Kingdom of Heaven

Kingdom of Heaven

This is my first time using the Blogger for Word plugin so bare with me here…

I went into this movie not knowing a thing about it.  This is rare for me because I like to keep up on my coming movies because of some sick need for control of the fiction that is force-fed to me through my eyeballs.  This one sorta just slipped through the cracks.

Orlando Bloom is in it.  He’s the guy that played that Elf, Legolas, that movie about some sort of Ring and some Hobbits.  Have you noticed that he seems to enjoy acting in epic-style movies?  The trilogy of Hobbits, Troy, Pirates… I guess that isn’t really that epic, but you know what I mean.  This movie has sort’ve combined all of these characters into one.  First, the blacksmith from pirates, the prince/noble-type from Troy and now finally the warrior/swordsmen from Lord of the Rings.  This was the first time that I felt like he seemed to not be a teen actor though.  He seemed like an adult.  He was skinny in Pirates, Troy, and the Hobbitopia movies.  He must’ve bulked up, because no he looks like a more mature, full-sized man.

Liam Neeson is in the movie too, albeit briefly.  He plays the father of Orlando’s character.  And somehow, during a trip from France to Jerusalem, he manages to turn Orlando from a simple blacksmith into a decent swordsman and a hardcore battle-strategist.  I have a little bit of an issue with this, but Liam’s character was well done.  Acted well as usual – I like Liam.

Oh, and what’s with the king’s sister and her makeup?  Heavy, heavy, dark eye makeup does not look good on someone with freckles and bad hair.

Technical merits…

My girlfriend and I borrowed this movie from her mom and watched on our home surround system.  Her comment was that the cinematography is striking.  I couldn’t agree more.  A lot of the beginning of the movie there is snow flying through the air and you really get a sense of being there with the characters as the flakes seem to move so well three dimensionally.  Great care has been taken to make sure that none of the shots are wasted.  They’re all important to telling the little bit of story there is.

The first half of the movie, I was very impressed with the sound.  I always get goosebumps when movies take advantage of a subwoofer and I was suitably entertained.  The rumbly bits were rumbly.  The music was moving.  The battle scenes were gory and brutal and they sounded the part.  The second half of the movie’s sound was somewhat less impressive though.  Although the battle scenes were much more grand and the blood and guts much more apparent (think about 200,000 people throwing themselves against the walls of a city for a few days), the sound really did not match it.  There were explosions, and chunks of rocks flying all over the place, yet there were no real rumbly booms.  Arrows flying, like the snowflakes from the earlier parts of the movie, really gave you a sense of being there, but there were no really “whizz” sounds as the arrows passed by the camera (and some were obviously extremely close).

Rating…

On the old corn cob scale, 1 being so corny that you should think about changing your diet and 5 being not so corny, this would have to be a strong 3.  Ridley Scott knows what he’s doing when it comes to making a film.  If the sound guy hadn’t taken a break for the second half of the movie, and had the story been something a little stronger than Orlando Bloom finding himself, then this could’ve been a 4 and maybe a 5.  It’s not one that I’ll own, and it’s probably not one that I’ll be going out of my way to watch again.

Halo

Lets See Halo, as I was browsing this past weekend for something to watch on my Shaw video on demand menu (Which I love btw,Video on demand that is) I seen this one film called HALO, check for more information and this is what I had read:

"A man sets out to find his missing sister who has been caught up in the dangerous underground club scene. Filmed in and around Edmonton, what makes Halo unique is all of the investment came from Edmonton businesses."

So I thought hey cool, might seem ok. They gave it 3 out of 5 stars, would this also equal 3 out of 5 cobs we shall find out.

