Brave - Review

So, there's this little animation company...you may have heard of them. Pixar.  A company constantly raising the bar for the evolution of animated films.  Everyone has a favorite film and everyone can agree that even the films they may not like are oozing with professionalism and fantastic concepts.  So, seeing Brave was a bit of a no brainer.  It's a great film that didn't quite do what I was hoping it would do.  But raises the bar none-the-less.

Speaking of animation, did I mention that Pixar created software specifically to deal with the hair of the main character alone?  That may not mean much to those who know very little about animation, but even if you don't realize the little details Pixar does to improve upon itself you will still notice it for sure.  All those little things add up to create a masterful work of animated art.

But Destructus, you say.  Earlier you said it didn't do what you hoped it would do, yet you sound like you really enjoyed it.  Well, I really did appreciate the animation and I did greatly enjoy the characters and the story may have been a little thin but a thin story doesn't take away my enjoyment from a film.  Perhaps I should explain...

The story centers on a princess who is being forced to live according to her parents opinions of how things should be, never allowing her to have a mind of her own.  In hopes of changing her moms mind about being forced to marry one of the prince's from the other 3 kingdoms she buys a magic spell from a witch in order to change her situation.  The spell has a bit of a side-effect in that it turns her mom the Queen into a bear.  And that's where the story somewhat lost my interest.  Pixar has created a vibrant world, easily one of the best looking worlds they have ever done.  But besides a couple trips to the woods we spend most of the film behind the castle walls as the young princess tries to protect her mom who is now a bear from being hunted and killed, meanwhile also working to reverse the spell she put upon her.  It seems a greatly missed opportunity to me.  It would have been a much more interesting film had they allowed the characters to explore the world they live in more. To see interesting environments and perhaps dive a bit deeper into Celtic mythology.  Sadly, that didn't happen.

Overall, it was a beautiful film that Pixar did an amazing job on, but is much too confined when there was so much more than could have been done to make this a more epic adventure.  On a side note, as I was watching the film it did feel a bit more like a Disney film than a Pixar film to me.  Much more kid friendly, with less humor for adults than in previous Pixar films. It's still there, but not as prevailant.

John Carter

I’ll be honest…the horrible reviews from critics for this film really persuaded me not to see it. Typically I don’t listen to professional critics but they seem to all say the same thing and they couldn’t all be wrong….could they?

Well, I finally had the chance to rent it in hopes that perhaps I could find some shining jewel in the muck and grime of what is Disney’s biggest box office failure in recent years and you know what? I REALLY liked it. Really!

Without getting to in-depth with the story (which isn’t complex).  A man in the 1800’s ends up discovering a device off of a dead alien that transports him to Mars where he discovers that due to the gravity difference he has super strength.  Not long after that he’s captured by a primitive alien tribe that’s impressed by his abilities.    Before long he’s involved in a war between two other races, fall in love with a princess and does many many heroic deeds.  On paper, that sounds pretty run of the mill.  But the way it played out felt very much like a classic, pulp fiction style adventure.  Action scenes were fun and entertaining, characters related well to each other.  And while we never really develop an emotional connection to the characters beyond “I hope he does something else awesome”  Maybe that’s enough?  It was for me. 

Let’s take a look at a film like Star Wars.  (A New Hope) the story wasn’t very deep, but the film was fun and kept you engaged and that’s exactly how I felt about John Carter.  It was a fun adventure with over-the-top action, the kind you dreamed about as a child.  Bigger than life heroes taking on the clearly evil bad guy.  That’s what this is…a story of good vs evil and the joy of an adventure.  And with that in mind, I greatly enjoyed the film.  I think it deserves at least one watch.

Safe House Review

I’m a big fan of Denzel Washington.  He always seems to put his all into a role.  So, I was very curious to see how well the chemistry would work between him and Ryan Reynolds.  Thankfully, they seemed to click nicely!  This is a fairly quickly paced film within the spy world containing gritty, fast paced action scenes and more than enough drama and suspense to keep the story flowing.  In some ways the film reminded me a little of the Borne series as the film throws in a fantastic car chase and one on one hand-to-hand fights with a few gunfights peppered in through-out the films story.

 

The story centers on Ryan Reynolds character who operates a Safe House and he’s bored out of his mind. He wants to get out into the field and see some action but instead is stuck in a little room just existing.  All that changes when a supposed rogue agent played by Denzel Washington is brought for…well…let’s just say an off the records interrogation.  The CIA isn’t the only group who was after him however as it isn’t long before guys with guns bust in and that’s really where the story starts.  Ryan Reynolds is forced to rescue Denzel (as it’s the job of the Safe House keeper to protect his “guest”) which leads them on the run from the CIA and the mysterious group of murderers.

