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Review #41: Indiana Jones Foursome.

Decided to kick off the 40s with all 4 Indiana Jones movies, in the order they were made, in one big review. Hope you enjoy.

Raiders Of The Lost Ark.

A schoolteacher and archaeologist, Dr Henry Walton ‘Indiana’ Jones, is called into action to locate and/or discover what is believed to be the Ark of the Covenant.
Also on the trail of the Ark however, are the Nazis and Indiana Jones has to stop them before they can use it’s power to plunge the world into darkness.
‘Tagging’ along is Indy’s ex-girlfriend and old cohort, Marian Ravenwood. What awaits the duo is something greater than either can imagine and powerful enough to look into their very souls.

The first and original movie is an all time great, it mixes elements of all genres: Western, adventure, mystery, mythology, comedy, tragedy, and to an extent even a touch of sci-fi mixed in with mystical magic.

It’s an absolute masterpiece in how to write and carry out a story. The scene placement and look of the film is absolutely bang on with the old-school feel of grand adventure and discovery. Lucas and Spielberg have even been noted as saying they wanted to encapsulate the old adventure stories seen on TV in the 1930s and they really have managed it.

The effects of the movie are another good point. Most of the film is practical, explosions, gunfights etc and is extremely well choreographed. It’s only near the end that the computers and other special effects are brought into play and even by today’s standard, they hold up extremely well.

The action too is very well put together. It’s very heroic and engaging and Indy’s character is different to most as he has a human side and is vulnerable during fights. It’s not the run-of-the-mill-relentless-march-of-victory that’s seen in most film s of its type.

The acting from all parties is also bang on the money.
Harrison Ford was born to play Indy. Not only does he look right for the role, he’s smooth with the women, tough in a fight, rugged around the edges, yet is at times extremely approachable and friendly. He’s also as I said, vulnerable, which gives him a real side.
Karen Allen as Marian is another wonderful touch. She’s also tough and yet extremely vulnerable when she’s in jeopardy. Allen plays the role as almost a tomboy with a heart.

Mixing to all that, John Williams’ awesome soundtrack, it’s a sure-fire classic.
It’s extremely difficult to find a fault with the movie. It’s definitely a one of a kind.

All in all a great adventure/mystery/discovery and full of laughs and tragedy too. One for the history books.
My rating 100%




Temple Of Doom.

Indy and his little protégé, Shorty Round and a beautiful singer called Willie Scott, find themselves trapped in India after an old acquaintance tries to kill Indy. While there they come across a village that has a sacred stone taken from the village temple and that their children have also been stolen.
The village Elders believe that Indy has been sent from the Gods to help them.
Reluctantly Indy takes up the challenge and still being young he thinks about the money that would be involved in finding the precious rock.
Unbeknown to Indy and his two followers, what awaits them is a Temple of devil worship and torture, lead by a man who has seemingly superhuman powers and strength.

The second movie (though based before the first) is a Marmite question for Indy fans. You either like it or hate it.
Personally, I loved it just as much as the first, though unlike the first movie, this one does have faults.

It’s not much of a story compared to Raiders, it feels quite simplistic with the writing. There is a story there and some elements of mystery too, it’s just a simple ABC-123 set of events.

The characters in the movie have been written with a touch more comedy too rather than finding real life comedy in their predicaments.

The movie also, is a lot darker than its predecessor with the subject matter. I didn’t mind too much, it makes it stand out from the others.

The action and effects of the movie are again, very well choreographed and put together. It’s exciting and keeps the viewer on the edge of their seat.
The acting, once again, is wonderfully played.

This time round there a touch of comic relief with Indy’s little helper Shorty Round. Key Huy Quan is brilliantly streetwise and also naïve at times in the sequence of strange events. He’s also brave and tough when called for.
Kate Capshaw as the spoilt brat Willie Scott, is another touch of comedy relief. She tends to become funnier in times of danger and when she’s in situations involving the outdoors, dirt and broken nails. Capshaw plays the role perfectly.

All in all, apart from the simple story, it’s another rollercoaster (ahem) of adventure and discovery.
My rating 99%



Last Crusade.

Set after the first movie, Indy is called into action again as the Nazis are on the hunt for more Christian antiquities. This time their after the Holy Grail, aka; The Cup Of Christ, and Indy has discovered that his father, Professor Henry Jones, a man who is the world’s leading expert on the Grail, has gone missing while trying to stop the Nazis.
Indy takes along Marcus Brody, a fellow schoolteacher and friend of his father and Dr Elsa Schneider, an Austrian Art Professor who had worked alongside Indy’s father when he went missing.
With a race against time for his father’s life and a race for the Grail, Indy will once again be thrown into a world of discovery and mythology in a bid to save mankind.

The third of the series is a fantastic return to the Indy that made the first so successful. It’s fantastically written and has many subtle levels of mystery and mythology. The mystery of the Grail is discovered throughout the story through Indy’s father’s teachings and is extremely well revealed over the running time.

The little twists and turns throughout the film are also well conceived.

The action scenes are again, choreographed with perfection. They’re exciting and explosive and again, are kept to being practical throughout the movie rather than outlandish effects.

The acting is by far the best of all three movies. Sean Connery as Professor Jones is an absolute mark of genius from the filmmakers. Connery, (even though he was James Bond) and Denholm Elliot as Marcus Brody, seem so out of their element as the stay-in-the-classroom Professors it actually gives them a loveability and a sense of comedic timing. The acting is bang on in their roles too.
John Rhys-Davis as Sallah returns from the first film as Indy’s cohort and friend and is gladly expanded as a character rather than a bit-part from the first film.
Alison Doody as Indy’s new love interest, Dr Schneider, is brilliantly sexy and has an untrustworthy edge about her.

All in all it’s a brilliant return to the Indy everyone loves and has more to it than the first movie too.
My rating 100%




Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.

An ageing Dr Jones finds himself kidnapped by the Russian Military in 1957, in a bid to find an artefact that contains a great power. They wish to harness this power and rule the earth from beyond the constraints of modern technology.
Tagging along is a young man calling himself Mutt Williams, who claims that his mother and a mutual friend call Harold ‘Ox’ Oxley have also, been kidnapped by the Russians.
It’s up to Indy and Mutt to save their mutual friend and Mutt’s mother and stop the Russians from gaining a power greater than anything known in this world.

Sadly, it’s very hard to find anything good in this film.

The writing is extremely substandard and linear. There’s very little in the way of exciting action or any kind of mystery or mythology.
It feels extremely rushed, cashed in and very, very cheap.
A little twist in the Indy Legacy is in there, but it feels more of a gimmick rather than anything else.

A lot of the ideas used in the film are unused ideas from other Lucas and Spielberg collaberations, including the now infamous Nuking The Fridge scene.

The subject matter too is by far the worst part of it all. The filmmakers seem to have forgotten what Indy was all about. The 1930s TV series adventure. Ok the movie is now set in 1957, but the aura of Indy has been stamped on and left for dead.

