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Dinosaurs
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Dinosaurs are fascinating creatures and their popularity seems never ending, fuelled by films such...
JT (287 KP) rated The Losers (2010) in Movies
Mar 10, 2020
If you want an action film that does precisely what it says on the tin, then this is clearly going to be the film of choice for you.
It’s thoroughly enjoyable without taking itself too seriously as other films of this genre do, and includes one of the funniest scenes I have seen for sometime. Hats off to the talented Chris Evans for that one.
The story is as straight forward as it could be, a group of CIA black ops narrowly miss being assassinated after a smash and grab rescue mission in the Bolivian jungle. So of course they want pay back, who wouldn’t, and they link up with the beautiful Aisha (Saldana) who has motives of her own.
The group are a somewhat mismatched bunch, but then any good special ops team is a mixed bag of personalities, just look at the A-Team.
It’s thoroughly enjoyable without taking itself too seriously as other films of this genre do
Jeffrey Dean Morgan leads the way as Clay a straight talking no nonsense commander, Jensen (Evans) a wise cracking tech, Idris Elba as the not to be believed Roque, Pooch (Columbus Short) whose handy at the wheel of anything with a motor and Cougar (Óscar Jaenada) who is deadly at long range with the sniper rifle.
The villain of the piece is Max (Jason Patric) a billionaire with plans for world domination, he dresses smartly and even has a villains affliction in the form of a damaged hand which he covers up with a variety of classy gloves. There are times though in a plot that is loosely built around a sonic bomb, that they better developed an ending worthy of a film that had everything in it.
Still, you won’t be overly bothered too much and when the adrenalin levels increase and the sharp shooting beings you’ll be keeping your fingers crossed for any signs of a possible sequel.
It’s thoroughly enjoyable without taking itself too seriously as other films of this genre do, and includes one of the funniest scenes I have seen for sometime. Hats off to the talented Chris Evans for that one.
The story is as straight forward as it could be, a group of CIA black ops narrowly miss being assassinated after a smash and grab rescue mission in the Bolivian jungle. So of course they want pay back, who wouldn’t, and they link up with the beautiful Aisha (Saldana) who has motives of her own.
The group are a somewhat mismatched bunch, but then any good special ops team is a mixed bag of personalities, just look at the A-Team.
It’s thoroughly enjoyable without taking itself too seriously as other films of this genre do
Jeffrey Dean Morgan leads the way as Clay a straight talking no nonsense commander, Jensen (Evans) a wise cracking tech, Idris Elba as the not to be believed Roque, Pooch (Columbus Short) whose handy at the wheel of anything with a motor and Cougar (Óscar Jaenada) who is deadly at long range with the sniper rifle.
The villain of the piece is Max (Jason Patric) a billionaire with plans for world domination, he dresses smartly and even has a villains affliction in the form of a damaged hand which he covers up with a variety of classy gloves. There are times though in a plot that is loosely built around a sonic bomb, that they better developed an ending worthy of a film that had everything in it.
Still, you won’t be overly bothered too much and when the adrenalin levels increase and the sharp shooting beings you’ll be keeping your fingers crossed for any signs of a possible sequel.
The Selected Poetry of Pier Paolo Pasolini: A Bilingual Edition
Book
Most people outside Italy know Pier Paolo Pasolini for his films, many of which began as literary...
Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated #Alive (2020) in Movies
Oct 17, 2020
Contains spoilers, click to show
#Alive is a Korean zombie movie that focuses on the survival of Oh Joon-woo, a young man who is stranded in his family's apartment at the outbreak of the zombie virus and follows him as he tries to work out what is happening, how he can survive and how he can cope with the fact that his family is probably dead.
#Alive is defiantly a film of 3 parts, the first part focuses solely on Oh Joon-woo and his attempts at survival alone in his apartment as he struggles to cope with the zombies, running out of food and the lose of his family. The portrayal of Isolation and loneliness is very well done, leading up to what could almost be a very short film.
Then Oh Joon-woo meets Kim Yoo-bin, another survivor who lives in the apartments across the street from him. The isolation continues as the two find ways to communicate and survive but now there is hope.
The two are eventually forced from their apartments and have to meet up and move up as they try to find somewhere safe to survive.
