Interstellar (Movie Review)
11.5.2014 | By Jack Rico |
The “1-4-0″: #Interstellar is one of the most ambitious movies ever made, but, that ending… oh that ending; it’s one for the history books. Read More
11.5.2014 | By Jack Rico |
The “1-4-0″: #Interstellar is one of the most ambitious movies ever made, but, that ending… oh that ending; it’s one for the history books. Read More
12.4.2012 | By Karen Posada |
‘The Dark Knight Rises’ is by far the best action movie of summer 2012, while it does have some flows they are easily overseen. For those of you that have been waiting for the final chapter of the trilogy I suggest you do it right and watch it in IMAX, because it truly takes the film to an unbelievable level. Director Christopher Nolan really completed the task of the Batman trilogy on a high note, this was such a delicate project that could have easily gone wrong, but now that it is complete we can be happy to say that Nolan didn’t harm it but enhanced it. The beauty of the trilogy is that they complement each other, as some offer better things than others so there’s not really a point in comparing them; but I can say this one offers the most action out of the three.
The story picks up eight years after the Dark Knight (Christian Bale) damaged his reputation in order to give the city of Gotham a more appropriate hero in his opinion. Bruce Wayne is urged to come out of retirement when Selina Kyle aka Catwoman (Anne Hathaway), a young police officer John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and entrepreneur Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard) show up at his doorstep. The final push come when him and Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) quickly realize that they merely put a lid on crime when Bane (Tom Hardy) the ultimate villain arrives to Gotham with catastrophic plans.
Villain wise there’s no comparison to the Joker (Heath Ledger), he was such a well-rounded and unforgettable character that is hard for any of the new villains to match up to him. Nonetheless, Bane is a different type of character because what he may lack in wit he makes up for in strength, and his plans in large scale are what makes him the ultimate villain when at times even Batman doesn’t seem like a fair adversary. Hardy certainly became the monster behind the mask with his brute strength and cold heart, something he gave us a glimpse of in one of the best movies of 2011 ‘Warrior’. Hathaway is one of the best actresses in Hollywood because of her versatility and she proves that once more as Catwoman, she obviously dazzles in the cat suit but also gives depth to a character that we are not told much about, I won’t give much away about her performance except that she steals every scene she’s in, even some of the ones where Batman is present.
The best thing about ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ are all the surprises it delivers, it is so engaging that once it’s over you won’t feel like you spent almost 3 hours of your day in a dark movie theater. With all its up an downs it is a bit draining but quite fulfilling. Some scenes are painful to watch but the ones where there’s redemption and action truly make up for it. There are also some emotional moments that give the film a more rounded feeling. The new ride “The Bat” is quite awesome to see in action, as well as “the Batpod” showing off a couple of new tricks. The nicest thing about this film is that although Batman is the main character, and Bale was born to play the role as he shows endlessly time and time again it is not all about him. Some of the new characters such as Blake easily get our attention and that surely was done on purpose. Gordon-Levitt was the perfect choice for the role as he’s shown aptitude for these types of films like he did in ‘Inception’.
Although Bane is an excellent bad guy especially because of his look he is very hard to understand when he speaks, his speech is supposed to be sophisticated and intelligent and there were various angry comments about it when the prologue was shown last year; they went back to the studio to change it and it makes a huge difference but at times it’s still he’s hard to understand in a theater surround sound and all. Some scenes might disappointing the comic book fans, but honestly some of the changes help make the movie uplifting, relevant and even humorous. This is not a PG-13 type of movie like ‘The Avengers’ in every sense is more dark and needs every moment of comedic release it can get; this is definitely for a more adult audience. By Now Nolan has created his own world of Batman that can stand on its own, but here the complicated parts of the story come from the interaction between some of the new characters and the old ones as some seem forced, also some parts of Bain’s sinister plan get too convoluted. Finally, reality is forgotten at times which can be annoying but this is a movie after all.
Batman’s greatest appeal is that he’s a superhero without superpowers and that’s exactly what makes this last chapter the more appealing, because everyone that comes in to complement the story such as Catwoman, Bain and Blake are humans with different gadgets and abilities that cater to the audience. Nolan is a cinematic genius and he proves it once more by giving the viewers chills in some of the scenes, you get so invested in the story that there’s a connection with what happens in it; also because of the familiar landmarks shown that makes it the more real, although it takes away the whole “Gotham” myth which may bother some. To me this last part of the trilogy fulfilled all my expectations and the fact that a movie can keep you entertained for so long says a lot. Get ready to enjoy the most anticipated movie of the summer and the last chapter of a trilogy that many will cherish and already do.
