With all of the experiments that have been performed on animals over the years its amazing that there haven't been more accidents than are portrayed in the movies. In some ways its easy to see where this story is fantasy, and where its reality, the talking dogs are quite obviously the fantasy part. Yet this story has some basis in the real world and who better to bring this story to the public awareness than Richard Adams the successful author of Watership Down. Like with Watership we're introduced to characters that you want to cheer for and cry with from the beginning to end of the film.
Two dogs escape from a test laboratory in Scotland to get away from the White Coats, but when its realized that they may have come in contact with a plague virus the only option is to kill them. The voice talent that is gathered together for this film ranges from John Hurt to James Bolan to Patrick Stewart, and with some old school animation this story is a pleasure to watch unfold. Some of the images are, at times, a little disturbing to see but they are completely necessary to bring across the focus of the story, and without them the audience would never have the emotional connection with the main characters.
Even with some very adult situations, mainly the violence that occurs throughout the film, this is a story that should seen by the whole family. It shows flat out the value that some people put on the lives of our fellow creatures on this planet, and the inhumanity that it spreads when it's given the chance. So hopefully the biggest thing that younger viewers of this powerful, yet little known film, is that all life is precious no matter what shape it comes in.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
Remaking a movie with better technology for special effects has become a driving force in Hollywood, sometimes it works , and sometimes it doesn't. Then there are times when the film makers try to enhance the original storyline to constitute the remake, and we end up with the same results. This was the first remake of the classic film, The Poseidon Adventure, and starred Adam Baldwin and Steve Guttenburg. With references to the original film throughout the story, even giving the Captain of the ship the name of the novels author, Paul Gallico, isn't enough to draw fans of the classic film in.
A terrorist cell attacks the cruise ship Poseidon and when a bomb detonates it capsizes the ship, and a handful of survivors fight to reach the exposed hole to escape. Even though this story stays pretty close to the original some of the changes to the plot just don't work. Removing the tidal wave to capsize the ship, and replacing it with a bomb is just to improbable to swallow. The characters are another problem this movie has, they are so stale that at no time are you concerned if they make it out alive or not. The comradary of the characters and the tension that builds up in the original is lost here, and its evident from the very beginning.
As a fan of the original story and film I was leery of the fact that the studio decided to remake this story, just the idea to use a terrorist bomb to flip the ship seemed far fetched even for Hollywood. But thankfully they tried one more time and got it right, with "Poseidon," starring Kurt Russell. So if you have a choice on which version to watch, I'd say the original or the 2006 remake, don't waste your time with this one.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Casshern
Having the world destroyed by decades of war is a popular theme for some sci-fi stories, and once these stories are transferred to the big screen they are usually very entertaining and thought provoking. In this adventure we're exposed to a number of different issues from war torn nations and their coping with the devastation to genetic experimentation with its unpredictable outcomes. With a strong cast and a well scripted story, the director is able to transport the audience into a future that isn't all shiny and pretty, but one that looks more real then any of us truly want to admit.
After decades of war the Earth has been left in a toxic state where the survivors are slowly dying from a terrible disease, but when Dr. Azuma develops a genetic treatment that may regenerate the human race his experiments come to life and revolt for their own lives. Visually there are parts of this film that are just stunning, and then there are parts that are so dark and menacing its hard to watch the scenes unfold. The strong subjects that are on display here rang from sending men off to war for no reason to genetic experiments on the living and dying. Once the new life forms strike out on their own the story quickly switches gears and becomes an action story and takes the audience on a fast and furious ride.
Strong themes throughout this story keep it going from the very start, but like most science fiction that comes out of the Asian cinema the audience is left wondering just how close to home could some of this truly be. This was one of those films that caught my eye on the store shelf and wondered if it would be any good, and after seeing it I'm glad I'm still a little curious about things I've never heard about. If it wasn't for that curiosity I'd never see films that peak my interest a little bit and turn out to be films like this one, one that I would see again without a second thought.
