Alex_Priest Reviews

Transformers (2007)

Michael Bay,King of the Day

[8/10 · 28 June 2007]

After giving us The Rock,Armageddon,Bad Boys I & II and The Island,Michael Bay surprises again with his latest "artwork" Transformers.

Let's face it,Bay is an action director.

His movies cannot be compared to masterpieces like the Godfather,but only to other action movies.

And believe me,he is effectively good in creating action movies. He has proved that nobody makes them as good and thrilling as him.

So,who cares if the movie is not faithful to the 80s cartoon?

No movie is 100% faithful to its source.That is a fact.

Within 2+ hours,Bay manages to leave us stunned and breathless as we watch the amazing effort he put to create this movie.

The CGI,like always,is at its best,much like the action sequences. The Autobots and the Decepticons finally come to life in this movie and they are realistic enough,given the genre of the movie.

The cast is great,with shining performances from Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox in the main roles.

Also,if you watch many movies(hard not to,this is IMDb!)you will recognize many actors in the supporting cast. Perhaps its the first time Bay utilizes such a big cast.

Now,any mature viewer,who is willing to pay the ticket fee,surely knows that beneath the big,flashy explosions,beneath the fast car races and the big robot battles,Transformers is another unreal,all-American,action blockbuster. There really is no need to criticize this movie.

For what it is,it succeeds.

I had doubts when I first saw that Michael Bay was going to direct this movie.I thought it would have been another animation/3D movie like many others.

What Bay gave me,pleasantly enough,was much much more.

So,my final advice would be:

Forget All the Physics you Learned at School,

Forget What You Know,

Forget Who You Are,

Go,see this movie and be Trans-formed!

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)

Captain Jack is Back for One Last Great Adventure...

[7/10 · 22 May 2007]

Aaaahh!At last!The Final Chapter of Earth's Most Famous Pirate Saga is out!

I Still Cannot Forget that Curse that is called Cliffhanger,which we Were Left Last Year with Dead Man's Chest...

And,now that the Wait is Over,I would call it a Crime not Seeing this Movie.Every Fan of Captain Jack Should Go in his/her Nearest Cinema and See this Exciting Pirate Story.

Fans and Non-Fans won't be disappointed.

Much like its Predecessors,this Movie Gives the Viewer Everything it Promises and,though being a bit inferior from the First,it's Great nonetheless and just a bit Better than the Second,which was Excellent too...

Captain Jack is Funny as Always and Provides the Audience Many Many Laughs.

The Remaining Captains,with Barbossa,Sao Feng and Davy Jones being the Most Famous Ones,Give Great Performances too and a Cameo from Keith Richards is Enjoyable.

The Action Sequences are Excellent as the Tradition demands,but the Final Battle is the Best of the Whole Franchise,One that Fans will Remember for Years to Come.

The Story,much like it was said,fills most of the gaps Dead Man's Chest created,though New Ones are Spawned,but in Movies of this Genre it really doesn't Matter.Generally I felt it was like a Big Story,filled with many (funny) mini stories in it,which made it not Boring at all,despite its (almost) 3 Hour Runtime.

Sword Fights,Ship Battles,Flying Cannonballs,Bunches of Angry Pirates,Neverending Seas,Huge Environments,Scary Marine Creatures as well as Great and Funny Dialogues are a promise in this movie.

Twists and Treacherous Moments are Endless too,and the Ending is Truly Fitting since it's Not the Classic "cheesy" One...

AND,finally,Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom use their Charm to Attract the Remaining Male and Female Audiences.

So,it seems like the Legendary Pirate Saga finally reached its Destination...

...too bad,because the third part made me addictive to it,even though this is how it should remain,since it fitted perfectly...

...but...Who Knows?...like Sparrow said:"Everybody Comes Back in the End"...

(or something like this,I don't remember the actual quote)

Anyway...

Years Will Pass and I Will Grow Up Older,but Captain Jack and his Adventures in the Most Fantastic Places Will Always Remain Indelible in my Memory...

Thanks for Everything Captain Jack...

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

Spider-Man 3 is Not to Be Missed!

[7/10 · 1 May 2007]

45 Years Ago Stan Lee created what would become the most successful Superhero in all History:Spider-Man.

With abilities that all of us would like to have,Spidey gathered millions of fans as the years came by.

The Story was captivating,the Villains tough,the Moves Cool and Mary Jane nice.

Spider-Man represented the superhero in all of us.

He wasn't an alien from another planet,he wasn't a rich businessman,but the Guy next door.

