Divergent

I am not sure I remember how to do this. I have not written in some time now, but I feel this film has enough chatter, controversy compared to the source material, and plenty of comparison to The Hunger Games to make it a fun write up. I will admit, I had very little knowledge of what this film was even about when I bought the tickets. With today's social media, it is hard to not know anything about a pop culture event, and yet I was clueless about Divergent. It doesn't take but a few scenes to know exactly what direction this film would go, but with its low Rotten Tomato rating, I was concerned about how the execution would transpire. Turns out, Very Good execution in my opinion. In this post apocalyptic world, the particular culture where this story takes place is made up of 5 factions. Sectors made up of people who have chosen what their particular lot in life will be. It sounds more complicated than it actually is. The film is about one girl's Journey into adulthood. Once the adolescents enter adulthood, they must choose to stay with their family in the faction which they were raised, or choose a new life path. Tris is our main character and her life is completely changed when she chooses to leave her faction for another. The problem is more about her mentality than her choice. This is not the easiest film to write about without spoiling some aspect of it, so I am going to go another direction and stop talking plot, and just give my insight about the film as a whole. I don't read books, so I cannot compare the film to the book, but at 2 hours 20 minutes, it didn't feel full of holes, and it also did not seem to drag on. I did not feel lost at any point, and I was just excited to see what came next. As for The Hunger Games comparison, I get it, and I don't. Post Apocalyptic world. Teenagers finding their way in life. One organization seeking control. These minor points aside, this film is nothing like Hunger Games. Kids don't have to hunt each other to feed their sector. Mostly, everyone gets along pretty well. Just a bunch of people trying to find their new way in life. Divergent refers to a certain type of person, and of course the heroine happens to be a divergent which is why the movie is interesting. All in all I cannot get it out of my head. Due to this fact, I have come to the conclusion that I enjoyed it as much as and maybe a hair more than Hunger Games. I am excited for the sequel and I hope the direction, adaptation, and acting live up to this first film.

NBM rates Divergent - Phenomenal

Star Trek Into Darkness

Let's put it this way. As if I wasn't already stoked for SW: Episode 7 (Strange opener, I know) with JJ at the helm, now I feel I must seclude my life to living in a bubble so as not to die prematurely before it arrives. Trek to me is an awesome precursor into our future of the "other" Sci Fi series JJ will take over. It gives us a very good peak into what this man can do with an epic scale of space and time proportions. I know to you "Trekkies" I have just blastphemed on high, but I don't care. I am not the one who hired JJ to cross into a galaxy far far away, so I feel I can mention the 2 movies in the same paragraph. Let me also say this. Into Darkness is no Iron Man 3. I actually liked it better. Maybe it's the fact I am not as versed in Trek's theology, or maybe it is because we have had a steady dose of Marvel for years now, but had to wait 4 LONG years on this sequel. Either way, Into Darkness starts off strong and with a run time right at 2 hours, it never really slows down. It is intense, dramatic, nail biting inducing, and quite comedic. I went in knowing I would enjoy it, but not really knowing the premise, or the villain it felt like a brand new thing in my life that has been missing.  It is smart, well thought out, and visually stimulating. 
The film may be one of the best I have seen to combine this smart of a plot, perfectly placed comedic one liners, and action parallel with anything Marvel puts out. Now I know I am comparing this film to other franchises, but I want you all to understand how worthy of your time it is. To me, Trek has always been sub par with everything else I loved. Now, it is turning into a series I can get behind. Spock and Kirk have their great chemistry once again, but Benedict Cumberbatch steals the show as the villain, John Harrison. He aims to turn the star fleet on it's ear, and does a pretty good job at it, but his plans are way bigger and at this point in the film, it gets very fun and interesting. It twists and turns, but it very fluid in it's delivery. As good as the first one? Absolutely. I believe I like this one a little better. It's just so AWESOME. Along with the fantastic leads in the film, stand out performances are delivered by the brilliant Simon Pegg as Scotty, Karl Urban as Bones, and Zoe Saldana as Uhura. I cannot think of any part of this film that I didn't enjoy. JJ even did a good job of not throwing promiscuous 3D shots in the film that would have no bearing on the non 3D viewer. I saw a couple but they were not exaggerated, and they were quick. If you liked the first one, you will like this one. If this looks good to you, go watch it. It is all around outstanding.

