It's very rare to make a series of movies (not based off books) and have each and everyone be amazing. the Dark Knight trilogy is one of these rarities. It's also hard to live up to the hype, and The Dark Knight Rises does just that. It rises to the occasions and meets all of your expectations. It is an excellent movie. I don't know if it's better than the The Dark Knight, but it's up there with some of the best movies ever to entertain the masses. It may be the best movie I've seen this year even with my few issues!
Before I tell you my issues with the movie, I'll tell you a little about it. DKR picks up 8 years after Harvey Dent aka Two-face dies. The city of Gotham is as crime-free as any city can be. Gordon is now commissioner, Bruce Wayne is MIA, and Batman is once again considered a thug and a murderer for the death of Dent, and he too is missing. Bane (Tom Hardy) and Catwoman
(Anne Hathaway) are the villians in this one. Bane is seeking to blow up Gotham with a nuclear bomb and Catwoman is seeking revenge against the rich. She's not a bad girl at heart, but she is one bad arse cat burglar. Bane's story ties into Ra's al Gul and the League of Shadows. There are many different little stories going on throughout but they all tie together in the end.
I watch a lot of movies and pay a lot of attention to everyone and everything, so it may just be me, but one of my issues is that I felt the movie was predictable. There really weren't any surprises for me. By their reactions, things that were obvious to me, aren't obvious to the audience. My second issue is that I could't understand what Bane said most of the time. I needed subtitles. My last issue with this movie is my issue with any other movie over 120 minutes, it was too damn long. Runtime is 2 hours and 45 minutes. That is 3 hours with preview! I don't know if all of it was necessary, but I guess to tell the story completely, it needed to be that long.
Supposedly, this is Christopher Nolan's last of the Dark Knight Trilogy. He really did an excellent job co-writing and directing this one. The special effects were just right. The violence wasn't overkill, and the acting was superb! I look forward to whatever Christopher Nolan does next, and with any luck, he'll change his mind and make a Batman and Robin trilogy too.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
The Amazing Spider-man - Listen to your spidey senses
Sitting in the theater, watching yet another trailer for yet another Spider-man movie, I thought to myself, "...do we really need another one?" I wasn't a fan of any of the Tobey Maguire Spider-man movies even though I saw them all. (I'm a sucker for a comic book turned movie.) I also told myself I wasn't going to see it, but the more I saw the previews, the more I thought, this one may be good. My spidey senses were correct.
If you've seen any one of the previous movies or read any of the comic books then you have a general background to this movie. Peter Parker played by Andrew Garfield, and odd and geeky looking kid, is sent to live with his Aunt May (the great Sally Field) and Uncle Ben (the average Martin Sheen) by his super secret scientist parents to keep him safe. We don't know where they go and when they will be back. Overtime, his aunt and uncle raise him as their own and we meet up with them while Peter is an awkward and often bullied teenager in high school. In an effort to learn more about his father after finding his father's briefcase, he goes to OsCorp and meets his father's old colleague Dr. Curt Connors. They develop a friendship, and Peter helps Dr. Connors with his research. During this time, Peter gets bitten by a genetically enhanced spider, develops powers, loses his uncle to senseless crime, falls in love with Gwen Stacey (Emma Stone) who's father is the police chief (Denis Leary), and all sorts of mayhem ensues.
Honestly, I feel that this Peter Parker is more likable. He's smart, witty, and unique which is relatable to so many. Andrew's geekiness doesn't seemed forced and becuase he doesn't have that hollywood look, you feel like he could be any boy in your neighborhood going through things who just so happens to have super powers and decides to try and save his city from vagabonds and giant lizards. Tobey was just awkward and annoying as Peter Parker. I always wanted him to "grow a pair". The Amazing Spider-Man was good, almost great. There was a believable storyline, no unnecessary sappy love scenes, excellent special effects that weren't over done, and a good cast. We'll see where this Spider-man series takes us, but so far, it's off to a good flying start.