#Alive is a film without a big main cast and this helps the sense of isolation and loneliness which is only increased by the fact that they spend most of the film separated by a street full of the undead.
Surprisingly #Alive manages to avoid becoming a love story. Normally when you have two survivors who meet in films like this they fall for each other and, at least part of the film is taken up by their relationship. However #Alive doesn't do this, Oh Joon-woo and Kim Yoo-bin obviously become friends but they are too busy surviving but their relationship doesn't overtake the main point of the film, survival.
There are moments of tension and relief in the film and they work well making #Alive a different type of film than a lot of other zombie films, including the other Korean zombie blockbuster, Train to Busan.
#Alive is defiantly a film of 3 parts, the first part focuses solely on Oh Joon-woo and his attempts at survival alone in his apartment as he struggles to cope with the zombies, running out of food and the lose of his family. The portrayal of Isolation and loneliness is very well done, leading up to what could almost be a very short film.
Then Oh Joon-woo meets Kim Yoo-bin, another survivor who lives in the apartments across the street from him. The isolation continues as the two find ways to communicate and survive but now there is hope.
The two are eventually forced from their apartments and have to meet up and move up as they try to find somewhere safe to survive.
#Alive is a film without a big main cast and this helps the sense of isolation and loneliness which is only increased by the fact that they spend most of the film separated by a street full of the undead.
Surprisingly #Alive manages to avoid becoming a love story. Normally when you have two survivors who meet in films like this they fall for each other and, at least part of the film is taken up by their relationship. However #Alive doesn't do this, Oh Joon-woo and Kim Yoo-bin obviously become friends but they are too busy surviving but their relationship doesn't overtake the main point of the film, survival.
There are moments of tension and relief in the film and they work well making #Alive a different type of film than a lot of other zombie films, including the other Korean zombie blockbuster, Train to Busan.
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated The Rhythm Section (2019) in Movies
Feb 2, 2020
Beats Me
The Rhythm Section is mismatch of La Femme Nikita, Atomic Blonde and all the Bourne films however it constantly skips so many beats that it just cant keep up the pace let alone be put in the same league as any of them. I feel the Spy film genre had largely started to become lazy over the last few years it seems like directors go for either style over substance or just replicate whats already been done and The Rhythm Section seems to try its hand at both. Its a film that im not entirely sure we needed because its filled with genre cliches and relocations of scenes/ideas from other films that have done it much better. Our main character for instance is liffted straight from La Femme Nikita and not only is her transformation process almost exactly the same but the way she looks becomes near identical too. Music integration is ripped from Atomic Blonde it just takes place in a different decade and what litte action sequences there are have been seen in the Bourne films. So as you can imagine I spent most of the film sat thinking "what is the point?", "why do I need to see this again?" and as the film traveled along the same old tracks boredom and fatigue started to settle in. Now im not saying Blake Lively or Jude Law are bad far from it they are both just miscast and deserve much better than this (if anything their scenes and chemistry together are the only thing saving this movie from being a total wash out). Theres almost no point in talking about the story because its of the most generic forgettable kind and while there is some suspense and excitement to be had its in relatively brief burts for a film that has a run time of nearly two hours. During these two hours nothing really happenes either and thats its biggest problem nothing feels like its been achieved and its final pay off especially feels disappointingly weak and higly unfulfilling. I would say theres about 3 short action scenes total and while the fight choreography is splendid and the car chase is exhilarating they are over in a flash and you are again subject to tedium before you arrive at another. End of the day I feel this movie wasted my time and while its not by any means horrible its just extremely unnecessary. Even last years Anna was way more fun and exciting than this.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Mega Shark vs Kolossus (2015) in Movies
Aug 16, 2020
Amendment to the shark rules, having "mega" in the title... *chef's kiss*
When the hunt for the power source known as Red Mercury takes a team to an underground bunker they accidentally awaken the giant doomsday machine that's been idle since the Cold War. While the Kolossus runs rampage a new megalodon is terrorising the coast... what will happen when the two inexplicably meet?
I will say that of the Mega-Shark "franchise" the best is Mega Shark Vs. Mecha Shark. It is obviously much more sensible having two things that are designed to be in the same environment battling together, a robot fighting a shark is epic... but a stretch. This duo does mean that it feels very much like two films, but honestly, the ridiculousness of this makes up a bit for that.
