Planet Terror

The Good:
I sincerely have nothing good to say about this giant steaming pile of crap.

The Bad:
Oh dear - where to start.

The acting was horrifically bad. If you can call any of what I saw acting.

The effects were cheesy and overdone.

There was no plot, none what-so-ever.

All in all:
There is no reason to even bother with this "film". The actors in it should be ashamed to have been a part of something this horrible. Where Tarantino succeeded with Death Proof in making a tribute film that was also good - Rodriguez failed on all possible fronts. In the opening 2 minutes of the "commercials" prior to the actual movie there were 4 breasts and more blood than in the lawnmower sequence of Dead Alive - and the effect was done just as poorly. The dialogue was retarded, as was the story, if in fact there was a story. Take every good and memorable sequence from a Zombie movie (all of which have been done before) and beef those up with stupidity to take away everything that made them good and memorable. Add to that nonsensical plot points, overdone super poor effects and horrible dialogue - and you end up with this movie. I've watched some bad movies in my time, I've always been able to make it through them - I could not make it through this one. It was so bad - in fact - my husband who will watch just about anything - tried three times to watch it and still couldn't make it through. This was without a doubt the worst thing I have ever seen. Shame on you Rodriguez. Shame.

Stardust

The Good:
All of the actors were fantastic. Michelle Pfeiffer was a delightfully evil witch, Claire Danes was the perfect mix of innocence and bravado, Charlie Cox was perfectly adorable as Tristan - but it was Robert DeNiro who really stole the show as the marauding sky pirate Captain Shakespeare.

The princes were wonderful. I was almost more engaged by the ridiculous hilarity of their story than anything else.

The effects were quite good for a Fantasy film.

The story was engaging and fun - along the lines of a Princess Bride type story.

The Bad:
It was a straight up Fantasy film, a fable, a fairy tale. If this type of story does not appeal to you - then this film won't be for you.

All in all:
Though I couldn't convince my husband to watch it with me - this was actually a very fun film. I went into it not expecting much, and was rewarded beyond what I had imagined. I am a girl at heart, though my preferences tend to bend toward horror and suspense and things not typically considered girly - I enjoy a good Fantasy piece - and this was very good.

Death Proof

The Good:
I haven't laughed this hard at Kurt Russell since his Big Trouble in Little China days. Russel makes Stuntman Mike so much fun to ride along with. His lines are perfectly delivered and a dead on mix of humor and insinuated serial killer creepiness that keeps you watching.

Tarantino delivers one of the best "oh my god that was horrible" moments I've seen in quite some time. Kudos Quentin. Well done!

"The Girls" were AWESOME. Zoe Bell, Rosario Dawson, and Tracie Thoms were so kick ass! I'm a sucker for a good girl power moment and these ladies delivered and then some!

The Bad:
The choppiness and loss of color and sound that were added to give the "feel" of the true Grindhouse movies of drive-in lore often just made you think that something was wrong with the DVD. This, I'm sure, would have translated better in the theatre.

Over all:
Don't go looking for a cinematic masterpiece but go in for a good time and you won't be let down. The movie was fun and as with all of Quentin's work the dialog was fantastic.

The Orphanage

The Good:
As with Pan's Labyrinth, Guillermo Del Toro's hand can be felt touching this piece. It was beautiful. The colors were rich even in their darkness. The music and sound were crystal clear. The story was solid and the actors always hit their mark.

The Bad:
This was billed as a horror movie and it really wasn't scary at all.

Over all:
If you liked Lady in the Water then you'll like The Orphanage. I went into this expecting a horror movie. What I got was a beautifully done reinterpretation of the Peter Pan fairy tale. I was not disappointed at all.

Blade Runner: The Final Cut

The Good:
The effects were solid and at times beautiful. Watching this again after years reminded me just how far ahead of it's time this movie actually was.

Harrison Ford - the man, the myth, the legend. Had my first crush on him as Han Solo, couldn't get enough of Indiana Jones - but to me he will always be Rick Deckard. Everything that Keanu Reeves did wrong in translated Philip K. Dick's character for A Scanner Darkly - Ford did right in Blade Runner.

Sean Young is stunning in this movie. She's beautiful and vulnerable and everything Rachael was meant to be.

Oh how I love Rutger Hauer as Roy Batty! Equal parts vicious emotionless killer and thoughtful heart-wrenching poet he embodies everything Roy was meant to be. His final moments in the film are still one of my favorite cinematic moments of the Sci-Fi genre.

I would be amiss to say that I wasn't influenced by Daryl Hannah's Pris. One of the first characters I ever built in City of Heroes was completely based on her interpretation of this role. Sex kitten meets lunatic assassin and played to a tee.

The Bad:
Watching it then the soundtrack (done by Vangelis) didn't seem out of place - watching it now the music seems dated and too cheesy for such a solid film.

I don't feel like the location of the movie was clearly explained so it became confusing at times to understand why there was such an Asian influence.

Over all:
I loved this film when first I saw it, and I love it even more the second time around. If Scanner failed miserably to interpret a solid novel - the Blade Runner succeeds on all aspects. I have enjoyed many of Ridley Scott's movies but this may be my favorite.