After decades of war the Earth has been left in a toxic state where the survivors are slowly dying from a terrible disease, but when Dr. Azuma develops a genetic treatment that may regenerate the human race his experiments come to life and revolt for their own lives. Visually there are parts of this film that are just stunning, and then there are parts that are so dark and menacing its hard to watch the scenes unfold. The strong subjects that are on display here rang from sending men off to war for no reason to genetic experiments on the living and dying. Once the new life forms strike out on their own the story quickly switches gears and becomes an action story and takes the audience on a fast and furious ride.
Strong themes throughout this story keep it going from the very start, but like most science fiction that comes out of the Asian cinema the audience is left wondering just how close to home could some of this truly be. This was one of those films that caught my eye on the store shelf and wondered if it would be any good, and after seeing it I'm glad I'm still a little curious about things I've never heard about. If it wasn't for that curiosity I'd never see films that peak my interest a little bit and turn out to be films like this one, one that I would see again without a second thought.
For Love of the Game
Baseball movies usually try to put the audience in the shoes of the players so that they have the feel of the game going on around them. But very few put you into the players life to experience the turmoil that goes on behind the scenes. Watching baseball players during a game it's hard to imagine the things that go on inside their heads and how that can effect the game. But with this story and the wonderful performance that Kevin Costner turns out, you walk away with the feeling that next time your watching a game you'll have more appreciation for the athletes on the field.
While pitching the best game of his career, Billy Chapel reflects in his mind about the life he's lead for the past five years and the choices he has and has to make. The flashbacks give so much insight into Chapel that the audience gets the feeling that they've been watching this ball player for his whole career. Some of Costner's best acting is done in this film, part of the reason for this is that he's acting in two different time periods of the character's life, so this gives his performance more dimension then most regular roles.
This film has a nice mix of a love story and a sports story, which puts it into a class all it's own, half is a chick flick and the other half is a guy flick. Which makes this film an all around favorite, no matter what kind of films you like. Costner doesn't hit the mark every time he makes a movie, but when he hits it right it's out of the park and that's where this one ends up, out of the park.
While pitching the best game of his career, Billy Chapel reflects in his mind about the life he's lead for the past five years and the choices he has and has to make. The flashbacks give so much insight into Chapel that the audience gets the feeling that they've been watching this ball player for his whole career. Some of Costner's best acting is done in this film, part of the reason for this is that he's acting in two different time periods of the character's life, so this gives his performance more dimension then most regular roles.
This film has a nice mix of a love story and a sports story, which puts it into a class all it's own, half is a chick flick and the other half is a guy flick. Which makes this film an all around favorite, no matter what kind of films you like. Costner doesn't hit the mark every time he makes a movie, but when he hits it right it's out of the park and that's where this one ends up, out of the park.
Balls of Fury
Of all the sports that man plays, ping pong is not the one that most people would choose to see an action film about, but making it into a comedy would seem to fit perfectly. But unfortunately even mixing in some martial arts and flawless special effects your left with a bad taste in your mouth after watching this film. Out of all the roles in this story Christopher Walken as the evil Feng is by far the best, but one actor can't carry a whole story even the great Walken himself.
A world class ping pong player is invited to a mysterious island to compete in a win or die competition. The story itself is to slow and dry to keep the attention of an intelligent audience, and the jokes that are good are so few and far between that the movie seems to drag on even longer. Some of the effects that are used to perform the unusual ping pong moves and stunts are very well done, and at times entertaining, but as soon as the story picks up again everything slows down to a crawl.
Seeing Walken in a comedy role is worth watching the film, if you're a Walken fan, but other than that the story tries to hard to force the comedy bits and most of them fall flat. Even with the obvious parodies of the Mortal Kombat films and the great martial arts film Enter the Dragon, this film doesn't have enough things going for to be watched with enthusiasm.
Cruising
Most movies are made with the idea of escapism for the audience, within the confines of the story a journey takes them into a realm that is different and strange. Add William Friedkin, the director of The Exorcist and The French Connection, and Al Pacino into that mix with their high intensity film making and acting and you end up with a film that the audience won't soon forget.
