I'm sure most peoples introduction to Flash Gordon was it getting mentioned in Ted - unless maybe your a member of the older audience (not like I know the ages of anyone reading this). I mean, just looking at that cover and knowing it's from the 80's (the "remastered edition" for my viewing) tells me everything I need to want to watch it. Why it's taken me so long is anyones guess, but can it live up to my expectations? Well, it's got a title theme done by the one and only Queen, so it's already starting off on a good foot. Can Gordon save us all, or will this movie be but a flash in our memory?
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You know what modern films haven't always done a good job of doing? Parody films. Yeah, we get the occasional one (like Shaun of the Dead) that's phenomenal, but compared to back in the day when Mel Brooks was constantly pumping out quotable riot after riot, it's hard not to miss the glory days. Speaking of the glory days, tonights entry comes right from that sweet spot back in the 1980's, named Ice Pirates. It promises rollicking good fun, space herpie, and even ferocious space possums. Can it truly be a riveting adventure on the rocks, or will it leave us floating in our own disappointment?
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I saw the first Raid a couple years back - and it was enjoyable. Pretty good action, enough of a plot to hold it together, subtitles - it was a rousing good time, as though someone combined SWAT with the newer Judge Dredd. Having seen some hype going around for a second Raid, I figured it would be in my best interest to check it out. Can this sequel live up to the hype, or did it just pull a Leroy Jenkins?
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Mr Bean as a spy? This has got to be good. Sometimes you aren't in a serious enough mood for a heavy duty spy movie like James Bond, so why not take a peek into what the best of British intelligence has to offer? Well, now that I mentioned it, will this movie bumble it's adorable way into our hearts, or will our brains wonder how our intelligence just disappeared in such a tuxedo clad way?
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Oh stop your whining, I like watching foreign flicks - those that may or may not emulate some of the stuff we are used to seeing in our hollywood copy-paste lifetimes. Some of the reviews said that this would have some awesome fights, and being an action hungry kind of guy, how could I resist? Add in that it was dubbed so I could take a break from all the reading I've been doing as of late, and it was guaranteed. Can this gang of punks grow on you, or will you rather they be tossed in the gutter?
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I once bought a sword off of someone I worked with because I recognized it as the FAKK sword. One might then find it odd that the first time I have seen the movie from which it comes was just now. Granted, I had watched the original Heavy Metal long before this, and find went in wondering if it would be more of the same thing, better or worse than what I knew already. Throw on your spikes and lace up your boots, it's time to find out if you'll be banging your head while throwing the horns or just banging it against a wall.
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Marvel likes making some anime-flavored flicks lately, but I'm not complaining. What character is cool that we don't ever hear anybody shout about not being in a Avengers movie? The Punisher. Who could we team up with the Punisher and have one not seem entirely outclassed? How about Black Widow? Tag team action in an animated form, with a little guest appearance of some the big-wig Avengers themselves! Is it a beautiful elegant thing to steal your breath away, or is it a vengeful executioner whose only plans are to stop you from breathing? Read on and and I'll tell you what I think!
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I had some apprehension coming into this movie, I'm not going to lie. See, I saw the old robocop before, and it isn't exactly the kind of movie that easily is turned into a non-R rated film while retaining it's unique feel, and that had me a bit worried. At the same time, I've had two separate friends tell me that it was "not too bad," which in my books means at least worth one watch. Would the corporate machine churn out another sub-stellar cash cow reboot, or would the soul find a way to give us a reincarnation of a classic in modern times?
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Ender's Game is a pretty big thing as far as books go in the sci fi community from what I'm told - and as is usual with these sorts of things (*ahem*Starship Troopers) I've never bothered to read it. Know what that means? I get to enjoy the movie more than all the folks who already know it from reading, because they tend to get hung up on all the differences or inadequacies that I don't even know about! When it comes to movie adaptations, ignorance truly can be bliss. That being said, I like me some science fiction movies, and heard rather mediocre things from those who went to see it (again, it usually takes some goading to get me to want to throw down that 10 dollars on a theater ticket) - so perfect case of it showing up in the Netflix queue at last. Will Ender make the movie a game to remember, or should the game end after it's first fielding?
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Celebrating 50 years of Godzilla, and also marking the last made (until 2014's Godzilla hit theaters) Godzilla film, Final Wars finally pops up. Although unrelated to the previous reviewed Heisei era flicks, it certainly honors some of the earlier traditions of the big G - such as monster a monster battles. With access to higher levels of technology and equipment, can the entire movie be elevated for one epic final battle - or are we destined to suffer another stinker about a giant iguana?