A Scanner Darkly

The Good:
I enjoyed the book when I read it so of course I enjoyed the story here as well. Philip K. Dick is a brilliant writer so the story is solid.

All three of the auxiliary characters played by Robert Downey Jr. , Woody Harrelson and Rory Cochrane were wonderfully played. They were fun to watch and laugh out loud funny at times which is exactly how I felt about them in the books.

The Bad:
The animation was... bothersome. I understand they just filmed the scenes and drew over them but it was like they didn't take the time to line them up correctly half the time so people's faces distorted and moved in ways they shouldn't. This detracted from the film.

I am not a fan of either Keanu Reeves or Winona Rider and this film didn't do anything to help either of them for me. They both seem to always be stilted and non-existent in anything they're a part of. Scanner was no exception. In the book, though addled by drugs, Reeves' character was dynamic and interesting. In the film he was flat and you just didn't care what happened to him. Caring what happened to him was the central emotion of the book. Rider on the other hand was dealt a character who in the book you both sympathized with and despised. In the film you just despised her.

Over all:
For me this is another read the book, skip the movie. Or perhaps read the book, skip any scene of the movie that does not include Rory, Woody or Robert.

30 Days of Night

The Good:
Visually it stayed very close to the amazing art that Ben Templesmith brought to the graphic novel. This was important to me because the art was such a huge part of what made the graphic novel so good. It was nice to see that they took Templesmith's interpretation of vampires and brought it to life in 3D.

They didn't play with the story TOO much. But really - this is more a compliment to Steve Niles who wrote the graphic novel than to the movie itself. When I stumbled across the graphic novel I was amazed that someone hadn't come up with the idea before - it seemed too perfect. There ARE places in Alaska that are dark for 30 days solid out of the year. Of course vampires would go there. Of course.

They honestly could not have cast the main vampire (Marlow) any better than with Danny Huston. His mannerisms, the way he spoke, his slightly jarred movement - straight out of the comic and everything that made the illustrated Marlow as intensely creepy as he was translated beautifully onto the screen.

I was so so so so glad they didn't tinker too much with the Trapper (Beau Brower) too much. He was a badass character in the novel, and he was badass in the film. Kudos to Mark Boone Junior for a part played to perfection.

The Bad:
I'm sure it's tainted by my dislike of Josh Hartnett, however I felt that The Sheriff came across as both too weak and wishy-washy and as much stronger than the comic had him ever become. There was a delicate balance written into the character that didn't translate from book into film. Whether this is the fault of the actor of the direction I cannot objectively say as I do not like Hartnett as an actor and that could taint my opinion in this case.

I felt like they made Stella (played acceptably by Melissa George) weaker than she was in the comic and less of a force than she should have been. Anyone who read the comic (SPOILER ALERT) knows that the heroine of this story was truly Stella, and yet the movie makes her out to be almost an auxiliary character. I didn't appreciate that at all.

Over All:
While there were things I liked, as a whole I felt like this was a piss poor watered down version of an amazing story. The visceral fear and anger and other emotions that were easily brought out by the comic just weren't there for me with the film. I felt that an extreme disservice was done to an amazingly original interpretation of a centuries old vampire tale with this movie. If you want something genuine, read the comic - skip the film.

Apocalypto

The Good:
Visually stunning piece of work.

The plot was strong. Yes it was history mixed with your traditional hero epic - but none the less it was strong, easy to follow, and well written.

Rudy Youngblood was absolutely brilliant as the main character Jaguar Paw. His emotion was tangible and raw. Exactly as it should have been.

Both the main "villains" were also exceptionally good.

The Bad:
It was an epic tale, ala The Odyssey and even Braveheart, which made it a little thick at times and perhaps a bit less accessible to the average viewer.

Again - I put this down as a negative ONLY because some people have so many problems with subtitled movies. This movie is subtitled, for me that was not a problem, but if subtitles bug you than this is not the film for you.

Over all:
I enjoyed it. For me it was particularly neat because I knew the history that surrounded the story that was being told so my mind was constantly pondering what was going on around the central story in the world at the time.

Strange Circus

The Good:
I have nothing good to say about this film.

The Bad:
Ugh. Maybe it was just me. Other people seem to have liked this film but it was just awful. Bad acting, bad staging, just ugh. It was confusing and disturbing but not in the horror movie disturbing kind of way - in the "there's no need for this" kind of way.

Over all:
I rank this right up there with Ichi The Killer. Absolutely no reason to waste your time.

Casino Royale

The Good:
The opening theme or "The Bond Theme" is GREAT. Chris Cornell style.

Daniel Craig was fantastic as Bond. I haven't been even slightly curious about a Bond film since the Sean Connery days and I'm actually very glad I took the time to watch this one. Whereas Remington Steele, oh wait... I mean Pierce Brosnan, was just cheesy and Timothy Dalton was just bad - Craig is a Bond akin to Connery. Cool, calculating, suave and dare I say sexy - he is exactly what Bond should always be.

Mads Mikkelsen was a fabulous villain. The Bond villains almost seem to take over the films from time to time but Mads was so perfectly balanced against Craig he just became a part of things.

