With a big cast of action heroes (Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Eric Roberts, Terry Crews, Steve Austin, Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Dolph Lundgren, including quite a funny cameo appearance from California governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger), The Expendables is cool and exciting. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of plot so after you get over the star swagger, you’re left hanging waiting for all the explosives and gun-firing and bad accents to dissipate with not much substance left over.
That said, is it exciting? You bet. With a ton of gun slinging action that pretty much never stops along with some crazy car chases and a ton of adrenaline-filled testosterone, the movie is on the go from the start. It’s an over-the-top extravaganza of manly machonistas. But outside of that, there’s no hiding the fact that the script sucks.
Rated 38% on the Rotten Tomatoes tomatometer, The Expendables is simply an aging A-list cast thrown together haphazardly in a B-grade movie, where a bunch of mercenaries attempt to save the destruction of small country under military occupancy and the control of an ex-FBI agent. Plus, let me not forget the hot Spanish daughter of the army general who convinces Stallone to singlehandedly attempt to take on the bad guys. Save my people, Mr. Big Muscles.
Cheesy? Just a little. But I knew what I was getting into when I went to see this movie, so overall I wasn’t too disappointed. Instead, I just let myself enjoy the mad old-school action movie ride that was The Expendables and in the end, I’m not ashamed to say that I actually enjoyed it. Chock full of bullets and blood, there are some great one liners and unexpectedly quite a lot of comedy.
Trench (Schwarznegger): Give this job to my friend here. He loves playing in the jungle, right?
Barney (Stallone): Right.
Mr. Church (Willis): What’s his [bleep] problem?
Barney: He wants to be president.
Nice dig at Arnold’s political aspirations. It’s hilarious too when they keep picking on Jet Li’s height.
Hale (Terry Crews): Great, they got a small army. What have we got? (looks at Ying Yang) Four and a half men.
Ying (Jet Li): Not so funny.
It’s by far not the best movie I’ve ever seen, but it’s not the worst either. If you’re into this kind of movie, I’d say check out The Losers which is way better (and funnier). The Expendables is definitely a “wait for DVD” movie but I’d rate it a 2 out of 5 stars just for its sheer old-school chutzpah.
I’d really like to say that Nanny McPhee is back and better than ever, but honestly I didn’t think that this sequel was as good as the first. Sure, there were a few poignant moments as well as some decent laugh-out-loud ones in Nanny McPhee Returns, but overall, it didn’t have much of the magic of the original Nanny McPhee.
Rated at 77% on the Rotten Tomatoes tomatometer, I honestly expected more given that the tomatometer is usually in line with what I think about most films. In this case however, I think it was a bit off. I’d probably put Nanny McPhee Returns at about 50%.
Nanny McPhee returns at Aggie’s behest (the baby from the first movie played by Maggie Smith) to help a young mother (played admirably by Maggie Gyllenhaal) with her three unruly children and their two spoiled cousins while their father is away at war. As usual, a scary-looking Nanny McPhee appears when she is needed but not wanted, and leaves when she is wanted but no longer needed (with hotness makeover complete). She has five lessons to teach these five youngsters, and goes about doing that in her unique stick-thumping manner. Although it’s a tad bit violent and reminiscent of a tween Fight Club when the children are beating the crap out of themselves, Nanny McPhee does manage to complete the first of her lessons. But then, toss in a creepy uncle who wants the children’s mother to sell the farm to save himself from debt (and the two heifers after his kidneys), an inanely random bomb diffusion, a weird blackbird addicted to putty, an unsightly (really unsightly) amount of poo, and a forged telegram that their father has been killed in action, and I’m not sure that the outcome can be anything amazing. Instead, it’s a hodge-podge of random events with a ton of fairy dust thrown on top of it to disguise its complete lack of anything magical.
That said, I didn’t leave the theater saying that this movie was terrible. It did have some redeeming moments too, like when the children stick up for each other, or their mother’s unswerving unconditional love (at moments when most mothers would go completely ballistic, like when they ruined her cherished wedding veil), or when their father comes home at the end because his son knows it “in his bones” that his father isn’t dead. Overall however, it just wasn’t near anything as good as its predecessor.
Emma Thompson is wonderful as Nanny McPhee, but the main storyline completely undermined how incredible she is in this role. I can certainly appreciate that this film is of course directed toward kids, but I just didn’t feel the magic. Don’t get me wrong, the actual magic was there – fairy-dust-making stick thumps, synchronized swimming piglets, sky-writing barley, and flying motorbikes, along with disappearing moles and unibrows. It just didn’t feel as original and extraordinary as the first film which also seemed to have more of a more fluid and emotionally-connective story. The magic went far deeper. The pacing of the film also felt odd to me, dragging along in parts and racing along in others which made it seem very fragmented and choppy. Things happened too much at random, and then didn’t get resolved or were ignored.
Nanny McPhee Returns does convey the right messages to children like not fighting, sharing, helping others, as well as more adult messages like taking leaps of faith, but it just didn’t come together for me as much as I wanted it to. I would rate Nanny McPhee Returns 2 out of 5 stars. Younger children will enjoy it, and as other reviewers have said, parents will probably enjoy their delight more than any of their own from watching the film themselves. I’d say wait for DVD.
One big unicorn, strong and free, thought he was happy as he could be. Then three little kittens came around and turned his whole life upside down. They made him laugh, they made him cry. He never should have said goodbye. And now he knows he can never part from those three little kittens that changed his heart.
