Fast and Furious – B (Gotta Rent)
The 4th installment of the franchise far surpasses the previous 2 in the series (2 Fast 2 Furious, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift), and injects some much needed NOS back into the franchise. The original cast is back, including Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster. The various car scenes are much more impressive than the previous 3 movies (including an awesome opening sequence). It’s as good as, if not better than the first movie. The story, as if anyone really cares in a movie like this, is actually pretty well written and keeps you interested. So if you’re into incredibly attractive women, fast cars and a great popcorn movie (so basically any guy) then this is definitely worth a rent.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Monday, July 20, 2009
DVD Releases July 21st ON REVIEW
Watchmen - A- (Gotta Own the Director's Cut, Gotta Rent the theatrical version)
Watchmen is a very unique take on the ever popular genre of superhero movies. It was directed by Zack Snyder, the same guy that made 300. There are many similarities between the two, such as the graphic nature of the action scenes as well as the tendency to slow down the scenes to emphasize what’s about to happen. It is set in 1985 with Richard Nixon as the president and warns of a potential nuclear holocaust. The character development is quite impressive with many of the “superheroes” being incredibly interesting (such as the Comedian, Rorschach, and Dr. Manhattan). It’s major flaw is its 2.5 hour length. It’s definitely an epic movie along the lines of Lord of the Rings or The Dark Knight where its length could dissuade some from watching it. The visuals, story, and uniqueness make this a must watch unless you are one to dislike its graphic nature and superhero storyline.
Echelon Conspiracy - B- (Wait for It)
Although Echelon Conspiracy is a pretty mediocre movie, it was more entertaining than I thought it would be. The plot and pace of the movie is basically the same as Eagle Eye or I, Robot, just with a smaller budget. The action sequences are a little too far-fetched in the sense that its not that the effects are so crazy that it could never happen (which I usually don't mind), it's that they just weren't produced well enough to look real. For instance, one scene Edward Burns shoots a car twice with a shotgun and manages to blow it up, whereas later he hides behind a car that is unloaded on with hundreds of bullets and nothing happens. Along with that Shane West couldn’t carry the main role nearly as well as Shia Labeouf or Will Smith in their respective roles. Despite its failures, the techno-crisis plot hasn’t quite been worn out yet so it’s interesting enough to keep your attention. Although it’s obvious that it is a direct-to-dvd movie it is still entertaining enough to be worth a free rental, otherwise wait for it to come on TV.
The Great Buck Howard - B+ (Gotta Rent)
I found this to be at times quite entertaining and clever, and at other times to drag on and bore me. John Malkovich is fantastic as the mentalist Buck Howard, as is Colin Hanks as his assistant who doesn’t have any idea what he wants out of life. It provides some good laughs at the beginning as the once famous Buck Howard is the only one that doesn’t realize he is no longer in the lime light. It is more of a light chuckle kind of comedy, and less of a laugh-out-loud one. Towards the end the plot stalls a little bit loses a bit of its interest. The shows Buck puts on makes you wonder if he’s using some sort of trick, or if he is for real. It’s a different kind of comedy that doesn’t require a lot of thought and is worth a rent.
Coraline - B+ (Gotta Rent, Gotta Own if a big fan of TNBC)
If you were a fan of The Nightmare Before Christmas then you will probably thoroughly enjoy this film. From the same director, Henry Selick, Coraline follows a girl into a dream world that becomes her reality, combining the fantastic animation style of TNBC with an Alice in Wonderland type of story. Where TNBC took Santa Clause, the Boogeyman and other children’s fantasy characters and made them slightly creepy, Coraline makes up all new characters to scare children with. I would go as far as saying Coraline is far creepier and closer to a horror movie than the gorefests that are released these days. The animation, music score and imagination of Selick is what really makes this movie. Although I didn’t feel as if it were as strong as TNBC it is still a wonder to watch and a must-rent.
Watchmen is a very unique take on the ever popular genre of superhero movies. It was directed by Zack Snyder, the same guy that made 300. There are many similarities between the two, such as the graphic nature of the action scenes as well as the tendency to slow down the scenes to emphasize what’s about to happen. It is set in 1985 with Richard Nixon as the president and warns of a potential nuclear holocaust. The character development is quite impressive with many of the “superheroes” being incredibly interesting (such as the Comedian, Rorschach, and Dr. Manhattan). It’s major flaw is its 2.5 hour length. It’s definitely an epic movie along the lines of Lord of the Rings or The Dark Knight where its length could dissuade some from watching it. The visuals, story, and uniqueness make this a must watch unless you are one to dislike its graphic nature and superhero storyline.
