My Bloody Valentine 3D (2009)

Film of 2012 #63


The First of the 3D horror spectaculars that came out at the start of the new Digital 3D revolotion and was part of the catalyst for all of the horror films that followed in the vain of Final Destination. I did not see this in 3D at the theartre and watched it as I had been meaning to and I do enjoy a good slasher film. This is a remake of a 1981 film and is a common idea behind a slasher film with the main protaganist returning 10 years after the slaughter of 22 people in a local mine by Harry Warden. The main character is Tom Hanniger played by Jensen Ackles, his old flame is Sarah Plamer played by Jaimi King and her husband Axel Plamer played by Kerr Smith who is also the local sheriff. 

This film is slightly different from your typical 80's and 90's slasher as the targets of the slashings are not your typical teen victims, they were teenagers at the time of the original attacks and when the film is set they are in their late twenties so that is the first small twist. It is funny as the characters still behave like they are teenagers, the difference being a couple have kids and are married but they react like teenagers. The film in itself tries to throw red herrings at you but you realise they are pointing so firmly in one direction that it has to be wrong and you then know exactly who is the killer. 

The 3D effects, as they normally are in horror films of this ilk are obvious and easy to see when the 3D is off and I think that this falls into the fun with a few drinks and friends category. I like what the film tried to do with the story twists and the idea but I think they got to carried away with the idea of the 3D and forgot the rest of it. This is a 2 star avoid unless you are a fan of the horror/Slasher genre then it is a film that is enjoyable enough within this genre.

Jaw 3 (1983)

Film of 2012 #52

The third film in the Jaws series, filmed in glorious 3D is a terribly produced, bad story, poor continuity enjoyable piece of entertainment. This is by no means a good film and without the 3D effects the film looks really poor with floating fish heads and arms looking really out of place as they are supposed to be sitting in front of your red and blue glasses. The story follows the Brody brothers Mike and Sean played by Dennis Quaid and John Putch. Their romantic interests Kate Morgan and Kelly Ann Bukowski played by Lea Thompson all work or are visiting the Florida Sea world run by Louis Gossett Jnr. Their man made sea world is invaded by a 35ft Shark and it's offspring.

This film is a monster movie that plays on the popularity of the Steven Spielberg original and the brothers while carrying the names and having a few after effects are not the emotional wrecks you would imagine after they went through what they did when they were children. Apart from the name there really is very little correlation between this and the original 2 films other than it is a shark attack film. The most surprising thing to me is the fact that Richard Matheson actually helped write this story, you can see glimpses of what they were trying to get with the story but they really needed to do their research on sharks.

I enjoy this film when I watch it, it really is one of the most guilty of pleasures and I think it actually get's an easy ride as the 4th film is terrible so people remember this film more fondly. I give this film 3 stars knowing full well that many people will not enjoy watching it.

Piranha (2010)

Film of 2012 #42

The 3D spectacular from Alexandre Aja that sees a remake of the 1978 fish horror film that I previously reviewed here. They take the basic idea of the Piranha in the water and use it as a natural monster spectacular. This film is basically your fun horror movie dark comedy with bloody gore and boobies used to comedic effect and it could be considered a bit campy but it really is enjoyable fayre. While the original film worked on the principle that the fish were genetic creations and were released in to the water, this idea works as the prehistoric fish have been living below a lake and a natural earthquake releases these fish into the water.

Your main cast is Elizabeth Shue as the sheriff, she is looking might fine in this film, you have her son played by Steven R McQueen who is on a different story line with Jerry O'Connell, Kelly Brook and porn star Riley Steele. You have a seismologist played by Adam Scott and Christopher Lloyd playing the expert, the characters are a means to an end and are not that well developed. There is no back story for any of them and really you do not need a back story you are simply watching this for the gore effects and the cool kills. You also have Richard Dreyfuss and Ving Rhames making appearances and you have several Jaws references which were really fun to spot.

Overall this film is not for everyone, there are scenes that are quite disgusting and are very gory, there is one sex scene that is in there simply for the sex scene. However that aside if you enjoy the campier, comedic side of gory horror then this films, this will be right up your street, it does not need to be seen in 3D however if you have the opportunity to see it in 3D then they use the gimmick of the 3D to good effect. A B movie worth seeing and a 4 star recommend for me, this is actually one of my films of 2011.

