I wonder how many of you readers remember Flightplan? It’s one of those movies that seemed to slip by many people. I can’t say that I’ve heard of it before, but you have to admit that it has a pretty cool poster. It’s slightly misleading and my one complaint is that she looks more horrified or shocked than determined and upset. Still, I’d say that the poster came out well and looks like a thriller/horror movie.

Flightplan involves the main character (Kyle) and her daughter (Julia) as they decide to board a plane. David Pratt had fallen off of a building, so they were going to bury him in Long Island. Julia seems to be worried since they were in a pretty seedy neighborhood, so Kyle made the logical choice and hailed a cab. They made it to the plane safe and sound, but that’s where things get dicey for the main characters.

Julia had wandered off to the side when she saw a nice snack. That’s never a good habit and Kyle warns her about that. Unfortunately, when Kyle takes a nap in the plane…Julia is gone! Even worse is the fact that she wasn’t on the Plane list and everyone claims to not have seen her. Obviously, she never got on the plane, but the heart that she drew is still there, not to mention that her Teddy Bear is still around. Kyle decides to check the entire plane, but she’s running low on suspects. There are two shady looking figures in the front, a really, overly cheerful guy in the back, a mean flight attendant, two irresponsible flight attendants,….The Captain! Maybe the suspect list isn’t as small as I had thought. Of course, if Everyone claims to not have seen Julia, could the entire crew be in on it? Julia must race against time as she tries to find Julia before the crew can arrest her.

Flightplan was a pretty solid movie, but it had some moments that were tough to believe. I won’t say whether she was hallucinating the whole thing, or if it happened. If it was the latter, wouldn’t someone notice a little girl being abducted? The crew was remarkably slow on the uptake in this film and nobody was willing to do what needed to be done. I can’t say that I was a huge fan of Kyle either, but she definitely beat the crew. Towards the end, the government gets involved, which definitely increased the stakes. There isn’t really a soundtrack on the film, but since there aren’t too many action scenes, it wasn’t necessary…right? Having a soundtrack is always a +, but not having one won’t hurt the film. (Of course, having one Would help the film) I’d recommend this film if you like classic mysteries and thriller films. Of course some scenes may make you facepalm.

Overall 5/10

True Grit is a call back to the old wild west days. If that didn’t start some alarms ringing in your head, then you may want to rethink that. I’ve never been a wild west person, but maybe this film could get past that. Maybe it could show me what a true wild west film should be like! Let’s see…..

The film starts out with a verse of scripture (Which is a solid way to start the film!) and then we get some narration. It appears that Tom Chaney defeated Mattie’s father and now she plans to avenge him. She mentions that everyone gets what’s coming to them at some point or other, but she’s going to take him down personally. First she needs to hire a gunman and get some money. In one of the better (but sadder) parts of the film, she negotiates with Colonel Stonehill. I liked his courage and dedication to the finer arts of negotiating, but Mattie is the protagonist, so things may not go his way. I’d say that this is where the film started going downhill. Slowly at first, but then it took a very steep nosedive towards the end.

Mattie hired a Marshall named Cogburn. They set out alongside LeBoueuf. (Who can get violent, but towards the end you’re supposed to sympathize with him because he’s a “hero”) They set off on a long trek to take down Chaney, but can they possibly catch him? Only time will tell I’m afraid.

Mattie isn’t a very good protagonist. I never liked a film to have a kid (Or in this case, very early teen) as the main character. I just can’t take the character seriously and it’s not as much fun. She has her “epic” scene at the end, but while it may have been temporarily satisfying, she should have listened to her own words. “Everyone pays for their sins” She’s all right with a gun, but she does freeze up when the going gets tough.

LeBoueuf is a pretty bad character. His opening scene is just awful and his next scene just keeps him on a spiralling track into oblivion. No matter what scenes he would get after that, it would be too late. He also tends to get taken out of a fight when things get tough.

How about Cogburn? Well, he tends to get drunk a lot and while he was a decent main character for a while, his poor treatment of his horse instantly put him on my bad list. That was just unacceptable and these characters could definitely learn a thing or two about true heroes.

