bprokosz Reviews

True Grit (2010)

Don't see what the fuss is all about

[7/10 · 10 September 2011]

So, I watched both True Grit films this week, the first being the new version...

The story is good...a girl who's father is killed is determined to find him and make him pay. She uses her wits and resources to convince an old cranky Marshall to help her while a Texas Lawman is also willing to get the bad guy, but for different reasons...he wants to bring him back to Texas to be hanged...

Now...after seeing the film I went "meh"...like I said, good story, everything looks good, the snowfall in particular really pops.

As for the performances...well, here we go: Bridges done just fine although there's really nothing outstanding about him. He plays a drunk old cranky lawman, so picture that..OK, that's it....Matt Damon is odd in this. He's playing it serious one moment, then smirks and acts like he's in a comedy. He's very mis-cast here. Josh Brolin, well, he's OK for the few minutes he's on screen, but he speaks so oddly I didn't know what he was saying half the time, same as every guy in the film really. It was annoying.

When it was over the girl did a good job, probably the best of the bunch but the ending was really lame, trying to go for depth and emotion and really it's a standard ending and it didn't leave me feeling much of anything. Certainly not worth all the nominations and awards, but given them probably because people think the Coen's can do no wrong or something. Overall I wouldn't recommend it. See Tombstone or The Proposition instead.

Oh and as for people saying "It's totally different from the original"...No..even the dialog is the same in a lot of scenes. The only differences are in the ending, otherwise it's the same movie.

True Grit (1969)

Saw both new and old

[6/10 · 10 September 2011]

They are the same film...despite what other people say, don't believe them...the plot, the storyline, heck even dialog is the same in certain scenes. The ending is barely different.

However, what sets this film apart is the old-fashion feel. It really is a John Wayne action/western...like alllll the other John Wayne action/westerns. If you liked one, you'll like this one. I don't know what other films this was up against but I pity the other actors because there's nothing spectacular about him in this that differs from his other performances so I don't know why he won an Oscar.

Honestly, I saw it hoping to like it more than the new film, but the acting in these old films is a lot of actors just waiting for their lines and not really reacting too believable (for instance, when Duvall makes fun of Wayne the camera cuts to Wayne who pauses looking bored before doing an over-the-top "whhaaat?" facial expression). However, if you read my review of that one, you'll see I didn't care for it all that much either...Definitely not the "quintessential western" as one reviewer posted...it's a good story but I won't ever recommend it.

Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

Review is for Director's Cut only

[10/10 · 9 September 2011]

The theatrical cut of this film runs 45 minutes shorter, has a different color pallet, is missing a few subplots, certain characters just go away and you never know what happened to them, the "bad guy" is one of those, he's just out of the movie all of a sudden...in short, it felt chopped and unfinished...

The Director's Cut is THE best work Ridley Scott has ever done...yes Blade Runner is considered his masterpiece but I disagree.

The music, color, set design, dialog, action, momentum, EVERYTHING is perfected. With the extra 45 minutes we get a completely told journey that actually stays with you after the film is over..due in part, to the outstanding score.

Orlando Bloom is actually able to carry the film, plus the secondary characters are ALL wonderful actors who do an amazing job as well.

Add to this the incredible 4 disc DVD set with an insane amount of special features like roundtable reads, interviews, behind the scenes, etc, including talk with Scott about how he really hates that the studio made him cut down the movie.

It also has a musical intro like when a theater is filing in, an intermission, and the discs are perfectly cut so the scene fades slowly between Act 1 and 2...

If you like anything epic or just like any of the actors don't bother renting, just buy the 4 disc DVD...the Bluray looks and sounds great but sadly there are no special features.

The Next Three Days (2010)

Not bad for a movie that bombed.

[7/10 · 3 September 2011]

A man decides his wife has to be innocent of murder so he hatches a scheme to get her out of prison when all attempts to retry the case are lost.

Liam Neeson plays a man who's escaped prison 7 times and teaches him in possibly the best scene of the film what its all about.

An hour into the movie, nothing really happens other than planning and character development.

But every scene leading up to when the action starts Russel Crowe is great...is emotions are perfect and you can tell he's a man on the edge.

