The Crazies takes place in a small, middle of nowhere, "Friendliest Place on Earth" hometown called Ogden Marsh, that's citizens begin to lose their fucking minds and go bat-shit crazy on one another when a military plane carrying a biological weapon crashes into the lake that supplies their source of drinking water.
The Crazies is actually a remake of a 1973 George A. Romero film, and I'm not quite sure if not knowing this would have helped or hurt this film.
In one respect the film never felt very original. It borrows many typical horror cliche's like semi-relying on Jump scares to get the audience to, well, jump. The worst moment in the film actually is during one of these borrowed moments that involves the worst use of the "Behind You" cliches. The way it's used actually made me make an audible groan in the theatre.
Luckily it's superbly directed by Breck Eisner, the son of Michael Eisner, and it's for this reason that I would reccommend this film to others. In fact this would have probably gotten a "rental" rating if it wasn't for his efforts. If it wasn't for his direction this film would be your typical foray into the "Horror" Genre. This guy clearly knows how to give direction and motivation to his cast, because it fuckin shows. Each character clearly has something that motivates him or her to act the way he/she does.
The Story itself tends to be pretty interesting at the best of times. The subject matter of your neighbor is now a crazed psychotic killer and the fact that there is really no one you can fully trust. The film gets all the more interesting when The US Military invades the town in an attempt to contain the pandemic in an effort to prevent a global crisis. The film tries to make the military out as some really bad guys but it just doesn't really work. Their by no means "Good"", but their also never fully "Bad". The film takes an interesting turn when we learn that the Military is just following orders.
As I said before the film is really nothing special. It never manages to be really scary, but at the same time it's got several kills of the year in it. The way some of these characters are offed make for some cringe inducing yet extremely enjoyable original moments in an otherwise somewhat bland film. Probably the best scene in the whole film is a set piece that I like to refer to as "The Killer Car Wash". If it isn't already obvious, the scene takes place in a car wash and actually manages, for the first time I can remember in movie history, to make something so normal like a car wash, terrifying. The scene builds and builds, only giving you glances of the killers hidden inside, before they finally decide to strike. It's fuckin glorious.
The characters in the film, well never really given any backstory, are fun to watch and easy to root for. There's the sherrif of Ogden Marsh named David Dutton (Played by Timothy Olyphant), his wife Judy (played by Rhada Mitchell) and the Deputy Russell Clank (My personal favorite character, played by Joe Anderson). Their all pretty interesting but I'd have to say the best relationship in the film belongs to David and Russel as they constantly have each other's backs and seem to really understand each other. Their just a joy to watch, David with his higher authority that suddenly means, well, nothing and Russell constantly playing the bad-ass.
The film also benefits from the setting of Ogden Marsh, one of thise small redneck towns that we all have driven through at least one time in our lives. It feels real and authentic, and the opening shot of ther town in complete ruins before the film flashes back to an earlier time is pretty neat. Unfortunately, even though the whole town is suppossedly infected we never get more than maybe a handful of Crazies attacking our small group of survivors throughout the film. I mean, we see a shitload of Crazies being held in a caged-in area by the military and when they manage to escape I was especting our heroes to have several run ins with mobs of these things. Instead we just get a shot of the town suddenly aflame when our heroes return in an attempt to flee. We never see how it gets this way kind of taking away some of that "cool" factor.
Overall, while there's nothing that will really stay with you after the film is over, The Crazies is still one of the best remakes I've seen and therefore is definitely worth a viewing if you've got nothing else better to do. Walk, don't run to your local cinema as, even though it's got nothing to get excited over, it's still the best horror film to come out this year so far.
3/5
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
BEETLE REVIEWS SHUTTER ISLAND
Shutter Island is directed by the fantastic filmmaker Martin Scorsese, and it shows.
from the opening shot of a screen-encompassing thick fog, the film firmly grabs you by the neck of your shirt and drags you inside . The way it is shot is just freakin amazing, The way the camera moves and sweeps over the characters makes the screen feel almost like a window...sometimes the shots are so good the screen completely disapears and you find yourself in the middle of the action; like the scene where Teddy's Car is first approaching the gates to Shutter Island, and the camera spins around to such an angle so that it feels like you are right there in front of the gates as they creak open. It's breathtaking.