07.18.2012 | By Karen Posada |
‘The Dark Knight Rises’ is by far the best action movie of summer 2012, while it does have some flows they are easily overseen. For those of you that have been waiting for the final chapter of the trilogy I suggest you do it right and watch it in IMAX, because it truly takes the film to an unbelievable level. Director Christopher Nolan really completed the task of the Batman trilogy on a high note, this was such a delicate project that could have easily gone wrong, but now that it is complete we can be happy to say that Nolan didn’t harm it but enhanced it. The beauty of the trilogy is that they complement each other, as some offer better things than others so there’s not really a point in comparing them; but I can say this one offers the most action out of the three.
The story picks up eight years after the Dark Knight (Christian Bale) damaged his reputation in order to give the city of Gotham a more appropriate hero in his opinion. Bruce Wayne is urged to come out of retirement when Selina Kyle aka Catwoman (Anne Hathaway), a young police officer John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and entrepreneur Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard) show up at his doorstep. The final push come when him and Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) quickly realize that they merely put a lid on crime when Bane (Tom Hardy) the ultimate villain arrives to Gotham with catastrophic plans.
Villain wise there’s no comparison to the Joker (Heath Ledger), he was such a well-rounded and unforgettable character that is hard for any of the new villains to match up to him. Nonetheless, Bane is a different type of character because what he may lack in wit he makes up for in strength, and his plans in large scale are what makes him the ultimate villain when at times even Batman doesn’t seem like a fair adversary. Hardy certainly became the monster behind the mask with his brute strength and cold heart, something he gave us a glimpse of in one of the best movies of 2011 ‘Warrior’. Hathaway is one of the best actresses in Hollywood because of her versatility and she proves that once more as Catwoman, she obviously dazzles in the cat suit but also gives depth to a character that we are not told much about, I won’t give much away about her performance except that she steals every scene she’s in, even some of the ones where Batman is present.
The best thing about ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ are all the surprises it delivers, it is so engaging that once it’s over you won’t feel like you spent almost 3 hours of your day in a dark movie theater. With all its up an downs it is a bit draining but quite fulfilling. Some scenes are painful to watch but the ones where there’s redemption and action truly make up for it. There are also some emotional moments that give the film a more rounded feeling. The new ride “The Bat” is quite awesome to see in action, as well as “the Batpod” showing off a couple of new tricks. The nicest thing about this film is that although Batman is the main character, and Bale was born to play the role as he shows endlessly time and time again it is not all about him. Some of the new characters such as Blake easily get our attention and that surely was done on purpose. Gordon-Levitt was the perfect choice for the role as he’s shown aptitude for these types of films like he did in ‘Inception’.
Although Bane is an excellent bad guy especially because of his look he is very hard to understand when he speaks, his speech is supposed to be sophisticated and intelligent and there were various angry comments about it when the prologue was shown last year; they went back to the studio to change it and it makes a huge difference but at times it’s still he’s hard to understand in a theater surround sound and all. Some scenes might disappointing the comic book fans, but honestly some of the changes help make the movie uplifting, relevant and even humorous. This is not a PG-13 type of movie like ‘The Avengers’ in every sense is more dark and needs every moment of comedic release it can get; this is definitely for a more adult audience. By Now Nolan has created his own world of Batman that can stand on its own, but here the complicated parts of the story come from the interaction between some of the new characters and the old ones as some seem forced, also some parts of Bain’s sinister plan get too convoluted. Finally, reality is forgotten at times which can be annoying but this is a movie after all.
Batman’s greatest appeal is that he’s a superhero without superpowers and that’s exactly what makes this last chapter the more appealing, because everyone that comes in to complement the story such as Catwoman, Bain and Blake are humans with different gadgets and abilities that cater to the audience. Nolan is a cinematic genius and he proves it once more by giving the viewers chills in some of the scenes, you get so invested in the story that there’s a connection with what happens in it; also because of the familiar landmarks shown that makes it the more real, although it takes away the whole “Gotham” myth which may bother some. To me this last part of the trilogy fulfilled all my expectations and the fact that a movie can keep you entertained for so long says a lot. Get ready to enjoy the most anticipated movie of the summer and the last chapter of a trilogy that many will cherish and already do.