The actors too are simply going through the motions as their characters. Ford as Indy seems kind of lost with it all, wondering why the hell he’s doing this.
A returning Karen Allen could have been a nice touch, but she too is extremely wooden.
Shia LeBeouf is a huge mistake. He delivers his lines like a robot and certainly doesn’t have the physique for the role he’s been cast into. He also tends to just flare his nostrils and look on with wide eyes when something remotely interesting happens.
By far the best part of the film is Cate Blanchett as the villainess Soviet Agent Irina Spalko. She revels in her role and never misses a beat and she’s certainly got an air of danger about her though she's still not perfect and seems also to be wondering why she's there.

As for the effects, Spielberg seems to have gone for full on CGI rather than practical effects and it’s not good CGI either. I’m afraid swinging through the jungle with CGI monkeys was completely lost on me.
CGI is used even when there’s no action on screen either, the entire movie feels hollow because of it.

All in all it’s a good job this wasn’t the first Indy movie. If it had been, it would have killed the franchise 30 years ago.
My rating 10%, mainly for Blanchett’s performance





Sit Ubu Sit.... Good Dog
Great review of the Indiana Jones films, and I couldn't agree more with you about The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, here's hoping the next one will be better.
__________________



Review #42: Predators.

4 soldiers, all from different armies, a Yakuza hitman, a Colombian gangster, a criminal and a doctor, all strangers, find themselves waking up in mid-airdrop and land in a jungle.
Quickly they learn that an unseen force is hunting them and have to team up with one another and find a way out of their predicament and out of the jungle before they’re killed off one by one.

It’s a happy return to a more serious Predator movie. AvP had almost killed off the franchise with the universe crossover that it failed to construct.

Rodriguez has taken all the things that were great with the Predator franchise and utilised it in the best way that he could have and has added new takes and expansion to the mix as well.

The writing is simplistic, but there are a few touches of originality in the storyline and the filmmakers have gladly kept to the original Legends as much as possible. They’ve also expanded only just enough to make it watchable for those who have never seen the original movies and make it an acceptable movie for the already existing Preds fans.

The action too is very Predator-esk. It’s loud, fast and exciting to watch and often appears out of nowhere.

The effects of the film are another welcome return. The CGI is utilised brilliantly and the ‘dogs’ seen in the film are certainly a threat and look the part too.

The acting is pretty standard for the type of movie. I was dubious about Adrien Brody in the lead role but he really encapsulates the no nonsense soldier role brilliantly.
A sexy Alice Braga with a gun, is also good to watch. Her @ss is awesome.
Walton Goggins is probably the best of the lot as the convict. He’s rather strange and plays the role with a memorable, ‘bull-sh*tter’ style.

The main fault with the movie is that the snot and gore has, to an extent, been toned down in place of more stylish violence.
There are scenes of blood and guts, just not as graphic as the original movie and certainly less than Predator 2, though I guess that’s Rodriguez’ way of making a movie.
The thing is though, it works and makes the movie memorable.

Many say that Predators is a re-run of the first movie and I’d agree, it feels very samey, almost being the Superman Returns of the Predator franchise, but Rodriguez’ and director Nimrod’s collaboration really does work very well.

All in all it’s a surprisingly good, if less gory re-run of Predator and expands the legend in all the right places and at just the right amount.


My rating is a well deserved 80%





Review #43: Raimi's Spider-Man Trilogy.

Spider-Man.

Peter Parker, a nerdy, bullied schoolboy is bitten on the hand by a genetically enhanced super spider while on a school outing at a science lab. After a night of illness, he awakens the next morning to find he has strange new powers that allow him to jump far and crawl up walls and a strange marks on his wrists that allow him to squirt a web-like substance.
After a car-jacking incident takes the life of a family member, he vows to use his new powers to make sure the tragedy that he has suffered, never happens to anyone else again.
Designing himself a suit, he becomes the all-powerful Spider-Man.
Unknown to him, what will become his most well known enemy, the Green Goblin, has also been born in a lab experiment gone wrong. Goblin’s goal is to wipe out all threats to his company Oscorp, and becomes a danger to the city in the process.

Raimi’s movie is an absolute joy. Though grand in feel, it’s relatively low-key and short-but-sweet with a lot of the action but utilises the look and feel of a comic book brilliantly.

It’s written perfectly too, the scene placement and storyline is wonderfully put together. The audience are given time to actually care about the characters too.
The love story between Peter and Mary-Jane Watson is worked on too, which is a nice sub story to care about.

The special effects are the absolute highlight of the film. The movie is very heavy on CGI. There are one or two glitches here and there but seeing Spidey swing through the streets of New York is a thrill-ride. It’s fast, exhilarating and colourful and is extremely well rendered.
The action scenes, though short at times, are lots of fun.

Toby Maguire as Parker/Spidey is a perfect choice for the role. Maguire took the role seriously enough to physically train as hard as he did and has the perfect physique for the Web-Slinger and acts the role overall, brilliantly. He has the cheeky, self-assured Spidey down to a T.
Willem Dafoe as Norman Osborn/Green Goblin is a joy to watch. He goes from normal guy to extremely evil, to comic book campy with absolute ease.
James Franco as Harry Osborn, Norman’s son and Peter’s best pal is good, but the role, apart from the half attempt at a love triangle, is barely expanded to more than a sub character.
J.K Simmons as Daily Bugle editor J Jonah Jameson is by far the most memorable of the characters. He absolutely smashes the role, he feels just like he’s stepped out of the comic. For me, he steals the movie when on screen.

Sadly though, the movie feels a little bare and empty for a Spider-Man film. It could do with more smash-em-up action in the mix.

All in all it’s a fun ride, lots of comic book fun and very colourful.
My rating 85%



Spider-Man 2.

Peter Parker has settled into his dual role as Peter/Spidey. The problem is that he’s settled too much. His college work and job are suffering and he’s running the risk of getting fired and flunking his studies.
Adding to that, his social life has tumbled and Mary-Jane is marrying another man.
With all the stress in his life, his powers have started to fail him.
A brilliant scientist, Dr Octavius meanwhile, has pioneered a new powerful form of energy through his research at Oscorp (now owned by James Franco’s character, Harry). Through a freak accident, Octavius’ Artificial Intelligent mechanical arms, (used for physically handling the energy), are welded to his spine and the A.I begins to control him. Spurned on by his love of his work, Octavius becomes a reckless danger to everyone in the city, with only one goal, personal gain. Harry, who blames Spider-Man for his father’s death, decides to use Octavius’ new power to kill Spidey in return for funding Octavius’ energy research. Unknown to Harry though, is that Spidey is his best pal, Peter.

Raimi’s sequel is a much grander thrill ride of effects and story writing. The legend of Spider-Man and his trials and tribulations is expanded massively throughout the movie. The story between him and Mary-Jane is worked on extensively too and also with Spidey’s relation to Harry.

It’s brilliantly put together on the story telling front.

The effects of the movie are also expanded and improved massively. The CGI action is bigger, louder and feels more like the comic book has jumped from the page.
The action itself is much grander in scale too rather than in short bursts.
The acting again is bang on the money. Maguire is given much more range with the tormented Peter/Spider-Man.

Kirsten Dunst and James Franco also are given more screen time and broader storylines.
Alfred Molina is another example of great acting, he really shines in his role as Octavius/Doc Ock. You can tell he’s enjoying every moment.
J.K Simmons steals the show again though when he’s on screen.