It does at last start with a super realistic submarine that's manned by a lot of women in tight pleather that doesn't look like it would offer any kind of protection against water or action. This is why we come for these films... the accuracy.
The acting is exactly what you'd expect from a shark film, probably something you'd rather wasn't on your resume. You've got all the stereotypes with all the cringeable moments and the actors don't do a bad job with what they're given.
There's a little issue right at the beginning of the film. When the team meet up outside the bunker there's an obviously pointless exchange to explain what's going on, two of the actors have subtitles. I don't have an issue with subtitles when they're needed, but while both the actors have accents in the scene they're actually speaking perfectly understandable English. It might have been a glitch on the copy I watched, I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt, but if it wasn't then I don't know what they were thinking.
When it comes to the shark scale this film is good because it has the requisite bag CGI, stupid storyline and classic quotes... the famous last words "No sign of the mega shark" and my personal favourite "...or you can die hiding under your desk searching for your balls." Glorious. Despite the amazing lines and the fact it's got a shark in it, the sheer impossibility of the pairing and the fact it feels like two films forced together makes it fall short of high marks.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/08/mega-shark-vs-kolossus-movie-review.html
When the hunt for the power source known as Red Mercury takes a team to an underground bunker they accidentally awaken the giant doomsday machine that's been idle since the Cold War. While the Kolossus runs rampage a new megalodon is terrorising the coast... what will happen when the two inexplicably meet?
I will say that of the Mega-Shark "franchise" the best is Mega Shark Vs. Mecha Shark. It is obviously much more sensible having two things that are designed to be in the same environment battling together, a robot fighting a shark is epic... but a stretch. This duo does mean that it feels very much like two films, but honestly, the ridiculousness of this makes up a bit for that.
It does at last start with a super realistic submarine that's manned by a lot of women in tight pleather that doesn't look like it would offer any kind of protection against water or action. This is why we come for these films... the accuracy.
The acting is exactly what you'd expect from a shark film, probably something you'd rather wasn't on your resume. You've got all the stereotypes with all the cringeable moments and the actors don't do a bad job with what they're given.
There's a little issue right at the beginning of the film. When the team meet up outside the bunker there's an obviously pointless exchange to explain what's going on, two of the actors have subtitles. I don't have an issue with subtitles when they're needed, but while both the actors have accents in the scene they're actually speaking perfectly understandable English. It might have been a glitch on the copy I watched, I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt, but if it wasn't then I don't know what they were thinking.
When it comes to the shark scale this film is good because it has the requisite bag CGI, stupid storyline and classic quotes... the famous last words "No sign of the mega shark" and my personal favourite "...or you can die hiding under your desk searching for your balls." Glorious. Despite the amazing lines and the fact it's got a shark in it, the sheer impossibility of the pairing and the fact it feels like two films forced together makes it fall short of high marks.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/08/mega-shark-vs-kolossus-movie-review.html
Movie Metropolis (309 KP) rated Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015) in Movies
Jun 10, 2019
Simply Brilliant
Director Matthew Vaughn has brought some visually striking films to the big screen in his fairly short career, from the brilliant Layer Cake, to the movie which many credit as saving the X-Men franchise, First Class, he certainly knows his way around a camera.
However, Kingsman: The Secret Service is probably his riskiest proposition yet. Can a dark comedy about upper-class British spies with their tailor-made suits compete with the very best films in the genre?
Thankfully the answer is a resounding yes. The spectacular cinematography and fantastic performances in Kingsman ensure it is one of the most memorable and cleverly crafted blockbusters of the last decade.
The film follows the story of underprivileged Eggsy, played wonderfully by Taron Egerton in his first full role, as he does his best to join The Kingsmen, a secret society of spies working to bring down evil in the world.
An absolutely marvellous Colin Firth and a slightly underused Michael Caine also play part of this group – possibly creating the poshest ensemble of characters seen in a film for years.
Naturally a spy flick isn’t complete without a villain and Samuel L Jackson is on course here to become one of the cheesiest megalomaniacs ever put to the big screen. His deliberately camp performance goes well with the dark humour throughout.
Kingsman is also genuinely funny and a real treat to watch with explosive, over-the-top visuals and beautiful scenery which utilises what the world has to offer rather than delving into the CGI drawer many directors employ nowadays.
