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Showing posts with the label sci-fi action

Chappie (2015) - Movie Review

Chappie is the third film directed by Neill Blomkamp, the guy who directed the awesome District 9. And while I enjoyed his second film, Elysium, it was no where near as good as D9. And after watching this, I guess I'll have to wait for his next film in hopes of getting something equally good as D9. Now, Chappie is set in a not so distant futuristic Johannesburg where police force is dominated by Robots and one of them gets a new programming which makes it a fully fledged A.I Sharlto Copley did a great job voicing Chappie. Loved him. Hugh Jackman played the main antagonist, and while he was good in it, his character just wasn't fleshed out more. He ended up being cliche typical villain. Sigourney Weaver was totally wasted in the movie. Her role was very limited and could have been played by anyone. Dev Patel was Ok. Those Gangsters were NOT GOOD AT ALL. Sure they had their punk/hip style and all but as actors, MEH. Chappie sets it self apart from most other A.I films ...

The Divergent Series: Insurgent (2015) - Movie Review

Having liked Divergent and its setting, I was really curious to know more about the world they created. Insurgent starts off straight from where Divergent left off. The team is on the run and are looking for some place to lay low. We got another A-list actor in this movie, Naomi Watts, who plays the rebellion leader. So it was Kate Winslet vs Naomi Watts. Her role was wasted in this movie though. Shailene Woodley was again good. I really liked Miles Teller in this. He was again the typical douche bag like he was in the previous film. The story and pacing this time felt a bit more messy because in the previous film, there was this continuous progression that kept the film together. Here, it felt more like a random mix up of high and low points. Now, I'm a sucker for rebellion scenarios and not surprisingly, I liked the said stuff here as well and plot points being associated with it. It did felt a lot similar to Hunger Game: Mockingjay story and I assumed it will progress a cer...

Jurassic World (2015) - Movie Review

"Monster is a relative term. To a canary, a cat is a monster. We're just used to being the cat." We finally get to go back to Isla Nublar after all these years (22 to be exact). It is a given that creating the same feel and magic of Jurassic Park is impossible. SO instead of just trying to recreate everything and doing it in a lesser way, director Colin Trevorrow went with a different approach and it actually payed off. Jurassic World takes place 22 years after the events of the original film. A new park after the events of the original film, on the same place, was opened and has been functioning for 10 years. They create a hybrid dinosaur as a new attraction but everything goes to hell when it gets loose. Now, I had somewhat low expectations going into the movie and while it wasn't as good as the original, nor did it had its magic and feeling (obviously), it turned out to be a whole another entertaining ride. The movie did a good enough job of paying homage to t...

Terminator Genisys (2015) - Movie Review

Just like Jurassic World, this is another new addition to a classic and beloved franchise we got this year. And in similar fashion, I was both excited and doubtful. Luckily, the movie turned out to be better than what I expected but it had lots of quirks. Arnold kicked it out of the park. I loved him. He was funny and he was awesome. Emilia Clarke (Khaleesi) was a pretty good Sarah Conner. She was just like what you'd expect a girl in her situation to be. Jason Clarke as John Conner was OK. And Jai Courtney as Kyle Reese wasn't that bad like everyone made him out to be. He still had that bland look about him though, don't think he'll ever get rid of that. Lastly, J.K Simmons role was pretty good, albeit a bit too short. The movie pays a huge homage/respect to the James Cameron Terminator movies (T1 and T2), especially part 1. Hell, some of the starting scenes were recreated shot for shot and it was great seeing that along with some bits and pieces that added to tho...

Tomorrowland (2015) - Movie Review

The trailers really intrigued me and knowing that Brad Bird was directing it, how could I not be excited for it. Finally got around to watching it and if you take out the third act of the movie, it was great. The movie is about, well, tomorrowland, or rather the journey to get there. I'll keep it vague as the movie did a great job of not telling you a lot in the trailers, unlike the stupid trend we have nowadays where even the main plot twists are sometimes shown in the trailers (I'm looking at you Terminator: Genisys). The main cast was pretty good. Brit Robbertson, who plays the lead girl, was fantastic. I loved her in the movie. She really had this enthusiastic, perky, and plain fun aura about her and it just made her character really likable. Good thing too since she had to carry the movie on her shoulders. We also get George Clooney, who obviously needs no introduction, and was good. And the little girl, played by Raffey Cassidy, initially didn't impress me but then...

Pixels (2015) - Movie Review

Aliens attack the earth, but this time their weapons of choice are classic retro games characters. The movie stars Adam Sandler, Peter Dinklage and Kevin James along with tons of other known actors and some high profile cameos. But aside from maybe Peter Dinklage, none of them worked. Lazy acting or over the top. Also, I really don't get what was the point of adding the LAME ASS romance in this movie. It was so cringe worthy and waste of time. Michelle Monaghan was just there to look pretty. The special effects, all the retro characters brought to life, were pretty good. The pixelation effects looked nice. Also, there were some, very few, scenes which actually were fun. Like defeating donkey kong while 'We will rock you' is being played. Now this is the kinda stuff the movie should have focused on. Other than that, the movie was just filled with mediocrity. The jokes never worked, the situations never worked and had so much cringe worthy stuff, and the cheese level was...

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015) - Movie Review

AH, STAR WARS IS BACK!! Since I was very young when the prequels came out and wasn't even born during the original trilogy, this was my first Star Wars movie in a cinema. And it was an enthralling experience. J.J Abrams, being a huge fan of the original star wars (A new hope), masterfully created an adventurous, thrilling, heart-pounding and all out entertaining start to a new trilogy while keeping things intact that made the original trilogy so dear to millions of fans. The dude is a Geek God, successfully helming back two of the biggest Sci-fi franchises, this and Star Trek. Old faces return and provide tons of nostalgia bombs and great moments. Harrison Ford, especially, was really great yet again as Han Solo. And all the while we are introduced to new characters as well, who were really well handled. Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, who play Rey and Fin (The new leads), did a terrific job. You could see they gave it all in their roles and it really payed off. I loved them. Th...

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 (2015) - Review

AH FINALLY!! Here we are at the end of another saga. Been waiting a long time to watch it, and honestly, disappointed by it. So the movie starts from where Mockingjay Part 1 left off and this is where everything has been leading up-to, the fall of the capitol regime on the hands of the united districts. The rebellion aspect of this series has always been my favourite thing about it and there are some pretty great moments regarding it. On the other side, Katniss has to deal with peeta's mental issues and the ongoing love triangle, UGHH, and of course her contribution to the war. Now, performances, like the previous parts, were again mostly great. Jennifer Lawrence again did a great job as Katniss. The points where the movie really shined for me were the war moments, showing both sides, the horrors of it, it was all really good stuff. Like I said before, the rebellion aspect of this series is my favourite thing and when the movie gave me those moments, I loved it. This movie has...

Independence Day: Resurgence (2016) - Review

When I heard that they were making a sequel to Independence Day, I was overjoyed. For me, the original 1996 film is like an epitome of a summer popcorn flick. And with almost all the cast returning along with the director, I couldn't help but get super hyped up for it. Unfortunately, Roland Emmerich forgot what made his original film so entertaining. The movie takes place 20 years after the first film where humanity has been living in unity and prosperity ever since the aliens were defeated, all the while preparing for the next attack thanks to the advancements made from remains of the alien technology. The aliens come back, and now we have our movie. And to be honest, this would have worked fine if it was just limited to this premise. But NOPE. Now for a 2 hour movie, it was just too crammed up, right from the start. Too many characters, too many subplots etc. Everything just felt like it was rushed to some extent. Even the scenes that were entertaining felt rushed. And w...