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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Final Girls in Books
Jan 21, 2018
Disappointing, especially after all the hype
In college, Quincy Carpenter goes on vacation to a remote cabin (Pine Cottage) with a group of friends and ends up being the lone survivor to a massacre. The horrific event puts Quincy in the "Final Girls club"--so deemed by the press--a group of women who are also lone survivors of other similar massacres. Lisa survived a bloodbath at her sorority house and Samantha a brutal attack at a motel. The women have never met, but Quincy and Lisa have spoken on the phone. They all share two things--being a "final girl"--and trying to move on with their lives. And Quincy is really trying. With the help of Xanax, she has a successful baking blog and a good relationship with her understanding boyfriend, Jeff. But Quincy's attempts at moving past Pine Cottage are derailed when she receives a call that Lisa has died, found with her wrists cut in her bathtub. Shortly after, Samantha shows up at Quincy's apartment. Reporters are breathing down Quincy's neck and between Samantha and the press, Quincy feels forced to confront the past she's tried so hard to leave behind. But once she does, what will she really discover?
I had really high expectations for this novel, as the "first great thriller of 2017" blurb from Stephen King is prominently placed on the cover, and its been highly reviewed in a variety of magazines. Maybe I'm just a cynical soul, but it just didn't live up to the hype. For about the first 3/4 of the book, I just couldn't get into it, and I almost decided not to finish it. I actually started and finished another book between starting (and finishing) this one. The book switches between present day and flashbacks to Pine Cottage; the Pine Cottage portions were far more intriguing, and I just kept wanting to flip forward to those pieces.
Thankfully, the last fourth or so of this novel is much better: things pick up, the various parts come together in fairly dramatic fashion, and the story grows much more tense and hard to put down. It's the last portion of the book that makes it difficult to give it a truly negative review, even if I did find a few parts of it a tad unbelievable.
Indeed, you definitely have to suspend disbelief a bit for this one. Quincy is a pretty good character herself, but once Sam arrives, she sends Quincy on a path that is just hard to stomach. Quincy's reactions to Samantha and the actions she takes once she arrives irked me and often, I found them almost implausible. (Also, how gullible and unaware was Jeff?) Samantha was an unlikable character and she seemed to cloud everything she touched.
So, overall, I was a little disappointed by this one. I had to slog through a lot to get to the payout at the end and even then, it all seemed a little crazy and hard to buy. I liked Quincy well-enough, but no other characters in the novel were of much redeeming, or interesting, value. The story was fairly engaging, especially at the end, but not the shocking, amazing novel I'd hoped for. Alas. On to the next one! (And most people loved this, so take my review with a grain of salt!)
I had really high expectations for this novel, as the "first great thriller of 2017" blurb from Stephen King is prominently placed on the cover, and its been highly reviewed in a variety of magazines. Maybe I'm just a cynical soul, but it just didn't live up to the hype. For about the first 3/4 of the book, I just couldn't get into it, and I almost decided not to finish it. I actually started and finished another book between starting (and finishing) this one. The book switches between present day and flashbacks to Pine Cottage; the Pine Cottage portions were far more intriguing, and I just kept wanting to flip forward to those pieces.
Thankfully, the last fourth or so of this novel is much better: things pick up, the various parts come together in fairly dramatic fashion, and the story grows much more tense and hard to put down. It's the last portion of the book that makes it difficult to give it a truly negative review, even if I did find a few parts of it a tad unbelievable.
Indeed, you definitely have to suspend disbelief a bit for this one. Quincy is a pretty good character herself, but once Sam arrives, she sends Quincy on a path that is just hard to stomach. Quincy's reactions to Samantha and the actions she takes once she arrives irked me and often, I found them almost implausible. (Also, how gullible and unaware was Jeff?) Samantha was an unlikable character and she seemed to cloud everything she touched.
So, overall, I was a little disappointed by this one. I had to slog through a lot to get to the payout at the end and even then, it all seemed a little crazy and hard to buy. I liked Quincy well-enough, but no other characters in the novel were of much redeeming, or interesting, value. The story was fairly engaging, especially at the end, but not the shocking, amazing novel I'd hoped for. Alas. On to the next one! (And most people loved this, so take my review with a grain of salt!)
