lagriff05 Reviews

The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

One of the landmarks of the thriller genre.

[8/10 · 26 August 2009]

Everyone knows this one; it's a pop culture gem and an icon in the realm of detective/thriller movies. Clarice Starling and Hannibal Lector, an unstoppable pairing and a pleasure to watch - Anthony Hopkins' performance is amazing, and Jodie Foster is always smart, snappy and cute as hell. The supporting actors are okay, sometimes becoming a little hammy or whatever, but never distracting from the film.

I think the main selling point of this is Hannibal himself, whose psychological musings and mind games make this movie stand out from others of its kind. Just take a look at his talks with Clarice Starling in the mental asylum - that is chilling. The other inmates are kind of creepy, but they're more silly than anything, and are overshadowed by Lecter himself. The dialogue in these scenes is just great, worth the whole price of admission by itself.

The movie flows well, wasting no time and generally being solid in every area, albeit not truly astounding in any of them, either. The story is basically as solid a detective story as you'll get, with every scene making you wonder what is about to happen next. Perhaps the most exciting part of the movie has nothing at all to do with the whole serial killer deal, as it is when Hannibal escapes from prison. You have to see it to find out what I mean - it is truly electrifying and suspenseful.

If you haven't seen this yet, you should rectify that immediately. This is a definite genre classic and certainly one any self-acclaimed movie buff needs to see. Recommended.

Being John Malkovich (1999)

John Malkovich is my friend

[26 August 2009]

Okay. Okay, I'm just going to...throw my hands in the air and disregard everything I ever knew about movies, because this film is just so...flat out bizarre, weird and boneheaded at times that there's nothing else to do about it. Let's just address the first and foremost question: Why John Malkovich? Did you just pick an actor's name out of a hat? Maybe I'm just too young or something, but god damn. You could have theoretically picked any actor, couldn't you? Did you just pick him because his last name is so catchy to say? I think that's why. Yeah, that must be it.

Second...IT'S A MOVIE ABOUT A PORTAL INTO HIS BRAIN. Which is admittedly a really interesting idea; it sure sold me. This movie is just...I don't know, it's really strange and it really leaves an impression on you. There are a lot of things I like about this. It's artistic, it's cryptic and it's got really excellent writing. As much of a head trip (ha-ha) as this movie is, it sure is good at keeping you drawn in. There really is a sense of comedic genius at work here, just in the plot itself, and it's underscored with a heavy layer of remorseful sadness: this is, at its core, a movie about longing and chasing one's dreams. When you cut out the weird bullshit, that's what it is, and the unique way in which the movie shows you this just makes it stellar.

But I do have some problems with this, like...god, what is up with some of the other comedy in this film? Like that stuff with the monkey with "childhood trauma"? And the whole first quarter of this is pretty much just completely insane. A lot of the time it just leaves you gaping at the screen rather than laughing, and I'm not sure that's a good thing. The jokes are rarely funny and are more confusing and odd than anything, and it hurts the film, especially in the beginning.

Being John Malkovich is one of a kind. It's really just...strange, but the gems here are hard to deny if you are actually crazy enough to stick around long enough for them.

Orphan (2009)

Great new horror movie.

[9/10 · 26 August 2009]

Horror has been real stale for a long time now, with only foreign movies like (REC) and the borderline-horror Let the Right One In bringing anything worthwhile to the table. But what about America, the country that spawned the most popular icons of the genre? It's mostly been wallowing in silly remakes of shitty Japanese movies or bad PG 13 ghost stories - and let's not even mention SAW and Hostel - since the last half of the 90s. It's time for a real turn-around movie to bring America back to the forefront. The Descent was good, and those horror comedies like Planet Terror and SLiTHER were nice distractions, but we need a really good, kickass return to why horror is good in the first place. With that said...Orphan.

I mean, good god. Where did this even come from? It's the most terrifying, depraved, downright evil movie I've seen out of a mainstream US theater in years! This movie is ballsy, not afraid at all to take risks or make you feel completely hopeless. I had no idea what was going to happen next at any turn in this movie; everything was shot in the dark and masterfully suspenseful. And yeah, of course the kid is evil, but she's built up in a way that makes you like her and feel sorry for her at first - something that even a good movie like Omen didn't do.

