Category Archives: Live Action Movies

American Underdog

Posted on by
Reply


It’s time to take a look at a movie about Kurt Warner. I definitely remember him a lot growing up, I missed his golden years but he was still recent enough where he was in all of the books. I remember him as a very explosive QB and an elite talent all around so I was looking forward to seeing what he was like here. That said, while the film is very good and goes into great detail on the work it took to get to the NFL, it dropped the ball on one key aspect. We don’t get to see almost any of his actual NFL journey and considering that he won a Super Bowl, that’s a pretty big deal. We really should have gotten more NFL screen time even if it meant extending the film by 30 minutes or so.

Kurt was always good at throwing the ball but as we see in his younger years he would scramble a whole lot and his coach didn’t like that. He wanted Kurt to be a pocket passer even if it meant taking absolutely devastating shots throughout the game. Kurt did his best but it wasn’t working so well and he was starting to wonder if he would ever end up playing in the NFL. Around this time he met up with a lady named Brenda and they hit it off right away. The main dilemma Kurt faces from there is if he continues to chase his dream but in the meantime he will be super low on money which is rough for their family or he finds a stable job and gets out of the sports game.

Of course we know the answer since this is based on his incredible career but that’s where most of the drama is. He and Brenda may have gotten together right away but their troubles only just begin from there. First up is obviously the financial issues since that’s always a strain on any relationship. Then due to Kurt’s job, he has to be away from home a whole lot because there are always games to be had and practices. Kurt’s with a lot of younger guys all the time who may not be the best of influences as well so he has to constantly guard himself against temptations and that’s also rough for Brenda while she’s at home. Brenda already had a negative experience in that way with her first husband. Finally Brenda is a little older than Kurt and already has a kid, both things of which can appear as red flags and Kurt’s mother isn’t particularly pleased with this arrangement.

Yeah they’ve got a lot of hurdles to overcome that’s for sure. In general you usually see the wife being younger than the husband as the norm but if the gap’s not that large I don’t think it should matter. My rule of thumb is of course it’s ideal if both people are about the same age but if there’s a gap, I think you can make it work up to 10 years or so, obviously as long as both are over 21. In this case the gap is 4 years which is basically nothing really. I think having a kid already is a bit of a tougher one since often times you want a fresh start and to have your first kid together.

Fortunately Kurt’s a great guy and gets along with the kids (There are 2 of them after all) right away. Brenda’s also a very responsible person with a good head on her shoulders and basically lets Kurt know that the kids are her priority and if he’s cool with that. He is and so things are good there. I could have done without some of the drama near the middle as I felt like it went on a bit longer than it needed to be but if that’s how it played out in real life then of course it makes sense to keep that in.

I enjoyed the Football moments a lot and his coach at the Rams was definitely a very likable guy. The OC took a little more getting used to since he seemed to be mean for no reason. The whole “Tough Love” approach can be annoying at times because sure being tough for a little bit can be a character builder but when you go too far it just comes across as obnoxious. I would personally have focused more on the Football though because it’s always great to see the games. I watch the NFL every year after all and can never get enough of it. Nowadays I’ll even check out the late games when I can and as much during the day as possible. With movie directing and such you can probably make it even more epic so that’s still my one complaint which I keep bringing up.

The drama is important of course and same with the romance but you could still cut large chunks of those scenes out and you’ll be all set. I think it’s a worthy tradeoff for some more Football action don’t you think? The Super Bowl is the main reason he got a film after all. If Kurt didn’t win a Super Bowl then the story wouldn’t be quite as miraculous the way it is today and so since that was such a big part of his legacy it should be included here. More than just a scene or two the way that it happened, I wanted a full breakdown of the season and everything!

Overall, American Underdog is definitely a really solid film. Kurt Warner was one of the best to ever do it and he definitely went through a path that seems like it would be super hard to replicate. He is the one in a million scenario here. If you’re interested in the details of how he got to the top then I definitely recommend checking this one out. Now we just need them to do a film on the greatest QB of all time, Tony Romo!

American Sniper

Posted on by
Reply

This write-up is based on the TV-14 edited version of the film. All thoughts below should be addressed as such as a review of the unedited version would be more negative

I can only imagine how difficult it is to be a sniper in an active combat zone. On top of the pressures on the average soldier which are already numerous, you’re now someone who has the added burden of watching out for them. If you notice a threat too late or hesitate to pull the trigger, you may lose comrades and that’s guilt that will stay with you for the rest of your days. You also have to be super accurate because in real life people are constantly moving and so all it takes is an inch to miss. Yeah it’s definitely not a gig that I would want but someone’s got to do it and this film’s about one of the best in the business.

The film starts off by introducing us to Chris who learned how to shoot at an early age by his father. They would go on hunting trips and such. Chris was also taught to defend himself and to stick up for others from early on as since he was blessed with great strength and ability, he needed to use that. This ultimately ends up giving him a bit of a hero/martyr complex as he goes into war and then he just can’t leave. After every term is up he keeps on re-enlisting which causes some strife at home with his wife. Ultimately if he continues to go out there as a sniper he can keep on saving a lot of lives but it may cost him his own as his family will have to move on without him. Can he choose to exit the game now or must he press on?

It’s a tough question of course and one that you always have to wrestle with. In life there is always something extra you can be doing to help someone else. Whether it be something really dangerous like going to war or something more mild like volunteering at a local soup kitchen there are always people who need help and ways for you to provide that. You also have to balance it against your own mental and physical health as well as keeping time to spend with your family. Everyone ultimately has to figure this answer out for themselves and it’s why I won’t say Chris was incorrect to keep on going.

