Synopsis (from IMDB):  In 1982, a massive star ship bearing a bedraggled alien population, nicknamed “The Prawns,” appeared over Johannesburg, South Africa. Twenty-eight years later, the initial welcome by the human population has faded. The refugee camp where the aliens were located has deteriorated into a militarized ghetto called District 9, where they are confined and exploited in squalor. In 2010, the munitions corporation, Multi-National United, is contracted to forcibly evict the population with operative Wikus van der Merwe in charge. In this operation, Wikus is exposed to a strange alien chemical and must rely on the help of his only two new ‘Prawn’ friends.

This movie is fantastic, and a must-see.  Made for $30 million dollars, it generated over $300 million dollars in total revenue at the box office domestically.  This is not including foreign viewership or DVD/Blu-Ray sales.  The promotion by the distributor (Sony) was very subliminal, and it made the curious want to go out and see the movie.  From there, word of mouth took over.

I did not go to the cinema to see this flick (as is my custom, it is very rare that I go to the theatre), but when I finally watched it on DVD I was blown away.  The movie did start out a little slow, and it took me a bit to pick up the accents (the movie was filmed in South Africa).  I enjoyed how the CGI was done with the aliens, and the storyline itself.

The plot is very similar to real world events, as in what actually happened in South Africa during apartheid.  The whites segregated the blacks into “zones.”  According to the director, that’s where the genesis of the movie was born.

I can see a sequel coming…in three years…District 10…where Christopher Johnson helps his friend Wikus, returning the favor so to speak.

Go watch this movie.  Now.

Synopsis (from IMDB):  When international diplomacy comes up short, extreme measures must be taken. In the newest installment of The Art of War, Agent Neil Shaw is on a covert mission to stop North Korean terrorists from obtaining a nuclear bomb. But when the deal turns deadly, Shaw is drawn into the crossfire to save a beautiful facilitator and ends up framed for murder. Now a wanted man with only his newbie partner and the mysterious facilitator by his side, Shaw must rely on his martial arts skills and warrior code to fight through Korea’s mean streets and find the terrorists before they detonate the bomb at a United Nations peace summit.

This is the first movie that I can remember not being able to watch until the end.  Yes, it is that bad.  Bad plot, and even worse acting.  Somehow, I managed to make it to the 45:00 mark before I thought I was going to kill myself.  Even The Wicker Man (the remake, with Nicholas Cage) wasn’t this bad.  I actually made it to the end of that movie.  Neil Shaw is not played by Wesley Snipes in this film – if he was he may of saved the movie.  Instead, the producers picked a two-bit rapper named Anthony “Treach” Criss and threw him to the wolves.  You can’t ask someone to act without at least giving them an hour of training first!  His co-stars did not fare much better.

Normally I would give any movie a default one star out of five (again, The Wicker Man comes to mind).  In this case, however, I think giving The Art of War III zero stars out of five is being comprehensively generous.  Do not waste your money renting or buying this garbage.  Do not waste your time watching this garbage unless you truly need something better than warm milk and bottle of sleeping pills to doze off.

Synopsis (from IMDB):  In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis. The Basterds soon cross paths with a French-Jewish teenage girl who runs a movie theater in Paris which is targeted by the soldiers.

This movie is very good.  It is complete fiction, historically inaccurate, and very fun.  As a word to the wise, it is very violent (as with most Tarantino movies).  In the theatre, two old ladies actually got up and left (and did not return) once the scalpings began.  I’m guessing they haven’t seen anything by Quentin Tarantino before (and likely, never will again).

Brad Pitt did a pretty good job as the leader of the basterds.  I’ve never been a huge fan of his (although the Ocean’s Trilogy wasn’t bad work), and outside of a cameo by Mike Myers he is the name start of the film.  Ergo…consider that high praise for Mr. Pitts’ work in the film.

The guy who did impress me is Cristoph Waltz.  He plays the evil, cunning, and smooth German Colonel Hans Landa.  The man is fluent in many languages and uses them all in the movie.  Tarantino himself has said that this movie could not have been made without Waltz, as he plays the part of Landa to a “T.”  Oscar-worthy, in my opinion that does not count anywhere except with the concept of my own reality.

Mélanie Laurent, as Shoshanna Dreyfus, also did a wonderful job.  She played her character very well, and I see big things for her in the future.  She is also very attractive.

