Legion Movie Review

 

Angels are the new demons. In truth, straight to video followers have known this since The Prophecy swooped down in 1995. There’s nothing in Scott Stewart’s directorial debut to match the black comedy swagger of that stylish low budgeter, and Paul Bettany’s heavenly rebel pales in comparison to the gloriously laidback malevolence of Christopher Walken’s anti-angel. That said, Legion isn’t without a little light controversy and some interesting ideas.

The film’s Christian-baiting premise is a simple one. God has grown weary of mankind’s selfish warring, so he sends a legion of angels to cull his creations. However, the archangel Michael (Paul Bettany), the bearded one’s favourite but most rebellious charge, spies a new Messiah on the way and a new hope for humanity. Too late, says God. A bit miffed, Michael does what any self-respecting fallen angel would do: he cuts off his wings and goes looking for Jesus 2. Meanwhile, expecting mum Charlie (Adrianne Palicki) wiles away the time working in a rundown diner in the middle of the desert, where she smokes lots of fags and reluctantly lives with her inarticulate boyfriend, Jeep (Lucas Black). With the fate of the world hanging in the balance and the angels about to lay siege on the diner, can Michael keep these white trash heroes alive long enough to bring about the third coming?

Paradise Falls Diner: Subtle this movie is not

You have to take your hat off to any film that provokes the ire of Christian groups before it’s even released. One critic went as far as to claim “It is as if the only goal of executives at Sony Pictures is to slap God in the face with its new movie and anger Christians everywhere. It sure has worked” If God has any sense then he’ll know not to worry about the blasphemous content of Legion; as Michael retorts to one non-believer questioning the existence of God, “Well, that’s just fine, Bob. He doesn’t believe in you either.” I’m siding with God on this one, Bob. The furore definitely died down when the film hit cinemas – there’s nothing like deflecting religious criticism by making a bad film. What could have been a genuinely interesting match-up between Christian and atheist commentators became a mere footnote.

Angels possess 'The weakest' members of society to do their evil bidding: these include old ladies, kids, ice cream men and metallers, for shame!

There are numerous problems to list, but the film’s biggest failing is its total and abject failure to bring interesting characters to the table; they’re an identikit bunch of ciphers taken from hundreds of sci-fi action movies since the eighties, and Terminator in particular. Imagine if Sarah Connor broke down in that Mexican service station, substitute cyborgs for angels, and you’re getting there. Whenever the film shifts the attention from the action (of which there is little) to the characters (of which there are too many), the film sags heavily. 

Only the extras truly understand the horror of Legion

The formula works like this: character seems like a dick, they reveal their reasons, commits an act of self-sacrifice and dies. This would be fair enough if any of them were worth caring about, but their back stories never ring true – Tyrese Gibson’s custody-battling hip-hop wannabe is embarrassingly thin. Only old hands Charles S. Dutton as the diner’s hook-handed grill man, and world weary owner Dennis Quaid, rise above the limited confines of the underwritten script. Protagonists Charlie and Jeep fare the worst. The Mary and Joseph of the piece are a couple of white trash losers with little to say or do, except smoke fags and look surprised until plot point two.

If the filmmakers seriously believe that Legion’s subtext of parental responsibility and coming-of-age inheritance holds up then they should be crucified. To name a character after an off-road vehicle is just cruel; it’s bad enough that Jeep didn’t sow the seed, so why compound his misery further? Wisely, we’re never introduced to God, the biggest daddy of them all, but we do get a look at Gabriel. So often the reluctant and rebellious son in films like The Prophecy and Dogma, here he’s a bit of a daddy’s boy, following God’s ruling to the letter of the law. Perhaps the best thing about Gabriel is that he fights like Batfink. 

Michael and Gabriel: the movie gently hints at a romantic past between the muscular angels - have they got the genitals to make it anything other than platonic, though?

