Reviews by Jacob S.

To get it out there: These movies are bad but I enjoy them as guilty pleasures. That being said, this installment is an improvement over the last Resident Evil movie and it's almost as good as the first. Though, that's not saying much. With each installment they continue to move further away from the game so I have no idea why they even bother to call this Resident Evil anymore. Those who enjoy these movies as guilty pleasures the way I do, you probably won't be disappointed. Fans of the games and everyone look elsewhere.

It's pointless pointing out the problems with the film since they're the same problems from the other movies. Some truly awful acting with the exception of Milla Jovovich and a couple of other people. Hey, at least there's no Ali Larter. Some excruciatingly bad dialogue as well as a non existent plot and a thin story line. Like I said, same problems as the previous films.

However, despite all those things, I still enjoyed the movie. You pretty much get what you're expecting. A hot Milla Jovovich in a tight latex suit kicking some zombie ass and it is entertaining as hell. The story is different this time around, with some interesting twists. Though, none of it makes much sense and feels pointless, at least they're trying something different. That counts for something right? At least it's never boring.

The action this time around is better and more entertaining. The fights are well choreographed and as always with this series, are edited nicely so there's no annoying shaky cam which is always a plus. The visuals are better this time around, though one or two moments the budget showed. The 3-D is clearly used as a gimmick but it made the movie more fun and this is probably one of the better uses of the product. So if have a few bucks that you can shell out it wouldn't be bad to invest it in the 3-D. Since it was filmed in 3-D it's lot better than 80% of the movies that came out in 3-D this year(3-D wise, not as a whole). There's almost no blur, the light levels are what they should be, and the overall picture quality doesn't look murky.

The way this movie is left off the sixth film has the potential of actually being good. However, this movie as a whole is just a filler and seems pointless. That is, until the sixth movie comes out. Fans of this series as well as the people who just enjoy it as a guilty pleasure shouldn't be disappointed in this installment as it delivers what you'd expect, Milla Jovovich in a tight latex suit kicking zombie ass for 90 minutes. Yes the acting for the most part is awful, the dialogue is sometimes hilariously bad, and the story/plot are paper thin but that's been the case with every Resident Evil movie. The action and special effects are even better this time around and puts the 3-D to good use. I enjoyed this movie, it was fun even if it's as brainless as the undead in this movie.

This movie arrives during an unfortunate time where found Footage movies are coming out in waves. However, this is a notch above most of them. It's not perfect but it does add some new fresh twists and in today's world that's enough to warrant a recommendation and put it above most movies in this genre.

This is an anthology, so for those who've seen Creepshow it's like that except these are found footage movies or for those who haven't seen that movie, it's basically a bunch of mini movies(5 to be exact) all put into one movie. The story is really simple, it's a group of guys who get hired by some unknown party to break into some old man's house and retrieve a video. However, it's not as easy as it seems since there are stacks of VHS tapes so they have to start watching them in order to find the right one but that's not their only problem as something else lurks in the house.

Before I say anything, none of these movies are ever boring. With that being said, some videos work better and are genuinely a lot creepier than the others. The second film, while intriguing is not scary at all. I see what they writers were trying to do(a side note: each video had different writers and directors) but it never came off as creepy or suspenseful, luckily it's not long. The 3rd film is also not that scary, but it does have two generally creepy shots and I like how they actually made the camera a crucial part of the video. The 4th film is scarier than the 2nd and 3rd as it does provide a nice "Boo" moment or two but compared to the first and last film, it's not as effective.

The first, and last films as well as the actual film(the guys breaking into the house to search for the tape) is where the actual scares of the movie lie. The first and last movies are so well done, beautifully told, and creepy that they make up for the lack of scare in the movies in between. The actual story itself is extremely creepy too, as once they break into the house you know they're not alone. A lot of scary stuff happens in the breaks between each short film. I also like how(with the exception of the 2nd film and the main story) that they manage to incorporate the camera in a way where it's a crucial part of the film(hence the third and fourth film) or avoids the common found footage movie flaw, why can't they just put the dam camera down? In first and last film, the person either has the camera in their glasses or in their costume so they manage to avoid that pitfall. I'm trying to avoid describing each film because it's more fun when you don't know much about a movie.

