thepolyblog Reviews

Wings (1927)

Still holds up after all these years

[10/10 · 6 December 2019]

Plot Two men from the same hometown and in love with the same girl go off to war and become fighter pilots.

What I Liked This movie was the first movie to win an Oscar for Best Picture -- in 1929! -- and so I wanted to see how it held up. Surprisingly well for a silent picture. I was totally blown away by how good the aerial combat shots were. I was expecting some hokey special effects, but for filming in the 1920s, they did a great job. The two men are Buddy Rogers and Richard Arlen, and while they are okay, it is a secondary girl from back home (not the Juliet to the two Romeos but a second Juliet in love with the hero) who steals the picture. Clara Bow plays a rough-and-tumble girl who goes to France, drives for the motor pool, does a lot of support work. She's brash, happy go lucky most of the time, and great at mooning towards the unsuspecting lovestruck hero.

What I Didn't Like There's a twist in the tale that is a bit hard to believe that pits the two fighters against each other, and some of the ending is a bit sentimental, but for a first Oscar winner, it holds up.

The Protector (II) (2019)

Not worth watching unless nothing else is on.

[4/10 · 5 December 2019]

PLOT A father hires an ex-SAS officer with a past to serve as his daughter's bodyguard when he gets a series of threats against her.

WHAT I LIKED The basic premise is sound, and the woman (Emma Rigby) is decent to watch. I saw her briefly before in Becoming Human but it wasn't a show I was into, so didn't see much of her there.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE The production has a made-for-TV feel to it with low-budget action plus a schmaltzy romance feel to it. Plus showing his supposed flashbacks is a bit ridiculously done. And did I mention the "plot" makes no sense after the first round? The father is a big tycoon, and is being targeted for something else. His daughter is threatened so it makes sense to hire the bodyguard too. Except here's the thing - the final revelation of who is behind it all makes NO SENSE for the methodology. As a spoiler alert, the father is being blackmailed by someone with photos of him in a compromising position. Which is enough on its own, and he's paying the blackmail. But they also threaten his daughter, which MAKES NO SENSE. Two entirely different threats from the same person when the first one worked on its own. The person behind it is relatively obvious, and the "reveal" is all told to the viewer, not even shown. And finally the main actor can't act to save his life, nor the father, or the brother. Which leaves the daughter, her friend, the bodyguard's booking agent/friend, and the mother. So why did I watch it? Because it accidentally ended up on my preview list when I thought it was the start of a TV series like the Equalizer. Nope.

Godzilla (I) (1998)

Too bad some of the budget wasn't spent on plot or acting

[6/10 · 5 December 2019]

Plot A large reptile mutated by French nuclear tests in the Polynesian Islands goes on vacation in NYC.

What I Liked Matthew Broderick (playing Nick Tatopoulos) adds another genre to his list of acting credits (following War Games, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Biloxi Blues, etc.) and takes on the role of the disrespected scientist who knows all about radiation effects on all creatures great and small because he has been studying mutated worms in Chernobyl. The special effects are pretty good (covering underground, undersea, heart of NYC, etc.), and there is something somewhat more menacing about this big dumb creature than the smaller but far more intelligent raptors from Jurassic Park. And the scene at the start where three fishing trawlers are destroyed is far more interesting than anything seen during the sinking of James Cameron's Titanic (with the possible exception of the propeller guy). Although this movie is not an actor's dream, Matthew Broderick does a good job and seems more comfortable in front of the camera than usual. Jean Reno (playing outside "investigator" Philippe Roche) is the best of the supporting actors and he steals a couple of really good scenes. Hank Azaria (of sitcom fame like Herman's Head) is surprisingly good as cameraman Animal.

What I Didn't Like The sub-storyline is Nick's reunion with his college sweetheart Audrey Timmonds (played by Maria Pitillo) -- an aspiring reporter who left him after college to tackle New York and who really wants this story as her big break. Standard fluff for the movie and no real sparks between the two of them -- more like old friends running into each other on the street. Pitillo is poor generally, with some really bad lines and some really terrible scenes where she's trying (but failing) to act upset. Other times you almost even care what happens to her -- almost, but not quite. One downside to the special effects is common in many movies of this type...most of the action takes place at night -- in fact, there is not one single shot of the creature in good light and the efforts to stop him are hampered by the fact that it rains the entire "week".

