7 Minutes in Heaven: My The Dark Knight Rises Prologue review

DISCLAIMER: I'm gonna spoil the shit out of this.

I had the pleasure of checking out a screening tonight of the Prologue to The Dark Knight Rises and boy was 7min, worth the 2hrs I waited.

The prologue begins as mysterious as the opening of The Dark Knight does, we don't know what is quite going on, but we are hoping that is all comes together in the end. The Dark Knight prologue was meant to introduce one of the iconic characters in the DC and Batman universe: The Joker. This prologue introduces and resurrects a character from the DC and Batman Universe: BANE.

Here is a brief description of the prologue, If you don't want to read it skip the italicized portion.

A car ride through a field leads to a plane on a private airstrip with a CIA agent standing at the front. The men who exit the vehicle are a Dr. and three men wearing black hoods over their heads. The hooded men apparently have information about the "masked man"; Bane. Once in the air the CIA agent begins the to hold hooded men out the plane asking for information about Bane and his wear a bouts. Bane reveals himself as one of the hooded men. Bane explains to the agent that the reason for allowing him to be captured was to apprehend the Dr. they now have in custody and make sure he did not spill any beans about him or his plans. The agent believes that Bane is trapped but all the while there has been a second plane hovering over the one Bane is in and men have zip lined down to the plane, sabotaged it, and recovered Bane in a way that definitely one ups the bank heist.

Afterwards there is a about a 15 to 20 sec sizzle reel that literally made me JIZZ IN MY PANTS! Which included, a Bat-plane, big fights, the tumbler, the bat-pod and also an iconic shot of Bane holding a broken Batman cowl in the rain and just throwing it away like it was garbage.

Then I JIZZED AGAIN.

The Dark Knight bank heist prologue echoed so skillfully of Michael Mann's HEAT. The precision of the position all the masked players played, the timing and betrayal, had the Joker not revealed himself at the end it could have been any other movie. When Inception came out there were many great similarities the movie had for example, The Matrix or Dark City, but none rang so true than Nolan had made his version of a James Bond movie, he continues it here with this prologue. Had Bane not revealed I would have half expected for a version of James Bond to zip down from the opposite plane.

Now most of the criticism around the interwebs is that Bane is really difficult to understand, which I must say is my only criticism but on the other end, Nolan is still editing, thank God for ADR.

While watching you can really feel like every shot and scene is their for a purpose and not just because it will "look cool". There is a method to the way Bane operates and this prologue definitely was a fantastic preview of his grand, ruthless, and brilliant villainous mind. The sizzle reel at the end really makes me want to say that Nolan will out do The Dark Knight, but even with this I want to keep my hopes at bay.

Then again if anyone can out do Nolan, its Nolan. I will be there Bat cowl on and all on July 20, 2012 when The Dark Knight Rises opens in IMAX and regular theaters.

Dueces!
StuntmanBob

Movie Review: PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3: 1988

Its probably no surprise to most of you that I'm a big fan of the Paranormal Activity series. The first movie I was a fan simply as a filmmaker; the story of how 11,000 dollars made such huge impact in the world of movies and cult horror was truly inspiring. I DEMANDED the movie come to Chicago and was there in line at the Music Box theater for the only midnight screening. The sound design was amazing and I think brought us (horror fans) back to the days of Carpenter, where he proved that its not some big guy wielding a sharp object that scary, it's what we can't see.

When news spread that a second movie was in the works I think we all thought the same thing; MONEY GRAB. The SAW series was in full effect by this point and it was no surprise that studios might have just wanted to capitalize. Yet, we were scared wrong again. The sequel wasn't really a sequel, it was more of an origin/sequel/prequel of sorts, that expanded on this demon and its relationship to Kate and her sister Kristi and their family. It amped up the scares but kept the simplicity of the effects going on to create those scares intact. Then end of the movie leading into the beginning of the first one was a great "ah-ha" moment. Even though the marketing reeled people in with scares and that "found footage feeling" there was an intricate history woven into this story, which with all its victims, the naive speculation or kids playing Quija, became far more scary than some of the set ups. Paranormal Activity 2 to me is like the Back to the Future II of found footage/horror films.

After being alluded to events in their childhood in number 2, it was no surprise that Paranormal Activity 3 went back to show "how all the activity began". Paranormal Activity 3 opens with some events of number 2, a pregnant Kristi is painting her unborn baby boys' room as the husband video records. Kate, from the first film, makes an appearance to drop off some boxes, one including a slew of video tapes that neither sister remembers being taken. We then see Kristi's house a mess, as if they've been robbed. The husband goes downstairs to find that the only thing missing was the box of videotapes. Flashback to 1988.

1988 opens with a Kate's birthday party, fun times and all. Her sister Kristi sits in the backyard talking with her imaginary friend...Toby. Toby apparently lives in the crawl space in the girls room and has sworn Kristi to secrecy on certain topics. If Kristi does not obey, she is in danger. Their mother's boyfriend is naturally a wedding videographer, who after hearing odd noises in the house decides to place cameras through out the house to hopefully catch what is making those noises. One camera that sits on a modified electric fan adds the most tension in the movie. My only critique is that I wish there was a smarter way to have introduced the cameras in the room other than the boyfriend being a wedding videographer.

If you remember in P.A. 2, we actually discover that Kristi's husband decision to place cameras in the house is actually the reason why Micah, from the first P.A. ultimately decides to purchase a camera to capture the activity going on with him and Kate.

There are some good original scares in this installment one in particular that involves a bed sheet, but sadly most of the scares are modified versions of past scares from the originals. They are modified well, but still remind me of old scares. Even though there are paranormal events going on, the human interaction is what really scared me. Simple conversations that Kristi has with Toby or her reluctance to speak about him really got my squirming. I know by this point you might be asking "how can you be still be scared?", but the truth is this movie spends a good amount of time, taking its time. Building tension and sometimes just because it knows it can, no just for a jump-scare.

On the other side of things, you can tell that unlike the other movies we are not painfully put through just seeing doors move for twenty mins or anything like that. The directors, who also directed the movie Catfish, have a bunch a fun with the activity which, again, in its simplicity is fun to see. Another encounter in particular when the girls are playing around and Kate actually runs into Toby; it will ultimately make you think twice about having your hair in a ponytail.

More of the history of the family is explored in this installment as well. We get to find out the origin of the paranormal activity and who is actually behind the sisters demonic woes as adults. This is an element I think that this series does well, there is always a moment in each of these movies where we get to a point where we could learn more about the reasons behind certain actions that are happening from an actual history stand point. But when a character attempts to explains these things a few moments later, the activity amplifies and we are in the full ride of the film. Thus we never know but it doesn't matter because that information is futile. I feel like if the series was to ever fully give us that information, the series would have given us the upper hand on it and I know they don't want to let that go.

Paranormal Activity 3 is good at what it does, its a smart, well paced found footage movie. The set ups are clean, the effects are woven in well and the final piece of history of this family tree was great to see. If your a fan of the series you'll definitely like this movie.

Paranormal Activity 3 opens nationwide on October 21, 2011

Deuces!
StuntmanBob

Movie Review: FOOTLOOSE: A fresh, new, fun, take with the soul of the original.

Craig Brewer is testing us.

I went into Footloose skeptical. A remake. A dance movie. Not the best descriptions to go in with. But as a big fan of the Craig Brewer directed Hustle and Flow and Black Snake Moan, I had to see what it was that drew him into this world.

The trailer for the movie is fairly simple; a terrible accident takes the lives of five seniors and thus leads to the banning of public dancing in the town of Bomont, Georgia. Three years later Ren MacCormick comes to town and shakes thing sup a bit.

