Dell's Good, Bad & Ugly Movie Reviews

[dell71]

AND NOW...

to piss some people off or comfort the few of you past puberty that actually agree with me...

The Karate Kid (2010)
Directed by Harald Zwart.
2010. Rated PG, 140 minutes.
Cast:
Jaden Smith
Jackie Chan
Taraji P. Henson
Wenwen Han
Zhenwei Wang
Rongguang Yu
Zhensu Wu
Zhiheng Wang

Tre (Smith) moves to China with his mom (Henson) after her job transfers her abroad. Practically soon as he steps off the plane, he takes a shine to one of the local girls. Of course, this puts him at odds with the neighborhood bully Cheng (Zhenwei Wang) and his cronies. Yes, this is a remake of the 1984 hit movie of the same name.

While maintaining the framework of the original, this one branches far enough out to stand on its own. The wise teacher, love story, evil teacher with a “no mercy” policy and angry young bully are all in place, yet it feels like a fresh approach. A contributing factor is the change in location from California to China. Another is the change in age groups from near adults to middle-schoolers. These changes work to create something essentially the same, but somehow different, if that makes any sense.

This version has something else going in its favor over the original. Some of you may stop reading after the next sentence, just a warning. Jaden Smith is a better karate kid than Ralph Macchio. I realize the blasphemy I’ve just committed, but I’ll drive on. Little Will seems to be the better athlete and actor, pulling off the role easier than “Danielsan”. It helps that he has many of his dad’s qualities, including a natural charm. Admittedly, he can occasionally become annoying, as most kid actors do, but it’s an overall better performance, in my very humble opinion.

In the mentor role, Jackie Chan is also excellent. As Mr. Han, he gives what is probably the finest performance of his career to date. It’s a far cry from the laugh, make a stupid face, run and fight while performing acrobatics routine most of his work consists of. Here, he conveys real emotions and wisdom. Granted, it’s not quite up to the same level of other-worldly awesomeness as Pat Morita’s Mr. Miyagi, but it’s not as far off as you would think going in. I’ll also admit that hanging and picking up the jacket is a lot more of stretch to translate into a fighting style than “wax on, wax off.” Can’t win ‘em all, I guess.

For me, a remake should retell the story of the original in its own way while maintaining what people liked about the original. It shouldn’t update its predecessor needlessly, but in ways the contemporary audience relates to. The 2010 version of TKK does this. People tend to forget, or ignore, that the 1984 version is really just a martial arts reimagining of Rocky. For that reason, even though I always liked it I feel it is overrated. The remake is rare in that it’s at least on equal footing with the movie it remakes. Duck, more blasphemy coming. In fact, I think its better, as a movie at least. Still, the original has the advantage of being a cultural phenomenon. Since it is, I can already feel many ill-intended glares from the disbelieving eyes that just read this.

MY SCORE: 7/10

[SOS4Prez]

I actually agree on The Karate Kid. Mainly because I thought Jackie Chan was phenomenal and it was a quick moving 2 hours, 20 minutes.

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

AND NOW...

to piss some people off or comfort the few of you past puberty that actually agree with me...

The Karate Kid (2010)
Directed by Harald Zwart.
2010. Rated PG, 140 minutes.
Cast:
Jaden Smith
Jackie Chan
Taraji P. Henson
Wenwen Han
Zhenwei Wang
Rongguang Yu
Zhensu Wu
Zhiheng Wang

Tre (Smith) moves to China with his mom (Henson) after her job transfers her abroad. Practically soon as he steps off the plane, he takes a shine to one of the local girls. Of course, this puts him at odds with the neighborhood bully Cheng (Zhenwei Wang) and his cronies. Yes, this is a remake of the 1984 hit movie of the same name.

While maintaining the framework of the original, this one branches far enough out to stand on its own. The wise teacher, love story, evil teacher with a “no mercy” policy and angry young bully are all in place, yet it feels like a fresh approach. A contributing factor is the change in location from California to China. Another is the change in age groups from near adults to middle-schoolers. These changes work to create something essentially the same, but somehow different, if that makes any sense.

This version has something else going in its favor over the original. Some of you may stop reading after the next sentence, just a warning. Jaden Smith is a better karate kid than Ralph Macchio. I realize the blasphemy I’ve just committed, but I’ll drive on. Little Will seems to be the better athlete and actor, pulling off the role easier than “Danielsan”. It helps that he has many of his dad’s qualities, including a natural charm. Admittedly, he can occasionally become annoying, as most kid actors do, but it’s an overall better performance, in my very humble opinion.