I was honestly completely surprised at a lot of the things this movie did, from the twisted opening sequence to the final bloody chase through the snow. This movie is brutal and does not hold back, and I like that a lot about it. It doesn't even try to sugar coat the children from harm - I'm obviously not going to say I like this about it, but that's what makes it so goddamn SCARY, and that is why it rules. Where other movies would come off as silly doing some of the stuff here, and while some of it is a bit "been there done that," it's all just executed so well that I can't say no.

Oh, and there are even a few comedic moments scattered throughout, adding an unexpected element of humor to the darkly chimeric mix here. They aren't too prevalent, but they're definitely noticeable. It doesn't lighten the mood, it just makes the movie more real. That's what any humor in a movie like this should do.

Yeah, there are a few dull moments, and a few kind of generic scares, but those are in the minority. This movie is just supremely good, definitely the best horror movie I've seen out of the US this decade. Highly recommended to those of you who can't turn down a good headtrip every now and then.

The Running Man (1987)

Solid campy fun.

[8/10 · 26 August 2009]

Adapted from a Stephen King novel I've never read, The Running Man is a movie that does not need much to remain entertaining and enjoyable, just a bunch of cool action scenes and a kinda-cute girl whose accent is just as thick as Schwarzenegger's - that was kind of funny to me. So really, it's about a dystopian future where Americans are a bunch of corporate whores who can't stop lying and cheating people out of things for two seconds. Arnold plays a wrongly-accused convict who has to survive a deadly game show in order to prove his innocence. And if you need me to tell you how it all turns out, you don't know how movies work.

This movie was enjoyable and packed a lot of fun, with some colorful visuals and an abundance of witty Schwarzenegger lines. The jumpsuits look pretty gay, but overall this movie doesn't fail to please.

Inglourious Basterds (2009)

A movie fan's movie.

[9/10 · 26 August 2009]

I haven't seen every Tarantino movie yet, but this one is clearly the best one next to Pulp Fiction that I have seen, I can say that much. Quirky, blazing with the kind of wit that Tarantino is famous for and topped off with a dose of nasty, gritty and rogueish violence. This movie is pretty sprawling, featuring a host of characters and plot niches that span over a huge 2.5 hour timeline, and surprisingly it manages to entertain for most of it, despite some scenes that could have been trimmed down for the sake of the story. Throughout its duration, Basterds delivers memorable scenes, memorable and witty dialogue and outrageously precise directing that all comes together for a smash hit of a movie, right on the bullseye.

And I think what sets this apart from the other recent Tarantino films is that it actually stands on its own two feet and delivers its story mightily and without the somewhat doddering eccentricity of Kill Bill or Death Proof - both of which were good, but not this good, not quite this complete and breathtaking. This is a movie fan's movie and I am proud to have seen it. Highly Recommended.

Hannibal (2001)

Cinematic vomit.

[1/10 · 26 August 2009]

Okay, who green-lighted this? I mean this is seriously completely unwatchable, from the lack of any kind of real plot to the stumbling, clumsy pacing to the atrocious ideas and "psychology" displayed here - there's just nothing good here at all. I mean, the main villain is a mangled homosexual cripple who will make you want to look at car crash victims as an alternative, and his ingenious plan is to feed Hannibal to a bunch of hungry, rabid hogs. That should be enough for you to skip this stinker by itself, but when you add in a horrible Ray Liotta and a climax that involves watching him stutter through his lines with his brain hanging out, it becomes a certifiable national disaster. This movie is just terrible, and I'd be willing to bet that the director and producer are the ones who really got lobotomized here. Avoid.

True Lies (1994)

Snappy, witty, action packed greatness.

