way to serious war after the disappearance of one of the kingdoms prince. Our tale is not about them though. Our story follows Sophie, a timid hat maker who never has any excitement in her life. Until a wizard by the name of Howl saves her from strange blob creatures. Later that night, the Witch of the Waste places a curse on Sophie where she transforms into an old woman and can't tell anyone about it! She decides to run away and hope Howl can help her. Once she sneaks onto the castle, she makes the excuse that she is the new maid for the castle and is allowed to stay. Sophie soon falls in love with Howl, but also finds a dark secret as well.

(Sorry if the plot is a little vague, I'll get more on the subject later.)

PROS

Miyazaki works with an animation studio named Studio Ghibli who always do an amazing job, and it shows here. The art style, the animation, all of it is gorgeous. I found myself just staring at the screen in ah. I also wasn't sure if this film used CG or if they had the most dedicated team of animators on the planet.

The voice acting is well done. One of the problems I have with anime (I do consider this anime) is that the actors are always way over the top for me. They're always shouting, be it in anger, sadness, or for comedy. Luckily, the actors here are great, acting like normal people and not some person who's had too many Red Bulls. Except for one...

This movie wasn't made for just kid's in mind. This film can be enjoyed by anyone of any age. 

The film also takes its audience seriously. What I mean is that it never fully explains things. It gives you enough hints to make your own idea of these characters. his is also a problem, once again, more on that later.

This movie is very imaginative. The world is so weird and cool it's hard not to love. Howl's castle is like a house junk yard with legs!

There is a very subtle anti-war message in this film. While not in your face, it's still there in passing. A character might mention how much problems the war is making or show how a town looks after war. It's never in your face and they always quickly return to the main plot.

CONS

Emily Mortimer plays Young Sophie, but not very well. She comes off as very wooden and unenthusiastic. Even in the emotional scenes she never sounded concerned or worried.

The story can get a bit convoluted at times, but if you pay attention and think it through (Like I had to) you get the gist of it. I honestly had to use Wikipedia to write a cohesive plot description.

CONCLUSION

I enjoyed this movie. While I didn't exactly see why everyone goes crazy over Miyazaki, I didn't see one of his best works either. This was a very creative and original film for all ages that I say is good to watch if you are interested. Now if you excuse me, I have to go on the hunt for a copy of Spirited Away. Wish me luck!

RATING

RENTABLE

      

     

     

      

You May Not Know: Extra Credits Ep-1

Welcome to my new segment, You May Not Know, also know as YMNK. I know, very catchy. The reason for this is to get the word out about cool stuff you may not have tried, or know exist! For my first YMNK, I'm going to display the amazingly informative ...

Let the praise commence 

 Extra Credits is a web series written by James Portnow, who has been just about been everywhere in the gaming world, Narrated and edited by Danial Floyd, who's voice sounds weird at first but you get used to it very quickly, and Alison Theus , who does the pretty pictures. The show originally started on The Escapist, but has sense moved o Penny Arcade, more on that later. It was created with one goal in mind that is, and I quote, "Join us every week as we take a deeper look at games; how they are made, what they mean and how we can make them better." These guys love games, and they want them to some day be seen as an art form and not just some kid's toy. 

 Every week they have a new topic that they talk about, in extremely intelligent and sophisticated ways, be it bad writing or work conditions. The best thing about the show is that they never rant. What I mean is that they never just complain, they also have ways of fixing a problem. For example, they might spend 1 or 2 minutes talking about the problem and give some examples, but they'll spend the rest of the episode on how to fix it and make it better. They were a huge hit on the Escapist, and I was one of those fans. I couldn't wait until Thursday to watch the show. Near the end of the second season, Alison had to have surgery on her wrist, or else she may never be able to draw again! James and Danial decided to have a fundraiser, all the donations would go to Alison's operation and rehab. In the mean time, they got guest artist to come on every week, so while the show was the same, the art would always look different. They received a staggering amount of money from their fans, way more than they ever expected or knew what to do with. That's when trouble started

 Allegedly, The Escapist had run into some money problems. It was rumored that Escapist wasn't even paying the Extra Credits team at all! The team decided that to pay off the debt, they could sell their intellectual property. They thought this was a simple problem with a simple solution. the Escapist did not. They thought that from the money they raised, Escapist deserved 75% of the revenue, so the debt was already paid and EC owed them $9,500. After a month of legal battles, the EC team decided to continue the series on Youtube while they searched for a new site. The future was not bright for them. Until September 7th when the episode "Pacing" went live on penny-arcade.com. They had found their match.

