vipher20 Reviews

The Warrior's Way (2010)

Meh....Pretty disappointing in light of what could have been an awesome movie.

[5/10 · 4 December 2010]

The concepts are great. A ninja movie with the smooth cool effects you'd hope for, some cinematography reminiscent of 300, and the old west verses ninjas. How cool is that? Well....unfortunately, not as cool as you'd think. There was a clip on Xbox Live that shows the first 2 minutes of the movie. The crummy thing is, after that first two minutes of setting up the stylish ninja effects and sword play...you don't see anymore of it till about the last 20 minutes of the movie. And that's exaggerating. Quick fight scene at the start. Long action scene at the end. And all the stuff in between is mush. I'm not saying I don't enjoy a movie with a good plot, but c'mon...there was only reason why any guy went to see this movie---ninjas...and cowboys VERSES ninjas. They didn't go to watch a lengthy story about a ninja falling in love and getting soft. Me and my buddies were really stoked about this movie going in, but I just really can't say it was that great. I actually liked the cinematography and the sets, but it just didn't use it enough to it's advantage. And to be honest, I really wasn't that impressed by the sword play. It was like the main character was never touched and he only had one move--slice. There wasn't any fancy flipping around and doing crazy stunts. It was just: ninja comes at him, he slices, they die. Rinse and repeat. No special way of doing it, just the same move every time. It didn't even look like any training was necessary. They just handed him the fake sword and told him whenever a guy gets near him, swing at 'em, and we'll add the blood in later.

The only other thing I can say is that Kate Bosworth's accent was TERRIBLE and annoying. I know it was supposed to be a little thick, but that was just a little much. And the funny thing was, as the movie progressed, it got less thick.

Anyways, wait for this to come out on DVD at best. Believe me, this is not nearly as cool as it could, or SHOULD, have been.

Knight and Day (2010)

Decent, but not as good as it looked

[6/10 · 24 June 2010]

I wouldn't say I had REALLY high expectations for this film, however it did look entertaining from the previews, and I'd hoped it would be something I walked out thinking it was a real solid movie like The Losers or a Mission Impossible flick. I wouldn't say the movie was a disappointment. It was entertaining and it kept me engaged the whole time. But there were a few flaws that just kept this from being on par with a Mr & Mrs Smith kind of movie. In that movie, there was plenty of comedy, action, and just a sense of coolness that this didn't have. I'm not saying I wanted a repeat of Mr & Mrs Smith, I was just kind of looking forward to some cool action with comedy thrown in.

First of all, the chemistry between Cruise and Diaz just seemed forced. Cruise had this glazed over look the ENTIRE movie as if his character was just a beaten puppy going through the motions of a spy. In the Mission Impossible movies, I felt like he was actually a spy and he had a lot of emotion. But I just couldn't get past the vacant look in his eyes the whole time. His age is starting to show a little in his face and like he's desperately trying to hold on to the younger action roles he used to play. This translates into the chemistry between him and Cameron Diaz's character. I'm not sure I can even describe it, but there was just something missing in Cruise's performance that made him seem so distant. Maybe it was some sort of confidence....I think that might be it. His character seemed to lack that bad@$$ confidence we expect from our cool spies. It was like "OK...I'm awesome. Sigh...but who cares. Guess I'll kill this guy."

The second thing that bugged me was how much was given away in the trailer that sucked the life out of the movie. There were some pretty decent action scenes, but they were almost all shown in the previews. I hate when films do that, but I know they gotta suck people in first and foremost with the eye candy. Along with that complaint, I gotta mention that the CGI was a little weak. Some chase scenes were just a bit too easy to peg as blue screen shots.

Those pickings aside, it was a enjoyable watch that will suffice as a average to slightly above average action/(barely)comedy/ date movie. There's definitely a few movies I would put above this one on the must sees for the summer before devoting your money to this. But it's probably worth a matinée.

Old Dogs (I) (2009)

The critics actually got one right....it was BAD.

