Change Your Image
harace
Reviews
House of the Dead (2003)
Flawed but Surprisingly Entertaining
I tend to enjoy the movies I watch. This means that my opinion usually goes against poorly received pieces. It happened to me with In the Name of the King, which I rather enjoyed. And there's The Bride of the Monster, which does have some stupid moments and pacing issues, but I still don't view it as catastrophic. Manos: The Hands of Fate is bad, but I respect Harold Warren for creating a movie without any kind of education in film.
So, let's turn to House of the Dead. The first 20-25 minutes were quite good. The movie begins with a short and not-too-informative introduction to the four teens that wish to get to some island, and have fun with friends there. Some, who are pickier about movies than I am, say that characters are best introduced through action than any narration, but not much is revealed about them, so it's no big deal. The dialog sequence aboard the ship was clever, funny, and served its purpose of establishing the characters, especially the captain.
Many complained about the characters' decision to stay at the deserted camp instead of running away, but please note that all but Alicia was drunk, so don't expect them to make rational decisions. Was Alicia's decision to go investigate rational? No, it wasn't, but the movie had to move forward, didn't it?
The movie went on, and I haven't gotten the impression that it was as bad as the reviews suggested it was. It looked like a typical horror movie, and it continued and ended that way. There are dark places, zombies sneaking in the forest, characters getting introduced (and killed), a hooded figure in the distance observing the humans, etc. The usual horror move stuff.
Possibly weakest part of the movie is the big shoot-out scene in front of the house. It's spectacular, but way too long. They kill zombies by the dozens, and not much else happens. One may argue that the battle scenes in The Lord of the Rings trilogy are even longer, but there are twists in them that serve a narrative purpose.
Also everyone aims perfectly, and they don't run out of ammo until the plot requires them to. Neither is an unheard-of plot device, but since the fight is very long, it becomes noticeable.
I also don't understand the narrative purpose of the in-game clips. It would have been better if Boll left them out entirely.
Surely, HotD isn't a *good* movie, but I fail to see why it received so much flak. I basically mentioned everything I disliked about HotD, and that's all I could find in a 90-minute-long movie. There are things I liked as well. Pacing is generally good, the dialogs are decent, acting is surprisingly good for a movie with this average rating. The flaws don't outweigh the pros, so I give it a 6.
The Pink Panther (2006)
Fairly entertaining, but not comparable with Sellers's version
I'm in a hard situation with rating and writing a review about this movie.
First of all, let me clarify that right at the beginning that I did not see the original English version of the movie, so I cannot really comment on anything related to human voice or dialog in the movie. I know that imitating a French accent is a major part in the film, and whoever dubbed Steve Martin's voice in the translated version even burred his R's to make it look more French-like. I was offended at this one because I don't think making fun of it is incendiary. While I acknowledge that R's in French are different than in for example, English (and American English, as a matter of fact) or Hungarian.
This was the only thing I disliked in this movie, and since I did not see the original English version, I cannot make it the fault of the creators, but the voice actor who dubbed the voice of Clouesau.
Otherwise, I had fun WATCHING the movie. Steve Martin under no circumstance can be better than Sellers, but a good sequel can never hurt. The investigation and the general plot line is not very impressive, but it is still better than what an average movie-goer would be able to write. I was a little bit disappointed by the conclusion of the investigation, it happened rather fast. We have arrived at the point where I must admit that it is not the plot line or storytelling upon which this movie was based on. Those who know the PP franchise know what I am talking about.
As I said, Steve Martin's version is not better than Sellers's movies, but those who like the series will likely enjoy it. I'm saying "likely" because I already read some negative comments here, which is acceptable, given that people expect much after Sellers's legacy.
The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1994)
Bad, pointless movie
This review contains some spoilers, but given the category of this movie, this is not a serious kind of spoiler.
I really hate the word "pointless." Not only using it, but hearing it as well. But there are a few occasions where I cannot simply use another word, or expect anyone to use a different word. "Pointless" accurately describes this movie, even knowing that a horrors/thrillers are not known because of their character development or inappropriately elaborate plot lines. The main problem is that the "Chainsaw Massacre" does not really have a plot, save the intro, up to the point we can see the first killing.
I must admit that I have not yet seen the first movie, or any of its predecessors, but after seeing this, I started to become curious how they could be. I know that sequels are not superior to its prequels, at least in the eyes of the reviewers. Seeing that the first movie got far better rating than this one, I look forward to seeing them, or any.
