Reviews

I rented this movie at our local library, mainly because of Asano Tadanobu. (One of my favorite Asian actors because he fits in any role, and he's good looking.)

This movie is very artsy, the kind of movie you don't find in the videostore around the corner. Which is kinda sad, because this movie really deserves to be seen. It's more of a visual experience than a movie, I think. The photography is so beautifully done, that it's almost superior to the story and the characters. (Which I like because I study photography :) I will definitely add Christopher Doyle to my favorite cinematographers list.

I haven't seen such a moving (as in: kinda sad) slow paced movie since David Lynch' The Straight Story. You just have to sit back and relax. Turn off your cell phone, dim the lights, so you're not disturbed in any way. Now you're able to follow the characters through abandoned towns, a mysterious ship and in the end, the world of the criminals. This movie really does something to your state of mind. Mine got filled with melancholy. And it's all because of the camera. This sort of cinematography is totally not Hollywood, and maybe that's why (in my opinion) Asian movies are sometimes better in quality. (OldBoy, Infernal Affairs, Hero, to name a few.)

I've read negative comments on the message boards, and I just don't get it why people don't like this movie. If you're used to teenage horror movies, then I sure do understand. But any serious movie lover should see this, because this movie has that little touch that I miss often when seeing movies. This one has humor, sadness, all the elements that make a movie great. It just doesn't have the usual pace. Let's just say it's the complete opposite of Fox' "24". But that's not a reason to bash it. This was done on purpose and for this movie and it's theme and the main character that we follow throughout the movie, it works perfectly. It deserves a 10 because in it's way it's refreshing, and I hope to see more of these in the future.

Having played all Splinter Cell games, I find Double Agent the most intriguing, but definitely not the most challenging in terms of difficulty. (I still think Pandora Tomorrow is the most difficult to date.)

There are some very challenging moments, but those shouldn't be a problem, because you can save at any time. This is really handy if you're playing in Elite mode. The 2 most challenging levels are (to me) Kinshasa, in which you start off with no gear at all, not even night vision and you have to deal with very smart guards. Then there's New York, in which you have to deal with guards equipped with night vision. Unlike the guards with thermal vision (Chaos Theory > Bathhouse level > shower room) there's a simple way to take out these, once you've figured it out.

I finished the 9 levels (+ 2 bonus maps) in a day and a half, so I was quite disappointed that it was all over so soon. (That's what happens when you play day and night, lol.) One of those bonus maps is definitely the weirdest level in Splinter Cell history!

The replay value is VERY high, since you can change the story as you choose for either JBA (the terrorist group Sam has infiltrated) or NSA (the government agency that Sam works for). After every completed mission, you'll find out which side is suspicious of you and who is confident of you. It's up to you to keep both sides satisfied. For example: you can choose to disregard opportunity objectives for the JBA in order to keep the NSA satisfied.

The enemies have gotten smarter. Guards patrolling in dark areas almost always have a flashlight. If they don't, then they probably carry a torch. They have also invested a serious amount of money in security cameras, lasers of different kinds and non-lethal ammunition. From the moment your visibility meter lights up even a little, they'll check out what they saw. (And sometimes they notice your presence when you're completely covered in shadows.) Their hearing has gotten a lot better too, so you should always be sneaking, if you didn't do that already. You'd better not take your gun out if an enemy is standing a few yards further, because they'll hear it. These enemies are very sophisticated and smart and that's what makes them so cool. The interrogations are always worth listening at, not always to collect information, but also for fun. The real challenge will be on the day that Ubisoft will create enemies with random patrolling routes.

A new, and I must say a very satisfying difficulty is Elite. You unlock this difficulty by beating the game. You have no weapons, no gadgets. Only the OCP to jam cameras/lights, a knife and the ability to whistle. You have to rely on your map and your sneaking skills. It's so much fun, but might get the unexperienced 'splinter cells' extremely frustrated. Be sure to keep your eyes open for flash bangs and smoke grenades in dark corners, because if they're there, you bet you need them later on. The whole game can easily be played in Elite mode, when you decide to game on a lazy Sunday afternoon. You have to take your time to do this, thinking about the different routes you can take, memorizing patrol routes of guards, etc. You'll start to appreciate it more and more every time you play it. Another improvement is that you can't accidentally whistle by pushing the wrong button.

There are also levels in which you have a teammate. You can tell them to wait or follow, which comes in handy if you want to explore the environment and take out the hostiles before they open fire on one of you. (Sam carries an adrenaline syringe, just in case.)

The controls are the same as in Chaos Theory, so it's easy to catch up on that, if you played it. The voices are again very well done and very realistic, maybe even better than in Chaos Theory. Sound and graphics are as good as always. The music alone is worth listening at. If there should be a soundtrack coming out, I'm definitely gonna buy one.

I wouldn't recommend this game to those that haven't played Splinter Cell games before. You always can, of course. It's not that hard to get to know the controls and the people. It's just more fun to play this game after you know what missions Sam has done in the previous games.

I'm going to rate it 10/10, because of the great time I had while playing. I have to say though that 2 levels take place in the same environment, which narrows the adventure down a bit. And also that it can be finished in no time. It's very different from the other Splinter Cell games, but I like this new approach. (I do miss Sam's haircut though :) Aside from that, it's worth every cent and minute of your time.