[2/10 · 26 November 2009]

Now I don't mind some good family fun and a light-hearted movie, which is exactly what I was hoping for. I didn't expect an award-winning movie of any sort or to laugh uncontrollably. But this was bad. The only one or two funny parts were in the trailers, which is pretty much the only reason I gave this movie more than 1 star. The plot was horrible, the acting was terrible, the chemistry between the two dad figures (Travolta and Williams) and the kids was nonexistent, and the general pace of the movie was pitiful. But then again, that could have something to do with me wishing it would hurry up and be over after the first 20 minutes. I kept looking at the clock praying that time would somehow move faster. By the 45 minute mark, I just couldn't care less how the movie ended and contemplated putting the truck in gear and leaving the drive-in me and my wife were watching this at. I hate to say it, but this ranks right up there with some of the worst movies I've ever seen. Do yourself a favor and skip this one, especially at the theater. There's so many other decent movies out right now that you could spend $8-$10 on.

The Foot Fist Way (2006)

Pretty dang bad

[2/10 · 26 February 2009]

I hate that I didn't like this movie. If I sit down and am prepared to be open and laugh at a movie, I can usually find the humor in it, but I am just dumbfounded on how this movie could reach anywhere above a 4 rating on IMDb....much less the 6.3 rating it has at the time of this posting. I think I recall laughing maybe three times the whole movie....of which were somewhat forced. To be honest, I think I've actually lost some respect for Will Ferrell and Adam Mckay just for recommending this movie so highly. This flick actually had some potential: The main guy being a loser that takes his goofy job waaay to seriously, his placement of some obviously "Pedro"-like kid as his top student, the dumb blonde wife, the overly-cocky bad guy........but unfortunately, it just doesn't deliver on any of the ideas. I seriously think (not just exaggerating) that Ferrell and Mckay were on something the first time they watched this, and possibly every time since. If you're just some mindless frat-boy that thinks foul language is funny, well then I guess you might think this is funny. But there's no joke behind a lot of it, just randomly placed f-bombs. At least with most of Mckay's stuff, there's still a joke behind the language.

People have mentioned the acting. Well let me reinforce that. The acting is BAD. The wife is the worst of all, and I can't believe they couldn't find ANY other hot girl to play the part. Look on IMDb at her acting credits......there's a reason she's only been in one other role. You could probably find better acting in most high school one act plays. Danny McBride was fine, and really is pretty decent when under a good director and writers. But it's almost like they just made it up as they went along. I guess I understand comparing it to Napolean Dynamite just for the fact that the characters are intentionally lame, but other than that, it's more or less a slap in the face to Jon Heder to say this movie can amount to ND in anyway (and "No"--I'm not any kind of hardcore Napolean Dynamite fan). It actually took me four sittings to finish this movie (sometimes cause I didn't have the time to finish it or cause I just couldn't make it through it any longer). I only gave it two stars cause by the time I had to turn it off the third time to go to work, I actually sorta wanted to know how it ended and sit down the fourth time to finish it....so I guess the end of the story had somewhat of a redeeming factor. And please understand, I get the whole dry-humor, lame characters, low-budget thing. I watched the Sasquatch Dumpling Gang, and while it definitely wasn't that great.....I still got the humor more than I did this one and actually laughed once in a while at it.

Anywhoo.........you get the point. It's BAD.

Max Payne (2008)

Beautiful rendition

[8/10 · 22 October 2008]

There's three kind of people going to see this movie. 1--People that have no idea about the game that think they're just going to watch some kind shoot-em-up mixed with a Constantine/Sin-City feel. 2--Those that have played the game and enjoyed the gameplay. 3--Those that have played the game and enjoyed the gameplay, but moreso, were mesmerized by the entire feel of the storyline; the dark noir-like cut scenes, the way Max's loss hunts him continually in an eerie way, the twisted levels with S&M induced screaming in the background of one and others with the valkyrie laced druggies wondering around, and of course, the poetic story-telling by Max himself.

Now, if you are one of the first two....let's face it, the majority of you just won't get it. You won't truly appreciate the lengths the director goes to in keeping the storyline congruent with the game, but not just rip it off completely. For those of you that keep saying Clive Owen should have played Max cause he did well in Shoot-em-up....you people should be the last ones to leave a rating on here. This film is not just a mindless shooter. This film would have been another game-to-film adaptation that had zero substance if Clive Owen had played the part. And people really would have been crying "Sin-city ripoff" if he'd played the part, since he was in that one too. Now was Mark Walberg PERFECT as the role? I don't know about that. But I thought he did a really job and captured Max's demeanor quite well.