12.1.2009 | By Jack Rico |
Rated: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and language.
Release Date: 2009-05-21
Starring: Paul Haggis, Shawn Ryan, Jonathan Nolan
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country:UK, Germany, USA
Official Website: www.terminatorsalvation.com
Terminator: Salvation does not seem like a Terminator movie, at least when compared to what we have experienced from filmmakers James Cameron (The Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgment Day) and Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines). This fourth Terminator is a different breed with a divergent feel, almost as if director McG (née Joseph McGinty Nichol) had decided to fuse Cormac McCarthy’s The Road with Transformers. Gone (at least mostly) are the time travel paradoxes and the concept of a single, indestructible villain. In their place is a futuristic war movie. With its idea of an insurgency striking against an implacable evil empire, there’s more than a little Star Wars in Terminator: Savlation, although not even at its Empire Strikes Back bleakest was Lucas’ series this dark.
For the first occasion in four movies, Terminator: Salvation does not move back and forth in time. Excepting a prologue in 2003, it stays rooted in 2018. This is a period not explored in previous installments of the cinematic series. Of course, after all of the muddying of the past that transpired in the second and third Terminator films, it’s no longer clear how much of the “established” future remains valid. As in Star Trek, we’re dealing with an alternate universe, so all bets are off. Will John Connor really become the legendary leader of a human resistance that overcomes the machines (as indicated in The Terminator)? Will he be killed by a T-800 that is subsequently re-programmed by his wife (as established in T3)? One of the problems with introducing time travel is that standard rules no longer apply. Filmmakers can do anything they want.
The screenplay for Terminator: Salvation went through a significant number of re-writes. It is credited to John Brancato & Michael Ferris, but was polished by the likes of Jonathan Nolan (who buffed it after Christian Bale came on board) and Paul Haggis. The result shows the effects of many fingerprints (too many subplots with too few payoffs), but it is more ambitious than the storyline for T3, which followed the basic “Cameron formula” established in the first two entries. Unfortunately, despite several rousing action sequences (involving cars, trucks, motorcycles, giant Transformers-like robots, and flying hunter-killers), the first two-thirds of Terminator: Salvation are rambling and disjointed. The final 30 minutes (or so) compensate for the deficiencies of what comes before. The climax is great – non-stop, kick-ass action and a surprise or two.
In 2018, John Connor (Christian Bale) is not yet the worldwide head of the human resistance. He is, however, one of many local leaders and the voice of the resistance on the radio. His superiors, led by the uncompromising General Ashdown (Michael Ironside), believe they have created a weapon that can shut down the machines if it’s brought to bear at a close enough range. Connor volunteers to test it. While doing this, he has a secondary objective: locate a younger version of his father, Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin), who has been targeted by the machines for termination. Reese is skulking around the ruins of Los Angeles when he joins forces with a mysterious stranger named Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington), who is headed for San Francisco, the heart of the machine empire. Reese’s partnership with Marcus doesn’t last long – the machines capture the teenager, leaving Marcus with the job of finding John Connor to mount a rescue operation.
The weakness of the film results from the lack of a central villain. Random T-600 Terminators pop up from time-to-time, only to be dispatched rather quickly (although not necessarily easily – they are tough to destroy). There is conflict between Connor and Marcus, but neither is a bad guy; in fact, their goals align. Action movies need strong antagonists. The engine that drove the three previous Terminator movies was the threat represented by the time-traveling killers. With that missing, Terminator: Salvation has trouble locking onto a target. When does it snap into focus? When the T-800 makes its first, dramatic appearance. Suddenly, there’s a recognizable villain and a clear goal. All is right with the world.
