Reviews

A crew of salvagers discover a ship floating over international waters, that has been abandoned for forty years. They plan to repair the ship and claim it as their own. However, while on board, the crew discovers that the ship is haunted by the spirits of those whom had perished on the ship.

It turns out that good special effects have been wasted on this nonsense. The plot seems to grow more lame and stupid as the movie progresses. Pile that on with mediocre acting and cliched horror sequences and we get a time-waster of a movie. (3/10)

Jet Li stars in this movie about a former MVA agent, Gabriel Yulaw, who plans to kill every alternate version of himself in the multiverse (in the movie we are told that there 124 universes). With each version of himself that he kills, Yulaw becomes stronger. He has killed 122 versions of himself, so he must kill one more in order to be the only one in the multiverse. The one remaining version that he must eliminate is a police officer (also played by Li).

What follows from this are mindless fight scenes and countless opportunities to show off special effects. Despite that the movie delivers thrills and entertainment, one cannot deny that this is an obvious 'Matrix' rip-off. One cannot help to see the final fight scene between the two Jet Li characters seems like a rehash of a fight between Neo and Agent Smith. Not to mention the dodging of bullets and the numerous 'long jumps'. The whole plot of this movie is incoherent. However, it doesn't really matter because this is one of those kind of movies that you watch with your brain on auto-pilot. (5/10)

Sharon Stone stars as Hush, a sleazy and irresponsible woman who has two children and lives in a small apartment. She is also in debt with a low-rate loan shark and, as a result, she is constantly being threatened by them. However, she eventually meets Joe (Billy Connolly), a man whose wife has just left him and also has found out that he has a brain tumor. They both fall in love while he helps her deal with her problems.

With such a story, one would think that this movie would add up to something good. However, the reality is that 'Beautiful Joe' is a film that does not work on any level. It starts out as a drama that puts an emphasis on a rather unconvincing love story between Joe and Hush. It then shifts to comedy (rather lame comedy that is) during the middle of the film. By the end, the film once again shifts back to drama. With such a lack of direction in a poor script and terrible acting (especially from Stone, whose career is definitely in freefall), 'Beautiful Joe' is anything but beautiful. (1/10)

Not only is 'The Terminator' one of the best sci-fi films ever made, it is also stands among the best films ever made. It revolutionized the sci-fi genre and paved the way for countless clones (Universal Soldier, etc...) that could never even come close to matching the greatness of this film. Even nowadays where we have better special effects and technology, 'The Terminator' has not lost its edge. (10/10)

After the box-office success of 'Conan The Barbarian', it was inevitable that a sequel would be made. 'Conan The Destroyer' may lack the brutality and some of the excitement from its predecessor, but it's not too bad.

This time, Conan is on a mission to help Princess Jehnna (Olivia D'Abo) retrieve a magic horn. The queen has promised him that if he is successful in reaching this goal, she will revive his dead love. However, early on we learn that the queen plans to betray him.

The film can get a little silly at times, however it remains quite entertaining throughout. It may not be as good as its predecessor, but it is definitely worth watching. (6/10)

'Talk To Her' tells the story of two men who meet and eventually befriend each other while caring for two comatose women. The first half of the film drags a bit, but the scenes between Benigno and Marco make it watchable. However, during the last half, the film disappoints. What started out as a film of beauty quickly sells out. Director Pedro Almodovar trades in what could have been a meaningful conclusion for a standard thriller plot twist. As a result, by the end of the film, I did not feel the same sympathy for Benigno's character as I once did. In effect, a lot of the beauty initially seen in the film quickly disappears. For this reason, 'Talk To Her' is a disappointment. (4/10)

When watching the trailer of Windtalkers, one gets the impression that this film is about the Navajo indians and how their native language was used to create a code that could not be broken by the Japanese. However, it turns out that this film is really about a white army seargeant (Nicolas Cage) and how he eventually befriends the codetalker (Adam Beach) that he is responsible for protecting.

Director John Woo doesn't disappoint with the action sequences. All of them are breathtaking and highly detailed. However, all of this action tends to take away the emphasis on the story. No matter, the scenes that show the developing friendship between the two seargeants (Cage and Christian Slater) and the codetalkers (Beach and Roger Willie) gives Windtalkers its heart. (7/10)

Edward Norton is perhaps one of today's most talented actors. He gave excellent performances in American History X and Fight Club. But, even he can't save this disappointing film from skilled director Spike Lee. I found the film to be rather slow and boring. So much that by the end of the film, I felt that it was not worth the effort of staying awake. (1/10)

A film about the kidnapping of a young girl (Dakota Fanning) by two experienced kidnappers (Kevin Bacon and Courtney Love). The two kidnappers have formed a master plan, which includes that each of the kidnappers is responsible of controlling and staying with each of the parents (Stuart Townsend and Charlize Theron).

The film is particularly good up until the ending. The movie ends in typical hollywood style. It substitutes what could have been a suspenseful and meaningful ending for one that consists of explosions and car crashes. Too bad, because the film is actually entertaining up to that point (despite the obvious miscasting of Courtney Love as one of the kidnappers). The film shines particularly during the confrontations between Bacon and Theron. However, the ending of the film makes Trapped slip into the rank of mediocrity. (5/10)

Nicolas Cage stars as Ben Sanderson, a heavy drinker. After losing his job, Ben travels to Las Vegas, where he plans drink himself to death. There he meets Sera (Elizabeth Shue), a prostitute, and forms an unlikely (and uncomfortable) relationship with her.

Despite how the critics have praised this film, there remains many problems with it. For instance, with the exaggerated amount of alcohol Sanderson consumes, it is hard to believe that he would remain conscious throughout most of the film. Shue, seems to be somewhat miscast as Sera. Although she gives a decent performance, she appears to be too beautiful for this kind of role. At the same time, the audience is not given enough of an explanation for why Ben has decided to become an alcoholic. As a result, it is hard to sympathize with Ben and his drinking, we don't really know why he is doing it. This is also true for Shue's character. The audience is not given enough information about her past to understand why she has chosen such a profession. Also, the love story between Ben and Sera seems somewhat unbelievable. Given how men have treated Sera in the past, why would she trust and fall in love so easily with Cage's alcoholic character.

As a result, Leaving Las Vegas stands as a flawed and standard tear-jerker whose plot consistently lacks logic. (4/10)

Samuel L. Jackson plays Trevor Garfield, a New York teacher who possesses a great passion for his job. However, after he is nearly killed by one of his students, Garfield relocates to Los Angeles and continues to teach as a substitute teacher. There, he's assigned to teach a class at a school, where a Latino gang controls the classroom. The gang even intimidates the administration by threatening them with lawsuits. So, when Garfield is terrorized by the gang, he is forced to play by his own rules.

Jackson is quite good, but even his performance alone can't save this uneven film. There seems to be a lack of direction within the script. During the first half, director Kevin Reynolds allows the audience to sympathize with Jackson's character and respect his integrity. However, the film crashes during the second half. The plot begins to lack sense and the script loads up on cliches. As a result, what started out as an interesting take on the violence that teachers face, quickly turns into average fare. (5/10)