I believe I have said this before.
The one thing I like about the Transformers movies... the Transformers.
The one thing I hate about the Transformers movies... the humans.
This Transformers sequel is awful.
Most of the robot fighting action in the movie is great. That's all I want to see when I go to a movie titled Transformers.
Most of the human interacting with Transformers and other humans is dreadful.
I get that alien robots coming to Earth need to interact with humans living on the planet, but those alien robots don't need humans causing problems for them as they are engaged in an intergalactic battle.
Why does this movie need long introductions of new characters?
What happened to the new characters from the last movie?
Why can't there be more Transformers fighting each other?
There doesn't need to be any more time spent on this.
Transformers: The Last Knight gets n - Nugatory
I would suggest you wait until it airs on a basic cable channel.
It has been a strange week for SMS. First, everyone skipped on seeing King Arthur last week. Then this week no one could decide on which movie to go see. Of course I was pushing Alien: Covenant because...Come on, it's an ALIEN movie.
As for everyone else, the theme of it being too scary kept surfacing. So I decided to make it extra scary by seeing the movie alone. (Those silly wusses!)
I have a slight confession to make. I love the ALIEN franchise. There is just something about these movies that thrills me. It may be because of the first time I saw the movie ALIENS way back in the late 80's. I can't tell you the exact date and I didn't see it in the theater. You see, the late 80s was the rise of home VHS rentals and premium cable channels like HBO and Cinemax. Back then movies would be released in theaters. Then maybe a year later you would see those movies available at the video rental stores. Then, shortly after that the movies would then premiere on the cable channels, and if it was a good movie, it could play on those channels for years!!
That is where I saw ALIENS for the first time. It was awesome! It was an action packed thriller that involved a group of military people fighting a giant alien monsters with this legendary scene.
YES! Get away from her, you bitch!
Following this movie there were releases of video games, and action figures all based on ALIENS. I was a fan of all it.
Then I heard that it was actually a sequel. Well I had to see the original! So I begged my mother to let me rent ALIEN (1979) from the local video rental store. She didn't want me to see it because she thought it would be too scary for me. After plenty of more begging and assurances that I wouldn't be scared, she finally broke down and let me rent it. And it didn't disappoint.
ALIEN was a much different film, and it most definitely terrified me. But after that I was hooked. I saw every Alien movie that was released after that. When Ridley Scott announced he was returning to the franchise that he created, I was extremely excited. Prometheus was released and I more confused than entertained so I was really hoping this next chapter in the franchise would return to its glory.
ALIEN: COVENANT does indeed return the franchises to its roots. There is a little bit of combining themes from both of the first and second films to give a good balance of action and terror. But I wouldn't say it is really that scary. Sure there are parts you may jump out of your seat, but there isn't any built up tension that gets the hairs on your neck to stand up. I would say the theme is more sinister than scary. The best character by far is the one played Michael Fassbender. He does a great job at being a malicious android.
ALIEN: COVENANT gets a G - Gratifying
I would suggest viewing it in a theater. Maybe try a late night showtime to make it extra creepy.
Next week we have a double feature week with Baywatch & Pirates of the Caribbean
Hopefully all SMSers can get on the same page this time!
Look at it! It's pretty bad ass. It has a dark and gritty feel. Finally The Thing looks like his proper size. All the characters are doing their best to be intimidating. Too bad this movie does absolutely no justice to the poster.
How can a movie about superheroes be so boring?
I don't know, but Fantastic Four has discovered a way to pull it off.
By now everyone knows that Fox needed to reboot the Fantastic Four franchise just to keep the film rights from returning to Marvel. Also by now you should have heard that this new FF film is horrible.
It is boring, predictable, and frankly uneventful. The pacing is slow, and there is very little action that only occurs at the end of the movie. You would think with the slower pacing that the characters would have a good chance to develop some chemistry. Nope. All of the relationships feel forced. This whole movie is just an origin story attempting to set up a future sequel. (yeah, right!)
It is SO boring that there is a scene were Sue Storm (Kate Mara) just stares at computer monitors for a sequence lasting at least a minute. No one wants to watch characters slowly getting smarter.
Fantastic Four is d - Dreadful
It was the worst film of the summer. I know earlier I stated San Andreas was awful, but after seeing the total train wreck that is Fantastic Four, I have updated San Andreas to at least entertaining. I laughed and that is worth some entertainment.
It would have been better off to not make this movie and let Marvel have the rights back.
It is no secret that I am a fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Each new movie released becomes the best one so far. Guardians of the Galaxy is no exception. It was the most anticipated movie of the summer and it did not disappoint.
In fact, it exceeded all my expectations.
In 2008, Marvel took a huge risk by making a movie about a "B-list" character from their super hero catalog, Iron Man. It was a very successful film that turned Iron Man into an A+ super hero and paved the way for The Avengers.
Now in 2014, Marvel wants to do it again with D-list super heroes. Even for an avid comic book reader like myself, these characters are far down my list of titles that I would read. Well, get ready for them to be blasted up to the top.