 Now the series is in full force, Alison is back on the art, there are still millions of topics to discuss, and the show is better than ever. I highly recommend this series, and to get you started, I've put my favorite episode right below, so you don't have to do any of that pesky typing that consumes so much of your time. Enjoy!

(The link opens in a new tab)

http://penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/learning-from-other-m

Extra Credits updates every Wednesday at www.penny-arcade.com. All of season 1,2, and 3 are at the website too.   

    

The Muppets: NR #11

Sorry for last week's miss, I was having too much fun playing Skyrim. This review is keeping me from my Skyrim time and so was this movie. EVERYTHING IS CRAP COMPARED TO SKYRIM!!!!  Sorry, I don't know what came over me. Anyway, let's get on with the main event; one of the most anticipated movies of the year. It's time to play the music, it's time to light the light, It's time to meet...

(notice the parody of another Disney sequel to a beloved franchise HINT HINT: Pixar)

Let's Begin...

PLOT

Gary and Walter (who is Gary's muppet brother...their dad must really like puppets) are some of the biggest fans of the Muppets  (next to Korey Coleman of course). When Gary takes his girlfriend, Mary, to Los Angles, he invites Walter to come along so they can see the Muppet studio together. They soon find that the Muppets aren't as big as they once were. They are so unpopular that an oil tycoon by the not evil name of  Tex Richman is going to tear down the Muppet studios to find oil! Once Kermit is informed, they hatch a plan to get the gang back together for one last show.

PROS

They obviously got some of the best puppeteers in the business, because the Muppets are handled amazingly well.

The Muppets come as close as they possibly could to sounding like their old selves. Kermit sounds like Kermit, Fozzy like Fozzy, and Mrs. Piggy like...well you get the idea.

The comedy is actually funny. There are some jokes that fall flat, but not many. Even the fourth-wall-breaking jokes are handled very well.

This film has a great mix of old and new. What I mean is that it has enough in-jokes, continuity, and nostalgia for the long-time fans and enough new stuff for the next generation of Muppet fans (including me, since I know little about the old stuff)

The musical numbers are really good. While not amazing, all of the songs are at least memorable, except for the one Amy Adams sings. 

Chris Cooper plays as Tex Richman and he has one of the best songs and scene stealing parts of this entire movie. It is one of the most intentionally awkward, lazy, basic, and random rap songs ever to be put on film, and it's the funniest scene out of all the great jokes. He really had a fun time with this.

Just about every Muppet, from what I can tell, get's a shinning moment and at least 5 seconds of screen time.

They have Mahna Mahna. Yes, that is a reason to sit through an hour and a half movie.........doodoodoodoo....

CONS

I wish Jason Segel and Amy Adams weren't there. They just seem almost pointless, and Amy Adams is really just doing a effortless job. I know Jason wanted to be with the Muppets so badly, but they could do away with his and her scenes. Whenever we had to leave the Muppets and go to their story, I felt bored and uninterested.  

If they had gotten rid of Jason and Amy, they could have fit that time with Walter, who has a dilemma and character change that comes out of left field. It's also resolved just as quickly. 

The celebrity cameos are all over the place. You have cool ones like Jack Black and Zach Galifanakis, but most are just weird and out of place, like how Whoopi Goldberg, Selena Gomez, and that fat kid from Modern Family show up at the same time for little reason at all.