I really enjoyed this movie, though the running time of 2 hours and 40 minutes passed by very fast.  Apparently Tarantino chopped this movie down from about four hours, so I will definately re-watch it if the full version is released on Blu-Ray.

Recently, I sat down and watched the three Bourne movies:  The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, and The Bourne Ultimatum.  All three movies were very well done, and make me want for more.  There is a new movie due in 2011, but I wonder how it will benefit the original trilogy.

The Bourne Identity

Synopsis (from IMDB):  On a stormy night, a young man is pulled out of the Mediterranean Sea by the crew of a fishing boat.  Thinking the young man is dead, a curious fisherman with a scalpel finds two bullets in his back and a miniature laser device in his hip.  The laser reveals a Swiss bank account number.  But our wet hero isn’t dead, and soon finds himself in Zurich.  In the bank vault the young man discovers his name, Jason Bourne.  In addition, he finds a baffling pile of different passports, all with his picture, and a huge pile of cash.  In the U.S. Embassy, Jason Bourne discovers his love interest and travel partner, Marie, along with the fact that someone wants to kill him.  Armed with a bag of money and mysterious martial arts skills, with Marie by his side, Bourne scours Paris for clues about his identity and past life…and finds himself in the middle of two assassination plots masterminded by the CIA.

The first Bourne movie was (in my humble opinion only) the best of the three (beating the third movie by a hair).  Instantly, right from the get go you were captivated by Bourne and his goal to try and figure out who (or what) he was.  Great plot, great background story and character development line a movie that has a lot of action in it.  You do not get bored, and are always kept on edge.  The car chase scene throughout Paris was great.  Matt Damon was a great choice to play Jason Bourne.  Initially, I had my reservations but seeing the movie (all three of them) I was very satisfied with the choice.  Franka Potente was a good choice to play Marie and did a very good job as well.  Prior to this movie, I had never heard of her.

The Bourne Supremacy

Synopsis (from IMDB):  After escaping from the emotional and physical pain he previously encountered, Jason Bourne and his girlfriend Marie begin a new life as far away as possible.  But when an assassination attempt on Bourne goes horribly wrong, Bourne must re-enter the life he wanted to leave behind, in order to find out the truth why they are still after him.

Of the three films, I enjoyed this one the least.  In so saying that, it is still a very good movie, however it was more action based then anything.  There was no real plot development, and had you not watched the first movie many things would not have made much sense at all.  The killing of Marie sets Bourne off on a chase to sanitize her killers.  The action scenes were great, and they at least show Bourne, that despite having superior physical abilities can still be hurt.  The mandatory car chase scene was not as good as the first movie, though still kept you interested.

The Bourne Ultimatum

Synopsis (from IMDB):  Bourne is once again brought out of hiding, this time inadvertently by London-based reporter Simon Ross who is trying to unveil Operation Blackbriar – an upgrade to Project Treadstone – in a series of newspaper columns.  Bourne sets up a meeting with Ross and realizes instantly they’re being scanned.  Information from the reporter stirs a new set of memories, and Bourne must finally, ultimately, uncover his dark past whilst dodging The Company’s best efforts in trying to eradicate him.

This movie and the first movie were ranked very closely on my favorites scale.  The producers completed the story arc started in the first movie and wrapped up the plot development at the end of this film, giving closure to the Bourne saga.  This movie would not have made much sense had you not seen the first two movies, which is the only knock against it.  With all three movies, the scenery is top notch.  The trilogy literally spans the globe.  Although the majority of the filming was in Europe, locations such as New York city, India, and Moscow are part of the films.  It’s nice to be able to watch a movie that was not filmed in the United States.  It just seems to add something extra.  As with the first two movies, the mandatory car chase scene (this time through New York city) was fantastic. 

I have yet to read any of the Bourne novels, by Robert Ludlum.  However, as soon as I am finished with my current set of books I will pick them up.  It is commonly known that the books are always better than the movies, and being an avid reader I will take advantage of that at the earliest available opportunity.

In a world where corporate takeovers are becoming more and more the norm, sometimes one comes out of nowhere and surprises you.  When it was announced today that Disney has purchased Marvel, I must admit to a bit of shock.

Much like when they bought Pixar, this represents a sound strategic move for Disney.  It allows them to build on one of their core strengths, animation, while diversifying into a genre that appeals to the 18-35 male demographic.  That demographic is one that Disney has had trouble capturing – until now.

Bringing characters such as Spider-man, Iron Man, and the Incredible Hulk into the Disney fold is a stroke of genius.  While Marvel had begun to finance and produce their own movies, now they have the back end distribution and infrastructure to go with it.

