New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

[TheGrandMom]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

The Other Guys

Will Ferrell is funny, Mark Walberg....go model some undies. He either tries too hard or not at all. Dwayne Johnson and Samuel L. Jackson's parts were far too short. They should have played both pairs off one another and the movie would have been a lot funnier. I liked the movie but I did not love it. I wish I would have waited for the rental.

If you really want to see it in the theatre, go ahead. But if you're tight on cash and trying to decide if it's worth it, wait and rent it. There are a lot better Will Ferrell movies out there.

Theatre Rating: C+ (but if you are a huge Ferrell fan, you'll probably want to go see it)
Rental Rating: B-

[Caspian]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

I know there's a connection between the two series, I thought Scott was behind both?

Scott did Alien and Aliens and Predators were Alien Vs. Predator and the second one as well (that movie was beyond awful). Thats the only connection of which I am aware.

TGM, I liked Michael Keaton's part. Great supporting actor. "Dont want no scrubs"

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

Ridley Scott

just to alleviate any confustion.

He just directed Alien, nothing Alien after that save for the two Alien prequels he has planned.

Personally, I hope they go back for the feel of the original movie. Also, anything that strikes Alien Resurrection from the continuity forever is fine with me. James Cameron said Resurrection was his third favorite Alien movie, but he's made nothing but irrelevant overhyped trash since T2, so fuck what he thinks.

I think he just hates that T3 and Alien 3 were follow-ups to his movies that happened to have some real balls.

[Malacite]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

Just saw the Expendables.... meh.

I was sorely disappointed. The plot was garbage, a lot of the scenes just did not make any sense or were otherwise completely ridiculous (i.e. would never in any way shape or form fathomable) but at least the action was awesome.


Though, even at that wtf... the opening is amazing, then it kinda spurts along with the odd cool scene here and there, until the awesomeness huge battle at the end (which was also full of plot holes and bad editing). Honestly, after how great Rambo was, I'm quite frankly stunned that Stallone fucked up this bad.

Thank God my man Statham was awesome. He totally was the saving grace... oh well.

I'd give it a B- not the best movie ever, but if all you care about is action than it's definitely worth the admission just for the huge screen and the sound etc etc. Otherwise just rent it.

[hexx]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

Scott Pilgrim vs The World

Went to see this movie, and I gotta say they did the comic and game justice. If you're a gamer you will love all the references made in this game as well. The action was well paced, and even had my 3yr old kicking jumping and punching XD

[Murphie]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

I saw it twice, I liked it so much. And as I said in the other thread, I hate Michael Cera, so that's saying a lot.

The soundtrack is also really good. I have been listening to practically non-stop.

And I've been watching [nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jMruFHTwrY"]YouTube- Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: Black Sheep - FULL music video[/nomedia] over and over again. It's the full version of Brie Larson singing Metric's "Black Sheep," which isn't on the soundtrack.

[hexx]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

I saw it twice, I liked it so much. And as I said in the other thread, I hate Michael Cera, so that's saying a lot.

The soundtrack is also really good. I have been listening to practically non-stop.

And I've been watching YouTube- Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: Black Sheep - FULL music video over and over again. It's the full version of Brie Larson singing Metric's "Black Sheep," which isn't on the soundtrack.

Yeah I hate Michael Cera too but he had the look and attitude for the character. The chick that played Ramona is fuckin hot too.

[Murphie]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

There isn't anyone that wasn't wonderful in that film. Kim, Scott, Young Neil, Knives, Julie, Envy, all of the Exes...good times, my friend. Good times.

[Ziero]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

Just saw the Expendables.... meh.

I was sorely disappointed. The plot was garbage, a lot of the scenes just did not make any sense or were otherwise completely ridiculous (i.e. would never in any way shape or form fathomable) but at least the action was awesome.