In the mentor role, Jackie Chan is also excellent. As Mr. Han, he gives what is probably the finest performance of his career to date. It’s a far cry from the laugh, make a stupid face, run and fight while performing acrobatics routine most of his work consists of. Here, he conveys real emotions and wisdom. Granted, it’s not quite up to the same level of other-worldly awesomeness as Pat Morita’s Mr. Miyagi, but it’s not as far off as you would think going in. I’ll also admit that hanging and picking up the jacket is a lot more of stretch to translate into a fighting style than “wax on, wax off.” Can’t win ‘em all, I guess.

For me, a remake should retell the story of the original in its own way while maintaining what people liked about the original. It shouldn’t update its predecessor needlessly, but in ways the contemporary audience relates to. The 2010 version of TKK does this. People tend to forget, or ignore, that the 1984 version is really just a martial arts reimagining of Rocky. For that reason, even though I always liked it I feel it is overrated. The remake is rare in that it’s at least on equal footing with the movie it remakes. Duck, more blasphemy coming. In fact, I think its better, as a movie at least. Still, the original has the advantage of being a cultural phenomenon. Since it is, I can already feel many ill-intended glares from the disbelieving eyes that just read this.

MY SCORE: 7/10

The problem w/ The Karate Kid 2010 film, is that its called The Karate Kid.

If it was named something else, people would take it at face value and they'd probably come away with something similar to your thoughts.

Calling it TKK doesnt help it, IMO. It was also long as fuck and it did come off, at least to me, as simply a stage for Jaden Smith to get face time.

[Senser81]

The problem w/ The Karate Kid 2010 film, is that its called The Karate Kid.

If it was named something else, people would take it at face value and they'd probably come away with something similar to your thoughts.

Calling it TKK doesnt help it, IMO. It was also long as fuck and it did come off, at least to me, as simply a stage for Jaden Smith to get face time.

The Karate Black Kid?

[Champ]

WHOA WHOA WHOA DONT EVER HATE ON RALPH MACCHIO

[dell71]

The problem w/ The Karate Kid 2010 film, is that its called The Karate Kid.

Funny thing is, I thought about this while watching it, only because he's not actually learning karate. So in this instance, it could've been called "The Kung Fu Kid", but whatever.

If it was named something else, people would take it at face value and they'd probably come away with something similar to your thoughts.

Probably true.

Calling it TKK doesnt help it, IMO. It was also long as fuck and it did come off, at least to me, as simply a stage for Jaden Smith to get face time.

It was long, but I thought moved along well. And I expected nothing less than a full on Jaden Smith assault.

[dell71]

Gentlemen Broncos
Directed by Jared Hess.
2009. Rated PG-13, 90 minutes.
Cast:
Michael Angarano
Jennifer Coolidge
Jermaine Clement
Halley Feiffer
Héctor Jiménez
Sam Rockwell
John Baker

Benjamin Purvis (Angarano) is an aspiring sci-fi writer and a bit of a loner. His mom, played by American Pie’s original MILF, Jennifer Coolidge, sends him off to a writer’s camp. By the way, she’s an aspiring fashion designer. Once there, he is befriended by the pushy Tabatha (Feiffer) and her sidekick/independent filmmaker Lonnie (Jiménez). The best part of the camp, as far as Benjamin is concerned is that the keynote speaker and judge of the manuscript contest is famed sci-fi author Chevalier (Clement). Before the rest of the people in the movie, we learn that Chevalier is in danger of being dropped by his publisher since his last few books have tanked and the one he’s working on is apparently terrible. On the other hand, everyone seems to love Benjamin’s work. Hmm, I wonder where this is headed.

What follows is a quirky comedy filled with awkward moments and passages from our hero’s story playing out in front of our eyes, performed mostly by Sam Rockwell. It’s brought to us by Jared Hess, the creator of Napoleoon Dynamite. Even without that tidbit of info we can recognize the same style of humor. The tone and delivery of lines are largely identical. The difference is ND has better jokes and note-perfect performances. Effectively, GB feels like a lame imitation. It has its moments but they merely garner mild chuckles, not all out laughter. I’m sure there are some who will swear I just didn’t get it. Maybe they’re right. In any event, despite its best efforts, GB never quite captures the magic of ND. If you’re one of those who just hate ND then stay far, far away from this one.