I had the near-forgotten pleasure of viewing Despicable Me in a real live drive-in theater, complete with miniature playground, deck chairs, and honest-to-goodness speaker boxes on poles between the cars. We did get reception on a radio station so it wasn’t entirely all old-school. It wasn’t 3D but still, what a great experience!
Rated at 79% on the Rotten Tomatoes tomatometer, Despicable Me lived up to its hype. More delightful than despicable, Despicable Me is a great family film that is sweet, funny, and endearing for adults and children alike.
Surrounded by a slice of suburbia in his hidden uber-outfitted, underground lair, Gru is a super-villain who is plotting his biggest crime yet…to steal the moon. All he wants is to win his mother’s approval. With the help of three orphaned girls to infiltrate his nemesis’ lair by selling cookies, he manages to steal back a shrink-ray (crucial in his plan to shrink and steal the moon). But what he doesn’t plan for is everything else it takes to raise three little girls, like meal time, play time, telling stories, and goodnight kisses. After they turn his life completely upside down, Gru decides to send them back to the orphanage. In the end, Gru and his Twinkie-like minions (who are hilarious – case in point, the photocopying of their bare bottoms and giggling like crazy had me in stitches), manage to pull-off the heist, but Gru realizes that what he really wants in the world is to be with his three girls. He wins his mother’s approval when she finally tells him that she’s proud of him for becoming a dad.
Gru: It’s like my heart is a tooth, and it’s got a cavity that can only be filled with children.
With a ton of great humor, Despicable Me is a heart-warming movie that will make you only want to see it again and again and again. Gru has some great one-liners as a first-time parent that were hilarious.
Gru: You will not cry, or sneeze or barf or fart! No annoying sounds.
Agnes: Does this count as annoying? (puffs her cheeks)
You can’t help but fall for the girls, especially Agnes, the one with the giant doe eyes and an unhealthy obsession with anything fluffy.
Agnes (staring at a plush unicorn at a fair): It’s so fluffy, I’m gonna die! SO FLUFFY!
She reminded me of the little girl in Monsters Inc. Super adorable!
Despite Gru’s gruff exterior, the girls look past all that, and start to see all the good things in him that would make him a great dad. Their love is immediate and unconditional. Like Gru, at the heart of it all, they just want to be accepted and loved, and find their own place in the world with a loving family of their own.
Edith: Mr. Gru is nice.
Margo: But scary.
Agnes: Yeah. Like Santa.
An enjoyable experience that I didn’t really expect, I would rate Despicable Me four out of five stars. The Twinkies probably warrant their own star. Absolutely loved em! I’m saving the final star for a 3D viewing which I heard was fantastic, so this rating is to be updated at some point. For now, Despicable Me is 95 minutes of superbad goodness. Enjoy!
I haven’t enjoyed a comedy/action film recently as much as I enjoyed Kick-Ass. Rated at 75% on the Rotten Tomatoes tomatometer, it definitely lived up to expectations. And as much as I love random, no-thinking-required comedies, this one actually had a few good messages, and when you add in a Sin-City-ish ton of blood and a badass eleven-year-old, you’ve got a little something something.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s probably going to rub you the wrong way from the start. I mean it’s totally warped. You’ve got a father shooting his kid in the chest so that she can get used to the feeling of being shot (although later on we learn that he used “low-velocity” bullets…awww). Said kid swears like a sailor and kills bad-guys like a tiny ninja without blinking an eye. She reminded me of the school girl in Kill Bill. So it’s probably going to scrape against what’s been ingrained into you as socially acceptable because it really isn’t on many levels – little girls shouldn’t be foul-mouthed killing machines for one. That aside, it was a pretty good flick, but you have to put yourself in the mindset of Kill Bill. It’s going to be gory and off-putting but it’s going to be cool in its own sick twisted way.
So what’s Kick-Ass about? Dave is an ordinary high-school boy, more of a nerd than anything, and he asks the question of why don’t more people try to help others. Why aren’t there more real-life superheroes? After being mugged and bullied, he buys a costume online and tries to defend people, calling himself Kick-Ass. The first time he gets completely creamed (and stabbed) ending up in the hospital with all kinds of metal in his body and messed-up nerve endings. The second time he gets You-Tubed sticking up for a guy being beaten up by thugs, and suddenly Kick-Ass is an online superstar.
In his adventures, he meets two other “superheroes,” Big Daddy and Hit Girl who have their own agenda – to take down the big-boss kingpin drug dealer who framed Big Daddy and killed his wife. Hit Girl is eleven and is Big Daddy’s own mini-me killing machine (she asks for switch blades on her birthday…awesome!) Meanwhile the drug boss thinks that Kick-Ass is responsible for killing his men even though it’s really Big Daddy, so the drug boss’ son decides to dress up as a superhero (Red Mist) to lure in Kick-Ass and the other two. In the end Big Daddy and Kick-Ass are captured but are rescued by Hit Girl. Big Daddy dies a fiery death. Together, Hit Girl and Kick-Ass finish what Big Daddy started, taking down the drug boss in an adrenaline-filled, bullet-blasting, bloody extravaganza.
5) Don’t let your kids watch this movie or get switch blades for their birthday
I would rate Kick-Ass three and half stars out of five. In Tarantino-esque fashion, it’s ingenious, irreverent, violent and vulgar, but like me, you’ll watch it and probably enjoy it.
