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Reviews
Silent Hill (2006)
By far the best video game movie adaptation I've ever seen.
Silent Hill is a deep and gruesome portrait of motherhood, religion, and revenge. It would be hard to believe that it is a video game movie adaptation if you had not played the game. Indeed, everything, the music, the camera angles, and the extremely disturbing images and demons could have been (and in many cases, actually were) taken straight from the Silent Hill game series.
Silent Hill is not a movie for the faint of heart and may be hard to follow at times if you don't know anything about the games or the story. Playing the games is certainly not required to enjoy the movie, but first timers and people looking for a simple slasher movie may feel left unfulfilled. And, just like the games, it may take multiple viewings to see and understand everything there is to behold.
Overall, the storyline is a little complicated (although nothing compared to something like A Tale of Two Sisters) and a tiny bit unclear at times, leaving some things open to interpretation. The last half-hour of the movie also holds some of the most disturbing and gory images on film. But the acting is solid on all parts, the story, if grasped, is engrossing, the pace is perfect, and the visuals are the best around.
I view Silent Hill as one of the best psychological/terror movies in existence, if not one of best ever made. I would recommend it to horror, psychological thriller, or Silent Hill game fans everywhere.
The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005)
The best comedy I've seen in years
Steve Carell comes into his own in his first starring role in the 40 Year Old Virgin, having only had supporting roles in such films as Bewitched, Bruce Almighty, Anchorman, and his work on the Daily Show, we had only gotten a small taste of the comedy that Carell truly makes his own. You can tell that Will Ferrell influenced his "comedic air" but Carell takes it to another level, everything he does is innocent, lovable, and hilarious. I would not hesitate to say that Steve Carell is one of the next great comedians of our time.
The 40 Year Old Virgin is two hours of non-stop laughs (or 4 hours if you see it twice like I did), a perfect supporting cast and great leads charm the audience through the entire movie. The script was perfect with so many great lines that you will want to see the movie again just to try to remember them all. The music fit the tone of the movie great, and you can tell the director knew what he was doing.
Filled with sex jokes, some nudity, and a lot of language, this movie isn't for everyone but if you liked the Wedding Crashers, Anchorman, or any movie along those lines, you will absolutely love The 40 Year Old Virgin.
Wedding Crashers (2005)
Marginally entertaining, rarely funny
I had reservations about this movie just from seeing the previews, but reviews were high, and people seemed to like it so I caved. Lesson learned.
The chemistry between castmembers (expecially Vaughn and Wilson) is undeniable, they worked off of each other flawlessly. And Isla Fisher stole almost every scene she was in.
The first 45 minutes were slow, with a wedding montage that didn't ever seem to end. It started to pick up a little as the movie moved into an actual plot but eventually the scenes began to drag again. About an hour and a half into the movie (it seemed more like two and a half hours) who comes along but Will Ferrell to save the end of the movie. Will Ferrell plays a supporting character that is in maybe a quarter of the film and he is the funniest character in the movie, his was the only one the audience was quoting afterwards.
I honestly don't know where this film went wrong, great cast, good script, funny idea in general, and several great comedic bits, but just not a funny movie. Your 9 dollars and two hours can be much better spent elsewhere.
Stealth (2005)
Eye candy with a sense of reality
I got the pleasure of catching a sneak preview today in Portland and I was not disappointed at all.
The first thing I should say is that the trailer is very misleading, it only gives a partial explanation of the story and movie is not just senseless action. There are a couple of times you feel that writers were kinda reaching for a reason to get the pilots in the air but once you see the absolutely beautiful aircraft and some the most realistic flying I've ever seen, you quickly forget. It looked like they actually built the airplanes and filmed them flying around, truly gorgeous CG.
Many cite the movie as unbelievable but the writer's build themselves a buffer for explaining the events by setting in the undefined future and using technical terms 90% of the population won't bother trying to comprehend and usually really don't mean anything anyway, kinda like the technology in Star Trek, just not near as advanced. It makes sense in it's context. The writers provide a good sense of plausibility.
On other notes, the action is spectacular, there are some jaw dropping explosions and crashes, the acting is pretty good, each character is actually fairly well developed for an action movie, and the music fits the tone of the movie and the individual scenes very well.
If you like action or airplane movies, Stealth is a must see.
8/10
Dark Water (2005)
Very disappointing
The movie is dark, the end is depressing and quite a let down, and it is not scary in the least. Rather than a horror movie I'd classify it as a drama or perhaps psychological thriller if I was feeling generous.
The acting was superb, the film as a whole was fairly interesting, and the director did well with what he had to work with but having only those things going for it was not enough to make a good movie.
The storyline in Dark Water was one of main the failing points, in fact it is VERY reminiscent of the Ring, only, you know, without the scary or sinister parts.
Rent the Ring if you want a good movie, or even the Grudge, you needn't bother with this movie.
The Ring Two (2005)
A Perfect Sequel
The Ring Two is just as good if not better than the original.
The acting was flawless on all parts especially on the part of Ayden and Rachel.
The Ring Two takes the horror of Samara even further, exploring the tragedy of her past and her intentions in the present. It ties this movie to the first one perfectly without seeming repetitive in any way.
There several simply incredible scenes which I won't talk of here simply because I don't want to ruin anything. The Ring 2 closes the story, in a good but not happy sort of way, a perfect end to a great story.
If you liked the Ring, I don't see how you could not love the Ring 2.
