Category Archives: MOVIES

Grizzly Review: The Amazing Spider-Man

It has a few flaws, but for a first installment of the rebooted Spiderman franchise it is better than any of the original films, especially Spiderman 3! The characters especially where far better this time around with Andrew showing Toby how to play Peter Parker. I will be looking forward to the next films in this great new Spiderman reboot. But I would love to see flaws I found fixed, they are so small though that a sequel would be able to see and fix them.

The Amazing Spider-Man is the story of Peter Parker (Garfield), an outcast high schooler who was abandoned by his parents as a boy, leaving him to be raised by his Uncle Ben (Sheen) and Aunt May (Field). Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be the person he is today. As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents’ disappearance – leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr. Curt Connors (Ifans), his father’s former partner. As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors’ alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero.

To start off let’s talk about the acting. The acting was very passionate which was a little surprising as it’s a super hero film, but you could really feel the emotional responses from its main characters (Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone) when various emotional scenes play out, beyond that would be a spoiler. Now for the main character who’s name I forget, nah only joking its Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) who I must say is the best interpretation of New York’s friendly neighbourhood Spiderman I have seen in a film. But as his competition is a cheap 80s film and Toby Maguire it was an easy win.

The best part about Garfield was that he looked and sounded the part, nerdy kid from Brooklyn. He was a teenager who had enormous power and treated it like a toy as you would. But my main compliment to this Peter Parker was that he made jokes even during battle’s which was always missing from the last Spider-man.

Sadly the thing many of us worried about was it feeling too soon for a reboot and it was lingering about. Mainly I would say in the origin of his powers but I don’t see how it could be avoided, at least with this film they tried to explain a very clever excuse for the radioactive spider what with using spider silk to create super strong cable.

Think I have talked enough about people and their silly human emotions. Now let’s talk about something more fun like the visuals. The special effects, physical props and visual landscape shots where excellent viewing as expected of a web slinger film. There’s nothing quite like being taken around New York through the eyes of Spiderman.

The lizard looked good and I am one those people who commented on him not having a snout but thinking about it now am not sure how they would get him to talk using a snout without it looking absolutely stupid, but at times the lizard looked more creepy than scary (Picture above for example).The best thing I felt about this films look was the way that the set of action scenes and spidey web slinging took place at night which was what Spiderman should be doing since he fights crime and it’s easier to keep a secret identity when you are fighting crime at night (don’t ask me how I know that).

My favorite scene without giving anything away would be the fight scene in the high school between the lizard and Spiderman, because it shows a great physical fight which plays with the effects and also shows a lot of the Spiderman humour whilst in the fight, which was never used in the original Spiderman. But of course this scene also includes my favorite Stan Lee cameo yet (you’ll see) The Avenger cameo was good this one is better.

What I liked about this films origin of the hero and the villain was that both a very much in development today, for example splicing technology used on the lizard has been in development a lot recent with plants to make super strong and big vegetables. Now another good point we see more spider-like creativity with Spiderman, this time for example in the pic above he sends out webbing in all directions and senses for vibrations much like a tarantula does to catch its prey plus he makes his own web shooters, I love clever stuff like that and it’s more true to the comics. Finally it’s a small flaw but it grinds my gear, why didn’t Uncle Ben state the legendary life lesson for Peter “With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility” to be far there was some variation of those words but I don’t see why they couldn’t just do the damn line! But finally it’s a good film with strong characters.

4.5 grizzlies

Movement on Edgar Wright’s ‘Ant-Man’ Movie?

So the Ant-Man movie, I’m hearing mixed reviews all over the shop about this flick. People are excited about the prospect of another Edgar Wright movie, but don’t seem pleased that it’s a film about a guy who talks to ants and shrinks down really small. ‘Ant-Man’ was a founding member of ‘the Avengers’ in the Marvel Universe, and has been through many revamps (the most recent been him taking on the costume and name of his deceased ex-wife and having a strange relationship with a robot that has his dead wife’s memories!).

Continue reading Movement on Edgar Wright’s ‘Ant-Man’ Movie?

Phase 4.5: Alternate Ending Reveled for Sci-Fi Classic

Finally, after 38 years, audiences have been able to see the recently found original ending for the 1974 movie Phase IV. A screening of the original movie in Los Angeles by Cinefamily to celebrate the works of the director Saul Bass lead into the viewing of the never before seen footage. This was Bass’s only film, but he was well-known in the industry as been a master title designer. On release the film was a flop, but has been well received by fans rediscovering it on TV and through parody shows like Mystery Science Theatre 3000.

