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kschang77
Reviews
Hanna (2011)
Unclear "mission" left me somewhat disappointed
Watched Hanna at a sneak preview screening in San Francisco. Overall, the movie is fine, though the unclear character motivation was a bit confusing and detracted from the overall enjoyment.
The character of Hanna (Ronan) seem to be influenced by quite a bit of anime, but certainly fresh for American mainstream cinema. Miss Ronan did a good job switching between the soldier's "thousand yard stare" and the wild-eyed wonder of a child who had not seen the world (though heard/read about it). It's also refreshing to see a girl who did not use a single bit of sexuality to do what she needs.
The character of Erik (Bana) is a general Bourne-influenced tough guy, nothing else came across. He's a secondary.
The character of Marisa (Blanchett) as a ruthless "heavy" is... rather one-dimensional. She's the primary heavy, but she recruited a bunch of secondary heavies along the way.
The action sequences are generally made quite well, with good hand-to- hand combat sequences, but there's a bit too much MMA / Wrestling moves like flip / body slam. Not quite enough gunplay or weapons play, IMHO, but it's still interesting.
The main problem I have with the movie is about character motivation. What exactly was the protagonist's mission? Was it simply to kill ________? If so, why? There was zero hints on what she's "ready" for, or why. They could have fixed that with only a sentence or two.
Same with the antagonist. What was her motivation?
The motivations are the biggest problem in this movie.
There were also a couple goofs (one's already documented) that I have issues with.
Overall, the movie is enjoyable, if you can rationalize the mission, the motivations and its aftermath.
Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation (2004)
CG to big screen looks okay, but overall a mixed bag leaning low
Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation (ST2 from now on) is an attempt to make a sequel to Paul Verhoeven's attempt to adapt Robert H. Heinlein's sci-fi novel to the big screen. The book actually covered very little about the war. It seems most of the inspiration for the sequel actually came from the Roughnecks, the CG animated series that followed. As a result, this movie featured all new characters, MUCH lousier CG effects in some segments, and couldn't quite decide which genre it wishes to stay in. The end product is a mixed bag that pleased very few people.
The no-spoiler summary is simple enough: a group of troopers is fighting bugs on some bug planet, where it's stormy and full of lightning. The troopers are surrounded on a hill, bugs running down below like Indians circling the settlers who had circled the wagons. A group stayed behind to hold off the bugs while the rest ran for an nearby abandoned outpost, and was about to get overrun when one of the troopers freed a prisoner inside, Captain Dax, who then helped turn the tide by activating outpost's defenses. However, Dax is a prisoner because he had alleged turned against the Confederation. Then the group left behind showed up with more survivors, and strange things started to happen inside the outpost...
By this time even without a spoiler you should be going "doh!" But the movie must go on. As a result, the movie turns from war movie, to mystery, to ______, and finally action movie for the climax and resolution. It never could quite decide what it wishes to be.
The CG effects are a mixed bag. The bugs are animated okay, of both types, but the gunfire is NOT. Instead of actually using blanks for the rifles, it appears all the gunfire and gun flashes were CG composites, and thus the gunfire looks like a small blue light flashing, nothing else. And the camera angles seem to deliberately AVOID showing shots as much as possible by including a lot of close-ups when one was expecting wider angles.
The sounds are nothing special, but this is a direct-to-video movie after all.
Acting is wooden out of everybody, but one does not expect an Oscar performance here, do we? Even the conflict between characters seems a artificial.
As a sequel, it actually ain't bad, as it's fairly faithful to the original, while adding its own twists. However, when the original wasn't that good to start with, one shudders at how low this one sank to.
Stealth (2005)
Popcorn action movie, nothing more and nothing less
Stealth is this summer's big budget popcorn action movie. It borrows liberally from all genres... a little of this, a little of that. The pacing suffers a bit initially, but once the action really gets rolling, it's rock-and-roll all the way. CGI effects are good, and explosions are exciting. Really, one does not see action movie for plot or characterization.
