Archive for Action

By definition, adventure/action movies always have an air to them that makes them unbelievable. But often you can overcome this by having a riveting tale of adventure that keeps you glued to your seat. Unfortunately, Journey to the Center of the Earth, starring Brendan Fraser, Josh Hutcherson, and Anita Briem, was one of the most forgettable movies that I have seen, an unbelievable tale that bastardizes Jules Verne’s classic book. In this iteration of the tale, the filmmakers (with Eric Brevig as director) tried to make up for a lackluster storyline by utilizing new 3D technology. The technology left my two sons, who saw the movie with me, constantly asking, “Why does the picture seem so grainy?”

So if combining an unbelievable story, a predictable plot line, and non-awe-inspiring effects is your formula for an action movie, then you should see Journey to the Center of the Earth. For everyone else, just save the cash.

I’m always good for a video game movie, though once is more than enough. Face it, if you dropped the money and time to get through boss levels and find secrets, what’s another $9 and 90 minutes going to hurt? In the case of the Doom movie, it could hurt plenty.

This fall Mark Wahlberg will have a chance to play Max Payne in the upcoming action flick Max Payne. In 2001, as a freshman at Keene State, I spent many a night consumed by this game. The story, graphics and “Bullet Time” blew me away. It practically played out like a movie. I was sad to watch it all end through a sniper scope on a skyscraper.

I don’t mind Marky Mark as an actor, and I think he can handle this role, though someone with a darker demeanor would have been cool. The thing: Max Payne is a cop who has nothing left but to get answers or get dead, can Mark pull that off? He has to play a guy with nothing to lose. (Well, if you saw Boogie Nights, you might say he could stand to lose a few inches. Man, even I’m grossed out by that one.)

Rounding out the cast we have Mila Kunis and Chris Bridges and Meg Griffin and Ludacris. But wait we also get Beau Bridges, Donal Logue and Chris O’Donnell too. Where the heck has Chris O’Donnell been anyway, waiting for a new Robin gig to surface?

Max Payne, as a game, was awesome and maybe my expectations will be a little high for this movie, but I have to be excited. Anything can be better than the debacle that was Doom (the movie). Did I mention that movie was a waste of time? Max Payne hits theaters October 17 in real time.

Before I took a trip to the movies yesterday, I checked out how The Dark Knight faired on Rotten Tomatoes, a Website known for being a harsh critic on movies. To my surprise, The Dark Knight had achieved 94% on the “tomatometer”, which actually makes it one of the most highly rated movies on the site.

Armed with my ticket I entered the theater and braced myself for an unforgettable experience. Oddly enough, I am among the 6% who did not enjoy the movie, and I even wish I could forget the experience.

As far as the characters go, I think the actors did a good job, but in my case, this is a bad thing. The Joker, played by Heath Ledger, seemed like such a creep that it was hard for me to keep my eyes on the screen while they focused on him. I felt like all of the voices were low and monotonous, often hard to understand over all of the action scenes. Critics credit this movie for being very “deep”, but all I can think is that they confused this word with “dark”. I might be more content with the movie if there were a glimmer of light or an ounce of casual humor in it. Alas, there was neither. I found myself listening to line after line of sadistic comments spewing from the mouth of The Joker. I felt I never would be set free from his evil, twisted manners.

In an article on MailOnline, Chris Tookey wrote, “It doesn’t fight terror, it embraces it.” I couldn’t put that into better words. It’s like no one in the film would just stop The Joker’s madness. The problem is that the movie is also longer than the average movie: 2.5 hours. When I had to use the bathroom during the movie, I found myself not caring that I missed a segment of the movie. (That has never happened to me before.)

I’d like to conclude by saying that if you’re specifically into action, this movie will not disappoint you; the special effects are fantastic, but I cannot say that for the rest of the movie.

The “Summer of Superheros” is officially over. And what a season it turned out to be. I entered the theater five times and was pleasantly and incredibly surprised. Let’s recap.

Ironman was a great way to start the summer: humor, smarts and action, oh and Robert Downey Jr. This movie had perfect parts of each ingredient.

The Incredible Hulk finally gave us a green giant to cheer for, thankfully. Although they could have kept Jennifer Connelly, I promise not to complain too much. Liv Tyler sufficed.

In Hancock, Will Smith manages to save humanity, yet again, and not drop any rum either. I was surprised by this movie and actually enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Plus, Charlize Theron wasn’t playing some kind of psycho killer for once, which helped.

