New Review: Pacific Rim

      The only regret I have with Pacific Rim is that I did not see it sooner. When I saw the first trailer I was hooked, my fanboy senses were tingling and I officially entered into my media blackout. A method I would like to add, has preserved the magic of countless entertainment experiences by actively avoiding every new trailer, piece of news, and off hand comment made between the time you get psyched and when you finally see your highly anticipated event. Now I use the word event because aside from it being a nice generic term for my rant about the irritations of media today, it fits this movie to a 'T'.

     For those who do not know, the movie is about giant monsters and robots fighting each other (that is it, stop looking for more). Humanity is teetering on the brink of destruction and the best an brightest of us figured that the funnest thing to delay this conclusion/whittle the time away is to kick A LOT of ass before the clock runs down. It is in this capacity that the movie shines as it wallows in its extremely destructible sandbox, and we ride a wave of demolition that will have you on the edge of your seat and in awe of the most fluid and entertaining action you will ever see. 

Overall: Some will complain about flat characters and diminished world building, but those issues are mere road side attractions on your way to Disney World. None of the movie's problems are anywhere heinous enough to distract from the best action scenes I have seen in a movie ever. The atmosphere is intense, the detail amazing, and the pace is brisk.

Bottomline: 4.5/5 WATCH IT NOW! While there are minor problems and a moderately missed opportunity for the plot to grow, the spectacle contained here deserves to be seen on the big screen as it fulfills every possible expectation you could have in a movie like this.

in short, prepare to look like this guy by the end of it all.

Unusual Suspect: In the Electric Mist

It is really who you know not what you know that provides the biggest sparks in a person's life. Drive, determination, pride, quality, all are necessary but all can be and are completely overlooked too often. I go off on this tangent because i only found this movie researching a secondary character on "six feet under" and realized the actress was in a movie with Tommy Lee Jones. I look it up and become thoroughly intrigued by its rather vague description. Figuring there have only been a few times Tommy has screwed me, i give it a chance.


Here Tommy Lee Jones is Dave Robicheaux a detective in Louisiana who is investigating the death of a woman in a series of murders that all seem to have a connection to John Goodman, a budding hollywood producer with his claws thoroughly entrenched in the small town politics. His investigation takes him to some disturbing places as he is guided by confederate soldiers. 

Overall:
The entire movie is dripping with atmosphere as Jones beautifully narrates his progress and exploration of the unique characters that litter the landscape and progress the story. All this is done while injecting some sudden and intense action scenes creating a wonderful pacing structure akin to mixing a book reading with action scenes from "Taken". However its weaknesses lie in its strength's, the movie is a novel adaptation and where introducing characters and surreal concepts like the confederate soldiers and the six feet under character can add perspective, here it just serves to clog up the logic of the plot. 

Bottomline: 3.5; high, Rent it: The exploration of the characters and the atmosphere is wonderful but too bulky to be excellent. 
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(in scar's voice) "I killed Movie Gallery!!"

New Review: Seeking a Friend for the End of the World

 When "Seeking a Friend for the End of the World" came out in June I was really excited to see it, but I was rather short on funds and time, running around doing cool birthday things. Well I finally saw it over the weekend and I have been itching to talk about it since.

In the film Steve Carrell 'Dodge' and Keira Knightley 'Penny' join forces as the world lurches to its doom upon hearing the news that a 70 mile wide comet is about to destroy all life on the planet. While the exploration of humanity facing its mortality is hilarious at times that is totally not what the movie is about and is entirely mis-marketed as a source of cheap apocalypse jokes. Instead it focuses on the friendship and eventual love that penny and dodge grow together and is all the better for it.



Overall: the apocalypse jokes here are really good but they are comic relief in a movie that is about the finding of love in a dieing world. The performances are top notch, unfortunately they are played to a realistic deadpan as the 2 characters slowly pull each other out of their end of the world despair. The result however is a terrific ending that displays the changes made throughout the journey. 

Bottomline: 5 WATCH IT NOW!!! it is touching and funny and you heart will thank me for making it smile.

Are you really going to let them beat you to this movie?

New Review: Bachelorette

I saw Kirsten Dunst on Leno a few weeks ago and heard her talking about this new comedy she was in called "Bachelorette". So I figured what the heck I like Kirsten Dunst and I have not seen her in a comedy since "Drop Dead Gorgeous."

Here Dunst is joined by Lizzy Caplan, and Isla Fisher as the group of old high school friends called in to fill out the wedding party as Rebel Wilson prepares for the upcoming nuptuals. Facing the understandable frustration of getting beat to the altar, the 3 friends gather the night before the wedding for one more big party. The women then proceed to race through the night dealing with more  consequences than the dad who tried to give the mouse a cookie.


Overall: While Bachelorette continually stumbles into some of the most blatant, cringe inducing scenes we have all seen in comedies before, the pieces do eventually fall into a heartfelt conclusion.

Bottomline 2.5 skip it unless you are desperate for something funny.

The way back files: Full Metal Jacket

In this edition of "The way back files" I discuss Full Metal Jacket. Part of the "Vietnam trilogy" i had developed in my mind of well reviewed movies about Vietnam consisting of platoon, apocalypse now, and Full Metal Jacket. They all carried a general description of depicting hellish conditions through characters who see things get worse as the movie progresses. So with the 25th anniversary of full metal jacket recently passed i decided to really test these old notions and gave it a go.

Full Metal Jacket is a movie very much in 2 parts. From the perspective of the "maggots" the movie begins in basic training where R. Lee Ermey uses his drill instructor background to create a character that twists your stomach in knots till part 1 comes to a shocking halt leaving part 2 with a lot to live up to. Utilizing a constant influx of characters and personalities the film tries to indepthly view all the different points the soldier is stripped of his old identity till he can kill.  

Part one in basic training is superbly done and terrifying. However i can not help but feel the movie as a whole was too eager to depict the despicable nature of war and the dehumanizing effect it has on soldiers to the point that i was left without anyone to feel sad for. 

Bottomline: worth the watch still a 3

a new hope...err blog

HA i am clever using a star wars reference in what will probably be a home for my more nerdy and nitpicky opinions. You see i have been watching a lot of movies and tv and while facebook is a fine medium to express those opinions they get a little lost amidst the funny pictures of cats. So i decided to create my very own blog to pass ultimate judgement on entertainment, flaunt the occasional fasntasy roster or whatever I want to show off more than usual.

I said it a while ago on facebook but my reviews are done in a similar vein as those seen on rotten tomatoes short to the point and with a version of a 5 star system that i will routinely split the difference on.

While numbers are all well an good most of us like a little linguistic information to go with them.

I developed my idea based around a home viewing market in all its incarnations.

the rating system is as follows and fairly explanatory:

5  WATCH IT NOW!!!! drop the baby, quit the cpr. This is so good you will be happier having watched it.

4   Buy it. Your hard drive is already full of enough... stuff as it is don't clog it up any more, just buy it. Your future probation worker and I will thank you.

 

3   rent it. basically a rental or saturday tv movie this is something that has a cool idea that you do not want to inconvenience yourself to try and see.

2   skip it. a show that is just so forgettable, repetitive, or maddening you will be better off not watching it.

1 BURN IT WITH FIRE!!! reserved for the most deplorable of content that dares to call itself entertainment. the only appropriate response is to burn any physical representation of these things with fire so that no other mortal soul has to experience your pain again.

Well there it is my first blog post i am gonna be posting some reviews here shortly. I would like to thank carolyn hutchinson for helping me work out with the name and because she did so here is the picture she demanded i instill this picture.