I'm not going to waste any time.
In The Raid 2, we pick up immediately after the events of The Raid, with Rama (Iko Uwais) being recruited by the only non-corrupt police boss in town, Bunawar (Cok Simbara), to go deep undercover in one of the two mobs that controls his city. It's all in the attempt to root out the other corrupt cops and put an end to he two mobs reigns of terror. First, Rama is sent to prison for two years, where he has more than enough time to gain the trust and friendship of Uco (Arafin Putra), who's father is Bangun (Tio Pakusodewo), the head of one of the big mobs in the city. Released after his two year stint, Rama is quickly initiated into Bangun's mob where he learns that Uco is teaming up with Bejo (Alex Abbad), a young gangster, in the hopes of igniting a turf war so he can get rid of his dad and take control of the mob.
The Raid had a simple plot that was fairly easy to follow, the focus was more on the action. In this second outing, the focus is definitely more on the plot, and there's more of it. There is more action as well, but it's spaced out this time and there are long stretches of dialogue and exposition in between. Surprisingly, the script and acting is pretty top notch. The best acting here goes to Arafin Putra as Uco and Iko Uwais as Rama. Arafin is perfectly slimy but still likable as the P.O.S who looks to shake things up and Uwais is still ever the bad-ass as Rama (who gets the shit beat out of him quite a bit in this one, but still manages to stay on top nontheless) even though he's not the only one doing the fighting this time around.
Some memorable bit roles in The Raid 2 are Julia Estelle as Alicia (aka Hammer Girl), Oka Antara as Eka, Cecif Arif Rahman as "The Assassin" (who's weapons of choice are dagger-like objects), and Very Tri Yulisman as "Baseball Bat Man" who uses a baseball bat as his weapon of choice. All get memorable fight scenes, and are pretty damn memorable. Back from the first film is Yayan Ruhian, although he's not Mad Dog this time around. In Raid 2 he plays a bit role, named Prakoso and he's still bad-ass and impressive here though I still say he made more of a lasting impression in the first Raid.
The action in The Raid was insane, and somehow master action director Gareth Evans manages to make the action/fight scenes in Raid 2 even more insane, brutal and bloody than before. I will say there is a good deal of shaky cam here, and sometimes that makes it a bit hard to make out what's going on, unfortunately. However, there are still a good deal of action scenes (I count 6 that really blew me away, but that's just one man's opinion. There's probably a grand total of around 12-13 action scenes in The Raid 2) that manage to recapture the brutality and fun of the action in the first film. The highlights this time around are the opening fight in a prison bathroom, an all-out prison riot, a fight in a subway car featuring Hammer Girl, a street fight featuring Baseball Bat Man, a fight on the roads (in cars), and the final 3 fights where it's essentially Rama vs. the rest of the mob. As I said before, while the action/fight scenes are more spaced out here, the action that does ensue will still make you cheer, make your head spin, and will leave you absolutely breathless in the best way possible.
By expanding the world of The Raid 2, we lose the claustrophobic and tense atmosphere of the first film (as I said before though, there are still some action scenes that feel tense), and by spacing out the action scenes and upping the run time ( a whopping 150 minutes), this sequel ends up feeling less tight and focused. The plot is fairly strong, as is the script and acting. The Raid 2 is pretty different from The Raid, I'd say The Raid 2 works better as a film than as a pure action film. There's definitely more meat for us to chew on here. If you go in expecting the film to be the same thing as the first Raid, you'll be satisfied but a bit disappointed, so it's best to adjust your expectations accordingly. By taking this film in a different direction than the first, but staying true to what made the first film great (them action scenes) The Raid 2 manages not to be better than the first outing, but just as good as it's predecessor was although in different ways. Both films are masterpieces, and any die-hard action fan would be wise to seek BOTH of these films out. Expect to walk out of The Raid inspired to go forth and kick-ass, and expect to walk out of The Raid 2 feeling beaten and bruised, but rejuvenated and ready for more.
5 STARS
Think of The Raid 2 as almost more of an art film
Watching as a whole flock of teenaged girls leave The Raid 2 near the end because the action is too bloody and brutal for them.....PRICELESS (also, how the hell did they even get in there to begin with?)
Friday, April 11, 2014
Friday, April 4, 2014
OH SHIT SON, IT'S CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER
In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, we pick back up with Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) an undetermined amount of time after the New York attack (I'd say at most a year after). He is working as a covert S.H.I.E.L.D operative while trying to adapt to the new times and the new politics of today's world. When a high ranking member of S.H.I.E.L.D is attacked, Steve is forced to go on the run from S.H.I.E.L.D and from a mysterious and lethal assassin known only as The Winter Soldier, while at the same time uncovering a conspiracy that threatens the freedom of not just the USA, but of the world.
As you can tell from my header, I absolutely LOVED this latest Marvel film. I'm actually crazy about it, but before I nerd-gush I'm going to try to organize my thoughts on the film itself.
There are many characters in this film, some minor and some not-so-minor, but all are strong and well acted. Chris Evans is back as Captain America/Steve Rogers. In this film, he's able to emerge as my new favorite Marvel hero (that's right, he beats out Iron Man). The action scenes he has are great (more on that later), and he still brings a great deal of emotion and gravitas to his role. Cap is still a completely lovable and relateable character.
Scarlett Johansson returns as Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff. She is still super sexy here, she does a great and memorable acting job, her fighting skills are still pretty awesome, and she easily emerges as one of the best things about this film. In this second outing, her and Steve get to share a complicated relationship and are kind of a duo (It's great fun to see them working together). Samuel L. Jackson dominates in his always iconic role of Nick Fury, certified bad-ass. He has a definite, strong role to play here and he does not disappoint (when does he ever?). Sebastian Stan does a great job as The Winter Soldier. Despite the title of the film, he isn't as big as you would expect him to be. Don't get me wrong, he does have a sizable role to play here, but he's not main baddie.