I should also warn that this movie is certainly not for everyone. I've never seen this much nudity in a film before(both male and female, both frontal and back) and some of these films are sick and twisted. So those of you with an easy stomach, you've been warned.

In a time where found footage movies are coming out on a monthly basis(or so it seems), it's nice to see a movie like V/H/S that completely surprises you by putting a little twist on a genre that's become monotonous. Sure some films are better and more frightening than others but this movie is never boring, at least to me it wasn't. This is also a notch above most horror movies today because it's you know, it's actually scary, something lacking in most horror movies today. It's also a bitch slap to those watered down, lame PG-13 horror movies(with the exception of Insidious and The Woman in Black of course) that are constantly coming out every week(at least, that's what it feels like). Horror fans should be pleased by this movie, and it's a nice edition to the found footage genre.

So after seeing Premium Rush and Dark Knight Rises as well as a few others of his movies, I am not embarrassed to admit that I have a man crush on Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Let's face it, he's a terrific actor. So I decided to watch a few of his old movies and this kind of caught my attention and I'm glad I decided to give this a shot.

As much as I loved this movie there were a few things here and there that bothered me. Some of these might bother more than others, it didn't bother me as much as it did with a few people but they still bothered me a little. First and foremost there is nothing original about the story. It's pretty much One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest but with teenagers. It didn't really bother me that much thanks to the outstanding cast. The biggest thing though was the camera. It's filmed in a documentary sort of way but it's not a documentary. Whatever the director was trying to say escapes me. It kind of made the whole movie seem pointless. Also, since it's filmed the way it is at some points the camera would shake uncontrollably for no reason which gave me a headache. These were really the only things that bothered me.

Now to the good things which made me forgive all the little problems I had. For starters, this movie actually takes the time to develops it's characters which is an extremely good thing since that's absent it most movies today. I cared about these characters, I wanted them to get better and I actually cared about what might happen to them which took me by surprise. Normally I don't do that with many movies.

The cast does a solid job and they are probably the best thing about the movie. Each actor humanizes they're character, they react to the way we would in certain situations and the way emotionally damaged teens would. Two people really stick out though. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Don Cheadle. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is excellent at playing an easily angered, lost teenager. He is convincing when he loses it, and starts becoming enraged. Cheadle however, leaves more of an impression as the Doctor of the Juvenile Lockdown facility. He reacts the way a normal human being would in certain situations. There was one scene in particular that really left an impression on me. It's when Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character punches one of the other kids during one of the group cessions, the way Don Cheadle reacts feels so real and natural.

Overall, the story is nothing new, and the way this movie is filmed is a bit off-putting but, the fantastic cast, the well developed characters, and strong script elevate the proceedings considerable. This is a very grim film about lost teenagers and it might prove to be too much for people but, this is a great movie and I'm glad I watched it. Even after a week of seeing this, it's still strong in my head which means something.

I thought there could have been a chance with this movie based on it's interesting premise, it's an intriguing idea but this is an example of what not to do.

I'll start off on a good note. For all the problems with this movie, they got a few things right. The movie actually starts off good, we're introduced to the characters in an engaging way and once we get to the town, the commanded do a nice job of raisng the tension and atmosphere. When they first get to the town and explore it a bit it's undeniably creepy. The whole setting is just oozing with atmosphere and creepiness. Then nightfall begins and that's when things go downhill.

We're introduced to a couple who joins the gang to go on the ToureTte way these characters are introduced you know they're going to die so when nightfall comes you start playing the guess who dies first game which is never a good thing. Most of the characters come off as annoying and I didn't particularly cared what happened to them. It doesn't help that these people do the dumbest things so I cared for them even less, and they deserve to die for being as stupid they were. Of course it's not the actors fault, it's the screenwriters. Who in their right mind would think "oh there's a dark room with a trail of blood lets go investigate!" No, no one with a brain would be dumb enough to do something like that.