Continue reading Phase 4.5: Alternate Ending Reveled for Sci-Fi Classic

Maleficent Is on Her Way

Those of us who grew up with the classic Disney films have had the joy (or maybe sorrow?) of seeing these stories turned into live-action flicks over the past several years.  Quite possibly the best part of these remakes was the portrayal of the villains.  Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil in the 1996 version of 101 Dalmatians, for example, made me decide I’d much rather work for the cynical, harsh editor Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada.  Also, Charlize Theron’s recent evil queen in Snow White & the Huntsman sparked in me a new appreciation for a villain I had otherwise thought rather shallow. Now it’s time to make way for some visible horns.

Angelina Jolie as Maleficent Those eyes could stare into your soul.

Set to release in 3D on March 14, 2014, Maleficent promises to share the other side to the 1959 animated classic Sleeping Beauty, this time focusing on development of Maleficent’s character.  The official Disney statement said, “The film reveals the events that hardened her heart and drove her to curse the baby, Aurora” (LATimes).  Directed by Robert Stromberg (production designer for Avatar and Alice in Wonderland) the cast is being led by Angelina Jolie, who has “already got her horns fitted” and has taken on the gutsy task of performing some of her own stunts.  Jolie points out in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that Maleficent is a multi-layered character who has her strengths and weaknesses just like any other person:

I hope in the end you see a woman who is capable of being many things, and just because she protects herself and is aggressive, it doesn’t mean she can’t have other [warmer] qualities. You have to figure out the puzzle of what she is…  It sounds really crazy to say that there will be something that’s good for young girls in this, because it sounds like you’re saying they should be a villain. [Maleficent] is actually a great person. But she’s not perfect. She’s far from perfect.  (EW)

The film also stars Elle Fanning as Maleficent’s opposite, Princess Aurora, as well as Juno Temple, Harlto Copley, and Imelda Staunton.  Production has already started in England, and apparently the Jolie-Pitt kids are making some trips to see their mother perform in all her robed glory.

Since Maleficent was always one of my favorite villains because she was just so purely dark and wicked, I am both curious and hesitant to see this production in its final release.  I’m always interested in hearing the other side of the story; that’s just a reasonable, fair way to learn and interact with other people in life.  However, I don’t believe that younger children should see this film, as their young minds are used to more black and white standards, and will not be able to fully grasp the situation of Maleficent’s proposed internal struggles and development.  The nature of such a character is probably better saved for more mature audiences, such as teens on  up, who can discuss and analyze that character and all her decisions and the impact they make.

Overall, for a character whom I believe most people thus far have considered 100% evil (I mean, really, who doesn’t?  She invokes the powers of hell, which seems pretty darn evil), Maleficent definitely promises to shed some new light on this horned female; we’ll just have to wait to see if that light will give us some nourishing vitamin D or if it will leave our skin burned and peeling.

The Man With the Iron Fists: New Trailer!

2012 is currently looking like a slam dunk for movies with the Dark Knight Rises hitting cinemas soon and Andrew Garfield swinging into action in The Amazing Spiderman. But our old friend Quentin Tarantino has been busy too. Not only is he prepping up his Django Unchained movie, he has also been working on getting this little beauty The Man with the Iron Fists to the silver screen.

Continue reading The Man With the Iron Fists: New Trailer!

The Amazing Spider Man – 2 AM Text Review

My buddy Aaron is a bartender for a certain movie theater here in Michigan, and on occasion, the theater will have advanced employee screenings for movies a couple nights prior to the film’s release. These are his thoughts on The Amazing Spider Man

Aaron: Watching spiderman was like watching the drunkest guy at the bar hit on the hottest waitress at the bar at the end of the night. – 3:08 AM

Aaron: It’s actually pretty entertaining, there’s a lot of misguided effort, but some how, you find yourself rooting for the guy because he’s trying so  – 3:10 AM

Aaron: hard. – 3:10 AM

Aaron: And more than likely, he’ll try again next week. So, yeah, Im definitely lookin forward to the sequal.  – 3:12 AM

 Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter – 2 AM Text Review

Ted – 2 AM Text Review