Hellboy 2 had visuals that alone made this movie worth seeing. I thought I was watching an extended Tool music video, but the red devil really pulled through with this one. I was worried this movie would be the sophomore slump, and it wasn’t. I just hope they make a third one.

The Dark Knight, wow! I think Christian Bale has dethroned Michael Keaton. Sorry Mike, you had a good run. What made this movie was. . . everything. Seriously, if you haven’t seen it, you need to do so. This movie, I feel, lived up to the hype and pressure.

I will say I haven’t been this excited for a movie season since the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and Kill Bill 2, and I was pretty excited. However, if the sight of death and violence bothers you, try Wall-E. Trust me, that little guy is as much a hero as any of the above mentioned.

Jet Li has released a new movie, and this time he forms a brotherhood with Takeshi Kaneshiro (Chunking Express, House of Flying Daggers) and Andy Lau (House Of Flying Daggers, Infernal Affairs) in The War Lords.

The Warlords is set during the corrupt rule of the Qing Dynasty in China. Because of oppression suffered by Chinese people due to corruption, a group of rebels formed the Taiping Rebellion to fight for the rights of the people. Jet Li (Brother Pang) is a defeated army general fighting the rebels when they were betrayed by their ally and left for dead. Brother Pang barely survived and was saved by a group of bandits, whom he convinces to join the Chinese army to be able to take care of his family. They agree, but he must join their brotherhood. They form a brotherhood and make a pact to free all Chinese people from oppression. However, as they succeed more and more, Brother Pang becomes hungry for more power and eventually puts their brotherhood in jeopardy.

As with any good action and war movie, the setting is very fast-paced and rarely gets boring. It was direct to the point and always exciting. It was an attempt by Peter Chan to make a beautiful movie about an ugly truth. And it did work. The movie was about two hours long, and there were times when I had to go back and wonder what had just happened. But otherwise, it was a good movie that touches on brotherhood, love and commitment. It’s not a movie that excels technically since everything was so simple, but it’s a movie that borders on good and excellent because it attempts to strike a chord in people’s hearts.

Watch The Warlords, not for the action it shows, but for the message it portrays.

All right, if you happened to catch the blood bath that was Wanted you probably did what I normally do for these types of movies: turn off my logic and let my eyes follow the explosions. I was ready for some kind of generic summer blockbuster along the lines of Independence Day or a Die Hard flick. What I got was something with Angelina Jolie and explosions.

Truth be told, Wanted wasn’t that bad. I practically was dragged to the theater by my girlfriend, who has an unhealthy obsession with James McAvoy. She was delighted to see her fantasy boyfriend dance on the big screen wielding a gun and killing people. Yes, I know she’s kind of weird like that. The funny part about all the advertising for this movie, especially the posters, is that they emphasize so much on Jolie you forget that McAvoy is the lead character.

We sail through the rigorous training process Jimmy has to endure so he can be accepted by Jolie’s bunch of merry assassins. Oh, but wait! Morgan Freeman happens to be the fellow in charge of the whole thing. Nothing can make someone blush like hearing Morgan Freeman use foul language.

I’m pulling away here. Overall the movie was a little generic about having some nobody realize he has a twisted fate, only to find out he happens to be a pawn in a larger game. The action, once it picked up, was pretty consistent and did manage to keep me fixed on the screen. Aside from the list of superhero movies coming this summer, I have a feeling Wanted could be the summer’s big action flick, which is kind of disappointing. Personally, there needs to be at least one more senseless, non-hero action movie coming out, or it just wouldn’t be summer.

The final acting role for late actor Heath Ledger is a dark, whimsical walk into the world of new villains and even more action than previous Batman films. The story revolves around the introduction of the Joker, played by Ledger, but it is rumored that toward the end of the film the villain Two Face makes his first appearance. (Unlike the comics, Dent’s alter ego is portrayed as more of an anti-hero than necessarily a villain.)

You can best describe Ledger’s character as a less fun-loving rendition of the Jack Nicholson version who is a psychopathic, schizophrenic killer. Director Chris Nolan wanted a frightening anarchical portrayal of the Joker, and Ledger definitely delivers.

Like every other Batman film, you have classic fight scenes and even a few surprises. You will find plenty of worthy quotes to repeat over and over again, and you may find a few unexpected cheesy moments. Brilliant chase scenes and a sense of the ever-coming wow factor add to the necessity for you to see this film again immediately after you have exited the theatre.

