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AlexWard
Reviews
Poseidon (2006)
Good movie, jaded audience!
OK, here's the problem. Recently, Hollywoods offerings have pretty much fit into one of two categories. Absurdly expensive special effects blockbuster with timid, undeveloped plot, or fairly low budget, decent story. Audiences have come to expect one or the other and thus lump Poseidon into the first one. However, that's not the type of film Poseidon is. X3, for example, was light on character development. Given the first two films, fleshed out, human characters are what we expect. But, Poseidon is the type of film that's all about "Whoa! That was close!" or "Aw man, she died". It doesn't matter who the characters are, the movie is all about the suspense and excitement of their escape from a watery grave. To make a comparison, what did we know about Grant, Ellie, Lex and Tim at the end of Jurassic Park? Almost nothing! And yet, the film is rated 7.5 stars on IMDb while Poseidon has 5.6. What's the difference? Both movies are full of cgi effects and about getting out of a very dangerous situation. The ride is what matters here, not the characters. The action and the escape ARE the plot. Would it make any difference if we know someone's whole back story or not when they are swimming through a flooded tunnel with no idea if it lets out into air or not? No, of course not. The thrill is in the suspense of whether or not they will make it! Yes, the characters are fairly generic, but that doesn't matter! See Poseidon without comparing it to the novel or the first movie, put yourself in the passengers place without worrying about who the really are or where they come from, and you will see it for what it is, a suspenseful exciting, edge of your seat film!
Mission to Mars (2000)
Not Perfect, but not bad
Mission to Mars was a good flick. It wasn't great, it had hollywood's usual mix of good science and tabloid junk science. It had parts that were outright hokey (such as Tim Robbin's death when there were at least 3 ways to rescue him) to beautifully executed (such as the micrometeorite/air loss scene). It was a fun film that, yes, could have been done better. But hey, even Private Ryan and The Matrix had their flaws. And as no one ever picks the jewels out of fair films, I think I will. The air loss scene was beautiful. That eerie music in the background, the emotionless computer calmly announcing how much air was left. The crew's hustle to fix it. Absolutely chilling. I loved how the crew drilled and drilled and drilled again for orbital insertion. I don't care how reliable computers get in the future, an astronout will NEVER just push one button and sit back while the computer does all the work. I love how the Martian ship filled with liquid for its flight. Water is incompressible and any human in a ship like that would withstand huge amounts of force. So while M2M is not the finest film in the world, it is a very worthy effort. P.S. PLEASE quit whining about ripoffs in Holywood. I would give $20 to anyone who can find a movie since the 70's that doesn't at least take some of its ideas from a past film!
Pitch Black (2000)
Excellent Movie!
I'm astonished that Pitch Black didn't do better, it was a wonderfully realistic and well written movie! And why can't people just enjoy the darn flick? People say the science is bad. WRONG! Gravity is what holds planets around a sun. If the planets are dense enough or big enough and the suns are small or less dense, than they very well CAN rotate around planets! Nobody even mentions the glow-slugs later! Of course it makes sense that on a planet like this evolution would create phosphorescence as a defense mechanism. Lovely detail! And quit whining about contrived plots and ripoffs! You CANNOT make a movie today without ripping something off! For everyone who called this movie a wannabe or compared it to Aliens or the Matrix, I hate to break it to you, but the critters from aliens were almost IDENTICAL to a critter in a novel called Voyage of the Space Beagle by AE van Vogt written at least 20 years before Alien came out. Likewise, the Matrix was ripped off from an RPG called Shadowrun which was released in the mid 80's! And yes, it seems a little hokey that they just happened to crash in the 22nd year when the darkness came, but you'll notice in Alien that out of the whole gigantic refinery ship, the creature just happened to hide in the little teeny-weeny lifeboat ship. And the queen in Aliens just happened to hide in the one place where they couldn't get her without killing themselves And finally as for those who say the characters are shallow. When was the last time you saw a character admit they did something stupid? (Fry crawling down the hole) or when survivors thanked the pilot for the extremely tough job she did of keeping some of them alive in the crash instead of "oh, great babe! ya really screwed us over with that pro landing!" And Riddick was still a nasty guy at the end, he was just starting to change and soften a little. Kurt Russell overcame 35+ years of ironclad conditioning and mind control in just a few weeks in Soldier! So everyone out there that keeps complaining about unreal this, and shallow that, save your money and watch "The Real World" on MTV. Those of you that can open your mind and just enjoy the great fiction, put Pitch Black at the top of your must see scifi!
8/10
Deep Impact (1998)
My God, what a movie!
I cannot praise this movie enough. I mean, the performances of all the cast, were excellent in and of themselves, but this is not just a movie, it is a triumph of the human spirit. In this film we see all that is best and noble about humanity. It shows that when the time comes and the stakes are high we can work together and put aside our petty differences. The only thing I don't like about this movie is I still cry at the end. 10 Stars. 2 thumbs up. DO NOT miss this one.
Fire Birds (1990)
Get some advisors from Ft Hood, Mr Director!
Firebirds suffered from the same problem many military movies suffer from. The writers knew exactly squat about the subject matter. This movie had potential to be really excellent. Nick Cage and Tommy Lee Jones are two very good actors. However, they had crap to work with. The first problem was Apache pilots are a completely different breed than fighter jocks. They were badly portrayed. Sure, they are cocky and arrogant, but those "macho" lines were soooo corny. No self-respecting rotary wing aviator would be caught dead spouting that garbage. Secondly, the helicopters were shown fighting jets and other helicopters. That's like trying to win the Indy 500 in a Yugo or portraying Schwarzanegger as a ballet dancer. Sure its vaguely possible, but no sane person tries it. Finally, Sean Young, while very attractive was not the right person for the role of Billie. All in all, Fire Birds had the right elements and the concepts, but they were jumbled together badly and handled wrong. Leave it on the shelf and get Full Metal Jacket or Saving Private Ryan and see a military movie done right.
Varsity Blues (1999)
An Excellent Movie!
Varsity Blues was a great movie. Watching this movie made my own high school days seem close enough to reach out and touch. What else can you ask from a movie, but that it makes you feel like you were in it? I live near several towns like New Canaan, and I guarantee that while the town's love of football shown is very slightly exaggerated, the whole story is absolutely dead on. It was realistic without quite edging over into parody. A must see for everyone who has ever watched his/her star quarterback strut down the hallway at school.
Lost in Space (1998)
Script Lost In Hollywood Space. Warning, Minor spoilers.
This movie had it all. The budget, the actors, the special effects, the plot......oops well maybe not all. The movie is a great idea, but the plot makes no sense. The hyperdrive on Jupiter 2 can't be used unless exact coordinates to the destination are known. Why waste building space with a drive that cannot be used? (Unless you know you will get the coordinates later. Reading ahead in the script? hmm....) And if earth is only a few years from running out of resources, why send a gigantic ship full of hundreds of crew to look for 5 people? There are many other contradictions I won't go into. Suffice it to say it was a noble effort, but ultimately the only good thing to say about Lost in Space was it was better than the Avengers remake.