Aside from Stonehill, I can’t say that I liked any characters in this film. Add to that the plethora of animal violence scattered across the film and some pretty cringe worthy scenes, this is not a film that I recommend at all. The Christian messages through the film are nice, but since the main character ignores all of them, you start to think about what the moral is. If you are squeamish about violence, you should probably avoid this film and if you like horses, then you should Definitely avoid this film. Next time you want to see something about the Wild West, check out the two part time travel episode in Justice League Unlimited. That’s the Wild West done right.

Overall 2/10

Jack Reacher is another film in a new trend of mysterious agent films. You know the type, the main character used to be the best of the best, until he retired or disappeared. Now he’s back and ready to roll! (Bourne, MI4. If James Bond were actually “The best of the best” you could add him to the list as well) Jack Reacher is a pretty good film and while it is weaker than the previous two films mentioned, it can hold its own.

The plot is that this guy shoots some people (And pays the parking meter!) before getting caught. At least the police were pretty quick on the draw this time, but they were too late. The convict asks for Jack Reacher to come, but the Police can’t contact him. Helen is the convict’s defense lawyer and she’s determined to help him. One day Jack shows up and tries to show why he’s the best. Helen decides to team up with him and together they can prove the convi-(I might as well say who the suspected convict is) James Barr’s innocence or vice versa. Unfortunately, some villains want to stop them, and they have the muscle to make it happen!

From there, there is a lot of shooting and fight scenes as Jack solves the case. He’s pretty smart and also physically powerful. In the film he’s capable of taking on several opponents at once and according to his trash talking, he always wins. Jack’s a pretty good character for the most part. When he’s in agent mode, he gets the job done. That’s the important thing. He’s also a pretty skilled marksman and did I mention that he served in the Government?

Helen is the other protagonist. She’s an all right character, but she’s mostly just there to be there. She doesn’t really help all that much and she’s definitely not much of a fighter. Towards the end, she doesn’t do so well, but at least she kept her dignity.

James Barr and Sandy aren’t very good characters either. Barr let his primal urges to shoot things get the better of him and Sandy doesn’t make the right move on several occasions. Cash is a pretty good character and it was nice to have at least one other fighter for the heroes. He’s all right with a gun and he did some damage. Zec is one of the big villains, but he’s very generic and not interesting. Let’s just say that he’s not much of a fighter. We also have the cop, but…..he’s not very good either.

Jack Reacher is a good film and if you like the subgenre of agents who must save the day, I’m sure that you will enjoy it. The final scene for Reacher can make you take a step back, but remember, Reacher’s no hero. He says so himself after all. You may be able to guess some of the plot twists early on, but it’s a good, popcorn fun movie to watch. Maybe it’ll get a sequel at some point. Either way, I recommend this film.

Overall 7/10

The Wolverine is a film that puzzled me for a long time. Not the film itself, but the concept. Wolverine is one of those characters that I never thought would get more than 1 film to himself. Wolverine is very popular, but it was just hard to picture, not to mention that the first one came out a long time ago. Now that the film’s out, it is a lot easier to picture Wolverine having a third film. The film is pretty solid and it’s a good superhero film.

Wolverine hasn’t had a very happy life. After the events of the first Wolverine film, and the 3 X Men films, Wolverine has decided to stop being a hero. The X Men can deal with their own problems and he’ll just live out in the woods. It’s a pretty neat set up, but ultimately it was never going to work out. After a very unnecessary subplot, Wolverine heads with Yuriko to japan. They meet with Shingen’s dad (Who is pretty awful. He makes some veiled threats along the way, but they aren’t to be taken seriously…), who is very old. Wolverine saved his life back in the day and now the old man wants to make sure that Wolverine gets what’s coming to him…..Wolverine declines and gets ready to leave. Unfortunately, he’s shot! Wolverine still does pretty good, but can he survive the odds without his healing factor? Also, Mariko is being targeted by the mafia, but why would they do such a thing?