Officer Steve Burns goes undercover to track down a serial killer who is attacking gay men involved in the S&M subculture of New York City. Shooting this entire movie in New York gives it the true gritty feel of the city and with the graphic scenes that draws the audience into the customs and practices of this gay subculture your left wondering how real the whole thing is. The two roles that stand out in this film are that of Pacino and Paul Sorvino, both play their characters to the hilt and when you walk away at the end your left wondering just what happens next to these people.
Back in 1980 when this movie first hit the screens there was a distinct shock value to some of the scenes, and after all these years the scenes are still in some ways disturbing. If you like a good thriller that leaves you thinking al the way through the film then this is a movie to watch. This isn't particularly a movie that is easy to watch with all of the openly homosexual acts that are viewed but the intensity and complexity of the story drives this into a must see category. With the authentic acting by Pacino and the on location filming you begin to see how close this way of life is to the "mainstream" that we see every day.
Officer Steve Burns goes undercover to track down a serial killer who is attacking gay men involved in the S&M subculture of New York City. Shooting this entire movie in New York gives it the true gritty feel of the city and with the graphic scenes that draws the audience into the customs and practices of this gay subculture your left wondering how real the whole thing is. The two roles that stand out in this film are that of Pacino and Paul Sorvino, both play their characters to the hilt and when you walk away at the end your left wondering just what happens next to these people.
Back in 1980 when this movie first hit the screens there was a distinct shock value to some of the scenes, and after all these years the scenes are still in some ways disturbing. If you like a good thriller that leaves you thinking al the way through the film then this is a movie to watch. This isn't particularly a movie that is easy to watch with all of the openly homosexual acts that are viewed but the intensity and complexity of the story drives this into a must see category. With the authentic acting by Pacino and the on location filming you begin to see how close this way of life is to the "mainstream" that we see every day.
Beowulf
There are some stories that over time become more exaggerated and turn into more myth than fact, and when that happens the legends grow far beyond the peoples that started the tale. Based on the Anglo-Saxon poem we are given a new interpretation of the story that has been told and retold since its inception in the 8th century. With Robert Zemeckis at the helm and some new computer animation technology the story of Beowulf comes to life one more time with a prominent cast including Anthony Hopkins, John Malkovich, Angelina Jolie and Ray Winstone.
Beowulf arrives in a small Danish kingdom to battle the demon Grendel and discovers that there is more than just the demon and his mother to fight. The computer animation that is used in the film is interesting to watch but with the overlay animation on the actors in the story your attention is drawn away from the acting in the scenes to notice the parts of the environment that don't seem to look just right. Yet even with that said the action sequences that the film does have are very well done.
This adaptation is nice to see, but unfortunately the draw back is the drama in between the action. There are times that the drama drags on and its very easy for the audience to lose interest in the tale. Even with the over use of the computer animation some of the best effects come from the demons and dragon in the story, and its not surprising that these are the effects are involved in the action sequences too. So if you have the time and are willing to sit through a retelling of one of the longest surviving Anglo-Saxon poems then you'll be happy with this film, just remember there isn't as much action as you'd think in an old heroes legend.
Beowulf arrives in a small Danish kingdom to battle the demon Grendel and discovers that there is more than just the demon and his mother to fight. The computer animation that is used in the film is interesting to watch but with the overlay animation on the actors in the story your attention is drawn away from the acting in the scenes to notice the parts of the environment that don't seem to look just right. Yet even with that said the action sequences that the film does have are very well done.
This adaptation is nice to see, but unfortunately the draw back is the drama in between the action. There are times that the drama drags on and its very easy for the audience to lose interest in the tale. Even with the over use of the computer animation some of the best effects come from the demons and dragon in the story, and its not surprising that these are the effects are involved in the action sequences too. So if you have the time and are willing to sit through a retelling of one of the longest surviving Anglo-Saxon poems then you'll be happy with this film, just remember there isn't as much action as you'd think in an old heroes legend.
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