Dredd

Dredd

Action (Sci-Fi, Comic Book)

2012

Rated: R

Running Time: 95 minutes

Starring: Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Lena Headey

Directed By: Pete Travis

Rating: 5 out of 10

Outline

Two futuristic police officers must fight their way out of a crime riddled building.

Review

Here is another example of an unnecessary Hollywood remake. The first movie is a classic and shouldn’t have been touched………………………………………………….I was just waiting for your laughter to stop. Obviously, I am joking, as the original film had Rob Schneider in it. End of story. Dredd is the story of a futuristic world in an apocalyptic state. Civilization finds itself in a giant, walled in city, and is protected by the police. (Who are called Judges.) The police act as judge, jury, and executioner in an attempt to battle the overwhelming crime rate. This movie sees a Judge called Dredd; team up with a rookie in an attempt to take down a local drug lord.

This film had a Robocop/Raid Redemption type feel to it which is not entirely bad. Let us forget about the original Stallone version of this film. I am sure most of you already have. I will not try and compare the two movies for there is little worth in doing so. Let me just say that while this film is no gem, it is waaaaaaaaaaaaay better than its predecessor. The opening scene sees Dredd patrolling the streets on his futuristic motorbike. It is just another day in this crime riddled city, and that means tons of murders and felonies are being committed. Dredd quickly becomes engaged with some criminals in a high speed pursuit. The chase does a nice job of establishing the tone for the movie. It establishes that the city streets are dirty and highly populated. It establishes that the criminals are addicted to a new drug. (Which makes everything appear glittery and in slow motion.) It establishes that this movie is going to have an impossibly high body count, as pedestrians are blown apart with little care. Lastly, it establishes that this movie is going to be a very bloody, hour and a half. After some inane scenes of establishing that Dredd is the badass of all badasses, we find ourselves following him and a rookie as they enter a high rise building. (It is basically a 200 floor city.) What should be a routine drug bust turns ugly, as they become trapped in this building and must fight for their lives. They have found themselves in a place run by a maniacal drug lord who goes by the name of Ma-Ma. (All I can think of is the elevator scene from Liar Liar when I hear Ma-Ma.) She unleashes her buildings fury on the Judges for simply being at the wrong place at the wrong time. The action sequences are enjoyable if not always good. Sometimes the filming goes into slow motion and you get to see bullets rip through throats, torsos, and other extremities. It is awesome in its high detailed goriness. Other times the action happens so fast that all you see is a CGI blood mist and little else (which is disappointing.) No matter what the scenario though, watching Dredd cut his way through the bad guys is always a good time.

Dredd is played by Karl Urban, and say what you want about the guy, he is exceptional at mimicry. He is a brilliant younger version of Bones (DeForest Kelley) in Star Trek, and he is an eerily similar version of a young Dredd (Sylvester Stallone) in this film. I like Urban, and while this role was not hard to play, he was never the less enjoyable to watch in it. He could have toned done the Christian Bale voice from Batman, but he was solid for the entire film. The rookie is played by Olivia Thirlby, and her presence is merely for some femininity in the film and little else. She is fine in the role, but it could have been played by anyone in Hollywood. Lastly, Ma-Ma was played by Lena Headey. (Damn you Cersei Lannister!) Heady is great as the drug queenpin. With her scarred visage and her barely contained rage, I felt she could have used a little more screen time.

As the film continues, the Judge duo has little recourse but to head upward in the building as they are locked in for the long haul. I felt Dredd’s signature weapon is actually the films downfall. If you are unfamiliar with the Dredd story then his gun is kind of like a Batman utility belt. It has different ammo for every situation, and of course Dredd finds himself in every situation where that special ammo is needed. Incendiary rounds, heat bullets, armor piercing bullets, and exploding bullets, is a lot of cheesiness to sit through. I also felt the bad guys in the building were the epitome of cannon fodder. They would line up in rows, they would bunch together in small rooms, and they would run into places with little regard for their own safety. Once again it is a lot of cheesiness to sit through. But because the film is little more than the two Judges moving up the building, floor by floor, it is always a bloody good time. As the film comes to its predictable final encounter, the question is will anyone make it out of this building of terror, alive? In conclusion, this film is a brainless 95 minutes, but it is also a fun 95 minutes. Dredd shoots and bad guys die. Dredd shoots some more, and more bad guys die. I think you understand the formula. If they left out his stupid gun and tightened up some of the action sequences then this film would have been a success.

Director Pete Travis (Vantage Point) did a lot right in this film, but also did a lot wrong. The positives were: the casting was good, the body count was high, and the humor was kept to a minimum. Some of the action scenes were solid and the film was always fun. The negatives: the editing was off (Judges would jump 50 floors without explanation.) Some of the action is a blurry mess, some weak CGI on the kill shots, and the overuse of the glittery drug sequences. Overall, I felt he did an above average job and he probably connected with most of this films core audience.

