Archive for April, 2009

Review: Monsters vs Aliens

Friday, April 24th, 2009

Dreamworks Animation delivers an enjoyable 3D animation (the theater didn’t carry the 3D showing with the new glasses though), where technically speaking, the texture and reflective properties takes another step closer to looking more real. Story is by no means the best, but it moving along at a fine pace. Character design has enough variety, and voice acting was up to par. Not totally surprising, but with not too few 3D animated flicks around, it’s enough to stand out.7+.

Review: The Reader

Wednesday, April 15th, 2009

This movie is Oscar nominated, but I I thought it was an okay drama at best. The characters keep mostly to themselves, and the driving force behind them has to be guessed most of the time. The ending is heavy, but a mystery to me.
Also, solid acting notwithstanding, some scenes are not totally convincing (Kate Winslet in “old” makeup).7.This movie is Oscar nominated, but I I thought it was an okay drama at best. The characters keep mostly to themselves, and the driving force behind them has to be guessed most of the time. The ending is heavy, but a mystery to me.
Also, solid acting notwithstanding, some scenes are not totally convincing (Kate Winslet in “old” makeup).7.

Review: The Unborn

Wednesday, April 15th, 2009

David S. Goyer made name for himself, delivering excellent screenplays for the Batman revival headed by Christopher Nolan. For his own project though, writing and directing this horror flick, it seems he fails miserably. Directing is shoddy at best, and the writing is amateurishly bad. Even for this genre, a bad script can be forgiven, as long as the scares are sufficient. But here, it’s just shot for shot, unimaginably contrived, like someone pushed him to show the scary kid in the mirror as if he’s earning a million dollar everytime he does it (I hope not, because it looks like a box office flop to me). Same goes for the underwear shots (the only thing I did appreciate). So, yes, Odette Yustman is hot (2 seasons of October Road), and no, Gary Oldman made one of his worst decision joining this movie. Which begs to wonder, how did this movie ever get “born” ? 4-.

Review: Knowing

Thursday, April 9th, 2009

A one man show for Nicolas Cage, but he can’t carry a movie that has only one simple outline, with a trailer revealing it all. The (titular) irony that the viewer knows the movie before he has seen it, isn’t very funny in this case. Hence, besides a few big special effects shots, it has nothing to offer, and it easily crosses the much feared BOREDOM border.5.

Knack Knack, who’s there ? It’s me, part 2.

Wednesday, April 8th, 2009

Reply to mail (info@unox.nl):

unox2
Geachte Unox Customer Service,

heden werd ik aardig verrast. De buurvrouw belde aan om een pakketje af te geven, en meestal bestel ik de meest interessante electronica. Maar dit keer was het een groter doos van vreemd formaat. In de doos bevinden zich 3 Unox artikelen, en mijn oog valt direct wederom op de logo’s met de letters ZONDER (kustmatige geur- en smaak- en/of kleurstoffen) in hoofdletters. Op dat moment lag er al een sappig stuk steak op de koekenpan te sissen, maar ik kon het toch weerstaan om meteen weer de Knaks uit te proberen.
Wel nu, de kwaliteit van Knaks waren marginaal beter dan de vorige (waar mijn originele klacht over ging), maar mijn fijngevoelige tong voelt nog steeds zo nu en dan de streling van zeer fijn gemalen kraakbeen en peeskapsels (in plaats van de te verwachten keihard zandachtig bot). Ik denk dat een normaal mens deze Knaks als smaakvol hadden kunnen categoriseren.
Hierbij meldt ik dan ook, dat mede door de geste van uw klantvriendelijkheid, mijn vertrouwen in Unox producten (met een klein minnetje voor de Knaks) volledig is terugverdiend.

Mvg, KaNam.

Review: Fast & Furious

Wednesday, April 8th, 2009

Yay, the old gang is back (Vin Diesel and Paul Walker, not to mention Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster) after 8 years, in which 2 other flicks were made.
I haven’t seen anyone of them, or maybe I fast forwarded it after download. At least I’m sure it’s not stored in my memory.
With a clean slate, there’s really not that much to expect from a race movie. And here the races are arbitrarily well infused into the story.
Action scenes are exciting enough, though CGI is still overused and easy to pick out. Needless to say, characters are dull and undeveleped.
All in all, for the fans of this series, it will probably satisfy their needs with the team back together.6½.