Movieman's Guide to the Movies
The Final Word on Physical Media
Resident Evil: Retribution is a lazy movie and one that despite a $65 million budget, felt so much smaller as the cast are contained more or less in one location (given Tokyo, Moscow and NYC were all computer simulations) but even so, situations are created that make no sense and you have characters who make decisions which not only defy logic but would’ve kept them out of unnecessary fights.
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There are many reasons I should denigrate the action sci-fi remake Total Recall, but despite all its problems, I still found it moderately entertaining. That being said, it’s not a movie I’d highly recommend and would instead say it’s at best worth a rental rather than purchase for multiple viewings.
Dick Tracy is hardly a perfect movie but star/director Warren Beatty does a tremendous job translating the source material into the feature film format. Between the art direction, production and costume designs, the visuals on the movie are fantastic and Beatty as Tracy was perfect.
Although hardly a great sequel even when compared with the others, Ice Age: Continental Drift overcomes any problems with a thin plot with at least a modestly fun adventure with likeable characters and jokes which mostly hit the mark. No, it’s not remotely close to anything Pixar has put out or even DreamWorks Animation for that matter, but since it only clocks in at 88-minutes, it’s a breezy flick to watch on a slow afternoon which the entire family can enjoy.
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The Bourne Legacy is a fine entry in the series and while it’s not as good as the previous three or as well polished, it’s still a fun movie with solid action scenes that keeps good pace after the first 10-15 minutes. Even though Legacy is as well refined as the other movies in the series, the potential is there for another sequel and a finale that involves the title character again.
MIB3 is a fine outing in the series and helps put the lackluster sequel in the rear view mirror and with the addition of Josh Brolin, really injected life into a relatively aging franchise. The script, interestingly enough, despite having three screenwriters (at least), was fairly coherent. I don’t think this is a great film and might not quite measure up to the first movie, but it’s still entertaining. Even so, the movie is still a lot of fun.
I suppose if you’re going into Silent Night wanting to revisit the good old days of the 1980s slasher genre, it will probably meet your expectations. However, if you’re looking even for a miniscule amount of logic –answering a question posed by the main character – then the film will disappoint. I couldn’t find much here to be entertaining.
The Kung Fu Panda Holiday Special isn’t anything profound or breaks new ground in terms of animation or anything, but with a short running time and a good message, this can be watched by the entire family.
Although the disc is pretty light on features – damn near empty, in fact – the fact that Deathtrap finally gets a proper widescreen release is good news for any fan, especially those in North America.
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Ritual is a second-rate supernatural thriller that features a decent performance from the lovely Jennifer Grey. Is she enough for one to sit through 90-minutes? Probably not, but I suppose if you’ve enjoyed even below average “Tales from Crypt” episodes, you might find this to be an adequate outing.
Collision Earth is the typical SyFy Original Movie with bad CGI, poor or stilted acting, one-dimensional characters with zero personality and a plot taken from some fan fiction.
Catch Me If You Can is a cool and energetic crime-drama featuring great performances, a fascinating main character, an amazing score and excellent direction that holds up quite well today.
ParaNorman isn’t a perfect movie by any stretch and the story isn’t all that interesting, at least in the middle part, but one can’t help but admire the stop-motion technique and just what’s involved to make a 90-minute feature film. Along with the voice casting, the movie is absolutely fantastic to look at.
I consider The Tall Man to be the surprise movie of 2012 going beyond my limited expectations and a story that was at first confusing but quickly brought back into focus with plot points which make complete sense once the twists are revealed.
Savages isn’t a complete waste of time but it was a waste of potential. The main characters aren’t very well developed though it’s not helped that the actors don’t deliver better performances and the use of voice over from Blakely was annoying. There are a couple glimmers of light: the film looks great thanks to director of photographer Dan Mindel and Benicio Del Toro is fantastic in a small but integral role.