I know it seems there may be no difference between liking the game for it's gameplay and then loving the game for it's story-telling, but there really is. When me and my buddy discussed the game, we always talked about how good it was simply for the mood and storyline, rather than the actual gameplay. And we both ended up really liking the movie.

You have to go into this movie understanding that there's more to it than just shooting guns and bullet time. If it was just those, the movie would have gaping plot-holes and would lose it's emotion. But the director leaves equal time for every issue; The eerie mood, how obsessed Max is with finding his wife's killer(s) and the way it affects his relationships, the hallucinations from the drugs, the corruption in which the valkyr has led to, and, yes, even the bullet-time. There really is a lot of substance to this film. It's a murder mystery film that also incorporates some vivid action and special effects. If people would know this going into it, I think their reaction would be a lot better. Probably not much of a movie to go watch with your g/f or wife, as my buddy's wife and her friend sat there and cut up the whole time cause they weren't connecting with the movie (which got on my nerves, as I was really into it).

All in all, I think it was beautifully done. It set out to capture Max Payne from every angle and did just that. It took ample time to make fanatics of the game go "holy crap, that scene was straight from the game", but yet also write in some originality of it's own that worked well within the plot. As far as some of the characters, I thought every one of them played their part to near-perfection. Mila Kunis actually did surprisingly well and it was fun to see her play the femme fatale bad@$$. Ludicrous didn't really have that much riding on him, but he still played the part just fine and I never got the feeling of "rapper-turned-cop" from his performance (unlike the way I can't stand many of Ice Cube's performances cause he's very one-dimensional). Chris O' Donell had a very short role, but I thought he played it amazingly. I haven't seen him in anything in a while, but he played the part of a corporate big-wig scared for his life very well and showed a lot of emotion in his performance in a way in which you almost feel sorry for him. Beau Bridges executed his part perfectly (not much more to say about that). I even enjoyed Donal Logue's serious short role as Max's partner, Alex.

Not a perfect movie, but definitely a good one, and by far the best video game-to-movie adaptation I've seen thus far.

Pineapple Express (2008)

Pretty friggin hilarious

[8/10 · 8 September 2008]

I'm not exactly a die-hard Apatow fan, with the exception of his work on Anchorman. I'll admit that when I can watch his movies with a buddy, rather than my wife, I enjoy them a lot more, as his movies are really geared more towards younger male crowds. Superbad, while having its funny parts, was a little over the top most the time. And although Forgetting Sarah Marshall had some great laughs and a decent storyline, the sex scenes and crotch shots just get ridiculous.

That being said as to state my position on Apatow films (as it seems most the time, people are either die hard fans or flatout hate his movies, whereas I'm kinda in the middle), I thought Pineapple Express may have been the funniest Apatow film I've seen since Anchorman. Naturally, as with nearly all his projects since Anchorman, this movie contains plenty of language. But it doesn't seem to distract from the movie so much. When I saw Tropic Thunder, even without my wife being there, the language from the character Les Grossman (played by a noteworthy cameo) was a bit much. All I could think was "Man...my wife would hate this". In Pineapple Express, I didn't really notice the language so much as to give me that same feeling. I was aware it was there, but it didn't seem to detract so much from the movie. I was also glad to see the movie absent of gratuitous naked shots, which have become a norm in Apatow films. The drug use really didn't bother me throughout the film, even though it's pretty much a constant the whole time. But watching a guy smoke a doobie on screen just doesn't really offend me on the same level as a male crotch scene or loading the movie up with extremely tasteless profanity. And while I've seen some people comment on the gore, it wasn't really that bad (well...it was no Rambo). At the end, it did have a little more, but it was always in a comedic manor and added heavily to the humor.

With all the pre-warnings out of the way regarding the reasons for the R rating, let me just tell you that this film is hilarious. You have to really understand the type of humor used in this film and understand the subtle jokes, slapstick, and random spoofs (don't worry, when I say spoof....I don't mean in a Disaster Movie or Epic Movie kind of way). While this could be considered a "stoner movie", the film is actually quite brilliant in the sense of comedy. It never takes itself seriously, and if you ever think it's about to, it turns right around and turns the situation into a well setup joke. The plot isn't elaborate and if you're looking for a "smart" comedy with a thick storyline.....well....you're a moron for thinking this film might be that. It's pretty much a plot thrown together for the most part to make you laugh, just as Anchorman or Dumb & Dumber. But also just like the aforementioned movies, you still get wrapped up in the plot and characters because it's just so dang funny.

