Thursday, December 30, 2010
True Grit
My devotion to the Western continues to be rewarded. I took in True Grit this evening, a movie that I have been anticipating for some months now. And this remake of a John Wayne classic did not disappoint.
Set in the 1870s in Arkansas, the film centers around 14 year old Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) and her attempts to bring her father's murderer, one Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), to justice. She enlists the help of Texas Ranger La Boeuf (Matt Damon) and a ruthlessly efficient US Marshall Reuben "Rooster" Cogburn (Jeff Bridges).
The actors are all excellent, as is usually the case with a Cohen Brothers picture. Matt Damon and Jeff Bridges play off of one another very well, as their characters often clash. Bridges is very believable in the roll. At first I worried that he may have fallen into the trap of either being too much or too little like the John Wayne portrayal, but Bridges really made the performance his own, really owned the character. But I was very impressed with young Hailee Steinfeld, who traded insults like a champ with Matt Damon, bartered an almost free horse out of a salesman, and even shot some folks along the way.
If there is one driving force behind this film besides revenge, it's Banter. The characters are constantly verbally jabbing at one another and often even the heroes are parting ways over matters of pride and words spoken in anger. I found myself laughing quite frequently at the constant flow of sideways compliments and flat out insults the characters leveled at one another.
One point that I feel I should mention, I was very happy to see that this film stayed what it was meant to be. A Western, in the traditional sense of the word. Don't get me wrong, I love the modern Action Westerns (as my review of The Good, the Bad, and the Weird will confirm), but this movie felt like a return to the days when a western only needed gunplay, witty dialogue, and heroes facing villains. It didn't try to be a heavy handed morality play, or an overbearing action fest. It was just True Grit, a film who's title describes what you are in for perfectly. Heroic characters displaying copious amounts of intestinal fortitude.
9 Gun-Shot Spareribs out of 10
Gulliver's Travels (2010)
So earlier this week, I took my cousin to a movie for her birthday. As she was the birthday girl, I told her to pick what flick we saw. She chose Gulliver's Travels, which was fine by me, since I'm a big fan of Jack Black.
To start off, I wasn't aware it was a 3D picture until they handed us the glasses on the way in, and I honestly was a little put off by it at first. I'm not a big believer in the "Avatar was Huge, Let's Make every movie 3D" philosophy in Hollywood these days. However, after the first ten minutes or so, it felt pretty natural, if only I didn't have to wear those Roy Orbison looking glasses.
Anyway, the story is a modern retelling of the classic tale of Gulliver's Travels. Here, our modern Gulliver works in the mail room at a New York newspaper. He seems largely content with his life until a new guy in the mail room gets promoted past him the same day he is hired. New guy also picks up on the fact that Gulliver has been crushing on the paper's Travel writer Darcy Silverman, played by Amanda Peet (and who can blame him? Have you seen The Whole 9 Yards? But I digress.) Gulliver attempts to ask her out, but ends up chickening out and claiming to be a freelance travel writer himself. She asks to see a sample of his work, which he plagiarizes out of desperation, then sends him on an assignment to the Bermuda Triangle. Once there, he quickly gets transported to Lilliput, where he is a giant compared to the island's tiny residents. There's a lot of ludicrous stuff that happens from there, but it's a fantasy movie, so I let it slide.
While I can't say that the movie is Laugh-a-minute Funny, I have to say it is entertaining and amusing. As a modern version of the classic story, it holds up fairly well. The cast of the film was very impressive to me as well. Billy Connoly of Boondock Saints, Catherine Tate of Doctor Who (who is painfully underutilized here), and Most of all Chris O'Dowd famously of the IT Crowd. There is something about Chris O'Dowd that made me laugh out loud almost every time he spoke, he was really the highlight of the film for me.
Overall, this film is not likely to win any awards, and I can't say that I'll ever see it again, but I still enjoyed it. I recommend it to those who want to see a 3d movie done well with some Jack Black hilarity.
6 How to Build Your Own Robot Magazines out of 10
To start off, I wasn't aware it was a 3D picture until they handed us the glasses on the way in, and I honestly was a little put off by it at first. I'm not a big believer in the "Avatar was Huge, Let's Make every movie 3D" philosophy in Hollywood these days. However, after the first ten minutes or so, it felt pretty natural, if only I didn't have to wear those Roy Orbison looking glasses.
Anyway, the story is a modern retelling of the classic tale of Gulliver's Travels. Here, our modern Gulliver works in the mail room at a New York newspaper. He seems largely content with his life until a new guy in the mail room gets promoted past him the same day he is hired. New guy also picks up on the fact that Gulliver has been crushing on the paper's Travel writer Darcy Silverman, played by Amanda Peet (and who can blame him? Have you seen The Whole 9 Yards? But I digress.) Gulliver attempts to ask her out, but ends up chickening out and claiming to be a freelance travel writer himself. She asks to see a sample of his work, which he plagiarizes out of desperation, then sends him on an assignment to the Bermuda Triangle. Once there, he quickly gets transported to Lilliput, where he is a giant compared to the island's tiny residents. There's a lot of ludicrous stuff that happens from there, but it's a fantasy movie, so I let it slide.
While I can't say that the movie is Laugh-a-minute Funny, I have to say it is entertaining and amusing. As a modern version of the classic story, it holds up fairly well. The cast of the film was very impressive to me as well. Billy Connoly of Boondock Saints, Catherine Tate of Doctor Who (who is painfully underutilized here), and Most of all Chris O'Dowd famously of the IT Crowd. There is something about Chris O'Dowd that made me laugh out loud almost every time he spoke, he was really the highlight of the film for me.
Overall, this film is not likely to win any awards, and I can't say that I'll ever see it again, but I still enjoyed it. I recommend it to those who want to see a 3d movie done well with some Jack Black hilarity.
6 How to Build Your Own Robot Magazines out of 10
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
My First 10 Blu Rays
So I got a Blu Ray movie for Christmas and as a result, finally caved and bought a player. I'm not sure why I was putting it off, but there it is. When I went to buy the player at Best Buy the day after Christmas, they were also having a big sale on Blu Ray discs, so I snapped up some great flicks at Low-Hanging-Fruit prices. When all was said and done, I had a player and 10 movies to watch on it, so by way of posting my first Oh-So-Cliched Top Ten list, I would run down the first 10 Blu Ray's of my collection and why I picked them up, besides the obvious "They were on Sale" answer. Let's start at the beginning with...
