RobinCook70 Reviews

Straw Dogs (2011)

Nostalgic Classic Remake

[7/10 · 13 December 2011]

Considering how the original Straw Dogs came out in a much different societal climate era to where it was censored and banned from theaters at the time for being "too violent/explicit," this remake could only update the material content. That was how things were in the 70's and the hippies were still strong in America. There is no other Dustin Hoffman or Susan George, that's for sure, but this film did a fair job in casting. With the way violence and rape content is blasted in our face today, this remake simply was not able to capture the same essence and nuances as the original. Even if a now era viewer were to watch the original film, due to be desensitized with so much violence and sexual content in media today, I doubt that it would have much of an impact.

My vote is a bit influenced from having lived in the time period when the original film was done, so my viewing this film I had a feeling of nostalgia accompanying my senses. Some films like this simply cannot match the original due to the nostalgia factor. However, this film is worth at least a one-time viewing since it is rather good, entertaining and well done. Not a blockbuster, but worth watching. With that said, I do recommend it.

Die Kinder (1990– )

Intensely Good

[10/10 · 8 July 2010]

I just finished watching the DVD copy of this six part series. It was very intriguing to the very end. From reading another comment I gather that there is a book ... and if the film followed the book's ending, then I guess that's okay, BUT, with the way filmmakers take advantage in changing various events from their "based-on" books, I truly wish they had done so with how this series ended and let the Lomax character remain alive and well at the end, but they didn't. Perhaps in the book the Lomax character wasn't as likable and deserved to get blown up? Other than the ending, the entire series was topnotch from the different intro scenes at the start of each episode to the casting and acting. I was glad that it was not heavily milked for doing over-dramatic scenes of "mother missing daughter." It had just enough drama alongside the intense intrigue.

All in all, this was a very good and well done series.

Year One (2009)

More Meat than Meets the Eye

[8/10 · 19 May 2010]

I usually don't like to watch this type of goofy-looking film, but decided to give it a whirl, and I actually enjoyed it. Perhaps either I was looking for more depth in the writing than was intended, or I picked up on it and "got it." The script was intelligently written and was quite cohesive in the various "messages" it was conveying insofar as its' subliminal and careful "opinions" regarding religion. The comedy was not forced and timing was very well done for the comedy. I rented the DVD and viewed the theatrical version ... and plan on watching the Unrated version soon.

This type of movie is usually stereotyped with meat-head types that don't appeal to me nor do I find them funny. BUT, when this film wasn't funny, at least it was intelligent, not insulting. There was ONE spot that had me laughing with literal tears to the extent I had to use the pause button. I have to say that this film was more of a non-comedic intellectual spoof than the usual fare of many stupid, inane type of meat-head films. It actually had smart dry humor implanted that seems to be rarely done these days.

Also, I think that it is a film that would cater to the enjoyment of the older, seasoned citizens. I would consider watching it again (as indicated to see the Unrated version), and for that I give it a considerable higher rating. It is a smart film.

Did You Hear About the Morgans? (2009)

Bad Lines for the Script

[3/10 · 19 May 2010]

Both Hugh Grant and Jessica Parker have very specific acting styles and an image that their audiences come to expect. The storyline and casting for this film was very well intelligently thought out, but the lines provided in the script simply did NOT match the actor and actress. I truly enjoyed seeing Sam Elliot again as well and wished there had been a little more of him to give some balance to a script with unintelligent lines. The attempted comedic lines dumbed them down when it was truly obvious the characters being portrayed were definitely above-average intelligent ... and the scriptwriting did not even attempt to blend the lines to work with each celebrity's acting styles or image.

Even if the casting had chosen two other leads for this movie, it really boils down to very bad lines done in the script. Even creative ad-libbing that they attempted to do simply didn't help. So, I was largely disappointed in this film since the storyline premise and the superb casting drew me with great interest, but it was a very frustrating film to watch and a waste of good talent ... and the entire film crew and producer, etc. If they had taken the time to rework the lines, this could have been an enjoyable film to watch. Instead, it was a most frustratingly stupid movie.