Anthony Mackie is pretty great as Falcon/Sam Wilson, he doesn't really come into play until the last act of the film but he still has a big role to play. Robert Redford plays Alexander Pierce, a shady higher up of S.H.I.E.L.D. He really nails his role, managing to impress. Some minor characters make a reappearance as well: Hayley Atwell makes a small cameo as Peggy Carter (I liked getting to see where her character is today) and Colbie Smulders is back as Maria Hill, doing a good job in a supporting role.
One of the most impressive things about Captain America: The Winter Soldier is the action and fighting sequences. This film has THE BEST action and fight sequences in any of the Marvel films thus far. Captain America is a complete and total bad-ass, and the way he goes about taking down baddies is jaw-dropping and super impressive (he also isn't immune to taking a beating at times). Black Widow is also a skilled fighter (which has already been well established). Falcon's aerial battles are impressive as well. Even Nick Fury gets his own action scene in the traffic heavy streets of New York. The action here is brutal, fast, and insane. Luckily for us, it's also fairly constant in the film. Each action/fight scene has something new to it, and they never feel stale, repetitive, or dull. Every one is guaranteed to reel any hardcore action junkie right in (and yes, they are indeed VERY hardcore in this film). I also love that this isn't just Cap's story, but S.H.I.E.L.D's as well.
However, that's not all there is to Captain America: The Winter Soldier. This sequel is also a political espionage thriller, with plenty of mysteries and conspiracies hidden inside. In fact, I'd say the film is equal parts political espionage thriller and action film (although the answer to the big mystery at the core of this film is suitably comic book-y). This film wants you to keep your brain on as you watch, as it also has a few sly comments about the world we live in today. It's actually a fairly smart film.
I saw the film in 3-D, and I gotta say that while it's not the best 3-D film I've seen , the 3-D sampled here is still impressive in some scenes (mainly the action scenes). Nothing really flies out of the screen, and there is a decent amount of depth added, but the real benefit of the 3D here is it makes the world you're watching feel larger and more spacious. I'm not going to say the 3D is required or necessary to enjoy the film, but if you do fork over the extra bucks to see it in 3-D you should feel fairly satisfied with the product delivered here.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier marks the next step in the evolution of the Marvel film. It easily asserts itself as a film that needs to be seen. There are some neat little moments that make reference to the first Captain America, so another viewing of that film may prove beneficial, but overall this is one of the few Marvel films that really stands on it's own. Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a film that changes the landscape of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there is an event that occurs at the end of the movie that shakes this world up a good deal and if you are even planning on seeing the next Avengers film, then Captain America: The Winter Soldier is absolutely required viewing. It also is easily the best Marvel film so far (it's also the most brutal, most hardcore, and the dirtiest). It sets a new bar, and from here on out will be the film I will use to judge all other Marvel films. Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a strong, fun film that's got plenty of action and smarts to it, making it not just a great Marvel film but a great film PERIOD.
5 STARS
Be on the lookout for a nice cameo by Danny Pudi (aka Abed from Community).
Just for reference: Out of 10 stars, I'd give this a 9.8 .
As you can tell from my header, I absolutely LOVED this latest Marvel film. I'm actually crazy about it, but before I nerd-gush I'm going to try to organize my thoughts on the film itself.
There are many characters in this film, some minor and some not-so-minor, but all are strong and well acted. Chris Evans is back as Captain America/Steve Rogers. In this film, he's able to emerge as my new favorite Marvel hero (that's right, he beats out Iron Man). The action scenes he has are great (more on that later), and he still brings a great deal of emotion and gravitas to his role. Cap is still a completely lovable and relateable character.
Scarlett Johansson returns as Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff. She is still super sexy here, she does a great and memorable acting job, her fighting skills are still pretty awesome, and she easily emerges as one of the best things about this film. In this second outing, her and Steve get to share a complicated relationship and are kind of a duo (It's great fun to see them working together). Samuel L. Jackson dominates in his always iconic role of Nick Fury, certified bad-ass. He has a definite, strong role to play here and he does not disappoint (when does he ever?). Sebastian Stan does a great job as The Winter Soldier. Despite the title of the film, he isn't as big as you would expect him to be. Don't get me wrong, he does have a sizable role to play here, but he's not main baddie.
Anthony Mackie is pretty great as Falcon/Sam Wilson, he doesn't really come into play until the last act of the film but he still has a big role to play. Robert Redford plays Alexander Pierce, a shady higher up of S.H.I.E.L.D. He really nails his role, managing to impress. Some minor characters make a reappearance as well: Hayley Atwell makes a small cameo as Peggy Carter (I liked getting to see where her character is today) and Colbie Smulders is back as Maria Hill, doing a good job in a supporting role.
One of the most impressive things about Captain America: The Winter Soldier is the action and fighting sequences. This film has THE BEST action and fight sequences in any of the Marvel films thus far. Captain America is a complete and total bad-ass, and the way he goes about taking down baddies is jaw-dropping and super impressive (he also isn't immune to taking a beating at times). Black Widow is also a skilled fighter (which has already been well established). Falcon's aerial battles are impressive as well. Even Nick Fury gets his own action scene in the traffic heavy streets of New York. The action here is brutal, fast, and insane. Luckily for us, it's also fairly constant in the film. Each action/fight scene has something new to it, and they never feel stale, repetitive, or dull. Every one is guaranteed to reel any hardcore action junkie right in (and yes, they are indeed VERY hardcore in this film). I also love that this isn't just Cap's story, but S.H.I.E.L.D's as well.
However, that's not all there is to Captain America: The Winter Soldier. This sequel is also a political espionage thriller, with plenty of mysteries and conspiracies hidden inside. In fact, I'd say the film is equal parts political espionage thriller and action film (although the answer to the big mystery at the core of this film is suitably comic book-y). This film wants you to keep your brain on as you watch, as it also has a few sly comments about the world we live in today. It's actually a fairly smart film.