Speaking of action, for a siege movie, Legion is rather light on violence. Whenever a dust-up occurs, it’s invariably night time and the lights aren’t working. Blame budgetary restraints if you will, but I suspect that the absence of creative action is as much down to a paucity of directorial vision and originality in the script as it is a lack of reddies. The film isn’t without moments of flair and fun, though: an explosion leaves a satisfyingly crucifix-shaped hole in the wall; a grotesque swarm of flies infiltrates a moving vehicle full of people; a possessed old lady calls someone a ‘C***’, bites a neck and then climbs the walls. There are enough moments to keep the attention, but these are almost superfluous to the plot. If someone had spent more time investing the film with these touches throughout, cut down on the number of characters, and given us a bit more action then we could’ve had a decent movie on our hands.

Reminds me of my gran - hell of a woman

Legion’s director Scott Stewart and star Paul Bettany are soon to release their next collaboration, Priest, based on a Korean manhwa comic. Let’s hope that the pair have learned some lessons from this experience.

Movie review: Dark House

The scariest thing about Dark House, the winner of this year's Fangoria's Frightfest film competition, is that it's the winner of this year's Frightfest film competition. How unutterably bad must the competing films have been? The thought is indeed a chilling one.

The plot of Dark House is a combination of the traditional haunted house story and the psycho killer-themed thriller, with high-tech holographic scare tactics thrown in for in-your-face effect. Director/scripter Darin Scott (whose prior directing experience consists of the 1998 crime drama Caught Up) offers not a lot new here, relying on the kind of ho-hum slasher gore we've grown so accustomed to in low budget genre cinema.

There are a couple of bright points in this run-of-the-mill creepshow darkness, the most notable of which is the hysterically insane performance turned in by Diane Salinger as Miss Darrode, evil mistress of the foster home where all the mad mayhem takes place -- both real-time and in spooky purgatorial re-creation. Horror legend Jeffrey Combs (Re-Animator) also shines as commercial haunted house impresario Mr. Walston, coming off when we first meet him like John Lithgow playing as Christian McKay playing Orson Welles.

Meghan Ory takes the starring role as Claire, who we first encounter as a youngster with more guts than common sense. She stumbles into the Darrode House after the grisly killings of all its young boarders, who are strewn about the household like so many bloodied rag dolls; instead of running from the slaughter like a normal kid, young Claire (played by Courtney Robinson) takes a slow and contemplative tour of the abattoir, ending up in the kitchen where Miss Darrode -- presumably stricken with remorse -- is in the process of grinding away her hands in the InSinkErator.

Flash forward 14 years, by which time Claire has gained enough normalcy to be traumatized by the Darrode House events. (Oh, sure, NOW she's scared of the place.) Her whack-a-doodle psychologist suggest she re-enter the house (now deserted, natch) as a form of confrontational therapy. Or something.

The perfect opportunity presents itself when Walston pays a visit to Claire's acting class, looking for some rubes (I mean, talent) to serve as hosts and hostesses at his newest spook house attraction: Darrode House! Wow, what a coincidence, and Claire quickly convinces her fellow thespians to take him up on the offer.

The rest is all arterial-spray sweetness and computers-gone-haywire light, as the evil spirits in the house take over the high-tech effects programming and make mincemeat of the participants, one by bloody one.

If I didn't know any better (which of course I don't), I'd swear filmmaker Scott had it in for Microsoft. When the system admin's network is taken over by supernatural forces, a particularly insistent sequence of trouble screens begins flashing across his monitor: messages like "DANGER: virus alert," "WARNING: Your computer has become unstable," and "CRITICAL FAILURE! The system has been infected!" are enough to strike fear into the heart of even the most unflappable of geeky observers.

And that, frankly, is the scariest scene in this otherwise pretty uninspired stab at horror.

Thor Trailer – Movie Review

Thor Movie Trailer -The epic adventure “Thor” spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. Thor Movie was filmed in these areas: Manhattan Beach, California, USA,Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA,Getty Center, Los Angeles, California, USA.

