THOR HAMMERS IT HOME...

Last night I had the privilege of viewing an advanced screening of THOR.  The theater was packed, of course, and everyone was into it.  It was one of the best theatrical experiences I've had in a while, despite a few technical glitches. 

To my surprise, we were presented with a 3D version of the film.  Now, this can really make or break a movie, in my opinion, especially if the film was not shot in 3D, and this one falls into that category.  While some of the scenes worked, others were dark and the action was too fast paced in some instances that you couldn't get any real benefit from it.  Also, one must take in to account that you are basically wearing polarized sunglasses while watching.  If the scene is dark and/or not originally intended for 3D viewing, it just looks dim or blurry.  Many shots of the intended bright and shiny city of Asgaard came across with a soft-focus-at-dusk look to them.

The 3D debate aside, the movie itself was solid.  I was concerned about how they would meld the real-world story with what would be gods and mythology.  Their solution was quite ingenious.  I won't give spoilers here, but I'm sure the purists and fanboys will probably complain, as they always do. 

The cast is outstanding.  Chris Hemsworth holds his own in scenes with Anthony Hopkins.  The casting of Natalie Portman was great as scenes with her 5'3'' frame standing next to Hemsworth's 6'4'' really did make him look ginormous.  Tom Hiddleston, Rene Russo, Colm Feore and Stellan Skarsgard round out the main cast.  Watch for cameos from Stan Lee, of course, as well as Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye), writer J. Michael Straczynski and, wait for it, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury.

No real spoilers here, but the action is divided fairly evenly between present day Earth and the other "realms".  CGI mixed with real sets and actors looked good in most instances, but some of the Destroyer character footage was a bit lacking.  This is a loud, action packed movie with witty banter, cool psuedo-science, drama and some truly funny moments.  In all, a very well-rounded kick-off to the 2011 summer blockbuster season.

Be sure to stay through the credits!!! ;)


THOR opens in U.S. theaters on Friday, May 6th.  Look for Captain America on July 22nd!

SPLICE SHOULD HAVE BEEN CUT

Adrien Brody makes some strange choices when it comes to deciding which movie roles to take on.  He should have passed on this one.  Splice is 111 minutes of garbage.  I am usually able to find some redeeming quality in a movie so as not to over-simplify a bad review with just one word, but "garbage" is being nice.  I am happy, however, that I was not one of the 7 people who saw this in the theater.  I would have asked for my money back.

The premise is a blatant rip-off of Species; a new life-form raised in a lab, becomes intelligent, strong and, well let's face it, sexually mature - so to speak.  Brody and co-star, Sarah Polley are a couple who also happen to be some kind of genetic scientists that spend their days creating said life forms.  There are other scientists who work there too, like Brody's on-screen brother, but they don't really do anything but sit around and listen to bad music.  So, the scientific dynamic-duo are left alone to do whatever they want until their corporate sponsor shows up and actually demands some results from their funding... how unreasonable.

Needless to say, the two go way off task by creating a new hybrid life-form using human DNA...gasp!  Unfortunately, with the two main characters, what you see is what you get.  We don't know anything about them, what their motivations are, what brought them together, etc.  The result, you don't care.  After the premise was set up, I spent the rest of the movie not caring about the characters, the new life form, anything.  The few "surprises" they tried to throw in were so incredibly obvious, you could pick them apart the instant they tried to throw a hint at you, even before really.  Also, toward the end of the movie, Brody and Polley's characters kind of switched places with their attitudes and actions.  This didn't make any sense, and then things just got weird.... and not in a good way.

Finally, after all is said and done, they leave the door open for a sequel.  Don't count on it.  This movie had a budget of $30 million, really cheap for a sci-fi thriller.  It did not make its money back in world-wide release!  Unless the Sy-fy channel picks up a low-budget sequel, as they did with Lake Placid 2 and 3 or Species 3, this franchise should be finished (although if Sy-fy did pick up a sequel it would probably be an improvement over the original... no really).  Also, my apologies to David Hewlett (Stargate Atlantis), who was a supporting actor.  I like his work, generally, but know that sometimes you just need a paycheck.

Bottom line - DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME on this film.  Watch Species again, heck, even parts 2 or 3.  You'll at least be entertained for a couple of hours.

ALL'S WELLS THAT ENDS WELLS

The Martian War: A Thrilling Eyewitness Account of the Recent Invasion As Reported by Mr. H.G. Wells by Gabriel Mesta
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Gabriel Mesta is Kevin J. Anderson.  I'm used to just a little bit more from him I think.  In 'The Martian War', Anderson builds a story around H.G. Wells and his "real" adventures much as he did with Jules Verne in 'Captain Nemo'.  The story is told on two fronts from two different perspectives.  One focuses on Wells and his companions, the other comes from entries in the journal of Dr. Moreau.  While the story is interesting it fails to really expand on what we know from Wells' stories.  It is kind of predictable but is a short, entertaining read.