The Vampire Diaries (2009–2017)

Forbidden Love

[7/10 · 11 April 2010]

I had seen the movie Twilight and thought it was a bit placid, and the 2nd movie was a real yawner. Then, due to some reason perhaps capitalizing on the Twilight fans flooding the market, this series was presented. So, I had this in my mind upon watching this series, so I was very skeptical and biased already.

In the first episode of Vampire Diaries, I noticed similarities in the forbidden love story unfolding, but this episode left me wondering about the cast, the script and how the heck this show was going to last. It was really boring and dreadful. I did set aside my impression of the Twilight movies as much as possible, but the first episode reinforced this impression to the series.

However, as with many TV series, the first episodes take a bit of time to gear up into being something worth watching, so I watched more episodes. I was pleasantly surprised and have now found it to be more worthy of viewing. The acting seems to have improved as well as the script writing. I haven't read any of the books, so my impression here is based only from my viewing impressions. I hope more character development happens and that this series succeeds in lasting at least two seasons. Capitalizing on a forbidden love story type theme, the movies and series, including True Blood, I falter, though, at the love story thread to maintain this series for a length of time before it gets monotonous and tiresome ... but, until then, it's fun fantasy entertainment to escape into.

First Australians (2008)

Incredibly Fascinating

[10/10 · 26 December 2008]

If you're in the mood for a good documentary series that tells it like it was with descendants relating events, then you're in for a treat. This next paragraph I copied from another site giving a summary of this series.

First Australians chronicles the birth of contemporary Australia as never told before, from the perspective of its first people. First Australians explores what unfolds when the oldest living culture in the world is overrun by the world's greatest empire. Over seven episodes, First Australians depicts the true stories of individuals - both black and white - caught in an epic drama of friendship, revenge, loss and victory in Australia's most trans-formative period of history. The story begins in 1788 in Sydney, with the friendship between an Englishmen (Governor Phillip) and a warrior (Bennelong) and ends in 1993 with Koiki Mabo's legal challenge to the foundation of Australia. First Australians chronicles the collision of two worlds and the genesis of a new nation.

Being in the USA, I have not had much of any information about Australia and its' history in any form like this. This seven episode series filled me in quite well ... and was further interesting to view it just after having viewed another fact-based drama and fact-event series, "Against The Wind." I recommend a comparison viewing with these two series so you can draw your own conclusions. This was a topnotch documentary series and I applaud all those involved ... now, if someone will manage to fix the 3rd episode audio sync copy I viewed (lol)! If I could give more than ten stars I would ... definitely a must see!

The Tracker (2002)

Truly An Experience

[10/10 · 7 October 2008]

Being in the USA, I'm not exposed to many films from Australia. I had seen Rabbit Proof Fence and Walkabout films some years ago ... and this one is in yet another corner of being a most outstandingly exceptional film.

There was a moment when the music almost seemed too much too long, but the "understood" clip clop of horse's feet not heard and replaced with music with a profile movement of each character outlined on the screen had the desired effect in keeping me from cutting off viewing. One thing I would have liked would have been some insight to the social customs of Aborigine's and aboriginal laws of the time concerning the subject of rape and murder. I recently watched an episode in a new series of Double Trouble in which it was a serious offense for a young aboriginal girl and boy to go to a cove to go swimming alone without an adult. How was "consensual sex" between a white woman and aboriginal man considered back in this movie's era? Customs, culture and "laws" were so much different then.

This film gives the sense of the long trail with three men tracking an Aborigine accused of raping and murdering a white woman. As the trail meanders thru the dry brush tundra, it is mingled with songs and freeze frame shots with original paintings capturing the moment's dark scene(s). Alongside Walkabout film, this film should, also, be with the Criterion Collection, if not already. With that said, this film was truly an experience and I truly recommend it.

Vedma (2006)

Great Art, Lousy flick

[1/10 · 20 August 2008]

I rented this film yesterday mostly due to the good-looking art and the summary given on the back of the jacket. After popping it into my DVD player I re-examined the jacket cover and even though I took the cover out of from the plastic viewer, I STILL could not read any of the production detail information about the film. This film is entitled Evil on the Jacket and had to locate it by going to Faith Films website to find out any linkage to it here on IMDb.

