Reviews

Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings is quite frankly my favourite Marvel movie since the original Iron Man. While many fans check out or get excited for a new Marvel movie simply because they like the series, I was stoked for this one because my cousin Gene Day worked as an artist on the comic book series that this is based on Master of Kung Fu. He was and artist on the series from issue 76-120 and co-created the character of Death Dealer who features in this movie. I had high expectations for this film because of my family connection and it didn't disappoint. Stunning visuals and exciting stunts elevate this film. While there are chanes from the original comics, these changes make sense and still fit within the overall scheme of the Marvel universe. Shang-Chi's father in the originals was Fu Manchu but since Marvel no longer owns the rights to the character, it makes sense to pick another strong Asian villain like The Mandarin to take his place. Overall a great addition to the Marvel universe.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre is the blueprint for the backwoods horror flick. Made in the early 1970s on an ultra low budget, TCM ripped into theaters and immediately caused a stir. The Reason? There had never really been anything quite like it. Granted, Psycho beat it to the punch, yet even Psycho was restrained in a way in which TCM refused to be. The set piece for Hitchcock's classic was one scene of violence, whereas Hooper chose to show of several scenes that suggested violence but never explicitly showed it. Indeed, fans claim to see much gore on show in TCM yet there is really only one scene of such. That comes when Leatherface accidentally chainsaw's his own leg. Other scenes never actually show gore, but are edited in such a way as the viewer pieces in the nasty details themselves. The meathook scene is a prime example. We see the girl lifted up towards the meathook and we see her hanging from it, but we never see it impale her. Yet many have claimed that this is a part of the film. Its all about how Tobe Hooper edited the film to make it shocking. In the end, TCM is a classic because of what it did.

In some ways, Stitches is typical Full Moon fare and in others it manages to break free of the mold. There are tiny dolls and they do some horrible things. Those expecting another Puppet Master or Demonic Toys, however, will be greatly disappointed. These are paper dolls and they hold the souls of victims. Mrs. Albright is an elderly woman who comes to a boarding house and proceeds to influence the patrons. Turns out this sweet old lady is really a demon in disguise and she's out to collect souls. Think Needful Things and you'll have an idea of where this is going. The main problem is that Stitches isn't as well written as Needful Things was and when in doubt Full Moon breaks out the killer dolls. Its a shame really because there are some good ideas in the script. Its just that nothing is capitalized on. What we get is a slow crawl from one soultaking to the next. Pity.

For the third film in the popular series, Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End is easily the best of the three. There are more double crosses, more pirate battles and intrigue. For those who said they have problems following the storyline I have two questions: 1) Did you even see the first two films? and 2) Were you paying attention. I ask this because having seen and been a fan of the first two, I had no problems following the story and all of the double crosses. I was thoroughly enrapt in the film and understood every well calculated move it made. I think that those who find problems with all the double crosses were really being just too lazy to keep track of the story and so they just let the film ride on its visuals. Mind you, the visuals are amazing. Davy Jones is resplendent in his squid like glory and the pirate ships at war are a sight to behold. Johnny Depp slips so easily into the role that by this point its like a second skin for him. Really now people, but he should get an Oscar win for this role, not just a nom. Its truly the role of a lifetime. Even Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom whom I always viewed as the weaker links in the cast both turn in fine performances this time out. As always, Geoffrey Rush is divine as Captain Barbossa. He is the epitome of what a pirate should be. All in all, Pirates 3 is great fun and a fitting way to end the series...or is it?

Pirates Of The Caribbean: Curse Of The Black Pearl is without a doubt one of the most fun rides to come along in quite some time. Starting from the Disney ride, the filmmakers have fashioned a good old fashioned pirate romp that combines action, adventure and comedy almost perfectly. Johnny Depp stars as Captain Jack Sparrow, a flamboyant pirate searching for the ship that was stolen out from under him when his crew mutinied. First off, this film belongs to Depp. His performance is s near perfect that it is almost divine. He brings such a character to Sparrow that you can't help but love him even though he is a pirate. Starring as the new captain of the titular pirate ship is Geoffrey Rush as Barbossa. He is truly the evil pirate that you love to hate and if anyone comes close to Depp's performance it is Rush. Rounding out the main cast are Orlando Bloom as Will Turner and Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Swann. While they try, they are just not in the same league as their more esteemed co-stars. Still, Pirates is good fun and a throwback to the old days of cinema. Enjoy!

