By Jason Rugaard | Friday, July 16th, 2010
3 1/2 Stars
Director Christopher Nolan’s follow up to the critically and commercially lauded ‘Dark Knight‘ is an even better and far more ambitious film. Leonardo DiCaprio is excellent as a man able to invade the minds of others to rob and steal information. Until he is hired to use this technology to ‘plant’ information in a specified target’s brain. To go any further in plot details would just confuse, even though Nolan does a great job of balancing a narrative arc over separate layers of reality. The cinematography by Wally Pfister is OSCAR worthy as well as the acting – Continue reading…
The Last Airbender (2010) – Review
By Trevor Anderson | Saturday, July 3rd, 2010
1 Star
One of the years worst flicks, ‘The Last Airbender’ has great special effects, but is sorely lacking in every other department. M. Night Shymalan has slowly been digressing as a filmmaker and with this film he’s hit rock bottom. The 3d isn’t great, the acting is worse and the dialogue is of no help. This could have been a decent action flick, but even the action sequences are staged poorly. There really isn’t much more to say, so we’ll keep this review short. If you’re a parent of a child who really loves the cartoons then it may – Continue reading…
Princess Of Mars (2009) – Review
By Jason Rugaard | Thursday, June 17th, 2010
3 Stars
Prolific film producers ‘The Asylum’ pumped out this surprisingly enjoyable low-budget ‘Planet of the Apes’/’John Carter of Mars’ rip-off. Antonio Sabato Jr is the displaced American solider on a foreign planet. Enslaved by the local species he must win their respect through his skills as a warrior, and his jumping ability. Yes, his ability to leap hundreds of feet in a single hop. As with all ‘Asylum’ productions; the less questions asked the better. Sabato is great in the ‘Mark Whalberg’ role, and plays the whole thing like its a big put-on, which lets face it; it is. – Continue reading…
By Jason Rugaard | Thursday, June 17th, 2010
2 1/2 Stars
An intriguing premise is wasted in this misguided blockbuster. An excellent first act gives way to an overly self-important second act that rings false. Will Smith is ideal in the role of the drunken, anti-social superhero who must atone of all the damage he’s caused by spending time in jail. Jason Bateman is an unsuccessful P.R. man, whom sells Smith on the idea that; while incarcerated the public will realize they need a savior. So far so good. Then the screenplay by Vy Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan takes an unexpected and serious turn, in the process – Continue reading…
By Jason Rugaard | Thursday, June 3rd, 2010
3 Stars
Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley are geneticists and lovers overseeing the creation of a new life form in director Vincenzo Natali’s latest sci-fi/horror hybrid. Not content with the progress they’ve made in their research before corporate backers have decided to stop funding, Polley mixes in human DNA and creates a living creature. At a rapidly accelerated growth rate it goes from arm- less beast with tail stinger to something that resembles a bizarrely attractive female humanoid. The film is beautifully shot and the special effects by Robert Munroe are unsettling and astoundingly effective. Its a tribute – Continue reading…
By Trevor Anderson | Monday, March 1st, 2010
2 1/2 Stars
Mike Conway continues in the tradition of Terrarium, lending a look and feel to Exile that makes the audience believe they could take place in the same universe. Gone are the slow, long stints of dialogue as Conway attempts to jam pack this movie with action. In fact, the lead, Brian Sheridan, takes a non-digital real blow to his head from a small log. This shot could be a viral YouTube video in its own right. As with Terrarium this is an incredibly low budget film, with all the bad special effects you’d expect. But this time – Continue reading…
By Trevor Anderson | Monday, March 1st, 2010
3 Stars
Lara Andrade (Tamra Frame) is dying of cancer. Luckily her husband works for a top secret government project and has just the cure she needs. Unfortunately there is one side effect, it gives her super human strength! This is the plot of The Awakening, another b-movie from filmmaker Mike Conway. Everything in the film is on par with extreme low budget films, that is except the effects. Conway is somehow able to pull off amazing results in which the viewer doesn’t even realize they’re seeing a special effect. Hence the three star rating for this film. If you – Continue reading…
Terrarium (aka War of the Planets) (2003) – Review
By Trevor Anderson | Monday, March 1st, 2010
2 1/2 Stars
Terrarium stands out as a true marvel of what someone can accomplish when they set their mind to it. This is an incredibly low budget film with horrid special effects we’ve come to expect from b-movies. But even so, this movie has charm. Mostly a talkie film, the plot extends over a few hours with astronauts caught in their hibernation chambers aboard a downed spacecraft. The planet they’ve crashed on is very hostile, as they soon find out. The monster is little more than a person in a gorilla costume, but of course Conway was smart enough – Continue reading…
Universal Soldier: Regeneration (2009) – Review
By Jason Rugaard | Tuesday, February 9th, 2010
3 Stars
If ‘JCVD’ was Van Damme’s comeback film ala ‘ROCKY BALBOA’, than this bloody, extremely violent and frequently exciting sequel is his ‘RAMBO’. This third film in the series comes a full 18 years after the original, and 11 years since the cartoonish second entry 1999’S ‘UNIVERSAL SOLDIER: THE RETURN’. The filmmakers have (wisely) chosen to ignore the events of the first sequel, treating this as a bookend to the original. Pic starts out with a great chase sequence that instantly reveals the level of professionalism involved with the project (budget estimated at $14 mil). Ultimately that’s what – Continue reading…
By Jason Rugaard | Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010
2 1/2 Stars
The first pairing of Willis and Rhames since 1994’s ‘PULP FICTION’ is heavy on mood and light on action. Set sometime in a future where people experience the world solely through the use of machines that resemble supreme versions of themselves (the surrogates of the title). Things are ideal until a group of users die while jacked into their avatars. Rhames plays a dread-locked prophet and leader of the resistance, a group of humans living on surrogate – free reservations. Willis is a Boston Detective investigating the murder of a young corporate heir, which leads to – Continue reading…
Terminator: Salvation (2009) – Review
By Jason Rugaard | Saturday, January 30th, 2010
2 Stars
An unnecessary trip back to the well, this time without Schwarzenegger. Sam Worthington fills in-(not an adequate substitution), as the human/machine hybrid. Christian Bale puts his ‘BATMAN’ intensity and peculiar speech pattern into an off putting performance as a 20’s something John Connor. The story is a mess and even more unforgivably it contradicts the previous films. A sleek look and some great explosions aren’t enough to bring life to this dull script. A quick Schwarzenegger cameo near the end is amusing though.
Director: McG
Stars: Christian Bale, Sam Worthington, Moon Bloodgood
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By Trevor Anderson | Saturday, January 30th, 2010
3 Stars
Moon is a deceptively simple film. Its stark and empty sets were obviously inspired from 1960-80s scifi films like 2001: A Space Odyssey, Silent Running and Outpost. There is even a robot, GERTY, that acts completely the opposite of HAL and yet reminds us of the role technology will play in our ultimate undoing.
A few words of warning though, like so many other scifi “dramas” Moon is an incredibly slow paced film. Some might say even boring at times, but what else can you do with a man isolated on the moon? If you stick through this film – Continue reading…
Rajan: i am sure a certain harrison ford will equal that record. Stallone becomes 1st Movie Star to Headline #1 Openings in last 5 Decades – News