Dancing is a very famous part of the history of this movie, however it does not hijack it. So many movies that incorporate dancing into their narrative tend to let the dancing take over; leaving characters and story lines in the dust. Although the trailers will primarily advertise this as a hollow dance movie, I assure you there is a heart and respect that jumps out at you from the screen like those shitty 3D movies. The way the opening credits are set up and how the court decides to ban public dancing made me see every dance sequence as an expression of each character and how they are being tied down by the ban. Rather than a cheap excuse to see girls shake their hips and have some new song by Lady GAGA or Rhianna in there or something. Every sequence really did have a purpose and that feeling hasn't happened in a long time for me.

Ren MacCormick is played by actor Kenny Wormald, who subtlety reminds us of Kevin Bacon, but with his signature Boston accent, adds a swagger to the role that makes the character his own. Ren is not just a handsome guy with some moves, he's got something to say and he's got morals. Those features are prominent in interactions he has with Ariel Moore, played by Julianna Hough.

As the preachers daughter Ariel has an identity problem. The constant going back and forth of who she wants to be and who people see her as was a little difficult to handle sometimes cause it made her seem like that cliche character. And maybe that was the point, because an emotional argument between Ariel and her father, Dennis Quaid, really made her character worth being in the movie for me. The scene was well acted and over the top in all the right ways. On a sidetone I saw some interesting similarities in Ariel's character with Christina Ricci's role in Black Snake Moan, its crazy obvious!

In addition to the main characters, its in the supporting cast and their dialogue that I really saw Brewers style shine. A sequence at a drive in parking lot where an elderly black man who owns the drive-in, allows the kids to dance, reminded me of Issac Hayes character in Hustle and Flow, even down to the old school radio/receiver that he flips on for the music to be heard through the sound system. You can tell that Brewer spent the same amount of time developing his main cast as well as his supporting. In addition to successfully giving everyone their moment to shine when it was needed.

Footloose takes place in what I like to call Craig Brewer's South! Brewers films have been primarily shot in and highlight the south. While this version is a bit of a cleaner one, its still HIS SOUTH! Also I was very glad to see the themes of religion, acceptance, and the betterment of an individual or community that have been so universal in his two previous films, come to fruition in Footloose.

When the end credits rolled I was surprised at how much I honestly enjoyed this movie, it was one of the few times where I let myself get taken away and not sit there and nit pick.The addition of the original music solidifies Footloose as not a remake but a re-imagining; A fresh, new, fun, take with the soul of the original.

CutLoose on October 14th, 2011 when Footloose opens in theaters.

Deuces!
StuntmanBob

Trailer Premiere: BATTLESHIP: "Fire the Guns; ALL OF THEM!"

Pirates of the Caribbean, Transformers and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra certainly led the way in turning games, cartoons and rides into feature length films. Now Hollywood is all the flutter with turning various board games into feature length movies; From Ridley Scott's Monopoly to Candyland in 2013, it seems as though the rise of the board game movies is coming sooner than we think with the Peter Berg directed BATTLESHIP.

On the one hand this trailer looks so serious and and overly gritty that I'm ready to suspend belief and go along for the outlandish ride. However, the alien ships look like something out of the movie Skyline, which was one of the worst movies ever made! So needless to say I'm split. I'm fan of Peter Berg's filmography which includes Hancock, The Kingdom, and the wonderfully fun The Rundown. Being a student of the Michael Mann school of filmmaking, he definitely has a style that brings the action right into your face and keeps even the most mundane scenes paced very well. However, if future trailers show star Liam Neeson standing very stoically, putting down a phone a looking off to a cadet and delivering the lines; "They just sunk my Battleship". This movie will have been worth the $10 dollars I will most certainly end up paying.

The website for Battleship went up yesterday and teaser trailer is up today. The plot synopsis according to IMDB.com is as follows:
A fleet of ships is forced to do battle with an armada of unknown origins in order to discover and thwart their destructive goals.

The movies stars Taylor Kitsch, Liam Neeson, Alexander Skarsgard, and features the acting debut of Rhianna. I wonder if she'll do a song for the movie. Battleship hits theaters May 18th 2012.

What do you guys think? Leave your comments below.

New Teaser Trailer: PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3

I've always been a big fan of the Paranormal Activity movies. The first one was by far one of the best handheld/docu-style movie our there today. When news of a sequel came out, I honestly thought it would solely be a grab for money as most sequels are these days. But Paranormal Activity 2 did what most sequels are unable to do; make it good. The second movie acted as a prequel and sequel to the first while adding in this extra history about the two main female characters and what haunts their family. But what made the movie good is that it stuck to the simplicity of the haunts that happened in the first one, while still creating larger "activity" sequences.

Now the directors of Catfish are taking us back to 1988 where we discover the origin of the activity. Personally, I really like how this is shaping up so far and if this is the only trailer we get for this movie I wouldn't be angry at all. The series has been doing well enough that I hope in future trailers they don't spoil some of their "money" shots.

Paranormal Activity 3 opens October 21st. 2011.




Deuces!
StuntmanBob

Movie Review: ANOTHER EARTH

On November 22, 2006 Darren Arnofsky's The Fountain hit theaters. I remember when the credits rolled I sat in my seat, pleasently traumatized by what I had just seen. I hadn't had a feeling like that until watching Another Earth.

Another Earth is directed by Mike Cahill and stars Brit Marling (who also co-wrote with Cahill) and William Mapother. If you've watched the trailer and I hope you have, you know that on the eve of a terrible accident, Rhoda causes an accident that ends the life of a mother and child; leaving the husband a widower. On this night the discovery of a second Earth is revealed. Rarely in a summer, where numerous sequels and big budget blockbusters are released; are we given a movie that truly makes us use our brain. Aside from context of the movie, there is a beautiful and yet tragic relationship between the two main characters. Their relationship is extended by various doctors and scientists who ask those moral questions such as "what would you say to the to other you?" or "Has the other me made the same mistakes that I have". These question tap into the basic human emotions of ours to figure it all out and figure our why we are here.

Those questions and the actions of the characters are what make the movie such an emotional powerhouse. Brit Marling who plays the main character Rhoda, has a very interesting acting style. With no formal training she delivers a very deep and neglectful performance that doesn't make the audience feel sorry for her, but more or less ask ourselves if we'd do the same thing that she is doing.

I'm sure that the thought of focusing on the sci-fi aspects of this film would be more attractive and commercial but there is subtext here that truly makes you think and is fuel for an amazing after movie conversation with friends. While my review isn't that long, only because its something that you should experience and not have someone like me explain it to you, I must say that this is by far one of my favorite movies of the summer. It holds more in its soul than that piece of shit Transformers movie! If your looking to be challenged and maybe discover something about yourself; see this movie!

Oh and one more thing, the end is also breathtaking!

Another Earth makes its way into theaters on July 22nd, 2011

Deuces!
StuntmanBob

New Trailer: THE AMAZING SPIDERMAN

The new trailer for Marc Webb's reboot the The Amazing Spiderman is online. The movie stars Andrew Garfield (The Social Network, Red Riding pt.1) as Peter Parker and Emma Stone (Easy A) as Gwen Stacy.

The overall tone of of this movie just seems a lot more raw and realistic. I'm immensely digging the connection to Peter's parents that shows up in the beginning, if you've seen the old television show, you know why. This is a great teaser; it sets up the characters more and leaves the effects and action at bay, for now.

Watch the trailer and leave your thoughts. Very excited for this new interpretation.



Dueces!
StuntmanBob

MOVIE REVIEW: Transformers: Dark Of The Moon

Disclaimer: This is a spoiler filled Review of Transformers: Dark of the Moon. So if you don't want to know what happens, I suggest you stop reading now. But if you don't give a shit, READ ON!

