Cowboys & Aliens

Title: Cowboys & Aliens.
Playtime: 118 min.
Genre: Action Sci-Fi.
Release Date: 29 July 2011.

By reading my blog, I think that you're starting to believe that I'm a regular customer at the cinema, but that's not the case, you s... Okay, that's exactly the case, I really enjoy going to the cinema with either friends or my girlfriend.
I try not to waste away too much money there by only going to the bigger movies and by not watching any swedish films at all... at least not at the cinema. (I have a thing against them.)
Anyway, this time I went with my girlfriend, since it was only fair that she, instead of the guys, enjoyed my company for a change.
Dispite having its' grand premier in Sweden, there we're large gaping holes in the audience. I guess that's how it's like when you live in a town like Sundsvall... it can't be alive everywhere at the same time.
Despite the lack of audience, I found the experience none the same as any other film.

Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) wakes up in the middle of the desert, with a large number of bruises and a metal object stuck to his wrist. After numerous failed attempts to remove it, he *cough* get's a horse and rides away.
He does not remember anything about himself that has happened, and wanders into a small town, unknowing of his past.
There, he interacts with people in both peaceful and violent ways, depending on who started the interaction. Soon, Jake Lonergan finds out he's a wanted man in the states and that a mysterious woman named Ella Swenson (Olivia Wilde) seems to be interested about his past.
A cranky old cattle owner, Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford) causes some ruckus in the town after hearing that his son has been held prisoner without Woodrow being told about it.
In the middle of everything, some large lights appear in the sky, causing everyone to go silent and wonder what it might be. Before they can react, their whole town has been bombed to dust by some alien lifeforms in large ships.
Now, all seperate factions have to unite to get revenge upon the aliens and restore peace to their lands.
The only questions are... How will they defeat them and why are they here in the first place? Will Jake ever learn the truth about his past?

For some reason, I think it's entertaining with tough elder men being the protagonist. It sort of makes them more vulnerable and weary instead of being some kind of human meat-machine that never stops.
Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig are examples of this type of character. In the movie, they're both careless of their actions, while displaying a bad-ass attitude.

Olivia Wilde is probably as successful as she is because of 3 different factors:
1: She's in House.
2: She has the looks ;)
3: To be fair, she's not a bad actor.
I also enjoy her action, and she doesn't act as most of the female actors, being just a normal girl living a normal life. Her characters are always sort of mysterious and clever in some ways.
I haven't seen Tron yet, but I'm guessing she's doing well there as well.

Things out of the ordinairy:
The ending wasn't all sunshine and rainbows.
The intense action mixed with humorous moments <---Now that's all a good movie needs.
Cowboys and Aliens, duuuh?

I did not expect seing scary-looking aliens. (Same goes for the one sitting in front of me.. I Could have swore it was Michael Fox at some points.) ;P

I think the movie is very unique with its' story and I enjoyed almost every part of it. There were some times when you just thought: "Oh no.. here comes the predictable part", but it wasn't so often.
I read that some reviewer thought the aliens ruined a good western-film... I think he should go home and watch his classic Clint Eastwood-films and cry about the new era of movies.

This movie gets the rating 7 out of 10.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Title: Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

Playtime: 105 min.

Genre: Action Drama Sci-Fi.

Release Date: 5 August 2011

Yet another Hollywood movie has had its' grand opening, with all its' glory and fame, plus the loads of cash that comes with it.
Starring actors arrive one-by one at the red carpet, eager to see the result of their hard work, not only in front of the camera, but also every challenge they've had to face on the way. Getting into shape, learning to know your character, and interracting with new people.
They sit there, waiting for the crowds' praise and the critics' approval while watching themselves act in front of greenscreens or through take 21 in that funny scene they never nailed.
I could go on writing about my dream-job forever, but I'm not that certain I'll experience it some day...
Enough of my sad hopes and dreams, I have a movie to review, and hopefully, you're waiting to read it!