If the guilt of not going to war and saving his troops would have ate him up then it makes sense to keep on going. Ultimately once he took out the enemy sniper then he was finally ready to call it a day but even then he was haunted for a while. When you’ve been in war all your life it has to be tough to just go back to being a normal civilian again. I’m personally against hunting in general and think we shouldn’t be doing that at all. It did allow Chris to develop the skills that he would ultimately need to take down the enemies but ultimately I’d like to see robotics improve enough to where you can practice on them rather than wildlife. The animal scene was a bit rough here.

Aside from Chris there really isn’t much of a main cast. His fellow soldiers tend to change for every draft since most aren’t voluntarily deciding to jump back into the fray. For a lot of these guys that probably sounds crazy since so many people die normally, re-enlisting is doubling your chances to die. There are other patriots like Chris who will keep on enlisting but they are likely the minority there.

His wife is around a lot and you can see how things are difficult for her. Effectively she is raising her kid as a single mom at this point with how he’s never home and that’s not easy. In general you get married for companionship as a main component so being by yourself tends to defeat the purpose. She definitely fought hard to stop Chris from going each time but in the end he was just too determined.

On the enemy side the only person with a lot of screen time was the enemy sniper who could really hold his own against Chris. The guy’s skills were legit and he also got a lot of kills on his side. Of course each one would eat away at Chris more and more even though most of the time it really wasn’t on him. He can’t do everything and taking out other snipers can be a part of his job but ultimately covering the troops and looking for threats is the main one. In a large battlefield you won’t always be in the right place at the right time.

It’s a different perspective on the battles compared to the normal ones for sure since usually you’re following the soldiers, not the sniper at the top. There isn’t a lot of variety in the scenery as a result though and if you’re not really into war movies then a portion of the film will probably get a little boring after a while. This movie isn’t aiming to be super entertaining, funny, or like a summer blockbuster. It’s really a movie about how traumatic war can be so this won’t really be for everyone. That said, the film properly gives you the right impression of what it’ll be about so you should know right out of the gate if you will like it or not.

Overall, The movie seems to be very true to the story of Chris’ life. I don’t know a whole lot about it myself but there’s a lot of good detail here and at the end they also give you the aftermath. Often times films based on true stories don’t have the happiest of endings which is why it was big enough to be a movie. So I understand why they kept the afterword in even if it’s not really the best way to end things off. If you’re up for an intense war film then this should be up your alley but definitely be ready for a very emotional experience.

The Cheap Detective Review

Posted on by
2


It’s been a little while since I’ve seen a parody but I’m always up for this kind of a film. A well written parody will absolutely go a long way because when you understand the gags and see how the film pulls them off it can really be a blast. I would say that by and large this film really succeeds at it too. It probably ends up front loading most of the best gags into the first half but ultimately it’s a film I would recommend all the way through. There is also a good amount of replay value to be found here.

The main character here is a detective named Lou who is always in over his head. The guy’s not very good at his job and just barely manages to hang in there. This time he is in a particularly tough spot though as he is framed for the murder of his partner. He’s the main suspect as it was common knowledge that he had been cheating with the partner’s girl and she isn’t doing a whole lot to try and prove his innocence. She even shows up with the cops to his door on multiple occasions. Lou needs to put some distance between all of them and quick. He has some leads including old flames and very sketchy underworld figures. Will they be enough to help him crack this case once and for all?

Naturally as a parody this film never really takes it self seriously and you shouldn’t either. You’re here more for the laughs and smiles than the actual mystery. Right from the opening scene they set the tone on this as everyone has just been murdered yet they were all in odd poses and never broke formation even after the bullet hit them. That is impressive to be sure but also really crazy. All of the conversations tend to start getting nonsensical after a while which is part of the point.

One of the better scenes is when the heroine calls Lou up but openly allows the cops to listen in on the conversation. The film even pokes fun at how the hero always has a bunch of heroines after him as he gets involved with 3 during the course of this film and they all end up at his place at the same time. It takes a lot of agility and quick thinking to keep them all from meeting up with each other. Lou is ironically quick witted when it comes to situations like this as opposed to the actual case.

Although the case would be difficult for anyone to solve. There are always more and more twists here as more and more players jump into the action. Also you have to consider that even the best of detectives would start to run into trouble when every character is lying through their teeth and half of them make absolutely no sense. Honestly after the film is over you’ll have a hard time keeping track of everything as well. It almost feels like the characters’ stories are changing as the film goes on although that might just be my imagination. It would be a nice extra detail if that was the case though.

The main thing to keep in mind is just that the characters are trying to get some kind of special object the whole time and you’ve also got a war going on in the background. As long as you have all that context then the rest is easy. You’re bound to be laughing at quite a few of the scenes here and the pacing is good so the jokes don’t tend to overstay their welcome. Not every gag will land for you of course but in a film like this there are always a bunch of other jokes to pick up the slack for the ones that did not do so well.

This film just never runs out of jokes and that’s a good thing because it’s important for a comedy film to just keep plunging ahead without missing a beat. The writing is good which is also important and the story is engaging. As I said earlier my only issue to an extent is that they used all the best material in the first half. The second half had a tendency to just not have as many all star jokes the whole time. It was still funny but the first half is absolutely what put it on the map. That’s regrettable to an extent because the ending is always what people remember so you want to end really well.