"...No matter what happens, I'm really glad I got in that car with you".

If you remember watching the first Transformers movie; these lines happen right before Sam takes the cube to the tallest building to be handed off to the military. Mikala (Megan Fox) calls him back and she doesn't do the cliche thing and say "oh Sam, I LOVE YOU" No like a flippin' gangsta' she makes her words count and ring true. At that moment, every person in the audience was really glad we got in the car with Sam.

There was this wonder and awe that came with the first Transformers movie; that brought everyone back to being a kid. Yes, there were moments like the cop interrogation scene that were a little much, but it had this almost PG-13 feel of Michael Bay's The Rock to it. There was a relationship between a boy and his first car that was held through out that movie and made us care for these characters.

The sequel: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen was an advancement in the action but a let down in the character department. The characters become caricatures of themselves in an an effort to make the movie...ummmm...funny? Most of this was attributed to the Writer's Strike that was on the horizon at the time but there's only so much you can't take the blame for. TF: Revenge of the Fallen got too mystical and thus the main point of the Decepticons wanting to destroy our sun for energon was quickly overshadowed by robots and dogs humping each other and loud screaming characters who were only added...ummmm...to be funny? The action in the movie, while good, was quite a mess. Small action, big action, more small action, little story, OH WAIT BIG ACTION!!!, small action and then.....Scene. Like I said messy.

We now come to Transformers: Dark of the Moon. The trailer to this movie held such great promise, it weaved Autobot history into American history and brought forth what we as Americans love to hear so much about; a cover-up. An ancient Autobot ship called the Arc is discovered on the moon which holds an Autobot name Sentinel Prime and a weapon he built that could bring about the end of the world. Shia Lebeouf returns as Sam Witwicky and sadly his hot gear head girlfriend played by Megan Fox is replaced by an air headed Victoria Secret model.

Sidenote: Michael Bay directs all the Victoria's Secret Commercials. Yea, he really does.

The movie begins wonderfully by bringing the nostalgia and wonder of the Apollo 11 launch to the Moon and revealing that the United States race to the moon with Russia had more behind it than just being first. However, what is the next scene after the opening credits? Ass. Victoria's Secret Ass. Ass in Victoria's Secret underwear. I'm sorry I thought this was a Transformers movie? I didn't know it was an opportunity to exercise your skills as a lingerie director!!!

In addition to findings on the moon, there are some good plot twists in this movie; we discover that Sentinel Prime has made a pact with the Decepticons and plans to use his weapon to transport Cybertron to Earth and use humans as slaves to rebuild it. Patrick Dempsey's character Dylan, a suave business man who has a nice car collection has been the man funding this invasion as the leader of the human alliance with the Decepticons. See that pitch alone should have guaranteed a slam dunk of a movie.

Sadly we have to rape what could have been a good movie and get the asian guy from The Hangover with the small dick, to do his shtick and jump up and down on Sam in a bathroom stall and try to speak "code" to him in an effort to relay some information which could have just been handed to him. Then, we have to completely underuse the great John Malkovich as Sam's tanned, orange, asshole boss who doesn't like any other color than yellow. Oh and since he likes yellow we will just add a scene where he tries to fight Bumblebee. Yea that sounds good right? Cause its funny right??? You have Alan Tudyk who has geek fame from playing Wash in Firefly and Serenity as Agent Simmons assistant??? Bloody Sad. Why wasn't he given a meatier government roll? I see what Michael Bay is going for with his casting, we get it, you like to have good actors even in the small roles. But these sort of roles should be like John Salley as the computer nerd in Bad Boys 1 and 2, there for 2min and then DONE! You don't need them through the entire fucking movie!!!

Newcomer Francis McDormand plays Agent Mearing, a tough as nails U.S Government Agent who just shits on anyone cause now she holds the "do whatever I want and get away with it" badge and she is a small breath of a real character in this movie. Even Tyrese was used well!

As far as casting goes I feel like the producers and or Michael Bay feels the need to have every character we've ever seen in the Transformers movies do something and we really don't. Creating new characters and ever getting rid of some old ones would have made this movie so much more better.

I've always loved Shia Labeouf, I think he's the Bruce Willis of our time, he's the everyday man; but here he is still acting like a high schooler and it pisses me off that he hasn't grown as a character at all! Shia is on auto pilot in this movie and for that matter so is the movie.

So you might be asking yourself; "But what about the action?" "Is there anything you liked?"

The best sequence to me wasn't even seeing Chicago getting destroyed it was the highway sequence with the dreadlock Decepticons chasing after Sentinel Prime. A new Decepticon name Laserbeak goes and murders various people and I thought the editing on those scenes added the creepy tone and mood that added to Laserbeak's ferocity. The effect is used later in the action sequence that takes place in Chicago but not well. The last hour of this movie are the events that happen in Chicago and boy its a doozie. I must admit after a while though I just didn't care anymore. There was grandious spectacle and a beautiful art to the action, but seriously it takes us fifty minutes to knock out one side of a building??? I feel like the action just ran way to long and was only there for the sake of having something BIG to end the series.

The only thing this movie does is solidify how much a classic this first one is and how for a moment we might get a Transformers series worthy of action that has purpose, driven characters and compelling story. Unfortunately, the hopeful series has turned into a big screaming contest, with a little Victoria's Secret commercial mixed in and music courtesy of 101.9

I personally say if you haven't seen this movie yet...wait till dvd or redbox it.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon is in theaters now.

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StuntmanBob

Teaser Trailer Premiere: MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: GHOST PROTOCOL

Could the Mission Impossible series be the next Fast and Furious?

The trailer for Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol; the 4th installment in the series, has gone up today courtesy of Trailer Addict. This series seems to have had a resurgence after the J.J. Abrams directed Mission Impossible III, which in my mind is the best in the series so far.

This installment is produced by J.J. and co. But directed by none other Brad Bird; director of classics like The Iron Giant and PIxar's The Incredibles. As with the Fast and Furious series I'm hoping Ghost Protocol brings about a fresh new take on the series and takes it to some incredible feats! This will be with all prints of Transformers: Dark of Moon this week/weekend.

Enjoy!

Movie Review: GREEN LANTERN

I'll preface this with saying that I haven't read the plethora of Green Lantern comics out there, but as I continue to educate myself on the character, I can honestly say that the movie does not live up to the writing or the drama in those great books!

Green Lantern stars Ryan Reynolds as test pilot Hal Jordan, who is chosen by the Green Lantern Corps to be the first human to wear a powerful ring and defend the universe. The movie is directed by Martin Campbell who has rebooted the James Bond franchise twice (Goldeneye and Casino Royale) as well as The Mask of Zorro.

The opening of this movie is a brief history of the Green Lantern Corps and the villain Parallax, from there we are witnessed to the escape of Parallax by some alien astronauts and then the selection process begins. The initial trailers to Green Lantern looked quite horrible; the CGI just did not look complete at all and ridiculous. Thankfully for the finished film they darkened up the green and energy coming from the suits which make them look a bit more plausible. That's really only one of the few highlights of the film.

Ryan Reynolds does an okay job at portraying Hal Jordan, but his demeanor and leading man qualities did not convince me that he was having doubts about himself being apart of the Corps. The moments where he was expressing his self doubt to Blake Lively, who only serves as eye candy, are really tough to get through. Its one of those times where someone should be screaming "ACTING!" at you. This self pity became contradictory often because directly after those scenes Hal Jordan would be doing something very heroic and with out fear, that was completely opposite of how he was "apparently" feeling.