This movie has what may be the most incredible chase scene I have ever seen. Definitely the best chase in a Bond movie. I recognized the "villain" who I'm sure was responsible for much of the scenes staging instantly as Sebastien Foucan, inventor of the sport Free Running. I watched a documentary on him and his sport on the Discovery Channel some time ago and if I was amazed with him then - I am even more impressed now. Even if you don't care for Bond the movie is worth seeing if only for this sequence. It's close to the beginning so you can get through it quick.

The Bad:
It's a Bond film, and because it's a Bond film, the plot is extremely predictable. You know who the character set is going to be, you know what's going to happen, you know what the resolution will be. There is very little guessing or surprise involved.

Some of the auxiliary characters aren't as well rounded as you would like for them to be.

Over all:
I really enjoyed this movie, and I didn't expect to. It lacked a lot of what I hate about Bond films (the overt sexism, the cheese, the unnecessary and predictable explosions and gadget sequences) and retained everything I did like (the cool bond, the cool villain, the cool soundtrack).

Across The Universe

Across The Universe Trailer - video powered by Metacafe

The Good:
It was a beautiful movie. The colors were vibrant and the cinematography was spot on.

Great plot - although it was based on historical reality so it's kind of hard to go wrong.

I thought Jim Sturgess, who played Jude, was amazing.

The soundtrack was fantastic. It's Beatles songs we're all familiar with, but covered in a way that is at the very least good and in some cases absolutely fantastic (see Dana Fuchs' cover of Helter Skelter - her voice is AMAZING).

The Bad:
It is a musical, but a very accessible one. I felt I needed to put it down as a "negative" only because some people are very turned off by musicals. I would still HIGHLY recommend this film - but just wanted to throw that out there.

Over all:
I very much enjoyed this film. I can see why it got so much critical acclaim. It made you feel something genuine, which is a rarity with modern cinema most of the time.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

I realized that I never bothered to write a review of the original Pirates. Figured I'd toss one up.

The Good:
There was actually a lot about this film that was very good - which surprised me I will admit.

Johnny Depp was amazing. If you are a Depp fan, and if not I say shame on you, then this is a must see. He is fantastic.

Geoffrey Rush, also fantastic.

The effects were actually stunning at times, which is a lot for someone like me who isn't big on effects most of the time.

The Bad:
Disney Movie.

Disney Movie based on a theme park ride.

Over All:
This movie was a lot of fun. Being that as above noted it was based on a theme park ride in Disney World, that came as a huge surprise with me. I was actually invited to see this in the theatre several times and always passed. I finally saw it on DVD and was blown away. I went into it expecting nothing and was surprised to have a lot of fun instead. I am rarely surprised when I expect nothing from a film so this one gets bonus points for actually proving me wrong - for the most part.

V for Vendetta

The Good:
Wow... where to start.

The cinematography was fantastic.

The lighting was dead on.

The villains were truly evil and the heroes were complex just the way I like them.

The story was great from opening to ending - if there ever is truly an ending to this story.

V was wonderful both to watch and to listen to. Do yourself a favor. Don't read the back of the movie or try to figure out who he is before you watch it. Try to guess. I assure you both that you should be able to figure it out and that you will be well rewarded whether you do or not.

The Bad:
I find Natalie Portman to be flat, one dimensional and ultimately forgettable in almost everything she does save The Professional. Though she was better than average in this film, I felt the character would have been better served by a more multidimensional or personality possessing actress. It was far to important a role to have been wasted as it was.

All in all:
Easily one of the best political statements I have had the pleasure of watching in a very long time. I adore seeing corrupt governments overthrown by the very people they try to enslave and destroy. There is nothing more rewarding. As V himself says "people should not fear their governments, governments should fear their people". Just good on so many levels - particularly when you see that it is a future not to far removed from the direction in which our current leadership would have us move as quickly as possible. A great thing to watch with an election looming on the horizon. If this won't motivate you to dethrone the dictators, nothing will.

The Private Eyes

The Good:
I always enjoy Tim Conway and Don Knotts together.

It was a fun film - there are so few of those now that it makes these even better.

The Bad:
I wished that the sound had been done a little better. There were times where it was almost too quiet to hear, and times when it was unbelievably loud - but this could be because it is an older film.

All in all:
I really had a great time watching this movie. It made me feel like a kid again and that is hard to do. It was a little bit of The Pink Panther mixed with a little bit of Scooby-Doo and overall a great movie for a rainy Saturday afternoon.

Bridge to Terabithia

The Good:
Both Anna-Sophia Robb and Josh Hutcherson were excellent, which was refreshing since some child actors can just be over the top.

The contrast between real elementary/middle school life and the battles of the fantasy world of Terabithia were executed perfectly.

The Bad:
The effects were kind of "meh" - not terrible, but nothing exciting either. In the realm of the first installment of Harry Potter which was also unimpressive.

I would like for the contrast between the two families to have been more clearly illustrated. I think you were given the impression that the girl's family was better even though they almost completely ignored her when they were writing.

All in all:
A fun ride if nothing else. I did think the story was a little too intensely sad at parts for young children which was part of the crowd toward which the film was marketed.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

The Good:
As with all previous editions the casting of 90% of the characters was dead on. The addition of Chow Yun-Fat was excellent, as was the additional cameo of Keith Richards as Captain Jack's father.