The Shy Guy,that rarely talks and is considered boring,but that when the moment comes,changes his personality and his alter ego saves the day.

Yes,Spider-Man came closer to teen fans more than the other superheroes exactly because of this:He was just a student,with lots of problems,exactly like most of his readers.

Years passed and the period when superheroes started appearing on the big screen came.

Due to the complexity of Spidey's moves,every attempt to create a Spider-Man movie failed.

All Up to 2002,when at last a man took Up the Challenge.

This man was Sam Raimi(the director of The Evil Dead).

The timing was right,since this is the age of special effects and almost everything can now be turned into a movie,and thus the movie was a success for a first try and fans were pleased.

2 Years Later,Spider-Man 2 was even better,with more action and a greater villain.

However,it was clear the the first two movies were just warming up. Raimi hadn't unleashed his best yet.

Now he has.

Spider-Man 3 isn't only a great sequel,it's the best Spider-Man ever.

The reasons are obvious.

We got even more action-packed scenes.

The story is as good as the ones before.

All actors give good performances and manage to bring,yet again,the comic book to life.

Tobey Maguire IS Spider-Man/Peter Parker and Kirsten Dunst is lovely as MJ.

Bryce Dallas Howard makes a hot appearance as Gwen Stacy,Parker's 2nd love interest.

All this and a Cameo from Bruce Campbell(Ash from The Evil Dead)makes the movie nice.

But those reasons are not enough to make it more special than the other Spider-man movies.

What is it Then?

The Villains of course! How can't a Spider-Man movie be good,since it features 3 villains at the same time?

We got Spidey's childhood friend Harry Osborn,who follows in the footsteps of his father and becomes the evil Hobgoblin(or New Goblin as mentioned on IMDb) and makes the skies insecure as he flies menaciously.

Then we Got the Evil Sandman,who makes for a great enemy.

How can u beat a man made out of sand,who can regenerate every part of his body? Well,you'll have to find out in cinemas.

But the show is truly stolen by the Great Venom!

Combined with an alien symbiotic costume,Eddie Brock finally becomes Spider-Man's strongest(and scariest)enemy.

Almost all the merit for the greatness of this movies goes to him.

Ever since I first saw Venom in the animated television series,I couldn't help but doubt and dream how would he be in a possible movie.

At last my wish came true.

Venom looked awesome on screen,I couldn't have imagined him better. He will surely be this year's best CGI character.

To Sum Up,Spider-Man 3 is not only one of this summer's best movies,it is also the best Spider-Man yet.

Fans of Spider-Man 3,watch this movie and you won't be disappointed.

With Venom finally alive,this movie is Not to Be Missed.

300 (2006)

The Evolution of Epic Battles

[8/10 · 15 February 2007]

After gaving us some of the greatest epic movies in the last 50 years,it was clear that filmmakers needed to take them to the next level.

But how can you make a new movie,for the audience to like,without recycling old material?

Answer:You improve what old filmmakers couldn't:Graphics.

Ben Hur,Braveheart,Gladiator,Spartacus and perhaps even Troy are only some of the epic movies that gave the audience so big thrills that they cannot be repeated. Almost every epic movie that will be made today,no matter how good the story will be or how faithful will be to reality,is bound to repeat itself.We got examples from Alexander and Kingdom of Heaven.

300 doesn't apply to this category.Besides it takes the epic to the next level.And more are like to follow.

Just like in the Lord of the Rings,much CGI was used here.

The result? This movie was a pleasure for the eye.

All the camera work and graphics exceeded my expectations. I thought they were comparable,if not better,to the LOTR,go see for yourselves.

I could write something about the plot or the actors's outstanding performances(especially Gerard Butler's..you see,being Greek-Italian,I wanted the best from the actors..Butler gave it. The anger in his eyes,the fury in his voice and the violence in his actions really reminded an ancient Greek king),but I won't ruin it for you. You must see it to understand how great this movie is.

But always remember that this is a movie that is based on a graphic novel and is by no means a faithful depiction of what really happened in Thermopylae in 480 B.C. All those who will pay the ticket to see this movie,must be prepared not for a historic movie,but for a stylish battle movie.

This movie,together with the LOTR,is the entrance to the 21st century's new epic movies.

Kudos to Zack Snyder,who came from nowhere and has,already from Dawn of the Dead,proved that he is a brilliant and capable director. We will surely see more of him in the upcoming years.

So,you read my Comment?

Aren't you curious?