[9/10 · 26 August 2009]

Kick ass. This is a sleek, stylized James Cameron blockbuster that combines action, husband-and-wife jealousy and comedy into one explosive package. Schwarzenegger and Jamie Lee Curtis take the front lines, and although they are about the last people in the world I'd put together as a couple in a movie, they work really well here, with Schwarzenegger's wit and simple charm clashing with Curtis'...well, the way she somehow exudes sexiness while not actually being the sexiest woman in the business. It's just how she acts I guess, and it works. Everything about this movie is just cool and quirky as hell, from that scene where Curtis goes on her first "mission" in the hotel to Bill Paxton's antics. It all comes together for a really enjoyable film.

The action is fast and fun, building up tension as the movie goes on, and the comedy is really brilliant too. Schwarzenegger has this deadpan, sarcastic style that I find myself smiling at all the time, even when his acting gets a bit weak, and yes, there is a scene where he rides a horse through a building and into an elevator. That about says it all. See this if you haven't.

Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

Shining majesty in film form.

[9/10 · 26 August 2009]

Winning Oscars is apparently easy for heartwarming romance/slice-of-life stories. But that's not to say Slumdog Millionaire doesn't deserve it, even if I think Benjamin Button should have gotten it instead. This movie is a very eloquent, artistic and cinematic venture that honestly left a smile on my face. Sure, it's a bit hammy and heavy-handed, but it works, and the story is told masterfully. There are some really tense dramatic moments here, and the movie being two hours long only feels like about ninety minutes - it flows wonderfully. The acting is great, even from the children, pulling you right in and keeping you there. And Freida Pinto is hot - even though she doesn't look a damn thing like the child version of her character.

The only thing I did find a bit unbelievable was how every question Jamal was asked tied into his past and childhood somehow. I guess it's kind of realistic, because that's just how we learn things, but it's still a bit odd that every single question would tie in so snugly. Oh well.

So Slumdog is a really good movie that I feel deserved the Oscar at the end of the day. It isn't really perfect, and I liked a few films from 2008 better, but am I going to complain when a film this good is getting such widespread praise? Hell no.

Last Action Hero (1993)

Laaaaaaaaaaaaaame.

[4/10 · 26 August 2009]

Last Action Hero is...I don't know, a satire of Arnold Schwarzenegger? A satire of action movies in general? That's the first problem, it doesn't know what the hell it is. At first you think it's going to be one of those fish-out-of-water movies where someone from our world is transported to one he doesn't belong in, but it also has the satire elements there, even though it isn't sure what it's a satire of. Then later on it seems like a sort of existentialist thing? Come on, you idiots, pick a theme and stick with it.

Whatever it is, there are some funny parts here that are really genuinely witty, tongue in cheek and clever, and some parts that just make you roll your eyes out of boredom, and that's the main problem with this - it's dull. It doesn't seem to have much direction at all as it plods on and on for what seems like forever, and while there are good ideas here and the intention seems to have been good, it's just too contrived and stale, and it doesn't really excite that much, as hard as it tries.

Austin O'Brien plays the kid in this movie in what is probably its most annoying point, too, dragging it down in mostly every scene he's in. Lame. We don't really need to have all of this self-reflective, obnoxious "it's a movie! it's a movie!" bullshit shilled at us, anyway. And why is he even doing it? What's there to gain by ruining what is supposed to be his favorite movie franchise? It makes no sense. This movie could have been a very funny and clever parody without the kid or any of the bullshit about the real world, or any of that, and you know what? It would have still been manageable as a full length theatrical movie if you took out all of that.

Well the ending FINALLY comes after what seems like aeons, as well as suffering through some painfully stupid scenes and a plothole or two - why would the kid need to get Jack Slater back into the movie? Wouldn't the real Schwarzenegger play him again anyway in another sequel? This makes the climax very hard to really get into, especially when it seems like they wanted you to. This whole movie is misguided, strange and not at all well thought out. Pass.

The Lazarus Project (2008)

A little half baked, but not bad.

[7/10 · 26 August 2009]

Decent low budget thriller that somewhat resembles Dennis Lehane's Shutter Island, of which a movie is also being made soon. Frankly, I'd rather watch that, but this is alright. There's nothing really gripping here, but the movie keeps your interest all the way through - albeit at times at the false assumption that it's building up to something truly horrifying, which it never does. But it's still quite interesting and you can tell they were really trying to make a good movie. They almost succeeded, if not for the truly wretched dialogue between the main character and this lady he meets. Good god, have these people EVER talked to a girl in their lives? In fact, all of the dialogue is pretty damn mediocre; you can tell the same person wrote it all because every character speaks the same way!

