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andy_pf
Reviews
Star Trek (2009)
Take the good with the bad
As a Star Trek fan, every time a new Star Trek movie comes out, you're excited, only to be let down. The last 2 movies had poor plots, bad scripts, and cheesy acting. And after The Next Generation, the TV shows went down hill as well (with Voyager being the bottom of the barrel).
This new Star Trek lifts the bar in some areas, but falls down in others.
The plot for instance isn't a strong point. There are too many times when you're left thinking 'come off it' ... there are some really ridiculous plot points and poor clichés. This may be Science Fiction, but it has to make you believe, and from the whole 'graduates who go straight to captain' to the 'super nova that would destroy the galaxy' or the 'got marooned on some random planet, but luckily, by total coincidence, I landed near old Spock and Scotty' ... it just leaves you feeling like the story was written by some hacks.
On the more positive side, the acting was bearable - a definite plus over some of the previous films (though obviously some of them shined more than others). Nero/Eric Banner was somewhat painful to watch, but the new Kirk was OK, and I didn't even mind Chekhov and his accent.
Where I think the film really stood out though was its cinematography. The special effects were good - but more importantly, the movie itself looked great. It looked like it could be real.
All in all, this felt more like a whole new action/scifi series than a Star Trek. I am convinced we will never get another Star Trek movie that Star Trek fans deserve (action AND intelligence in the plot - something that Wrath of Khan and The Undiscovered Country had, and First Contact almost had). Never the less, at least this isn't both stupid and lame (like Insurrection and Nemesis) ... and if you look at it from the perspective of it being the birth of a totally new scifi series, that just happens to be called 'Star Trek' and have the names of the characters you knew and loved, it really isn't all that bad.
Knowing (2009)
Wow ... what a pile of garbage
I don't expect a film about the apocalypse or premonitions to be the smartest movie ever ... hell, those 'disaster' movies where the hero charges around saving people are pretty much standard Hollywood fluff, and aren't too intelligent - but they are rarely this stupid. Its like they took all the annoying elements out of these movies and put them all in one (think Independence Day but without the bad jokes to forgive it for the stupidity) In parts I felt like I was watching a kids flick with gory disasters and spooky pedophile stalkers added in for effect. The kids were (as is often the case in these type of movies) annoying. But this time around the adults were so much worse. And the acting was just plain awful all round.
The most annoying thing though was the plot - it didn't make any sense. These advanced aliens can predict the future and feel the need to impart this to some kids to write it all down as a set of numbers in the hope some college professor figures out what they mean. But in the end, it doesn't matter what they mean, they're all going to die anyway. Lucky the aliens feel like saving the kiddies. Now I get the whole religion-aliens/angels take on the movie, but it doesn't feel any less dumb.
To sum it all up: Nicholas Cage's acting was awful, his 'son' was annoying, Rose Byrne's character was plain stupid, Cage's character was a total idiot, the aliens ending was ridiculous, and really, the only good thing was that they got what they deserved - toasted to death in a fiery inferno (too bad they kids escaped with their bloody rabbits).
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
Worst film ever.
Some people say this was the scariest movie they've ever seen. I want to know what these people were thinking. It is the worst movie i've ever seen. Not only is it boring and stupid but it comes no where near scary. I couldn't wait till the film ended.