1) Red Cliff: Original International Version
This was the movie I got for Christmas. I have yet to watch the FOUR HOUR international version, but I was in love with this film from the moment I knew it existed. Set in one of the most personally interesting eras of history for me, the Three Kingdoms era in second and third century China, and Starring Takeshi Kaneshiro of House of Flying Daggers fame and Tony Leung of Hero fame, this one is a no brain-er for me.
2) Hellboy
This was definitely in the Cheap category, but that doesn't change the fact that this Guiermo Del Toro helmed action fest is a lot of fun, often humorous, and Ron Perlman is perfectly cast as the titular Hellboy. Also, Kronen is a BA!
3) The Wrestler
I don't even want to get started on the validity of Pro Wrestling, it's a doomed argument. But when it comes down to it, this touching tale has less to do with wrestling and more to do with the Human Experience. Mickey Rourke is staggeringly good, as always, playing Randy "The Ram" Robinson, a man who once had it all thanks to his career. Now he has come to realize that his world fell apart around him as the consequences of his old life haunt him. It's subtle, simple, and magnificently shot. If you skip this one because it involves wrestling, you are doing yourself a disservice.
4) Army Of Darkness
What can I say, I'm a sucker for one-liners, and this camp classic is chock full of em. Behold!
This sequel to the Evil Dead movies is unabashed Bruce Campbell goodness and I love every minute of it! Klatuu. Barada. (Cough)to!
5) Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Based on the autobiographical book of the same name by the late Dr. Hunter S Thompson, this film covers a three day 'trip' to Las Vegas the good Dr. once took with his friend and lawyer. Loaded with hilarious lines, inspired performances, and psychedelic special effects, this film demonstrates what a spectacular director Terry Gilliam really is.
6) Inception
The naysayers of this Christopher Nolan Directed thriller will argue that a Complicated is not always a good plot. I say, shut up and watch the movie, naysayers. This is honestly one of the best movies I've seen in the last few years, and DiCaprio continues to win me over with another chilling performance.
7) The Last Samurai
You really have to love Ignorance sometimes. A lot of people dislike this movie because "Tom Cruise is the last Samurai," even though Cruise isn't the last Samurai, Ken Watanabe's character Katsumoto is. The irony being that the only reason Tom Cruise was put in this movie based on a true story that involved no westerners is because American audiences wont see a movie with an all Japanese cast in the theaters, unless you count Art houses. We need a white guy in there, because we can't relate to Asians. God, pisses me off just thinking about.
That being said, Tom Cruise dose an excellent job playing the part of the westerner's eye in this retelling of Dai Saigo's Last Stand.
8) Huo Yuanjia - AKA Jet Li's Fearless
Touted at the time as Jet Li's final Martial Arts film, this still stands, in my mind at least, as one of the greatest Wushu films. While the fights are epic and numerous, the story is the real reason I love this film so much, and Jet Li's acting is superb.
9) A Clockwork Orange
I honestly can't think of any way to describe this film. It is largely a procession of unsettling images of a dystopian future but the underlying story of law and lawlessness is potent. A darkly comic classic.
10) The Princess Bride
Do I even need to explain? one of my all time favorite movies.
Well, that's the list, now I think I'll go watch one of them. Anyone else remember their first Blu Ray/DVD/VHS?
1) Red Cliff: Original International Version
This was the movie I got for Christmas. I have yet to watch the FOUR HOUR international version, but I was in love with this film from the moment I knew it existed. Set in one of the most personally interesting eras of history for me, the Three Kingdoms era in second and third century China, and Starring Takeshi Kaneshiro of House of Flying Daggers fame and Tony Leung of Hero fame, this one is a no brain-er for me.
2) Hellboy
This was definitely in the Cheap category, but that doesn't change the fact that this Guiermo Del Toro helmed action fest is a lot of fun, often humorous, and Ron Perlman is perfectly cast as the titular Hellboy. Also, Kronen is a BA!
3) The Wrestler
I don't even want to get started on the validity of Pro Wrestling, it's a doomed argument. But when it comes down to it, this touching tale has less to do with wrestling and more to do with the Human Experience. Mickey Rourke is staggeringly good, as always, playing Randy "The Ram" Robinson, a man who once had it all thanks to his career. Now he has come to realize that his world fell apart around him as the consequences of his old life haunt him. It's subtle, simple, and magnificently shot. If you skip this one because it involves wrestling, you are doing yourself a disservice.
4) Army Of Darkness
What can I say, I'm a sucker for one-liners, and this camp classic is chock full of em. Behold!
This sequel to the Evil Dead movies is unabashed Bruce Campbell goodness and I love every minute of it! Klatuu. Barada. (Cough)to!
5) Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Based on the autobiographical book of the same name by the late Dr. Hunter S Thompson, this film covers a three day 'trip' to Las Vegas the good Dr. once took with his friend and lawyer. Loaded with hilarious lines, inspired performances, and psychedelic special effects, this film demonstrates what a spectacular director Terry Gilliam really is.
6) Inception
The naysayers of this Christopher Nolan Directed thriller will argue that a Complicated is not always a good plot. I say, shut up and watch the movie, naysayers. This is honestly one of the best movies I've seen in the last few years, and DiCaprio continues to win me over with another chilling performance.
7) The Last Samurai
You really have to love Ignorance sometimes. A lot of people dislike this movie because "Tom Cruise is the last Samurai," even though Cruise isn't the last Samurai, Ken Watanabe's character Katsumoto is. The irony being that the only reason Tom Cruise was put in this movie based on a true story that involved no westerners is because American audiences wont see a movie with an all Japanese cast in the theaters, unless you count Art houses. We need a white guy in there, because we can't relate to Asians. God, pisses me off just thinking about.
That being said, Tom Cruise dose an excellent job playing the part of the westerner's eye in this retelling of Dai Saigo's Last Stand.
8) Huo Yuanjia - AKA Jet Li's Fearless
Touted at the time as Jet Li's final Martial Arts film, this still stands, in my mind at least, as one of the greatest Wushu films. While the fights are epic and numerous, the story is the real reason I love this film so much, and Jet Li's acting is superb.
9) A Clockwork Orange
I honestly can't think of any way to describe this film. It is largely a procession of unsettling images of a dystopian future but the underlying story of law and lawlessness is potent. A darkly comic classic.
10) The Princess Bride
Do I even need to explain? one of my all time favorite movies.
Well, that's the list, now I think I'll go watch one of them. Anyone else remember their first Blu Ray/DVD/VHS?
The Good, The Bad, and the Weird
Hey again. Going forward, I think my reviews will be a little more about the asthetics of the subject and less about the story to cut down on the length. That said, here's a new one coming at you.