The acting in this movie isn't really all that great. The performances are passable. The roles do not require much except running around crying, screaming and acting stupid. The so called monsters hunting the groups are just mutated people who are zombies I guess, I don't know what to call them exactly. Whatever they are, they're not scary and are pretty much the least imaginative things. Though I will say there were moments in the middle of the movie, before these things are revealed that were creepy. At some points the characters would run but didn't know where they were going and they would hear screams in the distance and they couldn't tell which direction it was coming from. Those parts did have me shaking a bit. Had the film makers not revealed the monsters and kind of stuck with these scenes then it would have elevated the proceedings considerably and this could have been a truely terrifying movie. The ending is what really kills this movie, it is so abrupt and stupid that it made me forget everything that was good about this movie.

Overall, an intriguing premise with a good start but then dissolves into your standard horror movie with a terrible ending. This movie had potential but blew it. If you love horror movies stay away unless you are dying to see this, then by all means go ahead.

Premium Rush succeeded where a handful of movies this summer failed to do which was, it actually delivered on what it promised. When I first saw the trailers last year my initial reaction was, bike messengers? Really? How could you make a movie about bike messengers entertaining? Then I saw the director and the cast an my thoughts about the movie changed a bit and got kind of excited for this movie. I had a blast while watching this movie, this was one of those late summer surprises. I did not expect it to be as good or as much fun as I thought it would be.

While I did have fun watching this movie there were some.things that bothered me a bit but, they are only minor things. First and foremost the story is nothing new and is pretty thin along with the plot. This movie did also have trouble trying to find a consistent tone, but, it didn't bother me as much as some people. Lastly, Jamie Chung's fake Asian accent annoyed me a bit, it was somewhat bad too. as I said though, these were minor things.

Now even though the story and plot are thin and not very original, it's what director David Koepp does with the story and plot. He puts a fresh spin and twist on it. I'm surprised no one has ever thought of doing a movie like this. It's refreshing to see something different than your typical car Chase scenes in a Chase kind of movie. He makes bike messaging seem so badass.

The visuals and style of this movie are different than anything I've seen before. For example, when Wilee approaches incoming traffic we get a look inside his head as he tries to find a way out and are subjected to multiple videos of how that route will turn out. If he goes left he'll hit a pedestrian, if he goes right, he'll hit a car etc. The direction is great too, we get everything. Point-of-view shots, read-view shots, overhead shoots you name it.

The way this movie is told is nothing new, Koepp keeps jumping from past to present even though this whole movie really only takes place within 4 hours, but, the storytelling does not affect the movie's breezy pace. There's never more than a few minutes between each action/chase scene.

While everyone in the cast did a nice job, the two standouts were Joseph Gorden-Levitt and Michael Shannon. Not much of a surprise there. Joseph Gorden-Levitt has really been widening his range. He is probably one of the best actors in the business today. He shows no struggle with every part he plays and he proves just like in 50/50 that he has no problem carrying a film. Michael Shannon is a badass and he knows it. He is a great actor and gives such an awesome performance as the villain he should continue to do roles like these.

Overall, though there the story and plot are nothing new, this movie has trouble finding a consistent tone, and Jamie Chung's accent is laughable bad. Those shouldn't be much of a problem however thanks to the cast, especially Joseph Gorden-Levitt and Michael Shannon, the nice direction, the nice visuals, the style, and the action/chase sequences which were well-shot(thankfully there was no shaky cam thanks to Koepp which made this more pleasantly enjoyable). This was a fun movie, it was entertaining throughout, and it didn't disappoint.

After seeing this movie on DVD, I definitely made the right choice by not shelling out $12 of my hard earned money to see this "movie". From the trailers and Todd Philips as the producer this looked like it could have been a blast of a movie. I was terribly wrong. I really don't know where to begin, but I have to start somewhere.

First and foremost, another found footage- first person shot style movie? I had this same feeling towards Chronicle since these movies have arrived at an unfortunate time where these movies are coming out every so often. The difference between this movie and Chronicle is that, Chronicle managed to do something different and put a nice spin on the genre. The same cannot be said with this movie, there is nothing original about this movie.

This movie also took itself too seriously. I was hoping there would be some humor in this movie because sometimes that can make a huge difference but, there was no humor at all. It wasn't funny, I only chuckled once or twice because of the dog. I'm not sure why this is labeled as part comedy.

