rabol Reviews

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Awesome !!

[8/10 · 27 August 2005]

You know what ? I agree with all those who dislike this movie. I agree on all the flaws you point out with such care. Yes, there's a considerable amount of cheesy lines. Yes, there's occasional bad (very bad) acting. Yes, the Jedi might have go down too easily. But you know what ? I don't care ! Because if you're willing to let those little glitches slide, you will realize that this movie is simply awesome. I loved Anakin's transformation, I loved the whole idea and execution of Order 66, and most of all, I loved the final duel between Obi-Wan and Ana.. sorry, Darth Vader ! I loved seeing Vader expressing his hatred for his master as he was burning alive, and I loved screaming with tears in his eyes - "You were my brother Anakin" ! That was just powerful, just what I've been expecting.

I don't treat Star Wars nearly religiously (as many fans do). I didn't praise Lucas for making the original trilogy, I didn't feel the need to hate him after finding the first two prequels rather weak, and I don't feel the need to tell him that he has redeemed himself with this one. Screw all that. It's just movies people. And this one is simply awesome and provides some great entertainment. That's all I have to say.

The Village (2004)

Why I was disappointed..

[3/10 · 14 August 2005]

There are many reasons why people see this movie as a disappointment. The most common one is that they were expecting it to be a horror movie, and it turned out to be something entirely different than what it seemed to be. This is also the reason why I was disappointed, but not necessarily because I was tricked into watching it, while I wanted to see a horror movie. It's more because it had a lot of potential be a great horror movie. I liked the idea of the 'fake' plot about the creatures from the woods, and the truce being over. I really liked it. Durring the time when it still seems that the creatures are real, when they start invading the village, I found it pretty scary. It had a great atmosphere. Then the drama came, with all the boring dialogue, and I started to realize how much potential this movie wasted. That's why I am disappointed. Not because of all the drama, dull dialogue and the fact that I was tricked into watching it, but because it could've been something special.

The Grudge (2004)

Meh..

[3/10 · 7 August 2005]

The movie has a very "convienient" plot that automatically allows everything that happens in it to make no sense whatsoever. Sure, you don't expect a masterpiece story line in a horror movie, but come on, this one sounds like a very bad ghost story you would laugh at by the camp fire. So basically what you have here is a pile of supposedly creepy scenes consisting of worn out images of zombie looking children, cats, something that looks like hair i suppose it was, you have some burping and meowing sound effects to amplify the level of senselessness. I guess the makers assumed it would be scary since people are supposed to be scared what they don't understand and rationally explain. Well, not here. Yes I admit, some moments might creep you out on occasion, but it becomes obvious quite quickly that the extremely poor plot is just a cheap excuse to put a bunch creepy images in the movie. Nope, doesn't work, because what perfectly backs up creepy visuals, is the creepy story. But I guess we couldn't have both.

I don't know. Maybe I'm too demanding. Maybe a bit of effort is too much to ask these days. Maybe I've been playing too much Silent Hill (because that, although not a movie, is a perfect combination of extremely creepy story and creepy images, and the 'fear of the unexplained' theory works perfectly there).

Not a good movie. I'll give it 3 burping zombie girls up.

Batman & Robin (1997)

Why ?

[1/10 · 2 August 2005]

I've spent years trying to figure out why this movie is what it is. Joel Schumacher, the director of the movie, already made one attempt at directing a bat film and while it wasn't anything special, many people, including me, agree it was fairly decent. I would never expect the sequel to be such a complete disaster. Why did it go this way ? I'm not sure actually. At one point i honestly suspected that he (Schumacher) simply decided to play a prank on everyone who was to his disturbingly horrible creation. I've also suspected that maybe he was under the influence of narcotics or alcohol. Maybe he went insane. I just don't know. But I do know this : no matter what you do, no matter what your profession is, when you start working on a project based on a particular subject, you make sure you have enough knowledge on that subject and that you understand it. Joel Schumacher did not have to be an expert on comics. All he had to do was to do a little bit of research, get the titles of books that capture the essence of the character in the best way, and then simply read those books. Yeah, i know, it's crazy to assume that an experienced director wouldn't do at least a small research on what he was working on - but I really don't think he did ! I honestly think he approached the subject with only the basic knowledge figuring that will be enough. Bruce Wayne dresses up as a Bat to fight crime because his parents had been murdered when he was a child. That's it. I'm really sure this is all he knows about Batman. I'm sure, because there is no way in hell he would produce THIS if he knew more.

And being a huge Batman fan since i can remember, what he produced insulted me. It made me feel embarrassed. It made me feel violated. It made me feel ashamed and stupid. I can't explain why. It wasn't my fault, I didn't make this movie, yet i couldn't force myself to admitting in front of anyone who saw this garbage that I am a fan of Batman. Mr.Schumacher insulted and disrespected every comic book fan, every comic book creator who ever worked on "Batman" and he insulted Bob Kane himself by turning his creation into this.