All in all a vast improvement on an already great start from Raimi, it’s grand and exciting.


My rating 95%



Spider-Man 3.

Peter and Mary-Jane are now together in a rocky relationship. Peter’s dual life has taken it’s toll on their love-life and Mary-Jane has started to wonder if it’s all a mistake.
Harry, now knowing who and what Peter is, has undertaken the same research that nearly killed his father, Norman. He now has the mindset and powers to take out Spidey once and for all. However, Harry, now the new Green Goblin, is injured badly when he takes on Spidey and loses his memory.
Flint Marko, a runaway criminal (who is trapped in a particle accelerator and transformed at a molecular level into the Sandman), tangles with Spidey alongside Venom, an all-powerful, malevolent alien life-form that Spidey has been using for extra powers, in place of his normal Spider-Man suit.
Venom eventually finds its way to another host called Eddie Brock Jr, after Spidey realises it’s making him do bad things. Eddie has a vendetta against Peter for showing him up as a fraud at the Daily Bugle and uses his new found powers in Venom to take Spidey and Peter out.
Adding to the mix is some confusion about Uncle Ben’s death from the first movie, throwing into doubt Peter’s actions.

The story should work, it’s expanded, not greatly but it is expanded and the characters are all thrown into personal and interpersonal battles and the addition of the new villains should make for a broad plot.

Sadly though, it feels more like a rushed cash in to the first two gems.
The new love circle between Peter, Mary-Jane, Harry, Gwen Stacy and Eddie is another expansion, but again, it falls flat. You just don’t care if they work it all out or not. To be honest, neither do the actors.

The CGI in this film isn’t brilliantly improved. Some of it is very cartoony. By far the best thing in the CGI stakes is Sandman but the budget for the effects seems to have been spent solely on him, with the rest having to make do.

The action though I will say, is fast and exciting. Some of it is a little gimmicky but the end fight between Spider-Man, Green Goblin, Sandman and Venom is particularly good.

The one other good thing about the movie as a whole, is that it delves into a darker feel than the first two, but it’s just not enough when everything else is missing the mark.

The acting, sadly, has suffered also.
Maguire is his usual self in the role, but the addition of a bad attitude when he dons the black suit just isn’t Maguire’s forte.
Dunst is starting to look fed up with it all.
Bryce Dallas Howard as Gwen Stacy is a breath of fresh air. She's absolutely beautiful and plays the role with a tongue in cheek flirtiness.
Topher Grace and Thomas Hayden Church as Venom and Sandman respectively, are good in their roles. Grace in particular is slimy and evil.
Franco is a highlight as Goblin Jr. You can tell he’s enjoying his part as a real bad guy and hits his mark really well after his character’s memory loss.

All in all a sad ending to a terrific build up. Though it’s watchable, it most definitely should have been better.
My rating 35%





Review #44: Rocky 1-6.

Rocky.

Rocky Balboa, a down on his luck amateur boxer and debt collector for mobsters is given a shot at the big-time when he’s approached by the managers of the current World Heavy Weight Champion, Apollo Creed, in a bout for the title.
Creed and his managers see it as a publicity opportunity, never for a second believing that an unfit amateur slugger can stand up to a chiselled athlete like Creed.
Rocky on the other hand, takes it more seriously than they imagined and, with the woman of his dreams now on his arm, he trains harder than he’s ever trained before, for the fight of his life.

Stallone’s writing is pretty simlistic, but it works tremendously. His underdog story is an absolute masterpiece in simplicity. Keeping in mind he wrote the movie’s plot in a few minutes, it’s stood the test of time brilliantly.

The character development is very subtly written and played out over the running time of the film. Adrienne’s development and Rocky’s maturity growing over the film together is brilliantly conceived with the love story between Rocky and Adrienne, with Adrienne coming out of her shell through Rocky’s outgoing nature and eventually becoming a rock for him in return when he doubts his fighting ability.

The audience is also given time to really care for the characters too, it’s not just a punch ‘em up boxing movie.

The ending fight scenes aren’t perfectly put together but they work with the tone of the overall film.

The acting too is absolutely fantastic.
Stallone as Rocky is great. By far Sly’s best performance in any movie. His natural slurred speech and almost simpleton mannerisms are perfect for a punch drunk never-has-been. Though being a fighter, his sweet nature and humanity really makes you care about him too.
Talia Shire as Adrienne is another fantastic role played to perfection. She physically transforms over the movie as the character comes out of her shell.
Carl Weathers encapsulates Apollo Creed brilliantly too. A mediocre actor at best, this is another top performance. He’s loud, proud, brash and confident and fits Creed’s persona perfectly.

Stealing the show though, is the late and very great Meredith Burgess as Rocky’s manager and Trainer, Mickey. Burgess as always never misses a beat and though he’s a tough, rough ex-fighter, he has a human, fatherly side to him that really gives Rocky what he needs.

All in all it’s a brilliant, well acted and original sports-drama and has heartfelt action at the end.
My rating 95%



Rocky 2.

Rocky and Adrienne have now gotten married and are using the money and fame Rocky made to pay for better accommodation and a better life.
Adrienne has also fallen pregnant and a lack of money is starting to weigh on Rocky’s mind. Maybe one more fight can sort out their financial problems.
Creed has also decided that he wants a rematch with Rocky. Creed believes that their first encounter, with Rocky going the distance, was basically luck on Rocky’s behalf.
Adding to his problems is that his right eye has been damaged, making him almost blind on one side. Mickey has told him that if he fights Creed again, he’ll be going it alone as he doesn’t want to be responsible for sending Rocky blind. Adrienne too, is weary of Rocky fighting again.
With all this troubling Rocky, Creed makes a public embarrassment of him and after a family upset, Adrienne makes a turn around and eventually gives her praise for him to take on the Champ again.
With an angry Mickey by his side, Rocky takes up the challenge.

Some say the movie is a re-run of the first but Stallone’s writing has allowed for expansion for the characters.
Their attitudes are the same from the first film, Rocky is tough but human and Adrienne is still breaking through her shell in some areas, but their storylines are pushed into new and occasionally upsetting directions.
There’s definitely more of a drama sense with the film.

One thing that pulls on the viewer though is that it’s very downbeat, there’s too much bad stuff going on in Rocky’s life.

The fight scenes are happily an improvement in the movie.

The acting is also improved from all parties. They seem comfortable in their roles and carry the characters extremely well.
Burt Young as Paulie, Rocky’s brother-in-law, is expanded within the story too. He plays the part of the drunken waster brilliantly.

All in all it’s certainly on a par with the first movie, improved in a few ways too but lacks the originality of the first.
My rating 93%



Rocky 3.

Rocky has now become a megastar in the boxing world. He’s been top of the Heavyweight Division for a while and has decided that he would like to retire on a high note. Much to Adrienne’s delight as she gets worried every time he fights.
A young boxer called Clubber Lang has other ideas. He wants Rocky’s title and challenges him to a fight, insulting Adrienne at a press conference too, causing confusion and anger for Rocky.
Adrienne is less than happy with the idea though. Though Rocky has become a celebrity in his home neighbourhood, she feels as though Rocky hasn’t got anything left to prove, she also tells him that there’s no way that he can beat Lang as he’s too strong.
Sadly for Rocky, a tragedy occurs at ringside when he fights Lang, which causes Rocky to lose the fight and his title to a far superior and incredibly dangerous fighter.
Seeing an opportunity, Creed reappears and offers training to Rocky. A dubious and broken Rocky, takes up the offer and with Adrienne lending her support too, he trains harder than he’s ever done before, for an even harder fight of his life.