Once the action starts it doesn't stop until the films ends and it actually is pretty good, despite some cliché's and plot holes.

Overall, idk why it bombed but I can see why it didn't last long in theaters...its a nicely made movie that has a heart and is well acted...not too bad for a redbox rental.

Kill the Irishman (2011)

Underrated mob film only worthy of viewing because of the special features.

[8/10 · 1 September 2011]

This movie opens with a car bomb..it's a tense scene and it makes the movie seem pretty awesome, until the car actually explodes...it's a fake explosion...cgi...and done horribly...you can actually tell with ease that there's no flames, smoke, etc.

Because of this I thought "what did I get myself into?"...the budget looked like crap...but I gave it a shot.

1.5 hours later I thought the film was good but the same problems that plagued the opening minutes are standard in the film, but some explosions are real and amazing, which makes no sense.

Overall the acting was decent but the pace moves so rapidly that it winds up actually being a little boring, only because we aren't allowed to enjoy the moments. It also bordered on ridiculous...there was no way this guy could survive everything, go on TV, mock the mob, and stay in a trailer when they could easily kill him...it was just too crazy.

Then I watched the special features...the main feature is an hour long documentary featuring real news programs, the real people involved, interviews, and film of the shootings, crime scenes, and bombings...it shows that the film was about 90% accurate save for a few small details and some exaggerated parts in the beginning...this made me really appreciate the character and the story a lot more.

Bottom line, this is HIGHLY recommended viewing provided that you watch the special features (yes even on the redbox it's included)...I agree with other reviewers, if this had been given a bigger budget and shot with a more seasoned director it would go down as one of the greatest stories I've ever seen.

The Last Boy Scout (1991)

Why I never thought to watch this until today...

[4/10 · 1 September 2011]

OK, it's been a long time (20 years!) since this film came out...it's also probably the only Bruce Willis action film I hadn't seen and I always wondered why nothing ever really got me interested in it....

To be honest, I thought Damon Waynes was the reason...I hate the "hey lets act like a moron" comedy so I thought it would be a horrible buddy cop thing...I never actually thought it was a football film.

This reminds me of another Willis film I didn't like at all, Last Man Standing...it has a ton of profanity for no purpose other than to have it in an R rated film. This is probably why studios make films pg-13 now. It doesn't make the film any better lets put it that way....2nd it's got over the top shooting and violence that isn't really edited in a way to make it cool...it's just the early 90's close-ups of machine guns and blood splatter and there's really no style or substance to it...its boring.

3rd...the plot...it's really trying to be something deep and cool and different from other action movies and it ends up being too convoluted...it's confusing and not in a cool Inception way.

Finally the ending (don't worry, no spoilers) feels a lot like other Willis movies where the hidden gun and all the sarcastic humor come into play surrounded by bad guys...this type of thing works in Die Hard when there's 2 people and 1 guy isn't paying attention but this has maybe 8 and one has a shotgun pointed point blank at his chest and is the 3rd person to get shot...idk

Honestly with 10 minutes to go I just turned it off...the best part in the entire movie is Halle Berry as a stripper but I don't even know if it was actually her or a body double...either way, I know now why I never bothered to watch this...it's horrible...for a Shane Blake written movie see Lethal Weapon or Kiss,Kiss,Bang,Bang...for a good Willis...um, well you know his stuff by now, close your eyes and pick one.

Superman Returns (2006)

Before the new one comes out...

[25 August 2011]

Before all the reboots, sequels, etc Superman Returns managed to do one thing really well...pretend like Superman 3 and 4 never existed.

Set in the timeline of shortly after Superman 2, the world is without it's best hero...he's gone to investigate a NASA discovery that could mean more survivors of Krypton's explosion...nope...so he comes back, only to find a world that has gotten used to dealing with things without him.

Where the movie fails is its attempt to be just like the originals..it tries too hard to be like it was made back then...it's too long, has too little action, no real fights, and isn't as good as it should've been.