If there’s anything the film is lacking it’s that we could have had a good rival to Lou. Someone who is super competent perhaps but somehow always gets foiled. That could have been a nice contrast to Lou because in the end none of the supporting characters were particularly memorable. They all just sort of fade off into the distance by the end and while that’s fine since the focus is on the lead, having one more really distinctive character would be good. In the end I’d say that the main police officer was the second best character as is. I liked how calm he was while munching on his snacks the whole time.

Overall, The Cheap Detective is definitely a very good film. I was super close to even giving it one more star but ultimately I would say a 7 is fair. It’s got a lot of replay value and a whole lot of great moments all throughout but in the end I would say it loses just enough steam not to make the jump to the next level. Either way I definitely recommend checking this film out. The more detective films you’ve seen over the years, the more you will get out of this one since it really does a thorough job of destroying the normal tropes.

Overall 7/10

The Thing with Two Heads Review

Posted on by
Reply


It’s time to talk about this film which is definitely one of those titles that I really didn’t know about before watching it. It’s definitely not one that went on to win a lot of awards or anything like that but it embraces the absurdity of the whole story and ends up succeeding because of that. A certain car chase scene will either make or break the film for you though, that’s a guarantee!

The movie starts with Maxwell succeeding in his grand experiment to give a gorilla a second head through a surgical operation. This whole thing seems so crazy and yet it is now a reality. The real reason why he wanted to do this is so that he can put his head on another body since he is slowly dying. There ends up being a bit of a mixup though as the surgeons put Maxwell’s head on the body of Jack, an inmate who was sentenced to death. They wanted an inmate since the process will ultimately destroy the original host but Jack’s a little too smart for them. When he wakes up to find that he has an extra head, he breaks out and holds another doctor hostage, Dr. Fred. Now they are in a chase against the police. Even if Jack evades them, will his life ever be normal again?

There’s quite a lot to unpack right here. Lets put aside the fact that you can now remove someone’s head and put it on another body. That sounds pretty crazy but it’s the basis of the whole film so lets accept that as possible for now. There is a whole lot of plot convenience to Jack’s escape as he pretends to be asleep and then knocks out the staff but you’d think they’d be ready for that and have more security measures. Once he gets in the car though, that’s when things really get intense.

The police to their credit weren’t messing around. When they got the call that the convict was on the escape they basically sent the whole platoon of every officer in the state after him. We’re talking well over 40 police cars here and yet they all fall one by one to Jack. His car is just way more agile, nimble, and can hit those turns in a way that the police cars can’t as they all crash one on one.

The sequence goes on for an extraordinarily long time and like I said this is where the film will either lose you or you’ll be 100% on board. Personally I found the whole chase scene to be hilarious so this ended up helping the film in the end. Effectively this ended up making the film because it really got to embrace how hilarious the whole thing is. The same scenes just keep replaying like they were going out of style. I haven’t seen so much recycled footage in a very long time. that’s part of what makes it funny though even if it’s possibly a bit unintentional, it’s also fully possible that it was 100% intentional. We can’t rule that out.

In general the film has a lot of fun with the humor and I tend to enjoy the banter between Maxwell and Jack. See, a big part of the plot is that Maxwell is incredibly racist to the point where he tried to fire the new doctor Fred since he turned out to be black. Then when he’s merged with Jack….well he’s furious because Jack’s also black and so part of the dynamic is that Maxwell just can’t stand him. It’s to the point where Maxwell can’t even pretend to be nice to try and perform some kind of double cross. No, he’s as obvious as it gets the entire time.

Maxwell’s definitely the main villain of the film so the movie goes all in with making him as unlikable as possible. Meanwhile Jack’s a fairly calm guy who just wants to get out of this crazy predicament. He certainly never would have expected that he’d lose his body like this but he adjusts rather well. He doesn’t always make the smartest decisions like allowing Maxwell to knock him out but I guess as a scientist Maxwell would have a fairly strong will. Jack definitely has great skills with vehicles and escape though since he evaded all the cops.

There is a subplot about Jack saying that he’s innocent and trying to find the real criminal but that plot never goes anywhere so don’t worry about it. As for Fred, he’s hesitant to help the whole time so he spends most of the film waffling in the middle. Eventually he finally makes the big decision to be helpful though which was good. I feel like it should be an easy call to side with Jack in getting rid of Maxwell and restoring Jack’s body after all.

The cast is fairly small as those are really the main characters here. There are other scientist and you also have Jack’s girlfriend but for the most part the film is really focused around the main 3 here. They are the ones in the huge car chase scene after all and there isn’t really any room for the other characters. The film does throw an interesting misdirect at you with the gorilla that has 2 heads early on. Based on the title you’d expect that would have been the main plot so this was really a big shift. I got to watch the film without seeing the poster so that really helped to make the storyline a bit of a surprise.

I think it’s fair to say that the movie could have done more with the premise. Cut out the chase scene and throw in more dialogue and you would really have more opportunities for banter. That said, we still got a good amount here so I was satisfied. Honestly it’s the kind of film that I could definitely watch again because of how crazy it is so it’s got good replay value.

Overall, This is a pretty good movie. The plot certainly isn’t sound and you’ll find plot holes/conveniences throughout but the movie never forgets its sense of humor. There are a lot of good burns coming in from all the characters and you’ll have a good amount of laughs. Definitely check this out if the plot sounds intriguing to you. Not a whole lot happens technically since the plot goes on break for a while but you’ll still have a lot of fun either way.

