Legion DVD

Legion DVD

By Jose

An out-of-the-way diner becomes the unlikely battleground for the survival of the human race. When God loses faith in humankind, he sends his legion of angels to bring on the Apocalypse. Humanity's only hope lies in a group of strangers trapped in a desert diner with the Archangel Michael (Bettany).

About time someone decides to do something a bit different instead of Devil wants child and sends his minions to take it or Devil brings about the end of the world but one baby can save all of humanity, etc etc.

Overall Legion was a enjoyable movie. Had plenty of action, straight forward, a bit too much talking, but it left you wanting to see what happens next. Acting was ok from everyone. Bettany did what was needed of him. The angel possessed people were creepy and violent. Hell the old lady and the beginning was down right hilarious and creepy and was one of my favorites. Was Legion the best that I have seen. No. But it’s a popcorn movie and a damn good one.

Rated 2 out of 5

MacGruber Review

By: Robert Acosta

Cast:
Will Forte as MacGruber
Kristen Wiig as Vickie St. Elmo
Ryan Phillippe as Lt. Dixon Piper
Val Kilmer as Dieter Von Cunth

Plot: MacGruber is called into action to take down his archenemy, Dieter Von Cunth, who's has obtained a nuclear warhead.

Review: Who knew that a 60 second skit on Saturday Night Live could even be turned into a full length movie? I mean, sure it's been done before but could it be done in a time when every movie is in 3D and most "good" movies approach 2 hours or more? Yes, it can be done.

For those who have not seen the MacGruber skit on Saturday Night Live, ill let you know the usual scene. MacGruber, played by Will Forte, is sent with Vickie St. Elmo, played by Kristen Wiig, to defuse a bomb or get someone out of a certain situation. Usually, it never works and the bomb explodes or time expires. With that said, that makes it funnier that this kind of skit got turned into a movie.

This movie follows MacGruber after he's lost everything, presumed dead and the world needs him the most. He puts together a team to take down his rival, Dieter Von Cunth. When that plan hilariously fails, he must do with what he has to take down his rival.

People who go see MacGruber have to understand not to take this movie seriously. A lot of good movies, especially comedies, get ruined by people who just take the movie too seriously and look at some of the ridiculous events in the movies as flaws. Just sit back, relax and get ready to laugh.

For both Will Forte and Kristen Wiig, there probably was no training needed to get into character. These guys have played these characters many times before so watching them in this movie was very natural. Glad to see both Ryan Phillippe and Val Kilmer in this movie, making strong performances. It seemed like many years ago Phillippe was destined to be a big star in Hollywood. He's just been flying under the radar for years and years but it was fun to watch him in MacGruber.

Of course, this is still a comedy movie as well as an action movie so I must comment on both. To me, the comedy was top notch. I couldn't stop laughing at times, sometimes about scenes that happened 5 minutes ago. In terms of comedy, MacGruber matches up with movies like The Hangover, Anchorman and Knocked Up.

The action is very much like any other action movie, things explode, guns are blazing and running to survive are all present. What makes this a little better than it sounds is that it's MacGruber. You would think a movie as silly and hilarious as MacGruber is wouldn't have a satisfying amount of action but it does!

They're are cameos galore in MacGruber. From long time SNL actors like Maya Rudolph to many WWE wrestlers.

Overall, MacGruber is flat out hilarious. Some people may not like it because they may not like SNL period or they dont think the movie takes itself seriously. Well that's on them, they miss out on a tremendous comedy. Ironic on Memorial Day that I review this movie but I had to give some respect to America's funniest soldier.

Rating: 4.5 Out of 5.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Review

By: Robert Acosta

Cast:
Jake Gyllenhaal as Prince Dastan
Gemma Arterton as Princess Tamina
Ben Kingsley as Nizam
Alfred Molina as Sheik Amar

Plot: Based on the popular video game series, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time follows Prince Dastan as he tries to stop a ruler from carrying out his evil plans.

Review: For the readers who know my style of reviewing, you know I like to add notes at the beginning of these reviews. Why stop now? I can honestly say i've never played any of the Prince of Persia games. Not that the games themselves didn't interest me but I guess they were never my style. These games, so i've been told, are very action based, so I figured I should give this movie a chance.

