Reviews

Not bad. But not as good as the 99% Heisenberg-quality of the original show.

Good things first: It's just great to know how Jesse managed to make his way out. I'm happy that he did. And this movie brings up a lot of memories from the show that many viewers would recall fondly (e.g. "Magnets!"). I love it.

Now, breaking bad: This movie doesn't use its two hours wisely. There is too much about Todd. I'm sorry but I don't care that much about Todd. Dialogues are not as witty and interesting as in the show. Almost dull at some points. The characters behave in ways that make little sense. The "wild West" confrontation scene is cool, but no, it's so moronic.

All in all, it's an ok epilogue to the best TV series ever made. Certainly worth your time if you are a BB fan.

I really wanted to enjoy the show rather than nitpicking, but there is so much sloppiness that distracts my attention. So many things make no sense.

Why do the inquisitors know that kidnapping Leia would lure out Obi-Wan? Third Sister (Reva) says she found out a close relationship between Obi-Wan and Bail Organa, and then she kidnaps Leia? Why can she be so sure that Obi-Wan would come and rescue the little girl, without knowing how important Leia is really? It makes no sense.

Immediately after Reva questions Owen on the street, Obi-Wan comes out and say "thanks"?? Almost like saying "I'm here!" Conveniently, no one in the street is listening. Also why is Obi-Wan showing off his lightsaber when he boards the transport to leave Tatooine? He literally dug it up seconds before, so the audience doesn't need a reminder that he is carrying the lightsaber, thank you very much. Suddenly Obi-Wan thinks it's ok to keep his lightsaber dangling from his waist, after he was so paranoid about exposure? He even rejected another Jedi who came all the way to get his help, didn't he? It just makes no sense.

At the end of the second episode, Reva stands idle like an idiot as she watches Obi-Wan's cargoship take off? The series up to this point emphasizes Reva's tenacity to chase Obi-Wan, and she just lets him go like that? It makes zero sense.

At the end of episode three, why does Vader just let Obi-Wan leave the scene so easily, standing idle to watch a droid carry him away? After so many years of hunting? Not entirely clear if Vader had any better reasons than the petty wall of fire.

In episode five, Reva leads an embarrassing siege warfare on the rebel base. After a futile attempt of breaching the blast door with an underwhelmingly small siege gun, Reva simply cuts through the door with her lightsaber. Why on earth didn't you do that from the beginning? By any chance, have you ever watched Qui-gan cut through a blast door in Phantom Menace? That's the first thing any Star Wars fan would think of.

Also, I'm just tired of Disney portraying "strong women" one after another. I had a dry laugh when Beru suddenly turned into a warrior determined to stand and fight against Reva. What the hell?

To be fair, this show also had some great moments. Generally I liked the way Vader was presented in this show. The final duel of Obi-Wan and Vader was really good.

However, this show was tainted with sloppiness all over the place. They had a great material, to show how Obi-wan regained himself. I wish they had been more careful to do it justice.

Many people complain that this movie is silly. Lead characters survive by one in a billion chance. The movie's science may be off the mark when it says a massive solar wind microwaves the earth's core. An aircraft carrier drifts all the way to Washington D. C. and hits the White House precisely. But all that nonsense doesn't have to ruin your movie experience here.

The whole point of this film is to feel the spectacle. That's all - nothing more, nothing less. The mega earthquakes, mega volcano eruptions, and mega tsunamis destroy the human civilization on a ridiculously massive scale. And we get to see it all in beautiful CGI. In 2009, along with Avatar, this movie demonstrated there was nothing a movie couldn't show visually anymore.

I love this film so much because it does well what it sets out to do. A good movie shows more than it says. 2012 speaks little logic but shows much, and spectacularly.

Jurassic Park is just perfect in every aspect. The plot, characters, screenplay, music and CGI are all superb, combined to make the film entertaining to the last second of it. It's an all-time classic, more than a "cult" movie as some call it.

The plot is an exemplary show of storytelling. Two hours of this film never get boring partly because of the well thought-out plot structure. It begins quietly, though with some menace lingering over the horizon. We are taken to the park, and (along with the characters) get awestruck with the magnificence of dinosaurs. More fine details follow to let us breathe and be ready for the coming storm. A struggle for survival begins with the T-Rex, but their journey through the park has ups and downs, sometimes keeping us on edge and other times heartwarming. This rhythm of rush and calm is so finely tuned that we never get bored or tired. Their struggle is ended, again fittingly, by the T-Rex, and the film concludes with a definite answer: Life finds a way.

