Friday, August 9, 2013

Pacific Rim (2013): Big, nasty and beautiful.

Critic 1

 

Guillermo del Toro has a reputation to produce very bizarre and disturbingly graphic movies. Pacific Rim is not an exception. The Kaijus and Jaegers are exceptionally well animated and for once the 3D is more of an improvement than a handicap. Unfortunately the plot has all the Hollywood must-be's. Some hidden agendas, love story and crazy scientist... And some kamikaze bravery to indulge Japanese viewers. If your date is not into Japanese stuff do not bother. A very nice movie anyhow.

Critic 2


This is a movie about a distant future, where aliens came. In the beginning of the movie many things were already explained, so I was wondering will it going be a boring movie. It wasn't. Guillermo del Toro didn't let an audience down this time either. I think this was a good movie. I could have never imagined that big robots and monsters who fight each others would make an interesting movie. I'm happy I was wrong. The movie had exceptionally well made 3D effects and I'm glad to see a 3D movie that doesn't have constant blurring of the fast movements. Big robots and monsters looked good in 3D, so they actually used 3D for make a better visual movie, not just movie in 3D. Actrors were ok also.   


Extremely graphic movie
Judgement Star: A really nice movie.

 

Sunday, July 28, 2013

The Wolverine (2013): Like teflon.... Nothing gets stuck.....

Critic 1

 

It seems that Japan is the new black in the Hollywood. The Hunger Games rips off Battle Royale, Skyfall rips off the Japanese ghost towns, Pasific Rim is a copy of mecha anime and The Wolverine just steals the look and feel of Japan. I have never seen anything so mediocre than this movie. Movie was nice but a day later I can not tell any highlights. I just have this "Did I actually see a movie ?"  feeling.  A totally flavorless  movie. Go and see it if you must.

Critic 2

 

This movie is a sequel for the X-Men Origins: Wolverine. I'm glad that there weren't much references for the Origins movie, since I didn't remember much what happened there. In this movie Wolverine goes to Japan. In my opinion the movie was quite good interpretation of comics where Wolverine went to Japan, but the story was altered for the movie and maybe it affected for my judgement. Somehow I was expecting more from director James Mangold, since he has directed some very good movies before. But I still think that this movie was better than X-Men Origins: Wolverine. 3D could have been better (I was hoping less blurring movements), otherwise special effects were ok. Hugh Jackman was excellent Wolverine again, Tao Okamoto as Mariko and other leading female actresses were great also. It was really nice to see that they were good actresses also, not just pretty faces. 


A very mediocre
Judgement Star: A very mediocre movie

Friday, July 5, 2013

The Lone Ranger (2013) : Jumpig around in a Disney style.

Critic 1

 

And a once more Johnny Depp (as Tonto) gets his kicks with a messy head robe. I was mildly positively surprised about this movie. I feared that it would be like in certain pirate movies where in some point it feels that the dangling in the ropes is the main thing or in adventures of certain archeology teacher where jumping in between moving cars rises to spotlight in certain sections. But there was something similar though... A very entertaining movie never the less. Armie Hammer is an excellent choice for the Lone Ranger role. Just as much an American Golden Boy than one can possibly be. The visual effects were nice in general but some corners were cut.... The humor in the movie did not sink into me as well as in general audience. Many of the jokes were kind of obvious or just plainly lame. A good date movie. Will not rise any strong feelings moral vise.       
 

Critic 2


This was a funny western movie. Somehow I remember that I have heard from Lone Ranger and Tonto when I was a child, but I can't recall was it a comic, a book or tv series. There was quite much action in the movie. Jokes were quite funny and I was happy that they had updated them for modern times. A masked gunfighter was probably really cool about eighty years ago, but today you will need also something more and I was glad that the writers of the film had realized that. The movie was better than I expected and I have to say that I was positively surprised. The leading actors were great and visual effects were good. It was also great to see a 2D movie for a change, because I hate a blurring of fast movements in 3D movies.

