The Hobbit movies have a real chance to be longer than a reading of the Hobbit would take. I went to go see the second of the movies, The Desolation of Smaug, this past weekend. Not only does it show almost everything that’s in the book, it brings in a significant number of scenes that aren’t even hinted at in the book, mostly with Gandalf when he leaves the party. Overall it’s a decent movie that tries to hard to be more than it is. Let’s check it out.
Category Archives: movies
Ender’s Game movie review
Just so there is no confusion, this review will be ignoring all the controversy about author Orson Scott Card’s beliefs. The review will look at Ender’s Game as a movie and as an adaptation of the popular book. In both views, the movie falls short. It fails as a movie and does not do a particularly good job in adapting the book. Let’s see where the problems lie. WARNING: Spoilers ahoy.
Knowing movie review
I was recently talking to someone about the movie Knowing and could have sworn that I had reviewed it previously. But, looking through my archives, I couldn’t find it. The movie was directed by Alex Proyas, who is still living off his wonderful movie Dark City (my review). None of the movies he’s made since then really have the same visual appeal, but he does keep trying. Nicholas Cage dominates the movie and he chews up scenery thoroughly. Knowing isn’t a great movie, but I get the feeling that there could have been a good movie somewhere in here. Let’s check it out.
Planes movie review
If you’re like me, then Cars is far down the list of Pixar films (with probably only Cars 2 below it). So it was with some trepidation that I went to see the new movie Planes, set in the same world as Cars. Two things to note: First, I was dragged to see this against my will and second (and possibly more important) it’s not a Pixar movie. Planes is the first sequel to a Pixar movie made by Disney studios (which confuses everyone since Disney owns Pixar). Basically, a different group of people made Planes than made Cars. Sorry to say that they didn’t make it any better in their attempt. Let’s check it out.
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters movie review
Three years after the original Percy Jackson movie, our half-bloods are back in the sequel, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters. Most of the cast is the same (although Giles from Buffy replaces Pierce Brosnan as Chiron) as we pick up some undetermined time after the first movie. The first movie was decent, but not spectacular and this second movie continues in the middling vein. However, the movie has significant changes from the book. Let’s check it out.
Miracle Mile movie review
Miracle Mile is one of those movies that never hit it big when it came out in 1988 and never quite caught on in the cable circuit. It might have fared better in the Internet age, where people who love this little movie could get together to talk about and promote it. But, every now and then, you might be able to catch it late night on a cable station, between the other movies of the same name. The movie plays off a single plot point and spirals out of control. It never completely achieves what it sets out to do, but it’s a hell of a ride along the way. Let’s check it out.
R.I.P.D. movie review
The movie R.I.P.D is based on the comic of the same name. Not having read the book, I thought the premise was interesting and the movie might do a decent job of conveying it. Boy was I wrong. It wasn’t a bad movie, but it was extremely bland. There were a few moments of humor and some decent special effects, but overall it was a thoroughly predictable action movie that left me wanting to leave. Let’s check out what went wrong (spoilers inside).
Monsters University Review
I love Monsters, Inc. It’s one of my favorite Pixar movies. The interactions between Mike, Sulley and Boo were just perfect and the emotion carried the story throughout the entire picture. So, I was a little worried about the prequel, Monsters University, especially since Pixar’s last few movies were not at the same level of their earlier films (and Cars 2 was just plain mediocre). The movie is…decent. It’s not a bad movie, but it’s certainly not anyway near the level of Monsters Inc. Let’s check it out.
Man of Steel movie review
There’s a minute in the latest Superman movie, Man of Steel, where I think I’m going to like this movie a lot. One of my chief complaints about superhero movies is the extended and mostly useless origin story. The origin lasts 30-45 minutes and doesn’t really add much to the story. We just end up with less time to tell the story the filmmakers really want to tell. And, for most superheroes, we don’t need to know or care about their origin.The Man of Steel gave me hope for a minute, but then it descended into a loud, dreary mess that should embarrass everyone associated with the movie. Let’s see what went wrong. WARNING: Spoilers inside
Star Trek: Into Darkness movie review
I wasn’t sure I wanted to see the Star Trek sequel. I liked the first movie, but didn’t love it. No matter how much JJ Abrams tried to hide it, I knew who the villain would be (and that fed into my reluctance to see it). But, in the end, I went and saw it. While there were some good parts, overall I wasn’t thrilled with it. Warning, there will be spoilers below as I talk about the issues I had with Star Trek: Into Darkness.