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Reviews
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)
Star Trek TNG fan? Look no further...
I watched this movie again for the first time since seeing it in the theater more than a decade ago. It holds up quite well. If you're a Star Trek fan, and especially if you're a TNG fan, this movie will sit well with you. It has some interesting plot devices... one of which is what would you be like if your environment growing up was different from the one you experienced? You can judge a criminal for their acts, but what if you were in their shoes? An interesting idea fleshed out nicely in this film. Highly recommended! I grew up with TOS, but TNG is probably my favorite iteration of Star Trek. The cast and writing is top notch. The movie is well acted, well written, and satisfies. I was surprised the TNG movies generally received average reviews. They're great Star Trek movies!
Dinosaur Island (2014)
For a movie with its budget, a 10
My family watched this movie together and enjoyed it a lot. For the budget they had I give the effort a solid 10. The special effects and CGI are actually pretty good (again for the budget level). The acting is kids TV show level, but hey what do you expect? The kids in the movie have fun with it and do a decent job. The dinosaurs were creatively modeled and decorated, a nice departure from the usual rendering of dinosaurs in most movies. There was always some interesting action going on and the story was actually quite creative. My wife and I discussed the movie after wards and agreed that there was more story and creativity here than top-tier movies like Jurassic World and Avatar. I was surprised by the number of 1 star reviews, but those people are obviously comparing it to big Hollywood films. If you can get past unrealistic expectations you'll actually have fun with this movie.
Skyfall (2012)
lazy, boring, nonsensical
*** This review may contain spoilers ***
Terrible story, plot holes around every corner. Terrible dialog and one-liners. Aside from early action scenes, very slow pace and boring. Bad character development. Unbelievable Bond doesn't even flinch when woman that helped him gain access to bad guy dies. Could have saved girl by pulling escape moments earlier. Bad guy is ridiculous. Bond survives fiery explosion by hiding around corner (like fire can't go around a corner?). Dismisses Bond movie staples the whole movie (e.g. gadgets), but then at the end adds scene that praises and cashes in on the old style. Tried to cover up entire bad movie by circle jerking audience at end with this classic bond 'reboot' promise. On a side note, I saw Roger Ebert gave this very high praise... that alone should be enough to warn you away.
Silent Hill (2006)
An excellent horror movie not quite like anything you've seen before
I've seen hundreds of horror movies over the years, and this one stands out. It was truly disturbing, and I found the story to be rather fresh. Although it is rooted in the 'wronged-spirit-gets-revenge' category, there is a definite twist in who turns out to be the entity that did the wrong. I Highly recommend this movie to people who like their horror without having to switch off their brains. Visually, this was a treat. Some of the direction reminded me of Kubrick... very atmospheric. I guess that's why some people complain about the pacing of the movie (as they do with some kubrick). The effects were top notch and quite disturbing (I coulda done without seeing a human being burned alive in such great detail, I prefer my horror to be more rooted in fantasy). Overall A+ for this flick, now I'm gonna have to check out the game.
King Kong (1976)
Why Does Everyone Hate This Version?
People seem to jump on the old' bandwagon when bashing Kong '76. It's not that bad!!! For '76 I'd say it was quite an achievement. Lange is great in it (and quite stunningly beautiful) and Bridges always rules. Can't go wrong with this version... don't believe the negative hype. I, for one, appreciate it when someone does a remake and actually interprets the story differently. Carpenter did it with The Thing and Cronenberg did it with the fly and both were amazing. I think this movies gets more negative comments because they are comparing it to the original, which back in its day was the first movie of its kind (Mighty Joe Young is still better!). For movie purists, the thought of remaking a landmark film is always touchy territory. Thus, they rip the remake. The core story is still basically the same, the writers just updated key elements that were pivotal 'classic' moments from the original (empire state building for one). Again the purists cry foul. Bottomline, see it and give it a chance... ignore the pompous so called "experts".
Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Best Sci-fi in years
For those who can look past the fact that this series shares the same name as the 70's series, you have crossed the first hurdle to sci-fi bliss. This series is so well written, so well directed, that you have no choice but to acknowledge that this is perfection. Much more than any borg could ever hope to be. Serious fans of scifi will find themselves thoroughly entertained and intrigued. If you have imagination and appreciation for imagination of others, and others who obviously have seen an opportunity and have taken it full throttle, disappointment is left in the dust. The talent behind this show is quite deep. From the writing, the direction, the acting... it all comes together to create the best series of the scifi genre in a long time. All I can say is view this show and be prepared to say "oh my, this is good". Every scene bristles with meaning, and invokes a sense of intrigue... you'll be waiting on seat's edge to see what happens next. I'm no serious critic, but I know when something is good, and this is REAL good. Check it out!!!
Hellraiser: Inferno (2000)
A Matured-with-Age Hellraiser
This movie stands out from the previous Hellraisers for a variety of reasons. #1) The effects have finally matured to perfection. With great use of computers, the effects are all finally believable to the naked eye. One would expect the movie to have had a small budget, but I can say the effects are top notch. #2) The story is a thinking man's version of hellraiser. The cenebites just don't simply cater to physical torture. #3) The story and script are excellently written. I'm quite surprised this was a direct to video release. I wonder if it was slated to be from the start... I doubt it. This story was genuinely scary and intriguing. The pacing was excellent as well. The whole time I was watching it I was wondering what was going to happen next. When the end finally came it was an excellent conclusion and explanation of what had been going on. There is even a sequence that will leave one wondering, but my take on it is that he killed all those people because he killed them in his real life (figuratively). His partner had knives in his back from him "stabbing him in the back", his family froze because he was cold to them, etc. Not bad. For Hellraiser purists, you will be disappointed, but for the open minded who like a good horror tale, this is an EXCELLENT movie. Don't miss it!
Catwoman (2004)
Pleasantly Surprised... Don't Believe the "Negative Bandwagoneers"
First let me say that before I saw this I expected it to be absolutely terrible. The reviews and negative buzz about this is absolutely huge. But why? Most likely because humans are heavily dependent on social acceptance for survival (at least in the old days, i.e. BC). This has an annoying effect of massing non-critical thinkers into joining a mass movement of "public opinion", and quite often it gains speed and soon everyone is "doing it". What I mean by this is that people are afraid to say that the movie was good because everyone else says it's bad and they're afraid to be outside the "norm" of public opinion. Another thing in this same general area is feverent bashing of something to "fit in". It's the same thing as with homophobia, democrats, republicans and other groups of polarized opinion holders. In order to be accepted, the person desiring to be in the group does as others in the group does... it's simply monkey-see monkey-do in order to be accepted by a group.
So, with that intro into why the movie is being panned so badly, here's what I thought of the movie: It's good. The script is consistent and well written. The acting is good as is the direction (aside from the fighting sequences). There are plenty of interesting scene presentations and scene fades. The movie was not some flash-bang rushed project... there is a lot of thought behind every aspect of the movie. My only complaint with the whole film is the fighting sequences are frenetic and incohesive since the fight scene consists of MANY 1-3 second clips spliced together (the same scene filmed with multiple cameras, and switching between the cameras every 1-3 seconds). This breaks up the fight scenes into a collage of disjointed flash images that just make the action hard to follow. Aside from that, the CGI and action sequences are done quite well and are imaginative. Character development is excellent (if not somewhat predictable) but one does wind up caring what happens the protagonists. Some people complain about the "silly" story. Well this is a fantasy flick and I didn't have any problem at all with the evil cosmetics company threatening mankind. In fact it's just the over-the-top kinda aspect that really makes this film work. The whole film is very over the top in terms of the catwoman character and her adjustment to being infested with spirit ala cat. But it is done in a playful way and is actually the source of many of the humorous moments of the film. Overall, it's a movie based on a comic book character... don't' get all bogged down in "it's so unrealistic" - you'll be denying yourself some good IL' fashioned fantasy entertainment. I subtract one point for the lame fight scenes (reminds me of gladiator fight scenes). Final score: 9/10 (But I gave it a 10 in the voting to offset the bozo-votes of the sheep out there).
The Last American Virgin (1982)
Pretty close to the way it was
Being a teen in 1982, this movie pretty much hits upon the way it was. Always looking to get laid, getting high, and rock and roll. Same basic story as kids today. Cool twist on this one with the not so happy ending, isn't it true after all that most teen relations (and many others) end in not so happy circumstance? I give this a 10 for really capturing what it was like to be a teen in the 80s.