Movie Review - X-Men: The Last Stand

X-Men: The Last Stand (2 of 5): This is the third movie of the X-Men franchise and by far the weakest of the three, putting an end to the momentum and coolness that the first two movies were building up. This is primarily due to the fact that this movie tries to cover too much and ended up without a very cohesive (or interesting) store line. Not only are we introduced to a slew of new mutants including: The Beast, Juggernaught, Angel, and a bunch of no-name Brotherhood of Evil Mutant enlistees, but we also have the loss of some very significant characters and the return of Jean Gray as The Dark Phoenix. Unfortunately, all these elements are too much and the movie collapses under its own weight. All of these elements, especially the Dark Phoenix story, should have had their own movies. Instead, we get a mish mash of cool concepts and moments filled in with some rather lame dialogue and crappy character development. The most irritating thing of it all is that I can think of a multitude of ways in which everything that happened in this movie can be completely blown off and "written-out" of the franchise as a whole if a fourth movie is ever made. Since I know fan reaction has been harsh, this will probably happen, making the film a complete waste of time. Skip this suck-fest and hope Bryan Singer comes back to helm the inevitable fourth film.

Movie Review - Casino Royale

Casino Royale (4 of 5): Well, I am impressed. I didn't think it could be done, but the James Bond franchise has been rebooted and resurrected from the depths of mundanity. Bond is cool again, but he aint your mamma's 007. This Bond is brutal in his fighting technique, unafraid to kick some serious ass and possibly tear his tuxedo in the process! This movie effectively reintroduces us to James Bond as it presents a story from his early years in the British Secret Service. There are some great moments and many of the Bond cliches are defined for the very first time. You'll see how Bond gets his first Astin Martin; how he develops a taste for martinis; his first tuxedo fitting; and why he never gets too involved with the ladies. Its a basic story involving a bad guy who is just out to get rich, not take over the world; and there are no gadgets in this film either! Blasphemous, I know. But it all really works to re-write the franchise and take it in a new and fresh direction. My only two quibbles with the movie is that it is too long and that it suffers from some pacing issues in the middle. Other than that, I can't wait for the next Bond film with Daniel Craig as the new 007. Check it out!

Movie Review - High Tension

High Tension (2 of 5): Now, here is a movie that I was really getting into and quite enjoying, right up until the last 20 minutes or so which totally ruined, and I mean ruined, the entire film. We follow two girls who are going home to one of their parents' house to do some school studying before exams. The night they arrive all hell breaks loose when a psycho killer arrives at the house. The remainder of the movie follows the two girls as they try to escape the grasp of the murderer. This movie is very graphic and bloody! Honestly, there were some scenes that were just so gratuitous that I had to just squeal in glee. Although some scenes are hard to stomach, it was all in good fun. Then, the end... Poof, there goes a pretty great movie given today's low standards in horror films (I am looking at you SAW). Anyway, if you totally have to see this movie, I suggest stopping it before the climax/twist ending, otherwise you'll be as pissed as I am. The ending makes absolutely no sense, no matter how you look at it. As a matter of fact, I challenge somebody to defend the the end and explain it to me so that it makes sense.

Movie Review - Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Dawn of the Dead (2 of 5): Sorry, I can't get behind this movie. Way too long and way too hokey. Maybe if I had not seen the recent (and superior) remake I would have liked this old one better. Although I can appreciate some of the social and cultural commentary present in this film, it wasn't enough to save it from being a horribly bad and often laughable movie - I know, its not supposed to be an Oscar contender. All I wanted was a scary movie, but instead I got a pretty cheesy B Movie that was not scary at all. I'll give George Romero one more chance to impress me with his zombie movies when I watch Land of the Dead later this year. Hopefully, it will be better than Dawn.

Movie Review - Shaun of the Dead

Shaun of the Dead (3 of 5): I was somewhat disappointed with this movie. It came out a couple years back to what I remember was a fairly warm reception. So, maybe my expectations were set too high, but I just did not see the point. I have seen a lot better zombie movies. This one was more of a comedy, but there were actually some fairly dramatic scenes in it that were, for the most part poorly acted. Although there are some funny moments, I just felt like most of the movie was kind of boring. It was cool to see some of the actors from the BBC version of The Office in the movie though. Glad to see they are involved in other projects.

Television Review - Rome: Season 1

Rome: Season 1 (4 of 5): Rome is an HBO produced television series that is set during the last years of Julius Caesar's reign. The show does focus on Ceasar, but mostly centers on two Roman soldiers, Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo, and their families. Of course, being an HBO series, the production values are top notch. The acting is good and the story is great, though it can be hard to follow at times with all the characters to keep track of. This show isn't for the prudish though. There are heaping helpings of violence throughout the series and lot of explicit sexual content, especially in the first few episodes. Violence and sex... awesome! Except for just a couple episodes that did not hold my full attention, the story lines were great with plenty of politicking and back-stabbing to make things interesting. This show definitely paints a more personalized and gritty picture of Rome that you just don't get in movies like Gladiator or Alexander.