What are you waiting for?

Run to the nearest cinema,see this piece of art and when you are finished don't forget to come to IMDb to vote. This movie is destined to be at least in the top 100.

C'mon people!Hail for 300,the Evolution of Epic Battles!

Memento (2000)

"I CAN'T REMEMBER" a better thriller...

[10/10 · 9 December 2006]

Movie Title:Memento

Director:Christopher Nolan

Main Cast:Guy Pearce,Carrie-Anne Moss,Joe Pantoliano

My Rating:9.5/10

Tagline:Some memories are best forgotten

Why am I writing these since they are just a few spaces upper:Haven't Figured Yet...

....Now,sincerely,this movie is what I truly call a masterpiece.

Unpredictable,from the beginning to the end(or from the end to the beginning),Memento is one of those rare movies that consume almost 100% of the spectator's mind attention,without becoming boring and repetitive.

The plot idea was and still is totally original and(almost) unique even today,7 years after its release.

There are almost no plot holes in this movie.Those few that exist are the classic holes that every movie has,the ones that distinguish the movie from reality,so they can be accepted.

What,in my opinion,makes this movie so brilliant though,is the spectator's identification with the character.

Sure,in every movie the spectator identificates himself(or herself) with the character more or less,but it never reaches this level...

By showing us the story backwards,Cristopher Nolan managed to partially transmit us the exact feeling that Leonard has every time he wakes up.

That feeling of being somewhere without knowing where you are or how you got there.

That feeling of communicating with people,without never being sure of how much you can trust them.

Who is the Killer?

Is he among the people I know?

Will I ever find him,since I have a memory problem?

What will happen after I find him?

Who can I really trust?

Everybody?

Or perhaps Nobody,not even myself...

...are some of the questions that turn around Leonard's mind and,of course,our.

People who haven't seen it be warned:This is not a movie for everyone. In fact I would almost advise you to watch it by yourself or with a very die-hard movie fan friend. Just a little conversation with your friend or girlfriend can totally derail you from the path of the movie...it's already hard enough to totally understand in 1 round...I needed 2 to get everything straight.

The 3 main actors(Pearce,Moss,Pantoliano) give,not stellar,but great performances nonetheless...the movie plot surely gives kudos to their performances...

I found Pearce to be the best of the three...his confused voice,his empty from opinion face and,of course,his blocknote-body make Leonard come to life...

Moss,was good also,she has in her face the mystery the role needs...the good girl that is not totally what she seems to be...

Remarkable is the scene where she shouts and curses Leonard,by stating him that she can tell him whatever she likes,since he will not remember anything soon enough,transforming him into a mere puppet...my personal favorite one

Pantoliano,at last,gives the movie what it lacks:the funny element,without becoming a clown,but by showing us at least a smile in the mysterious world of Leonard...

Opponents like The Usual Suspects or Silence of the Lambs are,not easily,but slightly beaten in my opinion...They are great movies too,but to me they lack the so perfect identification Memento offers us...

Nolan has proved to be a genius director and screenwriter,as he continuously show's us in his new movies-he is today my favorite director.He hasn't directed many movies,but those 6 or 7 ones he gave us, are all brilliant and thought provoking...

To Sum Up,Memento is truly Nolan's Masterpiece and a jewel in the Thriller Museum. In the years that will come,from the many,great or not, thrillers that will appear,some will try to reach or steal it's greatness,but to me Memento will always be the highest apple of the tree.

I Will Never Remember a Better Thriller...

The Elephant Man (1980)

There is Justice in this World...

[9/10 · 5 December 2006]

What a Beautiful Movie this is.A truly Unique experience.

This (reality based)story is about a man that was heavily disfigured and ugly on the outside but beautiful and extraordinary on the inside.

A true example of how people should,but never will,be.

You may be pure,kind,gentle,the kind of person and friend everyone would like to meet,but if you differ from the others(because that was John's problem,he wasn't ugly,he was just different from the others.If he was born on a society formed of "Elephant-Mans" he would have been absolutely normal)your virtues count nothing at all and there are really few people who can appreciate you,usually open-minded ones(as Hopkins here).

What really touched me though,except from the great story,is a message that I personally found:

"THERE IS JUSTICE IS THIS WORLD".Kindness too if I might add.

When John was "tortured" by that hospital-guy(and his "owner" too)I kept saying inside of me these words:Justice exists,in this world or in the other.John will be awarded for his kindness and all those who transformed him into a way of entertainment will be punished.