Again - very good effects throughout.

Johnny Depp - excellent as with all three - same as Geoffrey Rush.

There was an excellent character foil between the two pirate goof-ups and the two East India Trading Company goof-ups which was carried to its fruition here.

The Bad:
The "love story" - which seemed to consume most of the movie - was a bit hokey and over the top and took away from the legend of Davy Jones instead of adding to it.

I wanted to see Calypso be far more badass than she turned out to be.

All in all:
Out of the three this was definitely last on my list, with the first being well... first. It seemed to lose steam and story with every incarnation. The villains became less evil, less complex while the heroes became wishy-washy and un-heroic. Worth seeing to complete the set but no where near as good as the first or even second film.

The Sixth Sense

The Good:
Some of the effects weren't half bad.

There were a couple of things that definitely made me jump.

Toni Collette is always good.

Haley Joel Osment is a decent child actor.

The Bad:
I know, I know - I'm biased - but Bruce Willis failed to impress. I didn't believe he was a psychologist. I didn't believe he was a human.

The surprise ending was not a surprise. If you're paying any attention at all you can figure it out in the opening minutes of the film.

All in all:
Mediocre at best. I remember being dragged to the theatre by a friend to see this movie. I was told "there is no way you will see this ending coming - this guy (meaning Shyamalan) is great". When I figured out what the ending was a few minutes later - I leaned over to my friend and said "if this is the way it ends, then I want my money back." The reply I got was "how do you do that?". Sometimes it's a lucky guess. Sometimes it's puzzle solving. In the case of this film - it was neither - it is spelled out for you in the opening minutes of the movie and simply reinforced the rest of the way through. Not really surprising.

What the Bleep Do We Know?

The Good:
I like Marlee Matlin.

The Bad:
Though the topic of quantum physics is undoubtedly an interesting one - this film manages to turn the topic into one that is confusing, threatening, depressing and then ultimately hokey. It just mismanages things on a large scale.

The "illustrative skit portions" involving actors took away from the seriousness of the film. Instead of showing you what the scientists speaking meant, it made the scientists look silly and created a fake aura about the whole film.

Some of the scientists, skits aside, were just hard to find credible. Out of all of them I think there was only one I didn't believe was totally full of crap. Particularly the woman - she seemed more like a gypsy card reader than any kind of believable source of information.

All in all:
I'm not going to lie - we did not even finish this film. It just wasn't good.

Microcosmos

The Good:
Beautifully filmed. The camera work in this film is just brilliant. For such tiny tiny things - you really feel like you are a part of the world which must seem infinitely vast to them. I'm not sure if some of these shots were set up in a closed environment or if it all really was filmed in "a meadow somewhere on earth" - but if it was filmed in an actual meadow, then it's even MORE impressive.

The soundtrack is minimal and also perfect. The music becomes a part of the story, without taking over.

The Bad:
I really don't have very much that's negative to say. Spiders freak me out so I wasn't too keen on the spider scenes but that's more my issue than a problem with the film itself.

All in all:
An excellent nature documentary about seldom thought about creatures and the intricacies of their world. Not your typical documentary - very different than most I've seen - but very good. If you don't like creepy crawlies, this is not the film for you - as aside from the brief appearances of a bird and a frog - that's pretty much all there is.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith

The Good:
Though I tend to be a fan of Brad Pitt more in his weirdo than his sex-symbol roles, I actually really liked both he and Angelina Jolie. They were funny and badass and just seemed to be enjoying themselves - which made you enjoy the movie. Of course, now we all know they really WERE enjoying themselves...

Vince Vaughn really stole the show for me in this movie, yet again. He was just hysterical. Reminded me of Dan Aykroyd's performance in Grosse Pointe Blank where he almost overtook John Cusack.

The Bad:
The action sequences were a little over the top - but that's pretty much ALL action movies for me.

There wasn't a lot of plot, or there wasn't a lot of backbone in the plot that there was - but again, that's most action movies for me.

All in all:
It's fun - just don't think too hard.

Unbreakable

The Good:
Samuel L. Jackson.

I found the framing of the film to be very well done. It seemed more like the panels of a comic book which added to the intended super-heroesque feel of the film.

The Bad:
Bruce Willis. I am well aware that my dislike of Mr. Moonlighting often clouds my judgment of movies that I might have otherwise liked. I don't think this was the case here. He just always seems like that generic not really believable action "hero from Die Hard. Like he's just incapable of doing anything else. In the case of this film, much like Keanu Reeves in the Matrix, I was left thinking mostly "if this is who we have to depend on to save the proverbial world - then we're fucked". If I'm going to watch a BW film I'll probably just go back to 12 Monkeys or Sin City and just try to forget this one.

As with most Shyamalan films it just felt staged - like it was trying way too hard to be the cool brain teaser thriller. It failed in all regards.

All in all:
This was by far the worst Shyamalan film I have seen yet. I just really didn't enjoy anything about it. For me it's Unwatchable, but I know many people who enjoyed it so who knows?

