Review-- Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Prince of Persia follows Dastan a orphaned street kid who catches the eye of the king of the Persian Empire. The king takes Dastan in as one of his own and he is raised in the palace as a prince. We then join a grown up Dastan(Jake Gyllenhaal) as he and his brothers prepare to attack the city of Alamut. During their attack on the city Dastan stumbles upon the fabled Dagger of Time and our story goes from there....

Prince of Persia is an all around good summer movie. It has something that will appeal to everyone. The plot is good, although it starts off a bit slow, and it makes sense and is easy to follow. The film is acted very well and includes actors Ben Kingsley, Alfred Molina, and Gemma Arterton. The CGI and effects are very well done. This film serves as the foundation for a good epic movie. I do see a well made franchise coming from this movie.

The only gripe that I have about the movie is the slow start that it takes in the beginning. The pacing could have been better but it didn't make or break the movie.

Overall Prince of Persia is a movie that would be enjoyed by most movie goers. If you have a chance you should....

GO NOW!!!!!!!

Review: MacGruber

First of all I want to point out the false advertising campaign that has been carried out. A recent trailer for this film stated that they were not showing the best parts of the film, unfortunately they lied....

MacGruber is a "comedy" film based on the popular(and actually funny) SNL sketch that parodies MacGyver. The film revolves around a stolen nuclear missile that was stolen from a Serbian convoy. It is up to MacGruber and team to recover the missile before it is used....

I noticed before the movie started that only five people were in the theater. Fifteen minutes into the movie the couple sitting a few rows in front of me left and never came back. I should have known then what I was getting myself into.

MacGruber is honestly one of the worst movies that I have ever seen. For the most part the movie is not funny at all. I believe this is partly due to the film relying entirely on crude and sexual humor, which is fine in small doses. That may have gotten them a few laughs along the way, but after a while it becomes tiresome and sometimes downright awkward. The story isn't the most original, but that is forgivable.

What is not forgivable is a comedy movie that only makes me chuckle a few times. The jokes that were delivered were repeated multiple times and many of them were run into the ground. What makes it even worse, is in most instances you can tell that the actors are really trying to be funny. It is painful to see them fail 90% of the time. Don't get me wrong there are few genuinely funny moments, but they are far apart and they do not justify this polished piece of fecal matter.

With recent blockbuster comedies such as Tropic Thunder, The Hangover, and the more recent Date Night I expected much better from a movie that was a spin off of SNL sketch. See this train-wreck if you dare, but you have been warned....

Stand Outside Your Local Theater and Warn People........Please!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mini Review: Date Night

Date Night is comedy that follows the crazy night of Phil(Steve Carell) and Claire(Tina Fey) Foster. We see early on in the film that the couple has become stagnant and that the spark in their relationship may be on the verge of dying. Phil decides to try to liven thing up a bit by taking his wife to a New York City restaurant on their normal date night. They soon find out that they will not be able to get a table at the restaurant that they really wanted to eat at. To resolve this situation they pose as a no show couple to get a table. This mistake will place them in the cross hairs of some very unsavory people and the night quickly takes off....

I'll be quick, Date Night is a fun comedy. It is very well acted. The story is well written and you are guaranteed to have a blast. If it is still playing at a theater near you I suggest that you....

GO NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Review - Robin Hood

Ridley Scott's Robin Hood is the latest telling of the story of the famous thief from the Middle Ages of England. It stars Russell Crowe in the lead role as Robin Longstride, Cate Blanchett in the role of Maid Marion, and Oscar Isaac as King John.

One of the main things about this version of Robin Hood that I liked is it gives us a greater understanding of the character of Robin and where he came from. Typically in other movies/stories of the man we start off knowing that he is a thief that famously steals from the rich and gives to the poor. But in Scott's film we get to see the background of Robin and how he came to be perceived as the famous outlaw that we know today.

Furthermore, the acting was superb. Especially in the case of Oscar Isaac in the role of King John. He was really good. He brought a wonderful performance of arrogance, ignorance, and pure intensity conjured up by the former. In addition the direction of Ridley Scott is great and what we've come to expect from him based on his previous efforts.

Musically speaking I liked the fact that although they used music from a few centuries after the movie's time setting, they didn't throw in 20th/21st Century songs in there (nothing wrong with a little Bryan Adams but still).

The main problem with the movie was the lack of a *wow* ending that we got out previous historical epics Braveheart and Scott's Gladiator. It's somewhat forgivable since the main guy in the movie did not, nor was suspected to, die. You kind of know how it's gonna end.

