The Man Who Wasn't There - 6/10. I need to stop thinking I'll be satisfied by a Coen Brother's movie. Great style and great acting, but the 'go no where' stories are starting to drag me down rather than be enjoyable.
Morning Glory - 4/10. Standard girl with no life finds a life in her job, which then threatens her personal life. All the standard cliches are present, but there is no catalyst which drives the movie - it's almost like the events have to happen for the story to go forward, but there is no actual character progression, just character change. But Rachel McAdams is hot, and Harrison Ford is always badass.
I know, I've done a lot of complaining about the game. Well, for all my bitching, the game has still managed to make me want to watch the movies again for the first time in about a year, and I still love them. I love the story, I love the characters, I love the effects, I love the DeLorean, I love the subtleties I didn't get when I was younger, I even love the plot inconsistencies and waving at them as they pass by. Easily one of my favorite movies.
However, I'm sorry but I've been dying to say this, but I didn't want to say it in the BttF forums where it would spark an unwanted discussion again. Seeing Claudia Wells circa 1985 has really driven home how much I can't stand the surgery she's had done.
I don't know how much of this I can actually believe or trust, as I know how manipulative documentaries can be, but this one seems to come across as almost air-tight. I thought it was really well-made and constructed, very persuasive and convincing, and also very entertaining.
[...]I love the story, I love the characters, I love the effects, I love the DeLorean, I love the subtleties I didn't get when I was younger, I even love the plot inconsistencies and waving at them as they pass by. Easily one of my favorite movies.
I originally thought you'd written (and misspelled) 'subtitles' here, and thought "why the hell would he love the subtitles?". Then I realized .
Hot Fuzz - 7.5/10
Nice, but definitely not as good as Shaun of the Dead.
Inception - 10/10
This is still the only movie in a long time that has actually made me think. And watching it in 3D (it was never released in 3D, but my 3DTV has a converter that works really well) and surround sound? Even better.
Great jokes and wonderful characterization. The Addams Family has always been a strong aspect of my childhood and it's great to revisit the film once more.
I'm actually mixed on this one. There are a lot of things I really liked. I liked the main story, and I liked the concept, and I liked the montage at the beginning (although I soon started to wonder if the movie had anything other than montages. Fortunately it did).
I didn't like the fantasy scenes while she's dancing. I liked the concept of them, but every single was on them made me think "is it over yet?". I found them extremely boring. It's pure action, nothing interesting, nothing to care about. I think even the dancing would have been more interesting.
But I liked the idea that they were metaphors for stuff, and I liked that each was a different movie genre. Still, I think the whole fantasy that's the main story was already good, I would have switched between that and the real thing (asylum) instead of switching between that and more fantasy inside a fantasy, which only consisted in killing and destroying stuff.
Most specifically, I disliked one in particular.
The one in which they kill a baby dragon, then its mother chases them and they killed the mom too. WTF? And these are supposed to be the GOOD guys?
Seamus, who loved these scenes, agrees with me on that specific point.
What I disliked the most about the movie though was the very end of it,
when she talks to you directly
. It was so cheesy I actually rolled my eyes in the theatre, which isn't something I remember doing ever (and I've seen a lot of crappy movies).
Ultimately, I liked a lot of things about the movie, and I liked the concept of it, but it seemed to me they tried to jam action scenes in a movie that would have been better without them. Even keeping the fantasy scenes, I would have liked them much better if they hadn't been action scenes. As it is, it's mostly combat that's hard to follow and that I really didn't care about. It felt a lot like Battle LA did (but fortunately only during these scenes). And yeah, the end, byeargh. Hated that, and ending the movie on it is a really bad idea IMO.
Another thing I liked is that
the main character isn't the one who gets to escape. The one who does is the one who didn't even want to try because she's the only sane one. Makes perfect sense for her to be the one who gets out of the asylum
. Another one I didn't like is that
the old guy who helps them doesn't make sense. I was fine with him just being symbolic, but then he's also the bus driver who somehow knows everything. I guess the point is that he's supposed to be an angel (and the main character too) but what, the guy became a bus driver just for that moment to happen? I don't know, I didn't really like it.
Something Seamus said he would have wanted
is for the stepfather to get his comeuppance in the movie, but honestly, I feel it's much more realistic if he doesn't
I think I liked it more than I disliked it, but I would take a movie of pure dialogue when the characters don't do as much as blink over an action movie, so there was way too much action for me in that movie.
You don't like her? She doesn't have a huge role, so I don't think it would ruin the experience for you unless you really hate her, it's not like she's the main character.
The A-Team - 8/11 - This is the movie that made Sharlto Copley one of my top ten modern actors. This guy has serious RANGE. He is awesome. You might remember him as the main character of District 9. He plays Murdoch in this, and he steals the show. Liam Neeson is great as Hannibal. He has the best intros in the entire movie. The action is...eh. The best sequence involves the team trying to fly a tank. Overall it's very TV quality in the action sequences, which kind of fits the series. The acting is pretty good. I don't really know what else to say about it actually. There were a couple memorable moments, but the music was kind of crappy. It was better than the Expendables anyway. I'd watch a sequel.