I saw the film in 3-D, and I gotta say that while it's not the best 3-D film I've seen , the 3-D sampled here is still impressive in some scenes (mainly the action scenes). Nothing really flies out of the screen, and there is a decent amount of depth added, but the real benefit of the 3D here is it makes the world you're watching feel larger and more spacious. I'm not going to say the 3D is required or necessary to enjoy the film, but if you do fork over the extra bucks to see it in 3-D you should feel fairly satisfied with the product delivered here.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier marks the next step in the evolution of the Marvel film. It easily asserts itself as a film that needs to be seen. There are some neat little moments that make reference to the first Captain America, so another viewing of that film may prove beneficial, but overall this is one of the few Marvel films that really stands on it's own. Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a film that changes the landscape of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there is an event that occurs at the end of the movie that shakes this world up a good deal and if you are even planning on seeing the next Avengers film, then Captain America: The Winter Soldier is absolutely required viewing. It also is easily the best Marvel film so far (it's also the most brutal, most hardcore, and the dirtiest). It sets a new bar, and from here on out will be the film I will use to judge all other Marvel films. Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a strong, fun film that's got plenty of action and smarts to it, making it not just a great Marvel film but a great film PERIOD.
5 STARS
Be on the lookout for a nice cameo by Danny Pudi (aka Abed from Community).
Just for reference: Out of 10 stars, I'd give this a 9.8 .
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
ROADS: BTTF NEWS- HUVr Tech
A new video has just popped up online claiming to be a "completely real" demonstration of new hoverboard technology. The product being advertised is named HUVr, and the company making it is named HUVr Tech. Here's the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4vE_vpkr90#t=59
Checking out the website, you find that the project started out as a summer project at the MIT Physics Graduate Program. You will also find that HUVr's customers and partners include Mark Cuban and Tony Hawk, and they each contribute a quote to the site. At the top of the site is a BTTF inspired countdown clock that has the destination time marked as December 2014.
I REALLY want to believe that this is for real. Unfortunately, after watching the video several times, I think I can see where the strings are attached to the people's shirts (look at the guy's hood and the girl wearing the blue shirt's shoulders. They look like they are being lifted up ever so slightly). It's clear that the video is indeed an elaborate and well executed fake. So, several possibilities remain as to what is really going on here.
Possibility 1: HUVr is real. The video is only meant to act as a demonstration as to what the HUVr will look like, and how it will act. The tech is indeed very real, but the product isn't quite ready for field tests yet. expect it to be unveiled in December of this year. It's also possible that the product shown works, but the strings were used to exaggerate it's floating capabilities. Also, the website's legal terms page looks pretty legit to me. Admittedly, this is the least likely possibility but I'm still holding out some slim hope that it's this one that ends up being real.
Possibility 2: Viral marketing for the Back To The Future Musical. A Back To The Future Musical has recently been announced to be heading towards London's West End in 2015. This matches up with the "destination" date on the website. Still, it must have cost A LOT of money to create a fictional HUVr, hire the actors from the movie, Mark Cuban, Tony Hawk, other "Real" people (i.e.: hired non-name actors), and HUVr spokespeople. If it is all for BTTF: The Musical I'm expecting it to have a lavish budget and to be filled with high-end SFX. In other words, the damned thing better blow my socks off if they're willing to go this far for a prank/hoax.
Possibility 3: Viral marketing for a film reboot/sequel for Back To The Future. Yes, rumors have been circulating 2013 and 2014 about a possible film reboot/sequel for BTTF. Nothing concrete has been announced yet, and normally by the time a viral marketing push starts we at least have some concrete info to work with. Naturally, a film would have more than enough money to hire the Delorean, the actors, and to create a fake HUVr. However, my gut tells me that this is another one of the not as likely possibilities due to lack of info, unless they are using this fake product to gauge interest on how popular the BTTF franchise still is.
Possibility 4: Viral marketing for a new IPhone app. In the video and in the website, there is a good amount of talk about an app that would be used to control your hover. Here's an excerpt from the website: "The HUVr App is is the control center for your HUVr Board. Activate your board via Bluetooth before each use and track route information such as path, distance, speed, and time travel. You can also rate and share locations with the HUVr community or via social media to Twitter and Facebook." In other words, this HUVr product is actually a virtual reality app. Would it come with a replica HUVr Board that we could toy around with? The site also name drops MIT a few times, maybe the proceeds would go to MIT antigravity research? Who knows. If I was a betting man, I'd place my money on this option (and I would be VERY disappointed if I was correct).
Possibility 5: Viral Marketing meant to get us hyped for new self-lacing Nikes. Self-lacing Nikes have been officially announced and are to be coming onto the market sometime in 2015 (I'm not making this up, you can google it if you want), maybe this fake product is really just meant to get us thinking about the Back To The Future franchise that way it's fresh on our minds when they make another announcement regarding self-lacing Nikes in December.
Possibility 6: It's just a cruel, cruel hoax. It's not advertising anything, hyping anything, or marketing anything. It's just a hoax meant to tease the fan boys. Several people have done research and found that Lauren Biedenharn, a costume designer and artist, was involved with the commercial. When digging deeper they discovered that her employer and producer was website Funny Or Die. This is a BIG (like, slap you in the face BIG) clue that it's all just a cruel hoax (another clue is that the main engineer guy in it showing off the HUVrs is a paid actor. His name is Nelson Cheng. On his about page it mentions that he is in an upcoming project from Funny Or Die. I'm betting this would be that.). Still, I'd like at least some confirmation. Maybe I'm just hoping there is SOME kind of payoff, instead of a reveal that it was just a prank, while Funny Or Die points and laughs at us.
If this whole thing did end up being a prank, the only way that Funny Or Die could make up for the emotional pain they have caused me and others is if they really did do HUVr Board events where you could sign up to be strapped to a harness, strap a prop HUVr Board to your feet and get to fly around on it for a few minutes. I would pay good money to get to do that. The only reason I bring this up is because live events do appear to be possible since HUVr recently posted on Facebook saying "We look forward to showing you just how real HUVr is with a series of live events coming soon to major U.S cities." They also say that "Pre-Orders will be available by the end of the month (that would be March) and we hope to ship in December 2014." (With end of March being thrown out, we have yet another date to look forward to now. Plus, will we have to pre-order in order to partake in the live events?). If this is all just another piece of the gag, or if HUVr actually plans to make good on their promise of live events is still left to be seen.