Overall 7/10

Creed III Review

Posted on by
Reply


It’s time to end the Creed trilogy. Well we may get more films but for now it’s a trilogy at least. The trailers for this one were pretty fun but the whole time I kept thinking that this should be the easiest victory for Creed by far. Could the film convince me otherwise? No, so on a power level standpoint I was a bit iffy about how the fights went down but either way this is a quality film.

The movie starts off with Creed winning another championship and deciding to retire while on top of the world. Things have really been going well for him but then one day his childhood friend Dame shows up. The guy had been locked up for many years due to something that happened in the past but he wants his chance to be a boxing pro. Creed lets him have that chance but the guy fights dirty and immediately rises to the top and tries to make Creed out to be the bad guy. Everything Creed has built is now at risk of being destroyed so he will have to enter the ring one more time. Can he manage to defeat Dame?

All right so lets put this into perspective here. Dame has been in jail for over 10 years. Yes he could still stay fit and everything but that’s 10 years of no boxing experience while Creed has already been known as a prodigy and quickly became the heavyweight champion of the world. You mean to tell me that in a few months Dame was able to get up to world champion level and give Creed a good fight? This isn’t Dragon Ball Z, I had a hard time believing this for a minute. I think the kind of story they were trying to tell here is a solid one about old friends leading you into trouble but there should have been more of a nerf to Creed to make the fight fair. His shoulder was a little banged up so I think maybe saying his leg was weak too could have worked.

Then we see how Creed has to rely on his mind to win the fight rather than brawn. It would tie in really well to the speech he gave his daughter too. As it stands though, I just didn’t buy into the power levels. Additionally you have to remember that Dame was fighting super dirty but the refs were missing every dirty hit. You mean to tell me that they continued to miss these hits in all of the fights after the opening one as this guy rose to the top of the ranks? Nah not in today’s world with constant 24/7 coverage, highlights and re runs. It’s just not happening so he should have been kicked out long before this was an issue.

A lot of convenient things had to happen in order for this confrontation to occur. Of course once we get to it, the actual fight was definitely really solid. We got a lot of solid moves here and the combat itself was really fast. You got to see just how fast the champs are in the ring. We even get a moment in the fight where it’s just the boxers and the audience fades away so you can focus on the moves. Neither fighter was pulling their punches and you are watching Creed for the actual boxing after all so if the fight’s good then you’re good.

Creed is a good main character here as you would expect. He can shut down a lot when his wife is trying to talk to him which can be annoying though. In a lot of ways he makes the situation a whole lot tougher than it really needs to be in this case. That’s the only reason why I would say he did go down relative to the last two films. It just felt like the old him would have confided in her more or at least would have done a better job of hiding his worries. He’s not helping anyone by stressing her out and staying silent. There were so many ways that he could have handled the situation considerably better than how he did. Instead he just made Dame’s job a lot easier in many respects.

Low key what would have been satisfying would have been for Creed to call his lawyers and just tell them to put a smear campaign against Dame. Point out all the cheating in the matches and get him suspended. Then Dame would always believe Creed did this but would have no proof. Boom you’ve just gotten your revenge without ever having to get into the ring. Of course that probably wouldn’t sound as appealing to Creed but it is an interesting plan of attack.

Bianca does well here and is trying to be there for Creed no matter how many times he tries to pull away. She was perhaps a bit oblivious when it came to Dame like inviting him over to the party when Creed was clearly not very comfortable but at the end of the day I still put that more on him for not saying anything. There’s only so much you can figure out on your own.

Then for Dame, well I can’t say that he’s too likable. He comes across as very entitles and super ungrateful almost from the jump. Creed does a whole lot to help him out, including even crossing some lines to get him opportunities that he shouldn’t really have yet. He’s doing everything he can and Dame still thinks it’s not enough and keeps bringing up the past. He seems like someone who will never be satisfied and then as soon as he starts to rise up he turns on Creed.

The guy was just using Creed until he could stand on his own and then start to backstab him. It’s a really bad look for Dame all the way through. Based on what happened in the past of course he could be a little resentful of how things played out but he shouldn’t even blame Creed. Dame made his choice to help which was good but then you have to live with that no matter how it turns out. Blaming someone else for your own actions is always something that you should just not do.

I also thought that the film went too easy on Dame by the end. Yeah he had a tragic backstory but it doesn’t change what he did in the present. He seriously injures different characters and does so intentionally. So by the end you really want to see him get beat and then preferably taken to jail. Instead the ending i played off more in an emotional way, like he’s change now and everything. It just feels too soft and isn’t very satisfying as far as endings go. I think that could have been a little smoother.

Meanwhile I liked Chavez but since you knew that he was doomed the whole time, his scenes didn’t hit as hard as they could. The guy just never looked super impressive which is a big issue. He is technically one of the strongest in the world right? So lets see that. Instead it just felt like the guy was a decent boxer and that was really it. If the series keeps going with more films I think it should start sowing the seeds for more characters to expand the verse. Open up the boxing world a bit because it just feels a bit too small right now if this guy is one of the best.

On the negative side, the soundtrack was considerably weaker than the first two films and probably the weakest in the Rocky franchise. You don’t have a lot of songs that pump you up the way that the old ones did. For the final battle when both competitors were walking into the ring, that’s usually when you get the really exciting songs and that didn’t happen here. Neither song got me particularly pumped. It’s not really my style of music in a sense but you should still grab a good variety of solid songs for a title like this.

