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Thomas-McSweeney
Reviews
Vice (2015)
Did they forget Westworld?
Having read the other reviews, I will have to agree with them - Bruce Willis must have really owed someone a big favor to sign off on this one. The plot is almost exactly like an updated Westworld. Do you remember that 1973 film with Yul Brynner? At least that one had a good director with Michael Crichton who wrote and directed that film (as well as the Jurassic dinosaur series of films, novels, and video games) . This one could have used a better writer to give it more depth and a better director to get more out of the actors. One criticism that would be obvious is that all the security guards needed many, many more hours on the target range as they could not hit the broad side of a barn at 20 meters.
Some reviewers called Bruce Willis' performance too wooden or stone-like, but that is understandable given the 'surprise' ending that he was just another robot all along. Bruce was just being a method actor playing the part of a robot the entire time on this film. He wasn't stiff, he was a robot! Now I really want to see Bruce Willis in more Science Fiction films - when given the chance to really act, he does a tremendous job and is a credit to the project. I only suggest you watch this film - for free - to see Bruce work. I am only sorry he didn't have something better to work with. My apologizes to Brian Miller and the writers Andre Fabrizio and Jeremy Passmore, although it is true I have not directed nor written a better Science Fiction than "Vice", I honestly believe if I could get the funding, even I could do a better job. Sorry, I gave this film a sore of 4 and that is pretty generous.
The Lost Legion (2014)
Mostly intricate plots with a few slow-motion fighting scenes
Although the films starts out with an action filled forest attack on the column of a newly married bride (Michelle Lukes) and the leader (Tom McKay) of one of the bands of warring barbarian clans, it quickly descends into a series of intricate plots and counter-plots. Urbina Prima, scheming wife of Maximus (Brian Caspe) the leader of the Northern Roman Army plots with Argos Sertorius (Jim High) and others to have her son Cassius positioned to be the next Emperor of Rome. Viewer interest in this long string of plots and counter-plots is daftly maintained by the ever presence of numerous bare-chested or thinly veiled young women and the occasional nude, both male and female. Betrayals and kidnappings prevail until the sub-climatic fight between Tom McKay and a pair of prize Roman gladiators. Here the use of slow-motion and quick cuts imparts a sense of action with Tom McKay as the obvious winner against all odds. Meanwhile, Maximus over-indulges his adopted son Cassius to gain Cassius' confidence only to betray him and his mother Urbina Prima when, at the moment of Cassius' inauguration as Emperor, Maximus convinces the dim-witted Cassius to adopt Maximus as Cassius's legal son, thus allowing Maximus to immediately slay Cassius once he is made Emperor and take the title for himself. Maximus then divorces and enslaves his wife Urbina Prima as her just reward for all her scheming. Feeling magnanimous, Maximus sends Tom Mckay as a slave prize to a rival barbarian war-lord King to gain his approval and avoid future fights with the Roman Army. This war-lord King reveals to Tom McKay that his young wife was given to him as part of Urbina Prima's schemes and that she is now with-child from his nephew and wishes to remain in his kingdom. She chose life over love. The love- stricken Tom McKay is given his freedom vowing to never lose his love for her and now must begin a quest to gain his place in the world as a set-up for a part two - if this film is successful.
Overall, I would have to say that the acting by Tom McKay and Brian Caspe is well done even thought they are set in a slow-motion plot with the supporting actors giving their lines like they were slowly reading them from Que cards. There really isn't enough action to call this an action film and no depth of characters to call this a drama. However, there is plenty of eye-candy with numerous window dressing half and full naked babes. The Emperor of Rome is crowned in the North, so there are no shot of Rome and it is hardly believable that only a pair of senators is needed to make a boy an Emperor. The chances of their being a sequel are slim, and if they do make one that should put in a lot more action scenes because the writers do not appear capable of making an interesting plot.