Chris Reviews Noah

Noah (2014)
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Ray Winstone, Anthony Hopkins, Emma Watson, Logan Lerman and Douglas Booth
IMDB: 6.7*
RT: 76*
Box Office: $106.4 (Worldwide)*

Summary-

A man is chosen by the creator to save the innocent creatures of the earth before he destroys the evil of the world with a massive flood.





Review (Spoilers!)-

This was a film that I expected would bring up a lot of controversy and it has. I figured it would challenge people's religious beliefs and in some ways it does. That being said, this is not a film that trashes religion by any stretch. Now before I get too deep into this review I want to state that I am not going to get into any theological discussions here. I am simply going to review it based on its merits as a film with only a few comments about its message. I do this because I do not pretend to have much knowledge of the historical context to the Noah story. I simply came into it wanting to hear a good story.

The film opens with an explanation as to how the world was created. It then goes to Noah (Russell Crowe) as a boy as he sees his father killed by Tubal-cain (Ray Winstone). Noah runs off into the wilderness and it jumps many years later and Noah is an adult with children and they are foraging for food. They see some men kill an animal and try to eat it but Noah stops them. He returns home to his wife (Jennifer Connelly) and tells her his fears that the men from the cities are getting closer and that they may need to leave. That night Noah has a vision that the creator is going to end the world. He realizes that he must try and find his Grandfather Methuselah to figure out what to do. So Noah and his family set out on a journey to find Methuselah. One thing that was apparent from the very beginning of the film was the excellent visual style that director Darren Aronofsky and Director of Photography Matthew Libatique have created. The film has a distinctly stunning look to it that had me hooked right away.

That's a pretty looking sky

Along the way to find Methuselah, Noah's family finds a little girl who has been hurt named Ila (Emma Watson) and they rescue her. After a long and dangerous journey they come to Methuselah's mountain and Noah and his oldest son Shem (Douglas Booth) go to meet him. He realizes that he must build an Ark to save the innocent of the world (the animals) from the coming flood. Methuselah gives Noah a seed from the garden of Eden and Noah plants it in the barren landscape near the mountain. The next day a large Forrest grows that will provide him with the wood he needs to build the ark and the fallen angels called the Watchers decide to help him build it.

Pretty desolate landscapes

The film then jumps ahead a number of years to when the Ark is nearing completion. Many of the animals are starting to arrive at the Ark and some people have noticed this. A large group of men comes to Noah to find out why all of the animals are coming there. These men are led by Tubal-cain, Noah is protected by the Watchers for now but Tubal-cain sets up camp nearby to prepare for an assault on the Ark. Noah and his family make the final preparations for the flood. This is when we also see some internal conflict within Noah's family as his youngest son Ham wants to have a girl like his brother, Ila does not believe she belongs with them because she is barren and Noah begins to believe that not even his family is meant to survive this apocalypse. Eventually the flood begins and Tubal-cain and his army assault the Ark. This is probably the part of the film that most people will take issue with. It essentially turns into a big fantasy film action sequence as the Watchers battle the men in order to protect the Ark. Noah also gets his hands dirty in killing some of these men as well. Eventually the water washes away all people and the Ark is propelled to the top. This was probably the most disturbing part of the film as you see and hear all of the people drowning and Noah refusing to save anyone.

The Ark under construction

The final act of the film involves Noah and his family living on the Ark for an extended period before the end of the flood and some internal conflicts that ensue. I will not go into too much detail here because I don't want to spoil everything in the film. All I will say is that the film does get pretty freaking (this is a movie about an apocalypse).  As the credits rolled it took me quite a bit of time to fully process this film. It was not what I expected but I don't even truly know what I did expect. This is an epic and visually stunning film that separated from religion would be a pretty cool fantasy film. The main issue is that most audience members will not be able to do that.

Final Thoughts-

Aronofsky has crafted a pretty solid biblical/fantasy epic. The film features a compelling story, solid acting and some great visuals that make this one of my favorite films of the year. I know that some people will immediately discount it because either they think it deviates too much from their perceptions of the biblical story or because they dislike anything religious. If you feel that way thats fine but you are missing out on a very enjoyable film simply because you can't get past your personal bias. Also there is one sequence in this that makes the entire film worth seeing. Watch out for the sequences when Noah tells his family the story of creation. It does a fantastic job of showing how the ideas of evolution and religion can coexist. I also encourage you to read the directors comments about the film as they are pretty interesting.  If nothing else watch this movie in order to understand your issues with it. I think that if you give it a chance you will find something to enjoy from this film.

MY RATING-

4 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart

*Information as of April 4th 2014

Western Movie Reviews: Silverado

Silverado (1985)
Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Starring: Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Kevin Costner, Danny Glover
IMDB: 7.2
RT: 76
Box Office: $32.1 Million (Domestic)

Summary-

A misfit bunch of friends come together to right the injustices in the town of Silverado.






Review (Spoilers!)-

Having watched quite a few Westerns by now I think I have a firm grasp on most of the genre conventions. I think that's partially why I have gravitated towards the Spaghetti Western's recently because I wanted to explore a different aspect of the genre. That being said every once in a while it's nice to enjoy an old school Hollywood Western like Silverado.

The film opens with Emmett (Scott Glenn) getting attacked in a small shack that he is sleeping in. He fights off the bag guys, takes their horses and rides off. On the way he meets Paden (Kevin Kline) who has been left for dead in the desert. He takes him to the nearest town where Paden finds and kills one of the men who took his things. Paden also runs into his old friend Cobb (Brian Dennehy) who offers him a job but he turns it down. Emmett sets off for Silverado to meet his sister and Paden decides to tag along. On their way they stop in a town where Emmett's brother Jake (Kevin Costner) is set to be hanged by Sheriff Langston (John Cleese). They also meet Mal (Danny Glover) who gets kicked out of town for causing trouble because he is black. Emmet ends up breaking his brother out and they continue on their way to Silverado with the help of Mal. The first act does a perfectly adequate job of setting up all the main plot points and bringing the characters together although the characters are a bit thin.