Most reviewers who review this movie said that Gyllenhaal carried the movie with a great performance. Not to take anything away from him because I think he did a great job, but I wouldn't go as far to say he carried the movie. He put in one hell of a performance that was both star-worthy and comical. Gemma Arteron is a gem to look at, she is just stunning. The hard to keep your eyes off her in every scene she's in kind of stunning. Not a bad actress either, made the chemistry between herself and Prince Dastan very believable. The chemistry between them is so good in fact, that I actually felt a little bad for what happens in the end, which of course I won't spoil.

As for the story, I can't say whether it is anything like the games cause I haven't played any of them. The story on it's own though was pretty enjoyable and made sense. I didn't feel like they're were any plot holes or things that could have been avoided.

Of course for action based games turned into an action based movie, i'm obligated to talk about the action. I'm a sucker for a good ol' bow and arrow, so when I saw that weapon in the movie I got instantly excited. After being sort of disapointed with the lack of action in Iron Man 2, I was decently pleased with the action in Prince of Persia. There were a couple of longer action scenes, quick action scenes and the typical "on the edge of your seat" action scenes. It all blends very nicely.

Though it didn't really feel all too long, the movie does run for 116 minutes. Is that bad? Yes and no. I've always found it difficult to sit in a chair, completely still for a couple of hours. On the other hand, most of the good movies that are out there are over 100-105 minutes, or even longer.

There were definitely a couple of scenes that had me saying, "oh no this isn't good." Both of these scenes were crucial to the story, particularly the ending. One was just a little too much expression for my liking and the other sort of reminded me of what the movie Vantage Point was like.

Looking past the couple of flaws the movie had, I cannot say Prince of Persia was a bad movie. Other major sites and newspapers have said otherwise. I'm not going to sit here and tell you that this is an amazing movie, a 5 out of 5 movie. What I will tell you is that the movie is not bad, much better than I expected. It's definitely worth seeing if you're a fan of the game or like a good action movie.

Overall: 3.5 out of 5.

Wizards Of Waverly Place The Movie DVD

Wizards Of Waverly Place The Movie DVD

By Jose

I actually like the show. It is a guilty pleasure of mine. One thing that Disney does well is create movies out of their shows and or talent they have. Normally the movies they make go directly to TV or to DVD. Now besides that Wizards of Waverly Place is, on its own, a good show about a family of wizards and everything that comes with that. Bickering magical kids, crazy friends, supernatural shenanigans, etc. The movie takes all that and places them at the most ancient and popular wizard destination of Puerto Rico (playing off the Spanish heritage the family has on their mom’s side). Right off the bat the visuals are amazing. The acting is well done and keeps along the lines of the show if not better. There is plenty of action and excitement (wizard challenge between Alex and her brother Justin) along with suspense (will the Russo kids reverse that wish Alex made or will they cease to exist). The movie compliments the show really well and shows that these kids, Selena Gomez, David Henrie, and Jake T. Austin can handle themselves in a movie.

Rated 3 out of 5

Halloween 2 2009 DVD

Halloween 2 2009 DVD

By Jose

This is the reason why remakes are so hated. When Rob Zombie came on board to give a new updated take on a horror franchise, I cringed. To me R Zombie is a fifty-fifty director. Half the time his movies are bad and the other half decent. So with that said the first one came out decent. Followed the original movie along with injecting a new take. It worked. But then someone in Hollywood decided a sequel to a remake would be a great idea. R. Zombie saw this as an opportunity to make the sequel his own. Very bad idea. Remember I said fifty-fifty. Well Halloween 2 was hands down horrible. What was Zombie thinking and what were the studio execs thinking? To believe that the product made was even good in any way is shocking. The money wasted on this film could have went into some other project. But no this garbage is released and makes horror movies in general look bad. It is already hard to make new and good horror movies and what R Zombie shat out hurt the genre even more. Stick with music and crappy music videos Rob Zombie and leave horror to those that know what they are doing.

Ratings 0 out of 5

Mothman SYFY Original Movie

Mothman SyFy Channel
By Jose

Review:
I consider movies that Syfy Channel on Saturday nights show to be nothing more but straight to DVD “B-movies”. So on this particular Saturday, the Syfy Original Movie, was Mothman, starring Jewel Staite. Yeah Mothman. And you know what it turned out to be a fun popcorn movie and a cheap horror thrill.