So, while no one has a real clue what this HUVr really is, if it's real, or what it's promoting. The good news is we only have 9 months to wait until we find out the truth....which is also bad news (because 9 months is a very long time to wait, and I'm an impatient fellow). Either way, this has been ROADS BTTF News. Until next time, remember: Where we're going we don't need roads!
HUVR official website: http://huvrtech.com
Self-lacing Nikes: http://solecollector.com/news/tinker-hatfield-confirms-nike-mag-will-release-with-power-laces-20151/
UPDATE: 3/5/14- Possibility 6 ended up being the correct one. Those bastards at Funny Or Die finally owned up to HUVr being a cruel prank on their part. You can watch their "apology" video HERE: http://www.slashfilm.com/funny-die-fake-hoverboard-video/
To me, it sounds in the video like they are scolding us for being such morons and nerds. Either way, Funny Or Die is dead to me now. That is all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4vE_vpkr90#t=59
Checking out the website, you find that the project started out as a summer project at the MIT Physics Graduate Program. You will also find that HUVr's customers and partners include Mark Cuban and Tony Hawk, and they each contribute a quote to the site. At the top of the site is a BTTF inspired countdown clock that has the destination time marked as December 2014.
I REALLY want to believe that this is for real. Unfortunately, after watching the video several times, I think I can see where the strings are attached to the people's shirts (look at the guy's hood and the girl wearing the blue shirt's shoulders. They look like they are being lifted up ever so slightly). It's clear that the video is indeed an elaborate and well executed fake. So, several possibilities remain as to what is really going on here.
Possibility 1: HUVr is real. The video is only meant to act as a demonstration as to what the HUVr will look like, and how it will act. The tech is indeed very real, but the product isn't quite ready for field tests yet. expect it to be unveiled in December of this year. It's also possible that the product shown works, but the strings were used to exaggerate it's floating capabilities. Also, the website's legal terms page looks pretty legit to me. Admittedly, this is the least likely possibility but I'm still holding out some slim hope that it's this one that ends up being real.
Possibility 2: Viral marketing for the Back To The Future Musical. A Back To The Future Musical has recently been announced to be heading towards London's West End in 2015. This matches up with the "destination" date on the website. Still, it must have cost A LOT of money to create a fictional HUVr, hire the actors from the movie, Mark Cuban, Tony Hawk, other "Real" people (i.e.: hired non-name actors), and HUVr spokespeople. If it is all for BTTF: The Musical I'm expecting it to have a lavish budget and to be filled with high-end SFX. In other words, the damned thing better blow my socks off if they're willing to go this far for a prank/hoax.
Possibility 3: Viral marketing for a film reboot/sequel for Back To The Future. Yes, rumors have been circulating 2013 and 2014 about a possible film reboot/sequel for BTTF. Nothing concrete has been announced yet, and normally by the time a viral marketing push starts we at least have some concrete info to work with. Naturally, a film would have more than enough money to hire the Delorean, the actors, and to create a fake HUVr. However, my gut tells me that this is another one of the not as likely possibilities due to lack of info, unless they are using this fake product to gauge interest on how popular the BTTF franchise still is.
Possibility 4: Viral marketing for a new IPhone app. In the video and in the website, there is a good amount of talk about an app that would be used to control your hover. Here's an excerpt from the website: "The HUVr App is is the control center for your HUVr Board. Activate your board via Bluetooth before each use and track route information such as path, distance, speed, and time travel. You can also rate and share locations with the HUVr community or via social media to Twitter and Facebook." In other words, this HUVr product is actually a virtual reality app. Would it come with a replica HUVr Board that we could toy around with? The site also name drops MIT a few times, maybe the proceeds would go to MIT antigravity research? Who knows. If I was a betting man, I'd place my money on this option (and I would be VERY disappointed if I was correct).
Possibility 5: Viral Marketing meant to get us hyped for new self-lacing Nikes. Self-lacing Nikes have been officially announced and are to be coming onto the market sometime in 2015 (I'm not making this up, you can google it if you want), maybe this fake product is really just meant to get us thinking about the Back To The Future franchise that way it's fresh on our minds when they make another announcement regarding self-lacing Nikes in December.
Possibility 6: It's just a cruel, cruel hoax. It's not advertising anything, hyping anything, or marketing anything. It's just a hoax meant to tease the fan boys. Several people have done research and found that Lauren Biedenharn, a costume designer and artist, was involved with the commercial. When digging deeper they discovered that her employer and producer was website Funny Or Die. This is a BIG (like, slap you in the face BIG) clue that it's all just a cruel hoax (another clue is that the main engineer guy in it showing off the HUVrs is a paid actor. His name is Nelson Cheng. On his about page it mentions that he is in an upcoming project from Funny Or Die. I'm betting this would be that.). Still, I'd like at least some confirmation. Maybe I'm just hoping there is SOME kind of payoff, instead of a reveal that it was just a prank, while Funny Or Die points and laughs at us.
If this whole thing did end up being a prank, the only way that Funny Or Die could make up for the emotional pain they have caused me and others is if they really did do HUVr Board events where you could sign up to be strapped to a harness, strap a prop HUVr Board to your feet and get to fly around on it for a few minutes. I would pay good money to get to do that. The only reason I bring this up is because live events do appear to be possible since HUVr recently posted on Facebook saying "We look forward to showing you just how real HUVr is with a series of live events coming soon to major U.S cities." They also say that "Pre-Orders will be available by the end of the month (that would be March) and we hope to ship in December 2014." (With end of March being thrown out, we have yet another date to look forward to now. Plus, will we have to pre-order in order to partake in the live events?). If this is all just another piece of the gag, or if HUVr actually plans to make good on their promise of live events is still left to be seen.
So, while no one has a real clue what this HUVr really is, if it's real, or what it's promoting. The good news is we only have 9 months to wait until we find out the truth....which is also bad news (because 9 months is a very long time to wait, and I'm an impatient fellow). Either way, this has been ROADS BTTF News. Until next time, remember: Where we're going we don't need roads!