I cannot recommend this film as it missed that fine line between realism and comic book style.

T Factor + If you are an action lover then this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you like your movies to have solid story lines then this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: The Raid Redemption, Babylon A.D.         

The Green Hornet

The Green Hornet

Action (Comic Book)

2011

Rated: PG-13

Running Time: 119 minutes

Starring: Seth Rogen, Cameron Diaz, Christopher Waltz, Tom Wilkinson, Jay Chou, Edward James Olmos

Directed By: Michel Gondry

Rating: 3.5 out of 10

Outline

An unlikely duo joins up to fight crime right across the city.

Review

This movie sat on my shelf for a long time. I would reach for it and say to myself not yet. It wasn’t out a sense of saving it for a rainy day more I couldn’t bring myself to watch Seth Rogen as any sort of crime fighter/super hero. Rogen portraying a super hero is kind of like me teaching a class on responsible drinking. It has a nice sound to it but neither of us are likely candidates to pull it off. The verdict: Rogen doesn’t work as a super hero and my liver probably looks like Norm’s does from Cheers. The Green Hornet is the story of Britt Reid. After the untimely death of his billionaire dad, he teams up with his late father’s assistant (Kato) to battle crime around the city.

I am a self admitted comic book geek and I am quite knowledgeable on most things superheroes. I knew virtually nothing about the Green Hornet going in so that is never a good sign that this is a strong character. Please forgive my ignorance to any OG Green Hornet fans out there as I am not sure if this movie does the original work justice. I can only really base my review on this film and for the most part it was awful. I understand the rush to make all thinks superheroes these days but come on. This film felt like the movie Rush Hour combined with Inspector Gadget and that is not a good thing. The film starts and we are introduced to the wild party boy Britt Reid as he drinks and fornicates his way through life. After the sudden passing of his father he is forced to grow up and take over the job of running his dads huge empire. From there the movie quickly translates into a comic book vibe as he meets his dads former assistant named Kato and they team up to fight crime (To quote Barney Stinson “ yeah, It happens that fast”.) The unlikely superhero angle is okay at the start but by the end you will be weary of it. Britt Reid is an idiot when it comes to fighting. He gets himself into all sorts of trouble by bumbling his way through fight scenes with hoodlums and bad guys. If it wasn’t for his trusty sidekick Kato and his robotic ninja moves, Reid would have died like 2 minutes into this film. Hence the Inspector Gadget feel to this film. Reid drops weapons, missed targets, trips and falls, and does all sorts of other things like that only to have Kato bail him out like Penny used to do. The comedy if you can even call it comedy comes in the form of bickering between the two crime fighters. They fight over plans of attack, women, nicknames, and it barely even registers as funny. Hence the Rush Hour feels to this film as the two leads from different worlds can’t get along.

I am a big fan of Seth Rogan as he is a hilarious guy; he just bit off more than he could chew with this film. His portrayal of Britt Reid as this odd bumbling character never connects with the viewer on any level. His stupid attitude and antics grow tiresome as the movie wears on and the character will appeal to very few. His sidekick Kato played by Jay Chou is average in the role as he struggles to deliver his lines. The two of them generate virtually no chemistry as polar opposite personalities which ultimately ruined this movie. Reid’s secretary Lenore Case played by Cameron Diaz is so forgettable in this movie you will have troubling remembering she was in this film a minute after it is done. Lastly the villain Chudnofsky played by Christopher Waltz is a campy mess of a crime boss making this film a complete fail across the board in terms of characters.

As the film proceeds the viewer is treated to a couple of okay fight scenes where the unlikely duo fights criminals across the city. The slow motion break down of the fighting is not great but offers something to look forward to in a film that offers little else. The story is typically weak and even the gadgets seem straight out of the 1960’s. A suped up car that has a flame thrower and spy hunter rims is not going to impress anyone. Even Reid’s gun shoots knock out gas pellets making you think he is going to be battling hippy protesters at Woodstock instead of an enemy that kills at will. The end of the movie just seals the deal as you won’t care what happens to anyone in this film as they battle Chudnofsky and his evil henchmen. This is based on an old school character and trust me that character should have stayed in that old school era.

Director Michael Gondry should stick to what he is known for (Be Kind Rewind, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) for his foray into the action world is less than stellar. To be fair, just like the Fantastic Four this character is too dated to do well. The comedy is misplaced and ill timed and the casting and characters are all sub standard. The action is about average and comes at infrequent intervals. Over all he did a poor job with this film.

I cannot recommend this film for we are in the golden age of the superhero movies and this character is too retro to work.

T Factor+ If you like Seth Rogen as an actor than this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you like solid superhero characters than this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: Daredevil, Captain America. 

