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Reviews
Beowulf & Grendel (2005)
Better than you might think
This was a good attempt at a big screen version of this classic tragedy. The way the story is told is almost Shakespearean and very enjoyable to watch as well as listen to. The acting is good save for the witch, and the dialog is competent enough to carry the story. It was a little difficult to understand the use of modern slang and vulgarity in a movie obviously meant to be a period piece. Overall, Beowulf and Grendel was entertaining and dark in both drama and humor. The priest who thought this was all about sin and the forgiving power of Jesus Christ really cracked me up, and I'm not sure he was supposed to. With a little more action and some better effects, this could have been a sleeper hit.
Warriors of Terra (2006)
Hardly worth the time let alone the money.
If you're not on an unlimited movie plan, skip this one fast. Edward Furlong has fallen a long way from T2 and American History X to be doing movies like this. And even worse yet, he wasn't the main character and didn't have a significant amount of screen time.
The movie itself was relatively predictable with only a couple minor plot twists that were not entirely unforeseeable. A group of animal rights activists break into a laboratory to liberate the animals and display their message with graffiti. They unknowingly walked into a very dangerous and deadly experiment that they manage to let loose. With a "team" hot on their tails and their only goal to survive, the night lasts longer than this movie ever should have. The movie managed to make almost every single character completely expendable and in the end the only one left was the most obvious selection.
Don't waste your time and especially your money, the only redeeming quality of this movie is the creepy noises the creature makes a la The Grudge.
Monster House (2006)
Not what you'd expect
This movie was not entirely what I expected and was actually fairly entertaining. It was an unusual mix of animation and horror that was done very creatively and did do some new animation tricks that were entertaining to watch. The voices of the characters were competent but not very memorable. The difficulty with animated movies is you need to have those characters whose voice leaves a mark on the movie. For example, no one will ever forget Robin Williams as the genie in Alladin. Love him or hate him, but you will never forget his voice when you see that genie. This movie lacked that natural interest.
The movie is worth a look especially if digital imaging interests you. The artistic quality of this movie is superb and the graphic artists were pretty effective at creating an unusual movie genre, the children's horror movie.
The Woods (2006)
Creepy but too easy
With a lot of buildup and a good job of some mystery and eeriness this movie ended in a hurry and did a poor job of conclusion. With some good acting on the part of the students and the headmistress, the one lacking part was Bruce Campbell. Apparently the only movies that will ever bring out his true talent for dark humor are the evil dead movies.
The movie builds around a mysterious girls school with a history of witchcraft and possessed woods. Ultimately this movie is about the woods, hence the name. The woods are the source of power for the witches within the school and apparently this is meant to thoroughly cheapen our horror. A bunch of branched attacking people is pretty weak and not very frightening, but the rest of the story is eerie enough to keep interest.
The weakest part of the movie is the ending. In a five minute frenzy, the movie is concluded in a graphic and unresourceful manner. Unfortunate for such an insurmountable evil to be overcome so easily. This movie is worth a look only if you've already seen better witchcraft movies like the Skeleton Key or The Craft.
Deepwater (2005)
Fight Club without the Club
I honestly fell for the trap that this movie sets up throughout the plot and the surprise ending. The problem I had with this surprise ending compared to other surprise endings is that when you see a surprise ending, it's supposed to make you think, "Well, that makes sense." This one does the exact opposite and the movie does a poor job in my opinion of setting up the surprise ending. This is unfortunate considering the acting was superior in every area. I couldn't help but think of "Fight Club" as they are running down the surprise ending. Parallel to what we were shown in the movie is a view of what "actually" happened. And as good as I think Lucas Black is as an actor, he doesn't even compare to Brad Pitt or Edward Norton at least not at this point in his career. Overall, a strange and diluted plot that does not fill two hours until you see what happens at the end at which point I was left a little wanting.
Mini's First Time (2006)
Splendidly Wicked
This was fun to watch, see where it takes me, I don't have to get too involved movie. The beauty of this movie was the fact that you never really care what happens to any of the characters so you are detached from the outcome of anyone's actions. All of the character's in this movie, save for the persistent detective played by Luke Wilson, are deviants to a society that created them. With a few twists and turns the plot flows smoothly from start to finish with little left to the imagination. It seemed a little predictable, but nevertheless fun to watch the plot unravel. The acting was precise and enjoyable and any movie that kills off a Carrie-Ann Moss character is a good one.
An American Haunting (2005)
Decent non-gory horror film
In an age of shock horror, this movie was a refreshing retro-like horror movie that would creep out a generation not immune to old jump and scare tactics. I did find the revealing ending a little bit disappointing, but the overall story was enjoyable. The acting was led by two very strong people, Sissy Spacek and Donald Sutherland. The supporting cast was acceptable, but not outstanding. Attempting to make a period horror piece is not easy, and could have been done a little better. I think what made this movie enjoyable for me was the story line that intrigued and enticed right until the truth is discovered.
The movie did not rely on special effects thankfully because they were not much to talk about. The editing made the movie a little difficult to follow, but the music was haunting and matched the storyline well. Overall, a good family fright if it weren't for the subject matter, only older adults may appreciate it's hitchcokesque lack of shock horror.
Edmond (2005)
Great yet disturbing
I found this movie to be quite a bit disturbing, however; the acting was wonderful and the direction was quite masterful considering the difficulty in adapting a play to a movie, especially this script. Fantastically written with dialog that intrigues and shocks you. It is sometimes difficult to hear the things being said because of their ferocity, but they illustrate what can't be illustrated with pictures.
William H. Macy was terrific as Edmund Burke, and the rest of the cast was stellar in support of his vicious character. I reminisced about Michael Douglas's character in Falling Down, but Edmund has a lot more content and a lot less posturing. A great movie that is difficult to watch at times because of its purely graphic nature.
She's the Man (2006)
Great misperception writing
This was a fantastically written screenplay when it comes to perceiving things from another perspective. The comedy was timely and not overdone, the acting was generally terrific, and the plot line served a greater purpose of generating misconception when we think about people solely based on their external appearance. The plot twists as the brother/sister character of Amanda Bynes tries to play soccer on the boys team finding instead a new love interest along the way. Tatum Channing is where the real misperception lies and he does a fine job of acting disinterested at first, later coming to realize the most important thing in life is friendship, not attitude.