Highlander - 8/11 - I've been needing to watch this movie for a long time. I first got interested in the series because Noah Antwiler talked about it so much, and a friend of mine finally pushed me to finally see it. Part of me didn't want to because I was afraid it'd get me to watch the sequels, and there is not much less I want to do. So, I'm having trouble gathering my thoughts on this one. It's...kind of like if you mixed Heavy Metal, Fire and Ice, Star Wars, and the best of the 80s. A great soundtrack, great action, awesome effects, silly but memorable acting, and a really cool story with a lot of mystery behind it. I thought Sean Connery was a bit underused, and I thought Lambert was the best performance in the movie, even if he does remind me of Tommy Wiseau. I don't know; I really liked this one, but I felt like I should have more complaints with it than I did. Either way, I really recommend it. Just avoid the sequels.
Mean Guns - 6/11 - A half-generic, half-unique shoot-em-up action movie starring Christopher Lambert and...urgh...Ice T. Surprisingly, the movie actually manages to do quite a few things right, such as it's use of music and musical cues. It also has several references to Sergio Leone sprinkled around. It's a B movie, with some terrible performances and a couple memorable ones, but it's entertaining enough. This is the movie that forced me to see Christopher Lambert as a somewhat better version of Tommy Wiseau. Seriously, they have the SAME LAUGH and sometimes, the same delivery. The movie isn't amazing, but it's not bad either. I really hate the color palette in this one though.
Donnie Darko - 9/11 - If David Lynch and Jared Hess made a horror movie together. I'm not sure what to say about this movie. I really liked it, but at the same time, I've heard a lot of bad points on it that make me wonder if I should. I guess more than anything I like the concept of it.
I like the idea of a young man plagued by horrifying visions who must come to terms with the fact that his lonely death is necessary for the universe to continue unaffected.
I like how dark this movie is. I can definitely see how people say it's an emo film for wrist-cutting little emos and all, but I think the concept is a legitimately neat science fiction story with horror tossed within.
This movie legitimately creeped me out, and even managed to make me jump a couple of times. The creepiest scene for me was probably
the ending, when his family is crying around the site of his death, and in-between crying, their faces warp into horrifying looks, the worst of which is the Dad's eerie stretchy smile. I looked on a couple forums and I was surprised that I'm the only one who even noticed this.
There were also some good effects in some scenes, especially the mirror scenes, which I really liked. The lighting really helped set the tone for each scene and the movie overall. The performances were mostly good, except for Seth Rogan and the other kid as the token bullies. I'm sick of cheesy, cliche bullies in films that serve no other purpose than to be bullies. I've also never been a fan of Drew Barrymore. I just can't stand her at all. Seeing Patrick Swayze in this film was really weird. I'm insanely glad he was in it, because seeing him really just added to the unnerving, uneasy feeling of the film now that he's dead. I miss him. I couldn't stop thinking of Shinji Ikari when watching Jake Gyllenhaal as Donnie. The mystery elements and the building aura of menace was perfectly woven. Even if the story ends with a twist that isn't entirely plausible, it held my suspension of disbelief within the movie. I honestly wasn't creeped out by Frank the rabbit. Donnie was the one who truly creeped me out in the movie. The feeling of impending doom and the end of the world is a powerful atmosphere tool if done right, and I feel they did it right.
I liked it. Seamus and I had different interpretations of the end, but we both agreed to say we enjoyed the movie. I didn't see time pass while watching it, which is rare nowadays with American movies for me. Wasn't bored at any time. If anything, I was disappointed we didn't get to know all the passengers in the train a bit better.
I liked the concept, it reminded me of Quantum Leap and Flashforward. Seamus says there was some action, but it didn't bore me, so that means it was well integrated to the story. Usually I lose interest otherwise and stop following what's going on.
It's a predictable movie, I think (we both guessed any major point before they were revealed or happened) but I didn't think it distracted from enjoying it. I had a really nice time.
I went into this movie expecting to dislike it. I expected it to be Disney trying to be Dreamworks. I'm not entirely certain I was wrong, but I enjoyed it anyway. I liked the story well enough, and the characters grew on me. While I was upset that Disney didn't continue their return to traditional animation as with The Princess and the Frog, the movie was visually stunning, although there's just something about traditional animation that CG animation just can't capture. My only real gripe was the songs. Coming off of The Princess and the Frog, in which absolutely all of the music was amazing, it was incredibly disappointing to watch Tangled and grimace through every single one of the songs. What makes it even worse is that I don't mind Mandy Moore as a singer, so I feel it could've been so much better even with that factor. But the songs were only a part of it, and I enjoyed it overall.
AnuvaHood 6/10 - Didn't know I was gonna watch this until the last minute - it was low-brow, but had plenty of laughs if you like films like Ali-G. There's no point watching it unless you understand the slang or have seen films like AdultHood, which it's parodying. So quite funny, but hardly the best movie of all time.
I don't know how much of this I can actually believe or trust, as I know how manipulative documentaries can be, but this one seems to come across as almost air-tight. I thought it was really well-made and constructed, very persuasive and convincing, and also very entertaining.
It was pretty untruthful, Britain's NHS is not the wonder system that Moore portrays it for doctors and patients alike, and that hospital in Cuba that he takes all those folks to for treatement, they get treated in the same facilitites that they use for Castro, your average Cuban gets nowhere near that level of care.
But at the end of the day it still makes a good point, refusing treatment on fiscal grounds is downright loathsome and should be a practice put to an end worldwide
I've been going on a very weird movie binge. It started with Prince of Egypt and somehow went into classic Disney stuff. Anyway, movies I've watched since last Friday afternoon (with breaks for food and D&D):
Prince of Egypt - 9.5/10. Definitely in my top 10 list of favorite movies ever. Great voice work, a fantastic interpretation of the Exodus story and some fantastic Music (minus "Playing with the Big Boys Now" which has good lyrics, but like "It's Tough to Be A God" suffers from some really bad vocals). I try to watch it every Lent as a matter of tradition, but it's also one of those movies I'll watch just because I want to stop watching bad movies for a bit and spend an hour or two on something more worthwhile than Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter or Insemnoid.
