Gerard Butler

How to train your dragon

The other day we had a happy family – daddy, mommy, and the kid – trip to the movies, because there was no way I would allow us to skip “How to train your dragon” – a much awaited animation from Dreamworks.

There are options to see it both in full 3D and regular, in Greek (dubbed) and in English (with subtitles). Language decision was the easiest (English of course), but the 3D option got me thinking for a second. On one hand it is a much richer experience. On the other – we were with a kid who is too hyperactive to sit through the whole thing without moving much. Finally I decided to go for the 2D version, because wearing glasses is an extra obstacle.

Now, back to the animation. It was widely promoted all over the place, with ads and several trailers. I knew that I wanted to see it for a while, and after seeing more trailers I knew that I won’t be disappointed. Just the stuff they showed in the promos was enough to enjoy. But the full length feature is so much more. It’s unbelievably good. It’s awesome. It’s fantastic. It’s an absolute must see!

It excellent on just so many levels – the story, the characters, the way it is drawn, the action sequences, the flying, the humor … pretty much everything is perfect. While I am used to being pleasantly surprised by the animation, the story got me this time more than anything. While it was childish and cartoon-worthy, there was a certain depth to it, at times it was even philosophical, going around issues which you don’t usually see in kid’s movies. And yet it was light and fun and inspiring.

Overall, a highly recommended for both kids and adults. Probably even better in 3D. I’ll give it a well deserved 5 out of 5.

Law Abiding Citizen

I just came back from the cinema where I watched “Law Abiding Citizen“. I vaguely remember seeing a trailer for this film, but other than that it wasn’t ringing any bells or setting any expectations. Even though 7.3/10 IMDB rating was promising.

The film turned out to be rather awesome! From the first scenes it looked like it had enough of everything – drama, action, plot twists, etc. It also felt nicely paced – not too fast, and not too slow. And it was getting better with every scene. I was somehow thinking that it would turn into one of those numerous revenge movies, where you could see through and predict things easily, but it didn’t. Just when I thought I had it figured, the plot was taking another twist, turning the movie even more interesting.

It’s difficult to talk about specifics without giving spoilers away, but I’ll try. While, as I said, I really enjoyed the film, the ending wasn’t up to the par with the rest of the film. It felt hurried into and even like it was from another movie or something. I would prefer a different one. But if there was a chance to shift the movie anywhere, I’d start the opposite direction after the scene with the judge.

Again, cryptically speaking to avoid spoilers, I think the film raises an excellent point on the fight of good and evil. And, unlike many other movies that do the same, there is some really big and strong evil. And, again, unlike in many other movies, the good is represented mighty powerful even if outnumbered. And there is the fight between the two for the whole film. But the ending spoils the fight a bit, since the fight and the whole point of counter-balancing one with another fades away for something else. And I am not even sure what that something else is.

Anyway, nevermind the rant. If you watch the film, you’ll know what I am talking about. And I highly recommend that you do. There is something for everyone and there is a lot for people who like this type of films. 5 stars.

Gamer

Went to see “Gamer” in the movies yesterday. As you might know, I actually expected this film.

It turned out to be quite a disappointment – silly story with a lot of non-sense, very shallow characters, horrible dialogues, extremely annoying shaky camera and fast cut editing, and overall feeling of pop. There were some good special effects, but they were practically lost to fast cuts and horrible rush through the movie.

Overall rating 2 stars.