There are a lot of questions that are left to the viewer, but I’m sure that you can guess them all. If you can’t, I recommend reading some Bleach and then getting back to this movie. Wolverine is a pretty solid character, but they did have to tone his healing factor down in this film. For most of the film, it is out of commission. There are circumstances involved, but I don’t find them plausible. This may not be a known fact, but Wolverine is still an expert hand to hand fighter. He’s gone up against Captain America and Spider Man in the past. The film shows us a little of that, but not too consistently. While his healing factor is working well, his fighting gets very sloppy. When his healing factor is fizzing out, Wolverine starts using tactics. Maybe that’s just the way he fights. Wolverine is a pretty solid character. (Even if he says a few “hardcore” things that take away from his character)

All of you should remember Yuriko from the anime, but for those who didn’t watch it; Yuriko is an expert close range combat fighter. She is able to fight against some pretty skilled opponents and it’s always good to have other characters who are able to fight alongside the main protagonist. Yuriko was definitely one of the better characters of the film and she gets 2 critical fights to herself. Her first fight was one of the best fights in the film and it’s always good to see a sword battle.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Mariko. I didn’t find her to be a very good character and she was mostly the damsel in distress of the film. She has a few “tough” moments where she took on the minions and actually defeated a few. I dunno, if she had kept fighting the whole time, then it would have helped. Maybe even some classic lines like “I promise you Revenge!”.

The villains are definitely the weak point of the film. We have Viper, who plays a decently large role. Her power is pretty awful and not one that I would want to have. She’s actually pretty weak, but stays in the game somehow. She didn’t really add anything to the film and I think that she shouldn’t have been added. Shingen is a pretty tough villain, but he’s not very likable. His sword skills are pretty impressive and he makes for a good challenge to Wolverine. He wasn’t nearly as powerful as his anime counterpart, but it happens.

The “Silver Samurai” is a pretty tough mecha. What he lacks in character (Though his character is pretty awful), he makes up for (Somewhat) in sheer power. His Fire Blade is made of adamantium and it’s one of the strongest swords in XCU (Xmen Cinematic Universe) history. The Silver Samurai is pretty tough, but he does lack speed. Still, he was a decent final boss for the film.

On the negative side of the film, there are three main things. The opening scene involving the bear was pretty awful. They should have cut the scene out, but most live action films have a few cringe worthy scenes. The next one would be the excessive language in the film. It’s not extremely over the top, but more than you would find in the average superhero film. Sure, he’s Wolverine, but we don’t need the film to keep reminding us. He says his “iconic” line from X Men Origins, but there’s pretty little point. There are a lot of things that he could have said that would have been more epic. Also, this film has a romance subplot which is pretty annoying. Jean Grey’s ghost (Who is still inhabited by the Phoenix it would seem) keeps goading on Wolverine to just die already. He refuses, but she did cross the barrier between the living and the dead. Possible foreshadowing?

The Wolverine is a pretty good film. The atmosphere is a lot lighter than the first film and it’s more fun to watch. I would say that this film is better than the first, but the first film had a better final battle. (Deadpool FTW) The music is decently good for the film. The film does have more romance than you may have expected. The scenes are pretty wince worthy, but as long as you block them out, you’ll still enjoy the film. I recommend this film, but if you want a true superhero experience, then I recommend checking out The Avengers.

Overall 7/10

Pacific Rim is a film that jumped into theaters with a very risky premise. Robots fighting Kaiju is pretty out there and the general audience might not be able to sympathize with our interest in the film. The film also got very little marketing in theaters and it was very unlikely that you would see a trailer for the film. I went to the theaters quite a few times this year, (Not to mention that I’ll be checking out Thor and Wolverine soon) and while you would see the trailer for At World’s End, and World War Z, Pacific Rim was nowhere to be found. I only saw it once, (if at all) which is pretty disappointing.

