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Machete

Adam — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 08:02:59 +0000

Double crossed by the Mexican government and forced to watch the execution of his own family, Machete (Danny Trejo), a former Federale is trying to make an honest living in the United States as an illegal immigrant/day laborer. But try as he might, trouble just seems to find him when he’s hired to shoot the hard lined anti-immigration Senator McLaughlin (Robert De Niro). Before long, Machete learns he’s actually been set up once again, this time to give a boost to the Senator’s campaign and in turn assist the evil drug lord Torrez (Steven Seagal), the very man who killed his family. Now out for blood and justice Machete takes on all evil doers with assistance from an unlikely group of folk legal and illegal. But will justice be served or will his legend be just a myth?

Flat out brutal grind house flavour with more than enough splatter gore will keep action hungry fans more than satisfied. From a visual angle director Robert Rodriguez returns to his roots and does arguably what he does best, stylized violence/action. Rodriguez’s comic book-esque plot drives this exploitation brand film over the top with plenty of irreverent and witty humor; and, of course the obligatory kung fu sword play and combat along with not so subtle political overtones help to strike the balance of levity and gravity in his story telling. The end result is an enjoyable watch with plenty of what we’ve been missing this summer in similar action flicks, intestinal fortitude with a smile…. plus some nudity. All told, the film does begin to drag in the last third, despite it’s minuscule run time of 80 minutes and that’s kind of a drag, and, if you haven’t clued in to this so far, this is a basically a film for dudes, so it may not be everyone’s cup of tea. Regardless, it’s still worth seeing for the spectacle, and best seen with a group of fans. Machete is rated R.
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Going The Distance

Adam — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 08:01:11 +0000

Record label A&R rep Garrett (Justin Long) is a 30 something guy, unwilling to commit to a relationship and open his heart, destined to fail with the ladies. Erin (Drew Barrymore) is an aspiring news writer looking to finish college and land a job with a major newspaper. When the two meet on a fluke, a one night stand becomes an intense relationship that neither saw coming. When their 6 week fling comes to a close and Erin moves across the country to finish school the two attempt to maintain a long distance relationship. But does the couple have what it takes to stay strong or will their careers and other distractions be their coffin nails?
Sharp writing and improv skills from the ensemble make this film a fast tongued and quick witted comedy that also happens to be a love story of sorts. And, given that in real life Long and Barrymore have been a couple on and off for some time, the film feels even more genuine. Several memorable moments also come to mind from supporting actors Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis who play Long’s roommates in New York, again success in the oddball comedy bits. Yet, before I go into a complete lovefest for this one, let me be quick to point out there’s still the irksome factor that we’re not exactly seeing a new story idea here. In fact, the film is predictable from the get go and does walk the line of becoming a stereotypical romantic comedy, the saving grace though is the honesty and edgier brand of humor without which the film this might not work. Matinee worthy and not embarrassing for the dudes out there to take their ladies on a date. Going The Distance is rated R.
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The Last Exorcism

Adam — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:26:12 +0000

A documentary film crew following Rev. Cotton Marcus (Patrick Fabian) gets more than they bargained for when they set up camp to watch the “exorcism” of a young girl named Nell (Ashley Bell). The real purpose of the documentary is to show how charlatans and fakes work to perform exorcisms and bilk hard earned cash from people who want to believe. The rub is that Cotton actually comes from a long line of real exorcists, and despite his lack of faith, apparently he and the film crew have stumbled into a legitimate demonic possession. Now it’s up to Cotton and the film crew to see if they can actually perform a real exorcism; of course, when you take on true evil you’d better be prepared to give all, but just how far will they go?

Points for creativity and believability in this mocumentary of sorts. The chemistry between Fabian and “documentarian” Iris Bahr comes across as genuine with enough wit and cynicism to lull the audience right into actually caring about the characters. Furthermore, good ole’ scare tactics in cinematography still prove to be effective with a minimal leaning on CGI to put the spook in spooky– proving once again it’s not always what you see but rather what you don’t see that can be the scariest of all. And, up until the very ending, the film certainly succeeds in pulling you along for the roller coaster ride forcing the audience to keep guessing what’s really going on. Unfortunately, for such a sweet build up
the ending does leave the viewer feeling a little let down but this almost doesn’t matter since the first 7/8ths of the film work so nicely. Worth a matinee and worth seeing in a group to get the full group scare effect. The Last Exorcism is rated PG-13.
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Takers

Adam — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:21:45 +0000

A whip smart group of high stakes bank robbers are coerced by an old colleague named Ghost (T.I. Harris) to take on their biggest heist ever. Led by the unflappable Gordon Jennings (Idris Elba) the group hustle to make their move and get the job done; meanwhile, detective Jack Welles (Matt Dillon) is on to the plan. But what about the Russian mafia’s interest in the cash, why does Ghost feel so untrustworthy, and what doesn’t detective Welles know about his closest associates?