Batman Begins

Batman Begins

2005

Action (Comic Book)

Rated: PG-13

Running Time: 140 minutes

Starring: Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Rutger Hauer, Cillian Murphy, Tom Wilkinson, Ken Watanabe

Directed By: Christopher Nolan

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Outline

This is the story of Bruce Wayne becoming Batman and how he tries to save the city of Gotham from destruction.

Review

The Batman movie character was not on his last breath he was flat lining. He was flat lining harder then Kiefer Sutherland in 1990. Director Joel Schumacher killed the Batman character and the franchise with a batman suit that included nipples and an evil Dr. Freeze saying things like “You’re not sending me to the cooler.”(Admittedly I love classic Arnold lines). Along comes director Christopher Nolan with a defibrillator and gives this film a jolt and a huge second chance at life. Batman Begins is the story of billionaire Bruce Wayne as he struggles with the untimely death of his parents. It follows his life from a young kid to adulthood. It also shows how he becomes Batman and how he battles to save the city of Gotham from crime and corruption.

Now I am a fan of the first Batman movie directed by Tim Burton and starring Michael Keaton as the title character. That movie worked in all its campiness and bursts of vibrant colors. This film takes a darker path filled with despair and greys and blacks. Polar opposite in the finished product but both worked in their own fashion. What I liked about this film was it didn’t spend a whole lot of time focusing on Bruce Wayne’s youth and original story. This will save most people from watching back story that has already been done before. This film works not only as an action film but plays out almost as a drama as we watch Bruce Wayne deal with his inner demons. The film takes the viewer through a journey of self doubt and self worth. Bruce Wayne will always be the most favored of the comic book characters for he is the most relatable. He is a man, albeit a very rich man, with flaws and imperfections like us and this film shows his weaknesses quite well. You will be caught up in this story of how Batman comes to be. You will find out where all his signature gadgets come from, you will find out where he learned his fighting technique from, you will find out where his rage against the crime world comes from, and lastly you will find out how his love can defend a city not worthy of this hero. He will win you over by beating his enemies into submission one by one and he does it solo which makes it even more impressive.

The cast of this movie is amazing. Bruce Wayne is played by Christian Bale and he is a good Batman. He has the body, the fighting technique, the passion, and it all shows in his performance. His voice is much maligned by critics and their disdain is justifiable. His deep and raspy voice detracts from his performance and ruins some of his allure. It doesn’t ruin the character though and that’s all that matters. Bruce Wayne’s butler and friend Alfred is played by Michael Caine. His coworker Lucius Fox is played by Morgan Freeman. His fighting mentor Ducard is played by Liam Neeson. His police contact Jim Gordon is played by Gary Oldman. If that isn’t enough, Tom Wilkinson, Ken Watanabe, Rutger Hauer, and Cillian Murphy all have various roles as well. This supporting cast brings such a fantastic veteran acting element to this story that this movie couldn’t fail. They all allow Bale to work his magic as Batman and bring out the best in this movie. The only person that detracted from the film was Bruce Wayne’s childhood friend Rachel Dawes played by Katie Holmes. Her performance as an honest lawyer just caught a bad nerve with me. She is unbelievable and unconvincing and was an odd choice for a film that was cast so brilliantly in almost every area.

As the film takes you along it is quite clear this movie knows what its audience wants. It gives you a character in Batman that takes brutal punishment and keeps on fighting. There is something about this underdog superhero that everyone should love. He fights crime bosses, hired hit men, trained assassins, and even a man out of childhood nightmares and nothing seems to get to him. The costumes are amazing and highly detailed. The city of Gotham is a perfect picture of corruption and crime. Batman’s new vehicle is high-tech and blows through the city like a tank. His fighting style is abrupt and high impact leaving a very satisfied feeling with the viewer as he beats his enemies using his brains and brawn. The only negative really is the camera work is over edited leaving some sequences choppy and visually weak. As the film makes its way to its end I couldn’t help but smile as Batman is back and he is kicking ass as the caped crusader and that is a good thing.

Director Chris Nolan (Memento, Following) is about to be praised by me. He took a broken franchise and coaxed it back to life. He took a brooding Bruce Wayne and left an indelible mark on the comic book movie industry. His casting was almost perfect and his darker take on this franchise is exactly what was needed. He over edited but that can be looked over with cool fight scenes and revamped technology.

I give this movie a recommendation especially to comic book lovers and action lovers.

T Factor + If you are a fan of Batman comics then this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you do not like Christian Bale as an actor then this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: The Avengers, X-Men First Class.

The Dark Knight Rises

Batman:The Dark Knight Rises

2012

Action (Comic Book)

Rated: PG-13

Running Time: 165 minutes

Starring: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Marion Cotillard, Matthew Modine, Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Directed By: Christopher Nolan

Rating: 5.5 out of 10

Outline

8 years have passed and Batman not only a forgotten hero he is a criminal. A new evil is heading to destroy Gotham city and only Batman will be able to stand in its way.

