Rating: 3.5 Shurikens
This week, I saw Cowboys and Aliens, a Sci-Fi Western movie, or was it a Western Sci-Fi movie? Well, it was a Sci-Fi picture set in the American West of the later part of the 19th Century. It had all the flavor of a classic Western, with outlaws, gunslingers, cowboys, Indians, whiskey and horses. It was also a pretty good science fiction story about aliens from another planet plotting to take over the world, with scary-looking aliens, not as scary as the aliens in Alliens, and ray gun weapons. It actually does a pretty good job of melding the two genres, but it has to stretch just a little to give the Earthlings a fighting chance to win.
The story begins with Roger Craig playing an outlaw who wakes up in the desert with a strange bracelet on his wrist, but no memory of who he is. Craig is the latest actor to play James Bond, and was very good in Casino Royale, which was arguably the most exciting James Bond movie to date. Anyway, he is the notorious outlaw Jake Lonergan, wanted in a stage coach robbery. He is desperately searching for his lost love. He is greeted by a group of seedy individuals who want to claim a reward, but he makes short work taking them out, and heads to the town of Absolution.
Absolution is a cow town, dominated by a particular cattle baron named Woodrow Dolarhyde, played by Harrison Ford, of Star Wars and Indiana Jones fame, among many other great films such as Blade Runner. Lonergan gets into a scuffle with Dolarhyde's son, and is arrested by Sheriff John Taggart, played by Keith Carradine, and ends up in jail, to be transported to the state capital to be tried for his crimes. Just as soon as he is loaded into the wagon, a beautiful girl tries to find out what he knows. Ella Swenson, played by Olivia Wilde, seems like she knows something about Jake's amnesia, and the disappearances of many townsfolk of late.
That is when the aliens come in. Some flying craft come and take several people from town, includinbg Dolarhyde's son, and fly away. Jake figures out that his bracelet is a weapon, and uses it to shoot down one of the craft, and then they pursue a wounded alien into the night. Jake takes off immediately, and the rest wait until morning, and soon a posse off sorts is formed with the Sheriff, Dolarhyde, Ella, the town minister, and the bar owner named Doc, who is played by Sam Rockwell. Rockwell was Justin Hammer in Iron Man II nad also played Zaphod Beeblebrox in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. There is also a kid and a dog.
The movie moves along haltingly at times, with some attempts at humor, and quite a bit of melodrama, and there is a very large amount of death amongst the humans before everything is said and done. Quite a bit of the story relies on some very incredible happenstance, which has to be explained in flashback to make the story complete. It is not the best movie of the Summer, and for many, it will be fine to wait for when it comes out on disc. Still, it had some good action and character interaction, and earns a rating of 3.5 Shurikens, for a pretty entertaining story and some nice action.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Captain America
Rating: 4.5 Shurikens
The latest Marvel movie just hit the screens, this one about the World War II-era hero, Captain America. The character was created by Joe Simon and the legendary Jack Kirby, and was extremely popular during WW2. Many comic book characters were originally conceived during the early part of the 20th century, including Superman, Batman, and Green Lantern, but they were mostly DC Comics characters. The stories of Captain America, with his sidekick Bucky Barnes, were published by Timely Comics, which was what Marvel was called back then.
After the war, the popularity of the character faded, but Jack Kirby revived him to be a core member of The Avengers, a team of super heroes that featured Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch, and many others over the years. The Avengers will be featured in what promises to be one of the best movies of all time, due in the Summer of 2012.
This movie is filmed in subdued tones for the most part, giving it a nostalgic feel which is apt for the times in which Captain America originated. The story is about a young Steve Rogers, a frail man with a lot of courage, who really wants to enlist in the Army during 1943. He is rejected repeatedly, but goes to different recruiting centers, trying unsuccessfully to enlist, but he doesn't give up. Finally, a chance encounter with a scientist who is creating a new Super Soldier Serum to enhance the physical abilities of soldiers so they can fight for the ultimate defeat of the Nazis, gives Rogers a chance at his dream.
The part of Captain America is played by Chris Evans, who was also cast as The Human Torch in the Fantastic Four movies, where he portrayed the character of Johnny Storm as good as the original comic book character was written. The man has talent, and it was evident in both of those movies. He also played in The Losers and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. He will reprise the role of Captain America in The Avengers, obviously, and hopefully we will see one or two more Captain America movies.
Tommy Lee Jones, the Academy Award-winning actor who played in Men in Black and Men in Black II, as well as Batman Forever, plays Colonel Chester Phillips, the Army officer in charge of the project which has the goal of creating a force of Super Soldiers for the Allies. The Colonel is overplayed as a character, featuring in several scenes which would be unlikely in any real military situation, but then a Starship Captain like James T. Kirk would never actually have been in any of the original Star Trek situations, so it doesn't hurt the story that much. Still, it makes one go hmmm, which is distracting.
Hugo Weaving makes for a very convincing bad guy as the Red Skull, one of the original Marvel Super-Villains. The Red Skull starts out working for Hitler in the war, but decides to go it alone as soon as he locates a cube-shaped object which is the source of some real power. Long-time Marvel fans already know of the Cosmic Cube, and it is introduced at the end of Thor. The Red Skull finds a way to extract the energy and use it to power advanced weaponry to arm a secret organization called Hydra. This is also a feature of the early Captain America and Avengers comics. Hugo Weaving, who was Agent Smith in The Matrix and Elrond in Lord of the Rings, plays The Red Skull.
A very beautiful Hayley Atwell plays Steve Rogers' love interest from the original WW2 comic books, Peggy Carter. Atwell is a relative newcomer to the movie business, and plays a good female lead. Dominic Cooper is the actor who plays Howard Stark, the father of Tony Stark, also known as Iron Man. A scene from Captain America, where Stark demonstrates his technology at a World Exposition, is a parallel with the expo in Iron Man 2. Sebastian Stan, also a relative movie newbie, plays Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers' friend. He doesn't really get to be the sidekick that appeared in the comics.
The movie also features some minor Marvel characters: Arnim Zola, a scientist who appears in various Marvel Comics stories as a baddie; Abraham Erskine, who appeared in the first Captain America comics as the inventor of the Super Soldier Serum; Nick Fury's Howling Commandos Dum Dum Dugan, Gabriel Jones, Jim Morita, and Jaques Dernier; and James Montgomery Falsworth who was the alter-ego of the character Union Jack.
Captain America is a good, long movie at 2 hours and 5 minutes. It is riveting, with lots of action and intrigue, and some really good characterizations and acting. It features lots of Marvel Comics trivia, and some good laughs. I found it to be immensely enjoyable. It is a must-see movie, and well worth the price to see it on the Big Screen. The tail-end sequence is a trailer for the long-awaited Avengers, due next summer. Captain America gets 4.5 Shurikens, go see it!
The latest Marvel movie just hit the screens, this one about the World War II-era hero, Captain America. The character was created by Joe Simon and the legendary Jack Kirby, and was extremely popular during WW2. Many comic book characters were originally conceived during the early part of the 20th century, including Superman, Batman, and Green Lantern, but they were mostly DC Comics characters. The stories of Captain America, with his sidekick Bucky Barnes, were published by Timely Comics, which was what Marvel was called back then.
After the war, the popularity of the character faded, but Jack Kirby revived him to be a core member of The Avengers, a team of super heroes that featured Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch, and many others over the years. The Avengers will be featured in what promises to be one of the best movies of all time, due in the Summer of 2012.
This movie is filmed in subdued tones for the most part, giving it a nostalgic feel which is apt for the times in which Captain America originated. The story is about a young Steve Rogers, a frail man with a lot of courage, who really wants to enlist in the Army during 1943. He is rejected repeatedly, but goes to different recruiting centers, trying unsuccessfully to enlist, but he doesn't give up. Finally, a chance encounter with a scientist who is creating a new Super Soldier Serum to enhance the physical abilities of soldiers so they can fight for the ultimate defeat of the Nazis, gives Rogers a chance at his dream.
The part of Captain America is played by Chris Evans, who was also cast as The Human Torch in the Fantastic Four movies, where he portrayed the character of Johnny Storm as good as the original comic book character was written. The man has talent, and it was evident in both of those movies. He also played in The Losers and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. He will reprise the role of Captain America in The Avengers, obviously, and hopefully we will see one or two more Captain America movies.
Tommy Lee Jones, the Academy Award-winning actor who played in Men in Black and Men in Black II, as well as Batman Forever, plays Colonel Chester Phillips, the Army officer in charge of the project which has the goal of creating a force of Super Soldiers for the Allies. The Colonel is overplayed as a character, featuring in several scenes which would be unlikely in any real military situation, but then a Starship Captain like James T. Kirk would never actually have been in any of the original Star Trek situations, so it doesn't hurt the story that much. Still, it makes one go hmmm, which is distracting.
Hugo Weaving makes for a very convincing bad guy as the Red Skull, one of the original Marvel Super-Villains. The Red Skull starts out working for Hitler in the war, but decides to go it alone as soon as he locates a cube-shaped object which is the source of some real power. Long-time Marvel fans already know of the Cosmic Cube, and it is introduced at the end of Thor. The Red Skull finds a way to extract the energy and use it to power advanced weaponry to arm a secret organization called Hydra. This is also a feature of the early Captain America and Avengers comics. Hugo Weaving, who was Agent Smith in The Matrix and Elrond in Lord of the Rings, plays The Red Skull.
A very beautiful Hayley Atwell plays Steve Rogers' love interest from the original WW2 comic books, Peggy Carter. Atwell is a relative newcomer to the movie business, and plays a good female lead. Dominic Cooper is the actor who plays Howard Stark, the father of Tony Stark, also known as Iron Man. A scene from Captain America, where Stark demonstrates his technology at a World Exposition, is a parallel with the expo in Iron Man 2. Sebastian Stan, also a relative movie newbie, plays Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers' friend. He doesn't really get to be the sidekick that appeared in the comics.
The movie also features some minor Marvel characters: Arnim Zola, a scientist who appears in various Marvel Comics stories as a baddie; Abraham Erskine, who appeared in the first Captain America comics as the inventor of the Super Soldier Serum; Nick Fury's Howling Commandos Dum Dum Dugan, Gabriel Jones, Jim Morita, and Jaques Dernier; and James Montgomery Falsworth who was the alter-ego of the character Union Jack.
Captain America is a good, long movie at 2 hours and 5 minutes. It is riveting, with lots of action and intrigue, and some really good characterizations and acting. It features lots of Marvel Comics trivia, and some good laughs. I found it to be immensely enjoyable. It is a must-see movie, and well worth the price to see it on the Big Screen. The tail-end sequence is a trailer for the long-awaited Avengers, due next summer. Captain America gets 4.5 Shurikens, go see it!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Cars 2
I truly admire Pixar for their animation skills. I had a choice of several movies this week, but I went with Cars 2, instead of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 or Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Seriously, I can't stand Harry Potter. People may think I am anti-nerd, but I read all the books until I realized that Harry would never be truly heroic, at least not in the books. As for the movies, I protest by not having seen a single one. Having a great master wizard named Dumbledore really messed it up. J. K. Rowling really should have worked harder on the name. Dumb, Bumble, Dork, Bore, you see where I am coming from. As for Transformers, I really don't see how that little tiny car can turn into such a big robot. Where does all that mass come from? Too much thinking.
But this is about Cars 2, which is a delightful picture show, which leads off with a Toy Story short cartoon before the movie, just like they used to do in the early days, before we had TV's at home and stuff. The toys are free to play while their kid is on vacation in Hawaii. Ken and Barbie stow themselves away in the kid's luggage, hoping to have some fun in the sun. Unfortunately, they hide in her book bag, which she doesn't take with her. The toys give Ken and Barbie an imaginary Hawaiian vacation.
Cars 2 starts out with a new star, a secret James Bond car named Finn McMissile, voiced by Michael Caine, whom we all know as Alfred, Bruce Wayne's butler in the latest Batman movies. He uncovers a secret plot by a secret conspiracy of lemon cars to discredit alternative fuels. A billionaire Land Cruiser bankrolls a three-part World Grand Prix using his own alternative to gasoline. Lightning McQueen signs up as a contender, and takes his best friend Mater to the Towkyo leg of the race, where Mater gets mixed up in the secret plot.
The premise of the story revolves around a new alternative fuel called Allinol. The billionaire Land Rover returns from an adventure in the wild where he ran out of gas, but managed to develop his new fuel in the Amazon jungle. He converts himself to solar power, which seems a little bit politically correct, and then he sponsors a world race in 3 countries where all the cars will use his new alternative fuel, to prove it is just as good as gasoline. The story does avoid some of the politics about global warming, er, climate change, which is necessary because in Cars 2, they all use gasoline as a source of energy. It really takes away from the fun of a kids' movie when they hide messages in them. The alternative fuel that Cars use in the race, Allinol, is never given a source. We never find out what it really is.
The story is pretty fast-paced, which is what you might expect from a movie about racing cars. The racing scenes are excellent, quite realistic. Some of the action is unrealistic in terms of the actual physics, which takes a little away from the efforts of the animators who work really hard at making their movies as realistic as possible. I would say they achieve about 92% in that department. Ultimately, it is a cartoon, so they can be excused. Mater is actually the star of this movie, with Larry the Cable Guy getting top billing. The Mater character is overused, and is so annoyingly stupid that it is hard to believe. The spy cars become most of the story, with Mater working along with them, and Lightning McQueen almost a bit part. Still, it works pretty well, and has plenty of car action for the kids, plot action for the adults, and humorous characterizations of cars in place of their human counterparts, like the Pope and the Queen of England.
Cars 2 is a very enjoyable movie experience. I am a big fan of Pixar, and never miss a chance to see their movies in the theater. Cars 2 is well worth a trip to the theater before it goes to DVD and On-Demand. I give it 4 shurikens for being a really great animated film with great characterizations and really top-notch animated action, but the Mater character takes some patience to deal with.
But this is about Cars 2, which is a delightful picture show, which leads off with a Toy Story short cartoon before the movie, just like they used to do in the early days, before we had TV's at home and stuff. The toys are free to play while their kid is on vacation in Hawaii. Ken and Barbie stow themselves away in the kid's luggage, hoping to have some fun in the sun. Unfortunately, they hide in her book bag, which she doesn't take with her. The toys give Ken and Barbie an imaginary Hawaiian vacation.