I’m a couple weeks late after the newest Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows trailer came out but I only saw it when I went to see Inception. It looks like it’s going to be phenomenal! I do have to say though that this whole splitting the last book in a series into two movies is just wrong. Harry Potter, Eclipse…I mean come on…we’ve bought and read all the books, we’ve gone to all the movies, we’ve bought the DVDs…do you have to stretch the beejezus out of the last one? Come on!
Rant said, the Harry Potter trailer looks awesome. I could almost be convinced that it would be worth it to see it in two parts. Almost. All I can say is that they have to do it right – and not just stretch it out painfully so that they can make the two movies. They both have to have standalone substance.
Prepare to get completely mind-effed. I was, and am still recovering.
Rated at 84% on the tomatometer at Rotten Tomatoes, Inception was an amazing film. Not only was it a fantastic visual experience, the plot is so intricate with so many layers, that you would need to see this movie more than once to even try to get it. Based on mazes as the basis for the architectural design of the dream world, Inception certainly seems to be just one giant maze that your mind constantly swings around – like the unending staircase loop. Paradox.
Similar to the Matrix in terms of its question of reality, Inception brings a new concept to the fore – entering one’s dreams to steal secrets or learn one’s thoughts. That is known as extraction. Inception on the other hand is the planting of an idea of external origin into the dreamer’s subconscious so that they come to accept and believe the idea as their own. Sounds simple right? In fact, it is far from simple as the delicacy required to not have the dreamer’s subconscious automatically reject a foreign thought is almost impossible.
In Inception, Leonardo DiCaprio plays Cobb, an extraction artist. A fugitive from the US, he is engaged by a third party, Saito, who asks him to perform inception with the heir of a billionaire and plant an idea to break-up his father’s empire to avoid a global corporate monopoly. To even achieve the near-impossible inception, Cobb and his team need to go four-layers deep into the dream-state, dreams within dreams, which puts them dangerously close to being in limbo (a state where you cannot return to reality). In each of the layers, they face different dangers, not just the dreamer’s subconscious protectors, but also Cobb’s own demons (his dead wife that guilt has kept alive in his mind) that attempt to sabotage them. Ultimately, they succeed in planting the idea, and Saito wipes Cobb’s record allowing him to get back to his children. In true movie fashion (*groan*), in the last few minutes, you are left haunted with whether Cobb’s reunion is actually a dream or reality, and whether they even succeeded at all!!!!
All I can say at this point is that the collective groan of the entire movie audience summed it up. MIND-EFFED.
Great cinematography – as good as anything your mind can dream up – that keeps your heart pumping while your mind is racing uncontrollably trying to keep up. Let me put it this way. If you’re looking for escapism, look elsewhere. This film will make you think, make your brain work trying to connect the different pieces…it just might make you insane trying to work out all the variables or invariables as the case may be. It’s so open to interpretation that you will think one thing one minute and then something completely different the next. Is it possible? Is it improbable? Is it doable? Is it one big mind-game? Who knows.
Amazing film. I would rate Inception 4 out of 5 stars. But like I said…that could change on a dime. Definitely a “go see it.” And pay attention because if you miss one second, it could change everything.
I finally managed to get in to see Eclipse over the weekend. I can honestly say that from Twilight to New Moon to Eclipse, the movies have definitely improved. But of course, boatloads of money will do that for you. I’m still not a huge fan of Robert Pattinson *gasp* but I’m very impressed with Taylor Lautner in this go-around. I found him to be very interesting (and hot) as Jacob, and am now wavering in my self-professed “vamp-girl-for-life” persuasion.
Rated at 54% on the tomatometer at Rotten Tomatoes, the film did have some great moments, like the fight scene between the vampires and the wolves which was exciting and fast-paced. I’m not sure I’m a fan of the diamond bodies – something about it just doesn’t resonate with me but that could be because I’m a crumble-to-ash-when-staked kind of girl. Old school. Nonetheless, in the new school, it was still pretty cool.
The core of the novels, I didn’t really enjoy the love scenes between Bella and Edward as much as I did when I’d read the books. In the film, I found them long and drawn-out. They were tedious and sappy, and I wanted to get to the action sequences. Something about Edward in this movie also felt a lot older to me – he didn’t seem as young as he did in the other two movies. Maybe that’s what made the love scenes seem awkward. Not entirely sure. I did like the interaction between Bella and Jacob – they were far more interesting. Plus you can’t help rooting for Jacob – the little underdog…er…wolf.
I also really enjoyed the back stories of each of the Cullens, and I especially liked Jasper’s story. I thought he was really great in this film – loved his humor and found that he reminded me of Louis from Interview with a Vampire at times (when he was conducting the training of the vampires and werewolves to fight the newborns), which was very cool.
Overall, I’d say it was a decent representation of the novel, and a film that most Twihards will enjoy. Me, I liked all the action scenes, Jacob’s constantly shirtless tanned body, and the nice one-liners throughout.
Edward: Doesn’t he own a shirt?
Not to mention the first kiss between Jacob and Bella which was so funny.
Charlie: What’s going on?
Jacob: I kissed Bella. And she broke her hand. Punching my face.
Classic. Love Charlie!