This third instalment is a chalk and cheese film for fans. The writing is about as good as it could have been but it feels as though the filmmakers are clutching at straws to keep the legend alive.

There are a few new original ideas going on with Rocky losing and having to make a comeback and a couple of little twists with who Rocky can and can’t trust anymore but that’s about it.

The fight scenes and training montages are well choreographed though. They’re far better than the first two movies.

The acting too is about as good as it could be, the lead roles in Stallone, Shire and Weathers are the same, but Mr T as Clubber Lang, sadly, is extremely wooden.
I’m a fan of Mr T but in Rock 3, he really does stink.

All in all it’s a more stylish take than the first two, with invincible enemies and new training regimes and has a few twist here and there and though it’s enjoyable, it’s a hollow shell compared to the originals, though personally, I enjoyed it.
My rating 75%


 
Rocky 4.

A new upcoming Russian super-athlete called Ivan Drago, has surfaced in America and his managers have been pressing for him to fight America’s best. Apollo Creed decides to come out of retirement with Rocky as his manager and takes on the Russian man-mountain with horrific consequences.
Spurned on by guilt over Apollo’s death, Rocky heads for Russia with Apollo’s old manager and Paulie and Adrienne by his side to take on Drago in a revenge match and to show the Russian super-fighter how it’s done, his way.

That’s about it really for the story, it’s incredibly simplistic like the first film, but contains much less in the way of drama or character development.

The filmmakers also decided to go for full on 1980s gimmicks too, talking robots, Russian paranoia, another indestructible enemy, enemies can love one another too etc.

What makes the movie stand out though is the ending fight between Rocky and Drago. It’s brilliantly choreographed and edited (if extremely cheesy at the end) and really gets the viewer on the edge of their seat.

The acting again is the same as usual, Dolph Lundgren, who made it to #34 in my top 40 villains is fantastically athletic and really looks the part. His acting isn’t the best but he’s kept quiet most of the time. The fact that Stallone and Weathers both were nearly killed by Lundgren during fight scenes, really speaks for his part in the film.

All in all a more bash ‘em up action orientated boxing movie but is extremely cheesy at times, though it stands out amongst the others.
My rating 80%



Rocky 5.

After Rocky’s bout with Drago, he discovers that he’s been hit with the thing all boxers fear, brain damage.
To make things worse, Paulie has squandered the family’s fortune and they find themselves back in their old crummy neighbourhood again.
Having to forcibly retire from his beloved sport, he takes on Mickey’s old gym and finds himself a protege in a young, street urchin fighter called Tommy Gunn.
In the process, Rocky’s relationship to his young son is put in jeopardy as he spends more and more time training Gunn.
With a new found fame, Gunn turns his back on Rocky’s teachings and management, in favour of a hollow lifestyle full of flash cars and lots of money. Eventually Gunn hits the big time and earns his Heavyweight title but is slammed by the newspapers for what he did to Rocky.
In a fit of rage, Gunn attacks Paulie in a bar while the TV cameras are rolling, forcing Rocky into one more punch up, this time against his ex-student.

Again, it’s a simplistic story, but it works with the little twist that’s added between Rocky and his son. The drama and heartache Rocky feels with the relationship between him and Tommy Gunn is worked on well too.

Apart from that that’s all there really is to say.

The acting seems to have dropped in calibre as well. Stallone and Shire do there best to keep up appearances but they look bored with it all.
Stallone’s real life son, Sage Stallone as Robert (Rocky Jr) was a nice touch and he carries his role really quite well for a young actor.

Sadly, the new villain in Tommy Morrison playing Tommy Gunn wasn’t much of a great choice. He can box really well, Morrison is a real boxer, but he certainly can’t act.

All in all, it’s a sad, low key ending to something that was already starting to falter. The story could and should have been much, much better played out.
My rating is a mid 37%



Rocky Balboa.

Rocky, now a retired boxer in his late 50s and widower after Adrienne’s death, is running a small Italian Restaurant in Philadelphia. His relationship with his son is failing too, they hardly speak and Robert feels his father’s fame is too much of a shadow.
A computer-simulated match between Rocky in his prime, and the current Heavyweight Champion, Mason Dixon, is shown on TV, and Rocky wins the simulated fight.
A slightly disturbed and curious Rocky decides to take a battery of tests to see if he can still fight professionally.
On hearing that Rocky has passed the tests, Dixon’s manager approaches Rocky with the offer of making the computer fight a reality and lots of money to go with it.
Initially, a reluctant Rocky is spurned on a new by found Little Marie (seen as a child in Rocky 1) and eventually his son too.
He takes up the reigns in the training room with Apollo’s old manager again and trains himself up to take on another life time challenge and get rid of the Inner-Demons that have haunted him for nearly 20 years.

Again, another simple plot for the Rocky franchise is smothered with sentimentality. However this time round, it’s a welcome return to the ring for fans of Balboa.
It’s very well put together in writing terms and feels almost nostalgic with the way it’s edited. There are also many subtle levels of story telling within the plot too and character development is forefront in the plot.

The gimmicky feel of Rocky 3, 4 & 5 has also been dropped.

The fight scenes are also a really well made piece of choreography.
Stallone and Antonio Tarver really trade punches in the fight too, which caused a nightmare for the injury-continuity team.

The training montage is another highlight, it’s really encouraging to see Rocky do his thing with such a determination.

The acting is another improvement in the franchise. Stallone is back on form as the Rocky we all know and love and is a little older and wiser too.

The biggest surprise in the acting is real life boxer Antonio Tarver as Mason Dixon. He’s not on screen a great deal in the acting stakes but he really makes an impression as the headstrong, arrogant fighter.

All in all it’s a really welcome return to the Rocky everyone loves and doesn’t pull any punches (ahem) with sentimentality.
My rating is up there with the originals at 94%





Review #45: The Lost Boys.

Two brothers, Sam and Michael, move to Santa Carla with their Mother to live at the Grandfather’s home after their Mother and Father have divorced.
Stories from their Grandfather about Santa Carla being the Murder Capital Of The World, spark Sam and Michael’s imaginations.
Within a few days in their new surroundings, Sam makes an impression on two comic book storeowners know as the Frog brothers. They tell Sam stories of vampires in Santa Carla and try to push him into reading horror comics, saying that they’re more like survival manuals. Sam of course, laughs it off and accuses them of sniffing too much ink.
In the meantime, through a girl calling herself Star, Michael makes friends with a group of young leather-clad bikers lead by a young man called David, and they introduce him to their hideout. While there, they tease him with what appears to be hallucinations and give him some red wine to drink.
For the following few days after, Sam notices Michael is behaving abnormally and begins suspecting that the Frog brothers were telling the truth. In a brotherly confrontation, Sam brings a sudden realisation to Michael that all may not be right and a meeting between Michael and the group of bikers brings Michael’s worst fears to a horrific reality.