HUVR official website: http://huvrtech.com
Self-lacing Nikes: http://solecollector.com/news/tinker-hatfield-confirms-nike-mag-will-release-with-power-laces-20151/
UPDATE: 3/5/14- Possibility 6 ended up being the correct one. Those bastards at Funny Or Die finally owned up to HUVr being a cruel prank on their part. You can watch their "apology" video HERE: http://www.slashfilm.com/funny-die-fake-hoverboard-video/
To me, it sounds in the video like they are scolding us for being such morons and nerds. Either way, Funny Or Die is dead to me now. That is all.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
OSCARS REACTIONS
I have a real love/hate relationship with The Oscars, and this year only made that all the more obvious with who The Academy decided to give the awards to.
First of all, Ellen was not a great host. She spent most of her time in the aisles bugging numerous different celebs. I'd say she was kind of terrible, but to such an extent that she became somewhat enjoyable. Take that as you will.
-I love Bill Murray but he looked half dead here. I loved his quick tribute to Harold Ramis. It seemed to be impromptu and not part of the script, but was it really? I can't tell.
-The acceptance speech for Let It Go was absolutely adorable.
-Why did they allow Tyler Perry on stage? Please, stop encouraging him!!
- Charlize Theron looked yummy in that dress, very sexy and beautiful.
-Gatsby won both Best Production design and Best Costume design, both awards it deserved to win. I'm very happy it got some recognition.
-I think that Wolf of Wall Street deserved Best Adapted Screenplay. Every line of dialogue in that film sizzled and popped. Instead, The Academy awarded the Oscar to 12 Years A Slave, which also had a good script....it just wasn't anywhere near as good as Wolf's.
- Her won Best Original Screenplay, and it damn well deserved to. I'm honestly overjoyed.
-Can't understand why they didn't give Best Director to Steve McQueen. Alfonso Cuaron nabbed the award, but he didn't really deserve it. I found Gravity to be a fantastic art film, and the visuals and technology were amazing...but everything else in that film I found to be lacking. That's right, I'm one of the very few who was not absolutely crazy about Gravity. It's a great film, certainly....but only as far as technology and visuals. I honestly felt it was the Avatar of 2013 (albeit, a better and more re-watchable version of Avatar). This brings me to my next point....
-The Academy's mantra this year seemed to be: When in doubt, go with Gravity. The film picked up Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects (awards it deeply deserved), but those were the only awards the film really should have won. Instead, it just kept rolling on like an unstoppable and scary force of nature, nabbing the awards for Best Director (as previously stated), Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing as well. On the other hand, this does support my previous statement that Gravity works best as an art film above anything else....so there's that.
- Now, it's time for a bit of a rant. McConaughey won for Best Actor. I do not agree with this. I'm sick and tired of The Academy robbing Leo of his time in the Oscar spotlight. Yes, McConaughey is a fantastic actor.....but I don't feel like he deserved a win for his work in Dallas Buyers Club (he was honestly a lot better and tons more memorable in his one scene in Wolf of Wall Street). Yes, it was impressive that he pulled a Bale in The Machinist and lost a lot of weight for the role, but besides that I honestly wasn't impressed with his performance. Leo on the hand was in two of the year's best films, and nailed his role in each. I'd say he put on the role of his life in Wolf of Wall Street. He should have won Best Actor, he deserved it....but The Academy just keeps yanking it away. I'm beginning to wonder if they have something against him.
-Will Smith presenting Best Picture: A marvelous choice. I was in heaven.
-The Academy made the right choice when it came to Best Film for a change. I still think Her was Best film of 2014, but 12 Years A Slave was still more than worthy of the award. The Academy actually rewarded a film that is not just challenging, but also important. That's good news folks.
So there you have it, all my thoughts about this year's Oscars. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go catch some Zzzzzzs. Till next time friends!
First of all, Ellen was not a great host. She spent most of her time in the aisles bugging numerous different celebs. I'd say she was kind of terrible, but to such an extent that she became somewhat enjoyable. Take that as you will.
-I love Bill Murray but he looked half dead here. I loved his quick tribute to Harold Ramis. It seemed to be impromptu and not part of the script, but was it really? I can't tell.
-The acceptance speech for Let It Go was absolutely adorable.
-Why did they allow Tyler Perry on stage? Please, stop encouraging him!!
- Charlize Theron looked yummy in that dress, very sexy and beautiful.
-Gatsby won both Best Production design and Best Costume design, both awards it deserved to win. I'm very happy it got some recognition.
-I think that Wolf of Wall Street deserved Best Adapted Screenplay. Every line of dialogue in that film sizzled and popped. Instead, The Academy awarded the Oscar to 12 Years A Slave, which also had a good script....it just wasn't anywhere near as good as Wolf's.
- Her won Best Original Screenplay, and it damn well deserved to. I'm honestly overjoyed.
-Can't understand why they didn't give Best Director to Steve McQueen. Alfonso Cuaron nabbed the award, but he didn't really deserve it. I found Gravity to be a fantastic art film, and the visuals and technology were amazing...but everything else in that film I found to be lacking. That's right, I'm one of the very few who was not absolutely crazy about Gravity. It's a great film, certainly....but only as far as technology and visuals. I honestly felt it was the Avatar of 2013 (albeit, a better and more re-watchable version of Avatar). This brings me to my next point....
-The Academy's mantra this year seemed to be: When in doubt, go with Gravity. The film picked up Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects (awards it deeply deserved), but those were the only awards the film really should have won. Instead, it just kept rolling on like an unstoppable and scary force of nature, nabbing the awards for Best Director (as previously stated), Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing as well. On the other hand, this does support my previous statement that Gravity works best as an art film above anything else....so there's that.