Some how the filmmakers of this movie will get you invested into these rarely known characters. Your new favorite Marvel character will be a walking tree named Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel). Your second favorite will be Peter Quill/Star Lord played brilliantly by Chris Pratt. This movie will help bust Chris Pratt into the next level of his acting career. You will be seeing him everywhere pretty soon. Along with Pratt, the other actors did great as well. Dave Bautista's character Drax really surprised me. I was not expecting his deadpan delivery of humor. It was great. Of course, Zoe Saldana kicks ass, and Bradley Cooper plays Rocket Raccoon with a great sense of seriousness.
This film was more than entertaining. It was funny, at times crude, and of course action packed. The humor was smart and witty. Drawing the type of laughter that causes you to miss the next line of witty dialogue. There is also a bit of playful cursing that is perfectly fine for an adult. I enjoyed this banter, but I'm sure a lot of people will probably take their children to see the fun loving raccoon and tree-man characters. And they will be surprised when those kids leave the theater quoting 'dick' and 'a-hole' lines. Parents please leave your kids at home.
Marvel has been on a roll ever since they started with the plan to interconnect their cinematic universe. The question has always been, when will they miss? I am not sure that will happen anytime soon. With Avengers 2 coming out next year, and more characters getting their own stand alone films, I am excited as a comic book fan to watch all of them.
Make Mine Marvel!
Guardians of the Galaxy get an E - Exceptional
It is definitely worth watching in the theater. Go Now!!
This week the Summer Movie Squad had a tough choice to make. Which movie to see together, Lucy or Hercules?
The vote was split even 2 - 2. No one would budge on their position, so it came down to a last minute executive decision.
Lucy was the winner!
It also seems that we weren't the only people making this decision. Lucy topped the Box Office this weekend beating out Hercules by $15 million.
Lucy is a movie that has a very interesting premise. A women somehow gets kidnapped to become a drug mule with drugs surgically placed inside her abdomen. Then, the drugs leak into her bloodstream giving her the ability to access more capacity of her brain. The movie quickly becomes an action thriller with some great action scenes, and great visual effects as Lucy transforms her world with her new super human abilities. Yet it lacks any real plot.
The beginning of the movie was quite entertaining in the way it was edited together, and Scarlett Johansson plays a great terrified hostage. She makes you believe what a person would actually go through being unexpectedly kidnapped. Although as the movie progresses it loses a bit of steam. Johansson is still acting great. As her character advances quickly into a emotionless superior life form, the story gets watered down and becomes quite predicable. As if I've already seen this movie sometime before, i.e. Limitless, Matrix.
Lucy is G - Gratifying
Scarlett Johansson is starting to pack a lot of star power punch. I think audiences are ready for her to start become a leading role, and by beating The Rock (who is supposed to be the next great action star) in the Box Office proves it. You can go see it in the theater but it would play just as well at home.
I will try to see Hercules sometime in the next week, but the SLMR is going to get intense in the coming four weeks.
Edge of Tomorrow was a fun, thrilling movie that is a must see in the theater!
Normally Tom Cruise films are very formulaic. He usually plays the unstoppable kick-ass special agent who is just likable enough to save the day.
Well, this movie doesn't veer to far from that. Instead Cruise plays the highly likable guy who isn't a kick-ass soldier but he has to learn to become one that is desperately needed to save the ONE day.
Going into you should be expecting a plethora of action packed scenes. There is definitely plenty of those scenes to go around. What may surprise you is lighter funny moments. I enjoyed those funny scenes immensely. Made you believe in the character as he tries to navigate the same day over and over.
I'm not going to say much more because I don't wan to spoil any surprises you may encounter. If anything, you should go view this movie just to see Emily Blunt continually beat up Tom Cruise as she trains him to become the ONE day savior.
Edge of Tomorrow gets a E - Exceptional!
You should see in the theater so you can experience all the action in its big, loud glory.
Are you ready for more Kirk? More Spock? More Scotty?!
This movie has presented me with a challenge. Talking about any part of this film becomes somewhat of a spoiler. I don't do spoilers!
Since the day it was announced that there was going to be a sequel to Star Trek, the plot has been heavily guarded in secrecy by director J.J. Abrams. This induced an increased amount of internet rumors over the past few years about how the film would turn out. I for one hate constant internet rumors that tend to ruin my perception of the movie once it is released.
So for the first time in this blog's history, I am not going be providing you with links to directors, actors, or movie profiles. That would only put you in the a spoiler filled situation if you haven't seen the movie yet.
Instead I will recite some one word promotional reviews I've been seeing
"Fun" - Lucy O'Brien, IGN
"Exciting" - Ian Freer, Empire
"Fantastic" - Steve Weintraub, Collider
"Epic" - Alex Billington, First Showing
"Crazy Good" - Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
WOW!! Those are some great reviews!!
I am going to add one of my own "Expectional!!!"- Travelin' Miles - SLMR
Go see Star Trek Into Darkness! It is better that the first movie. Now that we know the characters it is easy to just get lost in the enjoyment of the film. I view Spock as the scene stealer. I was surprised by the villain's power and tenacity. I want you to see this film without having any spoiler material.
So if you haven't see the film. Don't! I mean don't go to any more sites talking about this movie. Go see it! Then feel free to scour the internet clean of all the spoilers you desire.
Here is the new and improved rating system
L - Legendary E - Exceptional G - Gratifying e - Entertained n - Nugatory d - Dreadful
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