JosephCurwenJr Reviews

Sakra (2023)

just crap

[2/10 · 4 October 2023]

Bad story either slow or evolving too fast by an incoherent thing happening with no explanation (deus ex machina) , most characters are brainless and don't even try to think of hat's happening, Lady Ma has traitor all over her face since the first apparition - either badly acted or badly written, 2 new villains appear after 80 minutes so very badly introduced too ... We could say that the costumes and locales are great, but it's always like that in Wuxia. I even found Donnie had a strange face, maybe he wanted to change his acting for this movie.

Better watch : Wing Chun, Ip man,Butterfly and sword,Iceman,or the lesser known. Painted skin.

Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (2015)

not entertaining and funny like I expected

[3/10 · 20 February 2017]

I've been a fan of Salman and Sonam a long time, and hoped for some funny and entertaining movie. The result is far from that, I guess some moments work, like when Sonam convinces the sisters to give Vijay a chance, but already the characters don't catch your interest, it's Salman and Sonam so you don't stop the movie right now, but they don't develop as they should as characters that hold your breath until the end of the movie. The story (once the swap with the prince is done) gets boring fast, and the action scenes are not remarkable. Potential spoiled as I'm sure Salman/Sonam can bring good moments together.

You Again (2010)

pleasing family comedy

[9/10 · 14 June 2012]

I won't get into the plot, basically a young woman discovers her brother is getting married to the girl that made her life hell when she was younger and aunt of this girl was the girl that made her own mother hell when she was younger. I liked the fact that there's a story anyway, with some elements and characters coming until the wedding. Actin is very strong from Kristen, Odette, Jamie and the others. The comical element rests mostly on Kristen's character so getting attached to her is important to appreciate the movie. Odette Yustman/Annable, mostly remembered as being the "rescued" girl in Cloverfield) seems at ease with comedy and makes her character full of life (and of course she looks stunning). Jamie/Sigourney have fun playing old time enemies and use situation comedy well. Honestly Hollywood family comedy make my skin crawl usually, but I really love this one.

Game of Thrones: Fire and Blood (2011) Season 1, Episode 10

pathetic over-hyped medieval soap

[2/10 · 13 December 2011]

So we have manipulative characters, more manipulative characters, very blatant plans that unfold way too plainly, stabbing in the back by characters that look so obviously devious there's no surprise, and they even cheat characters so gullible and straight it's not even a challenge. Oh and yes we have the elf looking prince that wants to unite barbarians to reclaim a throne of an empire that doesn't exist anymore ... Hey! that could be a good sitcom! Anyway, I hope that people will realise when they re watch this amateur mess they were caught in the enthusiasm of the hype and have fun at watching it in some years. However 2 characters are charismatic and likable, Tyrion and Arya, and Iain Glen is a good actor. I put a vote of 2 as votes of 1 and 10 are less taken into consideration for the final note (yeah the IMDb rating system is quite broken).

Love Story 2050 (2008)

Fantastic movie

[9/10 · 24 September 2010]

This is the first (are they any others?) Bollywood science fiction movie I've seen. I was familiar with Priyanka Chopra and Director Harry Baweja, so it could have been a good surprise (bought this movie not knowing it existed before). I don't see what's weak in the movie story, the characters are introduced in the current period, beginning as a love story and a sympathetic one, important thing is the characters feel alive, have fun, and begin to like each other. Then tragedy strikes. But some destiny happens and Karan, the Professor and the kids are sent to the future. The atmosphere really changes with presentation of new technology being everywhere, from holographics ads, to clothe shop that shows you wearing the clothes, to robots ... Then there's a time constraint that makes things intense, as Karan doesn't have much time to bring Sana back. And there's a bad guy related to the professor wanting the time machine. Saw many movies with a weaker plot, really. The acting is in the good tier for Harman and Priyanka, others are correct. The couple is really nice, playing as 2 young adults seeing a relationship grow. Harman shows good charisma, and incredible physical prowess. The SFX are absolutely astounding, the representation of the city, with the flying vehicles, architecture, really amazed me. I had no idea Bollywood could get some good enough special effects guys. Once you're into the future, you always have some futuristic things on screen to remember you're in another world.