Beauty and The Beast -10/10. This was my favorite movie as a kid, next to a really obscure Rankin Bass product called Flight of Dragons. It's not my all-time favorite movie (That spot is a three-way tie between Zebraman,Amadeus and Persuasion), but it's definitely number two, especially as I've gotten older. I always identified a lot with Belle, being a very bookish kid who grew up into a lit major. On top of that, she's probably one of the most well-rounded of the Disney heroines and is very consistently well handled. The Beast's design is damn BAD ASS, and, in fact, he may be part of why I love monsters so much to this day. I still think it's one of the best monstrous designs put to animation, which is part of why I probably never liked his human form. The secondary cast is fantastic, and Gaston, while not having the most sinister of Disney Villain motives is a good foil for the beast (plus, he gets one of my favorite songs in Disney canon). Going back to this movie is probably the reason for my classic Disney binge actually.
Muppet Treasure Island - 9/10 TIM CURRY AS LONG JOHN SILVER, do I need to say more? Probably one of the best of the Muppet movies, which is saying something, This is an absolutely hilarious movie, an, sadly enough probably one of the best pirate flicks in existence (says something bad about the genre doesn't it?). This is pretty much the movies I turn on when I'm having a crappy day. There's no way you can sit through "Professional Pirate" and not feel as though the world is a better place.
The Little Mermaid - 7/10. Good film but Christ Almighty on a pogo stick does the plot of this infuriate me, though to be fair the original fairy tale has always pissed me off something fierce. I love Ursula as a villain and the secondary cast including the badass that is King Triton is solid, but Eric is bland as hell and the whole "I sold my voice/soul for legs and a man I don't know" just makes me angry on so many levels. I will say that animation is fantastic (as per the Disney Renaissance) and the music in general, except for "Kiss the Girl" which I've never liked for some reason, is very good, particularly "Poor Unfortunate Souls". It's just, guh, plot. Not my least favorite disney movie, no that's a toss up between Pocahontas and Hunchback of Notre Dame, but it's up there.
Aladdin - 7.5/10 After Little Mermaid I honestly was not...all that enthusiastic about this movie. I remember it being okay as a kid, but I wasn't expecting much this time around. However, I'd forgotten how entertaining Robin Williams was when he wasn't picking ridiculously awful scripts. This is a thoroughly fun movie, moreso than I'd remembered. It's not as uproariously funny as Muppet Treasure Island, but I had a smile on my face the entire time watching it.
Next on my list so far: The Aladdin Sequels, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Rescuers Down Under, Mulan, Hercules.
I myself watched The Maltese Falcon just now. It's great because of its level of film-noir, but I felt slightly cheated as the audience for not getting to see
the real falcon
. Also the plot got confusing sometimes. I give it a solid 7.5/10
Except for Rescuers Down Under, Hunchback, Atlantis, and Mulan, I haven't seen ANY of those.
I actually waited and watched the Nostalgia Critic reviews after I watched these movies fresh because I wanted some unique opinions on them. So here goes.
Street Fighter Vs. Mortal Kombat
Street Fighter - 5/11 - What a piece of solid dick. I hate this movie. I don't hate everything about it, but I do hate it. All of the characters were perfectly cast. However, the plot is a big fat piece of anal ass. Where was the STREET FIGHTING? WHERE? WHERE? WHERE!!!? How can you cast a video game movie so well and miss the mark so badly? There were...three fights that were barely fights. They sucked! I counted. There were only a few seconds of fighting in the first hour and eight minutes of this movie. That is one hell of a wait for some fighting in a Street Fighter movie. And when that amount of time was up...
...inhale...
...when THAT TIME WAS UP...
....EXHALE....
....THEY FILLED ALMOST ALL THE REST OF THE HOUR AND A HALF MOVIE..
...TWENTY-TWO MINUTES...
...OF SHITTY GUNFIGHTING!!!
I mean...it's not like any of the actors did a bad job with their characters. The action was poor and bland and cliche and boring and stupid and insipid and anal ass. The plot was a piece of crap. The music was barely there, with only a couple of good pieces. And the effects...WERE...BALLS. Especially in Blanka. What the hell was that? It looked like Lou Ferrigno in an Incredible Hulk costume. What a STUPID movie. And to be honest, I didn't entirely agree with the Critic on it. I liked JCVD; he was one of the best and funniest parts of the movie. I've always liked JCVD. I liked Raul Julia. Not a ton, but I liked him. Anyway, rant over. On to the next movie. Obviously it couldn't be nearly as good as the first right. It's probably an anal piece of ass too. Nothing could possibly make me adore another fighting movie from this era.
Obviously the rating will be Mortal Kombat - 5/11 -
All right, so the movie starts off with a semi-bland semi-awesome opening sequence. The effects and the look of the film immediately calls me back to Highlander and Big Trouble in Little China. Okay...that's...pretty damn cool, BUT I'M NOT LETTING MY GUARD DOWN AFTER THAT ASSFEST THAT WAS STREET FIGHTER. I...wait...that guy with the white hair...his voice sounds like....no.
...No....it can't be...
Lambert: Hi. I'm Raiden.
IT IS! IT'S CHRISTOPHER LAMBERT!