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) in Movies
Feb 5, 2020
Ian Malcolm Should Have Left Them On the Island
Thoughts before watching The Lost World: Jurassic Park as a twelve-year-old in 1997: “Oh man, I can’t wait to check out all this dino action! Raptors for life!” Thoughts before watching The Lost World: Jurassic Park as a thirty-five-year-old in 2019: “Why the hell are they going back to the island? These people clearly have a death wish!” Yes, the sequel to one of the greatest movies ever made sees a return to the dinosaur madness as a special team led by Jeff Goldblum’s Ian Malcolm goes on a mission for Jurassic Park’s creator John Hammond (Richard Attenborough).
Acting: 10
Jeff Goldblum has a way of captivating any screen he’s on. He has charm, wit, and an erratic nature that’s absolutely hilarious. He has a strong cast backing him up with guys like Vince Vaughn and Julianne Moore helping to run the show.
Beginning: 10
Strong start as we see there are still idiots out there that don’t know how to stay away from these islands. The movie is immediately entertaining while also letting you know it’s going to be a different kind of movie than the first. Definitely piqued my interest.
Characters: 6
One of my biggest issues with the entire movie. I’m honestly surprised I didn’t score it lower. For the most part, I hated these characters outside of Ian Malcolm. I almost wish he had left the rest of them to stew on the island by themselves. Julianne Moore’s character Sarah Harding was obnoxious and pretty annoying. Then again, I can say that for a lot of the characters including Malcolm’s daughter Kelly Curtis (Vanessa Lee Chester). At times, it really made it hard for me to enjoy the movie.
Cinematography/Visuals: 9
The dino special effects were taken to new heights in this one. I particularly love the extra work they put into the velociraptors showing off their incredible jumping ability and rogue-like stealth. I also appreciated the multitude of dinos you get in this one as well from the stegosaurus down to the tiny compies. I can’t remember their names, but my particular favorite dino was the one with the bone head. His hard skull could crash through just about anything. I enjoyed watching it wreak havoc on a number of doors and people.
What bothered me just a bit was the choice of a darker color tone throughout the movie. It was almost as if they were trying to purposefully differentiate from the first by doing this. It takes some getting used to, but ultimately didn’t kill the movie for me.
Conflict: 10
Entertainment Value: 10
Memorability: 4
Pace: 8
Plot: 4
What a stupid story. Who in their right mind after hearing all the craziness that went down at the original park would ever go back to face off against these dinos? Rescue mission my ass, not this guy! Had they followed the book, I feel it would have been a lot more believable.
Resolution: 9
Overall: 77
Let’s be honest, no way this movie was going to match the first in any way. Jurassic Park set an amazing standard that is just hard to follow. However, I will say that, while not perfect, The Lost World: Jurassic Park does have its moments that make it a decent enough watch.
Acting: 10
Jeff Goldblum has a way of captivating any screen he’s on. He has charm, wit, and an erratic nature that’s absolutely hilarious. He has a strong cast backing him up with guys like Vince Vaughn and Julianne Moore helping to run the show.
Beginning: 10
Strong start as we see there are still idiots out there that don’t know how to stay away from these islands. The movie is immediately entertaining while also letting you know it’s going to be a different kind of movie than the first. Definitely piqued my interest.
Characters: 6
One of my biggest issues with the entire movie. I’m honestly surprised I didn’t score it lower. For the most part, I hated these characters outside of Ian Malcolm. I almost wish he had left the rest of them to stew on the island by themselves. Julianne Moore’s character Sarah Harding was obnoxious and pretty annoying. Then again, I can say that for a lot of the characters including Malcolm’s daughter Kelly Curtis (Vanessa Lee Chester). At times, it really made it hard for me to enjoy the movie.