A good but tasteless movie.
Judgement Star: A good but tasteless movie.

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Star Trek - Into Darkness (2013): Like a Bond movie in space....

Critic 1

When I go to see a Star Trek movie I would like to see epic space fights, exotic new races (Klingon's at least) and hear some double minded comments from captain Kirk. What I do not want to see is a copy of the Moonraker. I wasn't overly surprised though. The plot was what I feared based on the trailers I saw. Apart of the evident lack of proper space fights the movie was really nice. Especially the visual effects were extremely good. Plot was ok but as I said I expected something else. An acceptable date movie. Even a total Star Trek n00b can appreciate the visual effects of this movie.

Critic 2

This is a next Star Trek movie in a new timeline. The movie begins about from the situation were the previous one was left. The beginning of the movie was very good and hooked the watcher. In my opinion the setting for the plot the were very interesting and movie dealt with the issues quite satisfyingly. Well, there were some holes in the plot if you think too carefully, but during the movie I didn't pay much attention to these. I think three main actors were exceptionally good. Visual effect were pretentious and nice to watch. If you liked  the the previous Star Trek movie you will probably like this one too. 

Into Darkness is a good movie.
Judgement Star: Into Darkness (2013).

Monday, April 22, 2013

Oblivion (2013): Ripping off from the Independance Day...

Critic 1


A very clean movie compared to our resent reviews. Tom Cruise does what he is used to do. Acts clinically, professionally and slips off without leaving big emotions behind. However - SPOILER ALERT !!! - The way the word ends this time is truly awful. Millions and millions of T.C.'s embarking from alien ships... Horror indeed. And would kill first as usual. The end game was a rip-off from the Independence Day. You'll see. Nevertheless a good, entertaining movie.  Safe option for a date movie.


Critic 2

 


The future, aliens have attacked and there is no more people living in the earth, only a couple who is maintaining water collectors. Somehow it's again very clean and dustless inside the future home. At some point story starts to drag a bit and looses it's focus. I was hoping that this science fiction movie would have presented more original ideas. Even if it lacks originality,  the movie has very nice cgi graphics. Actors were ok, especially I liked Andrea Riseborough as an ambitious woman.

A good movie.
Judgement Star: A fairly good movie.



Sunday, April 21, 2013

Warm Bodies (2013): Promises, promises.....

Critic 1

 

Zombies are really the hottest of hot currently. And it was only a matter of time when someone makes some fun out of it. Warm Bodies is a nice effort but not a masterpiece.  The trailers gave a very promising picture of the movie but the reality was much lamer. There were some nice comics embedded in the movie but not enough. Now the movie was not a comedy, horror movie or a love story either. But it is a good date movie. Happy ending leaves a nice after movie feeling.


Critic 2

 


A story of a forbidden love. Zombies have populated most parts of the Earth and humans are living in small fortresses. But then with a whim of  a destiny a girl and a boy meet. It doesn't matter if their kin hate each other. The movie wraps a love story and zombies in a very refreshing package. It never forgets it's roots in zombie movies, but it's still and all a funny love story with style. The length of the movie was just right. Also, Nicholas Hoult did very nice work in a leading role.    

Conflicting stars
Judgement Star: Conflicting stars for once.

Saturday, April 13, 2013

G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) : Total waste of time.

Critic 1

 

The first G.I. Joe was a passable movie with some eye candy and weaknesses related to... Well... Everything. Sequel on the other hand has dropped all the good parts (most notably the Scarlett) and left only the crap left.  The plot is weak and senseless, acting is mostly second class and so on... Stay away.

Critic 2

 

This movie is a sequel to first G.I.Joe movie. I have to admit, that I didn't remember what happened in the first movie, so first minutes I was wondering who are this guys and what is happening. But soon it was told who are the bad guys and good guys. Maybe I needed to have some information about the characters in advance from old comics or from somewhere, since some twists in the plot seemed highly illogical. Well, graphics were nice sometimes. 