The film starts with the main character explaining to us that the Kaiju have started to come to earth through an rift between dimensions, that was located deep beneath the Pacific. (Old school Kaiju fans may be skeptical since they usually come from underground or space, but it can be good to have a new take on that) The first Kaiju to make it through, manages to cause a lot of destruction over multiple cities before he was taken down. (By bullets and planes, but don’t laugh! Remember King Kong?) The rift seems to get bigger with each Kaiju attack and the frequency of the attacks becomes more and more common. (For example, it could have started as 1 Kaiju a year. Then 1 a week, 1 an hour, etc) The Kaiju have levels that let you know how dangerous they are. Level 5 Kaiju are the most dangerous and Level 1 Kaiju should be stopped pretty easily. The humans built Jaegers to combat the threat. They were doing some damage for a while. Now, the Kaiju are stronger and the attacks are more frequent. The Government, in their infinite wisdom, has decided to cancel the mecha project and just put a wall to stop the Kaiju from hurting everyone…..it’s an intriguing idea and I’d love to know which country thought of it. Either way, one Kaiju attack is enough to shatter it. They call in Becket to pilot the new and improved Gypsy Danger to end the Kaiju wars!

The main character is Mr. Becket and he’s a hardened veteran from the good old days. He has experience inside of Gypsy Danger and he’s one of the only humans to have ever piloted a mecha on his own. (Albeit for a few seconds) Only one other human has ever accomplished such a feat, but the film doesn’t let you know the (Obvious) plot twist until we are near the end. Becket is a pretty good main character and while he’s not quick to throw a punch, he has his limits. Nobody will be able to mess with him for long.

Stacker is the commanding officer of the army. (Don’t watch the trailer!) After tragic happenings, he can never put on the armor and go into a mecha again! (Don’t watch the trailer!) You really sympathize with him, since not being in a mech automatically takes you out of the main cast. He gives a lot of orders, but I never cared for the character. The end is his “Man Up” moment, but I wasn’t impressed. He wasn’t a bad character, I just would have preferred if he had made the final decision a bit earlier in the film. It would have had more impact.

Mako is another strong pilot for the Jaeger program. She was never allowed to actually get into one, even though her virtual scores were pretty solid. Why would they do such a thing!? They don’t tell us the reason for a while, but at least she still gets a decently big role. She was an all right character, but the fact that she nearly jeopardized Earth when she stepped into a Jaeger was a bit disappointing.

Meanwhile, Newton gets the subplot where he joins minds with a Kaiju. It’s a bold move, but probably not the right kind and it leads to some trouble. The subplot was probably to keep the film light, but I wouldn’t have minded some extra Kaiju scenes instead. Still, he could have been worse and he’s almost as good as Hermann. Hermann has a lot of calculations and prefers to use math to save the day. He’s pretty smart, but he’s not as used to mind fusing as Newton. Both characters were essentially filler, but at least they weren’t bad filler characters. Chau is one of the human villains, but he was pretty unlikable. His final scene was fitting…unless there is a post credits scene! (hint hint)

Gypsy Danger was easily the best Jaeger in the film. He had a cool energy blaster and let’s not forget about his Unibeam. He definitely means business and has a really cool design. Just about all of the Jaegers looked pretty cool, but none can come close to this guy. Second place is pretty tricky, but that would go to Cherno Alpha. It’s good to see a Mark 1 mecha fighting alongside Mark 5’s and holding his own. He did pretty good against the Kaiju.

I guess that brings us into the realm of the Kaiju! There are plenty of cool Kaiju in the film, but I’ll just name some of the coolest ones. Let’s start with the Trespasser. The film plays him out to be pretty weak since the army defeats him. (What they don’t mention, is that it took a Nuclear Attack to beat him) He has a pretty good design and you will all remember him from the trailers. He was the first of many!

The next Kaiju I’ll talk about is Raiju. I didn’t really like Raiju and it’s because of the way he lost. Who dives into a sword? (I nearly took a step back when that happened, but I caught myself in time.) It reminded me of Anguirus’s infamous scene in Vs Gigan. Arguably this was even worse!

Time for Knifehead! His design is definitely impressive and he dealt a lot of damage. His head makes for a good dagger and he can shred through metal as if it weren’t even there. Knifehead is only a level III Kaiju, but that’s more than enough to deal some hurt. Most of the Jaegers can’t really keep up with him for long and he’s definitely up there as one of the coolest Kaiju.