Mortal Kombat - 10/11 -
Screw what I said before! Screw it in its ass! This movie is going to be awesome! Or so I said. And I was right. This movie is badass from beginning to end. It has everything you need to have a good, entertaining video game movie. It has a good cast. It has cheesiness, but in a fun, entertaining way. It has GREAT special effects. It has..GASP...ACTUAL FIGHTING. BTW, this is where I really was at odds with the Critic's way of thinking. How can you criticize a fighting movie based on a fighting game for having TOO MUCH FIGHTING? You can't. And yes, even the effects on Prince Goro are cool. What? I love that Harryhausen sort of stuff, and I thought the effects were convincing enough. Personally, it just added to the fun to me. Now, not all of the acting was as good as in Street Fighter, I'll admit that. Still, who the hell cares? FIGHTING! Also, I wasn't really impressed with Scorpion's tentacle monster that shoots out of his hand. However, it didn't really bother me all that much, and the fight between him and Johnny Cage was BADASS. Everything Cage does in that movie is badass. And the music is great. It perfectly evokes the feeling of a video game, and not just a video game, but a fighting video game. I can't really gush about this one anymore. I loved it, and it'll be one that I'll watch again and again for years to come. Problem, internet? Oh, also, LAMBERT! WOOOO.
After the fun and exciting movie Mortal Kombat was, I sure couldn't wait to see Mortal Kombat 2. It had to be awesome. It had to be badass! It...
Mortal Kombat 2: Annihilation - ..../11 -
OH LORD, WHAT A PIECE OF SHIT. OH....OHHHHH....
My head is in my hands. How could they...how did they...why did they....
GAH!
See this screencap. That face is the only good thing in the entire movie. That's it. I just...I need a drink.
I just can't get interested in a video game movie about a video game series I don't play and don't want to play.
Guile: No weapon, Bison? What happened to the purity of unarmed combat?
M. Bison: This is merely superconductor electromagnetism. Surely you've heard of it. It levitates bullet trains from Tokyo to Osaka. It levitates my desk, where I ride the saddle of the world. And it levitates... me!
Note that the above quote is played COMPLETELY straight. Street Fighter is required viewing, sir.
That isn't even the BEST line in the movie. Actually, the lines and the actors are the only two reasons I could ever recommend that movie. I do think everyone needs to see it at least once.
I don't even know what to say about this one. I'd say it wasn't what I expected except I didn't know what to expect. It may not make the list of my favorite movies (or it wouldn't if I got off my lazy ass and wrote said list), but I did enjoy it and it was well worth the watch.
Now, from what I hear, I may be making a mistake here, but it was the two movie set that someone made me borrow...
Expect very long-winded posts from me until I've finished my Disney Renaissance binge. That out of the way, let's get to it.
Aladdin: Return of Jafar 4/10. JESUS CHRIST WHO IN THE DISNEY CORPORATION LOOKED DOWN FROM ON HIGH AND SAID 'THOU SHALT INCLUDE GILBERT GOTTFRIED MUSICAL NUMBERS IN THY ALADDIN SEQUEL'?! I WILL CUT OUT THEIR HEART WITH A RUSTY SPOON. Other than the torturous musical numbers (none of which are tolerable), this...is not awful. Disney has definitely raped other classics much harder (I'm looking at youBeauty and the Beast: An Enchanted Christmas), and this is mostly just bad sequel bad. My major complaint actually is the lack of Jafar's original VA and Robin Williams (the way they handle Genie in this movie is atrocious).
Aladdin: Prince of Thieves - 6.5/10. Definitely one of the better Disney Sequels. The plot is miles better than Return of Jafar. There's a couple of musical numbers that hurt a little, but overall they're not bad. Animation's pretty good, and I have to say, props to Disney for at least maintaining Aladdin, Jasmine and the sultan's VAs solid through all three movies. Also, Jasmine gets to kick ass, which I'm totally behind and the designs for the Vanishing Isle and the den of the Forty thieves were really well done. Genie sort of still makes me want to stab myself in the ear though.
Atlantis the Lost Empire - 7.5/10 I was surprised at this movie, quite frankly. I hadn't seen it since it came out and remember it being sort of 'meh', but despite some major character derailment towards the end most of the movies quite enjoyable. It might just be that I'm a really niche academic field and making arguments that aren't really accepted at the moment, but I really, really get Milo. Also the crew is fantastically quirky and very fun until they all of a sudden turn evil for no reason in the third act and then do another face heel turn right back to good, well except the commander. You saw him being evil from like a mile away. The only way he could have been more obvious was if he was a Vizier.
Hunchback of Notre Dame - 5/10. Literally all I remembered about this movie going in was Frollo's song "Hellfire" and falling asleep for most of it when I saw it in theatres. Frollo's still probably the biggest bastard in the collection of Disney villains, and I enjoy that. It's still kind of a...'meh' movie aside from Frollo though. Not terrible, but not great. Music and visuals are par for the course in regards to the Disney Renaissance (love the use of Latin high mass hymns in the songs), VA work's fairly solid, but it just...I don't know seems to lack soul a bit.
Rescuers Down Under - 8/10. LOVE this movie. The best Disney sequel in my opinion. It's got a fantastic pace, good visuals and some really good VA work, particularly George C. Scott as McLeach the poacher, who has one line which has become a joke among my family practically since the thing hit theatres. It's also one of the few animated flicks from the Disney renaissance that wasn't a musical and that's definitely in it's favor. I don't think the movie would have worked as well with musical numbers.
