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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Baywatch (2017) in Movies
Jul 11, 2019
Mitch Buchannon (Dwayne Johnson) is the head of the elite lifeguards of Baywatch. With over 500 confirmed saves he is a local legend. He and his team keep the beach safe by saving drowning victims and going after the people who threaten the safety of the bay they patrol. His team consists of; Stephanie Holden (Ilfenesh Hadera) the one person who might know the bay as well as Mitch and his second in command, C.J. Parker (Kelly Rohrbach) another veteran lifeguard, recruits Ronnie Greenbaum (Jon Bass) and Summer Quinn (Alexandra Daddario) both out to prove themselves, and the final member is cocky recruit Matt Brody (Zac Efron). When drugs start to wash up on the shores of the bay Mitch and company decide to investigate local business woman Victoria Leeds (Priyanka Chopra). They notice that some odd things seem to be happening around a high end resort she owns. The drugs are wash up right in front of the resort and an unknown fish company begins delivering mysterious blue barrels to the resort. But when a local councilman dies under suspicious circumstances, while wearing the same expensive watch worn by Victoria’s body guards, they decide they must infiltrate Victoria’s club, yacht . They have to come together and get to the bottom of where the drugs are coming from and who is responsible to save they bay they are sworn to protect.
If there was a film that took to the phase “don’t take yourself too seriously” Baywatch would be that film. This Seth Gordon (Horrible Bosses, Identity Thief) directed film embraces the cheesiness of the original Baywatch television series in a big way. The cast pokes fun at every aspect of the television series as well as the personas of the real life actors, specifically Johnson and Efron. Johnson’s character is constantly poking fun at Efron’s character by calling him boy band names, in reference to Efron’s status as a teen heartthrob. Another way the movie makes fun of itself is by calling out the fact the Baywatch team not only have the duties of lifeguards on the beach but also doing criminal investigates, going under cover and chasing criminals. There is an ongoing gag throughout the movie where a local police officer, Sgt. Ellerbee (yahya Abdul-Mateen II), reminds Mitch that he is not a police officer, which does not stop him from survelling suspects and looking at coroner reports. Another aspect that I think was done well was that it does not try to reimagine the universe of Baywatch. Rather it takes all the corny one liners and over the top plots and adds some raunchiness to make it new and fresh.
It maybe went a little too far on the cheesy lines and over-acting at times but I think that was the intent of the film. Many of times I found myself shaking my head at how absurd the story was but in the end it was all done in a fun way and again not taking itself too seriously. The action scenes are good not great. The acting fits the style of the movie, it’s bad but presumably on purpose. The CGI in the movie is hit and miss, most notable the underwater scenes are not the best. The movie is also way raunchier that I expected. Some scenes definitely caught me off guard at how far they went. I wouldn’t go into it expecting any amazing acting or plausible plot lines, because you are likely to be let down. This is not for anyone looking for a witty comedy or is not a fan of excessive foul language and some nudity. If you were a fan of the TV series you will probably enjoy the film, notably the cameos by Pamela Anderson (as Casey Jean Parker) and David Hasselhoff (as the mentor).
If there was a film that took to the phase “don’t take yourself too seriously” Baywatch would be that film. This Seth Gordon (Horrible Bosses, Identity Thief) directed film embraces the cheesiness of the original Baywatch television series in a big way. The cast pokes fun at every aspect of the television series as well as the personas of the real life actors, specifically Johnson and Efron. Johnson’s character is constantly poking fun at Efron’s character by calling him boy band names, in reference to Efron’s status as a teen heartthrob. Another way the movie makes fun of itself is by calling out the fact the Baywatch team not only have the duties of lifeguards on the beach but also doing criminal investigates, going under cover and chasing criminals. There is an ongoing gag throughout the movie where a local police officer, Sgt. Ellerbee (yahya Abdul-Mateen II), reminds Mitch that he is not a police officer, which does not stop him from survelling suspects and looking at coroner reports. Another aspect that I think was done well was that it does not try to reimagine the universe of Baywatch. Rather it takes all the corny one liners and over the top plots and adds some raunchiness to make it new and fresh.
