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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge (2020) in Movies
Apr 14, 2020
The hugely popular Mortal Kombat franchise has a new cinematic entry with the release of Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge. The film is based on the very popular game series which began in the arcades and grew to dominate home gaming systems.
The franchise has also included theatrical films, toys, and scores of merchandise and the recent Mortal Kombat XI game was a massive success as well.
With news of a new live-action film in the works; Warner Bros has given fans something that truly fits the franchise well in the form of an R-Rated animated film.
While the prior films had a PG-13 rating, this one relishes the gore and violence and gives fans plenty of what they have come to expect.
The plot follows elements of the game and early film in that the evil Shao Khan has called forth the champions from the various realms to fight in a generational tournament where the realm who wins 10 strait events will have control over all the realms.
With 9 consecutive wins in place for Shao Khan and his champion Goro (Kevin Michael Richardson), the God Raiden (Dave B. Mitchell), has assembled a team of champions to save Earth.
There is Liu Kang (Jordan Rodrigues), Sonya Blade (Jennifer Carpenter), and the ego maniac Johnny Cage (Joel McHale).
The team must battle all manner of enemies which includes a very impressive list from the game series and it was great to see so many of them appear even if their roles were small.
The main story focuses on Scorpion (Patrick Seitz) and his attempt to regain what was taken from him and it is his backstory which sets the tone and frames much of the events.
Action wise the film delivers as there are the moves, graphic internal close ups, and gore that fans will expect. There are also a few surprises along the way that I do not want to spoil. I did wonder why every creature in the film had red blood as I do remember there being a bit of variety amongst the non-human creatures but this is a minor fact in what is otherwise an enjoyable film that fans should like.
While the plot does not hold much in the way of surprises; it does give fans the action and characters they love and does bring some interesting new elements to the franchise as well as the basis for some character growth in future films.
The animation and voice work is first-rate and really captures the look and tone of the series while having a visual style of its own.
The ending clearly seems to be setting up a sequel and I for one cannot wait to see what they have in store next.
4 stars out of 5
The franchise has also included theatrical films, toys, and scores of merchandise and the recent Mortal Kombat XI game was a massive success as well.
With news of a new live-action film in the works; Warner Bros has given fans something that truly fits the franchise well in the form of an R-Rated animated film.
While the prior films had a PG-13 rating, this one relishes the gore and violence and gives fans plenty of what they have come to expect.
The plot follows elements of the game and early film in that the evil Shao Khan has called forth the champions from the various realms to fight in a generational tournament where the realm who wins 10 strait events will have control over all the realms.
With 9 consecutive wins in place for Shao Khan and his champion Goro (Kevin Michael Richardson), the God Raiden (Dave B. Mitchell), has assembled a team of champions to save Earth.
There is Liu Kang (Jordan Rodrigues), Sonya Blade (Jennifer Carpenter), and the ego maniac Johnny Cage (Joel McHale).
The team must battle all manner of enemies which includes a very impressive list from the game series and it was great to see so many of them appear even if their roles were small.
The main story focuses on Scorpion (Patrick Seitz) and his attempt to regain what was taken from him and it is his backstory which sets the tone and frames much of the events.
Action wise the film delivers as there are the moves, graphic internal close ups, and gore that fans will expect. There are also a few surprises along the way that I do not want to spoil. I did wonder why every creature in the film had red blood as I do remember there being a bit of variety amongst the non-human creatures but this is a minor fact in what is otherwise an enjoyable film that fans should like.
While the plot does not hold much in the way of surprises; it does give fans the action and characters they love and does bring some interesting new elements to the franchise as well as the basis for some character growth in future films.
The animation and voice work is first-rate and really captures the look and tone of the series while having a visual style of its own.
The ending clearly seems to be setting up a sequel and I for one cannot wait to see what they have in store next.
4 stars out of 5
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Mortal Engines (The Hungry City Chronicles, #1) in Books
Dec 25, 2018
Through this entire book, I kept thinking "this feels like Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets." It's a completely different setting, and a different plot, but it had the same atmosphere. Rollicking action, fantastical premise, crazy setting, huge machines with entire worlds within them. I loved Valerian - it may not have been a critically great movie, and I don't think the leads had much chemistry, but the movie was just FUN. And that's how Mortal Engines is, too.