The film had both good and bad moments, but overall I enjoyed it. I thought that Xavier Samuel who played Riley also did a good job of being Victoria’s little minion. But in the end, he dies, poor thing. Dakota Fanning as Jane, in the little we did see of her, does a great job combining the little girl looks with stone cold killer. Got chills from that one…nice. Not sure who the other two Volturi were but didn’t care too much on that front. Jane and Felix were enough for me.
Overall I would rate Eclipse, the movie, 3 out of 5 stars. It was fun and stayed true to the book which fans will love. Couple that with Edward’s broodiness and cool vampire hair, and Jacob’s chiseled abs, and well, you’ve got box-office millions. Enjoy!
Iron Man 2 is a worthy sequel to Iron Man with tons of action, gadgetry, cool special effects, and classic Tony Stark one-liners. Sitting at 75% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer, Iron Man 2 was worth the wait (and hype). As Tony Stark/Iron Man, Robert Downey Jr. is charismatic, witty, and charming. You can’t help but like him, as he continues on in the same vein of Iron Man one with flippant brilliant billionaire arrogance – “I have successfully privatized world peace!”
Add in a couple cool new characters – Mickey Rourke (Sin City and The Wrestler) as Ivan Vanko, the villain, Scarlett Johansson (He’s Just Not That Into You and The Nanny Diaries) as his sexy assistant slash kick-ass agent, Natalie Rushman, Sam Rockwell (Confessions of a Dangerous Mind) as the competitive but flaky weapons distributor, Justin Hammer – and the momentum just takes off. Iron Man 2 is well-acted, action-filled, unpretentious, and pure feel-good comic-book fun that doesn’t take itself (or previous performance) too seriously.
Brief synopsis. Tony Stark is Iron Man. At a senate hearing where the US government is trying to get its hands on the Iron Man suit as a weapon, in classic fashion, Tony responds, “To turn over the Iron Mansuit would be to turn over myself, which is tantamount to indentured servitude. Or prostitution, depending on what state you’re in.” Classic! He then shows videos of different countries, including Justin Hammer, trying to imitate the Iron Man suit to dismal failure, claiming that the technology for anyone else to mimic Iron Man is years away. The villain in this installment is Ivan Vanko or Whiplash, a physicist whose father was a co-designer of the arc reactor. He wants to destroy Tony Stark for destroying his family and builds an energy suit to show that the invincible Iron Man can be hurt and that the technology isn’t years away. “If you can make God bleed, then people will cease to believe in him … All I have to do is sit here and watch, as the world will consume you.” Sure enough, smelling blood in the water, the smarmy Justin Hammer coerces Ivan Vanko to help him build and automate the next generation of advanced tech robotic soldiers.
In the middle of all of this, Tony learns that the technology keeping him alive is slowly poisoning him. Despite his affirmation to Nick Fury of being an independent gunslinger, “I already told you I don’t want to join your super secret boy band,” they help him to briefly counteract the effects of the toxin so that he can build a new less corrosive source of energy for his heart.
Meanwhile, unfortunately (and predictably), Ivan Vanko has his own end game, and remotely controls all of the droids as well as a second Iron Man suit operated by Rhodie (played in this sequel by Don Cheadle, from Traitor), to kill Iron Man. In a very cool end scene with lots of sick flying maneuvers and pyrotechnics, Iron Man and Rhodie (who regains manual control of his suit with Natalie’s help) fight off all the droids and defeat Whiplash.
End scene = Tony Stark kisses Pepper Potts after he saves her from the final explosion. No fun and games with the baddass, latex-clad ScarJo (yep, see insert, she’s smoking hot), instead he gives his heart openly to Pepper. Awww.
Overall, Iron Man 2 was great start to finish, and full of humorous banter, great action sequences, and solid acting with great cast chemistry. All of the pieces and characters came together well, with of course a future set up for other installments in the Iron Man franchise. There’s nothing new here – hero is idolized, villain plots to kill hero, best friend betrays hero by aligning with his enemies, hero overcomes self-pity and rises to defeat villain, hero makes up with best friend, hero gets girl. The technology and robotics are similar to the original Iron Man, the characters more or less have the same light-hearted, witty relationships (even Vanko who wants his “burd” is hilarious), but the banter and overall humor together with the adrenaline-filled fight/actions scenes fuel this sequel. I don’t think it was a filler for a planned upcoming Avengers movie, in fact, I think Iron Man 2 stands alone quite well. I enjoyed it thoroughly.
I would rate Iron Man 2 four out of five stars for good entertainment value and great humor. Fans of Iron Man (the movie) will enjoy it. Fans of the comic book series may be looking for something a bit more fleshed-out.
Either way, I’ll leave you with another Tony Stark classic. “If it’s one thing I’ve proven, it’s that you can count on me to pleasure myself.”
Sam Worthington is unstoppable. The Australian actor is seriously a real-life Toruk Makto triumphantly riding the great beast that is Hollywood. Amidst rumors of him being the next pick for James Bond, it’s been confirmed that he will return for a Clash of the Titans sequel and as everyone knows, he’s committed to doing the blue trilogy with James Cameron.
Between Clash of the Titans last week and Terminator Salvation on FIOS, I watched Avatar the other night for the fifth time. Oh yea, I totally went out and bought the no bells-and-whistles DVD for $15.99. I had to have it. Could I have waited for the Director’s Cut supposedly to be released in November? Probably. Did I want to? Hell no. Watching the bell-whistle-less Avatar on a 65-inch HD screen completely filling my peripheral vision in a comfy, dark room was just as good as seeing it in the theater! Add in a glass of wine, and it was a shade better than 3D.
