(2014) Phil Lord and Chris Miller
This CG animated Lego movie is fun and subversive. The Lego blocks look pretty real and it feels like Stop motion animation. There are human generated sound effects. Funny and fun for the whole family. Double PUNCH!
Oh yeah this is probably the best Batman movie yet made.
(6/7)
Trailer
Monday, February 17, 2014
Vampire Academy
(2014) Mark Waters
Well. . . Vampire Academy trys really hard to make a fun and somewhat original teen vampire movie with some humor. Does it succeed? It is no Mean Girls.
Zoey Deutch is awesome and there are some decent double punch moments. There is also a cat in it.
(4/7)
Trailer
Well. . . Vampire Academy trys really hard to make a fun and somewhat original teen vampire movie with some humor. Does it succeed? It is no Mean Girls.
Zoey Deutch is awesome and there are some decent double punch moments. There is also a cat in it.
(4/7)
Trailer
Monuments Men
(2014) George Clooney
George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman, Bob Balaban, whoa that is a cast.
This "true story" of the United States soldiers charged with protecting and recovering artwork and items stolen by the Nazi's during the war looks great and has a great cast. Sadly this film seems a bit boring. A bit bland. There are some nice scenes but there is an uneven, methodical, plod to the work that brings somberness but little else. I kept waiting for all these great actors to be let out of their cages to shine. It did not happen. Brilliant casting of Nick Clooney as Old George Clooney.
(3/7)
George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman, Bob Balaban, whoa that is a cast.
This "true story" of the United States soldiers charged with protecting and recovering artwork and items stolen by the Nazi's during the war looks great and has a great cast. Sadly this film seems a bit boring. A bit bland. There are some nice scenes but there is an uneven, methodical, plod to the work that brings somberness but little else. I kept waiting for all these great actors to be let out of their cages to shine. It did not happen. Brilliant casting of Nick Clooney as Old George Clooney.
(3/7)
True Detective (On the Cables)
(2014) Nic Pizzolatto
A Southern boy tells a Chambersian/ Ligottiian/ Lovecraftian crime story with style and skill and Matthew McConaughey is at his career best in this HBO series. Woody Harrelson does a fine job also. This show is deep, tightly scripted and shot, tightly plotted and is genuinely scary. In fact this show gave me some Robert Chambers nightmares. Scary ones. The State of Louisiana also stars. Watch
(6/7)
Trailer
A Southern boy tells a Chambersian/ Ligottiian/ Lovecraftian crime story with style and skill and Matthew McConaughey is at his career best in this HBO series. Woody Harrelson does a fine job also. This show is deep, tightly scripted and shot, tightly plotted and is genuinely scary. In fact this show gave me some Robert Chambers nightmares. Scary ones. The State of Louisiana also stars. Watch
(6/7)
Trailer
Pontypool (On DVD and Streaming)
(2008) Bruce McDonald
Pontypool is a horror movie that uses a very Lovecraftian approach to tell the story of a bizarre alien outbreak. The infectious agent is something that Abdul Al-Hazred would have understood.
Stephen McHattie plays a former shock-jock who becomes the host of a small town radio show that is on the air when crisis strikes the town. This movie plays with building dread without physically revealing what is actually happening. This is a "closed room" story and it does a good job building suspense and evokes the storytelling of good radio drama. The explanation of causation of the outbreak is thoroughly original. . . Watch it.
Trailer
Pontypool is a horror movie that uses a very Lovecraftian approach to tell the story of a bizarre alien outbreak. The infectious agent is something that Abdul Al-Hazred would have understood.
Stephen McHattie plays a former shock-jock who becomes the host of a small town radio show that is on the air when crisis strikes the town. This movie plays with building dread without physically revealing what is actually happening. This is a "closed room" story and it does a good job building suspense and evokes the storytelling of good radio drama. The explanation of causation of the outbreak is thoroughly original. . . Watch it.
Trailer
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Now For Something Completely Different . . . .
I haven't posted in a while but I have been watching movies.