Review

So people have been hounding me to watch this movie and get my review on it so here it goes. This will probably not be one of my more popular reviews, as I have heard nothing but praise for this movie. Just to note, I am not knocking this movie to go against popular belief or to stir conversations. The long awaited finale to one of the most successful franchises has finally arrived, and I couldn’t have been more disappointed with it. This film was suffering from Transformers syndrome, meaning too much is happening to fully enjoy this film. We find ourselves following the story of Batman 8 years after the conclusion of the Dark Knight. Gotham is a city of peace for once but the tide is about to change. The city is on the precipice of disaster with a new bad guy on the scene called Bane. The only person that can stop him is the absent outlaw vigilante Batman, but time is running out for his reappearance.

The film has a great start and a great intro to our main bad guy Bane. Director Nolan knows his audience and hooks you instantly with an amazing opening scene on an air plane. From there the film splinters into a movie telling too many stories about too many characters. This franchise has taken a turn for the worse in my mind. Isn’t this film supposed to be about Batman? While Batman took a backseat to one of the most impressive acting jobs ever (Heath Ledger as the Joker) in the last film, his lack of screen time is more of a concern in this film, as there is no reason for it. Bane, Catwoman, Lucius Fox, Alfred, Commissioner Gordon, Miranda, Blake, are all taking up valuable screen time and not only will most people not care, it is boring to boot. Apparently all of their stories must be told, but did it all have to be crammed into one drawn out film? The film tries to go to a whole new level of darkness and depravity, but it falters along the way. Sure the new toys and gadgets are awesome but sometimes keeping it to the basics is just fine. There is nothing better than seeing Batman chase down bad guys on his motorbike, with his cape flapping behind him. Yes his plane is awesome but it is almost gratuitous at this point.

Since most of the players are back from previous films, I will instead focus more on the new players to this game. I will start with the main bad guy Bane, played by Tom Hardy. Hardy’s performance is determined mainly by his physique and his mask more than his acting ability. He is impressively massive and visually a great super villain for Batman to fight against. His voice was at times hard to hear which is frustrating, but overall he was an imposing character, and amazing during his limited fight scenes. Selina Kyle (Cat Woman) played by Anne Hathaway was a surprise performance for me. She can be cloyingly annoying at times in other films, but she brought her A game for this role. She was seductive, she held her own in the action sequences, and lastly she was underutilized (which is a good thing meaning I wanted to see more of her). She was great and I was really impressed by her performance. Police officer Blake played by the normally awesome Joseph Gordon-Levitt was off his game in this film. More so the character was so weak and yet he gets ample screen time. His less then stellar character gets thrown at you right through this film and Levitt does nothing with him to make it work.

Christian Bale as Batman was the same as he always is with these films. He has the personality and can pull off any fight sequence with ease. You either like him or hate him. I can get over his terrible raspy voice so I will miss him if he is truly done with this character. He also needed to have more screen time which is frustrating.

Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, are all back and great additions. Marion Cotillard was forgettable as businesswoman Miranda Hale.

With all of the multitude of story lines going on, it is like this film was preparing us for spin off films instead of dealing with the task at hand. Everything is lost in the mix, and this film feels like it has a running time of 4 hours as there is too much story. When Batman is fighting with Catwoman or Bane the film is working. When the film is focusing on Bruce Wayne’s inner demons, or officer Blake investigating crimes, the film is wretched. The film drags itself to a pretty cool ending, but even that seems abrupt and rushed as it flips from character to character so you never feel satisfied. This film's effects and action sequences are amazing and I would say the best of the franchise, but they are sporadic and fit unevenly into the story. Just because a film is darker and has bigger flashes and explosions, doesn’t make it a good film.

Director Chris Nolan’s resume speaks for itself. Memento, Batman Begins, Batman Dark Knight, and Inception, shows he is one of Hollywood’s elite directors. He missed badly with this film though. The film has too much going on and never seems to be heading in the right direction. This film would have been better served as two films so it didn't seem so cramped. Yes the action was amazing and the fight scenes were good except for some editing flaws, but it couldn’t save the movie for me. At the end of the day we want Batman, and he seemed like a supporting character in this film. It was a puzzling film and I am sad this is how it ends.

I cannot recommend this film, while it was entertaining and dark, it seemed Batman never fully rose to be the caped crusader we all love and admire.

T Factor + If you like Batman comics this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you want a lot of screen time for Batman in this film this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: The Amazing Spider-Man, The Avengers

The Amazing Spider-Man

The Amazing Spider-man

2012

Action (Comic Book)

Rated: PG-13

Running Time: 136 minutes

Starring: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Martin Sheen, Rhys Ifans, Sally Field, and Dennis Leary.

Directed By: Marc Webb

Rating: 6 out of 10

Outline

Peter Parker’s journey from becoming Spider-Man to fighting the bad guys of the city is detailed in this movie.

