I've joined the bandwagon and I went ahead and watched Snow White and The Huntsman. I've read several reactions towards the films and most of them were positive. I remember seeing Ben Lyons' tweet how good the movie was, and I read a couple of reviews about it.
I didn't want to see the movie at first for several reasons. First, I'm not a very big fan of Snow White, but the darkness of this particular story did interest me. Second, I;m also not a very big fan of Kristen Stewart so I wasn't sure if I would be able to enjoy it. Not to take anything away from her, because I think she's a good actress despite the claims of her just having one emotion. I just wasn't a huge fan - I liked her in Adventureland but that was about it. Third, I wasn't sure just how exactly the story would work out because I got a feeling that it would be overly romantic, and extremely cheesy that it would lose the essence of it being a twisted take on the Snow White story. These were just my initial thoughts on the movie.
I can now say that I am guilty of judging this movie too early. I actually quite enjoyed this one despite my initial worries. I didn't find it as good as the other people said, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked it.
I actually like Kristen Stewart more now after watching SWATH. She can actually be a badass. Although at the beginning, I was a little disappointed since I expected this Snow White to be strong and feisty, but she was nothing more than a damsel in distress. There was an evolution, though, from that damsel, to a soldier ready to fight back. I don't think I'd be watching the Twilight series because of her performance here, but I will be more open to watching her upcoming movies.
I really liked the darkness of this movie. I liked how they transformed this children's story to this sick twisted adaptation, a more interesting and bold take on a well-known story. I liked the concept behind it. It's new and it's not about the pretty side of this story. It took the darker route and I greatly appreciated the concept behind it. It gave a new spin to our beloved Snow White.
I also liked that the romance portion of the movie was not overdone. It was just right, nothing too much. It was the perfect amount of romance for a movie. I actually liked that aspect of the movie, exploring the possible would-have-beens of Snow White and the huntsman. It's very interesting to see that aspect.
The ending was just a bit anti-climactic. There was a huge build-up to the face off of the evil queen and Snow White, and I did expect a lot more action than what they did. I remember thinking "That's it?" when the fight ended. It was really a bit underwhelming. It's probably just a matter of preference to anticipate a huge battle scene between the two. I guess I just expected a little more. However, the ending was still a decent way to end the quest for their freedom .
I found it a pretty cool movie to watch mostly because of the idea behind it. The execution didn't falter either which made the movie work for me for the most part. There were some off moments, but as a whole it really was a good movie. The portrayal of Charlize Theron of the evil queen is a whole lot of reason to watch this movie. It was freaky and disgusting. It was wretched that you just recognize the awesomeness of her capacity as an actress. Also, it's a twisted Snow White story, and it was interesting to see the development. I guess, the movie had its own merits, but also had a few flaws, so it will be up to the viewers to decide what their take on this film will be. Personally I think the good bits outweigh the not-so-good bits so it was worth it for me.
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June 14, 2012
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
I just had to watch this movie after watching Get Him to the Greek a couple of days ago. I had fun watching the tandem of Russell Brand and Jonah Hill that I had to see the movie that started it. In addition, I got positive feedbacks regarding this movie, and I was told that it was really funny. I won't disagree with that one as I really found this comedy amazing.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall introduced the character of Brand, Aldous Snow, and it was nice to know that hey kept the character's core and didn't change anything up. Jonah Hill was also in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, althopugh he was playing a different character. I guess changing his hairstyle became his license to play another character. I won't complain though.
The story of the movie revolved around a man getting out of a 5 year relationship with his celebrity girlfriend, Sarah Marshall. To cope with the recent events he went to Hawaii only to find out Sarah Marshall was checked in with her new guy, Aldous Snow, in the same hotel. The whole awkward phase quickly thickens as they constantly bump into each other. It also became complicated when another character, Rachel (Mila Kunis) came to join the chaotic party.
I think Forgetting Sarah Marshall had a stronger, more precise story line than Get Him to the Greek. It had more substance and was a whole lot deeper than the latter one. It had a clearer direction, I think. It also took the sob story route, which made some of the scenes a bit dramatic. Although, it did afford the filmmakers a lot more opportunity to create different humorous scenarios.
I did find Get Him to the Greek just a little bit funnier, but that's probably due to the hysterical characters of Russell Brand and Jonah Hill. Fogetting Sarah Marshall was really good and really funny as well, but I think Jason Segel's character had more reservations than that of Brand's. Both were really fun, entertaining movies. I guess Get Him to The Greek just had a little more humor and remarkable witty lines. But Forgetting Sarah Marshall was really good as well. It was a great comedy that comes with a bunch of laughter. It's as vulgar and as raunchy, and both were really funny. I had tons of fun watching it as well.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall introduced the character of Brand, Aldous Snow, and it was nice to know that hey kept the character's core and didn't change anything up. Jonah Hill was also in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, althopugh he was playing a different character. I guess changing his hairstyle became his license to play another character. I won't complain though.