Here is a list of what I have been watching on DVD: Life of Pi; Idiocracy; Silver Linings Playbook; Les Miserables; Ong Bak 3; The Spiderwick Chronicles; Stripes; Silverado; Last Life in the Universe; Zeitgeist; Cave of Forgotten Dreams; Tokyo-ga; Bones Brigade: An Autobiography; The Tempest; The Pirates of Penzance; Max Headroom; Titan A.E.; McCabe and Mrs. Miller; Meek's Cutoff; The Assassination of Jesse James; Constantine; Eastern Promises; and Waterworld!
Some good stuff. Some less good stuff. I have been on a Western kick lately. I recommend Silverado and McCabe and Mrs. Miller as the classic "New" westerns they are. Last Life in the Universe is a great Thai movie from 2003 (directed by Pen-Ek Ratanaruang) starring Tadanobu Asano and Sinitta Boonyasak. I highly recommend it.
Cave of Forgotten Dreams is a documentary on Chauvet Cave's amazing prehistoric art by Werner Herzog. It is really cool to see the amazing artwork.
The Assassination of Jesse James has nice elements but Brad Pitt is only fair and the movie suffers from bloat in my view.
Tokyo-ga is worth watching as is the Bones Brigade doc.
I'll get back to actual reviews soon. . . .
Here is a list of what I have been watching on DVD: Life of Pi; Idiocracy; Silver Linings Playbook; Les Miserables; Ong Bak 3; The Spiderwick Chronicles; Stripes; Silverado; Last Life in the Universe; Zeitgeist; Cave of Forgotten Dreams; Tokyo-ga; Bones Brigade: An Autobiography; The Tempest; The Pirates of Penzance; Max Headroom; Titan A.E.; McCabe and Mrs. Miller; Meek's Cutoff; The Assassination of Jesse James; Constantine; Eastern Promises; and Waterworld!
Some good stuff. Some less good stuff. I have been on a Western kick lately. I recommend Silverado and McCabe and Mrs. Miller as the classic "New" westerns they are. Last Life in the Universe is a great Thai movie from 2003 (directed by Pen-Ek Ratanaruang) starring Tadanobu Asano and Sinitta Boonyasak. I highly recommend it.
Cave of Forgotten Dreams is a documentary on Chauvet Cave's amazing prehistoric art by Werner Herzog. It is really cool to see the amazing artwork.
The Assassination of Jesse James has nice elements but Brad Pitt is only fair and the movie suffers from bloat in my view.
Tokyo-ga is worth watching as is the Bones Brigade doc.
I'll get back to actual reviews soon. . . .
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Pacific Rim
(2013) Guillermo Del Toro
Ah Guillermo Del Toro strikes again. Idris Elba, Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi and giant monsters from another dimension. What else need be said? Well, OK actually other than riffing on a million and one (read: Shadow of the Colossus) video game superboss monsters and the idea of retooling the classic Gojira/ Kaiju and Giant Battling Robots (Mecha) mythos-- this movie is descent. The core story and performances are solid but the weakest, most aggravating element is the "mascot-esque" humorous performances of the "scientist" characters. They were essentially stepping of each others lines and muddling the dialogue with yelling and frenetic nonsense. It really detracted from the film. Bummer. Other than that there is some good action and a basically interestingly realized future where mankind faces a monstrous threat from beyond.
Trailer
Ah Guillermo Del Toro strikes again. Idris Elba, Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi and giant monsters from another dimension. What else need be said? Well, OK actually other than riffing on a million and one (read: Shadow of the Colossus) video game superboss monsters and the idea of retooling the classic Gojira/ Kaiju and Giant Battling Robots (Mecha) mythos-- this movie is descent. The core story and performances are solid but the weakest, most aggravating element is the "mascot-esque" humorous performances of the "scientist" characters. They were essentially stepping of each others lines and muddling the dialogue with yelling and frenetic nonsense. It really detracted from the film. Bummer. Other than that there is some good action and a basically interestingly realized future where mankind faces a monstrous threat from beyond.
Trailer
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