Shadowman82 Reviews

Quantum of Solace (2008)

Not bad but not great

[12 March 2009]

The latest Bond entry is something of a mixed bag . While Daniel Craig continues to impress with his gritty performance of Bond and the exchanges between Bond and M are first rate the movie does lack in comparison to a lot of previous Bond Films .

For one the choppy editing during the opening action sequences is annoying and gimmicky . The villain is boring and presents very little threat .

Also as far as the score by David Arnold goes while not as bad as let's say the score for Goldeneye it's pretty uninspired considering David Arnold started off so great with Tomorrow Never Dies and The World is not Enough . He seems to however get worse with each movie . Maybe they should get John Barry to come out of retirement .

Overall not the greatest film .

Red Dragon (2002)

A good thriller

[8/10 · 15 May 2003]

This adaption of Thomas Harris'novel ( I don't want to call it a remake of Manhunter ) is a step up from Hannibal . Anthony Hopkins returns as Hannibal and he is creppier than he was in Hannibal which is good but it's a bit hard to accept that this movie is supposed to take place before Silence of The Lambs with Hopkins looking considerably older here.

Ed Norton plays an FBI agent who like Clarice has to enlist the help of Lecter to find the serial killer known as The Tooth Fairy . The difference here is that Norton's character is the one that put Hannibal behind bars or glass rather . The rest of the cast is also good .

Director Brett Ratner is going for suspense and he succeeds allthough the film isn't quite as good as Silence .

More good news comes from composer Danny Elfman who delivers a good score.

Hannibal (2001)

A pretty good sequel

[7/10 · 15 May 2003]

Who could resist another movie with Anthony Hopkins once again chewing the scenery as Hannibal Lecter ? In this sequel to Silence of The Lambs Hopkins still does a great job allthough he is not quite a creepy as he was in the previous film . Julianne Moore takes over for Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling and she does pretty good , allthough I prefered Foster.

Unlike Silence of The Lambs the emphasis seems to be more towards violence rather than suspense which makes this one less effective than Silence . Even so Ridley Scott delivers a solid thriller .

Hans Zimmer's score is not bad but nothing to writte home about either.

The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

A great creepy thriller !

[10/10 · 15 May 2003]

Silence of The Lambs is a real creepy little thriller . In my opinion it's one of the best thrillers ever made . Anthony Hopkins appears in his first and most effective performance as Dr.Hannibal Lecter aka Hannibal The Cannibal . And Jodie Foster plays Clarice Starling the FBI agent in training who hopes to catch a serial killer nicknamed Buffalo Bill with the help of Lecter . Both Hopkins and Foster are great and they truly deserved the Best actor/actress oscars . The rest of the cast is also very good.

Director Jonathan Demme puts his money on suspense rather than blood and guts and yet he shows violence in a brutal way when it is called for which is certainly a very good move .

Adding to the creepiness is a good score by Howard Shore.

40 Days and 40 Nights (2002)

Pretty lame !

[2/10 · 7 May 2003]

Here we have another film starring everybody's favourite dope turned actor Josh Hartnett . In this one he plays a young man who vows to give up sex and masturbation for 40 days . Well that's a potentially funny premise but laughs are very scattered in this film and any material that might be funny just goes to hell with Josh Hartnett who can't even do this part right.

If you're looking for laughs than don't turn to this movie.

Lake Placid (1999)

A fun black comedy !

[7/10 · 7 May 2003]

This monster movie is quite alot of fun . It's full of black comedy and sarcasm . The film also features a good cast . Despite the fact that this film isn't mean to be serious it contains some pretty gory scenes and some really good special effects . Even the CGI animated Crocodile looks very good .

Also a good score by John Ottman adds to the film . This is one of those films you'll want to watch with a bunch of friends .

The Jackal (1997)

A great thriller !

[9/10 · 7 May 2003]

This remake of "Day of The Jackal " is a truly great thriller . It features a great cast which includes Bruce Willis and Richard Gere . It's great to see Willis in a "bad guy" role for a change and he does really well with it which once again proves that Willis is a good actor and not just some action hero .