It's a crazy world, where cities have become mobile - think Howl's Moving Castle - and they chase each other across a barren world, devouring each other for resources in a social order they call Municipal Darwinism. Some cities, like London, are huge, with six main levels, not really counting the Gut, or the center of the machinery. Other towns are small, one or two levels crawling along trying to avoid the notice of the larger, faster cities. The peoples of the Traction Cities think people who live in statics (stationary cities, or, horror of horrors, right on the ground!) or people who are part of the Anti-Traction League, are crazy barbarians. And then there are the airship captains and crews, based out of the one floating city.
It is a crazy steampunk world, and Tom Natsworthy stumbles into a conspiracy plot by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But as he travels with Hester across the wasteland, trying to survive their pursuers and avert catastrophe, he learns more about her, and more about how the world actually works.
I absolutely adore the last two sentences of the book, and I'm going to post those here because they aren't terribly spoilery. And they're fantastic.
"You aren't a hero, and I'm not beautiful, and we probably won't live happily ever after," she said. "But we're alive, and together, and we're going to be all right."
This book is the first of a quartet, and Reeve also wrote a prequel trilogy, so there's actually three books before AND after this book. I'll probably check my library for them, because I REALLY enjoyed this book.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.com
It's a crazy world, where cities have become mobile - think Howl's Moving Castle - and they chase each other across a barren world, devouring each other for resources in a social order they call Municipal Darwinism. Some cities, like London, are huge, with six main levels, not really counting the Gut, or the center of the machinery. Other towns are small, one or two levels crawling along trying to avoid the notice of the larger, faster cities. The peoples of the Traction Cities think people who live in statics (stationary cities, or, horror of horrors, right on the ground!) or people who are part of the Anti-Traction League, are crazy barbarians. And then there are the airship captains and crews, based out of the one floating city.
It is a crazy steampunk world, and Tom Natsworthy stumbles into a conspiracy plot by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But as he travels with Hester across the wasteland, trying to survive their pursuers and avert catastrophe, he learns more about her, and more about how the world actually works.
I absolutely adore the last two sentences of the book, and I'm going to post those here because they aren't terribly spoilery. And they're fantastic.
"You aren't a hero, and I'm not beautiful, and we probably won't live happily ever after," she said. "But we're alive, and together, and we're going to be all right."
This book is the first of a quartet, and Reeve also wrote a prequel trilogy, so there's actually three books before AND after this book. I'll probably check my library for them, because I REALLY enjoyed this book.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.com
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Wrath of the Titans (2012) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
Sequels often struggle to live up to the expectations set by their predecessors. Wrath of the Titans delivers. Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, and Ralph Fiennes reprise their roles as Perseus, Zeus, and Hades in this continuation of the Clash of the Titans remake from 2010. They’re joined this time by Rosamund Pike, who portrays the strong, female love interest as the beautiful Queen Andromeda.
Perseus has settled down to become a fisherman with his son. His wife has been written out of the story — either by design or because the actress was not available. She seems to be dead for no particular reason. Perseus has chosen to live life as a mortal, despite his father, Zeus (Neeson), offering him a seat of power on Olympus. Early in the movie, Zeus comes to his son and asks for help, telling him something big is coming. Only Perseus, a demi-god, would have the strength to ensure humanity’s survival.
The rest of the story involves Perseus’s journey to save the world from the reawakening of Chronos. Mythology geeks and fantasy buffs will appreciate the severity of this situation.
While the makers of this film certainly didn’t reinvent the wheel, or even attempt to one-up their previous film, they surely succeeded in making an entertaining screenplay. In short: if you liked the first, you will like this one. It has all the action, sword-swinging, flying-horse-riding, and titan-killing you would expect from the series. The CGI is impressive, and the 3D effects were not too objectionable.
One scene in particular stuck out as ill-conceived. The kiss at the end of the film felt forced. There was very little romantic build-up throughout the movie, so it felt as if the filmmakers included the kiss because moviegoers expect to see romantic resolution. Perhaps this is one of the several endings they filmed, at which point they let focus groups make the call. Either way, it felt awkward.