View all my reviews

An Early Christmas Present

Merry Christmas, Programs....

The 1982 Tron Holiday Special from Rip Taylor

Life Happens

Yes, it's been a while, I know.  I've gotten caught up in the holidays, fall TV programming and movies, work's kept me busy, etc.  All just lame excuses for not keeping up on the blog.  And, even now, I'll probably make this short.

Box office reports for the holiday season have been disappointing.  Only 'Harry Potter' has proven to be a success.  Disney's 'Tangled' has only done "okay" while Narnia 3 has been a domestic disaster (though it's doing well overseas).  'Tron: Legacy' is off to a good start but we'll wait and see how it goes.

Very disappointed to hear that 'Stargate Universe' has not been picked up for a third season.  The remaining 10 episodes will air, as planned, this spring but since they were filmed prior to cancellation, the second season will probably end with a cliff-hanger.  I can only hope that they will give the fans a follow-up TV movie to wrap it up later.  The 2011/2012 season will be the first in 14 years without a 'Stargate' show on the air.

A smattering of books and music has been released, just in time for the holiday gift-giving season, as usual.  Nothing outstanding here.  The only big news was iTunes getting The Beatles catalog, and depending on who you ask, it wasn't all that significant.  I, however, can appreciate the legal navigation that had to take place to make it happen.  Now if someone could just talk some sense into Angus Young and AC/DC...

Well, Happy Holidays and all that kind of stuff.  If I don't catch up with everyone over the next couple of weeks, I'll see you in the New Year.

Fall TV (Part 2)

Monday Leftovers

I caught up on Chase on NBC, Monday nights via the old DVR.  The pilot was lackluster with no character development.  I think the criminal-of-the-week had more screen time than any of the stars.  It appears U.S. Marshalls, operating out of what looks like a giant museum rotunda in Houston, do not have to abide by any laws to get their man.  This is evidenced by the amount of doors they busted in without a warrant and the damage they caused and just laughed about.  Example: In the first three minutes they chased a suspect through crowded streets, caused a stampede (you heard me) which caused what they reported to be $17,000 in property damage.  Their response to this news, “Ha, ha, ha!”  Evidently, no one on the team has a personal life and their boss has no real authority over them as they just kind of ignore him and do their own thing.  Using U.S. Marshalls in Texas, it just seems like the writers were trying to fill the void left by Walker: Texas Ranger, but not as well done (yes, really).  Maybe this show could develop into something if it wasn’t up against Castle and the new Hawaii Five –O in the same time slot.  Both of these shows are infinitely better.  I’ll make a prediction, Chase won’t see a second season, at least not on Monday night.

Wednesday and Thursday

I know there’s a lot out there on Wednesday on network TV, and Syfy has new episodes of Ghost Hunters which is usually interesting, but the only show that I was truly wanting to check out was The Defenders.  Starring Jim Belushi and Jerry O’Connell, it’s about lawyers in Las Vegas.  It’s well done and plays out very much like Boston Legal.  I guess calling it ‘Vegas Legal’ would have been too obvious.  If people will switch the channel from one of NBC’s countless Law and Order programs, it may have a chance of making it.

Thursday night sitcoms were back starting with Big Bang Theory (now on its new night), and the premiere of $#*! My Dad Says (officially pronounced  Bleep My Dad Says) starring William Shatner, Jonathan Sadowski, Will Sasso and Nicole Sullivan.  ‘Big Bang’ was good, as always, but ‘My Dad Says’ got off to a rough start.  The biggest problem for me was that Sadowski, portraying the son, seemed very uncomfortable with doing a comedic role.  His delivery was rushed and choppy.  The pacing was just off.  Shatner, however, was pretty good.  He has slipped in to a comedic persona over the past several years and I think it suits him well.  Sasso and Sullivan, both MadTv veterans held up ok too.  The writing needs to be tweaked a bit, but if they can find their legs, and Sadowski can loosen up, they may be OK.

Next was the long awaited return of Fringe.  Transitioning between two “realities” this season should prove to be interesting as several actors will get to portray different personalities of their same characters.  According to the writers, each episode will take place mostly in one setting or the other to avoid a lot of jumping around.  The season premiere was good and I’m looking forward to see how it plays out.  It’s one of the few ‘smart’ science fiction shows on right now.