On occasion I got a little confused about what exactly what was happening and where it was happening. It kinda jumps around alot. I recommend reviewing the background of the historical Robin Hood(s) before sitting down to watch the movie. It'll make a little more sense.

Robin Hood is a good movie, perhaps the best of the Robin Hood movies so far. But I'm still waiting for what I feel could be the definitive one...RENT IT.

Other Related Movies: Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves (1991)....The Adventures Of Robin Hood (1938)....Robin Hood: Men In Tights (1993)

Review ~ Just Wright

The minute that I saw the previews for this movie, I just knew that I had to see it. I mean, with rappers Queen Latifah, Common and of course Paula Patton? Not to mention countless NBA players, and the timeless Phylicia Rashad, along with basically the only sport that I understand, basketball!

Leslie Wright is a woman who is not having a lot of luck in the love department, always selected to be in the friend category, never moving toward being the girlfriend. Common portrays Scott McKnight in this romantic comedy, who happens to be the star player on the New Jersey Nets. He is Leslie's favorite player and the Nets are her favorite team. As luck would have it, there is a chance encounter at a gas station, and that ladies and gentlemen is where the movie takes off. In walks Morgan, (Paula Patton) Leslie's godsister, who thrives in the spotlight, intent on being the classic NBA trophy wife. The kind of woman that commands a second look, she catches McKnight's eye. As their relationship heads towards the altar, Scott endures a career-threatening injury, that causes Morgan to leave. Leslie is intent on pushing him down the road to recovery, and the rest, as they say, is history!

Even though the movie definitely had some cheesy moments, for me, it was a breath of fresh air. It was nice to see a different spin on your basic rom-com's of this decade. I'm pretty sure you all know me by now, and my take on rom-com's, but come on, take a deep breath, admit that this movie is just wright for you and .......................

GO NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dual Review: Iron Man 2

This years summer movie season opener is the sequel to 2008's smash hit, Iron Man. I suppose by now that I don't have to go into any background as most of you know what the deal is. Most of the cast from the first movie are back and we even have a few new faces added to the fray. Iron Man 2 picks up just after the ending of the last movie, after Tony Stark has revealed to the world that he is Iron Man. We soon learn that there is a Russian scientist, Ivan Vanko, who has a vendetta against Stark. To make matters worse we learn that the miniature arc reactor keeping Stark alive is causing complications and that the US government wants the suit. How does he deal with all of this you ask....he turns to alcoholism, which soon places himself and others in danger. Will our hero find what it takes to turn everything around? Only time will tell....

Jared's Take:

Iron Man 2 has everything that you would expect from a big summer movie. It has action, comedy, romance, and everything else in between. The acting was good and on par with the first movie. The special effects and the CG were very well done and you could tell that a lot of work was put into them.

I do have a few minor complaints about the movie though. The plot seemed to be watered down a bit. What I mean by this is that it had rather odd pacing. There were these big action sequences and they would be followed by a 10 min lull. I realize that you can't have an explosion every five minutes and still have a good movie, but I at least wish that the scenes in which there were no action were a little more interesting. I also think that the final fight was way too short.

As I write this review my thoughts do turn to The Dark Knight and how Iron Man 2 stands up against it. TDK's story was much better, but IM2 and TDK are two different movies. It's like comparing apples and oranges. TDK is more dark and serious and it forces you to reflect upon the struggle against good and evil. IM2 is a more light-hearted and fun film. It still has everything that you would expect from a good superhero film.

Overall Iron Man 2 was an enjoyable movie that should be seen by all. You've probably guessed what rating I'm gonna give it.....

GO NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Allan's Take:
This is kind of a difficult movie to review. I really wanted it to be good, at least as good as the original. However, while sitting in the theatre watching it I kept thinking that Chris Nolan has quite possibly risen the bar of comic movies to an extremely high level that's unrealistic to obtain in most movies. He's at least laid out the basis of what I want a comic movie to be.

I really didn't see the point of the specific use of villains and other characters that are used in the movie. They just seemed to be thrown in there at random but they have to get as much Avenger stuff in there as possible, I guess.

Despite all of the above I still think that Iron Man 2 should be seen at some point just to keep up with all that's happening in the Avenger world. I hope Thor, Captain America, and The Avengers movie take Marvel to a new level in the comic-movie genre

.....FX/TBS IT...