That also introduces an interesting twist of this film. Jurassic Park is often called an axiomatic blockbuster. Well, it is. But it is more than that. While being entertaining, it also poses important questions. Specifically, is genetic engineering ethical and safe? More generally, isn't technological advancement getting out of control? Shouldn't we ask more often if we should, rather than just if we can? This film is powerfully humbling.

All the characters are lovable and have an important role to play. They also develop as we watch them. The chemistry between Dr. Grant, Tim and Lex is amazing. Even those in supporting roles, such as John Hammond, Dr. Malcolm, Nedry, Arnold, and Muldoon all give us memorable moments. This film can't have one more or one less - it has a perfect ensemble as is.

The original music score by John Williams is again a perfect match to the movie. I'd even say this is his best work (though admittedly it's a very tough call). The music never fails to add more emotion to each scene, whether in peace or in danger. Whenever I listen to the Main Theme from Jurassic Park (on my iPhone), the majestic view of Isla Nublar is visualized on my mind.

CGI was cutting-edge when it came out in 1993, and it still is watchable after two decades of incredible technological advancement. That tells something about a wisdom of using CGI where it does the job best. They certainly had technological limitations back then, but their creativity more than made up for it.

All in all, this film is an absolute masterpiece. Anyone from anywhere can enjoy it. Even someone who has watched it a dozen times can still enjoy it. Even while the modern sequels stumble, the original Jurassic Park continues to shine.

The main thrust of this film should be obvious to everyone: We must protect the natural environment we have inherited. That's a respectable message. Apart from it, however, this film doesn't have much merit.

This film, 90 minutes long, is superfluous because the same environmental protectionist message could be conveyed in a five-minute ad. It doesn't offer much value added in terms of story, characters, or cinematography, all of which should matter if the movie is to be better than the bare political message.

Just think of Jurassic Park (1993). That film asks deep questions about the ethics of genetic engineering, while also being entertaining in every bit of it. Because we care about the characters and what happens to them, we also think more about the movie's underlying themes. By comparison, this film doesn't have much story or character to care about.

I expected the whole story to be about how the hero fights to protect his "forest", but he kills off all his colleagues fairly quickly. The rest of the movie just goes on lazily. The characters are one-dimensional, underdeveloped, and almost incomprehensible. Why do they suddenly decide to ditch the forest that they cared enough to preserve on a spaceship in the first place? Why does the hero care more about the forest than his colleagues? We don't know how these characters have become who they are, nor do they develop in front of us.

Not all sci-fi movies have to offer Star Wars-style of entertainment. Some political agenda may well find expression in film to enrich the whole experience. But Silent Running fails to exploit the full power of the movie medium to do so.

A mediocre war film. This movie has it all - an admiral and his staff discussing the dire situation, ragtag soldiers (or pilots) sacrificing themselves, wives and children worrying at home, and action-packed battle scenes. But everything feels like you have seen it before somewhere else, and nothing exceeds expectations.

Fundamentally, this flim is unfocused and too long for what it is. The Battle of Midway itself accounts for only one half of the film. The first half shows bits and pieces of prior engagements including Pearl Harbor, Battle of the Coral Sea, and Doolittle Raid. Those episodes can make good stories too, but they are not directly relevant to Midway (or, at least, this film fails to link up these events in a coherent story line).

Characters are disastrously shallow. They are just like symbols each assigned to a typical role in war movies and uttering designated cliches. In fact, the best characters in this film are the Japanese ones in my opinion.

Cinematography is ok, but nothing outstanding. Many scenes look cheap because they are so obviously computer-generated. Of course we know it's all CGI nowadays, but it still hurts when it actually looks like CGI. (Probably something is wrong with the rendering of fire. See some of the Pearl Harbor scenes.)

An upside of the movie is its generally even-handed approach in depicting American and Japanese sides. Many war films, such as Pearl Harbor (2001) and Hacksaw Ridge (2016) for example, show the Japanese as inhumane demons or maniacs. On the other hand, this film follows the style of Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) by showing how the Japanese made decisions for their part. It even explains briefly why the Japanese were "forced" to attack the U. S. But consistency fails here again when the Japanese tie an American POW to an anchor and throws him overboard.

All in all, this film shouldn't be a high priority in your war movie list. There are many more worthy films dedicated to naval battles of the Pacific War.