Whats up everybody. Well school has started, and its back into the grind. I've been busy working and preparing, but its good to be back in the swing of things. Got sucked in watching season 4 of the Mentalist
And playing a lot of video games especially from the Steam sale. Anyway I got some reviews of some movies. One new and two old. So lets get to it.
The Last Stand
Well after being the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger is getting back into films. Trying to reprise his roles as an action hero/badass, even though he is old (like Stallone). Its a good change of pace, and I support him all the way. He was awesome in The Expendables 2. Now he stars in his own action film, and it has a pretty bang.
Plot: Schwarzenegger plays Sheriff Ray Owens. He lives in a quiet town, and is trying to enjoy his day off. Meanwhile back in Las Vegas, an evil cartel boss named Gabriel Cortez is being transported to death row, but escapes in a Corvette C6 ZR1. A very fast car that goes faster than a helicopter. He is on his way back to Mexico, and the only thing standing in his way is Sheriff Owens' town. Its up to Sheriff Owens to make a stand and stop Cortez from escaping. The story is really simple and not really ment to wow people. Pretty much its there as a backdrop.
Genre: Its an Action film, and I can say there is action, but nothing really amazing. Compared to most other action films (like Expendables 2), there is nothing really explosive or amazing. Its fun to see a couple of rookie cops with old fashion weapons take on trained mercenaries with advanced gear. Plus Arnold is a badass for the most part, but he is getting old. The weapons were also not handled and portrayed realistically. So if you know your weapons then you are definitely going to call BS on some of the stuff that is said and done. Other than that the acting was OK. I felt the characters were not portrayed well enough. There are different characters with different personalities, but there is not enough that is done to really bring out the characters and make us feel for them. Especially Johnny Knoxville's character. I wished we could see more of him and see his character fully develop. Because he is pretty funny. The only thing we can do is just say go kick the bad guys ass. Oh yeah the cars are awesome.
Overall: Its a shallow action film. The characters aren't really memorable, but the action for the most part is passable. I enjoyed the film, but for people who expected more out of this film, you may be disappointed If you need a good action film with a shallow story and shallow characters, check this film out.
7 out of 10
Gangster Squad
I'll be honest. I really don't like Sean Penn. I'm not a fan. I do enjoy good action police films though. And Emma Stone is hot. Anyway when I first saw the trailer for this film, I was pretty excited and interested. It just had its own style and looked sophisticated. And its set in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Reminded me of an interesting video game I played called L.A. Noire. Like the video game it was impressive.
Plot: So this is based on a true story about a gangster named Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn). Cohen is about to take over LA, and make it his own city. The government and LAPD are corrupt and powerless against his occupation. A elite squad is formed by the LAPD to put a stop to his crimes (Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling and others). Its up to them to stop Mickey Cohen's organized crime operations before LA becomes a corrupt city owned by the powerful organized crime bosses. The story is a take on historical events. A little bit exaggerated and maybe some truths are not properly presented, but its still interesting.
Genre: Its an action film with some suspense. Its set during late 1940s/early 1950s, so I can't really say there lots of big explosions. But there are some cool shootouts with Thompsons, and fist brawls. There is plenty of action and it keeps the story flowing. All the characters look and act like they are from the 1940s, and the sets and special effects make the world believable. Like I said it has its own style and flare. Even though its based on a true story, there are some parts that I feel didn't happen, but it makes for a good movie, and it would be cool if that happened. Either way good action, good acting, and good set pieces. The movie does a good job immersing you in its world.
Overall: Its a well made action film. Enjoyable and cool to watch. Although it does exaggerate some of the truth, you get a pretty good idea of what happened for the most part. A good story with plenty of old fashion action.
8 out of 10
Zero Dark Thirty
I remember that day. It was a sad day. And you probably know what day I'm talking. It was a really sad for America. Then one day I heard on the news we got the SOB that did it, and I was happy. He got what he deserved. Revenge never felt good. So of coarse they are probably going to make a movie about this (I know one day in the next Call of Duty there is going to be a mission like this). The same person who did The Hurt Locker has wowed me again.
Plot: The story is simple. The hunt for Osama bin Laden, the man responsible for the 9/11 attacks. It follows the story of how the CIA tracked him down, all the way up to the attack on his compound. There is a lot of CIA interrogations. Deducing who are targets and who is telling the truth. Think NCIS, CSI, or Criminal Minds only its the CIA and the US government. Its a good story and the way its presented is great. Its not very technical of documentary style, its more suspenseful.
Genre: Its an action, thriller documentary. I mean for the most part everything seems correct and real. I mean sure there are some things hidden and classified because I highly doubt the CIA or the US government is going to release everything about this operation. But for the most part we get the idea. The acting is great and feels real. Kudos to the actors. There are some scenes involving torture, so if you don't like those parts, you may want to close your eyes, but like I said everything is pretty real and not BS. Seriously Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal know how to make real true to life military movies. There are some statements that can make some political people vocal (republicans and democrats alike), but for the most part the movie does a good job focusing on the people who tracked the biggest scumbag in history (up there with Hitler), and how they dealed with the bureaucratic BS in order to track and kill him. Great authenticity.
Overall: A really good film. I wish I got to see this during Christmas, but I'm glad they released it again in theaters. Its a good film, you have to go see it. It makes you feel good about our country for the most part. An authentic documentary on how we got the SOB. Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal score again.
10 out of 10
Asian Star of the Week
Mai Oshima
Dam a hot girl from Japan. She is a singer and a model. She used to be part of the popular Japanese Pop group AKB48. They were Asian Stars of the Week. But anyway she is cute.
Images from Redflava.com. If you want to see more images, check out their website. Well that's it for this weeks blog. I hoped you enjoyed. Until then see you later.
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