The story of the movie revolved around a man getting out of a 5 year relationship with his celebrity girlfriend, Sarah Marshall. To cope with the recent events he went to Hawaii only to find out Sarah Marshall was checked in with her new guy, Aldous Snow, in the same hotel. The whole awkward phase quickly thickens as they constantly bump into each other. It also became complicated when another character, Rachel (Mila Kunis) came to join the chaotic party.
I think Forgetting Sarah Marshall had a stronger, more precise story line than Get Him to the Greek. It had more substance and was a whole lot deeper than the latter one. It had a clearer direction, I think. It also took the sob story route, which made some of the scenes a bit dramatic. Although, it did afford the filmmakers a lot more opportunity to create different humorous scenarios.
I did find Get Him to the Greek just a little bit funnier, but that's probably due to the hysterical characters of Russell Brand and Jonah Hill. Fogetting Sarah Marshall was really good and really funny as well, but I think Jason Segel's character had more reservations than that of Brand's. Both were really fun, entertaining movies. I guess Get Him to The Greek just had a little more humor and remarkable witty lines. But Forgetting Sarah Marshall was really good as well. It was a great comedy that comes with a bunch of laughter. It's as vulgar and as raunchy, and both were really funny. I had tons of fun watching it as well.
June 13, 2012
Zombieland
I first saw this movie a couple of years ago with a few friends. I wasn't all that impressed by it then but that's probably because I was not really paying much attention to it. I;m pretty sure I was just eating and talking to my friends when we were watching the movie. Watching it for the second time, I still can't say I'm all that impressed by the movie, but I definitely liked it more the second time around.
Zombieland was released in 2009 and starred Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin. Bill Murray and Mike White also appeared in this movie. It was written by Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese and was directed by Ruben Fleischer. It garnered positive reviews and went on to be a commercially successful movie. A lot of people actually loved it. It's just funny because I never would have thought that Emma Stone was also in this movie. I saw this movie long before Emma Stone shot up to fame so it was just funny to think about it.
At first I didn't understand why it was categorized as a comedy movie. However, halfway through the movie I finally understood why. With the appearance of Bill Murray, things got out of hand, and it became really funny. Some of the things they did were actually quite insane which is the reason why it's downright hilarious. It's a parody of how people would react, how people would respond to zombies chasing them, and it's an entertaining one at that.
It's a mockumentary more than anything and a comedic take on the possibility of an apocalypse. It's also a how-to guide to survive a zombie apocalypse with Columbus' rules. The rules were pretty sensible actually, and I could picture myself following his set of rules if I find myself running away from human eating creatures. I also found some of the references amusing. But I think Bill Murray's appearance took the cake as the highlight of the movie.
The last 20 or so minutes were my favorite part(aside from the Bill Murray part). If zombie killing would be that much fun, I'd probably give it a try. But really, the last sequence of the movie were filled with a lot of zombie killing, and hardcore action. I really enjoyed watching it play out, especially since the location of the scene provided the movie with more opportunities to experiment. Woody Harrelson as Tallahassee was my favorite character in the movie. He's a bit on the psycho side, but the good psycho. He's very efficient in his gun use and he's someone you want to be with in a zombie apocalypse. He's your ticket to survival.
Overall, it was a good movie, one of the better zombie movies mostly because of its entertainment value. As mentioned, it was a parody and a mockumentary, although they did give valid guidelines on how to survive. They could be useful, just in case. It was a fun movie to watch, had great actors in it, and it was filled with zombies. What more can you ask for?
Lockout
Apparently this movie was released April 2012 in the United States, but it was only released here today. I have been waiting for the movie since I saw the trailer a couple of weeks back. I think I was about to watch Safe (starring Jason Statham - wrote a review of it a while back) when I saw the trailer and thought it would be good. I was right, I found it to be great movie.
I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, right from the start until the credits started rolling. The combination of the sci-fi aspect of it, and the action part of it was amazing to witness. It wasn't forced and it just flowed naturally. Add the brilliantly written script by Luc Besson, Stephen St. Leger, and James Mather, and we have one of my favorite movies of 2012. We're just midway of 2012, and a lot of amazing films are lined up to be released this year, but I'm sure Lockout will be one of my favorites this year. It was that good in my opinion and I was thoroughly entertained. I actually wished it was just a bit longer because I was having such a blast watching the movie. I'm not saying it's the best movie out there, but I just really liked it.
The story was a bit intense: a big escape from all the sociopaths locked up in a space prison. It didn't feel too heavy though since I was constantly laughing. I've been watching a lot of comedy movies lately, as you might have noticed from my latest posts, but this movie made me laugh even harder and much louder. This movie was just extremely hilarious at all the wrong places, which made it even funnier. Guy Pearce was just brilliant at delivering those lines with just the right amount of sarcasm and mockery. It made me wonder how he could keep a straight face saying those things. It's pretty amazing!