Cinematography/Visuals: 9
The dino special effects were taken to new heights in this one. I particularly love the extra work they put into the velociraptors showing off their incredible jumping ability and rogue-like stealth. I also appreciated the multitude of dinos you get in this one as well from the stegosaurus down to the tiny compies. I can’t remember their names, but my particular favorite dino was the one with the bone head. His hard skull could crash through just about anything. I enjoyed watching it wreak havoc on a number of doors and people.
What bothered me just a bit was the choice of a darker color tone throughout the movie. It was almost as if they were trying to purposefully differentiate from the first by doing this. It takes some getting used to, but ultimately didn’t kill the movie for me.
Conflict: 10
Entertainment Value: 10
Memorability: 4
Pace: 8
Plot: 4
What a stupid story. Who in their right mind after hearing all the craziness that went down at the original park would ever go back to face off against these dinos? Rescue mission my ass, not this guy! Had they followed the book, I feel it would have been a lot more believable.
Resolution: 9
Overall: 77
Let’s be honest, no way this movie was going to match the first in any way. Jurassic Park set an amazing standard that is just hard to follow. However, I will say that, while not perfect, The Lost World: Jurassic Park does have its moments that make it a decent enough watch.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Dark Tide (2012) in Movies
Aug 5, 2020
I always wonder what makes me not watch shark films, Dark Tide has Halle Berry, I like Halle Berry... so why have I never seen it?
Kate Mathieson has sworn off sharks ever since a dive went wrong and cost the life of one of her closest friends. Sharks were her life, and only doing tame tourist trips out on her boat means she's about to lose her business. Out of the blue, Kate's ex arrives with a man who's looking for more thrill than any regular dive can offer and he's convinced him that Kate is the only one who can do it. He's willing to pay big, but is the money worth reliving that memory?
Firstly, it was good to see a film with actual shark footage. I watch so many with terrible CGI that I sometimes forget that sharks aren't horribly pixelated and snarly. That is probably where the good comments end.
For a film with action in it I knew something was off almost instantly, there was no real hook into the film. It started out extremely calm and even the initial burst of energy didn't do anything to help and then almost as quickly we switch to present day and it's all calm again. Some might say that the up and down nature of the film reflects how quickly things can change at sea, I personally feel like saying they made a bad judgement call by giving it the pace of a terrible romance film.
Not helping the situation were the characters. Halle Berry always seems to have slightly brusk roles and although Kate doesn't start that way she certainly veers off when her ex shows up and the change in character is so sharp that it loses anything believable. Both Jeff (the ex) and Brady (the businessman) are unlikeable, one devious and the other arrogant, had they ditched some of the storyline between Kate and Jeff there might have been less tension and we'd have had something a little easier to watch. The few additional characters beyond these three were definitely light enough to lift parts of the film but they weren't in nearly enough to have a major effect.
The film was long, painfully long. It's not often I realise so early on that I'm struggling with a film, but for the entire length it felt like a slog. For some reason IMDb is listing 1 hour 34 (that would have been much better) but I checked the copy I watched and it says 1 hour 54. Perhaps 1,34 is how long we all wish it was. There was easily 20 minutes to shed from the runtime, but I don't know if it would have helped much without changes elsewhere too.
One last major change I would have like to have seen was to the whole ending. When things come to their climax it is almost impossible to tell what's going on, it doesn't make it anymore thrilling or intriguing, it's merely frustrating. A successful thriller can show me an almost pitch black scene and I'll be edging forward, eyes wide, waiting for whatever is going to make me jump out of my seat, but Dark Tide successfully bypasses that feeling in favour of leaving the viewer squinting at blackness.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/08/dark-tide-movie-review.html
Kate Mathieson has sworn off sharks ever since a dive went wrong and cost the life of one of her closest friends. Sharks were her life, and only doing tame tourist trips out on her boat means she's about to lose her business. Out of the blue, Kate's ex arrives with a man who's looking for more thrill than any regular dive can offer and he's convinced him that Kate is the only one who can do it. He's willing to pay big, but is the money worth reliving that memory?
Firstly, it was good to see a film with actual shark footage. I watch so many with terrible CGI that I sometimes forget that sharks aren't horribly pixelated and snarly. That is probably where the good comments end.