As for this film, I do not intend to give a brief outline of the plot, as some of my fellow reviewers have done so. The story started out relatively well, mainly because of the dialog in the car, but it continuously became worse as the movie progressed. When the fat man with started chasing the poor girl with the chainsaw, I was hoping that at least there would be something that boosts my morale in this movie. But no, not a single one was killed in a downright bloody and brutal way, I exaggerate if I say that either of the killings was any good. Yes, either, because only two of the four protagonists die in the movie, plus one antagonist gets chopped by the propeller of an aircraft. That was the best part in the film. (How the aircraft came into the view and why remains a mystery) Frankly, I was expecting more from this movie. I expected much gore and got little. The skulls, skeletons, and other corpses improve a bit on the overview. Not if these were elements which are unique for a narrow range of horror movies, or how they are displayed/placed were any special.
War of the Worlds (2005)
Despite all the negative reviews.
First of all, I have seen the trailer of this movie, which did not give me any negative or positive prejudices about the movie. Making an interesting movie and an interesting trailer are two completely different things. Like catching fish with a net and shooting insects with a shotgun. All I knew about the movie, seeing the trailer is that the world is in despair, everyone is panicked.
I walked into the cinema and sat down watching the movie. The introductory narration did not ignite much interest in me, I think the text of the narrator was not told in an interesting way. Okay, I have reached the point when I have to mention that I did not see the original English version, but the dubbed Hungarian one, so whatever I am going to say about dialogues could be the fault of the translation.
Starting to watch the film, I realized the movie takes after the novel called White Mountains. I read that book in an overly simplified version, so I was unsure how similar the movie will be to that novel. I knew what the Tripods are and I knew the solution how they can be destroyed. I was just hoping the will be another solution... or the film will have a bad ending, which I would have preferred. There were differences between the novel and the movie, that is for sure. The film is much more depressing and darker.
I found some dialogues and scenes humorous, especially before the alien's arrival. Mainly when Cruiser throws out the window with the baseball ball. I not only smiled like I did with other jokes: I started launching silently. Then the film turned sinister. The bad guys emerged and the mindless escaping began. It is only my opinion, that the sounds the Tripods made were too noisy. The fact that I found them noisy is perhaps I am not used to loudness so much. I did not give any bad marks for this, I just wanted it worth noting.
So, panic. I noticed only one mistake in the film: When the EMP shock-wave deactivated all electronics, I still saw people taking photos about the Tripods. I don't think any believable explanation can be given why only the cameras worked. It probably has something to do with advertising annihilation. :D
I found the feeling to be scary, to use some informal English slang. The scene when the alien scout 'snake' enfiladed the basement was okay, but when the Aliens arrived... it scared me. I don't remember any movies that made me fear while watching. I was hoping to do this by AvP when I watched that movie, but was not expecting that exactly this film will scare me.
As for the finale, I did not like that either. It may be because I am malicious that I wanted Robee(spellng?) to die, so when he appeared in Boston made me a little disappointed. The explanation in the end was not clear enough, it did tell what caused the doom of the invaders but it did not clarify how, which I think is more important or almost as important.
In overall, the movie was good enough. If you have noticed I did not say much good about the movie, this is my style of writing a review. I don't usually mention things I liked unless they are extraordinary. I am not sure whether I will watch it again, on VHS on DVD at best, I assume I will. This movie will not gain any special awards, it only showed to me, that Spielberg is not esteemed for nothing. I respect his achievements, even though I saw only a couple of his films.
I rate it 8 out of 10. If it were not for the sudden ending and the unclear explanation, it would be 9 out of 10.
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
Two minor flaws
I am trying to review this movie without any spoilers this time. Let's begin with one of the only things I did not like in the movie: Jar Jar's character. It is well-done how he and the Gungans speak, but his moves and 'humourous' character somehow does not fit in the movie, despite this one is supposed to be the 'most peaceful' of all the previous SW movies. It is also one minor flaw that the characters have apparent fluke. If I were to detail it, I would have to add spoilers, which I don't desire. Watch the film or recall what you have seen and you will see what I mean. Go to the positive part this time: In the movie, the long forgotten Sith return and the Sith Apprentice confront Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi. For those who still have not yet seen the film: Qui-Gon Jinn is the master of Obi-wan, who is still an apprentice. The Sith Lord vs. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan fight scene is probably the culmination of the events and this part is done the best. We will also see the Jedi in 'normal' combat against droids, which show how Jedi can fight. The plot is based around a conflict on a peaceful planet named Naboo, which the Trade Federation blockaded for various reasons. By the will of the Force, the two Jedi get stranded down on Tatooine, where they discover Anakin Skywalker, who actually helps them escape the planet. We will see a long 'pod race' scene on Tatooine, which could be amazing or damn boring, depending on your attitude to speed. I liked this part of the film the first time I saw it, but I normally skip this when I am to watch the film over again on VHS. When the final attack starts to retake the planet, the events are divided into three parts: We can see all three emerge victorious at various costs. Expect to see an awesome ground battle between Trade Federation droids and the natives of Naboo, in an open and wide area.
