Rating: C+
I don't understand how other people have given this movie such amorous reviews. Is it simply because it's a Pixar movie? While it was entertaining enough to watch, it's yet another movie that languishes in mediocrity, without taking any risks, or any attempt to follow through what the first part of movie suggests that this movie about. Both the introduction of the movie and the trailers suggest this is a movie about a young girl's quest for independence. Instead, it turns out that this movie is entirely about teaching the values of family and that mom really does have your interest at heart.
It really does seem like Pixar's lost its mojo after being bought by Disney. Even the jokes are losing their bite. The first couple of Pixar movies offered something different, something new; giving you the perspective of the toys as opposed to the kids playing with them. Or the turmoil that a monster needs to go through in order to have their place under your bed / in the closet. Or a different type of an "adventure" through a trip on a bajillion helium balloons. But Brave fails to do anything different. Oh, you'll enjoy it if you like the Pixar / Disney formula, but don't expect anything else.
Aside from a few belly laughs, the movie is awkwardly paced, there doesn't seem to be any breakthrough with the animation technology, nor does there seem to be any real artistic creativity (blogger's note: I really liked the flashback art in KungFu Panda 2). Everything is formulaic. A decent formula, but formulaic nevertheless.
~Cheers.
Showing posts with label Animated. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Animated. Show all posts
Thursday, 5 July 2012
Monday, 2 July 2012
Movie: Ted (2012)
Rating: B+
Let's call a spade a spade. Is Ted an artistic masterpiece of biblical proportions? No. It's crass, it's boorish, it's inappropriate; the story line is cliched, and really nothing new. But....it's SUPPOSED to be crass. It's SUPPOSED to be boorish, it's SUPPOSED to be inappropriate. And how do you get around a cliched storyline? Make fun of the storyline itself. The result is some seriously extended inappropriate hilarity.
(The is the red band trailer. View discretion is advised)
The interplay is fantastic and Seth MacFarlane reunites some of his cast members from Family Guy, including Alex Borstein, Mila Kunis, and yes....Patrick Stewart. Look for a tonne of cameo work, which totally makes this movie work. In particular, the scenes with Patrick Warburton. Quite honestly, there isn't a whole lot to say about this movie. If you're looking for laughter and a good time, and don't mind some totally refreshing, politically INcorrect humour, go watch it.
For me, there was an added bonus to this movie. I went to school at Boston University, and I haven't been back in over 10 years. Seeing some familiar streets, neighbourhoods, parks, and in particular the Citgo sign really brought back memories and moments of nostalgia. So you'll have to excuse me if I have a bit of a soft spot for this movie, knowing full well that while the movie runs for about 115min, only about 30min of it was comedic genius and the rest was just tepid drivel.
~Cheers.
Let's call a spade a spade. Is Ted an artistic masterpiece of biblical proportions? No. It's crass, it's boorish, it's inappropriate; the story line is cliched, and really nothing new. But....it's SUPPOSED to be crass. It's SUPPOSED to be boorish, it's SUPPOSED to be inappropriate. And how do you get around a cliched storyline? Make fun of the storyline itself. The result is some seriously extended inappropriate hilarity.
(The is the red band trailer. View discretion is advised)
The interplay is fantastic and Seth MacFarlane reunites some of his cast members from Family Guy, including Alex Borstein, Mila Kunis, and yes....Patrick Stewart. Look for a tonne of cameo work, which totally makes this movie work. In particular, the scenes with Patrick Warburton. Quite honestly, there isn't a whole lot to say about this movie. If you're looking for laughter and a good time, and don't mind some totally refreshing, politically INcorrect humour, go watch it.
For me, there was an added bonus to this movie. I went to school at Boston University, and I haven't been back in over 10 years. Seeing some familiar streets, neighbourhoods, parks, and in particular the Citgo sign really brought back memories and moments of nostalgia. So you'll have to excuse me if I have a bit of a soft spot for this movie, knowing full well that while the movie runs for about 115min, only about 30min of it was comedic genius and the rest was just tepid drivel.
~Cheers.
Wednesday, 29 June 2011
Game: Green Lantern - Rise of the Manhunters (2011)
Genre: 3rd Person Action
Game Play: 3 / 5
Graphics: 3.5 / 5
Storyline: 3.5 / 5
Re-Playability: 3 / 5
Overall: 3 / 5
Quite honestly, I enjoyed it. I like playing games with heavy story support. And quite frankly, I found the story more compelling than the Green Lantern movie.
I played the PS3 version of the game. After games like Metal Gear Solid 4, Uncharted, and Assassin's Creed, I've come to expect some spectacular graphics. Unfortunately, Rise of the Manhunters came just a little short. And I found the entire game to be such. It just came up a little bit short. It was ok, entertaining enough, but there wasn't anything great about it.
You're either running through a pretty linear plane, or flying through the air. When you're in the air, so long as you keep moving, you pretty much can't die, and you'll make it through the section. On the ground, you get to use your ring. There are some super moves that you can use the ring for, called "Constructs". Constructs are available for purchase with experience points. There are enough constructs to buy to play the game MAYBE 2x. But I was really hoping for a whole lot more. There are some puzzles in the game, but none that gave you too much grief.
I did however, encounter a couple of glitches that I wasn't too pleased about. After unlocking one of the doors, it was still locked. I ended up going online to check the walkthrough and found no additional locks for the door. I was finally able to get through it after turning the machine completely off and then back on. Really, it was a bit of a nuisance. I'm not sure if it was just the disc I had that was missing this information, or if it's missing on the PS3 system. There is one piece of key information that, again, I found on the walkthrough that wasn't part of the dialogue in my game. Once I heard that, I was able to get through the level. But it wasn't available on my game at all.