Keep in mind that this came out BEFORE Batman Begins and AFTER X2, possibly the best reboot and Marvel movie respectively...still, for what it is, the movie succeeds in telling a good Superman tale. Don't look for wow moments like Dark Knight had but its did have two cool scenes..1) involving Superman stopping a jet from crashing (I remember thinking how great it was to see someone who really did look like he was flying) and 2)towards the end Lex's thugs beat him in a way that actually made me cringe and feel sad..the scene was very effective.

Not the movie we were all hoping for but in no way deserving of all the harsh criticism it gets, I'd gladly watch it with anyone who hasn't had the chance to see it yet.

Game of Thrones (2011–2019)

Excellent television adaptation from excellent books.

[9/10 · 31 May 2011]

First of all, I have only read the 1st book, "Game of Thrones" because I wanted to read after I saw the first few episodes of the series. First of all, putting a face to the characters is worth it. HBO and the actors have done an amazing job making every single person exact to how their character is in the book. Dialog is, for the most part, word for word and it's pretty simple to divide the book into ten parts and read accordingly.

Overall its a fantastic fantasy series that most people will relate to Lord of the Rings, even though it really is NOTHING like it aside from it being grand-scale, having Sean Bean, and having funny sounding names for things.

Each episode is better than the one before it and even if you think the first few are a little slow, you'll relish them compared to the intense, often breathtaking pace the series jumps to during the latter half of episode 4.

Finally, its HBO...there will be nudity, swearing, and violence....of the 3 I will say the nudity is a tad overdone...while exposition is revealed during most of the scenes and is very important, it boarders on late-night cinemax, especially during episode 7.

10/10, for story, acting, cinematography, and being faithful to the origin. Even if you don't like LoTR (I don't), its just fun to watch.

Tron: Legacy (2010)

Tron bookends the age groups...

[7/10 · 27 January 2011]

It's surprising to me how difficult it was to actually get my hands on a copy of the original Tron. Amazon sells it for upwards of $70 and my local library had me on a waiting list that meant I had to see Tron Legacy last night instead of when it came out. Finally though, 2 days before it leaves most of my local theaters, I got to watch it...

First: TRON...the original...When Flynn breaks into the mainframe to download files that show he is the true inventor of popular video games, the mainframe activates a laser that breaks down his molecules and traps him in the computer world. In order to get back to reality Flynn teams up with Tron, a super program and fights to the Portal, the only way back. I asked everyone if the movie was good before I saw it...everyone said instantly "no...its horrible"...going in with that mindset I forced myself through the first 10 minutes of in-comprehensive story to get to the real plot. Then I was shocked that the disgustingly bad graphics and horrible acting were actually intriguing me. Soon I was on the edge of my seat as Flynn and Tron are involved in suspenseful light cycle chases and tanks blast away at the grid...really...i was shocked...the graphics are so bad and that acting is worse. After the movie I felt rewarded and thought the story had a perfect arc and was satisfied.....

TRON LEGACY....2 days after seeing the original I watched this..which also happened to be 2 days before it left theaters in my area (whew)...

1) The plot: Sam Flynn, son of billionaire Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) is the cookie cutter rebel...outrunning police on his Ducatti, living in a garage, and breaking into his father's company to pull pranks...one night, Adam (from the original..like...the guys who's program was Tron!) tell Sam his pager went off inside the dad's old arcade...Sam goes looking, finds a hidden door, accidentally shoots himself with the infamous laser gun, and is now on The Grid...horrible...the original had a point, setting up a point through "accidents" is, to me, a cop-out. Anywho...Sam is forced to play games and "survive" on the Grid as he looks for his father.

2) The characters....Sam= rebel...think Kirk in the new Star Trek mixed with a little John Conner via T2...thats it...he's there to push the plot along. Jeff Bridges= Awesome...really awesome...you could play a drinking game to the times he says "Hey man, it's cool man, we're jamming man!"...and he plays two parts very well.

All the other characters are programs so you'd expect them to act robotic therefore they don't count...although the club owner and the right-hand man are IDIOTS...so annoying.