Having just finished the sneak preview of Stealth, this movie reminds me of so many movies... unfortunately it's all the clichéd parts. There's a bit of Terminator 2, a bit of Top Gun, a bit of 2001, a bit of Macross Plus (if you're into anime), a bit of Conspiracy Theory, a bit of Behind Enemy Lines, and even a bit of the Fugitive. Is there anything really ORIGINAL in this movie? Probably not.
Characters are as bland as they come. Ben Gannon (Lucas) and Kara Wade (Biel) are lovebirds who don't really DO anything... because Navy have this rule about fraternization, and Wade's being groomed for... better things. Henry Purcell (Foxx) is the token minority, and we can pretty much guess what happens to him in mid-movie... Still, Foxx delivered enough comedy without breaking character. Not quite his performance in Ray, but good for the amount of screen time.
The real star of the movie is EDI (pronounced Eddy), the robot plane, and all the special effects that goes into the plane itself, as well as the other three F-37 Talon advanced stealth fighters. To be blunt, Eddy had the most personality of the entire movie.
The effects are good, and the explosions are typical Hollywood. Only in movies do every missile and bomb leave missile trails, and stealth fighters leave contrails. They hired enough consultants to got rid of most logical holes, but there's a couple left they never did explain. Among them, some speed and geography problems.
Overall, if you enjoy action flicks, and lament the lack of modern fighter movies, then this is a decent summer action flick, as long as you don't think too much about it. It's solid entertainment for 2 hours, but it's instantly forgettable.
Equilibrium (2002)
New style of action, too bad it came after the Matrix...
Equilibrium wasn't a big hit in the box office mainly due to the Matrix fever. Everything is compared to the Matrix, and Equilibrium is no exception. While Equilibrium doesn't question reality vs. fantasy like the Matrix does, it does pose a fundamental question or two... what makes us human, and what price would we pay for peace?
The plot is about as old can be... a dedicated public worker soon realizes he's on the wrong side, and goes about setting things right. While not quite the "one guy against an army" cliché, it's getting close. But you don't watch Equilibrium for the plot... You watch it for the action scenes.
To be honest, the big fights in Equilibrium are a bit too few, so to speak. There were a total of... five. One in the intro (complete with goofy whoosh sounds), one kendo fight, one gun-butt fight in the raid, one all-out gun battle in the nether, and the one big long battle against 3-4 sets of enemies at the end. When you compared to the Matrix with LOTS more action, there is no comparison.
However, the action scenes that are there are real gems. Most appear to be action at full speed (except the gun-butt fight), and expertly choreographed. The idea of "gun kata" (imagine kung fu integrated with gunplay) is nothing short of genius. It's incredible to see one guy perforating six enemies surrounding him using what appears to be martial arts moves. Then there's the swordplay... The main guy's Zatoichi-style katana wielding is very unique and never before seen on Western cinema. The only complaint would be the fibs just eject a bit too much "dust" to be realistic.
Christian Bale, as John Preston, seem to got cast into roles where he doesn't need to display too much emotion, and this is yet another one of them. He seems to be the clean-cut killer who doesn't enjoy what he does but he does it as efficiently as possible, like a professional. Later, he starts to demonstrate some emotions, but it wasn't until the very last shot in the movie that he cracked a smile (you'll have to find out why yourself). He managed to portray a complex character quite well, from unfeeling killer to unrequited lover to panic-stricken father and back to cold-blooded killer (for a cause this time). Mr. Bale was able to demonstrate a range of emotions.
Other characters didn't appear much and thus aren't really worth mentioning.
The twists in the movie aren't that surprising, actually, as you can sort of see them coming for a while. Still, they are decently presented and logical, unlike some writers who put in twists for the twists' sake.
ALl in all, Equilibrium is definitely worth a rental or even ownership if you are fan of action movies that has a bit more of a brain behind all the adrenaline.