NBM rates Star Trek Into Darkness - Phenomenal

Looper

So, is it possible to have an original idea these days? Yes. Case in point: Looper. I was more than expecting to love this movie. In fact, it would have taken a complete meltdown of story, acting, and effects for me to not have enjoyed it. Exactly the opposite happened. It is coherent story telling at its finest. There are tons of ins and outs, and what have yous, and I cannot believe how perfect it was. Anyone who owns a TV should know the premise of this film. Loopers are assassins in the year 2044. "Marks" are sent from 30 years in the future to be wiped out by the looper. Loopers are paid well in a mostly poor economy. They live well, they love their drugs and women, and as long as their record remains at 100%, life will remain good. That is what the trailers have fed us. We also know that one day, Old Joe (Willis) appears in front of 2044 Looper Joe (JGL), and JGL fails to do his job. This is only the tip of the iceberg of all the different aspects of this film. It goes in so many directions, yet is so engaging, it is almost impossible to not follow along. There was one point when I thought to myself, what the Hell is happening, then it plays out very well. There is also one aspect before the Joe/Joe situation happens that shows where this can go when failure occurs. I won't ruin it, but it was hard to watch, yet so over the top brilliant in its delivery. Where the story goes after Joe lets Joe get away is absolutely mind boggling. It goes forward and back. It is constantly edge of your seat good, and what is introduced, which becomes the main plot point really, caught me off guard. It was a twist of sorts. I was under the impression it would be about a battle against one's own self, but what it evolved in to is way better. It is deeper, and at times, hard to watch due to subject matter. Old Joe has his own agenda, while Looper Joe is trying to figure out what he needs to do. The writing of this in depth story very well could have derailed and become crap in a can. Instead it ultimately becomes the most original, most enjoyable film since Inception. The always gorgeous Emily Blunt plays a very good character, and Piper Perabo (Remember her? Coyote Ugly) seems to have a small part that turns out not to be that small. I cannot get the film out of my head, which proves how imprinting it is. Films that do that become legends and eventually get remade due to the lack of originality in Hollyweird. Rian Johnson who wrote and directed Looper was born by indie film cred. Looper is no different for him. The only difference is he got a bigger budget to make this film. The film, at times, looks as indie as they come. No soundtrack, no background music, no frills. I was a little concerned, as a lot of folks were, about JGL's prosthetics. I will say, it actually played well. It was not distracting and I appreciated the dedication to make this more real. I did find it hard to believe people in 2044 are still driving 2011 Smart Cars (33 years old), 1998 F 150's (46 years old), and late 2000 model Chevy Silverados (mid 30 years old), but at the same time, I appreciate budget money not being spent to make futuristic props that would have no bearing on the story itself.  That was the only thing I questioned in this futuristic, Sci-Fi Thriller. Everything else was fantastic, and I know why I LOVED it, but I am curious to see how other audience members feel. I did hear some grumbles when the credits rolled, yet I laughed it off and grinned ear to ear at what I had just seen. I already want to watch it again. That is saying something with the ridiculous ticket prices these days.

NBM rates Looper - A Work of Cinematic Art

Total Recall

Every once in a while their is justifiable reasons to remake a film. Even if the original was great. This is one of those films that people want to hate because it may be under the file "sacrilege", but I am open to new interpretation and this is DEFINITELY  worth everyone's time if you enjoyed the first one. Another reason this one was ready for another film is that technology has finally caught up with the world that Philip K Dick created. The world Len Wiseman built is so astoundingly perfect. It was impossible back in 1990 to do it justice. The effects and CG and overall imagination of the Art Directors is so much fun to sit back and enjoy. All that said, THIS IS NOT A REMAKE!! It uses the same title, character names and general principal, but this film actually mirrors the novel very closely, as for the Arnie version, where screen writers took tons of liberties to change a lot of the scenery, ie Mars and whatnot. Colin Farrell chose to do what many would not. Take a role that Mr. Universe made famous. He did it justice, but this version was knocked out of the park through Wiseman's storytelling. The poster's tagline is "What is real? What is Rekall" and I caught myself wondering several times if it was all a dream. Up until the end I was wondering. That is a brilliant film. Staring at Jessica Biel and Kate Beckinsale beat the crap out of each one minute and look beautiful all the other minutes was just superb casting as well. I don't feel I have to get into plot points because I'm sure you all have seen the previous version. I do feel the hatred being thrown at this film is simply out of spite that someone would remake an already brilliant film. I'm glad they did. It entertained me immensely. I want to see it again, if for nothing else, to see three boobs on a single lady.  I also liked seeing what Quaid was reading while in transit. A book by Ian Fleming. A spy novel perhaps. I'm not sure what Fleming is famous for, but I think it was spy novels. This is not a spoiler as it has nothing to do with the plot and was not even mentioned or focused in on. I simply noticed it off center of the main focal point. Blew away my expectations, and if you can take it as a totally different film, and not linger being a sad sack over "what have they done" syndrome, then you too will enjoy it. It is a grade A sci-fi thriller to the MAX. The only regret I have about my experience is the fact that I paid $5.15 for a bottle of Water. Ya, I could get it out of a garden hose...for free...that's $5? And Hollywood wonders why no one is going to the movies.

NBM rates Total Recall - Phenomenal

The Adjustment Bureau

This is one of the best films I have seen in recent years. Maybe it was the subject matter. Maybe it was that I had it pegged all wrong, and it was unlike anything I could have expected. I don't know, but I now LOVE this film. I thought it was going to be a political thriller much like The Ides of March. Not even close. Politics play a role in the plot, but by no means is this film political. This film answers to a higher power than any government could ever possess. It's mainly about life choices and where they will lead your future, but it is also about intervention when necessary to give one a bit of a nudge in the direction you are "suppose" to go. David (Damon) is about to embark on two moments that will define him as a man. He is about to lose an election for a Senate seat, and he is about to meet Elise (Blunt), aka, The woman of his dreams. It is love at first sight, but it is not meant to be. That doesn't stop him from looking for her, but it will be 3 very long years before he runs into again and this is where we get an inside look into what "The Adjustment Bureau" is. Without giving away to much, they are a group of men who feel they know what is best for every human on Earth, and they are also the ones who give those little nudges I spoke of earlier. The thing about this Bureau is no human knows of their existence. Not suppose to. They merely observe, until observing isn't enough. I immediately related them to the observers from Fringe, but in fact this is based on a book that precedes that show some 30 years, so JJ Abrams is actually the plagiarizer here. Shame Shame JJ. So what we here is actually a really great thriller that will keep you enthralled with the end game, and it may make you think of some of the choices you have made in life that you either regretted or didn't understand why you do such a thing. Is there an Adjustment Bureau, or is all just Free Will? Fantastic film with wonderful performance all around. Buy it, rent it, watch it, pass it along to anyone who hasn't seen it. 