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (RPA from now on, the swedish title "Planet of the Apes: (R)evolution" was more fitting) is supposed to be a prequel to the classic film Planet of the Apes.
It's a story about the fall of human and the rise of apes, and gives the audience a whole new perspective on how it all happened.
Admit it, all you knew about the old movie was that some intelligent apes had taken over the planet after the human race somehow went near-extinct. Kind of diffuse information you haven't had confirmed.
Anyway, as the movie begins, we're thrown into the jungle somewhere around Africa (I presume), and the hunt for primates has just started.
Some apes are caught and brought in to a lab, where they will be test-subjects for an experimental drug called ALZ-112. This very drug has been created by Will Rodman (James Franco) as a cure for alzheimer's patients, and amongst them, his own father.
Some things (I don't want to spoil the movie) go wrong and the project is being cancelled while Will Rodman is threatened to be fired.
Will aquires a baby ape, the only to survive after the lab-shutdown, and notices how fast the primate is developing intellectually. Will and his father decides to name him Caesar, after the roman emperor.
A drama sequence begins where we see how Will is teaching the ape sign language, taking IQ-tests of it, and letting him climb freely in the redwood park.
There's a very beautiful timeskip of 5 years, and the ape is now fully-grown and full of energy and power.
An accident causes the ape to be locked away with other primates in chance that he will calm down and get to know his fellow kind.
Caesar quickly grows from being the bullied one with few friends to a respected leader amongst the primates. He does this with his cunning intelligence and the respect from a few apes. The longer Caesar is imprisoned, the madder he becomes at Will and the rest of the human race.
An adding factor to this is the pranking punk Dodge Landon, displayed by none other than Tom Felton. (Oh yes, it's Malfoy).
How will Caesar react to his treatment? and will the drug enhance the human braincells as it did to the apes?

James Franco is an actor rapidly growing on me, and I've come to respect him as an outstanding actor. I really like how he's not the typical actor, who can only play the same role in every movie.
I hope I'll see him in other grand films in the future.

Tom Felton... may the gods take him, he's easy to hate. To not get misunderstood, I don't hate the actor, but every part he plays, as a punk who has a nasty habit of teasing everyone. I think he plays that role very well, but as I believe that's all there is to him.

I really enjoyed some "hidden" references in the movie, (e.g. have in mind that Caesar is played by the same actor as the one playing Gollum in Lord of the Rings).
A certain crew missing in space is also mentioned throughout the film.

Moments not quite in my taste:
The stupidity of humans.
Not as much action as one could hope.

Best Quote: NOOOOO!

I think this is a well-worthy sequel to the Planet of the Apes films, and it contained everything to make it clear how the first movie started and everything between it.

This movie gets the rating 8 out of 10.

Hanna

Title: Hanna.

Playtime: 111 min.

Genre: Action.

Release Date: 8 April 2011.

Hanna is a film I've been meaning to see for a while, but just never took the time to watch it. Ever since my girlfriend saw it at the cinema, she's been urging me too watch it, and in later days, review it.

So, here I am, writing a review of a film I normally wouldn't be attracted to, mostly because I had heard about some german dude whistling a jolly tune in it.

While the cause was kind of... wierd, my means were pure, and with a bowl of potato chips and some dip I sat down and enjoyed a different kind of film.

Hanna (Saoirse Ronan) is a 16-year old girl who's been raised in the forest and have trained to live like an assassin and a hunter. She knows everything anyone has to know about adapting and surviving alone, making her the ultimate soldier. Boy, we can already expect some saucy action scenes!

Hanna doesn't know much about the outside world, other than what her father has told her, by reading from a book, keeping her updated of science and culture. She has a large database of knowledge in her brain and could outsmart the most adults. 

Despite her knowledge, she has never heard any kind of music, seen any other human beings, nor has she witnessed the power of electricity.

As everyone know, none can keep a such large thing as the outside world hidden for a young child forever, which is exactly the case in this movie.

Hanna is ready to fight off any danger and survive all on her own, but what happens when she interacts with a world she's never seen before?

