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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Penguins Of Madagascar (2014) in Movies
Aug 6, 2019
Those cute little feathery spy guys are back in an all new action packed adventure. If you are unfamiliar with the Penguins of Madagascar animated series on Nick there is no need to worry. Here is a quick rundown; Skipper is the leader, Kowalski is the brains, Rico is the loose cannon, and Private is the rookie. This film takes off right after Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted when the Penguins are trying to escape from the Afro Circus song that seems to be driving everybody insane but also shows how they became a group and got their start.
This lighthearted film takes a break from all others that seem to always tug at those heartstrings. It is packed full of recognizable actors and a great script. The Penguins themselves are voiced by not so recognizable actors but are the ones who worked on Madagascar like animators directors etc. The real recognizable voices are those from the rival espionage crew the North Wind. Benedict Cumberbatch plays the gray wolf leader of a pack, Ken Jeong from the Hangover films, as a cute little seal, Annet Mahendru as an owl and Peter Stormare as a polar bear with a huge heart. Let’s not forget the big purple octopus villain played by John Malkovich whom has the perfect villain voice.
The script is chalk full of great humor for both kids and adults and is very entertaining. The writers used a lot of clever word play and great gags to entertain the audience throughout the entire film. Visually though the film can be viewed in 3D but as in most films it is not necessary to enjoy the 90 minutes of sheer silliness. This is a great film to take the kiddies to and also the adults like myself who are big fans of the flightless feathered quartet.
4 out of 5 herring
This lighthearted film takes a break from all others that seem to always tug at those heartstrings. It is packed full of recognizable actors and a great script. The Penguins themselves are voiced by not so recognizable actors but are the ones who worked on Madagascar like animators directors etc. The real recognizable voices are those from the rival espionage crew the North Wind. Benedict Cumberbatch plays the gray wolf leader of a pack, Ken Jeong from the Hangover films, as a cute little seal, Annet Mahendru as an owl and Peter Stormare as a polar bear with a huge heart. Let’s not forget the big purple octopus villain played by John Malkovich whom has the perfect villain voice.
The script is chalk full of great humor for both kids and adults and is very entertaining. The writers used a lot of clever word play and great gags to entertain the audience throughout the entire film. Visually though the film can be viewed in 3D but as in most films it is not necessary to enjoy the 90 minutes of sheer silliness. This is a great film to take the kiddies to and also the adults like myself who are big fans of the flightless feathered quartet.
4 out of 5 herring
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Rose McGiver (Masters of Sex) stars in iZombie as a young medical resident turned zombie who works...
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Join a table with global players! ◆ Takeover cities, collect tolls and out-wealth other players...
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Amanda Quick, the bestselling author of 'Til Death Do Us Part, transports readers to 1930s...
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Triple 9 (2016) in Movies
Aug 6, 2019
A crew of bank robbers is strong-armed by the Russian mob to pull off a near impossible heist due the response time of the police. In order to create a larger window, the dirty cops of this crew suggest creating a 999 (police code for “officer down.”) on the other side of town. That is the basic plot of Triple 9. Yet, the tagline for this film is, “The Code on the street is never black and white.” Seems like a different movie which is part of the letdown of Triple 9. It doesn’t know what it wants to be. Is it a heist movie like Heat or The Town? Or is it trying to be a movie about the cops and the rules of the streets like Training Day?
In the beginning, the film sets its self-up to be a smart and stylistic heist film. However shortly after it begins to feel disjointed as it attempts to develop everyone in its ensemble cast to the point where it hurts the story and some excellent performances become forgettable. It’s a shame because somewhere in this film is potentially two excellent separate films. One film about a crew having to complete a heist for the mob to save their lives and loved ones, and another about dirty cops, their partners and the moral ambiguity of the code on the streets. In Triple 9, these two premises never really get developed on one side or the other and thus everything is just left there.
On the heist side, Chiwetel Ejiofor plays ex-mercenary Michael Atwood. Michael is the careful and calculating leader of the crew, but is tied to the Russian mafia through the mother of his son. Michael is constantly being coerced by the Russian Mob Boss, played by Kate Winslet. The two give stellar performances, most notably Winslet who is cold and ruthless in wielding her power, speaking her mind and not caring how the job gets done as long as it gets done.
On the cop side, Anthony Mackie plays dirty police detective Marcus Belmont who becomes partnered with the ex-marine turned rookie detective Chris Allen (Casey Affleck). Belmont feels that the rookie doesn’t respect the streets and his “Do-gooder” “make a difference” attitude is going to get him killed. When Belmont’s heist crewmate Jorge Rodriguez (Clifton Collins Jr.) learns Chris is also the nephew of the Sergeant Detective (Woody Harrelson) investigating the heist crew, Chris becomes the clear candidate to be set up for the Triple 9. (Convenient huh)
Ultimately, as the story plays out it feels we are always arriving at the end of the meeting to plan the coming events. From the planning of the heist, to the set up murder, and to the exit plan, we are just carried through the motions without much motivation of how or why things have to play out the way they do. As a result, I didn’t really care for any of the characters good or bad, unlike other films of this nature. Even Ejiofor’s character Michael, who has his child involved, doesn’t get the opportunity to really show why the rest of the crew respects him and follows him, or why he needs to stay alive for his son, who basically seems better off being taken care of by the Russian mob.