Directed By: Kenneth Branagh.”Thor”, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans as punishment.

 

Once here, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth. No official Movie Trailer has been released – You can watch this Fan Made Trailer of Thor – Here : Photo by Marvel Studios/Paramount Pictures / Reviews

Movie Review: "The Girl Who Played with Fire"

Maybe youve heard of the Millennium Trilogy currently sweeping the globe. Or the fatal circumstances in which Swedish author Stieg Larssons three brilliantly detailed crime novels reached mainstream praise without him living to reap the benefits. Either way, as Larssons novels hang atop the New York Times Best Sellers List, the Swedish films are making a name for themselves, too.

 

Noomi Rapace stars as Lisbeth

The producers who acquired the rights to the novels did the smart thing and shot each film at the same time, using the same two leads. "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," the first in the series, was released domestically in March to much critical acclaim and an impressive box office pull. Now comes "The Girl Who Played With Fire," the second, and dare I say, more engrossing installment in the evolving series.

At the close of "Dragon Tattoo" our hero, journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist), had solved a decades-old mystery surrounding the disappearance of a young girl and served his brief prison sentence for libel, but not without the help of a punked-out genius hacker Lisbeth (Noomi Rapace). We last saw Lisbeth walking into the sunset, hidden under a plush blonde wig, with thousands of stolen dollars secured in her bank account. Thankfully, for us, "Played With Fire" takes little time getting to the point.

After hiding out in the Caribbean for several months, Lisbeth is compelled to return home and take care of some business. Within days, much to her surprise, she is the lead suspect in three murders, all linked to a human trafficking ring. Blomkvist, longing for his would-be lover since her departure, immediately throws himself into the case, helping to clear Lisbeths name since the police apparently cannot.

Forgive me for ceasing discussion on plot details, but the fun of these films is discovering them for yourself. Even if youre one of the millions of people who have read the books, the films will give you a fresh perspective. By the movies end, the story will have gone through enough twists and turns and spasms to make Christopher Nolan raise his eyebrows with envy.

As was evident in the first film, Nyqvist is marvelous in his ability to explain very complex topics within a matter of seconds. We actually believe Blomkvist could pull off everything he manages to, simply because Nyqvist convinces us he can.

But, lets be honest, the real star of the show is the petite 110-pound, bisexual little baddie. As the conflicted, damaged Lisbeth, Rapace goes places that could redefine what method acting is. Shes vicious, lean and, perhaps most importantly, smart as all hell. In a role that requires her to say very little, Rapace presents her character with more depth and conviction than most working actors today. Watch how, in the films most thrilling moment, Lisbeth not only takes on two huge biker boys, but she manages to steal one of their choppers before riding off into the sunset, all with the slightest of smirks on her face. Classic controlled acting.

As is often the case with sequels, people want to know if this one is better than the first. For my money, yes, it is. "Dragon Tattoo," was excellent in the Hitchcockian method of presenting a single problem and blowing it wide open. But "Played With Fire," as directed by Daniel Alfredson, taking over for Niels Arden Oplev, is slightly more detailed and technically controlled. The film deserves comparisons to the works of Polanski and Michael Haneke.

"Dragon Tattoo," which is out on DVD, could have survived as its own film; the story could have been considered complete after the credits rolled. But "Played With Fire" leaves a little more open, which, if youre a fan, gives even more reason to anticipate the Oct. 15 release of "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest."

And if that isnt enough for you, David Fincher is currently developing an American version of "Dragon Tattoo," reportedly starring Daniel Craig and Carey Mulligan. Will those capable-enough hands be as good as the original? You be the judge.

Kisses Movie Review

Kisses can hold a powerful meaning behind them, based on the context in which they are given. The 2008 Irish drama ‘Kisses,’ written and directed by Lance Daly, is getting ready to jump the Atlantic Ocean to America, and seems to want to prove that people’s intentions transcend culture. Kelly O’Neill and Shane Curry, two inner-city Dublin teens with no acting experience between them, play the two main characters in the movie, adding to the air of innocence and good intentions.