Oh well, aside from that, this movie is alright.

Jacob's Ladder (I) (1990)

Surrealism and horror - this movie just works.

[9/10 · 26 August 2009]

Jacob's Ladder is one hell of a movie. Very dark, very creepy - seriously, this movie is scarier than most real horror movies, and it doesn't even solely belong to the genre - and very cryptic. What it does right is downplaying the creepy hallucinogenic moments and ghostly specters to where they're not shoved in your face, and to where you'll miss them if you don't pay attention. This gave the movie a very dreamlike and surreal feeling that I haven't seen duplicated by most other horror/suspense movies - which this movie's uplifting ending and overall message sets it apart from.

There are a lot of scenes where I even felt like turning this off if I didn't already know how good it was. It's a very disturbing and dark movie where everything that can possibly go wrong, does, and everything that can possibly make sense never happens until the very end. Special points go to the hospital scene for being one of the creepiest and most disturbingly gleeful that I've ever seen. This takes pleasure in making sure you are as uncomfortable as possible and that you never forget it, and it is brilliant.

Regarding the ending, well...I don't like twist endings that much anymore. Too often they're flashy and gimmicky and don't really add much to the cinematic experience, and it really takes a good director to do it right. Jacob's Ladder is one of the ones that does it right, because your enjoyment of the movie does not in any way hinge on the twist or the ending. Yes, the twist is pretty drastic, but it's not shoved in your face and you don't feel talked down to when you finally see it. It's quite well written, and I'd cite this movie as an example of how to make a twist ending and a great movie overall.

Good stuff.

Memento (2000)

Problematic.

[7/10 · 26 August 2009]

This is just...I don't even know. I watched this years ago and was really blown away by its odd structure, but really it's rather simple once you get a grip on it - heinously simple, even. It's told backwards in a linear line and interspersed with black and white shots of the lead actor telling us the back story, so what? This movie is given a lot of credit for being complex, but it's not that mind boggling when you think about it. And the ending just feels like a huge slap in the face, especially after all that build up and guessing...it's deceitful!

And a lot of the first half of this is just too dull at times - especially the bits where the lead character is telling you about his client in the past who had a similar condition. It just feels too forced; they could have done it in a better and more interesting way.

But I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a good movie anyway. The deceit of the ending has its purpose and everything is fulfilled in the end; I just can't help feeling a little odd about it anyway. The strength of this movie just lies in the suspense that comes with it. Deceitful or not, it keeps you watching and guessing until the end. Sigh, this is a really dividing movie, as you can tell. You just don't know what to think about it, and I guess that's another good thing about it. Memento is a perplexing case and I would recommend it if you like thrillers - although you could always do better, this one definitely stands out.

Cube Zero (2004)

Sometimes gripping, sometimes not.

[6/10 · 31 July 2009]

This was such an awesome movie for about forty five minutes. I mean, it was dark, it was creepy, it was downright horrifying at times, transcending the sci fi/horror/thriller tag on it and becoming what could have been a cool political/religious satire statement. Its premise was original and exciting, even though the scenes in the Cube itself were a little stagnant, having already seen the first one before.

Then everything got boring and silly once the "official" characters were introduced. Bad acting (either too over-blown or too bland), a more boring and stale plot, and a loss of everything that made the first half so good. It wasn't bad per se, just lacking. This would have been far better as a short film.

Cube (1997)

Nail biting suspense and a lot of fun.

[8/10 · 31 July 2009]

This is the movie that pretty much started the whole SAW thing, along with David Fincher's Se7en, so you might be inclined to hate it for that, but it's just too good to argue with. First, the bad: I thought this movie dawdled a little too much on time-passing sequences in which nothing happened, which could have easily been filled up with more of the edgy and dark character-driven tension the rest of the movie so thrived on. A few things seemed a little too convenient, too, like the retarded guy knowing how to square numbers or whatever (this is partially explained by Cube Zero, but that's no excuse; it was poorly written). And I did not think Quentin's character was as believable as it could have been - he switched moods a little too fast.