Sam Worthington is not the world’s best actor nor is he the best looking guy in Hollywood, but there’s something about him that is so compelling. Maybe it’s his voice or that turn of the head that he does with his quirky corner of the mouth smile or that rebellious look he gets in his eyes. Whatever it is, I am a huge fan.
I’ve seen a ton of articles about whether Sam Worthington is a good actor or not, and whether he will go the route of Russell Crowe or Gerard Butler, or become a Hollywood action staple and household name. Despite his comments that he prefers guns and swords to kissing (dammit), I do think that he’s a better than average actor so I’m predicting the latter. When I saw Terminator Salvation for the second time, I watched him very closely. He got all of the nuances of his role perfectly. Human who doesn’t know he’s a terminator, incorporating classic tics like the slow but meticulous head survey? Fantastic. I thought he out-shadowed Christian Bale the first time around and this time was even better. Check out my review of that here.
What I love about Sam Worthington is that he seems to jump heart and soul into his roles. He was believable as Jake Sully/Avatar just as he was as Marcus Wright or Perseus. That said, those were action films so I guess we’ll see more of his um, kissing vs. sword abilities, in his upcoming film, Last Night, a romantic drama with Keira Knightly and Eva Mendes.
Sam Worthington is definitely worthy of someone to be watched.
HBO has finally released the new True Blood photo for the cast of Season 3 that we are all eagerly anticipating with bated breath, set to premiere on June 13, 2010 at 9pm. The entire gang is looking hot – Eric front and center, Pam, Bill and Sookie, Jason, Lafayette, Jessica, Tara, and Sam. Plus the cute little wolf smack-bang in the middle. Werewolf anyone? June 13 can’t come quickly enough!
Check out the latest “minisode” below as part of the Waiting Sucks HBO campaign. Get your teeth wet, you know you want to.
I am in love with Sam Worthington. And no, I am not biased because of Avatar. Well, not entirely. Still, he was not bad in Clash of the Titans as Perseus, a demi-god and son of Zeus (Liam Neeson) and executed some great action scenes reminiscent of Gerard Butler in 300 (ok, maybe just one move). Despite the low Rotten Tomatoes rating of a mere 30%, I did enjoy Clash of the Titans. Was I blown away? Not so much. Did I enjoy the film. Sure. If you’re looking for some supertastic remake of the original, you’re going to have to look elsewhere. This Clash isn’t it. And I saw it in regular-D, heard the 3D version was underwhelming.
Overall the film was good with some cool special effects and decent acting. Good cast also including Ralph Fiennes as Hades, Mads Mikkelsen as Draco (Quantum of Solace and Casino Royale) and Alexa Davalos as Andromeda (Defiance and Chronicles of Riddick) as well as the all-grown-up boy from About a Boy that I forced myself to recognize because his face was stuck in my brain, Nicholas Hoult as Eusebios.
The story was pretty much the same as the 1981 version on the film. The gods of Olympus have released the Kraken to wreak havoc on Argos because they are displeased with man’s overt defiance of them and their self-indulgence. When the Queen of Argos declares Andromeda to be more beautiful than a god, the gods are vengeful and release the Kraken upon Argos. Perseus, son of Zeus, is born to face Medusa the Gorgon and kill the Kraken before the princess of Argos, Andromeda, is sacrificed to it. With some decent special effects and a lot more CGI than the 1981 version, Perseus succeeds in his task.
All in all, not exactly blockbuster material but definitely good fun. I’d rate Clash of the Titans 3 out of 5 stars. And I’m still in love with Sam Worthington. So there.
And blue is the new black! Reserve your copy now and get it to your living room – Avatar comes to Blu-ray and DVD on April 22, 2010. Forget the Oscars or the Golden Globes, on this site, Avatar was best picture for 2009 (and maybe a tiny part of 2010), and the highest grossing movie of all time. Prepare to be blown away. If you’re wondering how Avatar is going to come across on the big screen, I was lucky enough to view an advance copy that I played on my iPod. Hello, tiny screen…and it was still freaking awesome!
With its underlying ecological themes, it is completely appropriate that the Blu-ray and DVD will be available on Earth Day 2010. This version of Avatar will be released in 2D with no bells and whistles, with a planned release of a multi-disc special edition in November later this year. If you want to get your fix, get this bare-bones copy now. If you can wait for the super-duper edition, hang on until November. Either way, it’s worth it.
Check out my last posts and catch up on your Pandora knowledge.
In typical DreamWorks style (think Monsters vs. Aliens, Bee Movie, and Shrek), the animation is stunning. The story itself pulls you in from the beginning, narrated by the ‘outcast’ of his Viking village, Hiccup, who coincidentally turns out to be the chief’s son. He is thin and weak, and nothing that his father Stoick (voiced by Gerard Butler) wants him to be.
Hiccup’s village is plagued by philandering dragons. And all Hiccup wants to do is kill a dragon to prove to his village, and his father, that he is a true Viking. But when Hiccup manages to take down a Night Fury, the most elusive and dangerous of all dragons, he realizes that he doesn’t want to kill it. The Night Fury has lost half of its tail fin and can’t fly, so Hiccup invents an attachment and with a lot of courage and patience, teaches ‘Toothless’ to trust him and gets him to fly once more.