Technical/Non-Technical aspects:

Well the music was ok, and by ok I mean just barely got an ok, the so called "Techno" was crappy at the best of times. All the other music was so-so. The acting at the start seemed too be played well then it went all down hill. Not to the point were it was horrible but again it was so so. The story did flow well and I give the writers a thumbs up as the story did flow not to bad. The directing was again so so. The camera could have been in better places to capture better moments. There were also a few themes from other movies I picked up right away being an avid movie watcher. One Scene which was clearly taken right from Lost Highway

Here’s the Scene in Halo:

He (the bad guy) is sitting in a chair and this good looking blonde girl (iirc her name was Michelle) is standing in front of the "bad guy" and she starts to strip to some music and he tells her with her eyes to do more.


Here’s the Scene in Lost highway:

Alice is waiting for Mr. Eddy cuz she can get a job from Mr. Eddy if she can prove herself. Night time comes and she is taken into a room where Mr. Eddy is waiting for her, and one of his thugs takes out a gun and points it to her head, she’s very scared.
Mr. Eddy looks at her with his Eyes and she knows exactly what he his thinking. So she starts to strip to some music. But this music is awesome, it’s a song called I put a spell on you by Marilyn Manson.

Now both scenes are very similar but you know why I remember the names and songs from the lost highway one? Because it was great and perfectly done and Patricia Arquette was super hot in that movie. Whereas the one in halo is a cheap rip off of that scene.

there were also rip offs done from other shows as well that you could catch. but none of them as pronounced as the lost highway rip off.


Rating: On the scale of corn cobs, 1 being so corny that you should think about changing your diet and 5 not so corny: This was a 2, only reason im being nice is that it was a locally produced film. And they did try there best, but you can tell what a lack of budget can do to a film with a good story. Of all the B movies ive seen, this is one of the better ones and it did keep your intrest, but it wasn’t nail biting drama. All in all I guess it was worth the $1.99. Maybe that should have been a clear indication but don’t fret I also picked up Video Drome for $7.99 and it is one of the best movies I have ever seen, worth the rent if your looking for something to watch, but not the purchase in my mind.

Its All Gone Pete Tong

Its all gone Pete Tong, This movie is about the Deaf Dj Frankie Wilde
I love how this movie was shot; they had some Dj's who are at the top of the Dance Scene, Pete Tong, Paul Van dyk, Carl Cox. Describing how they were influenced by Frankie. The movie is based upon true events; the name Frankie Wilde is not real as far as I have been able to find out. But that’s not what’s really important as the movie itself is.

The movie itself is full of energy, and music (my kind of movie). Has great music and good acting as well, it takes you on a wild trip through Frankie's Life. You fell sympathy for Frankie as he starts to loose his hearing as he is trying to keep "giging"
But the fact of the matter is he is going fully deaf. The movie Still manages to keep it light hearted and comical, but also in the final moment when he does go fully deaf. You cannot but help feel the pain he is going through.

One of the interviewed shots has someone saying that "Frankie was in a very dark place" you can almost feel it with him. One shot where his manager is asking him what’s going on and telling him the label wants to hear something. He is in bed lying there and there’s a quick shot of some tears falling from his eyes. It’s then, when it really hits home with him and the viewer that it’s all over. He is deaf and nothing is going to fix it.

Technical/non-technical Aspects:

The writing is very well done, the flow of the movie is very good, it makes you want tell Frankie that he has stop his self destructive ways if he wants to keep "giging"
Music what can I say, off the top music. Directing is also very good and it captures what the story itself is trying to say.

Rating:
On the scale of corn cobs, 1 being so corny that you should think about changing your diet and 5 not so corny. This is a solid 5 I have only watched the movie once, and I usually watch a movie 2 or more times to get the complete feel and absorb everything. And catch anything that I missed, this movie is up there with the likes of Donnie Darko, City of God, and a few others ones. This movie consistently has a good feel to it, I was laughing just as much as I was grooving on my couch to the music. A definite purchase, as watching it one time is not nearly good enough.

Donnie Darko

El Presidente:

Ok look. I didn't enjoy this movie that much, but you can't deny the cult following it seems to have garnered. Donnie's a little off. That dude dressed up as that whacked out bunny rabbit is a little more off. Overall, I'd have to say this whole shindig was entirely a little off.