Echelon Conspiracy - B- (Wait for It)
Although Echelon Conspiracy is a pretty mediocre movie, it was more entertaining than I thought it would be. The plot and pace of the movie is basically the same as Eagle Eye or I, Robot, just with a smaller budget. The action sequences are a little too far-fetched in the sense that its not that the effects are so crazy that it could never happen (which I usually don't mind), it's that they just weren't produced well enough to look real. For instance, one scene Edward Burns shoots a car twice with a shotgun and manages to blow it up, whereas later he hides behind a car that is unloaded on with hundreds of bullets and nothing happens. Along with that Shane West couldn’t carry the main role nearly as well as Shia Labeouf or Will Smith in their respective roles. Despite its failures, the techno-crisis plot hasn’t quite been worn out yet so it’s interesting enough to keep your attention. Although it’s obvious that it is a direct-to-dvd movie it is still entertaining enough to be worth a free rental, otherwise wait for it to come on TV.
The Great Buck Howard - B+ (Gotta Rent)
I found this to be at times quite entertaining and clever, and at other times to drag on and bore me. John Malkovich is fantastic as the mentalist Buck Howard, as is Colin Hanks as his assistant who doesn’t have any idea what he wants out of life. It provides some good laughs at the beginning as the once famous Buck Howard is the only one that doesn’t realize he is no longer in the lime light. It is more of a light chuckle kind of comedy, and less of a laugh-out-loud one. Towards the end the plot stalls a little bit loses a bit of its interest. The shows Buck puts on makes you wonder if he’s using some sort of trick, or if he is for real. It’s a different kind of comedy that doesn’t require a lot of thought and is worth a rent.
Coraline - B+ (Gotta Rent, Gotta Own if a big fan of TNBC)
If you were a fan of The Nightmare Before Christmas then you will probably thoroughly enjoy this film. From the same director, Henry Selick, Coraline follows a girl into a dream world that becomes her reality, combining the fantastic animation style of TNBC with an Alice in Wonderland type of story. Where TNBC took Santa Clause, the Boogeyman and other children’s fantasy characters and made them slightly creepy, Coraline makes up all new characters to scare children with. I would go as far as saying Coraline is far creepier and closer to a horror movie than the gorefests that are released these days. The animation, music score and imagination of Selick is what really makes this movie. Although I didn’t feel as if it were as strong as TNBC it is still a wonder to watch and a must-rent.
Monday, July 13, 2009
DVD Releases July 14th ON REVIEW
Horsemen - C (Don't Bother)
Dennis Quaid stars in this psychological thriller in which a serial killer kills based around the theme of the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse. The movie plays out much like the far better film Seven, starring Brad Pitt and Kevin Spacey. Where Seven shined, incorporating the 7 deadly sins in each of the various murders, Horsemen fails having its theme virtually non-existent. Dennis Quaid carries the film to the lowly C+ rating, as without him this would be far lower. If you’re looking for a good thriller of this nature just rent Seven or even Silence of the Lambs as this is a far inferior version of those films.
Killing Room - B (Gotta Rent)
In an attempt at analyzing the human psyche when put in an extreme pressure situation, Killing Room provides an interesting enough plotline to keep your attention. It has a pretty decent cast ensemble, all of which do a good job at their role (even surprisingly enough Nick Cannon). The movie resembles that of the Cube and Saw series without all the gore. If the film receives any attention I could see it becoming a direct-to-dvd series with a few sequels. The story gets a little entangled at times and doesn’t answer all the questions it arouses. I think it would have been better if they had a few more “prisoners” that could have added a bit more depth to the film. Overall it’s better than the average direct-to-dvd release and is worth a rent.
Haunting in Connecticut - C (Don't Bother)
Haunting in Connecticut is an unimaginative and confusing horror movie that provides little to no frights. It tries to give the age old story of a family member going crazy in a haunted house a new twist. The story makes little sense, even for a horror movie. Aside from it being a lame movie on its own, it’s also being released on the coattails of actual halfway decent movies such as The Uninvited and Unborn. Apparently this is based off a Discovery Channel special that is quite freaky, although watching this first doesn’t exactly make me want to watch it. If you’re looking for a decent horror film along the same lines then just watch The Amityville Horror or The Shining as this one isn’t really worth the time.
Edge of Love - B- (Gotta Rent)
Edge of Love is a film that looks like an artsy and independent one, however doesn’t have the feel of one. It never feels as if there is much of a plot except for following around the 2 main immature female leads played by Sienna Miller and Kiera Knightley. That being said, where the script lacks the cast makes up for with very solid performances. Although that should be expected since both Miller and Knightley play the same type of characters they play in every movie they are in. It seems like the director tried to hard to make it a Garden State type of movie and lost track of his own vision. If you can appreciate the look of the film as well as the performances of the actors and overlook the lackluster story then it would be a decent one to try out.
