Official Sight: DarkKnight
Director: Christopher Nolan
Writer: Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan
Producer: Christopher Nolan, Charles Roven, and Emma Thomas
Starring: Christian Bale as Batman/Bruce Wayne, Heath Ledger as The Joker, Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent/Two-Face, Michael Caine as Alfred Pennyworth, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel Dawes, Gary Oldman as Lt.James Gordon(IMDb). Rated PG-13. 152 min.
This was such an amazing story, often the novelty of the film being based on a superhero almost did not matter, but incidentally the film was based on a superhero, and that made it something special. The acting was superb, and of course to talk about the acting without talking about Heath Ledger would be sinful. Ledger was official, no doubt about it. All the elements in this film constituted an action packed fast paced crime drama that grabbed your attention, and kept it. This film gets an A. Stay Tuned Movieporium.blogspot.com.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Journey To The Center Of The Earth: Vernian
Official Site: JourneyToTheCenterOfTheEarth
Director: Eric Brevig
Writer: Michael Weiss
Producer: Beau Flynn, Cary Granat, and Charlotte Huggins
Starring: Brendan Fraser as Trevor Anderson, Josh Hutcherson as Sean Anderson, and Anita Briem as Hannah Asgeirsson(IMDb). Rated PG, 92 min.
Trevor Anderson is a scientist who has been studying the works of his brother who has mysteriously gone missing, and one week when his nephew, Sean, came to visit, Anderson stumbled upon some notes his brother made in a copy of Journey To The Center Of The Earth. While at the lab, Anderson and Sean noticed seismic activity in areas that corresponded with certain areas also found in the notes. Their investigation led them to Iceland, where they met Hannah, a mountain guide, who took them to the location of the seismic activity, but a lightning storm prompted them to hide in a cave. When lightning struck the entrance of the cave, they were trapped, and they had to find another way out, and that is where the adventure began.
Surprisingly this film was very suspenseful. The characters were constantly in situations that left movie-goers on the edge of their seat. The anticipation of danger in every discovery was key in crafting the intense levels of suspense that made this film engaging. One scene that had me on edge was the magnetic rock scene.
The pace of the film was excellent, there did not seem to be a dull moment, and certainly that made for a fun film. From the visual value of the film, to the mysterious underpinnings of the hollow earth concept, this film delivered. It was adventurous, and fun, fun, fun. Metacritic.com indicated this film received mixed reviews. Rottentomatoes.com indicated the film received 69 fresh tomatoes to 43 rotten ones thus far. I thought it was great, B+. Stay tuned, Movieporium.blogspot.com.
Director: Eric Brevig
Writer: Michael Weiss
Producer: Beau Flynn, Cary Granat, and Charlotte Huggins
Starring: Brendan Fraser as Trevor Anderson, Josh Hutcherson as Sean Anderson, and Anita Briem as Hannah Asgeirsson(IMDb). Rated PG, 92 min.
Trevor Anderson is a scientist who has been studying the works of his brother who has mysteriously gone missing, and one week when his nephew, Sean, came to visit, Anderson stumbled upon some notes his brother made in a copy of Journey To The Center Of The Earth. While at the lab, Anderson and Sean noticed seismic activity in areas that corresponded with certain areas also found in the notes. Their investigation led them to Iceland, where they met Hannah, a mountain guide, who took them to the location of the seismic activity, but a lightning storm prompted them to hide in a cave. When lightning struck the entrance of the cave, they were trapped, and they had to find another way out, and that is where the adventure began.
Surprisingly this film was very suspenseful. The characters were constantly in situations that left movie-goers on the edge of their seat. The anticipation of danger in every discovery was key in crafting the intense levels of suspense that made this film engaging. One scene that had me on edge was the magnetic rock scene.
The pace of the film was excellent, there did not seem to be a dull moment, and certainly that made for a fun film. From the visual value of the film, to the mysterious underpinnings of the hollow earth concept, this film delivered. It was adventurous, and fun, fun, fun. Metacritic.com indicated this film received mixed reviews. Rottentomatoes.com indicated the film received 69 fresh tomatoes to 43 rotten ones thus far. I thought it was great, B+. Stay tuned, Movieporium.blogspot.com.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Hell Boy II: Cuban Cigars
Official Site: HellboyMovie.com
Director: Guillermo Del Toro
Writer: Guillermo Del Toro
Producer: Lawrence Gordon, Lloyd Levin, Mike Richardson, and Joe Roth.
Starring: Ron Perlman as Hellboy, Selma Blair as Liz Sherman, Doug Jones as Abe Sapien, Seth Macfarlane as the voice of Johann Krauss, James Dodd/John Alexander as Johann Krauss, Luke Goss as Prince Nuada, Anna Walton as Princess Nuala, and Jeffrey Tambor as Tom Manning (IMDb) Rated PG-13.
