Movies

Wanted

The other day I went to the cinema to see “Wanted“. I’ve been waiting for this film for some time now, since I liked the trailer and heard quite a few positive reviews from people who saw it earlier. It wasn’t a disappointment at all. On the contrary. I really liked it. In fact, I’m planning to go and see it once again, while it is on the large screen, and then I want to get myself the DVD with all the extras and special features.

Excellent special effects, great soundtrack, and quite a few twists in the story – some of which are predictable and some are not – all these makes it into an excellent entertainment. Of course, Angeline Jolie with gun fights and car chases is a major attraction as well. Morgan Freeman is a nice addition. But what I liked the most about the movie is its originality. Not breathtaking kind, but the kind which really made me watch it in full attention. Rarely do I come across something from Hollywood and have this feeling.

Overall, 9 out of 10. Strongly recommended.

The Incredible Hulk

I needed a little focus switch, so I went to the cinema to see “The Incredible Hulk“. I didn’t particularly liked the first part – “Hulk“, but there was nothing better to choose from anyway.

Not a lot of improvements I must say. Special effects are pretty average. There are a few sparks, but overall – too cheap and unrealistic. It would have been a lot better to use photography for scenery and background objects rather than to render them. Operator’s work was pretty average. Scenes of Brazil towns were especially disappointing, since those were so reach with details, which were lost by operators and their equipment (shaky helicopter shots and such). The story is still boring and way over dramatic. It pushes for Forest Gump or something. Edward Norton and Tim Roth were acting good, and that improved the filim a lot. Liv Tyler tried as usual, but I am not a big fan of her.

Overall: 6 out of 10.

Nuke the fridge

I’ve recently enjoyed the “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” movie. However there was one particular scene which sticks out. It was the moment when Indiana yet again avoided his certain death, this time by hiding in the kitchen fridge. He was supposed to die of a nuclear explosion, but the fridge saved his hat.

Impossible? Of course. But there was something more to this. Something that bothered me for the last few days. Something that I could not find the words to express.

It turns out, I am not the only one. There was a hot discussion at IMDB forums, and at other places that have crowds of movie watchers and reviews. And apparently, a new term was born – “nuke the fridge“.

This is also a nice example to illustrate how the world changes with the Internet. Lots and lots of people talk about lots and lots of things. 24×7. Non-stop. That generates lots of ideas, sub-cultures, products, and services. And, in tern, lots and lots of money for people who dig it. Nice.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

I’ve heard a few negative reviews of the “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull“, so I wasn’t particularly rushing to see it. I have the box set DVD collection of all previous Indy films and I’ve seen them a few times by now – they are good, but the age shows. I like them, but you can’t call me a fan yet. With that, I went to the movies today.

I have to say that I really enjoyed the film. It was in exactly the same style as previous ones, but a bit refreshed. I think it feels exactly like the other ones felt back when they were just released. However if this film was shown 20 years ago, it would have blown the minds of a much wider audience.

In short, the film has everything it should have had – Spielberg’s directing, Ford’s acting, tonnes of action, a quest for something cool, much greater scale than anybody can imagine, and a few jokes here and there. Good value for money and not a time waster.

One thing that I particularly liked, how it was done for the PG-13 rating. There is a lot of action and a lot of people get killed in a lot of different ways, but there is no focus on that. There is not much blood or suffering. The scariest of the dead bodies are in bones, all over catacombs full of treasure – something you can’t take away from an adventure movie. Family-friendly and kids-recommended.

Overall, quality entertainment. 8 out of 10.

Iron Man

Yesterday I went to the cinema to watch “Iron Man“. I was a bit worried that it would be based on yet another comic book or something. But either it wasn’t, or the comic was pretty good.

The movie turned out to be solid entertainment. It was very much in the style of “Transformers“, but with more style and better special effects. It was complete even with Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man” song in the soundtrack.

Recommended. 7 out of 10.