McG, knowing his audience and being a fan, tosses out Easter Eggs. Composer Danny Elfman employs Brad Fiedel’s signature score at several key points. The first words uttered by Kyle Reese are: “Come with me if you want to live.” Later, Connor deadpans, “I’ll be back.” Linda Hamilton provides vocal work for when her son listens to the taped journals she recorded for him back in the 1980s. And Arnold Schwarzenegger is back, after a fashion, in the role that catapulted him to the action megastar stratosphere. When his character, who exists here as the result of digital mapping and effective editing, stepped onto the screen, the audience erupted. There’s no doubt this is the high point of Terminator: Salvation. It argues that if Schwarzenegger wants to return to the franchise after he leaves political office, the fans will welcome him back. In fact, one could argue that the actor’s absence is a hole McG can’t plug. The action sequences are pulse-pounding, the special effects are top-notch, and the post-apocalyptic atmosphere is palpable, but we’re kept waiting until the end for the real Terminator to show up.
Bale is suitably intense as Connor. This is a solid portrait of obsession and Bale dominates the screen. He’s more of a force here than in his Batman movies, but that’s to be expected since there’s no cowl and cape involved. Sam Worthington, a relatively new face to North American audiences, is an effective foil for Bale, although his American accent could use a little work. Perhaps the biggest surprise is Anton Yelchin. Although I wasn’t impressed by Yelchin’s version of Chekov in Star Trek, he nails Kyle Reese. It’s as if someone de-aged Michael Biehn 35 years and put him to work. Bryce Dallas Howard takes over for Claire Danes as Connor’s love interest, although she has little more to do than stand in the background holding her pregnant belly. Moon Bloodgood, as one of Connor’s underlings, has the “action female” role, although she’s no Linda Hamilton when it comes to physicality.
By radically destaturating color, sometimes to the point where scenes are almost black-and-white, McG develops a strong post-apocalyptic aesthetic. It’s a lot like the (recent) TV series Battlestar Galactica, where everything was dark and grimy, and bright colors rarely made appearances. One could argue that McG overdoes it a little, but he’s clearly not averse to traveling down potentially unappealing roads. The faux note of hope injected at the film’s end does little to dispel the fact that, if the humans win the war, the price is going to be astronomical.
Perhaps the ultimate problem with making more Terminator movies is that the entire story was told by Cameron in the first two movies and the subsequent sequels, including this one, have been struggling to explore corners where the time travel contrivance allows for flexibility and interpretation. Terminator: Salvation, like its immediate predecessor, is enjoyable and contains some top-notch action sequences, but it seems extraneous. This is everything a good summer movie should be and, while it does not dishonor the Cameron chapters of the saga, neither does it prove to be an indispensable adjunct to them.
05.21.2009 | By Jack Rico |
Rated: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and language.
Release Date: 2009-05-21
Starring: Paul Haggis, Shawn Ryan, Jonathan Nolan
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country: UK, Germany, USA
Official Website: www.terminatorsalvation.com
Go to our film page
Terminator: Salvation does not seem like a Terminator movie, at least when compared to what we have experienced from filmmakers James Cameron (The Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgment Day) and Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines). This fourth Terminator is a different breed with a divergent feel, almost as if director McG (née Joseph McGinty Nichol) had decided to fuse Cormac McCarthy’s The Road with Transformers. Gone (at least mostly) are the time travel paradoxes and the concept of a single, indestructible villain. In their place is a futuristic war movie. With its idea of an insurgency striking against an implacable evil empire, there’s more than a little Star Wars in Terminator: Savlation, although not even at its Empire Strikes Back bleakest was Lucas’ series this dark.
For the first occasion in four movies, Terminator: Salvation does not move back and forth in time. Excepting a prologue in 2003, it stays rooted in 2018. This is a period not explored in previous installments of the cinematic series. Of course, after all of the muddying of the past that transpired in the second and third Terminator films, it’s no longer clear how much of the “established” future remains valid. As in Star Trek, we’re dealing with an alternate universe, so all bets are off. Will John Connor really become the legendary leader of a human resistance that overcomes the machines (as indicated in The Terminator)? Will he be killed by a T-800 that is subsequently re-programmed by his wife (as established in T3)? One of the problems with introducing time travel is that standard rules no longer apply. Filmmakers can do anything they want.
The screenplay for Terminator: Salvation went through a significant number of re-writes. It is credited to John Brancato & Michael Ferris, but was polished by the likes of Jonathan Nolan (who buffed it after Christian Bale came on board) and Paul Haggis. The result shows the effects of many fingerprints (too many subplots with too few payoffs), but it is more ambitious than the storyline for T3, which followed the basic “Cameron formula” established in the first two entries. Unfortunately, despite several rousing action sequences (involving cars, trucks, motorcycles, giant Transformers-like robots, and flying hunter-killers), the first two-thirds of Terminator: Salvation are rambling and disjointed. The final 30 minutes (or so) compensate for the deficiencies of what comes before. The climax is great – non-stop, kick-ass action and a surprise or two.