Let’s not forget about Leatherback! He has a very powerful EMP which can disable the electricity in a very wide radius. Because of this, just about every Jaeger is useless against him. His raw power is immense and he seems to be one of the physically strongest Kaiju in the film. The EMP scene is still one of the best in the film, because it was pretty unexpected.

We also have Otachi, one of the stronger level IV Kaiju. She was definitely a pretty serious threat and it was a very cool moment where she spread out her wings. Gypsy Danger definitely took a lot of damage in that fight and it was nearly the end. One hit from her acid attack and the opposing Jaeger will start melting. Otachi has been compared to Rodan in the past and for good reason. They’re both pretty cool Kaiju who can fly. Not to mention that winged type Kaiju are pretty rare.

As Godzilla is King of the Monsters, Slattern seems to be King of the known Kaiju. He’s the first level 5 that we have seen, although I’m sure that there are plenty more down below. He’s pretty big, but he’s barely stronger than a level 4. Gypsy Danger took him on without much effort, but I guess that’s the risk of being a Kaiju. No matter how strong you are, your size can be a double edged sword. I thought Slattern was pretty under powered in the film, but maybe they had to rush the ending a little.

One thing that I didn’t like in this film, was the portrayal of the Kaiju’s intelligence. The aliens seem to be sending them out at their leisure and learning from their mistakes. Unfortunately, the Kaiju don’t seem to be very bright. (Like running into the sword!) Mostly, the Kaiju seem to try and strike randomly at the Jaegers, without a real plan. If they had fought carefully, they would have obliterated the Jaegers with ease.

Pacific Rim was definitely a solid film. It avoided the unnecessary romance scenes that most films end with. Becket and Mako stay as friends/co-pilots, and the music score was pretty good. (Godzilla fans should notice a certain music!) Pacific Rim is one film that you need to see in theaters to get the full experience. These Kaiju battles need to be watched in their full glory. Now that America has created a solid Kaiju film, this is only the beginning! Next year, their true test arises in the form of Godzilla. I highly recommend checking this film out and all audiences can appreciate it. Mecha fans, Kaiju fans, and Summer Blockbuster fans will all love it.

Overall 7/10

All right, as you guys may remember from my review of the first film, the film was pretty good and had a nice chunk of action, without getting too dark and generic. The first film had a pretty satisfying ending, so what would the sequel do?

Well, the plot is decent as Frank and his partner Marvin are framed because someone leaked an article claiming that they know about “Nightshade”. Frank wants to stay retired, but things get personal when someone makes an attempt on Marvin’s life. With Sarah goading him on the whole time, Frank finally accepts that it is time to return to the field. Unfortunately for them, “Nightshade” is pretty important, so every big organization on the planet is after them. M16, CIA, etc. There are a lot more villains that are out to destroy Frank and his allies this time around.

The soundtrack is pretty solid and you’ll remember the music for a while. The brief Death Metal music was interesting and the main theme that plays whenever they switch countries is pretty cool. The overall atmosphere of the film is still pretty light as it was in the first film.

Red 2 contains a lot of explosions and action throughout the first film, but Frank himself, doesn’t get to take up most of the screentime. This time he has to share a lot of it with other fighters such as Han. Marvin’s still pretty smart and seems to be the most capable agent in the field.

Frank himself is about the same as he was in the first film, but not quite as good. He’s still pretty tough in a fight, but he’s constantly worrying about Sarah and actually pulls a rookie (Or should I say, James Bond) mistake as he falls for someone’s charms and that person drugs him. He looked pretty bad for a while, but during the climax he’s back to the usual. Unfortunately, there are some things that you can’t come back from, and that error is one of them.