When they get to Silverado Emmett and Jake meet up with their sister and her family, Mal heads to find his families farm nearby and Paden discovers that his friend Cobb is the Sheriff of the town and owner of the local Saloon. Everything seems fine until each character is presented with a problem. The son of a man Emmett killed is a powerful landowner in the town and wants him and his family dead. Mal discovers that his mother has died and that his father has been run off their land by the powerful landowner. Paden on the other hand gets himself a job working at the Saloon for his friend Cobb but he soon realizes that Cobb is one of the bad guys. Things slowly escalate in the second act until Emmett's sisters house is burned, her husband shot and her son is kidnapped. This leads to a very action packed third act that features one big gun battle and a couple of duels. Each character gets to kill off an individual nemesis and all of the plot lines are tied up neatly.

The plot is fairly by the numbers but effective, the characters while shallow are still entertaining and the camera work is solid. All of these factors come together to make an above average Hollywood Western. It is also pretty fun to watch so many big name actors shooting at each other. We get some fun appearances by Jeff Fahey, Jeff Goldblum and John Cleese to go along with the already big named cast. It also has a pretty enjoyable score that really adds some excitement to the action sequences.

The Crew

Final Thoughts-

I had a really good time with this film! Sure it has a few too many story lines going on at once and the characters are rather shallow but its a strong enough film to overcome that. This is a modern Western that doesn't try so hard to break the genre conventions but instead embraces them and makes them enjoyable again. Sure it isn't one of the best Westerns of all time but it is probably a good starting point for people new to the genre.

MY RATING-

3.5 out of 5

- Chris "Da Franchize" Hart
 

Action Movie Reviews: Blood and Bone (2009)

Blood and Bone (2009)
Director: Ben Ramsey
Starring: Michael Jai White, Julian Sands, Eamonn Walker, Dante Basco and Nona Gaye
IMDB: 6.7
RT: Not Available
Box Office: Not Available

Summary-

Isaiah Bone gets out of a Los Angeles prison and enters the underground street fighting world in order to fulfill a promise to a dead friend.




Review (Spoilers!)-

I have slowly become a big Michael Jai White fan. He played a small but memorable role in The Dark Knight but his performance as Black Dynamite is what really made me a fan. I really think Black Dynamite is one of the greatest action/comedies of all time! So when I saw a martial arts film starring Michael Jai White on Netflix I knew I had to watch it. While the end result is not a good movie by any stretch, it does do enough to entertain.

The film opens with Bone in prison taking a piss. Some scary looking inmates (including youtube sensation Kimbo Slice!) come to shank him in the bathroom. He goes on to thoroughly kick their asses and the film cuts to the opening title. The opening is quick and to the point and immediately shows off White's impressive martial arts skills.

Bone is released from prison and heads to what seems like the most random place possible to rent a room. He stays in a house where this lady and old man take care of what I assume are foster kids. They live in a pretty rough neighborhood but the lady and the old man try to keep the kids out of it. Bone soon finds the underground fighting venue and watches as the wealthy and sadistic hustler James (Eamonn Walker) brings his scary looking fighter named Hammerman (Bob Sapp) to fight. This dude is a massive and insane man that will pretty much kill anybody he fights. 

Former NFL Player and MMA Fighter Bob Sapp

After Bone watches Hammerman decimate an opponent that was promoted by Pinball (Dante Basco) he convinces the promoter to give him a shot at a fight. Bone proves that he has very impressive fighting skills and Pinball begins to set up some fights for him. Michael Jai White shows he is very skilled and is fun to watch fight. Bone works his way up to get himself a chance to fight Hammerman. He also has his eye on James's girlfriend which seems like it may cause some conflict. Eventually he gets himself a chance to fight Hammerman and he kicks his ass. 

This gets James's attention and he invites Bone to his place to talk some business. James explains how he wants to become more than just a street hustler and that he wants to have an in with the wealthy white guys. So he wants to have Bone fight the worlds best underground street fighter. James tries to convince Bone by letting him take his girl. This is where Bone's true motivations are revealed. We find out that the girl used to be his best friend in prison's wife. James had him killed in prison in order to get this girl and Bone had made a promise to take care of his wife and son when he got out. He checks the girl into a rehab clinic because she has developed a massive drug addiction and we also find out that the reason he was living at that house is because one of the kids is her son. I thought that was a bit of a stretch but at least it explains some things.

The third act sees the plot begin to collapse a bit. The old man in the house is randomly killed by dogs and then its revealed that it was by James for no apparent reason. James gets Bone into the fight with the top street fighter but Bone decides he doesn't want to do it so James freaks out. The plot continues to devolve into chaos and things make less and less sense until it leads to a final fight. Bone shows up at a very wealthy man's house and has to fight the top street fighter. I actually really liked this fight scene!

It's pretty clear this is more of a B or C list action film. The supporting actors are not particularly good and the writing is pretty bland. That being said Michael Jai White does a decent job holding the film together and the production quality is high enough to make this watchable.

Final Thoughts-

I still really like Michael Jai White and will be interested to follow his career. I know that he does have a role in the upcoming Fast and Furious movie so we will see if he can have some more main stream success. This film reminds me a lot of the Jean-Claude Van Damme film Lionheart (which I liked) but with slightly higher production quality. As far as action films go the story is not that bad but I would still only recommend this to hard core action and martial arts film fans.

MY RATING-

2.5 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart

Chris Reviews Need for Speed

Need for Speed (2014)
Director: Scott Waugh
Starring: Aaron Paul, Dominic Cooper, Imogen Poots, Scott Mescudi
IMDB: 7.3*
RT: 23*
Box Office: $126.5 Million (Worldwide)*

Summary-

Tobey Marshall is small time street racer and car shop owner who gets an offer to make a lot of money. When he is framed for his friends death by a wealthy business associate he is put in prison. 2 years later he gets out and drives across the country trying to get himself to a legendary street race to face off against his rival, while also being chased by the police and other enemies.