In this sequel Hellboy and his gang are back to fight Prince Nuada, an other worldly being who decided to violate the truce made between man and the creatures of the forest. Prince Nuada made his return to the world of man at an auction that was selling pieces of a crown from his world that would help him control the indestructible golden army enabling him to destroy human civilization, and the red dude with the big hand was mankind's only hope at stopping him.
Needless to say this film was visually impressive. The special effects, the make-up, and the production were amazing. Collectively, that aspect of the film was great, and Del Toro's fingerprints were clearly evident, at least to those who are familiar with Pan's Labyrinth. However one aspect of the film that I thought lacked potency was the dialogue. I thought the dialogue was somewhat dry, and simple, and perhaps it was written that way intentionally. The comedic value of the film was retained it seems without any decrease in potency from the first to the sequel. For the most part Hellboy 2 was fun to watch, and the film lived up to the advertisements. There was plenty of action, but the ending of the film was somewhat anticlimactic, although there was an act of commendable sacrifice from one of the supporting characters. According to Metacritic.com the film received generally good reviews. Rottentomatoes.com indicates the film received 115 fresh tomatoes to 16 rotten ones thus far. It was a great popcorn movie, I'll grade it a B. Stay tuned, Movieporium.blogspot.com.
Director: Guillermo Del Toro
Writer: Guillermo Del Toro
Producer: Lawrence Gordon, Lloyd Levin, Mike Richardson, and Joe Roth.
Starring: Ron Perlman as Hellboy, Selma Blair as Liz Sherman, Doug Jones as Abe Sapien, Seth Macfarlane as the voice of Johann Krauss, James Dodd/John Alexander as Johann Krauss, Luke Goss as Prince Nuada, Anna Walton as Princess Nuala, and Jeffrey Tambor as Tom Manning (IMDb) Rated PG-13.
In this sequel Hellboy and his gang are back to fight Prince Nuada, an other worldly being who decided to violate the truce made between man and the creatures of the forest. Prince Nuada made his return to the world of man at an auction that was selling pieces of a crown from his world that would help him control the indestructible golden army enabling him to destroy human civilization, and the red dude with the big hand was mankind's only hope at stopping him.
Needless to say this film was visually impressive. The special effects, the make-up, and the production were amazing. Collectively, that aspect of the film was great, and Del Toro's fingerprints were clearly evident, at least to those who are familiar with Pan's Labyrinth. However one aspect of the film that I thought lacked potency was the dialogue. I thought the dialogue was somewhat dry, and simple, and perhaps it was written that way intentionally. The comedic value of the film was retained it seems without any decrease in potency from the first to the sequel. For the most part Hellboy 2 was fun to watch, and the film lived up to the advertisements. There was plenty of action, but the ending of the film was somewhat anticlimactic, although there was an act of commendable sacrifice from one of the supporting characters. According to Metacritic.com the film received generally good reviews. Rottentomatoes.com indicates the film received 115 fresh tomatoes to 16 rotten ones thus far. It was a great popcorn movie, I'll grade it a B. Stay tuned, Movieporium.blogspot.com.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Hancock: Frankenstein
Official Site: Hancock
Director: Peter Berg
Writer: Vincent Ngo, and Vince Gilligan
Producer: Akiva Goldsman, James Lassiter, Michael Mann, and Will Smith.
Starring: Will Smith as John Hancock, Charlize Theron as Mary Embrey, Jason Bateman as Rey Embrey, and Jae Head as Aaron Embrey(IMDb). Rated PG-13.
What I expected Hancock to be was a funny superhero movie involving a beatnik character who lacked the grace of traditional superheroes, and we see this absence of finesse in the way Hancock captures the evildoers, and even in his somewhat crash landings. And to some extent Hancock was a exactly that. Hancock does not know who he is or where he comes from; he can only recall waking up in a Miami hospital, and when the nurse in the hospital asked him for his "John Hancock" he kept that name, but after meeting Mary Embrey, he later gained an understanding of who and what he is, and this makes Hancock more than just the average superhero.
Hancock was very entertaining but unexpectedly dramatic. The dramatic element seemed to balance well with the comedic element of the film. The transition between the funny parts and the dramatic parts were great, and it's commendable how those two key elements of the film were managed nicely, equaling to a film that had more than just action, but emotional content as well. However, because Hancock was unexpectedly dramatic, it may disappoint those who were expecting a hardcore comedic action movie; while there was action in this film there was also a fair degree of drama. Even though this movie was primarily advertised has an action comedy, the dramatic element was not bad at all. In closing, the immortal and historic twist in the film made Hancock somewhat of a distinct superhero movie.