Mulan - 9/10. Like Aladdin, this movie is proof that notoriously unfunny comedians can actually be good. This and Shrek are two of the movies I can count on one hand in which I actually legitimately like Eddie Murphy. It's got an interesting cast of characters though Shang is sort of boring (Disney has this problem, I'm noticing), good music and visuals. I'm starting to realize that complementing music and visuals i sort of getting redundant, but hey you notice when they're either good or bad, so I feel I'm alright in saying something bout it. Also, one of the most insanely catch songs ever.
Hercules - 8.5/10 Firstly, I have to say minor props to Disney for somehow managing to make Greek myths family friendly, even if the way they mucked about with it sort of makes the mythology nerd in me cry a little. I've hated entire movies for less, but the awesomeness that is Meg and Hades stops me on this one, that and the really gospel music approach. I enjoy this movie far, far more than I legitimately should.
I saw Black Swan yesterday. It was just okay for me. As much as I love lesbian sex and watching cool special effects scenes to show off that someone is going insane the movie was average at best. I liked the effects and Natalie Portman is great in it but I'm guessing the oscar hype got the better of me on this one. I would still give at a 7 out of 10. Maybe an 8.
I'd tell you to watch The Legend of Chun-li to make it an equal 2vs2, but I feel it'd be completely inhumane form of torture that I wouldn't wish even on my worst enemies.
I'd tell you to watch The Legend of Chun-li to make it an equal 2vs2, but I feel it'd be completely inhumane form of torture that I wouldn't wish even on my worst enemies.
I love Ghostbusters, but I know it's not a brilliant movie. It's def worth an 8... if we're using the video game scale where seven essentially means dull and boring game
To me, anything above a 5 means "not bad". Giving it an 8 feels like saying I liked it more than I did, but a 7 still feels like a movie I thoroughly enjoyed, even if I didn't love it.
Yeah, pretty much. Only videogame movie I hate more is the The King of Fighters movie, and even then that's only on principle since there's no way in ****ing hell I'll ever watch that, it's too insulting to me.
To me, anything above a 5 means "not bad". Giving it an 8 feels like saying I liked it more than I did, but a 7 still feels like a movie I thoroughly enjoyed, even if I didn't love it.
To me anything worth a 5 isn't really worth the watch. I try to only watch really really good movies that I think i'd like. Doesn't always work out that way, but I can dream right?
Comments
9/10
7/10
This movie is quite unique albet a bit quirky.
The visuals are the best thing about this movie, and worthwhile watching for alone.
9/10 - Very interesting use of perspective and impressive combat scenes, given its time of production.
Morning Glory - 4/10. Standard girl with no life finds a life in her job, which then threatens her personal life. All the standard cliches are present, but there is no catalyst which drives the movie - it's almost like the events have to happen for the story to go forward, but there is no actual character progression, just character change. But Rachel McAdams is hot, and Harrison Ford is always badass.
I know, I've done a lot of complaining about the game. Well, for all my bitching, the game has still managed to make me want to watch the movies again for the first time in about a year, and I still love them. I love the story, I love the characters, I love the effects, I love the DeLorean, I love the subtleties I didn't get when I was younger, I even love the plot inconsistencies and waving at them as they pass by. Easily one of my favorite movies.
However, I'm sorry but I've been dying to say this, but I didn't want to say it in the BttF forums where it would spark an unwanted discussion again. Seeing Claudia Wells circa 1985 has really driven home how much I can't stand the surgery she's had done.
I don't know how much of this I can actually believe or trust, as I know how manipulative documentaries can be, but this one seems to come across as almost air-tight. I thought it was really well-made and constructed, very persuasive and convincing, and also very entertaining.
I originally thought you'd written (and misspelled) 'subtitles' here, and thought "why the hell would he love the subtitles?". Then I realized
Nice, but definitely not as good as Shaun of the Dead.
Inception - 10/10
This is still the only movie in a long time that has actually made me think. And watching it in 3D (it was never released in 3D, but my 3DTV has a converter that works really well) and surround sound? Even better.
Great jokes and wonderful characterization. The Addams Family has always been a strong aspect of my childhood and it's great to revisit the film once more.
I'm actually mixed on this one. There are a lot of things I really liked. I liked the main story, and I liked the concept, and I liked the montage at the beginning (although I soon started to wonder if the movie had anything other than montages. Fortunately it did).
I didn't like the fantasy scenes while she's dancing. I liked the concept of them, but every single was on them made me think "is it over yet?". I found them extremely boring. It's pure action, nothing interesting, nothing to care about. I think even the dancing would have been more interesting.
But I liked the idea that they were metaphors for stuff, and I liked that each was a different movie genre. Still, I think the whole fantasy that's the main story was already good, I would have switched between that and the real thing (asylum) instead of switching between that and more fantasy inside a fantasy, which only consisted in killing and destroying stuff.
Most specifically, I disliked one in particular.
What I disliked the most about the movie though was the very end of it,
Ultimately, I liked a lot of things about the movie, and I liked the concept of it, but it seemed to me they tried to jam action scenes in a movie that would have been better without them. Even keeping the fantasy scenes, I would have liked them much better if they hadn't been action scenes. As it is, it's mostly combat that's hard to follow and that I really didn't care about. It felt a lot like Battle LA did (but fortunately only during these scenes). And yeah, the end, byeargh. Hated that, and ending the movie on it is a really bad idea IMO.
Another thing I liked is that
Something Seamus said he would have wanted
I think I liked it more than I disliked it, but I would take a movie of pure dialogue when the characters don't do as much as blink over an action movie, so there was way too much action for me in that movie.