It all feels decidedly old fashioned and all the better for it with an almost grainy quality to the production – think The Avengers TV series but with a higher budget.
The plot is top notch and whilst it may border on cliché at times, Kingsman manages to steer the story in enough directions to make sure the audience never settles into a rut, the use of our reliance on modern technology being a particular highlight.
Special effects wise, it holds up well with most other blockbusters and has just a few lapses in CGI at the start and towards the riveting finale,Taron_Egerton_SDCC_2014 though these are barely noticeable if you’re not looking hard enough.
Moreover, it is a true pleasure to sit in a film and not wonder what the producers had to cut to achieve a crowd-pleasing 12A certification. Kingsman pulls no punches, this is a violent rollercoaster ride and well deserves the BBFC 15 rating it has been given. Whether or not this hurts its box-office performance remains to be seen.
Overall, Kingsman: The Secret Service is one of the only films which combines the ever-popular spy genre with comedy and manages to keep its dignity in tact as the end credits role.
So many films, Johnny English: Reborn and Get Smart to name a couple, simply delve into slapstick territory once the writers run out of ideas – this isn’t the case here.
From its exciting plot and brutally dark humour, to the engaging performances from every single character, Kingsman: The Secret Service is simply brilliant.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2015/01/30/simply-brilliant-kingsman-the-secret-service-review/
However, Kingsman: The Secret Service is probably his riskiest proposition yet. Can a dark comedy about upper-class British spies with their tailor-made suits compete with the very best films in the genre?
Thankfully the answer is a resounding yes. The spectacular cinematography and fantastic performances in Kingsman ensure it is one of the most memorable and cleverly crafted blockbusters of the last decade.
The film follows the story of underprivileged Eggsy, played wonderfully by Taron Egerton in his first full role, as he does his best to join The Kingsmen, a secret society of spies working to bring down evil in the world.
An absolutely marvellous Colin Firth and a slightly underused Michael Caine also play part of this group – possibly creating the poshest ensemble of characters seen in a film for years.
Naturally a spy flick isn’t complete without a villain and Samuel L Jackson is on course here to become one of the cheesiest megalomaniacs ever put to the big screen. His deliberately camp performance goes well with the dark humour throughout.
Kingsman is also genuinely funny and a real treat to watch with explosive, over-the-top visuals and beautiful scenery which utilises what the world has to offer rather than delving into the CGI drawer many directors employ nowadays.
It all feels decidedly old fashioned and all the better for it with an almost grainy quality to the production – think The Avengers TV series but with a higher budget.
The plot is top notch and whilst it may border on cliché at times, Kingsman manages to steer the story in enough directions to make sure the audience never settles into a rut, the use of our reliance on modern technology being a particular highlight.
Special effects wise, it holds up well with most other blockbusters and has just a few lapses in CGI at the start and towards the riveting finale,Taron_Egerton_SDCC_2014 though these are barely noticeable if you’re not looking hard enough.
Moreover, it is a true pleasure to sit in a film and not wonder what the producers had to cut to achieve a crowd-pleasing 12A certification. Kingsman pulls no punches, this is a violent rollercoaster ride and well deserves the BBFC 15 rating it has been given. Whether or not this hurts its box-office performance remains to be seen.
Overall, Kingsman: The Secret Service is one of the only films which combines the ever-popular spy genre with comedy and manages to keep its dignity in tact as the end credits role.
So many films, Johnny English: Reborn and Get Smart to name a couple, simply delve into slapstick territory once the writers run out of ideas – this isn’t the case here.
From its exciting plot and brutally dark humour, to the engaging performances from every single character, Kingsman: The Secret Service is simply brilliant.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2015/01/30/simply-brilliant-kingsman-the-secret-service-review/
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Chopping Mall (1986) in Movies
Feb 16, 2020
As I sat on my sofa looking for trash to watch I headed over to Prime to see what there was available. I decided to scroll through films it thought I'd like to watch based on my previous viewing habits... and that's how I discovered Chopping Mall, which is a much better title than it's alternative, Killbots... you always have to go for the pun. Amazon may know me a little bit too well with this recommendation.
The latest in shopping mall security is here, robot security guards that patrol the walkways and detain robbers with minimal fuss keeping your stores and staff safe*. [*Disclaimer: Unless there's a technical malfunction, in which case we take no responsibility for the massive loss of life and property damage.]