The film definitely gets dramatic with several twists here and at least one supporting character not looking so good here with the secrets that she was keeping. In a lot of ways you could say that a moral here was in how keeping secrets will always backfire in the end and put you in a bad spot. It’s best to just tell people what’s going on and defuse the situation before it gets too serious.

Overall, Creed III is a solid film as you would expect. The fights deliver the way they always do and the story is good. Where the film gets held back a bit is in part due to the underwhelming music but also that the plot doesn’t hold up as well as the others. Creed is borderline out of character with how many secrets he is keeping and keeping Bianca at bay. If he doesn’t do that then this film plays out very differently. Additionally Dame just isn’t the big threat that the film wants us to believe he is which is another big issue there. Watch this for the fights and enjoy the action but I don’t think it’ll have quite as much replay value as the first two.

Overall 6/10

All the President’s Men

Posted on by
Reply


This was a really fun movie. It’s kinda fun that I got to see the parody movie based on the Watergate scandal before watching this one but that’s just how it goes sometimes. It actually makes the parody seem more and more impressive as I watched this one because they got so many of the scenes done just right to mirror this one. This movie obviously goes a lot more in depth on the actual going ons behind the controversy though. It feels like a good amount of research went into this one and it’s still really thrilling which goes to show that real life can be just as exciting as the movies sometimes.

The movie starts off with some suspicious people walking through an office looking for something. Fortunately the cops show up in time to stop them but when these guys are taken to court they get a big lawyer out of nowhere. the whole thing seems suspicious so Woodward decides to look into it. Initially the Washington Post isn’t sure that this is a big story which is why they put such a new reporter on the case but he’s confident that he is on to something. Eventually the more experienced reporter Bernstein gets involved as well although they don’t get off on the right foot with the other guy sort of shoehorning himself into the picture. They will have to try and get along though because with a case this big they seriously can’t afford to make any big mistakes.

As with just about any movie based on a true story I’d be willing to bet that some parts of the film are exaggerated and played up but it does feel like most of it would be pretty accurate here. One scene I liked in particular was when Woodward was walking down a street as he normally would. Except it was late at night and everything seemed extra ominous. There was no music or anything, just the sound of his shoes hitting the concrete with each step and he kept looking around in case he was being followed. Nobody was there as far as he could see and the film never implies that anyone actually was there but you have to imagine the reporters probably were getting rather paranoid after a while. I personally wouldn’t like walking down the streets at around 2AM in the best neighborhood and when you’re picking fights with the most dangerous people around. Well..it makes sense that you would be a little nervous.

You also have to imagine that the reporters were probably close to being murdered many times because this was such a big case. When you anger the people up top then your lease on life certainly becomes a bit more tenuous. Still they kept on the case and I was glad when the Post did back them as the boss wouldn’t drop the case either. It’s really important for someone to have your back on a case like this because if you’re completely alone then you’re really not going to be able to do a whole lot.

The best character here definitely had to be the shadowy informant. I liked how that guy had all the answers and was always stringing the heroes along. To his defense it’s not like he can take too many risks or he would be in the targeting range but I was glad when he was called out for being so vague. I suppose the movie couldn’t just show who this guy was since presumably the reporters didn’t know there. This guy was almost like Batman with how quickly he would vanish out of view and then return later on. Nobody could tail him and so this guy was definitely a master of espionage.

For a film like this the dialogue definitely has to grab you and fortunately it did. The movie is quite long but at no point is it ever boring or tedious. You’re just as invested as the characters are in trying to figure out what is going on here. There are a whole lot of players involved after all so you want to try and memorize all of the names as best as you can. Typically each clue leads to a whole bunch of new characters as well so you have to try and keep following the names and the money for as long as possible.

Then the actual witnesses all give safe/double answers so as not to get in trouble and you see just how much work it is to try and get a single story out of all these guys. It’s definitely not easy that’s for sure. Still it feels like being a reporter was probably pretty fun in those days. It’s probably a bit glamorized of course but it’s more exciting seeing them go door to door than just hopping on the internet or the phone and asking questions that way. This way has more of a personal touch and we also get to see them discussing what kinds of traps they will lay out for the suspects. Like pretending they have extra knowledge and seeing if the bait is taken.

Overall, All the President’s Men is a really good film. It reminds you to always be on the lookout for corruption because it can certainly be everywhere. Then if you do find it you have to be very careful on how you handle it or you could end up vanishing really quick and you don’t want that. Personally I’m always a bit of two minds about the big conspiracies like this because on one hand you figure in real life nobody’s ever actually clever enough to pull off something too large scale without leaving behind massive amounts of evidence particularly in the post internet era but then you also see how a lot of government people are confused by basic technology and you can see how this kind of trick worked. If it can happen once then it can happen again so films like this are also good for reminding you to always double check your sources. keep your guard up and always leave some room for doubt for yourself. In the meantime definitely watch this film though, you won’t be disappointed.

Double Dragon Review

Posted on by
Reply


Double Dragon is a film that opens with its best fight scene right off the bat. That means you start off strong which is good but the huge downside to doing that is it means the rest of the experience is going downhill. Now granted, I did enjoy the film. It’s not great but I thought it was decently good. You are just surprised that the rest of the films aren’t as good as the opening because that showed you exactly what kind of potential this film had.