Review (SPOILERS!)-

I knew this was going to be a shit movie from the moment I heard they where making it. That being said I still really wanted to see it. I love the Need for Speed games and am a big fan of car movies so I was hoping this would be a fun B-movie that could at least keep me entertained. In some ways it did do that but the film was just a lot worse than I expected.

The film opens with Tobey Marshall (Aaron Paul) and his crew of friends working at their car shop and then going to the local drive in to get ready for a street race. While they are there Marshall's ex-girlfriend shows up with her boyfriend Dino Brewster (Dominic Cooper) who is a hot shot professional racer. Tobey and his crew have a pretty good system of how to do street races, Benny (Scott Mescudi) is a pilot who makes sure they have a clear path and Finn (Rami Malek) and Joe Peck (Ramon Rodriguez) are on the ground and Little Pete (Harrison Gilbertson) is like Tobey's little brother and he races too. Tobey pretty easily wins the race and he heads back to his shop to celebrate with his buddies. This is when he receives and offer from Dino to fix up a very expensive car. Tobey accepts the offer despite a distrust of Dino because he needs the money to pay of the loans on the shop. (They have some old high school beef that is never explained)

I'm pretty sure Ford paid for half this damn movie

Tobey and his crew fix up this car and they sell it for $2.7 million but Dino feels threatened by Tobey and challenges him to a race. Tobey and Pete come to Dino's Uncles house and he shows them 3 European Super Cars that they are going to race. At this point I knew exactly what was going to happen because they telegraphed every plot point. Tobey looks like he is going to win the race and Pete is preventing Dino from passing so that his friend can win so Dino flips Pete's car and he dies. Tobey gets arrested and Dino covers his ass and puts all the blame on Tobey and he goes to jail.The first act of the film is not terrible but its not great either. It adequately sets up a preschool level plot, has a few cool action sequences and does not reveal the terrible acting abilities of its cast fully. The second and third act is where the film really shows its hand.

Showing off the Mustang some more

2 years later Tobey gets out of jail. This is one of the first questions I had. Why was he only in jail for 2 years? I understand he only got in trouble for manslaughter, but when he was arrested they also said that the 2 cars they where driving were reported stolen. Wouldn't he have gotten a longer prison sentence for stealing 2 cars worth over a million dollars? Oh well I can live with plot holes like that because at least its a debatable question. After he gets out of jail he immediately goes down to his closed shop, asks the guy who owns the car he sold to let him borrow the car to enter this big race that Michael Keaton's character holds. The guy agrees as long as his assistant Julia (Imogen Poots) comes along. They realize they have to drive to California in less than 46 hours to get to the race in time. After a series of obstacles they get to California and he gets invited to the big race to face off against Dino.

The Final Race

The film really picks up in pace in the second act and we get a cool car chase around Detroit and a really big one with some hillbilly guys in trucks trying to kill Tobey in the southwest U.S. I was pretty impressed with the car chase sequences but that was to be expected as the director is known for his stunt work. The main issue with the film is the cookie cutter characters, especially Tobey's friends. I was also very disappointed in Aaron Paul, he just seemed very awkward in the role. He tried to pull of this brooding, quite street racer character with a raspy voice but I just wanted to laugh whenever I looked at him. It just seemed that the writing was very poor and the director had no feel for how to direct real actors. There were also a number of unresolved and not well fleshed out plot points.

Final Thoughts-

Despite all of the very negative opinions I have of this movie I still thoroughly enjoyed it and I'm not sure why. The action sequences were solid but unspectacular, the acting was piss poor and the writing was terrible but somehow it's watchable. Will I ever watch it again? Probably not but I'm not mad about having seen it. If your into car movies this might be worth a red-box rental at some point but that's about it. 

MY RATING-

2 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart

*Ratings and Box Office info as of March 24th 2014

Action Movie Reviews: Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)

Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)
Director: John Carpenter
Starring: Austin Stoker, Darwin Joston, Tony Burton, Laurie Zimmer
IMDB: 7.4
RT: 97
Box Office: Not Available

Summary-

Lieutenant Ethan Bishop is assigned to watch over Precinct 13 during its last night before its shut down. During the night a ruthless gang attacks the Precinct with heavy firepower and its up to Bishop, some of the administrators and two inmates to fend them off.




Review (SPOILERS!)-

This film is often heralded as one of the most unappreciated action films of the 1970's and rightfully so. In only his second feature film John Carpenter shows off his gritty and visceral style that would make him one of the most respected Sci-fi/Horror directors of all time.

The film opens with a bunch of gang members getting killed by police. We then get a radio broadcast describing how this gang has tons of dangerous weapons and then we see four of them making a blood pact. These guys seem pretty hardcore immediately as they quietly cut open their arms and pour their blood into a cup. We then see Ethan Bishop (Austin Stoker) leaving his home to start his first day of work as a Lieutenant on the police force. As he is driving he is told to report to Precinct 13 which is set to close down soon. He arrives and is told that he just needs to watch over the place over night. The first act draws all of the players to this one central location. Bishop is here to watch the precinct over night. Inmates Napoleon Wilson (Darwin Jonson) and Wells (Tony Burton) are on a prison bus transporting them to another prison but the bus has to stop at this precinct due to a sick inmate. The father of a little girl who is shot by the gang runs to the precinct for safety which is what brings the gang to the building. Now that all of the players have reached the central location all hell is about to break loose.

Don't Shoot the Ice Cream Man!

The gang marks them for destruction then unleashes an assault on the precinct. Most of the police officers are killed except for Bishop and two female administrators. In order to survive this siege they let Napoleon and Wells out of their cells and give them guns. They manage to repel the attack after killing dozens of gang members but one of the female administrators is killed. They are trapped inside the precinct and because the phones and electricity are out they cannot call for help. In the second act we get continued character development as the four people try to figure out what to do. Napoleon is a death row inmate who is a throwback to classic western characters. He is not a truly bad guy, he did something bad but he still has a code of honor. Wells is the guy who is a more typical inmate although he is not a terrible guy either just very unlucky. All four of the characters are very realistic and human which helps the audience to relate to them.  The gang on the other hand is more of a mindless, brutal and inhuman threat. John Carpenter has even said that the film was somewhat inspired by George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead as the gang is silent and unrelenting like the zombies in that film.