After premiering at the Galway Film Festival in 2008, and later being picked as an official selection at the Locarno, Toronto International, Telluride, Miami and Seattle International Film Festivals, ‘Kisses’ seemed destined from the start to be a popular movie with fans around the world. Even though coming in at a mere 75 minutes, much shorter than most American movies, the advertisements for ‘Kisses’ focuses on how teens can cope with family matters in a short period of time.

‘Kisses’ follows Kylie (played by O’Neill) and her next-door neighbor, Dylan, (portrayed by Curry), who live in the poorer outskirts of Dublin. Neither has friends in the outside world or within their families, as Kylie doesn’t get along with her four siblings, and Dylan is abused by his father after his older brother runs away. 

After Dylan gets in trouble with his father yet again and Kylie saves him, the two decide to runaway themselves. They try to find his brother on the streets of Dublin. While Kylie has no intention of returning home, they come to discover how dangerous the big city is without their families there to protect them.

While Daly strives to prove that children from all walks of life all over the world don’t always get along with their families and sometimes want to run away from home, ‘Kisses’ falls short of portraying teen angst. While both Kylie and Dylan both genuinely seem to dislike their families, their night in Dublin seems more like a first date for two friends who were always afraid to admit their feelings than a real attempt to break free from their home lives.

Dylan also doesn’t seem to know what he wants. While he wants to escape the wrath of his father’s abuse, he seems too eager to change his mind about going back home after he and Kylie get off to a rough start trying to find his brother. Kylie seems to want to stay away from home more so than Dylan. The reason why is questionable, as her home life wasn’t as heavily discussed as Dylan’s, and therefore doesn’t seem as bad.

Despite these fallbacks, Daly redeemed himself by casting newcomer O’Neill as Kylie, who seemed to understand what it meant to live with a down-on-their-luck large family that can’t catch a break. In order to cast the misfit lead actress, Daly told the View Oxford that he went to numerous schools in Dublin and picked out the worst behaved students to audition. Dylan added that he picked O’Neill not only because she was smart, but she also had an “immediate intuitive understanding of what acting really is.” Her instinctive understanding of teen angst resulted in a nomination for Best Actress in a Lead Role in a Film at the 2009 Irish Film and Television Awards.

‘Kisses’ also succeeded in the fact that O’Neill and Curry, two eleven-year-olds, were able to take on the responsibility of being the main characters, as their characters’ families have little screen time. Being so early in their careers and not having the guidance of more experienced actors to show them their craft, and still being able to create instant chemistry on-screen together, proved that both correctly chose their careers. 

The black-and-white to color transition used throughout the movie was also an effective way to show what the young characters were feeling. When both Kylie and Dylan were with their respective families, Daly used a muted black-and-white color scheme, representing the teens’ desolate feelings.  They both felt isolated from their families, as well as other teens, as the only attention they received was negative.

But when Kylie and Dylan came together and started their journey into Dublin, Daly discreetly started adding color. Daly was able to subtly show that the two only felt alive when they were with each other.

With a scheduled release date of July 16 in New York, with other select cities to follow, anyone interested in seeing the sights of Dublin will enjoy ‘Kisses.’ Parents may be hesitant to allow their pre-teens to watch the movie, as there is a brief scene of nudity, some coarse language, themes of family violence and abuse and Dylan and Kylie being given a beer by a Bob Dylan impersonator.  However, the overall theme that all teens, to some degree, want to be with their family, no matter what happened between them.

Mulan 2010 – Review

I was recently on a flight to Hong Kong and in the airline’s collection of Chinese movies, ‘Mulan’ was available. I was curious, obviously because I have known and loved the Disney version for years. It was nominated for a 2010 Best Film award in Hong Kong, and after watching it I can see why. It was an extraordinary film. While I have always loved the Disney’s Mulan, and as I got older, came to appreciate the accuracy with which they tried to convey the original poem, something about it has always bothered me. I did not know what exactly though, until I had watched this adaption of Mulan.