Shutter Island follows the exploits of Federal Marshal Teddy Daniels Leo DiCaprio) and his new partner Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo) as they are assigned to investigate a dissapearance on the mysterious insane asylum known located on Shutter Island . As Teddy and Chuck dig deeper into the mystery of Shutter Island, the deeper they fall into what may be a trap set for them.
As the film progresses it quickly becomes apparant that Teddy is struggling with some inner demons that are putting him at a greater risk, and causing him to act somewhat more erratically. Will Teddy be able to overcome his demons and triumph over the forces of evil at Shutter Island??
Shutter Island works partly because of the fantastic work all the actors do on the film. There are strong performances all around. Ben Kingsley is great as the creepy and suspicious Dr. Cawley; the head psychiatrist at Shutter Island, Max Von Sydow is perfectly offsettingas the more-or-less head of Shutter Island that may have ties to Nazi Activity, and Jackie Earle Haley puts in a strong performance as George Noyce even though he is only in one scene.
The setting of Shutter island is a character unto itself. With it's electrified perimeter, huge iron gates, and multiple creepy buildings, it all helps get the audience into the tense atmosphere of the film. Oh, and did I mention the bulk of the film takes place during an increasingle violent hurricane?
Shutter Island invites the audience to sit down and take a Journey with U.S. Marshalls Teddy Daniels and Chuck Aule as they invistigate an ever expanding and deepening mystery. You're more than welcome to try and figure out what's going on at Shutter Island as well, in fact I encourage you to do just that as it makes the film that much more fun and suspensful. Replete with dreamy hallucinations, suspicious characters, millions of fantastic conspiracies and one mean setting, Shutter Island has all the workings of a creepy masterpiece.
5/5
from the opening shot of a screen-encompassing thick fog, the film firmly grabs you by the neck of your shirt and drags you inside . The way it is shot is just freakin amazing, The way the camera moves and sweeps over the characters makes the screen feel almost like a window...sometimes the shots are so good the screen completely disapears and you find yourself in the middle of the action; like the scene where Teddy's Car is first approaching the gates to Shutter Island, and the camera spins around to such an angle so that it feels like you are right there in front of the gates as they creak open. It's breathtaking.
Shutter Island follows the exploits of Federal Marshal Teddy Daniels Leo DiCaprio) and his new partner Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo) as they are assigned to investigate a dissapearance on the mysterious insane asylum known located on Shutter Island . As Teddy and Chuck dig deeper into the mystery of Shutter Island, the deeper they fall into what may be a trap set for them.
As the film progresses it quickly becomes apparant that Teddy is struggling with some inner demons that are putting him at a greater risk, and causing him to act somewhat more erratically. Will Teddy be able to overcome his demons and triumph over the forces of evil at Shutter Island??
Shutter Island works partly because of the fantastic work all the actors do on the film. There are strong performances all around. Ben Kingsley is great as the creepy and suspicious Dr. Cawley; the head psychiatrist at Shutter Island, Max Von Sydow is perfectly offsettingas the more-or-less head of Shutter Island that may have ties to Nazi Activity, and Jackie Earle Haley puts in a strong performance as George Noyce even though he is only in one scene.
The setting of Shutter island is a character unto itself. With it's electrified perimeter, huge iron gates, and multiple creepy buildings, it all helps get the audience into the tense atmosphere of the film. Oh, and did I mention the bulk of the film takes place during an increasingle violent hurricane?
Shutter Island invites the audience to sit down and take a Journey with U.S. Marshalls Teddy Daniels and Chuck Aule as they invistigate an ever expanding and deepening mystery. You're more than welcome to try and figure out what's going on at Shutter Island as well, in fact I encourage you to do just that as it makes the film that much more fun and suspensful. Replete with dreamy hallucinations, suspicious characters, millions of fantastic conspiracies and one mean setting, Shutter Island has all the workings of a creepy masterpiece.
5/5
Thursday, February 18, 2010
GAMER REVIEW: BEETLE GOES TO HELL IN DANTE'S INFERNO
I never once imagined Hell as a huge, labrynth of a place inhabited by huge monsters, naked chicks, and other foul creatures all jumping at the chance to rip me a new one; but after playing Dante's Inferno I'm pretty sure it's the only way I'll be able to think of Hell from now on.
Dante's Inferno is a the Epic game that is based loosely on The Divine Comedy; a literary work written in the 14th century. In the game you play as Dante, a troubled, violent man that begins the game fighting in the crusades. The only thing keeping him going is the thought of his love Beatrice, so you can probably imagine his grief and rage when he returns home only to find her murdered. Things only escalate when he witnesses Lucifer steal her soul away to Hell, leaving you to give chase after her into the depths of Hell itself.