The movie starts off with Billy and Jimmy fighting against another pair of fighters in a martial arts tournament. They are doing well but unfortunately Billy makes a huge mistake and gets cocky which costs them the match. So they head home in disgrace and are then attacked by an enemy gang. See, this film takes place in the “future” which is the past at this point but the world’s not doing so hot. This is basically a dystopia as there is smog everywhere and a lot of acid all over the place. It’s really not safe after dark but Billy and Jimmy are rebels like that. They barely make it home where Satori lets them know about the dragon medallions. It’s rather sudden but they have to keep their half safe before the villain Shuko can get it or the whole world will be in trouble. Can these two teenagers man up and save the day or are they about to get absolutely rocked?

So like I said the opening fight is the best part of the movie. The fight scene actually has a lot of choreography to it and you can appreciate the stakes here. Nobody wants to lose in a tournament setting and Jimmy was actually doing really well until Billy ruined it for him. The fight had good music as well and with the film being based on a beat em up type game this is what you would expect. Unfortunately there are very few actual hand to hand battles after this and none of them are quite able to measure up.

Instead we have a lot of chase scenes and humor subplots but they don’t hit as hard. On the car chase I can at least appreciate the high tech gizmos that come into play with it but it doesn’t really stand out much. Then for the humor it’s often hit or miss. I like a lot of the puns and dialogue that the film is going for but some parts are just too outlandish and dragged out. For example one of the villains is named Bo and after he is defeated the villains decide to turn him into a huge Hulk type monster.

Now he’s nearly braindead and it seems like a rough fate for the guy but based on the music and scenes this is supposed to be funny to an extent. I’d say that the film definitely got lost in the sauce on this one. Any scene with Bo quickly became painful after this. You just did not want to see that guy at all and it’s not like he was a great villain before that but he definitely got even worse afterwards.

Then there is this whole subplot about Marian trying to unite the gangs and having what I guess you could equate to a nicer gang. They’re still vigilantes but they’re not so bad. With the police being extremely ineffective in this film as her own father the chief was nervous the whole time you do want this group out on the streets but it was a bit of a boring subplot. You were just waiting for the main characters to take the stage again.

The film does pick up again in the climax for the battle against Shuko though. We actually get to see the power of the Medallions in action and that also means that we have some more hand to hand fights at last. This does bring up some power level issues though because the medallion is supposed to be a big deal. It can even end the entire planet after all so what are two teenagers and their fists going to do about it? Well, at it turns out they can apparently do a whole lot about it. Kind of an odd way to dehype the object right?

Basically it can split you into shadows and has some other vague abilities including the ability to control someone else’s body but Shuko looks way too unimpressive. I just don’t buy him losing to the characters like that. Now I will say one hype thing about the climax is that we do get the iconic costumes at last. The costumes look really good too so the effects team held nothing back here. They should have given the heroes those costumes from the start but this was still a good way to end things. It showed you a bit of promise on how things could have been.

The movie tries to really nail the bantering dynamic between Billy and Jimmy but you just don’t feel like it works. There aren’t enough scenes of them actually being pals so it feels like they low key just don’t like each other. Even by the very end of the film one of the brothers tries to run away with the girl and ditch the other one only to be outsmarted by the guy already being in the car. It’s of course played up as a funny ending but yeah they spend most of the film being at odds with one another. The sequel probably could have fixed this but that’s not really in the cards.

Overall, At the end of the day Double Dragon isn’t a great film but it’s a pretty fun one. It’s a very old school title with a lot of campy action and witty banter. While not all of the film’s humor lands, I’d say that enough of it does. The villain has a classic base and the effects hold up well so you will appreciate the scenery behind him. The world isn’t very well thought out and it’s not super memorable but the film did try being grand here. There’s just enough unique elements about the film to make you want to keep coming back. I dare say there is a good amount of replay value to be found here although a modern remake could likely execute on the game’s premise way better. This could and should be an elite film just based on the game so I need the next one to focus on the fights a whole lot more.

Overall 6/10

Blue Thunder Review

Posted on by
Reply

This review is of the TV-14 edited version of the film. All thoughts below should be addressed as a review of the unedited version would likely be more negative

Blue Thunder is one of those films that has a fairly interesting plot but also unlikable main characters. There is one particularly egregious scene which realllllllly ends up hurting the movie as well. Ultimately if you are looking for those rare helicopter fight scenes then this one should be the ticket for you but otherwise it’s definitely time for a good skip. Watch Top Gun 2 instead for a solid film involving aerial combat.

The film starts off by introducing us to Frank and Richard who are two helicopter pilots who basically do frequent patrols around the neighborhood to make sure everything is going well. Well one day they come across a crime that seems like a potential mugging but the victim was a councilwoman and she ends up dying. It was a very odd neighborhood for this kind of attack and Frank notices things that don’t make sense around the area which all get missed in the police report. Unfortunately he doesn’t have much of a leg to stand on as he’s already known to not be the best at just following orders and his boss thinks he is sort of going off the ravine again. Can Frank get to the bottom of this mystery?

See, this is normally where you’re supposed to get annoyed at the boss because he’s slowing Frank down and not letting him do his job. Usually that’s the case at least but here’s the problem, Frank actually is a very bad employee. It’s not even one of those things where it’s close. He abuses his power in order to spy on people. The worst scene in the whole film is Frank and Richard invading a lady’s privacy and staring at her through the window from long range so she can’t see them. It’s really an awful scene all around and well past the boundaries of being even remotely funny. It’s just inappropriate and that alone should cost them their badge.

