It's actually a little strange that I've actually seen this movie. It was supposed to be one of the first movies I watched in my 2008 movie marathon and it just never showed up. However after countless delays Fanboys has finally made it on to DVD. After all that time was it worth the wait? Eh.
After watching it, I really can't see why this movie never got a proper theatrical release. It's not hilarious by any means, but it's decent and I'm sure it's better than a lot of the other comedies that have gotten huge releases this year and last. In fact I know it's better than most of them. So what the hell?
I know there was a huge thing about the cancer subplot and whether they should take it out. After seeing it with the cancer subplot I do think it's better with that in there, but if anything I think there should have been even more of it. Right now it almost feels like it was an afterthought, not the original plot device. It feels shoe-horned in so hopefully there are some deleted scenes that flesh it out a little further.
The cast is pretty good, with a ton of great cameos scattered throughout the movie. The only weak link really is Dan Fogler. Maybe by now Hollywood realized that he really isn't funny because I haven't seen him around lately. He really isn't funny though and it's made a lot worse by how fucking hard he tries to be. It's not as bad as that dude from College, but it's pretty bad.
Overall Fanboys is a pretty average movie. There are a few funny moments but a lot of it does fall flat and the plot needs to be fleshed out more. It is pretty cool to actually have seen it but I was really hoping it would be better.
6/10
Monday, May 18, 2009
Star Trek (2009)
I am in no way a Star Trek fan. I think I have seen one of the movies and a couple episodes of Next Generation. I wasn't into either of those things. The only reason I was excited for the movie was because of JJ Abrahms, being a huge fan of Lost and all. I went with my fiancee who is a huge Star Trek fan so I was interested to see who would actually enjoy it more. It turns out, we both loved it!
Star Trek easily ranks as the year's biggest surprise because I went in really thinking that I would not enjoy this movie. I had an absolute blast with it. I've heard from a few hardcore Star Trek fans that this is the best movie yet. It actually got me a little interested in going back and watching some of the old Star Trek shows and movies, that's how god damn good it was.
The first thing that blew me away is the casting. Everyone is fantastic in the role. Chris Pine kicks ass at Kirk and manages to make the character his own without ever reminding people that he should be William Shatner. You could tell even by looking at screenshots that Zachary Quinto would make a good Spock but it's even more effective when you actually watch him as the character. Karl Urban is perfect as McCoy, and Simon Pegg (although he doesn't show up until quite late in the game) is also great as Scotty. In fact let's just end it by saying everyone is super fantastic awesome in this thing....although I will also have to give special mention to a surprisingly badass Sulu played by none other than Harold and Milf guy, John Cho.
The story is also surprisingly good here. It can get a little hard to follow at times but overall it's well written and keeps you interested, unlike Wolverine did. The opening scene has gained a reputation and rightfully so, it's amazing. The credits could have rolled as soon as that scene was done and I still think everyone would have walked away satisfied.
You also get some really solid action sequences here, although the best one happens around the halfway point in the movie and none of the other ones really manage to top it. Some really good edge of your seat stuff and the crowd really ate it all up.
I really liked that I actually got all of the classic references to the show too. They really made this movie for fans and non-fans alike, which is appreciated. It also was also a lot more fun than I thought it would be. It never took itself too seriously (another problem I had with Wolverine actually that I never mentioned in my review) and balanced the heavy and light stuff very well.
If there was anyone who could make me like Star Trek, it was totally JJ Abrahms and he certainly proved it here. Great, great stuff. This is officially the summer movie to beat now.
9/10
Star Trek easily ranks as the year's biggest surprise because I went in really thinking that I would not enjoy this movie. I had an absolute blast with it. I've heard from a few hardcore Star Trek fans that this is the best movie yet. It actually got me a little interested in going back and watching some of the old Star Trek shows and movies, that's how god damn good it was.
The first thing that blew me away is the casting. Everyone is fantastic in the role. Chris Pine kicks ass at Kirk and manages to make the character his own without ever reminding people that he should be William Shatner. You could tell even by looking at screenshots that Zachary Quinto would make a good Spock but it's even more effective when you actually watch him as the character. Karl Urban is perfect as McCoy, and Simon Pegg (although he doesn't show up until quite late in the game) is also great as Scotty. In fact let's just end it by saying everyone is super fantastic awesome in this thing....although I will also have to give special mention to a surprisingly badass Sulu played by none other than Harold and Milf guy, John Cho.
The story is also surprisingly good here. It can get a little hard to follow at times but overall it's well written and keeps you interested, unlike Wolverine did. The opening scene has gained a reputation and rightfully so, it's amazing. The credits could have rolled as soon as that scene was done and I still think everyone would have walked away satisfied.
