Synopsis: Ron Pearlman is pretty spry for being in his 50's, he and Selma Blair have a spat, eat your heart out Peter Jackson.
There’s a reason Guillermo del Toro is directing The Hobbit and that reason is rampantly apparent in Hellboy II: his mind is inundated by fantasy. He swims in the lore of Scottish trolls, floats with Tolkien’s elves, and even splashes a bit in the pond of Grimm. Hellboy II revels in this high fantasy feel, and unblinkingly thrusts it into modern cityscapes. Bag ladies that eat cats (they’re really trolls) and steampunk devices that let you see things “as they really are” exist side by side with wet asphalt and street lamps. He also has this thing for eyeballs. You’ll understand when you see it.
At first Hellboy feels a bit like Men in Black, complete with a tour of paranormal HQ and what looks like some tentacled thing either giving birth or going through the telophase of mitosis. Soon, however, we take a turn and are introduced to the elves, yes elves, who feel more elven on their worst day than Orlando Bloom ever did in his little yellow wig. All of del Toro’s creature are unique and distinct but they also “feel right.” It is like hearing Beethoven in an opera house as opposed to on the radio or being given a truffle after only eating Hershey’s. Further chocolaty layers are drizzled as the movie continues, with adventures into secret troll markets, some darn impressive and acrobatic fight scenes, and a couple good laughs.
There are unfortunately some moments of movie cliché. These mostly happen during throw away jokes and generally involve some kind of slapstick. The movie is at times genuinely and creatively funny, but there are some Jar Jar Binks moments that make you feel like the film just ran over a possum. It’s brief and crunches, but is smooth driving shortly thereafter.
Seeming to hit his stride with Pan’s Labyrinth, be expecting to see a lot more movies with eyeballs in weird places. I’m putting a must see on this. It is great in the theater and is certainly worth it for his visual effects. However, the story is so well done you could watch it on your cellphone screen and still thoroughly enjoy it. But don’t. You’d miss a lot.
Showing posts with label PG-13. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PG-13. Show all posts
25.7.08
Dark Knight
Synopsis: Joker kills people, lots of things are destroyed, there’s actually TWO villains in this movie.
Ninjas. Who could possibly dislike ninjas? These mythical killers from Eastern culture are ingrained in the skulls of most males as the apogee of awesome. Already at their peak physical and mental level, there is only one way to improve a ninja: give them cool toys. Stick said ninja in Gotham City, and you have Batman.
Writing this review a bit after the movie came out has given me a chance to see critic’s reactions. They make me wonder if they somehow get throwbacks from the studio. Dark Knight is a fantastic movie but it is not The Untouchables or The Godfather as many reviews seem to christen it. It is a ninja in a bat-suit. It’s Batman. Please never make it anything else. I see comic book movies because I like comic book movies, not because I am secretly hoping to see Al Capone in makeup and Eliot Ness dressed as some armored rodent (with wrist blades!).
Heath Ledger is indeed fantastic. I would argue he is one of the best batman villains so far (although it is rather unfair to compare Batman movies, Burton had a very different direction than Nolan). But again, he is what he is, a comic book villain. This isn’t some existential movie about how we “turn on our heroes” or even that heavy laden with morality issues (yes he does have to make some decisions). His joker is a psychopath with a death wish. He doesn’t have any deep motivations. He says he’s like a dog chasing cars: he wouldn’t know what to do with one if he caught it. I do think it would be fair to put Ledger up for a best supporting actor, and perhaps all the hype around Dark Knight will help its being taken seriously when such awards are presented.
Dark Knight is sleek. Its huge budget obviously helps. The pacing is very nice, you spend a lot of time on the edge of your seat but are allowed to relax at the right times and the humorous bits are quite funny. It did well to stay PG-13 as it allowed one to watch in somewhat “safety,” knowing none of the alluded grossness would actually be shown on screen. I would have appreciated more of the choreographed fight scenes from the previous movie: it seems this relied more on glass shattering and people flying around, making his fighting style feel more like a Tasmanian devil or the Hulk than a ninja. This is probably more from my love of old Kung Fu movies however.
So if you like action movies or Batman or Christian Bale or want to see Heath Ledger at his best, Dark Knight is a must see. But if you want Eliot Ness, seek him elsewhere.
Ninjas. Who could possibly dislike ninjas? These mythical killers from Eastern culture are ingrained in the skulls of most males as the apogee of awesome. Already at their peak physical and mental level, there is only one way to improve a ninja: give them cool toys. Stick said ninja in Gotham City, and you have Batman.
Writing this review a bit after the movie came out has given me a chance to see critic’s reactions. They make me wonder if they somehow get throwbacks from the studio. Dark Knight is a fantastic movie but it is not The Untouchables or The Godfather as many reviews seem to christen it. It is a ninja in a bat-suit. It’s Batman. Please never make it anything else. I see comic book movies because I like comic book movies, not because I am secretly hoping to see Al Capone in makeup and Eliot Ness dressed as some armored rodent (with wrist blades!).
Heath Ledger is indeed fantastic. I would argue he is one of the best batman villains so far (although it is rather unfair to compare Batman movies, Burton had a very different direction than Nolan). But again, he is what he is, a comic book villain. This isn’t some existential movie about how we “turn on our heroes” or even that heavy laden with morality issues (yes he does have to make some decisions). His joker is a psychopath with a death wish. He doesn’t have any deep motivations. He says he’s like a dog chasing cars: he wouldn’t know what to do with one if he caught it. I do think it would be fair to put Ledger up for a best supporting actor, and perhaps all the hype around Dark Knight will help its being taken seriously when such awards are presented.
Dark Knight is sleek. Its huge budget obviously helps. The pacing is very nice, you spend a lot of time on the edge of your seat but are allowed to relax at the right times and the humorous bits are quite funny. It did well to stay PG-13 as it allowed one to watch in somewhat “safety,” knowing none of the alluded grossness would actually be shown on screen. I would have appreciated more of the choreographed fight scenes from the previous movie: it seems this relied more on glass shattering and people flying around, making his fighting style feel more like a Tasmanian devil or the Hulk than a ninja. This is probably more from my love of old Kung Fu movies however.
So if you like action movies or Batman or Christian Bale or want to see Heath Ledger at his best, Dark Knight is a must see. But if you want Eliot Ness, seek him elsewhere.
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