NBM rates The Adjustment Bureau - Phenomenal

The Avengers

To say that The Avengers has been anticipated for a while now is under selling it. Think about it. We first heard about "The Avengers Initiative" in 2007 after the credits in Iron Man. That's half a decade ago, and worth the wait. Way to not rush through Marvel. Patience is key when dealing with this many parameters. At 2 hours 22 minutes, I believe it is the longest Marvel film to date, and I did not want it to end. The reason I feel it worked so well at that run time is the fact we need little to no character development. We know the players through years of individual releases from Thor to Captain America and Iron Man we get all the info we need, so the story can get right down to it. I had heard there some comedy, no doubt from group smart ass Tony Stark, but a lot of times the entire theater was rolling. It really is 30% pure comedy. We all know the gist of the film from hours of promotion, TV ads, internet clips, Interviews, Spoilers, and common knowledge of the series, but it is so much fun to see it on the BIG screen. I wanna see it again already. There is really not a lot to say about it, except it is perfect in every way. As a film it is like Captain America in the sense that it was birthed out of Love to be the absolute best it could be. When Loki (Thor's evil brother) comes to Earth to take over, Nick Fury takes issue with this. This is when The Avengers are brought together for the first time. The Avengers looks good on paper as a resort to thwart terrorism, but too many egos is nothing but a bad combination. The whole first half of the film is them getting to know each other and realizing they don't like each other. Captain America is technically a senior citizen, so those jokes are slow pitches, and some of the team get along, but like High School, there will always be divided groups. Tony and Banner get along because they speak the same language. Tech and Science. Thor feels he is above everyone, demigod and all. Hawkeye and Black Widow are on the same page, but it is still a disaster. Loki is a force not of this world and other than Thor, no one knows how to deal with him. He is bringing an alien army, and he feels The Avengers are no match, but little does he know. The ultimate battle between the two worlds is very reminiscent of Transformers 3, but it doesn't matter. It is pure awesomeness. The action and direction is top notch and in a CG world, it is very easy to make it look like crap. Not the case here. It is perfect. I also want to discuss the character with the most controversy. Bruce Banner/Hulk. Mark Ruffalo is the third actor to take on Banner, and he is my favorite as the character. I love Ruffalo anyway, but I actually thought Eric Bana was a good cast for the part, unfortunately it was a HORRID script. Then Edward Norton was brilliant, but Ruffalo carries a brooding, dark attitude better than Norton did or could in my opinion. Now on to The Hulk. This is the biggest love it/ hate it character due to the difficulty of portrayal. He is 100% computer generated and until now he never looked real. This is the first Hulk, where we believe he is part of this team. He doesn't look disconnected or cartoony. He is everyone's favorite because of the shear force and destruction he is capable of. SPOILER - When Hulk and Thor beat the crap out of each other, it is AWESOME - Mind Blowing even. I so wanted Hulk to have a lot of screen time and be a viable character, and boy was he. He also provides one of the biggest laughs of the film. When The Avengers finally figure it out, they are somewhat on the same page. Luckily Captain takes over as the only one with military training and strategic battle planning knowledge, and he gets his ducks in a row. I honestly cannot determine what I liked more. The Avengers beating the snot out of each other at the beginning of the film, or fighting the enemy at the end. It has to be the end, because we love to see the good guys win. The last thing I will say is to PAY ATTENTION to the greatest cross movie reference in this film. Listen closely when Iron Man is gonna fly Hawkeye to the skyline. Literally LMAO at the joke. Oh ya and stay through the credits....all the way through. Trust me, It is a brilliantly, silently, hilarious 60 seconds that you will appreciate.


NBM Rates The Avengers - A Cinematic Work of Art

The Matrix

This film changed everything, and it came out 13 years ago. It will be forever used as comparison for any film that may come out. Whether it's story, special effects, originality, or what have you. Neo lives in The Matrix. A computer program that you feel is the real world. It's a complicated story that must be watched several times to really get it. The first time you watch it, you may miss things because you will be awestruck. He has been plucked by Morpheus and his band of freedom fighters to help with the cause. The cause being to take their world back from the machines. Yes, you may be thinking Skynet right now, and that is not far off. What the Wachowski Brothers give us with The Matrix though is much, much more in depth than that. The world they created is amazing. Plus they revolutionized special effects using several hundred cameras in a single shot to slow down time in the most realistic fashion to date. 1999's date, not today's date. Every film owes a debt to The Matrix. It broke a new ground in film making that is kind of a catch 22, if you will. It gave us the realm of really good digital effects, which in turn gave movie makers an easy way to make movies 100% that way, which takes away from a lot of films. The number one turn off for me is bad CG. We live in a CG Era now, but with the first Matrix, it is the perfect blend of stunt work, wires, slow motion capture, and CG. The Wachowski's should not have done 2 things following this film. 1- They should have considered not making the sequels; and 2- With the sequels they should have recreated the magic combination from the first film. They too relies 100% on digital effects and at times it looked like a video game, because essentially that what they made. This film also has some of the greatest action scenes in the history of film. The Hotel Lobby is the quintessential scene to watch when Surround Sound shopping. Take the Lobby scene and watch through the Morpheus escape with all the rounds falling from the chopper and you will know which sound system to buy. I must have seen this film 50 times, and when propositioned to watch the other day, it was a no brainer. Still as good as it was the first time. I'm sure the majority of you have seen this, as it is somewhat aged, but if you have not, do yourself a favor and go buy a copy of it today.