As I said before, if you enjoyed the first, seeing the second is worth your time and money.
Perseus has settled down to become a fisherman with his son. His wife has been written out of the story — either by design or because the actress was not available. She seems to be dead for no particular reason. Perseus has chosen to live life as a mortal, despite his father, Zeus (Neeson), offering him a seat of power on Olympus. Early in the movie, Zeus comes to his son and asks for help, telling him something big is coming. Only Perseus, a demi-god, would have the strength to ensure humanity’s survival.
The rest of the story involves Perseus’s journey to save the world from the reawakening of Chronos. Mythology geeks and fantasy buffs will appreciate the severity of this situation.
While the makers of this film certainly didn’t reinvent the wheel, or even attempt to one-up their previous film, they surely succeeded in making an entertaining screenplay. In short: if you liked the first, you will like this one. It has all the action, sword-swinging, flying-horse-riding, and titan-killing you would expect from the series. The CGI is impressive, and the 3D effects were not too objectionable.
One scene in particular stuck out as ill-conceived. The kiss at the end of the film felt forced. There was very little romantic build-up throughout the movie, so it felt as if the filmmakers included the kiss because moviegoers expect to see romantic resolution. Perhaps this is one of the several endings they filmed, at which point they let focus groups make the call. Either way, it felt awkward.
As I said before, if you enjoyed the first, seeing the second is worth your time and money.
Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019) in Movies
Jul 7, 2020
A Fun Family Film For Everyone
Dora and the Lost City of Gold is a 2019 adventure comedy movie directed by James Bobin and producer Kristin Burr, with screenplay by Nicholas Stoller and Matthew Robinson from a story by Tom Wheeler and Nicholas Stoller. It is a loose based continuation and live-action adaptation of the kids show created by Chris Gifford, Valerie Walsh Valdes and Eric Weiner and produced by Paramount Players, Nickelodeon Movies, Walden Media, Media Rights Capital and Burnt Productions with distribution by Paramount Pictures. The film stars Isabela Moner, Eva Longoria, Michael Pena, Jeff Wahlberg and Eugenio Derbez.
Spending her days going on adventures with her cousin Diego (Jeff Wahlberg), her monkey friend Boots (Danny Trejo) and imaginary friends "Map" and "Backpack", Dora (Isabela Moner), daughter of explorers, Cole (Michael Pena) and Elena (Eva Longoria) lives deep in the Peruvian jungle. Diego leaves to be with his family in Los Angeles one day while Dora's family remains searching for Parapata, the lost Inca city of gold. 10 years later, Dora's parents decide to send her to live with her cousin Diego in LA when they decipher the location of Parapata. While on a class trip, Dora and others are lured and captured by mercenaries who fly them to Peru where they plan to force her to find her parents for them.
I was pleasantly surprised with this movie. I guess that happens when you really don't have any expectations at all. I thought this movie was pretty funny and also pretty good for expanding on what was originally a 30 minute kids show that was mostly educational. The girl playing Dora, Isabela Moner, did a great job in her role of Dora. She was optimistically upbeat the whole film even when things didn't go her way but still showed a fragile side to her at the same time that she did incredible feats. Eugenio Derbez was also incredibly funny and did an awesome job as well. The movie was everything you expect for a fun family film and at the same time had good lessons or values to take away from it at the same time. I give this movie a 6/10.
Spending her days going on adventures with her cousin Diego (Jeff Wahlberg), her monkey friend Boots (Danny Trejo) and imaginary friends "Map" and "Backpack", Dora (Isabela Moner), daughter of explorers, Cole (Michael Pena) and Elena (Eva Longoria) lives deep in the Peruvian jungle. Diego leaves to be with his family in Los Angeles one day while Dora's family remains searching for Parapata, the lost Inca city of gold. 10 years later, Dora's parents decide to send her to live with her cousin Diego in LA when they decipher the location of Parapata. While on a class trip, Dora and others are lured and captured by mercenaries who fly them to Peru where they plan to force her to find her parents for them.