The chase into Hell is fantastic and terrifying. The ground gives way under your feet and demons and fire leap up from the Earth to heed your progress. Once you finally dive into Hell's depths after your beloved you will know that this game means business.
In Hell you will have to venture through the 9 circles that reside in Hell: Limbo, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Wrath, Heresy, Violence, Fraud, and Treachery. Each Circle has a distinctly different look than the rest and has a more or less unique set of demons that reside in each. In Gluttony you will have to fight off fat, vile, demons that are eager to eat you whole. Gluttony itself is laid out like you're inside a digestive tract with disgusting noises and such pervading the air. In Contrast, in Lust you will find yourself in the eye of a tornado made of Lust where those who have committed said sin must spend eternity spun around by the violent winds. The demons in lust are fully nude girls whose genetilia come alive and attack you.
The game becomes even more intriguing when you learn that you are the sole reason for Beatrice's present predicament and the 9 circles act as a way for you to face your sins... a task that would appear to take a huge toll on Dante as you venture on through the game.
The design of Hell is breathtaking and horrifying at the same time. Quite simply it is the stuff nightmares are made of. Once these horrific Images are viewed it is quite likely that they will remain locked in the viewers mind for a while afterwards.
Dante's Inferno is by far the bloodiest, most graphic and disturbing game that I have ever had the pleasure of playing. Cleopatra's enormous bare breasts spit out evil demonic unbaptised babies that have blades for arms; there are rivers of boiling blood in Violence ,and Gold in Greed; and there are several enemies thats faces and bodies are ripped in half by Dante. Adding to the intrigue is the players ability to chose to follow the holy path or the unholy psth, unholy giving you unlimited upgrades for your scyth (That you stole from Death) and holy giving you upgrades for your cross. Players will find themselves hacking and slashing whoever and whatever stands in their way via an ever expanding choice of combos for both cross and Scyth. It all makes for a fairly compelling game for adults...not so much for young teens .
Unfortunately, the game runs out of fuel as the last act nears. Before the final battle with Lucifer you are forced to complete 10 challanges that you must complete in able to advance to the final boss fight. The challanges range from such hair-ripping difficulties like a 100 hit combo to having to defeat all enemies without once touching the ground. These parts feel like they do not belong in the finished product and end up seriously hurting the game. It's ok to add them in as bonus material to be played after the game is finished, but to make them a required step to completing the game makes no sense and juat flat out infuriated me to no end.
When you finally do reach the 3 part Boss Battle with Lucifer, while it is really cool, it feels like the game was building up to something else entirely, and the ending is somewhat of a letdown.
Dante's Inferno is a great game that falls short of reaching the heroic heights of God Of War, the game that it consitantly "borrows" elemnts from. While there are a few flaws to the game, the first 2 acts should grab your attention and thrust players so deeply into the game, that by the time the last act and it's unsatisfactory final levels come around players should be able to find enough reason to fight on despite the games increased difficulty.
Dante's Inferno, while no God Of war, is a worthy successor and definently worth a playthrough if you've ever wanted to go to Hell and beat it into submission.
8.7/10 Stars
Dante's Inferno is a the Epic game that is based loosely on The Divine Comedy; a literary work written in the 14th century. In the game you play as Dante, a troubled, violent man that begins the game fighting in the crusades. The only thing keeping him going is the thought of his love Beatrice, so you can probably imagine his grief and rage when he returns home only to find her murdered. Things only escalate when he witnesses Lucifer steal her soul away to Hell, leaving you to give chase after her into the depths of Hell itself.
The chase into Hell is fantastic and terrifying. The ground gives way under your feet and demons and fire leap up from the Earth to heed your progress. Once you finally dive into Hell's depths after your beloved you will know that this game means business.
In Hell you will have to venture through the 9 circles that reside in Hell: Limbo, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Wrath, Heresy, Violence, Fraud, and Treachery. Each Circle has a distinctly different look than the rest and has a more or less unique set of demons that reside in each. In Gluttony you will have to fight off fat, vile, demons that are eager to eat you whole. Gluttony itself is laid out like you're inside a digestive tract with disgusting noises and such pervading the air. In Contrast, in Lust you will find yourself in the eye of a tornado made of Lust where those who have committed said sin must spend eternity spun around by the violent winds. The demons in lust are fully nude girls whose genetilia come alive and attack you.