Sucker Punch seemed to be something ambitious and I planned on checking it out....until I heard Vanessa Hudgens plays in it. >.>
Yeah I don't know.....as a person I don't dislike her. But as an actress......I dunno I can't take my movie too seriously knowing there plays a Disney actress© in it.
Plus she looks like a child but is used for sexual appeal....disgusting =S
Maybe it's because I am getting older or something....
Highlander - 8/11 - I've been needing to watch this movie for a long time. I first got interested in the series because Noah Antwiler talked about it so much, and a friend of mine finally pushed me to finally see it. Part of me didn't want to because I was afraid it'd get me to watch the sequels, and there is not much less I want to do. So, I'm having trouble gathering my thoughts on this one. It's...kind of like if you mixed Heavy Metal, Fire and Ice, Star Wars, and the best of the 80s. A great soundtrack, great action, awesome effects, silly but memorable acting, and a really cool story with a lot of mystery behind it. I thought Sean Connery was a bit underused, and I thought Lambert was the best performance in the movie, even if he does remind me of Tommy Wiseau. I don't know; I really liked this one, but I felt like I should have more complaints with it than I did. Either way, I really recommend it. Just avoid the sequels.
Mean Guns - 6/11 - A half-generic, half-unique shoot-em-up action movie starring Christopher Lambert and...urgh...Ice T. Surprisingly, the movie actually manages to do quite a few things right, such as it's use of music and musical cues. It also has several references to Sergio Leone sprinkled around. It's a B movie, with some terrible performances and a couple memorable ones, but it's entertaining enough. This is the movie that forced me to see Christopher Lambert as a somewhat better version of Tommy Wiseau. Seriously, they have the SAME LAUGH and sometimes, the same delivery. The movie isn't amazing, but it's not bad either. I really hate the color palette in this one though.
Donnie Darko - 9/11 - If David Lynch and Jared Hess made a horror movie together. I'm not sure what to say about this movie. I really liked it, but at the same time, I've heard a lot of bad points on it that make me wonder if I should. I guess more than anything I like the concept of it.
This movie legitimately creeped me out, and even managed to make me jump a couple of times. The creepiest scene for me was probably
Amadeus: 9/10. - Fawful's avatar reminded me of how much I needed to watch it again. Still proves to be one of my favorite movies.
I liked it. Seamus and I had different interpretations of the end, but we both agreed to say we enjoyed the movie. I didn't see time pass while watching it, which is rare nowadays with American movies for me. Wasn't bored at any time. If anything, I was disappointed we didn't get to know all the passengers in the train a bit better.
I liked the concept, it reminded me of Quantum Leap and Flashforward. Seamus says there was some action, but it didn't bore me, so that means it was well integrated to the story. Usually I lose interest otherwise and stop following what's going on.
It's a predictable movie, I think (we both guessed any major point before they were revealed or happened) but I didn't think it distracted from enjoying it. I had a really nice time.
I went into this movie expecting to dislike it. I expected it to be Disney trying to be Dreamworks. I'm not entirely certain I was wrong, but I enjoyed it anyway. I liked the story well enough, and the characters grew on me. While I was upset that Disney didn't continue their return to traditional animation as with The Princess and the Frog, the movie was visually stunning, although there's just something about traditional animation that CG animation just can't capture. My only real gripe was the songs. Coming off of The Princess and the Frog, in which absolutely all of the music was amazing, it was incredibly disappointing to watch Tangled and grimace through every single one of the songs. What makes it even worse is that I don't mind Mandy Moore as a singer, so I feel it could've been so much better even with that factor. But the songs were only a part of it, and I enjoyed it overall.
It was pretty untruthful, Britain's NHS is not the wonder system that Moore portrays it for doctors and patients alike, and that hospital in Cuba that he takes all those folks to for treatement, they get treated in the same facilitites that they use for Castro, your average Cuban gets nowhere near that level of care.
But at the end of the day it still makes a good point, refusing treatment on fiscal grounds is downright loathsome and should be a practice put to an end worldwide
Prince of Egypt - 9.5/10. Definitely in my top 10 list of favorite movies ever. Great voice work, a fantastic interpretation of the Exodus story and some fantastic Music (minus "Playing with the Big Boys Now" which has good lyrics, but like "It's Tough to Be A God" suffers from some really bad vocals). I try to watch it every Lent as a matter of tradition, but it's also one of those movies I'll watch just because I want to stop watching bad movies for a bit and spend an hour or two on something more worthwhile than Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter or Insemnoid.
Beauty and The Beast -10/10. This was my favorite movie as a kid, next to a really obscure Rankin Bass product called Flight of Dragons. It's not my all-time favorite movie (That spot is a three-way tie between Zebraman,Amadeus and Persuasion), but it's definitely number two, especially as I've gotten older. I always identified a lot with Belle, being a very bookish kid who grew up into a lit major. On top of that, she's probably one of the most well-rounded of the Disney heroines and is very consistently well handled. The Beast's design is damn BAD ASS, and, in fact, he may be part of why I love monsters so much to this day. I still think it's one of the best monstrous designs put to animation, which is part of why I probably never liked his human form. The secondary cast is fantastic, and Gaston, while not having the most sinister of Disney Villain motives is a good foil for the beast (plus, he gets one of my favorite songs in Disney canon). Going back to this movie is probably the reason for my classic Disney binge actually.
