Captain Phillips (2013) Good Film, Great Story

Captain Phillips (2013) Scott Rudin

I think most of us remember the tension of the event when we first heard about the real life Captain Phillips story. The situation was dire and the event horrific, but we were all pulling for our soldiers and our country to come out on top. Most of the country was not privy to the details of the event until far after it had passed. Of course the movie was a little dramatized, but the event deserved some recognition and the movie covered it well.

The film itself was somewhat politically charged and the plot was fairly accurate from what I have read from the situation. There were so many things I liked from the movie. First the acting was great and the script was written well. During the majority of the film you are surprised with how well the Captain handles the situation that you forget that it happened in real life. You are astonished by the actions he took and how he was able to save the lives of his crew members. The crew in the beginning was very against him and showed a bit of resentment for his stern behavior. The horn of Africa really is an unsafe place and because of how many journeys they go on they may forget about the dangers.

If you have ever lived in a dangerous area you sometimes forget about the problems that can arise if things go wrong. In my younger years I lived in a ‘ghetto’ area and I remember there were a lot of places to avoid. Most of the drug dealers and gang members would leave me alone because I lived in the area, but sometimes there were problems with the drug deals and weapons would be drawn while I was walking home from school. Most of the time it was pretty safe, but some situations arise that you can’t prepare yourself for. I was never taken hostage, but when the Captain was, I could absolutely relate in certain ways of feeling unsafe in an unsafe situation because having weapons drawn on you can be terrifying.

Tom Hanks did a great job with the role and was able to accurately portray this character in this horrible situation. I feel like as Americans, we aggrandize ourselves in many situations. We like to talk as if we are the greatest nation on the earth because of the people that we have here in America. Some of them are great some of them are not, but when we see an average Joe outsmart terrorists from African nations and sacrifice his life over that of his crewmen you can really feel proud of our country.

As soon as the seals show up I was ready for them to do what they do best. They are merchants of death and every one of those pirates probably deserved death even though it is not my place to judge. I personally am displeased with the progress of many of these underdeveloped counties and it is easy to see why so many people get caught up in piracy or any other similarly awful choice. The film is gripping and you cheer for our boys in uniform for doing their job and keeping Americans safe from future attacks. 

I thought Captain Phillips was a solid film and definitely a movie I would recommend to others. 

Enders Game (2013) BUT IT WASN'T LIKE THE BOOK!

Enders Game (2013) Summit

It’s hard to explain my feelings about this movie because I have waited close to 10 years to see it made correctly. I have waited patiently because I am a fan of the book series and I happen to enjoy great film. For me I love to read books because the capture a wide breadth of story and character development. If you read books you will already feel smarter than most of your friends and colleagues because you get to see viewpoints amassed by those with more experiences. This gives them great depth of character even if they are fictional and it is hard to look at the world in the same way after seeing from the viewpoints of others for so long.

This book series has helped me learn a great deal about myself because often times I find myself thinking like Ender. I weight the options of the greater good and I view humans as if they were an alien species. It helps me to understand a great deal about cultures and why people act as they do. I find Ender very accessible as a character because I emulate a larger strategy plan like he does. I may not have the eidetic memory of a Sheldon Cooper, but some of his quirks are shared with me.

I will say that the movie did not do well with the critics and it certainly failed in the box office numbers. This is depressing to me because again it is a far cry from what critics were writing. This movie had some political implications before it came out because the writer of the book is against gay marriage. I feel like that was a major contributor to the demise of this film. Many boycotted the film and the critics didn’t give it a fair assessment. The people who saw it did enjoy it.

This being said I will take up some of the petty grievances or complaints I have become accustomed of hearing when critics and friends talk about the film.

1.       “It wasn’t as good as the book”

·          Granted. A movie rarely possesses the same complicated themes a book can describe in detail and very few movies have a director that is able to condense the sheer size of a story into a cinematic format (unless they are named Peter Jackson and get unlimited budgets and runtimes).

2.       “It was rushed”

·         Of course it was. It’s hard to name a book adapted movie series that actually wasn’t rushed besides LOTR i.e. Harry Potter, Hunger Game, etc. Movies that are based on characters with mostly inner dialogue always lose the majority of their characters in the movie because you can only see their conflictions and not hear them. This brings me to another grievance.

3.       “Ender doesn’t seem that smart”

·         Agreed to an extent, they failed to convincingly show that Ender was constantly being watched and didn’t want to show his feelings very often. It didn’t show how much he hated Graff even before the Bonzo event. It didn’t show how he brilliantly out-thought Graff on many occasions and many of his actions were meant to make him the leader he wanted to be on his own terms. He was so far beyond his cohorts and he was beloved and hated at the same time, like Julius Ceasar. If they had spent more time in battle school, it would’ve been easier to see how far ahead he really was intellectually. His inner dialogue is very complicated for a similar person of his age. Notice that Katniss seems like a witless moron, but in the book she was much brighter than she appears to be in her film. You can’t adequately explain a character without time and since they had to condense the film, you lost a great deal of his achievements and intelligence.

4.       “Ender was easily manipulated”

·         Wrong. He was manipulated in order to show what he would do in certain situations and in the book he was much younger than he appeared in the film. He accepted many of the manipulations as tests and begrudged Graff for them, but constantly outperformed the expected results. He couldn’t control his life because that wasn’t his concern, but to say that he was easily manipulated in the film just shows that it was is a misconceived understanding.

5.       “The ending was easily foreshadowed”

·         Sure. In the movie it was. I can easily blame the director Gavin Hood for not only leaving out important dialogue, but absolutely failing miserably to continue with the themes of the book. He botched the ending by forcing the film to move at a rate that left regular viewers far behind. For the life of me I cannot understand why he was even allowed to write this. Sure the executive producers could’ve had more creative input, but they obviously couldn’t see past the problems of the script and the feeling of being “rushed” though the movie. I think Card was a part of the process, but never really got the control he wanted. The movie execs probably gave Hood the green light and didn’t want to have any scripts edited during the filming process. The movie itself had passed through the hands of 3 companies that I know of and finally ended up with Summit who failed to provide the story with a real script writer, director, and production company.

That being said I don’t really have an opinion on the critics themselves but their websites could easily be confused with buzzfeed or tabloid journalism at best. Most of the reviewers did not give this film a fair assessment and some of their criticisms while viable are also misplaced. It is easy to say that it was rushed or that it was not comparable to the book, but the honest truth is that this movie was never going to be LOTR or the Hunger Games. It didn’t have the director, the budget, the runtime, the script, or the production company with the stones to do it right. The movie did fall a little flat compared to the book, but I did not think that the message lost much of its potency. The story is captivating and shows us the difficulties of war, the decisions to be made, and the harsh mental conditions it put Ender through. The battle school may have not been moral, but it was necessary. I still thought it was a good film despite what problems I have with it. I didn’t care that it was rushed because it was entertaining and gripping. 

