Reviews by Happy Vader

I love films with realistic villains. Heck, I love films in which an outsider destroys what is shown as the 'perfect family'. Hell, I love these films even more when that said villain is a female!

Granted, this film wasn't Oscar material but both the lead females sure gave great performances with Annabella playing the housewife who has Asthma & Rebecca De Mornay playing the twisted & calm babysitter, Peyton Flanders!

To female viewers this film is sensitive because It focuses on the worst nightmare of a new-mother: The fear that something is gonna happen to their baby and I think the whole breast-feeding thing must've shocked a great deal of female viewers around the world!

Anyways, for people who like high tension and simple settings should go for this film but those who get offended by these subjects should just stay clear!

A classic? Not particularly but nevertheless, one of the best in the thriller-drama genre!

Without reading a single review or viewing a trailer, I decided to download Kick-Ass on the basis that it had Chloe Moretz who was 11 years old at the time. I thought this might be a children-oriented movie like Kicking & Screaming or Little Miss Sunshine but I was proven wrong, seriously wrong, just after 5 minutes into the movie. I mean, what the f***!!! I seriously thought this was a kiddie movie but instead gave something else. It was like as if I was expecting a slap but instead got a falcon kick to the gut.

Anyway, on to the movie: Aaron Johnson is probably the latest member in the Geek Pack, a group of actors who gained fame in the 2000's playing high-school characters in a geeky or nerdy manner or somewhere in-between. He gave a really great performance and is definitely one of the recent actors to keep an eye out for and as for Chloe Moretz, she really won me over with her performance as Hit-Girl, probably the most foul-mouthed child character ever to hit the silver screen. Her pairing with Nicolas Cage was amazing, almost too realistic. The violence is, well, shocking, even for a action flick but you see, none of the others have an 11 year old kid doing most of it. Nor do any other have a 40 year old beating an 11 year old to death. That's just too much!

Even though I gave a higher rating, I don't fully agree with what was shown and what was being said onscreen, especially regarding Chloe Moretz's character. Many have voted against her for using words like "cunts" & "motherfuckers" and I agree with them. I'm also against on the scene(s) where she kills people, not one-two but ten by the dozen. That's a rather poor showcase for young kids out there and I would recommend not viewing this unless & until you're of age. Other than that, the film is great and is funny at the right level but for squeamish people, this might not be the film to they want to jump on the sofa with popcorns.

On a further note, I liked the fact that they etched a 'hidden' message on why kids should not try to be superheroes in real life because it can have dangerous consequences but as seeing the ending, I think it might have the opposite effect!

8.7/10

Terminator 2, or a.k.a the most coolest movie ever, is a sequel to The Terminator and much, much better. Granted that it was more family-friendly than it's predecessor but you cannot deny the beautiful use of (then) mind-blowing CGI and technology. Even the acting performances this time were much better: Linda Hamilton handled her role as Sarah Connor in her crazy, brink-of-insanity state better than her timid state from the first film. Also, Robert Patrick as T-1000, one of the greatest villains ever to hit the screen. He was the perfect foil for Arnie's big, muscular titular character.

Since I'm a major Cameron fan, I may be writing things from a very strict POV but like I said, this is a major fan talking here. I liked the fact that it was more than just a shoot-em-up, fight-for-survival movie. This one had a more deeper theme on the corruption of man and that destroying is easier than making. Very few action movies actually ever try to convey that message and that's exactly what makes this one unique.

You see, the trouble with Cameron's post-Aliens movies is that they're not neccessarily hated but mostly disliked by many people. Since T2 onwards he has taken on a more less-violent approach and his films are more story driven than ever. All in all, for true Cameron fans, this might be their first or second best from him and for non-true Cameron fans, this might be one of the OK films released. How in the blazing hell can you hate a movie which made Bad to the Bone synonymous with bad-assery?