The game becomes even more intriguing when you learn that you are the sole reason for Beatrice's present predicament and the 9 circles act as a way for you to face your sins... a task that would appear to take a huge toll on Dante as you venture on through the game.
The design of Hell is breathtaking and horrifying at the same time. Quite simply it is the stuff nightmares are made of. Once these horrific Images are viewed it is quite likely that they will remain locked in the viewers mind for a while afterwards.
Dante's Inferno is by far the bloodiest, most graphic and disturbing game that I have ever had the pleasure of playing. Cleopatra's enormous bare breasts spit out evil demonic unbaptised babies that have blades for arms; there are rivers of boiling blood in Violence ,and Gold in Greed; and there are several enemies thats faces and bodies are ripped in half by Dante. Adding to the intrigue is the players ability to chose to follow the holy path or the unholy psth, unholy giving you unlimited upgrades for your scyth (That you stole from Death) and holy giving you upgrades for your cross. Players will find themselves hacking and slashing whoever and whatever stands in their way via an ever expanding choice of combos for both cross and Scyth. It all makes for a fairly compelling game for adults...not so much for young teens .
Unfortunately, the game runs out of fuel as the last act nears. Before the final battle with Lucifer you are forced to complete 10 challanges that you must complete in able to advance to the final boss fight. The challanges range from such hair-ripping difficulties like a 100 hit combo to having to defeat all enemies without once touching the ground. These parts feel like they do not belong in the finished product and end up seriously hurting the game. It's ok to add them in as bonus material to be played after the game is finished, but to make them a required step to completing the game makes no sense and juat flat out infuriated me to no end.
When you finally do reach the 3 part Boss Battle with Lucifer, while it is really cool, it feels like the game was building up to something else entirely, and the ending is somewhat of a letdown.
Dante's Inferno is a great game that falls short of reaching the heroic heights of God Of War, the game that it consitantly "borrows" elemnts from. While there are a few flaws to the game, the first 2 acts should grab your attention and thrust players so deeply into the game, that by the time the last act and it's unsatisfactory final levels come around players should be able to find enough reason to fight on despite the games increased difficulty.
Dante's Inferno, while no God Of war, is a worthy successor and definently worth a playthrough if you've ever wanted to go to Hell and beat it into submission.
8.7/10 Stars
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
BEETLE REVIEWS THE WOLFMAN
Even though it has become a bit more common to see a film thats parts are better than its whole, it is still a fairly rare circumstance. Unfortunately, Wolfman falls into this category.
The Wolfman borrows its title from the successful 1941 film of the same name. Even though the 2010 version tries to bill itself as a remake/update, don't be fooled. The characters may be the same and the story may be similar, but the film itself is quite different. It would help to go into the film with the idea of it being a re-imagining of the classic pic, instead of a remake.
The Wolfman follows Lawrence Talbot, a succesful American actor, as he returns to his England home to help solve the brutal murder of his brother. Inevitably, Lawrence digs too deeply into the mystery and is assaulted by a monster. He survives but finds that he too, is cursed with the burden of the monster.
The Wolfman's action scenes are freaking epic on all levels. You'll see quick shots of his claws slashing, people screaming, and heads and limbs flying apart. The Wolfman himself is one of the best incarnations I've seen in a while. Fast, Furious, and insane...he is everything a werewolf/wolfman should be. It helps that the creature design by the fantastic Rick Baker (From An American Werewolf in London fame) only helps to give the creature a more realistic look.
My favorite aspect of the film is it's creepy, tense victorian gothic setting complete with a huge dark wood, long foggy streets, and small Pub. The atmosphere set-up really helps to bring the audience into the film and adds some elements of suspense into it. I personally love how the film feels, more than any other thing about it. Imagine the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, but instead of the Headless Horseman...a Wolfman.
Unfortunately, the film itself is not as blessed as these parts. Incredibly fast-paced to the point where, even though it ups the "cool" factor, it ends up hurting the film, and the fact that the characters and their relationships are never satisfyingly fully developed only serves to bring it down more. You barely see Emily Blunt, The love story becomes background fodder, and the main crucial relationship of Lawrence and his Dad is barely given any thought at all, making the films epic climax and reveal somewhat blah.