Dulha Mil Gaya (2010)

Very enjoyable, nice to see Sushmita so good (in all ways)

[9/10 · 17 May 2010]

I bought this movie with several other Bollywood flicks and didn't know what to expect from it. I liked it from beginning to end. Yes it's another un-believable Bollywood story, but if you watch this movie you know what to expect. The characters are reasonably well developed, even their motivations are well developed. Sushmita / Shimmer is the center character, making all others meet and interact. Her character is a celebrity hungry top model, but she soon befriends a young woman who was deceived by her new husband, who happens to be Shimmer's best friend. Then the Bollywood effect occurs and situations go on as characters have to react to them and delve into their inner feelings. The whole thing is well acted, led by Sushmita with strength and class (and awesome beauty).

Mortal Kombat (1995)

The best video game adaptation???

[9/10 · 5 July 2006]

This movie is so dense I don't know where to start. Yes, density is here a compliment : no pause in character development, action, story, FX, incredible settings ... Paul W.S. Anderson debuts with a BANG with Mortal Kombat. The cast is really good and portrays admirably the main characters : Linden Ashby is cool and classy with good quotes (It was easy ... We're standing, they're not! ; This is where you fall down), Robin Shou plays the tormented Liu Kang, feeling responsible for his brother's death, but refusing to believe in the supernatural tournament because of pride, Bridgette Wilson plays the tough girl Sonya Blade, wanting to avenge her partner and refusing the help of others, Trevor Goddard playing the disgusting Kano with no pride and manners, always ready to gain some money and power (I still use the "almost lost my lunch" quote); Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa portraying Shang Tsung the evil sorcerer getting power from fallen warriors's souls and tyrannic leader of monster fighters. Using limited SFX to their fullest in the story, Anderson gives life to incredible characters and situations, with a simple story inspired by the Acclaimed (aha) Mortal Kombat video game, using some of the background story. Anderson manages to stay quite faithful to the game (even if blood is nowhere to be found), using SFX where needed, letting actors have fun ; oh yes, I forgot Christopher Lambert portraying Rayden, with quite some humor, but being the wise God dispensing knowledge to human fighters ... Fun, fun and fun is what you'll get her, enjoy!

Re-Animator (1985)

A horror legend

[10/10 · 5 July 2006]

I saw this movie in theaters when I was 16, I saw it 9 times in 4 days ... It has some dark humor, lots of blood, some nudity, more blood, great (I mean really great) acting by Jeffrey Combs ... Inspired by a 5 page novel by HP Lovecraft where Herbert West invents a formula than can make the dead come back to life, it ends with the dead tearing his body apart in the end (like we see Dr Halsey being dismembered by the mob of undead), it takes liberties into putting the theme in modern day society. The introduction scene where West works with Dr. Gruber, introduces us to the strange experiments West does. Then the opening credits with the somewhat light classical music and images of body parts as they study them in med school. We then see "Arkham" university - Akham is a town where a lot of Lovecraft stories take place. We soon understand that West is a very strange individual, who has left his humanity in the closet, and his new friend Danny is a "normal" teenager enjoying life with his girlfriend. But of course things start to change with West reanimating Dan's dead cat (the scene in the basement is astounding, with West reanimating the poor cat after, saying : he's screaming because he comes back to life! - he then takes the part of the mad scientist in the old black and white movies). Then horror and blood escalates, yet with some character development for the main cast and the villain, Dr. Karl Hill : even with his head cut, he can lust for Meg and fulfill his desire of power. Stuart Gordon manages to take us into a maddening story where suspense is present, characters are likable (even West sometimes) and gore is at its best. Jeffrey Combs helps a lot, building a cold, science driven med student, and we can perceive a reflexion about the limits of medical experimentation (on humans or animals). Definitely a must see!