MOVIE REVIEW: THE BOOK OF ELI

ON DVD

THE BOOK OF ELI



In the not-too-distant future, some 30 years after the final war, a solitary man walks across the wasteland that was once America. Empty cities, broken highways, seared earth--all around him, the marks of catastrophic destruction. There is no civilization here, no law. The roads belong to gangs that would murder a man for his shoes, an ounce of water--or for nothing at all. But they're no match for this traveler. A warrior not by choice but necessity, Eli seeks only peace but, if challenged, will cut his attackers down before they realize their fatal mistake. It's not his life he guards so fiercely but his hope for the future; a hope he has carried and protected for 30 years and is determined to realize. Driven by this commitment and guided by his belief in something greater than himself, Eli does what he must to survive--and continue. Only one other man in this ruined world understands the power Eli holds, and is determined to make it his own: Carnegie, the self-appointed despot of a makeshift town of thieves and gunmen. Meanwhile, Carnegie's adopted daughter Solara is fascinated by Eli for another reason: the glimpse he offers of what may exist beyond her stepfather's domain. But neither will find it easy to deter him. Nothing--and no one--can stand in his way. Eli must keep moving to fulfill his destiny and bring help to a ravaged humanity.

Director: Allen Hughes , Albert Hughes

Cast: Denzel Washington , Gary Oldman , Mila Kunis , Ray Stevenson , Jennifer Beals

Release Date: Jan 15, 2010

Rated R for some brutal violence and language

Runtime: 1 hr. 58 min.

Genres: Action/Adventure

Review:

The Hughes Brother’s have always had more talent than they’ve been given credit for, kind of lost in the mix and failing to make their mark after their break through film Menace 2 Society. The Book of Eli, unfortunately, won’t leave any sort of lasting impression either. Dour and lacking any sort of real heart, this overly serious and only occasionally interesting post apocalyptic road movie thinks it’s a lot more important than it actually is. The script has a message and the screenwriter could have taken some interesting angels on the subject matters of faith and religion in general, instead we get generic heroes and villains dialogue with a fairly pain by the numbers action sequences. The Hughes Brother’s shoot the film with enough style to give it an impressive if overly glossy look throughout even if we are left with the impression that the end of the world looks like Arizona. Denzel Washington is the strongest player in the entire film. He plays Eli with serious single mindedness vigor, giving the character a depth that isn’t in the script. It’s a shame he’s mostly wasted because I think that he could have done something interesting with a meatier more interesting take on the general concept. Washington plays his dutifully and looks believable during the films action sequences. Mila Kunis isn’t asked to do much in her role, much like the rest of the ancillary characters. Gary Oldman is asked to play a one dimensional villain and no one could fault for collecting a play check here. Ray Stevenson and Jennifer Beals are thoroughly wasted barely say a word. If you’d seen the more enjoyable classic The Road Warrior or the more thoughtful and gut wrenching The Road then there’s really no reason to waste your time here outside of waiting for a ludicrous curve ball at the end of this film.

C-

Movie Reviews: THE UNBORN

Saturday, September 12, 2009
Movie Reviews: THE UNBORN
ON DVD



THE UNBORN




Casey Beldon (Odette Yustman) hated her mother for leaving her as a child. But when inexplicable things start to happen, Casey begins to understand why she left. Plagued by merciless dreams and a tortured ghost that haunts her waking hours, she must turn to the only spiritual advisor, Sendak (Gary Oldman), who can make it stop. With Sendak’s help, Casey uncovers the source of a family curse dating back to Nazi Germany—a creature with the ability to inhabit anyone or anything that is getting stronger with each possession. With the curse unleashed, her only chance at survival is to shut a doorway from beyond our world that has been pried open by someone who was never born.

Cast: Odette Yustman, Gary Oldman, Cam Gigandet, Meagan Good, James Remar

Director: David S. Goyer

Opened January 9, 2009

Runtime: 1 hr. 28 min

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and terror, disturbing images, thematic material and language including some sexual references

Genres: Thriller, Supernatural Thriller



Review:




The Unborn is a hodgepodge of a horror film. Writer Director David Goyer seemed to be trying desperately to create something wildly original but instead just gave us a blended version of any recent Japanese horror remake, The Exorcist, Rosemary’s Baby, The Thing and just for the hell of it Denzel Washington’s The Fallen. Sprinkle liberally with a Kubrick like oddities ala The Shining with a dash of underwear exploration and you have The Unborn. It’s surprising that Goyer’s script is so terribly unfocused yet over done at the same time. Certain aspects of the story are over explained but others seem to just appear and disappear without notice. As a horror movie it strives for something different or disturbing but always ends up relying on the classic fright moments to get a cheap scare. As shown in Blade Trinity, Goyer as a director doesn’t have much of a talent for bring out anything discernible from his cast, the same is true here. Odettee Yustman headlines and spends the first 3rd of the movie walking slowly through darken hallways and bathrooms in some incredibly tight underwear. Once that passes she’s require to act and then things get a bit more dicey. Yustman delivers lines with all the conviction of a first year drama student and it doesn’t help that her character makes massive logical leaps for no apparent reason. It might help Yustman if the script had built more 3 dimensional characters to surround her with but she doesn’t and we are given two flimsy stock characters that are dispatched with zero impact. The smaller supporting roles are surprisingly well cast but terribly underused and underwritten. Gary Oldman and Idris Elba both have small roles and walk in and out of the film as if they were passing by to pay a ticket. Once Oldman leaves the film rushes to a swift conclusion with a twist that supposed to comes out of leftfield but was terribly obvious.