It’s a fantastic story of redemption, soul searching/saving and family ties and is wonderfully written with comedy-horror in mind. The subject matters of the movie are at times quite disturbing too, there are some genuinely scary and gory bits thrown in for good measure. The comedy tends to come from the situations that the young trio (the Frogs and Sam) find themselves in.
There's also a nice, well concieved twist at the end.
The dialogue is also brilliantly placed and played by the cast.

The effects are also a wonder, they’re practical and gritty and have shaped the look of pretty much all vampire movies since. There is only one, partial green screen effect in the entire film and you can’t even see it it’s that well covered.

The acting is another bonus. Most of the cast are young, sexy and very 80s.
Corey Haim as Sam is brilliantly naïve and has a wonderful, concerned kid brother feel about him and he carries the comedy and horror elements with style.
Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander are great as the Frogs. They’re young wannabe-commandos with a strangely competent air about them, and show signs of naivety too in the strange situations.
Jason Patric is another great choice as Michael. In the words of Joel Schumacher, ‘he has a wonderful big brother element about him’, he also plays the role with a great intensity.

By far the best of the cast is a young Kiefer Sutherland as David. He’s barely on screen and yet he makes a massive impression on the story and on the viewer. It’s by far his most memorable role.

The soundtrack is haunting at times and also very 80s in the style.

Maybe one bad thing about the film is the running time. I’ve said this about movies before but you don’t want The Lost Boys to end, it’s that good.

All in all, for me it’s the best vampire movie made to date and wrote the rulebook for most vampire movies since. An 80s classic.
My rating 95%




Review #46: Evolution.

After a meteor crash lands into Glen Canyon, all sorts of strange and weird creatures start appearing in the local area. It’s up to two college professors Ira Kane and Harry Block who were the first to discover the meteor’s secrets and Dr Allison Reed (a military employee), to find out what these things are and find a way how to stop a possible invasion. Along with a witness to the crash, Wayne Grey, they head out into the local town to discover new, alien life forms.
Involved is the U.S Army, lead by an old colleague of Kane’s, Brigadier General Woodman, whose hardheaded ways may put a dampener on the foursome’s plans of research and prevention.

It’s an extremely funny piece of filmmaking. Like with a lot of Ivan Rietman’s movies, it starts out relatively real, then heads down a path of unreal and very funny situations.
It’s also very well put together on the discovery front too, the audience is kept in the frame when it comes to finding out about the alien creatures involved.

The acting is a surprise.
Julianne Moore as Dr Reed is a surprise in a comedic role. She’s absolutely bang on with the theme of the movie.
Orlando Jones is his funny too as Professor Block, he carries the cheeky, wisecracking character well.
Seann William Scott as Wayne Grey is his usual self too, wacky, funny, occasionally slapstick.
The biggest surprise is David Duchovny as Dr Kane. Duchovny has shown signs of comedic timing before but in the movie he’s absolutely brilliant as the serious doctor who’s comedy comes from being occasionally cheeky and down to earth in a set of strange circumstances. The X-Files actor also lends himself to the theme brilliantly.

The special effects are another welcome surprise, the CGI is absolutely tip top.
The creatures involved in the film are also very original, with some bordering on comedic themselves. You can tell the filmmakers had a lot of fun with the creatures.

All in all, it’s a fun, funny movie with tongue in cheek comedy, great CGI and also seriousness thrown in too for good measure.
My rating 90%





Review #47: Alien Franchise (including my review for Alien 3 from an earlier review).

Before RIdley Scott brings out his 'prequel' to the Alien Universe later this year, I thought I'd ping up a review of all 4 current Alien movies.

Alien.

Set aboard the spaceship Nostromo, the crew are woken from hypersleep due to a starnge Alien signal coming from a nearby planet. Due to Company contracts, they’re obliged to check it out.
On landing on the planet, three of the crew head out into the unknown and discover a crashed ship, filled with hundreds of two-foot tall eggs. When one of the eggs hatches, it releases a strange organism that attaches itself to one of the trio’s face and sends him into a coma.
The other two drag him back to the landing craft, unknowingly placing the rest of the crew in mortal danger.

Ridley Scott’s sci-fi horror is an original masterpiece. It combines the two elements absolutely perfectly, adding to the mix genuine dread and fear, wonder, imagination, mystery and claustrophobia too.

It’s also extremely well written in terms of character, universe and dialogue.
Inspired by Lucas’ Star Wars, Scott built a future full of dirty, grimy and well used surroundings and characters that are real and ordinarily original.
He also added a few twists to the overall story telling with original ideas on certain characters and heroes.

The acting is another bonus.
The entire cast is absolutely spot on with their characters. They’re real in their surroundings and various roles throughout the ship and in the series of terrifying situations.

The creature also is an extremely original piece of design by H.R Giger. Though it falters slightly as the man-in-suit costume, it’s still something that captures the imagination and has lived in movie history for the nearly 4 decades.

All in all it’s a brilliantly original movie that has shaped the sci-fi horror movie world since its creation.
My rating 100%



Aliens.

Set years after the first movie, Ripley has woken from hypersleep to find that the world she knew has vanished. Surrounded by company officials and investigations, she’s ridiculed for the stories she tells about what happened on the Nostromo years before.
It’s revealed to her that the planet she described has now become part of a terraforming project and that contact has been lost with the colonists.
With a squad of Interplanetary Marines by her side, she’s sent out to the original planet as an advisor for the squad where she faces the possibility of more horror and has to face her fears that have haunted her for as long as she can remember.

James Cameron’s sequel to Scott’s masterpiece has it’s fair share of shocks and claustrophobia and borders on the horror genre but is much more action orientated than the original sci-fi horror.

It’s also just as well written too. It expands the universe that Scott created too. There’s more scope with the horizon of the storyline and there are new characters and an expansion in the ‘Company’ added in as well.

The acting again is bang on the money.
Sigourney Weaver as Ripley is expanded from the tough officer type to that of a mentally tormented, reluctant heroine. Eventually digging deep to do what’s needed. Weaver was nominated for an Oscar in the role too.
Michael Biehn is spot on as Corporal Hicks. He’s tough and take-charge and has a very approachable human quality about him too.
The Marines are primarily made up of stunt actors too, which adds to the authenticity of their roles.

The effects, especially the creatures are improved as well for the movie. Cameron, having a background in special effects, had the knowledge to use camera angles and wire work for the creatures, which expands their character brilliantly and he has a nice twist with the Alien lifecycle. The action is fantastically choreographed too.

All in all it takes a different approach to the original and is the rare exception where the sequel is as good as the first.
My rating is another 100%



Alien 3, Both Versions.

A movie hit with budget cuts, internal arguments between producers, director and writers, storyline changes (before during and even after filming) and studio executives having no leniency or confidence with director David Fincher.

The story, set just after James Cameron's Aliens, involves Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) crash landing on an almost abandoned planet with an enormous yet run down and barely populated prison after her cryo-tube is ejected from the Sulaco mothership.

The usual happens, an Alien Facehugger follows her in the Emergency Evacuation Unit and eventually spawns an offspring, which disappears into the prison.

