Category Reviews

Jul 14 2013

Pacific Rim Rocks!

pc rim posterDirector Guilermo Del Toro hits it out of the park again with his latest, monumental film Pacific Rim. Many will probably say that this giant monster or Kaiju extravaganza isn’t anything more than a Godzilla/Transformers mash up. Pacific Rim is more than that, which is why it’s so spectacular.

Pacific Rim takes place in the near future after an interdimensional breach on the Pacific Ocean floor unleashes gigantic creatures that destroy coastal regions. Humanity fights back by building gargantuan robots called Jaegers that are operated by two pilots. After a string of victories against the Kaijus, however, the colossal creatures adapt and begin defeating the Jaegers. This was vividly shown during an early battle where a Kaiju is killed at great cost to a Jaeger’s pilots.

PACIFIC RIMWhen the film opens, humanity is on the verge of shutting down the Jaeger program, because they’re seen as unsuccessful. One former pilot, Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnman) is approached by his old boss Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba) to come back to the program. There are only four remaining Jaegers left, and Pentecost has a plan to use them to deliver a nuke into the interdimensional breach and sealing it.

Becket is assigned to pilot the Gipsy Danger, his old Jaeger that was badly damaged in a battle years ago that took the life of his brother and co-pilot. Pentecost’s assistant Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi) wants to be Becket’s co-pilot but utilizing a Jaeger isn’t easy. The mammoth robots are so complex that two pilots need to operate them using a neural link that ensures a synchronized operation.  In other words, the pilots have to be compatible. Typically, Becket and Mako butt heads as both are recovering from painful memories. Meanwhile, Pentecost’s team learns that not only are the Kaiju attacks increasing, but there’s a reason behind their appearances, making it imperative that they seal the breach.

PACIFIC RIM

For anyone who loves or used to love those old Japanese Kaiju films that featured Godzilla, Pacific Rim is an ode to those classics. Even if you no longer watch those films, this one will reignite the passion one felt as a kid at seeing giant, misshapen monsters devastating a city. Only this time, big-budget special effects and top-notch direction enhance the experience. Guilermo Del Toro knows what works with the Kaiju films and what doesn’t. Using that knowledge he skillfully crafted this epic monster movie.

???????????It may be difficult, however, for non-Kaiju fans to appreciate the effort. At first glance, Pacific Rim may seem like a giant monster movie with robots that is made for kids. But it’s deeper than that, unlike those old films, you care about the characters. You’re entertained by them when the monsters aren’t on screen. There are also many quirky supporting characters that sometimes provide comic relief or add something important to the plot. The most memorable of them include Ron Perlman as a slick black market dealer and two nerdy and eccentric scientists played by Charlie Day and Burn Gorman.

Another notable factor with Pacific Rim, is that we get to see what a world with giant monsters might be like. We are flooded with imagery and background details showing how things will be different. We see the use of thick emergency shelters, the presence of a black market for monster parts, and hints at how the economy has changed for the worse. These elements aren’t dwelled upon, but they are there for repeat viewing.

The highlight, of course, are the amazing battles between monsters and machines. One important difference between this film and the old Kaiju films is the special effects. PACIFIC RIMThey’re practically flawless and the action scenes are well-executed and clear. Pacific Rim doesn’t have the shaking camera movements seen in those dumb Transformers movies that don’t let you know what is going on. Del Toro proves that he is a master of the camera in the way he stages these shots. The result is a thrilling viewing experience.

We’ve been teased by Hollywood of the capability of putting out a big-scale, giant monster movie. That was seen with Cloverfield and to a lesser extent 1998’s Godzilla. Pacific Rim is what the latter film should’ve been and so much more.

José Soto

Jul 8 2013

The Superman Movies Ranked

superman i superman returns

For decades, the Last Son of Krypton has appeared in non-comic book media like books, cartoons, serials, and TV shows. His popularity and standing grew thanks to the film Superman in 1978. As a franchise, the Superman films experienced ups and downs ranging from epic masterpieces to the type of garbage seen in Mystery Science Theater 3000. Having viewed the films recently these are my rankings for the Superman movies.

1. Superman (1978): This film has stood the test of time and become a genuine classic. There have been many superhero films that have come since this one, but it still holds up today in spite of its dated special effects and other drawbacks.

whos got youSuperman has a sense of awe and majesty in some moments, namely, the first acts in the planet Krypton and Smallville. At times some scenes in Superman’s hometown seem taken out of a Rockwell painting. It’s these quieter moments that lend an ambience to what we are watching.

Once Superman grows up and moves to Metropolis, the movie becomes a hybrid of a romance, light comedy and adventure yarn. At these points, Superman/Clark Kent encounters colorful types like his love Lois Lane (Margot Kidder) and nemesis Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman), who is both an amusing and devious foe.