Review

I am going to apologize to start this review. I really wanted to write this review with no comparison to the Sam Raimi directed Spider-Man movies. As I progressed though, I found it was inevitable that it has to be reviewed like this. They are too similar and filmed too close together not to compare. It really bothers me that we are watching a retelling of a film barely 10 years old. I was not a big fan of Sam Raimi’s first 3 Spiderman movies. I found them to be too cartoonish instead of comic booky (Yes I am sticking with the word comic booky). Spider-Man is back and his story is being retold. This story sees Peter Parker’s journey from becoming Spider-Man to having to save the city from the evil clutches of the Lizard.

I will say this about this film. This is what Spider-Man should have been from the start. Its darker cinematography and accompanying musical score make this film a much better watch. This movie will probably appeal more to people who have not seen the first Spider-Man movie from 2002. That is because this film was basically thrown into some sort of movie thesaurus and it spat out the same movie with the odd tweak of storyline here and there. Because of the non original storyline the first half hour of this film is insufferable as it is just repeated material. As the film progresses though you realize this films content and style is much better than the first three films. A scene where Peter Parker discovers his emerging spider powers on a packed subway prepares you for a much better shot action film. The film may be darker but Spiderman still spouts off his cheesy comical lines during tense situations which are a nice touch.

The original three movies were not my thing but I still really liked Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man. Andrew Garfield has a tough job in reprising this role in this film and he doesn’t disappoint. He is charismatic in a super dorky way which is very easy to follow. He gave a very respectable performance. Spider-Man’s love interest Gwen Stacy played by Hollywood’s it girl Emma Stone was a great leading lady. The two of them have a painfully awkward love interest but seemed well suited for this film. The two of them are able to have the love angle story line but not have the movie overtly caught up in their romance.

Rhys Ifans as Doctor Curt Connors/Lizard Man is perfect with his quiet portrayal. He has a sort of Jekyll and Hyde thing going which was right for the role. He has a subtle sinister and evil quality to him that made his performance so great. Martin Sheen, Sally Field, Dennis Leary all have supporting roles if you are fans of theirs.

Once all the same tired back-story is fulfilled and Spider-Man is able to shoot his white stuff at will (keep it clean people) this movie really gets going. He battles bad guy’s right through the city. I was interested in the multiple storylines. I wanted to see Spider-Man get the girl. I wanted him to track down the blonde haired convenience store robber. I wanted to see him battle his inner demons. Lastly I wanted to see him battle the giant Lizard man. I got to see all these things so ultimately I felt this movie did its job. It was way too long and too similar to the first but I felt it got it right.

Director Marc Webb (he must have been chosen for his last name) was a strange choice for a franchise of this magnitude. He had only the small indie love story flick 500 days of Summer on his resume so it was a big risk. I must say he did a good job with this movie. He put a dark edge on it which is the rage these days and never went overboard with it. He took some chances with the cast but it paid off and the action scenes were for the most part crisp and enjoyable. He could have cut this film down by at least a half hour and had a more original script but he produced characters you cared about and that is all that mattered. Overall this is a solid job from a relatively unknown director.

I am going to give this movie a recommendation. It will be enjoyed more by people who are not familiar with Raimi’s version and overall it may not be amazing but it is certainly decent.

T Factor + If you like Spider-Man as a character this movie could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you have seen the original Spider-Man film this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: Daredevil, Iron Man

The Incredible Hulk

The Incredible Hulk

2008
Action (Comic Book)
Rated: PG-13
Running Time:  112 minutes
Starring: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt, Tim Blake Nelson, Ty Burrell
Directed By: Louis Leterrier
Rating: 4.5 out of 10

Outline

A scientist is on the run from the army as a lab experiment causes him to turn into a giant green monster.

Review

The Hulk is back for round two after a dismal film debut and he is ready to Hulk Smash at will. Unfortunately for us the viewer it is much of the same monotonous film watching. This film centers on scientist Dr. Bruce Banner and his experiments with Gamma radiation. After an accident at the lab during one of these experiments the radiation changes him drastically. Bruce Banner changes from man into a hulking green monster with little to no control if his pulse hits a certain accelerated rate. Naturally the army can’t have this menace around so they need to capture or kill Dr. Banner before he does any damage to the populace or so they would have us believe.

 This film gets off to a good start as the actual laboratory accident and Dr. Banner’s subsequent flight from the army is all covered in an opening credits montage. People who don’t know much about the Hulk or have not seen the first movie might find this a little strange and too quick of a plot development. Although the players have changed I liked to think of this as Hulk 2 so I liked the quick intro of the back story. I felt it could have led to a fresher film with less drawn out scenes of storyline. The film however found new ways to bore the audience even though a big chunk of the original film's storyline was cut out. The problem with the Hulk movies will always be story to action ratio. Bruce Banner is not as captivating a character as Bruce Wayne or Tony Stark. So when we are forced to watch, like we are in this movie, long dramatic scenes of self discovery and love it is tiresome. When the action scenes do finally arrive you are almost bitter they took so long to get there instead of enjoying them.