How to Train your Dragon is a story of friendship and courage, and celebrates finding your own path. In the end, Hiccup helps his father defeat a giant prehistoric dragon (that all the others dragons have been forced to feed) with the help of Toothless and some of his new dragon friends.
The script was well-written and dynamic. The characters were witty and sassy and fun, especially Snotlout, voiced by Jonah Hill, and of course, Astrid, a fierce young Vikingess, voiced by America Ferrara. I didn’t see it in 3D but it was awesome nonetheless. The feeling of flying with the dragon was exhilarating and intense, and I can imagine that in 3D, it would be phenomenal. Since How to Train your Dragon was made for 3D, I would highly recommend seeing it in 3D (make have to make a return trip to the theater myself).
Rumored to be a potential trilogy (what isn’t these days?), Clash of The Titans looks like it will be one of the first of the pre-summer blockbusters. The trailers all look absolutely action-packed, with amazing special effects. With viewings in 3D, it really looks like it could be something special. I have high expectations, which isn’t necessarily a good thing, but I don’t think this film will fall short, unless of course the plot somehow doesn’t measure up to the cinematography (entirely possible). Rotten Tomatoes has it at 72% which is always a decent sign. Stay tuned for my review.
Based on the book by Cressida Cowell, How to Train your Dragon is an engaging story about a boy called Hiccup who struggles to fit in with his tribe of viking dragon-slayers. He meets a a dragon who challenges him to think differently about dragons and see the world from a new point of view.
Rotten Tomatoes rates How to Train your Dragon at a whopping 91%. Always a good sign to be high on the tomatometer! Watching the trailer, it was definitely more reminiscent of Harry Potter flying on the hippogriff as opposed to Eragon flying on his dragon. I can see this film as one of those feel-good, triumphant, fist-pump kind of movies. I’m looking forward to seeing it.
Avatar took six awards at the annual VES (Visual Effects Society) awards, but according to the NY Post, this Sunday may be a “Blue Sunday for Avatar Fans.” Despite the fact that Avatar has been snubbed by many other pre-Oscar awards, I still have hope that it will get the recognition it deserves at the Oscars. You will remember my last post regarding Zoe Saldana not being nominated for her role as Neytiri (yep, still upset about that one), well I find it funny that despite them calling her role in Avatar not true acting, that Avatar was not nominated in the “animation” category in the Oscars. So which is it then? Animation or not? The truth is – there’s a gray area. It’s a hybrid that breaks new ground…especially in the area of recognition.
This new type of film-making is called “performance-capture” film-making. As with traditional film-making, it’s the human actors that give life to the characters in Avatar. In an article in the Los Angeles Times, Steven Spielberg says, “I like to think of it as digital makeup, not augmented animation. It’s basically the actual performance of the actual actor, and what you’re simply experiencing is makeup.” That said, it certainly deserves some kind of recognition especially when we, as an audience, can connect with these actors/animated characters in a much similar way to how we connect with actors in traditional film-making.
Best actor nominee in The Hurt Locker, Jermey Renner, says, “Some movies are actors’ kind of movies and some movies are more directors’ movies. ‘Avatar‘ is a spectacle. It’s a beautiful experience, but it’s not really an actors’ kind of movie. It doesn’t really allow for an actor to truly tell a story. The director’s telling the story in that one.” I 100% disagree with that statement. Neytiri’s grace, grittiness, and raw emotion tell a story. Her entire tribe tells a story. Jake as human and avatar tells two distinct stories! In James Cameron’s words, it is completely an “actor-driven process.” I sincerely believe that Zoe Saldana should be recognized in her role as Neytiri, because I simply cannot imagine myself having the same connection with her if it were pure animation. Sigourney Weaver said it best, “Zoe played Neytiri with such strength, grace and force. If the audience realized just how much, they would have appreciated the performance more.” I certainly did. It’s time for the people who give out these awards to do so too.
You know it’s going to be a creepy, mind-bending story the minute Coraline says “the dreams aren’t dangerous” to her mother. Um, yes they are, sweetie.
Coraline, directed by Henry Selick, is definitely not for young kids! With a very Tim Burton-esque feel and a macabre storyline, even I was freaked out at points. Henry Selick also directed The Nightmare Before Christmas which was written and produced by Tim Burton. Despite Tim Burton not having any involvement with this film, I still felt his vibe, probably because this type of animation and dark, creepy characters are so synonymous with his work. See my last post on The Tim Burton Exhibition at MoMA.
Brief synopsis: The story is about a girl called Coraline who is unhappy with her life, and feels bored and neglected by her parents. When Coraline discovers a mysterious door in her house, it leads to a mirror-image parallel world where everything is perfect. Perfect parents, perfect friends, perfect everything. The people in this world though, all have button-eyes (yes, very disturbing) which hints that everything may not be as perfect as it seems. Sure enough, the “other” mother tries to get Coraline to stay there forever by sewing on her own button-eyes, in effect, giving up herself for the spiderish soul-sucking “other” mother to eat (yes, and it is exactly as it sounds – she eats children, very reminiscent of Hansel and Gretel). Coraline fights her off with the help of a magical cat that moves between both worlds, and frees the souls of three other children “eaten” by the other-mother as well as her parents. Escaping from the horrific parallel world, she throws the key in a bottomless well so that no one can ever reopen the door to the “other” world.