- Now, it's time for a bit of a rant. McConaughey won for Best Actor. I do not agree with this. I'm sick and tired of The Academy robbing Leo of his time in the Oscar spotlight. Yes, McConaughey is a fantastic actor.....but I don't feel like he deserved a win for his work in Dallas Buyers Club (he was honestly a lot better and tons more memorable in his one scene in Wolf of Wall Street). Yes, it was impressive that he pulled a Bale in The Machinist and lost a lot of weight for the role, but besides that I honestly wasn't impressed with his performance. Leo on the hand was in two of the year's best films, and nailed his role in each. I'd say he put on the role of his life in Wolf of Wall Street. He should have won Best Actor, he deserved it....but The Academy just keeps yanking it away. I'm beginning to wonder if they have something against him.
-Will Smith presenting Best Picture: A marvelous choice. I was in heaven.
-The Academy made the right choice when it came to Best Film for a change. I still think Her was Best film of 2014, but 12 Years A Slave was still more than worthy of the award. The Academy actually rewarded a film that is not just challenging, but also important. That's good news folks.
So there you have it, all my thoughts about this year's Oscars. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go catch some Zzzzzzs. Till next time friends!
Monday, February 24, 2014
THE GHOSTBUSTERS LOSE DR. EGON SPENGLER: HAROLD RAMIS DEAD AT 69
Today is a very sad day for movie fans. Harold Ramis has died at age 69 of autoimmune inflammatory disease, a rare disease that involves the swelling of blood vessels.
He directed National Lampoons Vacation, directed and co-wrote Caddyshack and Groundhog Day, and co-wrote Meatballs, Stripes, Ghostbusters, and Animal House. Quite possibly he will be most remembered for portraying Dr. Egon Spengler in both Ghostbusters films (and voicing him in the Ghostbusters video game).
Harold Ramis was a truly talented individual. As a fan of Ghostbusters since childhood, with that group being some of my childhood heroes, this news kind of shook my world a bit. It's very sad. I can't help but wonder if Egon was looking forward to becoming a ghost one day, and I suppose it may be exciting to get to study the Ghost World from the other side. I think the Ghost Busters will make an exception this time, and not bust him.
Farewell, Mr. Ramis, and thank you for enriching mine and so many others' lives. You will be missed.
He directed National Lampoons Vacation, directed and co-wrote Caddyshack and Groundhog Day, and co-wrote Meatballs, Stripes, Ghostbusters, and Animal House. Quite possibly he will be most remembered for portraying Dr. Egon Spengler in both Ghostbusters films (and voicing him in the Ghostbusters video game).
Harold Ramis was a truly talented individual. As a fan of Ghostbusters since childhood, with that group being some of my childhood heroes, this news kind of shook my world a bit. It's very sad. I can't help but wonder if Egon was looking forward to becoming a ghost one day, and I suppose it may be exciting to get to study the Ghost World from the other side. I think the Ghost Busters will make an exception this time, and not bust him.
Farewell, Mr. Ramis, and thank you for enriching mine and so many others' lives. You will be missed.
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
ROBOCOP 2014 IS SURPRISINGLY NOT BAD
I am a fan of the original Robocop, and when I saw the trailers for the remake I feared the worst. It seemed like this remake would suck the heart and core message out of the original classic, and turn Robocop into another failed attempt at cashing in on a recognizable name (Total Recall 2012 anyone?). Luckily, I was wrong for a change.
Robocop 2014 follows the same plot as the original. Detective Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnaman), a hard working, loyal and uncorrupt Detroit cop, is seriously injured in a car bombing. Raymond Sellars (Michael Keaton), president of mega-corporation Omnicorp, sees an opportunity and seizes it. He has been trying to introduce robotic law enforcement into the the city, however the general public seems uneasy about the idea. In Murphy, Sellars sees what could be the face for his robotic efforts and a way to get the public on his side. He orders Dr. Dennett Norton (Gary Oldman), head of the Omnicorp labs, to rebuild Murphy into a human/robot hybrid they dub Robocop. However, Murphy's basic humanity soon becomes seen as a threat to their perfect product. The fight is on as Murphy tries to hold on to the remaining shreds of his humanity while attempting to keep crime at bay and solve his own murder.
Robocop 2014 is restrained by a PG-13 rating. I understand why the studio pushed for a PG-13 here, to bring more people in and to better target the coveted teen demographic. However, the film does have a genuinely great message that I'm pretty sure most teens either will not get or just won't care about (more on that message later), and the PG-13 only serves to water down the film.The violence is at times thrilling, but it never is able to match the extreme lengths of the original's. Robocop also suffers from a deflated climax (especially when compared to the original's), and the way Murphy sustains his injuries that ultimately lead to his transformation is just weak.
This new remake is also quite humorless except for when it deals with Pat Novak (Samuel L. Jackson), an extreme right-wing pundit who owns his own Bill O'Reilly-esque show (The Novak Element) and reports on the news with his own biased and not-so-hidden agenda. It's clear the film is taking punches at Fox News, and it does so in a fun and almost tongue in cheek way with Jackson nailing his small role (He's perfect).
Robocop has a pretty good cast that never fully manage to make their roles memorable. Joel Kinnaman makes for a decent Murphy. When first turned into Robocop, he still has his humanity intact (a drastic shift from the original) but later it is wiped clean. I'm not so sure I like this angle, but I do understand it was done in an attempt to strengthen the message here. While the attempt doesn't completely work, the misguided effort is somewhat appreciated. Michael Keaton and Jackie Earle Haley (who plays Rick Mattox, a for hire military expert) are both criminally underused and get barely any character development. The same goes for Abbie Cornish and John Paul Ruttan (who play Murphy's loving wife and son), who are only brought in when the emotional element of the film is needed. Easily the best actor here is Gary Oldman (no surprise there), who plays a doctor that is struggling to keep his ethics and morals as Keaton's Sellars continually applies more and more pressure on him to get the job done.
Unlike Total Recall 2012, Robocop makes the very wise choice to keep the original film's core anti-corporation message. As I said before, the film tries to strengthen the message but it's an entirely unsuccessful attempt. The message is still in plain sight for anyone who is wise enough to notice it, and the film spends a good amount of time focused on this message (basically people are nothing but pawns to corporations, and the public are nothing but sheep that can be easily led either by corporations or the media). I do think the message is a good reflection of how the times are today, and thus while a Robocop remake wasn't necessary, this was a good time to make it.