Ryan Reynolds career has had quite a few ups and downs so it’s nice to see him in a film that’s solid and strong.  This was an enjoyable, fast paced thriller with a strong cast and one big twist that I was honestly surprised at.  If you’re looking for an action film with a good story then you will enjoy Safe House.

Legend of Korra - Season 1 Review

It's no secret that I am a huge fan of the previous Avatar: The Last Airbender series.  It was one of the very few animated series on American TV that combined fantastic high quality animation with strong, mature character writing. It was one of those shows that was entertaining for kids but much of the meat of the show was really geared towards teens and adults.  The story in general for Avatar is that there are four nations centering on the four elements (Earth, Fire, Water, Air) Within these nations there are those with special gifts based around chi called Bending.  Each person can only master one bending skill.  However, the Avatar is able to bend all four elements with practice and study.  When an Avatar dies (natural or unnatural) that Avatar is then reborn into the next generation (male or female as you will see) in order to keep balance in the world.

So when they announced that there would be a second series taking place many many years after the events of the first show and centering on a new Avatar (Korra, a spunky girl with much to learn) my mind exploded.  I couldn’t wait to see how it would turn out.

Thankfully, my expectations were met and then some.  The animation took a huge step forward coming extremely close to a full feature film in terms of quality.  Emotions are conveyed on the characters faces perfectly as well as their movements showing life-like grace.  The same goes for the story.  While the first series was definitely aimed at a mature audience, this takes that one step farther.  Much of the content will be lost to the very young and there is much more meat for teens and adults to dig into.  The story is filled with strong character emotions, powerfully driven scenes of action and beauty. 

The new Avatar is also very different from Aang.  Where Aang was much more spiritually centered, Korra is much more bullheaded.  She’s aggressive, passionate and even a little cocky at times.  It’s a huge joy to watch as the character evolves into a more peaceful Avatar as she masters the elements and her own emotions while dealing with the attraction she feels for a man who can’t quite decide if he loves Korra or the daughter of a wealthy industrialist.

Season 1 was filled with fantastic quality and depth rarely seen in American TV (live action OR animated) and is highly suggested for anyone who isn’t close-minded in believing that animation is only for kids.

Machine Gun Preacher

This movie was nothing like I thought it would be. I was expecting a by the numbers action film, but what I got was a film deep with heart and soul.  Powerful and moving scenes and some great action sequences.  This film is based off of a true story.

This film tells the story of a man (played by Gerard Butler) who just got out of prison and is the lowest of the low. Addicted to drugs, crime and anything else he can think of.  Until one night when something devastating happens that changes him. He goes to church where God finds him and turns his life around eventually leading him to go to Africa to help those devastated by war and death.

The actors play their parts with strong resolve, Butler is especially convincing as he transforms from the scum of the Earth to a man with a vision.  This film captures not only the beauty of Africa, but the horrors that take place which we rarely see in today’s media.  It’s a mesmerizing film full of intensity in emotion and in the real terrors faced by those who live there.  The characters convey what feels like real emotions and the chemistry between them feels genuine.

This is a movie not to be missed by anyone who enjoys a strongly acted and solidly cinematic film experience.

Prometheus Review

There has been a lot of debate and confusion on whether this film is a prequel to the much loved movie Alien or a completely separate entity.  There is a very easy answer to this and that answer is…

Yes and no.

Ok, so that seems not to clear things up.  But just stick with me for a bit and you’ll understand.   Prometheus does show how the Xenomorphs (the aliens in the Alien movies) are created as well as answer a few other questions fans of been wondering about for a long time with the first Alien film. However, these things are more a product of the end result of what happens in Prometheus rather than the core of the movie itself.  It uses the same universe that Alien takes place in as a jumping off point to start a whole new story.  One that seeks to answer the questions regarding the creation of life.  It’s more a movie of discovery.  And this is why the trailers shown don’t do the film justice.

That leads me to how the film was advertised.  The studio tried to make the film seem intense, scary and graphic like the original Alien film but it’s false advertising.  If anything this film falls more into the category of a Suspense/Thriller.  There are certainly plenty of scenes that are intense, but it’s more about exploration.

This is easily one of the most beautifully filmed sci-fi films ever to come out.  Environments have that sci-fi yet grounded in reality that Director Ridely Scott is known for and the action sequences are gripping and calculated.  The characters within this world may not be as deep as some films, but the core cast keeps the plot interesting.  Secondary characters are mainly there to die and/or add humor.  But because the story is so interesting and the core characters carry it so well it doesn’t detract from the enjoyment of the film.

All in all this is a fantastic and engaging film that is easily one of the best Sci-Fi films I’ve seen in some time and worthy of checking out.  On a side note the 3D was actually quite impressive!