Saoirse Ronan is an actor I've never seen before, but I can see that she's talented both in acting and staging a fight. I can definately see her acting in future films.

Eric Bana (displaying Erik) constantly reminds me of a man I used to know, and it makes me expect him to do something funny, since the man I knew always made some random funny gestures. It's sad that I can't take him seriously, but I thought he was the right man for the role.

Cate Blanchett is this films most famous actress and she has a very important role in the film as the devious main villain. 

I did not like her character at all, which I'll have to guess was the point with it, but still, I nearly hated her character, even though she acted well.

Not as good things with the movie:
It felt kind of B..
The scenes where she does impossible things. (truck, bed).
Too little time for the story... everything just got wrapped up real quick at the end.

Bottom line, it was an enjoyable movie, not because of its' super-blockbuster effects, but instead for its' charm and interesting plot. I liked the beginning more than the ending, and the action scenes were kind of "meh", while some were more bad-ass.

This movie gets the rating 6 out of 10.

Green Lantern

Title: Green Lantern.

Playtime: 114 min.
Genre: Action Fantasy.

Release Date: 17 June 2011.

Yet another grand superhero-movie is to be reviewed, and I'm afraid I don't listen to the critics when it comes to these movies. Almost every single hero-movie gets a low grade, since it has so much to live up to. It must be filled with great action scenes, love, story and at the same time be acceptable for the comic-fans.

Not many films can pull off such a difficult task, and it is partially seen in this particular movie.

As usual, I took my seat close to the screen, where no audience can be in the way of my experience.

So.. with my ultimate movie-snack combo (Sourcream Hotsnacks, Cola and Menthos Liquorice) I watched with normal expectations, as one should not expect too much from superhero-movies.

Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) is a "normal" guy, who's working with aircrafts, and is sort of an expert on flying.

He's a daring, irresponsible man who doesn't care for much more than his own happiness and wealth.

As almost every other superhero, Hal Jordan is missing one family members, since his father died in a flying accident. That's quite an interesting discovery I accidently made... I've never thought about how all the heroes have a sad past with dead parents or no parents at all. (Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Ironman, etc..).

Anyway, Hal Jordan witnesses a powerful Green Lantern-officer die, right before his eyes, and he discovers that he's about to replace the officer and become a Green Lantern in his place. Since it was the ring that chose him, he has to swear an oath to a lantern, since it's the only way to become an officer.

Hal Jordan is sent to training on the Green Lantern corps home planet, but after giving up on his training, he returns to earth and pretends like nothing ever happened.

After saving some people from an accident, his identity is revealed to his closest friends, and they urge him to continue his training in order to be able to protect the galaxy.

My personal opinion about Green Lantern in general is that his powers are ridiculous. Making a hero who can "create" anything he likes with a ring seems like you've run out of imagination and just come up with the first best thing.

Even worse, is that the main character has a huge lack of imagination and the coolest thing he ever creates is a minigun, which wasn't of much use...

Ryan Reynolds is an actor, which talent I cannot rate bad or wrong, since he's not doing anything impressive, while not screwing the role up completely. Bottom part, I don't find him as charming as the role should be, and he kinda looks like Earl Hickey from My name is Earl, just without a mustache. (seriously, look it up).

The love of his life, Carol Ferris, who is displayed by Blake Lively barely has any long scenes with need for tough acting, so I find it hard to "evaluate" her performance. Still... I'll forgive the director since she's eyecandy.

Bad things with the movie:
The speed in which he grew stronger.
The forced love... yes even in this one.
"Oh, noes, Parallax will doom us all!" "Whoops, the newcomer beat him in 5 minutes".

This is definately one of the worse superhero-movies, but I don't think it was so lousy none should ever see it, cause I wasn't completely wasting my time.

This movie gets the rating 5 out of 10.

Captain America: The First Avenger

Title: Captain America: The First Avenger.
Playtime: 124 min.
Genre: Action Adventure Sci-Fi.
Release Date: 22 July 2011.