Adam Out.

The Other Guys (2010) The Tuna and the Shark

The Other Guys (2010) Columbia

Cop dramas are a dime a dozen and if you don’t believe me then you should thinking about brushing up on your television. Every other show is about police in one branch of government or another. They are usually over dramatized and filled with bad one-liners. Police movies are also overdone, but the cop buddy comedies have risen in success and hilarity in recent years.

The Other Guys was an instant classic as far as comedies go in this millennium because of its ridiculous dialogue and oddball references.  From the first scene which is basically just a cameo for The Rock and Sam Jackson you know this movie is going to be funny, but not to what extent. I mean they started off by driving a car into a bus and then using that bus to propel them into another building which explodes. They catch the bad guys who apparently only had a half pound of weed and caused 12 million dollars in damage to the city. Not only does no one care about this, but these two cops are beloved by the people in the city and the media for being reckless and charismatic. Of course they die a scene later jumping off a 20 story building to catch some thieves which only adds to their legacy.

I don’t think I have seen a better PG-13 film comedy wise. Sure there was violence, crude references, and some drug references, but most of it was easily forgotten because of how funny Will Ferrell and Mark Whalberg are. It’s interesting to see Ferrell seemingly make more out of every character he plays. In the other films directed by the same guy, Ferrell plays a very different type of character in each one albeit they are similar. In this film he is an explosive yet passive personality. He has some conflicting feelings since he was a pimp in college while openly denying it. I’d have some issues if that was my life too.

Both characters have an identity issue and the movie itself has one as well. The end credits make you feel as if you were watching some corporate espionage story when in fact it was a comedy that features a wooden gun, a guy who accidentally shot Derek Jeter, and a police captain that makes several TLC references. I feel like it was supposed to be a part of some bigger theme, but it gets derailed so many times for so many reasons. When it ends you are supposed to just remember that the cops did their job while everything goes back to normal. I felt like that was kind of disappointing.

The Other Guys was a good idea and it was a funny movie. I wish they made more films like this, but it didn’t do so well in the box office so I doubt they will. Years later the movie is still funny. 

Dhoom 2 (2006) Machale!

Dhoom 2 (2006)  Yash Raj Films

Before Dhoom 2 I had never seen a “Bollywood” film. Bollywood is India’s version of Hollywood and they make some interesting films. One thing I love about Indian films is that they are known for being quirky, ridiculous, and having amazing dance choreography. The music videos are real. Every time I go to a hip Indian restaurant I can usually listen for some Bollywood hits I remember from all sorts of films. They are very catchy tunes that are easily remembered. I even sing them to myself unknowingly sometimes.

Dhoom 2 was the first film Bollywood film I saw and it is still by far the best. I don’t really feel like this film is supposed to be serious. Every time I see it, I am reminded of how ridiculous it is and then I wonder if it is meant to be a satire of American films. I say that because American films are ridiculous. Our action films show a lack of thought, possibilities, and most importantly physics. They make no sense and Dhoom 2 is no different. The stunts are stupidly funny on top of ridiculous that they were made to be that way. There are countless shots of people jumping off cliffs and other stuff. It’s so good that something must be said about the slow motion cinematography. First of all the slow motion stuff is next level. From the basketball scene to the jumping off cliffs, it’s absolutely gorgeous to watch. Secondly anything with Aishwarya Rai and Bipasha Basu is a great lesson in dancing and beauty. They may be two of the most beautiful women on the planet.

The 2 male leads are also dangerous and mysterious characters the way only celluloid can provide. Both of them are believable in their characters and are determined to outmaneuver the other. Bachchan is the dectective that has his own way of doing things even if it is outside the law. Hrithik is the mysterious criminal mastermind that never misses his target. They collide in this film and eventually… become friends? Yes that’s right, in Indian cinema the two settle their differences and allow one another to live free of their past. That would never happen in Hollywood. They must hate each other and value the others demise more than their own life. I was not expecting to see an officer of the law be so accommodating to the villains. After Rai’s character kills Hrithik, Bachchan just lets her go and lets her life be her punishment. I have also never witnessed a film where someone was absolved of murder so that they could live their life of shame. That’s kind of awesome. I wish people had more of a moral compass to the point that if you committed crime, but the only punishment was having the fortitude to press forward knowing what you have done. Heavy stuff from a mostly comical and action packed film.

The whole point of the movie is to prove that love is sacrifice and the film proves it on many occasions including a scene featuring Russian roulette. The scene isn’t great because it is over-dramatized, but the message is great. This film also features the first kiss on screen in Bollywood history. Although the women are dressed in somewhat more revealing clothing, they are very wholesome throughout the film. No raunchy sex scenes, just weird dance scenes that allows each character to prove their love… through song. I happen to appreciate that fact and it is highly refreshing. I am already excited for Dhoom 3, but I am unable to get a copy in America. 

Escape Plan (2013) At Least It's Better Than The Expendables

Escape Plan (2013) Summit

When I first saw the trailer, I thought about who was actually going to go see a Sylvester Stallone film. Every time one of these movies come out, you expect the worse and Stallone does not disappoint ever. He has not put out a good film since Cliffhanger, so I expected more of the same and I got more of the same, but I didn’t expect some of it.

During the beginning of the film you are expecting him to have a character that is better than everyone else in whatever he does. He will have inexplicable amounts of knowledge that make him the best protagonist ever conceived and a guy you don’t want to mess around with. Of course he gets into a job that is over his head and then has to MacGyver a way out of it. The situation is dire and the difficulty level is not difficult, but impossible because its Mission Impossible: Agent Stallone!!! Whoops wrong franchise. The dialogue in the film is horrendous but it could’ve been the Expendables. The worst part of the movie is the early relationship of Stallone and Arnold which is a constant measuring contest of who the tougher guy is. I can’t stand this garbage, they are both old and both of their characters made no sense as the tough guy due to their backgrounds (Stallone was a Lawyer and Arnold was a computer programmer?).

The thing that was weird about this movie is that I didn’t completely hate it as I was planning to. Some of it was actually good. I have to admit that I thought Jim Caviezel did a fantastic job in this film and nearly revived it from the oblivion of a film that will be found soon in the $5 dollar bin at your local Wal-Mart. For the most part the film is incredibly unbelievable as you expect, but the plot is not all that bad even though the prison is located in the most unconceivable location with the most ridiculous security ever conceived. It is so unnecessary that it begs the question of which people on the planet are bad enough to get sent to this place? Undoubtedly Stallone is left alone by the other inmates who get beat up by him as easily as a 16 yr old in skinny jeans, but in all fairness most of them seem like decent people running very friendly opium cartels and bringing down corrupt banks. I couldn’t believe that all these undesirables ended up being such friendly people.