Pete Sarsgaard plays Hector Hammond, who after performing an autopsy on Abin Sur, comes into contact with the yellow power of fear. His figure is transformed into a Hunchback of Notre Dame type and is played off in the movie as Jordan's doppleganger. I see what they were trying to do in showing a parallel between these two men and how having this great power thrust upon them affects their lives, but Hammond's story feels more fleshed out than Jordan's. Pity I couldn't get fleshed out journey's of both men.

Mark Strong who plays Sinestro is pitch perfect! I wish he was more of the villain in this movie, I think it would have proved to be a better movie overall! I really disliked Michael Clarke Duncan as the voice of Kilowog, Jordan's fight instructor, because you could tell it was him! I hate that someone actually thought "oh this character looks like it could be voiced by a big black guy", yea let's get him! I mean have some originality with your voice castings please!

The home planet of the Lantern's is called Oa. It's truly something to behold, you can tell most of the time was spent on the design of getting that right and not the story. Shame, again, I couldn't have both.

The training sessions Jordan goes through on Oa after becoming a Lantern are pretty cool. The ring that the Lantern's possess can create anything their mind thinks up through will power; the stronger your will, the stronger your creation. So you have this ring that can create anything and the movie really underuses this ability. The end fight between Jordan and Parallax was entertaining but the power to create things from sheer thought didn't reach its full potential! I'll be honest that the effects for the creations where really good, but still I wasn't wowed.

Despite my negativity, I was honestly childishly entertained. There are some redeeming moments in this movie and of course the very heavy CGI action takes my thought away from the lackluster story. This is due to my low expectations going into the movie. Another movie that I would always compare to Green Lantern, trailers wise, was this summer's THOR. Both movies were trying to break new ground in the superhero genre by meshing two worlds together. THOR I believe is the victor in this case, mostly because in that movie you had sets and things that set the actors apart from their environment; not to mention interact with. Green Lantern suffers from having way too much CGI. I understand Oa is an alien planet and all, but does the rock have to be CGI? I think some practical sets for the planet of Oa could have helped ground the movie a bit more and helped with the power of the Lantern's on Oa and on Earth.

Green Lantern is a very lazy superhero movie. It gives us the cliffnotes version of the heroes journey and thus makes Hal Jordon's character development really cardboard and like I said earlier contradictory. This movie had the potential make break new ground with a superhero who powers are defined from the get go as alien, but the motivation and work was not there to comfortably mesh these two worlds together so that I could care for the characters and marvel at the scope.

If you have kids, take them, you'll enjoy it for what it is, but then forget it soon after. But I suggest a matinee, DO NOT PAY FULL PRICE!

I hope the next Green Lantern movie, if there is one, is a reboot.

Dueces,
StuntmanBob

Movie Review: ATTACK THE BLOCK

"You'd be better off callin' the Ghostbusters love". - Pest from Attack the Block

The opening scene of this movie definitely had the sci-fi geek in me going as it was very reminiscent of the opening of John McTiernan's Predator. This movie is produced by Edgar Wright who directed Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz . Both Shaun and Fuzz set out to make fun of Zombie and the Action movie genre while created a sub-genre of each of them in the process. Attack the Block is directed by Joe Cornish who doesn't necessarily set out with the intentions of making fun of alien invasion movies. However it simplifies it.

I'm reminded of the 1966 Division Street Riots that happened during the end of the first Puerto Rican Day parade here in Chicago. A young boy was injured by the police which led to a three day riot because of the racism and political unrest that was happening with immigrants coming over. The National Guard was even brought in! Seriously research this event in Chicago's history; its an amazing story. Anyway this riot, ultimately led to the culture and pride that comes with walking through Humboldt Park. Now here's the plot to the movie; A group of tough inner-city kids defend their turf from an invasion of savage alien creatures, turning their South London apartment complex into an extraterrestrial warzone.


I think that Attack the Block shows an interesting look at a kind of gentrification and how far these kids and for that matter, us, are willing to go to preserve the neighborhoods we grew and continue to grow up in. Now that I got the heavy thinking off my chest, on to the rest of the review.

We are introduced to our anti-heroes as they are mugging a woman in the street and suddenly a giant flashing light crash lands into a car and we are off and running. These kids are naive, ignorant, foul mouthed, and all around BEBE kids! The movie tries really hard to make sure the audience does not care for them at all. But as the movie progresses its those same attributes that had me laughing and cheering all the way through as these badass kids battle this alien race.

Thank God! this movie doesn't come close to those sometime enjoyable, but mostly horrible B-movies on SyFy Channel. While this movie is definitely a B-movie, its one on par with John Carpenter's work; even down to the somewhat chessy synthesized alien-esque music. The designs of the aliens are simple enough to scare you. Pitch black beings with neon green teeth, they are as big as apes and as fast as a cheetah.

Its interesting that I see this movie literally a week after seeing Super 8 cause the similarities are uncanny. Kids who are having an encounter with an aliens race; all the while discovering their true purpose in life and growing from it. Maybe that description is better suited for Super 8, but WHEN you see this movie, you'll get me. I had a blast watching this movie and I recommend everyone be on the look out for it and support it when it comes out! My only critique is that the kids' London accents are crazily thick, so prepare yourself to do some translating of your own. I suggest watching Guy Ritchie's Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrel's for a taste of the accent's to come! TRUST!

Attack the Block has just received a U.S. release date of July 29th! GO SEE this movie!

Believe! Trust!
StuntmanBob

SPACE JAM ON BLU RAY OCT. 4TH!!!

Remember a time when basketball was good? Remember when everyone liked R. Kelly? Well ladies and gentlemen our prayers have been answered. Get ready to see Michael Jordan, Bill Murray, Daffy, Bugs, and the rest of the Looney Tune gang tear up the MONstars when Space Jam comes to blu ray on Oct. 4th, 2011.!! Very excited!! Are you?

Head on over to AMAZON and pre-order your copy today
-StuntmanBob

"MINT!" - Super 8 Movie Review

For the last couple years, and unfortunately I don't think they are doing this year, but every sunday during the summer, Marcus Cinema's in Orland Park, IL would show 35MM classic movies. Two that I was lucky enough to see on the big screen were Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark. Both times I walked out of the theater thinking "how cool it must have been to have seen those at their initial release."

Last night I got to feel what that was like with J.J. Abrams Super 8.

J.J. Abrams first feature length movie was Mission: Impossible III. In Mission: Impossible III, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) must get a hold of the "Rabbit's Foot" or else his wife will die at the hands of the films villain Owen Davian. Most movies would put great emphasis on what the Rabbit's foot is, where it came from, who created it and what can it do. Not Abrams, he puts at the forefront what is most important; his characters. Since Mission Impossible 1, Ethan Hunt has been this immortal-like spy who can get out of anything, but with M:I-III his family is in peril and he's no longer a spy, but a husband out to do whatever he can to save his wife. The humanizing of larger than life characters is something that is the key to Abrams films thus far. In his second directorial success, Star Trek, its the relationship between Kirk and Spock and with his third film Super 8, it's exploring the universal traits of friendship, loyalty, curiosity, and bravery in a group of young friends who are making a short movie but then get thrown into an adventure that put all those traits to the maximum test.

The cast of this movie succeeds in spades! Kyle Chandler who I'll always remember from the show Early Edition, plays Sheriff Lamb, his son Joe is at the center of the films mysterious goings on. But the supporting cast of Joe's friends take the cake, they all are almost a great modern day but "back then" version of the Goonies! yes I said The Goonies. Most of the comedic relief comes with these characters; its not forced but well deserved and believable. This adds to the authenticity of the films adventure. Also the relationship between father and son is a broken one at the beginning of the movie but is paid off with one of the most unique metaphors of letting go.

