Difference in Opinion

Batman

Released: 1989

Rated PG-13 for violence and disturbing images.

Cast: Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Michael Gough, Jack Palance, Tracey Walter, Pat Hingle

Rating: 9 out of 10

Runtime: 2 Hrs. 6 Mins.

Favorite Quotes: “Haven’t you ever heard of the healing power of laughter?” “I’ve recently had a tragedy in my life. Alicia…threw herself out of the window. But, you can’t make an omelette without breaking some eggs.” “Where does he get those wonderful toys?” “Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?” “You IDIOT! You made me. Remember? You dropped me into that vat of chemicals. That wasn’t easy to get over, and don’t think that I didn’t try.”

Summary (from IMDB): After a young boy witnesses his parents’ murder on the streets of Gotham City, he grows up to become the Batman - a mysterious figure in the eyes of Gotham’s citizens - who takes crime-fighting into his own hands. He first emerges out of the shadows when the Joker appears - a horribly disfigured individual who is out for revenge on his former employer and generally likes to have a good time.

The Bad Stuff:

- Kim Basinger isn’t very good. She looks pretty and screams. That is pretty much it.

The Good Stuff:

- This movie is awesome. It set the bar very high for all Batman movies to live up to.
- Michael Keaton makes a great Batman and Bruce Wayne. In some of the later movies, the actors are either a good Wayne or a good Batman. I will talk about those movies when I get to them.
- The combination of Danny Elfman’s music and Prince’s is great.
- Jack Nicholson is a fantastic Joker.

This is a great introduction to the Batman franchise. Tim Burton’s vision fit perfectly. The acting, art design, direction, casting, and music all worked together very well. It has a great blend of comedy, action, and drama. I highly recommend this to anyone who likes Batman or a good action flick.

Batman

Released: 1966

Rated PG for violence.

Cast: Adam West, Burt Ward, Lee Meriwether, Cesar Romero, Burgess Meredith, Frank Gorshin

Rating: 8 out of 10 for pure nostalgia

Runtime: 1 Hr 45 Mins

Favorite Quotes: “Penguin, Joker, Riddler… and Catwoman, too! The sum of the angles of that rectangle is too monstrous to contemplate!” “The Riddler is loose to plague us with his criminal conundrums.” “They may be drinkers, Robin, but they’re still human beings.” “Some days, you just can’t git rid of a bomb.”

Summary (from IMDB): When Batman and Robin are called out to rescue Commodore Schmidlapp, they are unaware that they are actually being fooled and the real Schmidlapp is being kidnapped by four of Batman’s most feared enemies. The Catwoman, The Joker, The Penguin and The Riddler are working together to try and take over the world once and for all.

The Bad Stuff:

- There is no bad stuff, if you don’t take this movie seriously. If you do, you will find a lot of things that are wrong or stupid. If you don’t, you can sit back and get lost in the obsurdity of it.
- Actually, there is one bad thing. Robin is a tool.

The Good Stuff:

- This is easily one of the most quotable movies ever. The lines themselves (and the deliveries by the actors) are classic.
- Meriwether (Kitka/Catwoman) is hot.
- If you liked the old TV show, you will love this movie. It has everything that the show had, including the “Pow!” and “Whack!” anytime someone gets hit.

- This movie has everything. Including, but not limited to: dehydrated pirates that get rehydrated, a bomb that is in shark which is biting Batman’s leg, a submarine that is painted to look like a penguin, the best aliases ever (P. N. Guin for example), the longest stare directly down the lense of the camera ever, drawn on eyebrows and nose, and so much more.

I think I might be a little biased towards this movie because I was raised on it. I don’t know how many times I watched it, rewound it, and watched it again. It is a classic that will never die.

Hollow Man

Released: 2000

Rated R for strong violence, language and some sexuality/nudity.

Cast: Kevin Bacon, Elisabeth Shue, Josh Brolin, Kim Dickens, Greg Grunberg, Joey Slotnick

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Runtime: 1 Hr. 52 Mins.

Favorite Quotes: “You know what, Matt? It’s amazing what you can do… when you don’t have to look at yourself in the mirror any more.” “You don’t make history by following the rules, you make it by seizing the moment.”

Summary (from IMDB): After years of experimentation, brilliant but arrogant scientist Sebastian Caine has discovered a way to make matter invisible. Determined to achieve the ultimate breakthrough, Caine pushes his team to move to the next phase - using himself as the subject. The test is a success, but when the process can’t be reversed and Caine seems doomed to future without flesh, he begins to show some unexpected side effects of his extraordinary condition.