Cars 2 starts out with a new star, a secret James Bond car named Finn McMissile, voiced by Michael Caine, whom we all know as Alfred, Bruce Wayne's butler in the latest Batman movies. He uncovers a secret plot by a secret conspiracy of lemon cars to discredit alternative fuels. A billionaire Land Cruiser bankrolls a three-part World Grand Prix using his own alternative to gasoline. Lightning McQueen signs up as a contender, and takes his best friend Mater to the Towkyo leg of the race, where Mater gets mixed up in the secret plot.
The premise of the story revolves around a new alternative fuel called Allinol. The billionaire Land Rover returns from an adventure in the wild where he ran out of gas, but managed to develop his new fuel in the Amazon jungle. He converts himself to solar power, which seems a little bit politically correct, and then he sponsors a world race in 3 countries where all the cars will use his new alternative fuel, to prove it is just as good as gasoline. The story does avoid some of the politics about global warming, er, climate change, which is necessary because in Cars 2, they all use gasoline as a source of energy. It really takes away from the fun of a kids' movie when they hide messages in them. The alternative fuel that Cars use in the race, Allinol, is never given a source. We never find out what it really is.
The story is pretty fast-paced, which is what you might expect from a movie about racing cars. The racing scenes are excellent, quite realistic. Some of the action is unrealistic in terms of the actual physics, which takes a little away from the efforts of the animators who work really hard at making their movies as realistic as possible. I would say they achieve about 92% in that department. Ultimately, it is a cartoon, so they can be excused. Mater is actually the star of this movie, with Larry the Cable Guy getting top billing. The Mater character is overused, and is so annoyingly stupid that it is hard to believe. The spy cars become most of the story, with Mater working along with them, and Lightning McQueen almost a bit part. Still, it works pretty well, and has plenty of car action for the kids, plot action for the adults, and humorous characterizations of cars in place of their human counterparts, like the Pope and the Queen of England.
Cars 2 is a very enjoyable movie experience. I am a big fan of Pixar, and never miss a chance to see their movies in the theater. Cars 2 is well worth a trip to the theater before it goes to DVD and On-Demand. I give it 4 shurikens for being a really great animated film with great characterizations and really top-notch animated action, but the Mater character takes some patience to deal with.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Green Lantern
Rating: 5 Shurikens
When I was a youngster, I used to read comic books all the time. I had the good fortune to have read most of the Marvel classics, and I had actually chosen to be a Marvel fan instead of a DC fan as I got into my teens. I couldn't afford to buy every comic that was good, and I liked the Marvel style. I did read a few of the DC classics as well, my favorites being the Justice League of America, the Teen Titans and the Flash. Green Lantern was one of the comics I read as a kid, when I was learnig to read. I admit to not having the kind of memories about Green Lantern as I did about Thor and the X-Men, but I did have some background. Green Lantern is one of the first DC characters besides Superman and Batman to get onto the big screen. The Man of Steel and the Caped Crusader have been in maybe seven movies eachand both on TV, and the Flash and Wonder Woman have been in TV shows, not counting cartoons. They couldn't have picked a better hero for the kinds of CGI animation we have these days.
This movie was way better than I expected. Way better. Ryan Reynolds played Hal Jordan, an irresponsible airplane test pilot with some incredible flying skill. Ryan Reynolds has been in a couple of Marvel comics movies, like Blade: Trinity and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. He is also slated to play the character Dead Pool, another Marvel character, in a future as-yet unwritten movie. He did an outstanding job as both Hal Jordan and Green Lantern. The woman who played Carol Ferris, Hal's erstwhile girlfreind, was Blake Lively. I would give her an award for her portrayal. She was very much into the character, and when you get right down to it, it can't be that easy to take a story about a guy with a magic ring seriously. I would say she pulled it off quite nicely, and made a huge contribution to the movie as a whole.
The introduction to the movie fills in the whole origin of the Green Lantern Corps. which is a group of thousands of Green Lanterns that each protects its own area of the galaxy. They come in all sorts of species, some humanoid, and some far from humanoid. We are told how the Guardians made the base of operations, and created the energy source that powers the lanterns which charge the rings. The story shifts to a very powerful being held as a prisoner for being a great danger to the galaxy, and at the beginning he breaks free and mortally wounds the Green Lantern that captured him and put him away. As the alien Green Lantern is dying, he heads towards Earth to find his replacement.
One of Hal's acquaintances is a genius scientist named Hector Hammond, played by Peter Saarsgard, who has a real knack for the type of character he plays. There is some history between Hector, Hal and Carol. Hector harbors some resentment, so when he gets to conduct an autopsy on alien Green Lantern and comes in contact with something residual that gives him special powers, he quickly goes to the dark side. We already suspect that his power has something to do with the malevolent being that killed the alien Green Lantern. Angela Basset plays the government scientist that brings Hector in, putting on a convincing performance. Hector happens to be the son of Senator Hammond, played by Tim Robbins. Senator Hammond is a stereotypical politician, with all of the faults politicians are expected to have. Tim Robbins has played in numerous movies, including the classic Howard the Duck, and Mission to Mars.
The story is well paced, with lots of action and special effects. All in all, it is a great movie. Some of the acting is worthy of awards, but the big awards always go to actors in movies most people don't watch. Green Lantern is a really good movie, which was a surprise to me. I would recommend it to watch more than once, and make sure you see it in the movie theater, because waiting for the video to come out will be cheating yourself. I give it 5 Shurikens for quality acting, lots of good action, and an excellent adaptation of the original story, plus fantastic special effects.
When I was a youngster, I used to read comic books all the time. I had the good fortune to have read most of the Marvel classics, and I had actually chosen to be a Marvel fan instead of a DC fan as I got into my teens. I couldn't afford to buy every comic that was good, and I liked the Marvel style. I did read a few of the DC classics as well, my favorites being the Justice League of America, the Teen Titans and the Flash. Green Lantern was one of the comics I read as a kid, when I was learnig to read. I admit to not having the kind of memories about Green Lantern as I did about Thor and the X-Men, but I did have some background. Green Lantern is one of the first DC characters besides Superman and Batman to get onto the big screen. The Man of Steel and the Caped Crusader have been in maybe seven movies eachand both on TV, and the Flash and Wonder Woman have been in TV shows, not counting cartoons. They couldn't have picked a better hero for the kinds of CGI animation we have these days.
This movie was way better than I expected. Way better. Ryan Reynolds played Hal Jordan, an irresponsible airplane test pilot with some incredible flying skill. Ryan Reynolds has been in a couple of Marvel comics movies, like Blade: Trinity and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. He is also slated to play the character Dead Pool, another Marvel character, in a future as-yet unwritten movie. He did an outstanding job as both Hal Jordan and Green Lantern. The woman who played Carol Ferris, Hal's erstwhile girlfreind, was Blake Lively. I would give her an award for her portrayal. She was very much into the character, and when you get right down to it, it can't be that easy to take a story about a guy with a magic ring seriously. I would say she pulled it off quite nicely, and made a huge contribution to the movie as a whole.
The introduction to the movie fills in the whole origin of the Green Lantern Corps. which is a group of thousands of Green Lanterns that each protects its own area of the galaxy. They come in all sorts of species, some humanoid, and some far from humanoid. We are told how the Guardians made the base of operations, and created the energy source that powers the lanterns which charge the rings. The story shifts to a very powerful being held as a prisoner for being a great danger to the galaxy, and at the beginning he breaks free and mortally wounds the Green Lantern that captured him and put him away. As the alien Green Lantern is dying, he heads towards Earth to find his replacement.
The story goes on from there, with Hal Jordan, of course, being chosen by the ring for his particular qualities of bravery. He gets to meet other Green Lanterns, including Sinestro, played by Mark Strong. You might remember Mark Strong from Kick Ass and Sherlock Holmes, but you will hardly recognize him in the costume. Sinestro is a bit more pragmatic than the other Green Lanterns, and will fight with any weapon, even the one which is the biggest threat to the existence of the Green Lanterns. Ultimately, Sinestro will become an adversary to Hal Jordan, but that is for a sequel, I am certain. However, in this picture, he is on the side of the Good Guys. Geoffrey Rush of Pirates of the Caribbean and Michael Clarke Duncan of Planet of the Apes play the voices of two other Green Lanterns.
One of Hal's acquaintances is a genius scientist named Hector Hammond, played by Peter Saarsgard, who has a real knack for the type of character he plays. There is some history between Hector, Hal and Carol. Hector harbors some resentment, so when he gets to conduct an autopsy on alien Green Lantern and comes in contact with something residual that gives him special powers, he quickly goes to the dark side. We already suspect that his power has something to do with the malevolent being that killed the alien Green Lantern. Angela Basset plays the government scientist that brings Hector in, putting on a convincing performance. Hector happens to be the son of Senator Hammond, played by Tim Robbins. Senator Hammond is a stereotypical politician, with all of the faults politicians are expected to have. Tim Robbins has played in numerous movies, including the classic Howard the Duck, and Mission to Mars.
The story is well paced, with lots of action and special effects. All in all, it is a great movie. Some of the acting is worthy of awards, but the big awards always go to actors in movies most people don't watch. Green Lantern is a really good movie, which was a surprise to me. I would recommend it to watch more than once, and make sure you see it in the movie theater, because waiting for the video to come out will be cheating yourself. I give it 5 Shurikens for quality acting, lots of good action, and an excellent adaptation of the original story, plus fantastic special effects.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Super 8
Rating: 4 Shurikens
The friend, Charles, played by Riley Griffiths, also a fairly new young actor, gets the group to sneak out at night to film part of the movie at the train station near town. While they are filming, a pickup truck drives onto the tracks and drives right at the oncoming train at top speed. A spectacular derailment occurs, which is something that I would have replayed over and over if I had had a rewind button, and I might just do that when it comes out on DVD. Never mind the fact that the mass of the train at several hundred tons would barely be slowed by a pickup truck, at only about one ton of the finest Detroit steel. You couldn't get a pickup to go fast enough on train tracks to have a meaningful effect on a moving train, even head-on. And the driver would never survive that sort of an impact, except in the movies. And that is pretty much what happens here.
As the kids wander around the wreckage, they find the driver of the pickup truck unconcious, but he is able to wake up and tell them a cryptic clue about the contents of the train. The kids are then forced to flee and leave him to the huge contingent of Air Force personnel that swarms the area. This is after the strange passenger manages to escape the train by pounding its way through a steel railroad car door. The Air Force combs the area, and also the town, searching for their missing passenger. The officer in charge of the military, Nelec, played by Noah Emerich, is obviously malevolent, and is determined to capture the creature at all costs, and without telling anyone anything about what is really going on.
Noah Emerich is the only cast member that I thought had a familiar face, since he had been in The Truman Show years ago. Most of the other actors were young kids, new to the business. The acting was surprisingly good, and it was easy to get immersed in the story. There was a good amount of humor, especially the pyromaniac kid who made his own firecrackers. Nowadays, you would get jailed as a terrorist for that kind of thing. There was also some nostalgia for the Seventies evoked by the music, the furniture, and the clothing styles, as well as the cars.
Super 8 is a good movie, and good for all ages. The scary part isn't so scary that it would give kids nightmares, and the story is interesting enough for just about anyone to enjoy. It is a little predictable, though, but made in a way that it continues to entertain. It's well worth the trip to the theater to see it. I give it 4 Shurikens for a good story and decent acting, and not relying too heavily on the special effects.
Super 8 is a good sci-fi movie about an Area-51-style secret military operation, and a nice fun movie about some middle-school kids in 1979, making a movie for an amateur movie competition. During the course of shooting the movie with a Super-8-millimeter film camera, a military train carrying a mysterious cargo, is derailed by a man in a pickup truck. Part of the mysterious cargo is a creature of some sort, definitely a monster, with incredible strength and intelligence. Super 8 was produced by Steven Spielberg, of Indiana Jones and E.T. fame, and by J. J. Abrams, the man behind the Lost TV series, and both Cloverfield and the recent Star Trek remake on the Big Screen.
We are introduced to Joe Lamb, the son of a local Deputy, whose mother was killed in an accident at the steel mill. His friend, Charles, is making a zombie movie, with the help of Jason and his other friends, and a girl named Alice Dainard, who Joe obviously likes. The Deputy, Jackson Lamb, has some sort of problem with the father of Alice, causing some drama within the erstwhile movie crew. Joe is played by Joel Courtney, a new actor who displays some significant talent in his role. The Deputy, Jackson Lamb, is played by Kyle Chandler, who appeared in King Kong several years ago, and also The Day the Earth Stood Still from 2008. Elle Fanning, the younger sister of Dakota Fanning, does a very nice job as Alice.
As the kids wander around the wreckage, they find the driver of the pickup truck unconcious, but he is able to wake up and tell them a cryptic clue about the contents of the train. The kids are then forced to flee and leave him to the huge contingent of Air Force personnel that swarms the area. This is after the strange passenger manages to escape the train by pounding its way through a steel railroad car door. The Air Force combs the area, and also the town, searching for their missing passenger. The officer in charge of the military, Nelec, played by Noah Emerich, is obviously malevolent, and is determined to capture the creature at all costs, and without telling anyone anything about what is really going on.
Noah Emerich is the only cast member that I thought had a familiar face, since he had been in The Truman Show years ago. Most of the other actors were young kids, new to the business. The acting was surprisingly good, and it was easy to get immersed in the story. There was a good amount of humor, especially the pyromaniac kid who made his own firecrackers. Nowadays, you would get jailed as a terrorist for that kind of thing. There was also some nostalgia for the Seventies evoked by the music, the furniture, and the clothing styles, as well as the cars.
Super 8 is a good movie, and good for all ages. The scary part isn't so scary that it would give kids nightmares, and the story is interesting enough for just about anyone to enjoy. It is a little predictable, though, but made in a way that it continues to entertain. It's well worth the trip to the theater to see it. I give it 4 Shurikens for a good story and decent acting, and not relying too heavily on the special effects.
Friday, June 17, 2011
Kung Fu Panda 2
Rating: 3.5 Shurikens
Jack Black's voice reprises his role as the Po, the Dragon Warrior, an unlikely Kung Fu hero. This time, he has to learn Inner Peace, not an easy thing for a panda who loves to eat. It is a good, funny movie, with good laughs, and some pretty good action for a cartoon movie. Like the first Kung Fu Panda, which was actually funnier, it relies a lot on "fat" humor. There are some joke lines which could easily have been used in the first movie, but which hadn't been thought of before it was finished.
