The Reel Review

3-D-eath

2010-08-10T09:38:00.000-07:00

So the post production 3-D trend is well underway and the world is eating up the new visual extravaganza. Production companies everywhere are dabbling into their share of the pie by coming out with their own take on 3-D presentation.
So far not much of a standard has been set as to how to create a great movie with 3-D, but it's a very simple concept, just go by this one rule of thumb:

You can make a great movie better using 3-D, but you can't make a bad movie better.

Basically, the way to make a great 3-D movie is to make a great movie, and then add 3-D. now I know you're thinking 'well duh, that's why they call it post-production 3-D', yes, but what I'm trying to emphasize is the fact that the 3-D should not be the selling factor. It should, like always, be the quality of film-work, the brilliance of the acting, the perfection of the make-up, etcetera etcetera, all the things that make a movie great already with this beautiful technology added to create something truly spectacular.
So before you waste your money on this holiday seasons 3-D cash-cow (The Smurfs, Yogi Bear, Tron: Legacy) please note that you're supporting the downfall of great film-work as we know it today. Thank you.

Movie News: DIE Vampires DIE!

2010-08-10T05:12:00.000-07:00

After punching Anne Rice in the face with the twilight series, Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer have decided to put the icing on the cake and the dirt on Anne's grave with another one of their ever-so-beloved spoofs that make us all quite obviously laugh 'til we cry.
I don't even understand how these two still exist in the movie business, well yes I do, people just assume that one of these days one of these movies is going to just magically turn back into Scary Movie, it ain't going to happen people! They were one third of one of the panels brought together to make Scary Movie, and somehow that gives them some kind of godly Comedy status among the public, stop feeding these tasteless, greed-driven, dull humored pansies your money!
It's one thing to be the series that kills the vampire monster terminally, it's another thing to be the movie that makes that series look good.
These two guys honestly must be the only two popular movie-makers that have NEVER put out an even slightly well-reviewed film, this is due to the fact that they are tricking the public, they aren't real movie makers at all, they're schmucks! Low-life wheelin' and dealin' thieves! I'm sure they're completely well aware of the fact that they're putting out miserable quality film-work (if you can stomach calling it that), but they don't care, and it disgusts me!
To Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer movie-making is not art, it's a paycheck.

Movie News: The End is Near..

2010-08-09T17:18:00.000-07:00

Says film director Matthew Vaughn. The director of kick-ass says that the industry has pummeled the genre 'til near death and he plans to end off the long, winding, hot and cold road of superhero flicks with a bang with his new X-Men to be released summer 2011.
"I've always wanted to do a big-budget superhero film and I think we've kind of crossed the Rubicon with superhero films. I think [the opportunity to do one], it's only going to be there two or three more times. Then the genre is going to be dead for a while because the audience has just been pummeled too much."
With audiences constantly hungry for some good superhero juice, Vaughn plans to deliver something beyond our imaginations (most of which can't imagine past Ratner ever-so-dull X-Men: Last Stand.)
This all sounds great, and with Vaughn's track record I have some faith. Though considering the genre.. I'll Believe it When I see It! And to the death of superheros, Good Night and Good Riddance.

Setting the Grade for Remakes Everywhere: Predators Review

2010-08-05T10:46:00.000-07:00

Let's face it, these days Hollywood has to be forming plots using phonics and picking movie pitches out of bingo ruffles. If a movie ever existed at any point in history it now exists as a sequel, remake or prequel.
It now seems that the creators of the Predator series have finally come up with something worth my time as much as the first, possibly even more. In '87 Arnold wowed us all with his raging biceps and authoritarian tones, intimidation seeped through the very veins of audiences world-wide. Now that was great and all, but something had to change for a completely 'New' movie to be made.
In this new addition to the Predator trio, Topher Grace gives us the timeless quirky behavior that you will expect to see from the 'That 70s Show' funny man, and although it takes a minute to get used to the serious side of Topher, he does a brilliant job in revealing the real Edwin.
Not to completely diminish the presence of our action hero Adrien Brody shows us a much darker personality to 'The Pianist' showing us that you don't have to be a 300 pound body-builder to fill Arnold's shoes.
Though the real out of this world performance has to be given to Laurence Fishburne, capturing the hunt-crazed Noland better than I think the writing even imagined possible; the theater itself gained an eerie feel to it throughout his time on-screen. My only wish is that Laurence had of been allotted more time to amaze me.
To me, this movie sets the grade for remakes everywhere, if every Hollywood producer and director were to take a lesson from Rodriguez the biz would be a better place undoubtedly.

The Creative Flares of Inception

2010-08-03T08:11:00.000-07:00

From the mind of Christopher Nolan, Inception shows us originality unwitnessed since Inglorious Basterds. The audience is invited to wander into the very depths of the mind without promise that they will enjoy what they do find.

Leonardo DiCaprio plays, as always, a breathe-taking role, capturing the mentally deteriorating Dominic Cobb to a tee. Marion Cotillard creates a love-hate fluster in your head having you at times crying for her fate, but at others cursing what she has forged Cobb's into. The relationship between Arthur and Eames creates a small but always present flare of comedy, which adds a simply brilliant touch. Ellen Page really proves herself as a dynamic actor, straying away from her typical dry humour flick into a deeper, more dramatically-savvy role.

This film is a truly unique experience for all adult movie goers forging action, thriller, romance with a "just out of the box" base concept. 5 reels out of 5!