You also get some really solid action sequences here, although the best one happens around the halfway point in the movie and none of the other ones really manage to top it. Some really good edge of your seat stuff and the crowd really ate it all up.
I really liked that I actually got all of the classic references to the show too. They really made this movie for fans and non-fans alike, which is appreciated. It also was also a lot more fun than I thought it would be. It never took itself too seriously (another problem I had with Wolverine actually that I never mentioned in my review) and balanced the heavy and light stuff very well.
If there was anyone who could make me like Star Trek, it was totally JJ Abrahms and he certainly proved it here. Great, great stuff. This is officially the summer movie to beat now.
9/10
X-Men Origins Wolverine
Iron Man was such a great kickoff to the summer last year. I had hopes that Wolverine would do something similar and turn out to be the movie of which all other summer movies this year are measured against. Sadly...not so much.
I can't even really put my disappointment with this movie into...good...words. It was just underwhelming I thought. Everything is there to make this a great movie, but it all falls short in one way or another.
Hugh Jackman is still great in the role. He isn't as impressive as he was back when we first saw him do it (man that entrance in the first X-Men movie was great) but he is clearly comfortable in the role and fits it perfectly. It is a little too bad that a lot of the one-liners he gets are pretty lame in this movie. Also I thought it was no longer cool to walk away from an explosion in slow motion? Maybe it isn't because this movie certainly didn't pull it off.
The storyline is pretty meh. We know a lot of it already, it's simply a matter of watching it play out. It's all pretty generic stuff when you break it down. Revenge, a couple of "who is the real bad guy" twists that you can see coming way beforehand, a love story that you never quite buy into, it's all here. It serves its purpose but it's never that engaging.
The action is decent, with a couple of stand-out sequences. The motorcycle chase is pretty awesome and some of the fights are good. Nothing is really like "holy shit awesome!" though. Iron Man's action sequences were infinitely better. Also a lot of the effects look pretty terrible. The first time Wolverine is looking at his new claws in the mirror looks like a bad video game. It's really jarring, and this isn't the only effect that's like that either.
It's cool to see some of the other characters from the comic book universe, the problem is that none of them really serve any purpose. Gambit is in and out, as is Deadpool, Blob, etc. It's cool to see them , but it really feels like nothing more than fan service.
Overall X-Men Origins Wolverine is a decent movie, but it could have been so much more. I think this will be the movie that you slowly start to forget about as the summer goes on.
6.5/10
I can't even really put my disappointment with this movie into...good...words. It was just underwhelming I thought. Everything is there to make this a great movie, but it all falls short in one way or another.
Hugh Jackman is still great in the role. He isn't as impressive as he was back when we first saw him do it (man that entrance in the first X-Men movie was great) but he is clearly comfortable in the role and fits it perfectly. It is a little too bad that a lot of the one-liners he gets are pretty lame in this movie. Also I thought it was no longer cool to walk away from an explosion in slow motion? Maybe it isn't because this movie certainly didn't pull it off.
The storyline is pretty meh. We know a lot of it already, it's simply a matter of watching it play out. It's all pretty generic stuff when you break it down. Revenge, a couple of "who is the real bad guy" twists that you can see coming way beforehand, a love story that you never quite buy into, it's all here. It serves its purpose but it's never that engaging.
The action is decent, with a couple of stand-out sequences. The motorcycle chase is pretty awesome and some of the fights are good. Nothing is really like "holy shit awesome!" though. Iron Man's action sequences were infinitely better. Also a lot of the effects look pretty terrible. The first time Wolverine is looking at his new claws in the mirror looks like a bad video game. It's really jarring, and this isn't the only effect that's like that either.
It's cool to see some of the other characters from the comic book universe, the problem is that none of them really serve any purpose. Gambit is in and out, as is Deadpool, Blob, etc. It's cool to see them , but it really feels like nothing more than fan service.
Overall X-Men Origins Wolverine is a decent movie, but it could have been so much more. I think this will be the movie that you slowly start to forget about as the summer goes on.
6.5/10
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Transporter 3
NOTE: SAME AS PUNISHER, THIS WAS TAKEN FROM MY OLDER BLOG. THEREFORE SOME OF THE REFERENCES MAY NOT MAKE A LICK OF SENSE NOW.
I love the Transporter movies and it’s no secret to anyone who has even glimpsed at this blog that I am a huge Jason Statham fan. I just feel he usually deserves better than what he gets. He didn’t start off the year well with Dungeon Siege, but he has really picked things up from there. Bank Job was good, Death Race was eerily entertaining, and now we have this. It’s not a great movie, it’s not even a very good movie, but it’s still entertaining.