I'm going to take a brief moment to talk about the ED-209's (or as I lovingly call them, the EDdys). They were one of my favorite parts of the original film, as they were a product that seemed bad-ass but were ultimately fuck-ups in the long run. Here, they are functional and work exactly as they were built to. There is no humor to the Eddy's in Robocop 2014. It's still good to see them pop up in all of their two scenes, but I still prefer the ones from the original.
While Robocop 2014 can't match the fun, bloodiness, brutality, humor, and message of the original......this remake is still by all accounts much better than it should have been. While it's not a perfect product, it's a functional one that should get you thinking and that you should be fairly entertained by. It works for what it is.
3 Stars
Robocop 2014 follows the same plot as the original. Detective Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnaman), a hard working, loyal and uncorrupt Detroit cop, is seriously injured in a car bombing. Raymond Sellars (Michael Keaton), president of mega-corporation Omnicorp, sees an opportunity and seizes it. He has been trying to introduce robotic law enforcement into the the city, however the general public seems uneasy about the idea. In Murphy, Sellars sees what could be the face for his robotic efforts and a way to get the public on his side. He orders Dr. Dennett Norton (Gary Oldman), head of the Omnicorp labs, to rebuild Murphy into a human/robot hybrid they dub Robocop. However, Murphy's basic humanity soon becomes seen as a threat to their perfect product. The fight is on as Murphy tries to hold on to the remaining shreds of his humanity while attempting to keep crime at bay and solve his own murder.
Robocop 2014 is restrained by a PG-13 rating. I understand why the studio pushed for a PG-13 here, to bring more people in and to better target the coveted teen demographic. However, the film does have a genuinely great message that I'm pretty sure most teens either will not get or just won't care about (more on that message later), and the PG-13 only serves to water down the film.The violence is at times thrilling, but it never is able to match the extreme lengths of the original's. Robocop also suffers from a deflated climax (especially when compared to the original's), and the way Murphy sustains his injuries that ultimately lead to his transformation is just weak.
This new remake is also quite humorless except for when it deals with Pat Novak (Samuel L. Jackson), an extreme right-wing pundit who owns his own Bill O'Reilly-esque show (The Novak Element) and reports on the news with his own biased and not-so-hidden agenda. It's clear the film is taking punches at Fox News, and it does so in a fun and almost tongue in cheek way with Jackson nailing his small role (He's perfect).
Robocop has a pretty good cast that never fully manage to make their roles memorable. Joel Kinnaman makes for a decent Murphy. When first turned into Robocop, he still has his humanity intact (a drastic shift from the original) but later it is wiped clean. I'm not so sure I like this angle, but I do understand it was done in an attempt to strengthen the message here. While the attempt doesn't completely work, the misguided effort is somewhat appreciated. Michael Keaton and Jackie Earle Haley (who plays Rick Mattox, a for hire military expert) are both criminally underused and get barely any character development. The same goes for Abbie Cornish and John Paul Ruttan (who play Murphy's loving wife and son), who are only brought in when the emotional element of the film is needed. Easily the best actor here is Gary Oldman (no surprise there), who plays a doctor that is struggling to keep his ethics and morals as Keaton's Sellars continually applies more and more pressure on him to get the job done.
Unlike Total Recall 2012, Robocop makes the very wise choice to keep the original film's core anti-corporation message. As I said before, the film tries to strengthen the message but it's an entirely unsuccessful attempt. The message is still in plain sight for anyone who is wise enough to notice it, and the film spends a good amount of time focused on this message (basically people are nothing but pawns to corporations, and the public are nothing but sheep that can be easily led either by corporations or the media). I do think the message is a good reflection of how the times are today, and thus while a Robocop remake wasn't necessary, this was a good time to make it.
I'm going to take a brief moment to talk about the ED-209's (or as I lovingly call them, the EDdys). They were one of my favorite parts of the original film, as they were a product that seemed bad-ass but were ultimately fuck-ups in the long run. Here, they are functional and work exactly as they were built to. There is no humor to the Eddy's in Robocop 2014. It's still good to see them pop up in all of their two scenes, but I still prefer the ones from the original.
While Robocop 2014 can't match the fun, bloodiness, brutality, humor, and message of the original......this remake is still by all accounts much better than it should have been. While it's not a perfect product, it's a functional one that should get you thinking and that you should be fairly entertained by. It works for what it is.
3 Stars
Friday, February 7, 2014
EVERYTHING IS AWESOME WITH THE LEGO MOVIE
Let me preface this review by saying that I never really played with LEGOs when I was a child. I attempted to several times but I just found the whole construction aspect frustrating. However, I do enjoy the numerous LEGO video games which I find to be clever and funny. Now, LEGO has their very own full length theatrical film directed by two of the best up-and-comer directors out there: Phil Lord and Chris Miller (who also wrote the script). Needless to say, The LEGO Movie is in safe hands.
In The LEGO Movie we follow everyday simpleton Emmet (Chris Pratt), a normal LEGO construction builder who dreams of being accepted into his community and having friends. One day, while chasing the beautiful Wyldstyle (Elizabeth Banks, who sounds as cute as ever here) he falls into a deep pit and stumbles across an ancient relic that could save the entire LEGO World from President/Lord Business (Will Ferrell, who is treated to one of his better roles here) and his evil plans. Emmett teams up with Wyldstyle, the wizard Vitruvius (Morgan Freeman), Unikitty (Alison Brie), Benny the Astronaut (Charlie Day), and Batman (Will Arnett) to save the day and then some.
The LEGO Movie has an extensive and impressive list of voice cameos in it. Liam Neeson voices Good Cop/Bad Cop, Colbie Smulders voices Wonder Woman, and Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill team up once again to voice Superman and Green Lantern respectively, who are kind of a duo here and get some great jokes together (talk about perfect casting). Charlie Day gets a good amount of funny material as Benny the Astronaut who is obsessed with building spaceships and is kind of the odd man out, Will Arnett makes for one of the best Batmans and is easily one of the most memorable things about the film (the amount of LOL jokes he gets here is enviable), and Chris Pratt is believable as a simpleton and our hero (in all seriousness though, Pratt was the perfect choice to play Emmett. He is very funny, super energetic, and very memorable).