This is possibly one of the most 80s of all 80s films. Fantastic hair, all those pastel colours and were thankfully lost some time in the early 90s, random nudity, terrific electronic music [that you know what created by someone who also had fantastic hair] and Dick Miller. I don't even know what I have to say any further than that... go to Prime and watch it immediately!
Sure, Chopping Mall will make you never trust a furniture store again but it's still totally worth watching.
There are moments where you want to scream at the screen for errors in common sense and continuity, but in that fun way where you're laughing and telling them they're all going to die because of their stupidity. That alone is worth watching it for. At only one point during the film did I think something was actually bad, and that was during a stunt where they obviously had the actress off screen doing the audio for a stunt double and the two didn't match well... honestly though, that's just nitpicking.
No, you're not mistaken if you thought you recognised the shopping mall in this, it's the same one used in T2, Commando and Fast Times At Ridgemont High as well as others. In fact there's a lot to spot in the film with nods to other films and the director, though I have to admit that most of them passed me by.
The film is an incredibly short (but very entertaining) 77 minutes and it's worth every second of time you spend on it. Turning to the trivia you'll discover that this is a cut down of the original... the one titled Killbots. It was initially released with about 15 minutes of extra footage but performed badly so they cut it down and renamed it to appeal more to the horror fans. Finding this trivia also made me realise that there's actually no chopping in the whole movie, which made me sad, but I still love the pun.
I could analyse this until the cows come home but it's just genuinely great fun. The acting is exactly what I love about these sorts of movies and there's nothing frivolous thrown in, that was one of the best films I've seen in ages and I'm annoyed I never discovered it before.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/02/chopping-mall-movie-review.html
The latest in shopping mall security is here, robot security guards that patrol the walkways and detain robbers with minimal fuss keeping your stores and staff safe*. [*Disclaimer: Unless there's a technical malfunction, in which case we take no responsibility for the massive loss of life and property damage.]
This is possibly one of the most 80s of all 80s films. Fantastic hair, all those pastel colours and were thankfully lost some time in the early 90s, random nudity, terrific electronic music [that you know what created by someone who also had fantastic hair] and Dick Miller. I don't even know what I have to say any further than that... go to Prime and watch it immediately!
Sure, Chopping Mall will make you never trust a furniture store again but it's still totally worth watching.
There are moments where you want to scream at the screen for errors in common sense and continuity, but in that fun way where you're laughing and telling them they're all going to die because of their stupidity. That alone is worth watching it for. At only one point during the film did I think something was actually bad, and that was during a stunt where they obviously had the actress off screen doing the audio for a stunt double and the two didn't match well... honestly though, that's just nitpicking.
No, you're not mistaken if you thought you recognised the shopping mall in this, it's the same one used in T2, Commando and Fast Times At Ridgemont High as well as others. In fact there's a lot to spot in the film with nods to other films and the director, though I have to admit that most of them passed me by.
The film is an incredibly short (but very entertaining) 77 minutes and it's worth every second of time you spend on it. Turning to the trivia you'll discover that this is a cut down of the original... the one titled Killbots. It was initially released with about 15 minutes of extra footage but performed badly so they cut it down and renamed it to appeal more to the horror fans. Finding this trivia also made me realise that there's actually no chopping in the whole movie, which made me sad, but I still love the pun.
I could analyse this until the cows come home but it's just genuinely great fun. The acting is exactly what I love about these sorts of movies and there's nothing frivolous thrown in, that was one of the best films I've seen in ages and I'm annoyed I never discovered it before.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/02/chopping-mall-movie-review.html
RəX Regent (349 KP) rated Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005) in Movies
Mar 7, 2019
Far, far away from it's potential...
Contains spoilers, click to show
After 22 years of waiting, since 1983′s "Return Of The Jedi", we were sat in the auditorium ready to witness the epic moment when Obi Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker would finally turn on one and other and Darth Vader's conception would be complete.
As the 'Clone War' came to a close, the Jedi had been all but wiped of the face of a galaxy far, far away and Chancellor Palpatine had ascended to become the emperor of the newly formed 'Galactic Empire', that moment had finally arrived. Was it worth the wait? Well, since the bar had be not so much lowered, but obliterated by the the first two prequels, measured with those in mind, then yes, absolutely! In fact, it does stand up well, and on the initial viewing, it was outstanding. A visual feast or choreography, visual style and epic art direction, everything you would expect from the man who had changed cinema forever, 28 years earlier.