Like many cartoon movies, the voices are not easily recognized for the actors that they belong to. Jack Black is very good at doing the cartoon voice, and is distinctive at it. Angelina Jolie does the voice of the Tiger, and other actors of major import, like Dustin Hoffman and Jackie Chan, voice other characters, but they are difficult to recognize, and sometimes seeing them in the credits as a matter of curiosity is the only way you would know them. Still, the voice characterizations are very good, especially Gary Oldman as Shen, the goose who is the adopted father of Po.
There isn't really much to say about Kung Fu Panda 2, other than it is a decent movie, and a good entertaining film in 3D, but not a good reason to go to the theater. It was the only decent choice when it opened, and I went because I love a good animated feature, but it would have been second choice during any other week. As far as kids go, it would be a great movie to take kids to see, since they tend to have lower expectations.
I give it 3.5 Shurikens for effort, and some spectacular animation, and the comedy.
Jack Black's voice reprises his role as the Po, the Dragon Warrior, an unlikely Kung Fu hero. This time, he has to learn Inner Peace, not an easy thing for a panda who loves to eat. It is a good, funny movie, with good laughs, and some pretty good action for a cartoon movie. Like the first Kung Fu Panda, which was actually funnier, it relies a lot on "fat" humor. There are some joke lines which could easily have been used in the first movie, but which hadn't been thought of before it was finished.
Like many cartoon movies, the voices are not easily recognized for the actors that they belong to. Jack Black is very good at doing the cartoon voice, and is distinctive at it. Angelina Jolie does the voice of the Tiger, and other actors of major import, like Dustin Hoffman and Jackie Chan, voice other characters, but they are difficult to recognize, and sometimes seeing them in the credits as a matter of curiosity is the only way you would know them. Still, the voice characterizations are very good, especially Gary Oldman as Shen, the goose who is the adopted father of Po.
There isn't really much to say about Kung Fu Panda 2, other than it is a decent movie, and a good entertaining film in 3D, but not a good reason to go to the theater. It was the only decent choice when it opened, and I went because I love a good animated feature, but it would have been second choice during any other week. As far as kids go, it would be a great movie to take kids to see, since they tend to have lower expectations.
I give it 3.5 Shurikens for effort, and some spectacular animation, and the comedy.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
X-Men: First Class
Rating: 4.5 Shurikens
Adapting comic books to the big screen has become mainstream. There is a huge pool of untapped creativity from stories as old as the 1940's. Captain America, Superman, Batman and Green Lantern were all what we used to call Golden Age comic book series. Superman and Batman have been adapted to radio, TV and the movies for decades. Only in the last 10 years or so have the other, less known, classics of comic book fandom been brought to the masses of people. Thor, Hulk, Spiderman and the Fantastic Four are all from the Silver Age of comics. Just a few weeks ago, I sat in a theater packed with people, most of whom, I am certain, never picked up a Thor comic book in their lives.
The X-Men are another Silver Age comic book classic. Created by the genius of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in the early 1960's, it is the story of a certain class of superheroes called mutants, who are born with their abilities. Unlike Superman, who comes from another planet, and Green Lantern, who gets his power from a ring, mutants are human but have genetic changes which give them different and varied abilities. Iron Man and Batman don't have powers, and Spiderman gets his powers from a radioactive spider bite. Mutants are misunderstood because they usually manifest their powers during the teenage years, when hormonal changes begin to occur. Their gifts of special abilities might be called curses, as mutants are feared and often times persecuted by normal people.
X-Men: First Class is the latest in a line of box-office hits begun with The X-Men in 2001. This is the fifth movie of the X-Men, in fact. It was concieved as the X-Men Origins story of Professor Charles Xavier, the founder and mentor of the X-Men. Professor Xavier, also called Professor X, is a mutant himself, who has incredible psychic abilities. He and his friend Erik Lensherr, who becomes the villain Magneto, decide to work together seeking out mutants who are just beginning to experience their powers. They have different opinions as to how they should treat normal humans.
The movie begins where the very first X-Men movie began, with the young mutant Erik Lenscher, who would later become Magneto, being separated from his parents at the gates of a Nazi concentration camp. A Nazi scientist learns of Lenscher's ability to affect metal, and "helps" him bring his powers out. Meanwhile, a young Charles Xavier meets a young Mystique in his own house, and they become brother and sister.
Years pass, and an older Erik Lensherr is stalking Nazis in Switzerland and Venezuela, seeking the scientist who experimented on him. It turns out that the scientist is a mutant himself, Sebastian Shaw. Kevin Bacon plays Shaw, the leader of a group of criminal mutants called the Hellfire Club. Lensherr catches up with Shaw, and tries to kill him, when Xavier rescues him from drowning. This is a simplified version, only to show where they met and started to become friends. Xavier is played by James McAvoy, who was the goat-like character Mr. Tumnus in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Lensherr is played by Michael Fassbender who was last seen in Jonah Hex.
They meet Hank McCoy, a mutant and scientist for the CIA, who has designed the Cerebro machine, which enhances Xavier's telepathic abilities, enabling him to find other mutants wherever they are. Together, Xavier and Lensherr assemble a team of mutants, which will later become the X-Men. Hank McCoy designs devices which help the mutants of the team focus and use their unique powers. While Shaw tries to start World War III during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Xavier and Magneto and the other X-Men go up against the Hellfire Club's own mutants.
The X-Men are comprised of Professor X, Magneto, Havok, Banshee, Beast, and Mystique, and the Hellfire Club has Sebastian Shaw and Emma Frost, the Ice Queen, as well as Azazael, Riptide, and Angel. This is a little different from the original X-Men of the comics who were Cyclops, Angel, Ice Man, Beast and Marvel Girl. Banshee was originally a villain who became good. The beast in the comics did not become the blue furry form until much later. Havok was originally Cyclops' younger brother. Marvel Girl was Jean Grey, later to become Phoenix. The original Angel was male and had bird-like wings, where the movie Angel had dragonfly wings and could spit acid balls. These differences will have to be chalked up to creative license, however, and the movie is still very decent in spite of them.
Another point is one which seems to suggest that the makers of this movie were trying to create a new storyline for the X-Men than the one in the other four movies. Watching the movie does not bear this opinion all the way out. For one thing, the very beginning of X-Men: First Class is the same as the original X-Men of 2001. Secondly, the helmet that Magneto takes from Sebastian Shaw is exactly the same as the one in the other movies. Also, a scene in the movie features Hugh Jackman looking exactly like the Wolverine character which he so perfectly portrays, and a close look at his hands shows no evidence of claws. This would be in perfect harmony with the original storyline, which has him born in Civil War times, and being mostly the same age because of his regenerating abilities. Beast becomes the blue furry type that appears in the later movies, and Mystique has her own slow aging explained, as well as how she becomes on the other side in the other movies. There is another point between X-Men Origins: Wolverine and X-Men: First Class about Xavier's paralysis, but that would not be conclusive, since Professor X was able to walk at some times in the comic series, and not at other times. I submit that this is not completely a reboot, and I choose to believe it in order to maintain continuity.
One thing which was a stark error in the movie was when Mystique took the form of Sebastian Shaw to fool his followers, she is wearing the Magneto helmet, which she could not possibly have seen, so how could she know what to look like in that situation. I noticed it instantly. Shaw was in the submarine when he put it on, and was in the submarine for the duration of the battle scene where Mystique takes his form.
All in all, X-Men: First Class is a great movie, with lots of action, good character portrayals, and even though there is an abundance of mutants in this story, it manages to give everyone a part to play without seeming cluttered. The story is easy to follow, yet artfully woven into actual historical events. I give it 4.5 Shurikens, just because of the artistic license taken with the original characters of the comic book series. Otherwise, it is a must-see, you will not regret it.
Adapting comic books to the big screen has become mainstream. There is a huge pool of untapped creativity from stories as old as the 1940's. Captain America, Superman, Batman and Green Lantern were all what we used to call Golden Age comic book series. Superman and Batman have been adapted to radio, TV and the movies for decades. Only in the last 10 years or so have the other, less known, classics of comic book fandom been brought to the masses of people. Thor, Hulk, Spiderman and the Fantastic Four are all from the Silver Age of comics. Just a few weeks ago, I sat in a theater packed with people, most of whom, I am certain, never picked up a Thor comic book in their lives.
The X-Men are another Silver Age comic book classic. Created by the genius of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in the early 1960's, it is the story of a certain class of superheroes called mutants, who are born with their abilities. Unlike Superman, who comes from another planet, and Green Lantern, who gets his power from a ring, mutants are human but have genetic changes which give them different and varied abilities. Iron Man and Batman don't have powers, and Spiderman gets his powers from a radioactive spider bite. Mutants are misunderstood because they usually manifest their powers during the teenage years, when hormonal changes begin to occur. Their gifts of special abilities might be called curses, as mutants are feared and often times persecuted by normal people.
X-Men: First Class is the latest in a line of box-office hits begun with The X-Men in 2001. This is the fifth movie of the X-Men, in fact. It was concieved as the X-Men Origins story of Professor Charles Xavier, the founder and mentor of the X-Men. Professor Xavier, also called Professor X, is a mutant himself, who has incredible psychic abilities. He and his friend Erik Lensherr, who becomes the villain Magneto, decide to work together seeking out mutants who are just beginning to experience their powers. They have different opinions as to how they should treat normal humans.
The movie begins where the very first X-Men movie began, with the young mutant Erik Lenscher, who would later become Magneto, being separated from his parents at the gates of a Nazi concentration camp. A Nazi scientist learns of Lenscher's ability to affect metal, and "helps" him bring his powers out. Meanwhile, a young Charles Xavier meets a young Mystique in his own house, and they become brother and sister.
Years pass, and an older Erik Lensherr is stalking Nazis in Switzerland and Venezuela, seeking the scientist who experimented on him. It turns out that the scientist is a mutant himself, Sebastian Shaw. Kevin Bacon plays Shaw, the leader of a group of criminal mutants called the Hellfire Club. Lensherr catches up with Shaw, and tries to kill him, when Xavier rescues him from drowning. This is a simplified version, only to show where they met and started to become friends. Xavier is played by James McAvoy, who was the goat-like character Mr. Tumnus in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Lensherr is played by Michael Fassbender who was last seen in Jonah Hex.
They meet Hank McCoy, a mutant and scientist for the CIA, who has designed the Cerebro machine, which enhances Xavier's telepathic abilities, enabling him to find other mutants wherever they are. Together, Xavier and Lensherr assemble a team of mutants, which will later become the X-Men. Hank McCoy designs devices which help the mutants of the team focus and use their unique powers. While Shaw tries to start World War III during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Xavier and Magneto and the other X-Men go up against the Hellfire Club's own mutants.
The X-Men are comprised of Professor X, Magneto, Havok, Banshee, Beast, and Mystique, and the Hellfire Club has Sebastian Shaw and Emma Frost, the Ice Queen, as well as Azazael, Riptide, and Angel. This is a little different from the original X-Men of the comics who were Cyclops, Angel, Ice Man, Beast and Marvel Girl. Banshee was originally a villain who became good. The beast in the comics did not become the blue furry form until much later. Havok was originally Cyclops' younger brother. Marvel Girl was Jean Grey, later to become Phoenix. The original Angel was male and had bird-like wings, where the movie Angel had dragonfly wings and could spit acid balls. These differences will have to be chalked up to creative license, however, and the movie is still very decent in spite of them.
Another point is one which seems to suggest that the makers of this movie were trying to create a new storyline for the X-Men than the one in the other four movies. Watching the movie does not bear this opinion all the way out. For one thing, the very beginning of X-Men: First Class is the same as the original X-Men of 2001. Secondly, the helmet that Magneto takes from Sebastian Shaw is exactly the same as the one in the other movies. Also, a scene in the movie features Hugh Jackman looking exactly like the Wolverine character which he so perfectly portrays, and a close look at his hands shows no evidence of claws. This would be in perfect harmony with the original storyline, which has him born in Civil War times, and being mostly the same age because of his regenerating abilities. Beast becomes the blue furry type that appears in the later movies, and Mystique has her own slow aging explained, as well as how she becomes on the other side in the other movies. There is another point between X-Men Origins: Wolverine and X-Men: First Class about Xavier's paralysis, but that would not be conclusive, since Professor X was able to walk at some times in the comic series, and not at other times. I submit that this is not completely a reboot, and I choose to believe it in order to maintain continuity.
One thing which was a stark error in the movie was when Mystique took the form of Sebastian Shaw to fool his followers, she is wearing the Magneto helmet, which she could not possibly have seen, so how could she know what to look like in that situation. I noticed it instantly. Shaw was in the submarine when he put it on, and was in the submarine for the duration of the battle scene where Mystique takes his form.
All in all, X-Men: First Class is a great movie, with lots of action, good character portrayals, and even though there is an abundance of mutants in this story, it manages to give everyone a part to play without seeming cluttered. The story is easy to follow, yet artfully woven into actual historical events. I give it 4.5 Shurikens, just because of the artistic license taken with the original characters of the comic book series. Otherwise, it is a must-see, you will not regret it.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Rating: 4.5 Shurikens
Johnny Depp is back as Captain Jack Sparrow in the fourth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean series from Disney. Depp is famous for some of the more eccentric roles in movies, like Edward Scissorhands and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, not to mention the Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. He most recently did the voice of Rango, and played the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland. Jack Sparrow is a thieving pirate with a an instinct for self-preservation.
Cast members from the first three Pirates movies include Depp, Geoffrey Rush as Hector Barbossa, the pirate captain, and Kevin McNally as the first mate Gibbs. Two of the other top stars of the first three Pirates movies, Orlando Blum and Keira Knightley, decided not to reprise their roles. Ian McShane, a very fine actor in my opinion, is the pirate Blackbeard, and Penelope Cruz plays his daughter, a woman from Jack Sparrow's past. Ian McShane played Coach in Death Race, and starred in The Seeker: The Dark is Rising. His acting in the HBO series, Deadwood, was almost Shakespearean. Penelope Cruz was in Vanilla Sky, about 10 years ago, her only movie in the sci-fi genre, that I know of.
The story begins with Jack Sparrow on trial in London, with a hanging in his very near future. Somehow, he has Gibbs standing in his place, and Jack has arranged an escape by impersonating the judge in the case. After leaving the courtroom, they are escorted into a prisoner wagon, where they hope to be released by the driver who has been paid off. Instead, they are recaptured by the British, and taken to the king. Jack makes another daring escape, and ends up in a tavern where he meets Angelica, who is impersonating him and hiring on a crew of sailors. Again, the soldiers catch up to them, and they escape, but Jack is knocked out and wakes up as a sailor on the ship of Blackbeard the Pirate.