If you only see one movie this summer, I highly recommend Batman: The Dark Knight when it hits a theatre near you on July 18^th. The stars Include Maggie Gyllenhall, Heath Ledger, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Anthony Michael Hall, Eric Roberts and Gary Oldman.

If you haven’t seen Iron Man, stop reading and go. Why are you still reading this?

All right, now that you’ve sat through the awesome movie featuring Robert Downey Jr., just wait a few weeks because the summer of superheroes has just begun.

Up next is that lovable green giant, the Incredible Hulk. Sticking closer to the comics than the last Hulk movie, I’m dying to see how Edward Norton does in this role. We all know he can fight, but how angry can he get? Weighing in as the largest superhero of the summer, this movie looks like it will not disappoint.

It wouldn’t be summer without a Will Smith movie, and Hancock looks like the best antihero to come to our rescue. However with Jason Bateman as his comic promotions agent/sidekick, this movie seems to have a lot more promise than your normal hero movie. Plus, the direction Will Smith has taken lately in films is only going to help his career further down the road.

I’ve come to the realization that whatever Guillermo del Toro touches is Spanish gold. This summer everyone’s favorite cigar smoking, sarcastic red devil is back for Hellboy II: The Golden Army. As the world of fantasy dies, Hellboy must stop an army from invading the real world. Think Pan’s Labyrinth minus Ivana Baquero and add tons of monsters to keep Hellboy asking: how do I kill it?

Finally, two words: Bat, wait for it, Man. Much like Daniel Craig reinvigorated the James Bond franchise, Christian Bale has given new hope to fans that thought Batman movies were dead. Honestly, I don’t care what the plot is, Heath Ledger’s Joker looks completely demented, and I can’t wait to see him and Bale go toe to toe in Gotham. Viva la Dark Knight.

They should have used this for the tagline for The Forbidden Kingdom because this is the first movie in memory where Jet Li smiles more than once and actually looks like he means it. The Forbidden Kingdom was touted as the first pairing of Kung Fu superstars Jet Li and Jackie Chan. That was enough to get a core fan base out. But how was the movie?

Honestly? It delivered. The martial arts were excellent, as expected. Plus, the story was fun, well told and well delivered. Jet and Jackie both play dual roles (and I won’t give out any more spoilers), but Jackie, by dint of far better English and a more personable screen presence, carries the film.

The plot centers around a young, American kid who gets swept into the realm of the Forbidden Kingdom and has to become a great, wise warrior in order to save the world and return home. As with the Wizard of Oz, he wants to get back. Unlike Oz, you can’t figure out why, until the very end, and even then, it’s a little questionable.

The young star is the same kid who starred in Sky High. He’s a normal looking person, not too gorgeous, not ugly, and he does a great job with two masters, two actors who both have logged considerably more screen time.

As said earlier, the martial arts are great, as are the rest of the special effects. You don’t want the movie thinking about the CGI, you watch it thinking about how cool this world looks.

It has a remarkably happy ending for a martial arts film. Honor is still the paramount issue, but the good guys aren’t completely screwed over in order to save the world and everyone’s honor. Martial arts, Jet Li, and Jackie Chan, you really can’t go wrong.

Tony Stark, the titular hero’s alter-ego, is a socialite who enjoys the drink and the womanizing so much that it seems to be more of a compulsory action than a voluntary one. How fitting that Robert Downey Jr. is the one to get tapped to bring the troubled superhero to the big screen, right? That jab was so easy that I almost feel bad for taking it. Almost.

Mr. Downey, Jr.’s troubled real life is what, I believe, makes him the only actor capable enough to fill the iron boots. He comes across as completely believable in his role as Tony Stark; so much so that the movie doesn’t have to rely on the intense action scenes to carry it like so many of Marvel’s latest films. Though I wouldn’t have minded seeing a movie with nothing but Iron Man flying around blowing things up.

The plot is fairly simplistic and easy to predict, but it’s forgivable considering the source material. The Marvel films seem to have struck a nice balance between high action, humor, and fan-service, but I feel Iron Man has stepped it up a notch. Even a passing knowledge of the Iron Man universe will yield plenty of references and little inside jokes. Though the hardcore Iron Man fans don’t have to worry, the film doesn’t take many liberties with the fiction.

After all is said and done, I can safely recommend Iron Man to anyone looking for a fun film that doesn’t strive to be taken seriously. The high-quality action, compelling acting, and funny-little-quip after funny-little-quip will send just about anyone out of the theater with a smile on his or her face. Just be sure to wait until the credits end. Trust me, you’ll enjoy the sequel hints.