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And it comes to this, the final part of the Heisei era of Godzilla. The promise of monster-a-monster battle, and something different about Godzilla draw us in to what we already expect to enjoy (being fans of our giant radioactive dinosaur friend). The defining film that takes it all the way back to the original Gojira, and wraps up the exodus of our monster king's story. Can the plot and characters bring this movie to the top, or will it be a complete meltdown from which we may never recover?
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Inevitably, the scale of these movies tries to one up itself. Sure, you get the little things - soundtrack changes, upgraded visuals, the normal stuff - but eventually a movie feels as though it consciously decided "Hey, you know what? We need this bigger and better." A lot of times, this can be a bad thing for the movie, but sometimes it's not so. Can a showdown between the king of monsters and a space version of himself prove to be out of this world, or is it a small speck in the skies?
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It strikes me as strange to be honest that this movie came after Godzilla vs Mothra. I guess it works, as one can assume that some time would have passed while Japan messed around with robotic parts from Ghidorah to make it - which is a turn over the "robot parts built on top of a Godzilla skeleton" that graces one of the other Mechagodzilla flicks, but considering how tied it is to that it seems as though it would have come first. Well, regardless of when the movie was delivered, can the movie prove to be massive scale metal, or does it prove to be nothing but a toy?
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Goodness, it took me long enough to get to this one didn't it? You see, the biggest issue is I wanted to take the time to re-read the book, as there are some pretty substantial differences between it and this movie - but of course I'll get to that later. For now, the world's most beautiful part-man returns with another job to kill another vampire. This time, things aren't quite as they may seem, and D isn't the only hunter on the case! Can this addition to the video collection bring it's fangs to bear, or is it just a stake to the heart?
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The interesting thing one notices as time goes on is that each of these Godzilla movies seems to have a unique spin to the human side of things. In last weeks GvsB, there was a very espionage / secret agents feel to what was going on. This week things are a bit different, but the glue that holds these films together is undoubtable Godzilla himself - no matter what happens, at some point the threat of Godzilla rises to the forefront. As an added bonus, this is the first of the Godzilla flicks to really go into the history of Godzilla, outside of just "nuclear lizard."
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Now we start getting into the parts of Godzilla that we all tend to love the most - the monster on monster action! The 1989 entry marks the first step of the Heisei series that involves Godzilla not being the only giant monster to stop around the block - although by far it's certainly not the first ever 'zilla flick to feature multiple monsters (just in this arc). Can the king of monsters hold his ground against the new threat? Will the movie harbor any improvements over Godzilla '85? Did I manage to get the non-Americanized version? Either you are gonna love this like a giant rose, or want nothing more than to burn it with your fiery breath.
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30 years later, the great lizard king returns in the "first" movie of the second Godzilla story arc - called the "Heisei Series." In modern times, we would probably call this a reboot - although its actually more of rebooting a sequel to start again as opposed to erasing the original and starting from scratch. Now, the reason I wanted to do this specific arc or story is because it seems to deal more with how/what Godzilla is, which seems like it very well might tie into the newer one a bit more solidly than some of the others do. Of course, the real question then becomes is it a good thing that it might be getting it's influence from here?
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I don't normally review movies that are fresh in the theaters, because I find it a less than optimal experience as far as the movie goes. Don't misunderstand, it's great to sit in a theater with the awesome surround sound and big old screen with a bunch of friends, but it becomes hard to concentrate on the movie itself at times when there's a bunch of people screaming over what they thought was scary or hollering over something they thought was great. Let's not forget those pesky kids who always manage to talk through forty percent of the movie roll... Forget that though, I saw this one and figured It'd make a nice change of pace for me to tell you if this guy rose to the top or feel with brave Leonidas and his 300.
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From the title alone, we can assume it's going to be two guys with guns versus the world. Action, action, action! For best results, go in expecting an action flick and you should be content. Normally, I'd be more than happy to come up with a witty title-based remark that leaves you hanging, but with a title like 2 Guns, the best I can come up with is something like like "is it shooting blanks, or is fully loaded for an assault on your favorites list." Sorry.
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I present to you, ladies and gentlemen, on the pedestal of my past the movie that got me into something called anime. Beyond that, it introduced me to a new world that even to this day is an exciting twist on the rather dull and expected Vampire genre that feels as though it just carries on through a checklist of things it has to have. It got me back into reading after I had stopped for a while as well, after I found out that the novels from which this was based on were getting an english translation and release, and I got deep enough into it that I own not only those novels, a few of the manga renditions of them, and the two movies (the second will come later, don't you worry), but also a rather mediocre game that came on in the vein of Resident Evil. This, you stunning people, is Vampire Hunter D, and I am quite excited to share my thoughts on my gateway into so many things.
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