NBM rates The Matrix - A Cinematic Work of Art

In Time

I was anxiously awaiting this when it hit theaters, but missed it. Wah Wah. Finally got to see it, and my only regret was how exhausted I was when I decided to delve into a whole new world, a new fantastic point of view. I made it through in one sitting, but wish I could have been amped up a little more, because even as tired as I may have been, it was still awesome. I was a little leery about it due to all the "I liked it, but..." coming from anyone I knew who saw it. The one that stuck with me was, "The film was not long enough to get into this created world to the fullest." I DO NOT agree with this. Yes, at less than 2 hours we have to absorb all the rules of this world that has been given to us, but the flow and attention to detail was great. Then we have the acting. These people are professional for a reason. We must believe them when they believe they will die when their time is up. Literally. The clock on the arm counts down and if it hits zero, you die. It is a fantastic world where the currency for living is your time line. 4 minutes for coffee, an hour for a bus ride and so on. Each human's clock starts when they turn 25 and is set for 1 year. The catch is from this point on, you will never age, so a world full of attractive people may die at the age of 50, but they still look as they did when they turned 25. They can earn time for goods and services such as we earn greenbacks, or clams, or bones, or whatever you call them. When ghetto dweller, Will Salas (Timberlake) is given a present of an enormous amount of time, he becomes public enemy number one and then we really get into this world and how there are still classes of people. Rich, poor, middle and its all based on time. Like I said earlier, The Details is what you will enjoy. Things you would never think about since we have never been in this situation. When Will gets desperate and takes extreme measures the heat turns up on him, but he doesn't care. He wants to change the world for the better, but will the Time Keepers (cops) get to him before he can do that? It is a very in depth film that does a nice job not leaving any questions after it's hour and forty five minutes are done. I will recommend you all watch this if you like the trailer. It is a new twist on society that I liked very much.
NBM rates In Time - Phenomenal

Cowboys & Aliens

Honestly, I don't know why this genre mash up is getting ripped apart so badly? Oh wait, maybe it's because it's really different, and original. I will say, I have waited a year for this film, and it finally came, and I am happy. What my question is, what's not to like? Harrison Ford back in the Action role? Daniel Craig with a 6 shooter? Aliens? All of the above are great reasons to go watch C&A. It starts off like all the trailers we have seen. Jake Lonergan (Craig) wakes up near nowhere, with no memory of who he is, or why that "iron" is on his wrist. When he gets to the nearest town of Absolution, things get harry. He messes with the wrong guy, and ends up shackled for a different crime he can't remember committing. This film starts off perfectly. Character development is done well, but the "Western" part of the film is awesome. It is done so well, we feel we are there to see a western, but without wait, the aliens show up and attack. The writing is great in the fact that, the Internet does not exist in 1865, nor does Stephen Hawking, so space and time and other beings are unknown. The alien vessels fly in at high speeds destroying everything while taking prisoners. For what? That is where the film heads. Harrison Ford plays "The Colonel", who is a hard nosed battle hardened man. He is rough and tough and played to perfection. To say that he and Lonergan don't like each other would not do it justice. We are teased a little bit with the aliens themselves, but not long enough to piss us off. The next order of business is figuring out what they want and how to get their people back. Lonergan is the biggest hope, since the wrist accessory he wears is the only weapon they have that will bring them down. There are definite resemblances to ID4, and the Indiana Jones tribute is classic. See if you catch it. I don't think it was unintentional at all. All the people involved in the end is outstanding. Favreau does a great job of making a Sci-Fi western. He also does a superb job of flashing back when we, the audience, and Lonergan are all seeing what he is beginning to remember. A couple of sub plots are welcomed to enhance the story, and 1 very good twist helps with development. When the aliens are not on screen or the focus of the Cowboys, the western aspect is so fun to watch. One thing I did not expect was to see the aliens as much as we did. It was awesome. The last 20 minutes was a wild rush of action, that just kept going. A-Bomb kept looking at me asking how critics could hate it. A-Bomb, The AP, and myself all loved the film, but reviews have been mixed. Critics hate it, but 70% of users like it. I think it is a good big screen movie. I welcome the change, and originality, and I hope this can open the minds of writers to think outside the box. Daniel Craig just solidifies himself even more as one of the Elite actors working today. He is British, but he played an American Cowboy as good as Harrison Ford. This was my most anticipated movie of the summer, and when asked why, I responded, "I will be glad to see Harrison in another action role that is not Indy. As much as I love Indy, this should be great for him." It was. If you have ever thought, you may possibly think you would like to see this, then go see it. The trailers did it justice, and Favreau delivers again. Overall, it is a great western with Aliens, or a great Sci Fi adventure with Cowboys. Either way, well done.