Muppet Treasure Island - 9/10 TIM CURRY AS LONG JOHN SILVER, do I need to say more? Probably one of the best of the Muppet movies, which is saying something, This is an absolutely hilarious movie, an, sadly enough probably one of the best pirate flicks in existence (says something bad about the genre doesn't it?). This is pretty much the movies I turn on when I'm having a crappy day. There's no way you can sit through "Professional Pirate" and not feel as though the world is a better place.
The Little Mermaid - 7/10. Good film but Christ Almighty on a pogo stick does the plot of this infuriate me, though to be fair the original fairy tale has always pissed me off something fierce. I love Ursula as a villain and the secondary cast including the badass that is King Triton is solid, but Eric is bland as hell and the whole "I sold my voice/soul for legs and a man I don't know" just makes me angry on so many levels. I will say that animation is fantastic (as per the Disney Renaissance) and the music in general, except for "Kiss the Girl" which I've never liked for some reason, is very good, particularly "Poor Unfortunate Souls". It's just, guh, plot. Not my least favorite disney movie, no that's a toss up between Pocahontas and Hunchback of Notre Dame, but it's up there.
Aladdin - 7.5/10 After Little Mermaid I honestly was not...all that enthusiastic about this movie. I remember it being okay as a kid, but I wasn't expecting much this time around. However, I'd forgotten how entertaining Robin Williams was when he wasn't picking ridiculously awful scripts. This is a thoroughly fun movie, moreso than I'd remembered. It's not as uproariously funny as Muppet Treasure Island, but I had a smile on my face the entire time watching it.
Next on my list so far: The Aladdin Sequels, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Rescuers Down Under, Mulan, Hercules.
not as great as the comics
I myself watched The Maltese Falcon just now. It's great because of its level of film-noir, but I felt slightly cheated as the audience for not getting to see
Except for Rescuers Down Under, Hunchback, Atlantis, and Mulan, I haven't seen ANY of those.
I actually waited and watched the Nostalgia Critic reviews after I watched these movies fresh because I wanted some unique opinions on them. So here goes.
Street Fighter Vs. Mortal Kombat
Street Fighter - 5/11 - What a piece of solid dick. I hate this movie. I don't hate everything about it, but I do hate it. All of the characters were perfectly cast. However, the plot is a big fat piece of anal ass. Where was the STREET FIGHTING? WHERE? WHERE? WHERE!!!? How can you cast a video game movie so well and miss the mark so badly? There were...three fights that were barely fights. They sucked! I counted. There were only a few seconds of fighting in the first hour and eight minutes of this movie. That is one hell of a wait for some fighting in a Street Fighter movie. And when that amount of time was up...
...inhale...
...when THAT TIME WAS UP...
....EXHALE....
....THEY FILLED ALMOST ALL THE REST OF THE HOUR AND A HALF MOVIE..
...TWENTY-TWO MINUTES...
...OF SHITTY GUNFIGHTING!!!
I mean...it's not like any of the actors did a bad job with their characters. The action was poor and bland and cliche and boring and stupid and insipid and anal ass. The plot was a piece of crap. The music was barely there, with only a couple of good pieces. And the effects...WERE...BALLS. Especially in Blanka. What the hell was that? It looked like Lou Ferrigno in an Incredible Hulk costume. What a STUPID movie. And to be honest, I didn't entirely agree with the Critic on it. I liked JCVD; he was one of the best and funniest parts of the movie. I've always liked JCVD. I liked Raul Julia. Not a ton, but I liked him. Anyway, rant over. On to the next movie. Obviously it couldn't be nearly as good as the first right. It's probably an anal piece of ass too. Nothing could possibly make me adore another fighting movie from this era.
Obviously the rating will be Mortal Kombat - 5/11 -
All right, so the movie starts off with a semi-bland semi-awesome opening sequence. The effects and the look of the film immediately calls me back to Highlander and Big Trouble in Little China. Okay...that's...pretty damn cool, BUT I'M NOT LETTING MY GUARD DOWN AFTER THAT ASSFEST THAT WAS STREET FIGHTER. I...wait...that guy with the white hair...his voice sounds like....no.
...No....it can't be...
Lambert: Hi. I'm Raiden.
IT IS! IT'S CHRISTOPHER LAMBERT!
Mortal Kombat - 10/11 -
Screw what I said before! Screw it in its ass! This movie is going to be awesome! Or so I said. And I was right. This movie is badass from beginning to end. It has everything you need to have a good, entertaining video game movie. It has a good cast. It has cheesiness, but in a fun, entertaining way. It has GREAT special effects. It has..GASP...ACTUAL FIGHTING. BTW, this is where I really was at odds with the Critic's way of thinking. How can you criticize a fighting movie based on a fighting game for having TOO MUCH FIGHTING? You can't. And yes, even the effects on Prince Goro are cool. What? I love that Harryhausen sort of stuff, and I thought the effects were convincing enough. Personally, it just added to the fun to me. Now, not all of the acting was as good as in Street Fighter, I'll admit that. Still, who the hell cares? FIGHTING! Also, I wasn't really impressed with Scorpion's tentacle monster that shoots out of his hand. However, it didn't really bother me all that much, and the fight between him and Johnny Cage was BADASS. Everything Cage does in that movie is badass. And the music is great. It perfectly evokes the feeling of a video game, and not just a video game, but a fighting video game. I can't really gush about this one anymore. I loved it, and it'll be one that I'll watch again and again for years to come. Problem, internet? Oh, also, LAMBERT! WOOOO.