There is something in the Chinese culture in its portrayal of romance that cannot be adapted – and certainly not by an American company, with its need for a happy ending and a final message of ‘good will conquer evil, the guy gets the girl and everyone is a hero’. That does not happen in the Chinese adaption, although the story still comes from the same source material. It is set during the reign of Emperor Xiaowen, wherein the tribe of Rouran has declared war on the nation of Wei. Mulan disguises herself as a man and joins the fight for Wei, in place of her elderly and sick father. The key difference in this adaption though is in how and when she is discovered. At the time she first enlists, her friend from her home village, Tiger, realises who she is right away, but swears to keep her secret. Fellow soldier Wentai discovers her secret not much later, one night when she is bathing and she fights with him in an attempt to keep her from discovering her. In the resulting tussle he can of course feel that she is not a man, and so discretely sets out to discover who this woman is.

It’s not long before Wentai’s suspicions are confirmed. Mulan is set to be severely punished for an unrelated crime, but an unexpected enemy attack sees Wentai rescuing her from certain death at the hands of the attackers. Though she is told to flee, she does not, and actually kills the Commander of the attacking army, altering the battle moral for the enemy and effectively enabling their victory. Her superiors and Wentai are so impressed with her bravery and fighting skills that they promote her, along with Wentai. This continues throughout the next few years, with Mulan and Wentai consistently winning their battles with strength and strategy. Wentai notices however, that Mulan is weakened by her soft heart; her love and compassion for her fellow soldiers impairs her judgement in times of battle. So when Wentai is injured in battle, he takes the opportunity to fake his death, effectively cutting Mulan from her greatest friend in the army. After the resulting depression Mulan falls into, in an attempt to ‘cure’ her, Tiger declares rather abruptly that she must become a better General to protect the remaining soldiers.

It works, and Mulan becomes one of the most renown and feared Generals of the Emperors Army. Wentai continues to watch from the sidelines, pretending to be a regular soldier. At the same time, Rouran’s leadership has passed to the son, who is a ruthless Commander, having killed his father to obtain this leadership. By this point however, everyone else is desperate for a peaceful outcome. In the final battle, Mulan suggests a strategy that will ensure certain victory for the Wei army, defeating the 200,000 strong Rouran army with just 20,000 men of her own. It relies on a supporting General however, who is a coward and betrays her. The army holds out for as long as they can, but in the end they are starving, sick and already dying. So Mulan proposes a martyrs death to her soldiers, which they proudly support. This is when Wentai reveals himself to be a Prince of Wei and exchanges his life for that of the battalion. The trade is accepted by the Rouran leader and they leave with Wentai as their prisoner.

Mulan, now aware that he is still alive, goes to rescue him, alone. She finds and manages to come to an agreement with the Princess of Rouran. They both want peace, and so the Princess will marry Wentai to bring about that peace between the two nations. Even though Mulan is in love with Wentai, she encourages this as a way to stop the fighting. Then she can go back to nursing her father in her village. Their plan works, and when she is brought before the Emperor, he does not punish her for concealing her gender. At the same time, it is announced that Wentai will marry the Princess of Rouran and to form an alliance with the two nations. It is clear that Wentai does not wish to marry her, even though it will bring peace, but he agrees to after some persuasion from Mulan.