I won’t ruin the plot by telling you what happens in the story, but I will mention that the ending is both bogus and not as bad as you expect. There is a TWIST… that is explained in one sentence and it honestly didn’t surprise me in any way. I was impressed because this movie followed its usual formula, but actually had the semblance of a plot. Sure it wasn’t the greatest film made in the last few months, but it was entertaining and I repeat, not as bad as expected. I think I may even watch this film again. 

The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) The Beginning of the Manliest Story Ever Told

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) New Line Cinema

Years after first watching the epic tale of the Lord of the Rings there are still things I have missed in the previous 25 times before this one. This is by far the best movie series on the planet and I could argue that if you combine the three of them that it is one of the greatest stories ever told. Every part of the movie has fantastic qualities from the cinematography to the characters and their dialogue. From top to bottom you couldn’t have picked a finer cast and it is a great representation of what a film should be. 

Every time I see the council when they decide on the ring bearer my heart drops for Frodo because he almost doesn't know what he is in for. After seeing the whole trilogy you wish you could tell him what was coming. Of course there was no one else that would've been able to do the task, but that isn't important.

As a man I can easily relate to the characters in this film. Not all men, but some are honorable. These types of people are the standard to which all good men wish to judge themselves. Whether it be in the line of duty or the storied tales of tough men throughout history. Great men always seek to become greater than themselves. Aragorn is not a perfect man and neither are Boromir and Gimli, but they are men of character. They did not need to swear an oath of allegiance to Frodo or Gandalf or the Ring. They followed him because Frodo needed the help and more importantly it was the right thing to do for humanity. They didn't weigh the options. They accepted it as their fates to represent their kingdoms and peoples in under a few seconds. They knew what was ahead of them because Boromir just explained that Mordor was the most foul place that ever existed and that it would take more than 10,000 men. That is real sacrifice (in a fictional tale). The characters aren't these buff unrealistic looking action heroes that live for some perfect death they hope to create for themselves. They are regular people making a difference with the skills they have. None of them are all that big they aren't even the best fighters in Middle Earth. They just did the best they could with what they were given. They are quality characters and it is sad to see male protagonists in film now because they lack these types of characteristics. Half of the men in Hollywood can’t even act similarly because they lack the fortitude and strength of persona.

The action scenes are not even that farfetched (with the exception of Boromir's death). Aragorn fights the Orc commander in under a minute. They are both bleeding and the killing blow was simple. No ridiculous backflips or gaining extra strength the more they are punched in the face. Some of their abilities are a little over exaggerated, but that is to be expected in fantasy.

At the end you are still excited for the next movie in the series because you know it gets even better. Sure the hardships are hard to bear, but by small means were they able to tear down evil for good.

 It’s hard not to feel passionately about this film for the range of emotions a person can feel throughout the films. You love and hate a lot of the characters and are glad they were able to grow so much as people through very tough situations. 

Last Vegas (2013) Who Knew?

Last Vegas (2013) CBS

At first thought, you may wonder what this movie is actually about. I thought it was going to be the last hurrah for a few older gents that wanted to relive their glory days of chasing tail and giving each other a hard time. They do make fun of each other a lot, but it is never maliciously done. I honestly was not expecting a drama about guys who have been friends for over 60 years.

Each character comes from a different circumstance of elderly life. Morgan Freeman comes from a situation where he is being babied by his family because they are worried about his health. De Niro is an old curmudgeon that lost his wife and his will to enjoy life. Michael Douglas is a rich man who never found real love. Kevin Kline was still with his wife, but felt trapped by his life with her.

Each character embodies a different style of a person in the later years of their life and the film has very little to do with trying to get women half their age in Vegas. During the film you can see how each character has lived over the years and De Niro is probably the most honest of the four about his life and the way the others live theirs. He criticizes them for running away from their lives and not being able to confront their problems although he hasn’t as well.

Although there are so gratuitous moments of the film, there is no nudity. Being a Las Vegas native I can testify to the authenticity of some of the situations they are caught up in like being the judges of a bikini contest. Stuff like that and meeting transsexuals is not out of the question.

The characters have some problems that haven’t been resolved since they were kids and they are understandable secrets to keep. Too many years have gone by since they happened and it would be difficult to talk about them now.

Last Vegas was much more diverse than I expected it to be and I ended up enjoying it to a point. I am not saying it’s a great film, but if you are interested in what I have already written then you might have a fun time watching it.

I was happy to see Jerry Ferrara back in a film because he was a great character in Entourage. The last time I saw him was in the movie Battleship (2012) which like this film was much better than it looked. I am hoping he has a good performance in Lone Survivor (2013) so that I can officially say he is back.

Last Vegas was fun, heartfelt, and provided interesting point of view. Maybe my expectations were supremely lowered due to the marketing of the film, but I thought it wasn’t a waste of time like I expected. I may never watch it again, but for a one time watch it was good. 

Brave (2012) Merida is the Best “Disney” Princess

Brave (2012) Pixar

It’s not often you get to see a real mother daughter relationship on film. In fact, even in television shows the parents resolve most of their issues with their children in less than 22 minutes and always have some special way of connecting with them so that they understand why. Real life is not like that. Most parents fight with their children about the same issues over long periods of time. Both sides hardly ever come to a conclusion without some shouting match or concessions given by both sides.

I felt like Brave was able to display these relationships accurately and asks children a very difficult question for a younger age group. Is what you want for yourself to become someone very different than your mother?

If you have a mother than you know that this is a difficult question to answer. The two of them do not understand the opinions of the other and do not come to an understanding until they are put in a situation where they need to survive. They are both stubborn and if you come from a Scottish family like me than this is no real surprise.

One of my favorite things about Merida is that she is not your typical princess. Not only is she uninterested in a prince to come save her, but it adamantly opposed to the idea of a man she doesn’t love. It’s like a Bollywood film gone Pixar in Scotland.  I don’t mind that she resembles her father both in attitude and looks because I have met a lot of girls that are like their fathers and they are easily relatable. How can you disagree with a girl that wants to change one of her family members? I think we have all wanted to do that on several occasions. My father always tells me that I need to have good relationships with my family because they are the only people in your life that you can’t get rid of haha.