Judgement Star: Close to B class movie...

Monday, April 1, 2013

Cloud Atlas (2012): Some fancy acting here...

Critic 1

 

I think that I have to find the Cloud Atlas novel from somewhere and read it. That was the first feeling after the movie. The beginning of the movie was slightly confusing and the knowledge based on the novel would have helped to get more out from the movie. The casting of the movie was excellent and after a while I understood that the movie had actually been made maybe like with ten different actors. The movie looked really nice and needless to say that the plot was interesting but maybe slightly complicated to persons who have not read the novel. More original view of the human future would have been in order. Without going into details the bad capitalists are ruining the earth... Again. A very nice date movie. Just sharpen your mind for the inevitable philosophic discussion afterwards.

Critic 2

 

Cloud Atlas told stories from different times. These stories were connected with little details or perhaps there was more, but I'm not sure if I got all the clues. At first some stories were more interesting than others, but in time all of them grew to be interesting. Sometimes it was fun to try to guess which actor played the role, since main actors had several roles in different times. The movie was quite long, but stories weren't dull. Some of the stories included a bit of philosophical pondering, but nothing too heavy or shocking. In the end some of the stories seemed a little bit rushed. A very well made movie and good actors. Visions from future looked great.

A very good movie.
The Judgement Star: Coud Atlas is a very good movie.
 

Saturday, February 16, 2013

A Good Day to Die Hard (2013): Let the John McClane finally die....

Critic 1

 

As a die hard fan of Die Hard movies I'm appalled.  This piece of art is totally unaligned compared with the true John McClane  films. All the humour is gone and the once so fluent storytelling and greater than life goons are missing.... Now I just felt that " This is what really cheap movie looks..." And  John McLane was lamer than ever... There was a Mi-24 flying around  and John is known to have taken flying lessons. Conclusion based on the old films is obvious and highly anticipated but no.... Keep clear. Do not bother your date.


Critic 2

 

Die Hard saga continues. The idea of the movie sounded very good, John Mclane meets his son after long time. From the previous Die Hard movies I understood that the idea of movie saga was that John McClane just happens to be there in the middle of action accidentally. This time he went straight to car chase and things started to crash. Also a character development scenes could have been less obvious. In the previous Die Hard movies there were more (funny and stupid) jokes included or maybe I remember wrong. The storyline and movie felt rushed, a cheap copy of some unknown (super)agent film. I also wondered why the aspect ratio of film screen wasn't that wide as usually in movies today. I think Die Hard saga deserves far better movies than this kind.  

close to a B-movie.
The Judgement Star: Very close to be a B-movie.
  

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Zero Dark Thirty (2012): Nothing surprising here.

Critic 1

 

I was wondering when somebody starts with the "USA rules" movies about the war on terror. This was in a such a fairly good movie. The story was more about individual stubbornness than superiority of a nation. But to be honest I have the feeling that the main character is not a real one and she is written in only to twist the knife in the wound. The ending was naturally spoiled long ago but the happenings after 9/11 and their links to the hunt of O.B.L were very interesting. Not really a date movie I'd say. The interrogation scenes may ruin the mood...


Critic 2


This was a movie about a hunt for a terrorist. Everyone know how the movie will end so there is nothing new in there. But the movie was well made and you still wanted to know what happened next. The style of the movie reminded a documentary and somewhat cold leading role fitted this style. Movie also represented refreshingly different female role what I have seen in long time.  For me it was hard to figure out what a director really wanted to say with this movie and I'm not sure did I get it. The movie was pretty long, but it didn't feel that long. The plot development was well done.   


A fair movie.
Judgement Star: A fair movie.

        

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Django Unchained (2012): Beat those white sorry asses!