This ending is what really struck me, above all else. At the very end, the Prince comes to visit Mulan in her village, and asks that she elope with him. However, she tells him that he must do his duty and return to his betrothed. After all the fighting they had done, this would bring the peace that had craved for so long, therefore they would have to bear the sacrifice. To me, this signifies the Chinese moral of the day – sacrifice yourself if it will mean the prosperity of others. Even though it is very clear they both love each other deeply, Wentai sadly leaves the village to return to the palace. There is no intimacy between the two; no romance is obscenely displayed across the screen. Instead, there are small moments, lingering stares and the promise between the two of them to protect her identity. When she is gravely wounded and suffering a high fever, Wentai risks his own health to cut into his wrist and allow his blood to keep her hydrated. He gives himself over to the enemy to save not just all of his troops, but her life in particular. This transcends beyond romance into something more, something more subtle yet at the same time dynamic. The two actors do an outstanding job of conveying the relationship and companionship of the two Generals. This can also be said for the rest of the cast, all of the soldiers in Mulan’s battalion have distinct personalities, and you become attached to each of these very well developed and loveable characters.

While it may be said that in today’s world, the romantic in all of us craves for the onscreen lovers to have their happy ending, I am still very pleased with this not-quite-happy-ending. It is more realistic, in my opinion. For this reason, I give Mulan a Cool Plus. I guarantee that you will find something you like about this movie, whether it is the main characters or supporting cast, the cinematography or the plot itself.

Movie Review: Live Animals (2008)

Plot:

This one had me undecided as to whether I liked it or not almost the entire running time.   The opening had me rolling around my eyes; the middle kinda had to hooked; and then the ending … the goddamn ending.  What I thought was gonna end up being a pretty decent and fun entry into the torture-porn sub-genre completely falls apart in the final act.  I was really disappointed that writer-director Jeremy Benson took LIVE ANIMALS in the direction he did in the last 20 minutes.

The film opens with meeting Wayne (John Still); a seemingly salt-of-the-earth, hard working middle America kind of guy who has a big white beard that reminds you of a Santa impersonator at the mall.  But soon after meeting Wayne we follow him as he hunts down and captures a group of 20-somethings as they are having a house party.  With the help of Edgar (a very intimidating Patrick Cox) he locks them up in a barn in individual cages hoping to sell them to the highest bidder.  Yup; it turns out that Wayne is just your typical white slave trader selling the 20-somethings into sexual slavery overseas.  This movie really doesn’t offer anything new to the torture-porn sub-genre and I found myself successfully predicting where the story was gonna go.  But through some pretty well-shot scenes and decent gore, I found myself enjoying this one more than I should have.

What makes this one stand out from the typical shitty torture-porn flick is that the focus isn’t on the captured kids.  Director Jeremy Benson instead decides to focus on the captors (Wayne and Edgar).  Wayne is a matter-of-fact kinda guy who’s married (for 10 years we’re told) and doesn’t take any sadistic pleasure in hurting the kids unnecessarily.  After they’re captured Wayne takes one of the kids and ties him up in front of the others.  He explains, rather rationally, that people are easier to deal with than animals because with people you can “break” one and the others will fall into place (with animals you need to break every one of them).  He then proceeds to “break” the guy as an example.  It was a pretty tense and cringe-inducing scene that worked for me.

The cast of 20-somethings, as a whole, were unfortunately not very good actors.  They of course do the typical whining and crying, but most of them pander to the camera and I was aware I was watching actors the entire time.  The good thing is that Still and Cox both put in solid performances as the captors.  This is a good thing considering the movie was focused more on them than the kids.  And just wait until the slave buyer shows up and “checks out” the merchandise; its a really creepy scene that will make you feel really uncomfortable and dirty (especially how they box up the girl after she is sold).