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (2010)

Film of 2012 #18
Some Spoilers

Finally got a chance to see the Owl film as it was called because who can pronounce the name of where the owls stay. So going into this film I thought that it was literally a journey movie about the main characters heading off to find the legendary owls of Ga'hoole, but this is not all it is about. There is a good vs evil story line, a betrayal that is really obvious and in fighting between family members which was really dark from where the film started. Overall for a kids film this was very dark you do not see anything through the animation but it is quite clear that there are several deaths and while it is life you do see the Owls eating what they normally eat, Mice. So not necessarily one for the very little kids, if you have small children I would watch it first before letting them see it. 

Now the animation was magnificent and I am sure that some of the scenes would have been exceptional in 3D but overall I did not think that I missed very much considering it was a 2D version that I saw. I think that this was a film from New Zeland or Australia as I did not recognise any of the actors voices and there was certainly a few with the Antipodean twang. It was good not to have any famous people involved as their voices did not pull you from the piece. Overall though I did not really buy into the set up, which sounds strange as it is a film about owls but in comparison I believed the world that Cars created with inanimate items coming to life. 

Overall I am glad I saw this film but would not recommend it unless you have a want to see it, 3 stars from me and I will not be rushing out to see it again. If you have seen it and disagree with what I have said then please let me know as I am really unsure what the population at large thought of this with or without seeing it. 

The Three Muskateers (2011)

The legendary story from Alexandre Dumas is brought to the big screen in glorious 3D by Paul W S Anderson. You have a fine cast of villains played by Christoph Waltz as Cardinal Richelieu, Milla Jovovich as M'lady and Orlando Bloom as the Duke of Buckingham with your heroes being played by Matthew Macfadyen as Athos, Luke Evans as Aramis and Ray Stevenson as Porthos with Logan Lerman as D'Artagnan and Gabriella Wilde as the young couple in love for the stroty.

This is a story that has been told many times before and to be honest my favourite and best telling was the Muskahounds, but back to this telling of the story. Firstly it does not need to be seen in 3D and there is an element of steamunk to this telling and it fits well with the way they are trying to tell the story. While this is not the best film you will ever see ti is fun and entertaining and actually worth seeing.

So a recommend if you are interested in seeing a retelling of this classic tale and an enjoyable couple of hours. A three star recommend from me, let me know if you saw it in 2D and thought anything was missing as I did not think that the 3D added that much.

Final Destination 5 (2011)

So I went to see the latest in the long line of Final Destination sequels, it fell in to the trap last year when the stated that they were releasing THE Final Destination it sucked and to be honest after that film I was not that interested in seeing number 5, however when I saw the trailer which I reviewed here I thought a different take now that could be interesting. Now I have to say that they do not play this angle up quite as much as I thought they would but it made a nice conclusion to part of the story. Now I have to be honest and say that I love these films for the campyness and the tension when it is done right.

The story is your basic Final Destination plot with a cast of characters that you meet and then you see the disaster and the survival. Now the disaster is a bridge collapse and it is pretty cool actually they have some good impact scenes at this point the 3D was worth it for some good kill scenes but the CGI was god awful, why can they not get it right. Anyway I was not that bothered by the crap CGI as the deaths were pretty cool and I had a great time in the nearly empty theatre laughing my ass off.

Overall this is probably tied for my second favourite Final destination film with number 2 and behind number 1. The twist that they do at the end is awesome and when I saw it coming I was jumping up and down getting far to excited for a 33 year old man in the cinema alone. This is 4 stars for me I only bump it up as I came out with a really good feeling about the film and would actually go and see it again.

Shark Night (2011) Trailer

So watched this trailer wondering what it was going to be about and the trailer sets up your standard group of teenagers going to the lake for the weekend and then the shark attacks, really what can go wrong with this type of film.

It looks a little bit more than some form of Jaws knock off so hopefully it will be good I will definitely be looking forward to this at the cinema when it comes out.