Marvin still has a lot of plans up his sleeve and he’s always ready for just about anything. He hasn’t changed much, which is good, but arguably the pressure gets to him towards the end as he makes a crucial phone call. I’d say that he was easily the best character once again, but Han gives him some pretty good competition for that title. Han was a solid addition to the cast and he’s pretty skilled. I dare say that he could possibly defeat Frank, but it would be close. He’ll definitely remind you of Storm Shadow while he’s fighting and his scenes are definitely cool. (Him popping out of nowhere with the machine gun is definitely one of the best scenes in the film)

Sarah is much braver than in the first film and she’s much more enthusiastic than Frank is about the situation. She enjoys being an agent now, but she suffers from her competition against Katya. She ends up using pretty unheroic methods to get the mission done and I don’t believe that “The End justifies the means” logic. She is still a better character than Katya, but I preferred her depiction in the first film.

Katya is the agent from Russia. She’s pretty high ranked and can get bailed out of jails within an hour. Her fighting skills don’t seem to be as good as the main cast’s, but she doesn’t get to fight that often. She was a pretty bad character and I can’t take her seriously as a “villain”

Victoria gets a small role in this film. M16 needs her to prove her loyalty by destroying/capturing Frank and his cohorts. The film really tries to show us how great a shot she is, but…she never hits the opponents. In one scene, a really loud death metal song plays as she dramatically takes out her gun. She takes out the opponents….after about a dozen+ shots. She was all right in this film, but not one of the better agents. She’s still better than Ivan, who gets a really small cameo/guest star role. It’s a pretty bad role and won’t help me gain respect for the character.

The final villain of the film is pretty intense and he manages to take on a battalion of soldiers while behind bars and not containing any guns or bullets. It’s pretty intense, but makes you feel bad for the army guys. Sleeping on the job doesn’t pay. The explosion at the end looks pretty cool and was a nice way to end the action scenes.

So, Red 2 is a pretty solid addition to the franchise. I wouldn’t say that it was as good as the first, but it was a good film. It suffered from more romance than the original and less hand to hand fight scenes, but the soundtrack kept it afloat. The car chases were also pretty intense and I think that a sequel would be fun. The ending in this one makes a sequel more likely than the previous film’s.

Overall 6/10

I’m sure that just about everyone has watched The Wizard of Oz. It’s a living legend that everyone always hails as one of the all time classics. I can’t say that the original was that great (No real action and I’d only give it a 2-2.5/5) but it is definitely a film that I won’t forget. Making a prequel to that movie is pretty ambitious, but was the risk worth it?

Well, the film starts out as Oz is conning people with his magic tricks. He loves his work and people give him a couple of coins. He’s not a great magician and he is quickly discovered to be a fake. He’s a pretty awful protagonist and proceeds to flirt with as many people as he can. Someone tries to beat him up, so Oz makes a break for the balloon and gets in. You’re actually left wishing that they had knocked him out and taken him to jail, but maybe he’ll still get defeated once he’s in the land of Oz.

Once he makes it to Oz, he meets one of the Witches, Theodora. He tricks her into thinking that he’s the magician of legend and eagerly awaits his gold. They travel for a while and he keeps on saving the day by accident. Oz also suckers Finley into becoming his slave for life. Once Oz makes it to the castle, they tell him that he will need to slay Glinda, The Wicked Witch of the South. Oz doesn’t want to do it since the danger is high, but he’ll do anything for gold. He heads on his way and is ready to slay the witch!

Well, Oz is definitely one of the worst main characters in a while. He’s like a junior Captain Kirk or James Bond. He never really gets what’s coming to him and the film tries to portray him a hero by the end. I really hope that nobody fell for this trap. He hasn’t changed at all and will keep on acting the same way, only now he is rich as well. He’s a character that makes you wince whenever he’s on screen.

Glinda, Theodora, and Evanora are the three witches of the film. All of them are played for fools by Oz and it’s a bit embarrassing. They have actual powers, but once Oz summons up a little light and magic, one of them makes a hasty retreat, while the other one flies off into the distance. I guess Oz is a very fearsome individual eh?

The film doesn’t really have much of a soundtrack, but most live action films are lacking one as well. The fight scene at the end was decently good, (Even if the movement was a little fake) but having one fight scene can’t save an entire film. It was a decent film and I’d recommend it if you have always wanted to see a movie about Oz, but it wrecks his character from the original. If you want to see a classic reborn into the modern world, check out Yugioh Bonds Beyond Time!