So whilst browsing through Netflix on my new Blu Ray player, I spotted this film. I had seen it the other day when I was shopping for Blu Ray movies. The title hooked me from the start, as it clearly seemed to be related to the Greatest Western of All time. Don't argue with me! Anyway, I looked at the case and realized that this film was a South Korean movie, which was another mark in it's favor. I decided to give it a look, mostly to see how the streaming would look on the new player, and very quickly realized that I was in for a heck of a good Action flick.
The film revolves around three key characters, and like other aspects of the movie, there is no doubt that these characters were at least inspired by Sergio Leone's classic, complete with shifting alliances. The stoic bounty hunter Park Do-Won, the obsessive gang leader Park Chang-yi, and the odd petty criminal Yong Tae-Goo. After Tae-Goo obtains a mysterious map during a train robbery, he discovers that it leads to something terribly valuable. It is the pursuit of this McGuffin that drives the plot from here. Tae-Goo is almost immediately attacked by Chang-yi and his gang, who appear to be after the map. The thief escapes only to be caught by Do-Won. The scenario eventually evolves into a race for the prize between the three main characters, two rival gangs, and the Japanese army itself. If you have seen enough westerns, it may be easy to call the shots as far as the story, but that doesn't do much to stop this from being an entertaining and action packed western-style bullet fest.
While the actors are all very skilled at playing their roles in the plot-driving quiet scenes, the gunfights are what make this film legendary. They are varied, creatively filmed and fast paced. I often found myself marveling at the level of activity.
Set in the Manchurian Desert in the early 20th century, when Imperial Japan was busy conquering much of China and Korea, this film takes place at a very historically interesting time. It is a time of contradictions. While the automobiles, Machine Guns, and Artillery are common for the military, the common people are frequently seen riding horses and wielding melee weapons along with their Rifles and six shooters. This makes for some varied and ofter one sided combat scenes, particularly the penultimate scene, which involves all the interested parties in a full tilt mounted gunfight with horsemen, military trucks, machine guns, artillery fire, jumping from vehicle to vehicle and too many awesome shots to take in on the first viewing. It just has to be seen.
Watch The Trailer!
As I've stated, I'm a big fan of Asian cinema in general, and South Korean filmmakers have been turning out some inspired films in recent years (Oldboy for example). This movie takes it's lessons from Westerns, but the film is undeniably a unique animal. I was inspired to give this film a look in part by my love of Sukiyaki Western Django, and I have to say that this movie has probably dethroned it as my favorite Western-Inspired Asian action film. It's just staggeringly good.
I give it 9 Opium Den Girls out of 10. Did I mention the Opium Den? That was hilarious!
So whilst browsing through Netflix on my new Blu Ray player, I spotted this film. I had seen it the other day when I was shopping for Blu Ray movies. The title hooked me from the start, as it clearly seemed to be related to the Greatest Western of All time. Don't argue with me! Anyway, I looked at the case and realized that this film was a South Korean movie, which was another mark in it's favor. I decided to give it a look, mostly to see how the streaming would look on the new player, and very quickly realized that I was in for a heck of a good Action flick.
The film revolves around three key characters, and like other aspects of the movie, there is no doubt that these characters were at least inspired by Sergio Leone's classic, complete with shifting alliances. The stoic bounty hunter Park Do-Won, the obsessive gang leader Park Chang-yi, and the odd petty criminal Yong Tae-Goo. After Tae-Goo obtains a mysterious map during a train robbery, he discovers that it leads to something terribly valuable. It is the pursuit of this McGuffin that drives the plot from here. Tae-Goo is almost immediately attacked by Chang-yi and his gang, who appear to be after the map. The thief escapes only to be caught by Do-Won. The scenario eventually evolves into a race for the prize between the three main characters, two rival gangs, and the Japanese army itself. If you have seen enough westerns, it may be easy to call the shots as far as the story, but that doesn't do much to stop this from being an entertaining and action packed western-style bullet fest.
While the actors are all very skilled at playing their roles in the plot-driving quiet scenes, the gunfights are what make this film legendary. They are varied, creatively filmed and fast paced. I often found myself marveling at the level of activity.
Set in the Manchurian Desert in the early 20th century, when Imperial Japan was busy conquering much of China and Korea, this film takes place at a very historically interesting time. It is a time of contradictions. While the automobiles, Machine Guns, and Artillery are common for the military, the common people are frequently seen riding horses and wielding melee weapons along with their Rifles and six shooters. This makes for some varied and ofter one sided combat scenes, particularly the penultimate scene, which involves all the interested parties in a full tilt mounted gunfight with horsemen, military trucks, machine guns, artillery fire, jumping from vehicle to vehicle and too many awesome shots to take in on the first viewing. It just has to be seen.
Watch The Trailer!
As I've stated, I'm a big fan of Asian cinema in general, and South Korean filmmakers have been turning out some inspired films in recent years (Oldboy for example). This movie takes it's lessons from Westerns, but the film is undeniably a unique animal. I was inspired to give this film a look in part by my love of Sukiyaki Western Django, and I have to say that this movie has probably dethroned it as my favorite Western-Inspired Asian action film. It's just staggeringly good.
I give it 9 Opium Den Girls out of 10. Did I mention the Opium Den? That was hilarious!
Friday, December 24, 2010
Saturday Anime: Christmas in Anime.
Merry Christmas! As promised, here comes the first edition of Saturday Anime.
To start off, I would like to direct your attention here as this link is where I got some of my examples for this article. Thanks to the original author!
So, Japan is a place where Animation has been one of the top forms of entertainment for decades. For example, Princess Mononoke, an animated fantasy epic and in my opinion the crowning achievement of Hayao Miyazaki's illustrious career, sold more tickets than Titanic in Japan. Japan is also a country that has known occupation by American Forces following World War II. As a result, there are some traditions that Americans brought with them that remain in one form or another. And Christmas is one of them.
As stated in the above link, in Japan, Christmas is quite a bit different, but also much the same as it is in traditionally Christian countries. While it is not a Holiday recognized by the Japanese Government and almost completely secular, it is still celebrated as a time of Exchanging Gifts, Romance, and an unearthly sense that the miraculous can come true in this special time of year. The Iconography revolves more around Santa, Gifts, Christmas Trees, and Cake than anything overtly religious. As a result of the romantic overtones attached to the Holiday in Japan, it if fairly common for anime with romantic overtones to include episodes or arcs that take place during Christmas.