The only issue is that even though the fans wanted nothing more that to see this duel, the rest of the prequel franchise was merely filler, and a series of plots designed to delay the inevitable battle and to give the audience anything but what they had expected. But after a ridiculous 22 year wait, there was almost no good ideas left that hadn't been explored in two decades of fan fiction, leaving all the bad ones to be included in Lucus' second, no rather third rate scripts! We had been told that he was waiting for the technology to make these films, but what was he waiting for exactly? The technology to animate the, perhaps? The visual effects in these films, though sparkling and perfect in its details, are hollow and do not match the standards of the original films, and begs the question as to why not? Four years since the release of "Revenge Of The Sith", James Cameron would finally release a film which he had being developing the technology for, for over 10 years, ("Avatar") and the result: Groundbreaking cinema, in both the 3D and Mo-cap tech, raising the bar, as "Star Wars" had done three decades earlier.
But this film had restored something which the franchise had all but destroyed with episodes one and two. This finally felt something like the original films and was a joy to watch, even though it still falls short of the mark. The acting is poor in all the prequels, which account to Lucas' directorial style, favoring green screen and CGI over acting. But John William's score is first rate, as it has been throughout the entire saga, but this was both classic and moving, a score truly in touch with the audiences love and feeling towards the films, sadly devoid in most other aspects of the production.
That's not to say that technically this was well produced, because on paper, in the computers, and certainly in sound editing suites, it was perfect, with levels of audio visual detail to die for and the scope was awesome. But in the end, it is a hollow shell of what it should have been. "Episode III" though, is the most fulfilling of the three, but all of them rely of the decades of loyalty given to them, because without it, these would probably be laughed out of the auditoriums.
But having said all that, I enjoy this film, as a part of the saga, and still look forward to seeing it, and some of the sequences in this film , though far from perfectly realized, are fun and enjoyable. This is leagues below "Star Wars" and the superior "Empire Strikes Back", but still worth a watch.
As the 'Clone War' came to a close, the Jedi had been all but wiped of the face of a galaxy far, far away and Chancellor Palpatine had ascended to become the emperor of the newly formed 'Galactic Empire', that moment had finally arrived. Was it worth the wait? Well, since the bar had be not so much lowered, but obliterated by the the first two prequels, measured with those in mind, then yes, absolutely! In fact, it does stand up well, and on the initial viewing, it was outstanding. A visual feast or choreography, visual style and epic art direction, everything you would expect from the man who had changed cinema forever, 28 years earlier.
The only issue is that even though the fans wanted nothing more that to see this duel, the rest of the prequel franchise was merely filler, and a series of plots designed to delay the inevitable battle and to give the audience anything but what they had expected. But after a ridiculous 22 year wait, there was almost no good ideas left that hadn't been explored in two decades of fan fiction, leaving all the bad ones to be included in Lucus' second, no rather third rate scripts! We had been told that he was waiting for the technology to make these films, but what was he waiting for exactly? The technology to animate the, perhaps? The visual effects in these films, though sparkling and perfect in its details, are hollow and do not match the standards of the original films, and begs the question as to why not? Four years since the release of "Revenge Of The Sith", James Cameron would finally release a film which he had being developing the technology for, for over 10 years, ("Avatar") and the result: Groundbreaking cinema, in both the 3D and Mo-cap tech, raising the bar, as "Star Wars" had done three decades earlier.
But this film had restored something which the franchise had all but destroyed with episodes one and two. This finally felt something like the original films and was a joy to watch, even though it still falls short of the mark. The acting is poor in all the prequels, which account to Lucas' directorial style, favoring green screen and CGI over acting. But John William's score is first rate, as it has been throughout the entire saga, but this was both classic and moving, a score truly in touch with the audiences love and feeling towards the films, sadly devoid in most other aspects of the production.
That's not to say that technically this was well produced, because on paper, in the computers, and certainly in sound editing suites, it was perfect, with levels of audio visual detail to die for and the scope was awesome. But in the end, it is a hollow shell of what it should have been. "Episode III" though, is the most fulfilling of the three, but all of them rely of the decades of loyalty given to them, because without it, these would probably be laughed out of the auditoriums.