Picking up shortly after the end of the first film, Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest follows the arrest of Will and Elizabeth on their wedding day for the escape and aiding of Jack Sparrow. They are given a choice, however, which is to find Sparrow and bring him back to stand trial. Agreeing to this, they set out to find and bring Jack back. Along the way, our heroes soon become embroiled in a game with the monstrous Davy Jones, who has also come in search of Jack as it turns out that he owes Jones a debt as well. There's a lot going on in the second Pirates movie. In fact, so much so that the film ends in a cliffhanger that will leave fans crying for part 3 to come out. And while it may seem that much is left unanswered, I'm sure that all will be revealed in part 3 when it arrives. Until that time, fans will have to make due with all the swashbuckling and double crossing going on here.

Time After Time is one of those films that is best described as high concept. Imagine if you will, that H.G. Wells actually created a time machine. He planned to go into the future to see his utopia that he knows exists. However, when his doctor friend is revealed to be Jack The Ripper, the famous serial killer escapes in Wells' time machine to 1979. Wells decides to chase the ripper there in order to catch him and bring him to justice. Sounds really cool doesn't it? Well, in many ways it is. Malcolm McDowell is great as Wells and David Warner brings a chilling air to Jack. The script moves along a fairly good pace and there seem to be few plot holes. My problem is that it is just not exciting. With a concept like that I should be hanging off my seat wondering what will happen next instead of predicting the plot and wondering how long till its done. This is definitely a film that could benefit from a redux as the ideas are there but it just needed a stronger hand to guide them.

Since he started in the business, Dario Argento has been referred to as the Italian Hitchcock. So it came as little surprise that he would one day helm a film called Do You Like Hitchcock? Stylistically, there are differences between the two directors. Hitchcock was far more suspense oriented and rarely showed violence on screen. It was usually referenced by a shot and a reaction. The shower scene in Psycho being the most obvious example. Argento, however, does not shy away from violence. In fact, he fully embraces it. Both create tension and atmosphere in their work and Argento's early work does actually feature their fare share of suspenseful moments. First off, the film borrows plot points liberally from Rear Window (the most obvious) and Strangers On A Train. Fans of Hitchcock will recognize these points and enjoy them. Giulio is a film student who witnesses several fights between a girl and her mother across the street. when the mother turns up dead, he begins to suspect the daughter was in on a plot to have her killed. He begins investigating and soon finds himself caught up in a web of lies and deceit. The acting ranges from good to poor, partially as a result of the dubbing from Italian. This being a TV movie, there is little in the way of violence except for a great scene near the end of the film and the set-piece murder that kicks things off. Oddly enough, however, there is a lot of nudity and sex scenes. Argento is very restrained here and in a way its nice that he took this approach to the material. All in all, as far as TV movies go this is superb. My problems with the film come from an obtuse ending that left me puzzling it out for several hours and a backstory that is never satisfyingly tied into the main plot line. Still, the film is decent and worth a look.

A lot of people have been saying that the spark is gone. I say the opposite. Its still there. Shrek The Third delivers the exact same as the first two films in the series. For me the films have never been about laugh out loud comedy. Come to think of it I think I only ever laughed once or twice during either of the first two. What Shrek is about is the in jokes. Its a spoof of fairy tales with a modern twists. Hence the humour comes from the princesses being Charlie's Angels like fighting machines, or Prince Charming being an arrogant jerk. The visual gags are what makes a Shrek movie funny and as it is three delivers just as many if not more than the first two movies. here, the king has died and Shrek is next in line for the crown. The only other blood relative is Arthur. Not wanting the crown, Shrek sets off to find Arthur so that he and Fiona can get on with their lives. They arrive at a snotty high school and find Arthur to be a put upon youth. meanwhile, Charming has amassed an army to take over Far Far Away and so they have. Upon returning to the kingdom, Shrek is captured and its up to the gang to save the day. As I said, the film is all about the visual gags and that's what makes it amusing. In this way Shrek The Third is just as good as the first two in the series. Give it a shot.

Franchises are difficult. Its hard to keep a series going with fresh ideas. If done poorly, you get a slasher series such as Friday The 13th which just goes over the same basic scenario over and over again. So it is that I entered Spiderman 3 with a bit of trepidation as I wondered if the franchise-itis would begin to set in. Luckily, my fears are quelled as Spiderman 3 continues where the first two left off.