So when Frank is getting upset about the bosses zeroing in on him…well he definitely earned it. That scene also has nothing to do with the film and seemed to only have been added as fanservice. Cut that out and the film is immediately a lot better. The worst part is that the characters don’t really pay for that. Sure Richard has a painful time during the film to be sure but it’s not directly related to this scene. Then Frank gets to play the hero as he runs around blasting at everyone.

The film is at its best when it’s focused on the actual mystery. For example Frank’s friend Kate helps him out by going to the reporters and we get a fun little side plot near the end. One of the villains even sends a goon after her but fortunately she didn’t fall for the trap and then the reporter came through in time with the security guard. That was definitely fairly tense and the reporter was impressive. He felt like he could have been the lead in a different film.

As for the main villain Cochrane, the guy is definitely not very subtle about being a villain but when there is so much corruption in the ranks why would you bother hiding right? The guy can basically do whatever he wants to a large extent and it’s not like anybody is going to be able to stop him. He’s just going to do whatever he wants and will keep on doing it until someone can stop him. He plays the villain role well and is the most entertaining character in the film to be sure. The guy’s just so sarcastic the whole time.

The effects for the helicopter scenes definitely hold up really well too. I’ve always preferred planes in most areas since I feel like they are faster, more agile, better equipped, etc. But you still don’t want to underestimate the Helicopters because there is a lot that they can do. Part of the focus in the film is that they are testing an experimental one which will have so much firepower that it is basically a mini army in its own right. The dilemma here is obviously that having so much firepower within the city is a huge risk, especially if it’s in the hands of someone like Frank.

I’d say he proves that he’s not trustworthy for using it throughout the film. It also has a lot of invasive hardware in it like a super long range scanner to hear anything anyone says from any range. Not exactly the kind of tech that you just want anyone to have right? It was even funny in a way how in the army demo the company gave we saw a ton of innocent people being destroyed in the simulations. There just isn’t a way to get this kind of weaponry to ever be super safe without some collateral damage. Not without some kind of big technological breakthrough at least. The action scenes are good though and the film’s pacing is on point.

Overall, This film had potential but that one scene just dragged on way too long and was way too detailed. It also destroyed both main characters in an instant to the point where they were impossible to root for. The conspiracy angle was done well although most films have done it better. We get some minor hand to hand kind of action here but mainly it’s about the vehicles and that is handled well. I still wouldn’t recommend this film but it’s fairly close to the border of being a solid pic. If you can get behind that one moment of Frank being the villain then you should have a good time here.

Overall 4/10

One Missed Call Review

Posted on by
Reply


It’s time for a retro horror film and One Missed Call definitely lives up to what you would expect there. It’s a horror film that plays it very by the numbers without a whole lot going for it beyond being…well a classic horror film. This one involves phones and a villain so powerful that it’s like you’re fighting against destiny itself. The film doesn’t have a particularly strong cast or memorable visuals to keep it afloat but at the same time it’s certainly not the worth horror film I’ve seen. I doubt I’ll even remember it too vividly several years from now.

The movie starts with the most intense scene in the film to be honest as a lady walks towards a pond when a giant hand emerges and drags her under. It also grabs the cat so the film decided to start off with an animal death for some bizarre reason. Leaving that aside for a moment though, the scene gave the villain a pretty intense design right off the gate and it was memorable. It reminded me of the Redead hands from the Legend of Zelda games. Unfortunately after this you will not see any memorable designs like that at all. In fact once we see the actual mastermind at the end of the film, the villain looks super unimpressive. Basically normal if you will and that’s no fun.

All right so back to the plot. Everyone is worried about the way the girl died and then another girl gets a voicemail from her number but it’s from a future date and has another girl’s voice. This girl promptly dies at the exact time of the voicemail and this “Phone curse” continues to spread. Each victim receives a call from the last victim with a voicemail dated at the exact time that the next victim will die. In essence the instant you receive this voicemail you are already dead which is a sobering thought unless you can escape destiny. Beth is the main heroine of the movie and she has a little time while all of her friends are bumped off. Once they are gone though then she will be next in the firing line. Oh I should also mention every victim gets a candy that they spit out after they die. Pretty random detail but its so random that it’s actually kind of interesting so I’ll give the film credit there. Of course it is explained later on but even if it wasn’t that’s the kind of randomness that can make the situation even scarier.

Fortunately she has the help of Officer Jack who believes there is something to this. Unfortunately the rest of the police don’t buy this so he’s on his own. Now it’s great that he believes since there is some evidence to support it at least but the guy is super sloppy. So the biggest potential evidence here are the phone calls right? Tangible calls that you could trace to see what is going on. Well…over halfway into the film he remembers that you can do this and looks them up but it was such a basic thing he could have tried from the start that it really stands out. You just think “Cmon man” because it would have been easier if the film just said all records mysteriously weren’t there. Really make this as supernatural as possible.

After all this is supernatural so why would it need to follow conventional rules anyway? Jack mainly does good here but I do have to say that one mistake so many characters make is putting their eye right next to the keyhole. Seriously even in real life you don’t want to do that because the door isn’t very well secured at all. Just being near it is a dangerously bad idea. Trust me on this, you do not want to do that! Just stay away from the door and he was probably doomed anyway but it didn’t help matters.

We do get the tragic backstory leading up to the origin of the curse later on and the film gets fairly dark with the lore as you’d expect. Again all fairly common for this kind of film but it also just feels rather forced. I think the movie should have actually not had a backstory for what was going on here. It’s way spookier for this to be happening for no real reason. Just give us a way to actually fight back and then you’re set. For example, that giant undead creature from the opening was super spooky so that’s all you need on the scares front. Have the team try to figure out a way to defeat it.

