My Movie Year in Reviews
Thanks to my good friend, Rick Klaw, I've been lucky enough to attend quite a few advance press-screenings for various movies over the last 12 months. when appropriate I have even penned a few reviews for the great folks over at RevolutionSF.com.
As much as a reminder to myself, here's a run-down and links to my various reviews from 2010.
CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER - 7/10 - The third installment of the Narnia chronicles revolves around the two youngest of the Pevensie children, Lucy (Georgie Henley), and Edmund (Skandar Kyenes), returning to the magical land of Narnia, where they are legendary rulers, to join their friend, King Caspian (Ben Barnes), in a search for seven magical swords needed to drive an all encompassing evil that is infiltrating his newly peaceful realm. Also reluctantly drawn into the adventure is their annoying and skeptical cousin, Eustace (an excellent Will Pulter in his first feature role).
Plot-wise, this installment is the thinnest of the Narnia stories, as it lacks many of the twists and turns of others, and it does not include any grand battles. Yet The Dawn Treader has always been my favorite book in the series (it's actually the fifth installment), as it's the most character driven. - Full Review
DESPICABLE ME - 6/10 - Pretty much everything you need to know about Despicable Me is covered by the four theatrical trailers, which have been playing for a while now. String three of the trailers together and you basically have the first five minutes of the movie.
The predictable plot centers around an aging and somewhat unsuccessful super-villain named Gru (voiced by Steve Carell), who has been upstaged by a young upstart, Vector (Jason Segel), after he pulls off a theft of one of the Pyramids. - Full Review
RED - 8/10 - RED is everything recent movies such as The Losers and The Expendables tried to be but failed. A mix of buddy movie, band reunion, May-December romance, political thriller and plain flat out action movie, it works on all those levels except one.
The one area it falls down is with the political thriller plotline which is meant to be the driving force behind the heroes' actions. But it doesn't really matter why they are doing what they are. It’s just fun to watch them do it. - Full Review
ROBIN HOOD - 4/10 - When you sit down to watch a movie with the words "Robin" and "Hood" in the title there are certain things you expect to see. You know, things like the lead character becoming an outlaw, taking to Sherwood Forest and then robbing the rich to give to the poor.
If that's the expectation you have for this Ridley Scott directed Russell Crowe action flick, don't hold your breath, because none of that happens until the closing minutes of the movie.
Whatever this movie is, the one thing it isn't is a Robin Hood movie. - Full Review
SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD - 9/10 If you've ever played a video game, read a comic, watched anime, jammed in a garage band, liked movies, or been in love; then you need to see this movie.
It's as simple as that.
I've read snarky reviews in some of the mainstream press that say this movie is only for video game obsessed twenty-somethings. They are wrong. - Full Review
TOY STORY 3 - 8/10 - When Pixar originally announced they were doing a sequel to Toy Story, I was skeptical. There was no way they could recapture the magic of the original, which is simply one of the best buddy-movies ever made. Yet, in 1999 they proved me wrong. Toy Story 2 was a wonderful movie.
If I was skeptical eleven years ago, I was even more distrusting this time around. The early trailers made it look like this was going the way of most franchise third installments, and suddenly overload the plot with a mass of new characters I didn't care about.
It also appeared that it was pandering to Hollywood's current infatuation with 3D. I should have known better. My new mantra should be "Trust in Pixar." - Full Review
TRON: Legacy - 4/10 - Back in 1982 a movie was released by Disney that I never expected to see from that particular studio; a movie dealing with the still nascent world of computer science and its growing impact on pop culture. That movie, Tron, proved to be a little disappointing in terms of story telling, felt over long (even though it was just 96 minutes), but was for its time a visually stunning event whose imagery stayed with me long after the movie was over. Over the years it became something of a cult classic that many, including myself, remembered fondly.... - Full Review
As much as a reminder to myself, here's a run-down and links to my various reviews from 2010.
CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER - 7/10 - The third installment of the Narnia chronicles revolves around the two youngest of the Pevensie children, Lucy (Georgie Henley), and Edmund (Skandar Kyenes), returning to the magical land of Narnia, where they are legendary rulers, to join their friend, King Caspian (Ben Barnes), in a search for seven magical swords needed to drive an all encompassing evil that is infiltrating his newly peaceful realm. Also reluctantly drawn into the adventure is their annoying and skeptical cousin, Eustace (an excellent Will Pulter in his first feature role).
Plot-wise, this installment is the thinnest of the Narnia stories, as it lacks many of the twists and turns of others, and it does not include any grand battles. Yet The Dawn Treader has always been my favorite book in the series (it's actually the fifth installment), as it's the most character driven. - Full Review
DESPICABLE ME - 6/10 - Pretty much everything you need to know about Despicable Me is covered by the four theatrical trailers, which have been playing for a while now. String three of the trailers together and you basically have the first five minutes of the movie.
The predictable plot centers around an aging and somewhat unsuccessful super-villain named Gru (voiced by Steve Carell), who has been upstaged by a young upstart, Vector (Jason Segel), after he pulls off a theft of one of the Pyramids. - Full Review
RED - 8/10 - RED is everything recent movies such as The Losers and The Expendables tried to be but failed. A mix of buddy movie, band reunion, May-December romance, political thriller and plain flat out action movie, it works on all those levels except one.
The one area it falls down is with the political thriller plotline which is meant to be the driving force behind the heroes' actions. But it doesn't really matter why they are doing what they are. It’s just fun to watch them do it. - Full Review
ROBIN HOOD - 4/10 - When you sit down to watch a movie with the words "Robin" and "Hood" in the title there are certain things you expect to see. You know, things like the lead character becoming an outlaw, taking to Sherwood Forest and then robbing the rich to give to the poor.
If that's the expectation you have for this Ridley Scott directed Russell Crowe action flick, don't hold your breath, because none of that happens until the closing minutes of the movie.
Whatever this movie is, the one thing it isn't is a Robin Hood movie. - Full Review
SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD - 9/10 If you've ever played a video game, read a comic, watched anime, jammed in a garage band, liked movies, or been in love; then you need to see this movie.
It's as simple as that.
I've read snarky reviews in some of the mainstream press that say this movie is only for video game obsessed twenty-somethings. They are wrong. - Full Review
TOY STORY 3 - 8/10 - When Pixar originally announced they were doing a sequel to Toy Story, I was skeptical. There was no way they could recapture the magic of the original, which is simply one of the best buddy-movies ever made. Yet, in 1999 they proved me wrong. Toy Story 2 was a wonderful movie.
If I was skeptical eleven years ago, I was even more distrusting this time around. The early trailers made it look like this was going the way of most franchise third installments, and suddenly overload the plot with a mass of new characters I didn't care about.
It also appeared that it was pandering to Hollywood's current infatuation with 3D. I should have known better. My new mantra should be "Trust in Pixar." - Full Review
TRON: Legacy - 4/10 - Back in 1982 a movie was released by Disney that I never expected to see from that particular studio; a movie dealing with the still nascent world of computer science and its growing impact on pop culture. That movie, Tron, proved to be a little disappointing in terms of story telling, felt over long (even though it was just 96 minutes), but was for its time a visually stunning event whose imagery stayed with me long after the movie was over. Over the years it became something of a cult classic that many, including myself, remembered fondly.... - Full Review