CONCLUSION

This is a great movie for all ages, the first kids movie this year to make me consistently laugh out loud, and yet one of the most disappointing. I came into this with high hopes, it was getting rave reviews and the parody trailers were absolutely hilarious 

   

But it's not as great as people make it out to be. Now I'm not saying it's terrible, I gave it about 20 pros, I'm just saying don't let the hype fool you. I hope that if we get a sequel, it's about the Muppets, and just the Muppets.

RATING

WALK TO

P.S. Later on tonight or tomorrow, I'll be posting another blog highlighting an online series that is perfect for anyone who enjoys video games, or who thinks video games are just kids toys that can't be taken seriously. Stay Tuned!    

   

         

 

Attack the Block: CR #12

My life is complete. I have FINALLY seen one of my most anticipated movies of this year. A movie that has been one of the most talked about films of the year... among critics, yet unknown to the general public. A movie that is the directorial debut of Joe Cornish, one of the writers of the upcoming The Adventures of Tintin. This is....

Let's Begin

PLOT

One night in the ghetto of London, a nurse is mugged by 5 teenagers. The mugging is stopped by a meteor crashing into a car containing a strange alien creature. Once it's killed, the gang return to their block to hide the creature. They soon find that more and more of these meteors are crashing all over London, but they don't have the alien they killed. No, these are bigger, scarier, and deadlier. Now these couple of kids must protect their block from these aliens while being chased by the cops and drug overlord (although he mostly sells weed) Hi-Hatz.

PROS

The acing is great, considering the fact that most of the main cast are first time actors. The best one out of them all is John Boyega who plays as the leader Moses. He has never acted in a movie before, but you would never know. He pulls this off perfectly, especially in the more emotional scenes.

There is a real sense of camaraderie with these teens. What I mean is that they seem like they've been friends for a long time. Other movies trying to show this this summer (Super 8) have failed, but this one succeeds with flying colors.

The aliens in this movie are actually scary. Think of the last time you saw an original alien design, one that didn't seem like any other alien you had ever seen before..... never right? Well these are some of the most original aliens I've seen, Every time one of those things was on screen, weather it was in my face or in the corner, I started swearing like a sailor I was so scared. I would describe them or put up a picture but that would just ruin it. I can't do them justice with a description.

Speaking of aliens, The alien's special effects are AMAZING. This film doesn't have a large budget, but these aliens look James Cameron caliber real, probably even better. I honestly think they found 50 of these things, alive and breathing, and put them in the movie they look so real.

This movie goes completely against Hollywood standards, it's a completely British film. What I mean is that this movie isn't scared to do some crazy stuff or make it american friendly. Everyone drives on the left side of the street, the wheel is the right side of the car, and everyone talks in cockney British accents. Other ways it goes against Hollywood is that it's not afraid to kill off main characters, have no bad consequences for smoking weed, and have 9 year olds cuss, but in a normal way, not in a "IM GOIN CUZZ EVERY 5 SECONDS CUSE ITS FUNNY!!!!" way.

In all of this movie's advertisements,  Nick Frost is heavily used to get that Shaun of the Dead crowd. I'm happy to say that Frost is barley in the movie. The reason this is a good thing is because it means that this movie doesn't need the help of other more famous works to be good or memorable.

This film is a great mix a horror, action, and comedy. Actually scratch comedy. While the movie does have some comedy parts, it;s more of a Horror action than comedy. 

The soundtrack is awesome. It's this sorta electronica, dub-step mix that works and fits the film perfectly. It's no surprise the music was done by Basement Jaxx.

The main characters are likable. Now, at the beginning of the film, your hate these kids and hope they all die. But as the movie goes along, you see their personalities and good sides shine. You soon start to love all of them, and hate it when they die. You'll have a favorite by the end and it'll probably be Moses.

CONS

While I don't consider this a con I know this may be a draw back for some people. The accents are very British. It can be hard to understand them sometimes, but you can get most of it if you listen. The only British movies I've seen are Shaun of the Dead , Hot Fuzz, and The King's Speech and I understood the accents here near perfectly.