I must admit that if John had died that night the whole bunch of persons entered the hospital and he was kissed by those women and spilled with wine,while the responsible of this situation managed to get away clean,I would have supposed that in the afterlife everything would have come to its right place.But ,since this wouldn't be shown,the movie wouldn't have the same impact on me.

What if in there is no afterlife or if there is no justice in the afterlife?I don't fully believe those last lines I wrote,but I don't negate them either.

Luckily enough,there is justice in this world...

John,even in an ugly body and in a terminal condition at his 21st year of age only,found what he wanted:Love and Acceptance by people,at least by some of them.

And the responsibles for his bad times got caught too. I would like to see what would Mr.Bytes(John's former owner)do in a foreign country without his "treasure"to feed him...same goes for that hospital guy,he would have to find another job,plus get another judgement when his time would come to pass on the other side...

To conclude,this movie faithfully depicts how people from a "darker" age(but not too different from ours-see Jews,Negro's etc.) act against something that is considered ugly and different.

I advise it to anyone who truly believes that : "Despite our differences,all humans are Equal"

The Departed (2006)

Why The Departed is better than Infernal Affairs...

[8/10 · 20 November 2006]

Well,having watched the Infernal Affairs trilogy just one day before going to The Departed,I entered the cinema,only to find out why this movie is so better compared to its predecessor. So let me start from the Chinese trilogy first... (What follows is just my opinion)

~Infernal Affairs was the movie that started everything...great story and....I have to admit....nice music in the moments with suspense(I liked more the music they played in IA when Yan was chasing Ming in the Cinema than the one in TD....also the ringtone of Ming's mobile when Sam called him in the end was better)...another great thing were the flashbacks which showed us how the characters grew up,from "kids" to adults(while in TD were just the same actors). But that's it....it was a nice story,but I think it was not complete...something was missing....perhaps some action in order to make it more interesting(just a bit,I was not asking for The Matrix)

~Infernal Affairs II was a bit more confusing as a story compared to IA and less original,but it had what IA lacked:Action Scenes...and I must admit that the action scenes(I mean the executions) were comparable to the Godfather...simply great...except from those,it also featured some good lines("Evil Things Live On and Only the Good Die Young.The World Shouldn't Be Like This.It's Not a Way to Be."-forgive me for the mistakes),but moreover(the lines) were the same as those in IA(Both the story with the two cards and the line:"Have You Ever Seen Anyone Shaking His Hand With The Dead" were great-again sorry for the mistakes)

~Infernal Affairs III confused my opinion:Up to the end I hated it,but it was the ending that changed everything...that very twisted ending...I must admit that I'm a fan of twisted endings....and until the end I hated the Inspector with the Glasses,I thought he was a horrible arrogant person...but for one more time things are not what they appear to be and Andy Lau failed again on trying to be a good guy(as Sam said:"I Have Passed the Point of No Return")...except from this whole (Great) idea of Ming's double personality,the very ending was also awesome...finishing were IA beginned(we even saw how Yan broke his hand)...

So,those 3 movies gave us exactly what a good cop thriller needs:Good Story,Suspense,Action,Nice Lines and a Twisted Ending... The 1st one was the present,the 2nd one the past and the 3rd one was both the future and the connection between IA and IA 2....and the story was complete

Now we've got the Departed;

Was it better that IA?Of course it was(except some small points I stated before):The whole movie is longer,deeper,has a great soundtrack and it is far more realistic than IA;everything is done more accurately and with no rush,always thanks to the bigger budget...

Was it Better than IA 2?Of course it was:The story is less confusing,smarter and the action scenes comparable...

Was it better than IA 3?(Again)Of Course it was:TD kept u on the edge of your seat from beginning to end,while IA 3 only in the end...

What I'm trying to say here is that The Departed succeeds where every Infernal Affairs movie(alone) fails;That's why there will be no sequel to the Departed(I don't know about a prequel)...it's already complete and doesn't lack anything...

And so we arrive to the final battle:The Departed against The Whole Internal Affairs trilogy:

Is TD better?Of Course No(although I believe that the whole trilogy slightly beats TD,because TD is always more realistic and has better acting-->Nicholson was much better that the actor playing Sam and Vera Farmiga was way hotter than the psychiatrist in IA)...The IA trilogy has more lines,more scenes,more twists,more jokes(crazy Keung was great),more action...more everything....but we must also notice that what The Departed does in 2 1/2 hours,the Infernal Affairs Trilogy does in 5 1/2 hours (moreover)...end of comment

I know that lots of people will find a (logic)reason to disagree with my comment,so I would like to state that everyone is free to agree&disagree with me as much as he/she likes;

Because this is what makes us human...Differences

Léon: The Professional (1994)

Luc Besson managed to do sthg unachievable:To Create a Movie for all kinds of Movie Fans,Leon...