I don't really know how else to explain the movie. It's clever, witty, entertainingly stupid, and just downright fun. It's one of the better comedies I've seen in several years. I'd say go see it with a group of guys, and you'll all be rolling.

Dumb and Dumber (1994)

Gotta say it.....Greatest comedy ever

[10/10 · 8 August 2008]

I've never had an easier time giving a 10/10 rating to a movie then this one. After all, when I approach a site that asks my favorite movie...I don't have to think twice......Dumb and Dumber. I guess the truth is, you have to LOVE comedy to truly appreciate this movie. Sure, there are other great comedy movies, but I just feel like no movie really uses every second to other second to make you laugh like Dumb and Dumber does. You have to see the true art of being able to make a pun or underlying joke out of any simple phrase...."Big gulps, huh?".

If you want to see a clever, well-educated, plot heavy, witty comedy.....go see a Woody Allen movie. If you want to exercise your right to let go, relax, not think too hard about everything, and just LAUGH... this is it. I've been quoting this movie since I was 15, and probably will till I'm at least 50. Anchorman is the closest I've seen to a movie like this that's purely quotable and makes you want to pause the movie just so you can finish laughing before something else makes you feel like you'll throw up from laughter.

I say any movie can really be depressing and dramatic and friggin win an Oscar.....but comedy is an under-appreciated art form. One that makes you feel good. Makes you want to be a fun person. Makes you want to soak up life and take it a little less serious. Since when has an award winning movie like "Memoirs of a Geisha" provoked such joyful feelings in a person. The only thing it gave me was an unhealthy interest in Asian women.

This movie is solid gold. There's a reason why nearly every Farrely Brothers movie that comes out uses the tag line "From the guys who brought you Dumb and Dumber"......cause it set the bar for comedy in a whole new way and those guys are still trying to pull that off again. If you're one of those people that think this movie is stupid...lighten up. Watch it again and WANT to laugh. Enjoy it for what it is and bask in the pure insolent joy that comes with a perfect comedy.

"Well.....see ya later...."

The Dark Knight (2008)

Astonishing, gripping, epic......everything it should've been

[10/10 · 23 July 2008]

I had to write a review to tag on the later part of this thread cause it was being bombarded with crappy wannabe critics who think a movie has to be an utterly depressing Sundance Film Festival winner to be considered "good".

I've seen some people on here saying this movie was too cliché and not real enough. How much more real do you want it, people, without clipping out the gripping action scenes? Christopher Nolan did a PHENOMENAL job of making Batman and Joker as believable as possible. Obviously, there's always going to be a degree of fiction when you're dealing with a guy that dresses up as a bat and parades around the city stopping crime. And the dialogue was perfect. It was believable, yet engrossing. Passionate when it called for it. Silent when need-be. There's a fine line between "cliché" and "profound".....and this movie rides the latter perfectly without ever shifting into the expected on a cliché level.

Then there's the other degree of people who think it's not comic-book style enough. Well, there-in lies my point. Nolan had to meet you nit-picky people somewhere in the middle. He had to create a movie that would give you something that you didn't expect, yet not stray to far off blockbuster material. C'mon people.....you have to understand that creating an amazing movie is like creating a great song. You want to write something original that's never been done before, yet if you stray to far off a mainstream sound, you're not going to get much of an audience and it will bomb.

If you didn't want to see the movie and had these preconceived notions that the movie was "over-hyped" before you even went into the theater, why the crap even see it? The movie was beautifully crafted from start to finish. Was it more than two hours long?....yes. But if you can't pay attention to an ACTION/SUSPENSE flick for that long, then maybe you should stick to romantic-comedies and Nash Bridges reruns. It wasn't like the third Lord of the Rings long, where they did ending after ending that just drew it out for no reason. If TDK stopped the movie about 20-30 minutes short, then yeah, it couldn't stopped there....but then the same people would have been complaining that the loose ends weren't tied up and you don't know what happens to certain characters.

