Yet another batch of quickie reviews for all my lovely readers. Hopefully some of these reviews will help you in your Christmas shopping!
(Other editions: Volume One, Volume Two, Volume Four)
Be Kind Rewind
Pros: Cute story and had some funny moments. Certainly a good comedy for an older generation that is tired of the slapstick/filthy comedic genre.
Cons: Not nearly as funny as the previews made it seem to be. It was more of a nostalgic-comedy in the vein of Sideways. I expected more slapstick and not the deeper feel of this film, which is more a problem with marketing than with the film itself.
Rating: 2.5/5
Doomsday
Pros: Probably the only film I’ve seen that portrays cannibalism realistically. Lots of action and scifi. Violent and generally interesting. It’s a good attempt at revitalizing the post-apocalyptic genre.
Con: Suffers from “get an actress that looks like another popular badass character” syndrome. Rhona Mitra looks exactly like Kate Beckingsale from the Underworld franchise. The story loses some of its luster after about halfway through and some of the actors chosen for the roles made me question the overall film.
Rating: 2.5/5
The Forbidden Kingdom
Pros: One of the only Americanized kung fu movies that successfully capture the nostalgia that comes with the territory without sacrificing the story. Plenty of magic and intrigue to go around too. Did for this genre what Bulletproof Monk failed to do.
Cons: It’s not a perfect film, and it certainly gives you all those moral, happy-the-dweeb-main-character-grew-up moments that we let Karate Kid get away with.
Rating: 4/5
Get Smart
Pros: Had it’s moments of sheer brilliance and captured decently the more comical side of the super spy life.
Cons: Steve Carell is good, but I think he is sometimes a little much and this film did drag at times due to some of his performances.
Rating: 3/5
Wanted
Pros: The action was excellent and James McAvoy is by far one of the best young actors of this day and age. I was amazed at how well he pulled together all the varying aspects of his transformation from total loser to badass assassin.
Cons: Angelina Jolie needs to stop making films where she plays the sexy woman. The one nude scene in the film featured an aging Jolie and I was reminded of an elderly woman. Other than that, nothing wrong with this flick.
Rating: 4/5