However, everything else about this just rules. It isn't an amazing film, but it is really good, with the acting being surprisingly good (especially compared to Cube Zero) and the drama and tension being extremely well executed. The characters were given distinctive and interesting personalities and were only detailed enough for the story to work. The traps and the gore are well done, as they are not the focal point of the story and don't need to be - we're scared more by what's outside the cube instead of inside it! So this is a great film, immensely entertaining and always keeping you on the edge of your seat, certainly worth watching for fans of horror, science fiction or just gripping, nail-biting suspense in general. Get it now.

Cube²: Hypercube (2002)

I am speechless.

[3/10 · 31 July 2009]

Where do I start with this one? My brain is absolutely muddled. It has been turned and curved and thrown around and smashed into a pulp, and that was only the start of what happened after I watched the demented, drunken art-house flick from Hell that was Cube 2: Hypercube.

This was the sequel to the original Cube, with worse acting, no budget and not even a lick of common sense. Nothing about this movie is logical or cohesive at all. It starts off promising, like all the Cube movies do, but unlike its predecessor, it sinks into total insanity in the last half of the movie as the writers realized they didn't have any more ideas.

I mean, seriously. This is so crazy that it makes mental asylum patients look like normal, every-day people. It is so rambling and incoherent that I could probably get more sense out of Ozzy Osbourne than watching this thing again. About halfway through, the film just randomly drops out the plot and substitutes it with hideous special effects and half-assed bells and whistles and just sort of lets itself die. The characters are stupid, the plot twists predictable, and everything is blown out of proportion to the point where there is no suspense at all.

There were three (3) (III) separate instances where I said, okay, the movie has finally given up. Each one was worse than the last, all very bad Adobe Flash sequences that look more like crayon scribbles by a five year old, if they were animated and evil. This movie was so horrible that they were actually forced to jump BACK in time to make a PREQUEL rather than another sequel, and that about says it all. Avoid.

The Hangover (2009)

Hung Over from the Hangover.

[8/10 · 26 July 2009]

Hell, another good 2009 movie. For all my grievances about not being able to see Up, Moon and The Brothers Bloom all in one week, it seems like all of it is finally paying off, as I found this movie very entertaining.

The comedy is hit and miss, but to be fair, it's mostly hit, with my only real criticism being that the characters are kind of stock - but then again, they're still enjoyable and really fun to watch, and surprisingly developed and well written in the end, too. The dialogue is good and the first forty five minutes or so are really good, with the random suspense mixture throwing you for loop after loop until the conclusion. The comedy, when it's really "on," is delightfully vulgar and silly, and the pace of the movie is great, sending you on a wild adventure that you won't forget any time soon, full of laughs.

The ending seems to drag on a bit, but again, nothing that really hurts the movie. The Hangover isn't a modern classic, but it's definitely a good movie, and it kept me interested. Recommended. I really did like what they did with the ending credits, that was just great. Set this movie apart from others; and it didn't even make you wait until the ages of credits were done to see anything extra.

12 Rounds (2009)

Vapid.

[2/10 · 26 July 2009]

This movie is just retarded. It's basically nothing more than a badly acted vehicle for pro wrestler John Cena to star in a poorly written Die Hard with a Vengeance ripoff. I was pretty excited when I heard was this was going to be about, but unfortunately it is bogged down horribly by very poor acting, which leads to shallow characters and poorly delivered lines, which leads to the death of any tension that could possibly come from the movie's plot.

Also, when Die Hard with a Vengeance did this, they had like three or four challenges that Bruce Willis had to do, and they were stretched out over a long period of time; generally exciting and fun to watch. With this movie, it's twelve challenges, and they're all done in rapid succession. This movie isn't believable, it isn't exciting and it isn't endearing. Does any of this sound good to you? I didn't think so.

The Haunting in Connecticut (2009)

Surprisingly good.