Earlier this week, I watched a movie I always love this time of year. Tenchi Muyo: Manatsu no Eve. The second of the Tenchi movie trilogy, this one follows the events of the original OVA, which still ranks as my Favorite anime to date. While it isn't truly a Christmas Movie, as most of the events take place in the summer on Earth, some of the previously mentioned themes of Japanese Christmas are the driving force of the story. One typical summer day, Masaki Tenchi is surprised to find a young girl along the path to the old Masaki Shrine, and even more surprised when the girl claims to be his daughter. When Tenchi brings the girl, Mayuka, back to the Masaki house and the other girls here her claim, things get really interesting. As Mayuka and Ryoko clash verbally and physically, Washu quickly confirms that Mayuka is biologically Tenchi's Daughter. When Washu is unable to determine the identity of her mother and speculates that she must be from the future, the girls wonder if one of them could be Tenchi's eventual wife and Mayuka's Mother. However, Tenchi's Grandfather seems to knowingly intervene on the girls behalf and there is clearly something more to be known about Mayuka and here origins. As Mayuka befriends most of the girls while she stays at the house, they show her an album of photos taken from their Christmas Party the previous year. Mayuka becomes enamored with the holiday, and is overjoyed when Aeka and the others invite her to join their family and celebrate Christmas with them Next year. As events draw to their conclusion, Sasami reveals that it is Startica Season back on their home-world, and that Startica is very like Earth Christmas, even including decorating trees. Unfortunately, the sad truth of Mayuka's origin comes to light and tragedy strikes. The last act of the movie is heart wrenching, but in the final scene, a miracle occurs and restores the hope that Mayuka will celebrate Christmas with her new family.
Great Compilation Vid I found on YouTube: Spoilers!
Despite the fact that the majority of the film is not strictly a Christmas movie, I can't deny the fact that it gives me the Holiday's warm fuzzys.
A more direct example of the Japanese idea of Christmas in anime is the Love Hina Christmas Special. If you aren't familiar with Love Hina, I highly recommend it for a lot of the same reasons I recommend Tenchi Muyo.
The story revolves around Urashima Keitaro, a Ronin (Student who has studied for college entrance exams for over a year) who despite his poor performance in the past is determined to get into the toughest college in Japan, Tokyo U, in order to fulfill a childhood promise to a girl. Even though he has forgotten the identity of the girl, the memory of the promise drives him to continue to try. This is compounded by the fact that his grandmother leaves him in charge of the Hinata Inn, which has become an all-girls dorm. Not only does he have the added workload of running the dorm, but he is constantly distracted by the antics or attacks of it's tenants. However, one of the girls is also shooting for Tokyo U and eventually offers to help the hapless Keitaro study for the entrance exams. This girl, Narusegawa Naru, quickly becomes Keitaro's biggest distraction as he is besotted by her. From there, the primary narrative of the show revolves around Keitaro and Naru's could-be-couldn't-be romance, and this is still the case as the Christmas Special.
The Special primarily deals with the romantic aspects of Japanese Christmas. Naru is becoming frustrated with Keitaro, as his mock test scores have been slipping lately. What she doesn't know is that Keitaro's studies are suffering because he has taken a Holiday job, dressing as Santa to advertise Christmas Cakes (What did I tell you? It's all about the cake!) for a local bakery, in order to purchase a Christmas Gift for Naru. As the story unfolds, mishaps and miscommunications seem to doom the would-be/wont-be couple and all appears lost. However, a rumor of a matchmaking miracle and a last second turn around gives the viewer renewed hope that their relationship really does go deeper than mere study-buddies.
I love the feeling of hope that accompanies the ending of this special, and the romantic overtones of Japanese Christmas are in full force.
Overall, I like to watch several Christmas movies this time of year, but it just wouldn't be the Christmas Season without at least one of these flicks.
Anyway, that's all I have to say about that, I'll probably do a more traditional review next Saturday for Saturday Anime and I try to post a list of my 10 favorite Christmas shows/movies/whatever. Merry Christmas!
To start off, I would like to direct your attention here as this link is where I got some of my examples for this article. Thanks to the original author!
So, Japan is a place where Animation has been one of the top forms of entertainment for decades. For example, Princess Mononoke, an animated fantasy epic and in my opinion the crowning achievement of Hayao Miyazaki's illustrious career, sold more tickets than Titanic in Japan. Japan is also a country that has known occupation by American Forces following World War II. As a result, there are some traditions that Americans brought with them that remain in one form or another. And Christmas is one of them.
As stated in the above link, in Japan, Christmas is quite a bit different, but also much the same as it is in traditionally Christian countries. While it is not a Holiday recognized by the Japanese Government and almost completely secular, it is still celebrated as a time of Exchanging Gifts, Romance, and an unearthly sense that the miraculous can come true in this special time of year. The Iconography revolves more around Santa, Gifts, Christmas Trees, and Cake than anything overtly religious. As a result of the romantic overtones attached to the Holiday in Japan, it if fairly common for anime with romantic overtones to include episodes or arcs that take place during Christmas.
Earlier this week, I watched a movie I always love this time of year. Tenchi Muyo: Manatsu no Eve. The second of the Tenchi movie trilogy, this one follows the events of the original OVA, which still ranks as my Favorite anime to date. While it isn't truly a Christmas Movie, as most of the events take place in the summer on Earth, some of the previously mentioned themes of Japanese Christmas are the driving force of the story. One typical summer day, Masaki Tenchi is surprised to find a young girl along the path to the old Masaki Shrine, and even more surprised when the girl claims to be his daughter. When Tenchi brings the girl, Mayuka, back to the Masaki house and the other girls here her claim, things get really interesting. As Mayuka and Ryoko clash verbally and physically, Washu quickly confirms that Mayuka is biologically Tenchi's Daughter. When Washu is unable to determine the identity of her mother and speculates that she must be from the future, the girls wonder if one of them could be Tenchi's eventual wife and Mayuka's Mother. However, Tenchi's Grandfather seems to knowingly intervene on the girls behalf and there is clearly something more to be known about Mayuka and here origins. As Mayuka befriends most of the girls while she stays at the house, they show her an album of photos taken from their Christmas Party the previous year. Mayuka becomes enamored with the holiday, and is overjoyed when Aeka and the others invite her to join their family and celebrate Christmas with them Next year. As events draw to their conclusion, Sasami reveals that it is Startica Season back on their home-world, and that Startica is very like Earth Christmas, even including decorating trees. Unfortunately, the sad truth of Mayuka's origin comes to light and tragedy strikes. The last act of the movie is heart wrenching, but in the final scene, a miracle occurs and restores the hope that Mayuka will celebrate Christmas with her new family.
Great Compilation Vid I found on YouTube: Spoilers!
Despite the fact that the majority of the film is not strictly a Christmas movie, I can't deny the fact that it gives me the Holiday's warm fuzzys.