The Bad Stuff:

- This movie started out with a lot of potential, but quickly turns into an above average slasher movie.
- Shue’s character is an idiot. I blame the writing and directing. (Possible Spoiler Below)

She gets trapped in a freezer. The has a giant metal bar with her and a guy with a puncture wound. She gives him a quick fix and tries to figure out how to get out. After a few minutes of trying to get out, she gives up and starts crying. Hey! You have a giant metal bar! Beat the crap out of the cooling system. Once that goes, you will be able to think more clearly and won’t freeze. You didn’t even try to stop the fans blowing the cold air. I thought you were a scientist. Scientists should be smart and not idiots who I don’t care about.

- The bad guy is the person who I identified with the most. I wanted him to get away with everything that he was doing. All of the good guys, I could not care less about. They are lame and stupid. You are supposed to care about them, but I hoped that they would die.

The Good Stuff:

- Kevin Bacon gives a great performance. The amount of info that he gives with his tone of voice is amazing.
- The CG was way ahead of its time.

This movie isn’t the best. It was entertaining at the time, but the more I think about it, the more I don’t like the main “good guys” of the story. It is worth watching for the CG effects, Kevin Bacon’s performance, and the concept that it started with. After it turns into a slasher movie, it is laughable and predictable, but kinda fun.

The Ghost and the Darkness

Released: 1996

Rated R for some violence and gore involving animal attacks.

Cast: Val Kilmer, Michael Douglas, Tom Wilkinson, John Kani, Bernard Hill

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Runtime: 1 Hr. 49 Mins.

Favorite Quotes: “Darling… you know how God invented liquor so the Irish wouldn’t rule the world. Well, I think he may have invented being stubborn so we can be the best at something.” “What better job in all the world than build a bridge? Bring land over water. Bring worlds together.” “I’m a monster. My only pleasure is tormenting those people who work for me.”

Summary (from IMDB): Set in 1898, this movie is based on the true story of two lions in Africa that killed 130 people over a nine month period, while a bridge engineer and an experienced old hunter try to kill them.

The Bad Stuff:

- Val Kilmer’s Irish accent comes and goes through the whole movie. While doing a great job with the character, the accent distracted a lot from a great performance.

- There are parts of the movie that didn’t actually happen. I hate it when movies add things to spice up the story, when they really aren’t needed.

- The acting is ok. Tom Wilkinson definitely gives the best performance, but isn’t in the movie much.

The Good Stuff:

- Michael Douglas’ character is great. He is probably the most interesting person in the movie. The only bad part is the fact that his character was added into the movie to help it sell.

- The tension is held very well from beginning to end.

- The lions were amazing.

Overall, this is a good movie. While not being the best, it tells an interesting and captivating story. There are parts that could have been done a bit better, but it is definately worth the watch.

Enchanted

Released: 2007

Rated PG for some scary images and mild innuendo.

Cast: Amy Adams, Patrick Dempsey, James Marsden, Timothy Spall, Susan Sarandon, Julie Andrews

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Runtime: 1 Hr. 47 Mins.

Favorite Quotes: “The steel beast is dead peasants! I’ve set you all free!” “I seek a beautiful girl. My life partner, my one coquette, the answer to my love’s duet.” “He knows the song too? I’ve never heard this song before!”

Summary (from IMDB): An animated fairy tale meets modern, live-action comedy. The beautiful princess Giselle is banished by an evil queen from her magical, musical animated land and finds herself in the gritty reality of the streets of modern-day Manhattan. Shocked by this strange new environment that doesn’t operate on a “happily ever after” basis, Giselle is now adrift in a chaotic world badly in need of enchantment. But when Giselle begins to fall in love with a charmingly flawed divorce lawyer who has come to her aid - even though she is already promised to a perfect fairy tale prince back home - she has to wonder: Can a storybook view of romance survive in the real world?

This is obviously a little different from the other movies I have done so far. I was so impressed with it that I couldn’t not do a review for it.

The Bad Stuff:
- They tease with an image of a dragon close to the beginning and it looked really cool. When it showed up, I was a little disappointed. I can understand why they toned down the scary (children’s movie) but I was hoping for something a little more like the Sleeping Beauty dragon.

That is the only problem I had with the whole movie.

The Good Stuff:
- Amy Adams does a great job of blending every Disney princess into one character. Everything from the inflections of her voice to her movements fit perfectly.
- James Marsden completely stole the movie. He is by far my favorite part. It was weird to see Cyclops from X-Men wearing a prince costume and singing, though.