I'm so grateful for having seen this movie on the silver screen. It's an amazingly dark film, in the style of Man Bites Dog, and it also has some elements of Eli Roth's Hostel. If you like movies with that dark atmosphere, don't miss this one! A young man who is hired to fix up an old house, finds a mysterious letter that has instructions. When he decides to follow them, more letters and instructions follow, and eventually he ends up in a house in the middle of the woods where he and others have to face a difficult task, in order to please the rich. If (the word IF is very important) he survives, he gets a lot of money. I'd love to tell you more about it, but it would ruin the surprise.

At the end, when you're watching the credits, I think you'll feel more satisfied than watching any American movie. This one has an ending, it can't have a sequel. The ending is quite ironical, it's been a while since a movie really surprised me with that. It's amazing what kinds of risks non-American movie makers take, what they put their characters through.

The cinematography was also surprising, it's a black and white movie, very stylish, film-noir like. Artsy, but not at all MTV-like. Once you get into the story, you'll begin to love the black and white, it's been such a good decision, and it adds to the atmosphere.

I had never seen a Georgian movie before so i was very excited and all my wishes came true. It was way better than i expected and when it's out on DVD, I'll rent it again, or buy it, that's for sure.

One last thing, if Géla Babluani's writing and directing a movie again, i hope it will be as awesome, dark and surprising again! He could be the Georgian Tarantino. 10/10

A masterpiece of an action movie is what you get indeed. I recently bought the 2 disc special edition and I must say it's worth every cent. I wish I could have seen it on the silver screen, but you'll still be thrilled with excitement when watching this one! Michael Bay (I know lots of users here don't like him) is in my opinion the God of action movies and one of my personal favorite directors to be walking on this earth. If you have seen The Rock, with Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage, you have to admit you weren't exactly falling asleep.

I can't quite remember what the first Bad Boys movie was about, but that's not necessary to understand this one though. The sequel is a whole new story, but fortunately with the same 2 main characters. I wish I could explain what the sequel is about... The fact is, it's about so many things that you might start to think (after you've seen it) that they were like 3 movies in one. Read the plot outline for more information :) Another thing that's rather unusual for an action movie is that it goes on for 147 minutes!! That's just wow, because i can't stand 90 minute movies with lots of action and poor characters. This is a great ride, filled with exciting characters, humor, unexpected plot turns and of course, lots of car chases and crashing cars and so on. Just sit back, turn on your surround system and enjoy the show.

And then Amir Mokri. I bet you've never heard of this man, but o.m.g., he is (in my eyes) the *best* director of photography in Hollywood. He also did The Salton Sea, with Val Kilmer. What I personally like so much about him, is his very effective use of colors and camera angles. If you compare, let's say Romeo Must Die, to Bad Boys 2, you'll laugh at the poor cinematography of the first one. In the end, Mokri and Bay are both responsible for the look of the movie, the intensity of the characters, the surroundings, the feelings you get and the overall atmosphere. I'd say that's a big responsibility! Luckily they're so talented to make it all look very professional and very 'never-seen-before'-like.

I have little to say about the actor's performances. Martin Lawrence and Will Smith do as usual, a bit better even. ;-) Maybe a bit over-acting by Jordi Mollà, the main bad guy. Peter Stormare is as freaky as he usually is ;-)

One last piece of advice, don't switch off your DVD player before the first half hour. I turned mine off when i rented BB2 the first time, regretting it now, of course. You might expect a story about people doing drugs in night clubs, but it's not. Give it (Bay + BB2) a chance, keep an open mind, don't go criticize the movie when watching it, just look. Keep your brain locked in a closet. If you're into romantic comedies or drama's, don't give it a low rating just because you don't like action movies. And if you're a professional critic, at least try to appreciate the work that's been done behind the scenes. It's a masterpiece in it's genre. 10/10

Although i'm a huge fan of Tim Burton's, i didn't like what he did to Batman. He put far too much humor in his Batman movies. It was funny sometimes, but I always had a feeling like: No, this is wrong, this isn't supposed to be a comedy movie.

I thought it would be Burton-style, but i was COMPLETELY wrong. It even was a tearjerker movie! So yeah, i did cry when Bruce Wayne lost his parents. That scene and the ones that come after are so touching.

And of course Christian Bale is a very attractive, charming Batman, he has a great warm voice and he's even better than Clooney. I never thought there would be a better and more handsome Batman than Clooney. This movie proves me wrong. The bad guy in this movie (i can't recall his name) was a good choice too! I remember he played the leading role in *28 Days Later*. He's an excellent choice. He's got that kinda face you expect a bad guy to have.

Batman is not about special effects. OK, there are some very good action scenes, but Bruce Wayne's anger towards the thugs of Gotham and the one who killed his father is equally as important, maybe even more important.

The human side of Bruce Wayne is what makes this movie so impressive. (And yeah, also that Batmobile and car chases :-) Bruce's not just some superhero that learns the bad guys a lesson. This Bruce has a personality, a history. Spider-Man has one too, but they haven't gone deeper into Peter Parker, they didn't go to the bottom of what he really is. I'm glad the writer(s) paid much attention to... how and why Bruce Wayne has become what he is now. I couldn't fall asleep last night, I just kept thinking how *wow!* this movie was. I haven't seen many summer movies this good, apart from Sin City. And gosh, it 's already in IMDb's top movies list! So that has to mean something to those of you who are still not sure whether or not they wanna see it in theaters or rent it. Very impressive movie. I rated it a 10. I never thought i would.