ruks-mail Reviews

The Death of Michael Smith (2006)

Fantastic!

[7/10 · 5 November 2006]

I recently had the opportunity to see this movie in a screening at a local film festival, and I was simply blown away. I'm not much of a gritty crime drama person, and I went into a screening of this film expecting more of a "wrong man"-type story, but what I found instead was just as satisfying, if not surprising.

"Death" is about three men, each named Michael Smith, whose lives all become intertwined following a murder in wintery Detroit. One of the Smiths is the aging gunman sent to kill a drugrunner, one is a young man who's trying to build his street cred, and the third is the homicide detective who's trying to sort out the first's seedy doings.

The three Michaels are each flanked by interesting supporting characters, the most notable of which is the "kid" that Hit-man Michael is assisted by when he realizes that someone's out to kill him. The kid allows Michael to show a bit of his more-human side, a little humor here and there, adding depth and charm to a character who we're afraid of at first. Young Michael has a deadbeat for a father, a troubled mother, and a beauty pageant contestant girlfriend; the latter helps him seem deeper and more understandable as well. Detective Michael has a crumbling marriage, but not much else—he is, uncategorically, the least-developed of all the characters, but since he doesn't play a huge part in the story, it doesn't make much difference.

I have only two gripes with the production overall: while most of the cinematography is brilliant and striking, it seems as if the picture can be extremely hard to see at times—film lighting can be a harsh mistress, as amateurs like myself know very well. And at the end of the story, I'm left asking what seems to me to be a fairly important question, in the scope of the film: does Young Michael have any relation to Hit-man Michael that isn't immediately apparent? Listen to what Hit-man Michael says concerning his home life, and you may understand why I'm wondering.

The production on this film was exceptionally solid, the editing more than professional, and the music orchestration beautiful. Considering that the total budget for the film was less than $600, these facts are made even more astounding. Daniel Casey is poised to go a long way in the business, if only his work gets more time in the spotlight.

Batman & Robin (1997)

If "Batman Begins" can possibly be worse, I'd like to know how.

[2/10 · 5 March 2005]

And not because it's a BAD film, per se. It's a terrible film because of the Hollywood budget this thing had thrown at it, and because of the fans' expectations that the Batman series continues to dash.

We have Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze/Dr. Victor Fries, who starts off as the lead villain. In the beginning, we find him stealing diamonds to power his giant freeze cannon, with which he plans to zap all of Earth, so he can continue work on trying to cure his diseased, cryogenically-frozen wife undeterred. Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy/Pamela Isley comes in a bit later, transforming into the creepy plant-fetish villainess after a row with her scientist boss, who's trying to sell genetically modified super-soldier Bane to warring nations.

Alfred's niece Barbara (Alicia Silverstone) shows up for a visit to the mansion while on vacation from school, and doesn't become Batgirl (Comissioner Gordon's daughter, in every other Batman universe) until about 20 minutes are left in the film, which just strikes me as an excuse for there to be a girl in leather. Well, on second thought, I guess it does sort of make up for the nipples that Bats (George Clooney) and the Boy Wonder (Chris O' Donnell) have built into their body armor.

Back to why this is a bad film--the special effects budget seems to have been spent on about five things in this movie: Mr. Freeze's suit and ice gun, Ivy's pheromone dust, fluorescent paint, and black lights. I believe the filmmakers' logic went something like this: "Scene look too natural? Just throw some fluorescent paint on it--the black light's'll catch it."

Seriously. And don't think Ivy has any amazing plant creatures or anything to pull out of her sleeve to fight the Dynamic Duo--the best she can do is to try to make them horny with her pheromone dust, which she uses approximately 32,751 times during the course of the film. And by the way, did I mention she gives poisonous kisses? Dang. I should have.

Anyway, eventually Freeze and Ivy team up, try to destroy Batman and Robin's teamwork, and--what? You expected me to give away the ending? Why should I spare you from having to watch this stain on Hollywood's name for the answer (like you couldn't figure it out yourself)?

Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem (2002 Video Game)

The Best Survival-Horror Game, Hands-Down!

[13 January 2005]

I do love my Mega Man, believe me, but this title is SO, SO, SO MUCH BETTER than any Mega Man game ever released. When someone says "survival-horror," you probably think of the Resident Evil series. Can I tell you something? If I compared survival-horror games to, say, automobiles, ED makes any other survival-horror game look like a Ford Pinto right after the bumper was smashed in.

The story opens with young Alex Roivas receiving a call to identify her grandfather's body-- he recently experienced a mysterious death that left him as nothing more than a pile of bloody flesh. Alex vows to search the old mansion for clues, and in doing so, uncovers a dark family secret: a huge book in her grandfather's study attracts Alex's attention, and it is through this book, the Tome of Eternal Darkness, that the story unfolds.

Your avatar changes as you complete each chapter of the Tome. All the characters come together to tell of the Tome's historical accounts, and the purpose behind the book itself.

Though the concept of basing a game around a book instead of its characters is certainly unique, it's not ED's strongest selling point. That would be your Sanity Meter--a glowing, green vial that tracks how kooky your character's mind becomes after you are attacked. When your sanity begins to fade, the game will do things to mess with your mind: tilt the camera, make you see dripping blood from the walls, and make you appear upside-down in a room--and those are some of the milder effects. The stronger, more brain-tickling pranks will genuinely make you angry, frustrated, frightened, or confused: the TV will appear to suddenly shut off, or your character will spontaneously split apart, for example. ED is survival-horror done right: you're dropped into monster-ridden territory with limited weapons, a magickal book, and only your wits to guide you. It's not anywhere near as difficult as Resident Evil, and the fact that you play through different periods of history with an alternate-universe twist gives ED a lot more credit in my book.

With copious amounts of blood, gore, death, references to the occult, and plenty of creepy- crawlies and scary moments, this is very much a grown-up's game--but MAN, what a great game it is! For all those momentarily fed up with kiddie games on the 'Cube, snatch this treasure up from the video game store's bargain bin and put some hours into it--you won't be disappointed.