Almost completely forgettable, lazy screen writing and poor character development make this one a bit of an eye roller. Conceptually the film has potential but there’s nothing here that hasn’t been done better a zillion times before. Paint by number action continues with, fights, parkour, helicopters blowing up, impossible shoot outs, and fraternal love that’s thicker than thieves….so to speak. The overall impact feels kind of like eating a bunch of rice cakes, there’s not much sustenance. On the positive, Elba and Dillon both feel genuine in their roles and this helps add a little gravity to the film. Regardless I’m still thinking this is a rental when you’re truly bored this winter. Takers is rated PG-13.
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Vampires Suck

Adam — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 00:42:58 +0000

Summing up and roughly following the plot lines of the first few Twilight films in parody form, Becca Crane (Jenn Proske) is a angsty teenage girl caught in a love triangle with vampire Edward Sullen (Matt Lanter) and werewolf Jacob White (Chris Riggi). Meanwhile, the town of Sporks is being ravaged by a new trio of dangerous vampires and Becca’s friends are busy spinning drama of their own. But how can this all shake out, who will Becca be with in the end and how will teams Edward and Jacob make out?
First and foremost, let’s be clear about this, this is a spoof film, it’s not meant to be taken seriously, anyone who is expecting to see cinematic greatness is sure to be disappointed– that’d be sort of like expecting a Kindergartner’s finger painting to trump a Monet. That said, this is not a great film, but it does have it’s merits, it’s irreverent, it’s crass, it’s crude, and for what it’s skewering, it’s not half bad. If you’ve been subjected to the Twilight series thus far, rolled your eyes and wondered what exactly do people see in this garbage, Vampires Suck will serve as a train wreck that exploits a large handful of the problems, inconsistencies, and directorial choices that have lead to the misery you’ve felt. To that end it’s delicious, but only delicious in the way you might compare a happy meal to a cut of prime rib. Probably not worth shelling out the big bucks for this one, but perhaps a rental for a mindless watch later. Vampires Suck is rated PG-13.
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Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Adam — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 12:51:39 +0000

Based on a graphic novel, this is the epic tale of Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera), a sensitive 23 year old with aspirations of being a rock star. Currently dating a 17 year old high school student named Knives (Ellen Wong), and taking flack from all of his friends and band mates, things could be going better for Scott. Enter Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), the uber cool and mysterious hip chick. But as Scott’s attention and heart turns towards Ramona he discovers she has something akin to a bizarre curse, to win her affection he’ll need to defeat her seven evil exes, all jaded past lovers out for revenge– an insurmountable task, or is it? Can Scott defeat the seven exes and win Ramona’s heart, and what about his hopes for rock stardom?

Directed by Edgar Wright the film definitely gets points for creativity, quick wit, and its showiness. Visually the film is packed with graphics, and artistic flare which helps to maintain the graphic novel feel. For all the actors involved, the right amount of camp, and comedic timing adds a real wallop yet still feels genuine. The fight scenes feel well choreographed and play well too. However, towards the end of the film each fight does begin to feel a bit drawn out, there are after all seven exes that need to be defeated. So here’s the flaw, for all of it’s zaniness and color, the film begins to drag for the last third because we kind of already know where things are headed but now need to see how the whole thing plays out. Despite this, I can honestly say the film does offer a lot to chew on and smile about and almost certainly demands a second viewing to catch all the nuances. A good date film (if you need an excuse). Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is rated PG-13.
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The Expendables

Adam — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 12:46:57 +0000

On a remote island run by fascist military leader General Garza (David Zayas), a crooked former U.S. government agent named Munroe (Eric Roberts) and his henchmen are trying to collect on owed money and drugs. But, when the U.S. government learns about the scheme they call in a rogue and elite force of specialists to clean up the mess and put an end to Garza and ultimately Munroe. Lead by Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone), what starts out as professional becomes personal and before long Ross’s group “The Expendables” is up to their ears in trouble trying to liberate the country and just stay alive, but have they bitten off more than they proverbially chew?