But having said all that, I enjoy this film, as a part of the saga, and still look forward to seeing it, and some of the sequences in this film , though far from perfectly realized, are fun and enjoyable. This is leagues below "Star Wars" and the superior "Empire Strikes Back", but still worth a watch.
JT (287 KP) rated Easy A (2010) in Movies
Mar 10, 2020
Flat, dull and lacking in any laughs. Harsh this verdict might be, but I’m afraid it is about the long and the short of it. As Indie films go this does little to highlight those credentials bestowed on other greats such as Clueless or Sixteen Candles. The lovely Emma Stone whose turn in Superbad put her on the road to stardom is short of her best, and at times is cringe worthily bad.
Olive (Stone) is a well liked pupil at high school, but when a little white lie about losing her virginity gets the rumour mill going she is singled out as, well, quite simply a slut.
Drawing on comparisons to The Scarlet Letter, which happens to be one of the books she is studying she takes it upon herself to brandish her attire with the letter A, for adulterer, as well as using her new found status to milk a little money from desperate males keen to move a level or two up the social ladder.
As Indie films go this does little to highlight those credentials bestowed on other greats such as Clueless or Sixteen Candles
Some have compared this to the best teen comedy since Clueless, well forget it, Director Will Gluck does little to inject this film with any laughs whatsoever, and any dramatic interludes seem bland. If anything the characters are somewhat annoying, ranging from Amanda Bynes’s devout Christian who is not really a good advert for all things religious to Olive’s best bud Rhiannon (Aly Michalka) by far and away one of the worst acting performances I have seen for some time.
Even the inclusion of Friends star (yes she’ll always have that tag) Lisa Kudrow as the school councillor or Thomas Haden Church as her teacher husband do little to offer the overall outcome of the plot. Perhaps one of the few shinning lights are Olive’s parents Dill and Rosemary (aptly named), Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson respectively, whose care free guide to parenting should be noted for today’s modern age.
If Gluck thinks he can walk in the same footsteps of a John Hughes master class he is going to have to come up with something better than this. Hughes himself was the Godfather of the teenage comedy for the likes of The Breakfast Club and not forgetting for a second Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
Easy A tries to hard to follow in the footsteps of the above and even Olive herself references them during the film, with an ending that hardly screams of originality, unless they are paying homage to 80s teen comedies.
Openly, its not good, confused and lost for long periods Stone does her utmost to pull anything back but it ain’t working for her or Gluck here.
Olive (Stone) is a well liked pupil at high school, but when a little white lie about losing her virginity gets the rumour mill going she is singled out as, well, quite simply a slut.
Drawing on comparisons to The Scarlet Letter, which happens to be one of the books she is studying she takes it upon herself to brandish her attire with the letter A, for adulterer, as well as using her new found status to milk a little money from desperate males keen to move a level or two up the social ladder.
As Indie films go this does little to highlight those credentials bestowed on other greats such as Clueless or Sixteen Candles
Some have compared this to the best teen comedy since Clueless, well forget it, Director Will Gluck does little to inject this film with any laughs whatsoever, and any dramatic interludes seem bland. If anything the characters are somewhat annoying, ranging from Amanda Bynes’s devout Christian who is not really a good advert for all things religious to Olive’s best bud Rhiannon (Aly Michalka) by far and away one of the worst acting performances I have seen for some time.
Even the inclusion of Friends star (yes she’ll always have that tag) Lisa Kudrow as the school councillor or Thomas Haden Church as her teacher husband do little to offer the overall outcome of the plot. Perhaps one of the few shinning lights are Olive’s parents Dill and Rosemary (aptly named), Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson respectively, whose care free guide to parenting should be noted for today’s modern age.
If Gluck thinks he can walk in the same footsteps of a John Hughes master class he is going to have to come up with something better than this. Hughes himself was the Godfather of the teenage comedy for the likes of The Breakfast Club and not forgetting for a second Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
Easy A tries to hard to follow in the footsteps of the above and even Olive herself references them during the film, with an ending that hardly screams of originality, unless they are paying homage to 80s teen comedies.
Openly, its not good, confused and lost for long periods Stone does her utmost to pull anything back but it ain’t working for her or Gluck here.