The Dilemma Review
Here’s a dilemma for ya: How do you tell Ron Howard that he no longer has any clue when it comes to comedy? Sometimes I forget how many great movies he made 25 years ago. Yes, THAT long ago.
Here’s a dilemma for ya: How do you tell Ron Howard that he no longer has any clue when it comes to comedy? Sometimes I forget how many great movies he made 25 years ago. Yes, THAT long ago.
What do you get when you put a group of competent actors in a film with a script that clearly should have been written 30 years ago? You get The Rite, or shall I call it, the Movie That Would Have Been Good Before The Exorcist. I mean, hey, there are some good people in this, but it’s pretty obvious that the fact that Anthony Hopkins stars here is why the movie got made at all.
There’s one thing in particular to remember about action movies like this one: don’t expect any Oscar noms. And know what you’re getting into before you buy your ticket. Ok, that’s two things. But remember them, because if you go in with some kind of delusions of grandeur, then you’ll come out disappointed for sure.
Well, granted this didn’t come out in January, but we’re reviewing now anyway. It’s clear this isn’t a January release because it doesn’t suck. It’s way better than anything you’ll likely see until at least Spring. Winter’s Bone, despite it’s name, came out back in the summer. We’re just here to confuse you all.
This story is based on some nebulous historical events of Rome’s Legion IX Hispana that Rome lost track of around 117 AD. How you loose 5,000 Roman soldiers is beyond me, but then, if some of the theories are correct, it’s just another reason that the Scots kick ass.
There are some really beautiful shorts here. And not one of them is drawn like a drunken 5 year old. Uh, not that there would be anything wrong with that. Well, the drunken part, maybe. Definitely. And the Plympton one has that shaky thing going on. Oh, whatever.
If someone had told me a year ago that Liam Neeson was going to become an action movie star, I would have raised an eyebrow, to say the least. Not that I didn’t think he was capable of it, but you know, look at him. He just doesn’t seem to fit the part.
Unfortunately, I’m not going to a party this year where there’s an Oscar pool, so it doesn’t behoove me financially this time around, but seeing them is quite the reward in itself. But really, the irony is not lost on me that the one time I won’t win money is the one year I get to see ALL the shorts. Damn you, fate!
Oh, the joy of reviewing another magical Nicolas Cage film. As we know, he opened the 2011 year with one of the worst films I’ve ever seen. Why would I expect Drive Angry to be any different? It’s not like Cage has any less debt to pay off, right?
Rango may not be incredible, or a masterpiece, but in my opinion, it is far, FAR from being one of the worst animated films ever made. From a visual standpoint alone it is head and shoulders above most animated fare.