A more direct example of the Japanese idea of Christmas in anime is the Love Hina Christmas Special. If you aren't familiar with Love Hina, I highly recommend it for a lot of the same reasons I recommend Tenchi Muyo.
The story revolves around Urashima Keitaro, a Ronin (Student who has studied for college entrance exams for over a year) who despite his poor performance in the past is determined to get into the toughest college in Japan, Tokyo U, in order to fulfill a childhood promise to a girl. Even though he has forgotten the identity of the girl, the memory of the promise drives him to continue to try. This is compounded by the fact that his grandmother leaves him in charge of the Hinata Inn, which has become an all-girls dorm. Not only does he have the added workload of running the dorm, but he is constantly distracted by the antics or attacks of it's tenants. However, one of the girls is also shooting for Tokyo U and eventually offers to help the hapless Keitaro study for the entrance exams. This girl, Narusegawa Naru, quickly becomes Keitaro's biggest distraction as he is besotted by her. From there, the primary narrative of the show revolves around Keitaro and Naru's could-be-couldn't-be romance, and this is still the case as the Christmas Special.
The Special primarily deals with the romantic aspects of Japanese Christmas. Naru is becoming frustrated with Keitaro, as his mock test scores have been slipping lately. What she doesn't know is that Keitaro's studies are suffering because he has taken a Holiday job, dressing as Santa to advertise Christmas Cakes (What did I tell you? It's all about the cake!) for a local bakery, in order to purchase a Christmas Gift for Naru. As the story unfolds, mishaps and miscommunications seem to doom the would-be/wont-be couple and all appears lost. However, a rumor of a matchmaking miracle and a last second turn around gives the viewer renewed hope that their relationship really does go deeper than mere study-buddies.
I love the feeling of hope that accompanies the ending of this special, and the romantic overtones of Japanese Christmas are in full force.
Overall, I like to watch several Christmas movies this time of year, but it just wouldn't be the Christmas Season without at least one of these flicks.
Anyway, that's all I have to say about that, I'll probably do a more traditional review next Saturday for Saturday Anime and I try to post a list of my 10 favorite Christmas shows/movies/whatever. Merry Christmas!
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Going forward.
So, it's clear I don't really have anyone reading this yet, and that's cool. I'm just having fun doing it. However, I just wanted to put this up since, for me, having it on a site or whatever makes it feel official and helps me stick to it.
So, I've got a few movies that are coming out soon in mind for a review treatment. Tron: Legacy this week, and True Grit the next, which I am extremely excited to check out. I plan to use this as an excuse to go to more movies in the theater, since I've not been doing that as much.
I'll likely talk from time to time about stuff that's coming soon that I am interested in.
I'd like to do some more Classic Reviews too, I had a ton of fun with Django and I have plenty of movies in mind that scream "Why Haven't I seen that yet?"
I've got a few games that I've been neglecting lately that I might get back to soon, and when that happens, expect some insight on those. First in that area will likely be my thoughts on Cataclysm, the latest Warcraft expansion.
I had a great Idea to bring back the spirit of The Sci Fi Channel's old Saturday Anime programming slot by having a weekly viewing of some anime, either favorites from my personal collection or something new off Netflix Streaming. Gives me an excuse to watch some "cartoons" on Saturday mornings again. I may also shake it up by throwing in a Samurai movie from time to time.
You can bet I'll be talking about anything new from Dir En Grey, and probably some other bands too.
Anyway, like I say, Don't even know if anyone will read it, but I plan to do it anyway for laughs.
So, I've got a few movies that are coming out soon in mind for a review treatment. Tron: Legacy this week, and True Grit the next, which I am extremely excited to check out. I plan to use this as an excuse to go to more movies in the theater, since I've not been doing that as much.
I'll likely talk from time to time about stuff that's coming soon that I am interested in.
I'd like to do some more Classic Reviews too, I had a ton of fun with Django and I have plenty of movies in mind that scream "Why Haven't I seen that yet?"
I've got a few games that I've been neglecting lately that I might get back to soon, and when that happens, expect some insight on those. First in that area will likely be my thoughts on Cataclysm, the latest Warcraft expansion.
I had a great Idea to bring back the spirit of The Sci Fi Channel's old Saturday Anime programming slot by having a weekly viewing of some anime, either favorites from my personal collection or something new off Netflix Streaming. Gives me an excuse to watch some "cartoons" on Saturday mornings again. I may also shake it up by throwing in a Samurai movie from time to time.
You can bet I'll be talking about anything new from Dir En Grey, and probably some other bands too.
Anyway, like I say, Don't even know if anyone will read it, but I plan to do it anyway for laughs.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Classic Review: Django
In recent years, I've been gaining a much greater appreciation for the Spaghetti Western. Few fans or historians will dispute the fact that such movies present an absurd representation of the Old West. Still, it's hard to deny the charms of a movie where one steely eyed man can outwit, outshoot, and possibly most important of all, out quip roving gangs of toughs or even whole army battalions get the girl/treasure/McGuffin/Last Laugh and ride off into the sunset. That said, it quickly became clear that Django was right up my Alley.
The film opens with a scene of our main character, the titular Django (pronounced Jango FYI) in a ragged Union Army outfit, dragging a coffin through the mud. The camera stays at his back and we don't see his face under his wide brimmed hat. He isn't on a horse, and he is pulling his dubious cargo with grim determination. As was common with most spaghetti westerns, an oddly passionate song that can only be described as a Spaghetti Ballad accompanies this scene. These songs a very common in the opening credits of Spaghetti Westerns, and for some reason I just love em.
Behold.
Right away, the viewer can't help but be intrigued by the morbid parcel Django drags. The coffin is old, muddy and rugged. What's in there? Why does he drag it everywhere he goes? Why does he forbid people to inspect it?
As the film opens, Django stands on the edge of a valley as unfortunate scene is playing out, silently observing. A woman is being whipped by a group of Mexican bandits who are shortly dispatched by several former confederate riders. Rather than rescue the distressed damsel, it turns out these men are planning to burn her alive for an apparent betrayal. As they prepare her for her grisly fate, Django interjects and the confederates inform him that his service in the Union Army has doomed him. Django is quick to apologize for the offense... and even quicker to gun them all down. The girl, Maria, thanks him for intervening, but Django insists "I didn't do it for you."