NBM rates Cowboys and Aliens - Phenomenal

Independence Day

Only one movie worth writing about on the 4th of July. The film that changed things. An alien invasion movie like nothing we've ever seen. This movie is so good, I can't pass it by if it is on. I also just learned that Roland Emmerich directed it. I only bring that up because he also directed The Patriot. A review I wrote from a couple days ago. It starts out like any other film of its ilk, but then quickly takes the turn we need. The ships are hovering over every major city across the world, and we wonder if they are friendly or not, then they go and blow 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. At this point, we know they are hostile. Will Smith launched his career as the fighter pilot hero, and Jeff Goldblum is the science nerd who may have a solution to stopping the bad aliens. This movie does a brilliant job of putting in the "jumpiness",out necessarily being scary. When we first get to see an alien up close in lab is where it all goes down. "Is that glass bullet proof?" The aliens have successfully killed millions of people, and destroyed several major cities, but the fight we humans possess inside us is undeniable, and history has proven that even if you are out matched, if you bother the opposing force enough, eventually they will just go away. We fight and try to figure out how to take out the aliens defense system, and if this works we may actually have a fair fight. The White House blowing up is one of the coolest visuals of all time. Solid action, direction, and script make this the ideal action drama, which happens to take place on our Independence Day. Bill Pullman as our POTUS does a great job and delivers one of the best on screen speeches/pep talks in cinema history. I still get chills when I hear it. Never fails.

NBM rates Independence Day (ID4 for short) - A Work of Cinematic Art

Total Recall

Please excuse the picture, but this is a tribute post. Our very own Dean-O is having a similar nostril procedure done today, so we thought it would be funny to give you all a look into what's happening. Here, Quaid (Arnold) is actually removing a tracking device from his nose. I have only seen this movie twice before last night, and I didn't remember much about it. It is actually one of the more clever films laid down. Quaid is bored with his life, he wants to move to mars, or at least vacation there, but he can't convince his wife (Sharon Stone) to go. He decides to visit a company called Recall. They place the memories in one's brain to make them feel like they did something they didn't actually do. He is pretty stoked when he gets to take a trip to Mars as a secret agent without actually ever going anywhere. Cool concept. Unfortunately before the memories are implanted he goes berserk. He is talking and screaming out of his head about his "mission" and his "blown cover". Apparently he has had his memory wiped, and the memories from the past 8 years were implanted to make him forget what he was actually doing. He has only been Quaid for 6 weeks. This awesome part of all this is his mentality. What's real? What's a dream? Where do you belong? The mind is a very powerful organ, and if it's true in there, what makes it false in reality? Nothing. Quaid must piece it all together, since he is now a target. He is being hunted down by the company that erased his memory. They need to get rid of him once and for all. He travels to Mars to figure out what his happening to him. Cohaagen is in charge of the red planet and Quaid is out to shut him down. The people of Mars are oppressed and a resistant team led by a mutant named Kuato are trying to overthrow the current leaders. Quaid is now there to help. Twist after twist, this movie is really intriguing to me. How hard would it be to continually be in an argument with your brain? That would be unimaginable. This movie is definitely smart and impressive, especially for 1990. Total Recall is getting another movie. I'm not sure if it is a sequel or a re-boot, but either way it looks like Colin Farrell is attached in the leading role. I think it could be just as good with today's technology, as long as the story holds up and they don't try and copy the first film word for word.

NBM rates Total Recall - Awesome

Tron: Legacy

Visually stimulating. Overly Bright. A two hour mangasm. It states, "What 3D was made for." That I disagree with. While it was awesome, and I do not regret paying the extra 300 pennies, I do proclaim that Avatar was still a better 3D offering. Not necessarily story wise, but the 3D effects popped more. I guess I am not sure if I had watched Tron in 2D if anything would have been lost. Tron: Legacy is getting ripped based on its "weak" story, and it's being praised for it's visuals. I say they are half right. The visuals do make the film, but the story is powerful. All I kept thinking was, what if I had no choice, and I were imprisoned by what I had built? I cannot imagine missing out on 20 years of my son's life. Not being able to explain to him where I was, only hoping he would not hate me if we were to be together again. Tron is deeper than critics are realizing. They are expecting something the doesn't exist. Another movie that could predict the future like TRON (1982) did is gonna be hard to reproduce. Tron:Legacy does a fantastic job for a sequel 28 years in waiting. I really enjoyed the two Jeff Bridges battling each other. Flynn is trying to create a perfect world inside a program. He creates CLU in his own image to do the work when he is unavailable. I thought Garrett Hedlund, who plays Sam Flynn, did a superb job. He is informed by Alan, his Dad's best friend and Sam's interim Father of sorts, that he received a page from Kevin's office at the arcade. The strange thing is the number has been disconnected for 20 years. Sam can't ignore it and goes to check it out. This is when he gets sucked into the program that has kept Kevin a hostage for the past two decades. From here the plot is thin, the action is thick, and the special effects are outstanding. It is very retrospective of the first film when Sam enters the program. He and his Father had the same mentality about it at first. Sam is much more aggressive than Kevin ever was, and this is helpful to his survival. Not to mention the technology Sam grew up with gives him the advantage of what to expect, and what may or may not be possible. We see a lot of the same aspects in this film as we did in the original. The speeder bikes, discs which hold memory, Transport vehicles, but it is so much more special. It just feels so real. Olivia Wilde is a hot program name Cora. She helps Sam and Kevin, and she longs to feel and see a sunrise. The whole film comes to a head when the object is revealed. I won't give anything away, because I didn't even know that was where it was going. I must admit it is hard to watch Bridges do anything anymore without adding Dudisms to his lines. Mostly the word Man to the end of every line does it pretty well. Fortunately he did that himself for most of the film. It felt at times like the laziest man ever, El Duderino, had somehow stumbled his high, White Russian drinking ass into a program. I also feel Bridges can do no wrong. What an Icon. TRON (1982) changed and predicted the future. This one makes us wonder, but stops there. It is a very fun movie, that is definitely worthy of the title "Big Screen Movie".