Constantine (2005)
A pleasant surprise!
Honestly I was not expecting much from this movie. I'm not a huge fan of Keanu Reeves and the comic book movie genre has a heck of a lot more losers than winners. What I got was a very pleasant surprise.
I have not read the Hellblazer comic books so I can't attest to accuracy, but this was one hell of a movie (no pun intended).
The movie was well acted on all parts, even the kid from Even Stevens (whom I very much dislike) did a good job with his role. What really surprised me was the storyline. It was great. Not just a run of the mill angels vs demons with a human in the midst. It was well thought through and excellently portrayed. A huge plus to the movie was the special effects. Simply incredible in every way. Everything looked very realistic and was beautifully done.
I can't not recommend this one. The only people I can understand not enjoying this movie are people too absorbed in themselves to consider the possibility of Heaven and Hell or Catholics/Christians who are too over the top to enjoy a good movie about such a serious topic (regardless of the moral, which I thought was a pretty good one). I say that this is a movie to see.
The Punisher (2004)
If you like the comic stay away
If you are new to the whole comic book hero thing, then sure go ahead and see The Punisher, you might enjoy it. But for anyone who has ever read a single comic book with him in it, stay the hell away.
The movie is slow and painful to watch. It's over an hour of melodramatic character development to lead to one action scene that remotely resembles the Punisher that we know and love.
Spoilers....
There aren't just a few problems in this movie, the whole movie is the problem, if they had kept the storyline and the true character of the Punisher then it would have been over in about a half hour. The punisher doesn't go to the trouble of making the bad guys kill each other and waiting for the evil henchmen to find him at his apartment, he goes in in his armored van ( which is not in the movie) with the help of his technical genius sidekick (also not in the movie) and slaughters the criminals. As for considering suicide at the end? The writers should shoot THEMSELVES for considering putting that in, the Frank Castle we know is too busy making sure the stuff that happened to him doesn't happen to anyone else to bother thinking about ending his own life.
So far we have maybe two or three good comic book character movies out of I've lost count how many. Can we step up the letter writing to Marvel please?
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004)
Eh, it had its moments
Not an overly funny movie but it has its moments, and almost all of them involved Ben Stiller.
Unfortunately, most of the movie will have you shaking your head as you think of what could have been if they had only put a joke that was remotely entertaining in there. Basically this movie has an onslaught of jokes, all of different caliber so everyone who sees it will laugh at something even if they find the rest of the movie simply idiotic.
This movie is all over the place with its jokes and acting, but remains fairly watchable. If you have nothing better to do, go ahead and see it.
rating 6/10
Ying xiong (2002)
Highly overrated
First, disregard all trailers you have seen for this movie, they are very misleading and are not related to the plot in almost any way.
Second, only see this if you like great sword fights or Asian film. The sword fights are great, if you liked crouching tiger hidden dragon you'll definately appreciate this. Also the style of the the movie is fantastic, its once you look past those things to the plot and message of the movie that it loses its magnificance.
SPOILERS
Don't think I don't appreciate what the movie was trying to convey, I got the message loud and clear, it just all seemed pointless (especially when you find out about 80 percent of what you saw never happened). In the end, everyone is dead except the person they originally wanted to kill. And all in the name of bringing peace AKA the king can continue his conquest of the world? Anyone else see a little problem here? Uniting the world is a much longer and bloodier process than taking out one tyrant. I just don't buy the message of the film.
Nice try but no cigar, Overall 5/10
AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004)
SIMPLY INCREDIBLE
AVP is a credit to both series'. I saw it at the first showing and it was money and time well spent.
Great storyline, good performances, astounding action, and flawless special effects contribute to an overall stunning movie experience. It's even got a few hidden treats for us Alien cult followers (you'll know what I mean when you see it).
The Predator is true to form in his ruthless efficiency, honor, and simple bad-ass-ery. And the aliens are as beautifully evil as ever.
I'd recommend this movie to anyone who has seen any of the Alien series, Predator series, or anyone who simply wants to see a great action/sci-fi flick.
When does AVP 2 come out?!
Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation (2004)
I cried for hours
Its bad.
Its really bad.
For the love of all that is good and holy, stay away from this movie. I have never seen a movie try so hard to emulate another movie, and fail so miserably.
The first thing I noticed are the bugs, they used to be menacing and dangerous, now a squad of troopers can hold off hundreds at once when completely surrounded. The second thing was the troopers themselves, they aren't the same federation as the were in the first movie. Then the infesting spider things, wow, apparently the bugs are sentient and want to kill us because we value individualism too much and are insane. How did this storyline and script ever get off the table?
None of our favorite characters are back, and none of the new ones are likable. None of the action from the first movie is there. None of the style is there, none of the MEANING is there. Nothing is there, this movie is every b-movie ever made rolled into one, and all the remotely decent things taken out.
The Boondock Saints (1999)
Masterful
Simply put, this film is a masterpiece. Everything about it is wonderful. The story is unique. The script is great. The acting is flawless. The action is incredibly stylistic and well done.
One more reason to see Boondock Saints: Willem Dafoe. This is his best performance ever, he shines in all his glory. His performance in itself is reason enough to see this movie.
The "Firefight" scene (watch the movie and you'll know what I'm talking about) will live forever as one of the greatest moments in cinema history.
Boondock Saints is definitely a must see. If you haven't seen it, GO OUT NOW AND BUY IT.