Planet Earth

The Good:
Beautifully - and I cannot stress this enough - BEAUTIFULLY filmed. There were some incredible shots in this series. Things that through the thousands of nature documentaries I have seen - I had still never seen before. The film crew was absolutely fabulous, the cinematographer was fabulous, the editing was fabulous.

This series did an amazing job of making you feel as though you were there - that you were a living breathing part of nature itself - instead of the outside observer which you become with most documentaries. For a humanity that has become so distanced from the Earth, from the grounding forces of nature - this series does an unbelievably good job of bring you back down with a comfortable ease.

Sigourney Weaver was an excellent choice for narrator. Her voice was calming and settled into the film so that you almost didn't notice it at times. That may not sound like a good thing - but so many times the narrator in a nature documentary takes over a film and you become focused on it instead of the film itself. This was not the case with SW.

The Bad:
There were some sequences that were just hard to watch - not because they were bad, because they were so real. It was a true vision of the struggle for survival and if seeing the reality of this is traumatic for you than this may not be your cup of tea - or there will be some segments you will simply have to skip.

It left you wanting more. Again - not sure this is necessarily a bad thing - but when it was over I definitely felt like there were more places I wanted to see, more things I wanted to know.

All in all:
Highly recommended. This was simply an amazing piece of work.

The Village

The Good:
This was the first time I had seen Bryce Dallas Howard, and she was quite good. I've seen a lot of movies with sighted people playing the blind and BDH did a passable job of making herself seem visually impaired - unlike many before her.

I just like Joaquin Phoenix. I think he is underrated and under appreciated, often falling into the shadow of what his brother could have been.

Adrien Brody - who is either take it or leave it for me - was quite entertaining in this film. However - I'm not certain he was intended to be quite as funny as I found most of his scenes to be.

Yet another instance where I am reminded how stunning Sigourney Weaver remains to this day. Would that we all could age with such grace.

The Bad:
It is a Shyamalan film, and thus horribly predictable - though he touts himself as being UNpredictable.

The quaint little village people just got on your nerves most of the time.

I felt like the woods were supposed to be a character unto themselves, but they just weren't fleshed out enough to be convincing or as menacing as they needed to be. Much more like the woods nearby a childhood home that you always gave this presence to - but when dared to enter them quickly found that they weren't scary at all.

The "creatures" were campy and staged and seemed like something out of a High School production of Little Red Riding Hood. How anyone could have been sincerely afraid of them and believed they were real for so long is a mystery more so than anything else in the film.

All in all:
Not being a Shyamalan fan - I tend to rank his movies in order of least to most tolerable rather than in line with other cinema. This one goes solidly in the middle with Unbreakable being the worst and Lady in the Water being the best (mostly because it strays from the formulaic repetition of his other films).

Not a horrible movie - but not all that good either.

Wicked Little Things

In retrospect, I shouldn't have watched this movie after watching Unrest. The previous movie was SO good this one would have had to be amazing just to keep up - needless to say... it did not.

The Good:
From looking at the cover art and reading the brief synopsis on the back I gathered I was in for some zombie children goodness - and the zombie children really were the only good thing about the film. They were amazingly creepy. Their movements, their look - and those eyes - even if they had been standing there doing something completely normal those eyes would be creepy.

The Bad:
The plot was awkward and heavy on gleaning from other/better zombie flicks.

The actors were just not good and were constantly doing things that made you think "why would you do that?" or "why didn't you do this?".

You were supposed to feel sorry for some of the characters - but you just didn't.

You were supposed to dislike others - but you just didn't.

In the end you just didn't care what happened to any of them and ultimately just wanted the movie to come to an end. Blissfully - it did.

All in All:
I really didn't think this was worth watching at all. I also didn't understand what was so "questionable" about this movie that made it impossible to get into theaters except as a part of this film festival. I think the only reason this film was never released was that it was bad.

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon

The Good:
The campy "behind the scenes documentary" feel of this film was brilliantly executed.

The scenes of the "retired" cereal killer talking about the good old days was hysterical.

Great shout outs to other films of the slasher/horror genre in that "what Scream did right" kind of way.

Nathan Baesel - who played Leslie Vernon - was excellent.

The Bad:
The main female character was TOO over the top. I didn't care if she lived or died. In fact, I would have voted "die please - and soon so I don't have to listen to your idiotic ramblings anymore".

All in all:
Definitely unique - and enjoyable. I'd watch it again if I saw it on TV but I wouldn't pay for it. An assured one time viewer.

Dark Ride

The Good:
I have watched it - I never have to watch it again.

The Bad:
The entire cast, including Jamie-Lynn Sigler who I expected more from as she was great in The Sopranos.

The plot was done, done and over done.

Another horror film simply overflowing with cliche.

All in all:
Another bomb from the first After Dark Horror Fest. Better luck next year guys.

All the generic MTV era fluff with no substance.

The Hamiltons

The Good:
I like the "I shouldn't be seeing this" documentary style feel of the film.

The Bad:
The pacing was just off and left you bored instead of "along for the ride".

The characters were for the most part despicable - which meant you didn't care about them so once you added in the slow pacing you were left not caring at all whether or not you finished the movie.

All in all:
Sad really - the idea was actually a novel one that I haven't yet seen. I just wish it had been better executed. Another stinker from the first After Dark Horror Fest.