More than an origin story about Clark Kent growing up to be Earth’s greatest superhero, Superman is a loving ode to classic Silver Age comic books. Thanks goes to director Richard Donner’s respect for the source material and Christopher Reeve’s masterful performance as Superman/Clark Kent.

????????????  zod supes

2. TIE: Superman II (1981)/Man Of Steel (2013): I couldn’t decide which of the two films is greater. They both have their strengths and weaknesses, but they’re so different in style and execution. So determining which is better depends on the viewer’s taste and preference.

Superman II is very exciting and captivating with an engaging story. Kryptonian criminals come to Earth and create havoc while Superman, unaware of their activities, gives up his powers to be with Lois Lane. As fun as it is, Superman II unfortunately is littered with plot holes and conveniences.

For starters, how is it that Luthor gains entry into Superman’s Fortress of Solitude (some security!). How come Superman never learns about this? More importantly why is he so clueless about Zod and his cronies until after he renounces his powers? Why give up his powers? Just to dance in the sheets with Lois? Given the scope of his decision, it makes him seem kind of irresponsible and naive. Plus, the ending has an even bigger cop out than the first movie.

kneel before zod

Still, the performances by Reeve and Kidder are stellar whenever they’re together on screen. Terrance Stamp, Sarah Douglas and Jack O’Halloran are formidable and vicious villains with Stamp’s Zod displaying a sense of regality and pompousness. You’re just itching for Superman and these super jerks to finally get into it during the film’s last act. The battle in Metropolis is fun and exciting, even if it lacks the scope and effects shown in Man Of Steel. However, at least Superman showed more concern for the innocent civilians caught up in the melee, unlike Man Of Steel.

man of steel and lois

Producer Christopher Nolan and director Zack Snyder reinvigorated the Superman franchise with the epic reboot Man Of Steel. It’s a no-expense-spared spectacular with jaw-dropping and exhausting battle scenes that finally showcase the scale of Superman’s powers.

Many elements about Superman and his mythos are updated and feel refreshing. Henry Cavill does a fine job playing Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent and echoes Reeve’s earnestness and humble nature. At the same time, Cavill makes the role his own as the role emphasizes Superman’s loneliness. We feel that he is an outcast who just wants to help out and find himself.

As Superman searches for his past heritage, MAN OF STEELGeneral Zod (Michael Shannon) arrives on Earth his small army of evil followers with the intent of capturing Superman and transforming the Earth into a new version of Krypton. Afterwards, Superman must not only contend with Zod and a mistrustful military, but with his dual heritage. There are many terrific quiet moments when he examines his humanity.

There are so many great things about the film but it has faults. Aside from common complaints about the music, the film needed tighter editing. It’s a long movie and it feels like one. Some fights seem to go on forever, leaving you wanting the whole thing to end already. Sometimes less is more as the saying goes. Continue reading →

Jun 30 2013

Transformers Ride Comes To Orlando

trans rideI had the chance to go to Orlando recently and made a stop at Universal Studios Orlando. The theme park’s newest attraction is Transformers: The Ride–3D, which opened on June 20th. This is the third incarnation of the ride, the first two being in the Universal Studios parks in Singapore and Hollywood. Our contributor GEO raved about this ride last year when it opened in Hollywood, so I was very excited to try it.

After standing in line for over an hour in the summer heat and finally riding it, I’ll have to say that Transformers: The Ride–3D was underwhelming.

Don’t get me wrong, the pre-show and the setup are topnotch. But I wasn’t into the ride; something kept nagging me about it for the rest of the morning. Later that day, I went to Islands Of Adventure nearby and once there I realized what was wrong with the Transformers ride. I saw the sign for Islands Of Adventure’s attraction The Amazing Adventures Of Spider-Man and it hit me. The Transformers ride is a near copy of the Spider-Man ride!

For anyone who hasn’t experienced the Spider-Man ride, you get into a vehicle and put on 3D glasses. Then the vehicle zips off and you witness Spider-Man in huge 3D screens fighting his enemies as the car zooms from one spot to another. The entire thing gives the impression that you’re part of the scenes. This was revolutionary back in 1999 when the park first opened, and it still is. It is incredible that none of the rides since then have copied it, until the Transformers did it.

evacI guess I would’ve enjoyed Transformers: The Ride–3D more if it didn’t copy many moments from the Spider-Man ride. One example is when the vehicle you’re on is supposedly freefalling and saved before hitting the ground.

Don’t ask about the story, the ride follows the style of those awful Michael Bay films in that it’s confusing, loud and too much is going onscreen. It had something to do with the evil Decepticon robots led by Megatron trying to get something called the Allspark for who knows what reason. My friends told me this doohickey was featured in the films and is the soul of the Transformers.