NBM rates Tron : Legacy - Phenomenal

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TRON

Considered one of the biggest flops in cinema history at the time. TRON was made for $17 million back in 1982 and only grossed out at $33 million. In 1982 computers were the size of rooms and unaffordable by common men. I think that is why it had box office woes. Today computers are ubiquitous, but in 1982 the words "computer program", and "software" were not relative terms. We did not own our first computer machine until 1995 and it was, by today's standards, a piece of crap. Not only did it suck, but it cost a fortune. Windows 95 and all. Amazing how far we have come since then, let alone 1982. I think I watched TRON once as a child and was so lost I never watched it again. With the release of Tron: Legacy, I have watched TRON 3 times in 3 days all taking place about 6 weeks ago. It's genius cannot be described, but must be witnessed first hand. It is still mind boggling to me and I am not the ignorant little boy who couldn't afford a computer, but now I own several, and I know a bit about them, but still cannot fathom being thrust into a program and having to survive. Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) is a gamer and game designer who feels his old company stole his idea, so he hacks in to get proof. The MCP or Master Control Program sucks Flynn into the computer where his alter ego Clu must survive. TRON is the new security program sent to shut down MCP for all his wrong doing. Clu and TRON must thrive in this environment and take down MCP to save reality. Clu thinks it's just a game. He doesn't realize if he dies, it's game over for him and Flynn. TRON must eliminate MCP for the greater good of both worlds. It is a film that should have you in awe the entire time. A film this advanced for it's time that very few movie goers probably even understood. The sequel comes out today and I am excited. Looks like a great premise for a sequel and the technology finally caught up. What started out as simple espionage to prove he was ripped off, Flynn is in for the fight of his life. I predict Tron: Legacy will exceed the $300 million mark domestically, which sounds like a lot, but with a budget in the high $200 millions, percentage wise it would be more of a failure than the first film, but I bet it is not seen that way at all. Just my opinion. We are having a viewing party of the first film followed by a trip to the theater to watch the second film tonight and I could not be more stoked. Unless I don't get tickets, you will get that review on the morrow. I hope the 3D doesn't suck. I am still on the fence about that reason to boost my ticket price.

NBM rates TRON - A Work of Cinematic Art!!!

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Repo Men

I had a hankering to see Repo Men, but did little to no investigation into what is was, or how it was. I knew one thing about it. The Repo Men repo human organs from buyers who are past due on their payments. A-Bomb made a good point, you see once your organ is repo'd, you basically die. Which if you hadn't had the transplant in the first place you would have died anyway. The organs are now man made electronic functioning devices, and they have absolutely everything from a heart to super hearing ears. All come at a price with a contract that you better pay up. If you are 90+ days past due the Repo Men are legally allowed to taze you and surgically remove their property right there on the spot. It is graphic and gross, but rent-a-center would do the exact same thing if you were behind on that plasma TV you had to have. Ruthless? Maybe, but they should've made their payments. The two best Repo Men in the biz are Remy (Jude Law) and his life long friend Jake (Forest Whitaker). Their boss if played by Liev Schrieber. His is a stone cold boss who needs results. Both from his salesmen to sell $600K organs and his repo men to get them back if need be. It's a genius plot that was done really well. Remy is beginning to have issues with his current line of work, well, his wife is anyway. He is planning on getting out until one day he involved in a terrible accident. Guess what, he needs a heart now. He now has a perspective no repo man should have. Compassion. His whole life is ripped apart when he is mentally unable to do his job. No repo's, no money. No money, no payments. He quickly becomes the target of his company. All the years of service matter not. You don't pay, you lose. The story unfolds pretty predictably, but it's a fun ride. Remy's ultimate goal is to take himself out of the system. If his account is deleted or shows it's been paid off, then he will no longer be targeted. It doesn't have many laughs, but when it does, they are deserved. I said predictable earlier, but it twists and turns and ends in a way unforeseen by myself or The A-Bomb. The feeling was mutual that we both really enjoyed it.