Steven Spielberg is a giant part of this success because he serves as Executive Producer on this passion project of Abrams, of which Speilberg is the grandfather of. Watching Super 8 I was reminded of movies like Jurassic Park, Jaws, and E.T. That sense of wonder and awe is so perfectly emulated in this movie that there were moments I was on the edge of my seat and my jaw was wide open. Another credit to the movie is that it gets underway almost immediately. The audience was not subjected to an hour long prologue before the meat of the movie started as so many movies do today.

The only downside I can see to this movie is that with all its hype, people will expect more than what they receive by the time they are walking out of the theater. Did the movie live up to the hype in my eyes? Obviously, yes. But I hope that when you go to see this movie and YOU SHOULD. You should know that while the main story revolves around a mysterious train crash and its contents, the real story is about the people involved and how they overcome such amazing obstacles. If your in the mood for adventure, comedy, horror, action; then this is your movie!

I throughly enjoyed the nostalgic and childlike feeling this movie gave me. I encourage everyone to run out and support this movie this weekend. Bring the whole family and enjoy!

Super 8 is in full release in conventional theaters and IMAX on Friday June 10

Deuces!
StuntmanBob

"Peace Was Never An Option" My X-MEN: FIRST CLASS Movie Review

"Peace was never an option"

The last X-Men movie I saw, if you can call it that, was X-Men Origins: Wolverine; and it was horrible. It sadly set the franchise back a few millennia. For a while there it seemed that all hope was lost and we might never see another good X-Men movie again. Around the same time that X-Men Origins: Wolverine was being prepped there was another origins movie being prepared; Magneto's. The return of Bryan Singer and Matthew Vaughn saw idea of expanding Magneto's solo origin story into an origin story of both Erik Lensherr and Charles Xavier.

There are a few recognizable mutants in this story but I was delighted to see that there were no "name" mutants. No Cyclops, No Storm, No Iceman. While I see the appeal to have these mutants in an X-Men movie, given that they are such staples by this point, it would purely be to sell tickets and make money. First Class, is a story about Magneto and Professor X.

Michael Fassbender (HUNGER, Inglorious Basterds) has the meatiest character arc as Erik Lensherr a.k.a Magneto. His journey from lethal bounty hunter to one of the most powerful mutants of all time is truly a great sight to behold. Also many of his journeys are very reminiscent of James Bond movies, being that the movie is set in the 60's its actually very fitting.

I put my vote in for Michael Fassbender as James Bond when Daniel Craig retires from the role; Make it happen HOLLYWOOD!

James McAvoy (WANTED, Atonementt) brings a breath of fresh air to the younger version of Charles Xavier; most notably using his intelligence and the explanation of the evolution of Mutants as a pick up line to loose women in bars; I like this Xavier. Fassbender and McAvoy's characters are simply defined by the iconic chess games they have together throughout the film. They make their characters more relatable and down to earth in addition to paying homage to the older versions of the characters already established by Sir Ian McKellan and Patrick Stewart.

Another duo story line I was pleased with was the story between Dr. Hank McCoy a.k.a BEAST and Raven Darkholme a.k.a Mystique. Hank McCoy is played by Nicholas Hoult who was most recently in Tom Ford's directorial debut A Single Man. Raven is played with great dimension by Academy Award Nominee Jennifer Lawrence, who was last seen in Winter's Bone and will soon be see in the big screen adaption of The Hunger Games; she plays Katniss. Their relationship is what truly defines the yearn to be accepted that is so universal in the X-Men series. We got a taste of it with Anna Paquin's Rogue in the original series, but it aside from Erik and Charles, its nice to see two younger characters battle with their own acceptance together.

I have to give credit to Kevin Bacon, whose played villain Sebastian Shaw very cool. It could have been very easy to see him "twisting his mustache" in every scene but Bacon held a great balance of villain and "freedom fighter".

Bryan Singer returns to his comic book roots to co-write and produce this origin story. Director Matthew Vaughn finally gets his crack at a Marvel film after X3 and THOR fell through for him. What Vaughn brings to this story that didn't even show up in X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a sense of the time period. For all of you who are reading this, did you know that X-Men Origins: Wolverine takes place in the late 70's? Yea that's right THE 'EFFIN 70'S!!! Sure doesn't feel like it right?

First Class puts the 60's right in your face! The Wardrobe, the music, the score, and the dialogue. The dialogue at times seemed a little corny but then you had to check yourself and say "wait, this is how they talked in the 60's". Matthew Vaughn got to make is Marvel Comics X-Men movie and James Bond movie all in one. Massive credit and thanks to Matthew Vaughn for giving us an actually period piece superhero movie.

X-Men First Class is a really intelligent comic book movie, that aims to show us the TRUE ORIGINS of Mutants during the 1960's during the Kennedy era and also gives some background to the "hidden" reasons that sparked the Cuban Missile Crisis. This I feel is the most mature of all the X-Men movies. X2 is still number one in my book, but X-Men First Class is right underneath it. The James Bond-like globe trotting, the involvement of the CIA, the politics, the betrayal and world being in peril, gives this series the jolt of lighting it needed to become relevant again!

Deuces!
StuntmanBob

Nick Fury Announced?

Perusing IMDB.com is definitely a must in these parts and while looking at the cast of the various Marvel comic book movies coming out this summer I stumbled upon a page for the Nick Fury solo movie which has Samuel L. Jackson as Fury, Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson and Neal McDonough who will be seen in Captain America in July as Dum Dum Dugan.

Check it out: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0482631/

Stuntmanbob

MOVIE REVIEW: Pirates of the Caribbean: ON STRANGER TIDES

I'm a big fan of the Pirates of the Caribbean Trilogy. Despite the unnecessary length and crowded story lines, I definitely argue that the way the characters were woven and balanced into said story was enough to make the movies very entertaining. Also the caliber of actors, Bill Nighy, Geoffery Rush, Chow-Yun Fat; just to name a few brought a real ferocity to their roles. The end of the third movie, titled, At World's End, concludes with Capt. Jack going after the fountain of youth.

This brings us to On Stranger Tides, which to be honest really doesn't make any kind of sense. It might as well have been called Pirates of the Caribbean: Fountain of Youth. From the preview, this movie looked like a slam dunk; Jack Sparrow is our main character and a breath of new characters are introduced. Sounds like a fresh exciting start, right?

I remember reading articles that Disney executives didn't really know how to quite take Johnny Depp's creation of Sparrow and were really worried people might not get it. But three movies later, the eyeliner, deadpan stares and those dreadlocks have solidified him as one of the most popular characters in movie history. It's truly amazing to see Depp back in his signature character in On Stranger Tides, but I'll be honest something is really missing. Depp makes his regular quips here and there but I feel like throughout the entire movie Depp is trying to find the character again and its kinda uncomfortable.

Penelope Cruz plays Angelica, the daughter of legendary pirate Blackbeard and former lover of Sparrow. Now, while her exchanges with Sparrow are meant to be clever and hold tons of comedic innuendo, their playful banter quickly outruns its course and gets really boring. Ian McShane, who portrays Blackbeard is also really underused here, while torching someone to death numerous times was a real mood changer and kind of cool in this movie; that was really the only real "Wow" factor I got from this character in the Pirates cannon of villain's.

New director Rob Marshall does a nice job at setting that "Pirates tone", but a staple that is lost here in this fourth installment are those grand and well choreographed pirate ship battles that were a treat to behold in the original trilogy. In On Stranger Tides we spend alot of time on land and with being on land we are now subject to watch our favorite water based characters in the same old "modern like" action sequences that I'm almost sure I've seen before in the Renny Harlin directed pirate movie Cutthroat Island. This might be a cause of the lower budget on this movie but even still you are making a movie about PIRATES!!!

