Evil Dead Movie Review

On Thursday night, I attended the midnight premiere of Evil Dead. The tagline of the film is "This is not a remake, it's a rebirth." They got it right.. It definitely was not a remake, because it did not have one thing the original 1981 film had.. Bruce Campbell, although, he did produce this one. This 2013 film was directed by Fede Alvarez, whereas the 1981 film was directed by Sam Raimi. The main characters were played by actors I had never heard of. That being said, I went into this movie blindly: not knowing if I hated an actor. Each of the main actors provided solid performances. Jane Levy played the female lead, Mia. Since the story revolved around this addict, she gave the greatest performace. Shiloh Fernandez, David (or Mia's deadbeat brother), was a sort of douche hero type, but nonetheless, gave an astounding performance. A major similarity between the cult classic and this "rebirth" is the gore! The entire film was basically red. Five young adults, and an immense amount of blood and gore. *** I advise sticking around until after the credits for a special treat. *** If blood, gore, or loss of limbs makes you queasy, I do NOT recommend seeing this film. I also do NOT recommend seeing this with children or the faint of heart. I do recommend this movie, however. It is just ill-advised to see it with the listed above. I give Evil Dead ** 1/2 out of ****. Reminder!!!: Do NOT take your children!!!

Oz: The Great and Powerful Movie Review

I'm here to review Oz: The Great and Powerful. This film, if you didn't know, is a prequel to the Wizard of Oz. Except, you know, this one is actually about the Wizard. Oscar "Oz" Diggs is played by the very talented James Franco. This film is a great one to take your kids or just to go see on your own. Michelle Williams, Mila Kunis, and Rachel Weiz all play witches; Glenda, Theodora, and Evanora, respectively. Each female lead did an excellent job. Zach Braff, of Scrubs fame, played Oz's assistant; he did fantastically. Without spoiling the movie, there is one major plothole between this prequel and the 1939 original film. Go see this movie and you'll know what I'm talking about. The setting, as well as the colors, are very exubrant. The Little China Girl is voiced by Joey King, some of you might remember her as Ramona Quimby in Ramona & Beezus, or the young version of Talia al Ghul in The Dark Knight Rises; this little starlet is gonna make it big. She has a bright future ahead of her. I recommend seeing this film as a family. Chances are you saw the Wizard of Oz as a family, keep the tradition alive. I give Oz: The Great and Powerful a *** 1/2 out of ****.

Olympus Has Fallen Movie Review

I saw Olympus Has Fallen last weekend. Gerard Butler plays a man named Mike Banning, a former Secret Service agent to the President (played by Aaron Eckhart). The movie spans about half of a day; North Korea tries taking over the White House by holding the President hostage. This movie does not take long to take off. Almost instant action. Butler, Eckhart, and Freeman have phenomenal roles and they play them well. Although this movie has an underlying sense of patriotism, the amount of blood, gore, and headshots is too much. I would not recommend taking your children to see it, but it is indeed a great and riveting movie. *** 1/2 out of ****. Just because this is a shorter review does not mean it was a bad film. Truth of the matter is that this is one of the best movies I have seen recently. I highly recommend seeing this, but leave your younger kids with a babysitter.

Spring Breakers Movie Review

I went to see Spring Breakers.. This movie is almost unbearable. It stars Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens, of Disney fame, as well as Ashley Benson, of Pretty Little Liars fame. This is definitely not a family-friendly movie. Four best friends take a Spring Break vacation that is filled with drugs, sex, and other vices. Alien, played by the ever-so-fantastic James Franco, becomes the girls' saving grace. He actually became the films saving grace. The girls get into some really big trouble and he comes to their rescue. This movie, overall, is just bad. The most entertaining aspect of this movie was the comedic scenes; some of which were inappropriate. When I saw it, a family brought three young kids, and I thought, this cannot be good for these kids. I was flabbergasted by this film. Something I would not have expected from these former Disney starlets. The director's wife is one of the four friends and she is the first to drop clothes. Being a Spring Break film, most early adult women are topless. Thank the gods for James Franco, he was the one that gave this film it's only star. I give Spring Breakers a * 1/2 out of ****. Do NOT take your kids to see this.