[8/10 · 19 July 2009]

I did not expect this movie to be good. Yeah, I was so put off by puerile horror movies I actually passed up a date to go see this thing in March. Well, it turns out it's really not bad at all! Yes, twenty something years later they finally got Poltergeist right; this movie is a kick-ass ghost story with some seriously shocking scenes. Yeah, there are a few "trendy" moments here, and there was one scene I really hated - when the exorcism is going on and the camera is flickering, it's just annoying - but overall this is surprisingly creepy and compelling. The ending was a little sappy, and I didn't think the mother character was particularly likable, but she did an okay job. That's another thing I found particularly good here: the acting on most levels was pretty damn good for this genre. Impressive.

There were a few bits they skimped out on, but mostly they did good. This movie was a nice little surprise. See it if you like horror.

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

Surreal and entertaining.

[7/10 · 28 June 2009]

This is basically a movie about two robbers, their hostages and a host of drunken truckers and bikers fighting off vampiric strippers in Mexico. Sound good? OK, well, welcome to Robert Rodriguez' From Dusk Till Dawn, the only movie I've ever seen that has managed to so effectively make you afraid of mostly naked women. That has to be some kind of an accomplishment, and Quentin Tarantino is in this movie too - with a writing credit and a healthy post-Pulp Fiction sensibility to boot. That only adds to the surreality of the whole thing.

So the movie pretty much jettisons along at rocket speed, with lots of silly moments and some really cool head explosions and gore later on when the slaying starts literally out of nowhere. Why are there vampires in Mexico? I don't know, all I know is that I'm not visiting any strip bars down there. This movie is worth watching though.

The Shining (1980)

I am impressed.

[9/10 · 27 June 2009]

I was originally going to give this a slightly lower score, but it really is a very good movie. But let's be serious; as a book-to-movie adaptation this pretty much fails, as it takes an entirely different view of the story as compared to Stephen King's original novel. For the first half hour or forty five minutes of this movie, you will be questioning why certain things were not added, why certain things were changed and why everything else, but by the end you'll be hooked because this movie knows how to pull the scares with efficiency and great measure.

The problems are as follows: there is barely any tension in the beginning of the film, no descent into madness or inner conflict with the Jack character. Where was that? This movie just skipped all of that and sort of jumped right into things, and while I enjoyed it, it could have been done better than it was. It didn't make any sense the way it was here, and the character development was pretty much a zero for every character. The first half of this film just sort of speeds by without really setting much up – don't get me wrong, this is great for what it is, but it would have been a real masterpiece if we had been given a slightly altered beginning that showed us more of Jack's "normal" side, given us a reason to doubt his spiral into madness later on. And I don't think this movie really elaborated on the whole "shining" concept much, which is silly considering the name of the movie, but whatever.

We really do have to work with what we're given, and honestly, this really is a horror classic when you get down to bare bones. I mean, once things really kick off at about the hour and a half mark, the movie takes no prisoners. And by the two hour mark, it doesn't matter whether or not you want to see stuff from the book on the screen, because Stanley f*cking Kubrick is SCARING THE HELL OUT OF YOU. Seriously, the last half hour of this movie rules, everything about it does.

Another great thing about this movie? Jack Nicholson. At first I thought he didn't fit the part of Jack Torrance, but really that was just because of the inconsistent pacing I mentioned above. No. Jack Nicholson's tremendous screen presence is one of the best things about this. He's just so entertaining to watch, even when he over-emotes things a bit. He does a really great job, even just playing "himself."

One thing this whole movie does really well is suspense and tension, with ruthless camera angles creating a horrific portrait that you will not forget. This movie might be lacking as an adaptation, but that's the thing I've been learning lately with these things: you can't have a great movie that is also a book adaptation, because they're just two different mediums that require different things in order to be good. Yeah, Kubrick changed a lot here, but what came out in the end was really a very successful and well made horror movie that succeeds at what it is trying to do. The Shining is a blood-soaked horror classic that you won't want to miss if you haven't seen it already.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Awesome, awesome, awesome.