Though, even at that wtf... the opening is amazing, then it kinda spurts along with the odd cool scene here and there, until the awesomeness huge battle at the end (which was also full of plot holes and bad editing). Honestly, after how great Rambo was, I'm quite frankly stunned that Stallone fucked up this bad.

Thank God my man Statham was awesome. He totally was the saving grace... oh well.

I'd give it a B- not the best movie ever, but if all you care about is action than it's definitely worth the admission just for the huge screen and the sound etc etc. Otherwise just rent it.

The plot in that movie was as bare bones as you could get, which was kind of the point. It was a bunch of old mercs, with a lifestyle that was starting to get to them, who normally only take jobs for the money that finally decided to take one for a real purpose. What more story did you need? I didn't see any scenes that didn't make any sense...it was all pretty straight forward. It was all 5 minutes of romance...maybe 15 minutes of story/character development and 120 minutes of some of the most over the top action, violence and one-liners I've personally ever seen on film in the last 20 years. And it was just all completely bad-ass.

Every single "name" in this movie was awesome, Rourke being the only real "weak" one with his 5 minute close up monologue without any actual action. But even that was decent enough...a bit too long...but still it threw in the whole idea of what happens when these guys work too long. But everyone else was freaking awesome, despite how little screen time some of them got. Roberts and Austin made bad-ass villains, each for different reasons but they still both just exuded mean. Couture was damn near funny as hell with his whole "sensative guy" shtick yet still kicked the crap outta people when he was in the spotlight. Crews, well he wasn't even acting, but he's just hilarious to watch being himself, especially when he pulled out that AA-12, that weapon is just as crazy awesome as Crews himself. Jet-Li, besides kicking the crap out of everyone was absolutely hilarious, every broken english line he spoke was funny as hell. Willis and the Governator, despite being in the film for literally 3 minutes, made the most of their time and played their parts perfectly. Also, it was a totally treat to finally see those three on screen at the same time, it was just one of those moments. The whole camaraderie feel between Statham and Stallone worked really well too, it was like they really were old war buddies, and of course they both kicked so much ass that "overkill" couldn't even begin to describe it.

But my favorite by far was easily Dolph. He just played up that whole "crazy russian" angle so perfectly. Always smiling, always looking like he could just snap your neck and it wouldn't even phase him, he just had this "not right in the head" look to him that made him completely badass. He set the tone for the entire movie right off the bat with that first shot, and other then some slow story scenes in the first half, the movie kept up the action pretty solidly. So glad Van Damme pussied out and they replaced and rewrote his part for the big guy, he just worked so well for it.

This is definitely a "see in theaters" movie, and if you loved those old, cheesy "tough guy" action flicks this movie brings all aspects that made them great back to life and ignores all that crappy "story and romance" junk that drags down action movies today. No whiny little bitches, emo brat heros, apologetic villains or pulled punches here. This is just a straight up all go, no slow, crazy violent, super fun action flick. This is exactly what it was supposed to be, and there was never any reason to expect anything more then that. Story? Psh, screw story, this movie had too much testosterone coursing through it's veins to worry about silly things like that.

[Solymir]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

The plot in that movie was as bare bones as you could get, which was kind of the point. It was a bunch of old mercs, with a lifestyle that was starting to get to them, who normally only take jobs for the money that finally decided to take one for a real purpose. What more story did you need? I didn't see any scenes that didn't make any sense...it was all pretty straight forward. It was all 5 minutes of romance...maybe 15 minutes of story/character development and 120 minutes of some of the most over the top action, violence and one-liners I've personally ever seen on film in the last 20 years. And it was just all completely bad-ass.