The filming and special affects done in the film looked quite good ... THEN, a line-reading actor spoke. Oh dear ... this actor's reading sounded like some pimple-faced high school jock whose voice just managed to change pitch, and no attempt given to go beyond reading the lines from the script. At first I thought I got a bad disc out of audio sync, then had to surmise it was a foreign film since I couldn't read the jacket... English dialog dubbed. If they'd casted the right person for dubbing the dialog, this film MIGHT have been decent. I gave it a chance of about 20 minutes before ejecting it when I discovered the bad line reader wasn't going to get killed off, but stay as the constant main fixture. Yes, it is THAT bad! The jacket cover art and the art done in the film are great, so gave the one star, but minus 1,999,999 stars for the rotten dialog. I do not recommend this one!

CJ7 (2008)

Absolutely adorable

[10/10 · 15 August 2008]

I just finished watching this film and just loved it. It's done intelligently very well so an oldie like myself enjoyed it probably as much as children. The little CJ7 character was really adorably creative in it's design and the cgi animations done outstandingly.

Yes, I got out a hankie to wipe my cheeks down from one of the most touching and endearing scenes (even though I had anticipated it coming, but didn't expect I'd get so emotional over it!). Very touching and sweet ... and in a very good way.

The story was well played out with the youngster learning there is more important things in life than his own selfish wants, and his Father had taught him good values of integrity, respect and morals. CJ7's role was akin to a magical subconscious compelling him to do the right thing(s), and that sometimes one makes a choice for an unselfish ultimate sacrifice.

This was, by far, one of the best foreign children's films I've viewed in some while. Set aside the English dubbing and get past that, I recommend this one for a good feeling viewing experience.

Never Forget (2008)

Entertaining

[9/10 · 23 July 2008]

I didn't know what to expect from this movie when I rented it today. I have noticed that Lou Diamond Phillips has been diversifying his acting roles rather than his past "cause" or "message" type movies, and he can actually act! I'm impressed. After a deluge of his past message/cause movies (that caused to form a feeling of dread for me when I'd see his name attached), I hesitated to try out some new movie rentals lately with his name on them, and have to say I found them entertaining and enjoyable. This one did not disappoint me (and the Westerns he's been in were good, too). The premise storyline seems hackneyed and simple, but it was more complex, and very well done ... kept me guessing to the end as to who was the bad guy. The movie set was the woods, woods, and more woods, so to do a feature like this and keep me from hitting the Stop button ... well, the movie was intense and kept me interested. The one item that I found to be a bit out of place was the scene with arterial blood spurting (knocked a star off for this since I thought it cheapened the film). I think that could have been left out, but perhaps it was left in for gore fans.

If you're looking for a deep kind of gory thriller, this wouldn't fall into that category. This is more of an intellectual guessing type thriller that exceeded any expectation I had upon renting it. It's not a big blockbuster, but I'd recommend giving it a watch!

Rails & Ties (2007)

Touching and Moving

[10/10 · 19 June 2008]

I rented this on DVD and am wondering why they took out the Additional Scenes in the movie that are on the Special Features. I was hoping there would be some interviews on the DVD, but alas, had to settle for just the Additional Scenes.

This movie has typical Lifetime TV earmarks, but with a lot more to give. I was especially impressed with Miles Heizer in his role of the young boy. It is a good story that gives both character insight angles of the victim and the accidental killer. I applaud the casting done here. Kevin Bacon's role was perhaps the best choice to play this particularly difficult part, and he conveyed/portrayed it very well. I can't think of any other actor who could have pulled it off.

The emotional dramas did cause me to pull out some hankies, but they did not dwell on this content in an overdone fashion. I am weary of movies that linger on with many scenes of someone dying in bed of cancer (which was not done at all in a great movie "Who Will Love My Children"), but they kept the IV drip bit scenes to a tolerable minimum. The tears were not associated so much to the cancer bit, but was with how the story was put together ... very, very well done.

This young 14-year-old lad, Miles Heizer, is a gem and I really hope to see more of him performing in more films. This movie I recommend when you're in an emotional mood of viewing pleasure. It's definitely worth the rental fee.