[10/10 · 27 June 2009]

The differences between this and the first one are just night and day. The first one was good; very good, even, but this is just a whole other level of badassery. I'm going to have to divide this review into factions to explain it:

The Action: The biggest feature here that everyone seems to talk about is the Liquid Terminator, or T1000, and goddamn if I'm not going to agree with them, because he is truly awesome. The action here is a lot of the time just proportionate to how create whatever the T1000 is doing is, with all of his metamorphic features. But there are still enough cool explosions here to satisfy me, too.

The Story: A quite archetypal (and brilliantly told) tale of warning of apocalypse and action heroics, T2 also possesses an interesting moral qualm partially through involving human life and the intricacy within. T2 packs a little of just about everything, from action to science fiction to romance to drama, and it ties it all together in an explosive package that nobody should miss. There are a lot of cool little themes here too, like how the kid teaches Arnold things - and how the "no killing people" thing is carried through with such style - or the evolution of Sarah Connor's character from the first movie to this one, and all of this interspersed with the high-octane action makes for a hugely gratifying experience.

The epic scope, vision and dynamics of this movie are just incredible. It does so much and yet never manages to lose the viewers at all like some other movies might. Terminator 2 is a superlative movie and definitely one of, if not THE, best sequels ever made. See it if you haven't already, and remember, you CAN change your destiny.

Watchmen (2009)

Good but not great. Very faithful though.

[7/10 · 27 June 2009]

Well, the big day is finally here, and we've all been waiting for various amounts of time for the film adaption of the popular comic book spectacle known only as Watchmen. Made by the so-called visionary director of recent cinematic borefest 300, this movie was obviously a big target on everybody's radar, and I wasn't sure what to think of it - how could anyone, let alone Zack Snyder, make a film adaption of a book as layered, complex and involving as Watchmen? The answer to that question is, they took the easiest way out and just made the movie scene-for-scene with the book. Not a bad idea in the end, although there were a few minor changes. I'm quite frankly surprised how much fun this was to watch.

I think the main draw here for the comic-book fans is the number of not-so-subtle nods to them in the way that the movie really did pull most of the scenes here right out of the book, dialogue and all. I mean, word for word, seriously. The most shocking part of this to me, aside from the abysmal opening sequence and the stupidly gory fight scene in the allyway, was the Dr. Manhattan soliloquy on the moon, which was actually pretty much carried out in full, flashbacks and all. Rorschach's journal is vocalized a lot of the time, too, and I kind of expected that. The flashbacks are all done with high regard to the novel, and a lot of the time I was just sort of nodding my head along with it, as the book was still fresh in my memory and none of it really surprised me.

The violence was heavy, bloody and dark as Hell, and I was much more entertained here than I was watching big, beefy men with no shirts on sloooooowly stab each other to death in...you know, that other movie. Like I said, the beginning is silly, with the violence being kind of pointless and very poorly constructed, but after that it gets better. The scenery is awe-inspiring, with huge, bright, vivid landscapes filled with shadows and intricate details and everything else that's just icing on the cake. Just look at the city streets; V for Vendetta wishes it looked that good. And the scenes on Mars...holy hell! The costume designs, too, are all amazing, and it's a slap in the face to other comic book films that they made everyone look so much like they did in the original book. I mean...aside from Ozymandias, they look like they jumped right out of Alan Moore's graphic novel.

Okay, so enough book comparisons, how was the movie as a movie? Well, this was very long, very detailed, and very over the top in every aspect. The explosions are loud, and they're bright, too; I had to cover my eyes a few times. The story is told in a very jumpy comic-book-esquire format, which is no surprise, although honestly I would have preferred a totally different adaption by a smart director like Chris Nolan instead. Everything moves fast, so fast that it gives the illusion of the movie being shorter than it is (and also being ironic in the way that 300 dragged more than a car with flat tires). The story is very stylized and charismatic, with the use of several songs during the "bigger" moments that I actually liked a lot; they added an extra special something to the movie that I found charming and invigorating, even. Not something I'd like to see in every movie, but it works surprisingly excellently in this one. And yes, Dr. Manhattan's speech does get a bit tedious - working only in the book format, apparently; a direct copy-paste of the novel dialogue to a cinematic form is not a good idea - but for newcomers, I imagine it will at least be interesting to listen to, if not too long. And the great special effects will even keep the comic fans watching.