Maria, Django, and the coffin arrive in a nearly deserted town. The owner of the town saloon let's Django know that he and his "girls" are the only civilians who remain, as the town has become a sort of Neutral Zone for a turf war. On one side, General Rodriguez and his Mexican outlaws. On the other, Major Jackson and his Militant KKK followers. A spy for Jackson reports Maria's arrival and the mysterious stranger she arrived with. Shortly thereafter, Jackson and some of his men and confront Django. Talks quickly break down, and Django dispatches all of the Major's thugs in spectacular fashion. Steely eyed Django asks the major how many men he has left, to which the Major replies he has 48. Django lets him go and tells him to come back with all of them, so they will have a chance next time.
As he prepares for the major's return, Django drags the coffin outside and crouches behind a log in front of the Saloon. Nathaniel, the owner, asks how Django expects to fight off all of the Major's men without help. Django glances at the coffin and replies "I've got all the help I need."
The Major returns with his Posse, and they slowly close in on the saloon. As they approach, Django opens the coffin, and then... All hell breaks loose.
And that is just the first third of the film. From there, a twisting series events leads to a truly epic conclusion.
It goes without saying that Django is a classic. So many of the scenes are iconic and so often rehashed in other movies. The pacing of the movie can best be described as a roller coaster. Slow valleys, High peaks, and break neck drops. Django must have the highest ratio of minutes to plot twists in film history. At first, our protagonist can hardly be called a hero, serving his own interests above everything else. However, by the end, an epically selfless act reveals that Django is a man haunted by the past, but that deep down he is not a bad person. The climax of the movie has to be seen. It is as iconic as western movies get.
Visually the film is constantly interesting, and the music fits perfectly with the pacing of the different scenes. The primary actors are all excellent, Franco Nero as Django in particular. His portrayal of the hard as nails, mysterious gunman became a staple of westerns and few have pulled it off as well.
If there is one thing that drags down this film, it is the rather unfortunate dubbing of the English translation. There are times when it seems as though no consideration given to the pacing of the vocals matching that of the actors on screen. The voices are often very good, Django's in particular, but some of the background characters voices are atrocious. This is a common problem with Spaghetti Westerns in general, so it's not surprising, but it's still a shame when considering how excellent the film is otherwise.
All in all, I recommend this film to any lover of westerns, and a lover of classic cinema in general should find plenty to enjoy here.
9.5 Mysterious Coffins out of 10.
The film opens with a scene of our main character, the titular Django (pronounced Jango FYI) in a ragged Union Army outfit, dragging a coffin through the mud. The camera stays at his back and we don't see his face under his wide brimmed hat. He isn't on a horse, and he is pulling his dubious cargo with grim determination. As was common with most spaghetti westerns, an oddly passionate song that can only be described as a Spaghetti Ballad accompanies this scene. These songs a very common in the opening credits of Spaghetti Westerns, and for some reason I just love em.
Behold.
Right away, the viewer can't help but be intrigued by the morbid parcel Django drags. The coffin is old, muddy and rugged. What's in there? Why does he drag it everywhere he goes? Why does he forbid people to inspect it?
As the film opens, Django stands on the edge of a valley as unfortunate scene is playing out, silently observing. A woman is being whipped by a group of Mexican bandits who are shortly dispatched by several former confederate riders. Rather than rescue the distressed damsel, it turns out these men are planning to burn her alive for an apparent betrayal. As they prepare her for her grisly fate, Django interjects and the confederates inform him that his service in the Union Army has doomed him. Django is quick to apologize for the offense... and even quicker to gun them all down. The girl, Maria, thanks him for intervening, but Django insists "I didn't do it for you."
Maria, Django, and the coffin arrive in a nearly deserted town. The owner of the town saloon let's Django know that he and his "girls" are the only civilians who remain, as the town has become a sort of Neutral Zone for a turf war. On one side, General Rodriguez and his Mexican outlaws. On the other, Major Jackson and his Militant KKK followers. A spy for Jackson reports Maria's arrival and the mysterious stranger she arrived with. Shortly thereafter, Jackson and some of his men and confront Django. Talks quickly break down, and Django dispatches all of the Major's thugs in spectacular fashion. Steely eyed Django asks the major how many men he has left, to which the Major replies he has 48. Django lets him go and tells him to come back with all of them, so they will have a chance next time.
As he prepares for the major's return, Django drags the coffin outside and crouches behind a log in front of the Saloon. Nathaniel, the owner, asks how Django expects to fight off all of the Major's men without help. Django glances at the coffin and replies "I've got all the help I need."
The Major returns with his Posse, and they slowly close in on the saloon. As they approach, Django opens the coffin, and then... All hell breaks loose.
And that is just the first third of the film. From there, a twisting series events leads to a truly epic conclusion.
It goes without saying that Django is a classic. So many of the scenes are iconic and so often rehashed in other movies. The pacing of the movie can best be described as a roller coaster. Slow valleys, High peaks, and break neck drops. Django must have the highest ratio of minutes to plot twists in film history. At first, our protagonist can hardly be called a hero, serving his own interests above everything else. However, by the end, an epically selfless act reveals that Django is a man haunted by the past, but that deep down he is not a bad person. The climax of the movie has to be seen. It is as iconic as western movies get.
Visually the film is constantly interesting, and the music fits perfectly with the pacing of the different scenes. The primary actors are all excellent, Franco Nero as Django in particular. His portrayal of the hard as nails, mysterious gunman became a staple of westerns and few have pulled it off as well.
If there is one thing that drags down this film, it is the rather unfortunate dubbing of the English translation. There are times when it seems as though no consideration given to the pacing of the vocals matching that of the actors on screen. The voices are often very good, Django's in particular, but some of the background characters voices are atrocious. This is a common problem with Spaghetti Westerns in general, so it's not surprising, but it's still a shame when considering how excellent the film is otherwise.
All in all, I recommend this film to any lover of westerns, and a lover of classic cinema in general should find plenty to enjoy here.
9.5 Mysterious Coffins out of 10.
Friday, December 17, 2010
The Warrior's Way
I know, this took a lot longer than I meant it too. Sorry about that.
So, a while back I saw the previews for The Warrior's Way on YouTube and TV etc, and I was instantly interested in seeing it. Geoffrey Rush is always a draw on me, Not to mention Kate Bosworth, Tony Cox doing what he does, and Danny Huston as a vile gunslinging villain and my interest is already piqued. Add to that Dong-Gun Jang, whose work I had not yet seen, but I had heard good things. As a fan of Sukiyaki Western Django, when I realized that the setting of the movie was the American Old West and the protagonist was an Asian Assassin on the run from his own clan, and I knew I was sold. Ninjas Vs. Cowboys? Yes Please!
So how did it hold up against my expectations? Overall, very well.