But more than anything what hurt this film is the slow pace.  There are many scenes where the camera lingers on pretty unimportant things for too long, and we get endless shots of the captured kids with their faces pressed against their cages.  I think 10 minutes of this film could have been shaved off to made a tighter, more engaging film.  There were also way too many convenient plot points that Benson used to further the plot.  It felt as though Benson wrote himself into a corner a few times and simply “created” a way out that didn’t feel natural to what was occurring on screen

And unavoidably we come to the end; the “escape scene” whereby a few of the caged up “product” gets loose.  Aahhh that goddamn ending.  What I thought was gearing up to be an original ending for a torture-porn flick unfortunately becomes a cookie-cutter ending that really pissed me off.  As soon as the three survivors escape it seems they become completely different characters and start doing really stupid and annoying things that make their situation worse.  And just wait until you see the pain threshold of one of the survivors:  he gets stabbed in the stomach, shot in the back with bird shot, gets a really thick drill through his hand, and gets a finger cut off.  This guy’s more tenacious than that fucking Energizer bunny and just keeps on going.  It was really silly.  I can’t imagine why Benson decided to take the ending where he did.  LIVE ANIMALS completely falls apart in the final act … COMPLETELY, and we even get a “twist” at the end that is just retarded.  Blech.

So what I thought was going to revitalize the torture-porn sub-genre by injecting some fresh blood into it (by focusing on the captors instead of the kids captured) ends up going down the same road of cliches.  Now I must admit that I found this one more effective than the HOSTEL flicks.  LIVE ANIMALS doesn’t glorify the violence like HOSTEL 1 & 2 does.  If you’re gonna watch this one anyway, do yourself a favor and don’t watch the final 10 minutes.  This one almost got my recommendation but the ending is just too damn 

 Screenshot:

Movie Review : The Twilight Saga-Eclipse (2010)

INFO:

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010)
[FORMAT]:.......................[ Matroska (MKV)
[GENRE]:........................[ Fantasy | Romance | Thriller
[NO OF CDs].....................[ 1
[FILE SIZE]:....................[ 400 MB
[RESOLUTION]:...................[ 720 x 304
[LANGUAGE ]:....................[ English
[SUBTITLES]:....................[ NO
[ORIGINAL RUNTIME]:.............[ 01:55:09
[RELEASE RUNTIME]:..............[ 01:55:09
[SOURCE]:.......................[ TS-IMAGiNE

Synopsis:

As a string of mysterious killings grips Seattle, Bella, whose high school graduation is fast approaching, is forced to choose between her love for vampire Edward and her friendship with werewolf Jacob. 

Description:
If anyone thought the global fascination (make that obsession) with the Twilight book-turned-blockbuster film series had waned among its Jamaican teen and young adult loyalists, think again. The sight of Taylor Lautner’s excellent pecs and muscular arms alone still elicits deafening rounds of female screams each time they grace the screen. Not so much for Robert Pattinson’s endlessly pallid visage and frequently dowdy demeanour, and Kristen Stewart is still, well, very Bella.
The most noticeable difference about the latest Twilight installment, however, is how appealing the plot points, action, and performances are this time around. Talk about improvement. Twilight (2008) and last year’s New Moon were frustratingly inconsistent productions. Though not quite a stunning success, Eclipse (Summit Entertainment) is the absolutely most thrilling in the series yet. Director David Slade (Hard Candy, 30 Days of Night) and screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg have successfully injected fresh energy, intrigue, and exhilaration into Stephenie Meyer’s beloved vampire-werewolf saga, making for an almost thoroughly entertaining, satisfying film.
Picking up where New Moon left off, the Jacob/Bella/Edward love triangle forms the crux of the story. Werewolf Jacob and bloodsucker Edward are still sworn rivals over mortal Bella’s heart, but when the vengeance-obsessed Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard) and a newly formed army of famished, vicious vampires pose a threat to Bella’s safety, the boys must cast their grouse aside (if momentarily) to help protect her. What’s more, who will Bella ultimately choose? The handsome, hunky werewolf or the moody, brooding vampire? The intriguing sequence of events heads to a showdown just shy of a spectacle that wondrously brings the production to an emotionally involving crest.
Evenly paced and sufficiently absorbing – with noteworthy leads and a strong supporting cast – Eclipse is worth the trip to the cinema, even if your enjoyment of the movie is sporadically interrupted by deafening screams from wide-eyed teen girls (and grown women!) infatuated with Taylor Lautner’s abs. Nearly a week later my eardrums are just recovering.