Merida really is the best “Disney” princess. She’s down to earth, free spirited, independent, rebellious, intelligent, soft of heart, and she flaunts no particular features to make women self-conscious about their looks (as animation is so good at doing for both women and men). She is highly gifted for horse riding, sword fighting, and most of all bow shooting. These are important skills to have because there are always dangers in the land and even those who can’t protect themselves can still fall to the sword.

I am excited for the next Brave movie and hope that Pixar eventually explains “The Pixar Theory” which has grown to be an internet phenomenon. Every Pixar film is practically film gold because they are able to adapt stories that resonate with all age groups. They have a lot more to accomplish in the years to come and it’s worth the wait. 

True Grit (2010) Pretty Well Figured

True Grit (2010) Paramount

A few days ago, I realized that I had not seen a western this month which is a fact I cannot live with. Whether it be a remake or the original a western is a western. I consider it a shame not to at least view a western a few times a year because it gives us a good perspective on how simple life used to be here in America. Before the big cities and the modern conveniences, Americans used to have true grit. It is hard to actually come across a person these days that has put their shoulder to the plow and not on some dude ranch vacation.  When you watch a western you gain a thankful heart that you do not have to spend your days worrying about how to feed your family or if they will die from some disease.

True Grit is the story of an old marshal that has out grown his time and a young girl who seeks justice fort the violent murder of her father. In those days there wasn’t much justice to be had without paying top dollar, so the young girl Maddie aims to find a real tough guy to hunt down the murderer and bring him some.

Whenever you watch these types of westerns you always think about how difficult it must be to find people out in the wilderness. If you are anything like me, I can get lost just hunting small game on foot. On horse, it would be somewhat easier to get around, but people could be making camp anywhere around you so it is not like walking to the front door of a house. Even lawmen through the fifties had a difficult time actually pinning criminals to the murders. The evidence was not much and witnesses were easily disposed of.

True Grit is a better remake than it is an original with John Wayne. Although “The Duke” is an American icon, this was towards the end of his career and not his best work. Jeff Bridges brings out an even better side of ‘Rooster’ and plays a great drunk. I will say that even Matt Damon has a good role in this film and surprisingly did much better than I expected even for a Texas Ranger. Bridges is an honest character and you could say that he was easily frustrated with the general public of the day. I would also consider this movie to be a comedy if you consider one-liners and arguments to be an art form. Rooster and LaBoeuf go back and forth with each other and it makes for a good time.

Although this film may have its quirks, it is an awesome tale about the man Rooster Cogburn and his last hurrah as a marshal and the gumption of a quick witted young woman. He is a drunk but he is loyal to the end. The ending was worth the watch and you are cheering for the hero Rooster and glad he is such an authentic American cowboy that speaks with authentic frontier gibberish accent.

For a movie with an estimated budget of 38 million and a worldwide gross of 245 million, you can bet it was as worth seeing it then and it still is now.   

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013) It Caught Our Attention Again

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)  Lionsgate

Chances are that if you are reading this post, you are already a fan of the book or of the movie series. I have to admit that these movies are done incredibly well and are able to give the books their due justice. I am also a fan (I even named my car Katniss) and have loved the movies so far.

If you read my site (and I am hoping you do) you already know that I am a fan of JLaw and think she’s a great actress. She is fun and down to earth and everything you would hope a celebrity to be.

Catching Fire was my favorite book of the series and I say that because it is the last one that takes place in the arena and it had an ending I wasn’t expecting. I guess I was always hoping/expecting that Katniss would eventually stop being so selfish and do the right thing and try loving Peeta at least to keep up pretenses for the capital in the hopes that war wouldn’t be necessary. Sadly she is so hostile and untrustworthy that Haymitch is forced to continually lie to her in all situations. She fails to do the small task that President Snow gives her and causes the deaths of many people. You can’t blame Haymitch for his actions because who wouldn’t do the same thing? In order to protect her (even from herself) he is forced to leave her out of the big picture which causes unexpected consequences.

During the film you can tell that something is going on behind the scenes because everyone else is privy to knowledge that Katniss doesn’t know about. When I was emotionally involved in the story I always wished that Peeta would tell her something so that she knew that they would somehow live though this, but it would’ve been impossible. At times it is hard for me to watch the film because of the way the characters treat Katniss. I always felt she was much stronger than she was portrayed as, but I was willing to accept this as a movie flaw for exponential character growth through all the films.

One thing I disliked about the film is that Liam Hemsworth is in it. His gloomy faces and poor emotional deliveries make me want to punch him in the face as often as possible. I know he is loved by women for his looks, but he needs to go. Find a real man to play Gale. Seriously almost anyone else will do.

I liked that they spend a large part of the movie before the games to show the relationship between Peeta and Katniss as well as keeping the Gale triangle alive. I thought it would be hard to juggle all of them, but they did a good job making sure both characters are still relevant. I thought that they could’ve explained the feelings that Katniss had better because the book derives the majority of her personality from her thoughts. The only thing the two movies left out was the inner dialogue of Katniss and although it takes away from the general story of the movie, it is relevant and pertinent to the story as a whole.

For some minimal concerns I have, it is a well done movie and pays homage the book series in many ways. I thought that Catching Fire was the better of the two and I am already excited to see the third. 

Moneyball (2011) How Can You Not Be Romantic About Baseball

Moneyball (2011) Columbia Pictures

To start this review I should mention that I am already biased toward the A's because they are my favorite baseball teams along with the Dodgers. 

My friends are not big fans of baseball because they think it's slow and boring. I can agree with that assessment when watching it on the television. The in-game experience is much better to give baseball their credit. They will need to figure out something in the future to increase the viewership on TV. 

Moneyball is the tale of what it's like for the smaller market teams to compete professionally with the bigger market teams. Baseball has been hard to watch over the years because of the salary rules. They have a salary tax system where the teams that spend over a certain amount of money have to pay a percentage of that salary extra. It hurts the smaller teams because the bigger teams can pay top dollar for players that would otherwise be paid much less by smaller market teams.

Its an unfair system and the film exploits the fact that these smaller teams have fan bases that are let down every time a good player leaves to a bigger market for more money. The difference is that one man named Billy Beane is trying to change the way he looks at the game. He highers Peter Brand who studied economics. He believes he can help Billy Beane find a team of guys that no one wants by finding value in their statistics. They project what numbers they need in order to make the playoffs so that they can get another shot at the title. 

The movie itself features great performances from Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill. The script writing for the film was phenomenal and it provided the perfect foreground for the story of how they compile the team and the reaction they get from the fans and media.

I guess the film does what you expect, but the frustration was real and it was based on a real struggle as a general manager. Most films would not be able to transfer these types of feeling through film and you got a front row seat for greatness while seeing Brad Pitt.