It maybe went a little too far on the cheesy lines and over-acting at times but I think that was the intent of the film. Many of times I found myself shaking my head at how absurd the story was but in the end it was all done in a fun way and again not taking itself too seriously. The action scenes are good not great. The acting fits the style of the movie, it’s bad but presumably on purpose. The CGI in the movie is hit and miss, most notable the underwater scenes are not the best. The movie is also way raunchier that I expected. Some scenes definitely caught me off guard at how far they went. I wouldn’t go into it expecting any amazing acting or plausible plot lines, because you are likely to be let down. This is not for anyone looking for a witty comedy or is not a fan of excessive foul language and some nudity. If you were a fan of the TV series you will probably enjoy the film, notably the cameos by Pamela Anderson (as Casey Jean Parker) and David Hasselhoff (as the mentor).
Saffy Alexandra (89 KP) rated Conversations With A Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes in TV
Jun 10, 2019
After the huge hype about a new movie coming out called Ted Bundy featuring Zac Efron of course there was going to be a mass calling for more information on the serial killer. So when on Netflix they said they were doing a series on unseen and unheard clips of Ted Bundy then I, like many, were pulled in ready to be wowed.
I was left a little underwhelmed and a bit dissapointed to be honest. I think I was expecting more drama or something we hadn't ever heard about Ted Bundy, but if you had already done your research (or even Wikipedia'ed him) then this TV series didn't really give you much more.
The first few episodes I felt were very slow and didn't really hold my attention but through perseverance I kept with the show till the end.
It was interesting and hearing and seeing actual witnesses and people from Ted Bundy's life was certainly one plus to watching this series and an interesting input and out look on the serial killer.
What most fascinated me was the fact that police ended up going to Ted Bundy and asking him to help them solve other Serial Killer murders, that was possibly the most eye-opening through out this.
An interesting series if you haven't seen or heard about Ted Bundy and a clever outlook to the Serial Killer, but over all not a winner in my eyes.
I was left a little underwhelmed and a bit dissapointed to be honest. I think I was expecting more drama or something we hadn't ever heard about Ted Bundy, but if you had already done your research (or even Wikipedia'ed him) then this TV series didn't really give you much more.
The first few episodes I felt were very slow and didn't really hold my attention but through perseverance I kept with the show till the end.
It was interesting and hearing and seeing actual witnesses and people from Ted Bundy's life was certainly one plus to watching this series and an interesting input and out look on the serial killer.
What most fascinated me was the fact that police ended up going to Ted Bundy and asking him to help them solve other Serial Killer murders, that was possibly the most eye-opening through out this.
An interesting series if you haven't seen or heard about Ted Bundy and a clever outlook to the Serial Killer, but over all not a winner in my eyes.
David McK (3773 KP) rated Batman, Volume 3: Death of the Family in Books
Jan 30, 2019
With a title that references the famous Batman story 'A Death in the family' (in which the Joker bumps off Robin - or, at least, one of the characters to hold that mantle), this is third volume in 'The New 52' series of Batman comics (after [b:Batman, Volume 1: The Court of Owls|13223349|Batman, Volume 1 The Court of Owls|Scott Snyder|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1342307351s/13223349.jpg|18412501] and [b:Batman, Volume 2: The City of Owls|15752115|Batman, Volume 2 The City of Owls|Scott Snyder|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1342309403s/15752115.jpg|21446852]), and sees the return of who is commonly considered to be ol' Bat's arch-nemesis: that of the Joker.
And, boy, is the clown prince of crime scary in this.
With more in common, perhaps, to Heath Ledgers portrayal of that character in 'The Dark Knight' than to Cesar Romero's (Batman '66 TV series) or even Jack Nicholson (the 1989 Batman movie), this version is pretty much just a pure agent of chaos, and a formidable (and scary) foe indeed - this is definitely not a read for the kiddies, say.