Rated 89% on Rotten Tomatoes, Coraline is a fantastic story. Coming from the mind of Neil Gaiman, you’d expect nothing less. Henry Selick did an excellent job in bringing it to life in a frighteningly magical way that had me cringing and wanting more at the same time. At times, the movie also reminded me of Pan’s Labyrinth – the same feeling of escaping to a magical, if strange and terrifying, world. Coraline herself is a bit annoying, snarky, and willful, but I found myself rooting for her at the end to use some of that precociousness to outsmart the “other” mother. She definitely grows on you.
The movie straddles several important themes, the biggest of which is that the grass is not always greener on the other side, a common “want” of most children and adults alike. You always want what you don’t have but as most parents always warn, be careful what you wish for. Be grateful and appreciative for what you have because the alternative could be far worse. Coraline also portrays how courage and determination can overcome any odds, no matter how large.
Entertaining, terrifying, and gratifying, Coraline is unique and will entertain for years to come. I rate Coraline 4 out of 5 stars.
The second trailer looks awesome for The Last Airbender! Great cinematography and scene settings, definitely worth the wait since the first trailer. The air bending effects look amazing!
According to the LA Times article, M. Night Shyamalan had a sense about ‘Airbender’: ‘This would make a killer movie’, “this is the first time he’s directed a film based on pre-existing source material.” Even so, I’m excited to see his unique flair in this film. He’s weird and talented and different, and I’d be excited to see what he does with this one.
Based on this trailer that stays pretty true to the animated story of the four nations of air, water, earth, and fire, and one boy’s journey to discover his power to master all four elements and fight against the corrupt fire nation, I think it’s definitely going to be something to see. Check it out. The Last Airbender drops July 2, 2010.
Oscar Nominations are in, and Avatar has picked up 9 of them, including Best Picture and Best Director. Not to put a downer on anything but Titanic had 14 nominations. Too early for sibling rivalry? Ok, I’ll leave that alone. I’ve got other things on my mind.
So downer number 2. Seriously what is with the decision to have 10 Best Picture nominations? Some people say that maybe it was because there were so many good films to choose from, but I disagree. I think that maybe they wanted to send a message about Avatar – like, listen you CGI’d, non-artsy, tons-of-dough 3D blockbuster, there are a lot of other films that are far better contenders than you are so you better watch your blue behind! But maybe I’m just cynical or emotional, or both.
Downer number 3. So Zoe Saldana didn’t get nominated for Best Supporting Actress which she probably could have easily. BlackBook’s article “Was Avatar’s Zoe Saldana snubbed by the Oscars” where the author, Robin Guha wrote “Sure most of us would agree that if honors were being handed out for Avatar‘s acting, then obviously Michelle Rodriguez’s five-line cameo deserves to be the front-runner,” made me see red. I 100% disagree with this statement. Obviously Ms. Guha and most of her friends did not appreciate that there was a real live actress behind Neytiri, with real emotions along with a real gritty delivery of those emotions. That is not rocket science technology, it’s acting. People connected with that film because of the actors and their voices and their interaction and their movement. Not because the actors are playing an “animated” character!
Further to that, this is not pure animation like say Disney-Pixar’s Up where there’s no real live actor behind the character. There is a difference, a very big difference between the two. I’ve talked about Zoe Saldana’s actingbefore in other posts – in my view, for an actress to be able to convey such raw emotion through a CGI’d visual projection of her character, then that demonstrates far better ‘acting prowess’ than anyone. James Cameron himself stated to the Hollywood Reporter, “People confuse what we have done with animation. It’s nothing like animation. The creator here is the actor, not the unseen hand of an animator.” If people don’t recognize that, then they have a very narrow view of what constitutes acting. Maybe we need a new category? Um, Best Actor in an Animation-Like but Non-Animation Film? Or maybe just a new vision. We are moving into a technology-advanced world, shouldn’t our awards and recognition of such art media broaden to follow?
Anyway, enough of that. You all know if you’ve followed my blog on my love for Avatar where I stand. If you don’t, what are you waiting for? Type “Avatar” in the little search bar at the top and get going! I’ll see you guys for more Avatar-drama after the Oscars which airs on March 7, 2010.
I knew what I was getting into when I went to see Legion. I’m not blind, I read the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, and the 18% standing on the tomatometer had me nervous about shelling out $10. But Rotten Tomatoes sometimes gets it wrong – G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra was rated a mediocre 36% and I really enjoyed that movie!
Sad to say that in this case, they were right. Legion started out so good too, I mean I was excited to see it – it’s a pretty decent concept and Paul Bettany’s six-pack draped across billboards in Times Square was a definite pull. And then the pain came and didn’t stop until it stopped. I hate it when that happens.
Legion had so much unrealized potential which just got completely eclipsed by all the bullets and comatose, possessed, shark-toothed people. Oh wait, did I mention that said shark-toothed people were possessed by angels? Now I’m pretty much open to any kind of fantasy (oldies but goodies or far-out newfangled concepts) but seriously, angel possession? We’re talking black eyes and pointy teeth demonic-looking things. Again, I repeat, angel possession? Really??? Sorry, but I don’t get that.