On Stranger Tides doesn't really try and set itself apart from the previous three movies. Its a movie that goes through to motions and takes its audience for granted mainly because they've added a few new characters and we've seen three movies already, why not a fourth. There are even certain set pieces and fights in this movie that are almost exact replicas of encounters in the previous movies; Lazy.

If your a fan of the Pirates movies, nothing I can say, can sway you from seeing this one but if I can impart any advice its to be smart and catch a matinee.

Savvy?
Bobby

Extra "Couch" Time

Hey Everyone, hope your seeing some great movies this weekend. Briefly, every time we shoot an episode there always ends up being some extra conversation that doesn't always make it in the cut. Well from here on out we will be releasing these bits as their own small informative video pieces called "Extras". Keep checking back for all the updates.

In the meantime if you haven't gotten the chance to see our newest episode on the trailer to THOR then enjoy now!

ALL NEW EPISODE!!: THOR

Ladies and Gentlemen our trailer review episode on THOR is officially live! Please watch and share your thoughts and comments.


Dueces!
StuntmanBob

New Trailer: CONAN: THE BARBARIAN

Briefly this trailer looks like there's something missing. There is so much action going but not even a sense of a plot. Now, you might be asking yourself; "Bobby, is this a movie your really looking at to have a descent story?" This simple answer is no, but at the same time, give me something! There are some very mediocre visual effects that are only there because the movie is in 3D. LAME!

Jason Momoa who stars as Conan really is not selling me on the weight that, that name carries with it, yes he's big, but other than that I didn't get chills down my spine when he said he'd follow an enemy into hell.

Another disappointing factor in this trailer is that it doesn't feel like a Marcus Nipsel directed movie. Now, say what you will about the remakes of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Friday the 13th, but those Marcus Nipsel directed films had a really great tone and texture that I was really hoping would be in Conan, but its no where to be found.

Check out the trailer and let us know what you think. Conan is in theaters August 19 2011

Dueces!
StuntmanBob

Trailer Premiere: TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON

Here it is folks! From the great Teaser Trailer that got us curious with the first Moon landing tie in, to that crazy :30spot of Chicago being torn to shit. Today the Official Theatrical Trailer to Transformers: Dark of the Moon is online.




Watch it again in all its HD glory at Apple.com


StuntmanBob

Trailer Review: PROM

No one's PROM is like this. Seriously. Here I'll prove it.

My Prom was started off good; got the school to pay for the ticket of my date and I, was rocking a stone cold zoot suit, danced, she won Prom Queen, I didn't win Prom King (awkward). THEN on the way home I get locked in a gas station because some guy is arguing over ten cents and gupta behind the counter gets all freaked out, electronically locks the door and calls the cops. Finally I got out, jump the expressway and as I'm paying a toll the toll booth guy asks if I just got married. Why not right? So I told him yea and he let me go for free through the toll. Went home and went to bed.

SEE!!

When I see trailers like this that are released by Disney I often wonder if the execs get handed the script, look at it and say, "well its not great, but we have Cars 2 coming out this summer and we really need some extra cash cause we are remodeling the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. OH! also that Star Tours revamp wasn't cheap either. You know what greenlight it. Pixar will keep us on track". This is by far one of the laziest movies that Disney has put out. This looks like it would have faired better on the actual Disney channel as a made for TV movie.

PROM looks like a feel good movie and the time its being released is perfect because it is around the actual Prom season, so I'm sure a lot of suburban high schools can relate. I think the trailer tries to follow to many characters, the dialogue is a clear sign of that. Its very flat, obvious and uninventive. Also there is nothing new being done with this concept. I argue that the movie 10 Things I Hate About You which is based off of Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew is a far better representation of the ritual of Prom, than, well the PROM TRAILER.

Disney also likes to live in this fantasy world that is oh so tiring. The hotties are still blond. The bad boys are the people with long hair, some scruff and wear leather jackets. The nerds have no confidence and are slightly big 'round the midsection and sweat profusely. And there also has to be this "Bring it on" tension between the white hottie and the black girl. ENOUGH!!!! This is 2011, why is there no sign of it in here?

SIDENOTE: Ok so half way through the trailer the white girl tells the black girl that they crown the Prom King and Queen at as certain time, so don't be late. Was that some racial profiling insinuating that black people are always late? Yea I knew you caught that. #CPT

The movie is directed by Joe Nussbaum, whose last movies were Sydney White and American Pie Presents: The Naked Mile. I haven't seen either of those movies for obvious reasons but Mr. Nussbaum is most famous for, in my book, directing the short George Lucas in Love. If you have not seen this short, you are not a true Star Wars fan. There is a wit and cleverness within this short that is amazing! However those same traits are absent from this trailer.

Now there was a show on ABC, which is owned by Disney, called My Generation. This show had a documentary crew following a group of high schoolers through prom, graduation, etc. Then catches up with them ten years later to see what's changed and so forth. Sounds like an interesting drama right? While it did get cancelled, I would have challenged executives to go back to the drawing board, find the holes in why the show didn't work and taylor a movie about Prom using the documentary style. I know it might not have helped anymore than what we have now, but in terms of caring for the characters, it could have made somewhat of a difference.

I would personally stay away from PROM, yes it looks cute and cuddly, but I predict a lot of eye rolling and sigh's while watching this movie. Oh and someone needs to let the studio's know that they are really over using "Firework" by Katy Perry. It has to stop.

Well the final review of this movie will happen when someone (not me) sees the credits roll and house lights go up.

Prom asks you to Prom April 29th, 2011

If you curious in seeing George Lucas in Love, I've embedded it below

Dueces!
StuntmanBob

Trailer Review: FAST FIVE

This movie looks crazy, ridiculous, but dammit if I'm not ready to blow 15 bucks on an IMAX ticket to see it!

The Fast and Furious franchise has had it's ups and downs (2Fast,2Furious), but had a slight resurgence with it's third installment Tokyo Drift, mostly because it abandoned the title characters and followed an entirely different group of characters and style of driving. At the end of that movie Vin Diesel makes a cameo that brought us the fourth film, simply titled Fast and Furious and now, Fast Five.

FF4 brought back all the original characters from the first movie and was by far the strongest of the series. Although it had a cliche villain in the form of a drug trafficker, the story was solid based on the characters history with each other and the loss of a key player, Michelle Rodriguez's "Letty". A moment of silence please.

Director Justin Lin has definitely pumped some much needed NOS back into the series that started with FF:Tokyo Drift. Much like what Len Wiseman accomplished with the 4th Die Hard, Lin has gone the route of good ol' fashion stunt work in complex action sequences, which has made the series more fun to watch in my opinion. He's also made this potentially one-time cast into a modern day Magnificent Seven-esque group of sorts. Not to mention giving us the coolest edition to the group into the form of Han, a drifter in Tokyo Drift.

I know it's been nothing but a constant praise for the series and Fast Five, but here are my bones that need a pickin'.

Fast Five collects characters from all four movies before it, to give us a Marvel-team up kind of adventure. The trailer was rockin' until I saw Tyrese and Ludacris.

Tyrese returns as Roman Pierce, whose wanna-be gangster attitude from 2Fast2Furious was one of the most annoying additions to the series. Perhaps under the care of Justin Lin that will change but I'm not holding my breath. Also, Ludacris, who was in the same basterd movie, made mention that his character doesn't even race anymore because of a previous accident. So why is he here?

I honestly would have loved to have seen Lucas Black and Bow Wow from Tokyo Drift.