The plot doesn’t really matter, nor has it mattered in any of the Transporter movies. At least not to me anyway. The plot is merely something that gets in the way of more people getting their asses kicked by hoses or whatever. In fact I can barely even remember what the plot of this one is. So there you have it.
The acting is fine. Jason Statham does his usual badass, raspy voice routine but well, he’s really fucking good at it so who can really say anything about that. The girl in this movie however was very annoying. I was actually mad when he started falling for her because as far as I could tell, she had absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever. This movie would have gotten a 5/5 if Transporter has just punched her square in the face or vagina. Sadly he does not which is simply no good. Robert Knepper is ok as the main villain, although he is pretty much just playing T-bag from Prison Break.
The action in this one is pretty ok, but I would say the weakest in the series so far. The fights are good but suffer from that quick editing that is plaguing just about every action movie that comes out now. Of course it wouldn’t be a Transporter movie without some shit that makes you go “get the fuck out of here,” which this one delivers. Nothing quite compares to the bomb car in part 2, but there’s no amount of insanity that can top that anyway.
I would say this one is the worst in the Transporter series, but it’s still a decent enough movie. It’s not as gritty and awesome as the first one, and it’s not as off the wall fucking ridiculous in the 2nd one. Still pretty good watching though.
6/10
The plot doesn’t really matter, nor has it mattered in any of the Transporter movies. At least not to me anyway. The plot is merely something that gets in the way of more people getting their asses kicked by hoses or whatever. In fact I can barely even remember what the plot of this one is. So there you have it.
The acting is fine. Jason Statham does his usual badass, raspy voice routine but well, he’s really fucking good at it so who can really say anything about that. The girl in this movie however was very annoying. I was actually mad when he started falling for her because as far as I could tell, she had absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever. This movie would have gotten a 5/5 if Transporter has just punched her square in the face or vagina. Sadly he does not which is simply no good. Robert Knepper is ok as the main villain, although he is pretty much just playing T-bag from Prison Break.
The action in this one is pretty ok, but I would say the weakest in the series so far. The fights are good but suffer from that quick editing that is plaguing just about every action movie that comes out now. Of course it wouldn’t be a Transporter movie without some shit that makes you go “get the fuck out of here,” which this one delivers. Nothing quite compares to the bomb car in part 2, but there’s no amount of insanity that can top that anyway.
I would say this one is the worst in the Transporter series, but it’s still a decent enough movie. It’s not as gritty and awesome as the first one, and it’s not as off the wall fucking ridiculous in the 2nd one. Still pretty good watching though.
6/10
Double Team
I spent a good chunk of my life making fun of this movie. How could you not really? Van Damme and Dennis Rodman? This movie flat out deserves to be ridiculed. It quickly started to build a reputation as one of the worst movies ever and if any of our friends actually confessed to liking it, we would usually just stomp on their throat until they admitted their mistake. However a strange thing happened a couple of weeks ago. I actually sat down and watched the movie...and it was kind of awesome.
I can't believe I'm saying it but it's true. Double Team was just a little awesome. It was stupid yes...but fuck was it ever entertaining. I would also like to believe that the movie had no idea how ridiculous it actually was. That just makes it so much better.
The movie is so off the wall fucking insane that you just have to keep watching, if only to see just what the hell is going to happen next. Van Damme faces down a tiger in a stadium full of land mines while defending a baby. That's just a taste. There is tons more weird shit in there that I would never dare spoil. Double Team is something to experience, not read about.
Dennis Rodman is as expected, pretty terrible. However his presence just adds to the overall fucked upedness of the movie, so you can't even fault him too much. The action is ok, although there does seem to be a lot of slow-motions jumping away from explosions. In fact I remember one scene where it happened like three times in a row.
I could not believe I enjoyed this movie as much as I did. It wasn't because of the high quality of the thing, just the bizarreness of it all. It's just damn entertaining.
7/10
Punisher War Zone
NOTE: THIS IS ACTUALLY A REVIEW I WROTE FOR THIS MOVIE FOR MY BLOG LAST YEAR. MY OPINION OF IT HASN'T REALLY CHANGED SO I JUST COPIED IT WORD FOR WORD. CLEARLY IT WAS WRITTEN LAST YEAR DUE TO REFERENCES IN THE REVIEW, BUT WHATEVER. FUCK OFF.