CONCLUSION

I think it's obvious that I love this movie. Well I do, but I believe it's one of the best films of the year. I discovered this during the last big set piece of the movie. The tension and excitement I felt was something I hadn't felt in a long time. This is one of the most original, most awesome, most well made movies I've seen all year, and you've never heard of it. I know you can watch it right. You can rent it on Youtube for god's sake! So please, please, PLEASE go see this movie at all cost.

RATING

RUN TO !!!!!!    

  

  

Tower Heist: NR #10

It's been a while but after a month or two, a SPOOKtacular month of horror, I've returned to the theater to see a somewhat anticipated movie that has had a long history. It started out as an idea from Eddie Murphy from 2005 as a heist movie with an all-star comedic black cast with the likes of Martin Lawrence, Dave Chappelle, Tracy Morgan, and Murphy himself. But after the Hollywood producers got a hold of it, they replaced the comedic geniuses with some white guys. After it was finally announced to release, Universal was planning on putting this movie on demand three weeks after it was released in theaters...for $60. One boycott later and we get to where we are now with...

Let's Begin....

PLOT

Ben Stiller works as the manger of an expensive hotel in New York, but after their boss is arrested for security fraud, it's soon found out that their boss had invested all of the employees money and that money has been lost. Now Stiller, Kasey Affleck, Alan Alda, Matthew Broderick plan to rob the hotel. But they're stupid, so they someone who is just as stupid, but knows how to steal, so they bring Eddie Murphy along. Now begins the heist. (I really have no idea how to write this plot, I saw this a couple of hours ago and I'm already forgetting it.)

PROS

 Um....It wasn't as bad as I thought is was going to be...and that's about it...moving on...

CONS

No one, and I mean NO ONE, from the main cast is funny. Ben Stiller doesn't have a single funny line, Kasey Affleck is just forgettable, and Alan Alda has one maybe two funny lines. The only funny people in the movie are Matthew Broderick and Gabourey Sidibe (AKA Precious) and they are SO under used.

Speaking of not being funny, Eddie Murphy has maybe three good lines in the whole movie. He just seems like he was told "Be funny." Eddie:What do I say? 

                                          Director: JUST BE FUNNY!!!!

I feel like he was thrown in there to keep something from the original idea.

The movie moves a little too fast. What I mean is that they spend 10-15 minutes coming up with the heist, then they just move onto actually doing the heist and we have no idea what they are doing or how. So when ever they're doing something, we don't why. It feels like they're coming up with it as they go along.

I hate to keep going back to Eddie, but his character is so poorly used. He starts out as a good guy, changes alliances in a heart beat, then changes back FOR NO REASON! It makes no sense.

The big action set piece has no tension. The reason being that we have no connection to these characters, which could have happened if they had a spent maybe 10 more minutes on the "Making the heist" scenes. The only times I felt tense was when ever they showed what it looked like from that high up, only because I have a fear of heights.

There are some sub-plots that go no where. One in particular is a forced romance between Ben Stiller and the FBI agent Tea Leoni. It goes no where it just seems like filler.

Speaking of filler, this movie has too much filler, or un-needed scenes that are there just to increase the running time. One example is during the big ending set piece, they get a dog in the mix and you think "Ok that, was weird", the you think "Oh, that'll create tension!", finally "....well that was a waste."

CONCLUSION

This may seem like I hate the movie. Well at first I didn't. But after thinking about it and looking over this review, I do. Now if this looks funny to you, I say see it, just wait 'till DVD.

RATING

ME: RUN AWAY

YOU, IF IT LOOKS FUNNY: RENTABLE 

Trick r' Treat CR:11 Halloween Special!

The time is upon us...

YES!!!! It's one more day 'till Halloween, Halloween, Halloween... dang it I knew it was going to get stuck in my head again.  Anyway, to celebrate this wonderful holiday I'm going to review a classic Halloween themed horror movie that was been scarring audiences for years...

What? Were you expecting some other masked killer?