D+

Movie Reviews: THE DARK KNIGHT
IN THEATERS


THE DARK KNIGHT




With the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent, Batman sets out to destroy organized crime in Gotham for good. The triumvirate proves to be effective, but they soon find themselves prey to a rising criminal mastermind known as the Joker, who thrusts Gotham into anarchy and forces the Dark Knight ever closer to crossing the fine line between hero and vigilante.

Cast: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman

Director: Christopher Nolan

Opens July 18, 2008

Runtime: 2 hr. 32 min.

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and some menace

Genres: Comic-Book Superhero Film, Crime Drama, Fantasy, Crime

Review:

Christopher Nolan's follow up to Batman Begins carry such weighty and mature themes that it makes all the other superhero films seem childish by comparison. The Dark Knight is a tightly scripted thriller of a crime drama that's as dark as it is engrossing. Nolan's film feels more like a Michael Mann film than a comic book film, it's urban it's gritty and it winds you up like a top. Freed of having to deal with the origin story, Nolan is allowed to hit the road running right from the start. Nolan's comfort level with large action sequences, such as thrilling car chase about halfway through the film and his ability to film fight sequences better this time around, we can actually see what's happening now, make it much more enjoyable journey. The Dark Knight also benefits from having a much more expansive and epic feel than Batman Begins. Everything feels bigger this time around; the city, the story, the themes. The scripting also feels much tighter as well, we get less comic book sounding dialogue and more naturalistic debates about the concepts of good and evil. To say that this script might have more bubbling underneath the surface would be a bit of an understatement. There are plenty of real world issues being address here so it goes without saying that this is a complex multilayer film that will make you use your mind as much as your eyes and ears. While some may complain about the movie long run time, 2 hours and 32 minutes, it never becomes an issue as the film is so tightly edited that there's hardly a moment that isn't important, needless to say you should probably make sure to get your bathroom breaks out of the way beforehand. Nolan's work is superb for sure but his cast just makes his job so much easier. First off, Heath Ledger is just perfect as the Joker. He's captures everything the character has been in either animated or comic form that's been lacking in previous incarnations. I for one was never a huge fan of Jack Nicholson's take in Tim Burton's original Batman because it was more about Jack than about the character. As a Batman fan, mostly from the fabulous Bruce Timm produced Animated Series from the 90's, Nicholson's take seemed off, it was fun for what it was but it never captured the embodiment of the character. In The Dark Knight, Ledger hits every note right, giving the character the proper feel of a manic psychotic with a joke in his heart. The Joker feels more like an unleashed force of nature than a character. He is anarchy incarnate. In some way or form his character always has the upper hand all the while making the heroes just as complicit and responsible for every evil deed he commits. The fact that his motives and back story are pretty much non existence gives his character an even more sinister feel. The hype about his performance isn't an over exaggeration, every time he's on screen he demands your attention and doesn't release it until he's gone. Ledger's work is truly amazing to watch but so is the rest of the cast who answered the bell just as readily. Christian Bale again shows why he's my favorite actor to don the cowl. His work here is just as complex and textured as Ledger's. His character grapples with the meaning of his personal crusade and the general cost it tolls on people around him. Bale gets more time this go around as Bruce Wayne and he clearly enjoys playing that part of the persona as much as his alter ego. Bale and Ledger share a couple of great scenes which for me where the highlights of the entire film. Aaron Eckhart's Harvey Dent is equally impressive which, like Ledger, captures the real spirit of the character. Eckhart plays the part of civic hero on a mission but you can sense something more wicked simmering beneath his persona. His character's tale is perfectly set up even if it feels a tad truncated near the end it doesn't take detract from its tragic conclusion. Maggie Gyllenhaal thankfully takes over the role of Rachel Dawes and does more in less time with the character than Katie Holmes did in the previous film. Gyllenhaal feel more organic, even if its light script wise, in the role than Holmes ever did, so much so that I wish there were a way to go back and replace her in Batman Begins. Gary Oldman might be lost in the shuffle with all the bigger roles being played so well but his work as Jim Gordon is on par with any of the headliners. Even going back to Batman Begins and more so here, Oldman just is Gordon and it's a performance that can easily be lost but his nuances and speech inflections are so perfect it hard not to enjoy it. Michael Caine once again adds his fatherly charm to Alfred. Caine and Bale's interactions come across so naturalistic that you'd think they'd really known each other for decades. In a movie this large someone has to be short changed and along with Gyllenhaal, Morgan Freeman has even smaller role than the first go around but he does make the most of what he's given. Also in a very small role Eric Roberts has a lot of fun as crime boss Salvatore Maroni, giving him a great sense of slime mixed with criminal honor. If you haven't gotten the point by now, Christopher Nolan and the cast pretty much hit it out of the park here. A slight warning though, this film is pretty brutal and it really pushes the PG-13 limits throughout. This is a comic book movie in name only and it doesn't pander to younger audience instead it asks you to think about what's being presented. If you are looking for something light and fluffy this is not the movie for you. The Dark Knight is rousing success, one that feels incomplete and screaming for a sequel, let just hope Nolan and company return to finish this impressive story.

A

Bluray quality; Video is grade A across the board with the scenes that were shot in IMAX really showcasing how impressive the HD video is; Sound is display quality, working in perfect unison with the visuals.

I was hand-selected to be a member of Blu-ray Elite, a beta program from Warner Home Video which has graciously sent me this free Blu-ray disc.