The Punisher seems like he should be the easiest character ever to make a movie about. Slap a badass in a skull shirt and have him kill people. Sounds simple enough right? Well up until now we had 2 movies try it and fuck it up. I didn't full out hate the 2004 version, but I agree with most people that it really didn't feel like the Punisher, at least not until the very, very end of it all. This movie goes the EXACT opposite route. The last movie took about 100 minutes to get to the violent Punisher kills, this movie however, takes maybe 100 seconds. Now that is more like it. This movie still isn't great, but for a Punisher movie, it's a definite step in the right direction. Also smashing a dude's face in with your first...always a great direction to step towards.
War Zone sort of feels like someone gave a decent budget to a cheesy 80's movie. Everything about this movie feels like something you would have seen from that timeframe. The oneliners, the over the top villians, the story itself...but you know what, it sort of works. It's a fucking ride. You laugh and enjoy yourself, knowing full well the movie is ridiculous but who cares? The Punisher himself is pretty fucking ridiculous. I mean...did you read the part about smashing a guy's face in with a single punch?
The action here is pretty standard, but pretty entertaining too. Lots of shootouts and the usual. The editing didn't suffer from the quick cuts like most recent movies do. They're there of course but they don't ruin it as much as they do some other movies. Plus I don't know if you heard this or read it anywhere, but this movie does contain a moment where a fist caves a face in.
I do think Thomas Jane made a great Punisher and it's really too bad he didn't come back for this one too. Ray Stevenson is still very good though. He fits the role quite well. The bad guys are crazy over the top in terms of acting. The main villain's brother was pretty god damn bad though. As was Julie Benz I thought. But whatever, you can look past the acting if it means seeing a fist smash in a face...which you do.
Overall this one is worth checking out if you're a Punisher fan you felt let down by the last movie attempt. It's a pretty good watch, but certainly not on par with well, just about every other comic book movie that came out this year. But then I don't remember Batman, Incredible Hulk, or Iron Man smashing a face in at any point. So maybe this one was the best actually.
War Zone sort of feels like someone gave a decent budget to a cheesy 80's movie. Everything about this movie feels like something you would have seen from that timeframe. The oneliners, the over the top villians, the story itself...but you know what, it sort of works. It's a fucking ride. You laugh and enjoy yourself, knowing full well the movie is ridiculous but who cares? The Punisher himself is pretty fucking ridiculous. I mean...did you read the part about smashing a guy's face in with a single punch?
The action here is pretty standard, but pretty entertaining too. Lots of shootouts and the usual. The editing didn't suffer from the quick cuts like most recent movies do. They're there of course but they don't ruin it as much as they do some other movies. Plus I don't know if you heard this or read it anywhere, but this movie does contain a moment where a fist caves a face in.
I do think Thomas Jane made a great Punisher and it's really too bad he didn't come back for this one too. Ray Stevenson is still very good though. He fits the role quite well. The bad guys are crazy over the top in terms of acting. The main villain's brother was pretty god damn bad though. As was Julie Benz I thought. But whatever, you can look past the acting if it means seeing a fist smash in a face...which you do.
Overall this one is worth checking out if you're a Punisher fan you felt let down by the last movie attempt. It's a pretty good watch, but certainly not on par with well, just about every other comic book movie that came out this year. But then I don't remember Batman, Incredible Hulk, or Iron Man smashing a face in at any point. So maybe this one was the best actually.
7/10
Pinocchio
I haven't seen this movie in probably at least 15 years. I do think it's the only movie during the course of my entire life where immediately after it ended, i rewound it and watched it again right away. I have never done that since.
We mostly rewatched this movie because it was the blu-ray release of it. This is my first experience with a Disney Blu-ray and fuck does this thing ever look great! It's almost unbelievable what an amazing job they did with the transfer of this. It looks brand new. When you factor in the age of the movie it's just mind blowing. This is absolutely one of the most impressive blu-rays I have seen so far.
As for the movie itself, there really isn't a whole lot for me to say about it. It's a classic, everybody knows that. However despite saying that, it's not my favourite of the Disney animated features. I don't think I would even put it in my top 5. I was always an Aladdin kind of guy. This is still a really good one though.
Maybe as a kid I never really noticed it but this movie is really fucked up. The idea of a puppet coming to life alone is pretty insane. But then when you have that puppet dance in a play, go to some magic island where he smokes, drinks and then turns into a donkey, only to have him come home and immediately be swallowed by a whale under his own free will? Well....shit. That's quite something right there.
Pinocchio is undeniably a classic and it looks incredible in its blu-ray transfer. No matter what, even if you aren't a huge fan of the movie, I would recommend picking this disc up because it really does look that amazing.
8/10
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