In 2018, John Connor (Christian Bale) is not yet the worldwide head of the human resistance. He is, however, one of many local leaders and the voice of the resistance on the radio. His superiors, led by the uncompromising General Ashdown (Michael Ironside), believe they have created a weapon that can shut down the machines if it’s brought to bear at a close enough range. Connor volunteers to test it. While doing this, he has a secondary objective: locate a younger version of his father, Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin), who has been targeted by the machines for termination. Reese is skulking around the ruins of Los Angeles when he joins forces with a mysterious stranger named Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington), who is headed for San Francisco, the heart of the machine empire. Reese’s partnership with Marcus doesn’t last long – the machines capture the teenager, leaving Marcus with the job of finding John Connor to mount a rescue operation.
The weakness of the film results from the lack of a central villain. Random T-600 Terminators pop up from time-to-time, only to be dispatched rather quickly (although not necessarily easily – they are tough to destroy). There is conflict between Connor and Marcus, but neither is a bad guy; in fact, their goals align. Action movies need strong antagonists. The engine that drove the three previous Terminator movies was the threat represented by the time-traveling killers. With that missing, Terminator: Salvation has trouble locking onto a target. When does it snap into focus? When the T-800 makes its first, dramatic appearance. Suddenly, there’s a recognizable villain and a clear goal. All is right with the world.
McG, knowing his audience and being a fan, tosses out Easter Eggs. Composer Danny Elfman employs Brad Fiedel’s signature score at several key points. The first words uttered by Kyle Reese are: “Come with me if you want to live.” Later, Connor deadpans, “I’ll be back.” Linda Hamilton provides vocal work for when her son listens to the taped journals she recorded for him back in the 1980s. And Arnold Schwarzenegger is back, after a fashion, in the role that catapulted him to the action megastar stratosphere. When his character, who exists here as the result of digital mapping and effective editing, stepped onto the screen, the audience erupted. There’s no doubt this is the high point of Terminator: Salvation. It argues that if Schwarzenegger wants to return to the franchise after he leaves political office, the fans will welcome him back. In fact, one could argue that the actor’s absence is a hole McG can’t plug. The action sequences are pulse-pounding, the special effects are top-notch, and the post-apocalyptic atmosphere is palpable, but we’re kept waiting until the end for the real Terminator to show up.
Bale is suitably intense as Connor. This is a solid portrait of obsession and Bale dominates the screen. He’s more of a force here than in his Batman movies, but that’s to be expected since there’s no cowl and cape involved. Sam Worthington, a relatively new face to North American audiences, is an effective foil for Bale, although his American accent could use a little work. Perhaps the biggest surprise is Anton Yelchin. Although I wasn’t impressed by Yelchin’s version of Chekov in Star Trek, he nails Kyle Reese. It’s as if someone de-aged Michael Biehn 35 years and put him to work. Bryce Dallas Howard takes over for Claire Danes as Connor’s love interest, although she has little more to do than stand in the background holding her pregnant belly. Moon Bloodgood, as one of Connor’s underlings, has the “action female” role, although she’s no Linda Hamilton when it comes to physicality.
By radically destaturating color, sometimes to the point where scenes are almost black-and-white, McG develops a strong post-apocalyptic aesthetic. It’s a lot like the (recent) TV series Battlestar Galactica, where everything was dark and grimy, and bright colors rarely made appearances. One could argue that McG overdoes it a little, but he’s clearly not averse to traveling down potentially unappealing roads. The faux note of hope injected at the film’s end does little to dispel the fact that, if the humans win the war, the price is going to be astronomical.
Perhaps the ultimate problem with making more Terminator movies is that the entire story was told by Cameron in the first two movies and the subsequent sequels, including this one, have been struggling to explore corners where the time travel contrivance allows for flexibility and interpretation. Terminator: Salvation, like its immediate predecessor, is enjoyable and contains some top-notch action sequences, but it seems extraneous. This is everything a good summer movie should be and, while it does not dishonor the Cameron chapters of the saga, neither does it prove to be an indispensable adjunct to them.
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