Mothman brought a plot line about a mythological legend and made a fascinating shell around the myth. I was expecting very little but the use of the monster was minimal through the first 1/2 of the movie, relying on plot to get you through to the 2nd hour. It carried me from point A to point B in the story convincingly enough to keep me going.
Yes, it’s a Syfy Saturday night movie. But it was an above average TV movie for this time slot and I found it to be a pleasant experience.

When the monster showed up, the effects were minimally considerable. That’s my nice way of saying that it didn’t suck horribly like some movies can do when they apply the same Photoshop cut-out to multiple scenes. Yeah, we’ve seen those movies before, I am looking at you Mega Piranha, but this wasn’t one of those.

In fact the monster, the Mothman, comes into the world via reflective surfaces. The first time we see it, it materializes on the side of a trailer-home and I started to worry just a little bit. But we learn about the monster, it’s victims, and it’s methodology as the film proceeds. So it made sense to a degree which is surprising for a movie like this.

The film developed nicely. We learn about the characters first and the “demon” of a secret they all carry. Yes, it seemed way off-mark on how the group of characters decide to deal with their accident in the beginning. I mean really you are going to mess around with a scared younger kid in a river and then surprised that he drowned and the first thing that comes to mind, instead of calling the police or trying to revive him, is to cover it up and to smash his head open with a rock. But not once, no that is too simple. Everyone that was there took turns smashing the kids head in with said rock. Couldn’t just sign your name on a paper or make a pact right there? We then learn about other people and the existence of the creature itself. We then find ourselves learning how the monster operates and the TV movie is closed out with the cast of characters dealing with their personal demons and how they draw the Mothman to themselves and how they deal with it. To be honest, I was surprised that I enjoyed the movie completely. Considering it being a SyFy Original movie. Haha.

Ratings: 2 out of 5

Scooby Doo! The Mystery Begins DVD

Scooby Doo! The Mystery Begins

By Jose


What it’s about:

What brings best friends together? For Daphne, Velma, Fred, Shaggy and Shaggy's spunky pup Scooby-Doo, it's a mystery! The live-action Scooby-Doo: The Mystery Begins original movie takes you back to when four teenage sleuths, plus one dog detective, first met.

Review:

So Scooby Doo has about several hundred different shows and movies if not more. Which all range from classic and great to forgettable and just bad. We also seen release of two Hollywood released movies and few years ago that weren’t that bad yet were not necessary to the Scooby Doo franchise. So here comes another live action Scobby movie that gives us a look at where it all began. And you know what, besides the obvious flaws, was really entertaining.

The film is an origin story for Scooby and the Mystery Inc. gang, revealing how they met and the events of their very first case. In Coolsville, Ohio the cast is introduced on the school bus. Shaggy is a nerdy outcast who is frequently picked on by a jock, normally by getting tripped every morning on the bus. Fred is the quarterback of the football team and the jock's friend, but disapproves of him picking on Shaggy. Velma is an outcast geek, and Daphne is in the drama club. At school, Shaggy's trouble is trying to get his locker door open results in him falling in a trashcan and rolling into the Principal's office, though this is clearly not the first time. Principal Deedle suggests that Shaggy try to find some friends and says he should take up a hobby like his, stamp collecting. (which plays into the plot later on in the movie). Meanwhile, a talking Great Dane named Scoobert trying to get adopted at an adoption fair with no luck. At the end of the fair he's crammed into a cage and loaded into the back of a pickup truck. Scoobert falls out and begins to wander through a graveyard, but a strike of lightning resurrects a pair of ghosts. In a blind panic, Scoobert runs off and leaps into Shaggy's house. They instantly become great friends, and Shaggy nicknames the dog "Scooby."