Let's begin.... 

PLOT

Trick 'r Treat is an anthology movie which means that it follows many different story's with all of them being connected in some way, in this case being that that they all take place at different times on Halloween night.   

A man trying to hide a dead body, a couple of kids paying respects to dead trick 'r theaters, and a young women trying to find a date are some of the terrifying tales you'll find here.

PROS

All of these story's are cleverly connected together, even referencing upcoming tales of horror in creative ways, like hearing a wolf howl in back-ground and then the next story will involve werewolves.

This movie doesn't go over board with the usual modern horror stuff, you know like excessive blood and gore or some girl taking her shirt off every 10 minutes, while it's still in here it's toned down by a lot. The most gore you see is some fake organs, no literally they are fake organ, and the most nudity you see is 1 shot of breast and that's it.

The movie actually surprised me. You know most horror movie today are so predictable that you can tell who's gonna die first in the first 5 minutes, well this one doesn't. There were many times that I predicted something was going to happen, and it took a completely different direction then I thought it would.

The movie is very well shot. I'm the best at knowing if a movie is "shot" well of not, but I could tell here. It has some very cool shots and one creepy shot that's just seeing a girl's face while hearing horrific sound in the back-ground.

For the third time this month, I'm reviewing a film that has good real effects. While it only shows up every once in a while, there still a lot better than if it was CG.

This is more of a personal pro, but there is a scene here that pays homage to one of my favorite horror movies, Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn, at least I think it does.

CONS

The film has a dark sense of humor that, well, only worked sometimes. Most of time it felt a little out of place. When the film wanted me to laugh, I was confused at what it wanted me to laugh at.

The acting and writing at the begging of the movie aren't that good. While it does get a whole lot better after words, It could still turn off some people.

CONCLUSION

This is the perfect film to watch on Halloween, it got me into the Halloween spirit, heck, I want to dress up as that kid on the poster! So I strongly suggest watching this tomorrow while you give out candy to the kids. You also have hardly any excuse not to watch it, you can probably rent it at your local video store, it's very cheap to buy on DVD or Blu-ray, it's on Netflix instant streaming, AND the cable channel FEARnet is having a 24 hour marathon of Trick 'r Treat on Halloween. NO EXCUSES!!!!

RATING

RUN TO!!

       

The Thing (1982) CR: #10

To continue my month of Horror, I'm going to review a classic horror movie that is SO classic it got a remake this week...or is a a prequel...um...a remake/prequel? Who cares, it probably sucks anyway! So let's look at the source material that the prequel rips off from! Or does it rehash the scenes if it's a remake...GAH, I have to stop doing that, where was I? Oh yeah! This is John Carpenter's classic...

Let's Begin...

PLOT

Our film follows a team a researchers in the Arctic who have recently has there communications cut off. They find a dog being hunted down by a crazy man! They shoot him don and discover that he was with a Norwegian research team. They investigate the research facility and find that they had found someTHING in the ice. Once they return back to base, The discover that the dog is not a dog, but what the Norwegian had found in the ice, an alien who can absorb living organism and take them over! Once they think it's dead, they soon realize that this Thing has token over someone in the base! Now they just have to find out who is real and try to survive until a search party comes.

PROS

This is one of the definitive bottle films, A bottle film, for those who don't know, is a film where a group of characters are stuck in an isolated, claustrophobic area trying to find a way out and this does it with barley any flaws. It feels like a psychological horror film that let's you know that, yes, there is a Thing, but doesn't tell you who it is. 

One important aspect of a bottle film is that you have good characters, and The Thing succeeds in that level.

None of them are annoying and their motives are clear and make sense.

The Thing is mostly known for it's gore, and boy does it deliver. One great example is a scene where one of the researchers is using a defibrillator on another guy. At one point, the guys chest opens up like a mouth, with  teeth and all, and bites the researchers arms off!

The practical effects are some of the best ever seen for its time, and even today. There are some scenes where it looks so real, there is no way they did it with effects. They had to have killed that dog, It looks to real!

