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All reviews - Movies (990) - TV Shows (126) - DVDs (69) - Books (70) - Music (15) - Games (210)

Batman for a new generation...

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 07:35 (A review of Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker)

A lot of the Batman cartoon versions are better than the live versions, and Return of the Joker is one of them. Set in the Batman Beyond universe (between twenty and thirty years later from when Bruce was in his prime), this movie introduces a young boy named Terry who is given the honor of becoming a Batman for a new generation. At the same time, the Joker, who was long thought dead, resurfaces and causes no end of trouble for our heroes.

I've also had the chance to watch a big chunk of the series, and it's always neat when a video release like this is a continuous piece of the series. The voice acting is well done, the story is compelling and dynamic, and the physical limitations of the real world are easily evaded with the animation medium. This makes Batman a lot more agile, swift, and sneaky then he ever could be in the movies. Anybody who's followed the show has probably seen this, but if you haven't, it's definitely worth a watch.


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15. Sheva Alomar

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 06:10 (A review of Sheva Alomar)

First appearance: Resident Evil 5 (2007)

Sometimes, I feel like I’m the only one in the world who liked Sheva in RE5.

Good thing I’m the one writing the rankings!

This underappreciated BSAA agent brought real co-op to the Resident Evil franchise in the best way possible.


She’s also great as an AI-controlled companion with the bravery to take on an 8ft tall executioner with a stun baton.

On a more superficial note, she’s one of the hottest ladies in the franchise. Her DLC outfits were fire!

Capcom really needs to bring her back.



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2. Mother Miranda

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 06:07 (A review of Mother Miranda)

First appearance: Resident Evil Village (2021)

European mythology is rich in tales of shape-shifting demons with human forms that terrorize humanity for hundreds of years.

In the world of Resident Evil, there may be some truth to these stories.

Mother Miranda discovered the Black Mold in the early 19th century and quickly became fixated on its power. She dedicated her life to studying the mold, becoming immortal in the process.

The dark and cursed aesthetic makes Mother Miranda feel like a primordial evil far beyond our comprehension.



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13. Alex Wesker

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 05:53 (A review of Alex Wesker)

First appearance: Resident Evil: Revelations 2 (2015)

If you missed Resident Evil: Revelations on the 3DS and never got around to playing the sequel, you’ll be surprised to learn that Albert Wesker had a sister.

Along with Albert, Alex was the only surviving subject of Project W, which aimed to create the next step in human evolution.

Both Wesker children made it their life’s work to push humanity forward in the most sinister ways possible.

Their choices would eventually lead them both to a violent death on the business end of an RPG rocket.



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Entertaining and Full of Action Adventure

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 03:55 (A review of National Treasure: Book of Secrets)

During a lecture about John Wilkes Booth and Thomas Gates, Ben Gates (Nicolas Cage) and his father Patrick Gates (Jon Voight) are surprised by Mitch Wilkinson (Ed Harris) that claims that their ancestor was a conspirator in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln based on the missing page of Booth's diary that he possesses. The outraged Ben decides to prove the honor of his ancestor and together with his wife Abigail (Diane Kruger) and his best friend, the writer Riley Poole (Justin Bartha), they head to France, England and Washington to collect clues to lead them to a lost city of gold Cinola and clean the name of Thomas Gates. But Mitch Wilkinson is following each step of Ben and his friends to take the merit of finding the treasure for himself.

"National Treasure: Book of Secrets" is an entertaining and full of action adventure that follows the style of Indiana Jones combined with "Da Vinci Code. The story is developed in high pace, with likable characters and funny situations. Nicolas Cage and the gorgeous German Diane Kruger show a wonderful chemistry and Jon Voight, Justin Bartha and Helen Mirren give a magnificent support. Ed Harris is a very confused and ambiguous villain and his true motives are never clear, Harvey Keitel has a minor role and Bruce Greenwood performs again the role of president of the United States of America that seems to be tailored for this great actor. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Lenda do Tesouro Perdido – Livro dos Segredos" ("The Legend of the Lost Treasure – Book of Secrets")


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Security risks

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 03:18 (A review of National Treasure)

"National Treasure" is a thriller that was obviously targeted for young audiences. John Turtletaub, its director, has created a film that will resonate with those audiences because of the great ride and the adventure it depicts. On the other hand, heaven help us, should anyone feel inspired to emulate the hero of the film and attempts to do something similar, which in a way, doesn't say much about the security in guarding the real "natural treasures" of the country.

If we can believe Ben Gates can pull the caper, then there's no problem in enjoying this film, which offers an action packed couple of hours that could have been trimmed a little bit to make it even better.