For a film with action in it I knew something was off almost instantly, there was no real hook into the film. It started out extremely calm and even the initial burst of energy didn't do anything to help and then almost as quickly we switch to present day and it's all calm again. Some might say that the up and down nature of the film reflects how quickly things can change at sea, I personally feel like saying they made a bad judgement call by giving it the pace of a terrible romance film.
Not helping the situation were the characters. Halle Berry always seems to have slightly brusk roles and although Kate doesn't start that way she certainly veers off when her ex shows up and the change in character is so sharp that it loses anything believable. Both Jeff (the ex) and Brady (the businessman) are unlikeable, one devious and the other arrogant, had they ditched some of the storyline between Kate and Jeff there might have been less tension and we'd have had something a little easier to watch. The few additional characters beyond these three were definitely light enough to lift parts of the film but they weren't in nearly enough to have a major effect.
The film was long, painfully long. It's not often I realise so early on that I'm struggling with a film, but for the entire length it felt like a slog. For some reason IMDb is listing 1 hour 34 (that would have been much better) but I checked the copy I watched and it says 1 hour 54. Perhaps 1,34 is how long we all wish it was. There was easily 20 minutes to shed from the runtime, but I don't know if it would have helped much without changes elsewhere too.
One last major change I would have like to have seen was to the whole ending. When things come to their climax it is almost impossible to tell what's going on, it doesn't make it anymore thrilling or intriguing, it's merely frustrating. A successful thriller can show me an almost pitch black scene and I'll be edging forward, eyes wide, waiting for whatever is going to make me jump out of my seat, but Dark Tide successfully bypasses that feeling in favour of leaving the viewer squinting at blackness.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/08/dark-tide-movie-review.html
The Marinated Meeple (1853 KP) rated Jurassic Park (1993) in Movies
Apr 5, 2018
The CGI (2 more)
The Special Effects
The Storytelling
The all time best dinosaur movie made so far....
This move is a great one and will hold up for many many years. They way the original king Kong holds up the groundbreaking special effects for the time are solid enough to fool people nowadays in a charming old fashioned way. Yes technology is evolving faster than dinosaurs ever did, but when something is made this well, it tends to age well, not poorly. Jaws is another example of aging well, yes we can see the flaws and the seems, but it doesn't matter. Yes I understand the science is flawed, but the premise is interesting, and the pseudo science is good enough to capture the imagination. And the imagination runs wild here like a T-Rex after a Jeep. It gobbled me up like a guy on a toilet. I still love to visit Isla Sorna. And plan to go back many many more times.
Fun Tidbit: All of the cast were given a Raptor model, signed by Steven Spielberg as a gift. It looked very frightening, and Ariana Richards has it in her house to shock anyone coming in, like a guard at the gate. Jeff Goldblum's model has a prime spot in his house and is a cherished object. Laura Dern put her Raptor model in her son's room near his crib. When he was older and saw it he screamed like never before. She had to put it in storage, but hopes one day, the two will be friends.
Here's 2 awesome movie posters:
Fun Tidbit: All of the cast were given a Raptor model, signed by Steven Spielberg as a gift. It looked very frightening, and Ariana Richards has it in her house to shock anyone coming in, like a guard at the gate. Jeff Goldblum's model has a prime spot in his house and is a cherished object. Laura Dern put her Raptor model in her son's room near his crib. When he was older and saw it he screamed like never before. She had to put it in storage, but hopes one day, the two will be friends.
Here's 2 awesome movie posters:
Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated Blame in Books
Jun 5, 2019
Imagine, several years of your life just vanish as a result of an accident, but all you know is that the person you were with was killed and everyone blames you. This is situation Jeff Abbott tackles in Blame, an engaging thriller with an ending I didn’t expect.
Jane Norton is hiding something, and although we vaguely know pretty early on what has happened to her, she is an amnesiac and not portrayed in the best light. Why was she in the car with David, the boy who died? Who wrote the note they found at the scene of the car crash, which appeared to be written in Jane’s handwriting stating “I wish we were dead together”?