But that's my point of view. This is from a perspective of a long time Batman fan. What about regular moviegoers ? What did they receive for their money ? Horrible acting not just by Ah-nuld, but by someone like Uma Thurman as well, who has a reputation of being a good actress. Dumb duologue aimed directly at 3 year olds constructed mainly from ridiculous one-liners, even more ridiculous plot that makes you wonder if it was written by a 10 year old. What else ? Well, there's a fair amount of pure uncut stupidity. Stupidity in it's purest form. Take this scene for an example : Robin smashes through a thick museum door on his motor bike making a hole in it, being completely intact. Sounds stupid, right ? Keep reading. The hole turns out to have a perfect shape of a Robin logo. That's right ! It's THAT stupid ! And on top of all that..

..you know what ? To hell with it. I'm not going to finish this review. I thought maybe this would help me let go of my frustration, but it's not worth it. I refuse to waste any more time on this piece of garbage whether it's writing a review or god forbid watching it ever again. I'm out.

24 (2001–2010)

Simply - WOW !!

[10/10 · 10 April 2005]

I started watching 24 in the middle of season 4. I've been hearing people saying how great the show is, so i decided to see for myself what the fuss is all about. As i started to watch my firs episode, i didn't know any of the characters, and i didn't know the story. Yet, i could feel the amazing intensity. Several more episodes, and I was 'in'. I became a fan of the show, and it was enough to buy the DVD of the first season, without even knowing if it was actually good. Few hours later, i was fully addicted and obsessed with the show. The next two days i spent trying to get money and muttering only four words : 'must...see...season...two'.

I cannot describe anything in this review, and I'm not referring to spoilers. I basically mean any element of the plot. I wouldn't wanna risk ruining it for you, because it's half of the shows magic - amazing writing full of intensity and mind blowing plot twists. If, after reading this comment you decide to give 24 a chance - here's my advice - stay away from any 24 forum/chat-room/website until you've seen it all. It took one visit on the official website, and one short look on a character profile page to ruin the most shocking twist from season 1 (although I still enjoyed it).

Rent the first season, give it a shot, you won't regret it.

Resident Evil (2002)

Not so bad.

[15 October 2004]

I am a die hard fan of Resident Evil video games. The first Resident Evil for Playstation is a grand daddy of all the survival horror games. It was a scary game just like every sequel. I was happy when i heard there's going to be a movie based on the game. And as it turns out, it's a pretty good movie.

Many fans of the game complain about the plot. They don't like the fact that it isn't based on any of the games scenarios in 100%. We don't see any familiar characters. No Jill, no Leon, no Claire and no Chris. But i think it's a good thing. It just wouldn't be fun. Everyone would know what is going to happen and how is it going to end. We still have all the most important elements taken from the game. We have the Umbrella Corporation, we have the zombies and a 'licker', people trapped in the building fighting for survival and of course there's the T-Virus.

Other people complain that the movie isn't scary enough. And i understand those people. I mean, it was obvious that a movie based on a survival horror game, has to be a horror movie. But it isn't. It's a Sci-Fi Thriller. Maybe that's why I don't hate it. Before i went to the theatre and saw it, i was told what to expect. A thriller - not a horror movie. I admit that this is a little bit of disappointment, because the movie had a full potential to be a solid horror movie, but it's still good as a thriller.

So if you haven't seen it yet, and if you're planning to watch it, don't expect to see a horror movie. You're gonna see a sci-fi thriller.

Third Watch (1999–2005)

Some spoilers inside !!

[10/10 · 7 August 2004]

'Third Watch' is a drama series about a group of cops, fire fighters and paramedics. They do what real cops/firemen/paramedics usually do, and that way they create the best drama tv series ever - in my opinion. What i love the most about this show is the fact that it's unpredictable. You never know what's gonna happen next, i found myself shocked many many times by the events taking place in the show. The producers always manage to suprise and shock us. For example, one of the main characters is absolutely fine, has some minor issues, but who doesn't ? And then all of a sudden in the next episode he goes crazy and does something absolutely unexpected and shocking. It happens all the time in 'Third Watch'.Speaking of characters - they're all very well written, and the cast is very talented. This is basically all i have to say about this show, it love it, if you haven't seen it before, give it a shot, you'll love it too :)

Psycho (1960)

Brilliant !!