Friday

The final season of Smallville returns to the CW in the 8 o’clock time slot.  I’ve watched this off and on over the years and it’s generally ok, though they’ve taken the Superman story and turned it completely upside down.  If you can ignore that, you’re fine.  However, I’ll probably be tuning in to Fox’s Human Target whose first season turned out to be a surprise hit.  A mid-season replacement, many people liked the smart, fun, action-filled show.  Though it’s over-the-top most of the time, it is heads above most of the competition in terms of quality and acting.  Medium returns to NBC in the same slot but, judging from the preview, it looks like it may be “jumping the shark”.  The season premiere does a Freaky Friday storyline where mother and daughter switch bodies.  Taking a supernatural-drama and turning it into a Disney comedy just doesn’t sound like it will work.  Oh, well.  I gave up on that show after the first season when I realized every week was the exact same story.  Several other shows are returning or debuting on Friday, but there are only so many programs the DVR can hold…

Saturday and Sunday

Saturday doesn’t offer much in the way of compelling television programming and I think the same can be said about Sunday, though I’m sure one would argue that the Simpsons and Family Guy represent gripping  social commentary.  Most everything else is just stupid reality shows and the even more stupid Desperate Housewives which had its best storyline in season one and has been hanging around like an unwanted house guest ever since.

Well, that’s all I’ve got for now.  Though I’ve covered quite a bit of ground on this it should be noted that my total television viewing really only amounts to about 5 or 6 hours per week on average.  I pick the best-of-the best for my tastes and move on.  I’d like to think I have a life….

'Tis The Season.... For Fall TV (Part 1)

Monday and Tuesday

Well, Baseball season is closing in on its finale and Football season is kicking off (get it).  It’s also time for all the new and returning Fall shows.  I’ll be watching as many as I can to try to get an idea which ones to put on my (usually short) list of must-see-tv.

Monday night:

Started off with NBC’s Chuck.  I’ve watched it on and off over its first 3 seasons and have always enjoyed it.  That’s not to say I’ve gone out of my way to make it one of my staple programs but it’s a nice diversion when I have time.  The writing and acting are always top-notch and the recent string of guest stars has been cool.  Monday night was no exception.  Both Dolph Lundgren AND Linda Hamilton were on the season premiere with Hamilton playing Chuck’s long lost mother.  For the uninitiated, Chuck is about an electronic store clerk/geek who inadvertently gets drawn in to the world of spy vs. spy due to an accident that leaves him able to experience “flashes” of pertinent knowledge about the international intelligence agencies’ confidential data.  Also, as of last season, he can tap into Matrix-like knowledge of martial arts to kick some butt.  The show’s a lot of fun…

I stayed tuned into NBC for the series premiere of The Event.  It has been described as a combination of 24 and Lost and that actually turns out to be a pretty accurate assessment.  It has the mystery/thriller aspect of Lost with the pacing and action of 24 and just a touch of Sci-Fi thrown in for good measure.  What is THE event?  It appears that will be revealed as the story moves along and the writers have promised you’ll find out sooner rather than later.  They reportedly have this mapped out to tell the story prior to, during and then after the event and there will be none of this “making it up as they go” B.S.  It’s off to a good start and may be added to my list if they can keep up the good work.

At this point I switched over for the series premiere of the new Hawaii Five-O on CBS (I did DVR NBC’s Chase but haven’t watched yet).  This show was a big surprise for me.  My expectations were low due to all of the re-imagings and re-boots going on right now, most of which are bad.  This show, however, was really good.  It has a great cast that works well together, lots of action and humor.  Plus, it’s in Hawaii, what more can you ask for!  This one should make it if people can find it at 10pm on a Monday.  I, personally, can see myself tuning in to a combo of The Event and H5-O on Monday night.  I’ll just have to see how Chase turns out.  From what I’ve seen, it looks like a female version of Walker: Texas Ranger.

Tuesday night:

Not a lot on the agenda except for the season (or is it mid-season, I never can tell with Syfy) finale of Warehouse 13.  I can’t say enough good things about this program.  It just does everything right and it’s a lot of fun.  Next Tuesday, however, is the season premiere of Stargate Universe.  I’ve been waiting for this one.  The first season was great and I’m looking forward to see where they will take the story next.  This chapter of the franchise is a lot more serious than the past outings but it is very well done.

I haven’t tuned in to any of the new sitcoms yet, but I can only stand so much of that.  Looking forward to the premieres of Big Bang Theory and $#*! My Dad Says with Shatner on Thursday, though.

Well, that’s all until I get to see a few more shows this week.  Talk atchya later….