Movie Review: Kong - Skull Island

With the recent Hollywood produced Pacific Rim, Godzilla '14, Shin Godzilla, and now Kong: Skull Island, I have to admit to being pleased with the resurgence of giant monsters on the big screen. It all makes me that much more excited for the promised Godzilla 2 which will introduce more creatures, as well as the expected 2020 release that will pit this Kong against Godzilla. With the trailers out there for Skull Island, I admit to being pretty excited to see what they had in store for the giant ape. With a strong cast, and an incredibly large and nasty looking King, is there anyway for this movie to fail? I guess so, but I am happy to report that it does not.

Movie Review: The Hateful Eight

When is a Quentin Tarantino simultaneously like a Quentin Tarantino movie and not like a Quentin Tarantino movie? When it is the eighth movie by Quentin Tarantino. It is a movie that is also known as The Hateful Eight. I am sure you are wondering what that opening statement means. I will get to that. Let me start by saying one of my first thoughts was wondering when I am going to see a Broadway billboard advertising the first play by Quentin Tarantino. That is what that opening alludes to. This movie feels a lot like a play, the limited locale, the focus on dialogue, but it still feels very cinematic at the same time. Rather contradictory, I know, but it fits.

Movie Review: Kingsman - The Secret Service

When I first saw a trailer for Kingsman: The Secret Service, I was not sure what it was going for; however, seeing that Matthew Vaughn was listed as director, I was certainly interested. The guy has a solid track record, with movies like Layer Cake, Stardust, Kick-Ass, and X-Men: First Class on his resume. The big question going in was what he would bring to this. No, I was not aware of the comic book origins, but it seems to make sense with the over top nature of the tale. It strikes me as a blending of movies like Layer Cake and Kick-Ass, with the result being a spy movie and superhero movie being rammed into each other.

Movie Review: Captain America - The Winter Soldier

Captain America has never been much of a favorite of mine. The character was too much of a boy scout, the costume always seemed goofy, and it just never really did much for me. Now, it has been a long time since I have been a comic reader/collector, maybe he has changed over the years. Anyway, back when The First Avenger came out, I was curious how they adapt the boy scout in the red, white, and blue and somehow make him appealing as a cinematic hero. I was happy to see the movie was a solid introduction and I particularly liked the way it spent a lot of time as a WWII film. The Avengers helped the character a bit more, but it is only now, with The Winter Soldier, that I am sold on him as a cinematic marvel.

Movie Review: RoboCop (2014)

It has finally arrived. Despite what seems to have been a troubled production and vociferous protestations from the anti-remake brigade, the new take on RoboCop has arrived in theaters. Many have sworn not to see it, others were excited for it, others were cautiously optimistic. You can count me among the latter group. It seemed clear based on who was brought in to make it that it was not meant to be merely a cash grab, although there is a certain amount of that to be certain, but the got a generally interesting cast and some new blood behind the camera. Was the end result worth it? Ultimately, that is up for you to decide yourself.

Movie Review: Oldboy (2013)

Way back n 2003 a film was released in South Korea that left a mark worldwide. Not everyone liked the movie, but there were (and are) a good number who consider it a classic. The movie was called Oldboy and it was directed by Park Chan-Wook. It was the middle chapter of his vengeance trilogy, book-ended by Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Lady Vengeance, a trio of films connected not by character, but by theme. All three were excellent films. So, as is the custom of modern Hollywood, a remake of Oldboy (the most famous of the three) was announced. This announcement, as is customary of fandom, was received with a resounding grumble of angrily clicking keyboards. It did not improve when Spike Lee was announced as the director.

Trailer Park: Oldboy (2013)

To be honest, I never thought it would actually happen. As you know, I am not against remakes, but there are some movies that would appear to be more difficult than others. I figured Oldboy was one of those movies. Then word got out that it was up to be remade. All right, I'm game. Now, the trailer has arrived and I have to say it looks pretty darn good. I am not sure it will be able to top the Park Chan Wook classic.