This isn't a psychedelic 70's movie, or a late-nineties action movie. It's a thinking-man's movie. One about a kid in school who is, well... for lack of a better word, off. Strange things seem to happen when he's around, though not in a Children of the Corn sort of way. If you happened to have attained a higher state of consciousness while under the influence of illicit pharmaceuticals then you're really going to enjoy Frank. Either that or you're totally going to freak out.


DarkDragon:

As El Presidente had stated this movie does have a cult following, with me being one of the hardcore followers. I first watched this movie when it was released on dvd/video.
My wife’s friend Janice had rented it and said we had to watch it. Not knowing a thing about this movie I tossed it in an instantly I was hooked. It was dark and borderline disturbing, but that’s the very high appeal of Donnie Darko. Some of us are Donnie Darko, and those who are not, know of someone who is like him. This is one of my all time favorite movies not many movies will top this one.


Technical/Non- Technical Aspects of movie:

DarkDragon:

The acting in this movie I think is very top notch; Jake Gyllenhaal does a great job, his best to date if you ask me. His sister off the screen, Maggie Gyllenhaal, also plays his sister Elizabeth Darko. They both have a good onscreen chemistry between them. They played off each other very well. Jena Malone also does a very good job in this movie as well. The score and music used in the film was for lack of a better word perfect. It captures those moments of sorrow and confusion. The soundtrack is awesome and I have had it for sometime now, and listen to it a lot. Everything else about this movie, writing, directing, and cinematography was all top notch. It couldn't have been done better in my eyes.

El Presidente:

I honestly can't say that I remember too much of the technical details like Reverend Geekeyez above (I've only seen the movie once, afterall), but from what I do remember, the effects were believable and the music, cinematography and acting all did make for a dark movie. heh, Donnie Darko. Isn't that interesting... *snore* (just kidding).


Rating:

El Presidente:

On the a scale of corn cobs, 1 being so corny that you should think about changing your diet and 5 not so corny (so sayeth your proctologist), I would have to give this a 2. I really don't want to relate this to a fecal joke, because I don't want to be that crude... yet. It's got it's good points... purely from a technical and story point of view, this movie is excellent. They did everything right. The tone is consistently dark throughout, right through to the end. I just didn't enjoy it. I really couldn't get into it.

And I'm afraid of big rabbits named Frank.

DarkDragon:

On the scale of corn cobs, 1 being so corny that you should think about changing your diet and 5 not so corny, I give this one a 5+ for sure. Not many will get this 5+ but this movie certainly deserving of that rating. Everything that went into the movie seemed perfectly intertwined. The ending is one which you have to watch a few times to get it at least I did as you can't really get it the first time you watch it. And you pick out little things that you missed watching it the first time.
Definitely worth the purchase.

P.s the directors cut of the film is a lot better then the original release, you do get more of a deeper understanding of the movie and Donnie's actions and what drives him to do what he does.

Mindhunters

This movie doesn't stink. It doesn't rule either, but it was enjoyable. It's a film about a group of FBI profilers who get sent to an island on the east coast of the US for training.

It's got some names in it. LLCoolJ being the biggest one. Jonny Lee Miller (Hackers, Trainspotting). Christian Slater. Val Kilmer. Oh, and that lady who plays Anukh-su-namoon (or however the hell you spell it).

The plot is reasonably predictable and the methods of death are suitably graphic. I have to confess that I've never seen anybody melt from the inside out. That's the one thing that really sticks out in my recollection... oh, that and Val Kilmer's puppet routine.

On the a scale of corn cobs, 5 being not so corny and 1 being so corny that you should think about changing your diet (so sayeth your proctologist) I would give this about a 2. It's exciting, but nothing that I'd want to own. The paranoia, while integral to the story and understandable, really does get old.

-El Presidente