** It is very graphic during the repo scenes, so watcher beware!!

NBM rates Repo Men - Awesome

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Repo Men (Unrated) [Blu-ray] 

Repo Men  DVD

Surrogates

Being laid up these past few days, I've had plenty of time to watch some movies I hadn't seen. Surrogates happened to be one of the first ones I decided to watch. Based on recommendations from A- Bomb and my mother "Shayla", I dove right into it unsuspecting of what lay ahead. I knew the premise. The ads and commercials made it pretty obvious of that. What I didn't know was the payoff. James Cromwell was a pleasant surprise. He plays the inventor of the surrogate program, which is now a worldwide way of life. Humans now live their lives through their surrogates. They actually have surrogate stores where a surrogate can be purchased if need be by any user. These machines are made to look like their users, and there is no class differences. Not only the rich can afford them. Everyone has a surrogate. When plugged into one's surrogate, a'la The Matrix, the user is in complete control, but without the chance of being harmed physically. These have declined the death rate of mankind. They never mentioned what the life expectancy rose to once the surrogates became a normal way of life. I think it would have been an interesting aspect to the film. "Now with the surrogate program, the average human being lives to be 98 years old" or something to that affect. Anyway, when the son of the inventor is the first user ever to die while plugged into the program, some red flags are raised. FBI agent Greer (Bruce Willis) is hot on the case until his surrogate is destroyed by the human movement lead by "The Prophet" playes by Ving Rhames. When this happens, he has no choice but to go out into the world and in harms way to solve the mystery. He uncovers a plot that will be detrimental to the well being of every human on earth. Great story, with a good twist, and really fun to watch RT rated Surrogates at 39% which is pitiful to me.

NBM rates Surrogates - Awesome

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The Island

The Island was somewhat original, and somewhat Twilight zone or The Outer Limits mashed up into an action packed film. The Island as it is called is a lottery vacation escape given away to the residents that reside in this community. It is an all indoor community where everyone is a number instead of a name. One day Ewan McGregor starts asking questions, and his friend played by Scarlett Johansson, tags along on his adventure. He wonders why he has no memories, even though he is an adult. Their entire existence is based on routine. Sort of like the nicest maximum security prison you've ever seen. One things leads to another and his discoveries are extremely disturbing to him. He desperately begins spreading the word to the other "inmates". He also discovers once you win the lottery to the Island you never come back. He does the unthinkable and escapes this "prison" only to dive deeper into this mess, but he will not stop until he figures out every piece of the puzzle. It's as twisted as it is brilliant, and it gets better as it wraps up. I will not spoil it for those who haven't seen it, but for those who have, You know what I'm talking about.


NBM rates The Island - Awesome




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The Last Starfighter

When my neighbor, who is also my best friend, who is also old as dirt (he is 35) asked me if I wanted to watch The Last Starfighter, of course I said yes. This is the sole reason I am better than every other critic on Earth. I am able to watch a movie from 1984, and appreciate it for all it is. I did not grow up with this movie. Tonight is the first time I ever saw it. I am completely able to send my brain back to when I was 8 years old, and absolutely love this film. I do not make fun of the poor CG, or anything like that. I dug it completely. Tron came out and created the computer generated film in 1982, and not many other films tries to follow that lead. The Last Starfighter does enter the realm of computer graphics and does it rather well. It follows Alex, a trailer park raised young man who feels he is destined for better things. He does spend much of his time playing the video game "Starfighter". A video game to him and every other Earthling, he has no idea it is actually a real time simulator placed on Earth to train would be starfighters. The game serves as a recruitment tool for the aliens facing invasion. A fleet of starfighters have been set to fight back against evil. Alex wants no part of this, so he hitches the first ride back to the trailer park. Once back on his home planet, the rest of the starfighter fleet are destroyed by the enemy, plus one saboteur, who is on board with them. Alex knows what he must do. Being The Last Starfighter, he rises to the challenge. He leaves his family and his girl in order to save several other worlds in the universe. The video game has taught him well, and he uses his talents to the fullest. With great comedy intertwined into the sci fantasy story, it turns into an awesome story, that in my opinion, should have been sequelled. I mean, Evil Emperor Xur, (Similar to the Evil Emperor Zurg from Toy Story. Coincidence? I think not), was never killed. He was not even captured. Alex accepted the job of Starfighter trainer, he came back to Earth to get his girl and save the galaxy, but no sequel. Baffling. (On a side note, The Last Starfighter, 1984, still looks better than Transmorphers, 2007.) If I had seen this when I was 8, I would have rated it Awesome. Now, at 28,

NBM rates The Last Starfighter - Awesome....... I Rule!!!

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Masters of the Universe

The Expendables: Day 6

By The Power of Greyskull, I had a good time watching this 1987 release featuring The Expendables star Dolph Lundgren. Of course, if I had seen it for the first time ever last night, it probably wouldn't have been as great to me, but having grown up with it, I was really taken back to that time in my life. I think this is the lowest rated film I have reviewed so far. Sitting at 13% on RT, not many people gave it a positive review. I, on the other hand, enjoy watching movies I grew up on. With all the crappy CG, and the bad sound editing. None of that matters, because it was as enjoyable as it ever was. Sucks there was no green tiger though. I would have liked them to have had at least one scene with that awesome tiger. It wouldn't have been hard. A little paper mache', some paint. All he had to be was a prop in the background on the planet of Eternia. Other than that one miss, Dolph wore the crap out of that cape, did he not? I also remember how scared I used to get at the site of Skeletor's bounty hunters. The creepy short, ghoulies type fellow, with the flowing pompadour and bad teeth used to freak me out. Karg, I think was his name,kind of still does. Courtney Cox couldn't have asked for a better big screen debut. What a career launcher that turned out to be. She really rocked the denim jacket/skirt combo well. What I couldn't get past was, if let's say, they had a million dollar budget to film Masters, then I'd say they spent half of that budget on Skeletor. He was awesome looking. I may be biased on the subject of He-Man, but I am willing to bet there are a lot of you all that feel the same way. I decided to post this picture, because growing up, the green tiger with orange stripes and no moving parts was my favorite toy. Will I ever watch it again?