PTU (2003)

Some Merit ... maybe

[4/10 · 19 June 2008]

I rented this on DVD yesterday and did not realize it was a "character study" type of movie, so I struggled to watch about an hour of it before hitting the Stop button.

Even with a character study theme, I just could not get into this film at all. Perhaps it was my mood in wanting to watch something else, or maybe I had other expectations, but setting that aside, I tried my best to move on to finish watching, but gave up. The actors played their roles well, but the global combination did not come together to keep my interest. About the only interesting thing was the sergeant's gun being stolen and he hurried to buy another one, and spray painted it black to appear as police issue. I think this movie should have been entitled, "Who Stole the Sergeant's Gun?" Scenes were well done but putting them together I once again felt robbed for anything cohesive to keep me viewing.

Since I didn't finish watching it I'd say there is some merit to renting this film ... maybe. To me, it was a waste of good viewing effort and time. I'll leave it up to you to try it, but it's not one I'd strongly recommend.

Otis (2008)

Otis 2 ?

[10/10 · 13 June 2008]

This film simply "worked." I'm not keen on horror fare shows that are what I refer to as "survivor movies (meaning who is gonna survive at the end)." This one breaks the rules for that fare. It had moments with Otis and his creepiness that was all too "there" for me, but was done so well, I was kept in my seat.

Then, when the story angle changed with the twist in the movie, I guffawed so hard I had tears streaming down my face laughing so hard. The way the ending was done ... which, I would like to add, was a very good way to end the movie ... it gave a good opening for a 2nd movie. The ending (without giving it away), leaves something a bit obscure to the sight, so it is very possible another film may be done. I am, also, glad that they chose this ending rather than the alternative ending they have in the Special Features on the DVD. One question kept bugging me, who was Kim? I got an idea, but nothing stated or perhaps I missed that part from my phone ringing or something.

Casting was one of the best parts here ... each character played their role great and cohesively .. they gelled. Needless to say, if you aren't a total squeamish sort, or at least if you are a movie sampler like me, I would say to give this movie a look-see.

Towards Darkness (2007)

Another DVD Frisbee

[1/10 · 11 June 2008]

This movie says it is inspired by true events, but that's as far as the interesting part goes.

I don't mind reading a movie (since this film is foreign), but being unfamiliar with the cast along with the constant and frustrating flashbacks, I had to continue to pause to finish reading something and then try to figure out who was talking, plus what character (actor) I was viewing and in what character context.

Also, with each scene of seeing the ransom money delivery guy stuck in traffic to meet the noon deadline, then another and another and ....yet another flashback ... and back to the traffic frustration. The flashbacks were too often and they were the kinds that had flash, flash, flash of this and that kind of ratatatat pictures, that my eyeballs became so weary from the strain I had to stop watching this film. It was hard enough to read the movie, but to have my eyes assaulted with flashing flashbacks was just too much. I got the idea, okay? that these were good buddies who drank together and so forth, but enough was enough. This movie lacked cohesiveness with a very limited storyline. As far as I was concerned I didn't care if the kidnap victim was rescued ... was about ready to side with the kidnappers! So, fly this Frisbee disc out the window and don't waste your time.

Identity Theft (II) (2007)

Rought Edges, But Worth The Bother

[7/10 · 15 May 2008]

The first comment summarizes the plot for this movie with numerous details. I hesitated in continuing to view this film because of the lines and delivery, along with the background acoustics were not as professional as the big league films (the scene with Antonio Chavez at the DMV is a prime example, with them sounding like they were in a hollow echo box), but, hey, this wasn't a big leaguer. The theme of the story held my interest, and after pushing aside the initial thwart of what seemed like line-reading, I continued watching and was intrigued to know how the story would unravel and the ending resolution. The story content and the characters kept this film working. They kept it cohesive.