3) The 3D....pointless. Now before I get hate responses I will say the graphics looked amazing...light cycle races, Frisbee fights, and the planes all were flashy and bright and fun...however, I tilted my head several times to see without the glasses and found out there were very very few times where the entire image was in 3D...sometimes a light trail would be but the cycle wouldn't...a pixel would blast out at you but the action around it wouldn't etc...in my opinion wasted. Also, 3D movies are shown darker than normal so I'm confident that the Bluray of this will look brighter, flashier, and even better.

overall....eh...keep in mind this is the sequel that broke so much new ground in the world of computers and movie-making it's still being talked about...it was a revolutionary idea and blew everyone's mind....the new one is typical Disney flash but there's NOTHING in it that I found to be groundbreaking or did anything even close to "bullet time" in the Matrix, 3D in How to Train Your Dragon/Avatar, or even tell a fantastic story. This movie is Matrix/Star Wars/Star Trek/and the ending is 100% LOtR you shall not pass...

Explanation of my title for this review.....for kids this movie is definitely worthy of its PG title, the style is more important to kids ages 6-13 than the substance so it is a perfect movie for them. Ages 14-17 will probably think it's not cool to see a PG Disney movie and would rather sneak into a dumb R rated comedy. For fans of the original like my parents and anyone old enough to remember the actual affect Tron had will like this movie as well, most likely the 30-50 year-olds. There are tons of references to the first movie including dialog "Wow, that is a big door" is said in both films while opening the same door. the words "I fight for the users", the original had as one of it's tag lines is in this movie and is a great moment for fans.

Finally, this movie starts out an origin story for newbies but should have been a full-fledged sequel. The scenes on The Grid are fun but nothing monumental, the story is everything we've seen a million times, and the ending is just fine, if not feeling a little rushed. Great as escapism but not worth the $16 3D fee at all.

Saw 3D (2010)

The final piece

[8/10 · 29 October 2010]

It says there are spoilers but I'm really just referring to past films so nothing about this one...that matter.

I never thought so many years ago I would be all grown up, still enjoying these movies. More than that, I can't believe I'm writing a review for the final episode in this saga.

I won't talk about Dr. Gordon because he's in the film very briefly, almost like a cameo, but it just puts a big happy smile on my face seeing him again.

I also won't talk too much about John Kramer, who, besides a video at the finale only has one, brief scene the entire time....but come on, the dude is dead and we know all about him, so really, they couldn't have done MORE back story...his one scene ends with laughter from the audience and a fuzzy feeling inside like "dude, you were the man"...the final videotape will go down as my absolute favorite scene of any of these films.

THE PACING: The director shot this the same style as 6...in fact, everything feels like 6, which is fine with me cuz 6 was terrific.

THE MUSIC: Best music yet, pulse-pounding the entire movie..there's always ambiance.

HOW IT RANKS: Well, this is tough...the ending is 100% satisfying, but the plot with Bobby is something that was done better in 6. So...the beginning of this film and the ending propel this movie to 3rd place status...not bad for the 7th movie...6 would be 2nd, and, sorry haters but I loved SAW 4 and how it happened during 3.

THE TRAPS: OK, these are MINOR SPOILERS...

Overall the traps were good, definitely the most suspenseful in a while and by far the most gory...If you are squeamish about things going into the throat ur not going to have nightmares, you're probably going to just drop dead...sorry...but seriously EVERYTHING involves the neck once the plot gets going....well except for fish hooks...especially 1, tiny fish hook that provided the most squirms and murmurs of the night....all-in-all they were good, and surprisingly suspenseful.

THE ENDING: (NO SPOILERS....PROMISE)....could not have ended any other way because I feel totally satisfied....there's no itch for the next one, there's no plot to cover, no back story unmentioned. You leave with the amazing score pounding in you and it's like "sigh, this is the last time I'll hear this during Halloween in the theater"

THE 3D: Wonderful...seriously...they provide tons of jump scares that are totally effective and yes, guts do fly at you...while there aren't guts all the time the field of depth is drastic and really cool to watch....if you bank with Chase, by your tickets on moviewatcher and get buy one get one free...seriously...$10.50 for two people to see a 3D film...awesome.

One final thing...the opening credits mixed with the opening scene...were awesome...best opening credits ever.

sorry I had to add one more thing...minor spoiler tho... the special thing at the end in the evidence locker was so amazing.