Just about the only good characters are Sir John (Lawrence's dad) and Inspector Abberline. Anthony Hopkins acts out his role with a sinister glee that adds some charm to the film, and Hugo Weaving adds some bad-ass-ed-ness to his detective role. It's a shame that Abberline isn't seen as much as he should have been since his scenes were a joy to watch. Somehow he made his character likeable and his intentions clear, despite his lack of appearances in the film.
Overall, The Wolfman is a fairly uneven film that can't quite live up to it's highly hyped release. With a somewhat poor script, lack of character development, and underdeveloped relationships that hinder the film, it almost seemed destined for a bad rating, luckily the filmmakers managed to do something right. Even though they threw away most of what a superior film needs, they gave the audience what it essentially wanted: Fast and furious action scenes and a tense, creepy atmosphere. It makes for a fairly enjoyable film. In the end, if you're looking for a good werewolf film, I suppose you could do worse than The Wolfman.
3/5 Stars
Oh, and Universal did a superb job at making The Wolfman Haunted House at HHN 19 closely resemble the world and sets of the film. As I said, It felt like I had entered the film.
The Wolfman borrows its title from the successful 1941 film of the same name. Even though the 2010 version tries to bill itself as a remake/update, don't be fooled. The characters may be the same and the story may be similar, but the film itself is quite different. It would help to go into the film with the idea of it being a re-imagining of the classic pic, instead of a remake.
The Wolfman follows Lawrence Talbot, a succesful American actor, as he returns to his England home to help solve the brutal murder of his brother. Inevitably, Lawrence digs too deeply into the mystery and is assaulted by a monster. He survives but finds that he too, is cursed with the burden of the monster.
The Wolfman's action scenes are freaking epic on all levels. You'll see quick shots of his claws slashing, people screaming, and heads and limbs flying apart. The Wolfman himself is one of the best incarnations I've seen in a while. Fast, Furious, and insane...he is everything a werewolf/wolfman should be. It helps that the creature design by the fantastic Rick Baker (From An American Werewolf in London fame) only helps to give the creature a more realistic look.
My favorite aspect of the film is it's creepy, tense victorian gothic setting complete with a huge dark wood, long foggy streets, and small Pub. The atmosphere set-up really helps to bring the audience into the film and adds some elements of suspense into it. I personally love how the film feels, more than any other thing about it. Imagine the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, but instead of the Headless Horseman...a Wolfman.
Unfortunately, the film itself is not as blessed as these parts. Incredibly fast-paced to the point where, even though it ups the "cool" factor, it ends up hurting the film, and the fact that the characters and their relationships are never satisfyingly fully developed only serves to bring it down more. You barely see Emily Blunt, The love story becomes background fodder, and the main crucial relationship of Lawrence and his Dad is barely given any thought at all, making the films epic climax and reveal somewhat blah.
Just about the only good characters are Sir John (Lawrence's dad) and Inspector Abberline. Anthony Hopkins acts out his role with a sinister glee that adds some charm to the film, and Hugo Weaving adds some bad-ass-ed-ness to his detective role. It's a shame that Abberline isn't seen as much as he should have been since his scenes were a joy to watch. Somehow he made his character likeable and his intentions clear, despite his lack of appearances in the film.
Overall, The Wolfman is a fairly uneven film that can't quite live up to it's highly hyped release. With a somewhat poor script, lack of character development, and underdeveloped relationships that hinder the film, it almost seemed destined for a bad rating, luckily the filmmakers managed to do something right. Even though they threw away most of what a superior film needs, they gave the audience what it essentially wanted: Fast and furious action scenes and a tense, creepy atmosphere. It makes for a fairly enjoyable film. In the end, if you're looking for a good werewolf film, I suppose you could do worse than The Wolfman.
3/5 Stars
Oh, and Universal did a superb job at making The Wolfman Haunted House at HHN 19 closely resemble the world and sets of the film. As I said, It felt like I had entered the film.
Friday, February 12, 2010
BEETLE REVIEWS LEGION
I promised you all a review of Legion several weeks back and now, I reluctantly present my thoughts.
Legion. Angels battling Angels during what can only be described as part apocalypse part extermination. There are loud explosions that light up the screen as machine-guns are fired into the air. How could this description be of a bad film?? well, it is...more or less.