Okay, here’s the deal, this film is kind of like a who’s who of the biggest current and has been action heros of all time including Jet Li, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Steve Austin, Bruce Willis and of course Arnold just to name a few. And, after Stallone’s recent display of pure carnage in Rambo a few years back there seemed to be genuine potential for summertime B quality action with swivel arm battle grip! Alas, no, I can’t sugar coat this one, it’s horrid. Granted, generally audiences have come to expect very little when it comes to such testosterone fueled plot lines, but this is about as remedial as it gets. With a screenplay and dialogue that reads like an 8th grader’s fantasy and half efforted delivery it’s pretty clear we’re here to see ass kicking, not a psychological docu-drama. And, in fairness, the fight sequences did appear to be well choreographed, so there’s your silver lining. But, with more shoddy computer graphics and not so special effects from start to finish the film’s production quality drops from mediocre to glaringly bad. For the life of me I can’t figure out why Stallone let this crap fly after doing such an admirable job on previous projects. Maybe a rental later, but even that may be pushing it. The Expendables is rated R.
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Eat Pray Love

Adam — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 12:43:40 +0000

After a receiving a prophecy about her life in a meeting with a medicine man from Bali named Ketut (Hadi Subiyanto), Liz Gilbert (Julia Roberts) begins to question her marriage, personal happiness, and overall life direction. The end result is a decision to divorce her husband (Billy Crudup), then take a year to travel to Italy, India, and ultimately back to Bali in search of herself and balance for her soul. Along each leg of her tour, Liz is challenged and forced to make new unlikely connections, but how will she make out in her search for balance?
Based on the wildly popular book by the same title the film serves as an adaptation that manages to keep the core of the book in tact but in the same breath loses some of the book’s original charm and humor, but this is almost to be expected. From a production standpoint most of the film works, although the sound editing could have been a little better, a number of poorly recorded lines should have been addressed, but this is a mild complaint. And, from an acting standpoint, for the most part all of the leads did an admirable job, or at least a believable job. So, while there’s nothing that stands out as a glaring mis-step here, I can’t really say there’s anything that makes me jump up and down with excitement either. Hmmm, if only the film had more of a spice flavor and less of a cream of wheat flavor. Maybe a matinee but more likely a rental. Eat Pray Love is rated PG-13.
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The Other Guys

Adam — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 08:02:17 +0000

Two shunned officers of the New York police department (Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg) bite off more than they can chew in an effort to redeem their good names as they attempt to take down David Ershon (Steve Coogan), a dastardly financial planner trying to cover his losses. But how will the two expose this ruse and thwart the efforts of an international global company from robbing from the taxpayers of New York?

As far as buddy cop comedy films go it’s not as though there’s new ground being broken; but, as far as live action summer comedy films go, you could do a lot worse. Wahlberg’s traditionally rough, dry, cop persona serves as just the right foil for Ferrell’s quirky sensibilities. In fact, a slight turn on the ear in which Wahlberg’s straight man routine is actually made to look like the odd man out which adds a nice extra dose of goofiness. Topical humor and tongue in cheek reaction to the recent disasters we’ve seen on Wall Street lends further relevance to the film. Worth a matinee if you’re looking for a few good chuckles, also, stick through the credits for fun financial facts plus a deleted scene. The Other Guys is rated PG-13.
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Middle Men

Adam — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 08:01:56 +0000

Inspired by a true story, Jack Harris (Luke Wilson) is an honest businessman with a knack for fixing broken financial deals and making them work. But, when Jack is introduced to a business in need of his talents run by two socially stunted but technically gifted innovators Wayne (Giovanni Ribisi) and Buck (Gabriel Macht), he hardly realizes what he’s gotten into. Wayne and Buck have invented a way to make credit card payments on the internet, a technology that up until now never existed. More specifically, it’s a safe and easy way to pay for porn on the internet. Of course, before long the Russian mafia wants a piece of the action, and, as the stakes get higher the harder it is for Jack to maintain his honesty. Now as the FBI begins closing in something has to break, but where will the chips fall?

While there’s definitely an interesting story here, it seems unfortunate that the way writer/director George Gallo has chosen to tell the story feels like a paint by numbers screenplay. Not that the acting or the production or any of the other elements of the film seem wrong or out of place, but what could be a truly compelling story just kind ends up flat– not necessarily what we’ve come to expect in a film full of gangsters, junkies, tough guys, federal agents and porn stars. Feels like a rental in the winter when you’re feeling a little nostalgic for the early 90′s. Middle Men is rated R.
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