MY SCORE: 4.5/10

[dell71]

Gonna do a review on Due Date?

I enjoyed it.

Eventually, but probably not until after it hits DVD.

[dell71]

Do you rent DVD's? OR just watch them online? I'm sure you've answered this multiple times,I'm just lazy to look.

It's a combination...

Blockbuster online/in-store
Local library
Sister-in-law
Online


For new movies...

The occasional trip to the theater
The occasional good online version

[dell71]

How to Train Your Dragon
Directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders.
2010. Rated PG, 98 minutes.
Cast:
Jay Baruchel
Gerard Butler
America Ferrera
Craig Ferguson
Jonah Hill
Christopher Mintz-Plasse
T. J. Miller
Kristen Wiig

Hiccup (Baruchel) is a bit of a miscast. He’s a young Viking who, like others, yearns to grow up and slay dragons. They’ve been terrorizing his island village since long before he was born, hundreds of years in fact. However, he doesn’t appear to be blessed with the ability. He’s not big or strong and has a knack for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He’s also more cerebral that most of, if not all of his people. Basically, he’s a very young and not quite as neurotic Woody Allen.

Inevitably, Hiccup is misunderstood and smart enough to build a device that enables him to catch one of the elusive species of dragon known as a Night Fury. He’s the first Viking to ever do so. However, instead of killing the beast, he sets it free and the two begin a relationship not much unlike a contemporary boy and his dog.

From there, we get a fun and fun to look at tale. The animation strikes a nice balance between realism and fantasy. The story does the same between light-hearted and intense. It’s a movie adults might not love, but can certainly enjoy.

HTTYD isn’t completely without faults. There could’ve been more about the Night Fury. Are there any more? The final battle could’ve been even more epic. And why the dearth of women on this island. I counted very few. Maybe I wasn’t paying close enough attention.

There is also the old accent problem. Usually, it’s a Disney problem but Dreamworks has picked it up. In a number of animated movies, the hero will have an American accent while everyone else uses whatever is native to the land. In this case, it correctly makes Hiccup seem out of place, but for some it will also render him unbelievable. Who am I kidding? I just way overthought this. The kids probably won’t notice.

In all, it’s a solid kiddie flick full of life lessons. Thankfully, the moralizing doesn’t overwhelm the story so we still have a blast. This is no small part due to some very good writing that ebbs and flows nicely. It’s one grown-ups can actually be entertained by instead of being assaulted by stupidity.

MY SCORE: 7/10

[dell71]

Bronson
Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn.
2008. Rated R, 92 minutes.
Cast:
Tom Hardy
Amanda Burton
Kelly Adams
Andrew Forbes
Jon House
Johnny Phillips
Matt King
James Lance

The life and times of Michael Peterson AKA Charles Bronson (Hardy). No, not THE Charles Bronson, star of such classics as Once Upon a Time in the West, Hard Times, Death Wish and its way too many sequels, so on and so forth. We’re talking England’s most notorious prisoner. He takes on the Bronson moniker during one of his rare stints in the free world as his underground street-fighting name and it sticks. True story. Really, this is based on a true story.

So far in his life, Charlie has spent 34 years in prison. We’re told that 30 of them have been spent in solitary confinement. His crimes on the outside hardly warrant such lengthy incarceration. What happens on the inside is what extends his stay. Those of you familiar with sports radio and TV host Jim Rome will recognize the label “likes to fight guy.” That describes Bronson to a tee. He simply loves fighting. Often, he fights groups of prison guards all at once. Whenever he knows its about to go down, he gets naked and slathers himself in some sort of cream for some unexplained reason. Just as well, I’m not sure I really want to know why. Sometimes, Bronson fights other inmates because that’s the only way he knows to deal with a situation. He even kills one poor guy simply to get moved to a different facility. The scenes depicting all these fights are realistically brutal. As he should since he’s usually taking on half a dozen guys or more, Charlie ends up bloody and beaten on more than a couple occasions. Saying that he’s a hard-headed fellow is a massive understatement.

Bronson tells the story from its subject’s completely unapologetic point of view. It doesn’t try to present him as some sort of misunderstood soul. It barely falls shy of glorifying his lifestyle. What makes it an odd biopic is that it flat out refuses to analyze him or speculate on what made him that way. As a result, we simply watch him move from one act of violence to the next until 90 or so minutes pass and the credits roll. It feels like a pointless exercise. At the risk of spoiling it, I’ll put it this way: he doesn’t learn a lesson, get the girl or save the day. We don’t sympathize with or gain a deeper understanding of him and we don’t learn a lesson, either.