Shaggy attempts to smuggle Scooby to school disguised as a kid; however, when a jock trips Shaggy (again), Scooby bites the jock's leg, which starts a fight that quickly involves Shaggy, Fred, Velma, and Daphne. Both Shaggy and Fred attack the jock to protect Scooby, and Fred unintentionally disturbs Daphne and crushes Velma's science project. All four of them get six weeks of detention when the bus driver, distracted by the commotion, crashes into the school's flagpole, knocking it over and smashing into the windshield of Vice Principal Grimes' new car. As the four are in detention, they discover they share an interest in mystery stories, but all quickly get on each other's nerves. Suddenly, the two ghosts appear. The ghosts chase them into the gym during the pep rally and a third mysterious ghost, the Spectre, appears, telling everyone to leave at once. The principal decides to close the school, but the vice principal deems the incident a prank caused by the gang out of revenge for their detention, and he changes from the charge of detention to suspension. From here on the gang falls into a mystery that they need to solve to clear their names and save the school.

Now as you may have read certain reviews of mine, I tend to not spoil much of the movie I review. I am the type of person that will give you a bit of the beginning to gain some interest and then for you, the reader, to judge if you want to check out the movie or not. So with that I want to get into the actors a bit and Scooby himself. Previously we have gotten Matthew Lillard as an older Shaggy but for Mystery Begins we get a outstanding performance from Nick Palatas as Shaggy. I mean this guy was Shaggy. If you ever pictured what Shaggy would look like and act like in real life look no further then at the performance that Nick gave. And the same goes for Hayley Kiyoko as Velma. I truly have to stop and applause the casting choices for these two roles because they are honestly perfect and I hope if there are any other Scooby Doo movies that they go out of their way and bring these actors back

But that is not to say that Kate Melton as Daphne and Robbie Amell as Fred were bad actors or choices for these roles. No not at all. They were good as well. But Nick and Hayley stole the show. They became the characters. That and Fred had dark hair. Don’t know why they decided on that. Maybe there is a story about how Daphne colored turned him into a bleach blonde at some point in time in the future or whatever. But it was what it was. Scooby Doo himself was computer animated character. You know with a straight to DVD movie the effects are not going to be great but Scooby was decently done and I did enjoy bringing in Frank Welker to voice Scooby.

Final Thoughts:

Yes Scooby Doo the Mystery Begins is a straight to DVD live action movie based on a beloved classic cartoon. So automatically we should hate it. I did not. I enjoyed this movie for what it was. A glimpse into how such a great group of ghost and mystery hunters first came to be and how there friendship began and grew. Yes it has it’s faults but all movies regardless of budget, cast, director, etc all have faults. So with that I leave you with this: if you are a fan of Scooby Doo and the gang give this movie a try. You probably will not be disappointed and maybe enjoy it how I did. Plus here is hoping for another Begins-type Scooby movie with these actors.

Ratings: 3 out of 5

**A bit of an update seems that they are making another movie with all the same people. Scooby Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster is due out later this year. I can't wait.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1618435/

Iron Man 2 Review

By: Robert Acosta

Cast:
Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man
Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko/ Whiplash
Scarlett Johansson as Natalie Rushman/ Agent Romanoff
Gywneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts

Plot: After revealing that he is Iron Man, Tony Stark must contend with issues involving the government, his own friends, as well as new enemies due to his superhero alter ego Iron Man.

Review: Off the bat, before I even got to see the movie, I had already read reviews about Iron Man 2. Not to say that they were negative but automatically the movie was and continues to be compared to it's predecessor as not nearly as good. Do I agree? I'll let you know at the end of the review.

The story is pretty basic and I wouldn't be spoiling much of anything by telling you every single that happened. Of course, I won't do that, i'd rather you go see the movie. At the end of Iron Man, Tony Stark reveals he's Iron Man to the world. In the beginning of Iron Man 2, it's clear that he has enemies who want to take him out but that he also has a tremendous amount of fame now. Tony Stark's mission is to hold off his enemies, which include Ivan Vanko, the government and Justin Hammer(played by Sam Rockwell) who is Stark's business enemy.

Robert Downey Jr. is Iron Man. I know that sounds ironic and redundant cause we know that. But I mean, he is Iron Man. No one could replace him and do anywhere near as good as he's done. He's arguably the one guy in the comic book movie world that cannot be replaced. Christian Bale as Batman isn't 100% enjoyable to me and I could see someone else doing it, not that I have anyone in mind. Both Iron Man 1 and 2 would have completely failed without Downey Jr. and his funny one liners and nonchalant attitude.