Taking in a couple of plot-strands from other New 52 titles (including The Joker, Nightwing, Batgirl and Detective Comics, amongst others) this version of the Joker is out to re-create his early crimes; out to (effectively) 'reset' tgime back to when it was just Batman and him duking it out.
And, boy, is the clown prince of crime scary in this.
With more in common, perhaps, to Heath Ledgers portrayal of that character in 'The Dark Knight' than to Cesar Romero's (Batman '66 TV series) or even Jack Nicholson (the 1989 Batman movie), this version is pretty much just a pure agent of chaos, and a formidable (and scary) foe indeed - this is definitely not a read for the kiddies, say.
Taking in a couple of plot-strands from other New 52 titles (including The Joker, Nightwing, Batgirl and Detective Comics, amongst others) this version of the Joker is out to re-create his early crimes; out to (effectively) 'reset' tgime back to when it was just Batman and him duking it out.
Awix (3310 KP) rated The A-Team (2010) in Movies
Feb 16, 2020
Leaden remake of the popular-in-the-80s-but-only-possible-to-enjoy-ironically-now TV action show. Unhinged special-forces unit the A-Team are framed for a crime they didn't commit, bust out of prison, try to clear their names by going to Germany. Where, you may be wondering, is the mom 'n' pop store being threatened by cheap gangsters the team are called in to protect? Where is Hannibal putting on a stupid disguise? Where is the bit where the bad guys lock them in a shed with a load of welding gear, allowing them to build an armoured car out of bits of old washing machine? Where is the scene where they spray 35,000 rounds of .223 ammunition at the bad guys, destroying everything in sight but leaving their targets miraculously unscathed? Friends, none of these things are here.
Instead it's almost as if the A-Team have wandered into a rather downbeat Mission: Impossible movie, or possibly one of the Bournes. You don't expect to have to wrestle with the plot of The A-Team but there's a confusing tangle of double-crosses and betrayals between military intelligence, the CIA and private security firms at the heart of this. Seems to fundamentally misunderstand the essential cheesy disposability of The A-Team by trying to make it feel like a serious drama. I wouldn't have thought it was possible: this manages to be both inauthentic to the original series and also bad.
Instead it's almost as if the A-Team have wandered into a rather downbeat Mission: Impossible movie, or possibly one of the Bournes. You don't expect to have to wrestle with the plot of The A-Team but there's a confusing tangle of double-crosses and betrayals between military intelligence, the CIA and private security firms at the heart of this. Seems to fundamentally misunderstand the essential cheesy disposability of The A-Team by trying to make it feel like a serious drama. I wouldn't have thought it was possible: this manages to be both inauthentic to the original series and also bad.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Doom: Annihilation (2019) in Movies
Jul 19, 2020
Pretty dire
Let’s be honest, the first Doom film was never going to win any Oscars but it at least had a lot of cheesy and fun charm alongside a fairly star studded cast. Sadly this reboot has no such qualities.
To start with, you can tell this is a very low budget film. The whole thing just looks cheap, from the poorly built sets to the costumes and props. It just has an overall feel of a cheap made for TV movie. And then there’s the cast and the script, both of which are incredibly dire. The acting for the most part is terrible, although I did have a soft spot for the rather over the top and hilarious Australian Winslow. One good thing about this is they at least use mostly physical effects, which is probably because the CGI is awful when it is eventually used. That said, some of the physical effects are pretty atrocious too. The creatures when they eventually show up (after the weird zombie like creatures that aren’t Doom in the slightest), they’re obviously just a bloke in a suit and a very badly made suit at that. The creatures aren’t scary, they’re just funny and actually reminded me of the bad guys you used to see on Power Rangers.
There are some films that are so bad they’re good, but sadly this isn’t one of them. This is just plain awful and really didn’t need to be made.