If there is a method to the madness, it is to take aim at and skewer the culture that makes celebrities of anyone willing to make a fool of themselves in public. We see it in Charlie’s monologues delivered on a stage during which he basks in the glory of his fame as his country’s most dangerous inmate. The problem is, the movie seems to strain to make a point and doesn’t quite do it effectively.

As pointless excercises go, this is an excellent one. The simple fact of the matter is that Tom Hardy is amazing in the title role. He gives a mesmerizing performance. He makes Bronson, both the character and the movie something you just can’t take your eyes off.

MY SCORE: 7.5/10

[Cody]

Nice review on Bronson I was thinking a 8 but you pointed out some good stuff I did not think of.

[KillaK]

I was a little disappointed with How to Train your Dragon, I think everyone kept hyping it up and it made me think the movie was going to be another Toy Story 3. Not a bad movie but I just thought it would be better.

[dell71]

The Lovely Bones
Directed by Peter Jackson.
2009. Rated PG-13, 136 minutes.
Cast:
Saoirse Ronan
Stanley Tucci
Mark Wahlberg
Rachel Weisz
Susan Sarandon
Michael Imperioli
Rose McIver
Reese Ritchie
Carolyn Dando
Nikki SooHoo
Christian Thomas Ashdale

Susie (Ronan) is your everyday, boy-crazy 14 year old in 1973. Well, we think she is. However, we very quickly discover she’s already been murdered. She even tells us that Mr. Harvey (Tucci) is her killer. Since we get all this information at the beginning of the picture, we know this is no ordinary murder mystery.

But there is mystery. The obvious question comes will Mr. Harvey be caught? There are other questions to be answered, as well. Mainly, how does Susie’s death affect her family. That aspect is explored in-depth. We can see how each person copes, or doesn’t cope with the situation. This includes Susie, who continually narrates to us from the other side while trying to find her way to Heaven.

Speaking of narration, I’ve never been a huge fan of it in movies. I freely admit if it is done right, it’s a great asset to a film. Here, it’s done right. The key is Susie rarely, if ever, crosses the line of giving us too much information. More importantly, she steers clear of simply recapping what we just saw or telling us what we’re about to see, for the most part. Essentially, she thinks out loud so that we see her perspective changing as we move along.

Playing the role of Susie, Ronan does an excellent job. Even though she spills the beans on the major details early, her performance conveys the idea there is much still to be discovered. As she, and we, come upon these revelations she is appropriately amazed and dismayed.

While Ronan is good, there are two other performances that are simply perfect. The one you may know about is Stanley Tucci’s Oscar nominated portrayal of our villain, Mr. Harvey. It’s an amazing piece of work. Helpfully, it is a very well written character. He’s downright gentlemanly in his approach to most things. If we didn’t know any better, we’d think he was just some non-descript fellow who lives in the neighborhood, the scariest kind of boogeyman.

The other great performance has flown under the radar. Susan Sarandon as the chain-smoking, and chain-drinking grandmother is absolutely fabulous. Her drunken wisdom and lack of domestic capabilities add both levity and comic relief. Sarandon strikes the perfect balance. In the process, she becomes the linchpin that keeps the family and potentially the movie from spiraling completely out of control.

There are times when the movie does indeed seem to take leave of its faculties. Most of these occur when the focus is on Samantha’s excursions in the afterlife. These portions of the film try to wow us with exoticvisuals. Instead, it takes what’s already a far-fetched premise and pushes it to the brink of total inaccessibility. There is also her constant lament of not having had a first kiss while alive. While that’s understandable from a teenage girl, the way this particular issue is resolved is a bizarre piece of b-movie madness that threatens to sink the movie. The same goes for her sister’s lame-brained effort at heroism that miraculously turns out far better, far easier than it should.

Those issues aside, TLB is an excellent watch that intrigues us at almost every turn. It makes us empathize with Susie’s family. Eventually, we feel as if we lost a loved one. And though it’s not a horror film, it frightens us just enough to keep us on the edges of our seats.

MY SCORE: 8/10

[Kurt Cobain]

I enjoyed The Lovely Bones, but I did not care for the gay ending.