dr-t-tolentino Reviews

Under the Skin (I) (2013)

Long... Slow... Boring... No plot... No conclusion...

[2/10 · 29 July 2018]

Quite simply, this movie is extremely slow, has almost no dialogue, and no real conclusion... Perhaps if I could force myself to watch this movie over and over and over, I MIGHT be able to figure out what the real point of the movie is.

From the movie description you know that the main character is an alien (played by Scarlett Johansen) who lures men into a mysterious black liquid.... That's pretty much the entire movie...

The Adventurer: The Curse of the Midas Box (2013)

A young English man is pulled into an Indiana Jones type of adventure

[7/10 · 29 April 2014]

This is a good, entertaining, slightly-cheesy, mystery/action movie you can absolutely watch with your kids.

I honestly don't understand the low ratings. Note that it is "Indiana Jones LIKE" in nature, but Indiana Jones it is not. It is not meant to be and it is not meant to be taken too seriously.

What it is, is:

1:Fun 2:Clean 3:Well acted (for the most part. I suspect some characters were meant to be cheesy) 4:well filmed.

I enjoyed it. I feel it's completely safe to watch with young children, and that is a rare thing. I recommend you give this movie a chance, ESPECIALLY if you're a parent looking for something you can watch with your kids that YOU can enjoy at the same time...

47 Ronin (2013)

A good and solid movie about Samurai

[9/10 · 19 April 2014]

I loved this movie...

The story line is an excellent that is loosely based on (as far as I can tell) Japanese tales of Ronin. Consider all the movies that are 'loosely based' on the tales of King Arthur; even if they do not stick to the exact details of the original, they make for great stories.

The fighting choreography is as good as any I can recall. I LOVE the fact that the fighting here isn't the 'hokie' stupid physically impossible type of fighting you might see in John Wu movies (although, I like those as well.) What I mean is, you don't see one person spinning kick another and the victim goes horizontal to the ground while spinning many times...in the wrong direction... You don't see people flipping from a high roof and landing on the ground in that oh so cliché 3-point landing (both feet, one hand down, knees bent, and one hand behind their back for some reason... SO SICK OF THIS) The fighting in this movie, while exaggerated, can be believed... Of course, there are times when magic is used and you have to attribute that to magic...

The ACTING IN THIS MOVIE IS VERY GOOD! I believe every person in this movie played their role well... They weren't cheesy, hokie, or cliché...

Even the ending was not a "hollywood" everyone gets what they want type of ending.

Now, I have seen complaints about this movie and many of them deal with the fact that Keanu Reeves is not Asian... To those of you who can only enjoy a story about Vikings only if everyone in it is tall and white with blonde hair...to those of you who can ONLY enjoy a movie about Hawaiians if everyone is big and brown skinned with black hair...to those of you who believe ONLY Asian people can use swords...Well, I suggest you get over it... Get over your xenophobic belief that only your race is good or right or perfect or the best... I am Hawaiian, and yet I believe white people can surf...A good friend of mine is black, and yet he believes that Japanese people can play basketball... Half breeds have existed all over the world since before the time of recorded history... genetic testing bears this out... So, get over yourself and just enjoy a good tale...

Red Dawn (2012)

Good movie. What you would expect.

[7/10 · 11 March 2014]

First off, I thought this was a very good movie.

I did see the original version when it first came out and a few times since. I loved the original.

I think the remake was well done. This was NOT like the remake of 'Footloose' in which there seemed absolutely no point in remaking the movie. This remake gave us the same basic story, but with some different characters, a different country invading, and some very good acting.

I figured Thor, Wonder Woman, and Peta (the actors not the characters) would do a great job but I was pleasantly surprised (shocked even) at what a great job of acting Josh Peck did.

Honestly, I don't understand the bad reviews this movie seems to be getting.

1: The story line was solid. 2: The acting was excellent. 3: The special effects were very good. 4: The pace was good. The movie never dragged.

A solid movie. If you've not seen it, then I suggest you give a chance.