The ending is quite a spectacle, with a new bit added in that I found quite cool; won't spoil it, though. It is a lot darker in some ways, a lot lighter in others, and more Hollywood-ized, and I found that it worked. Watchmen is about as good of a straight-ahead comic book adaption as we'll get these days, so far at least, and although it is not perfect, I found it extremely entertaining and definitely worth re-watching. It isn't particularly life-changing, lacking most of the gravity and weight of the novel, but it is a provocative, interesting look at superhero films, and those who have never experienced the novel before will be in for a real treat. Recommended.

The Final Conflict (1981)

Awful degenerate horror-lite swill.

[4/10 · 27 June 2009]

So, what has cartoonish, silly scenes where idiots try to capture their enemy and fail unanimously? And what has over-long, pointless dialogue and scenes that don't really leave an impact on you, with few of any merit at all? The Omen III, of course. This movie is just boring, with little that kept me interested after the very first death scene. The characters are flat and unemotional, the plot is vague - did we miss a movie here? - and overall everything is just extraordinarily mediocre. Half the time it's like the Satanic version of the god damn Looney Tunes, what with how those priests set up traps to try and "catch" Damien. That first sequence with the guy falling off the rafters was bordering on comical, and the rest are not much better. The other half it's just excruciating to have to listen to the self important piddle from the vain, self important lead character. Just skip this drivel entirely; what a waste of time.

Angels & Demons (2009)

Faithful and unremarkable.

[6/10 · 27 June 2009]

I remember reading the Dan Brown book about four years ago now, and here I am watching the movie. First things first, let me just say what a remarkable job the director and writer did keeping everything true to the original novel, with only a few things that I can remember not being here - quite a remarkable feat, and between this and Watchmen, 2009 is truly a year for great book-to-movie adaptations.

However, really this is just a standard action movie otherwise, as it isn't really pulled off with enough gusto to really remain captivating. The acting is passable, the directing is passable...everything is just rather adequate. It is a lot of fun at times, but it's also a bit boring at times - possibly reflecting here on Dan Brown instead of the screenwriters? Whatever the cause, this movie is a bit of a mixed bag between good stuff and stuff that will make you want to fast forward a bit. Angels and Demons may not be a genre transcending movie but it is a lot of fun, and if you're looking for a summer blockbuster...well, really, I guess you could do a lot worse than this.

Lost in Translation (2003)

Spellbinding.

[10/10 · 27 June 2009]

This is a phenomenal movie centered around two lonely, misplaced people played by Bill Murray and Scarlet Johanson as they are both in Japan for career reasons. The drama level is high and the acting is great on all counts, with the atmosphere being mostly quiet and personal - certainly not the slick sheen of some other modern films. What I mainly like about this film is the incredibly realistic nature of it - it's just a movie about people, that's pretty much it. No pretension, no gimmicks, just a touching, funny and sometimes sad story about people and the way their lives interact and the way they think. That takes more talent than you'd think.

I especially like how the movie has a little more respect for its audience and doesn't just lapse into a traditional romantic storyline with the typical trappings of that sort of style. Lost in Translation is interesting in that it doesn't do anything you'd expect - the characters never sleep together, there are no gratuitous sex scenes (or sex scenes at all), and when they finally kiss at the end, it's more sad than triumphant or sappy. Sure, these things aren't huge, but it's the little things that really matter in movies, and Lost in Translation emphasizes this more than anything.

This movie doesn't sugar coat anything and it doesn't try to be any more cinematic than it has to be, and in that regards, it is worth a hundred miles more than any pre-processed comedy or romance movie you'll find some other big stars starring in.

Lost in Translation is a movie that is just extremely pleasant to watch. Not everyone will like it, but a great many people will, and I'd recommend this wholeheartedly to anyone who likes and appreciates the art of film. Plus one for Focus; I'll be checking more of these guys' movies out.