Although the frustration continues for the A's, each year they are getting closer and closer to the championship based off the model that they started using in this film.

Baseball may not be the most entertaining sport, but this film highlights why baseball is still a great sport to be apart of as a fan. 

The Chronicles of Riddick (2004) I Wish It Was A Joke

You may notice that there are ads on my site. I decided to monetize it and I get paid per click on an ad, so you will now see those to the right and bottom of my posts.

The Chronicles of Riddick (2004) Universal

I decided that I wanted to see a comedy last night, but both my lady and I couldn’t decide on which one. She has never seen The Chronicles of Riddick, so I decided to watch this with her. It was just as funny as I remember it. The one-liners were cheesy and the graphics were mostly bad and visually outdated. When you compare this movie to the new one, it is hard to imagine that this could be better or worse, but it is both. It’s an odd compilation to have when the movies are the basis for each story and they are lacking in some things and good at others.    

If you ever stop to watch the Vin reaction shots you almost can’t help but laughing because many times they are out of place. It’s why I consider this movie a comedy. Some of the audio is not synced with the characters and you can tell it was just added in later without reshooting it. I can’t say that anyone would expect this film to be good, but it would’ve been easy for this to be transformed to be a well written screen play.

As movies go this one is partly action as it is mostly filled with ridiculous things that could never happen. The story has the semblance of being something greater but is never able to realize its potential. It also is never able to create its own distinction from other Sci-Fi endeavors and falls short constantly on acting, cohesion, and reasoning.

Throughout the entire story you continually ask yourself why Riddick is where he is. Earlier in the story instead of trying to escape a dying planet with his holy friend (and his family) he decides to go back to where the Lord Commander is in order to avenge his now dead friend. He does this easily and no one is afraid that he killed of the best Necromonger fighters. The Lord Commander basically allows Riddick to escape the armada with little to no effort to entrap him. Another instance of this is right after this scene. After deciding to not save Helion Prime he decides to get caught by the mercenaries that were trying to kill him earlier so he could find his old friend Jack in the most difficult prison to break out of in the system. Knowing that the Necromongers would surely be following him to this location, he plans are altered and he tries to get both himself and jack to safety while trying to help some others from the prison (even though he cares for no one). After just abandoning an entire planet to death and destruction, he goes to a prison and helps people escape with him. It makes no sense. After this ridiculous effort, he decides to go back to the armada to attempt to kill the Lord Commander for the genocide on Furya. Without any thought of getting out of there alive, he decides to go for the assassination attempt (which is not his usual MO).  He fails and is given another chance to join the Necromongers (again).

It’s hard to say that this is a well thought out film. In fact, I am not sure that there was any though given to some of it. I am not sure how movies like this get made, but it was funny to watch. I wish I could liken it to Starship Troopers (1997) which was only made as a joke.

All in all this movie is great for watching bad acting, poor plots, and stupidly fun one-liners. 

Man of Steel (2013) Better Than Expected

Man of Steel (2013) Warner Bros

I have heard a lot of mixed reviews about this film. When I first saw it I could tell that there was something I didn't like about it, but couldn't identify what it was. The second go around there was only one thing that bothered me throughout the movie... it was Louis Lane.

Now in the past I have generally disliked the women characters in superhero films because they have the personality of a potato and never add anything good to the film. They are always a side character that is put in an unlikely situation and should end up dying if it weren't for the superhero. They cant save themselves, they usually don't have any business being where they are, and they have off-putting relationships with the superhero because it materializes out of thin air. These types of characters hold back the development of the story and become a nuisance to watch.

Man of Steel is the opposite of what most movies are because the story is better than the characters in the film. Usually stories are character based and show how they develop overtime. Superman changes a little, but its mostly showing why he feels the way he does. For one, he has two great families. Both of them teach him the value of life and show him the impact of his actions. Both fathers are portrayed by great father figures (in the movies) and they did a wonderful job. You would think that the movie was about the character of Superman, but in all honesty his story is not nearly as interesting as the galactic one being told. The race of alien beings on the planet of Krypton have more substantial interests than some red-headed reporter ever did.

The struggle for resources and political power for dominance of the galaxy far outweigh a skirmish on planet Earth. I was more interested about Krypton and their race of people than Earth. I think this is because Superman is one of the only superheros that didn't gain his powers through radioactive experiments. He wasn't a lab rat, he was born with his powers. His alter ego of Clark Kent is really a critique of the human race. Clark Kent is clumsy, mistake prone, and hesitant to accomplish anything. It really makes you feel small as a human if an alien species were to ever come to down to Earth and live among us.

The characters of the film are captivating because they have actual values, while most of the human side-characters have no impact on anything because they are too weak or realize the impact of their own insignificance. Either way, humans were as worthless in this film as Amy Adams.

Writing of Amy Adams and Characters:

I know that Amy Adams is being nominated for an Acadamy Award for her performance in American Hustle, but that being said she is an annoyance in the majority of the films she's starred in. I don't mind the quirky, intelligent, and straight to the point girl but she's just not great at doing it. She's mildly attractive but she doesn't deliver dialogue well. She has a nonsensical relationship with Superman and it was substantiated in over 3 conversations they had together. If that were real life it would only work with someone that looked like Henry Cavill and it would be as meaningless as this relationship was. It made me angry to think that Superman was unsure of himself and what to do when he had been preparing for it his whole life. Some girl comes by and tells him that she believes in him and suddenly hes superman again. No. Superman is already super as I have already mentioned. He was born differently than the rest of us. He was already a great person with a sense of protecting others. Why did he need anyone to tell him that he was just that? It doesn't make any sense. Why trivialize a man who has worked hard to be the man he was supposed to be and who even sacrificed his own father to do so?

General Zod is an interesting character. He is unable to take over his own planet with a surprise attack, gets his ass kicked by Supermans father (who was a scientist), and is banished by the people he claimed to be too weak to rule. On his way to banishment (instead of death even though they are low on resources already) he claims that Jor-El (the man he just killed) was right and he agreed that the death of the planet was caused by the council of leaders. He is a loser by definition but it allows him to use his hate and animosity to fuel his mission. Throughout the film you find it to be hard for him to be arrogant but he somehow he manages it. You also wonder about his motives because his devious plot is to destroy earth and to save his people who were far more technologically advanced in and revolutionized in ideals. A plot point some of you may have missed, is that he believes his race to be far superior than that of humans (they were in every way). He says to Jor-El that it would be hard for them to struggle to adapt to the foreign conditions of Earth and claiming that for this reason he needed to change it to be more like Krypton. I know that Zod is supposedly intelligent and also a warrior that can rule over his own senses, but he was able to adapt in less than a few hours on Earth and it made him almost a God among humans comparatively. Hard to see a downside to co-existing at this point. 