Aside from a few nuisances, the game isn't horrible. Granted, Green Lantern was one of my favourites growing up, so that might have something to do with it. Oh, if you want to beat the game REALLY easily? Have Player 2 jump in. Just to stand there. The AI's for some reason enjoy beating up the decoy more than beating up on you.
~Cheers.
I'm glad that the storyline was separate from the movie tho.
Game Play: 3 / 5
Graphics: 3.5 / 5
Storyline: 3.5 / 5
Re-Playability: 3 / 5
Overall: 3 / 5
Quite honestly, I enjoyed it. I like playing games with heavy story support. And quite frankly, I found the story more compelling than the Green Lantern movie.
I played the PS3 version of the game. After games like Metal Gear Solid 4, Uncharted, and Assassin's Creed, I've come to expect some spectacular graphics. Unfortunately, Rise of the Manhunters came just a little short. And I found the entire game to be such. It just came up a little bit short. It was ok, entertaining enough, but there wasn't anything great about it.
You're either running through a pretty linear plane, or flying through the air. When you're in the air, so long as you keep moving, you pretty much can't die, and you'll make it through the section. On the ground, you get to use your ring. There are some super moves that you can use the ring for, called "Constructs". Constructs are available for purchase with experience points. There are enough constructs to buy to play the game MAYBE 2x. But I was really hoping for a whole lot more. There are some puzzles in the game, but none that gave you too much grief.
I did however, encounter a couple of glitches that I wasn't too pleased about. After unlocking one of the doors, it was still locked. I ended up going online to check the walkthrough and found no additional locks for the door. I was finally able to get through it after turning the machine completely off and then back on. Really, it was a bit of a nuisance. I'm not sure if it was just the disc I had that was missing this information, or if it's missing on the PS3 system. There is one piece of key information that, again, I found on the walkthrough that wasn't part of the dialogue in my game. Once I heard that, I was able to get through the level. But it wasn't available on my game at all.
Aside from a few nuisances, the game isn't horrible. Granted, Green Lantern was one of my favourites growing up, so that might have something to do with it. Oh, if you want to beat the game REALLY easily? Have Player 2 jump in. Just to stand there. The AI's for some reason enjoy beating up the decoy more than beating up on you.
~Cheers.
I'm glad that the storyline was separate from the movie tho.
Friday, 17 June 2011
Movie: Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011)
Rating: A-
Too many sequels are money mongering excuses to build a franchise, that just regurgitate the same story in a different setting (ie, The Hangover Part 2). Kung Fu Panda 2 is among the select few sequels that might actually be better than its first installment.
The story, while nothing new, is compelling enough to be retold. The jokes actually have some thought put in to them and fitting for all ages. The star studded voice cast did an admirable job.While I would have liked to have seen the supporting cast be more involved, the story would have been far too complex to properly use ALL of them.
I loved the artwork when they were talking about the past, in particular, Po's little stuffed toy. Very adorable. It's great to see them use a different art style to differentiate what is now and what was THEN.
Is it twice the awesomeness as advertised? Yes it is!
Too many sequels are money mongering excuses to build a franchise, that just regurgitate the same story in a different setting (ie, The Hangover Part 2). Kung Fu Panda 2 is among the select few sequels that might actually be better than its first installment.
The story, while nothing new, is compelling enough to be retold. The jokes actually have some thought put in to them and fitting for all ages. The star studded voice cast did an admirable job.While I would have liked to have seen the supporting cast be more involved, the story would have been far too complex to properly use ALL of them.
I loved the artwork when they were talking about the past, in particular, Po's little stuffed toy. Very adorable. It's great to see them use a different art style to differentiate what is now and what was THEN.
Is it twice the awesomeness as advertised? Yes it is!
Thursday, 7 April 2011
Movie: Megamind (2010)
Rating: C-
There was still 8hours on my flight back from Hong Kong, and I had run out of movies to watch. I had watched every single movie that I had wanted to see, and the fat snoring guy in the aisle seat had no intention of waking up. Flipping through the pages of movie selections, I came across a big blue head. No, it wasn't the Smurfs. It was......MEGAMIND
Unfortunately, it starred Will Farrell. While some love his antics, I find him fairly annoying. Especially when he starts shouting and yelling. There seemed to be a lot of it here. The movie was amusing enough, with some small chuckles here and there, but it never gave you reason for bellyaching laughter. And the same goes for the movie as a whole. Mildly entertaining, but entirely formulaic. Nothing inspiring and nothing new.
While you do finish with a smile, it just seems to be a waste of such an all star cast. Tina Fey, Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, David Cross, and even Ben Stiller. And yet, none of their performances were memorable. And I hate to say it, but if it weren't for Will Farrell, Megamind would have been a MegaDisaster.
~Cheers.
There was still 8hours on my flight back from Hong Kong, and I had run out of movies to watch. I had watched every single movie that I had wanted to see, and the fat snoring guy in the aisle seat had no intention of waking up. Flipping through the pages of movie selections, I came across a big blue head. No, it wasn't the Smurfs. It was......MEGAMIND
Unfortunately, it starred Will Farrell. While some love his antics, I find him fairly annoying. Especially when he starts shouting and yelling. There seemed to be a lot of it here. The movie was amusing enough, with some small chuckles here and there, but it never gave you reason for bellyaching laughter. And the same goes for the movie as a whole. Mildly entertaining, but entirely formulaic. Nothing inspiring and nothing new.
While you do finish with a smile, it just seems to be a waste of such an all star cast. Tina Fey, Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, David Cross, and even Ben Stiller. And yet, none of their performances were memorable. And I hate to say it, but if it weren't for Will Farrell, Megamind would have been a MegaDisaster.
~Cheers.
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