I was wondering why Maggie Grace looked so familiar, then I realized she was Kim from Taken, a movie I absolutely enjoyed, and actually one of my favorite movies. I liked her before, and I like her even more now. She's just the perfect partner to Pearce's flawless performance. The connection the two had in this movie was phenomenal, and it allowed all those snarky comments be funnier. The exchange of their dialogues was just epic, to use the term loosely.
I really had a great time watching this movie. I was laughing from the beginning cause it really was a funny movie. I am now a Guy Pearce fan, and I'm looking forward to watch his other movies. He portrayed the sarcastic, Tony Stark-like character and owned it. He was absolutely brilliant and the people in the cinema clearly enjoyed watching him. People responded very well to his humor and his kick ass fighting skills.
I probably am setting it up to be this big comedy film, but it was not. It's a sci-fi action movie and the development of the story stuck to it being a sci-fi action movie. It retained its core throughout the movie and stayed loyal to the idea and concept. The magnitude of some of the fight scenes were actually immensely engaging that I just held by breath to see how it will go. Joseph Gilgun and Vincent Regan brought authenticity to the danger of being stuck in a prison with 500 criminals. The whole characterization, and the way they acted it out were horrific and disturbing. More so for Gilgun's character. However, I just recognize that despite it being a sci-fi action movie, the filmmakers found a way to mix humor in it. To be honest, it made the movie a lot more enjoyable.
I don't know what's up with the people who didn't like it. If we're talking about entertainment value, this movie had loads of it. It didn't get the best reviews from critics and I firmly believe it's just one of those overly criticizing a good movie. The people in the theater had a very positive reaction, laughing at the hilarity of Pearce's character and his interaction with Grace's character, and rooting for them to get out of the prison safe. By that, I mean I can actually hear people cheer for Pearce and Grace to get out of the prison in time. I really recommend this movie despite what the critics have said. I enjoyed it and maybe you'll enjoy it as well.
I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, right from the start until the credits started rolling. The combination of the sci-fi aspect of it, and the action part of it was amazing to witness. It wasn't forced and it just flowed naturally. Add the brilliantly written script by Luc Besson, Stephen St. Leger, and James Mather, and we have one of my favorite movies of 2012. We're just midway of 2012, and a lot of amazing films are lined up to be released this year, but I'm sure Lockout will be one of my favorites this year. It was that good in my opinion and I was thoroughly entertained. I actually wished it was just a bit longer because I was having such a blast watching the movie. I'm not saying it's the best movie out there, but I just really liked it.
The story was a bit intense: a big escape from all the sociopaths locked up in a space prison. It didn't feel too heavy though since I was constantly laughing. I've been watching a lot of comedy movies lately, as you might have noticed from my latest posts, but this movie made me laugh even harder and much louder. This movie was just extremely hilarious at all the wrong places, which made it even funnier. Guy Pearce was just brilliant at delivering those lines with just the right amount of sarcasm and mockery. It made me wonder how he could keep a straight face saying those things. It's pretty amazing!
I was wondering why Maggie Grace looked so familiar, then I realized she was Kim from Taken, a movie I absolutely enjoyed, and actually one of my favorite movies. I liked her before, and I like her even more now. She's just the perfect partner to Pearce's flawless performance. The connection the two had in this movie was phenomenal, and it allowed all those snarky comments be funnier. The exchange of their dialogues was just epic, to use the term loosely.
I really had a great time watching this movie. I was laughing from the beginning cause it really was a funny movie. I am now a Guy Pearce fan, and I'm looking forward to watch his other movies. He portrayed the sarcastic, Tony Stark-like character and owned it. He was absolutely brilliant and the people in the cinema clearly enjoyed watching him. People responded very well to his humor and his kick ass fighting skills.
I probably am setting it up to be this big comedy film, but it was not. It's a sci-fi action movie and the development of the story stuck to it being a sci-fi action movie. It retained its core throughout the movie and stayed loyal to the idea and concept. The magnitude of some of the fight scenes were actually immensely engaging that I just held by breath to see how it will go. Joseph Gilgun and Vincent Regan brought authenticity to the danger of being stuck in a prison with 500 criminals. The whole characterization, and the way they acted it out were horrific and disturbing. More so for Gilgun's character. However, I just recognize that despite it being a sci-fi action movie, the filmmakers found a way to mix humor in it. To be honest, it made the movie a lot more enjoyable.
