I can easily sum up Peter Jackson's version of King Kong in three words: longest movie ever. At some points the movie seemed longer than its three hour plus running time, and that's what made it so boring. It got exciting at times like when the actors were being chased be dinosaurs. At that point I thought that I was watching an other "Jurassic Park" movie, that was until I saw the 25 foot computer generated giant gorilla that is King Kong. The movie seemed to drag on forever from there.
I can basically sum up the plot this way: Giant gorilla meets human female. Giant gorilla falls in love with human female, and saves her from being eaten. Greedy men capture giant gorilla and bring him back to New York. Giant gorilla breaks out of chains and destroys the city until he finds the human female.
I can't tell you how it ends, because that would ruin the movie for anyone who hasn't seen it. I can tell you this much, this version of Kong is a typical Hollywood action movie, its all about the effects and the CGI, and not about the actors (and I use the term loosely). I'd rather watch the original Kong, because its shorter.
I give this movie a 4 out of 10
How the rating system works:
10-9=A
8-7= B
6-5= C
4-3= D
2-0= F
This year so far (scores out of 10)
Robots 8
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 7
Cinderella Man 7
Batman Begins 8
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory 7
Doom 5
Four Brothers 8
War of the Worlds 7
Corpse Bride 6
Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit 8
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Batman Begins
Batman fans have dying to know about the origin of the Dark Knight. The movie Batman Begins finally tells the story of how Bruce Wayne became the defender of Gotham City. Bruce (Christian Bale) is a prisoner in a third world country, until he’s saved by Ducard (Liam Neeson) a strange man who tells him to bring a blue flower to the temple of the mysterious Ra’s Al Gaul (Ken Wannabee). He tells Wayne that Gaul can help him overcome his fear of bats, and the guilt he feels about the death of his parents.
Gaul is the leader of the League of Shadows whose mission is to destroy Gotham. To do this they use Wayne Industry’s technology, and a poison created by Dr. Crane a.k.a. The Scarecrow (Cillian Murphy) that causes its victims to have hallucinations and panic attacks.
Unfortunately for the villains, Batman has some tricks up his sleeves, and some help from Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman) who provides him with the gear, and the cool tank like car that he drives in the movie.
Diehard fans will love Warner Brothers latest attempt to revive the Batman franchise, after the failure that was Batman & Robin. This is the coolest Batman film since Batman Forever, which like this one had a great cast. Batman Begins is a thriller that will leave you the edge of your seat.
I give this movie an 8 out of 10
How the rating system works:
10-9=A
8-7= B
6-5= C
4-3= D
2-0= F
This year so far (scores out of 10)
Robots 8
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 7
Cinderella Man 7
Gaul is the leader of the League of Shadows whose mission is to destroy Gotham. To do this they use Wayne Industry’s technology, and a poison created by Dr. Crane a.k.a. The Scarecrow (Cillian Murphy) that causes its victims to have hallucinations and panic attacks.
Unfortunately for the villains, Batman has some tricks up his sleeves, and some help from Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman) who provides him with the gear, and the cool tank like car that he drives in the movie.
Diehard fans will love Warner Brothers latest attempt to revive the Batman franchise, after the failure that was Batman & Robin. This is the coolest Batman film since Batman Forever, which like this one had a great cast. Batman Begins is a thriller that will leave you the edge of your seat.
I give this movie an 8 out of 10
How the rating system works:
10-9=A
8-7= B
6-5= C
4-3= D
2-0= F
This year so far (scores out of 10)
Robots 8
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 7
Cinderella Man 7
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
There are many similarities and differences between the new version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the old one. Both tell the story of a poor boy named Charlie Bucket, who lives in an old run down house with his parents and four grandparents who spend most of their time in bed. Charlie’s life changes when finds a golden ticket in his Wonka Bar.
Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp) closed his factory because too many spies were stealing his secret recipes. Fifteen years later he decides to place a golden ticket into five random Wonka Bars. The five lucky kids who find these tickets get to take the family member of their choice with them on a tour of the factory.
Depp’s version of Willy Wonka could easily be mistaken for Michael Jackson, because of the extremely pale skin, and the unusual clothes he wears. During the tour he
experiences flashbacks to his childhood. His father’s a dentist who never allowed Willy to eat candy. So Willy decides to leave home, and eventually opens the world’s largest candy factory.
The funniest part of the whole movie is when the Oompa Loompas perform their song and dance number after each of the unfortunate events that occur during the tour. These are the only songs in this film, which is a sharp contrast to the 1971 adaptation of the book, which was more like a Broadway musical.
The whole purpose of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is to teach children two lessons: 1. If you don’t follow the rules, then you suffer the consequences of your actions. Of course in real life those consequences don’t include: being sucked up into a pipe, turning into a giant blueberry, being dragged into a garbage shoot, or being shrunk down to the size of an ant after teleporting yourself into a television.
2. Your family is the most important thing you’ll ever have.
I give this movie a 7 out of 10
How the rating system works:
10-9=A
8-7= B
6-5= C
4-3= D
2-0= F
This year so far (scores out of 10)
Robots 8
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 7
Cinderella Man 7
Batman Begins 8
War of the Worlds 7
Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp) closed his factory because too many spies were stealing his secret recipes. Fifteen years later he decides to place a golden ticket into five random Wonka Bars. The five lucky kids who find these tickets get to take the family member of their choice with them on a tour of the factory.
Depp’s version of Willy Wonka could easily be mistaken for Michael Jackson, because of the extremely pale skin, and the unusual clothes he wears. During the tour he
experiences flashbacks to his childhood. His father’s a dentist who never allowed Willy to eat candy. So Willy decides to leave home, and eventually opens the world’s largest candy factory.