This film wasn't a "message" movie, but it did contain a fair amount, but not rammed down one's throat regarding drugs, violence and getting clean. This movie covered a great deal of territory (drugs, money, sins of the flesh, jealousy, ambition ... and identity theft with a twist) giving a blend of a parallel of lifestyles in reverse, but with interesting depth and insights. These insights in how they were conveyed were creatively well done. Raul Villarreal's role was a tough one to pull off and put across believably, but he did well in the various transformations of his character becoming a responsible and compassionate young man in the face of so many adversities. In fact, Antonio Chavez' role had many facets of twisting transformations as well. Considering the short length of a movie's time, both actors carried it off well and probably better than many famous actors could manage. The one thing that bothered me was I kept thinking Raul Villarreal was wearing a wig, which I found to be distracting (it wasn't the little tail in the back of his head so much as his forehead hairline and, well, it just looked like a 1980's cheap Japanese wig with a bleached ponytail in the back instead of straight up). It was distracting enough that it was harder to get into his character. Perhaps it looked better on the big screen, but on my 30" crt TV squinting at the DVD widescreen format, well, it just looked bad. Despite this, I hope to see more of Raul Villarreal in future films ... he has more to offer given time.

Yes, there are great blockbuster movies to watch, but I have to say that this movie has merit and should not be dismissed because of the lack of funds to give it better props (at least expense was made on the jacket art for the DVD, but alas, lacked English subtitles for the hearing impaired). Low budget and rough edges, but it is worth the bother.

The Fixer (2008–2009)

Well casted

[6/10 · 31 March 2008]

This show has a lot of promise ... good casting and a different threaded theme to continue with more episodes. There is a good amount of creativity and variables to make each story interesting.

The one, thing, though, that I don't like about the show is I cannot understand OVER half of what the actors are saying. Either the suspense-to-impact music drowns out an important sentence/statement or the accent fluidity is so thick and/or slurred/blurred I end up rewinding five or six times to attempt to understand what is being said (and most times have given up). If this speech were worked about more, there would be more of a viewing audience. I'll try and watch a few more episodes to perhaps get more familiar with their speech patterns, but after four episodes of viewing I'm ready to give up and wait until it comes out on DVD so I can turn on English subtitles ... I think that is what is being spoken, right? I enjoy many British shows, but turn away from them when I cannot understand the speech and fear this will be yet another one I'll have to do a pass.

Other than this, the show has all the right elements and can see that it will have a fast growing audience ... in the UK only perhaps.

Silk (2006)

Very Imaginative and Creative

[10/10 · 4 February 2008]

I rented this on DVD today and was pleasantly surprised. The DVD has an alternative ending for the movie, which I am glad had not been used. The ending that was chosen was the better choice.

I was immediately drawn into this movie with it's intriguing story. How each character approached the mystery of the captured ghost and their own agenda's made for more intrigue to see how each came together to finalize the story. On another plus for this movie was the lack of gore ... there was "some," but not of the type to ruin such a good movie. Of course, one scene was a bit bloody, but it was a necessary scene for emphasis. The two lead roles had seriously realistic depth regarding love, hate, compassion, suffering and death. Due to the creativeness and imagination that went into developing the characters, I lost myself into the film forgetting they were acting.

All aspects were done very well ... good timing, special affects, lighting (was a little too dark at the first of the movie), music score, cast ... everything was superbly done. Also, it was nice that the movie had a good ending and wasn't one of those that leave you hanging with "gee, there'll be a sequel." The one thing that did not come out well for me on my regular television was the strands of silk. If I had not watched the Special Affects on the DVD to know there was supposed to be silk threads emanating out of a bowl of noodles I would not have known (and didn't know when I watched the film) that silk threads were present. Then again, I watched this movie this afternoon, when the television gets more daylight obliterating fine details such as this, so I recommend watching this in a darkened room to fully appreciate it and maybe the first part of the film won't seem so dark. I recommend this movie and if more than a 10 rating could be given I would do so. It's one of the best "horror-thrillers" (go light on the horror) I've seen in a very long time with a story that's not been done before.

Dragon Wars: D-War (2007)

Entertaining

[7/10 · 18 January 2008]

I rented this movie yesterday and in the overall theme of the whole picture I enjoyed it. I watched the Special Features on the DVD, which I found to be further enjoyable. Before yesterday I knew nothing about this movie. The artwork done in developing this movie was brilliant.