Marvel throughout the years has developed over 5,000 unique characters.  Combine these characters with Pixar’s genius and what kind of movie do you think could be made?  I am rather excited to see the possibility.  As for the feature film division of Marvel, I think Disney will leave that end of things rather untouched.  They are businessmen first and foremost and the Marvel movies make a very good profit.  Now, with Disney’s backing, I am sure that these films will make even more money.

This is not the first time that a major studio has owned a comic book company.  DC Comics, the home of Aquaman, Wonder Woman, and Superman among others, has been owned by Warner Brothers for almost forty years.

Synopsis (from IMDB):  In a dystopic & crime ridden Detroit, a terminally wounded cop returns to the force as a powerful cyborg with submerged memories haunting him.

Robocop is one of my all time favorite movies.  Even 23 years later after the movie was made, it still stands the test of time.  Robocop, played by Peter Weller, was once a cop named Frank Murphy.  He was brutally murdered at the hands of Clarence Boddicker, who is the leader of a ruthless gang of criminals.

The city of Detroit sold the police force to private interests, OCP.  As Murphy signed a release form in the event of his death, OCP remakes him into the cyborg Robocop in an effort to fight crime.  Problems occur when Robocop starts to remember its previous past as Officer Murphy (especially Murphy’s violent death), through flashbacks.  This leads Robocop on a crusade to bust Boddicker’s gang, but this is complicated by corruption within OCP, at the highest levels.

For me, this movie is a solid four and a half out of five stars.  Great acting, great scenery, great plot, great quotes (“I’ll buy that for a dollar!”), a whole lot of violence (in fact, the movie received an X rating upon its initial screening), and subtle humor all make for a fantastic movie.

There are multiple versions of the film floating around.  The Criterion Collection (which is now discontinued) and the Blu-Ray release are by far the best out there.  On each version, the extras as well as the uncut footage both add to the release, making it one of the all-time greats.  Rumor has it that there is a remake of the film in production, to debut in 2011.

As an aside, don’t bother with the sequels or the TV series.  The second film was decent but by no means lives up to the quality of the original.  The third film is garbage.  Period.  The TV series was ok at best, but nothing that I would waste my time watching.

Synopsis (from IMDB):  Michael and Sara wed, but the happiness is short lived when the Feds apprehend her for the murder of Michael’s mother, Christina. Once a hit is ordered on Sara, the team reunite to break out an increasing vulnerable Sara.

This movie was the culmination of the fantastic Prison Break series.  The series aired for four seasons, and each and every episode was a nail biter.  This movie, the series finale, explains what happens in the four years that have passed between Michael and the gang gaining their freedom, and the reunion in Panama to gather at Michael’s grave.  I rated this movie three stars out of five.  I would have rated it higher except the fact that it was not as good compared to the rest of the series, especially the first two seasons.  It’s hard to hold a candle to a television show that completely engrosses you, both with believeable storylines and incredible acting.

Synopsis (from IMDB): A mercenary gets involved in a mission that threatens the lives of his kin. In order to succeed, he must break into one of the most wellguarded prisons in Eastern Europe and free the son of the most notorious drug lord in the world today.

Steven Seagal has gotten fat.  Yes, he was 55 years old when the movie was made (2006) and doesn’t look a day over 45, but I think there comes a time when action movie stars either need to find a new genre to act in or a new line of work.  At least he got rid of the silly pony tail.  This movie really has little in the way of plot, other than trying to combine an action flick with one aged star trying to recreate Oceans 11.  For the action, I will give the movie two stars, but beyond that, it was horrible.  The voice acting was spotty in places and the plot was disjoined.

Synopsis (from IMDB): A mature 14-year old girl meets a charming 32-year old photographer on the Internet. Suspecting that he is a pedophile, she goes to his home in an attempt to expose him.

I wasn’t sure what to expect of this movie when I first watched it.  I had not heard much, if anything about the movie other than it starred Ellen Page (who I first saw in the first season of ReGenesis).  It is a thriller, with the protagonist (Page) extracting revenge on a man for the disappearance and murder of another young girl.  The movie is riveting, with twists and turns throughout.  You will note the comparisons with Ellen Page’s character to Little Red Riding Hood.  I would give the movie a solid three and a half stars out of five.  It was filmed on a low budget, and some of that is apparent throughout the movie.  The conclusion is somewhat anti-climatic as well.