Not being a Nicolas Cage fan, one was prepared for the worst, but this is one of the films in which Mr. Cage is at his mellowest intensity and it's easy to tolerate his antics. Diane Kreuger is a beautiful addition to the film that pays well. Justin Bartha does what he can being a computer nerd and pulling fantastic stuff to help his friend. Sean Bean, Christopher Plummer and Jon Voight, are seen in supporting roles.

This is a film that will play well with young minds and with adults that will allow for the silliness of the situation at hand.


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So he's...the bad guy?

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 02:41 (A review of The Scorpion King)

Okay, I'm confused. The Mummy Returns portrays the Scorpion King as some evil tyrant who wants to take over the world by smiting any and all civilizations in his way. But that's exactly the opposite of the same character in his very own movie. In fact he struggles to overthrow an evil ruler for those very reasons.

So when, and why, did he become bad? I'm afraid I'm not following this. The movie, however, is entertaining, if rather short and silly. Chuck Russell tries to cram in loads of fighting and hokum as he can. It works and The Rock is very cool as said King (or Mathayus) and former Jason victim Kelly Hu is gorgeous as the scantily-clad Cassandra. Grant Heslov and Michael Clarke Duncan fill out their usual roles as ethnic comic-relief and big, muscley guy.

The film has slightly less integrity to it than the Mummy movies. This is evident with the fun and lively, but completely inappropriate, score by John Debney. I'm not expecting anything like his Passion of the Christ score but blaring death metal guitars seem kinda out of place in a movie set 3000 years BC.

But this movie is a cheeseburger, not a 17-course dinner. So why bother complaining. After all it's a prequel of a sequel of a movie that was a re-make of a movie that was made in the 30's. But it's well made and loads of fun so just go along with it and you'll enjoy.

Filmed in Panavision the DVD is in perfect 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen with very loud and thrilling Dolby/DTS 5.1 sound. The extras are fluff, but that's to be expected.


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Sadly disappointing

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 02:39 (A review of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor)

Warning: Spoilers
I do have a question, what ever happened to the slow walking lame Egyptian mummies? I mean, as silly as they are, they're still entertaining. Now we have The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, I loved The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, it was watchable, but this one was just an excuse to make some quick cash. I was actually looking forward to seeing this movie, I got the opportunity to see it today, I was excited, but unfortunately, we now have Chinese mummies that can do anything that will fit into the CGI budget. Another disappointment was the recasting of Evelyn, I know Rachel Weisz turned this script down, but she was seriously needed, Maria Bella, who is a decent actress, actually made Evie a very flat character and not as enjoyable. Then not only that, but we have Brendan and Maria who do look incredibly good for their age, they have a 20 year old son in the movie? This story was a waste of time and money.

The Emperor of China wanted to rule the entire world, but when a Chinese witch curses him and his army, he is put to sleep for thousands of years. Rick and Evie are now retired and have lost the spark in their relationship, but when they are asked to go to Shanghai to deliver a small little ball, they bump into their son who has discovered the Emperor. Rick and Evie are forced to wake the mummy by his followers. Now the whole family with Jonathan and the protector who was supposed to keep the emperor from rising, must destroy the Emperor or he will take over the entire world.

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor has some OK moments, I loved the beginning story and the ending battle scene is held pretty strong, it's worth the look for that, but I would say this is more of a rental. It's just a sad disappointment, considering how much better it could have been. The one liners were too cheesy and we have three headed dragons, karate kicking abdominal snow men, why not just go all the way and have leprechauns with machine guns? That's how out of control the CGI effects are. Luke Ford makes Brandon Fraiser look like Marlon Brando with his acting and the love story between him and the protector girl was useless. Like I said, wait for the rental, not the worst movie of this year, but a huge let down for sure.

5/10


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A mindless must-see.

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 02:33 (A review of Pacific Rim)

I usually don't watch action films. They just aren't my sort of thing. However, my daughter insisted that I watch "Pacific Rim" and I was feeling absolutely horrible when I watched the film, as I had just gone through some painful surgery that morning. So, to take my mind off my aches, I gave it a try. And, thankfully, it turned out to be exactly the sort of tonic I needed--entertaining and crazy fun. While I didn't see it in the theater (the best way to see this type of movie), I did see it on a very large screen at home and watching it on a small screen is practically a waste of time. For once, I loved that a film has eye- popping visuals, explosions and action--and it manages to deliver an entertaining experience without leaving you feeling dumb for having enjoyed it--a problem too often associated with movie of this style. Well worth your time.


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Riddick

Posted : 2 years, 4 months ago on 5 July 2022 02:28 (A review of The Chronicles of Riddick)

Riddick might not be the right character to build an epic saga story line about, but he's the right character to make a franchise with and this film proves that Vin Diesel's Riddick role is fun enough to watch with great action set pieces.


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