The two flaws I mentioned above make me consider this film 'only' 9 out of 10. I was more forgiving in the case of Episode III, simply because I better liked the fight scenes in that movie, which is not a shame from the aspect of the Phantom Menace. While this movie is focused on one single conflict, Episode III is not only about a conflict, it's about a galaxy-wide fought war. For this reason, it is no wonder we cannot see as much fight as we do in Episode III or even II.
To sum up the whole, the Phantom Menace is a good movie, with some minor flaws. The movie is safe to be watched by children of any age, too.
If you haven't seen this movie yet, don't waste any more time! It's highly recommended.
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)
Excellent movie
To start with, I am one of the very few who liked the two previous movies, The Phantom Menace and the Attack of the Clones. It did not come as a surprise for me that I liked this movie. I want to see this as soon as possible, for the second, third, fourth..... twenty-seven millionth time! OK, the 27 million times is an exaggeration, excuse me.
BE WARNED: This review DOES contain spoilers.
The fight scenes were most excellent, amazing and spectacular. There are a lot of special effects, which looked realistic to me, the saber fights were quick, spectacular, reminded me of the special abilities of the Jedi. They are fast and deadly, as seen in the first part of the movie(*). Anakin's movements and his fight with Count Dooku were very good. I regret that there was no more time for their duel and Anakin did not kill him on his complete own. When they escaped from the falling elevator, it reminded me James Bond! I was one of the best moments in the entire movie. The space battle at the beginning was better than the one we saw at the Battle of Endor(I dare say this). The worlds which were displayed almost stopped my heart beating. Fantastic. The battles between the Clone troopers and the Droids gave a fantastic feeling, especially the one in where Grievous got killed. Now, let's talk about what I did not like: (*) = The Jedi got killed way too easily. I can't believe that Ki-Adi Mundi could fend off three blaster shots and got killed by a fourth one. He is a member of the Jedi Council and is it the best of his knowledge? Kit Fisto also suffered a quick death in the fight with Palpatine, which I find hard to believe. How can anyone, even Palpatine kill FOUR Jedi knights(among them Mace Windu, the best saber-wielder in the galaxy) in a single fight? The two other Jedi knights were not even able to fend off a single parry and Windu's death was disappointing. I would have preferred if he got killed by Anakin in a face-to-face duel. Poor Secura Aayla, she did not even notice the situation when she got a blast to the back. Why I say all this: The Jedi 'youngster' who defended Bail Organa from the republic clones fended off more shots than any of the three Jedi mentioned above combined(Kit Fisto, Ki-Adi Mundi and Secura Aayla). Perhaps it is this child who was the chosen one? Poor youngster fought well, but got shot, which is understandable considering he is a mere apprentice. OK, let's get back to the Main characters: Padmé's acting was good, but the dialog written for her was not first class, which is true. I felt sorry for this couple when Anakin choked Padmé. In retrospect, I don't think it was feasible that Obi-wan defeated Anakin in the saber fight on the lava planet(I don't know how it is exactly spelled, so I omit to mention its name). It was so disturbing to see the Chosen one suffer from the heat and Obi-wan suffer from what he was seeing.
AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004)
Below expectations, but still good
*Contains spoilers*
Reading some of the reviews, I could conclude that most of you(respect to the exceptions) are disenchanted about this movie. I can agree with some of the points, like a Predator teaming up with a Human, but that did not annoy me up as much as the fact I mention below:
This is where this becomes a spoiler: I do not understand and I do not even want to know why this movie degraded Predators so much. I can't believe that one Alien killed two Predators and the third(and the last one) gets 'facehuggered' a good ten minutes after the fight begins.
Talking about face-huggers, I also find it strange that Aliens evolve way too quickly. It must be a result of the Director's decision on how to make the movie more whirling. Aliens birth quickly, OK, but what about the 'fecundated' Predator? How come it survived for so long? Also a note on Alien life-cycle: How is that possible that the Xenomorph births from a Dead body? I obviously mean the Italian guy(don't know the name) and the Predator.
I loved how the Predators looked like at any rate. The one last thing I did not like about Predators in this movie is their vision modes. Why did not they leave the old-style Predator mask sound? That was the best. One other thing: I find the into part VERY long, it is even longer than the action part itself with the Credits.
To sum up a whole, I had really loved this movie despite all what I wrote.