The story revolves around Yang (Dong-Gun Jang), an assassin of vague Asian origin. The film never comes right out and says where he is from. During the opening sequence, Yang faces off against a group of rival assassins, led by a man who is said to be the greatest swordsman in the world. After a frenzied fight with the lower minions, Yang dispatches their leader with a single stroke and claims the title of greatest swordsman for himself. Upon inspecting the package the assassins were defending, Yang discovers it contains a baby girl. This girl is revealed to be the last member of the rival clan Yang was sworn to destroy, but he can't bring himself to murder an innocent child. Instead, he peace bonds his sword, swears never to kill again, and flees to America to escape the wrath of his clan, taking the child with him.
When he arrives in the town a friend told him about, said friend is long gone, and his debts condemn Yang to running the Laundry business (ugh) he left behind. The town is also inhabited by the members of a circus, including Lynne (Kate Bosworth) the failed knife thrower with a tragic past who becomes the focus of the film in the second act, 8 Ball (Tony Cox) a little person Fixer who befriends Yang, and Ron (Geoffrey Rush) the town drunk who was once a feared sharpshooter.
Besides the opening action sequence establishing Yang's motivation, the first act is pretty dismal, to be honest. I was very worried that my interest had been misplaced when I heard Kate Bosworth's Annie Oakley delivery of her lines and realized that Yang was being portrayed as the Mysterious Asian Guy with only a few lines we've seen in so many other movies as well as the stilted dialogue, my enthusiasm for the film waned severely. One high point in the early parts of the movie comes when Yang teaches Lynne to throw knives and sword fight, as well as trusting in her own instinct and ability. Predictably, Lynne falls for the emotionally distant Yang, though he later reveals that he feels the same.
When we come around to the second act, we learn more about Lynne's past and we are introduced to our main antagonist, the leader of a gang of roving brigands known simply as the Colonel (Danny Houston). The Colonel is easily the most twisted, interesting character in the film. He and Lynne have a past, which earned him a scarred face he covers with a leather half mask. His bandits are little more than psychotic thugs who are more interested in tormenting the townsfolk than stealing goods. They take over the Inn and Saloon in town and further antagonize the townsfolk. During the second act Lynne infiltrates the inn by posing as a prostitute in order to get close to the Colonel. At the same time, Yang's vow of non-violence is tested as the barbarism of the Colonels men escalates, and he at last breaks it and the peace bond on his sword when news reaches him that Lynne was found out and captured by the colonel. The second act ends with a pretty spectacular action sequence of Yang driving out the Colonel and his men and organizing the townsfolk's resistance to their eventual return. This is when we learn of Ron's past as a gunfighter and sharpshooter who also vowed never to kill again. He sobers up and digs up his cache of firearms in the local grave yard to aid in the defense of the town.
Without spoiling anything, the third act sees the Colonel's men return. To complicate matters, Yang's past at last catches up to him. The last act is an unapologetic action fest with over the top sword fights and gun play that crosses into the realm of Ludicrously entertaining action movies like Versus, Death Trance (AKA Dir En Grey: the Movie!), and Dead or Alive. Towards the end, there is an insanely awesome bullet trick and a duel in classic Samurai movie style. In all the ending is very satisfying.
The Warriors Way is one of those movies that seems to start out with good intentions and some interesting Ideas, but suffers from the problem of trying to do too much in one movie. The majority of the first half of the movie could be easily skipped, and the end would still be entertaining, but for some reason the formulaic exposition of the characters eats up big chunks of time. This would be less of a problem if the characters were less interchangeable with action movie trope characters you get in all movies like this. Yang ends up coming off as "Stereotypical Asian Warrior" more than anything else. He is basically Grave from Death Trance, only not nearly as animated. Lynne becomes far more interesting when her revenge plot takes center stage, as she is a terribly accented tough Southern girl up till that point. The only character who really shines is Geoffrey Rush's Ron, mostly due to Rush's performance, but even he is the classic western gun fighter who swears not to fire a gun. A trope that is well worn in westerns. Yang, Lynne, and Ron all have lengthy Origin scenes, all of which could have been much better done in allusions and brief flashbacks throughout the opening acts. Honestly, the movie would have been much better off if Yang had simply wandered into the American town with a baby hanging from his sword in the opening minutes without any explanation. Revealing his back story in the opening scene gives him very little to do in the following acts besides "be mysterious." Lynne's back story served to demonstrate what a vile bastard the Colonel is and why she hates him, but it took too long to get going, her motivation was far from original, and by the time it's over, you forget what was going on in the movie proper. Ron's story is handled right, with only hints early on that he is anything but a drunk, then a brief exposition of why he stopped fighting and turned to the bottle. It's simple and compelling.
Visually, the film has some rough spots, mostly involving the CG. There are plenty of action scenes that scream "This is CG!" It is a minor annoyance that only really distracted from the cool factor of the scenes themselves a couple of times. The run-down western town setting of the film is pretty spectacular in my opinion, and the costuming and makeup is overall very good.
Sound is one of the strong points of the film. The soundtrack is very similar to that of Sukiyaki Western Django, with Spaghetti Western and Samurai Movie tones. If the soundtrack is available, I'd be tempted to pick it up.
Overall, I found the movie enjoyable. It wasn't quite what I expected, but it delivered some very entertaining action and a decent story in the second half of the film. And while the first half of the film is weighed down by poor pacing and mediocre humor, it isn't enough to prevent one from enjoying the much more interesting second half with a little patience.
Final Score: 7 Sliced Bullets out of 10.
So, a while back I saw the previews for The Warrior's Way on YouTube and TV etc, and I was instantly interested in seeing it. Geoffrey Rush is always a draw on me, Not to mention Kate Bosworth, Tony Cox doing what he does, and Danny Huston as a vile gunslinging villain and my interest is already piqued. Add to that Dong-Gun Jang, whose work I had not yet seen, but I had heard good things. As a fan of Sukiyaki Western Django, when I realized that the setting of the movie was the American Old West and the protagonist was an Asian Assassin on the run from his own clan, and I knew I was sold. Ninjas Vs. Cowboys? Yes Please!
So how did it hold up against my expectations? Overall, very well.
The story revolves around Yang (Dong-Gun Jang), an assassin of vague Asian origin. The film never comes right out and says where he is from. During the opening sequence, Yang faces off against a group of rival assassins, led by a man who is said to be the greatest swordsman in the world. After a frenzied fight with the lower minions, Yang dispatches their leader with a single stroke and claims the title of greatest swordsman for himself. Upon inspecting the package the assassins were defending, Yang discovers it contains a baby girl. This girl is revealed to be the last member of the rival clan Yang was sworn to destroy, but he can't bring himself to murder an innocent child. Instead, he peace bonds his sword, swears never to kill again, and flees to America to escape the wrath of his clan, taking the child with him.
