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Movie Review: Terminator Salvation

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The new Terminator movie is one of the best video games I’ve never played.  This movie is wall-to-wall action with lots of guns, little robots, big robots, and hand-to-hand combat.  As for the acting, Christian Bale plays “Batman” and everyone, the scenery, and camera style seem imported from the new “Battlestar Galactica.”    Actually, a lot of this movie seemed imported from a few recent movies, TV shows, and video games (I also got a vague sense of “Halo” from this movie).  I thought the end was pretty jacked up because I would have liked the character that dies to continue on.   Geez … it’s rather handy to have someone who can hack into Skynet without becoming part of Skynet … Oh well, whatever … My feeling is that this movie fits in with the first two movies.  The third movie was a stinker, so I don’t count it as a Terminator movie.    Suspending reality, though, I have to say I really enjoyed this movie for what it was and I recommend it as a good summer action movie.

Movies Kuroneko003 is anticipating — “Harry Potter 6”, “Bruno” (from that “Borat” guy — the theater was giddy with laughter during the preview), “Sherlock Holmes” (starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law — Hellz YEAH!!!  Both of those guys get better with age), and “The Hangover.”

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Movie Review: Quantum of Solace

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Some people are complaining out there about how Bond is a lover and not a fighter and how much they miss the campiness of the previous Bond movies.  I couldn’t disagree more with those people.  I like this new Jason Bourne like Bond.  While being a fighter, I believe this Bond is more of a lover in deeper sense than the superficial Bonds of the past.  From the past two movies it is clear that Vesper was more than just a convenient roll in the sack and it is the need to avenge her and M that motivates this Bond to be a cold and efficient killer.

Onto the movie itself … this movie combines all the things I like in an action thriller:

  • Car chases
  • Fire
  • Boat chases
  • Free running
  • Angry CIA operatives
  • A handsome leading man
  • A beautiful leading lady
  • Impossible, but plausible stunts
  • A sniveling jerk of villain who Bond curb-stomps in the end (I love what Bond does to this jerk to avenge Strawberry Fields).
  • Revenge fulfilled

The movie is fast paced and Bond operates in a murderous fashion against his enemies without mercy or remorse.  He is true to his convictions and true to his allies.  The inclusion of “Strawberry Fields” feels like the last minute addition of a convenient female for Bond to @#$%.  Her character is totally unnecessary seeing as how Bond really connects with the other “Bond Girl,” Camille, with whom he adventures with and shares a similar desire for revenge within the confines for duty.  I also like the further development and definition of the relationship between Bond and M.  Bond is M’s loyal servant and his love for her is like love that one feels toward a Mother, a Queen Mother, and a could have been lover if M were 20 -30-yrs younger.  It reminds me of the kind relationship between anime/manga partners like Alucard and Integra of “Hellsing” and Sebastion and Ciel of “Kuro Shitsuji” — faithful Demon servants who serve dogs of the British Monarchy ;).

I didn’t like the camera work in some of the scenes.  At times it was too frenetic for my brain to actually process what was going on and I had to look away a couple of times to regain my frame of reference so I wouldn’t fall out of my chair.

All in all, I felt this was an excellent action adventure movie.  If you enjoy the Bourne movies, then you will enjoy this Bond movie and the previous one.  If you are looking for camp, meaningless sex, and poor attempts at “quipping,” then this is not the Bond movie for you.  4.5/5 for great action and great main characters.

A little more: Another star of this movie for me are user interfaces.  The interactive display table M and co. use to visualize data at the fictional Mi6 office is the stuff of future-possible fantasy.  It’s retro-modern slick look harkened back the motifs of the 60’s.  The fantasy Sony-Ericsson phones also looks very cool.   All together there are some nice product placements that are very in line with the movie.

Movies

Movie Review: W.

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I saw the CNN blip that said this movie was surprisingly touching and it’s true.  “W.” is very sweet movie about a fictionalized George W. Bush.  Oliver Stone portrays W. as a good man with very little brains who got himself in way over his head when he became President.   Oh, and don’t forget the father complex.  Deep in my heart I wanted this character to win and I wanted him to accept his father’s love, but we all know the story and it’s not good for W.  I sorta felt that Oliver Stone was allowing himself and us, through viewing this film, to forgive President Bush for his shortcomings.  I came out of this movie feeling like our President needs a big hug and a “there-there, you did your best”.

As for the nitty gritty of the movie itself, Richard Dreyfuss is eerily great at playing Dick Cheney (give Dreyfuss the Oscar).  James Cromwell and Josh Brolin also give great performances as Bush Sr. and W.  I also like the performance and the scripting of Laura Bush.  Her character wholeheartedly accepts W. with all his flaws and she stands by him, throughout the story, with quiet feminine strength.  It is a beautiful little nugget of a love story.  As usual, there are the surreal dream scenes that serve as little cut-aways to time shift.  Also, there is the usual mix of fiction and real news footage that we come to expect from an Oliver Stone film.

Like Bush or hate him, this film was very enjoyable and I think it, also, would have made a great stage play.  If you are going to see it, I suggest that you go into the theater knowing full and well that this is a fictional dramatization and not the real W.  I highly recommend this movie 5/5