Apparently, Blackbeard, the British Crown, and the Spanish, are all on the track of the legendary Fountain of Youth. Jack foments a mutiny, and learns the hard way about Blackbeard, and why he is so reared as a pirate. He manages to survive and makes a fast deal to save himself, by promising to help Angelica and Blackbeard find the Fountain. Meanwhile, Barbossa has signed on with the British Navy and with Gibbs as his guide, they try to get to the fountain first, where Barbossa plans to get his revenge on Blackbeard for his taking of the Black Pearl, Jack Sparrow's pirate ship from the earlier stories.
There is lots of action, with plenty in between to allow the story to develop. The camera angle changes are pretty frequent, although not as bad as some movies I have seen. One problem with action movies is the tendency to overuse different camera angles trying to capture every movement, and at the same time leaving important parts of the action off the edge of the screen. It seems to be true of all action movies these days. I guess I have to be satisfied if they don't do it too much, and this Pirates movie is not too bad in this respect.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is good and long, 2 hours and almost 20 minutes and uses every minute to good effect. The story is fairly complex and entertaining. It manages to be interesting, with a few twists and turns, but without any real surprises. It resolves well towards the end, with another sequel an obvious possibility. There are lots of sword fights and musket shots, but surprisingly few people are killed. They parry and thrust, blades clanging, and then bonk their adversaries on the head. I can't remember a single time where the pirate jack Sparrow actually kills someone. This is good for the children who want to be Jack Sparrow next Halloween.
I recommend this movie for good entertainment, safe for most younger viewers. There isn't too much in the way of romance, but that isn't a big drawback. The whole package makes for a nice evening at the movies. It gets 4.5 Shurikens for lots of good action, some excellent characterizations, and a good storyline. If you haven't been to the movies in a while, this is a good reason to go.
Johnny Depp is back as Captain Jack Sparrow in the fourth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean series from Disney. Depp is famous for some of the more eccentric roles in movies, like Edward Scissorhands and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, not to mention the Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. He most recently did the voice of Rango, and played the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland. Jack Sparrow is a thieving pirate with a an instinct for self-preservation.
Cast members from the first three Pirates movies include Depp, Geoffrey Rush as Hector Barbossa, the pirate captain, and Kevin McNally as the first mate Gibbs. Two of the other top stars of the first three Pirates movies, Orlando Blum and Keira Knightley, decided not to reprise their roles. Ian McShane, a very fine actor in my opinion, is the pirate Blackbeard, and Penelope Cruz plays his daughter, a woman from Jack Sparrow's past. Ian McShane played Coach in Death Race, and starred in The Seeker: The Dark is Rising. His acting in the HBO series, Deadwood, was almost Shakespearean. Penelope Cruz was in Vanilla Sky, about 10 years ago, her only movie in the sci-fi genre, that I know of.
The story begins with Jack Sparrow on trial in London, with a hanging in his very near future. Somehow, he has Gibbs standing in his place, and Jack has arranged an escape by impersonating the judge in the case. After leaving the courtroom, they are escorted into a prisoner wagon, where they hope to be released by the driver who has been paid off. Instead, they are recaptured by the British, and taken to the king. Jack makes another daring escape, and ends up in a tavern where he meets Angelica, who is impersonating him and hiring on a crew of sailors. Again, the soldiers catch up to them, and they escape, but Jack is knocked out and wakes up as a sailor on the ship of Blackbeard the Pirate.
Apparently, Blackbeard, the British Crown, and the Spanish, are all on the track of the legendary Fountain of Youth. Jack foments a mutiny, and learns the hard way about Blackbeard, and why he is so reared as a pirate. He manages to survive and makes a fast deal to save himself, by promising to help Angelica and Blackbeard find the Fountain. Meanwhile, Barbossa has signed on with the British Navy and with Gibbs as his guide, they try to get to the fountain first, where Barbossa plans to get his revenge on Blackbeard for his taking of the Black Pearl, Jack Sparrow's pirate ship from the earlier stories.
There is lots of action, with plenty in between to allow the story to develop. The camera angle changes are pretty frequent, although not as bad as some movies I have seen. One problem with action movies is the tendency to overuse different camera angles trying to capture every movement, and at the same time leaving important parts of the action off the edge of the screen. It seems to be true of all action movies these days. I guess I have to be satisfied if they don't do it too much, and this Pirates movie is not too bad in this respect.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is good and long, 2 hours and almost 20 minutes and uses every minute to good effect. The story is fairly complex and entertaining. It manages to be interesting, with a few twists and turns, but without any real surprises. It resolves well towards the end, with another sequel an obvious possibility. There are lots of sword fights and musket shots, but surprisingly few people are killed. They parry and thrust, blades clanging, and then bonk their adversaries on the head. I can't remember a single time where the pirate jack Sparrow actually kills someone. This is good for the children who want to be Jack Sparrow next Halloween.
I recommend this movie for good entertainment, safe for most younger viewers. There isn't too much in the way of romance, but that isn't a big drawback. The whole package makes for a nice evening at the movies. It gets 4.5 Shurikens for lots of good action, some excellent characterizations, and a good storyline. If you haven't been to the movies in a while, this is a good reason to go.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Priest
Rating: 4 Shurikens
Priest is a pretty exciting and entertaining movie. Set in a post-apocalyptic future, where history is one of a constant war between humans and vampires, the main character is a member of an order of clergymen who are the main weapon of humanity against the vampires. The Church is the highest authority of the humans, who have battled with vampires for what seems like decades. The Priests were the decisive weapon in the victory over vampires, and after winning the war and imprisoning the last remaining vampires, the Church disbanded the Priests, and left them to fend for themselves in a society where they have no real skills.
The future world is depicted as dingy, crowded cities like the ones in Blade Runner, set in a desert wasteland like Mad Max. The social order in the cities is regimented in an Orwellian fashion, with slogans and pictures of the Monsignor everywhere. The church is obviously modelled upon the Catholic religion, but is respectful of the actual religion, using it as a fictional vehicle without making fun of its practices. The movie is filmed in almost black and white with very subdued colors, a lot like the recent Sucker Punch, but with better effect.
The main character is called Priest, one of the best of his kind, and is played by Paul Bettany, who is possibly best known for being the albino in The DaVinci Code, and the Angel Michael in the movie Legion . During the vampire wars, a group of Priests enters a vampire hive, and is ambushed. Most of the Priests escape, but one, played by Karl Urban, is captured by the vampires. Karl Urban was Dr. McCoy in the Star Trek movie, and will be again in the upcoming sequel. Anyway, Priest was holding onto him when his grip slipped and he was pulled away. He comes back as the villain called Black Hat, and kidnaps Priests niece in order to get his revenge over being lost to the vampires.
As an adaptation of a graphic novel, the characters and story are very comic book-like. The Priests have super-human abilities which make them very good at what they do. The villains of the are also not your customary vampires. The are like Gollum in Lord of the Rings, rather than the Dracula of the classics. They are susceptible to sunlight, but don't turn into bats. They don't have eyes, either, but they do have some very mean fangs. They reproduce by a queen, like insects, rather than the vampires of legend which rise 3 days after being bitten by another vampire.
The Church has decided that it is better to forget about vampires. The head of the Church, the Monsignor Orelas, played by the venerable Christopher Plummer, is determined to forget about the wars with vampires and keep the people in the fold of his church, and safe within the cities. He forbids Priest from going after his niece, but of course Priest rebels and forsakes his vows. Monsignor then dispatches four other Priests, including Priestess, played by Maggie Q, to stop him. Maggie Q was in Live Free and Die Hard, and also Mission Impossible III. Accompanied by the wildlands sheriff Hicks, played by Cam Gigandet, who played in the sci-fi thriller Pandorum, Priest and Priestess try to take on Black Hat and the hordes of new vampires determined to exterminate the humans.
Priest is the best movie of the week, in the week before the latest Pirates of the Carribean, and the week after Thor. It is a nice diversion, not excessively gory, and a satisfying ending, which leaves plenty of loose ends to be resolved in a future sequel, if enough people get out to see this one. I do believe it to be worth seeing, and worth a sequel, so go! This one gets 4 Shurikens for good plot, good story, decent acting and plenty of action.
Priest is a pretty exciting and entertaining movie. Set in a post-apocalyptic future, where history is one of a constant war between humans and vampires, the main character is a member of an order of clergymen who are the main weapon of humanity against the vampires. The Church is the highest authority of the humans, who have battled with vampires for what seems like decades. The Priests were the decisive weapon in the victory over vampires, and after winning the war and imprisoning the last remaining vampires, the Church disbanded the Priests, and left them to fend for themselves in a society where they have no real skills.
The future world is depicted as dingy, crowded cities like the ones in Blade Runner, set in a desert wasteland like Mad Max. The social order in the cities is regimented in an Orwellian fashion, with slogans and pictures of the Monsignor everywhere. The church is obviously modelled upon the Catholic religion, but is respectful of the actual religion, using it as a fictional vehicle without making fun of its practices. The movie is filmed in almost black and white with very subdued colors, a lot like the recent Sucker Punch, but with better effect.
The main character is called Priest, one of the best of his kind, and is played by Paul Bettany, who is possibly best known for being the albino in The DaVinci Code, and the Angel Michael in the movie Legion . During the vampire wars, a group of Priests enters a vampire hive, and is ambushed. Most of the Priests escape, but one, played by Karl Urban, is captured by the vampires. Karl Urban was Dr. McCoy in the Star Trek movie, and will be again in the upcoming sequel. Anyway, Priest was holding onto him when his grip slipped and he was pulled away. He comes back as the villain called Black Hat, and kidnaps Priests niece in order to get his revenge over being lost to the vampires.
As an adaptation of a graphic novel, the characters and story are very comic book-like. The Priests have super-human abilities which make them very good at what they do. The villains of the are also not your customary vampires. The are like Gollum in Lord of the Rings, rather than the Dracula of the classics. They are susceptible to sunlight, but don't turn into bats. They don't have eyes, either, but they do have some very mean fangs. They reproduce by a queen, like insects, rather than the vampires of legend which rise 3 days after being bitten by another vampire.
The Church has decided that it is better to forget about vampires. The head of the Church, the Monsignor Orelas, played by the venerable Christopher Plummer, is determined to forget about the wars with vampires and keep the people in the fold of his church, and safe within the cities. He forbids Priest from going after his niece, but of course Priest rebels and forsakes his vows. Monsignor then dispatches four other Priests, including Priestess, played by Maggie Q, to stop him. Maggie Q was in Live Free and Die Hard, and also Mission Impossible III. Accompanied by the wildlands sheriff Hicks, played by Cam Gigandet, who played in the sci-fi thriller Pandorum, Priest and Priestess try to take on Black Hat and the hordes of new vampires determined to exterminate the humans.
Priest is the best movie of the week, in the week before the latest Pirates of the Carribean, and the week after Thor. It is a nice diversion, not excessively gory, and a satisfying ending, which leaves plenty of loose ends to be resolved in a future sequel, if enough people get out to see this one. I do believe it to be worth seeing, and worth a sequel, so go! This one gets 4 Shurikens for good plot, good story, decent acting and plenty of action.
Monday, May 9, 2011
Thor
Rating: 5 Shurikens
If ever there was a movie that has to be seen, Thor is it. Based on the Marvel comic book which was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in the 1960's, it precedes the other Marvel Comics adaptations of Captain America and the X-Men prequel, due later this summer. At the same time DC breaks from the old Superman and Batman habits to release the long-awaited Green Lantern. This promises to be a great summer for comic book and sci-fi movie lovers.
The movie, Thor, captures the essence of the original comic book series of the 1960's and 70's, although some changes have been made to the storyline in the interest of the big screen. The concept of adapting an entire mythology to a comic book was due to the comic book geniuses Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. They depicted the grandeur of Asgard, and brought Thor to Earth as a one-armed doctor who had been sent to learn humility. He found a walking stick while vacationing in Scandinavia, and learned that he could strike the cane on the ground, and be transformed into Thor. Thor became a superhero, and a member of the Avengers.
They evolved the contentious Thor-Loki relationship, which was an aspect of Marvel comics heroes of that time, in that they had extraordinary lives but they had real-life problems. Thor had his dear brother, whom he loved, but who was also prone to doing evil deeds. There was friendship, rivalry and forgiveness. Thor's father was the extremely powerful Odin, also the King of Asgard and the Realm Eternal. He was a tough parent himself, and Thor had to deal with a father who was beloved yet also was kind of overbearing, much like real fathers can be sometimes. People could relate to some of the human problems that Marvel heroes experienced, but which were quite absent from DC heroes, until much later.
The movie shortens the storyline somewhat, but does feature all of the main characters, including the alter-ego Don Blake, who was Thor's identity in the comic book. Also, Jane Foster, the scientist in the movie, was a nurse in the comic series. Thor's warrior companions from Asgard, .the Warriors Three, Hogun, Fandral and Volstagg, are featured in the film, very much like the original as they were in the comic series co-written by Lee and Kirby. As an avid reader of comic books in the day, I can say that Jack Kirby would be proud if he were alive to see it. The excellence of Thor surpasses the Fantastic Four/Silver Surfer movie, and at least two of the Spiderman movies.
The story begins with Thor, played by Chris Hemsworth, ascending to the throne of Asgard. Hemsworth was George Kirk, father of James Kirk, in the recent Star Trek movie. As Odin, played by the accomplished actor Anthony Hopkins, is preparing to hand over the power of King, a small number of Asgard's rivals, the Frost Giants, enters Asgard and causes a distraction which keeps Thor from being actually named king. Thor wants to get revenge on the Frost Giants, but Odin tries to convince Thor not to be rash, and an argument ensues. They call each other names, and Odin takes away Thor's hammer and his powers and sends him to Earth.
Jane Foster is a scientist, played by Natalie Portman. Natalie is a pretty famous actress, having starred in three Star Wars films, although her acting was not that good. She has been in many other films, both good and bad, and recently appeared in Your Highness, reviewed here previously. As Jane Foster, she actually impressed me, because I have been dubious of here acting abilities. I saw Black Swan, and was not impressed, and of course the aforementioned Star Wars movies, which could have been poorly-written scripts. She portrays a great character in Thor, adding to the experience as a love interest, and a believable scientist, even though the character did not exist in the comic book, in an absolute sense.