In watching this movie at the start I wondered if it were some kind of comedy or a spoof due to the acting and silliness of some of the scenes that were almost childishly stupid. But, it was due to these scenes that added a flavor and charm to this movie you seldom see. I was unaware the director was a comic or was Korean (or that the film was Korean). In view of this and knowing Korean culture as well as I do, I can now give a better comment and appreciate this film more. I wish that the director had not hidden the Korean flavor to his movie. I liked the concept of the setting to be in the USA, but I do feel that more of the roles should have been Korean to give more balance to the imoogi legend theme as well as to the movie itself for the audience to be more accepting of those rough scenes with both comedical and poor line deliveries, etc.

All in all, I was wowed by the creativeness and imagination put forth in this film that is not seen in many these days. I do like Korean movies and would like to see more. This film was a work of art, for sure, and is entertaining. It does need fixing, but I wouldn't tell people to not watch it.

Suburban Girl (2007)

Was it Bad Casting?

[1/10 · 17 January 2008]

Another bad one I rented and watched today. Miss Buffy should have blonded her hair again to at least attempt to look younger for the part portrayed. While on the subject of hair, what was the story with Baldwin's hair toupee stylist? How many toupees were used in this movie? They weren't toupees? Omigawd ... egads if they weren't.

Sarah didn't come across very well in this movie, which made the "romance" unbelievable. It was if she was forcing her lines and forcing herself to tolerate being in this role and even being around Baldwin. As a result, to me the romance relationship just didn't have heart or even lust. It had no click.

Scenes like where the old rich gal tells Baldwin to marry the hussy after Sarah got drunk at the elite high-societal gathering and made a twit of herself in front of everyone ... really rankled my chain. This kind of behavior is now acceptable? If the old woman was being facetious, the delivery of lines did not carry that element.

I don't believe this movie would be good even for the teenage group. I think this movie had a decent story, but the poor casting, dreadful and inappropriate music scores, forced lines (and forced acting), horrid clothing no teenager would be caught dead in, bad makeup (sorry Sarah, but au natural neckline without makeup made you look again too old for this part), and a bad hair stylist took away from anything redeemable in this movie.

Once again, the one good thing going for this movie was the art done on the DVD jacket cover. I recommend that it be taken off the shelves.

Dragonlance: Dragons of Autumn Twilight (2008 Video)

Very Disappointing

[1/10 · 17 January 2008]

I rented this movie today and was looking forward to watching it ... big disappointment. It really is sad, too, because the story was decent enough but the rest of the production was dreadful.

Not only was the animation stiff and "cheap," but the voices were, also, with no emotion or enthusiasm. It was as if the voices were just reading their lines deadpan. Then again, due to the stiffness of the arted characters' animation, even if the voices had more spunk in them it would not have helped.

It would be nice to see someone put some dollars into re-doing this movie as was spent on the artwork for the DVD jacket cover. The jacket cover is about the only good thing I can say about this movie.

Avoid renting or buying this one .. truly one of the worst animations I have seen in years, if not THE worst.

The Kingdom (2007)

Ho-Hum

[1/10 · 30 December 2007]

If you begin watching this movie with the notion already set in your mind that there really aren't terrorists at all like how the governments want us to believe there are, then this movie takes on another ho-humdrum of more political propaganda for the unenlightened viewers. The first half hour or so of this movie was typical style television droll of cop-type-status-people-posturing-banterings, and then the cast is finally on the plane and off to Saudi Arabia. The director must have seen me ready to leave my chair from boredom, so they finally put the cast on the plane. From there the film got interesting, but the acting and lines were forced and hesitant. The Prince was lame, the terrorists were lame and, well, so was this movie. The last half of the movie I guess you could say was entertaining but after struggling with being in my chair waiting for anything of interest to appear I left the viewing with a complete feeling of frustration. The concept of an FBI investigation in Saudi Arabia was a good notion for a storyline for a movie, but this movie just wasn't it. I fail to see why there are so many reviews here praising this hyped up movie. If ya gotta see it and sold by all the hype, then see it, but there are better movies out there.