The survivors attempt to send someone out to get help but it fails and the 3 remaining people have to prepare for the final assault. They have limited ammunition and have to come up with some way to survive. Then the final assault on precinct 13 begins. This film is very reminiscent of an old school western and the story is often compared to Rio Bravo. While it has a very classic story the tone is very different from the action films of the time. Rather than having a major action star like Clint Eastwood be the lead Carpenter chose to have an African American man in the lead which was still somewhat of a big deal. The film is also fairly violent and the scene with the little girl getting shot is still pretty shocking.

Final Thoughts-

I understand why this has become such a big cult film over the years as I enjoyed the hell out of it. It's Carpenter at his best, delivering a dark and gritty film that gets good performances out of lesser known actors. While its not my favorite Carpenter film (The Thing) it is pretty damn close.

MY RATING-

4 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart    

Action Movie Reviews: The Transporter (2002)

The Transporter (2002)
Director: Cory Yuen
Starring: Jason Statham, Qi Shu, Matt Schulze, Francois Berleand, Ric Young
IMDB: 6.8
RT: 54
Box Office: $43.9 Million (Worldwide)

Summary-

Frank Martin is a "Transporter", he delivers peoples packages with no questions asked. He has a set of rules but when he breaks one of those rules many complications arise.








Review (SPOILERS!)-

After watching Homefront I decided to go on a little Jason Statham marathon. I realized I had never actually watched that many of his films outside of the Expendables. I decided to start with the film that put him on the map as a viable action star. He had co-starred in films such as Lock,Stock and Two Smoking Barrells, Snatch, The One and Ghosts of Mars but this was his first solo film. The script was penned by Robert Mack Kamen and Luc Besson who was known for films such as Leon: The Professional and The Fifth Element. This film was pretty well received which led to 2 sequels being made and another trilogy being planned.  

The film opens with Frank Martin explaining what his job is and his specific rules that he always follows. While he is doing this we get a slick car chase as he helps drive some burglars out of a crime scene. The film definitely has that early 2000's, PG-13 action movie feel similar to The Fast and the Furious and The Bourne Identity. If you enjoyed those films than you probably will enjoy this. After completing his job, Frank Martin returns to his very nice looking French Villa on the sea. While he is on his next job he gets a flat tire and when he changes it he sees the package he is delivering start to move. He decides to break one of his rules by looking in the package and discovers a girl. He delivers the package to a guy nicknamed "Wall Street" played by Matt Schulze (The Fast and the Furious) who realizes that Frank looked in the package. He asks Frank to deliver another package for him which he agrees to but it ends up being a bomb and blows up his car. Frank goes back to the house and kicks some ass and steals a car that the same girl happens to be in.

The girl comes back to his home with him but they are soon attacked by the bad guys goons. The girl tells Frank that they are transporting several hundred Chinese people in storage containers. She convinces him to help free them but he soon discovers that she is the daughter of the guy smuggling the people. Frank ends up getting put in jail and the girl is taken by her father. The cop who has been following him and arrested him allows him to go as he knows there is something else going. It seemed like the cop was too easily convinced to let Frank go, especially since Frank had lied to him about everything in the movie up to that point. Frank sets off in a boat with some guns to go and take down the human trafficking deal. This is where you get all of the cool action scenes. There was one scene in particular that stuck with me as pretty inventive.

The second half of the clip where he covers himself in oil and fights them in a big pool of oil is pretty cool. I never realized how much I actually liked Jason Statham's fighting style. The main issue with this film for me though is that it is definitely an action movie made for kids/teens (its PG-13). Frank Martin always manages to survive ridiculous things without any consequences and there is very little blood in the film.

Final Thoughts-
This might be a good place to start for kids/teens who's parents don't want them to see the more violent/gory films. That being said its not really even the best movie for that as this is pure genre formula. I would recommend watching films like The Bourne Identity instead but this is still a solid film. Overall The Transporter is a pretty mild, early 2000's action film that features some nice fight scenes and is worth a watch for fans of the genre.

MY RATING-

3 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart 

Action Movie Reviews: Homefront (2013)

Homefront (2013)
Director: Gary Fleder
Starring: Jason Statham, James Franco, Izabela Vidovic, Kate Bosworth, Winona Ryder
IMDB: 6.6
RT: 41
Box Office: $31.3 Million (Worldwide)

Summary-

Former DEA Agent Phil Broker has moved to a quite town in Louisiana. When he pisses off a local drug lords sister he puts his daughters and his own life at risk. 




Review(Spoilers!)-

I had wanted to see this in theaters but missed it because it wasn't out very long. This is a Sylvester Stallone written film so that should immediately tell you what kind of movie it is, a dumb and formulaic action film that is a lot of fun!

The film opens with DEA Agent Phil Broker undercover in a biker gang as they are about to make a big meth deal. The police barge in and a shootout ensues leading to the death of Jojo Turrie, the son of the drug boss. Phil Broker then storms off angrily and it cuts to the opening credits and it is assumed that he has left the force to live in peace with his daughter. This opening sequence is effective although its another film using that shaky cam look for fight scenes which I'm not crazy about.

Long-haired Statham

This is a story you have seen on film a million times, the guy who retires from a dangerous past which comes back to haunt him. There is a reason its a formula though as it is a pretty compelling story and if done correctly can make a good movie. In this case my reaction was somewhat mixed. The first act is all about Phil Broker trying to start a life in this new community with his daughter but has a hard time fitting in. His daughter beats up a kid who happens to be the nephew of the local drug boss nicknamed Gator (James Franco). The boys scary meth head mom played by Kate Bosworth goes to her brother to ask him to teach Broker some respect. This leads Gator to discover that Broker is a former DEA Agent. He then uses his girlfriend Sheryl to make a deal between with the Biker gang Broker busted at the beginning of the film. Gator will give the gang the location of Broker and in return he wants them to distribute his drugs nationwide. Through the first two acts of the film there is adequate character development and surprisingly decent performances (specifically from Franco) although the father daughter scenes are somewhat dorky.

