MOVIE REVIEW: SHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF SHAWDOWS

ON DVD

SHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF SHAWDOWS



Brilliant detective Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) matches wits with the nefarious Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris) after uncovering a diabolical plot to destabilize the entire Western world in this sequel from director Guy Ritchie. A criminal mastermind without a conscience, Professor Moriarty is Holmes' worst nightmare -- a man who uses his incredible intellect for unspeakably evil purposes. When the Crown Prince of Austria dies and Inspector Lestrade (Eddie Marsan) rules the death a suicide, Holmes steps back to see the big picture. But little does Holmes realize that Professor Moriarty is about to commit a crime that will shock the entire world, and that solving it may be the death of him. Jude Law returns as Holmes' faithful sidekick Dr. Watson in a sequel also featuring The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo's Noomi Rapace and Rachel McAdams. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Guy Ritchie

Cast: Robert Downey, Jr., Jude Law, Noomi Rapace, Rachel McAdams, Jared Harris

Release Date: Dec 16, 2011

Rated PG-13 for some Drug Material, Intense Sequences of Violence and Intense
Sequences of Action

Runtime: 2 hr. 9 min.

Genres: Action/Adventure, Suspense/Thriller

Review:

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is a long walk taken briskly. Guy Ritchie directs his follow up to his 2009 re-imagining of Holmes with the same frenetic energy and visual flair with all the hallmarks of a blockbuster sequel. Everything is bigger, the set pieces are massive and impressive flung at the screen in such a rapid fire motion that there’s rarely a moment to let the plot breathe. It’s fund but kind of mindless at the same time, plot points and details are thrown in as quickly as possible so that we can get back to Ritchie’s Holmes’s style of action. Robert Downey Jr. is again clearly having a blast in his role. Between this and Tony Stark, you’d think Downey Jr. just walks around in a constant state of glee, his joy in these roles shines in such a manner it’s hard to resist. Sadly his rapport with Jude Law this go around, a strong point of the first, feel a tab more forced and uneven. It’s still fun seeing both bounce off each but it lacks the spark from the first film. The supporting players are strong actors who are asked to do very little. Rapace make a fine looking gypsy but serves as noting more than window dressing, her character could appeared or disappeared with nary an issue to the main plot. Stephen Fry should be given more to do but he’s on and off the screen all too quickly. Jared Harris, in the biggest crime, is short changed as Holmes arch nemesis Moriarty. He’s only given one substantial scene with Downey Jr. which is great fun, an intellectual cat and mouse game. It’s a shame more time wasn’t given to his character because he could have been a proper foil to Holmes as he was intended. It’s all still terribly watchable rarely dragging but ultimately soulless.

C

Bluray quality; Video is captivating across the board showcasing the wonderful visuals throughout; Sound is top notch and nearly display quality, extremely active sounds stage.

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.

MOVIE REVIEW: PROMETHEUS

IN THEATERS

PROMETHEUS



A team of space explorers embarks on a fantastic voyage to the edge of the universe after making a profound discovery that hints at the true origins of the human race. Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Idris Elba, and Charlize Theron head-up the cast of this epic sci-fi saga from director Ridley Scott and writers Jon Spaihts (The Darkest Hour) and Damon Lindelof (Lost, Star Trek). ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Ridley Scott

Cast: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce

Release Date: Jun 08, 2012

Rated R for Sci-Fi Violence, Brief Language and Some Intense Images

Runtime: 2 hr. 3 min.

Genres: Horror, Suspense/Thriller

Review:

Grandiose and epic in scale, Ridley Scott’s return to sci-fi is simply an achievement in filmmaking. His film is a visual feast for the eyes, shot in stunning 3D, and an endless buffet for genre fans to digest. This sort of prequel to his original masterpiece Alien offers enough visual and script hints winks and nods to keep franchise fans happy but never content. Answers to many plot threads are left dangling in the wind by the film’s runtime. This can be a good or bad thing depending on the individual viewer. Hints of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001 pepper the film right from the start and Scott never shies away, it’s clear he’s going for something larger with this film. Its plot is an endless landfill of spoilers to those that haven’t seen it but if you’ve seen enough of the trailers some of the major points are fairly evident. While Scott is in top form behind the camera, the script does leave some room for improvement. It sets up and telegraphs major twist in such an obvious way that it sucks any tension or surprise right out of the film. Plot holes are readily apparent but the director and the cast do their best to move past them. The cast itself is stellar with Noomi Rapace delivering a tender and subtle turn as the film’s lead. Rapace’s character will be compared to Ripley from Alien but it’s not an apt comparison. Her character is driven by a variety of forces outside of survival; it’s an interesting centerpiece which could have benefited from left heavy handing scripting. Michael Fassbender continues his current run of seeming less endless run of fantastic performances. His android David is a singular and engaging performance which is reminiscent of many sources yet never feels tired. Idris Elba, sporting one of most interesting American accents, is incredibly fun as the ship’s captain, easily becoming the coolest character in the whole film. The remaining cast isn’t given much to do and even stalwarts like Theron are left with mostly one note characters. Even with the most obvious issues, Prometheus is cinematic flypaper never letting your eyes or mind go once it’s got a firm grip.

A-

[Trailer] Django Unchained

Oh such a delicious first look at Quentin Tarantino’s latest film. This blacksploitation / western entry looks like it’ll deliver the usual QT trademarks along with Leonardo DiCaprio just having an absolute ball…..

MOVIE REVIEW: SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN

IN THEATERS

SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN



The enchanting Snow White (Kristen Stewart) joins forces with the fierce Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth), who was recruited by the diabolical Queen (Charlize Theron) to kill the fair beauty, and together they fight to rid their kingdom of evil in this bold new take on the fairy-tale classic from commercial director Rupert Sanders. Obsessed with being the fairest woman in the land, the Queen learns that Snow White will soon surpass her in beauty, and seeks to achieve immortality by consuming the young girl's heart. But the Huntsman is the only one capable of braving the dark forest to seek out Snow White. Threatened with death should he refuse to follow his order, the Huntsman finds Snow White, and begins training her for the arduous battle ahead. Meanwhile, a handsome prince (Sam Claflin) falls hopelessly under Snow White's spell. Ray Winstone, Ian McShane, Eddie Izzard, Bob Hoskins, Toby Jones, Eddie Marsan, and Stephen Graham co-star as the seven dwarfs. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Directed by Rupert Sanders

Cast: Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Sam Claflin, Ian McShane

Release Date: Jun 01, 2012

Rated: Intense Sequences of Action, Brief Sensuality and Intense Sequences of Violence

Runtime: 2 hr. 7 min.

Genres: Action/Adventure, Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Review:

Rupert Sanders showy, visually opulent freshman film is occasionally impressive. Sanders knows how to shoot impressive visuals and does so quite a few times, letting you savor the set design and fabulous costuming at work. Unfortunately, his inexperience shows in various ways. The film lacks any sort of dramatic and thematic flow through leaving you emotionally detached as sequences pass by. Even though you are exposed to a few characters, you never really make any connection to any of them. Kristen Stewart, she of the mopiest face around, is blank barely registering throughout the film’s run time. Her acting is terribly underwhelming and the character is strangely underwritten. Chris Hemsworth gets by, play a Thor-lite character, on general screen presence and charisma. Charlize Theron should have just killed this role but instead is allowed to embellish in the worst kind of over the top performance imaginable. Being a fan of hers, it was tough watch her scream insanely throughout the better part of the film. Subtly is entirely thrown out the window, it’s a massive misstep considering she could have nailed this role had she attacked it with more tact. Some strong character actors are used for the dwarfs even if they appear primarily in the 3rd act. A few well directed, if derivative, round out a film which is watch able but never as impressive as it looks.

C

[Trailer] The Bourne Legacy

New full trailer for The Bourne Legacy is out and it looks like the plot will be expanding on the Bourne universe exploring more areas of the entire Treadstone project and fall out.

Looks like it can be surprisingly good even though it was a strange way to keep an actor centric franchise alive, a solid cast always helps…..

[Trailer] Les Miserables

I was a little unsure of what to make of this latest adaptation when I first heard about it. Casting rumors ran wild and thankfully they settled on some impressive names, with an impressive proven director.

This first trailer sure does set the stage for what to expect with Anne Hathaway showing off some impressive vocals to go along with some strong looking sets and visuals…..