To start with, you can tell this is a very low budget film. The whole thing just looks cheap, from the poorly built sets to the costumes and props. It just has an overall feel of a cheap made for TV movie. And then there’s the cast and the script, both of which are incredibly dire. The acting for the most part is terrible, although I did have a soft spot for the rather over the top and hilarious Australian Winslow. One good thing about this is they at least use mostly physical effects, which is probably because the CGI is awful when it is eventually used. That said, some of the physical effects are pretty atrocious too. The creatures when they eventually show up (after the weird zombie like creatures that aren’t Doom in the slightest), they’re obviously just a bloke in a suit and a very badly made suit at that. The creatures aren’t scary, they’re just funny and actually reminded me of the bad guys you used to see on Power Rangers.
There are some films that are so bad they’re good, but sadly this isn’t one of them. This is just plain awful and really didn’t need to be made.
LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Motherless Brooklyn (2019) in Movies
Mar 10, 2021 (Updated Mar 11, 2021)
A swing and a miss, to be sure - but boy do I admire what a wide fuckin' swing it is. Norton clearly loves and understands the mechanisms of film noir but translates them into a boiling hot mess. A baffling Frankenstein's monster of hokey performances, grotesque fakey-looking cinematography, trash editing, formless structure, and corny dialogue - you'd think no one here had ever been involved with the moviemaking process before, it's actually bewildering. The ever-dependable (and criminally underrated) Daniel Pemberton's score as well as some fine production are in direct conflict with its shit TV movie visuals - so there ends up being no actual mood here either. Its noble but muddled attempt at reviving the old-school prestige gumshoe epic make it at least mildly diverting oftentimes - but there's a whole lot of people explaining the plot to each other and not a lot of actual character on display. Nothing really feels lived-in, we're told time and time again how much we're supposed to feel for these relationships despite the fact that everyone just kind of bounces in and out only when they're needed to advance the plot with no further development - and its 50s setting it banks so hard on is mere window dressing to peddle the type of plot you've seen a hundred other times in these. Am I supposed to be shocked that urban renewal leaders are greedy, egotistical, and racist?
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (AVP 2) (2007) in Movies
Jun 28, 2019
A shameless money grab
After the thoroughly underwhelming AVP, we are presented with Requiem, a film that's entices you with it's R rating (after the first films odd PG-13 rating), and it's clear to see why a lot of the advertising was centred around the R rating - because Requiem has little else to offer.
Both of these franchises are beloved, but unfortunately, the bad films have really started to outweigh the good - and Requiem is a film made purely to make money. There's no diving into the lore behind any of the past films, and instead the story is set in a small Colorado town, full of actors that I kind of recognise from various TV shows - which is fitting, because the film plays out like an episode of Dawson's Creek, just with lots of Aliens running around.
The staple violence of both series is present once again, however, it feels like the constant Gore is being thrown at you to distract you from the threadbare plot.
The (singular) Predator looks pretty good, however the Aliens are mostly shrouded in shadow, I don't recall seeing a full body shot of a Xenomorph at any point, and the Predator-Alien hybrid, again, is never really shown properly, and what we do see looks silly.
It's a pretty shoddy movie all in all, and this particular mash up is probably best left to books and graphic novels.
Both of these franchises are beloved, but unfortunately, the bad films have really started to outweigh the good - and Requiem is a film made purely to make money. There's no diving into the lore behind any of the past films, and instead the story is set in a small Colorado town, full of actors that I kind of recognise from various TV shows - which is fitting, because the film plays out like an episode of Dawson's Creek, just with lots of Aliens running around.
The staple violence of both series is present once again, however, it feels like the constant Gore is being thrown at you to distract you from the threadbare plot.
The (singular) Predator looks pretty good, however the Aliens are mostly shrouded in shadow, I don't recall seeing a full body shot of a Xenomorph at any point, and the Predator-Alien hybrid, again, is never really shown properly, and what we do see looks silly.
It's a pretty shoddy movie all in all, and this particular mash up is probably best left to books and graphic novels.
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