Ledger was perfect. Period. Anyone on here that says he didn't do an amazing job is a friggin snob. Put down your $10 latte and quit acting so self-righteous. Just cause it was a comic-book character doesn't mean it can't be a role worthy of an award, which Ledger is definitely worthy of for his performance. If you think you can pick Heath Ledger peaking out from underneath his character at any second....please point it out. Cause I NEVER once saw Heath Ledger at any instance. I saw the JOKER. It's by far, some of the best acting I've ever seen. And believe me when I say it had nothing to do with him dying in real life. I would've praised Ledger all the same for his performance should he still be alive.

The Dark Knight was everything a movie should be. It was a crime movie. A comic-book movie. A suspense-thriller. An action flick. A tragic love story. And the jokers kill-or-be-killed scenarios were reminiscent of the SAW movies (though on a less gruesome scale). How could you possibly ask for better? This movie has every right to push it's way forward and replace Titanic as the number-one grossing movie of all time (which never deserved that privilege in the first place). There's a reason this movie is riding around the top of IMDb's top 250 movies ever (when I posted this, it was actually THE top movie.....above the Godfather.....). It will go down in history as one of the greatest movies ever. My hat is off to Christopher Nolan and his brother for creating the essence of a masterpiece.

The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005)

A Tasteless Disappointment

[3/10 · 7 December 2005]

I am astounded at how many great reviews this movie has received. I thought the movie to be horridly tasteless in it's constant use of the foulest language possible. Carrel's scene where he's being waxed appeared to be the funniest scene as shown on commercials, but when the time came, it turned out to be nothing more than a 5 minute explicative-fest that would make Chris Rock blush. Why is it that the male college-aged crowd finds the overuse of the worst possible names for female and male genitalia as cursing names so funny? What happened to the witty and sometimes slapstick comedy of movies like Anchorman, Dumb and Dumber, and even Dodgeball? Now, please realize, I myself am a college-aged student who gets a kick out of the occasional crude humor, drug jokes, or things of that nature. Heck, I even enjoyed quite a bit of "Harold & Kumor Go to White Castle". Now given that there was a good deal of crudeness in that, it didn't rely on it to be it's focal point of gaining laughs all the time. To tell you the truth, if I hear about another rated R comedy coming out by the director of The 40-Year Old Virgin, I'll probably hold off on seeing it at least till it comes out on video, if at all.

This movie had a decent plot to hold it together, and Carrel's spaced-out personality kinda makes you chuckle in itself, but I was hoping to see a movie that held itself together through actual FUNNY lines and clever writing, rather than tasteless humor that it would seem you would need at least 4 beers before you would find it remotely funny. I thought Wedding Crashers was a great movie and was a little worried that this movie would step over some of the lines that Wedding Crashers tilted on all throughout it.......and it did. Even my roommate, who enjoys quite a few raunchy movies, thought this one was too much.

I'll spare this movie three stars for the decent plot line and handful of laughs I got out of it, but if you have any morals WHAT-SO-EVER, save your money and rent it.

Just Friends (I) (2005)

Laugh-out-loud, Feel-good movie of the season

[9/10 · 7 December 2005]

My fiancé and I went and saw this movie the other day and thought it was great! The humor was well-placed and it was great to see Ryan Reynolds in a movie where he wasn't surrounded by tasteless humor every 5 minutes. Me and my fiancé both agreed that the funniest bit throughout the whole movie was the relationship between Reynolds character and his brother. The slap-fights were great and the one moment of brotherly love was simply hilarious. If you're tired of the raunchy humor of the likes of 40-Year Old Virgin and want a good movie for a date or just as a stand alone movie, this one is great. It's got so many things in it that make it wonderful: Tasteful witty humor, good plot, puts you in the Christmas spirit (but also works as a non-seasonal movie), and gives props to any guy who's been put in the "Friend-zone". My fiancé came out of the movie and said "That makes me feel bad about all the guys I've told them I 'just want to be friends'". So there you go guys--if you got a girl you're crushing on and you think you might be in the "Friend-zone" with her, take her to this movie (even if it's just a "friendly date"). It may break the ice and she could see what kind of girl she's being. I found my 'one and only', but I've been in the friend-zone several times, so I was able to relate to this movie in many ways.

This is just an all around feel-good movie. I was very happy with the 14 bucks I spent on this flick.