aikidofreak

I've seen this movie twice now. It didn't bore me the first time, it didn't bore me the 2nd time. Why does this flick catch so much hate?

probably because of the stupidity of the characters, the weak story, weird script and shoddy acting.

But... this is an aliens-invade-earth-omg-start-running-in-all- directions-to-escape movie. Who cares about the story? If anything, the movie is quite entertaining. the aliens are quite awesome. unique take on their 'powers' as well. the action is spectacular AND very watchable. not the bloody shaky cam or dark crap some other movies in this genre have. I liked it. the CG is very well done. for Independence Day on a budget (Which Skyline is) its damn well done.

I thought it was fun to watch. It has quite some flaws but a 4/10 is undeserved imho. there are A class titles that bore you to tears and get better ratings than this. this flick is fun to watch if you don't think about logic stuff too much. this kind of movie is made to entertain at a low intellectual level. it does just that. and quite well, I must say.

Lets get this out of the way: Im no kenshin fanboy. I've read the manga and have watched the anime. That's it. So when I heard about a live action movie I thought 'Oh my god'. Uwe Boll-like crap induced horror scenarios crossed my mind. But what a pleasant surprise. They haven't cocked it up. In fact, they did a pretty damn good job of making the manga come to life.

STORY

The story is basically the first 2 arcs of the manga mixed up and slightly changed to fit into a 2 hour movie. It's pretty good. nothing too fancy but it works and doesn't bore.

EFFECTS & CHOREOGRAPHY

No. Bleeding. CG. Like, none. everything you see is done by real humans. thank god there are still directors who know their stuff. a rope helps here and there but nothing as stupid as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. there was but 1 instant in the entire movie where a move looked slightly 'unnatural'. You'll know what I mean when ya see it.

the fights are simply awesome. real swordfights and at speeds that make your eyes go 0_o. slick moves, smooth as silk with a great pace. and the occasional brawling, courtesy of Sanosuke. the action is top notch. some of the best, if not -the- best sword fight scenes I've ever seen.

ACTING

The characters are all portrayed as they should be. there is no crappy acting. Kanryu is slightly over-acting but I guess it kinda fits his character anyway. solid acting all over. some dayplayers in the background seem to have been given little instructions of what to do at times though, it seems. they sometimes look rather lost or keep repeating the same motions. but no matter. you wont notice unless you re nitpicking.

OVERALL

The entire movie has a slightly 'cartoonish' feel over it. the way people talk, the way they move. but it still all seems very natural and appealing. The music is very nice as well. no tunes from the anime, but some nice original scores that fit the bill.

all in all this movie is what so many game/anime-turned-movies should have been. It's well made, with good actors, good music and it doesn't bore you for a second. Word has it there will be a sequel. if it can rival the quality of this movie, Ill be back for part 2.