Jor-El was one of the most believable characters that Russell Crowe has played in years. The character itself is so noble that he chose his own death because of the failures of his own race. In other words, he fell on his own sword. It was noble even though these characteristics are hard for most to understand because it's a foreign concept. He wasn't going to try and redeem his people because they already failed. Sure he could have tried to reunite with his son but he already gave him everything he could. Jor-El is a great lesson to us all and shows that you can give someone a meaningful existence through your actions even if you are not always there. He tells Zod that he was a better man once and that he would honor that man even though they were fighting to save their own race through different means.

Jonathan Kent was also a good character with high moral standing in his community and the film. He is as much a father to Clark as Jor-El and taught him great understanding of his powers. He was the only human in the film I didn't entirely hate. 

I wont mention any more about the characters, but I will say that most of them made sense and made for a great story. Like I said the whole movie would've been better if it wasn't so focused on the character of Lois Lane. I wish she wasn't in the film or an innocent bystander until introduced properly as a real woman that has a real relationship with Clark Kent. Man of Steel was the best Superman film yet and a solid film. I hope they do more in the future. 

Wreck-It Ralph (2012) How Soon They Forget

Wreck-It Ralph (2012) Disney

Every time I hear about Frozen (2013) being the best movie that Disney’s made since The Lion King (1994), I can’t help but remembering a certain film they made last year. Wreck-It Ralph has been somewhat forgotten. Sure it isn’t the kid’s movies that Disney is famous for, but for the first time in years I have been interested in an animated film that didn’t say Pixar or Madagascar on it. Many of these animated creations can be forgotten (like Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs) and to be fair most of them fall short of a complete film.

For me it can be very difficult to hear opinions on films I haven’t seen yet because I always feel like they are overhyped. To be honest, I didn’t want to see Wreck-It Ralph in theatres. Everyone told me it was good and I was sure that it wasn’t. I was delightfully surprised to witness such a fun film. Even a year later I still think it’s hilarious. Wreck-It Ralph is the first Disney story I could relate to in years and that is saying something. Many people also forget how often Disney actually makes films. To be precise Disney made 13 movies in 2013 alone and 14 in 2012. It is astonishing how many films one company can make that suck. In recent times they basically average that amount of films and practically the majorities that don’t say Pixar on them are forgettable. In fact, I checked and there are 12 Air Bud movies. Is anyone tired of seeing this dog play sports and flying through space?

After all that ranting I guess I didn’t expect Disney to make a movie for my demographic. This arcade based tribute far outdates the majority of the Disney demographic. I thought it was nice to see Disney do more to include more of its fans from an earlier time.

Wreck-It Ralph was fun to watch a features unique dialogue between the two main characters. The plot of the story resonates with many people there are few that haven’t been underappreciated as a human. Bad guys are usually the ones that get forgotten in video games because they are always impeding you from victory.

The story itself was complete and although much of it was a homage to gamers, it could be understood by all. When I write this I hope to interject the feelings that express a joy to see a hate-able character become liked once again as this age old plot from Disney can be reiterated several times in various scenarios. Although the plot wasn’t anything new it did allow for them to create great characters that are sure to be ruined by less qualified actors and script writers in the sequel.

I don’t want to rush through this review because I did generally like the film and think it’s nice for the big guy to get credit once and a while. 

The Family (2013) Both Surprising and Wickedly Funny

The Family (2013) Relativity Media

Last night my lady and I wanted to see something light-hearted or action oriented so we decided to rent The Family from Redbox. When I first saw that there was another Robert De Niro film out, my first thought was “not again.” He has been in far too much stuff in his later years and it is getting hard to watch if you have ever seen his greatness in other films like The Godfather: Part II (1972), Goodfellas (1990), Raging Bull (1980), and Taxi Driver (1976). Any two of those films would’ve put him in the hall of fame of acting forever and he has all four. He is a legend and is deserving of the title, so I was hoping during the first 10 minutes of the film that this would not be like some of the bad films he’s been in recently (Machete, Stardust, All the Fockers movies). It did not disappoint. It was cheerfully dark, and disconcertingly funny.

The Family was an action-comedy directed by Luc Besson who is famous for making Leon: The Professional (1994) which is a solid film, but nothing like a comedy such as this. Leon was a great film, but the themes were much different.

I must admit that this film was not De Niro’s usual gig when he plays an Italian guy. His character Giovanni Manzoni which is one of the first mob informants that was willing to testify against their own family and live. Of course he is a tough guy that doesn’t like to be disrespected, but if you didn’t expect that then you’ve never seen his other films. He plays the perfect Italian mobster in a transitional time in his life. The FBI (should’ve been the marshals if it were being factual) has been taking care of him in a version of the WITSEC program in hopes to save the life of him and his family from mob assassins. The family members are all just as devious and mob-like as Giovanni is.

One the best touches of this film is the relationship the kids have with each other and the world. Both are extremely intelligent when it comes to social aspects and seem to have a grasp on people’s pressure points. They run the school like a prison yard in under a day of living there. They make friends with the right people and they are able to take control of the bullies and the black markets of the school.

Coming from a large school in a major city I can attest to something like this being a major concern. Moving to another school can be difficult because fitting into the right group can be everything. If you are ever in need of certain supplies or certain people, it may be important to be in contact with the people ‘who can get things’ at school as our young characters prove it to be useful.

The family has a large set of amazing scenes that are never in need of CGI or Hollywood dialogue. The movie itself was based off a book called “Malavita” which translates to “Bad Life” in Italian. The name also happens to be the name of the dog.

One of my favorite scenes of the movie is when De Niro is invited to a communal movie review. They lose the movie they were going to review and end up watching Goodfellas instead. De Niro stars in the film they are watching and ends up giving commentary about the film and the life of a gangster in America.

Overall, I would recommend this movie. 

Sherlock (S03E03) Love and Other Drugs

Sherlock (S03E03) His Last Vow

At first you may notice that I did not title this “His Last Vow” even though it is the title of the episode. To be honest, I thought mine was more fitting due to the context of the material.

Spoiler Alert!

This episode revealed the bit a dialogue that mentioned in my last Sherlock post. I am glad to be proven right, but the connection was much different than what I expected. I thought it was amazing that she was a secret agent for the CIA. Mary was a real professional assassin with a background in Eastern and Western Europe.

I though the link between Mary and Watson was very interesting. Watson was addicted to danger (which led him to Mary), Sherlock was addicted to drugs (which was why he solved crimes), and Mary was addicted to John (and to some extent danger as well). This fact was exploited by Sherlock and made Watson really question himself as a person. It was dramatic to watch and full of great reactions.