When he arrives in the town a friend told him about, said friend is long gone, and his debts condemn Yang to running the Laundry business (ugh) he left behind. The town is also inhabited by the members of a circus, including Lynne (Kate Bosworth) the failed knife thrower with a tragic past who becomes the focus of the film in the second act, 8 Ball (Tony Cox) a little person Fixer who befriends Yang, and Ron (Geoffrey Rush) the town drunk who was once a feared sharpshooter.
Besides the opening action sequence establishing Yang's motivation, the first act is pretty dismal, to be honest. I was very worried that my interest had been misplaced when I heard Kate Bosworth's Annie Oakley delivery of her lines and realized that Yang was being portrayed as the Mysterious Asian Guy with only a few lines we've seen in so many other movies as well as the stilted dialogue, my enthusiasm for the film waned severely. One high point in the early parts of the movie comes when Yang teaches Lynne to throw knives and sword fight, as well as trusting in her own instinct and ability. Predictably, Lynne falls for the emotionally distant Yang, though he later reveals that he feels the same.
When we come around to the second act, we learn more about Lynne's past and we are introduced to our main antagonist, the leader of a gang of roving brigands known simply as the Colonel (Danny Houston). The Colonel is easily the most twisted, interesting character in the film. He and Lynne have a past, which earned him a scarred face he covers with a leather half mask. His bandits are little more than psychotic thugs who are more interested in tormenting the townsfolk than stealing goods. They take over the Inn and Saloon in town and further antagonize the townsfolk. During the second act Lynne infiltrates the inn by posing as a prostitute in order to get close to the Colonel. At the same time, Yang's vow of non-violence is tested as the barbarism of the Colonels men escalates, and he at last breaks it and the peace bond on his sword when news reaches him that Lynne was found out and captured by the colonel. The second act ends with a pretty spectacular action sequence of Yang driving out the Colonel and his men and organizing the townsfolk's resistance to their eventual return. This is when we learn of Ron's past as a gunfighter and sharpshooter who also vowed never to kill again. He sobers up and digs up his cache of firearms in the local grave yard to aid in the defense of the town.
Without spoiling anything, the third act sees the Colonel's men return. To complicate matters, Yang's past at last catches up to him. The last act is an unapologetic action fest with over the top sword fights and gun play that crosses into the realm of Ludicrously entertaining action movies like Versus, Death Trance (AKA Dir En Grey: the Movie!), and Dead or Alive. Towards the end, there is an insanely awesome bullet trick and a duel in classic Samurai movie style. In all the ending is very satisfying.
The Warriors Way is one of those movies that seems to start out with good intentions and some interesting Ideas, but suffers from the problem of trying to do too much in one movie. The majority of the first half of the movie could be easily skipped, and the end would still be entertaining, but for some reason the formulaic exposition of the characters eats up big chunks of time. This would be less of a problem if the characters were less interchangeable with action movie trope characters you get in all movies like this. Yang ends up coming off as "Stereotypical Asian Warrior" more than anything else. He is basically Grave from Death Trance, only not nearly as animated. Lynne becomes far more interesting when her revenge plot takes center stage, as she is a terribly accented tough Southern girl up till that point. The only character who really shines is Geoffrey Rush's Ron, mostly due to Rush's performance, but even he is the classic western gun fighter who swears not to fire a gun. A trope that is well worn in westerns. Yang, Lynne, and Ron all have lengthy Origin scenes, all of which could have been much better done in allusions and brief flashbacks throughout the opening acts. Honestly, the movie would have been much better off if Yang had simply wandered into the American town with a baby hanging from his sword in the opening minutes without any explanation. Revealing his back story in the opening scene gives him very little to do in the following acts besides "be mysterious." Lynne's back story served to demonstrate what a vile bastard the Colonel is and why she hates him, but it took too long to get going, her motivation was far from original, and by the time it's over, you forget what was going on in the movie proper. Ron's story is handled right, with only hints early on that he is anything but a drunk, then a brief exposition of why he stopped fighting and turned to the bottle. It's simple and compelling.
Visually, the film has some rough spots, mostly involving the CG. There are plenty of action scenes that scream "This is CG!" It is a minor annoyance that only really distracted from the cool factor of the scenes themselves a couple of times. The run-down western town setting of the film is pretty spectacular in my opinion, and the costuming and makeup is overall very good.
Sound is one of the strong points of the film. The soundtrack is very similar to that of Sukiyaki Western Django, with Spaghetti Western and Samurai Movie tones. If the soundtrack is available, I'd be tempted to pick it up.
Overall, I found the movie enjoyable. It wasn't quite what I expected, but it delivered some very entertaining action and a decent story in the second half of the film. And while the first half of the film is weighed down by poor pacing and mediocre humor, it isn't enough to prevent one from enjoying the much more interesting second half with a little patience.
Final Score: 7 Sliced Bullets out of 10.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Heya,
Greetings, salutations, and whatnot.
So, I'm a pretty opinionated person as a rule. I always feel like I could easily write reviews about different things I've seen, heard, played, etc. So, at last I'm going to give it a whirl.
My credentials are as follows: I'm a bit of a nerd. Seriously, I'm no expert, this is just what I think about the movies, music, games, an so forth that I have personally witnessed. I'll probably do full reviews after I've partaken of something new, and since I know how much people love to hate Top 10 type lists, I'll probably do a few of those.
For the time being, please be patient with me, as far as adding links, pic, credits go, I'm completely new to this blogging thing. I will have my first entry up shortly, it will be a review of the new action film "The Warrior's Way" starring Dong-Gun Jang, Geoffry Rush, and Kate Bosworth.
PS: I went with the name "My 12 Cents" because I figure I will almost always have 6 different opinions about any one thing, heh.
So, I'm a pretty opinionated person as a rule. I always feel like I could easily write reviews about different things I've seen, heard, played, etc. So, at last I'm going to give it a whirl.
My credentials are as follows: I'm a bit of a nerd. Seriously, I'm no expert, this is just what I think about the movies, music, games, an so forth that I have personally witnessed. I'll probably do full reviews after I've partaken of something new, and since I know how much people love to hate Top 10 type lists, I'll probably do a few of those.
For the time being, please be patient with me, as far as adding links, pic, credits go, I'm completely new to this blogging thing. I will have my first entry up shortly, it will be a review of the new action film "The Warrior's Way" starring Dong-Gun Jang, Geoffry Rush, and Kate Bosworth.
PS: I went with the name "My 12 Cents" because I figure I will almost always have 6 different opinions about any one thing, heh.
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