9.7/10

I declare that Tarzan is the last greatest cartoon ever made, Disney or not. And by that I mean the one that can be considered in the same ship as Dumbo, Cinderella, Snow White, Bambi and all the others that preceded it. Seriously, I mean it! This alone signaled the end of the Disney Renaissance and ultimately, the end of great cartoons. Sure, we had Monsters, Inc., Toy Story 3 and all but, I will argue, they were not as beautiful as this one and not just by animation, but the level of emotion and value not seen in any other cartoon before or since. This is beauty at it's most extreme and this is also one of the few which I enjoy each and every voice-over + every song (something that was last achieved in 1967 with The Jungle Book)

Every little thing is so alive and fresh and I've always enjoyed Minnie Driver's unique voice and her V.O. as Jane Porter is arguably one of the finest. I just can't imagine Jane with any other voice and as for Lance Henriksen; the dude is a legend and his V.O. was just brilliant. Also, on further note, I think Clayton was and is the last greatest, most realistic villain ever. Period. The only one that comes *this* close is Lotso from Toy Story 3 in terms of great but in terms of realistic, no-one else. Also, his death is probably the most horrifying death Disney has ever done and kudos on that one!

All in all, Tarzan is strictly for Disney fans and also fans of Phil Collins, as his songs fuel up the cartoon brilliantly. I just love this cartoon and I'm kinda disappointed that we're getting such boring ones nowadays (seriously, Meet the Robinsons, Barnyard and not to mention Chicken Little)

9.5/10

Frankly speaking, The Lost Treasure, alongside Cinderella III: A Twist In Time are the only 2 films I enjoyed by DisneyToons, who produces sequels to Disney cartoons. This is one of my guilty pleasures due to many reasons: the voice-over is great and the animation is very beautiful. OK, I admit, it's not as 'breathing' or 'riveting' as Tarzan or Beauty & The Beast, it's one of the best I've seen.

Anyway, The Lost Treasure is a children's movie and it behaves like one with an unlikely character as the lead, Tinkerbell. This version of Tink is like Betty Boop for our generation: short, with even shorter clothes and highly sexual with bare legs and all. It's like as if adding Jessica Rabbitt as the 5th member of the Teletubbies. From the voice-overs, I really enjoyed Jesse McCartney as Terence. I don't know why but he was really in it and was quite convincing. Although the story is neither brilliant or boring, it's still quite good. So, all in all, drop the macho-man image and just enjoy this likable flick.

8.5/10

It's hard to write a review on a movie which only runs for 16 minutes. It's supposed to be easy but it isn't, not especially when Salvador Dali is involved. Nothing involving him can be easily translated or interpreted. Have you ever read Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince? Then you will remember a powerful love potion being mentioned "Amortentia" which "smells differently to each person"... so, in this case, this film will be seen differently to each and they can shape it in whatever shape they want to. It can be easily viewed on YouTube (come on, it's only 16 minutes long)...

Anyway, to me, at first glance, was a jumble of a mess but, from second viewing onwards, it was like as if watching a dream, The Prisoner style or a hallucination of a LSD-induced college boy. A visionary accomplishment for it's time and still to this day, the greatest mindf*** movie ever made! HA! Take that, Eraserhead!

After 11 years of waiting, Toy Story 3 was worth it. Every damn second of it. Rarely has a third installment been this great. The voice-overs, especially by Ned Beatty as Lotso and Bud Luckey as Chuckles, were just great. The animation this time around was very beautiful and was 10x better than the first two and the storyline was also great.

All in all, this one has a more deeper theme of friendship and acceptance and, even for a fantasy world, has a more realistic feel to it. If the ending or atleast the climax doesn't move you to tears then you're obviously not paying enough attention to the scene. Toy Story 3 by all accounts is better than the first two and out of all the pop-culture references, I liked the Cool Hand Luke one! You will understand once you watch it!

To many, classic horror starts from the 70's or from early 80's. I disagree. To me it was from early 20's to mid 50's, the true predecessor of modern horror. Many of the well-known horror movies were made at this time and The Wolf Man is one of them. Although not the first werewolf movie, it certainly was the most influential and iconic. I consider the performance of Lon Chaney, Jr. as the doomed Larry Talbot / Wolf Man and the whole film in general to be the definitive portrayal of a werewolf. all Universal Monsters are iconic but there's just something about the Wolf Man. Is it the groundbreaking make-up for its time or the creepy atmosphere? Or is it because of the great performance by Lon Chaney, Jr. (why do think I've ranked him no. 1 [Link removed - login to see]). Just like the horror movies of it's time - and before - it has the very 2 things they are famous for: Amazing music and at least one iconic scene. In long intervals the music serves a great role and it often very chilling. For the iconic scene, the part where Larry turns into a werewolf. Remember that was the 40's, long before CGI and everything (come to think of it, many of the CGI and special effects pioneers of modern times were not even born then) and the transformation must've caused a-many nightmares. It's effective and damn simple to the point that anyone with a good camera and Windows Movie Maker can achieve the same effect (hint: try Transition). The performances by all are very convincing and rather impressive. Before he went the utterly quotable and blendable Capt. Renault, Claude Raines gave easily one of his best performances as Sir John Talbot. All in all, if you're a classic horror fan and/or like Universal Monsters then this one is definitely not to miss and believe me, you will love this and if you think that Boris Karloff was great as Frankenstein or Sir Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal, your mind will have changed after watching Lon Chaney, Jr. If you don't like it, you can remove me from your friend list (yes, I'm that confident)