Absolutley! I'm sure one day my boy will wanna see it and I will oblige him.

Masters of the Universe NBM rating of -Great 

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Terminator Salvation

The Expendables: Day 5

Some of you may be wondering who the common factor between Terminator Salvation and The Expendables is. You had to really pay attention to Terminator to notice him, because unfortunately he dies really early in the film. I'm talking about Terry Crews. (Hit the link to watch his hilarious Old Spice commercials). He is a large black man who used to be an NFLer, but now lends his bulky body not only to action films, but he is also quite the funny man in several comedies. He has great screen presence for someone with no formal acting lessons. You may remember him from the comedy Benchwarmers with Rob Schneider. He wore a hilarious Blonde Toupe' to hide his bald head. Anyway, Terminator Salvation is an awesome movie. I can't beleieve it was rated the lowest among the 4 films, even the 3rd one, which I like, but not as much as this one. I actually find Salvation more enjoyable than The original (I know, I'm a Blasphemist) and the 3rd one. Judgement Day will always be the tops to me. Christian Bale did a phenomenal job being the so called "Savior" of the human race after Skynet launched and Judgement day left very few people on earth. I really like how McG directed Salvation. The action and the new Terminators we are introduced to was neat because Skynet hadn't yet launched the T-800 series made famous by Arnold. We got to see clunkier early versions for most of the film, only to get an all digital Avatar, if you will, of Arnold's face and body on the brand new T-800. It was cool to see the look on John Connor's face when he first saw his one time protector roll out of the steam of the engineering department trying to kill him. I also really enjoyed the Kyle Reese character. He has not been more than a memory in the 2nd and 3rd films. It was nice to see what kind of warrior he was, and to see him meet his son, who is older than him at the time. Of course, he doesn't know he is Connor's father, but Connor is well aware he cannot let anything happen to his, then teenage, father.  I am a little upset though to know this was supposed to be the first movie in an all "War with the Machines" trilogy, only to find out no one wants to fund the two sequels, which Bale is contracted for. Now we lay in wait while the Terminator series is actually on the auction block. I was immediately looking forward to the next film the moment the credits rolled on Salvation. When it first got a PG-13 rating, I was confused, because it was supposed to be very dark. I then came to the realisation that machines don't have blood, therefore there could lots of death and destruction without warranting an R rating. I was not disappointed in the least. I was worried going into the movie that I had built it up to much in my head and it couldn't live up to my expectations. In fact it exceeded, which isn't hard with me, but well appreciated. I hope it does return for 2 more movies and I will be there. As for Terry Crews, I hope he has a bigger part in The Expendables, because he is an awesome actor. I have enjoyed everything he is in, and look forward to the intensity he is bound to continue to bring to the silver screen. I predict that one day he will get the lead role in a big movie like Danny Trejo finally got in the upcoming "Machete" after years of being a character actor.
NBM gives this film a rating of Phenomenal

Here is proof that Terry Crews was in Terminator Salvation. That's him on the right talking with Bale and Director McG.




















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The Omega Man

Based on the Novel by Richard Matheson, this is the second of three films based on the book. The first starred Vincent Price from 1964 and was called "The Last Man on Earth",  and the last was "I Am Legend" with Will Smith back in 2007. The Omega Man starred Charlton Heston as Dr. Robert Neville. It was released in 1971 and didn't fare as well as the other two. I wasn't aware of this movie when I first saw I Am Legend. After having seen and enjoyed I Am Legend, I wanted to watch The Omega Man. A few days ago I did watch it and its funny to me to see a movie that is basically the same script as I Am Legend, but at the same time, completely different. The similarities I Am Legend took straight out of the Omega Man were funny for me to see in reverse order. Charlton Heston basically drives around all day in any car he wants to, gathering food and supplies for his survival. The Night Walkers know of his existence and want to kill him or at the very least, turn him into one of them. Neville's main agenda is to find a cure, since he is immune, to save all humanity. The biggest difference between the two is the mental state of the night walkers. In The Omega Man, they are reasoning, mentally stable people, who believe God is punishing them for their violent ways as humans. They also believe Neville is the Devil of sorts, since he is not one of them. They believe it must be his fault they have become light sensitive. It's a classic 1970's campfest film. It's full of action and not short on laughs. It's also a catch 22 for the lead character. He does nothing all day and night that doesn't relate to him finding a "cure" for people that absolutely don't want to be "cured". Good acting, jokes, action, and campiness. I enjoyed it more than I expected I would and it's easy for me to give The Omega Man an NBM rating of Great.
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