New facts are learned about the death of Uncle Ben, there are 3 villains plaguing New York, and Spiderman himself must deal with the perils of a bloated ego. In the beginning we are dealt a lot of scenes of Peter and Mary Jane, who are dating again. There are a lot of courtship scenes as Peter prepares to propose to his true love. Spiderman is at the height of his popularity and this seems to be going to Peter's head as Mary Jane experiences a low point in her professional career. Soon, an alien symbiote that has crashed landed on a meteor on Earth attaches itself to Peter. On the surface, it merely changes Spiderman's suit black, but underneath it is also eating away at the core of Peter, taking his weaknesses and exploiting them. Soon Peter is more aggressive, vain and ego driven than anyone can actually believe.

At the same time, we learn that a common crook named Flint Marko was the real murderer of Uncle Ben. Turns out he was a partner of the robber from the first film and that he shot Ben for the car. On the run, Flint accidentally falls into a particle research test site and becomes joined with the sand in the pit. Thus, the Sandman is born. Learning these facts, Peter goes on a quest for vengeance for Uncle Ben's killer.

Realizing, however, that the new suit is controlling him and not the other way around, Peter rids himself of it only to have former rival photographer at the Daily Bugle, Eddie Brock be the next host for the symbiote. Yes fans, Venom is born! As it is, Brock has a bone to pick with Parker, who stole his job away when he revealed Brock had doctored old photos of Spidey to win the position. Add in that Peter hooks up with Brock's girlfriend Gwen Stacy after falling out with Mary Jane and there's some big time payback.

While all of the above is happening, Harry begins juicing himself up in his father's lab and takes over the mantle of Green Goblin. He still believes Peter to be the cause of his father's death and wants revenge as well.

Does all of this sound complicated? Well, it is. Three definitely ups the ante in terms of plot as more happens in this film than either of the other two. Thankfully, despite all these new story lines, director and writer Sam Raimi manages to keep things moving fairly well and juggles the plots well.

To mirror the inner war of Peter, everything about this film is darker. Clothes are drab colours. Scenes are shot largely at night. This is Spidey at his worst and Raimi has chosen rightfully so to show it in the surroundings as well.

But all is not dark. There's some comedic moments to lighten the tension. Fans can look for Bruce Campbell as a maitre'd at a French restaurant, and J. Jonah Jameson is a riot as always.

One can only wonder what may happen should a fourth film in the series be made as several plot lines are finished and a couple of new ones are just beginning.

Mortuary is one of those films that had a lot going for it. Interesting concept, good actors, creepy location, and famed director on a wee bit of a comeback. Unfortunately, due to the last 20 minutes of this film that comeback may be stalling a bit. Denise Crosby relocates her family to a rundown mortuary in a small California town after the death of her husband. Its never quite referred to what happened, just that he's dead. Taking up the role of town mortician, she begins to fix the decrepit old funeral home up. Of course, there's a local legend about the ground being cursed and a deformed child thought dead but whom the residents believe to be still alive all these years later. So far so good. The cast is game and things move along quickly. Then somewhere along the way things got too complicated. Turns out the ground really is cursed by a strange black fungus that likes to eat blood and resurrect the dead as well as convert the living. Oh, and the deformed child is alive and well and all grown up. There's almost too much going on here. From zombies to the fungus to the deformed killer its like the writers couldn't figure out how to end it so they just threw everything in and said "There, have at it." its too bad really cause the film had potential. It just needed to focus is all. On a high note, Dan Byrd proves himself to be an actor to keep an eye on after a strong turn here and in The Hills Have Eyes and Salem's Lot remakes. Here's hoping this is just a minor setback for Hooper.

Maybe it is to the detriment of The Illusionist but I actually watched The Prestige first and found that film to be far more entertaining. That's not to say that this film is not entertaining by any means. I did enjoy it for what it is: a well made, period piece that keeps the viewer guessing until the final reveal. The film's plot is fairly straightforward. We begin with the arrest of Eisenheim (Edward Norton). The story then reverses telling what has transpired to bring us here. Finally, once it has caught up, the rest of the tale is told. Edward Norton is fine as Eisenheim and the ubiquitous Paul Giamatti turns in another great performance as his nemesis Chief Inspector Uhl. Jessica Biel is so-so as the lady caught in the middle, while Rufus Sewell turns in a you love to hate him performance as Crown Prince Rudolf. While The Illusionist is good, I found the complexities of The Prestige to make a far better film. The best part of this film is without a doubt, the superb score by Philip Glass. It rivals his work on Candyman as his his best film music to date.