At first, as usual, Ripley's magical tale of giant aliens with acidic blood and a mouth for a tongue is ignored by the powers that be (the prison super-intendant and his second in command). The Alien eventually runs amuck, sending the prisoners and the prison staff into fits of panic by picking them off one by one.
Ripley eventually is looked to for help in fighting the creature while they all await a rescue ship from 'The Company'.

Theatrical Version:

The theatrical release of the movie is the version most people are familiar with. The Alien gestates inside of a dog that belongs to one of the prisoners.
This version contains a limited storyline as it was cut and shredded in the editing room against Fincher's wishes. It's also a good 30 minutes shorter.

It also contains limited interaction between the viewer and the actors/characters, many of the prisoners are nameless faces treated like cannon fodder for the Alien.

Only a handful of characters are expanded on for the viewer: Ripley, Dr Clemens (Charles Dance), Dillon (Charles S Dutton), Morse (Danny Webb) and Aaron '85' (Ralph Brown) and that's about it.

The Alien, gladly is kept to the shadows as much as possible and many of the attack scenes are shot relatively close up to put the viewer in the midst of the action. Which works to an extent but can get disorientating.
The prison also is kept almost as secret as the nameless prisoners. The viewer never really feels part of the setting. Giant corridors that all look the same make the audience just as lost as the storyline.

Ok, the theatrical release is a marmite movie for fans, they either love it or hate it.
I'd say that it works as a horror and is a good film in its own right, but it feels unfinished and rushed. I didn't like it at first, but over the years, it grew on me.

Definitive Edition:

Now we're talking.
Fincher was put to making two similar beginnings to the movie, the theatrical version being the one the studio wanted, this 'definitive' edition being Fincher's preferred.
The dog in the theatrical version is never seen in this version, instead, an ox (used as a tractor by the prisoners) is the Facehugger's choice of gestation.

The story is expanded between the audience and pretty much all the characters, especially Golic (played by Paul McGann), a psychotic murderer and rapist who actually sympathises with the alien creature.
Most of the nameless prisoners now have speaking lines and the storyline feels much more finished and that more time has actually been taken in making it work.

A huge chunk of the middle of the film contains the same scenes as the theatrical release but with the extra/original scenes added back in, it gives the entire movie a completely different aura.

The bad point of the Definitive Version is also, sadly, the added scenes.

That might seem contradictory but the problem is this; The sound hasn't been looped in an editing room, which gives the added scenes a 'hissy' background sound. Some of the added original scenes are fine, others not so.

It's a shame really, as the Definitive Edition is by far a superior movie.

Though if you can look past the small sound problem, even if you didn't like the theatrical Alien 3, you'll certainly prefer this one.

Give it a go. I did, and even though I like the theatrical version, I'll never be going back to it now.

Overall Theatrical Version rating: 75%.
Overall Definitive Version rating: 90% (would be 95%, just the sound lets it down)



Alien Resurrection.

The USM Auriga, a military ship has, after 200 years, managed to clone Ripley and the Alien Queen. Their goal is to use the Alien as an ultimate weapon.
In the cloning process, Ripley’s and the Alien’s DNA have been crossed at a genetic level, giving Ripley a superhuman strength.
After the creatures escape from their cells and the military personnel on board the ship are either killed or escape, it’s up to Ripley and a small group of survivors, mainly space pirates, to get off the ship and destroy the Auriga before it can land on Earth.

Sadly, after a great build up and the marmite question of Alien 3, the fans of the franchise were hit with this abomination.

It’s very stylish and contemporary in the way it looks and in the character design but the writing, particularly the dialogue is mediocre at best.
There are little original twists in the story and some of the characters and creatures but they feel more gimmicky than anything else and there’s a lot of very samey plotlines going on too.

The acting is also extremely hammy and borders on wooden at times, especially Winona Ryder.
Weaver is about as good as she could have been but looks fed up with it all.
The best of the acting comes from Ron Perlman, he encapsulates his thug of a character brilliantly and adds a touch of loud humour too.

The action is very stylish rather than realistic and doesn’t really excite the viewer. Coming from a French director I guess that’s expected but it does make the film stand out from the others. The underwater scene is by far the most memorable scene of the entire film.
The creature effects are relatively good and the CGI is well rendered.

All in all, it has a very stylised feel and look and is mainly a miss affair, but it’s watchable for post-pub entertainment.
My rating 27%





I was enjoying Resurrection pretty well up until that cringe-worthy last section.
__________________
#31 on SC's Top 100 Mofos list!!



Shame really, could have been good to see an expansion on the universe but instead we got a European Art-house wannabe.



Yeah, I enjoyed the humor and such, and Ron Perlman's performance was cool, but that was hardly an Alien film. Definitely the weakest of the series by far. People complained about 3 but it was frigging genius compared to the sloppy execution of Resurrection.



Yeah, I enjoyed the humor and such, and Ron Perlman's performance was cool, but that was hardly an Alien film. Definitely the weakest of the series by far. People complained about 3 but it was frigging genius compared to the sloppy execution of Resurrection.
Alien 3 Definitive is the one to go for if you fancy watching the third film. By far the superior. The Theatrical is ok but still.

In regard to Resurrection, it's that bad that if you look at my past reviews, you might notice that AvP and AvP Requiem actually scored higher lolol!



I actually like AvP and own it. I can't really recall the second one.

Alien 3 was underrated, and people complained it was too gloomy and they didn't like the ending. I thought it was fitting, and the film felt much more like Alien than Aliens. They should've just left well enough alone, I guess.



Review #48: The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park 3 (plus a runover from my earlier Jurassic Park review).

Jurassic Park.

The premise, by Michael Crichton is a partially fact based scientific endeavour to bring Dinosaurs back to life using preserved blood found in insects.

Let’s start at the movie: John Hammond (Richard Attenborough), a multi-squillionaire with delusions of grandeur has set about and succeeded in turning an entire island into a theme park full of unnatural-abominations.
After inviting along two scientists (Sam Neill and Laura Dern), a chaos theorist (Jeff Goldblum) and a lawyer (Martin Ferrero) to the park while his own grandchildren are there (Ariana Richards and Joseph Mazzello), things inevitably take a turn for the worst when fences fail from a power cut.
The group, who are all now separated into their own survival stories have to hide and run in a desperate attempt to restore power to the park and call in the helicopters to take them home.

The movie as a whole is extremely well made. The character build up and strong acting make the movie very weighty.
Sam Neill with Ariana Richards and Joseph Mazzello are a chalk, chalk and cheese buddy movie in their own right.
The story adapted from the novel differs to the novel in many respects but is still extremely well written.

The cast is not just extremely good at what they’re doing, they fit the theme.
The movie is also shot beautifully. It’s very grand in feeling. Some of the sets are also extremely spooky.

The special effects used were not just cutting edge for the time (1992-1993), they still beat most movies of modern times. The ILM and Stan Winston Studios collaboration is very special.

Most of the computer work for the dinosaurs had to be created solely for the movie (albeit adapted from existing technology). What makes the movie’s CGI special is that the movie-makers asked a very simple question: "What is impossible?". Then they achieved the impossible.
The main place that the movie fails, is that it’s extremely loosely based on Crichton’s fantastic novel.