Morgan "Gator" Bodine

The biker gang comes to the town led by Cyrus (Frank Grillo) and plans to kill Broker and his daughter. This starts off the predictably action packed finale. The bikers come to his house and there is a big action sequence. While I was not crazy about the way they filmed the action sequences the sound design was pretty great as you really feel the impact of every bunch and hear every bone crack. 

Final Thoughts-

This is exactly the type of movie you would expect it to be as it hits all the action movie tropes. That being said this film did have a certain charm to it. The casting of Franco was a good choice as he delivers a solid villain even if the character is not written particularly well and Statham is solid in the lead. If your in the mood for some mindless action entertainment this wouldn't be a bad choice but its not particularly memorable either. 

MY RATING-

3 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart               

Horror Movie Reviews: Land of the Dead (2005)

Land of the Dead (2005)
Director: George A. Romero
Starring: Simon Baker, John Leguizamo, Dennis Hopper
IMDB: 6.3
RT: 74
Box Office: $46.7 Million (Worldwide)

Summary-

After the zombies have taken over the world, civilization survives within a walled city. There is a divide between the rich who live in a luxurious tower and the poor who live in the streets. A group of people attempt to threaten the wealthy just as the zombies breach the city.



Review (Spoilers)-

Romero returns to the zombie genre for the first time in 20 years with this film. It seems to have received decent reviews although significantly worse than his original trilogy. I didn't really care for this film for a number of reasons that will be explained below.

The film opens with Riley Denbo (Simon Baker) and his group of people doing a supply run for their community. He is clearly in charge but Cholo DeMora (John Leguizamo) seems to be a threat to that. Cholo goes to pick up some alcohol that he can sell and in the process one of the people with him is bitten. This continues to increase the tension between Riley and Cholo. After they gather their supplies they head back to the community led by an armored vehicle called Dead Reckoning.While they are leaving you start to see that some of the zombies are becoming more intelligent and they begin to follow the survivors after they leave. This scene was okay although I could immediately tell that I was not going to like any of these characters.

Dead Reckoning

The group of people return to their community which looks like Pittsburgh. The city is run by a group of elite rich people that live in a luxury building called Fiddler's Green. The rest of the people have pretty shitty living conditions and watch zombie fights and gamble for fun. There is a pretty overt political message about the Rich taking advantage of the poor in this film. Cholo brings some booze up to Kaufman (Denis Hopper) who is the guy in charge of this community. Cholo is owed a lot of money by Kaufman and hopes to be able to move into Fiddler's Green but Kaufman turns him down. Cholo proceeds to steal Dead Reckoning and take it out of the community and threatens to launch some missiles at the Fiddler's Green if he isn't paid a bunch of money. This just seems really stupid, what the hell are you going to do with money if you leave the only community that uses it? It's just such a stupid idea! Of course what is even worse is that Kaufman refuses to pay because he doesn't negotiate with terrorists. I would have just given the guy money since it is pretty much just useless pieces of paper but everyone in this movie is an idiot. Dennis Hopper gives a pretty shitty performance as the human villain of the movie as well.

Zombies crossing the river

So Kaufman sends Riley with his friend Charlie, a hooker named Slack and a couple of goons that work for him to go and stop Cholo. While all of this is going on the zombie horde is slowly moving towards their community. Riley and his group are able to stop Cholo but by the time they do that the zombies have broken into their community. They try to save the people but everyone is pretty fucked. This is where you get all of your good zombie scenes but the plot is just so stupid that I didn't care.

Final Thoughts-

This was a huge letdown after watching the old school Romero zombie films. Sure it has a few good moments but this is by far the worst written one that I have seen (I have not watched Diary of the Dead or Survival of the Dead). I hated all of the actors in this film and didn't even like the zombies in it much either. This is pretty much just for die hard zombie and George Romero fans only.

MY RATING-

2 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart

Horror Movie Reviews: Day of the Dead (1985)

Day of the Dead (1985)
Director: George A. Romero
Starring: Lori Cardille, Terry Alexander, Joseph Pilato
IMDB: 7.2
RT: 82
Box Office: $5 Million (Domestic)

Summary-

A small group of scientists and military personnel are living in an underground bunker during the zombie apocalypse. The scientists are working desperately to find a way to either cure the zombies or make them not want to eat humans. Their experiments begin to cross the line, further developing the tension between the military and the scientists.


Review-

Is it blasphemous to actually like this film better than Dawn of the Dead? While that film may have been a bit more action packed and featured more zombies I had more fun with this one!

The film opens with a group of people flying in a helicopter through Florida. They land in a town and try to see if they can find anyone but all they find are hordes of zombies. They return to their base and you can see that their are tons of the zombies beating at their fence. The group of people take an elevator down into an underground bunker. You immediately can feel the tension between the military and the scientists. I also liked the look of these zombies much more than in Dawn of the Dead.

Desolate streets of Florida

There are 3 scientists that are working in this compound, Sarah who is essentially the main character of the film, a guy they call Frankenstein who does the more absurd experiments and another guy that I could not tell you what his name is. Sarah is attempting to eradicate the disease while Frankenstein is attempting to make the zombies more docile. Rhodes, the newly promoted leader of the military unit (their previous commander had just died) wants immediate results as he is tired of losing men in attempts to capture zombies to experiment on. There are essentially two factions that are operating in this bunker, the scientists and the helicopter pilots on one side and the military people on the other.The majority of the film revolves around the tensions between these two groups and there is a clear political message about anti-intellectualism. I can understand why people where initially disappointed in this film because it is more of a slow burning character study but I still found it fascinating. I especially liked the experiments on Bub the zombie. He actually has a very interesting character arc and also serves as part of the political message of the film.   