The major problem with this film is the absence of a clearly defined plot. Hancock did not have a well defined goal in the film. Hancock was a crime fighter, but he was not going after a certain villain that was threatening to destroy the human race. Although the film did not have a well defined plot, it did have closure. At the end of the film, movie-watchers understood who Hancock was and why he was so grumpy. Metacritic.com indicated this film received mixed reviews, and Rottentomatoes.com indicated 57 fresh tomatoes to 102 rotten ones. This film was entertaining; I give it a C+. Stay tuned, Movieporium.blogspot.com.
Director: Peter Berg
Writer: Vincent Ngo, and Vince Gilligan
Producer: Akiva Goldsman, James Lassiter, Michael Mann, and Will Smith.
Starring: Will Smith as John Hancock, Charlize Theron as Mary Embrey, Jason Bateman as Rey Embrey, and Jae Head as Aaron Embrey(IMDb). Rated PG-13.
What I expected Hancock to be was a funny superhero movie involving a beatnik character who lacked the grace of traditional superheroes, and we see this absence of finesse in the way Hancock captures the evildoers, and even in his somewhat crash landings. And to some extent Hancock was a exactly that. Hancock does not know who he is or where he comes from; he can only recall waking up in a Miami hospital, and when the nurse in the hospital asked him for his "John Hancock" he kept that name, but after meeting Mary Embrey, he later gained an understanding of who and what he is, and this makes Hancock more than just the average superhero.
Hancock was very entertaining but unexpectedly dramatic. The dramatic element seemed to balance well with the comedic element of the film. The transition between the funny parts and the dramatic parts were great, and it's commendable how those two key elements of the film were managed nicely, equaling to a film that had more than just action, but emotional content as well. However, because Hancock was unexpectedly dramatic, it may disappoint those who were expecting a hardcore comedic action movie; while there was action in this film there was also a fair degree of drama. Even though this movie was primarily advertised has an action comedy, the dramatic element was not bad at all. In closing, the immortal and historic twist in the film made Hancock somewhat of a distinct superhero movie.
The major problem with this film is the absence of a clearly defined plot. Hancock did not have a well defined goal in the film. Hancock was a crime fighter, but he was not going after a certain villain that was threatening to destroy the human race. Although the film did not have a well defined plot, it did have closure. At the end of the film, movie-watchers understood who Hancock was and why he was so grumpy. Metacritic.com indicated this film received mixed reviews, and Rottentomatoes.com indicated 57 fresh tomatoes to 102 rotten ones. This film was entertaining; I give it a C+. Stay tuned, Movieporium.blogspot.com.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Wall-E: Pizza Plants
 |
| Disney Pictures |
Director: Andrew Stanton
Writer(s): Andrew Stanton, and Jim Capobianco
Producer(s): Jim Morris
Starring: Ben Burtt as Wall-E, Elissa Knight as Eve, Jeff Garlin as Captain, Fred Willard as Shelby Forthright/BnL Ceo, John Ratzenberger as John, Kathy Najimy as Mary, and Sigourney Weaver as Ship's Computer(IMDb). Rated-G, 103 minutes.
Wall-E is a lone surviving member of a class of robots left to clean the earth. After seven hundred years, Wall-E has developed what us humans would call a personality. Furthermore, from watching a couple singing, and holding hands from an old video tape of a musical he gathered from the prodigious amount trash left on planet on earth, WALL-E became curious about love. And one day a probe named Eve entered Wall-E's life, and he fell in love, but Eve was not looking for love. She was looking for something else, on a classified mission, but she ended up caring for Wall-E regardless.
I was not excited about seeing this film, but I am happy I gave it a chance, because I enjoyed it immensely. Wall-E is an adorable character, who is innocence incarnate. Wall-E loves his girl Eve and he will chase after her, and protect her, to the far destinations of space. As I watched this movie, I eagerly wanted Wall-E to reunite with Eve. Besides Wall-E, I also felt favorably toward the Captain as well, who was perhaps the hero of the film.
This is a heart warming story that will induce emotions in a Vulcan. There is no lag, and the pace of the film keeps one interested in the occurrences that were pertinent to the multiple plots. One plot of course, was Wall-E's quest to earn Eve's affection, and the other plot was for Eve to execute her directive, and the third plot was for the Captain to return to earth.
These plots were clearly outlined, and that provided for an easy perception of the story. This is a marvelous tale of love, deception, and triumph. Metacritic.com indicated the film generally received good reviews, and Rottentomatoes.com indicated the film received 133 fresh tomatoes to 5 rotten ones thus far. Great film. A classic. I will grade it an A-. Stay tuned Movieporium.blogspot.com.
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