Legion is about the war for the fate of mankind. Apparently God has tired of all our bullshit and has sent down an army of angels to wipe us out once and for all. However, one Angel named Michael seems confused by his orders and refuses to follow through on his mission to kill a pregnantg woman who the fate of mankind rests with. Now it is up to Michael to defend her from the army of Angels and the ultimate angelic warrior: Gabriel (Yes, THAT Gabriel).
Now I imagine that this description must sound vageuly familiar... If you can't figure out why I'll lend you a hand. Maybe you're familiar with a little popular franchise called The Terminator?? Well, that is what this film shamelessly rips off. The pregnant woman whose child is the savior of mankind...CHECK! The lone hero sent to defend her...CHECK! etc etc etc. Legion plays like a poorly written, unbalanced version of the terimantors except instead of robots there are Angels.
The film does have several scenes of really cool bad-ass-ed-ness, but it's never really enough to make up for the poor writing and story. Even the action scenes feel kind of wrong...maybe it's because Micaheal's main weapon of choice is a machine gun. Hmmm, I don't know about you but Angels with machine guns just seem wrong to me. Shouldn't they be using swords instead?? Anyways, The film does try to make up for its faults by inserting a biblical message, but even that feels wrong as well. Almost as if the film is trying to cash in on something by blowing people to bits and then throwing the bible in your face. Very hypocritical.
The actors also do a fairly poor job, even the regularly good Randy Quaid puts in a fairly horrible performance here. About the only actor that seems to be genuinely trying to act is Paul Bettany, The actor who plays the role of Michael. As hard as he trys it's really a fruitless effort because a film this bad really does not deserve to be saved.
While it is cool to see 2 high-ranking angels that are actually mentioned in the Bible duke it out for the last part of the film, unfortunately as a whole Legion falls flat. If you like action I guess I could reluctantly reccomend Legion to you...so long as you're able to overlook the script, the acting, and the hypocritical biblical message; and all that is pretty tough to do. Legion had an interesting concept that just couldn't sustain the weight of a GOOD film, unfortunately. Once again: Like The Terminator...only with Angels instead of Robots.
2/5 Stars
Legion. Angels battling Angels during what can only be described as part apocalypse part extermination. There are loud explosions that light up the screen as machine-guns are fired into the air. How could this description be of a bad film?? well, it is...more or less.
Legion is about the war for the fate of mankind. Apparently God has tired of all our bullshit and has sent down an army of angels to wipe us out once and for all. However, one Angel named Michael seems confused by his orders and refuses to follow through on his mission to kill a pregnantg woman who the fate of mankind rests with. Now it is up to Michael to defend her from the army of Angels and the ultimate angelic warrior: Gabriel (Yes, THAT Gabriel).
Now I imagine that this description must sound vageuly familiar... If you can't figure out why I'll lend you a hand. Maybe you're familiar with a little popular franchise called The Terminator?? Well, that is what this film shamelessly rips off. The pregnant woman whose child is the savior of mankind...CHECK! The lone hero sent to defend her...CHECK! etc etc etc. Legion plays like a poorly written, unbalanced version of the terimantors except instead of robots there are Angels.
The film does have several scenes of really cool bad-ass-ed-ness, but it's never really enough to make up for the poor writing and story. Even the action scenes feel kind of wrong...maybe it's because Micaheal's main weapon of choice is a machine gun. Hmmm, I don't know about you but Angels with machine guns just seem wrong to me. Shouldn't they be using swords instead?? Anyways, The film does try to make up for its faults by inserting a biblical message, but even that feels wrong as well. Almost as if the film is trying to cash in on something by blowing people to bits and then throwing the bible in your face. Very hypocritical.
The actors also do a fairly poor job, even the regularly good Randy Quaid puts in a fairly horrible performance here. About the only actor that seems to be genuinely trying to act is Paul Bettany, The actor who plays the role of Michael. As hard as he trys it's really a fruitless effort because a film this bad really does not deserve to be saved.
While it is cool to see 2 high-ranking angels that are actually mentioned in the Bible duke it out for the last part of the film, unfortunately as a whole Legion falls flat. If you like action I guess I could reluctantly reccomend Legion to you...so long as you're able to overlook the script, the acting, and the hypocritical biblical message; and all that is pretty tough to do. Legion had an interesting concept that just couldn't sustain the weight of a GOOD film, unfortunately. Once again: Like The Terminator...only with Angels instead of Robots.