Every single "name" in this movie was awesome, Rourke being the only real "weak" one with his 5 minute close up monologue without any actual action. But even that was decent enough...a bit too long...but still it threw in the whole idea of what happens when these guys work too long. But everyone else was freaking awesome, despite how little screen time some of them got. Roberts and Austin made bad-ass villains, each for different reasons but they still both just exuded mean. Couture was damn near funny as hell with his whole "sensative guy" shtick yet still kicked the crap outta people when he was in the spotlight. Crews, well he wasn't even acting, but he's just hilarious to watch being himself, especially when he pulled out that AA-12, that weapon is just as crazy awesome as Crews himself. Jet-Li, besides kicking the crap out of everyone was absolutely hilarious, every broken english line he spoke was funny as hell. Willis and the Governator, despite being in the film for literally 3 minutes, made the most of their time and played their parts perfectly. Also, it was a totally treat to finally see those three on screen at the same time, it was just one of those moments. The whole camaraderie feel between Statham and Stallone worked really well too, it was like they really were old war buddies, and of course they both kicked so much ass that "overkill" couldn't even begin to describe it.

But my favorite by far was easily Dolph. He just played up that whole "crazy russian" angle so perfectly. Always smiling, always looking like he could just snap your neck and it wouldn't even phase him, he just had this "not right in the head" look to him that made him completely badass. He set the tone for the entire movie right off the bat with that first shot, and other then some slow story scenes in the first half, the movie kept up the action pretty solidly. So glad Van Damme pussied out and they replaced and rewrote his part for the big guy, he just worked so well for it.

This is definitely a "see in theaters" movie, and if you loved those old, cheesy "tough guy" action flicks this movie brings all aspects that made them great back to life and ignores all that crappy "story and romance" junk that drags down action movies today. No whiny little bitches, emo brat heros, apologetic villains or pulled punches here. This is just a straight up all go, no slow, crazy violent, super fun action flick. This is exactly what it was supposed to be, and there was never any reason to expect anything more then that. Story? Psh, screw story, this movie had too much testosterone coursing through it's veins to worry about silly things like that.

Well said. Only thing I will add is I thought a "few" of the short dialogue sequences between the opening scene and the beginning of the next mission were a little meh.

[Yellow Mage]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

So, I got back a while ago from seeing that Owls movie with a bunch of the local furries.

The plot was predictable, and one you've probably seen before a hundred times (a high fantasy story) except with owls! The characters were largely forgettable. The main character in particular was a moron (basically whatever the owl equivalent of an adolescent is, with naivete turned up to 11), and the bad guy was essentially Owl Hitler. Several bad jokes involving owls were given throughout the film, some explicit, and others more implicit (hint: pay attention to the music used during the inevitable training montage scene, as well as in the ending credits - it's kinda hard to miss, actually). We weren't given an option to not watch it in 3D, but the 3D didn't get in the way too much, and it actually worked pretty well for the vortex effects. Also expect quite a bit of bullet time, at least once where it was totally unnecessary.

Oh, and you can practically build a D&D party from the explicitly mentioned archetypes that each of the characters in the main character's band took. One of them was a melee Bard. . . . that kinda says it all, so, in honor of that, I will rate this movie in terms of FFXI Dagger skills:

Theater: Bard.
Rental: Red Mage.
If you are around 7-10 years of age: Dancer.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

Just finished watching Defiance.

Usually, I don't enjoy movies that deal with the Holocaust or WWII, I usually leave them scowling because its not a pretty part of history. All the same, I think they're important to see because there's just so many sides within the history of that which still get brought to light.

This movie had its ugly parts, too, but its the sort of details that can't be spared if you want to tell the story properly.

Also watched the live-action version of Alice in Wonderland the other night. I have to say I'm glad they did this as a spiritual sequel to the animated movie rather than a remake, that really helped it. Well that, and Tim Burton and Johnny Depp teaming up means you're in for a really weird experience.

Hatter going from his cryptic manner to this thick Scottish accent was rather creepy. Hell, for Lewis Carrol, Burton is an ideal direactor, everything was as surreal as it needed to be.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

Went to see Tangled today.

Overall, I was fairly impressed. My problem with all the Pixar and the general CG movie craze is the lack of well, soul, in those movies. They never really come close to what the hand-drawn movies achieved. Put simply, most CG moves lack elasticity, they lack the bounce, and roly-poly qualities hand-drawn characters do.