[10/10 · 11 April 2006]

This Movie is GREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTT!!!!!!!Luc Besson(the director and screenwriter of Leon,as long as other successful movies)did a miracle by creating this movie...Movies like this are Rare and maybe it doesn't exist yet one movie that can be matched to Leon. Every kind of movie fan will like it,I can guarantee that(maybe only small kids wouldn't like it as they wouldn't like the violence and they wouldn't understand the emotional part of the movie).

-Action film fans will love it for for Jean Reno's great stunts in the beginning,but especially in the end.Just for you to understand the quality of the stunts,they were so well executed that at the same time they seemed like they were taken from a modern action film,without Leon doing something impossible.I had never seen a movie where a single man goes against an army of armed guys portrayed in such a believable way,I mean...even the holes in the story have been covered:Jean Reno didn't learn to fight an army of men in the last half hour of the movie,but he plays one of the best assassins that ever existed,so it's normal what he did.Plus the movie shows us that Leon(Jean Reno) even though was very well trained and without emotions,was also vulnerable to bullets and human,something that we see in the wounds he takes in some scenes(I won't continue,I don't want to spoil the movie to you).

-As for emotional types this movie is again great:The story of Love(and when I say love I mean Father to Daughter Love,even though Matilda/Natalie Portman was a bit further than this point-don't misunderstand me)that is slowly formed between Leon and Matilda is great,as it doesn't happen immediately(in a scene from the beginning Leon tries to shoot Matilda in her sleep,but in the end he can't make it...oooops sorry I won't speak anymore of the movie),but slowly and in the way it would happen if this story was real.It will show them how two different strangers will learn to love and feel compassion for each other...some of them may even cry a bit.

-And in the end,fans of comedies/adventure movies will also like it because it also shows some funny jokes once in a while(but don't expect Jim Carrey/Ben Stiler jokes). This movie will surely keep everyone seated in front of the screen without even going once to take a glass of water or peeing... The characters were also great:

-Gary Oldman perfectly plays the role of a corrupted psycho cop who loves Beethoven,

-Natalie Portman makes us really believe that she is a just a small and weak girl,but that wants to learn from Leon how to kill in order to avenge the murder of her little Brother,but also generally to give justice to all bad people,

-But the star of the show was....JEAN RENO!!!In this movie he is brilliant,I don't know if they gave him an Oscar or another award,but he surely deserved it.The way he shows us his two sides:the side of the ruthless assassin and the side of the lonely man who enjoys some company,is awesome.It is clearly showed that every man has a heart and that in the most particular moment he can change,take away from his face his cold mask and start showing his emotions. To conclude,I suggest every movie fan to watch this movie,they will love it.I hope that my comment also helped those who didn't understand it's power(no offense). I give it a 9.5/10 ;-D

Transporter 2 (2005)

Good Action for Matrix Fans....

[7/10 · 11 April 2006]

This was a Good Action Movie and even Better than the First One,as not only it contained more action and fighting scenes,but they were also more stylish...All people who will watch this movie be warned-This is not a movie for those who didn't like XXX2 or the Matrix Trilogy or Generally every movie that contains things that cannot be done in real life.It is only for those who,some seconds before they push the Play Button in their DVD Player,will think that they are about to see a movie with lot of action,car chases,shootings,explosions and every other thing that we see in action movies...if they can expect what they are about to see,this movie won't disappoint them,on the contrary it will please them. Now,for those who didn't like the First Transporter there is no chance that they will like the Second,as it is even more Hollywoodian,if I may say so, and even more fake. I admit that even I didn't like some scenes(like when Bad Girl Lola has behind her 2 cops that point their guns to her and they ask her to drop her Uzis,but she calmly refills them and shoots the cops without being hit),but I knew that in every action movie some scenes are destined not to be liked... Ah....and one last thing:this movie is also worth seeing for this Bad Girl I mentioned before(actress Kate Nauta):she is very hot,she wears only the necessary and...SHE IS ARMED.So if you are not an action-movie fan watch it only for her... That's what I had to say and I hope that most Users will agree with me...C'mon,What are You Waiting For,Go Watch the Movie...