I knew the film would be cheating as soon as the Star Wars “Force Choke” scene happened. So one girl named Taylor had a really good idea. She allowed herself to be recruited by a supernatural TV show where they record people being possessed and try to save them. These guys may be crazy or scammers but now she’s surrounded at least right? Well the ghost/demon/mysterious villain shows up anyway and just chokes her using invisible intangible powers. There was nothing Taylor or anyone could do and that’s when I realized how futile this was going to be. The villain was too powerful.

In any horror film you have to try and balance out the villain being really powerful and imposing while also giving the heroes some kind of chance to fight back. There always has to be some hope or else why are you even watching right? If the only option is to wait around for your death then that’s inevitably going to get boring and so the film needed to introduce more of a weakness. Taylor’s death just felt unfair the whole time because unlike the other characters I actually thought her plan was as close to full proof as possible.

I haven’t talked much about Beth and in large part that’s because there isn’t a whole lot to say about her. She really stands for being your average everyday person just trying to get out of this situation but she doesn’t have much character beyond that. You’re hoping that she will get out of this in one piece but that’s definitely not a guarantee in a film like this.

Overall, I can see why One Missed Call wasn’t really a hit. The film wasn’t super balanced and didn’t always seem to know what it wanted to do. It’s a fairly serious film with an intense threat but the world wasn’t very fleshed out and there’s nothing to write home about here. While the film isn’t super violent, you definitely do have some intense deaths here. The dark backstory is also intense of course. I did like some of the spooky visuals like the Centipede and the hand in the opening scene but that was about it. The rest of the film just didn’t land and you should give this one a hard skip.

Overall 3/10

Konga Review

Posted on by
Reply

Konga is one of those films that ended up failing because it forgot the very premise it was supposed to execute. Why are you watching a film called Konga? Well…odds are that it’s because based on the title you want to see a really good giant creature film right? that makes the most sense but a super large chunk of this is about a super annoying scientist trying to have an affair with his student and this plot drags the whole film down. We don’t actually get the large Konga until the final minutes and it’s way too late by then.

The movie starts with the legendary researcher Charles finally getting back to the country after being presumed dead for a while. He has been living in the wilderness with a tribe learning more about animals and manipulating DNA. He figures that he finally has a way to turn Gorillas into giant monsters and this has a lot of possibilities for human evolution. His assistant Margaret was hoping he would finally be ready to settle down with her and they could start a family but it looks like that isn’t in the cards anymore. No, instead he is completely obsessed with only two things, his experiments and his student Sandra. Can Margaret put a stop to this guy?

I’ve got so many problems with this film but lets start off with Charles. He’s the main character but he’s such an unlikable villain that you are hoping he will be taken out soon. The guy wants to revolutionize science and yet he sets it back by murdering everyone else who were coming up with similar ideas. He claims to be completely focused on the job but then he tries to get with Sandra and makes that a priority. This guy doesn’t actually seem super serious/focused on his work so he becomes all talk by that point and it’s why you can’t respect him as a character. Even if he was a jerk you could at least understand what was going on if he was serious about his scientific advancements.

The instant he lost sight of that the guy was too far gone. Meanwhile I didn’t care for Margaret as the heroine either. For starters she didn’t jump in to protect Sandra when she was being attacked. Additionally Margaret allows herself to just be verbally attacked and ignored all the time. She likes Charles for some reason but you still have to stand up for yourself. She kept all of his affairs in order while he was gone and the guy never shows any gratitude. Instead he keeps making empty promises about how they will still get married some day and she believes them. She seems very naïve here throughout the movie.

Additionally Sandra is also rather oblivious the whole time. Charles isn’t very subtle about his flirting here and how he keeps trying to get her by herself. At first I figured she noticed and just didn’t mind but by the end we see that she hadn’t really considered this. Instead she thought her friend Bob was just being jealous when he tried to warn her multiple times. I don’t get how nobody sees the red flags on this character.

Bob at least decides to fight Charles and even has the upper hand during their skirmish. You can’t blame him as much for sparing Charles’ life because murdering someone is an absolute last resort and Bob wasn’t trying to go down that dark path. He was just put in a really dicey spot the whole time. He gets props for at least roughing the guy up a bit though. The other students were being too busy making fun of the guy to do anything productive.

All right, so what about Konga then? Well he’s stuck in the cage for over 90% of the film as Charles runs experiments on him and keeps saying how expendable the creature is. Naturally once Konga does break free he quickly makes sure to murder as many people as possible before being shot down but of course the issue here is that at the end of the day he’s an innocent animal being gunned down due to being put in the wrong place at the wrong time. It makes for a very somber ending right there and you really wonder what the point of the film really was. It fails as a creature feature film and the character cast was really weak.

The writing can be okay at times. I do still enjoy the old writing style and everyone sounds very polite and proper but you still can’t help but be annoyed. The film’s pacing is solid so it goes by quickly either way. There is definitely no reason to actually go ahead and watch this movie though. There are way better ones out there and there just isn’t anything in particular that would make this movie a must watch compared to others.

Overall, Konga may be a cool name for a film but this is not going to be the next Godzilla. Konga is a film that will likely be lost to the mysteries of time and that’s for the best. Definitely stay away from this film and remember that the main takeaway is to always be wary of announcing your secret research until it is ready. Otherwise you may get bumped off by a rival like what happened in this film and then that definitely would be a tragic way to go out.

Overall 3/10