I was pleasantly surprised with this movie. I guess that happens when you really don't have any expectations at all. I thought this movie was pretty funny and also pretty good for expanding on what was originally a 30 minute kids show that was mostly educational. The girl playing Dora, Isabela Moner, did a great job in her role of Dora. She was optimistically upbeat the whole film even when things didn't go her way but still showed a fragile side to her at the same time that she did incredible feats. Eugenio Derbez was also incredibly funny and did an awesome job as well. The movie was everything you expect for a fun family film and at the same time had good lessons or values to take away from it at the same time. I give this movie a 6/10.
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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated The Green Hornet (2011) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
The Green Hornet has appeared in books, a television series, and perhaps in its most famous form, as a radio series. Adapting a superhero to the big screen is not without its share of challenges. For every Batman and Spiderman that sets box office records there are several that fail miserably, such as Daredevil, Elektra, The Phantom, The Shadow, and the first Hulk movie.
When it was first announced that Seth Rogen would star as the title character many people were first skeptical that a chubby comedian would be able to pull off the part. While the Green Hornet is not as iconic as Batman, the casting did bring to mind the controversy of casting Michael Keaton as the Dark Knight for Tim Burton’s take on the Caped Crusader.
Further complicating matters were the delays and in the announcement that the film would be converted to 3-D in postproduction even though it was shot in 2-D. When the film failed to meet its anticipated holiday debut there were those that had wondered if the film would fail to meet even modest expectations as January certainly isn’t the time of year that action films, especially those based on a superhero, are released.
Thankfully the film is an extremely pleasant surprise that deftly mixes comedy and action with smart pacing in a winning formula. The film tells the story of Britt Reid (Rogen), the son of a wealthy newspaper owner who, despite his best efforts, always disappoints his father who never runs out of ways to criticize his only child. Britt, to his father’s dismay, has no ambition in his life and is content to live in the guesthouse of his father’s mansion, womanizing and embracing the party scene.
When his father dies unexpectedly, Britt is forced to take control of the newspaper, a job for which he is woefully unqualified. It is at this time that Britt meets Kato (Jay Chou), his father’s long-time employee, responsible for taking care of the elder Reid’s very impressive fleet of cars.
One evening in an act of rebellion against the benevolent image of his father, Britt and Kato intervene to stop a crime. Motivated by their success and by Kato’s amazing ability to invent technology and modify vehicles, as well as his superb martial arts abilities, the duo set out to make a name for themselves by taking on the city’s criminal element.
While it first appears that Britt sees this as just some grand adventure, he soon becomes dedicated to the cause and sets upon a path to use his newspaper to play up his newly created hero. The plan is to make the Green Hornet appear to be a bad guy when in reality he is fighting to end crime. The convoluted idea has some initial success despite Britt’s lack of fighting ability. Britt and Kato soon begin to make a name for themselves in the local underworld as well is dominate the media.
At this time a young assistant named Lenora case (Cameron Diaz), comes to work for Britt. Britt and Kato are both captivated by Lenora and use her knowledge of criminal psychology to detail their plan of action for their alter egos. While Britt and Kato are buoyed by their initial success they soon find themselves under the scrutiny of the local crime boss Chudnofsky (Christopher Waltz), an insecure criminal who believes people don’t think he is scary enough or stylish enough.
Finding them an annoyance, Chudnofsky decides to wage all-out war on the Green Hornet and Kato and will rest at nothing to see them dead. As if this was not bad enough, Britt and Kato find themselves in a jealous rivalry over Lenora as well as their roles. Britt sees himself as the real hero and Kato as merely his sidekick. Kato naturally takes umbrage with this being not only the one who develops all of their gadgets, including the awesome black beauty equipped with bulletproof glass, machine guns, rocket launcher and a flamethrower, but also the one with the amazing fighting skills.
What follows is a hilarious and action packed film that is one of the most satisfying action-buddy-comedies ever made. Rogen is in his element cleverly playing Britt as an everyman who, despite having all the advantages of wealth, is still very much a kid playing superhero who has to learn about the important things in life .