There are appearances by the good Autobots like Optimus Prime and Bumblebee who help out your vehicle, who is actually an Autobot called Evac. To be honest, aside from some audio and a few shots of CG hands in the screen in front of me, I could barely tell we were riding inside a robot. Evac didn’t have much of a personality, he wasn’t like Bumblebee for sure.

The ride is largely a tug of war between Evac and Megatron, as the Allspark keeps switching hands. In the meantime, there are lots of explosions, slow motion shots and machinery being crunched and twisted. Probably the best thing about this ride is that it didn’t feature Sam Witwicky (Shia LeBeouf)!

battle

Maybe Transformers: The Ride–3D might’ve left more of an impression if it was more original in its moves or had better special effects. It was obvious that CG was used in the scenes and I wonder how these effects will hold up in the future. I think they’ll probably look dated before long.

Tranformers fans should love the ride, but I liked Transformers: The Ride–3D better when it was a Spider-Man ride.

Annette DeForrester

 

Jun 18 2013

The Must-Read Book For The Summer: Max Brook’s World War Z

 

world war z coverTrends come in cycles. Recently the popular culture has seen the return of an old and familiar staple, the zombie. The Hollywood ghouls started out in the spooky black and white classics of the 30s and 40s, but they were branded into the baby boomer consciousness via George Romero’s 1968 classic Night of the Living Dead. To be fair, they’ve never been away much since, thanks to Living Dead‘s various sequels, semi-sequels, and remakes. But in 2002 British film wunderkind Danny Boyle gave the genre a shot of adrenalin with 28 Days Later, about a deadly virus ravaging London and turning survivors into hyperkinetic, psychotic killers. For zombie fans, the die was cast.

In 2003 writer Max Brooks – son of Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft – wrote The Zombie Survival Guide (TZSG), a tongue-in-cheek “how-to” on surviving a zombie onslaught as society breaks down. TZSG was a New York Times best –seller thanks to its dark humor and occasional light tone. The book’s characteristics, however, did not mask the fact that underneath the surface it contained some very useful survival information, and it’s easy to see that Brooks did his research. His work must have fuelled a thirst somewhere, because a month later Image Comics began publishing Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead (now a hit TV series on the AMC cable network), describing the adventures of survivors of a zombie apocalypse.  The undead were officially back in style.

Not to be outdone, Brooks took zombies one step further and in 2006 came out with World War Z (WWZ), describing the entire history of a massive, deadly zombie onslaught – a war, basically between humans and the undead (“Z” for zombie, if you haven’t yet figured that out). The zombies are the same as those in TZSG, making the book a follow-up of sorts.  According to Brooks, zombies are humans re-animated by an incurable disease, spread by a zombie bite or having open pores exposed to zombie tissue. Taking a page from Romero’s model, they are slow, brainless creatures completely devoid of intelligence, whose sole instinct is to eat live flesh. They are incapable of tiring, cannot drown, and can only be killed by a blow to the head.

Other than that, WWZ is very different in style and tone than its slim predecessor. Patterned in structure after Studs Terkel’s classic oral history of WW2, The Good War, WWZ is not one story per se like Kirkman’s comic but rather a series of individual accounts telling the story from the initial sudden outbreak to mankind’s victory and the sad, weary aftermath.  The book’s narrator (in whose voice Brooks writes), a member of the (fictional) United Nations Post War Committee, is commissioned to interview survivors from mankind’s war against zombies.  Like a twisted travelogue, Brooks shuttles around the world, as survivors running the gamut from military, clergy, health services, government officials, security, and ultimately the average citizen describe their experience and the ghastly horrors they witnessed.

In a chilling opener, the story begins quickly but methodically. In a remote, rural province in China, a young boy goes diving for sunken booty with his father. His father is pulled down by something unknown and the boy escapes but is nipped on the heel.  The poor infected lad becomes “patient zero”, infecting others and kickstarting the zombie pandemic. Once the infection goes beyond the village, it acts as an out-of-whack Rube Goldberg contraption, setting in motion a chain of events that will change the world.  Infected Chinese refugees begin streaming across the border into Central Asia. Others fly out to Europe, bringing the infection to the continent. The Chinese government feverishly tries to halt the spread and invents a military crisis involving Taiwan to mask their armed build up and activities.  Only after hitting the poor South African ghetto townships does the world begin to take notice, calling it the “African Rabies”.  Israel is one of the first to respond, imposing a national quarantine, granting entry only to uninfected Jews and Palestinians, and calling out the Israel Defense Forces for border security.