In the end Triple 9 is not a bad movie, it just isn’t really a great one either. It has strong performances by the entire cast and has the makings of something great, but fails to deliver on that opportunity with a disjointed story trying to focus on too many characters. This makes it ultimately forgettable compared to other heist films of similar nature.
In the beginning, the film sets its self-up to be a smart and stylistic heist film. However shortly after it begins to feel disjointed as it attempts to develop everyone in its ensemble cast to the point where it hurts the story and some excellent performances become forgettable. It’s a shame because somewhere in this film is potentially two excellent separate films. One film about a crew having to complete a heist for the mob to save their lives and loved ones, and another about dirty cops, their partners and the moral ambiguity of the code on the streets. In Triple 9, these two premises never really get developed on one side or the other and thus everything is just left there.
On the heist side, Chiwetel Ejiofor plays ex-mercenary Michael Atwood. Michael is the careful and calculating leader of the crew, but is tied to the Russian mafia through the mother of his son. Michael is constantly being coerced by the Russian Mob Boss, played by Kate Winslet. The two give stellar performances, most notably Winslet who is cold and ruthless in wielding her power, speaking her mind and not caring how the job gets done as long as it gets done.
On the cop side, Anthony Mackie plays dirty police detective Marcus Belmont who becomes partnered with the ex-marine turned rookie detective Chris Allen (Casey Affleck). Belmont feels that the rookie doesn’t respect the streets and his “Do-gooder” “make a difference” attitude is going to get him killed. When Belmont’s heist crewmate Jorge Rodriguez (Clifton Collins Jr.) learns Chris is also the nephew of the Sergeant Detective (Woody Harrelson) investigating the heist crew, Chris becomes the clear candidate to be set up for the Triple 9. (Convenient huh)
Ultimately, as the story plays out it feels we are always arriving at the end of the meeting to plan the coming events. From the planning of the heist, to the set up murder, and to the exit plan, we are just carried through the motions without much motivation of how or why things have to play out the way they do. As a result, I didn’t really care for any of the characters good or bad, unlike other films of this nature. Even Ejiofor’s character Michael, who has his child involved, doesn’t get the opportunity to really show why the rest of the crew respects him and follows him, or why he needs to stay alive for his son, who basically seems better off being taken care of by the Russian mob.
In the end Triple 9 is not a bad movie, it just isn’t really a great one either. It has strong performances by the entire cast and has the makings of something great, but fails to deliver on that opportunity with a disjointed story trying to focus on too many characters. This makes it ultimately forgettable compared to other heist films of similar nature.
Ian Poulter: The Biography of Britain's Golfing Hero
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Ian Poulter: The Biography of Britain's Golfing Hero tells the story of one of Britain's finest...
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Feb 24, 2023
Otway93 (580 KP) rated Resident Evil (2021) in Movies
Feb 13, 2022
Story (1 more)
Nostalgic
Casting (1 more)
Character Traits
A fun film, but not without obvious flaws.
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is a great film. It attempts to combine key elements from the first 3 Resident Evil games into one movie, which kind of works, and kind of doesn't at the same time. Expect a lot of familiar moments and memorable key moments from the story of Raccoon City, but also don't get too excited because a lot of key moments and characters are missing entirely.
The film should have been two films really, the first covering the Mansion Incident, and the second covering the outbreak in Raccoon City.
The characters, while being most of the best known characters from the original game, are present yet at the same time not quite right. The casting, while not terrible, did make some mistakes, mostly in Tom Hopper's portrayal of Wesker, he just seems far too young for the role. But that isn't the only issue. The character's personalities are not as you remember them.
Chris comes across as very arrogant and annoying, Jill comes across as quite sassy, and poor Leon, the rookie cop seems to be a bumbling fool there for comic relief.
The best written and acted character by a long way is Claire, who comes across as the little rebel we know and love.
All in all, definitely worth a watch, and I will definitely watch it again. But if you are a huge Resident Evil nerd such as myself, it will certainly have it's moments for you, but don't go in expecting to see the entire story of Raccoon City unfold before your eyes.
Also, don't forget to keep watching the credits...
The film should have been two films really, the first covering the Mansion Incident, and the second covering the outbreak in Raccoon City.
The characters, while being most of the best known characters from the original game, are present yet at the same time not quite right. The casting, while not terrible, did make some mistakes, mostly in Tom Hopper's portrayal of Wesker, he just seems far too young for the role. But that isn't the only issue. The character's personalities are not as you remember them.
Chris comes across as very arrogant and annoying, Jill comes across as quite sassy, and poor Leon, the rookie cop seems to be a bumbling fool there for comic relief.
The best written and acted character by a long way is Claire, who comes across as the little rebel we know and love.
All in all, definitely worth a watch, and I will definitely watch it again. But if you are a huge Resident Evil nerd such as myself, it will certainly have it's moments for you, but don't go in expecting to see the entire story of Raccoon City unfold before your eyes.
Also, don't forget to keep watching the credits...
Love You To Bits
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“Love You to Bits” is a crazy cute, purely visual, puzzle-filled, point-and-click, sci-fi...
