Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 13th, 2007
Honestly, was anyone really surprised when Universal announced a sequel to the ultra successful (and ultra-good) film The Mummy? The easiest comparison one can make is that Universal was trying to create their Indiana Jones series ala Fox. Even though neither Mummy film will EVER approach the quality of any of the Indiana Jones films (even the weakest Temple of Doom), The Mummy films, especially The Mummy Returns, are damn fun to watch.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 7th, 2007
Some of you might know the book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream, then others of you might known the movie simply called Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, but one way or another you know about the crazy days Hunter S. Thompson had in Vegas. Hunter Thompson along with his buddy Oscar Zeta Acosta are the credited creators of Gonzo Journalism (Journalism with indistinct lines between fact and fiction), so the book and movie are partially based on their accounts, except replace Thompson with Raoul Duke (Johnny Depp) and Acosta with Dr. Gonzo (Benicio del Toro).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 7th, 2007
Truth be told ladies and gentlemen, before receiving The Breakfast Club in for review, I couldn�t even begin to fathom the fan base this film has had since its 1985 release. After all how interesting does a film where 5 students are put in detention sound? After seeing the film, I believe the interest lies not necessarily in the basic premise of the film, but the overall impact the five students have on themselves and, more importantly, the viewer.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 7th, 2007
For the longest time I avoided Field of Dreams. This is simply because I�ve never really liked Kevin Costner as an actor, and mainly because I figured a film about baseball starring him would be boring. Boy was I wrong on this one. Sure Field of Dreams isn�t the best film ever made, but damn if it�s not a film that one can�t help but enjoy slowly falling for the story, characters and surroundings.
Ray Kinsella (Costner) is a simple man who has a lovely wife named Annie (Amy Madigan). Ray decides to move to Iowa soon buying a farm.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 1st, 2007
Let�s face it people. Martin Scorsese, for most part, is a god amongst filmmakers. The man can�t do anything wrong in the filmmaking. Film after film he continues to amaze me with his sheer ability to tell a story bundled together with fantastic acting. Even though many don�t name Casino as one of his best works (rightfully so), the film is still excellent as it shows the gritty 1980s Las Vegas mob world.
One cursory glance at the plot of Casino would make the smallest Scorsese fan think that the film should be called Goodfellas 2.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 29th, 2006
Truth be told, when I first heard of the idea of a new Mummy film, I became excited. The first two in the series were surely not examples of Oscar material, but were damn entertaining films. Then news slipped out that the next film would be based on WWE Superstar The Rock�s character The Scorpion King, which seemed like an odd idea on paper. Was The Scorpion King that much of an awesome character that he needed his own film? Well, success continues as The Scorpion King isn�t excellent film making, but sure is pretty entertaining.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 29th, 2006
Based on a true story, Jet Li�s Fearless takes place just after the turn of the 20th century. Huo�s father is challenged and beaten by the leader of the Zhao Clan leading to sheer embarrassment for everyone involved. Soon Huo Yuanija, his son, suffers a similar fate. Only Huo swears to never let a beating like this occur again. Huo wants nothing more in the world than for his father to teach him the way of the wushu, which is the way of fighting. The problem is that Huo doesn�t tend to put his heart in the right places. He hates studying his medicine and doing his calligraphy leaving his mother to tell him that wushu is not all about winning, but rather about patience and self-discipline.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 28th, 2006
Jet Li's Fearless is reportedly the star's final martial arts epic. Since we're talking about the guy who did Once Upon a Time in China, Twin Warriors and Hero, that fact alone makes this is a significant film for martial arts fans.
Fearless tells the story of Huo Yuanjia, who in 1910 helped found the Jin Wu Sports Federation (Chin Woo Athletic Association), the first civil Kung Fu organization in China. Li plays Yuanjia, who is a Chinese folk hero. The film follows Yuanjia's life from early childhood until his last days, showing his journey from a weak, little boy to a cocky, selfish bully, and finally to a respected martial arts master and Chinese patriot.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 27th, 2006
Synopsis
I must be crazy, but I kinda liked Hulk! Although, this is coming from the kid who faithfully watched the old CBS show and loved every damn minute of it. When Universal decided they were going to make a big-screen adaptation, with a computer created green machine, so be it. I fell for the trailers, and everything else. So when it came out to theaters, it seemed like the consensus result was: �Blah!� in large part to said CG leading man/monster. But at the end of the day, it doesn�t seem like he takes up much of the movie, and the action scenes aren�t hurt by his presence, some of them look very good.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 20th, 2006
Director Ron Howard is quite the puzzling man. He surely knows how to direct a fine film like A Beautiful Mind or even The Da Vinci Code, but still knows how to give us that random piece of crap. When word came that Howard was going to adapt Dr. Seuss� timeless classic How The Grinch Stole Christmas, I immediately questioned why? After all wasn�t the TNT special that airs oh 40-50 times a year good enough? I guess not for Hollywood as the 2000 remake made some serious bank with Jim Carrey portraying the lead character. The only unfortunate part here is that the film is absolutely horrendous.