The rest of the cast does a great job of being the supporting cast, Downey Jr. is the clear star. Mickey Rourke didn't do bad as the villian, though I expected more about him but that's not his fault. The stunning Scarlett Johansson was great, kicked ass but mostly irrelevant in scenes where shes not kicking ass. Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer seemed like a better villian to me, even though he never hopped in a suit to physically fight Iron Man. Don Cheadle as Lt. James Rhodes provided a decent sidekick for Iron Man. I'll be honest, War Machine is my favorite character of all time, so it would be hard to fuck the role for me. Just seeing the costume in action, kicking ass was enough for me.

My main complaint or complaints are interconnected. For a movie that was over 2 hours long, the action scenes were few and far apart. I count only 3 fight scenes, 1 was featured in the trailer on the race track, 1 wasn't even a hero vs villian fight scene and the last fight scene was pretty damn bad ass but short. There's a lot of talking during the movie, which is good talk because it's telling a good story and some comedy is involved. At the same time, it's an Iron Man movie. After watching the first movie and watching the trailer for the 2nd part, a good amount of action is expected but in this case, was not delivered.

Lastly, a note for people who go see the movie. Stay for the credits. Those who have kept up with the movie world and know what's going on, there is to be many more Marvel comics movies coming out within the next year or so. Characters and groups like Captain America, Thor, The Avengers and X-men are all getting movies added to their series. So stay for the credits because there is some hints regarding more than 1 of the movies I listed above.

Overall, Iron Man 2 is a great movie on its own. I personally don't like comparing movies in a series, rather just looking at how the movie faired on it's own. Did you have to see Iron Man 1 to see Iron Man 2 and understand what's going on? Yes and no. Iron Man 2 does a good job of catching you up and setting you up for what's going on. To understand certain themes in the movie though, you'd have to had seen Iron Man 1 or some knowledge of the comics. May has started off with a bang!

Rating: 4.5 out of 5  

Horsemen - DVD

Horsemen -DVD
By Jose

What is it about
Platinum Dunes finally makes a horror movie that isn't a remake and it ends up going straight-to-DVD. Why am I not surprised?
Horsemen is a Se7en-ish thriller. But that only works if you're willing to buy into the reasoning behind the motivation of the killers, or the very identity of the ringleader of these Four Horsemen-inspired killers.

Review
For Horsemen to be enjoyed, it requires the viewer to accept a lot of stuff that can be a bit hard to swallow. Like if you're willing to believe a quartet of killers can sneak in and out of populated buildings with heavy clanging metal frames undetected. Or if you're willing to believe a teenager can stab arteries with a degree of precision we're told would even be challenging for a skilled surgeon. Or if your willing to believe Dennis Quaid's widowed single dad truly does care about the well-being of his two sons even after his neglected eldest blames him for being such an absentee father he hasn't even looked inside his bedroom for three years. Three years? Really? Also, somebody hangs them self thirty-plus feet in the air with metal hooks in their arms all by their lonesome.

Side Note
I may sound like I disliked this movie the way I disliked Mega Piranha (HA). But no I did enjoy the movie. It is that people tend to see certain movies and even though you mention the faults they go ahead and “yell” them at you once again. Again, even though I already mentioned them.

Back to the review
Dennis Quaid stars as Aiden Breslin, a criminal pathologist specializing in teeth and bite marks. His wife died of cancer a few years earlier, his teenage son attends therapy, the youngest son is still too young to fully comprehend the loss, and Aiden copes by throwing himself into his work to such a degree he's grown distant from both of them. A platter of bloody pulled teeth with no corpse to go along with it gives him another chance to push his sons aside in favor of drowning his sorrows in work. A corpse suspended from hooks on metal frames with cryptic clues is the first victim, sending him in search of a quartet of serial killers basing their methodology on the Biblical Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
A scene that begins with Eric Balfour as a blue collar guy verbally abusing his gay kid brother takes a turn that proves more emotionally gut-wrenching than anything else the film throws at us.

To reveal anything more would be to spoil the further twists, and this is a serial killer that is all about misdirection and building towards a big climactic twist. Even though you'll probably figure out who the main orchestrator of the murders is long before that individual reveals him or herself.