One of the greatest things about The LEGO Movie (besides it's all star voice cast), is that EVERYTHING IN THIS FILM IS MADE OF LEGOS. Surprisingly, most of the film is made using stop-motion LEGOS, with minimal CGI being used as well. For the most part the environments, characters, numerous dioramas, the ocean, the clouds, lasers, smoke stacks, and even fire and explosions are all made with LEGOS. Simply put, if you love LEGOS, then The LEGO Movie is your wet dream.
Now, a word of warning: If you do see The LEGO Movie you will leave with a certain song stuck in your head on repeat for days on end. This song is called Everything Is Awesome. It's catchy, cute, the lyrics are simple and easy to remember.......quite simply, it's an infectious virus. The song is repeated several times throughout the film (it's basically the theme song for the film), and if you are able to resist it's wily charms then you are a better man than I. The song itself is pretty awesome, and while I hate getting any song stuck in my noggin I've got to admit that this one has kind of grown on me.....I actually love it to be completely honest.
The LEGO Movie has some great themes in it about being special/what it takes to be special/who is special, friendship, teamwork, getting in touch with your inner child, creativity, non-conformity and imagination. It's filled with some pretty great bits of humor and there is a third act twist that had me squee-ing in jaw dropped joy. Seriously though, the twist itself elevates the film up to a higher level for me and it changes the way you look at what came before it. It's a surprisingly clever film as well (for crying out loud people, the main villain is named Lord Business, and the film plays with the "one hero" trope in a smart and new way, creating a new and positive message in the process), and when you realize what this film is really all about, that's also when you realize just how deep and smart this film is too. I'm going to be honest, I had heard the advanced rave reviews for this film. Despite that, I still didn't have my hopes incredibly high yet The LEGO Movie still charmed me and wow-ed me (how could you NOT LOVE those LEGO characters, their so cute!). The amount of work that went into creating this film and the numerous LEGO effects and environments is staggering. It's only February, but I have a feeling that we could see The LEGO Movie become a contender for next year's Best Animated movie category. The LEGO Movie is a film that both adults and kids can enjoy in equal measure. There should be no surprise when I say that Chris Miller and Phil Lord have done it again.
5 STARS- BETTER THAN SEX
In The LEGO Movie we follow everyday simpleton Emmet (Chris Pratt), a normal LEGO construction builder who dreams of being accepted into his community and having friends. One day, while chasing the beautiful Wyldstyle (Elizabeth Banks, who sounds as cute as ever here) he falls into a deep pit and stumbles across an ancient relic that could save the entire LEGO World from President/Lord Business (Will Ferrell, who is treated to one of his better roles here) and his evil plans. Emmett teams up with Wyldstyle, the wizard Vitruvius (Morgan Freeman), Unikitty (Alison Brie), Benny the Astronaut (Charlie Day), and Batman (Will Arnett) to save the day and then some.
The LEGO Movie has an extensive and impressive list of voice cameos in it. Liam Neeson voices Good Cop/Bad Cop, Colbie Smulders voices Wonder Woman, and Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill team up once again to voice Superman and Green Lantern respectively, who are kind of a duo here and get some great jokes together (talk about perfect casting). Charlie Day gets a good amount of funny material as Benny the Astronaut who is obsessed with building spaceships and is kind of the odd man out, Will Arnett makes for one of the best Batmans and is easily one of the most memorable things about the film (the amount of LOL jokes he gets here is enviable), and Chris Pratt is believable as a simpleton and our hero (in all seriousness though, Pratt was the perfect choice to play Emmett. He is very funny, super energetic, and very memorable).
One of the greatest things about The LEGO Movie (besides it's all star voice cast), is that EVERYTHING IN THIS FILM IS MADE OF LEGOS. Surprisingly, most of the film is made using stop-motion LEGOS, with minimal CGI being used as well. For the most part the environments, characters, numerous dioramas, the ocean, the clouds, lasers, smoke stacks, and even fire and explosions are all made with LEGOS. Simply put, if you love LEGOS, then The LEGO Movie is your wet dream.
Now, a word of warning: If you do see The LEGO Movie you will leave with a certain song stuck in your head on repeat for days on end. This song is called Everything Is Awesome. It's catchy, cute, the lyrics are simple and easy to remember.......quite simply, it's an infectious virus. The song is repeated several times throughout the film (it's basically the theme song for the film), and if you are able to resist it's wily charms then you are a better man than I. The song itself is pretty awesome, and while I hate getting any song stuck in my noggin I've got to admit that this one has kind of grown on me.....I actually love it to be completely honest.
The LEGO Movie has some great themes in it about being special/what it takes to be special/who is special, friendship, teamwork, getting in touch with your inner child, creativity, non-conformity and imagination. It's filled with some pretty great bits of humor and there is a third act twist that had me squee-ing in jaw dropped joy. Seriously though, the twist itself elevates the film up to a higher level for me and it changes the way you look at what came before it. It's a surprisingly clever film as well (for crying out loud people, the main villain is named Lord Business, and the film plays with the "one hero" trope in a smart and new way, creating a new and positive message in the process), and when you realize what this film is really all about, that's also when you realize just how deep and smart this film is too. I'm going to be honest, I had heard the advanced rave reviews for this film. Despite that, I still didn't have my hopes incredibly high yet The LEGO Movie still charmed me and wow-ed me (how could you NOT LOVE those LEGO characters, their so cute!). The amount of work that went into creating this film and the numerous LEGO effects and environments is staggering. It's only February, but I have a feeling that we could see The LEGO Movie become a contender for next year's Best Animated movie category. The LEGO Movie is a film that both adults and kids can enjoy in equal measure. There should be no surprise when I say that Chris Miller and Phil Lord have done it again.
5 STARS- BETTER THAN SEX
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