The slow start of the story reflects her altered perception of things in a way which explores how she came to be in the state she is, piecing together what happened, in her own disorientated way. I felt sorry for her, yet slightly annoyed at her behaviour. Yes, she is flawed, but she is also scared and frustrated. Does she deserve the treatment some throw at her? Would you be able to forgive her if you knew the truth? As the story progressed I found I was beginning to revel in Jane’s take no sh^t attitude and she grew on me even more.
I took a while to get into this, but glad I stuck it out. That’s never a good expression to put into a review, but it is how I felt. Despite this, the plot did indeed gather speed and there were twists and turns galore, which raced to a final conclusion that made reading this book all worthwhile.
Jane Norton is hiding something, and although we vaguely know pretty early on what has happened to her, she is an amnesiac and not portrayed in the best light. Why was she in the car with David, the boy who died? Who wrote the note they found at the scene of the car crash, which appeared to be written in Jane’s handwriting stating “I wish we were dead together”?
The slow start of the story reflects her altered perception of things in a way which explores how she came to be in the state she is, piecing together what happened, in her own disorientated way. I felt sorry for her, yet slightly annoyed at her behaviour. Yes, she is flawed, but she is also scared and frustrated. Does she deserve the treatment some throw at her? Would you be able to forgive her if you knew the truth? As the story progressed I found I was beginning to revel in Jane’s take no sh^t attitude and she grew on me even more.
I took a while to get into this, but glad I stuck it out. That’s never a good expression to put into a review, but it is how I felt. Despite this, the plot did indeed gather speed and there were twists and turns galore, which raced to a final conclusion that made reading this book all worthwhile.
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated Surf's Up (2007) in Movies
Jul 28, 2018
Surprisingly Great
I feel like I'm fairly "In the Know" when it comes to films. I make it my business to know all the upcoming films, but this one definitely snuck under my radar even all these years later. A solid film for the entire family, I only wish I had caught this one sooner. It's the story of penguin Cody Maverick (Shia LaBeouf)and his journey to win top surfer at the World Surfing Championship in Hawaii.
Acting: 10
Great cast of voice actors led by LaBeouf. The voices breathe life into each character giving them their own flair. Jeff Bridges seems to always find a way to be the shining moment in almost every film he's in.
Beginning: 10
Characters: 10
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Some of the best animation I have seen in film, hands down. The colors are bright and vivid, teeming with life. Where the visuals really shine are during the surfing scenes. There appears to be so much care that went into the water and wave animation and it pays off on screen. I can't wait to watch this film on a 4K television.
Conflict: 10
Genre: 8
Memorability: 6
Pace: 8
Plot: 10
If a penguin surfing isn't original enough for you, the story as a whole is enough to keep you entertained. Has there ever been an animated film about surfing period, let alone surfing animals? Not sure, but this film captured its essence well while respecting the sport.
Resolution: 10
Overall: 92
With a hilarious opener, classic characters, and Joe the Chicken (trust me, you'll love him), this film is a home run. Great movie for a family night.
Acting: 10
Great cast of voice actors led by LaBeouf. The voices breathe life into each character giving them their own flair. Jeff Bridges seems to always find a way to be the shining moment in almost every film he's in.
Beginning: 10
Characters: 10
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Some of the best animation I have seen in film, hands down. The colors are bright and vivid, teeming with life. Where the visuals really shine are during the surfing scenes. There appears to be so much care that went into the water and wave animation and it pays off on screen. I can't wait to watch this film on a 4K television.
Conflict: 10
Genre: 8
Memorability: 6
Pace: 8
Plot: 10
If a penguin surfing isn't original enough for you, the story as a whole is enough to keep you entertained. Has there ever been an animated film about surfing period, let alone surfing animals? Not sure, but this film captured its essence well while respecting the sport.
Resolution: 10
Overall: 92
With a hilarious opener, classic characters, and Joe the Chicken (trust me, you'll love him), this film is a home run. Great movie for a family night.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Midnight Special (2016) in Movies
Aug 6, 2019
As children, we often fantasize about what it would be like to possess superpowers or some trait that sets us further apart from our peers. We imagine ourselves as being able to become invisible, fly, or command animals. The film Midnight Special introduces us to a young boy who is blessed with a special gift that no one can quite comprehend. A religious cult seeks the boy as their savior. The government wants to use him as a weapon. His father wants to protect him.