UK Release Date - 30th September 2011

Final Destination 5 (2011) Trailer

You have to love this series but after the 4th film I was like no way can they make another and no way can they make it any good, however from the trailer I have to say that I am won over. The rules have changed in this film and no longer it is about saving each other to make the pattern skip but the trailer makes you think that they kill each other to survive which makes the whole thing a lot more exciting.

I am actually really looking froward to seeing this film after seeing the trailer and i just hope that it gets a chance to live up to the expectations that i ma now placing on it. It is in 3D but I think I will just give that a miss as there is just no need for paying the extra and even though I have my Shrek 3D glasses which I love I am not that bothered about 3D any more.

So I will see this in the cinema and let you know if it is worth seeing at all.

UK Release Date - 26th August 2011

The Smurfs (2011) Trailer

The little blue Smurfs get the big screen make-over, the Belgian cartoon is the latest 80's program to b ere--imagined on the big screen. Having seen the trailer for this I have to say that it looks good, really they can make any film and idea appear to be a good thing and the CGI looks good, however I do not think this is a film for me.

There seems to be the idea that the Smurfs end up in New York City and they have to find away home, this is a bit like the story of Enchanted which was a good film in itself and I am sure that the film will appeal to the target audience which is obviously children.

I do not think that I will end up seeing this film, however I think that on DVD I will probably give it a watch I have certainly given time to films that are more than likely a lot worse than this appears to be. I will perhaps wait to see what the reaction of the critics is.

UK release date - 10th August 2011

Drive Angry 3D (2011)

This film was another pay check for Nicholas Cage I went to see it with very little information thinking that it would be a good chance for them to use the 3D in an action/gory type way. The performance from William Fichtner as the accountant was excellent, really enjoyable and the direction they gave Hell was interesting and good idea.

However overall the film made very little to no sense it was a series of set pieces with a thin watery story running through it. There was the opportunity for an interesting twists and story line but I think this film was cut and adjusted or just very poor and only got released because Nicholas Cage was in it and they knew there was an audience that would go and see it because of that.

I cannot recommend this film to anyone, if you want to know the interesting thing they do with Hell, ask me and I will let you know. But avoid this film, the 3D is not even good enough to justify seeing the film. 1 Star from me on this one.

Tron Legacy (2010)

I enjoy the original Tron, I think that it was probably due to nostalgia as I re-watched it before going to see Tron Legacy. I realised there is an awful large suspension of disbelief required to actually enjoy it. I am sure when it came out originally it was visually stunning and what was known of computers what it portrayed was possible if a bit far fetched. Then they decide that nearly 30 years later a sequel is needed, I was anticipating much from this film, the graphic and effects have moved on so much I wondered what they could do with it. 

They failed to achieve anything, I saw this in 2D so I think a lot of the effects were lost on me, a film should not have to rely on 3D to be spectacular but the story itself lacked any real drive or engagement. It was predictable and the only highlight was Michael Sheen in a Cameo role. Jeff Bridges seemed to have decided to come back to get paid, the story had him as some sort of God who could manipulate the world but they never went anywhere with it. And how the whole thing ended was fairly predictable. 

The Visual effects were pretty good but I think that they focused to heavily on the 3D so I am going to give this 2 stars, I would say wait for it on TV, not worth spending any cash on.

Thor 3D (2011)

Cinema April 2011

So I went to see this at the cinema in 3D and I hated it, the 3D that is. I am finally finished worrying about seeing films in 3D so this is the last time I will go and see a film in 3D, the extra money you pay is not worth it.

The film itself was okay, at the start I was taken out of it by the 3D and was distracted during the fight scenes and the action. Overall it is an origin movie for a super hero it has been done many times before and will be done many times again in the future. It is getting really boring to me as there is so much set up and it is really by the numbers.

The performances are okay Chris Hemsworth was likable enough and Natalie Portman who seems to be in everything at the moment is as good as you would expect from her, the film itself just did not grab me and is really just a long set up for the Avengers movie.

Overall there is nothing great or terrible about the film so it ends up with a 3 out of 5 from me, will not be interested in re-watching it, but if you like comic books and cannot wait for the Avengers then go and see the origin, let me know what you think of the end.