Overall 4/10

Whatever Happened To Baby Jane is an old movie that got plenty of good reviews. Upon checking it out, the only question I have is..What!? This has got to be one of the worst movies that I’ve ever seen. (It still beats Sucker Punch….barely) I can’t even….well, let’s talk about the plot first.

Jane was a pretty popular actor when she was a kid and stole the spotlight. She was pretty mean to the rest of the family let the fame go to her head. Her sister Blanche was pretty sad about this, but she got her chance for fame in the upcoming years. While Jane was forgotten, Blanche became a really popular actress. Eventually, they both retired and Blanche was in a car “accident” that caused her to lose the ability to walk. Now, Jane has decided to make Blanche’s life miserable and that’s the plot of the film.

This could have worked as a 5 minute short, but as a whole movie, it just couldn’t last. The cast of the film was pretty awful and there aren’t any decent characters in the film. They’re all really slow on the ball and can’t seem to piece two and two together. Jane is pretty psychotic and Blanche isn’t smart enough to call for help. Elvira lets the main villain get a hold of a hammer and the neighbors never get to help. Edwin gets drunk and is far too slow to be of any real help.

Now, the film was definitely going to get a pretty negative score as it dragged on, but the unnecessary animal violence was going too far. The film didn’t have many points left to lose, but that helped the film drop to rock bottom. There is a plot twist at the end of the film that doesn’t help matters. Also, one of the characters literally gets away with murder. The villain isn’t even arrested at the end. (I like to think that she was, but it’s never shown which isn’t very fulfilling)

In the end, films are meant to make you have a good time. They’re a form of entertainment, so if you aren’t entertained, then the film is failing. This film won’t have any scenes that will make you smile, or even any scenes that will make you care for the characters. It’s supposed to be a pretty tragic film, but there just wasn’t any point in the end. It’s like watching paint dry on the wall. Even Twilight has the occasional fight scene or trash talking scene.

Overall, this is a film that I strongly don’t recommend. It’s very long and not that exciting. Animal lovers should also beware and if you’re looking to rent this film to watch, it won’t be a very enjoyable experience. If you’re looking to find out which classics are overrated, then check it out, but make sure that you have a video game or book with you. On the bright side, anything that you watch afterwards will seem exciting in comparison!

Overall 1/10

Priest is a Vampire action film that came out back in 2011. I’m not usually a Vampire fan, but I’ve always liked one series on the subject. (Records of a Fallen Vampire) Does this movie change my mind about Vampire films? Well, they stick away from the biting cliche (For the most part) but the Vampire look like zombies for the most part.

The film starts out by telling us that Vampires came and started slaughtering the humans. So they called in the Priests. (In an animated scene that may make you wince if you don’t have a stomach for violence. Of course it is animated, so maybe you’ll let it slide) The Priests have some mild superhuman abilities (Like Captain America) which makes them strong enough to fight the Vampires. Throughout the film, the Priest doesn’t seem that superhuman, but superhuman enough to win most of his battles. The world has lived in peace for ages and they believe the Vampire threat to be over. One day, a girl is kidnapped by Vampires, so her friend enlists the help of The Priest to save her. The Priest goes to help, but now the other Priests are ordered to take him down.

Priest is a pretty good main character and he does what he can to help save the world. He’s made a lot of sacrifices, but he believes that he’s done them for a good cause and he always does what he thinks is right. The Church doesn’t see eye to eye with the Priest, so he is forced to renounce his vows and become a fugitive. “To go against the Church, is to go against God!” is the Church’s catchphrase, but the Priest seems to know that the line is completely false and he continues to have faith. The only moment that seemed a bit sketchy was when he interrogated a Vampire. I still have never believed that good guys have to resort to such crude methods. (Take Superman. He interrogates all right, but in a more heroic way) The Priest didn’t seem that strong, but he still did some decent damage to the Vampires.

The Priestess arrives later on in the film, but with her quick close combat skills and athletics, she makes quick work out of a lot of zomb-Vampires. She didn’t look so good in her initial appearance, but she made up for it during her later fights. The Vampires never knew what hit them!