It would have helped if we had character's to care about. Costa is just an asshole and I would never want a friend like him. So the fact that Thomas was friends with him didn't make me feel sympathetic towards him after everything that happened, he deserved what he got. The relationship between Kirby and Thomas has been done many times before, the guy who ends up having feeling towards his tomboy best friend. The ending between them would have had a more emotional impact had they developed the relationship but alas we're only reduced to a few clips between them. The real character is the party and I like that idea, but there's no point of it if their is nothing to latch onto.

There's really no point on commenting on the acting since not much is required for these parts. Anyone could pull off like they're having the times of their life. From the few clips before and after the party the actors are okay but there's not enough to come up with a definite conclusion.

The way the first person style is used I almost forget it's being shot by a held hand camera from one of the "actors". It rarely shakes which is good so I didn't have to deal with the usual side effects of feeling nauseous and getting headaches. However, just seeing a bunch of people jumping up and down gets boring after a while especially as I mentioned before, there's nothing to latch onto. I will admit there were some cool moments during the party but those weren't enough to save this atrocity.

Overall, this could have like Chronicle, done something different, put a new spin on the genre but this was a bunch of missed opportunities. This movie did have some moments during the party, but that wasn't nearly enough to save the movie. There is no humor, no characters to care about, not much excitement, and most of the party scenes are boring and sluggish. I also like how there was music playing from nowhere in the scenes before the party. It's not like it was coming from someone's iPod or something, it would come out of nowhere, I thought this was suppose to be a found footage movie? Also, some of the characters recording were somewhat creepy. They would ease drop on Thomas's parents having a conversation or him almost having sex with the hottest girl in school. This just came off as creepy to me. No I haven't been to too many parties but this is just crappy film making.

This is what the first movie should have been. This is a homage to all the 80's and 90's action movies, so for people looking for a good story, plot, script etc. look elsewhere.

As usual I'll start off with the negatives. I understand this isn't suppose to be taken seriously and I know that when they were writing the script they knew it was going to be silly but some of the dialogue is just bad. I also could not understand Sylvester Stallone at certain points of the film, this kind of irritated me a bit. As with almost every action movie, these guys are big but they're still human so I don't understand how some of these guys can take chains to the face, multiple kicks and punches, and brass knuckles to certain parts of their body and act as if it's nothing? Yes this is a movie but it's not some kind of superhero movie, these guys are still human. This is a problem with many action movies and it annoys me sometimes. Finally, (*Possible Spoiler skip to next paragraph*) what the hell happened to Jet Li?! He was in the beginning of the movie for 8 minutes then he never came back! I kept hoping he would show up again at some point but he never did. He was my favorite thing about the first film.


Now to the positives. As I said before there was some bad dialogue however, there are a lot of hilarious one-liners. This movie made me laugh more times then some of the comedies that came out this year(I'm looking at you Adam Sandler!). The Chuck Norris jokes were probably my favorites. They certainly amped up the gore and body count in this movie compared to the first one. The action in this movie was bigger, better and a lot more fun, I guess this is because this time around I got to finally see Arnold shoot and blow shit up along with Bruce Willis and Chuck Norris. The action scenes were also shot a lot better, there was less shaky cam compared to the first movie so I could actually see what was going on.

The story and plot are still thin but they're told a lot better than in the first movie. The chemistry between the cast was just as good if not better than in the first film. There's really not much to say about the acting since there's little of it but based on that, Liam Hemsworth was good. Nan Yu was laughable but she didn't have to do much acting anyways, she was great at kicking ass. The cast from the first movie Stallone, Statham, Crews Etc. were good. Norris and Schwarzenegger pretty much made fun of themselves and blew shit up, neither of which had trouble with either those two things. Jean-Claude Van Damme was a good choice as the villain he was a badass.

When I first saw that they were making a second one, in all honesty, I thought it was going to be garbage. My first thought was "Why?" the first movie was only decent but nothing great. I was surprised at how much fun I had while watching this. This movie is cheesy, corny, and silly but everyone involved knows that and this movie knows that, it embraces it, which is why this movie was fun to watch.

Overall, while there is some bad dialogue and people who must have superhuman strength, this movie is a blast thanks to the consistent humor, the cast and awesome action sequences. This is big, dumb, fun, and you pretty much get what your expecting, to expect anything more( like a great story, plot etc.) would be foolish. This is a great homage to all the 80's and 90's action movies. This is what the first movie should have been but never was. I'm now excited for the third movie.