Monday, July 6, 2009
DVD Releases July 7th ON REVIEW
Five Fingers - B (Gotta Rent)
Ryan Phillipe and Laurence Fishburn star in a thriller about terrorist cells and interrogation. Aside from the terrible accents, this film was actually a pretty intense direct-to-dvd movie. The movie plays out with Fishburn torturing Phillipe trying to find out some information about his intentions by cutting off his fingers. Both actors do a decent job, although they also have done better work. What really makes this movie is the ending. Too often do good movies crash because of a disappointing ending; however that’s where this one shines. This is one of the few direct-to-dvd releases that is definitely worth a watch.
Push - C- (Wait for It, if you're bored)
Push couldn’t have been more of a disappointment. It follows in the same footsteps as the movie Jumper; a promising storyline, potential for great special effects, and yet falls flat on its face. The story is almost as if a rookie director got control of the Heroes television show and tried to make it into a movie. Push is advertised as being a movie about telekinesis. Along with the telekinesis is also precognition (seeing the future), mind-control, and 2 characters whose power is an annoyance rivals that of Jar-Jar Binks. With a pretty decent cast this should have been at least an average movie, however this was one of the biggest disappointments I’ve seen in recent years.
Knowing - B (Gotta Rent)
If I hadn’t known any better going into this movie I would have thought it was directed by M. Night Shyamalan. For the first hour and a half it is a very unique, thrilling story. The CGI for the disaster scenes are also quite impressive. However, the last 20 minutes is such a disappointment that it almost ruins the movie. Their resolution to the story resembles all of Shyamalan’s movies, making little sense and so distant from the rest of the movie that it will just make you laugh at how ridiculous it is. Most of its other flaws (such as minor plot holes) can be easily overlooked, but the ending isn’t as easily forgettable. I’d recommend it to rent, which could have been worth a purchase if a better ending were to have been written.
The Unborn - B- (Wait for It)
As far as a horror movie goes this is better than most of the ones that have been released in recent years. I found it to be much creepier than The Grudge series and on par with The Ring when it was released. There is something about little kids in horror movies that makes them much scarier than the ones with psycho killers or monsters. The plot itself is pretty lame and doesn’t make hardly any sense, but that’s not usually something people care about in horror movies. I’d put this on par with the recently released The Uninvited and would say it’s worth a rent if you’re a horror fan.
Ryan Phillipe and Laurence Fishburn star in a thriller about terrorist cells and interrogation. Aside from the terrible accents, this film was actually a pretty intense direct-to-dvd movie. The movie plays out with Fishburn torturing Phillipe trying to find out some information about his intentions by cutting off his fingers. Both actors do a decent job, although they also have done better work. What really makes this movie is the ending. Too often do good movies crash because of a disappointing ending; however that’s where this one shines. This is one of the few direct-to-dvd releases that is definitely worth a watch.
Push - C- (Wait for It, if you're bored)
Push couldn’t have been more of a disappointment. It follows in the same footsteps as the movie Jumper; a promising storyline, potential for great special effects, and yet falls flat on its face. The story is almost as if a rookie director got control of the Heroes television show and tried to make it into a movie. Push is advertised as being a movie about telekinesis. Along with the telekinesis is also precognition (seeing the future), mind-control, and 2 characters whose power is an annoyance rivals that of Jar-Jar Binks. With a pretty decent cast this should have been at least an average movie, however this was one of the biggest disappointments I’ve seen in recent years.
Knowing - B (Gotta Rent)
If I hadn’t known any better going into this movie I would have thought it was directed by M. Night Shyamalan. For the first hour and a half it is a very unique, thrilling story. The CGI for the disaster scenes are also quite impressive. However, the last 20 minutes is such a disappointment that it almost ruins the movie. Their resolution to the story resembles all of Shyamalan’s movies, making little sense and so distant from the rest of the movie that it will just make you laugh at how ridiculous it is. Most of its other flaws (such as minor plot holes) can be easily overlooked, but the ending isn’t as easily forgettable. I’d recommend it to rent, which could have been worth a purchase if a better ending were to have been written.
The Unborn - B- (Wait for It)
As far as a horror movie goes this is better than most of the ones that have been released in recent years. I found it to be much creepier than The Grudge series and on par with The Ring when it was released. There is something about little kids in horror movies that makes them much scarier than the ones with psycho killers or monsters. The plot itself is pretty lame and doesn’t make hardly any sense, but that’s not usually something people care about in horror movies. I’d put this on par with the recently released The Uninvited and would say it’s worth a rent if you’re a horror fan.
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