The action sequences are fresh and entertaining and both Rogen and Chao pull off their roles very convincingly. While the plot is not overly complex it serves its point and propels the characters along without getting bogged down or becoming too ridiculous. Director Michel Gondry keeps the film moving at a steady pace without overstaying its welcome and does not allow the action to overtake the characters.
The supporting cast is very strong and the only real issue I had with the film was the converted 3-D that was totally unnecessary and did little to enhance the film. Very few sequence appeared to benefit from it. That being said I had a fantastic time at this film and I surely hope that we’ll be seeing other films in the series in the not too distant future.
When it was first announced that Seth Rogen would star as the title character many people were first skeptical that a chubby comedian would be able to pull off the part. While the Green Hornet is not as iconic as Batman, the casting did bring to mind the controversy of casting Michael Keaton as the Dark Knight for Tim Burton’s take on the Caped Crusader.
Further complicating matters were the delays and in the announcement that the film would be converted to 3-D in postproduction even though it was shot in 2-D. When the film failed to meet its anticipated holiday debut there were those that had wondered if the film would fail to meet even modest expectations as January certainly isn’t the time of year that action films, especially those based on a superhero, are released.
Thankfully the film is an extremely pleasant surprise that deftly mixes comedy and action with smart pacing in a winning formula. The film tells the story of Britt Reid (Rogen), the son of a wealthy newspaper owner who, despite his best efforts, always disappoints his father who never runs out of ways to criticize his only child. Britt, to his father’s dismay, has no ambition in his life and is content to live in the guesthouse of his father’s mansion, womanizing and embracing the party scene.
When his father dies unexpectedly, Britt is forced to take control of the newspaper, a job for which he is woefully unqualified. It is at this time that Britt meets Kato (Jay Chou), his father’s long-time employee, responsible for taking care of the elder Reid’s very impressive fleet of cars.
One evening in an act of rebellion against the benevolent image of his father, Britt and Kato intervene to stop a crime. Motivated by their success and by Kato’s amazing ability to invent technology and modify vehicles, as well as his superb martial arts abilities, the duo set out to make a name for themselves by taking on the city’s criminal element.
While it first appears that Britt sees this as just some grand adventure, he soon becomes dedicated to the cause and sets upon a path to use his newspaper to play up his newly created hero. The plan is to make the Green Hornet appear to be a bad guy when in reality he is fighting to end crime. The convoluted idea has some initial success despite Britt’s lack of fighting ability. Britt and Kato soon begin to make a name for themselves in the local underworld as well is dominate the media.
At this time a young assistant named Lenora case (Cameron Diaz), comes to work for Britt. Britt and Kato are both captivated by Lenora and use her knowledge of criminal psychology to detail their plan of action for their alter egos. While Britt and Kato are buoyed by their initial success they soon find themselves under the scrutiny of the local crime boss Chudnofsky (Christopher Waltz), an insecure criminal who believes people don’t think he is scary enough or stylish enough.
Finding them an annoyance, Chudnofsky decides to wage all-out war on the Green Hornet and Kato and will rest at nothing to see them dead. As if this was not bad enough, Britt and Kato find themselves in a jealous rivalry over Lenora as well as their roles. Britt sees himself as the real hero and Kato as merely his sidekick. Kato naturally takes umbrage with this being not only the one who develops all of their gadgets, including the awesome black beauty equipped with bulletproof glass, machine guns, rocket launcher and a flamethrower, but also the one with the amazing fighting skills.
What follows is a hilarious and action packed film that is one of the most satisfying action-buddy-comedies ever made. Rogen is in his element cleverly playing Britt as an everyman who, despite having all the advantages of wealth, is still very much a kid playing superhero who has to learn about the important things in life .
The action sequences are fresh and entertaining and both Rogen and Chao pull off their roles very convincingly. While the plot is not overly complex it serves its point and propels the characters along without getting bogged down or becoming too ridiculous. Director Michel Gondry keeps the film moving at a steady pace without overstaying its welcome and does not allow the action to overtake the characters.
The supporting cast is very strong and the only real issue I had with the film was the converted 3-D that was totally unnecessary and did little to enhance the film. Very few sequence appeared to benefit from it. That being said I had a fantastic time at this film and I surely hope that we’ll be seeing other films in the series in the not too distant future.