The film gives the audience enough suspense and relevant issues to keep them fully engrossed in the story. The opening of the film leaves us with very little background of the events that have taken place which for many films would be a grand weakness in the storytelling, however, for this film it is essential in shaping the dramatic moments as it builds to the climax. Midnight Special features strong performances from Adam Driver and Michael Shannon. Director Jeff Nichols does a superb job in weaving a story that is both original and imaginative. The film itself is a journey involving various elements that drive the story. For some, it will make them more skeptical of the government and religious fanaticism. For others, they will have a new take on the road film genre which is filled with peril, tension, friendship, and love.
Midnight Special is one of those rare movies that allows the viewers to become fully involved in the story and characters involved. With the suspense, humor, and interactions, the actors and director have made a complete film. It stays with you and makes you want more.
The film gives the audience enough suspense and relevant issues to keep them fully engrossed in the story. The opening of the film leaves us with very little background of the events that have taken place which for many films would be a grand weakness in the storytelling, however, for this film it is essential in shaping the dramatic moments as it builds to the climax. Midnight Special features strong performances from Adam Driver and Michael Shannon. Director Jeff Nichols does a superb job in weaving a story that is both original and imaginative. The film itself is a journey involving various elements that drive the story. For some, it will make them more skeptical of the government and religious fanaticism. For others, they will have a new take on the road film genre which is filled with peril, tension, friendship, and love.
Midnight Special is one of those rare movies that allows the viewers to become fully involved in the story and characters involved. With the suspense, humor, and interactions, the actors and director have made a complete film. It stays with you and makes you want more.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2346 KP) rated May Day in Books
Jul 1, 2021 (Updated Jul 1, 2021)
Wasn’t What I Was Expecting
Mira’s life in Minneapolis is falling apart, so when a chance comes up to be an assistant librarian and part time reporter in the small town of Battle Lake, Minnesota, she jumps at the chance. She’s not expecting her love life to be super active there, but then she meets Jeff, and it is love at first sight. At least it is for a week until she finds his dead body in the middle of the library one morning when she goes to open it. Worried that she is a jinx, Mira decides to figure out what happened. The fact that she can turn it into an article for the paper is an added bonus. Will she figure out what happened?
This series has been on my radar for years, so it was with anticipation that I picked up this book. I was very disappointed with it. While we start out with Mira finding the dead body, we then flashback to get background on the characters. The result was a slow start to the book. The mystery was decent, with enough to keep me engaged and an ending that surprised me. The characters were more types, built to create comedy instead of be real characters. And most of the jokes didn’t land, especially since they were more raunchy than funny. This definitely isn’t one of my typical cozies, and I found that content off-putting. It was almost forced into the book. I really did want to like this book, especially since I have a few others in the series already. But I will probably move on without reading them.
This series has been on my radar for years, so it was with anticipation that I picked up this book. I was very disappointed with it. While we start out with Mira finding the dead body, we then flashback to get background on the characters. The result was a slow start to the book. The mystery was decent, with enough to keep me engaged and an ending that surprised me. The characters were more types, built to create comedy instead of be real characters. And most of the jokes didn’t land, especially since they were more raunchy than funny. This definitely isn’t one of my typical cozies, and I found that content off-putting. It was almost forced into the book. I really did want to like this book, especially since I have a few others in the series already. But I will probably move on without reading them.
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Machete (2010) in Movies
Jul 27, 2020
B-Movie Exploitation Film
Machete- is a intresting B-Movie Exploitation action film. I like how Machete was in Spy Kids and that film was PG and now this film is R. Just like how he want easy and really did no killing in spy kids and in this one is full blooded revenge person.
Instead, during the filming of Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino's Grindhouse, Rodriguez shot lobby cards and sequences from parts of the original script in 2006 for a fake trailer featuring Danny Trejo, Cheech Marin, and Jeff Fahey.