If you've seen any one of the previous movies or read any of the comic books then you have a general background to this movie. Peter Parker played by Andrew Garfield, and odd and geeky looking kid, is sent to live with his Aunt May (the great Sally Field) and Uncle Ben (the average Martin Sheen) by his super secret scientist parents to keep him safe. We don't know where they go and when they will be back. Overtime, his aunt and uncle raise him as their own and we meet up with them while Peter is an awkward and often bullied teenager in high school. In an effort to learn more about his father after finding his father's briefcase, he goes to OsCorp and meets his father's old colleague Dr. Curt Connors. They develop a friendship, and Peter helps Dr. Connors with his research. During this time, Peter gets bitten by a genetically enhanced spider, develops powers, loses his uncle to senseless crime, falls in love with Gwen Stacey (Emma Stone) who's father is the police chief (Denis Leary), and all sorts of mayhem ensues.
Honestly, I feel that this Peter Parker is more likable. He's smart, witty, and unique which is relatable to so many. Andrew's geekiness doesn't seemed forced and becuase he doesn't have that hollywood look, you feel like he could be any boy in your neighborhood going through things who just so happens to have super powers and decides to try and save his city from vagabonds and giant lizards. Tobey was just awkward and annoying as Peter Parker. I always wanted him to "grow a pair". The Amazing Spider-Man was good, almost great. There was a believable storyline, no unnecessary sappy love scenes, excellent special effects that weren't over done, and a good cast. We'll see where this Spider-man series takes us, but so far, it's off to a good flying start.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Magic Mike - Not enough eye candy in the world...
Picture this: men stripping off their clothes, dancing, body rolling, and simulating sex for money. Is this Chippendales? No. It's the background premise of the movie Magic Mike starring non other than the ever-so-sexy Channing Tatum. Mr. Smooth Moves Tatum plus Matthew McConaughey, Joe Manganiello, (Alicide on True Blood) and other half naked men where great to ogle but they were not enough to make this a good movie. Heck, it wasn't even a decent movie.
I can't really give you a brief synopsis because there wasn't much of a storyline, but I'll try. Magic Mike (Tatum) meets The Kid (Alex Pettyfer) working construction and then runs into him again that night at the club while trying to get women to come to his male review owned by Dallas (McConaughey). The Kid comes with Magic Mike to the show and by happenstance The Kid begins working there. There's sex, drugs, a sister, some parties, screaming women, and not much more. It's a low budget version of Boogie Nights.
It was poorly written, poorly directed, poorly edited, and worst of all, poorly acted. I can't decide if Channing flubbed his lines and they just didn't make him do it over, or if was written that way. There really wasn't a beginning, middle, and end. There was no climax, no lesson learned, or resolution. It just kind of ends. Now, I wasn't expecting greatness, but I was expecting the movie to be entertaining. Please ladies and gay men, go into this movie knowing that it is absolutely going to suck!!! Straight men, stay home because although there are gratuitous boob shots, it won't be enough for you to sit through two hours of horrible acting and men dry humping the ground in cheesy costumes.
I love looking at Channing Tatum which is pretty much why I watch any of his movies, but he owes me $7 for this one.
I can't really give you a brief synopsis because there wasn't much of a storyline, but I'll try. Magic Mike (Tatum) meets The Kid (Alex Pettyfer) working construction and then runs into him again that night at the club while trying to get women to come to his male review owned by Dallas (McConaughey). The Kid comes with Magic Mike to the show and by happenstance The Kid begins working there. There's sex, drugs, a sister, some parties, screaming women, and not much more. It's a low budget version of Boogie Nights.
It was poorly written, poorly directed, poorly edited, and worst of all, poorly acted. I can't decide if Channing flubbed his lines and they just didn't make him do it over, or if was written that way. There really wasn't a beginning, middle, and end. There was no climax, no lesson learned, or resolution. It just kind of ends. Now, I wasn't expecting greatness, but I was expecting the movie to be entertaining. Please ladies and gay men, go into this movie knowing that it is absolutely going to suck!!! Straight men, stay home because although there are gratuitous boob shots, it won't be enough for you to sit through two hours of horrible acting and men dry humping the ground in cheesy costumes.
I love looking at Channing Tatum which is pretty much why I watch any of his movies, but he owes me $7 for this one.
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