Anyway, Jane Foster is studying electromagnetic anomalies in the weather in order to find actual wormholes, when she happens upon the fallen Thor. There is some pretty good comedy as Thor learns the ways of Earth. Meanwhile, Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. locates Thor's hammer which has landed in the same desert as Thor, but fifty miles away. Agent Coulson is played by Clark Gregg, and was seen in Iron Man and Iron Man 2. In the post-credit teaser from Iron Man 2, he finds Thor's hammer in the Arizona desert. This teaser turns out to be an actual scene in Thor. Clark Gregg is set to appear in the upcoming Nick Fury and The Avengers.
Loki portrayed by Tom Hiddleston, is somehow involved in the events that cause Thor's elevation to king to be interrupted. To say much more would be to give away too much, and I am not a spoiler. Hiddleston is a relatively unknown actor to me, but his acting is really good. He does a great villain, and a really good Loki. The energy and the brotherly rivalry between Thor and Loki is evident, and the drama is so believeable that you hardly think you are watching the adaptation of a comic book, it is that good. Even the resolution of the storyline in the later parts of the movie is unexpected, but superb. The plot does take a twist or two, and even though the outcome is already expected, due to the fact that the comic book series runs a span of decades, it manages to surprise.
Rene Russo plays Frigga, Thor's mother. She has only a few scenes in the movie. She was probably at her best in the Lethal Weapon movies of the 80's. Some other characters never appeared in the comics, but seem to have been created especially for the movies. Erik Selvig is Jane Foster's mentor in the Thor movie, yet I can't place his character in any comic book I have read. The actor, Stellan Skarsgård has a lot of cinematic credits under his belt, and will reprise his role of Erik Selvig in The Avengers, next summer. The other is Darcy, Jane Fosters assistant. Darcy Lewis is played by Kat Dennings, who was also Nora in Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist.
Thor is an entertainment masterpiece. It has excellent action sequences without too many different camera angles, although there could be less of that. The special effects are pretty good, too, and the acting is really top-notch. The audiences were pretty large, and the number of people waiting for the teaser after the credits was as much as half the number who crowded into the theaters to watch the movie on opening night. The story flows easily from one scene to the next, and at the end you are left with the feeling that you have just seen a really good movie. Even people who have never read a comic book in their life ill enjoy Thor. This is rated a Must See, with 5 Shurikens for fantastic all-around enjoyment. This is truly a white giant star in the comic book movie universe.
If ever there was a movie that has to be seen, Thor is it. Based on the Marvel comic book which was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in the 1960's, it precedes the other Marvel Comics adaptations of Captain America and the X-Men prequel, due later this summer. At the same time DC breaks from the old Superman and Batman habits to release the long-awaited Green Lantern. This promises to be a great summer for comic book and sci-fi movie lovers.
The movie, Thor, captures the essence of the original comic book series of the 1960's and 70's, although some changes have been made to the storyline in the interest of the big screen. The concept of adapting an entire mythology to a comic book was due to the comic book geniuses Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. They depicted the grandeur of Asgard, and brought Thor to Earth as a one-armed doctor who had been sent to learn humility. He found a walking stick while vacationing in Scandinavia, and learned that he could strike the cane on the ground, and be transformed into Thor. Thor became a superhero, and a member of the Avengers.
They evolved the contentious Thor-Loki relationship, which was an aspect of Marvel comics heroes of that time, in that they had extraordinary lives but they had real-life problems. Thor had his dear brother, whom he loved, but who was also prone to doing evil deeds. There was friendship, rivalry and forgiveness. Thor's father was the extremely powerful Odin, also the King of Asgard and the Realm Eternal. He was a tough parent himself, and Thor had to deal with a father who was beloved yet also was kind of overbearing, much like real fathers can be sometimes. People could relate to some of the human problems that Marvel heroes experienced, but which were quite absent from DC heroes, until much later.
The movie shortens the storyline somewhat, but does feature all of the main characters, including the alter-ego Don Blake, who was Thor's identity in the comic book. Also, Jane Foster, the scientist in the movie, was a nurse in the comic series. Thor's warrior companions from Asgard, .the Warriors Three, Hogun, Fandral and Volstagg, are featured in the film, very much like the original as they were in the comic series co-written by Lee and Kirby. As an avid reader of comic books in the day, I can say that Jack Kirby would be proud if he were alive to see it. The excellence of Thor surpasses the Fantastic Four/Silver Surfer movie, and at least two of the Spiderman movies.
The story begins with Thor, played by Chris Hemsworth, ascending to the throne of Asgard. Hemsworth was George Kirk, father of James Kirk, in the recent Star Trek movie. As Odin, played by the accomplished actor Anthony Hopkins, is preparing to hand over the power of King, a small number of Asgard's rivals, the Frost Giants, enters Asgard and causes a distraction which keeps Thor from being actually named king. Thor wants to get revenge on the Frost Giants, but Odin tries to convince Thor not to be rash, and an argument ensues. They call each other names, and Odin takes away Thor's hammer and his powers and sends him to Earth.
Jane Foster is a scientist, played by Natalie Portman. Natalie is a pretty famous actress, having starred in three Star Wars films, although her acting was not that good. She has been in many other films, both good and bad, and recently appeared in Your Highness, reviewed here previously. As Jane Foster, she actually impressed me, because I have been dubious of here acting abilities. I saw Black Swan, and was not impressed, and of course the aforementioned Star Wars movies, which could have been poorly-written scripts. She portrays a great character in Thor, adding to the experience as a love interest, and a believable scientist, even though the character did not exist in the comic book, in an absolute sense.
Anyway, Jane Foster is studying electromagnetic anomalies in the weather in order to find actual wormholes, when she happens upon the fallen Thor. There is some pretty good comedy as Thor learns the ways of Earth. Meanwhile, Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. locates Thor's hammer which has landed in the same desert as Thor, but fifty miles away. Agent Coulson is played by Clark Gregg, and was seen in Iron Man and Iron Man 2. In the post-credit teaser from Iron Man 2, he finds Thor's hammer in the Arizona desert. This teaser turns out to be an actual scene in Thor. Clark Gregg is set to appear in the upcoming Nick Fury and The Avengers.
Loki portrayed by Tom Hiddleston, is somehow involved in the events that cause Thor's elevation to king to be interrupted. To say much more would be to give away too much, and I am not a spoiler. Hiddleston is a relatively unknown actor to me, but his acting is really good. He does a great villain, and a really good Loki. The energy and the brotherly rivalry between Thor and Loki is evident, and the drama is so believeable that you hardly think you are watching the adaptation of a comic book, it is that good. Even the resolution of the storyline in the later parts of the movie is unexpected, but superb. The plot does take a twist or two, and even though the outcome is already expected, due to the fact that the comic book series runs a span of decades, it manages to surprise.
Rene Russo plays Frigga, Thor's mother. She has only a few scenes in the movie. She was probably at her best in the Lethal Weapon movies of the 80's. Some other characters never appeared in the comics, but seem to have been created especially for the movies. Erik Selvig is Jane Foster's mentor in the Thor movie, yet I can't place his character in any comic book I have read. The actor, Stellan Skarsgård has a lot of cinematic credits under his belt, and will reprise his role of Erik Selvig in The Avengers, next summer. The other is Darcy, Jane Fosters assistant. Darcy Lewis is played by Kat Dennings, who was also Nora in Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist.
Thor is an entertainment masterpiece. It has excellent action sequences without too many different camera angles, although there could be less of that. The special effects are pretty good, too, and the acting is really top-notch. The audiences were pretty large, and the number of people waiting for the teaser after the credits was as much as half the number who crowded into the theaters to watch the movie on opening night. The story flows easily from one scene to the next, and at the end you are left with the feeling that you have just seen a really good movie. Even people who have never read a comic book in their life ill enjoy Thor. This is rated a Must See, with 5 Shurikens for fantastic all-around enjoyment. This is truly a white giant star in the comic book movie universe.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Rio
Rating: 3.5 Shurikens
Rio is an animated movie from DreamWorks, in the best traditions of Walt Disney. It is the story of a blue macaw named Blu, one of the last of his species, who is taken back to the land of his hatching to mate with the last female blue macaw. . The place of his hatching is the Amazon rain forest in Brazil, near Rio de Janeiro, hence the title. The movie begins in that selfsame rain forest when Blu, recently hatched, is captured by poachers who take exotic birds from their natural habitat to sell in America. Blu falls from the back of a truck in Minnesota, where he is found by Linda, a little girl who takes him in and raises him. They actually grow up together, but Blu never learns to fly.
Linda's voice is the voice of Leslie Mann, whom I can't place in a movie role that I have seen. Blu's voice the the easily-recognized voice of Jesse Eisenberg, who was Zuckerberg in The Social Network, and also played in Zombieland. Years later, Blu and his human are doing just fine running a book store in Minnesota until the scientist from Brazil named Silvio convinces them to go to Rio so Blu can mate with Jewel, the last female of his species. The voice of Jewel is Anne Hathaway, who played Agent 99 in the remake of Get Smart, as well as The White Queen in the recent Alice in Wonderland. She is slated to play Catwoman in the next Batman movie. Silvio's voice is the voice of Bernardo de Paula, who is a relative newbie to the movie business.
Hijinx ensues when Blu and Jewel are kidnapped by poachers, helped out by a disillusioned and cynical bird named Nigel. Nigel, voiced by Jemaine Clement, was once a star who had it all, but now is reduced to a life of crime. The poachers plan to make millions off the rare blue macaws, along with a huge number of pilfered birds from the rain forest. Blu meets several other species of birds, both good and bad plus monkeys and a dog. Voices include Jamie Foxx and Will I. Am.The bumbling bad guys are reminiscent of Disney, and poor Silvio, the bird scientist, is ridiculous to the point at which he starts to drag the whole movie down.
The story is entertaining enough and the characters are sufficiently cute to get you through the movie. It does seem a little bit contrived in that it so much resembles the old theme of Lost Animal Trying to Find Its Way Home. It it never comes close to Madagascar or Ice Age in funniness, though there are a few good laughs. There is very little in the way of touching emotion like many animated features like Despicable Me and the Toy Story movies deliver, except very late in the feature. The voice characterizations are passable but not outstanding and fail to add much feeling, so the animation is left to carry the whole movie. Also, there are some musical trivia points made with some favorite tunes from the past, and some nice cultural elements such as Carnaval and the depiction of life in one of the most populous cities in the Western Hemisphere.
All in all, I give this piece 3.5 Shurikens, for splendid animation, good storytelling, and for staying out of the gutter for the humor. The spectacle of #d and vivid color is worth seeing it in the theater, but I would wait for the matinee when there are some children in the theater. Kids can add an air of excitement to the action scenes, and the matinee price will bring it more in line with the actual value of the movie versus the ticket price at around 15 dollars fro 3D.
Rio is an animated movie from DreamWorks, in the best traditions of Walt Disney. It is the story of a blue macaw named Blu, one of the last of his species, who is taken back to the land of his hatching to mate with the last female blue macaw. . The place of his hatching is the Amazon rain forest in Brazil, near Rio de Janeiro, hence the title. The movie begins in that selfsame rain forest when Blu, recently hatched, is captured by poachers who take exotic birds from their natural habitat to sell in America. Blu falls from the back of a truck in Minnesota, where he is found by Linda, a little girl who takes him in and raises him. They actually grow up together, but Blu never learns to fly.
Linda's voice is the voice of Leslie Mann, whom I can't place in a movie role that I have seen. Blu's voice the the easily-recognized voice of Jesse Eisenberg, who was Zuckerberg in The Social Network, and also played in Zombieland. Years later, Blu and his human are doing just fine running a book store in Minnesota until the scientist from Brazil named Silvio convinces them to go to Rio so Blu can mate with Jewel, the last female of his species. The voice of Jewel is Anne Hathaway, who played Agent 99 in the remake of Get Smart, as well as The White Queen in the recent Alice in Wonderland. She is slated to play Catwoman in the next Batman movie. Silvio's voice is the voice of Bernardo de Paula, who is a relative newbie to the movie business.
Hijinx ensues when Blu and Jewel are kidnapped by poachers, helped out by a disillusioned and cynical bird named Nigel. Nigel, voiced by Jemaine Clement, was once a star who had it all, but now is reduced to a life of crime. The poachers plan to make millions off the rare blue macaws, along with a huge number of pilfered birds from the rain forest. Blu meets several other species of birds, both good and bad plus monkeys and a dog. Voices include Jamie Foxx and Will I. Am.The bumbling bad guys are reminiscent of Disney, and poor Silvio, the bird scientist, is ridiculous to the point at which he starts to drag the whole movie down.
The story is entertaining enough and the characters are sufficiently cute to get you through the movie. It does seem a little bit contrived in that it so much resembles the old theme of Lost Animal Trying to Find Its Way Home. It it never comes close to Madagascar or Ice Age in funniness, though there are a few good laughs. There is very little in the way of touching emotion like many animated features like Despicable Me and the Toy Story movies deliver, except very late in the feature. The voice characterizations are passable but not outstanding and fail to add much feeling, so the animation is left to carry the whole movie. Also, there are some musical trivia points made with some favorite tunes from the past, and some nice cultural elements such as Carnaval and the depiction of life in one of the most populous cities in the Western Hemisphere.
All in all, I give this piece 3.5 Shurikens, for splendid animation, good storytelling, and for staying out of the gutter for the humor. The spectacle of #d and vivid color is worth seeing it in the theater, but I would wait for the matinee when there are some children in the theater. Kids can add an air of excitement to the action scenes, and the matinee price will bring it more in line with the actual value of the movie versus the ticket price at around 15 dollars fro 3D.
Your Highness
Rating: 2.5 Shurikens
Billed as a comedy and action movie at the same time, Your Highness dips into the toilet bowl for much of its humor. As an action movie, it is a decent story about a lazy and crude prince who is jealous of his brother's accomplishments, who yearns more for his brother to fail than to try to make something of himself. The plot is predictable, but there is plenty of action, and even through the very crude humor, the story is enjoyable. It seems to try to be something for everyone, but it doesn't have anything for children.
James Franco as Prince Fabious and Natalie Portman as Isabel support Danny McBride as Prince Thaddeus, who is the useless younger brother of Prince Fabious. Danny McBride costarred with Will Farrell in Land of the Lost, and some other less notable films like Pineapple Express. James Franco is a rising actor, having played Harry Osborne in the three Spiderman movies. We all remember Natalie Portman from her important role in the Star Wars prequel trilogy as Princess Amidala, and also from the movie V for Vendetta.