The film is truly exciting , it won't let you go for a second .

Another plus is a good score . Highly recommended !

Anaconda (1997)

A cool monster flick !

[7/10 · 7 May 2003]

Anaconda is another one of those Monster movies but it's actually a good one. The story is simple and the film certainly isn't too deep and involving but that doesn't mean it's not fun to watch . The star of this film isn't the giant Anaconda but actor John Voight who gives a great over the top performance as a snake hunter . As far as the rest of the cast is concerned most of them are quite good , except Ice Cube gives the usual rapper turned actor performance . Jennifer Lopez on the other hand is a bit better.

As far as the special effects go the CGI animated snake looks a bit fake at times but the mechanical snake looks pretty good .

Another plus for the movie is a good score by Randy Edelman . If you're looking for a fun and cool monster movie then check this one out , if you're looking for something with alot of substance then look elsewhere.

Jason X (2001)

Another space horror flick!

[3/10 · 30 April 2003]

Why do they always have to put popular horror characters into outerspace ? This film is another lame ass sequel with bad actors ( except Hodder as Jason and David Cronenberg in a cameo) . On the plus the movie contains some good gore effects but the rest of the effects once again look cheap .

Jason Goes to Hell (1993)

Okay movie

[5/10 · 30 April 2003]

The biggest fault of this movie is that Jason spends much of his time in the body of other people . On the plus side it contains some great Make up effects , the other special effects seem a bit cheap though . This movie tries to explain why Jason is so evil and it contains a hell of an ending which was obviously designed to lead into a long postponed movie .

Friday the 13th: The New Blood (1988)

Back to B movie

[4/10 · 30 April 2003]

After the great part 6 we are back to another lackluster sequel . This time Jason actually get's an opponent who can hold a candle with him and he really hates that . Noteworthy is the first appearance of Kane Hodder as Jason and he does really well in the role . But that doesn't help to elevate this pretty substandard movie that much . The US release was heavily edited to obtain an R rating .

Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986)

The best of the bunch !

[8/10 · 30 April 2003]

After loads of so so sequels we finally get one that is really good . It's obvious that this one has a larger budget than previous entries and probably most that followed as well . We finally get some better actors and the film also has better production values . There is also a nice amount of humor present but not the kind of dumb humor associated with modern teen slasher flicks . Harry Manfredini's score also seems to be more rousing than usual . All in all a good effort . Unfortunatly the US release was once again edited to obtain an R rating .

Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (1985)

One of the worst !

[3/10 · 30 April 2003]

This is one of the worst entries in the series because ( major spoiler warning) it isn't really Jason Vorhees who's killing people just someone dressed like him . Apart from that there is nothing really new either , some cool effects but that's about it . Of coarse the US release was edited to obtain an R rating .

Friday the 13th: Part 3 (1982)

Nothing new

[4/10 · 30 April 2003]

This second sequel brings nothing new to the series . One noteworthy event in this film is the fact that this is the film where Jason first gets his trademark Hockey Mask . The make up effects aren't bad if you can get a hold of an Uncut version . The US release was once again edited to obtain an R rating .

Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)

Average slasher sequel

[5/10 · 30 April 2003]

Jason Vorhees returns to kill some people foolish enough to camp at Camp Crystal lake . This slasher sequel is fairly average , not bad and not good either . The acting is also pretty standard . The adults tend to be better then the teens but even they aren't that good . It should be noted that the US release was edited .

Legend (1985)

A stunning movie .

[9/10 · 28 April 2003]

Legend is one of those movies you either love or hate . It's a fantasy movie but it doesn't really contain a whole lot of action which is probably why many people are turned off by it . But the film is visually stunning and features a good performance by Tim Curry as "Darkness" , Tom Cruise on the other hand looks a bit confused throughout the movie . Also Rob Bottin's Make up is just amazing .

Now things weren't helped by the fact that there are so many versions of this movie and some are vastly better than others . The weakest and shortest of the all is the US theatrical cut because it misses many scenes and ads a few that seem tacked on but worst of all it contains a score by Tangerine Dream instead of the original one by Jerry Goldsmith .