Critic 1

 

Tarantino's newest does not leave anybody cold. You either love it or you hate it.  Christoph Waltz makes excellent work as a German born dentists who's noted that killing people makes more money than healing them.  Jamie Foxx plays a part of an shining black knight rescuing a damsel in distress. When the plot is laid  down the movie rolls on nicely and the body count rises steadily. There is a kind of lapse during the end game but who cares. This is exactly what you would expect out of western made by Quentin Tarantino. Maybe not for the first dates though.

Critic 2

 

A new movie by Quentin Tarantino. A western about a topic rarely discussed in western movies, namely, slavery. Basic themes are familiar from previous movies by Tarantino, a lot of lively discussions and violence. But again marvellously talking is not boring and almost three hours went quickly. If you liked Tarantino's previous movies you will probably like this one too, although in my opinion this is not one of the best movies from him. The leading actors were really great again, but storyline starts to fall apart towards to the end and this is the biggest minus of the movie. 

A very good movie.
Judgement Star: A very good movie.
   

Friday, January 25, 2013

Book: Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton

May the aliens shiver...

 

A sequel to the Pandora's Star  tells the story of the epic end game of the struggle between humans and the evil aliens the Primes. Not very surprisingly humans prevail after some moral dilemmas which are solved by an unruly hippie... Of course. The story flows nicely without unnecessary stalls. For a fairly long book (~1000 pages) its very fast to read. As a stand-alone book this will not work. It's expected that you know what happened before.

Conspiracy by Apple...?

 

One odd detail stole my attention. There were several references in Finnish things. Like one minor character and a planet named after a Finnish town. And make no mistake. The low Finnish birth rate will make sure that no planets will be named after our towns. At first they kind of seamed out of place and my crooked mind instantly thought  " Could it be that Apple modifies the details of the books based on the purchase location... " Damm... Changing these minor details would bring just enough patriotism in to raise the future sales.  But no. Hamilton has made these references before. Shame. No hidden conspiracy there. But I claim the idea of modified details myself (if it's unclaimed.)


A nice book indeed.

Forget it! - Take it as a gift - Buy it from a discount - Buy a hard cover - For the prime spot on the shelf     

Saturday, January 12, 2013

Frankenweenie (2012): Horror for the kids.

 

Critic 1


This movie is mainly for the kids and hard core Tim Burton fanatics... Or so I thought. The idea is a basic Frankenstein plot with obvious character substitutions. Tim Burtons puppet-animation style works extremely well here and the resurrected horror / tension elements really hit it home. This short and captivating movie probably suits well as a kids first "horror" film. And of course this is a good date movie. Should be easy enough to digest. 

 Critic 2


The movie is a very nice interpretation of the tale of Frankenstein. I thought this would be children's movie with several Disney singing songs. But I'm glad I was wrong. Well, there was one song, but it was creepy enough.  Black, white and grey colour scale suited to movie perfectly. This is a horror movie for children, but the movie was good and a heart warming story progressed nicely. You may also spot some references to old horror movies. Now I'm curious to see the original short version of Frankenweenie.

A nice movie.
The Judgement Star: A nice movie.

Monday, January 7, 2013

Book: Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton

 

Solid but unsurprising universe...

 

The first part of the commonwealth saga paints a very plausible view of the human society in the not-so-distant future. Humans live practically forever - if the wallet allows - and humans are more or less under one government. Nothing really extraordinary here. Contrary to mainstay stories the space flight does not have so big role in this book. A refreshing exception, although towards the end of the book it started to become more prominent. The bad alien in this book is described chillingly good. The motivations behind the alien actions are told and the pure inhumanity tingles my spine... 

Storytelling like in the Game of Thrones


There is no single main character in the book. Much like in the certain very popular fantasy and middle-age related book series. And I like it. It lets the tension build up or lets you breathe when the main flow of the book demands it and splits the book into a manageable chunks.

A very entertaining but not so overly exceptional book.

Forget it! - Take it as a gift - Buy it from a discount - Buy a hard cover - For the prime spot on the shelf   

-Critic#1