Anyone who has read the book will know that, as always with Spielberg, things got dumbed down to a more friendly atmosphere for a wider audience. Even so, at rated PG in Britain, which basically means anyone can watch, under 13s with supervision, I still wouldn’t let my own children at 5 and 6 years old watch it just yet. All I’m saying is Raptors In The Kitchen.

If the filmmakers had stuck to the book and Spielberg had been a bit braver, the movie would have been a hell of a lot better.
At time of release, the movie itself was so big it stayed in cinemas in my local town for nearly two years.

All in all a popcorn movie with a decent story and some genuine scary bits.
My rating 86%




The Lost Word: Jurassic Park.

The premise is based on secrets kept by the Ingen company. There is a second island with dinosaurs on and Hammond has decided to send in a team of scientists to research how they have managed to live for so long without the injections needed for survival.
Ian Malcolm has been drafted in unwillingly as his girlfriend Sarah Harding has been sent to the island ahead of schedule, alone.
Cue lots of running and screaming.
 
It’s another marmite movie from me, the fans of the original film were divided with this one.
As it is, it’s a decent movie, the filmmakers approached the idea with the mindset of "we’ve achieved the impossible with JP, now how far can we push it".
It really shows too, it’s louder, faster, has more dino’s and has far better special effects.

The action is by far the best thing about the movie, it’s very exciting and fantastically choreographed. The cliff top T-Rex scene is certainly a heart stopper.

The downside is that the story has suffered. It feels as though Spielberg felt obliged to make a sequel and, though he resorted to Crichton’s books again, it feels kind of hollow and rushed. Not cashed-in exactly, but certainly empty of story.
There are nice little touches throughout the film, for example with the T-Rex, and some of the action sequences, but again, Crichton’s masterpieces of storytelling have been torn apart again.

The acting is good though. Jeff Goldblum reprises his role as Malcolm, he hits the nail right on the head.
Julianne Moore as Harding is another good point, she very likable.
The late great Pete Postlethwaite makes an appearance as a Great White Hunter and though he’s only around for about a half of the movie, he makes a lasting impression.

A marmite point for fans is the second act of the film, some loved it, others not so. Personally I though it was an original touch.

All in all it’s a thrill ride of effects and action but lacks the charm and mystery of the first.
My rating 74%




Jurassic Park 3.

The premise, is that thrill seekers are using the second island (from the second film) as an adventure holiday sort of thing. Ben Hildebrand and his stepson Erik Kirby vanish when their parasailing trip goes wrong and they land on the island.
Erik’s mother and father (Tea Leoni and William H Macy) kidnap Alan Grant (a returning Sam Neill) and his assistant Billy (Alessandro Nivola) and take 3 mercenaries with them too, to the island in search of their son.
Again, cue lots of running and screaming and dino’s.

This is certainly the first and final nail in JP’s coffin. It was an anticipated movie by fans but sadly detaches itself from the JP universe almost completely. The only exception being Sam Neill and a 30-second cameo from Laura Dern. It’s also written without any input from Crichton, which really shows in the extremely poor storytelling.

The filmmakers try to add a broken family trying to fix their problems into the mix, but it falls flat, you just don’t care about the characters enough and the ending is so abrupt and unrealistic it smashes any hopes that the film may have had.

There are more Dinosaurs shown throughout the movie and the Raptors in particular have been updated to modern scientific fact, but sadly that’s the only good point, and sadly again, it pushes the movie even farther from the JP universe with continuity errors. The addition of a new super-predator could have been worth while but it comes off as a cheap, badly animated gimmick.

It’s kind of a double barrel; the good points are actually a bad point.
The island and buildings seen on the island also bare absolutely no resemblance to the second movie either.

The effects are another bad point, the creatures seen are extremely animated.
When I say animated, what I actually mean is that they look like cartoons.

Getting Joe Johnson to try to live up to Spielberg's calibre, was certainly a bad choice by the studios, it’s simply an extremely poor film compared to Spielberg's lead up.

Sam Neill looks absolutely tired of it all.
William H Macy and Tea Leoni aren’t too bad, but their comedic ‘divorcee differences’ don’t do much to lift the story.

All in all, it’s a miss so big it wouldn’t get wet if it fell out of a boat.
My rating 10%





Review #49: Gremlins 1 & 2.

Gremlins.

A failing inventor called Randall Peltzer is searching through Chinatown in search for a Christmas present for his son, Billy.
While there he’s taken to a small shop by a boy where he finds that the boy’s Grandfather has a small animal in a cage.
Besotted by the little creature, he offers to buy it, the old man refuses saying there is a lot of responsibility with it.
In secret, Randall and the young boy make a deal for the little animal and the boy explains that there are rules that need to be followed with caring for it.
Don’t get him wet. Don’t ever feed him after midnight. Don’t expose him to bright light, especially sunlight, as it will kill him.
On returning home, he gives Billy his present, now named Gizmo and within a few days, Billy breaks the first two rules and unleashes a an army of evil, malignant little creatures on his home town.
It’s up to him and his girlfriend and Gizmo to stop the little monsters before they end up spreading beyond control.

It’s a pretty simplistic story and sets itself up quite easily for the viewer, but the concept as a whole is very original.
Joe Dante’s direction is another bonus, he really creates an atmospheric set of circumstances and keeps the mystery of the creatures going throughout. There are also some jumpy moments mixed in as well.

Though the movie is seen as a big hit with kids by modern standard, at the time of release though, some cinemas actually banned it and warnings had to be aired to TV during trailers, warning people not to take their kids to see it. Gremlins is more of a comedy-horror than anything else, but humour is very dark at times and borders throughout on macabre and sadistic too.
It also contains some quite violent scenes, particularly the attempted killings of innocent people.

The effects are also a bonus. Using mainly hand puppets for the creatures they have a very real organic feel to them and they’re brilliantly modelled.
There is one stop motion scene as well, but it’s really well put together.

The acting is again, a good point. The actors play it relatively serious throughout, which makes some of the comedy work better.
Zach Galligan as Billy is a brilliantly nerdy, normal guy thrown into horrific circumstances.
Phoebe Cates as Kate Beringer is another normal character who has to dig deep during the horror.

A bad point is that some of the story telling is really very simple and set up in an ABC-123 set of scenes. Though, it’s not much of a downer as the film as a whole is really well made.

All in all, it’s a funny, if dark movie that has proved its worth over the past 30 years.
My rating 85%



Gremlins 2: The New Batch.

After the death of Gizmo’s owner (the Grandfather from the first film), the large Clamp Corporation takes over the city block and builds a large skyscraper. Gizmo is also snatched by the company’s genetics lab and kept in a cage in the building.
As it happens, Billy and Kate are now working in said building and Billy finds out that Gizmo is there and rescues him from the lab.
Of course, Billy leaves Gizmo alone for a few hours where he ends up getting into trouble and gets wet, spawning the New Batch of the title.
Cue lots of destruction and hijinks in the skyscraper.

It’s another simplistic story from director Dante and sadly, all the dark humour and horror from the first film is dropped completely for a more friendly family film that’s suitable for kids.
The movie is a prime example of Hollywood catering for taste and wider audience, rather than for making decent films.