- It was fun to try and point out which Disney movie they were referencing in different scenes. Fun stuff from an angry midget that “Giselle” calls Grumpy to the subtle arm placements and costumes of the dance scene.
- Everyone’s acting was great. Each person fell right into place in the world that the film makers created.
- The CG was done very well.

This movie is a lot of fun and it is very family friendly (unlike the rest of the movies I have reviewed). I was very skeptical that I would like it, but it absolutely blew me away.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Released: 1998

Rated R for language and drug use.

Cast: Johnny Depp, Benicio Del Toro, plus a ton of cameos

Rating: 9 out of 10

Runtime: 1 Hr. 58 Mins.

Favorite Quotes: “We can’t stop here. This is bat country” “You can turn your back on a person, but, never turn your back on a drug. Especially when it’s waving a razor-sharp hunting knife in your eye.” “There he goes. One of God’s own prototypes. A high-powered mutant of some kind never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die.” “Few people understand the psychology of dealing with a highway traffic cop. A normal speeder will panic and immediately pull over to the side. This is wrong. It arouses contempt in the cop heart. Make the bastard chase you. He will follow.” “I’m a relatively respectable citizen. Mutiple felon perhaps, but certainly not dangerous.” Plus a ton more that I won’t put here.

Summary (from IMDB): An adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s novel of the same name. The film details a whacky search for the “American Dream”, by Thompson and his crazed, Samoan lawyer. Fueled by the massive amount of drugs they purchased with an advance from a magazine to cover a sporting event in Vegas; they set out in the Red Shark. Encountering police, reporters, gamblers, racers, and hitchhikers; they search for some undefinable thing know only as the “American Dream” and find fear, loathing and hilarious adventures into the dementia of the modern American West.

The Bad Stuff:

- This movie can be very overwhelming. There are a lot of drug hallucinations that, obviously, don’t fit with the story. After I saw it for the first time, I said to myself, “What the crap did I just watch?”

- It can seem very long. Definately have to be in the right mood.

The Good Stuff:

- Johnny Depp makes this movie. He is simply amazing to watch.

- The relationship between Depp and Del Toro is great. Each plays off the other very well.

- Del Toro can be so intimidating. When he is on acid, he is scary.

- This movie is very funny. It has a lot of memorable lines.

- While being funny, it isn’t afraid to switch the mood out of the blue.

I love this movie. While confronting the mind set of people after the “acid wave” of the 60s, it is very funny and off-the-wall. The search of the American Dream is something we all can relate to.

Greenstreet Hooligans

Released: 2005

Rated R for brutal violence, pervasive language and some drug use.

Cast: Elijah Wood, Charlie Hunnam, Claire Forlani, Marc Warren, Geoff Bell, Leo Gregory

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Runtime: 1 Hr. 49 Mins.

Favorite Quote: “You don’t run, not when you’re with us… You stand your ground and fight!”

Summary (from IMDB): A wrongfully expelled Harvard undergrad moves to London, where he is introduced to the violent underworld of football hooliganism.

The Bad Stuff:

- The slang that the Brits use can be hard to understand, at least until you see the movie a couple times and get used to it.
- The Brits’ accents are hard to understand as well. I had to turn on the captioning the first few times I saw it.
- Claire Forlani, while being hot, isn’t the best actress.
- This movie is very violent, not only violent but brutal. That can be a major turn off for a lot of people.

The Good Stuff:

- The acting in this movie is fantastic. Charlie Hunnam really stands out from the rest of the cast.

- The action is great. The “battles” are choreographed very well and shot very well, too.
- The relationship between everyone in the “firm” is very clear. It is a very important part of the story and it is brought out beautifully.

- The scene with Elijah Wood playing football with the kids that Hunnam’s character teaches is great. It is a good, light-hearted part, which is needed in this movie.
- Geoff Bell as Tommy Hatcher is terrifying. He can be charming at times, but you can sense something sinister underneath everything he says.

This movie was a lot better than I thought it would be. It is intense, funny, violent, and touching. I don’t like football, or soccer, and this movie made it look awesome. It has a great story and great action.

Titus

Released: 1999

Rated R for strong violent and sexual images.

Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Jessica Lange, Harry Lennix, Angus Macfadyen, Alan Cumming, Colm Feore, Laura Fraser. Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Matthew Rhys

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Runtime: 2 Hrs. 42 Mins.

Favorite Quote: “If one good deed in all my life I did, I repent it from my very soul.”