Bub

Now while some may find the 2nd act of the film depressing and boring (I don't) they can't argue that the third act is awesome! All of this tension between the military and scientists builds to a point where they are all going to kill each other. Unfortunately for them, Miguel who was Sarah's boyfriend has been on the verge of insanity for a while. When he is bitten and they chop off his arm to stop the infection from spreading and he finally loses it. He goes above ground and lets a bunch of zombies into the complex and everything goes to hell. The finale is awesome and brutal and has some phenomenal practical effects. I had been hooked all the way through and the final act sealed the deal in my love for this movie!

Final Thoughts-

I really enjoyed this film and it probably ranks as one of my favorite zombie films. It has that bleak, post-apocalyptic feel that I was looking for while having just enough comedy in it to keep you sane. It's not just a straight up horror movie though either as it does have a political statement which seems to be the case in all of Romero's zombie films. I'm the guy who always likes the less popular films in a franchise and i guess its no different here.

MY RATING-

4 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart

 

Foreign Film Reviews: Oldboy (2003)

Oldboy (2003)-
Director: Chan-wook Park
Starring: Min-sik Choi, Ji-tae Yu and Hye-jeong Kang
Country: South Korea
IMDB: 8.4
RT: 80
Box Office: $14.9 Million (Worldwide)

Summary-

Dae-su Oh is an average guy who one night is randomly kidnapped and imprisoned for 15 years. He is finally released and wants to know why he was kidnapped and who was his captor. He soon discovers that the real question is not why he was imprisoned but why he was released.


Review (Spoilers)-

Over the past few years I have started to develop a love for Asian cinema. I have always heard this is one of the best and I finally got a chance to watch it last night. Wow is this an amazing movie!

The film opens with Dae-su in a police station for public intoxication. His friend comes to bail him out and they go to a pay phone to call his family and let them know he is okay. While his friend is talking to them on the phone Dae-su disappears. It then jumps to several months later and Dae-su is being kept in a prison like room. We see the routines that he is put through and what is life is like for the 15 years. Then one day they release him on a rooftop of a building. He goes to a restaurant and meets a girl working there and they both feel like they know each other. The first act of the film does a great job at establishing Dae-su as a character and really peaks your interest as to why he was imprisoned.

Dae-su's home for 15 years

The second act is all about Dae-su trying to figure out why he was imprisoned. This seemed like the weakest part of the film but I was also tired when I was watching the film so I might have missed a few things. I did like a couple of the action sequences in this part of the film although I would not say that this is an action film. There is one scene in particular where Dae-su fights a bunch of guys in a hallway that was really badass.

 
The film builds up the mystery more and more as you go along as Dae-su and Mi-do try to solve this mystery. It seems like everyone knows who he is and that he is not in control of what is going on. It all leads to a shocking and brutal third act and finale. Even if the movie moves a bit slow in the 2nd act, the payoff at the end is well worth it.

Final Thoughts-

I understand why this film has been so highly praised. Not only is this a well made, well acted and creative film but it also features a phenomenal story. I also really enjoyed the soundtrack to the film as well which always is a big deal for me. I tried not to spoil the plot too much because this is a movie that any film fan should see right away!

MY RATING-

4 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart   
   

Horror Movie Reviews: Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Director: George A. Romero
Starring: David Emge, Ken Foree, Scott Reiniger, Gaylen Ross
IMDB: 8.1
RT: 95
Box Office: $55 Million (Worldwide)

Summary-

Four people take refuge in a mall during a zombie apocalypse. They clean it out of zombies but eventually must defend it from armed people as well.





REVIEW (SPOILERS!)-

I have always heard that this is the greatest zombie film of all time. Since I have been in the mood for zombie films I decided to finally give it a watch last night. While I did enjoy the film, I do think it has been a bit over-hyped.    

The film opens in a news studio as reports are coming in about the zombies. They are trying to provide information to their viewers but people are starting to take off. We are introduced to Stephen and Francine as they plan to get out by using the traffic helicopter. Then we are introduced to Roger and Peter who are police officers and are trying to clean out people in a housing project. This is when you get your first glimpse of the zombies as the police have to battle some of them. It's hard to go from watching modern zombie films to this because the production quality is so different. The zombies have a blue skin tone and just look really fake overall. Initially I did not like it but eventually  I was won over by how campy it was. There are some pretty cheesy/over the top actors and some funny special effects right away. Roger and Pete decide they are going to get out before the zombie outbreak gets worse and they go to meet Stephen and Francine at the helicopter. They take off in the helicopter and just keep moving without any real plan until they find the mall.

Don't point a gun at me!

Once they get to the mall the film really starts to get interesting. This is also the portion of the film that has the most social commentary (all about consumerism). They find a way into the mall and hide in a storage area at first. They soon decide they want to go down into the mall and check out what is in the stores. This is probably the most fun part of the film as Roger and Peter have a blast go through the department store and get the things they want. They are able to avoid the zombies and get the supplies, they are also able to form a plan about how to survive here. The zombies seem fairly easy to manage if you keep them in small enough numbers. Things change when they attempt to put trucks in front of the entrances to the mall. Roger is bitten and you see the slow process of him turning into a zombie. Before he dies they are able to finish killing all of the zombies in the mall and secure it.

   
Up until Roger turns into a zombie, things seem like they can be okay. It seems like they can make a life in this mall but it quickly changes. Another group of survivors (led by horror legend Tom Savini) finds the mall and storms into it with guns blazing. They let all of the zombies back into the mall and pretty much everything goes to hell.

Final Thoughts-

I see why people like this as it is a poignant social commentary, a cool story, has some memorable moments and is pretty campy. That being said I did not find it to be all that scary. I think its an important film to watch for fans of the genre but it definitely isn't one of my favorites.

MY RATING-

3.5 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart

Horror Movie Reviews: 28 Weeks Later

28 Weeks Later (2007)
Director: Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
Starring: Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner, Imogen Poots
IMDB: 7.0
RT: 71
Box Office: $64.2 Million (Worldwide)

Summary-

 28 weeks after the outbreak the people infected with the virus have starved to death and a US led NATO force is attempting to resettle London. A carrier of the virus gets into the the facility and the virus starts to spread all over again.