After the fun and exciting movie Mortal Kombat was, I sure couldn't wait to see Mortal Kombat 2. It had to be awesome. It had to be badass! It...
Mortal Kombat 2: Annihilation - ..../11 -
OH LORD, WHAT A PIECE OF SHIT. OH....OHHHHH....
My head is in my hands. How could they...how did they...why did they....
GAH!
See this screencap. That face is the only good thing in the entire movie. That's it. I just...I need a drink.
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You should really give the street fighter movie a chance it's actually pretty hillarious. Not good by any means but still funny (the Van Damme one)
Guile: No weapon, Bison? What happened to the purity of unarmed combat?
M. Bison: This is merely superconductor electromagnetism. Surely you've heard of it. It levitates bullet trains from Tokyo to Osaka. It levitates my desk, where I ride the saddle of the world. And it levitates... me!
Note that the above quote is played COMPLETELY straight. Street Fighter is required viewing, sir.
I don't even know what to say about this one. I'd say it wasn't what I expected except I didn't know what to expect. It may not make the list of my favorite movies (or it wouldn't if I got off my lazy ass and wrote said list), but I did enjoy it and it was well worth the watch.
Now, from what I hear, I may be making a mistake here, but it was the two movie set that someone made me borrow...
Aladdin: Return of Jafar 4/10. JESUS CHRIST WHO IN THE DISNEY CORPORATION LOOKED DOWN FROM ON HIGH AND SAID 'THOU SHALT INCLUDE GILBERT GOTTFRIED MUSICAL NUMBERS IN THY ALADDIN SEQUEL'?! I WILL CUT OUT THEIR HEART WITH A RUSTY SPOON. Other than the torturous musical numbers (none of which are tolerable), this...is not awful. Disney has definitely raped other classics much harder (I'm looking at youBeauty and the Beast: An Enchanted Christmas), and this is mostly just bad sequel bad. My major complaint actually is the lack of Jafar's original VA and Robin Williams (the way they handle Genie in this movie is atrocious).
Aladdin: Prince of Thieves - 6.5/10. Definitely one of the better Disney Sequels. The plot is miles better than Return of Jafar. There's a couple of musical numbers that hurt a little, but overall they're not bad. Animation's pretty good, and I have to say, props to Disney for at least maintaining Aladdin, Jasmine and the sultan's VAs solid through all three movies. Also, Jasmine gets to kick ass, which I'm totally behind and the designs for the Vanishing Isle and the den of the Forty thieves were really well done. Genie sort of still makes me want to stab myself in the ear though.
Atlantis the Lost Empire - 7.5/10 I was surprised at this movie, quite frankly. I hadn't seen it since it came out and remember it being sort of 'meh', but despite some major character derailment towards the end most of the movies quite enjoyable. It might just be that I'm a really niche academic field and making arguments that aren't really accepted at the moment, but I really, really get Milo. Also the crew is fantastically quirky and very fun until they all of a sudden turn evil for no reason in the third act and then do another face heel turn right back to good, well except the commander. You saw him being evil from like a mile away. The only way he could have been more obvious was if he was a Vizier.
Hunchback of Notre Dame - 5/10. Literally all I remembered about this movie going in was Frollo's song "Hellfire" and falling asleep for most of it when I saw it in theatres. Frollo's still probably the biggest bastard in the collection of Disney villains, and I enjoy that. It's still kind of a...'meh' movie aside from Frollo though. Not terrible, but not great. Music and visuals are par for the course in regards to the Disney Renaissance (love the use of Latin high mass hymns in the songs), VA work's fairly solid, but it just...I don't know seems to lack soul a bit.
Rescuers Down Under - 8/10. LOVE this movie. The best Disney sequel in my opinion. It's got a fantastic pace, good visuals and some really good VA work, particularly George C. Scott as McLeach the poacher, who has one line which has become a joke among my family practically since the thing hit theatres. It's also one of the few animated flicks from the Disney renaissance that wasn't a musical and that's definitely in it's favor. I don't think the movie would have worked as well with musical numbers.
Mulan - 9/10. Like Aladdin, this movie is proof that notoriously unfunny comedians can actually be good. This and Shrek are two of the movies I can count on one hand in which I actually legitimately like Eddie Murphy. It's got an interesting cast of characters though Shang is sort of boring (Disney has this problem, I'm noticing), good music and visuals. I'm starting to realize that complementing music and visuals i sort of getting redundant, but hey you notice when they're either good or bad, so I feel I'm alright in saying something bout it. Also, one of the most insanely catch songs ever.
Hercules - 8.5/10 Firstly, I have to say minor props to Disney for somehow managing to make Greek myths family friendly, even if the way they mucked about with it sort of makes the mythology nerd in me cry a little. I've hated entire movies for less, but the awesomeness that is Meg and Hades stops me on this one, that and the really gospel music approach. I enjoy this movie far, far more than I legitimately should.
I'd tell you to watch The Legend of Chun-li to make it an equal 2vs2, but I feel it'd be completely inhumane form of torture that I wouldn't wish even on my worst enemies.
I love Ghostbusters, but I know it's not a brilliant movie. It's def worth an 8... if we're using the video game scale where seven essentially means dull and boring game
Yeah, pretty much. Only videogame movie I hate more is the The King of Fighters movie, and even then that's only on principle since there's no way in ****ing hell I'll ever watch that, it's too insulting to me.
To me anything worth a 5 isn't really worth the watch. I try to only watch really really good movies that I think i'd like. Doesn't always work out that way, but I can dream right?