Through the illegal organ trade, the infection reaches Brazil and once in Mundus Novus it begins to wreak havoc.  Zombies rip through an unprepared United States, as corruption, government incompetence, and overconfidence result in some heavy bungling and widespread deaths. Millions all over the world begin fleeing their homes for safety, as the “Great Panic” begins. At a major, decisive battle in Yonkers, New York, American soldiers fight a massive and frightening wave of undead as if they were fighting living soldiers. Using inappropriate techniques against an undead army – such as attempting to “demoralize them” – they fail miserably and the American forces are brutally defeated on live TV. Other countries encounter similar disastrous results and world civilization as we know it begins to crumble. Continue reading →

May 21 2013

A Town & TV Show Called Defiance

defiance pic

Syfy recently premiered its new sci-fi epic series Defiance, a complex, baffling TV show about aliens and humans trying to get along in a ruined Earth. It’s a bit too complex and not for casual viewers, but it has some potential.

Much of the background for Defiance is never explained onscreen. In fact, I had to go online to its official website to learn it, which helped explain a lot of the show’s lore. It’s a very detailed but regrettably most of it is never mentioned or shown and doing so would help immerse viewers to this intricately crafted world that the show’s creators went out of their way to assemble.

nolan and irisaA few years from now, several, huge alien ships arrive on our planet carrying refugees made up of seven different alien races. Together they’re called the Votans, but the show concentrates on two of these races: the Irathient and the Castithan. The Irathient are vaguely cat-like with their bright irises and slightly bulging eyebrows. They’re very spiritual and independent minded with little regard for traditional law. The Castithan are a race of albinos with shocking white hair and skin. They come off as arrogant and disdainful of other races, including humans and try to preserve their caste-based culture.

The Votans were seeking a new world after their solar system was destroyed. This, of course, led to conflict with the humanity. After a brutal war, both sides reached a ceasefire and chose to share the Earth. One nasty side effect of their arrival is that the world was accidently and partially terraformed, leaving most major cities and landscapes destroyed or unrecognizable. Bizarre, hybrid plant and animal life emerged and mass social and political upheaval threw the world into chaos. The survivors now struggle to make it through the day, while trying to at least tolerate each other.

Defiance takes place in what was once St. Louis, Missouri. The ruins were resettled by a mix of humans and Votan races and renamed Defiance. It’s essentially a crowded Wild West backwater town mixed with elements of Farscape, Firefly and The Road Warrior.

mayor and rivals

Despite a crowded lineup of characters, Defiance revolves around five characters, with three of them taking center stage. Running the place is the new mayor Amanda Rosewater (Julie Benz), who tries to keep things running smoothly and getting all the human and alien factions in town from killing each other. She’s insecure about her position and is trying to earn the townspeople’s respect; at the same time Rosewater has to face the harsh reality of backdoor deals and maintaining composure.

At the end of the pilot episode she hired a drifter, Joshua Nolan (Grant Bowler), as the sheriff or rather lawkeeper of Defiance. Nolan is your typical Han Solo/Malcolm Reynolds type, who looks like Christian Slater’s older brother. He’s a cynical war veteran first seen roaming the countryside with his Irathient adopted daughter Irisa nolan and mayor(Stephanie Leonidas). After passing through Defiance, Nolan went against his bitter nature and decided to stay in town and bumble his way through many dull police cases. His daughter Irisa, who was a war orphan rescued by him, can’t understand why he wants to plant roots in the town and wants to reach Antarctica, a supposed paradise on par with Tahiti. She is exotically pretty and a hothead with a troubled past.

The other two prominent characters are Datak Tarr (Tony Curran) and Rafe McCawley (Graham Greene). Tarr is a nefarious Castithan businessman who runs the town’s underworld. His ambition for political power is surpassed by his cunning wife Stahma (Jaime Murray), who gives Lady Macbeth a run for her money. McCawley is a rival businessman that owns a nearby mine and can’t stand Castithans, namely Tarr.

defiance charactrsEpisodes deal with Nolan trying to keep the peace, while Tarr and McCawley vie with each other and Rosewater. Some of the bland drama comes straight from routine Western dramas. Tarr and McCawley feud, while their children are romantically involved with each other; Nolan has a fling with the town prostitute (Mia Kirshner), who happens to be the mayor’s sister; one episode even borrowed heavily from Stagecoach. On the whole, Defiance has a richly detailed world with an exhaustive backstory, and tries to emulate Firefly or Farscape but it cannot. While the trappings are eye catching, the show’s stock characters and predictable stories hamper it. That is surprising considering that the show’s creators are Rockne S. O’Bannon (Farscape), Michael Taylor (Battlestar Galactica) and Kevin Murphy (Reaper, Caprica), who all created, produced or wrote some terrific genre shows.

Still, while Defiance isn’t captivating it does have a slow burn quality to it and seems to be carefully building up its storylines. Some stories and developments did hold my attention. It should toss out the uninteresting cop procedural stuff, or go into more detail about the world of Defiance and not leave it up to viewers to track it down.  Or jettison some of the trappings to make viewers want to learn more about the show.

Some TV shows take a while to get its bearings before reaching their potential. Defiance could go either way, hopefully it will find its footing because it’s one of Syfy’s better original offerings of late.

Lewis T. Grove