Review (SPOILERS!)-

The opening sequence may be my favorite part of the whole film. It begins with Don (Robert Carlyle) and his wife who are living in a country cottage with some people. They let in a little boy who is on the run from some zombies and they quickly break into the house. There is a desperate scramble to get out of the house and Don leaves his wife and escapes out a window. He then runs across a field to a boat where another one of his group is trying to get out but is bit and turns into a zombie as well. He manages to get out and then it jumps to 28 weeks later. This scene is exhilarating and you really feel the emotions of this guy as he escapes. You see how people will do anything in order to survive, even if it means abandoning your loved ones. We then get information that explains what has occurred since the outbreak of the virus. This is where I start to have issues with this film because it seems like the people in charge are making very stupid decisions. They decide to start resettling people into London even though they have not even decontaminated the entire city let alone the country. I can't imagine the world leaders would be that stupid.

Shit they gone eat me!

We then are introduced to Tammy (Imogen Poots) and Andy (Mackintosh Muggleton) who are kids moving into this new London settlement. It is revealed that they are the children of Don who has been living at this place for a while. He has to tell them that their mom is dead but they are going to start getting back to normal life. We are also introduced to Scarlet (Rose Byrne) who is an Army doctor and Doyle (Jeremy Renner) who is an Army Sniper. Apparently everything is safe as all of the zombies have died off but the Military has not finished getting rid of all the bodies so the citizens are kept in a confined area. Of course once this idea is established the kids instantly leave the safe area in order to find a picture of their mom from their house. They then find their mom hiding in the house and the military comes and finds them. This all seemed a bit farfetched for me. How the hell did she get out of the house in the opening sequence without getting killed? I get why she would go to the family home in London but that also seems like it would have been a long journey on foot.

Rose Byrne and Jeremy Renner

She is then brought back to the facility and Scarlet examines her and discovers she is a carrier of the disease but is immune to it. The husband comes back to apologize to her for leaving and when they kiss he is exposed to the virus and changes into a zombie. This starts another outbreak of the virus as he escapes and starts infecting other people. It becomes pure chaos and the Military enacts Code Red which means they have to exterminate the population to prevent the virus from spreading. They start killing all of the civilians and fire bomb the whole complex but the zombies still get out into the rest of the city. The rest of the film follows Scarlet, Doyle, Tammy and Andy as they attempt to survive. Doyle helicopter pilot friend gives him a location that he can be extracted and the group heads for that spot. This whole part of the film is pretty well paced and exciting. You get a lot more zombie killing and violence in this than in the original film which should appeal to some.  

Helicopter vs Zombies

The transition from 2nd to 3rd act is pretty weak as they both kind of flow together. The problem with this is that the final act feels a bit repetitive but the pace is brisk enough that the film doesn't drag. Most of the people in the group get killed but eventually they do manage to get out alive but they leave it open for a sequel as they show zombies loose in front of the Eiffel Tower before the credits roll.

Final Thoughts-

This is a much more polished looking film than the original but the story is a significant step down. The characters are very flat and there really isn't much of a message like the first film. This is a film more about getting from point A to point B and trying to cram in as much blood and scares along the way as it can. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing as the film is very entertaining, I just wish there was a bit more meat to it. I would have liked more plot development about the Military and what they where doing and more about this community they set up. Overall I still had some fun with this movie and would be intrigued to see a third installment in the franchise at some point.

MY RATING-

3 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart    

Horror Movie Reviews: Chris Reviews 28 Days Later

28 Days Later (2002)
Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Cillian Murphy and Naomie Harris
IMDB: 7.7
RT: 87
Box Office: $82.7 Million (Worldwide)

Summary- 

After animal rights activists let out infected chimpanzees, a virus sweeps across Great Britain. Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes up 28 days after the outbreak to an abandoned London. He meets Selena (Naomie Harris) and together with Frank (Brenadan Gleeson) and his daughter they attempt to find somewhere safe from the infected people.


Review (SPOILERS!)-

I am pretty new to the Zombie genre. I have always had an interest in post apocalyptic films because its a genre my dad likes a lot but I had never seen many zombie films. The Walking Dead was really what sparked my interest and now I really want to dig into this genre. 28 Days Later was a film I had always heard great things about and it looked interesting from the few scenes I had seen.

The films opens with some animal rights activists breaking into an animal testing facility. They plan to release some chimpanzees despite a scientist warning them that they are infected with "Rage". The chimpanzees get out and attack the people and after they are bitten the people turn into blood puking, crazed zombies. It then cuts to "28 Days Later" and Jim waking up in a hospital bed. He gets out of the hospital and starts wandering the streets of London and there is no one in sight. I really liked the cinematography in the opening few scenes but the intentionally bad video quality really bothered me. All of the colors are very muted and the whole film looks like it was shot on a SD Sony Handycam or something. I was able to get passed that later in the film but initially it really bothered me.

Jim wandering through London

After wandering around for a bit he goes into a church and sees bodies laying everywhere. He attempts to talk to the people in there and they try to attack him. He starts to run and is rescued by Selena and another person. They explain the situation to him and then come with him to his house as he wants to know what happened to his parents. He finds out there dead and then during the night they get attacked by some of the zombies and the other guy gets bit and Selena kills him instantly. You find out that it only takes about 15 seconds to start to turn. I really liked that element of the film. It makes encounters with these zombies a lot more intense in that if someone gets blood in their system you have to kill them right away, there is no time to grieve about it.  The first act wraps up with Selena and Jim being rescued by Frank (Brendan Gleeson) and them hearing about a safe zone over the radio and deciding to go for it.