 Edward Norton takes over the character Dr. Bruce Banner from Eric Bana in the first film and does an admirable job in the role. His unassuming style and smaller body type lead to a solid character that you could get behind. His quest for the truth of the accident plus trying to find a cure for his Hulkism was well done. His love interest Betty Ross played by Liv Tyler however was less than stellar. Her pained raspy delivery coupled with stupid character decisions was a major detractor. Running towards a Hulk battling men with guns is one of the many things you can look forward to from this awful character. I hated the Banner/Ross love story angle and wish it was deleted from this film. They have zero chemistry together and she should have been recast. It should come as no surprise that the star of this movie was Tim Roth playing soldier Emil Blonsky. Roth is always at his best when playing the bad guy (See Rob Roy) and he was no different in this one. His decidedly evil features coupled with a good perception of his characters focus was what this film needed. Having William Hurt in a supporting role never hurts (No pun intended) a movie either.

 Comic movies are always about action and although I found the story ruined this film the action for the most part was a good if not a great watch. The film is all about the army trying to take down Dr. Bruce Banner as the hulk and while an opening scene in Brazil had a lot to be desired due to choppy camera work. The action sequences in the middle and at the end were a fun watch. The Hulk is at his best when tearing things apart so battling the army and its many gadgets is a good start. Also having the fighting venues take place in the city causes for a lot more wanton destruction and human casualties so I liked the setting a lot. The CGI while on purpose cartoonish was put together nicely and led for some great scenes. All in all the action sequences were decent and well polished but they always felt too long in the making.

 Director Louis Leterrier is no stranger to action films with the first two Transporter movies and Unleashed on his resume. He unfortunately tackled a monster in this film that in my mind is not to be. Leterrier I think did as good a job as he could have with the script handed to him. The action sequences were crisp and outside of Liv Tyler the casting was correct. The film however felt like it was 3 hours long instead of just under 2 with unwanted dialogue and forced scenes of reconnecting with the past. Having to wait for the fight scenes in this film is torture as Bruce Banner is not a fun guy to watch. Leterrier did a decent job in some places but ultimately turned a film that should be action with drama into drama with action and that was a huge mistake. I also felt this movie could have used a little comic relief in places or if they did try it just wasn’t funny. Lastly and this is me just being petty I hated Bruce Banner’s wrist pulse counter telling us when he was about to Hulk up. Like the audience is really going to be scared when his pulse is rising it was a stupid addition to this film. Overall he did a respectable job with a hard topic.

 I cannot recommend this film. Hopefully this will be the last of Hulk as a standalone film as although he might be called the Incredible Hulk in the title he is Mediocre Hulk at best.

 T Factor + If you like lots of dramatic buildup in your movies then this could score higher on the rating scale.

 T Factor – If you need lots of action in your movies then this could score lower on the rating scale.

 If you liked this movie reel recommendations: Iron Man, Captain America

The Avengers

The Avengers

2012
Action
Rated: PG-13
Running Time: 144 minutes
Starring: Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johnasson, Cobie Smulders, Tom Hiddlesworth, Robert Downey Jr., Samuel L Jackson, Jeremey Renner, Mark Ruffalo
Directed By: Joss Whedon
Rating: 9 out of 10

Outline

A group of superheroes must band together to protect the Earth from a menacing Alien presence.

Review

Move over Aliens, Die Hard, Bad Boys 2, Star Trek, 300, and even The Dark Knight. You have a new film that takes its rightful place amongst you and arguably at the top of the awesome action genre pyramid. I can just easily review this film in six words YOU NEED TO SEE THIS FILM! Alas, that is not how the movie review game works so here it goes. The Avengers has been in works for many years and literally had nerds drooling in anticipation. It was up to brilliant director Joss Whedon to bring this all together in a coherent presentation and he didn’t disappoint. The Avengers is based on the comic of the same name and has many superheroes working together to fight the common cause of evil. Because of the sheer magnitude of this film my review will be broken down into each character and participants so I can cover all angles.

Captain America/Steve Rogers played by Chris Evans is the natural leader of this group and I found at times to be lacking in this film. It is not to say Chris Evans is a bad Captain America it is just in the room of strong personalities his star seemed to fade a bit. His straight man routine was pure entertainment when bickering with Tony Stark though. He holds his own in the action sequences and his rah rah good guy routine was an effortless fit into the film. I just wanted a little more from the role. It is noted that this character seems to be getting better and hopefully the second Captain America movie will bring him up to a level of coolness everyone wants.