It’s very comic book in feel too. The filmmakers decided to go mainly for wacky comedy and funny sound effects and the movie is laden with gimmicks, especially when the creatures end up in the genetics lab and start drinking the various potions.
There are a lot of nods and homage to other films as well.

The effects are improved with the creatures though, the puppets are much better modelled but they’re very cutesy for a younger audience appeal.

The acting is a good point though.
Zach and Phoebe hit their roles perfectly again.
This time round the viewer is treated to John Glover as the Squillionaire Daniel Clamp (head of the Clamp Corporation). Glover is absolutely fantastic in the role and has a very subtle, comic book comedy about him. He's lots of fun and very enigmatic.

Another bad point of the film is that some of the soundtrack (music) is existing material from other Dante films.

All in all, it’s a big step back from the first film, but as a whole, as it is, it’s actually quite entertaining and fun to watch.
My rating 45%





Review #50: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990).

For my 50th, I decided to do a review of a childhood favourite of mine and yes, I do still enjoy watching it even though I'm now in my 30s

Four turtles, around the ages of 15 and 16, live in a New York sewer with a rat. What makes them special is that all five creatures have been mutated into human sized freaks of nature. The rat, once a pet of a Japanese Ninja Master called Hamato Yoshi, has taken it upon himself to train the turtles with the knowledge he acquired from his time with Yoshi.
After a chance meeting with a news reporter, they make themselves enemies of a secret band of Ninja Thieves calling themselves The Foot Clan, who have been operating in New York.

The story is incredibly well put together. It contains elements of the original graphic novel mixed with elements of the Saturday morning cartoon and blends them in a perfect mix of violence, stylish martial arts, fantasy, comedy, tragedy and especially, storytelling.
It’s fun, fast and exciting to watch and has perfect elements of mystery, haunting backstory and discovery added to it too, that are revealed over the course of the movie.

Some of the scenes are quite haunting too, the music adds to the feelings of upset and anguish when tragedy strikes which is something not many films of this type are able to put together.

It can be very brooding and dark at times too with some of the subject matters involved.

The effects, particularly the creatures are a marvel. By today’s standard they show a few mistakes but they hold up pretty well. The actors in the suits, mainly martial artists and stuntmen, are absolutely brilliant to watch during fight scenes.
Another plus is that all of the effects are practical and animatronic, there’s no CGI.

The acting is also bang on.
Judith Hoag as news reporter April O’Neal is fantastically out of her depth as the damsel in distress and proves her worth toward the end.
Elias Koteas as Casey Jones is another plus point. His character starts out as an enemy but eventually befriends the Turtles and becomes a key figure in the fight against The Foot.
There’s also a small but memorable turn from Sam Rockwell as a head thug of The Foot.

The main area of attention needs to go to the stunt-actors in the suits and their voiceovers.
Michelan Sisti as Michelangelo, voiced by Robbie Rist.
Josh Pais as Raphael voiced by Pais himself.
David Forman as Leonardo voiced by Brian Tochi.
Leif Tilden as Donatello voiced by Corey Feldman.
James Saito as Shredder, voiced by David McCharen.

The above parties involved are absolutely bang on the money. They’re very real and draw the audience into actually caring about the characters.

Saito’s portrayal of Shredder in particular made into my top 40 villains.

One thing that lets the movie down is that it hasn’t really stood the test of time fantastically with the effects as I said a moment ago. Still though, they work and don’t let the film down too much.

All in all, it’s a fantastically put together comic book movie and is brilliantly choreographed. An extremely rare piece of filmmaking considering the material it’s based on.
My rating 90%





Sit Ubu Sit.... Good Dog
I am just glad to see that you gave Jurassic Park (1) the best out of the three, if you hadn't then I would have lost all respect.
What's your thought on the 4th on that is getting made?



I am just glad to see that you gave Jurassic Park (1) the best out of the three, if you hadn't then I would have lost all respect.
What's your thought on the 4th on that is getting made?
Personally, I think they should scrap the idea of making a 4th.
They should go back to Crichton's novel and reboot the entire thing and actually use the book as the source material rather than just using certain elements.

That way they could make it a 18 rated movie with decent story rather than the family friendly adventure that Spielberg made.



Sit Ubu Sit.... Good Dog
I think that is one of the rumors about the 4th is remaking the 1st, it will have Sam Neil and the girl that played the main female part I can't remember her name, so that is one of the rumors is that it is a remake.
Anyone who has read the books would like to see a remake page for page remake of the book, the movie should have been rated R if it was based on the book but as with a ton of movies that does not happen because of the crowd they are trying to attract, I don't think there is any 100 percent proof of what the 4th will be but I am kind of hoping that if will be a remake/re-think/whatever you want to call it of the first movie, but you have to keep Sam Neil and the girl I can't remember, and from what I have read they are going to do that much at least,,,,,, so who knows.



Review #51: 30 Days Of Night.

The most remote northern town called Barrow is subjected to 30 days of perpetual darkness every year. This year will be different.
The local Sheriff has been finding strange things in the days leading up to the dark winter, missing mobile phones, dead sled dogs etc.
What awaits the town’s residents is a ‘family’ of sadistic and brutal vampires that have been waiting for the month of night-time to arrive so they can have their fun and feed on the people of Barrow.

Based loosely on the graphic novel of the same name, 30 Days is, I have to say, one of the most thrilling vampire films I’ve seen in a while. The last decent vamp film would probably be the original Blade over a decade ago.

It’s hard, cold, fast and extremely well realised, the fact that the concept of the town’s perpetual night-time winter is based on truth it gives the movie a little more weight too.

The action is also extremely brutal but is really well choreographed, especially with the movement of the creatures against the mere running and screaming humans that they’re tearing apart.

The creatures themselves have an aura of originality about them. They’re not just the basic bloodsuckers, the filmmakers have gone for a more grounded feel of reality with them.
In the words of the director: Something that wants to kill you, eat you and drink your blood is neither sexy nor romantic.
It works too, they’re very spooky at times and some of the scenes are quite sadistic and macabre, particularly when they kill whole families and make them watch as they do.
The make up and prosthetics and even touches of CGI on their faces is really well put together too.
It’s also very gory when it gets going, especially against the plain white backdrop of a snow-covered town.

The acting is also pretty good for a slash ‘em up movie. Though not the best in the movie world it’s pretty up there with other horrors.
Josh Hartnett as the town’s Sheriff is ok, he’s at his usual self in the role but is believable.
Melissa George is a spot of beauty among the carnage and she’s not just the regular damsel in distress either.
Mark Boone Junior has a small and memorable role too, he’s at his usual too but makes an impression and plays a key part in the storyline.
Danny Huston steals the show though as Marlow, the ‘head’ of the creatures. As usual, he encapsulates his character brilliantly and is extremely withdrawn from reality.

One fault with the movie would be the resolve at the end i.e.; How they find a way to defeat the creatures. It’s a little contrived but coming from a graphic novel, it works to an extent and gives the movie it’s own little twist.

All in all it’s an original and enjoyable, if at times a gory and disturbing look, at the vampire legend. A surprisingly good movie.
My rating 80%