Hicks is the friend of Lucy (The girl who was kidnapped) and he comes along for the ride. The problem is that he’s a mere mortal wielding a gun. He doesn’t stand a chance against the Vampires and is quickly dispatched when the battles start. Adding him was to make us have a human to root for I suppose. He could have been worse, but I can’t say that he was a great character.

We can’t forget about Black Hat! He’s the main villain of the film and his abilities far surpass that of the main cast. He’s faster and stronger than the Priest and he sees everyone in slow motion. Because of that, he completely dominates in every fight that he’s in. I always get worried when a character is so much stronger than the others because it means that the ending will have to have some major plot hax. (Plot Hax = A scene that wouldn’t really happen, but needs to happen so that the heroes can win. Or the opposite) Black Hat made for a pretty good villain. His only negative scene would probably be losing control at the end. I thought he had more will power than that, but overall that didn’t stop him from being a compelling villain.

The Council at the Church were pretty uninteresting characters. They refuse to believe in the Vampires and are quick to judge others. In the future, the Church seems to have been corrupted. Or at least, the Church definitely seemed a little off. The title makes it obvious that the film will have some religious elements, and it definitely does. The main character claims to draw strength from God and all of the good guys supposedly believe in him. Of course, the main characters murder many vampires, breaking one of the 10 Commandments every other second. Was it necessary? It’s one of those moral questions that you will need to ask yourself. At least the Priest never seemed to break any of the others and seemed to be a pretty honorable guy.

Overall, it’s a decently good film. You should be warned that the violence is very excessive and you probably wouldn’t want to take your kids to watch this film. The action can get as intense as Bleach, but luckily there are only a few cringe worthy scenes. (Animal violence) The fight scenes are decent and while there are missed opportunities in the film, it did a decent job of capturing the future. (Much better than the Hunger Games, but it’s no Final Fantasy) (Actually, now that I’ve brought it up. The film has a lot of resemblances to the Final Fantasy VII Advent Children movie. Same type of motorcycles, The City is extremely similar, hmmmm…) Anyway, if you like Vampire movies, then this is a good one to check out. If you’re looking for a futuristic action blockbuster, then head on over to Tron Legacy.

Overall 6/10

Citizen Kane is a pretty classic movie and it’s gotten some very positive reception. Citizen Kane didn’t do so well in the box office, but having a lasting legacy can be more important in the long run. Old black and white films are usually pretty cool because they’re so retro, but does this film succeed?

The plot revolves around a group of news reporters who want to find out the truth about the man known as Mr. Kane. So, most of the film is a series of flashbacks, with the main plot only appearing once in a while. I think that the news reporters subplot was the best part of the film, which is why it’s too bad that it didn’t appear for very long.

Mr. Kane is a man who started out trying to be an honest business man who looked out for the people. As time went by, he started to stray from that and he did some pretty immoral things. Mr. Gettys called him out on this and things got dicey for Charlie Kane. Charlie’s newspapers also started to change as he started to drift away from them. Charlie ends up not being a really likable character and his life gets more alone by the year.

Jerry Thompson is the best character of the film. He follows up with the leads about Mr. Kane and he’s a pretty mysterious figure. One second he will be around, and the next second he’ll be gone. Even at the end, he manages to troll the other reporters with the astounding fact that the word “Rosebud” probably didn’t mean much. Did he actually find out what the word meant or not? You’ll have to watch the film to find out. Thompson is definitely the character that you’ll want to keep an eye on.

Citizen Kane drags during some of the flashback scenes, but the reporter scenes are good. I’d say that all in all, this is an average (non action) live action film. It could have used some better characters and a decent soundtrack, but considering that it was from the early 40’s, it can get away with it. Still, 10/10 worthy? I don’t think so, but it’s still a decent film. I’d recommend checking it out if you like drama films or really old films. If you’re looking for a deep and dangerous mystery about who Citizen Kane was, then you may want to keep on going to Sherlock Holmes.

Overall 3/10