Fabious goes on quests with his Knights Elite, and enjoys the admiration of everyone in the kingdom, except Thaddeus. From his most recent quest, Fabious has brought back a virgin girl who was kidnapped and held in captivity for her entire life. He wishes to marry her, but the wizard who kept her captive has other ideas. He uses powerful magic to upset the wedding, and takes the girl back to his tower, where she is to meet her fate. Fabious and Thaddeus embark on a quest to reclaim his bride, Belladonna, played by Zooey Deschanel, who was Trillian in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. On the way, the princes are betrayed by someone in their midst, and when they flee, they are captured by wild forest people who throw them into a caged arena to fight a fearsome creature. They meet Isabel, who joins their quest to find the tower of the evil wizard, Leezar, played by Justin Theroux.
The story takes its twists and turns, but cannot pull itself free of the crude humor and references to maijuana, masturbation, and crude sexual references, some of which are funny in spite of being raunchy. In my opinion, the producers attempt to make a comedy more funny by adding the adult humor, but go to the toilet far too often to be called truly funny. Adolescent boys and immature adults should be rolling in the aisles, but anyone seeking an enjoyable time at the movies will have cringe at times at the crassness of this movie. Absolutely do not take small children to see this movie!
Other than the crass and raunchy crudeness, it isn't too bad of a movie. The action is good, and some of the acting is pretty good, and even some of the humor is pretty good. There are some decent special effects, and good camera work. Still, it is best saved for the NetFlix queue or the Red Box, but please don't watch it with little kids. At best I give it 2.5 Shurikens, crude humor taking away from a better production.
Billed as a comedy and action movie at the same time, Your Highness dips into the toilet bowl for much of its humor. As an action movie, it is a decent story about a lazy and crude prince who is jealous of his brother's accomplishments, who yearns more for his brother to fail than to try to make something of himself. The plot is predictable, but there is plenty of action, and even through the very crude humor, the story is enjoyable. It seems to try to be something for everyone, but it doesn't have anything for children.
James Franco as Prince Fabious and Natalie Portman as Isabel support Danny McBride as Prince Thaddeus, who is the useless younger brother of Prince Fabious. Danny McBride costarred with Will Farrell in Land of the Lost, and some other less notable films like Pineapple Express. James Franco is a rising actor, having played Harry Osborne in the three Spiderman movies. We all remember Natalie Portman from her important role in the Star Wars prequel trilogy as Princess Amidala, and also from the movie V for Vendetta.
Fabious goes on quests with his Knights Elite, and enjoys the admiration of everyone in the kingdom, except Thaddeus. From his most recent quest, Fabious has brought back a virgin girl who was kidnapped and held in captivity for her entire life. He wishes to marry her, but the wizard who kept her captive has other ideas. He uses powerful magic to upset the wedding, and takes the girl back to his tower, where she is to meet her fate. Fabious and Thaddeus embark on a quest to reclaim his bride, Belladonna, played by Zooey Deschanel, who was Trillian in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. On the way, the princes are betrayed by someone in their midst, and when they flee, they are captured by wild forest people who throw them into a caged arena to fight a fearsome creature. They meet Isabel, who joins their quest to find the tower of the evil wizard, Leezar, played by Justin Theroux.
The story takes its twists and turns, but cannot pull itself free of the crude humor and references to maijuana, masturbation, and crude sexual references, some of which are funny in spite of being raunchy. In my opinion, the producers attempt to make a comedy more funny by adding the adult humor, but go to the toilet far too often to be called truly funny. Adolescent boys and immature adults should be rolling in the aisles, but anyone seeking an enjoyable time at the movies will have cringe at times at the crassness of this movie. Absolutely do not take small children to see this movie!
Other than the crass and raunchy crudeness, it isn't too bad of a movie. The action is good, and some of the acting is pretty good, and even some of the humor is pretty good. There are some decent special effects, and good camera work. Still, it is best saved for the NetFlix queue or the Red Box, but please don't watch it with little kids. At best I give it 2.5 Shurikens, crude humor taking away from a better production.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Hanna
Rating: 4 1/2 Shurikens
Saoirse Ronan stars as Hanna, a girl of 16 who has been living in the frozen North with her father, a man who is a former CIA agent. Hanna is a special girl, not your average teenager. She is the product of a government program that was attempting to create a super soldier.
Eric Bana, who starred as Bruce Banner in the Ang Lee Hulk movie, turns in an impressive action part as good as any with Matt Damon or Liam Neeson. As a man named Erik, he has been keeping Hanna in isolation and safety all her life, teaching her to fight and speak at least five languages a well as giving her an excellent home school education.
A particular woman agent who goes by the name of Marissa, played by Cate Blanchett, is interested in Hanna with malevolent intentions. Ms. Blanchett was Galadriel in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and also in the Hobbit movies yet to be made. She has had many noteworthy parts, but none as important as Galadriel, in my opinion. She was in Robin Hood as Maid Marion with Russell Crowe, and had parts in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and the most recent Indiana Jones movie, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. She makes a convincing female bad guy, who will bend any rule and work outside the system.
At the start of the movie, Hanna starts to get curious about where she came from, so Erik lets her have a way to civilization. Hanna already knows that Marissa wants her, and is ready to meet her. Hanna is picked up by the American military and taken to a secret base in Morocco, which she soon escapes from. She is expecting to meet her father in Berlin, and her travels take her through Spain and Germany, while being pursued by some of Marissa's underlings. She makes some friends along the way, and has some interesting experiences. I don't like to say too much, because it might spoil a pretty awesome movie.
The premise of a super-human, advanced by genetic engineering, is nothing new. That fact does no detriment to Hanna, which is a top-notch action flick with a lot of good fight scenes and a very high body count. It does break new ground in that the hero is female, and so is the main villain. This movie is good an long, but not at all boring. One thing I tend to dislike about action movies is the excessive use of camera angles which attempt to get 8 or 9 points of view in 3 seconds. This movie is not guilty of that. It is fast paced in places, but relaxed in others. It gives the audience a chance to reflect, unlike some action movies which are non-stop action from beginning to end, and exhausting to watch.
Hanna is a great action movie. It is also good and long. Perhaps the body count is a little high, but some death is needed for the story. There are couple of good scenes which are almost educational, one in Morocco, the other a lengthy Flamenco dance. It gets four and a half Shurikens for a good story, a good cast, and really excellent action scenes.
Saoirse Ronan stars as Hanna, a girl of 16 who has been living in the frozen North with her father, a man who is a former CIA agent. Hanna is a special girl, not your average teenager. She is the product of a government program that was attempting to create a super soldier.
Eric Bana, who starred as Bruce Banner in the Ang Lee Hulk movie, turns in an impressive action part as good as any with Matt Damon or Liam Neeson. As a man named Erik, he has been keeping Hanna in isolation and safety all her life, teaching her to fight and speak at least five languages a well as giving her an excellent home school education.
A particular woman agent who goes by the name of Marissa, played by Cate Blanchett, is interested in Hanna with malevolent intentions. Ms. Blanchett was Galadriel in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and also in the Hobbit movies yet to be made. She has had many noteworthy parts, but none as important as Galadriel, in my opinion. She was in Robin Hood as Maid Marion with Russell Crowe, and had parts in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and the most recent Indiana Jones movie, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. She makes a convincing female bad guy, who will bend any rule and work outside the system.
At the start of the movie, Hanna starts to get curious about where she came from, so Erik lets her have a way to civilization. Hanna already knows that Marissa wants her, and is ready to meet her. Hanna is picked up by the American military and taken to a secret base in Morocco, which she soon escapes from. She is expecting to meet her father in Berlin, and her travels take her through Spain and Germany, while being pursued by some of Marissa's underlings. She makes some friends along the way, and has some interesting experiences. I don't like to say too much, because it might spoil a pretty awesome movie.
The premise of a super-human, advanced by genetic engineering, is nothing new. That fact does no detriment to Hanna, which is a top-notch action flick with a lot of good fight scenes and a very high body count. It does break new ground in that the hero is female, and so is the main villain. This movie is good an long, but not at all boring. One thing I tend to dislike about action movies is the excessive use of camera angles which attempt to get 8 or 9 points of view in 3 seconds. This movie is not guilty of that. It is fast paced in places, but relaxed in others. It gives the audience a chance to reflect, unlike some action movies which are non-stop action from beginning to end, and exhausting to watch.
Hanna is a great action movie. It is also good and long. Perhaps the body count is a little high, but some death is needed for the story. There are couple of good scenes which are almost educational, one in Morocco, the other a lengthy Flamenco dance. It gets four and a half Shurikens for a good story, a good cast, and really excellent action scenes.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Source Code
Rating: 4 Shurikens
The name of the movie doesn't really convey what the movie is about. In the movie, it refers to a secret military project that allows some one's consciousness to enter the time stream sometime in the past. The problem is that it can only happen eight minutes at a time. It is partly dependent on there being a catastrophic event where someone dies. The subject goes into the past and inhabits someone else's body, eight minutes before death.
The premise makes a nice jumping-off point for a time-paradox movie. Jake Gyllenhaal, most recently seen in Prince of Persia, plays Colter Stevens, a helicopter pilot who has been recruited to test the new system. He starts out not having been told what is going on, and soon discovers that the Chicago-bound commuter train he finds himself on is doomed to destruction. He awakens in his own time, to learn what has happened: A commuter train has been blown up by unknown terrorists, and they need him to find out what happened. They send him back again, and he re-experiences the events again. On the train, he finds himself talking to a pretty brunette, Christina Warren, played by Michelle Monaghan. She has been in a few good movies, like Mission Impossible 3 and Eagle Eye.
Colter Stevens is sent to the past, to repeat the same eight minutes, and every time, he dies. But each time, he gets closer to solving the mystery. His contact and handler is the lovely Colleen Goodwin, played by Vera Farmiga, an accomplished actress who has been in a lot of movies I have never seen. Jeffrey Wright is Dr. Rutledge, the inventor and head of the Source Code project. He doesn't turn out to be an overly sympathetic character. The cast is rounded out by Michael Arden, who is cast as Derek Frost, the villain of the story.
The movie explores the classic time paradox, in the model of Star Trek, in a story format similar to Groundhog Day. The story loses a little bit of credibility over the choice of villains. The elaborate plot to blow up a train as a cover for setting off a dirty bomb seems too much for one man. It is difficult to imagine how one would be able to perform such feats by oneself. There would certainly be plot complications if it had turned out to be a terror cell, so the producers retreated to the politically correct solo crazy white guy as the antagonist. The movie is quite enjoyable in all other respects, but the villain is a definite weak point.
All in all, this movie will be worth seeing in a theater, given the spectacular explosions, even though it comes up against much stronger movies. I give it 4 Shurikens for an entertaining plot line, good acting, and a satisfying resolution.
The name of the movie doesn't really convey what the movie is about. In the movie, it refers to a secret military project that allows some one's consciousness to enter the time stream sometime in the past. The problem is that it can only happen eight minutes at a time. It is partly dependent on there being a catastrophic event where someone dies. The subject goes into the past and inhabits someone else's body, eight minutes before death.
The premise makes a nice jumping-off point for a time-paradox movie. Jake Gyllenhaal, most recently seen in Prince of Persia, plays Colter Stevens, a helicopter pilot who has been recruited to test the new system. He starts out not having been told what is going on, and soon discovers that the Chicago-bound commuter train he finds himself on is doomed to destruction. He awakens in his own time, to learn what has happened: A commuter train has been blown up by unknown terrorists, and they need him to find out what happened. They send him back again, and he re-experiences the events again. On the train, he finds himself talking to a pretty brunette, Christina Warren, played by Michelle Monaghan. She has been in a few good movies, like Mission Impossible 3 and Eagle Eye.
Colter Stevens is sent to the past, to repeat the same eight minutes, and every time, he dies. But each time, he gets closer to solving the mystery. His contact and handler is the lovely Colleen Goodwin, played by Vera Farmiga, an accomplished actress who has been in a lot of movies I have never seen. Jeffrey Wright is Dr. Rutledge, the inventor and head of the Source Code project. He doesn't turn out to be an overly sympathetic character. The cast is rounded out by Michael Arden, who is cast as Derek Frost, the villain of the story.
The movie explores the classic time paradox, in the model of Star Trek, in a story format similar to Groundhog Day. The story loses a little bit of credibility over the choice of villains. The elaborate plot to blow up a train as a cover for setting off a dirty bomb seems too much for one man. It is difficult to imagine how one would be able to perform such feats by oneself. There would certainly be plot complications if it had turned out to be a terror cell, so the producers retreated to the politically correct solo crazy white guy as the antagonist. The movie is quite enjoyable in all other respects, but the villain is a definite weak point.
All in all, this movie will be worth seeing in a theater, given the spectacular explosions, even though it comes up against much stronger movies. I give it 4 Shurikens for an entertaining plot line, good acting, and a satisfying resolution.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Sucker Punch
Rating: 3 Shurikens
Sucker Punch is the story of a pretty young girl who is sent to an asylum by her step-father, who is trying to gain control of the inheritance left to her by her mother. In the intro, the step-father seems to have some sort of hand in the death of the mother, trying to get to her money. The mother's will leaves the money to her daughters, and in anger, the step-father kills the younger daughter and pins the blame on the main character, who we know as Baby Doll, and lands her in the asylum. The story takes place in the early part of the twentieth century, when psychiatric science was experimental, barbaric and somewhat cruel to the mentally ill. The asylum is a large, dark and ominous-looking facility in Vermont, which has residents who are mostly girls and young women. To establish the tone of the movie, the weather is cold and rainy, and there is no daylight at all throughout the movie.
The story is told in a fantasy format which is concocted in the mind of Baby Doll, played by Emily Browning. Emily played Violet, one of the Baudelaire Twins, in Lemony Snickett: A Series of Unfortunate Events, several years back. Her acting is passable, in that she delivers a sad and depressed-looking character, who in her fantasy worlds is athletic and determined to overcome all obstacles. Her fantasy is one where the asylum is some sort of hotel where the girls are used as slaves for the gratification of a seedy clientele. This is a psychological defense mechanism, and possibly represents a premise in the story that she may actually be slightly insane. As the story unfolds, there are several allegorical fantasy segments, fantasies-within-a-fantasy, so to speak. They feature most of the movie's spectacular action sequences, with all the violence a moviegoer can ask for. Much of the violence is directed at automatons and zombies, so we are spared large amounts of gore.