To put it out there: No it's not a good movie in terms of acting, story, plot etc. but, it is fun which is why I'm giving it the score I am.

So to get it out of the way, I'll talk about the negatives of the films first. The problems in this film shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. The story and plot are pretty much non existent, what a shocker. Though, I do applaud the filmmakers for moving past dance battles. However, as unmemorable and cliched the plot was in the third movie it was better than the story and plot in this movie. The dialog in some parts was good but laughable in others.

The next and last thing is the acting. Now this has been a problem for all the Step Up movies. The actors (specifically the leads) were always good at the dancing part that was required of their roles but when it came to the actual acting parts, they were all terrible. The same thing is evident here. While the performances between Guzman and McCormick weren't horrendously bad, they could have been much better. These two have potential, had they been under the direction of someone else they could have been good. I will say that there was at least some chemistry between Guzman and McCormick which was missing in the last film. There were also some nice scenes between them but, like every other Step Up movie the romance aspect gets shoved aside in favor of the dance sequences. I really had no problem with the supporting cast since none of them really had to do much.

So now to the positives of the film. Like in the previous movie the dance sequences are exhilarating. They are incredibly well choreographed and they're the main reason why people come to see these films now. As I stated in my review of the third movie, this really sets the bar high for any dance movies in the future. The visuals as well are amazing and have improved from the last movie. These dance sequences were fun and engaging and thankfully took up 60% of the running time.

The 3-D was definitely worth it. This is the way 3-D should be used and this is probably one of the best uses of 3-D this year (along with Prometheus and Avengers) as well as the past few years. It enhances the experience by bringing us into the dancing and feeling like were a part of it with diversions (like sand, water, and sparks being thrown at our faces) and dancers coming out of the screen into our faces. It helps that this movie was filmed in 3-D like Prometheus was. Director Scott Speer not only uses the 3-D effectively but manages to avoid the common pitfalls of it. Such us dimness, and blurriness. It's crisp, clear and bright.

The setting is beautiful and it's nice to be out of Manhattan. The production designs were fantastic my favorite being the art gallery. That was just incredible. Scott Speer manages to get some nice shots of Miami that they look like they could appear on a postcard. In fact in some scenes while the actors were talking my attention diverted to the beautiful backgrounds with the nice palm trees and clear blue waters.

The soundtrack was great, each song fit the dances perfectly and the dancers danced to each beat perfectly and accurately.


Conclusion: Like every other Step Up movie there was hardly a story or plot, some laughable dialogue, and some wooden performances. Everything else was great, the dance sequences were terrific, they were extremely well choreographed, the 3-D was used effectively, the production designs were good, the setting was beautiful, the leads at least had chemistry even if their performances weren't that great, there were some nice moments in the romance, and the soundtrack was just as good this time around. For the next movie, if there ever will be one. The filmmakers should either abandon a story altogether and make a 90 minute 3-d music video rather than trying to shoestring in a story to connect the films impressive dance sequences or actually hire real actors who can act and someone who can come up with a decent screenplay. If the movie had a better story, better acting, better screenplay, to accommodate the dance sequences this would have been an amazing film. For those of you who just want to see this movie for the exhilarating dance sequences and can ignore the horrible story, wooden acting, and sometimes laughable dialogue like me, you won't be disappointed and you'll probably have as much fun as I did. For anyone who is looking for a good story etc. look elsewhere.

To be honest, this movie was a tad disappointing. Maybe my expectations were a little too high, or maybe this movie was a bit overrated. It's hard to give an honest review since I read the books but I'll try my best.

The acting in this movie was great with the exception of Lenny Kravitz. His performance was very dull and he didn't fit Cinna so well. Jennifer Lawrence was wonderful and fit the role of Katniss perfectly. She has proven that she can carry a film, I adored her even if her cheeks were way too puffy/big. Elizabeth Banks and Stanley Tucci were wonderful as well, they both nailed the characters. Even little Willow Shields did a great job as Primrose. The Rest of the cast was good but not as good as the people I mentioned.