Iron Man /Tony Stark played by Robert Downey Jr. is the star of this film. The most recognized actor from this movie outside of Samuel L Jackson maybe. He shone at all the right moments be it dramatic or action. It is a good sign as the second Iron Man movie was not a shining moment in this character’s history. Tony Stark with his quick wit and cool gadgets always led the scenes in the right direction. His fighting scenes were crisp and explosive and his presence on film is undeniable. All in all Iron Man was the best character of the film bar none.

Thor played by Chris Hemsworth lost a little bit of momentum from his awesome self titled stand alone movie. Thor is a god and needs to dominate the screen time and he never really hits his stride in this film. He is awesome during the fight scenes but his dialogue is not as intriguing as his introductory movie. Hemsworth has the look down and the personality he just needed some better lines to show how cool this character can be. I am guessing the next Thor film will restore my faith in this character.

Bruce Banner/Hulk played by Mark Ruffalo was a surprise smash hit. The Hulk is a character that we have seen before and has left a bitter taste in our mouths. Eric Bana played Hulk in Ang Lee’s disaster of a film that shook our faith in the character. Edward Norton’s portrayal of Hulk then confirmed our fears that the Hulk is good idea on paper but will never pan out on film. I have to admit I still believe a Hulk stand alone movie will always suck but Ruffalo left me wondering. It was his quiet almost passive portrayal of Bruce Banner that won me over. He also doesn’t have a lot of screen time as the Hulk character so when he is smashing things you appreciate it all the better. Kudos to Ruffalo for bringing out the best in such a limited character and who knows where this will lead.

Nick Fury played by Samuel L Jackson is a needed but almost a useless character to this film in my mind. He is tasked to bring the Avengers squad together but really anyone could have done this role. He does direct the movie in the right way however and that is a good thing. His plotting and faith in this ragtag team allows the film some actual dramatic moments instead of mindless action which at times were needed. Jackson was solid as Fury but unremarkable.

Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow played by Scarlett Johansson was another surprise hit for me. Her character was introduced to us in the second Iron Man film and she was mediocre at best in that film. Johansson more than held her own in this film and in a genre dominated by men. Her dialogue is average but when the fighting starts she does not take a backseat and I compliment her on a job very well done.

Clint Barton/Hawkeye is played by Jeremy Renner. Renner is one of my favorite actors and while having said that he seems to be left behind in this film. People have picked on Hawkeye and I can see why but Renner still did a good job with the character. At the end of the day he is just a dude with a bow and arrow while his teammates are blowing up stuff with crazy abilities and technology all around him. He was an okay character and if critics hated Hawkeye I cannot wait for Antman to arrive on the scene. Yes there is character called Antman whose power is controlling ants that has not been introduced yet.

Loki played by Tom Hiddleston was great. Every great film needs a great bad guy and Hiddleston delivers the goods. Loki felt he was slighted in the Thor movie and vows to take his revenge out on the little old planet Earth with the help of an alien army. His pale complexion coupled with his menacing demeanor is exactly what you wanted from this bad guy. You loathed and felt sorry for Loki at the same time and Hiddleston just made this film a treat to watch.

Worthy mention goes to Colby Smulders playing Agent Maria Hill. Smulders best known for her role as Robin Scherbatsky on television’s How I Met Your Mother was another solid female presence and was above average in a role I thought she would be terrible at.

Last but not least to the man of the hour director Joss Whedon. Whedon is a brilliant man and it is great he is finally getting his recognition outside of his small but very loyal fan base. He is the man behind arguably the best Sci Fi show ever made in Firefly. He has done such things as Dr Horrible’s Sing Along Blog as well as television’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Now he will be most known for this but he has been a genius in the industry for a long time. He had a Herculean task of bringing all these actors together and putting together a film of staggering proportions. He did it with style and grace and that is hard to do when so many of the stand alone films leading up to the Avengers were below par. He combined a staggering amount of great action scenes with a perfect amount of humor and intrigue. Take a bow mister Whedon this film has set a new standard of greatness.

By now you are probably cursing my name for such a long review but it was surely needed for a film that was so amazing in every capacity. This film had like 6 action sequences that would be considered great ending scenes for most films. The CGI was well put together and while the camera work was not perfect at times it was certainly way above average. I also liked it was not just a feel good everyone gets along type of film. The bickering and internal fighting within the Avengers crew was as entertaining as when they were fighting Loki. You will laugh, you will be amazed, you will smile, and you will be upset you have to wait for the next one. I recommend this film to everyone as I loved it from start to finish.

