Trailer Review: THE LAST STAND

He said he'd be back.


After being Governor of California for eight years, Arnold Schwarzenegger returns as a local sheriff looking to stop a drug lord from crossing the US Mexico border. There's not much to say about this trailer other than it looks like a true return to form for the former Governor. The plays on his age and the opening line about not being recognized in regular clothes, made me chuckle quite a bit. With Expendables 2 coming out this weekend and now looking forward to this I think fellow cinephiles are on a high of seeing older war horses get back in the saddle of these 80's type action films. Nothing complicated, complex, just simple and executed well. Which is what I'm hoping for this movie. 

However... I cannot overlook the director; Mr. Kim Jee-Woon. Who you might ask?

Kim Jee-Woon is a South Korean writer/director who is making his American feature film debut. His last two films The Good, The Bad, The Weird and I Saw the Devil are very very good films. The Good The Bad, The Weird is an entertaining journey into the Clint Eastwood style spaghetti westerns where three individuals are after a map to a secret treasure that is on a train, however "The Weird" comes into posession of the map and from there its a chase to find the map and get the treasure. The ending of the film ending in true western fashion.

I Saw the Devil, is a fantastic, brutal, bloody and emotional revenge film. A mass murderer stalks and kills a young girl who ends up being the wife a police detective. The police detective is numb, numb to a point where he takes two weeks off to hunt the mass murderer down. However he does not kill him, he cuts him open and plants a tracking device inside of the murder and tracks him so that at his leisure can brutally beat and brake the murderer down. From then on its a game of cat and mouse. While being very bloody and graphic I Saw the Devil is a beautiful take on the morality of men pushed to their limits no matter what social position they hold.

Despite looking like your garden variety action film, I'm holding out big for this one. Its a return of one of the greatest action stars ever! and also the American debut of a director who execution on character of action and story I highly regard. I encourage you all to seek out those films.

The movie co-stars, Luis Guzman, Genesis Rodriguez, Johnny Knoxville, Jamie Alexander, Peter Stormare, and Eduargo Noriega

Join Arnold on his The Last Stand on January 18th, 2012

-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