ianriley Reviews

Live Free or Die Hard (2007)

better than the first 3 put together!

[9/10 · 30 June 2007]

wow. the action scenes were as good as it gets. Bullets and bombs right from the start, and it never lets up.

The premise is a nice twist on the traditional terrorist attacks. I don't know about you, but I'm getting tired of seeing movie after movie of some extremist group planting bombs in buildings. Attacking all the technology we rely upon, now there's a scary situation.

The story moved along at such a great pace, that it felt very unpredictable. Sure, you know the outcome in the end, but everything in between is a wild roller-coaster of intense chase scenes and massive shootouts.

If you've never seen a die-hard movie yet, you might wanna watch some of others first, and leave the cream of the crop for last. It couldn't have been done any better in my opinion. OK there was one scene involving a car and a helicopter that is quite far fetched, but hey, it's die-hard baby! yippie kai yay muther suckers!

Sicko (2007)

his best documentary so far

[8/10 · 17 June 2007]

Brilliant documentary, with a softer, less angry Moore taking a good hard look at the current state of the inner-workings of the American private health care system, and comparing them to the universal systems in Canada, England, and France. The nay-sayers will argue that he's skewing his content, or simply choosing the worst HMO stories, but that's exactly what he has to do to drive his point home! The content here is far less controversial than in his previous films. It's widely known that, despite being one of the richest countries in the world, the states is far from best when it comes to taking care of their own.

The film gives the impression that Canadians wait an average of 45minutes to get seen at a hospital. Being a Canadian, I'll tell you right away that is not the case. There is an issue here in Canada with long wait times (both at the hospital and for major surgery), however, the system still works well, and everyone is taken care of, regardless of financial or social status.

Seeing sicko really made me realize just how much I take our universal health care system for granted. Some of the HMO horror stories Moore gives are shocking (to put it lightly).

While this film doesn't pack quite the punch, compared to Fahrenheit and Columbine, it's still going to turn a lot of heads. Everyone should see this movie.

American Wedding (2003)

doesn't pack the humourous punch that the first 2 did but it was still hilarious

[1 August 2003]

Just saw American Wedding tonight and I must say, the raunchy humour continues! While I thought the first 2 were better, this was still worth seeing. I won't talk about any of the jokes in it because they have to be seen! If you're a Pie fan go check this one out!

Basic (2003)

I Basically want my money back

[2 April 2003]

This movie was a huge disappointment for me (although I didn't have huge expectations from it to begin with). The movie itself did have alot of potential, and the idea was good, but the delivery was aweful. The plot twists were rediculous, to the point where I found myself laughing at each one. The script is aweful in many parts. Then there's the traditional sexual tension that occurs between Travolta and the female lead which is just horrible. It's completely irrelevant and is not needed at all. The script completely downplays Travolta's acting ability. I actually liked Jackson's performance, though he wasn't on camera as much as Travolta. The lead actress was horrible. Her role as the tough interrogator was badly done and very unbelievable.

5/10

One Hour Photo (2002)

gets better as it goes on

[27 August 2002]

I agree with others on the fact that it is formulaic. I started off feeling as if everything that happened did so in a perfect order, which made parts predictable. However, it did get better at it went on. Ending was a bit disappointing for me, but on the whole the movie was worth seeing. Robin Williams did a great job as Sy.

Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)

well done, makes up for Phantom menace

[8/10 · 17 May 2002]

well I liked it.. I really liked it. Action scenes were phenomenal, CGI was done very well (minus a few parts), the acting was O.K. (though cheezy and poorly acted in a few places), but all in all, I walked out with a positive impression. This episode fills in alot of blanks as to how episode 4 starts off. Ewan does an awesome job as obi-wan, and yoda done as CGI looked VERY good in my opinion!

go see it! you won't be sorry!!!!!