T Factor + If you don’t need graphic/bloody fight scenes this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you didn’t watch the stand alone films leading up to the Avengers than this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: X-Men series, Batman series

Sin City

Sin City

2005

Action

Rated: R

Running Time: 124 minutes

Starring: Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen, Rosario Dawson, Josh Hartnett, Michael Clarke Duncan, Carla Gugino, Brittany Murphy, Nick Stahl, Benicio Del Toro, Devon Aoki, Alexis Bledel, Rutger Hauer, Michael Madsen, Mickey Rourke, Elijah Wood

Directed By: Robert Rodriguez, Frank Miller, Quentin Tarantino

Rating: 8 out of 10

Outline

Three stories taking place in the miserable underbelly of Basin City. This movie is based on the graphic novels by Frank Miller.

Review

Sin City is a visual splendor of action, guns, drugs, women, and bad guys and watching it is a joy from the opening scene. The movie follows a bunch of different stories all taking place in Basin City a miserable place filled with corruption, drugs, and murder. This movie is a telling from the graphic novels inked by Frank Miller and trust me the movie doesn’t disappoint. This movie is like watching a moving comic and it takes you into a world not really captured before on film. The cast is a star studded affair but they all take back seats to the special effects and attention to detail on the cinematography. Three stories are being told but many sub stories also combine to make one cohesive story that will take you on a fantastic ride. Of all the stories this film thrusts at you the one involving Mickey Rourke playing Marv is definitely the best and most exciting. Marv is a muscle head delinquent on a quest for revenge after being framed for the murder of his lover. He has no remorse and endless rage and kills everyone involved in his quest to avenge his woman. It is this type of story that is the essence of Sin City. Blood, nudity, and violence are the name of the game and at every turn Sin City seems to get better and better. The other two main stories involving Bruce Willis and Clive Owen are no less brilliant then Rourkes and they are every bit as addictive in their execution. The flow of the story changes pace quite quickly from high tempo to slow and plodding but never does this film lose your intrigue. This movie won’t be for everyone for it is brutally violent and also has touches of craziness as it has that comic book feel to it. It asks you to take monsters and hallucinations as easily as it asks you to take passion and caring. The film is a blood bath of artistic proportions and if you take it as is Sin City is a movie marvel and will capture your imagination with its fluid movements and interesting characters. Even the hokey dialogue seems to fit perfect in this one and adds instead of subtracts from the films allure. I give this movie a big recommendation as it is one action lovers or people looking for something new and exciting will not want to miss.

T Factor + Like intense sequences of mindless gore and violence then this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor - Need a sense of realism to your storylines then this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: 300, or Robocop

Thor

Thor

2011

Action

Rated: PG-13

Run Time: 115 minutes

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, Stellan Skarsgard, Kat Dennings, Idris Elba

Directed By: Kenneth Branagh

Rating: 7 out of 10

Outline

The Mighty Thor (Hemsworth) is sent to earth as punishment and must find his true worth among mortals. The story is based on the comic of the same name.

Review

It seems they are producing the full movie gamut of every comic book character ever made, as it is big business for Hollywood. I was never a big fan of the comic Thor, so I was expecting very little from this movie. It also came out in a summer with two other comic book movies in Captain America, and Green Lantern, so unique it was not going to be. However, Thor was able to work while the other 2 movies failed considerably. I was always entertained with this movie, and I was able to forgive some obvious flaws for a free flowing script with plenty of humor. Thor portrayed by little known Helmsworth, was the perfect choice as Thor and was at his best on Earth trying to find his way through mortal, social etiquette. It is through these stumblings that he is introduced to a group of physicists, led by Jane Foster (Portman). Obvious flaw, and you must forgive me physicists, but Portman clearly does not look the part. However, I let it go because as a leading lady to Thor, nothing less than beautiful would have done for this movie. Foster’s coworkers Erik Selvig, (Skarsgard) and Darcy Lewis, (Dennings) provide solid supporting roles with much needed humor throughout this film. Where the film is lacking is in the action sequences themselves. It is a curse these days in movies to have the action sequences over edited. It produces fight scenes so quick they cannot be fully enjoyed. This is the case from the start to finish in this film. Instead of an opening scene that leaves you in awe, the dark cinematography and shaky editing, leaves you with a sense of not fulfilled and it was disappointing but not unexpected. The bad guys in the film are well designed, being red eyed Frost Giants. While they are clearly menacing, it would have added that little extra to see them fight with a steady hand. It may have been able to push this movies rating a little higher. Overall, Director Kenneth Branagh took a mediocre character in my mind, and produced a film worthy of this critics praise. He was able to match what Favreau was able to do with the weaker character in Ironman. This was a great origins story, prepping Thor for his place in the Avengers movie. While before I thought he would stand in the background and virtually unused in the Avengers. Thor will hopefully get a place, front and centre where he deserves. Like all of these movies, stick around after all the credits for a mini teaser. This is very well done and gets my recommendation.

T Factor + If you did not mind the shaky action sequences then this movie could score higher on the rating scale

T Factor – If you do not like lighthearted movies then this could score lower on the rating scale

If you liked this film reel recommendations: Iron Man, DareDevil