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

More enjoyable than I was expecting

[8/10 · 4 December 2019]

Plot Eighteen months after Superman battled Zod, Batman is convinced that Superman himself is a potential threat and needs to be stopped. Meanwhile, Clark Kent wants to unmask Batman the Vigilante.

What I Liked The original premise seemed silly, until you see both Batman and Superman fearing what the other might do, and seeing themselves as the saviour. Diana Prince does a great job managing around the two testerone-filled superheroes. And it is great to finally see a real villain that poses an actual threat -- Doomsday is so powerful, he can even kill Superman, and it takes all three of the heroes together to stop him and Lex Luthor.

What I Didn't Like Lex seems more like a cliché, and using adoptive mothers as extortionary bait seems contrived.

American Ninja 2: The Confrontation (1987)

A significant step down from the first movie.

[4/10 · 25 February 2019]

Plot Michael Dudikoff and Steve James are back as Army Ranger buddies sent to an island where some Marines have disappeared. The reason? Witnesses saw guys in black outfits, hoods, and swords carrying them away.

What I Liked The movie jumps from fight scene to fight scene so the action rarely slows down. And there is a great scene with Steve James using fairly large knives in an epic battle. Overall, most of the secondary fight scenes are much better done than in the first movie.

What I Didn't Like The plot is almost non-existent (super soldiers, meh), almost all of the acting is hammy, and the ultimate battle is a let down compared to a big car chase scene doing a bit of a take-off of the first movie's opening scene (person being dragged behind a vehicle).

American Ninja (1985)

A basic action movie from the '80s but it doesn't hold up.

[6/10 · 24 February 2019]

Plot An American soldier with special skills gets posted to an island base where someone keeps hijacking military convoys. When his convoy gets hit, he's cooperating right up until someone hits the Colonel's daughter, and then he intervenes. His memory of his childhood is mostly gone from an explosion on an island, but he has obviously had training. When the hijackers send Ninjas after him, it becomes obvious though that his skills are way more than just simple techniques.

What I Liked Some of the basic fight scenes are fine, particularly between Joe and the Black Star Ninja. And the opening sequence is really well done. There's a scene where they shoot arrows at him, and he uses the handle on a shovel to deflect their trajectory...highly iconic and when I first saw it as a kid, I was hooked.

What I Didn't Like I rewatched it recently, and it just doesn't hold up. As I said, some of the basic fight scenes are good, but the fight scenes with guns seems more like a Stephen J. Cannell TV show where a million bullets are fired but nothing ever hits its target. In addition, some of the stunt work is either done at low speed, shows that it isn't the actor doing the stunt (particularly a motorcycle jump), or in one case, requires a helicopter to hover in place for about 5 seconds for the stunt man to get ready to jump on the front.

Castle (2009–2016)

Beckett brings the serious, Castle makes it fun

[7/10 · 12 February 2019]

Richard Castle is a successful best-selling author, twice married and twice divorced, living in a spacious Manhattan condo with the single actress mother (Martha) who raised him and a bright teenage daughter (Alexis). He has money, toys, and rotating women, but he's bored. So bored in fact that he has killed off his best-selling character, Derrick Storm, a rogue prone to danger. Castle's looking for something new.

Enter Kate Beckett, a strong forceful female homicide detective. The fact that she's also hot is irrelevant to her, but not to Castle. A serial killer is committing murders and staging them to look like kills from Castle's books, so Beckett needs to interview him. He's all play, she's all business. She doesn't think that he's likely involved, but she has to interview him anyway.

Castle is hooked. He convinces the mayor to "let" him work the case as a consultant/advisor, much to Beckett's dismay, and the game is afoot. Castle helps solve the case, and the successful partnership continues so Castle can do research.

As the opening narration reveals, every writer has his muse, and Castle thinks he's found his. He even bases a new character on her - Nikki Heat. A strong forceful female homicide detective who works with a roguish mystery writer to solve cases. With a small difference - in his books, the two are lovers, which Castle wants to replicate with Beckett. But like I said, she's all business.