I don't know what's up with the people who didn't like it. If we're talking about entertainment value, this movie had loads of it. It didn't get the best reviews from critics and I firmly believe it's just one of those overly criticizing a good movie. The people in the theater had a very positive reaction, laughing at the hilarity of Pearce's character and his interaction with Grace's character, and rooting for them to get out of the prison safe. By that, I mean I can actually hear people cheer for Pearce and Grace to get out of the prison in time. I really recommend this movie despite what the critics have said. I enjoyed it and maybe you'll enjoy it as well.
June 12, 2012
The Hangover
Finally I finished watching this movie. I saw the first part of it before but never had the chance to finish it, until now. The Hangover was released in 2009 and starred Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis and Justin Bartha, with Ken Jeong and a special participation of Mike Tyson. It was directed by Todd Phillips and the story was written by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore. It went on to be very successful earning more than 467 million dollars on a budget of 35 million.
I watched the sequel first before finally finishing the first movie, which is probably the reason why I enjoyed the second one a lot more than you people. I can now understand the people's comments about how the second one was just a replica of the first, and to some extent I think so now too. However, this does not mean to say that the other one was bad, it just means, at least personally, that there were a lot of parallelisms between the two movies. Both of the movies were great, funny, and very entertaining.
It was a little raunchy and a bit vulgar so it may raise flags for some people. Taking that aside, the movie had sufficient material and a very well-thought out, well-written script. It had charm, wits, and a combination of classic and modern humor. I just can't get over how good the script was. It's one of those films that make you swear for all the right reasons cause it's just making you laugh uncontrollably.
Todd Phillips and the writers did so well with this movie. The story was simple, but the development of it was extraordinary. Where else can you see a tiger in a bathroom? It had a lot of elements to it and everything worked. Nothing was overdone considering how extreme the circumstances were. From a lost baby, to a tiger, to a missing friend, to a Chinese mobster, every single detail in the movie showed the process of creating this fantastic movie.
It also helped that they had the actors they had. Starting with Bradley Cooper, I think this movie just boosted his career as he's been constantly snagging movie deals. Zach Galifianakis is a star and one of the better actors in terms of comedy. Everything he does appeals to the audience because he's a quirky actor who can deliver the laughter. Ed Helms is one great comedian and I doubt anyone will deny that. He's just amazing at what he does and the quality of his comedy is at a level well-beyond some. I've been a fan of Justin Bartha ever since I saw the first National Treasures. I loved that movie and its sequel and I keep hoping they'd make a third installment. It's good to see him in another highly successful franchise, although I wish he'd get more screen time and a bigger part. We'll see then they make the third part of the franchise.
The Hangover is definetely a must-watch. Without question, one of the best comedies of 2010. It's been a comedy night for me, watching Get Him to the Greek (http://mrfilmreviewer.blogspot.com/2012/06/get-him-to-greek.html) and The Hangover in one night. The level of entertainment and laughter both films gave me should be illegal. Both films were very funny, intelligent, and insanely entertaining.
I watched the sequel first before finally finishing the first movie, which is probably the reason why I enjoyed the second one a lot more than you people. I can now understand the people's comments about how the second one was just a replica of the first, and to some extent I think so now too. However, this does not mean to say that the other one was bad, it just means, at least personally, that there were a lot of parallelisms between the two movies. Both of the movies were great, funny, and very entertaining.
It was a little raunchy and a bit vulgar so it may raise flags for some people. Taking that aside, the movie had sufficient material and a very well-thought out, well-written script. It had charm, wits, and a combination of classic and modern humor. I just can't get over how good the script was. It's one of those films that make you swear for all the right reasons cause it's just making you laugh uncontrollably.
Todd Phillips and the writers did so well with this movie. The story was simple, but the development of it was extraordinary. Where else can you see a tiger in a bathroom? It had a lot of elements to it and everything worked. Nothing was overdone considering how extreme the circumstances were. From a lost baby, to a tiger, to a missing friend, to a Chinese mobster, every single detail in the movie showed the process of creating this fantastic movie.
It also helped that they had the actors they had. Starting with Bradley Cooper, I think this movie just boosted his career as he's been constantly snagging movie deals. Zach Galifianakis is a star and one of the better actors in terms of comedy. Everything he does appeals to the audience because he's a quirky actor who can deliver the laughter. Ed Helms is one great comedian and I doubt anyone will deny that. He's just amazing at what he does and the quality of his comedy is at a level well-beyond some. I've been a fan of Justin Bartha ever since I saw the first National Treasures. I loved that movie and its sequel and I keep hoping they'd make a third installment. It's good to see him in another highly successful franchise, although I wish he'd get more screen time and a bigger part. We'll see then they make the third part of the franchise.
The Hangover is definetely a must-watch. Without question, one of the best comedies of 2010. It's been a comedy night for me, watching Get Him to the Greek (http://mrfilmreviewer.blogspot.com/2012/06/get-him-to-greek.html) and The Hangover in one night. The level of entertainment and laughter both films gave me should be illegal. Both films were very funny, intelligent, and insanely entertaining.
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