[10/10 · 25 July 2004]

This movie can be simply described with one word : brilliant. It really is brilliant. Every element of this film is brilliant. The plot, the characters, the suspense, the atmosphere, and especially - the ending. It's a masterpiece, 'nuff said. 'Psycho' is without a shadow of a doubt the most scary and creepy movie i have ever seen. And it's not because of the gore, blood and guts. No way, you won't find that in this movie. The suspense and the incredible atmosphere is all this movie needs to be scary. Once again Alfred Hitchcock proved that he is indeed a genius. He wanted the movie to mess with your mind, and he succeeded. All i can say is this : people who didn't see this movie, do it ASAP, don't bother watching the re-make, just watch the original 'Psycho', allow it to enter your minds and play with them a little bit.

10/10

Off Centre (2001–2002)

Chau rules ! You know !

[22 July 2004]

This is absolutely one of my favorite TV shows. Why ? Well, the writing is good, jokes are funny, the acting is OK. What i just said describes a decent TV show. In order to become something more, a TV show needs something special, and this one certainly does have something special - Chau. He's simply one of the funniest characters ever ! John Cho played his role perfectly. Whenever there's a scene with Chau in it, it's guaranteed you're gonna laugh your butts off. At least i did each and every time, and so did the millions (and millions) of Chau's fans ! Don't get me wrong, it's not like Chau is the only good thing about this show. Hell no. It would be really good without him, as i already said, but Chau character is so brilliant, that sooner or later everyone starts to watch the show just to see him. And i realize that different people like different types of humor, some things may seem extremely funny to one guy, while the other one won't even smile, but the truth is, if Chau won't make you laugh, even just a little bit, that means you have no sense of humor at all. READ THE WALL - CHAU RULES !!!

Halloween: Resurrection (2002)

Busta Rhymes - WHAT ?!? ***SPOILER***

[17 July 2004]

First of all, i'm gonna say what i liked in the movie. That would be Laure Strode's death. I wasn't expecting this, it was about time, the kiss for goodbye was cool. Another thing i liked was... wait.. that's about it.

Basically i HATE this movie for two main reasons. 1.It's supposed to be a horror movie, a horror movie is supposed to be scary, and this movie is far far faaar from being scary.

2.The creators trashed Michael Myers character.

Oh sorry, one more :

3.Busta Rhymes.

Halloween: Resurrection is predictable, boring, the storyline seems like it was written in .. 10 minutes, and the acting is horrible. But believe me. That's not the worst thing about it.

This movie killed the legend of Michael Myers, and it's all thanks to Busta Rhymes and his Freddie character. So far Michael Myers was a personification of evil. Unstoppable killing machine. After seeing the first Halloween, i often thought, what would i do if one rainy night i would look in a window and see Michael Myers standing outside looking at me ? I would crap my pants and kill myself before he could do it, because there would be no way i could escape him. No way i could beat him. It would be just easier to give myself up to him. Now, after i saw Halloween: Resurrection, i would think : Michael Myers ? Don't just stand there, come upstairs so i can kick your ass.

Why would i think so ? Simply because this movie made him look like a complete looser, a weakling who stood no chance against Busta's character, while Freddie is a brave hero,who literally beat the hell out of Michael, and didn't even break a sweat. He used all kinds of lame phrases, showing, that he is absolutely not afraid of Michael Myers !! Michael Myers - the pure evil, a devil's spawn who should be scaring the crap out of everybody ! Busta was just running his mouth on Michael, using kung-fu moves like some goddamn action hero, and he crushed Michael Myers in combat. Perfect Victory. Oh wait.. Mike did stab him once, but this doesn't count since Freddie was surprised, and in the movie it looked like Michael just got lucky. I almost cried when i saw that.

I almost forgot to mention, that Freddie ruined the whole movie. Mainly because of the fact that he wasn't even close to be afraid of Myers. It's one of the elements of a horror movies, if a victim is afraid of the killer, the viewers are more afraid. Of course there was a lot of "tough guys" in horror movies, but that was the idea - they act like heroes - they get killed, therefore people watching the movie are even more afraid of the killer. Freddie however, is not only brave and tough, but he also, as i already mentioned - beats the crap out of Michael... easily, which is unacceptable.

Also, some of Freddie's kung-fu moves and sounds making while performing those moves, made people laugh. Every single person at the cinema was laughing (except for me, they just wanted to be entertained, i however, am a big fan of Halloween series, so instead of laughing, i cried). This is also unacceptable. The guy who came up with this was either drunk or retarded. Probably both.

Actually, to be honest with you, this whole thing with Freddie p***ed me off so much, and it was so incredibly ridiculous, that even if the movie was scarier than all the other sequels (heellloooo creators of H:R - that's the idea with Horror movies, they're supposed to be S-C-A-R-Y, i can't believe nobody told you that) i would still consider it a bad movie, and the worst of all Halloween titles (yes, even worse than Halloween 3).