Rescue Dawn (2006)

Very Entertaining

[10/10 · 29 November 2007]

Having just rented and watched this movie, I found it a movie that has left a good impression. In Bale's role of Dieter, it makes me wonder if this portrays Dieter's personality nuance(s), which was most refreshingly different. It seemed almost unreal with his quip approach and conversation with the camp commander, who came across as likable! In view of the film's PG-13 rating, I gather much of the actual horrors were toned down, but there was no mistaking the trauma affect with the phantom "ghost" repeating his feet were cold whilst the off-screen vivid memory of a sadistic brutal attack. This insertion of the cold feet was a good transition from grief back into the business of being rescued.

While watching this film another film done with Gene Hackman (Bat-21) came to mind, which is hard to make comparative differences due to the nature of each POW's experiences and personality portrayals. There are other films, of course, which portray the endurance(s) of surviving prisoner of war camps (and escaping or being rescued), but this one had a unique quality to it and Christian Bale did a wonderful job. The jungle was portrayed better in this film than many with being entangled with vines and so forth in trying to make their way out ... no small wonder why it takes forever to get thru the jungle .. especially with one machete.

All in all, this movie was very entertaining to the end and I would recommend it.

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

As the Crowe Flies

[1/10 · 5 September 2007]

I just saw the pre-screening of this movie and I could not wait to get out of the theater. I don't know where to start on how bad this film was. I can't imagine the other comments giving it such high stars unless they're as lamebrain as this movie was. I guess perhaps from a cinema field of work, this movie could be viewed as fine performances, but they certainly were wasted. I mused that even Crowe had a hard time packing away his paycheck with the delivery of some lame lines as well as receiving same. The storyline, as in the original, is sound, but what was done in this one, the industry should be ashamed. I lost count of how many people were killed and how many guns (endless supply of bullets) were around. In one scene, they're traversing through non-friendly Indian country to take a short cut, and maybe my brain drifted, but I didn't see any Indians ... just gunfire. At that point in the movie I was actually hoping to see the Indians and finish everyone off! I think what disturbed me the most about this movie was how evil Crowe's character was, but yet they added a twist to glamorize him and his horse instead of the hero. This movie was, also, very long. The killing scenes were even too much for my friend sitting next to me and both of us turned away ... which I would say here to turn away from this movie and keep your money in your wallet. Lionsgate, shame on you for this sicko, bad-taste movie and whip it out to the public as a Western. Ten thumbs down on this one.

Fracture (2007)

Law & Order TV show Remake

[4/10 · 16 August 2007]

This movie was done very well, but to me it was basically a Law & Order episode remake ... only added an all-star cast, up the time to a movie sized feature and make money on it.

So, the ending was expected and predictable. However, the rest of the movie was done very well until the hackneyed ending. I had an inkling that it would end as it did, but while watching it, I had a glimmer of hope that it would have something more original and creative ... like, what if the wife woke up? When you consider how Anthony Hopkins' character had thought out all the details and legal angles as well, it was a little far-fetched to think he wouldn't have thought out the last detail as well. So, this was disappointing to say the least.

Stardust (2007)

Very Imaginative Fantasy Film

[10/10 · 10 August 2007]

I went to the pre-screening of Stardust last night and am very glad I did. Aside from the movie, the offer of free Stone Cold ice cream and a free massage, plus raffle tickets for the book, and then free posters were over the top. Unfortunately, they didn't have many posters. Everyone got a card with a peel-off, silver stick-on star on it as an additional promotional for the movie.

No need to really comment on the storyline since others here already have, but it was a wonderfully fun story to follow. It was incredibly detailed and imaginative ... so much so that there isn't another movie out there that can compare (as some already have done). This movie was so uniquely different it made it a pleasure to view. There is various tidbits of humor interlaced within this movie that are so well executed that they are an additional bonus detail. Someone I spoke to last night said the author of the book detests taking baths and hasn't bathed in years. He told me, too, that the author has other books with movie deals in the fire, so I am looking forward to more. There is a scene in the movie of one of the princes' in a bathtub (won't tell the details), but suspect this was the film-maker's symbolic tribute to the author done in a most clever way. There was a lot of attention to detail in this movie I was astounded.

It was evident as I left the theater that there wasn't anyone who didn't like the movie.

I am somewhat biased because I love fantasy films ... if they are well done, and this one was! If you like fantasy films with a good story and one that goes out of their way to attention to details, you'll fully enjoy this movie.