Overall, I would like to call The Wolf Man as one of the Big 4 Of Classic Horror, the other 3 being: Nosferatu, 1922, Dracula, 1931 and Frankenstein 1931. I have others in mind like The Old Dark House, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Phantom of the Opera and so on but these four really defined everything and their images are known to everyone throughout the world, movie-goers or not. Like I said before, the image of the wolf and the portrayal is great. A lyncanthrope is supposed to be shown in a tragic, yet determined sort of way who doesn't want to turn into a werewolf but is doomed, not the lovey-dovey crying stuff like in Twilight. Anyway, classic horror survived the 40's because of this and, even after 60 years, still manages to scare us by sheer simplicity. A great film indeed!

10/10

After the disappointing results of Batman & Robin, up-and-coming director Christopher Nolan took it upon himself to do a Batman reboot. And that's exactly what Nolan did and bought forward the (then) greatest Batman installment of all time. Frankly speaking, I did not like it the first time around because I wasn't much exposed to Christian Bale. After seeing him in The Machinist and American Psycho, I saw this film again and this time, loved it. Each scene builds up to another scene like a long great drum marathon by either Nick Menza or John Bonham. Overall, I liked the dark tone of the movie which was lacking in the superhero movies of its time, bar Blade.

One thing I would like to point out: I liked Katie Holmes performance as Rachel Dawes and she was quite convincing. Of course, when Maggie stepped in the sequel, she was more better but Katie was also good nevertheless. Also, the chemistry between the leads, Bale & Holmes, might be a little shaky but it wasn't whiny as the Peter Parker/Mary Jane pairing from the Spider-Man franchise. This one had more realistic feelings and emotions. Also, I liked the fact that this had a wide variety of classic actors like Tom Wilkinson, Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine. I mean, an epic movie like this deserves to have epic actors, right?

Let's see, what about the film? Unlike it's predecessors and it's successor, Begins is more dialogue-driven. I think that was a good thing or otherwise it would've been just another action-superhero movie and would've been boring. All in all, the acting by everyone is great (check out Cillian Murphy and Tom Wilkinson) and the action is well placed and Cillian Murphy is the only actor who easily blends with all characters and shares good chemistry with each. In conclusion, first watch Batman & Robin, get heavily disappointed and then watch Batman Begins to lift your spirits higher.

9.0/10

Directed by another legendary team of Disney, Gary Trousdale & Kirk Wise, Hunchback is the 7th in the Disney Renaissance era (the duo's other film, Beauty and the Beast is the 3rd) and overall, one of the darkest Disney productions to date. Adapted from Victor Hugo's novel, I've read that Disney strayed too far and I cannot confirm or deny this because I still haven't read the original novel. Now, what sets this apart from most other Disney works is, apart from the dark scenes, is the use religion and other mature themes not previously found in other works. I believe that Hunchback signalled the end of the sweetness and child-friendly scenes which Disney was most famous for and instead bought forward much realistic themes and settings. OK, if not the greatest, then I consider Hunchback to be one of the important Disney productions to date. All Disney fans should watch this at least once!

On to the film: Just like many others, this one also opens with a song and the lyrics are actually very well written. We're quickly thrown into the brooding world of Quasimodo and Claude Frollo by the epilogue and from there it just levels up. The animation is quite realistic and not very 'one-sided' or 'sliding-manner' which means a characters appears to slide to the screen as-if being pushed from behind and the side (check out when Scar from Lion King comes into view after when Simba lies next to Mufasa's dead body and you will understand). The expressions and movements are very real, something that would later expand in Tarzan and the voice over, us usual, is top-notch. Every voice is perfectly suited and they all give a distinctive touch to their respective characters.

In conclusion, watch this and you won't be disappointed but fans who are used to the lighter themes of Disney's previous movies will find it a bit shocking. Well at least this is better than The Black Cauldron, another film in the same vein with dark tones.

7.9/10