traviskramer Reviews

Land of the Dead (2005)

George returns with something a little different and scores!

[8/10 · 22 June 2005]

I was able to catch an advance screening with friends last night, and maybe it was just the mood we were in, but we had a blast. It took me a few minutes to get the direction George was going with this one, but once I did, it cranked on almost every cylinder.

The first thing to note is this is not a serious, somber, scare you out of your pants zombie movie. What it actually plays out as instead is a social commentary on class, politics, and stereo types, while having a good time doing it. Think more Evil Dead meets Mad Max meets Night of the Living Dead, and you'll get a clearer picture of the movie George has made here.

Yes, it is very violent, and yes, there are plenty of "feedings." Highly recommended for those whose take zombie movies as seriously as they should.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)

This movie broke my heart

[10 July 2003]

Terminator 3 caused some reflection on my part. Normally I don't go see a movie and feel like that after the credits start to roll.

Unfortunately, the reflection didn't have much to do with the quality of the film itself.

Certain films are near and dear to us. For me it's films like The Princess Bride, Aliens, Casablanca, and the Terminator pictures. You've seen them until they feel like an old friend. And to find out someone is going to tinker with them makes you nervous. In the case of Terminator 3, the film leaves you feeling like you got kicked in the gut. Maybe it's not fair to judge the film against my memories, or for that matter the quality of the other films, but the film makers chose to produce it and I paid my eight bucks for the right to pass judgement.

Director Jonathan Mostow should have thought more on this: If you chose to create a sequel to an existing film series, I would hope that you are doing it to actually move the story forward, and not to make a buck. I'll assume he wasn't. Films like Alien 3 (which ironically was another sequel based on a Cameron directed gem) tossed the previous film's ideas aside and did nothing new or interesting with the story and characters. Terminator 3 sadly treads the same ground, except we've got a poor film score and cinematography to boot.

The story in synopsis reads like T2 revisited. An advanced terminator (Kristanna Loken) is sent back in time to destroy John Conner. Arnold Schwarzenegger, now an obsolete design, is again reprogrammed and sent back to protect him. The problem with this setup is that the first half of the film plays out without any dramatic tension. Loken does ok, but she's following Patrick as the T-1000 and Arnold as the T-800. She's about as menacing as a killer barbie doll. Hamilton felt more like a terminator in T2 than Loken does here. We know Conner isn't in danger for at least 3/4 the film, we know Arnold isn't in danger for at least 3/4 the film, etc.

If the first act added to the characterization of the lead roles, this at least could have been put up with. As it stands, it's another cog in the bland, loud, effects wheel this summer. Is the now oft talked about crane street chase impressive? Well yeah, they spent probably 20 million dollars on it. It should look cool. But I felt no fear, no tension, nothing. Jonathan Mostow seems to have no concept of dramatic pacing here, and action for the sake of action doesn't cut it. Mostow also frames everything so blandly. Maybe its due to the complexity of the effects they need to add in post-production, but I could frame scenes like these. Framing would have helped add texture to the film, but his inferior John Ford routine doesn't work. You find yourself longing for Cameron and Alan Greenberg cinematic eye only a few minutes into the film.

The film does wrap up with an interesting twist, but it unfortunately throws out everything Cameron preached for the first two films.

The death of the concept of "No fate but what we make" was the biggest disaster in the film. Adding insult to injury, the way it happens is completely impossible, and ultimately a bit laughable.

Speaking of laughable, I couldn't help but wander if Mostow thought he was making Bad Boys 2 or Con Air at times. Sometimes the graphic violence was bookended with rather stupid jokes. T2 had a few shots at levity, but this new film seems to have no concept of violence = consequences. The Terminator series always had this theme running underneath, and it was ultimately discarded with the rest of Cameron's ideas.

In the end I could on about things like military command bases looking like Dr. Evil's lair. Or security letting Arnold and the kids walk into the most secret Air Force facility on the face of the planet, loaded with ammo and guns. Or why is the TX less advanced that the T1000? The T1000 was indestructible except by melting. The TX went down easy. She has a metal skeleton inside that can be broken. This is progress? Or how can "taking control" of the computer chips of a Ford Crown Victoria cop car suddenly give it the ability to drive itself? The onboard computer in a car doesn't press the gas peddle for us does it? Is this Terminator meets Trucks meets Duel? Etc. But that just begins endless nitpicking.

The point is the filmed is flawed on basic levels, and like the 3rd and 4th Alien films, should be wiped from the Terminator mythos. As a summertime action flick, it would be a 7 out of 10. As a terminator film, its a zero...and a sad footnote to one of my favorite film series...