We now come to the paradox of the character Han who sadly died in Tokyo Drift. But was in the opening action sequence in FF4 which in the FF timeline was revealed to be a prequel to Drift, so it made sense that he was there and now is part of Fast Five. I cringe at what the explanation will be for his resurrection but I hope it's not a lame one.

Another pitfall this trailer falls into is simply showing us way to much in the form of action. It looks like there are two different action sequences that we get too much of a preview of. A movie franchise as successful as this one could most definitely have gotten away with a teaser trailer. One of those scenes has Paul Walker and Vin Diesel going "car diving", which looks so 'effin cool, but should have cut away sooner from going off the cliff. I hope there is something even bigger than that sequence in this movie cause if thats it, then it blows that I've already seen it.

Second to last, the title of this movie sounds like a porno. No one can argue how terrible this title is. Some personal suggestions of mine are; FURIOUS, FURIOUSLY FAST, VROOOM!!, FAST to the 5th POWER, or FAST AND FURIOUS 5.

Lastly, the wild card;THE ROCK! I simply love that he's in this and that we are going to see a throw down between him and the Diesel. It's kinda nuts and a little corny that he's in this movie but what are the FF movies but nuts and corny fun.

Overall, Fast Five looks like the fun, over the top, tagline spewing, car crashing, money stealing, half naked girl wearing action movie that sometimes you just need to see. This is definitely an opening weekend movie for me. I've heard rumblings of a 6th and 7th movie, and although these are fun movies; how long can this really go on for?

The final review will be when the credits roll and the house lights go up.

Fast Five runs the red light to IMAX and regular theaters near you on April 29th, 2011

Deuces,
StuntmanBob






- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Trailer Review: ARTHUR

To preface I have not see the original movie that this remake is based off.


So lets break this trailer down. At its core its a movie about a guy not wanting to have an arranged marriage and trying to prove to his family and potentially himself that he can have a life separate from his wealthy lifestyle and be happy. This is obviously a plot line we are familiar with. Arthur looks funny, but more and more it looks very tiring. I like Russell Brand, he's unpredictable and funny, but only in small doses. The potential upside to this movies is that it ends up like the other Brand vehicle Get Him to the Greek. Greek was received well critically because it was more of a dissection of his character, Aldous Snow, than just a big, sex, party and drug movie. I mean it was "that movie" at times but the story, in the best way, was definitely more the main focus.

The supporting cast consists of Jennifer Garner as Arthur's arranged wife, who looks like she's trying really hard to be Isla Fischer from the movie Wedding Crashers. Fischer does a better job, for now. Luis Guzman plays the limo driver, which seems like a really reserved character for him. Guzman is usually seen as a more loud and punch line character but I'm hoping that his subtle comedy gets to due time in the spotlight. Lastly, we have Helen Mirren who gives this movie its biggest credibility. Mirren, who is Arthur's nanny and naturally the only one who believes in him I'm sure will make the most of the scenes between her and Arthur. I'm hoping she brings a very sweet and deeper subtext to said scenes.

Arthur seems like it will just be gags, massive amounts of pop culture references and crazy antics all the way through, then about halfway through he'll meet a girl he really cares for, lose her at some point, win her back and then his mom will let him be with whoever he wants cause she's seen a great change in lifestyle. Movies done, I just saved you $10 bucks.

I don't think this is an opening weekend movie for me, personally I'm hoping Hanna wins the weekend.

As always the final review of this movie will be when the credits roll and the house lights go up.

Arthur tries to prove to you that he's worth our time on April 8th, 2011

Dueces!
StuntmanBob

Trailer Review: HANNA

"Once Upon A Time"

Director Joe Wright whose past work includes Pride and Prejudice, Atonement, and The Soloist; directs this story about a small girl trained by her father to be an assassin and from the looks of it go after a CIA agent played by Cate Blanchett. The juxtaposition in the opening words, the lullaby-like music and scenes of actress Saoirse Ronan as Hanna screaming like a viking and viciously attacking Eric Bana, her father, are just surreal. There's also a really nice color palette that go throughout the trailer. For example, those opening scenes start out in the snow; the stark, white, dream-like environment represents an innocence and the purity that we the audience should feel for the young girl. Which then shifts to very vast colors of blues, reds, and grays. Even Cate Blanchett's hair, RED, makes her more a villain. Aside from the action, drama, CGI and "entertainment" in movies trailers; colors, play a huge part.

What I find most interesting about this movie is its similarities to the movie Kick-Ass, directed by Matthew Vaughn. When Vaughn was shopping around the script for Kick-Ass there was an 11 year old girl who was cutting off people's arms and legs with samurai swords and brutally murdering bad guys. Studios only request was that they up the age of the girl to 19 or 20. Long story short, Vaughn didn't cave and Kick-Ass became a huge hit because of that young assassin.

Hanna, while it looks really good, is Hollywood's answer to Kick-Ass; A PG-13 movie with a small child assassin. PG-13, in a movie that looks this visceral really turns me off, because I get the feeling that the movie will be restricted by its rating and not reach its fully crazy, assassin like potential. Granted there are movies rated PG-13, like Taken, with Liam Neeson that still "bring the pain" as it were. But then there are movies like the Angelina Jolie vehicle Salt, that was really affected by its PG-13 rating and turn out to be very unoriginal as a result.

I'm not really a fan of Hollywood doing such things because once again we reach the reality of Hollywood not having anymore any original ideas. But at the same time all movies are inspired by something else. It shouldn't impair your judgement of a movie but its definitely something to look at when you see movies.

Personally, I'm going to be there opening weekend to see Hanna, I think Saoirse Ronan looks fantastic as the title character and I'm really curious at what the McGuffin in this movie, which is some sort of DNA revelation about Hanna. Test tube baby? Alien? Perhaps she was created from the DNA of the finest Judges in Megacity...oh wait sorry that was Judge Dredd.

Anyway the final review of this movie will be when the credits roll and the house lights go up.

Hanna screams its way into theaters on April 8th 2011.

Dueces,
StuntmanBob


oops almost forgot to mention, the score is done by the Chemical Brothers!!! Oh yea!

Trailer Review: THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU

Do we control our own lives?

This is often something that I think about, being a writer, having an interest in various conspiracy theories, and of course the big kahuna; Aliens; why not, think that I'm not control of my own life. Movies that try to make this the main plot of their story are always very appealing to me, good or bad, because there are so many movies that are similar, that its interesting to see what new features can be added to the already established canon.

Director George Nolfi directs Matt Damon and Emily Blunt in a story about a congressman who falls for a ballerina. But that supposed to happen or was it? This is Nolfi's first directing credit he's written movies such as Ocean's Tweleve, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Sentinel, and Timeline. So obviously Nolfi has experience writing such thrillers, make sense that his directorial debut would be one as well. The movie is based off a Philip K. Dick short story called "Adjustment Team". Yes I like Bureau better too.

We all know Matt Damon pulls a good performance in ANYTHING we see him in and I'm really happy the world is getting more and more Emily Blunt; she's awesome. I think the parring of these two fits well and the on screen chemistry looks very believable. The movie co-stars John Slattery and Terence Stamp as two men of the Adjustment Bureau. These characters also bear a certain but more sophisticated resemblence to the tall, top hat wearing "adjusters" in Alex Proyas' Dark City. Who if I'm correct were aliens of some sort, the joy of that movie is part of me is still figuring it out. Also the idea of adjusting and even changing an event for the better or possibly worse has also been explored in another Philip K. Dick adaption; Steven Speilberg's Minority Report.