 Screenshot:

Predators 2010 Review

  Predators 2010

INFO:

A group of elite warriors are hunted by members of a merciless alien race known as Predators.

Plot:

The odds of Predators actually being good and entertaining were not very promising. For starters, this 20-year-old plus franchise was preceded by two lame-brained installments of Alien vs. Predator, with the last one, Requiem, being among the worst of the worst. The new movie also stars Adrien Brody as the archetypal tough guy. No offense to Brody, but as good an actor as he is, he’s not exactly threatening. When it comes to movies like the original Predator, Arnold Schwarzenegger provides some big shoes to fill.

Fortunately, Predators overcomes those odds. With solid direction, good performances and a halfway intelligent screenplay, it rejuvenates the franchise and makes the idea of any future sequels more encouraging. The movie was directed by Nimrod Antal, whose résumé includes the underrated Vacancy and last year’s so-so Armored. Like those movies, Predators maintains a good amount of energy and tension, which only get deflated during the routine action sequences.  

The movie wastes no time getting started. It opens with a Black Ops solider named Royce (Brody) free falling from the sky. He suddenly wakes up, pulls his chute and lands in a remote jungle, which "could be the Amazon." Others fall near him: a Mexican drug cartel enforcer (Danny Trejo); a Chechnyan soldier with a mini gun (Oleg Taktarov); an IDF sniper (Alice Braga); a death row inmate (Walton Goggins); an RUF rebel (Mahershalalhashbaz Ali); a Japanese assassin (Louis Ozawa Changchien); and an American doctor (Tropher Grace)

After they explore the area, the group realizes they’re not in Kansas anymore. In fact, they’re not even on Earth. Royce deduces he and the others were specifically chosen because they’re the world’s most specialized and unapologetic killers (with the exception of the doctor), and they’re on a game preserve being hunted. “We’re the game,” he says.

Of course, we know the hunters are those pesky alien creatures known as predators, with their muscular, human-type bodies; big heads; floppy mouths; sharp teeth; and thick dreads. Antal and the screenplay by Alex Litvak and Michael Finch do a good job of building tension because they don’t reveal the predators right away. There’s a terrific scene when one member of the group senses he’s being watched and there’s an unsettling point of view shot from the predator up in the tree. When the character looks up, we know the predator is camouflaged, but it’s never made certain. Actually revealing the predator would have robbed this scene of its creepiness and excitement.

Eventually, though, the predators attack and we get a handful of shoot ‘em up action sequences that we’ve seen many times over. However, there’s enough build up to each one that they carry more weight than usual.

Laurence Fishburne plays a stranded U.S. soldier who’s been surviving on the planet for the last decade and he reveals the predators’ agenda. Fishburne is particularly strong here and the screenplay gives his character an extra dimension. I would have preferred he have more screen time and played an even larger role. We see that ten years alone in the jungle has left the man disturbed and it’s a shame he comes and goes so quickly because there’s more we want to know about him.

When people go to a movie called Predators, they’re anticipating action, high-tech explosions and gore. On that level, the movie delivers, but it does so without completely dumbing down the screenplay. I appreciated the extra time Antal devotes to creating mystery and suspense and would have liked it even more had the movie focused less on action and stunts and more on the psychoses of the characters. It had a chance to let the actors go beyond action movie archetypes and generate ample substance, but it ultimately settles for style and spectacle, albeit good style and spectacle.

Perhaps I’m asking for too much from what is obviously a summer popcorn movie, but at least it exceeded my expectations. Antal slows things down enough so the actors can perform and he lets the story and tension build so they turn out to mean something. And of course, the movie sets the franchise up for another sequel, but this is a sequel I would look forward to watching because it seems there’s more story to tell. With the closing shots, we sense there are good things to come. One of those may even be that substance I was talking about.  

  

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