Baby Doll teams with some of the other girls to plot an escape from the asylum, form a team of fighters who do some fantastic deeds. She is joined by Sweet Pea, Rocket, Blondie and Amber. Sweet Pea is played by Abbie Cornish, who turned in a pretty decent performance as Lindy in Limitless, which is playing at the same time as this movie. See my review of that feature here. Her character is the cautious voice of reason, and the older sister of Rocket, played by Jena Malone. The other two girls are Blondie, a brunette played by Vanessa Hudgens, and Amber, played by Jamie Chung. The asylum staff are basically a crooked orderly named Blue Jones, played by Oscar Isaac, the actor who played Prince John in the Russell Crowe Robin Hood last year.
There is some pretty intense action, and some incredible animation as the different stories are woven into the fabric of the main story. The cinematography is subdued to the point where the movie is in black-and-white for the most part, and where color creeps in, it is muted. The style is very much like Sin City, The 300 and Watchmen, but without a graphic novel to be based on. The positives of this film, then, are good faced-paced action and superb visual effects. The soundtrack is pretty decent as well.
On the downside, the movie is very loud, and most of the acting is decent at best, but nothing worthy of award. The title, Sucker Punch, means a hit coming out of nowhere, being a surprise to the one assaulted. The relationship between the term and anything in of the movie is unclear, and how it became the title is unfathomable. The ultimate outcome of the movie is less than satisfying, because the viewer enjoys some very spectacular action scenes which have no influence on the outcome of the movie. They merely entertain, but do not contribute. In the end, one does not get the feeling that justice is served, and the feeling of vengeance fulfilled is utterly lacking. I came away felling a little bit cheated. I can see using allegory as a vehicle when the ending is served, and have seen it done much better. I do believe that there are the artistic types who so badly want to produce art that they forget what a movie is for. They give us weird and unfulfilling endings in order for their friends to pat them on the back at cocktail parties. I would have ended it much differently.
I rate this one a wait, as in wait for the video on NetFlix, and enjoy a microwave popcorn on a Thursday night, rather than plunking down thirty bucks taking a date to the theater. You may end up owing your date a chick flick to compensate for the time you made her sit there. There are many good choices of movies more worthy of your theater dollars. This one gets 3 Shurikens, for cinematic artistry and really good CGI action, but an ending that does little to inspire.
Sucker Punch is the story of a pretty young girl who is sent to an asylum by her step-father, who is trying to gain control of the inheritance left to her by her mother. In the intro, the step-father seems to have some sort of hand in the death of the mother, trying to get to her money. The mother's will leaves the money to her daughters, and in anger, the step-father kills the younger daughter and pins the blame on the main character, who we know as Baby Doll, and lands her in the asylum. The story takes place in the early part of the twentieth century, when psychiatric science was experimental, barbaric and somewhat cruel to the mentally ill. The asylum is a large, dark and ominous-looking facility in Vermont, which has residents who are mostly girls and young women. To establish the tone of the movie, the weather is cold and rainy, and there is no daylight at all throughout the movie.
The story is told in a fantasy format which is concocted in the mind of Baby Doll, played by Emily Browning. Emily played Violet, one of the Baudelaire Twins, in Lemony Snickett: A Series of Unfortunate Events, several years back. Her acting is passable, in that she delivers a sad and depressed-looking character, who in her fantasy worlds is athletic and determined to overcome all obstacles. Her fantasy is one where the asylum is some sort of hotel where the girls are used as slaves for the gratification of a seedy clientele. This is a psychological defense mechanism, and possibly represents a premise in the story that she may actually be slightly insane. As the story unfolds, there are several allegorical fantasy segments, fantasies-within-a-fantasy, so to speak. They feature most of the movie's spectacular action sequences, with all the violence a moviegoer can ask for. Much of the violence is directed at automatons and zombies, so we are spared large amounts of gore.
Baby Doll teams with some of the other girls to plot an escape from the asylum, form a team of fighters who do some fantastic deeds. She is joined by Sweet Pea, Rocket, Blondie and Amber. Sweet Pea is played by Abbie Cornish, who turned in a pretty decent performance as Lindy in Limitless, which is playing at the same time as this movie. See my review of that feature here. Her character is the cautious voice of reason, and the older sister of Rocket, played by Jena Malone. The other two girls are Blondie, a brunette played by Vanessa Hudgens, and Amber, played by Jamie Chung. The asylum staff are basically a crooked orderly named Blue Jones, played by Oscar Isaac, the actor who played Prince John in the Russell Crowe Robin Hood last year.
There is some pretty intense action, and some incredible animation as the different stories are woven into the fabric of the main story. The cinematography is subdued to the point where the movie is in black-and-white for the most part, and where color creeps in, it is muted. The style is very much like Sin City, The 300 and Watchmen, but without a graphic novel to be based on. The positives of this film, then, are good faced-paced action and superb visual effects. The soundtrack is pretty decent as well.
On the downside, the movie is very loud, and most of the acting is decent at best, but nothing worthy of award. The title, Sucker Punch, means a hit coming out of nowhere, being a surprise to the one assaulted. The relationship between the term and anything in of the movie is unclear, and how it became the title is unfathomable. The ultimate outcome of the movie is less than satisfying, because the viewer enjoys some very spectacular action scenes which have no influence on the outcome of the movie. They merely entertain, but do not contribute. In the end, one does not get the feeling that justice is served, and the feeling of vengeance fulfilled is utterly lacking. I came away felling a little bit cheated. I can see using allegory as a vehicle when the ending is served, and have seen it done much better. I do believe that there are the artistic types who so badly want to produce art that they forget what a movie is for. They give us weird and unfulfilling endings in order for their friends to pat them on the back at cocktail parties. I would have ended it much differently.
I rate this one a wait, as in wait for the video on NetFlix, and enjoy a microwave popcorn on a Thursday night, rather than plunking down thirty bucks taking a date to the theater. You may end up owing your date a chick flick to compensate for the time you made her sit there. There are many good choices of movies more worthy of your theater dollars. This one gets 3 Shurikens, for cinematic artistry and really good CGI action, but an ending that does little to inspire.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Limitless
Rating: 4 and 1/2 Shurikens
I went into this movie with no idea what I was going to see. It was the only movie starting at the time I got to the theater, so I took it. I hate walking in even a minute after the movie starts, let alone the trailers. I got into my seat as the screen came up, closer than I wanted to be because the theater was rather packed.
The opening was arresting. The sequence before the credits was a wild visual ride through streets and sidewalks as if someone took a camera and zoomed in a straight line several miles away. It went in the back of car windows, out the fronts, along streets and down sidewalks, into doorways. It was awesome! Sitting close to the screen as I was made it even better. The movie is narrated by the main character, who starts out in a precarious position, ready to jump from a tall building rather than be killed in some heinous fashion by the people who are trying to break down his door.
Eddie Morra is played by Bradley Cooper, who was seen in the recent movies The Hangover and The A-Team. The plot is that the guy is a starving author who is pretty smart, but has no idea what he is going to write about. It isn't clear how he could ever be considered an author, because it seems he hasn't written a thing. His girlfriend, Lindy, is breaking up with him because he is such a loser. Lindy is a beautiful blond, played by Abbie Cornish, who is also in Sucker Punch. She is rising in her career as he is going nowhere, and he reminisces about his very short first marriage, as a way of introducing a couple of people who figure into the story later on. He goes on trying to write his book, and walking around the streets of New York trying to clear his head, he runs into his ex-brother-in-law.
Vernon is played by Johnny Whitworth, who was a costar in 3:10 to Yuma, the remake. He also is to appear in the upcoming sequel to the most excellent Ghost Rider. Anyway, Vernon seems to have run afoul of some bad people, and is dealing in pharmaceuticals. He is like a drug dealer, but the drug is new and isn't illegal, although it isn't approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Vernon gives Eddie a clear little pill, which Eddie takes on the way home. This is where the movie starts to get good. Eddie is suddenly a genius, and everything in his brain works perfectly, and he is able to start his book.
After the drug wears off, he goes back to being normal, and seeks Vernon so that he can get some more. Vernon sends him out on an errand, and when he returns, he finds Vernon dead. He searches the place, which has already been thoroughly torn up, and finds the secret hiding place where Vernon kept the pills. With a supply of the wonder drug, which is called NZT, Eddie becomes a celebrity, and enjoys a new life where everything he does turns out right, because he is really smart when he takes the drug. Apparently, he was already pretty smart to start with, which really helps when taking NZT.
Like most things in life, there is a downside, and that is the dark side of NZT. Eddie learns the side effects, which cause some harm to the body and brain from having such high levels of performance. It's like steroids for the brain, with some consequences. Eddie decides to make the best of it, and tries with little success to use his enhanced brainpower to make money in a down economy. He is forced to see a loan shark, so that he can get seed money for his plan. The loan shark turns out to be a very mean person, one of several plot dimensions that make the story interesting. Robert de Niro plays Carl van Loon, who Eddie needs to help him make the big score. Then there is the mysterious person who seems to be following him around, with bad intent.
The first part of the movie is told in flashback, then comes back to the ledge, where he is ready to jump. But, does he? You'll have to go see it to find out. To say any more would give away too much of the story, and that is not what I am here for. I just want to say that this film has a lot to offer in terms of edginess, intrigue, and even good old-fashioned violence. The story is riveting, and the premise is very interesting. The intro at the beginning and a similar scene in the middle of the movie make a greatly entertainment effect. But, like with the wonder drug NZT, there is a downside, which is a possibly unintended message relating to drugs. The way the story presents a substance that is very much like an illegal drug, might give tacit support to the use of illicit drugs as a way of dealing with life's problems. There is a philosophical side to this story. I am a little bothered by that aspect of the movie. Parental guidance may be in order here.
Otherwise, I rate this a "See". I give it 4 and 1/2 Shurikens, for a captivating story, good acting, and all-around good entertainment value for the ticket price.
I went into this movie with no idea what I was going to see. It was the only movie starting at the time I got to the theater, so I took it. I hate walking in even a minute after the movie starts, let alone the trailers. I got into my seat as the screen came up, closer than I wanted to be because the theater was rather packed.
The opening was arresting. The sequence before the credits was a wild visual ride through streets and sidewalks as if someone took a camera and zoomed in a straight line several miles away. It went in the back of car windows, out the fronts, along streets and down sidewalks, into doorways. It was awesome! Sitting close to the screen as I was made it even better. The movie is narrated by the main character, who starts out in a precarious position, ready to jump from a tall building rather than be killed in some heinous fashion by the people who are trying to break down his door.
Eddie Morra is played by Bradley Cooper, who was seen in the recent movies The Hangover and The A-Team. The plot is that the guy is a starving author who is pretty smart, but has no idea what he is going to write about. It isn't clear how he could ever be considered an author, because it seems he hasn't written a thing. His girlfriend, Lindy, is breaking up with him because he is such a loser. Lindy is a beautiful blond, played by Abbie Cornish, who is also in Sucker Punch. She is rising in her career as he is going nowhere, and he reminisces about his very short first marriage, as a way of introducing a couple of people who figure into the story later on. He goes on trying to write his book, and walking around the streets of New York trying to clear his head, he runs into his ex-brother-in-law.
Vernon is played by Johnny Whitworth, who was a costar in 3:10 to Yuma, the remake. He also is to appear in the upcoming sequel to the most excellent Ghost Rider. Anyway, Vernon seems to have run afoul of some bad people, and is dealing in pharmaceuticals. He is like a drug dealer, but the drug is new and isn't illegal, although it isn't approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Vernon gives Eddie a clear little pill, which Eddie takes on the way home. This is where the movie starts to get good. Eddie is suddenly a genius, and everything in his brain works perfectly, and he is able to start his book.
After the drug wears off, he goes back to being normal, and seeks Vernon so that he can get some more. Vernon sends him out on an errand, and when he returns, he finds Vernon dead. He searches the place, which has already been thoroughly torn up, and finds the secret hiding place where Vernon kept the pills. With a supply of the wonder drug, which is called NZT, Eddie becomes a celebrity, and enjoys a new life where everything he does turns out right, because he is really smart when he takes the drug. Apparently, he was already pretty smart to start with, which really helps when taking NZT.
Like most things in life, there is a downside, and that is the dark side of NZT. Eddie learns the side effects, which cause some harm to the body and brain from having such high levels of performance. It's like steroids for the brain, with some consequences. Eddie decides to make the best of it, and tries with little success to use his enhanced brainpower to make money in a down economy. He is forced to see a loan shark, so that he can get seed money for his plan. The loan shark turns out to be a very mean person, one of several plot dimensions that make the story interesting. Robert de Niro plays Carl van Loon, who Eddie needs to help him make the big score. Then there is the mysterious person who seems to be following him around, with bad intent.
The first part of the movie is told in flashback, then comes back to the ledge, where he is ready to jump. But, does he? You'll have to go see it to find out. To say any more would give away too much of the story, and that is not what I am here for. I just want to say that this film has a lot to offer in terms of edginess, intrigue, and even good old-fashioned violence. The story is riveting, and the premise is very interesting. The intro at the beginning and a similar scene in the middle of the movie make a greatly entertainment effect. But, like with the wonder drug NZT, there is a downside, which is a possibly unintended message relating to drugs. The way the story presents a substance that is very much like an illegal drug, might give tacit support to the use of illicit drugs as a way of dealing with life's problems. There is a philosophical side to this story. I am a little bothered by that aspect of the movie. Parental guidance may be in order here.
Otherwise, I rate this a "See". I give it 4 and 1/2 Shurikens, for a captivating story, good acting, and all-around good entertainment value for the ticket price.
Rango
Rating: 4 Shurikens
Animation these days is quite amazing, at least the CGI stuff they put on movies. Some of the cartoons they put on television are sheer crap, but I digress. This is about Rango, the story of a terrarium lizard whose home is smashed on the road in the middle of the desert, leaving him lost and without direction. He stumbles upon a girl lizard of a similar but different species, who takes him to the town of Dirt. There, he finds adventure, heroism, a purpose to his life, and love.
The setting is the deserts of the American Southwest, and the time is the present. Johnny Depp does the voice of the Lizard called Rango, and it may be some of his best acting work ever. He was pretty decent in What's Eating Gilbert Grape and Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, and I enjoyed The Legend of Sleepy Hollow quite a lot, but his Jack Sparrow is weak and not very heroic. In Rango, he is convincing and brings a realistic voice to his character.