Manchester on Fire

 As they make there way to this safe zone there are a couple of very interesting scenes that I liked. My favorite is when they attempt to go through a tunnel and encounter a huge pileup of cars. They plow through them and get to the other side but get a flat tire. Then hoards of rats start coming towards them as they are running from the zombies. I think that is the most intense tire changing scene I have ever seen as they manage to get the tire changed right as the zombies get to the car. There are also some more lighthearted moments such as the time they go to the grocery story or when they eat lunch and watch the horse running in the countryside. There is a nice balance of horror and happiness although I think I might have preferred to keep the tone darker throughout the whole film. When they finally reach their destination it appears to be abandoned which upsets Frank who is subsequently infected with a drop of blood that gets in his eye. Right as he is starting to change he is shot dead and they are rescued by some military personnel. This begins the third act as they are brought to a house that has become a military stronghold.   

 

The third act is where a lot of the action takes place as we not only see how this military unit fights the zombies but also fighting among the non-infected. I don't want to spoil it too much if you have not yet seen the film but suffice it to say the military guys are not good either. This leads to a violent but somewhat confusing climax. That being said there is a happy and satisfying ending to the film.

Final Thoughts-

If you really want to dig into this film you can find a lot of social commentary and symbolism. For instance when Jim wakes up in the hospital he is completely naked which is supposed to represent him being born into this world. He is innocent but is exposed to horrible violence from the infected and in the third act he becomes violent himself in order to save the people he cares about. Its an interesting social commentary and makes this film a bit more interesting than I thought it was immediately after watching it. That in combination with the solid direction and writing make this an above average horror film for me. Sure I'm not crazy about the video quality aesthetic but that does not detract enough from the film to prevent me from liking it. 

MY RATING-

3.5 out of 5

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart  

Action Movie Reviews: Chris Reviews Escape Plan

Escape Plan (2013)-
Director: Mikael Hafstrom
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone
IMDB: 6.8
RT: 49
Box Office: $137.3 Million (Worldwide)

Summary-

Ray Breslin (Stallone) is an expert at breaking out of prisons. He has a company that is usually hired by the Federal Bureau of Prisons to test their security. He gets an offer to test a secret prison called The Tomb that contains the worlds most dangerous people captured by the CIA (Terrorists etc.). He is framed and trapped in this prison that was designed based on his ideas of how to make prisons more secure and must work with Rottmayer (Schwarzenegger) in order to escape.


Review (SPOILERS!)-

This was a film that I missed in the theaters but was initially very excited about. Unfortunately after some lackluster reviews I put it on the back burner in terms of movies I needed to watch. I wish I hadn't because I really dig this film!

The story starts with Ray Breslin as an inmate in a Prison. He gets himself put into the isolation cell after he starts a fight in the prison yard and begins to work out how to escape. It doesn't take long for him to get out and meet up with his employees Abigal (Amy Ryan) and Hush (50 Cent). After his business partner Lester Clark (Vincent D'Onofrio) explains to the police and the Warden of the Prison what happened, Breslin explains how he escaped. This whole sequence is pretty well paced and quickly establishes everything you need to know about the characters and the situation. I really liked the concept right off the bat even if the actors where a bit stiff.

After everything is established Breslin is offered a very lucrative job to test out a special prison that's privately funded to house some of the worlds most dangerous people. It immediately seems like a bad idea but Breslin goes for it anyway. When he meets the employers things go bad very quickly and he is drugged and wakes up inside the prison. This prison seems very intimidating as all the cells are glass and its in the middle of a large warehouse type room with tons of guards.

Kind of like Magneto's Prison in X-Men

The guards at this prison are brutal as you immediately see them beating the fuck out of people. I guess this is what Guantanamo Bay is like cause it seems like their are no rules for the guards. He then meets Hobbes (Jim Caviezel) who is the soft spoken, clean cut but harsh Warden. Once he gets released into the common area you see all of the typical prison movie tropes (different gangs etc). This is when we get introduced to Rottmayer who immediately takes interest in Breslin. This is where the film really starts to get interesting as Breslin has to figure out the layout of the prison and how it operates. Initially it seems like Rottmayer is to willing to be Breslin's friend which bothered me but there is a reason for it that is revealed at the end. Warden Hobbes realizes that it is Breslin who has brought into the prison and is exited because he based the designs of the prison on the book thathe wrote about prison security. This adds another challenge on top of simply breaking out of the prison.  

Action Legends conversing

The middle act of the film is mostly about Breslin trying to figure out where this prison is which becomes another complication to the story. Then the usual tropes of a prison film of planing the escape which Breslin says there are three important factors to; knowing the layout, knowing the routine and having help from the outside. Throughout the course of this middle act they figure out all three of those which sets the film up for a big finale. The main issue I had with this part of the film is that they have another plotline about Warden Hobbes wanting information about some CIA target that Rottmayer worked for. I didn't really care about that aspect of the story and simply wanted them to focus on the prison escape. That being said at the end of the film you realize that the plot point about this CIA target is pretty important.

Warden Hobbes

The final act where they escape is where all of the action is in the movie. While I think the overall escape plan is murky and not particularly creative it is still pretty exciting. There is a short but brutal fight that I liked between Breslin and the Warden's Henchman who gets thrown down a flight of metal stairs. There is also some shoot out scenes throughout out the prison as they are trying to make their escape. Once they get to the outside of the prison Rottmayer has some friends who come to rescue them in a helicopter which provides Schwarzenegger and opportunity to mow down some bad guys with a machine gun. If your into these types of movies these are the moments that you are waiting for. Then of course you have to have the moment where they kill the bad guy and say one liners. (Schwarzenegger "Have a lovely day asshole!") Once they escape the prison they quickly tie up all the lose ends although I think that is the most forced part of the whole film.

Final Thoughts-

This is clearly not the most original film or even a particularly well written one but the script is good enough to keep you interested. The characters are pretty flat but luckily when you have Stallone and Schwarzenegger you don't need dynamic characters, they just play themselves and we love them for it. The two of them carry this film and make it fun enough to be memorable. I think this is equal to if not better than either of their last solo films (Bullet to the Head, The Last Stand) and is worth watching for all action film fans!

MY RATING-

3 out of 5 

-Chris "Da Franchize" Hart