Penny Dreadful

The Good:
The freaky meat stick was way disturbing. I can't say any more. You'll know what I'm talking about if you see the film.

It did a passable job of building the feeling of claustrophobia.

The Bad:
The acting and writing were both bad.

This movie was chock full of those nonsensical "no one in their right mind would do that" moments which resulted in a complete lack of compassion for the main characters because anyone that stupid deserves what they will inevitably get.

All in all:
The title says it all - Dreadful. Another of the first After Dark Horror Fest to avoid.

The Messengers

The Good:
It had a good cast - they just didn't have a lot to work with.

Some good effects and genuine creepy moments - but they borrowed heavily from Asian cinema and didn't do it nearly as well.

The Bad:
This is another in the long line of - "I think I just figured out the whole story in the first 30 minutes - if I'm right I'm going to be really mad" - line of films. And once again - if you think you figured it out - you're going to be right.

All in all:
I spent more time trying to figure out where I'd seen Kristen Stewart (who plays Jess) than I invested in the entire movie. Turns out it's Panic Room. It was just a big let down because you really can figure it all out in the opening sequences - and once you've done that - there is really nothing else that keeps you watching, except the need to see if you were right - at which point you will feel stupid for continuing to watch.

Mortuary

The Good:
Well - the mortuary itself and some of the "stitching up the dead people" scenes were pretty creepy.

The Bad:
It was bad. Just plain bad. I don't even know where to start - it was all bad.

Tasha Yar (aka Denise Crosby) what has happened to you?

All in all:
Do not pass go, do not collect $200 - do not see this film. Even zombies can't save it.

Wind Chill

The Good:
The idea that souls could be trapped forever where they leave the world and that they will continue to come back to help or harm the living is always a disturbing one.

The blank slate of a deep winter's background is a powerful metaphor for desolation and isolation that will elicit fear in even a mediocre setting.

There were some very creepy moments.

The Bad:
I know I say this a lot - but I felt like I'd seen this movie before, and that it had been better.

Most of the time you either disliked or were indifferent toward the main characters.

The creepy moments were short lived and usually mired within some unending dullness.

All in all:
Pass.

Night Watch

The Good:
Fantastic overall cast.

Brilliant effects.

The subtitles were done in an amazingly artsy way that made them BECOME part of the film, instead of just running along the bottom and making you miss things. I wish more movies could pull this off.

Konstantin Khabensky was very, very good. He was totally believable as this formerly normal person who is just sucked into a world of weird one day and expected to deal.

Zavulon is deliciously evil - while still eliciting sympathy. A perfectly crafted villain.

Olga's transformation sequence is wonderfully done. Again - whoever does their effects is very good at what they do.

The execution of the stark contrast between the light and the dark was masterful - and yet the film still managed to allow you to see that everything was rooted in the same gray mire.

The Bad:
Svetlana. I understand she has a part to play but she was so boring and trite and a predictable mire in what was otherwise a standout film.

That disturbing little doll/spider thing that was reminiscent of the freak kids creations in Toy Story. It was upsetting - but it was probably supposed to be.

All in all:
Five Stars. See it - love it - then see the sequel and love it a bit less.

Hot Fuzz

The Good:
The combo of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost is just as hilarious here as in Shaun of the Dead. It was refreshing to see that as often times it doesn't work so well the second time around (see Super Troopers vs. Club Dread).

Timothy Dalton was absolutely hysterical - and I normally hate him quite a bit.

Please watch their analysis of Bad Boys more than once. I haven't laughed that hard since Tarantino's speech about Top Gun in Sleep With Me.

The Bad:
I don't think there was anything I can remember not liking.

All in all:
Great movie. Great follow up to Shaun. If you liked Shaun, you'll like this as well. Can't wait to see what else these guys have up their sleeves.

Beneath

The Good:
It was blissfully short.

The Bad:
Just about everything else.

The plot was predictable, not scary and really just sad.

The only decent actor in the film isn't a huge part of it as a whole.

Generic, generic, generic.

All in all:
Bleh. Forget it. The MTV logo on the front should tell you everything you need to know, I wish I had noticed it - sadly it was very small on the internet icon and I didn't make it out until it was too late. It's a mindless steaming pile of poo crapped out for the "now" generations non-existent intellect and attention spans.

Disturbia

The Good:
The little prank his friend pulls which involves a tower of Twinkees and a camera (that's all I'm saying, don't want to "ruin" it for anything - though it's gonna be rancid either way) was pretty entertaining.

Shia LaBeouf was at least tolerable... that's really all I've got.

The Bad:
The plot has already been done - much better - with better writers, better actors, and better directors.

I absolutely hated the "generic love interest/hot neighbor". She was horrible - and her teeth were weird as though they'd been filed down into nubs.

Carrie-Annie Moss' role may as well have been played by a corpse for all the livelihood that was in it. Of course - that's pretty much how I feel about her in general, but she was particularly bad here.

The villain role was generic, stereotypical and PREDICTABLE. A large part of this I blame on the fact that they cast the villain with David Morse - who save a small handful of roles - almost always plays "that generic creepy guy who might be eating your friends".