The film does a great job at giving you the feeling of isolation. For example, there is a scene where a guy is watching the price is right on T.,V., he then takes a VHS (remember those?) out of the T.V. and puts in another. This shows that they have little to no access to T.V. and have to watch things they've seen over and over again.

The film does a great job at hiding who is the Thing, There is a famous seen where they test to see who is real and whose the Thing. It's very suspenseful and leaves you guessing 'till the end. 

CONS

While the characters aren't annoying, they're not three-dimensional either. I just didn't really feel anything when a character was killed.

The special effects get worse as the movie goes on. While the first time you see thing is just plan nasty and creepy, the last you see it is just ridiculous.

CONCLUSION

While not perfect, The Thing is still a must see for horror fans, but I say go in with caution if gore is not your thing. And if you see it, you can see the remake/prequel, compare it to the original, and hate it!

RATING

WALK TO

P.S. For next weeks review, I just can't choose which one I want to see, so I'm letting you, YES specifically you, choose which movie I watch, leave a comment on the Facebook post of this which movie I should see..

Movie A: Misery

Movie B: Basket Case

Movie C: Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein

Movie D: Buried

Just type the letter of the movie you want me to see. Thanks!  

  

An American Werewolf in London CR: #9

Everyone this month who does reviews are doing Horror themed movies. We'll I'm going to be ENTIRELY un-original and do the same. And, I'm starting with a classic 80's movie, and then another next week, and another..BUT after that, I'm doing a NEW movie! that was released in 2007...anyway, my first Halloween review is...

Let's begin...

PLOT

Location: Northern English country-side, Time:early 80's, People: best friends David and Jack, Context: Best friends hiking in the Northern English country-side. After leaving a strange pub, David and Jack are attacked by a werewolf! while Jack is killed, David survives and is in the hospital. After a few weeks, shocking dreams, and a visit from Jack's bloody and mangled ghost, David goes home with a hot nurse and just as soon as they get home, they start a moon dance and romance. The next day, David transforms into a werewolf. The next day he doesn't remember a thing, but soon puts 2 and 2 together and the only option left? David must die!

PROS

  This movie has a perfect blend of terrifying horror, and gut-busting comedy. This was John Landis's third film after Animal House and The Blues Brothers, so of course it has comedy. but, it's mixed well with the horror. One minute, you'll be jumping out of your seat it's so scary, the next, you'll be rolling out of that same seat with laughter.

The music collection for this film is very clever. Landis uses up-beat catchy music just because they have moon in the title. Songs like Bad Moon Rising and Blue Moon are used and, just like the comedy, mixes well with the horror.

     

This film is most known for having the best transformation scene in any form of entertainment EVER, and I have to say, I agree 110%. The amazing fact is that it's all done with practical effects, no CG. The guy who did the special effects, Rick Baker, even won an Academy Award for his work. He was even hired to do the special effects for The Wolf Man remake last year. But they were all cut out and replaced with crappy CG... screw you Hollywood.

The scenes with Jack's ghost are great. Every time David see's Jack his body is more mutilated and decomposed than the last time. Shaun of the Dead even did a parody of the famous "Mirror" scene.

The night David changes, he kills 6 people, and you barley see him actually kill them. I liked the restraint Landis had in showing the deaths. Any movie today would have stopped the movie for 20 minutes just to show WereDavid gruesomely killing the victim, but you would have no idea what was going on because the camera would be shaking like it was in a washing machine on it's highest setting.

CONS

The movie's pace moves a little too fast after David is put into the hospital. The pace goes back to normal the next day, but it still affects the movie.

CONCLUSION

This is a classic horror movie that anyone who loves horror MUST SEE. Also, if you think practical effects are "Fake" and "Stupid" then watch this movie and if you come out of it still thinking that, your a Lier and should be banished from this Earth!

RATING

RUN TO

P.S. Next weeks review will be of the original of a remake coming out next week, BUT WHICH ONE!?!?!? Find out next week!