Summary (from IMDB): War begets revenge. Victorious general, Titus Andronicus, returns to Rome with hostages: Tamora queen of the Goths and her sons. He orders the eldest hewn to appease the Roman dead. He declines the proffered emperor’s crown, nominating Saturninus, the last ruler’s venal elder son. Saturninus, to spite his brother Bassianus, demands the hand of Lavinia, Titus’s daughter. When Bassianus, Lavinia, and Titus’s sons flee in protest, Titus stands against them and slays one of his own. Saturninus marries the honey-tongued Tamora, who vows vengeance against Titus.

The Bad Stuff:

- This movie can seem really long. You definately have to be in the right mood for very heavy Shakespeare.
- Julie Taymor is notorious for using a lot of imagery and she doesn’t break her trend. The only problem is the fact that some of the images and segments in the movie aren’t neccessary and seem to just be there to be pretty or interesting without moving the plot forward.
- Some of the dialogue is moved around from the original play, making things happen out of order. This would only bother theatre nerds, like myself.
- The language can turn some people off. If you can’t understand Shakespeare, you won’t like the movie.
- The little kid is annoying.
- The final shot of the movie goes on f-o-r-e-v-e-r. It could have easily been cut by 2 or 3 minutes.
- Tamora’s sons (Meyers and Rhys) are over-acted to the point of being distracting.

The Good Stuff:

- The acting is amazing. There couldn’t be a better cast for this movie. Alan Cumming, Anthony Hopkins and Harry Lennix really stand out with their performances.
- The concept of blending almost every time period was really cool and done very well.
- The sets and locations are interesting to look at and fit the scene very well.

- The costumes are great. They really add to the concept of the film.

I think this is one of the best Shakespeare adaptations to date. It is acted and directed in a very knowledgeable and fascinating way. If you love heavy drama and Shakespeare, I highly recommend seeing this movie.

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

Released: 2007

Rated R for aberrant behavior involving nudity, violence, sexuality, and disturbing images.

Cast: Ben Whishaw, Dustin Hoffman, Alan Rickman, Rachel Hurd-Wood

Rating: 9 out of 10

Runtime: 2 Hrs. 27 Mins.

Favorite Quote: “Because it’s a legend, you numbskull.”

Summary (from IMDB): Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, born in the stench of eighteenth century Paris, develops a superior olfactory sense, which he uses to create the world’s finest perfumes. His work, however, takes a dark turn as he tries to preserve scents in the search for the ultimate perfume.

The Bad Stuff:

-This movie can drag. Some moments are very slow. This can make it seem a lot longer than it is.
-The end scene seemed a little strange. It was so fantastical that it didn’t really fit with the rest of the story.

It is a sign of a good movie when I can only think of two things that bugged me.

The Good Stuff:

-Ben Whishaw gives an unbelievable performance. He doesn’t say much, but his actions speak louder than the words that he says.

-Alan Rickman and Dustin Hoffman give great performances as well.

-The production design and attention to detail is amazing. It captures the era very well.
-The soundtrack fits perfectly.
-John Hurt as the narrator was a great touch. His voice almost commands you to listen.

This movie is an interesting story with terrific acting on all parts. It is suspenseful, funny and disturbing all at the same time. I highly recommend seeing this movie at some point.

I thought I would do something a little different for this review. I will be following one director through the three movies that he has made. This director is Eli Roth.

Cabin Fever

Released: 2002

Rated R for language, sexuality, violence/gore and drug use.

Cast: Rider Strong, Jordan Ladd, James DeBello, Cerina Vincent, Joey Kern

Rating: 5 out of 10

Runtime: 1 Hr. 33 Mins.

Favorite Quotes: “That guy asked for our help. We lit him on fire. You’ll understand if I’m not in a particularly social mood.” “I don’t want any of us getting sick, but you two f**kin’ f**kers insist on touching her, now she’s bleeding all over both you guys! So you two can f**kin rot, but not me, no f**kin’ way not me!” [runs off carrying beer]

Summary (from IMDB): An offbeat horror tale about a group of five college friends on vacation at a remote mountain cabin when one contracts a flesh-eating virus. As it spreads among the friends, their true feelings and personalities emerge as they struggle to survive the virus and each other.

The Bad Stuff:

-The acting is super cheesy. I know this movie wasn’t supposed to be taken too seriously, but the acting could have been a lot better.
-Rider Strong saying, “F**k” is hilarious. I just keep seeing Shawn Hunter from “Boy Meets World” saying it.

