Thoughts: Seven Pounds
I went into Seven Pounds hoping to be wowed, because, well I like Will Smith and he's due to be in another awesome movie. I wasn't (and this sure isn't "awesome"), but that's not the end of the world. In fact, there are some really good parts in this movie, and both Will Smith and Barry Pepper turned in convincing performances, as well as Rosario Dawson. In the end, I think the biggest faults with this film are the pacing and the editing, which don't really work together to gradually reveal Ben's (Will Smith) motives. I'd suggest this as a date movie, which is good to watch once, then easily forgotten.
Thoughts: Quantum of Solace
I was chatting with Ludwig this weekend about the latest exploits of James Bond in Quantum of Solace and while he wasn't too thrilled with the film, I enjoyed it overall. Now, it's not the easiest movie to follow and Mr. Bond can certainly be robotic, but what thrilled me most was the possibilities of where Bond can go from here.
He's wreckless, impulsive, and less of a drink connoisseur than the Bond I grew up with, which is a big part of what gets me so pumped for where Bond is going to go. He's more dangerous, albeit less stylish, than the Bonds of years past, but he has the ability to be the most unique. It may not be to everyone's liking, but I enjoy the change from the generic catch phrase-spewing Brosnan.
As for Quantum itself, the plot is kind of hard to pick up on until about halfway through the movie. There's a lot of tying up the loose ends from the first movie, but it's also an action spectacle through and through. Some of the quick cuts in filming are hard to keep up with, but I found the chase scenes benefit from this style. It makes them more tense and frenzied, especially in the foot chase early on in the movie.
It's not perfect, but I thought it was better than Casino Royale, which was a bit of a snoozer. Consider me interested in seeing where Bond goes from here.
Ricky Gervais is kind of a snob
So I've watched the Ricky Gervais stand-up special and, wow, Ricky Gervais is a stuck up dude. The special opens with about 10 minutes of an announcer praising Ricky Gervais for all of his achievements, then he procedes to sit there and stroke his own ego for another 10 when he finally emerges onto the stage. Don't get me wrong, the guy is talented and funny, and the show was overall good, it's just ... uh, you don't need to be so smug about the whole thing. I mean, look at the king outfit? Like, seriously, dude? Are you the king of England? And is having the most downloaded video on the internet of all time that big of an accomplishment?
Thoughts: Max Payne
So I watched Max Payne last night. All I have to say is this: ugh. What a bad movie. First of all, the casting was absolutely horrible. Mila Kunis as the badass assassin chick? Bad. Mark Wahlberg's inability to emote? Horrible. Bad casting aside, the movie also had some ridiculous moments.
There's two points in the movie where someone shows up in the nick of time to shoot a key player. Despite what's going on all around them, they managed to slip in, unnoticed, and blast away. It's comical, to say the least.
If you enjoy good movies, don't watch Max Payne. It's a cliche-ridden piece of garbage that pays no respect to the source material. It's a shame, too, because the games were fairly decent. The gameplay got tired, but the plot in both titles was better than this 88-minute pile of garbage.
The most ridiculous fight scene ever
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vMKN1tYknE[/youtube]
Ludwig sent me this video clip like last week and he wasn't kidding: it's the most ridiculous fight scene ever. I kind of feel like, if I watched the actual movie it's from, my mind would be blown by just how awesome it is. But, I survived Street Trash, and that was easily one of the best films ever made, so who knows? Catch me on a day I'm feeling brave, Riki-Oh!
Samuel L Jackson’s lost Titanic screen test
Ben sent me this link to a hilarious bit of comedic work, with Samuel L Jackson's lost screen test for Titanic. It's pretty damn funny, so just click the motherfunking link in the motherfunking blog post already.
Dark City on Blu-ray is a must buy
I was talking with Ludwig about this coming out on Blu-ray on Skype the other day and with a price of $18 bucks, I figured a purchase was in order. I'm pretty particular about what I buy on Blu-ray, because I think hi-def doesn't just make any movie. Action movies and stuff benefit, but for things like comedies and dramas, I usually just go regular DVD (the PS3 upscales amazingly, so the picture often looks great on plain old DVD). Dark City is a movie I already own on VHS and so I figured I might as well upgrade.
Boy am I glad I did. It's such a great flick, and definitely one of Keifer Sutherland's best performances. Sure, the end can be a bit much, but the look of this film, the atmosphere, as well as the OMGCR8ZYTHINGS crescendo the film comes to in the last half hour, really make it memorable. If you have a PS3 (or you bought a stand alone Blu-ray player for some super silly reason), check this out. Or, at the least, check out the regular DVD version.
IN A WORLD … without Don LaFontaine
In my sleeping in this morning (I'm pretty sick today), I failed to see news that Don LaFontaine totally bought the farm. It sucks, because I don't think movie trailers are going to be nearly as good. Also, what the hell is Pablo Francisco going to do now? Don LaFontaine was like his whole damn act! Actually, maybe he could be the new guy. His "comedy" was never that good anyway.
Ludwig said something pretty appropriate: "Do you know when his funeral is? THIS SUMMER!"
Quick bio:Hi! I'm David Hinkle, Contributing Editor for Joystiq, former Lead of DS Fanboy and Wii Fanboy (now known as Joystiq [Nintendo]) and co-host on the Xbox 360 Fancast. Basically, I write about games, talk about games and play games -- all of the time.
This place is mainly a dumping ground for random thoughts, but you can also find links to all of my reviews and my contact info. Email me by clicking on this link.
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