2/5 Stars
Friday, February 5, 2010
RETRO REVIEW: BEETLE TAKES A TRIP INTO THE FUTURE WITH SURROGATES
Imagine a world where you can live your life through a remote controlled robot. You can be anything you want to be, change your appearance, your sex, even your skin color. You could jump off tall buildings, get hit by a speeding car, even lose your arm and feel no pain whatsoever. This is the fascinating world that the film Surrogates inhabits.
Surrogates takes place in the near future where advances in technology have made it possible for over 98% of the general population to live their lives through the safety of a robot, called a Surrogate, that you can design yourself and then remotely control from the comfort of a chair. The Surrogate can perform amazing feats with absolutely no harm done to the controller. The company responsible for the creation of the Surrogates, Virtual Self Industries (VSI), has become somewhat of a monopoly as Surrogates have taken over almost every aspect of the daily life.
Yes, things seem to be perfect in the future...until someone finds a way to effectively kill a Surrogate and its controller, thus creating a big problem for VSI and the general public. Surrogates is a fable about technology, its use in soceity, and our unhealthy dependence on it. Filled with engrossing themes and decent performances by Bruce Willis as the detective assigned to sort the whole mess out, Rhada Mitchell as his partner, and Rosamund Pike as his wife. Surrogates is an interesting outing in the sci-fi genre.
Surrogates is a well-made film that does a pretty good job at getting its message about technology and its ability to help or hurt across to the audience. Probably my only complaint about the film is that it doesn't have much action in it, but when it does occur, the action is of such a high quality and its so cool, that I'm willing to forgive that there wasn't as much as there could have been.
Supported by its interesting message, decent if not a bit shakey performances by its leads, and its fascinating portrayal of a future that could be, Surrogates is a must own film that is almost guarenteed to give you enough to think about for a few weeks after the final credits roll.
3/5
Surrogates takes place in the near future where advances in technology have made it possible for over 98% of the general population to live their lives through the safety of a robot, called a Surrogate, that you can design yourself and then remotely control from the comfort of a chair. The Surrogate can perform amazing feats with absolutely no harm done to the controller. The company responsible for the creation of the Surrogates, Virtual Self Industries (VSI), has become somewhat of a monopoly as Surrogates have taken over almost every aspect of the daily life.
Yes, things seem to be perfect in the future...until someone finds a way to effectively kill a Surrogate and its controller, thus creating a big problem for VSI and the general public. Surrogates is a fable about technology, its use in soceity, and our unhealthy dependence on it. Filled with engrossing themes and decent performances by Bruce Willis as the detective assigned to sort the whole mess out, Rhada Mitchell as his partner, and Rosamund Pike as his wife. Surrogates is an interesting outing in the sci-fi genre.
Surrogates is a well-made film that does a pretty good job at getting its message about technology and its ability to help or hurt across to the audience. Probably my only complaint about the film is that it doesn't have much action in it, but when it does occur, the action is of such a high quality and its so cool, that I'm willing to forgive that there wasn't as much as there could have been.
Supported by its interesting message, decent if not a bit shakey performances by its leads, and its fascinating portrayal of a future that could be, Surrogates is a must own film that is almost guarenteed to give you enough to think about for a few weeks after the final credits roll.
3/5
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Beetle's Bug Juice: Will Avatar ever slow down??
Hey there Beetle-heads, welcome to yet another segment of Beetle's Bug Juice
Today I am proud to announce that as of 2-3-10 Avatar has grossed $2,074,646,827 worldwide making it the first film to ever hit the 2 billion dollar mark. That's quite an achievement if you ask me.
Avatar has also managed to cruise past Titanic and gross $601,141,551 domestically (In the U.S). For comparison: Titanic only made $600,788,188 domestically.
So Avatar has officially won 3 top titles, so my question to you is....When will Avatar begin to slow down??
Till then I'm Beetlejuice.....and you've just been bugged.
Today I am proud to announce that as of 2-3-10 Avatar has grossed $2,074,646,827 worldwide making it the first film to ever hit the 2 billion dollar mark. That's quite an achievement if you ask me.
Avatar has also managed to cruise past Titanic and gross $601,141,551 domestically (In the U.S). For comparison: Titanic only made $600,788,188 domestically.
So Avatar has officially won 3 top titles, so my question to you is....When will Avatar begin to slow down??
Till then I'm Beetlejuice.....and you've just been bugged.
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