I know its kinda terrible to compare movies but with even similar looking characters is very difficult not to. The all around look and feel of the movie has a gritty undertone to it, there's texture and it adds to the environment we are in. While the chemistry looks great between Damon and Blunt, my only fear is that the movie will be hijacked by their fight to be and love one another. From the trailer, obviously it looks like the entire plot of the movie and I hope that the stakes to be together are very high. So high that it possibly makes their efforts completely futile by the end of the movie. That sense of never escaping and that realism would be great and I hope it goes somewhat in that direction.

As mentioned before I'm definitely going to see this movie. It appeals to the theorist in me and just looks like a really good Twilight Zone-esque thriller.

As always the final review will be when the credits roll and the house lights go up.

The Adjustment Bureau tries to secretly alter out lives on March 4th 2011


Dueces!
StuntmanBob

PLAY BY PLAY

Well the super bowl has just finished up and I've decided to introduce a new featured post that will pop up occasionally; aptly title "Play by Play".

If your as hyped about all the upcoming movies and their trailers as I am, I'm sure you go through the trailers with a fine tip comb, well that's exactly what play by play is. I'm gonna go through the entire trailer wether its :30 sec or 2min and just dissect the shit out of it.

Look for Play by Play's of some of the Super Bowl spots, such as, Captain America, Thor, Rango, Fast Five, and Transformers: The Dark of the Moon, this week.

Dueces!
StuntmanBob

Sanctum Trailer Review

I am most certainly on a James Cameron high.

Sanctum is the "inspired by true events" story of a bunch of cave divers getting trapped in a cave and trying to escape/survive. Pretty simple, right? But if your going to have anybody behind this movie it had better be James Cameron.

A few weeks ago I just finished reading the book The Futurist: The Life and Films of James Cameron, by Rebecca Keegan. Aside learning more about Cameron's famous and groundbreaking movies I was surprised to learn what he did in his off time. Going on deep sea dives to the Titanic and of course his journey to shoot his infamous Abyss, really opened my eyes to the explorer he really is. His brother and him also hold quite a few patents on new camera's and diving equipment that they designed, so Cameron could shoot under water. Impressive; I recommend the book if any of you are interested.

I'm looking forward to Sanctum for a couple reasons. Richard Roxburgh and Ioan Gruffudd are two of those reasons. The latter is mostly known for playing Mr. Fantastic/Reed Richards in the Fantastic Four movies and in a great indie movie called The TV Set as a tv exec. I caught wind of him in the movie King Arthur where he played a new incarnation of Lancelot. Richard Roxbugh has always been a favorite of mine, he's hammed up Dracula for Stephen Sommers in Van Helsing, battled it out with Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible 2, and played the Duke in Baz Lurhman's Moulin Rogue. Both actors are incredibly versatile and I'm glad they are getting a movie to shine in, like this.

The size and scope are another reason, this movie just looks big! But really came in under the radar in terms of advertising and such. Of course they are using the fact that Cameron is producing as a marketing tool. But I must hand it to director Alister Grierson and just the cast and crew for pulling off an awesome looking flick, which I'm sure was without its problems. Movies like this really show you the joys and lows of filmmaking. You have a team of cave divers (filmmakers), going where no one has explored before and trying to make it out alive and in one piece. Same as a film crew; everyone must pull together to make an great and entertaining movie and survive in the process.

In my last few post on trailers I've been very big on authenticity. I will echo that same feeling here. I love that this looks like they are in really tight spaces without the help of CGI. Granted there are some shots of CGI in there but the great wide shots of the area surrounding the cave hole is a great juxtaposition to the claustrophobic spaces of the cave itself.

I love an adventure, that's why we all go to the movies and from the looks of it so far, the desperation to survive at the end of trailer really makes me feel like this movie will deliver.

Sanctum dives into theaters on February 4th, 2011

Dueces
StuntmanBob

The Other Woman Trailer Review

Natalie Portman is everywhere and I'm loving it.

I like the trailer to this movie. When it first starts I honestly thought that it was going to sway into that same old cliche of a movie where the husband tries to have his cake and eat it too, but was pleasantly surprised when he actually marries the other woman. You'd think; maybe the ex-wife goes psycho and tries to kill them! But again, its about the other woman trying to figure out how to fit in. She sees it in the new life her and her husband have created and then sadly that is taken away from her. I've known people who have lost a child and I cannot imagine the feeling.

The trailer most reminds me of the Julia Roberts movie Stepmom. Only in the fact that Natalie Portman is trying to gain acceptance with her new husbands son. This feels like an un-official independent sequel to Stepmom. Aside from that interest, the authenticity of Portman's journey is truly poignant in the trailer. Here is woman who thinks that after she has a child of her own that everything is just right and her position as a the new wife and now, new mother solidifies her being there. But upon losing the child she delves into a mentality of there being no hope and that isn't true. She's now gotta do what she should have done in the first place and that is establish a common ground with the already established family she is now apart of.

Natalie Portman is again, everywhere and she's really blowing everything she does out of the water. While I didn't write a review for it, she was definitely the saving grace of the movie No Strings Attached. Having never been in a cliche movie like that before, she really showed her comedic talents to fullest.

In addition to the tears that will come from such an emotional movie, I fully recommend checking out this movie when it opens. There will be ups and there will be downs, but movies like this always show the hope at the end of that deep dark tunnel and sometimes you need a movie like that. Of course the final review will be when the credits roll and the house lights go up.

The Other Woman comes into your life February 4th, 2011

Dueces
StuntmanBob

The Eagle Movie Trailer Review

The Eagle is directed by Kevin Macdonald whose past movies are the American adaption of the BBC original State of Play and The Last King of Scotland. Both movies I highly recommend. My real beef is not with this movies director but with tone and feel of the trailer itself. There are so many same shot references to other swords and sandals movies, in this trailer, that you might as well put on those; i.e. Gladiator, King Arthur, Centurion, etc. I mean the opening shot is of our main character sitting in a tented area praying to a clay figure. That is a scene right out of Gladiator! C'mon now! We've all seen this movie before and nothing is really setting it apart from the other movies. The bit of history explained in the beginning might peak my interest a bit, but that's not saying much either.

On top of the tone and un-originality, the casting of Channing Tatum is a bit of a double edged sword. The first movie I can remember seeing Mr. Tatum in was Step-Up; yes I saw it, get over it. Now he went on to do other work in some romantic movies and such like She's the Man and Dear John. However the movies that really made him stand out to me were A Guide to Recognizing Your Saint's and Stop-Loss. I think Tatum is a really good actor he brings a visceral and authentic rawness to his roles. Well at least the ones where he's got to be and its a treat to see, for me at least.

A Guide to Recognizing Your Saint's and Fighting, both directed by Dito Montiel, really show this energy. I can only imagine this is one of the reasons he was chosen for this role. But sadly, the authenticity of the film will lay on his shoulders and in the few scenes he does speak he sounds like he's really trying to have this roman accent but his "twang" or whatever keeps getting in the way. That in itself really just takes me out of the entire world the movie is trying to build. Hopefully the energy I like is enough to keep me interested but I doubt it.

Jamie Bell and Donald Sutherland round out the supporting cast and I think Jamie Bell is going really shine here. Bell has been seen in Billy Elliot, Jumper, and Defiance. Each of these movies are really good and entertaining and Bell has stepped up his game in each one. Be sure to look out for him in the future. He'll next been seen in Steven Spielberg's The Adventures of TinTin

Overall I'm thinking this movie will get some moderate attention when its released. My advice if you have seen all the movies nominated for a Best Picture already then go ahead and check this out. It might be some harmless fun or it could end up being the worst movie in the world, which will then convince you to go home, put on Gladiator, and reclaim your sanity.

As always the final review of the movie happens when the credits roll and the house lights are up.

The Eagle, does a spread, on February 11th, 2011

Dueces
StuntmanBob