I will attempt to make the argument that Mary was addicted to John. She loved him enough to start a new life with him and she was running away from her past. She finds solace in the made-up relationship she has created because of Johns addicted to danger and adventure. Although Watson is not aware of it, he eventually decides that Sherlock was right in his assessment (as he usually is). We are always learning new things about John.

I was sad however, to find out that Magnussen was not going to be in seasons 4 and 5 with have been announced. I thought he was a great character and to this day is the only one to outthink Sherlock. I kind of hated to see that he did. He brought the letters on purpose to keep the illusion that the evidence was all real. By the end you find out that there was no such thing and it was all a ruse in order to put Sherlock away in prison in order to put Mycroft in a difficult predicament.

By the end of the show I was less shocked than I should’ve been at the death of Charles Magnussen seeing as there was no other way out of the situation and the gun was fore-shadowed by Sherlock before they left. Maybe he did know that it was another option, but it didn’t really resolve anything. The same people in the government were still easily manipulated and his network of evil didn’t really go away. I am wondering if they are going to have Moriarty take over some of the things that Magnussen left.

Either way it was a fantastic episode that will leave us begging for even more. I guess until next year. 

The Fifth Estate (2013) Not As Advertised

I know this post will be short because I have nothing to say about this film. One of the most interesting things about this film was what happened off stage. 

I guess I had high expectations for this film because of the actors in it and the story it was going to tell albeit a one sided story. It never gave enough information for the viewer to judge. I really did not feel like I was watching the story promised in the trailer. I know that a book should not be judged by its cover, but I will probably never see this film again. 

The film itself was about the controversial rise and (to and extent) fall of WikiLeaks.com which is a website that has been known in the past to leak information about the corruption of governments and companies. It was an interesting film that had great buildup but little climax. It felt like amazing things were about to happen and then they had less of a splash then they should have. Although Daniel Brühl is now on my list of actors to watch (after watching Rush) I think that both actors portrayed their roles incredibly well. You hate them both at different times and are happy for their small successes.

One of the interesting things about this film happened in 'real-life'. Benedict Cumberbatch was emailed by the creator of Wikileaks Julian Assange to not participate in the film. When Cumberbatch asked to meet with Julian in order to get to know him better, his request was denied. 

The fallout from the film has been minimal, but what is more interesting is the commentary in the film about Julian Assange and where he is now. As of this moment he is in the Ethiopian embassy in London. I don't believe he is able to leave. It seems odd that he wouldn't just serve a term in prison rather than serving a different one be it in a really nice one. I know he doesn't think he has done anything wrong, but the man has leaked privileged information about certain countries which cant be good for him. I am not saying what he did was wrong because its hard to argue against the war crimes he has leaked to the public in numerous countries. 

I wouldn’t consider this film to be ‘must-watch’ material, but it did have some good moments. The cinematography wasn’t subtle and the payoff wasn’t great. I was also finding myself losing interest in both main characters toward the end because it was foreshadowed throughout and was inevitable.

The story was complicated to watch, but it wasn’t a great story or film.

Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2 (2013) Google vs. The Hippies

Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2 (2013) Sony Pictures Animation

I apologize for not writing this past weekend, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to post about this one because of its possible political nature. I decided to not worry about it and post it anyway.

During the course of watching this movie I noticed that the themes of the film had a great deal of social commentary, which is odd for a children’s movie. You can tell that this sequel was even made for a younger audience than its predecessor.

Unlike Pixar movies that usually have great themes this movie really falls short when it comes to the plot line. I know it’s just a kid’s movie, but it asks questions that many adults have not been able to answer for themselves.

Here is the problem:

If you created a machine that made food out of water, wouldn’t you use it to solve the problem of world hunger? Well at the end of the first film they had to destroy the FLDSMDFR machine because it was making sentient food. In this film the machine miraculously stays on and continues its work of creating sentient food with no power source and uses vines for cables.

Later on you find out that there is a company known for its scientific achievements (Google) that comes to the aid of the town. It offers to relocate everyone to San Fran Jose (might as well be google headquarters) in order to clean up the town for free so that people can rebuild their homes (evil right?). They also were able to create a zero emission car that runs on “cute.”

(The reason I call the company Google is because they are based in the same area as google, they have a similar looking facility, they give out free beverages just like google does, and they bring in the best talent all over the world.)

The people willingly leave their home on the island, but the cache is that the leader of the company (looks like Steve Jobs and steals inventions too) just wants to use the machine to make a better food bar product they sale. The food bar contains all the nutrition you would need for one meal and could potentially feed the world if they could bring the cost down. Now that they can make food out of water, that would be a real possibility.

The hippies are the only ones that can see the food as wildlife and is a group made up of a fisherman, police officer, Spanish camera man, meteorologist, chicken salesmen/bully, and a scientist. The main inventor decides to turn off the machine to make sure that it doesn’t create any harmful food that would be dangerous to humans. The meteorologist points out that the machine has created life and that we shouldn’t use its creations as food because they have feelings and conscience. The underlying theme becomes a vegetarian argument for not eating animals even if they are in a farm system.

I don’t mind vegetarians or their arguments about animal cruelty, but I disagree with the notion that animals are more important than people. If it comes down to it I would rather feed people than keep an overpopulated amount of sentient fruit and taco monsters. Just like real wildlife they can be dangerous depending on the situation, but can also be docile as well.

It’s important to note that these creatures can be dangerous for humans and that there is not much known about the creatures. Their ecosystem is not really explained either. Their population also grows at a rate that would render humans extinct if they reached mainland. The hippies want to ignore all the dangers of these unknown species and have no vision to the future about what their existence could mean.  

The evil company wants to use the new food source to feed the world with better tasting food bars that are also more nutritional. I don’t think they should’ve killed the sentient food. I wish they would’ve just reprogrammed the machine to make regular food and keep it more under control. This way they would eventually be able to harness a new food source for the entire planet.

Obviously the point of this film is not about the issues I have mentioned, but it is fun to think about the logistics of this new race of food. 

Enough Said (2013) It Barely Said Anything New

Enough Said (2013) Fox Searchlight

I felt like I have been watching too many action films and that a drama would be better for last night’s selection.We decided to watch Enough Said which is a movie featuring Julia Louis Dreyfus and the late James Gandolfini. The story is about a masseuse named Eva that becomes friends with a woman she meets at a party. Subsequently she meets a man at this same party who later asks her on a date. During the course of the story she finds out that the woman she is massaging is the ex-wife of the man she is now dating. Although she is caught in an awkward situation, she tries to learn all she can from the woman she is now friends with in order to find out about problems with her ex-husband.