-The script isn’t very good. It sounds like something that drunken frat guys would write.
-The character of Dennis is way too weird for me. At one point he is just sitting on a porch-swing and the next, he is doing a ton of Tae Kwon Doe. I forgot to mention that he bites people as well.

The Good Stuff:

-This movie is very funny at times (not only on accident, but a few times on purpose).
-The makeup was done very well. It looks very believable.
-The character of Deputy Winston is amazing. He steals the movie.

Overall, this isn’t a very good movie. Having said that, if you are in the mood for a cheesy, over-the-top, funny horror movie, this one is for you.

Hostel

Released: 2006

Rated R for violence, blood/gore, sexuality, nudity, language and drug use.

Cast: Jay Hernandez, Derek Richardson, Eythor Gudjonsson, Barbara Nedeljakova, Jana Kaderabkova, Jan Vlasák, Rick Hoffman

Rating: 8 out of 10

Runtime: 1 Hr. 34 Mins.

Favorite Quotes: “I get a lot of money for you, and that makes you MY bitch.” “Can’t you keep your f**king Viking ass in your pants for two seconds?” “I’ve been all over the world. You know, I’ve been everywhere and the bottom line is: Pussy is pussy. You know, every strip club, every whore house, every… It’s all the same shit. You know, I just f**ked a girl two days ago and I don’t even remember the color of her tits. But this… This is something you never forget, right?”

Summary (from IMDB): Paxton, Josh and Oli are backpacking across Europe when they are told about a hostel in Slovakia. Once they hear that this hostel is infested with beautiful European woman who only want tourists, they quickly get on a train to the wonderful promise land. As soon as they get there, they start having the time of their lives. Soon after they arrive, they slowly start to realize that this hostel is hiding a terrible and dark secret.

The Bad Stuff:

-The acting can be a little corny at times. This mostly falls on Jay Hernandez in the first half of the movie.
-It is slow to get into the actual story of the hostel that they are going to.
-It is very violent and there is A LOT of nudity.

The Good Stuff:

-It is very violent and there is A LOT of nudity. In these days, horror movies have stepped up a notch to be scary or intense. Lately, horror movies have tried the same old formula that has been used for years and it is getting old. This movie rose to the challenge to be different and original.
-Jan Vlasák, who plays the Dutch Businessman, is probably the best actor in the movie. He is very intense and he has very piercing eyes. It is even more impressive since he learned all of his lines phonetically.
-Rick Hoffman stole one of the two scenes he is in. He had a very small part, but is one of the most memorable parts of the movie.
-All of the makeup and prosthetics look amazingly real.
-A lot of the horror lies in the sound design. The movie doesn’t show a lot of the torture, but it is implied with the sound that they use. It makes your imagination go wild, which is a lot worse than just watching it.
-The whole movie is a commentary on human nature. The boys start off paying for prostitutes to do anything (sexually) to them. By the time they get to the hostel, people are paying to do whatever they want (violence or whatever) to others.

This movie is intense. It definitely isn’t for everyone. If you love horror movies and the direction that they are going currently, you will like this one. This was a huge step up from “Cabin Fever.”

Hostel: Part II

Released: 2007

Rated R for language, violence/gore, nudity, sexuality, drug use.

Cast: Lauren German, Roger Bart, Heather Matarazzo, Bijou Phillips, Richard Burgi, Vera Jordanova

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Runtime: 1 Hr 33 Mins.

Favorite Quotes: “Is he hot, or is he too Eastern Bloc?” “Hands on your pencils, boys!”

Summary (from IMDB): Three female college students take a detour from their partying, enticed by a beautiful European woman who promises seclusion, safety and maybe even romance. What they get is a living hell where they are sold to the highest bidder who’s fondest wish is to kill them slowly. Hostel 2 also follows 2 American men who, on the flip side of the coin, are willing to pay to join an exclusive club where a life will end at their hands…any way they like.

The Bad Stuff:

-This movie has the same problems as the first one.

The Good Stuff:
-The story is more interesting than the first. Not only does it focus on the victims, but it shows the inner workings of the hostel and what the people are like that pay to do these things.
-Richard Burgi’s performance is fantastic. His character arc is fascinating to watch.

-Roger Bart’s performance is amazing, as well. Again, the character arc is great to watch.

This movie, obviously, isn’t for everybody. Out of the 3, this one is the best. Eli Roth’s talent for directing and writing has grown with every movie that he has done. I would watch out for his movies in the future. Hopefully, his talent will keep growing.