All in all:
People are going to tell you that this is the modern day version of Rear Window. Those people are either liars, fools, or being paid off by the movie company in some way to get people to watch their horrid generic little film. Don't bother with this. It's a waste of time. Just watch Rear Window and then take away everything that makes it good - then you will end up with Disturbia.

Monster House

The Good:
The animation was pretty good - though far more cartoony than I tend to like these days.

Great voice acting.

Solid overall story with something everyone, even adults can identify with. I mean - come on - who didn't have that house in their neighborhood whose yard you just DID NOT go into - not even on a dare.

I think this teaches a very good lesson for kids - which can't be said for a lot of today's kid oriented films - animated or not.

The Bad:
It's no Pixar.

I think it was a little to scary at times for the age to which it was marketed. I know if I was the age it appeared to be geared toward, I would have been super freaked out after seeing it.

All in all:
Worth seeing - but not in the rush out and get it kind of way. Good solid just chilling on the weekend and want to watch something fun faire though.

Little Miss Sunshine

The Good:
Quirky, fun story with lots of heart.

Very well written and acted.

Ran the gambit of emotions from hysterical laughter to hysterical tears.

Absolutely stellar ensemble cast.

Abigail Breslin was wonderfully funny and equally heartbreaking and most importantly REAL. So often child actors are just so rehearsed it isn't believable. Not in this case. You really felt for her through all her ups and downs.

Greg Kinnear - who is so often hit or miss for me - was 100% on the mark this time. He was equally real as both the mumbo-jumbo spouting motivational speaking asshole and as the struggling father just trying to hold things together.

Toni Collette - who I think is so very underrated as an actress - breaks my heart here, and that is what she is meant to do.

Alan Arkin is both a riot and a jagged little pill as the haggard but lovable grandfather figure.

Steve Carell - though incredibly low key - has what I think is his best role so far.

And last, but certainly not least - Paul Dano almost steals the show with a role that has him not speaking for a better part of the film.

The Bad:
Olive's dance sequence was almost painful to watch - though I'm certain that's exactly how it was meant to be.

Mothers who push their children to be Skipper in the disturbing Little Girl Beauty Pageants have always nauseated me. This film does not help that.

All in all:
One of the few times I can honestly say I agreed with the critics and the Oscar committee. This was an excellent film. I cannot recommend it highly enough. I will say - if you like it, give Happy Texas a try. Another little known gem.

Dead Waves

The Good:
It had a definite creepy feel throughout.

The cover was very well done, again - sucked in by the creepiness of the cover art.

There were some genuinely well done creepy Asian effects.

The Bad:
Seemed a bit hokey - the whole concept - the TV show about the supernatural that really just exploited the people shown on it as some sort of side show circus freaks was about as close to anything rational or real as the movie ever came.

It just didn't make sense.

All in all:
Another one to file under "I have run out of things to see and just want to watch something weird and creepy" but don't seek it out.

The Fountain

The Good:
It was a pretty film.

The Bad:
Though I have enjoyed both Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz before - I found them both to be stilted, flat and boring in this film. I think it was mostly the subject matter given to them was a bit to hokey for even them to buy.

Though pretty - it was often nonsensical past the willing suspension of disbelief. It left you confused and not in the "that just wasn't explained clearly" kind of way.

All in all:
Unless you just have the need to see something pretty with no substance, don't bother. And even then - I'm sure there are better ways to use your time.

Day Watch

The Good:
The contrast between light and dark (not to be confused with good and evil) is brilliantly done here as in Night Watch.

The color, cinematography and effects were beautiful to watch.

I have become a big fan of Konstantin Khabensky just due to these films. The gritty humanity of Anton is really what draws you in - though everything else is amazing as well.

I also enjoy Galina Tyunina as Olga. The sequences between she and Anton are always entertaining.


The Bad:
I didn't like Svetlana when she was a minor part of the first film, and I liked her even less as a major part of the second.

I felt this film was much less powerful than Night Watch. It was by no means a bad film, and is worth seeing if you have seen the first - but it just wasn't as good.

What happened to the artistic subtitles? If you've seen the first film - you'll know what I mean.

Return to Oz

The Good:
I saw this movie back when it first came out and it became one of my favorites. I had lost track of and almost forgotten it for years until I stumbled across it again. It has not lost anything that made me first love it - and many things I remember from childhood often fail to stand up to the harsh light of adulthood.

Fairuza Balk is wonderful. Yes - I understand many people had problems with her in this role because they remember Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz and cannot reconcile how the returning Dorothy could be younger than the initial visitor. Just look at them as separate entities and you will be fine. And if you want to get technical - Judy Garland's Wizard of Oz was way off the mark anyway - though I loved it as well.

Jean Marsh as Mombi with her interchangeable living heads remains to this day one of the most vividly frightening things I've ever seen.

The Bad:
I never did like this version of The Scarecrow. He's far too cartoony - as is The Cowardly Lion. I do think a lot of that has to do with the era during which this was filmed and not a failure on the part of the film itself.

The Wheelers are far to close to clowns - and I HATE clowns.