So basically the short synopsis is that one angel, Michael (Paul Bettany), goes renegade when he disagrees with God’s supposed plan to wipe out mankind, and cuts his wings off in a stand-off to protect an unborn child prophesied to lead mankind out of darkness. Mouthful, I know! Anyway, this standoff takes place at a busted rest-stop in the middle of nowhere with a stockpile pile of automatic weapons big enough to level a small country. In the end, Michael does save the child and his mother, and is forgiven by God because Michael “gives him what he needed” as opposed to “what he wanted.” Bold words, you bad-ass, renegade angel, you.
Most of the good parts were shown in the previews, like the ice-cream man or the old devil lady, although she had some pretty choice lines just before she goes all praying mantis on the ceiling (way too R-rated for repetition here). Tyrese Gibson also had some well-delivered one-liners which gave a bit of ‘flavor’ relief to the otherwise drab and painful dialogue. Paul Bettany, while awesome to look at as the brooding, rogue angel, seemed too wooden and uninterested in his role to really make it believable. If he doesn’t believe he’s an angel, how the heck am I going to believe it? And let me not even get into Dennis Quaid’s acting which was more in line with a C-grade movie. He was definitely not as strong as he could have been. His best scene was when he died at the end.
From a plot perspective, I felt that many elements of the script and story were too unconnected. There were far too many holes – like what was the deal with the “instructions,” the tattoos that appeared on Jeep’s body which had previously been on Michael’s? Or who was the child? Or why do the crazies, um I mean angels, stop attacking right after Charlie has the child? Why can’t they attack the child? The list goes on…
There’s one other sliver of light in this whole 100 minute debacle. I will give them props for the two angel fight scenes in the end. They were definitely cool. The spinning thing with Gabriel’s wings blocking oncoming bullets was awesome and the overall special effects here were very well-done. The wings looked realistic…well, except for the flashback heaven scene with Michael and Gabriel where they look like giant pieces of carpet. But except for that, kudos on the wings, especially on the wing flex which looked pretty darn amazing.
Like I said, Legion had potential, but failed miserably on execution. I rate the first forty minutes of Legion a solid 2 out of 5 stars, but 100 minutes all in, probably 1 star.
With a big cast of action heroes (Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Eric Roberts, Terry Crews, Steve Austin, Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Dolph Lundgren, including quite a funny cameo appearance from California governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger), The Expendables is cool and exciting. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of plot so after you get over the star swagger, you’re left hanging waiting for all the explosives and gun-firing and bad accents to dissipate with not much substance left over.
How to Train your Dragon
nothing that his father Stoick (voiced by Gerard Butler) wants him to be.
realizes that he doesn’t want to kill it. The Night Fury has lost half of its tail fin and can’t fly, so Hiccup invents an attachment and with a lot of courage and patience, teaches ‘Toothless’ to trust him and gets him to fly once more.
toric dragon (that all the others dragons have been forced to feed) with the help of Toothless and some of his new dragon friends.
racters were witty and sassy and fun, especially Snotlout, voiced by Jonah Hill, and of course, Astrid, a fierce young Vikingess, voiced by America Ferrara. I didn’t see it in 3D but it was awesome n
onetheless. The feeling of flying with the dragon was exhilarating and intense, and I can imagine that in 3D, it would be phenomenal. Since 
Avatar
s, “I like to think of it as digital makeup, not augmented animation. It’s basically the actual performance of the actual actor, and what you’re simply experiencing is makeup.” That said, it certainly deserves some kind of recognition especially when we, as an audience, can connect with these actors/animated characters in a much similar way to how we connect with actors in traditional film-making.
he director’s telling the story in that one.” I 100% disagree with that statement. Neytiri’s grace, grittiness, and raw emotion tell a story. Her entire tribe tells a story. Jake as human and avatar tells two distinct stories! In James Cameron’s words, it is completely an “actor-driven process.” I sincerely believe that Zoe Saldana should be recognized in her role as Neytiri, because I simply cannot imagine myself having the same connection with her if it were pure animation. Sigourney Weaver said it best, “Zoe played Neytiri with such strength, grace and force. If the audience realized just how much, they would have appreciated the performance more.” I certainly did. It’s time for the people who give out these awards to do so too.
You know it’s going to be a creepy, mind-bending story the minute 
all have button-eyes (yes, very disturbing) which hints that everything may not be as perfect as it seems. Sure enough, the “other” mother tries to get Coraline to stay there forever by sewing on her own button-eyes, in effect, giving up herself for the spiderish soul-sucking “other” mother to eat (yes, and it is exactly as it sounds – she eats children, very reminiscent of 
s
want what you don’t have but as most parents always warn, be careful what you wish for. Be grateful and appreciative for what you have because the alternative could be far worse. 
The second trailer looks awesome for 
Oscar Nominations are in, and 
both.
s? Now I’m pretty much open to any kind of fantasy (oldies but goodies or far-out newfangled concepts) but seriously, angel possession? We’re talking black eyes and pointy teeth demonic-looking things. Again, I repeat, angel possession? Really??? Sorry, but I don’t get that.
into Dennis Quaid’s acting which was more in line with a C-grade movie. He was definitely not as strong as he could have been. His best scene was when he died at the end.
ve them props for the two angel fight scenes in the end. They were definitely cool. The spinning thing with Gabriel’s wings blocking oncoming bullets was awesome and the overall special effects here were very well-done. The wings looked realistic…well, except for the flashback heaven scene with Michael and Gabriel where they look like giant pieces of carpet. But except for that, kudos on the wings, especially on the wing flex which looked pretty darn amazing.