They captured the story and plot well, not surprised at all since the Author was a screenwriter. They managed to stay true to the book with some minor exceptions here and there(Madge ehem!? Avox Girl?! Prep team?!). I like how they actually added more stuff that wasn't in the book which was President snow having conversations with Seneca.

For the first hour, the events preceding the games I think they nailed perfectly. The Set-up to the games was perfect. with an exception here and there(I was disappointed by the flaming capes, they looked so fake. That was a great opportunity to do something amazing and really WOW the audience but they blew it, my reaction just ended up being Meh.).

While the first hour was perfect, the same cannot be said for the games themselves which was everything after the first hour. The games are suppose to be this exciting, special event but they failed to capture any of this well enough. The game itself wasn't tense like it was in the book, they failed to capture any of that. They should have given Rue more screen time with Katniss during the game. I only felt what I did that moment with Rue was because I read the book. For people who didn't read the book I bet probably didn't care or feel that much. Had the games been as tense and suspenseful like it was in the book, it would have made everything more exciting, entertaining, and better.

I understand that if this film was rated R, this movie would have lost a ton of money as a huge portion of their fan base consists of teenagers. However, had they been truly faithful to the source material this would have been rated R, and it would have added a lot more. It probably would have made the movie better, it would have added more tension and suspense to the games.

The other problem I had with this movie was the shaky cam. I get why he did it, to show everything from Katniss's point of view because the in the book it's told from mostly katniss's thoughts. Had there been voice overs this would have completely ruined the film, so I think what Gary ross did was the right thing. However, he went overboard with the shaking. It makes sense for the games, but there was no need to jerk the camera around while she was walking down a street or having a conversation with someone.

The last thing that bothered me was the chemistry between Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson. I know in the book the romance between them was fake but there was at least some chemistry. In the movie, there was hardly any chemistry which is a problem if we're suppose to buy into the romance.

Last thing, the visuals. Thankfully this movie wasn't in 3D. The visuals, while great, weren't anything first rate or spectacular. The best examples would be the fire capes, and the mutts which they ruined. I also forgot to mention the costume design and art direction. Both were great and deserve recognition when it comes to Oscar time. They managed to do a good job at capturing the wacky styles of the capitol that they described in the book.

Conclusion: Lenny Kravitz was a miscast, his performance was dull. The games weren't as tense or thrilling as they should have been, had it been rated R and they were fully faithful to the book it would have made a difference. The shaky cam was too much at times, they jerked the camera around at moments when it was not necessary too. There wasn't that much chemistry between the leads. Finally while the visuals were good, they were still a notch below first rate. Now to the good stuff. The performances were great with the exception of Kravitz. The first hour leading up to the games was perfect. They managed not to butcher the story and plot. I liked the first person point of view style, it was a good decision rather than having to constantly listen to voice overs, and inner monologues. I also forgot to mention that I thought it was very creative of them to make Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith do commentary during the games to explain things that Katniss would try and figure out in her head. The Costume designs and art direction were great. this is a great movie and hopefully the next movie will be just as good as this one.

I never heard of this movie surprisingly, until I watched it in my Sports Literature Class. I have to say, I'm glad my teacher showed this to us, this is a really nice and uplifting story.

The performances were good but, Samuel L. Jackson stood out the most and was probably one of the best things about this movie. He commanded every scene and without him this movie would probably be nothing. The basketball scenes were good too, they were nicely shot. There wasn't any shaky cameras, they were shot still and clear. The dialogue for the most part was good and very uplifting especially when Coach Cater would give his speeches and lectures. I also liked some of the sub-plots, if a sports movie doesn't have any sub-plots it makes the movie a lot less interesting. I liked how this movie illustrated some of the difficult decisions these players had to make, it made the movie feel more real and interesting.

That being said, I did have some problems with this film. It was too long, they could have cut a scene or two and shortened it by at least 10 or 15 minutes. This movie also felt a little too preachy, like the scene where (POSSIBLE SPOILER!!!) after the gym is open and Samuel L. Jackson goes into the gym only to find his players sitting in desks doing their schoolwork to show that they're still willing to be loyal to him. This scene made me roll my eyes rather than make me feel something.

Overall, this is a level above most sports drama's mostly because of Samuel L. Jackson's performance and the fact that this movie actually does manage to be inspirational even if it's too long and preachy.