Season 1: Beckett brings the serious, Castle makes it fun. 4/5

Season 2: Season 2 starts with Beckett and Castle on the outs, as she's pissed at him for looking into her mother's case at the end of season 1. By the end of the season, Castle is starting to give up the romantic chase, just as Beckett starts to think she likes the chase. 3/5

Season 3: This is the season where Castle hits its stride. Beckett and Castle are in a good place after the first couple of episodes, they're in their groove, and they're even making progress on the conspiracy that claimed Beckett's mother. 4/5

Season 4: Building off Season 3, this season really starts to gel in certain areas. Which is odd, because the characters are written so they are NOT gelling...Castle finished off Season 3 with a big pronouncement, and Beckett says she doesn't remember it. So they are at odds for most of the season. They have their moments, and then they have stumbling blocks. While a lot of Seasons 1-3 were about Castle growing up a little, finding something to care about besides being a playboy writer, this season is about Beckett growing as a person, finding something to care about other than her job. 4/5

Season 5: I really want to love this season, and there are some seriously good episodes, like Ryan going undercover or the Rear Window episode. And while the average is higher for individual EPs, driving the season up to 4.0 overall, my overall satisfaction was down - the backstory just wasn't working for me any more around Bracken, 3XK, Beckett's mom, and the wildside of Castle's Dad's story (great premise, not awesomely executed). 4/5

Season 6: The season starts off with Beckett working in Washington, and the whole dynamic just doesn't work. I like the 3XK stuff, and a Carrie-like prank. I'll even accept the wedding episode. But not a great season overall, one of the lower average scores so far. 3/5

Season 7: As I watched the episodes, I frequently felt, "Okay, last season". Quite a few Eps seem like repeats of story ideas they've used before or promising ones that go nowhere. I was initially skeptical of the "Castle as P.I." plot device, but it isn't completely batty in its execution, and it does work for the most part. Washington? Not so much. 3/5

Season 8: There is an episode near the end (E19) that is one of the best of the series...it is funny, it is interesting, it is vintage Season 1 and 4 all together in a big bowl of mystery with comedy sprinkled on top. A complete palate cleanser from all the Eps filled with Angst. Yet by the time I got there, the first half of the season was almost making me wonder if I would continue watching. Definitely near the bottom of the seasons. 3/5

Andromeda (2000–2005)

Season 1 - An intriguing but uneven start

[8/10 · 7 May 2017]

S01E01 Under the Night Pt 1 - The long night has come, the Commonwealth has fallen 4/5 stars

S01E02 An Affirming Flame Pt 2 - The ship…she's alive, and she is ticked off 4/5 stars

S01E03 To Loose the Fateful Lightning - Nova bombs don't kill, kids with Nova bombs do 3/5 stars

S01E04 D Minus Zero - Andromeda gets attacked in a debris field 3/5 stars

S01E05 Double Helix - Tyr engages with a Nietzschean pride who offer him a home 4/5 stars

S01E06 Angel Dark, Demon Bright - Daddy always said, "Never mess with time travel" 3/5 stars

S01E07 The Ties That Blind - Beka's brother stops by with a faux Wayist 3/5 stars

S01E08 The Banks of the Lethe - That thing didn't just swallow my ship, it swallowed my life 3/5 stars

S01E09 A Rose in the Ashes - Saddle up gang, we're doing a jailbreak 4/5 stars

S01E10 All Great Neptune's Ocean - A potential inductee gets killed by Tyr's force lance 4/5 stars

S01E11 The Pearls That Were His Eyes - Beka's Uncle Q, err, Sid isn't the warm cuddly type 4/5 stars

S01E12 The Mathematics of Tears - Romy's big sister is a little bit crazy 4/5 stars

S01E13 Music of a Distant Drum - An amnesiac Try crash-lands on a Drago controlled world 4/5 stars

S01E14 Harper 2.0 - Harper gets a knowledge upgrade, thanks to librarian 4/5 stars

S01E15 Forced Perspective - Dylan visits an old mission that led to an assassination 3/5 stars

S01E16 The Sum of Its Parts - I come in piece, take me to your leader 3/5 stars

S01E17 Fear and Loathing in the Milky Way - Gerentex is back and looking for a diary 4/5 stars

S01E18 The Devil Take the Hindmost - They saved Paradise by introducing the serpent 4/5 stars

S01E19 The Honey Offering - Arranged marriages occasionally have bumps in the road 5/5 stars

S01E20 Star-Crossed - The episode where Michael met Lexa 5/5 stars

S01E21 It Makes A Lovely Night - Tarn-Vedra in 46 easy slipstream jumps, P.S. don't use drugs 4/5 stars

S01E22 Its Hour Come 'Round at Last Pt 1 - Romy 1.0 re-emerges and takes a tour of Magog space 5/5 stars