Jessica Alba won a Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress, along with her other roles in The Killer Inside Me, Little Fockers and Valentine's Day.
The plot: After nearly being killed during a violent fight with a powerful drug lord, a former Mexican Federale known as Machete (Danny Trejo) roams Texas streets as a vigilante and sometime day-laborer. Hired to perform a covert hit, he is double-crossed and forced to go on the run. Machete may be down, but not out, and he carves a path of blood, bullets and broken hearts in his quest to settle the score.
The supporting cast is intresting and never thought that this people would work together. For Example Steven Seagal, Linsday Lohan, Don Johnson and Robert De Niro all working together. Never thought that any of these people would work together. Well i could see Don Johnson and Robert De Niro working together. But the rest, nope. But it did and it actually worked really well.
Its a fun action B-Movie exploitation film.
Instead, during the filming of Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino's Grindhouse, Rodriguez shot lobby cards and sequences from parts of the original script in 2006 for a fake trailer featuring Danny Trejo, Cheech Marin, and Jeff Fahey.
Jessica Alba won a Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress, along with her other roles in The Killer Inside Me, Little Fockers and Valentine's Day.
The plot: After nearly being killed during a violent fight with a powerful drug lord, a former Mexican Federale known as Machete (Danny Trejo) roams Texas streets as a vigilante and sometime day-laborer. Hired to perform a covert hit, he is double-crossed and forced to go on the run. Machete may be down, but not out, and he carves a path of blood, bullets and broken hearts in his quest to settle the score.
The supporting cast is intresting and never thought that this people would work together. For Example Steven Seagal, Linsday Lohan, Don Johnson and Robert De Niro all working together. Never thought that any of these people would work together. Well i could see Don Johnson and Robert De Niro working together. But the rest, nope. But it did and it actually worked really well.
Its a fun action B-Movie exploitation film.
Lee (2222 KP) rated Only The Brave (2017) in Movies
Nov 14, 2017
A true story that deserved to be told
Only the Brave is based on the true story of the Granite Mountain Hotshots - the first ever municipal fire crew to be certified as Hotshots, which is the name given to the brave firefighters that tackle wildfires on the ground. It's another true story I wasn't aware of, and as with many of the others that have had movies made of them recently, it is just as deserving to be told. My appreciation of the movie, in particular how it all ended, was certainly improved based on the fact that I had no prior knowledge of the story.
Although, we do get to see a number of wildfires throughout the movie and get to fully appreciate the scale and danger that they present to both firefighters and residents in the path of destruction, Only the Brave never descends into an over-the-top disaster blockbuster. Instead, the movies main focus is often on the team of firefighter themselves, their family lives, and how they juggle all of that along with such an intensely demanding work life. At times though, this side of the movie doesn't work so well as we constantly meander through some of the less interesting parts of the lives of the crew, and I felt the whole movie could have benefited by shaving about 30 minutes from its run time. There's a great, all-star cast to help things along though - Josh Brolin is supervisor Eric Marsh, Miles Teller one of his rookies, and that's just the start of it. Jeff Bridges, Jennifer Connelly, and Andie MacDowell all feature in strong supporting roles.
Despite its slow start and extended run time, I definitely found Only the Brave an enjoyable and emotional story.
Although, we do get to see a number of wildfires throughout the movie and get to fully appreciate the scale and danger that they present to both firefighters and residents in the path of destruction, Only the Brave never descends into an over-the-top disaster blockbuster. Instead, the movies main focus is often on the team of firefighter themselves, their family lives, and how they juggle all of that along with such an intensely demanding work life. At times though, this side of the movie doesn't work so well as we constantly meander through some of the less interesting parts of the lives of the crew, and I felt the whole movie could have benefited by shaving about 30 minutes from its run time. There's a great, all-star cast to help things along though - Josh Brolin is supervisor Eric Marsh, Miles Teller one of his rookies, and that's just the start of it. Jeff Bridges, Jennifer Connelly, and Andie MacDowell all feature in strong supporting roles.
Despite its slow start and extended run time, I definitely found Only the Brave an enjoyable and emotional story.