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Tashiro
Reviews
Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010)
Disappointing (Spoilers)
Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief may as well have said 'may possibly have been inspired by the book of the same name'. This movie veers from the book dramatically almost from the beginning, and throws out a lot of what made the book a good read.
Now, attempting to ignore this, here are a few things which did not help the movie at all:
1) All of Ares' children were male, while all of Aphrodite's were female. Why? Do we need more gender stereotyping? (to wit - the book's main antagonist in the camp for Percy was a daughter of Ares)
2) Grover should not have been a Wayans Brother done miniature. The role of 'black annoying comedy sidekick' has been done to death, and is bordering on racist. They turned someone who had been filled with self- doubt and a need to do right into a bungling, annoying hedonist.
3) They destroyed the story arc. The movie had the Lightning Thief, but showed no hint of the greater threat to the Olympians. Rather than digging deeper into Greek Lore (like the book), they removed any trace of a growing threat and made the thief a stand-alone. Very disappointing.
4) Hades is not 'Satan', and the realm of Hades is not 'Hell'. I have no idea why they decided to add Christian roots to a Greek pantheon. And, to add, why was Persephone in the realm of Hades during the summer? It is during the summer that she's free - she'd not have been there.
5) I don't think they should have made the characters older than the book. Having them young allows for the characters to age and mature. While I liked the actors chosen for Percy and Annabeth, I felt that younger actors, and showing the trials of being younger in a world of gods and monsters, would have done better.
To their credit: I liked how they portrayed Poseidon, and the Hydra was amazing, but I think they missed the mark in a number of places. Chris Columbus did an amazing job of Harry Potter 1 and 2, though some thought he stayed too close to the books - unfortunately, with Percy Jackson, I think he strayed entirely too far from them, though this was probably more the fault of the script-writers and the producers, than the director.
Saint Sinner (2002)
Gut-Wrenchingly Horrible
I've collected most (if not all) the original Saint Sinner comics from when Marvel Comics released them as part of Clive Barker's 'Razorline' collection. The original comics is about a boy in the modern age who unwittingly gets possessed by a demon, and then an angel, having both torment him and try to guide him. He becomes a self-made Saint, 'I come to you, you are my court of last resort', whose miracles always have a positive and a negative side, whether he wishes them to or not. Creative, amazing, and would have made an excellent television series.
This movie is not that series. It has nothing to do with this series. The only thing that this movie has to do with the original Saint Sinner is the title, and that Clive Barker wrote the screenplay.
The movie is about a monk coming from the past to the present, to hunt down two succubi he happened to unleash upon the world. The succubi are over-the-top, and grotesque. The monk is unbelievable (though passable). The plot is horrible, jerky, and makes absolutely no sense. There is a 'clock' fade between scenes, saying what time it is, but not explaining why this is important to the flow of the movie. Characters do the stupidest things, and honestly, the ending was not satisfactory in the slightest.
Do not rent this movie. Do not watch this movie. Go, read the comics, and think wistfully about what may have been.
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
Two very different movies.
Just finished watching 'From Dusk Til Dawn' again, and it seems like two very different movies. Before the vampires arrive, the movie appears to be a somewhat dark 'road movie' where the criminals are the antiheroes of the film. Anything which could have been interesting for character interaction is done there, but it gets thrown out the window for the second half of the film -- once the vampires show up. The acting, filming, and story for the first half of the film is excellent, but the second half throws it away. A shame, really.
George Clooney is a skilled actor, and his 'bad ass' character is played well. Even if he is a complete jerk in the film, he's a professional, and operates with skill and panache. He prides himself on what he does, and it shows throughout the entire film. That, in and of itself, makes him a good character to watch even if his actions and goals are not ones you can approve of.