The story is a distillation of many recurring themes of Western movies across time. The characters are all animals, but they all have human archetypes, like the robber baron mayor, the western banker, hillbilly townsfolk, and gunslinging outlaws. Rango arrives in town, and tries hard to blend in and be accepted. In the middle of a drought, someone is buying up all the land. Only one landowner is left, and she won't sell the land left to her by her father. There isn't any hope, and the town is becoming more deserted by the day.
Rango, in his enthusiasm to win friends, weaves a tall story, convincing the people in the town bar that he is a dangerous outlaw himself. Somehow, Rango manages to defeat a serious threat to the town, and ends up a hero.When the bank is robbed of the last of the town's water, Rango forms a posse, and they ride into the desert. The mystery of what has happened to all the water for has to be solved, and Rango has to confront things that are far bigger than he had ever thought possible.
I'm not saying too much here, this is just the basic plot stuff. There are a lot of laughs as many Western movie cliches are exploited for their humorous potential, and there is really a good story with plot character interactions that make it a good story for all ages. The depiction of the Western skies at sunset and the star-filled night skies is fantastic. I have seen sunsets that were not as pretty. The desert locations reminded me of Death Valley. Visually, the backgrounds are true art.
The characters were not as appealing, being all grimy, but that would be the case in such dry conditions. The fur effects, eyes, and teeth were very realistic, and the mouth movements followed the speech perfectly. Mouth movements have got to be the most difficult task for animators. There were a few stereotypes in the movie, such as the little mariachi-singing birds who were convinced that Rango would not live to see the end of the movie, or the crow that was supposed to be an Indian. They didn't seem all that offensive to me, but some people might have thought differently.
There were some well-known voices behind the animals, like Ned Beatty, who played Lex Luther in the Christopher Reeve Superman movies, as The Mayor. There was Harry Dean Stanton as Balthazar the Banker, who played in the original Alien in 1979, and was the holograph from the future in the Quantum Leap TV series. Then, there was Timothy Olyphant voicing the Spirit of the West, a character that is obviously patterned after Clint Eastwood. We just saw him in I Am Number Four. Isla Fischer, who I have never heard of, but still famous to others. does the voice of Beans, the girl lizard that Rango seems to fall for. And finally, Alfred Molina, who played Horvath in The Sorcerer's Apprentice is the voice of the armadillo that has been run over while trying to cross the road.
Rango is a pleasant animated comedy, with lots of satire and quite a bit of slapstick comedy, and some deeper humor. It is a good film, but I think it would have been over the heads of most young children. The nice thing about animated features is that they can be made to appeal to larger audiences. They can have things happen in them that can't be done with live action, like talking animals riding chickens as horses. Unfortunately, having talking animals is not enough to entertain little kids for almost two hours. I just didn't see this as a movie that I would want to take a five year old or younger to see, and possibly not even up to seven years old. For myself, I think it was quite entertaining, and it was worth the time to see it. It gets four Shurikens for a good story, some decent laughs, and animation artistry.
Animation these days is quite amazing, at least the CGI stuff they put on movies. Some of the cartoons they put on television are sheer crap, but I digress. This is about Rango, the story of a terrarium lizard whose home is smashed on the road in the middle of the desert, leaving him lost and without direction. He stumbles upon a girl lizard of a similar but different species, who takes him to the town of Dirt. There, he finds adventure, heroism, a purpose to his life, and love.
The setting is the deserts of the American Southwest, and the time is the present. Johnny Depp does the voice of the Lizard called Rango, and it may be some of his best acting work ever. He was pretty decent in What's Eating Gilbert Grape and Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, and I enjoyed The Legend of Sleepy Hollow quite a lot, but his Jack Sparrow is weak and not very heroic. In Rango, he is convincing and brings a realistic voice to his character.
The story is a distillation of many recurring themes of Western movies across time. The characters are all animals, but they all have human archetypes, like the robber baron mayor, the western banker, hillbilly townsfolk, and gunslinging outlaws. Rango arrives in town, and tries hard to blend in and be accepted. In the middle of a drought, someone is buying up all the land. Only one landowner is left, and she won't sell the land left to her by her father. There isn't any hope, and the town is becoming more deserted by the day.
Rango, in his enthusiasm to win friends, weaves a tall story, convincing the people in the town bar that he is a dangerous outlaw himself. Somehow, Rango manages to defeat a serious threat to the town, and ends up a hero.When the bank is robbed of the last of the town's water, Rango forms a posse, and they ride into the desert. The mystery of what has happened to all the water for has to be solved, and Rango has to confront things that are far bigger than he had ever thought possible.
I'm not saying too much here, this is just the basic plot stuff. There are a lot of laughs as many Western movie cliches are exploited for their humorous potential, and there is really a good story with plot character interactions that make it a good story for all ages. The depiction of the Western skies at sunset and the star-filled night skies is fantastic. I have seen sunsets that were not as pretty. The desert locations reminded me of Death Valley. Visually, the backgrounds are true art.
The characters were not as appealing, being all grimy, but that would be the case in such dry conditions. The fur effects, eyes, and teeth were very realistic, and the mouth movements followed the speech perfectly. Mouth movements have got to be the most difficult task for animators. There were a few stereotypes in the movie, such as the little mariachi-singing birds who were convinced that Rango would not live to see the end of the movie, or the crow that was supposed to be an Indian. They didn't seem all that offensive to me, but some people might have thought differently.
There were some well-known voices behind the animals, like Ned Beatty, who played Lex Luther in the Christopher Reeve Superman movies, as The Mayor. There was Harry Dean Stanton as Balthazar the Banker, who played in the original Alien in 1979, and was the holograph from the future in the Quantum Leap TV series. Then, there was Timothy Olyphant voicing the Spirit of the West, a character that is obviously patterned after Clint Eastwood. We just saw him in I Am Number Four. Isla Fischer, who I have never heard of, but still famous to others. does the voice of Beans, the girl lizard that Rango seems to fall for. And finally, Alfred Molina, who played Horvath in The Sorcerer's Apprentice is the voice of the armadillo that has been run over while trying to cross the road.
Rango is a pleasant animated comedy, with lots of satire and quite a bit of slapstick comedy, and some deeper humor. It is a good film, but I think it would have been over the heads of most young children. The nice thing about animated features is that they can be made to appeal to larger audiences. They can have things happen in them that can't be done with live action, like talking animals riding chickens as horses. Unfortunately, having talking animals is not enough to entertain little kids for almost two hours. I just didn't see this as a movie that I would want to take a five year old or younger to see, and possibly not even up to seven years old. For myself, I think it was quite entertaining, and it was worth the time to see it. It gets four Shurikens for a good story, some decent laughs, and animation artistry.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
I am Number 4
Rating: 4 Shurikens
This was an interesting and actually quite enjoyable film, very much like a comic book series. The main character is one of nine young people sent to Earth after their own world is plundered by some very mean biker-looking aliens. The evil aliens are hunting down the nine survivors, killing them one-by-one. The third one has just been terminated when the movie begins, thus the title. Number Four is John Smith, not his real name, the young alien who is discovering special gifts, much like what we would call Super Powers.
Alex Petyfer plays John Smith, our hero. He's a reasonably good actor, and very good looking, which was evidenced by the large number of girls in the theater when I went to see it. You don't usually see girls in such numbers at sci-fi and comic book movies. The performance is pretty good, in that he delivers believability to the fantasy component, and also a realistic teenager in high school as the new kid who is chosen as a target of the big man on campus.
John has a guardian, who is a warrior from his home world, who keeps him a few steps ahead of the Magadorians. Timothy Olyphant, who has not seen any really big movie roles yet, plays Henri, who is the voice of reason and surrogate father to Number Four. He relies on his smarts and experience, because he doesn't have any interesting abilities, kind of like Batman's butler, Alfred. The Magadorian leader is played by Kevin Durand, who played Little John in last year's Robin Hood, which was reviewed here previously. Durand also has been seen in the Lost TV series, and as Blob in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
John and his guardian are on the run from the Magadorians, like John Connor and his mother, Sarah in the late Terminator TV series. As the movie begins, John is being flamboyant and drawing attention to himself so that Henri realizes that it is time to move on. The destination he has chosen is a town in Ohio, where there is something that needs to be revisited from the past. When they get there, John signs up to go to High School, where he meets Sarah, his love interest, and Sam, the nerd who is always being picked on because his father, who believed in UFO's, left him when he was a young boy and he believes his father was abducted by space aliens.
Sarah is played by Diannam Agron, a very pretty girl who is also a star of the popular Glee television series, which I have never watched. Her role doesn't do much to test the skills of an actress, but she does portray a likable and sympathetic character. Sam is played by Callin McCauliff, who was in a movie called Flipped, which was a nostalgic love story which I couldn't bring myself to watch. He makes a good sidekick for John, and adds a couple of good laughs to the movie. As a nerd, he does well.
Then, there is the other minor villain of the piece, Mark, the Big Man on Campus, the bully who picks on the nerd, the quarterback on the football team, and the ex-boyfriend of Sarah, who hasn't quite given up on her, even though she is not with him anymore. Mark is played by another near-newbie to the big screen, and delivers a good performance as a typical very-unlikeable high school bully.
When Henri and John run from the house on the beach at the opening of the movie, they burn a lot of personal effects, and then leave in a hurry. After they leave, another blond girl shows up on a motorcycle, and searches their place. After she finds something or another that tells her she is on the right track, she sets the place on fire, and leaves. As it explodes, she seems to have some sort of force field that protects her from the huge flaming explosion of the house. It turns out that she is Number Six!
We never get a name for Number Six, but she is played by Teresa Palmer. It may be recalled that she was in The Sorcerer's Apprentice, which is another movie I reviewed before. As Becky, she was helpless but brave, but as Number Six, she is confident and quite powerful. She comes to the scene closer to the end, with knowledge of her abilities that provides a nice counterpoint to John's inexperience.
Rounding out the cast is the shape shifting creature called a chimera. It is first seen as a salamander that jumps into the car when Henri and John set out for Ohio, the morphs into a cute beagle that suddenly appears as a stray, which John adopts. This reminds me of a vehicle from the Saturday morning cartoons, The Cute Animal. Johnny Quest had bandit, Space Ghost had the cute monkey, The Jetsons had Astro, and on and on. The chimera is just that sort of character, and it plays a pivotal role in the resolution of the story.
I am Number Four is well worth the time spent, and is among the top 3 movies of the week. The story is satisfying, the good guys win, the bad guys lose, the hero gets the girl, and the ending cries out for a sequel. What more can a moviegoer ask for? Four Shurikens.
This was an interesting and actually quite enjoyable film, very much like a comic book series. The main character is one of nine young people sent to Earth after their own world is plundered by some very mean biker-looking aliens. The evil aliens are hunting down the nine survivors, killing them one-by-one. The third one has just been terminated when the movie begins, thus the title. Number Four is John Smith, not his real name, the young alien who is discovering special gifts, much like what we would call Super Powers.
Alex Petyfer plays John Smith, our hero. He's a reasonably good actor, and very good looking, which was evidenced by the large number of girls in the theater when I went to see it. You don't usually see girls in such numbers at sci-fi and comic book movies. The performance is pretty good, in that he delivers believability to the fantasy component, and also a realistic teenager in high school as the new kid who is chosen as a target of the big man on campus.
John has a guardian, who is a warrior from his home world, who keeps him a few steps ahead of the Magadorians. Timothy Olyphant, who has not seen any really big movie roles yet, plays Henri, who is the voice of reason and surrogate father to Number Four. He relies on his smarts and experience, because he doesn't have any interesting abilities, kind of like Batman's butler, Alfred. The Magadorian leader is played by Kevin Durand, who played Little John in last year's Robin Hood, which was reviewed here previously. Durand also has been seen in the Lost TV series, and as Blob in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
John and his guardian are on the run from the Magadorians, like John Connor and his mother, Sarah in the late Terminator TV series. As the movie begins, John is being flamboyant and drawing attention to himself so that Henri realizes that it is time to move on. The destination he has chosen is a town in Ohio, where there is something that needs to be revisited from the past. When they get there, John signs up to go to High School, where he meets Sarah, his love interest, and Sam, the nerd who is always being picked on because his father, who believed in UFO's, left him when he was a young boy and he believes his father was abducted by space aliens.
Sarah is played by Diannam Agron, a very pretty girl who is also a star of the popular Glee television series, which I have never watched. Her role doesn't do much to test the skills of an actress, but she does portray a likable and sympathetic character. Sam is played by Callin McCauliff, who was in a movie called Flipped, which was a nostalgic love story which I couldn't bring myself to watch. He makes a good sidekick for John, and adds a couple of good laughs to the movie. As a nerd, he does well.
Then, there is the other minor villain of the piece, Mark, the Big Man on Campus, the bully who picks on the nerd, the quarterback on the football team, and the ex-boyfriend of Sarah, who hasn't quite given up on her, even though she is not with him anymore. Mark is played by another near-newbie to the big screen, and delivers a good performance as a typical very-unlikeable high school bully.
When Henri and John run from the house on the beach at the opening of the movie, they burn a lot of personal effects, and then leave in a hurry. After they leave, another blond girl shows up on a motorcycle, and searches their place. After she finds something or another that tells her she is on the right track, she sets the place on fire, and leaves. As it explodes, she seems to have some sort of force field that protects her from the huge flaming explosion of the house. It turns out that she is Number Six!
We never get a name for Number Six, but she is played by Teresa Palmer. It may be recalled that she was in The Sorcerer's Apprentice, which is another movie I reviewed before. As Becky, she was helpless but brave, but as Number Six, she is confident and quite powerful. She comes to the scene closer to the end, with knowledge of her abilities that provides a nice counterpoint to John's inexperience.
Rounding out the cast is the shape shifting creature called a chimera. It is first seen as a salamander that jumps into the car when Henri and John set out for Ohio, the morphs into a cute beagle that suddenly appears as a stray, which John adopts. This reminds me of a vehicle from the Saturday morning cartoons, The Cute Animal. Johnny Quest had bandit, Space Ghost had the cute monkey, The Jetsons had Astro, and on and on. The chimera is just that sort of character, and it plays a pivotal role in the resolution of the story.
I am Number Four is well worth the time spent, and is among the top 3 movies of the week. The story is satisfying, the good guys win, the bad guys lose, the hero gets the girl, and the ending cries out for a sequel. What more can a moviegoer ask for? Four Shurikens.
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