The European cut is better in that it is longer and it features Jerry Goldsmith's score .

The best version however is the Director's Cut featured on The Ultimate Edition DVD . It runs alot longer than any of the other cuts and it is the most coherent cut as well and it features the score by Jerry Goldsmith.

From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money (1999 Video)

A hit and miss

[5/10 · 21 April 2003]

This direct to video sequel to the highly popular 1996 movie is a hit and miss affair . The actors aren't bad but they are just no replacement for the great cast of the first film . The movie also doesn't have the bite of the original .

On the plus side the Special Effects by KNB FX group are good , unfortunatly they don't happen as much as they did in the first film. There are also some interesting camera angles used in this film .

If you're a fan of the series then definetly check this one out but if you're not then you might want to skip this one .

From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter (1999 Video)

a fun horror movie and a good prequel

[7/10 · 21 April 2003]

This prequel to the 1996 original set in the Old West is a step up from the From Dusk Till Dawn 2 . The acting is good and the Special Effects by KNB FX group are top notch for a direct to video film . Also the movie has some good humor . Recommended for a good time .

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

A gory fun time !

[9/10 · 21 April 2003]

From Dusk Till Dawn has become something of a modern cult classic and there is a good reason too . It features interesting characters , loads of black humor and most of all over the top gore and violence .

Great performances by the cast , this is one of Clooney's best and Tarantino also shines as Clooney's "sexual predator" brother . Harvey Keitel is also great as the former Minister who along with his family is forced to take Clooney and Tarantino to Mexico because they have just robbed a bank and killed a whole bunch of people . Cheech Marin is also hillarious in no less than three separate roles in this movie .

The movie also features cool music and great Special effects by KNB FX group. Highly recommended !

Wishmaster 4: The Prophecy Fulfilled (2002 Video)

Pure Garbage !

[1/10 · 20 April 2003]

We get another Wishmaster sequel and this one is the worst of them all . John Novak plays The Wishmaster in this one and he sucks just as bad as his horrid dialogue . The rest of the cast isn't much better.

It seems this movie had a ultra low budget because there are only three effects in this one that actually work , the rest look cheap.

This movie is to be avoided at all costs !

Wishmaster 3: Beyond the Gates of Hell (2001 Video)

The Wishmaster returns but not Andrew Divoff

[3/10 · 20 April 2003]

Once again The Wishmaster returns but this time Andrew Divoff does not . Instead he is replace by John Novak who is just terrible in the role . He comes across as a fat idiot in make up . The Djin's human form is played by Jason Connery who isn't bad but he lacks the charm and wickedness of Andrew Divoff.

The Special effects are a notch better than those found in part 2 but they are nowhere near as good as those of the first movie .

Another problem with this film is the writting . The dialogue is just terrible .

All things considered this is a rather poor sequel . Not recommended !

Wishmaster 2: Evil Never Dies (1999 Video)

The Wishmaster returns , but without a decent budget .

[20 April 2003]

Andrew Divoff reprises his role as The Wishmaster in this sequel . He once again gives a great performance . The rest of the cast is fairly forgetable though.

The main problem with this sequel is that it has a very low budget so while some of the effects work well alot of them just look too cheap to be convincing . Recommended only because of Andrew's great performance.

Wishmaster (1997)

A great horror movie !

[20 April 2003]

Andrew Divoff is fantastic as the evil Djin in this movie who takes pleasure in twisting wishes into hideous punishments . Andrew's performance just oozes with charm and wickedness and he is equally effective in both Make up and human form . Also the movie contains cameos by some of the greats of modern horror including Tony"Candyman" Todd and Kane"Jason" Hooder . Rober Englund who is of coarse best known as Freddy Krueger plays a millionaire in this film and he does quite well in a non villian role . The heroine of the story is played by Tammy Lauren , she isn't bad at all allthough the spasms she throws everytime someone dies do to the Djin tend to become a bit annoying .

But the real treat of this movie are the amazingly gruesome Make up Effects by KNB FX group .

All in all a great movie for horror fans . Non fans maybe turned off by the gruesome effects .