All in all:
I would still highly recommend seeing this if you never have, or even if you haven't in a long time. The only thing that I could see making people dislike this is if they are of the crowd who seems to think the technicolor old school Wizard of Oz is the bible for how all things Oz must be. To those of you, I say read the books - then watch this movie. Oz is much darker. Enjoy the Wizard of Oz with Judy Garland for what it is - a beautiful bit of childhood fluff.

A Tale of Two Sisters

The Good:
The directing, cinematography, acting and pacing of the film were well executed.

The Bad:
I didn't really "get" it. I tried - but I just didn't. I figured out the puzzle, but I didn't understand why it mattered and how everything else fell into place. I've read other reviews that said that "if you can't get this movie you're just lazy" - so I guess I'm lazy.

All in all:
I don't know - maybe see it if you like puzzles and don't mind the possibility that you could come out exceptionally confused.

Earthsea

The Good:
As a long time fan of the Legend of Earthsea series by Ursula K. Leguin, I was excited to see this finally made into a visual media. Particularly with the success of Harry Potter, which is pretty much Earthsea with some minor changes - I was anxious to see the better of the two come to light.

Visually it was very well done for a Sci-fi Channel Original. Sometimes they can be quite a bit hokey in their effects.

Danny Glover was perfectly cast as Ogion. He was exactly what I had always imagined the character to be.

The Bad:
It was too short to get the full story. Far too much was left out or changed from the book for it to be in any way a true adaptation.

Ged was an amazingly powerful and complex character - and Shawn Ashmore did not in any way shape or form capture this. He was Iceman, again.

Equally disappointing was Kristin Kreuk as Tenar - who was easily washed away and lost against her much stronger female cast-mates.

All in all:
If you liked the books, avoid it - it will only break your heart.

Three... Extremes

The Good:
The second short - Dumplings - is one of the most horrible things I have ever seen in a horror film. It doesn't show much - honestly - but that is much worse because the things you imagine are so much more twisted than anything they could show you. I can't say more because it would ruin the surprise.

The Bad:
The first short - Box - and the third short - Cut - both leave much to be desired. Box tries to tell you a creepy story of retribution for past sins - but is just mediocre and somewhat pedophilic at parts. The third, Cut, has a good psychological basis ala Fight Club - but just never quite gets there.

All in all:
This is a must see simply for Dumplings. Even if you skip the other two - which are enjoyable if not completely successful - don't miss Dumplings.

Mean Machine

The Good:
Good in that Lock, Stock/Snatch kind of way.

A good ensemble cast - fun to try to pick out who you have seen where.

This is, without a doubt, my all time favorite Jason Statham role. He is maniacally brilliant as The Mad Monk. So much fun.

The Bad:
Though I love Vinnie Jones as well - this is not his best role - which is ironic since both soccer and being dethroned from soccer due to questionable actions are both things to which he should be very familiar.

The constant snotty spitting of the "mad-bomber" main villain made me nauseous numerous times.

All in all:
If you liked Snatch and other films in that line - then you will enjoy this as well. Even if you didn't watch it just to see Statham as Monk.

The Number 23

The Good:
Jim Carrey was excellent. I tend to like him more in his non-comedic roles as I think at times he can go too far with his comedy. This wasn't Truman Show as far as performance goes, but he was still very, very good.

The viewer can easily follow the path of his obsession - and find themselves drawn and starting to buy into it as well.

Both Virginia Madsen and Danny Huston were good in their roles.

The Bad:
The viewer can easily follow the path of his obsession - and find themselves drawn and starting to buy into it as well.

All in all:
Very entertaining - which is, I suppose, the ultimate goal of cinema.

Blades of Glory

The Good:
I am a sucker for Wil Ferrell. I think most of the truly big laughs I've gotten over the past 10 years have been due to his over the top chaos.

I also love Jon Heder and he is equally funny. The two are perfectly paired.

Craig T. Nelson as the fanatical coach, also a good choice.

The Bad:
I don't know if I can say anything was truly bad. I'm not a big fan of either Will Arnett or Amy Poehler, so I guess that's something.


All in all:
I didn't go into this expecting anything except a few cheap laughs - and thus I wasn't let down. Don't go into it looking for more and you'll be fine too.

The Host

The Good:
It really did have that fun B-movie horror feel to it, if you allow yourself to be taken on the ride.

The acting wasn't bad - neither were the effects.

It had an odd mix of scientific what-ifs mixed with Godzilla-esque b-movie horror goodness that I enjoyed.

The Bad:
I found myself not understanding the motivations of the main characters, nor caring very much whether they lived or died - which is always a bad sign to me.

I didn't really feel like any battle had been won at the end - but maybe I wasn't supposed to.

All in all:
Fun b-movie, just don't think too hard.

Cache

The Good:
The film had a very menacing, unsettling feel to it - and the pacing added to that brilliantly.

The Bad:
It was segmented.

This is one time when I really did feel that subtitles took away from being able to enjoy the movie. If you became focused on the subtitles - which unless you understand French you are going to have to do - then you missed a lot of the movie.

Another film with a convoluted ending. I hate those.

All in all:

I had high hopes for this back when I saw the trailers when it was in Cannes. It was pretty much a complete let down. Pretty much all the good stuff was packed into the trailers. Maybe if I understood French and could have avoided the subtitles I would have liked it more.