But Tangled not only has that sensibility, it has it in spade. When you look at the animal buddies most Disney movies have to contrast their human counterparts, that senseibility is there. Maximus the horse and Pascal the chameleon feel they follow the proud tradition of characters like Iago, Flounder, Jaq. And the same can be said for Rapunzel and Flynn, they feel like they would fit in a handdrawn movie just as much this CG effort.



And it was a fairly traditional in terms of being a Disney fairy tale in that its a musical. Though I was a little peeved with how poppy Rapunzul's first song was, its something I lay squarely at the feet of Alan Menken for being tempted to do it because Mandy Moore was cast as Rapunzel. Left ot a more traditional arrangement, though, it might have felt a little too "Part of Your World" from The Little Mermaid, so perhaps it was for the best it was a little different in sound. Moore does a fine job and proves elsewhere in the movie she doesn't have to ride a pop music sensibility to make Rapunzel's singing work.

That aside, its got a few gems. I wouldn't say its quite the treat was Princess and the Frog was (I could be biased, I like New Orleans jazz quite a bit), but here are some samples from Tangled that i really liked:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck8TgTpXZ-4]YouTube - Tangled Soundtrack - I've Got a Dream[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkggbsfmxmM]YouTube - Tangled Soundtrack - Mother Knows Best[/ame]

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

Got back from Tron Legacy. I'll just do some pros and cons

+ Extremely faithful to the original film
+ Weaknesses in the plot are overcome by good application of the mythos, Bridge's coming timing and great casting
+ CG de-aging of Jeff Bridges makes Clu sufficiently creepy and evil
+ The games are just as enjoyable to watch as ever, even reflecting things written into a gamers' DNA by now
+ Olivia Wilde's role Quora is incredibly endearing.
+ Daft Punk's Soundtrack is faithful to the original score, the new tracks are great and their cameo is appropriate.
+ Real world locales from the first move are accurately reproduced

- CG de-aging of Jeff Bridges for scenes featuring Flynn from the 80's are extremely creepy and uncomfortable to watch.
- For such a titular character, Tron once again is relegated to the role of a plot device.
- Save your cash and see it in 2D, this one wasn't built from the ground up for 3D, it feels tacked on.
- Sam Flynn and Clu have a couple cliched character elements, but story overcomes the daddy issues.
- There's one guy that felt like a Matrix reject, he's all too easy to spot.

I give it four identity disks out of five. The good far outweighs the bad here.

If you liked Tron, you'll like Tron Legacy about as much, I'd say. It maintains its cult classic feel, but with a much better budget. People unfamilar with Tron can go in and feel what people felt in 1982, though they may wonder why they called it "Tron" when its mostly about the Flynns.

For something that took 28 years to get a sequel, it was a very respectable effort, there's no Matrix/PotC level of sequel disappointment to be had here.

[TheGrandMom]

Re: New Movie Reviews **NO SPOILERS**

TRON Legacy

I'm a fan so watching Legacy made me SQUEEEEE! lol For any fan of the original this is worth seeing just to see the nods they made to the original. I really enjoyed it but I can see where it could drag for the non-fan at times.

Agreed Kitten, the 3D version isn't worth it. I went even though I can't see 3D all that well but my son told me it was nothing to get excited about and he'd rather see it in 2D. There are 2D scenes in the 3D and if you take off the glasses during them they look way better so we were taking our glasses on and off.

The de-aging of Mr. Bridges was indeed creepy. He reminded me of a wax figure. But I thought about it a bit and came to the conclusion that it kind of fit because he was a program...a copy of the original so he was fake. A fake should look fake. The other issue I had with the younger Mr. Bridges was the lip syncing was out of step at times.

Tron Fans Theatre Rating: B+
Regular Movie Patron: C+
Rental Rating: (Fan) A+ (Everyone Else) B