The funniest part of the whole movie is when the Oompa Loompas perform their song and dance number after each of the unfortunate events that occur during the tour. These are the only songs in this film, which is a sharp contrast to the 1971 adaptation of the book, which was more like a Broadway musical.
The whole purpose of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is to teach children two lessons: 1. If you don’t follow the rules, then you suffer the consequences of your actions. Of course in real life those consequences don’t include: being sucked up into a pipe, turning into a giant blueberry, being dragged into a garbage shoot, or being shrunk down to the size of an ant after teleporting yourself into a television.
2. Your family is the most important thing you’ll ever have.
I give this movie a 7 out of 10
How the rating system works:
10-9=A
8-7= B
6-5= C
4-3= D
2-0= F
This year so far (scores out of 10)
Robots 8
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 7
Cinderella Man 7
Batman Begins 8
War of the Worlds 7
Friday, October 21, 2005
Corpse Bride vs. Wallace & Gromit
Battle of the claymation movies:
Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride vs. Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit
This fall two movies, which use a combination of stop motion animation, and digital photography and editing have been released. Comparing Corpse Bride and Wallace and Gromit isn’t a matter of comparing apples to oranges. Its more like trying to compare a colorful bowl of salad to a bowl of Cream of Wheat. No matter how much sugar, cinnamon, or fruit you add to it, its still as bland as it was before.
To realize this all the viewer has to is look at the characters and their environment. While Wallace and Gromit live in a town where they are well respected members of society, due to the success of their Anti-Pesto security company which uses humane methods to capture troublesome rabbits.
In the movie Corpse Bride, Victor resides in a city that is a sharp contrast to the world of the cheese loving inventor and his dog. Its drab and full of characters that look like they could have been in an episode of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, which, was a popular British TV show during the 1970s, and was known for it creative animation sequences.
The plots in both films are fairly simple. In The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit puts a new twists on the ware-wolf story when Wallace’s mind alteration machine goes crazy, and causes him to change into a vegetable devouring monster, and one the of the rabbits into him.
In Corpse Bride Victor is forced to marry a girl, but forgets his vows. So he decides to practice them while walking in the woods, and ends up being pulled down into the underworld by the Corpse Bride. The underworld is a more lively place then where he lives, but Victor longs to return to his home. It seems like in every movie, or book that involves one or more characters being transported to another time, place, etc. They just want to go home. Its all been done before.
Music plays an important role in both films. While watching Corpse Bride I hoped that some of the songs would be as funny as the songs in other Burton films such as The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. However, with the exception of one song they were more of the annoying Disney variety. Which made me wonder why Disney didn’t distribute this film.
There’s no singing in The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit, which made it more enjoyable. In the scenes where there isn’t any dialogue the music guides the viewer through them while changing at the appropriate times.
Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit clearly wins this battle with its vibrant characters, and the fact that it appeals to both children and grownups. Fans of the short films, Chicken Run, and British comedy will love it. Corpse Bride, on the other hand will probably be too scary for some young children. If you like clay animation then you should definitely check out both of these movies, and decide for yourself which one is better.
I give Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit an 8 out of 10, and Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride a 6 out of 10.
How the rating system works:
10-9=A
8-7= B
6-5= C
4-3= D
2-0= F
This year so far (scores out of 10):
Robots 8
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 7
Cinderella Man 7
Batman Begins 8
War of the Worlds 7
Four Brothers 8
Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride vs. Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit
This fall two movies, which use a combination of stop motion animation, and digital photography and editing have been released. Comparing Corpse Bride and Wallace and Gromit isn’t a matter of comparing apples to oranges. Its more like trying to compare a colorful bowl of salad to a bowl of Cream of Wheat. No matter how much sugar, cinnamon, or fruit you add to it, its still as bland as it was before.
To realize this all the viewer has to is look at the characters and their environment. While Wallace and Gromit live in a town where they are well respected members of society, due to the success of their Anti-Pesto security company which uses humane methods to capture troublesome rabbits.
In the movie Corpse Bride, Victor resides in a city that is a sharp contrast to the world of the cheese loving inventor and his dog. Its drab and full of characters that look like they could have been in an episode of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, which, was a popular British TV show during the 1970s, and was known for it creative animation sequences.
The plots in both films are fairly simple. In The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit puts a new twists on the ware-wolf story when Wallace’s mind alteration machine goes crazy, and causes him to change into a vegetable devouring monster, and one the of the rabbits into him.
In Corpse Bride Victor is forced to marry a girl, but forgets his vows. So he decides to practice them while walking in the woods, and ends up being pulled down into the underworld by the Corpse Bride. The underworld is a more lively place then where he lives, but Victor longs to return to his home. It seems like in every movie, or book that involves one or more characters being transported to another time, place, etc. They just want to go home. Its all been done before.
Music plays an important role in both films. While watching Corpse Bride I hoped that some of the songs would be as funny as the songs in other Burton films such as The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. However, with the exception of one song they were more of the annoying Disney variety. Which made me wonder why Disney didn’t distribute this film.
There’s no singing in The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit, which made it more enjoyable. In the scenes where there isn’t any dialogue the music guides the viewer through them while changing at the appropriate times.
Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit clearly wins this battle with its vibrant characters, and the fact that it appeals to both children and grownups. Fans of the short films, Chicken Run, and British comedy will love it. Corpse Bride, on the other hand will probably be too scary for some young children. If you like clay animation then you should definitely check out both of these movies, and decide for yourself which one is better.
I give Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Ware-Rabbit an 8 out of 10, and Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride a 6 out of 10.
How the rating system works:
10-9=A
8-7= B
6-5= C
4-3= D
2-0= F
This year so far (scores out of 10):
Robots 8
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 7
Cinderella Man 7
Batman Begins 8
War of the Worlds 7
Four Brothers 8
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