It seems somewhat convoluted to read about it, which probably points to the fact that I did not explain it all that well. It’s not a convoluted watch and is what I would call an interesting film, but not worth a date night with your significant other. Both Dreyfus and Gandolfini are funny characters, but the movie turns into a romantic comedy that follows the same cycle (I wrote about this in my review About Time) except the girl makes the mistake instead of the guy and instead of getting back together with a grand romantic gesture, it’s a very odd situation. It’s a tale as old as time and its getting difficult to watch.

Am I the only person out there that is tired of romantic comedies? They all seem to be following the same path and they aren’t really bringing anything new to the table of art. I titled my blog as “If Movies Were Only Like Great Art” and I titled it like that because most movies really fall short of anything that could be construed as art. I liken it unto a line used in the Pixar film Ratatouille where they explain the definition of the phrase “anyone can cook.” It doesn’t mean that everyone can become a great chef; it just means a great chef can come from anywhere. This is how movies are for me. Some of them are good, some of them are bad, many of both those categories are entertaining, but the great ones transcend film and become art.  

Obviously I don’t feel like this film was great. It was amusing but never borders on being anything exceptional. I felt like I was always waiting for it to change into something better, but it just let me down. Maybe that is what the director wanted to portray. There are just two characters that go through an awkward situation and come back together through small means. I know it was not the cheesy ending you may have expected, but at least it was real. For that, the critics of the film were more than willing to score this film very high for a played out plot line. I guess it is interesting to see some 50 yr old divorcees try to find love after having kids and a life, but I didn’t necessarily feel like I could connect or relate to the main character on a personal level.

It may be too much for me to ask that a romantic comedy be something that connects people and real-life situations. I understand that it is difficult because the stories may be too boring to put on camera for a thrill seeking audience, but I feel like even if the situation is extrodinary that you can still connect to the characters in many ways.

Enough Said was a fun film that had some laughs, but at the end of the day I will probably never watch it again.  

Pacific Rim (2013) Your Inner 7 Year Old Will Cheer. In Fact, YAYYYYYY!

Pacific Rim (2013) Legendary Pictures

Go big or go extinct! You may already be thinking that this movie did not appear to be watchable from the trailers, but you are dead wrong. Pacific Rim gets the joke that it is a part of. No matter what anyone tells you about this film, you should know that there is no joke someone can make to take away the integrity of this film. It doesn’t pretend to be anything that it isn’t and lives up to more than you can divine from a single trailer. I loved this film because of these facts and because it was incredibly interactive. Characters were easy to follow and although the script was overt in trying to explain drift compatibility and dimensional gateways, you cared genuinely about Mako and Raleigh. I found that each character had a purpose and all of them were fun to watch during at least one part of the film.

One of the best things about Pacific Rim is that it was properly labeled as its own movie. This isn’t Transformers 5, it wasn’t a Power Rangers remake, and it wasn’t an updated film version of Mecha Godzilla (and thank God they weren’t). It is a movie about new characters facing a threat we have wanted to see on film since we were children. It wasn’t animated, it wasn’t dramatized, it was just a movie about robots punching alien sea monsters in the face and it was great. Who cares about all the science that was mostly unbelievable? I don’t expect all that much science in a film anyway although some plots depend on the science (see my star trek review). Pacific Rim didn’t need to be weighed down into a lengthy physics lessons and one-liners of dialogue that explain some mystical science device in the future. It was what you expect and it did a great job of it. What more can you ask for as a movie viewer?

I review movies every day and can tell you that many of them diverge from their original plot lines in order to develop too many characters, or find too many new sub plots. Pacific Rim never really does this (other than one time that I can think of) and you get what you need from the film. The only think I wanted more from the entire movie was more Kaiju and Jeager fights and wish that there was a larger montage scene that showed every single one. They are impressive at scale and a feat of CGI genius. Luckily I will get my wish because Pacific Rim 2 has already been announced! Whhhatttttt?

Now I feel like some of you are already saying “BUT ADAM THIS MOVIE LOOKS SO DUMB” and I understand that. Granted I am a man that grew up in the 90s and I understand that not all people will enjoy this film, but it’s not like this idea was new or groundbreaking (see any anime TV series ever). When I was a kid I loved power rangers and even the girls loved power rangers. The idea that you got a robot you could use to fight evil in the streets of downtown somewhere was a great fantasy. I remember it was a fight to choose your ranger at recess and the red and green rangers were always the first taken while there were always girls that wanted the pink and yellow rangers. The show was awful, but it has sown the seeds of robots fighting alien creatures long ago. It was still a good idea today and thankfully they made this film and it wasn’t done horribly like the transformers series (I seriously don’t know how it could get worse, but I am sure they will find a way).

Also, I kind of enjoy seeing American films start using terms to explain things in other languages. If you speak another language then you probably already know that English has some major flaws that can’t be ignored. In Latin it is difficult to come up with new phrases if there is not a base to explain the word. Usually people would call the Jaegers ‘giant robots’ or ‘mechs’ and the Kaiju ‘alien sea monsters’ because that is the only base we can derive it from. In the past year, we have seen two phrases from Japanese that already exist for things in movies. The two phrases I can remember are Kaiju and Kuzuri (used in The Wolverine). Kaiju means “strange beast” and Kuzuri just means “wolverine” although in the movie Mariko defines it as “an animal with long claws and sharp teeth that fears nothing.” I enjoy this vernacular because it explains words in a single word that would take a Latin or Greek base a sentence to explain without creating a new word. It’s entertaining and gives us a language lesson about other cultures, which in my opinion is desperately needed.

Many people have told me that because this film didn’t make any money in the U.S. they will not create another like it. The truth is that it did not do very well in the U.S., but it did extremely well in the rest of the world. The movie cost 190 million to make and only made around 100 million in the box offices in the U.S. The great thing is that the movie made 305 million internationally and even broke records in China. I am guessing that the sequel to this movie will do even better in the box office because many people (including myself) didn’t even see the movie in theaters.

I also thought that Charlie Hunnam was a great lead actor in this role. I can only remember seeing him in Greet Street Hooligans in 2005 and to this day it is still one of my favorite movies. Ron Pearlman and Charlie Day both had decent roles as well, but the star of the show was Idris Elba who did a great job at being a leader/father character. He is great at delivering one-liners and even his monologue wasn’t horrible. I can’t wait to see him as Mandela.

To say the least, I thought this was a great film and was absolutely worth watching. I would consider it to be family friendly (there is no nudity and if you don’t mind blue goo for blood then it should be fine). I felt like a little kid at a carnival when I was watching this film and I will probably see it again before the end of the year.