Final thoughts
Horsemen takes a quieter, more subtle slow burn approach to the story compared to Platinum Dunes penchant for noisy, over-edited films. Perhaps a little too slow, too subtle, too lacking in suspense. I have a strong feeling that opinions on Horsemen are going to be very mixed. I actually fall into a ‘middle of the road‘ with this one. I liked it but I wish there was a bit more organization or a polish to Horsemen.

Ratings: 2 out of 5

May Movie Releases

Doesn't it feel like the months are flying by? It feels like just yesterday we were bringing in the new year and here we are already in the 5th month of the year.

April turned out to be alright with movie releases. Kick-Ass and Nightmare on Elm St headlined the month, though unfortunately Kick-Ass didn't have a great showing at the box office. Death at a Funeral and The Losers backed these movies up with strong efforts but once again, not so great numbers at the box office. Clash of the Titans seemed to disappoint people who saw it, including myself. Solid month of April movies, only leading to another solid month of movies in May. Lets take a look at them:

(x)= Limited Release

May 7

• Iron Man 2
• Babies (x)

May 14

• Robin Hood
• Letters to Juliet
• Just Wright

May 21

• Shrek Forever After
• MacGruber
• Solitary Man (x)

May 28

• Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
• Sex and the City 2
• Survival of the Dead (x)
• Micmacs (x)

Robert Acosta: For starters, it's gonna be a great start to the month with Iron Man 2. No doubt about it, a must see. Hell I saw the trailer for Babies and couldn't help but smile and think it could be a fun thing to watch. Robin Hood is my surprise pick. I think it's gonna be really really good in terms of action and a story much different than we typically know of Robin Hood. Letters to Juliet and Just Wright seem like fun, romantic movies you would go take your boyfriend or girlfriend to see, just a regular fun time at the movies. The May 21st week of movies is where the question marks begin. I'm not too sure about Shrek Forever After, it feels like they're just trying to milk the name for whatever money it's gonna make. Not to say that I don't think it will be funny but the 3rd Shrek movie wasn't that great, why should I expect the 4th one to be better? As for MacGruber, I have to hand it to Will Forte and Kristen Wiig. They both are pretty funny on Saturday Night Live so maybe they can deliver in MacGruber, we'll see. I don't even want to talk about Sex and the City 2, I just.....I don't want to talk about it. Another question mark lies in Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. I'll be honest, i've never played any of the video games so I don't exactly know how it goes. Nonetheless, I know that a lot of movies that are video game adaptations have not faired well so once again I ask, why should I expect this one to be better?

Jose Diaz: April came on a good note and left with a whimper. Clash of the Titans did well, Date Night surprised many, then a dragon came back and kicked everyone else’s ass (pun intended). Yes Kick Ass did not do as well as it should have and neither did Death At A Funeral or The Losers. Yet How To Train Your Dragon came back with a fury and dominated the box office. You and I can argue the why’s and why not’s but considering that everyone and their mothers like Kick Ass yet it under performed. I think it was many kids buying tickets to see Dragon and sneaking into see Kick Ass. But now here comes May.

May is and will always be the unofficial start of the summer movie season. And boy does it start with a bang. The long awaited and highly popular Iron Man 2 is released. I for one, can not wait to see this movie. Also if the rumors are true then the scene at the end of the credits will make my mouth water. Literally. Robin Hood seems to be an interesting “prequeal” to the stories we all know. Shrek Forever After will most likely do some damage at the box office due to being 3D and the last of the series. We also get an SNL movie in the lines of MacGruber. Honestly don’t know what to say about that one. Queen Latifah and Common bring some romance/comedy/drama with Just Wright. Letters To Juliet is the “girly” movie of the month. It actually looks like it might be good if not better than what has been released so far. At the end of the month we get a game based movie in Prince of Persia staring Jake Gyllenhaal, Ben Kingsley (cashing a check), and Alfred Molina. Prince may be a decent fun movie. Then the crap of the month, Sex and the City 2. Really? A sequel? All these other movies and all these potential good ideas out there and you make a another SITC movie? Hope it fails.

Overall May seems to be a great month and hopefully we get a decent showing at the box office compared to last month.