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone Movie Review

I went to see The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. The movie stars Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Olivia Wilde, and Jim Carrey. This is a film about magicians, or I guess Vegas performers. Each of the stars gave brilliant performaces. Wilde, who has numerous credits despite her young age, will be one of the best actresses in Hollywood. Steve Buscemi was actually funny in this movie, usually I don't really care all too well for him, but this movie gave me a chance to rethink his talent. Carell and Carrey team up again after Bruce Almighty, and compliment one another very well. It seems like we have a new Sandler/Schneider. Burt, played by Carell, is a struggling magician who is in need of "one big act" because another performer, Steve Gray, played by Carrey, moved in on his turf. A typical hero losing his spot to the new guy. Along Wonderstone's journey he realizes that being famous is not why he became a magician in the first place. Overall, this movie seemed redundant. Too many films have plots similar to this one. The comedy was solid, but the plot made this film mediocre, at best. I give The Incredible Burt Wonderstone a ** out of ****.

21 and Over Movie Review

I'll be reviewing 21 and Over, a film that had seen in it's opening weekend. Justin Chon plays college student Jeff Chang, the person you expect the movie to revolve around (since it is his twenty first birthday), but it revolves around his high school buddies, Miller and Casey, played by Miles Teller and Skyler Astin, respectively. The latter two take Jeff Chang out for his 21st birthday, which just so happens to be the night before a big medical school interview. Jeff Chang winds up getting totally smashed and if you've seen The Hangover, you'd know what ends up happening. The three main characters are young upstarts that have bright futures ahead of them. 21 and Over is not a movie you should take your young kids to see, as it has a numerous instances of adult language, and a couple of extreme cases of other adult themes. Aside from the major adult themes, 21 and Over has a sort of love story between Casey and Nicole, played by the beautiful and talented Sarah Wright. Without giving any spoilers, let me just say that fate gives them numerous chances to be together, but one of the two does NOT pick up on them. I give 21 and Over a ** 1/2 stars out of ****. I recommend seeing this with your adult buddies, just not your little kids.

Twilight Movie Review

I'd like to take this time to review Twilight... Oh boy! Was really looking forward to this movie review... Okay, so.. I should start with the fact that this is a movie based off of a book. It had potential, but Catherine Hardwicke did not take it to it's true full potential. She neglected some key moments from the book and that made fans upset. This was also a film that had a couple of upcoming actors. Ashley Greene, Jackson Rathbone, Kellan Lutz and Nikki Reed all have bright futures and before Twilight, no one would have known who these fine young actors were. Each, if I can say this without sounding like a fan (which I am not), gave a good performance. Those four actors were phenomenal supporting cast. Which brings me to the main three roles of Bella, Edward, and Jacob... The roles cast were below par. Kristen Stewart is "plain," as Bella is supposed to be percieved, but Stewart made Bella seem to boring and she gave no emotion. She could have done better or they should have cast someone else, someone that could give emotion. Robert Pattinson, granted I don't like the guy, he had a solid performance as Edward Cullen, the mysterious vampire boyfriend of Bella's. He has an established reputation as an actor in the UK, but this was different, out of his element, so to say. He handled the pressure and the fangirls well. Taylor Lautner, on the other hand, had a couple of roles under his belt before Twilight. His character, Jacob Black, was too dry for my taste. He left too much to be desired, in my opinion. Hardwicke could have and should have taken a different direction with his character. Overall, the movie left an odd taste in my mouth. Something about Stephanie Meyer, maybe if her vampires didn't sparkle in the sun, it would be different. I give Twilight a ** out of ****. Thank you for your time.