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Reviews
Voltron Force (2011)
Good outweighs the bad
I'm a 33 year old viewer who grew up on the original Voltron.
When I started watching this, I cringed at the horrible opening theme (which I still think needs to go), the new voice actors and the questionable animation style.
Then it grew on me -- a lot. The storyline is very faithful to the original, and you can tell the writers have a lot of love and respect for its roots. One of the great aspects of this sequel arc is how it answers all the geeky questions my generation had about Voltron when they were growing up. There was an episode based entirely on the fact that Voltron takes so flippin' long to form. Another one had a semi-psychotic Voltron geek who collected Voltron "toys", which included Sven's (!) original suit. Followed quickly by an episode where Sven himself returns, which has a nod to the original series when Hunk goes, "Who's flyin' blue lion?" If that's not enough, Voltron now has the ability to temporarily switch centers so any of the five lions can form the head (though to be fair, Pidge's green center looks a little ridiculous), complete with their own unique weapons. The eight-year-old in me totally came back to life here.
As for the cadets. They grated on me at first, and I'm still not happy about them gradually replacing the original pilots, but their personalities are pretty well developed (especially Daniel's), and there's an actual continuing story arc that leads to a rather...unexpected season 1 conclusion. Definitely darker and deeper than most kids' cartoons.
If you grew up watching the series AND you've got an open mind, give this a chance.
K-PAX (2001)
A virtual masterpiece; how could this not have won something?
K-PAX is quite possibly one of my favorite movies ever. The story is original, compelling, heartfelt and involving, the theme is multi-layered, the humor bits are memorable and the acting is superb. The musical score is wonderful, haunting, poignant, strangely appropriate. I honestly don't think I can find a single flaw in this film, though I'm sure some exist for those hardened cynics out there to dig up. What I especially loved was how (and I'll say this without spoiling) when all is said and done, at least two entirely different stories are told, depending on your belief. This is very much a movie about belief and possibility, the central symbol being Spacey's last words to Bridges. I'm at a loss as to why this movie didn't win any awards, and being a creative artist myself with a persistent fear of my own work being misunderstood, the lack of attention given to this movie is pretty demoralizing.
Joe Somebody (2001)
A good, enjoyable movie with nice messages
I wasn't expecting much, but I must say I thoroughly enjoyed this film. The character interactions were clever and meaningful, there was a true and valid commentary and a nice way of delivering the message. The multiple lives and perspectives were also a nice touch. And to top it all off, the beginning commercial about the "side effects" of the first drug was absolutely hilarious; I swear, they ripped that one right from one of my own jokes. Overall, somewhere between B+ and A-.
Gosford Park (2001)
Worst movie of the year, at best. Bring an alarm clock.
The only movie I hated more than this film was Vanya on 42nd Street. The two are very much alike, except Vanya is American and this is British and has a semi-interesting environment. That's about the only good comment I can scrounge up about this wasted 2.5 hours of my life.
I'm generally patient and by no means a single-minded or immature action freak. I appreciate plot and most of all characters, but this film just didn't cut it for me in the least. I sat expectantly for about half an hour trying to make sense of the flash-by-flash relationship spaghetti, and once I did I spent the rest of the film not caring about any of it. Boring, insignificant soapish details, boring characters with very sporadic interjections of almost-funny humor that does nothing. Folks, I'm not a sadist or anything so don't take this the wrong way, but EVEN THE MURDER WAS BORING. As for plot, absolutely nothing happened in this film, even with a dead body present. The ending fell more flat than a week old soda, and throughout the film not so much as a spark toward any climax of any kind happened. Like Vanya, this is the kind of film that appeals very strongly to realist buffs and dullards, so if you aren't one of those, STAY AWAY. If you must, just visit your doctor and ask him for a few solid shots of ENNUI.
Free Enterprise (1998)
an Absolutely, Positively Brilliant movie for Trekkies
If you aren't a hard core Trek/sci fi fan, you'll be bored to limbo by this film, so don't even bother reading on. But if you are, there isn't a better fan movie for you than this. Right from the beginning, the jokes and references fly so fast and furious (from young Mark's flying leg kick and "no, I won't kill him!" line, straight to the end) that you'll be kept on your toes all the way through. The writing is very clever for the entire film, including Robert's set-up for the surprise at the end. The interactions are witty and excellent. And even if you think the jokes get a bit repetitive at some point, that's not all this film has to offer. You can look it also as a semi-serious autobiography (which it partly is) about two sci fi nerds very much like the rest of us with faults very much like our faults (though played to the extreme) trying to fulfill their dreams; Robert is a brash womanizer, but living too deeply in his fantasy world and irresponsible to the point where he leeches off friends more shamefully than any of us would dare (the scene where he meets Claire a prime example), and chooses to go without telephone or electricity so he can line his shelves with mucho expensive collectors' action figures. Mark is responsible and loyal to his friends, yet his narcissus complex (he won't even talk to people in his office unless they're sitting down!) and fear prevents him from dating any woman he cares about. While the film is packed with our favorite geek humor, their problems are very real, as are their deeper interactions and how they are affected by them. Free Enterprise is a wonderful story of friendship, struggle and ultimate achievement that people like us can all very strongly relate and aspire to, with important lessons underneath the jokes.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Very Good, but some of the cuts should not have been made
While I agree that it was very well done, and that certain elements (like Bombadil) needed to be cut, I was outraged at how they completely emptied the story of Gollum's background. It would have taken them maybe 5 minutes or less to include the origin of Smeagol and everything that happened to him, yet those 5 minutes would have given him the characterization he deserves. Heck, even Bakshi threw in the basics of that anecdote. Instead, we now have some one dimensional creature who just exists and found the ring. My question then, simply, is WHY did they do this? What could they have possibly gained from it? I'm just hoping they have the missing elements in the DVD release.