Yesterday, me and my friends decided to go watch the new Marvel-movie; Captain America: The First Avenger. As the time passed that day, more people were interested in seeing the film, so at the end, we were 9 people marching for SF in Sundsvall city.
The time was approxamately 8 pm when we ordered our tickets at the third row, counted from the front. Yes... we do have large movie-lounges in Sweden, and no, we didn't snap our necks off by sitting there.
It's actually a much more thrilling experience when there's no large crowd in front of you, but rather in your rear. (That may have sounded dirty.. nevermind).
But anyways, it's very relaxing to be close to the screen with your feet up the empty seats in front of you, and no annoying kids, whom have to comment on every single event throughout the movie.

The movie begins with a real-time discovery, and before we know too much, we're being sent back to 1941 in Norway, and the ww2 is on-going.
There, a scientist is searching for some kind of ancient power, said to belong to the gods of asgard. At this point, we know we're about to see a little mythology, science, loads of action, and of course, the ww2.
If you've seen all the Marvel-films, you know that each of them connects to the other, making all events intertwine in each new movie that comes. The same thing goes for this moive.
A special, rare artifact seen in Thor is retrieved in Captain America, and an old friends grandfather is there to join him. (That didn't sound as intriguing as I wanted)
There's loads of that witty humor I bet everyone gets and likes, as the whole crowd was laughing at some points in the film... some more than others...
I was not dissappointed with the action scenes, and the story was quite interesting unlike many other superhero-movies.
But if there's one thing I've learned from watching these types of movies is that they're all so darn predictable. I mean... from the first scene in the film, I got a hint of what the end might be like, and I'll be damned if I weren't right! While the younger audience might go "Oh, wow! I didn't see that coming!" at the end, some others think "Yep, that's exactly as I predicted."
We get to follow our beloved Captain America (Chris Evans) from bootcamp, where hard training pressures his slim body. He makes it through just barely and is selected to become the next generation-soldier, imbued with unhuman strenght. He will crush the nazis and bring an end to the long war.
This is the allied idea of changing the course of the war, but something goes wrong and someone stands in their way...

Chris Evans usually plays kind of "player"-roles, where he's a real ladies man and strutts around saying cheesy punchlines. This is not the case in this film, and I think he acts his role really well. There's something with his voice that adds seriousness to the part, and finally, he's not so good with the women, despite having ridiculous muscles.

There are also other familiar faces in the movie, that adds to it's quality, actors such as: Tommy Lee Jones, Hugo Weaving and of course, Samuel L Jackson, even if only for a moment.

Things I didn't enjoy were:
The obvious ending, (even though it was quite amusing).
The forced love... I hate those things in a movie. Can't they all just forget about it and focus on story and action?
The... final... battle...???

Although, this is one of the better marvel-films I've seen, and I definately think people who are interested in these types of movies should watch it!

This movie gets the rating 7 out of 10.

Valentine's Day

Title: Valentine's Day.

Playtime: 125 min.

Genre: Romance Comedy

Release Date: 12 February 2011

Okay, I know what you must be thinking about me watching this film; "He was probably forced to see it by his girlfriend." Well let me tell you that It was nothing like that! I, myself offered to watch it together with her... after being urged to see it a number of times :)

I can honestly say now, afterwards, that it was not as cheesy and boring as I thought it would be, and I probably will watch the second one (New year's eve), as it's a chick-flick even guys can enjoy.

As I love to think about what's really going on while watching movies, I always enjoy multiple main-characters with a story bound to one another's.

We get to follow more than 10 totally different people, and watch as they celebrate Valentine's day in their own special way, mixing both comedy and romance to display it.

Holden Wilson (Bradley Cooper) spends most of the day on a plane, Reed Bennett (Ashton Kutcher) proposes to his girlfriend (Jessica Alba), Kelvin Moore (Jamie Foxx) does a repotage about this very day, and Kara Monahan (Jessica Biel) is planning her anual "We who hate valentine's day-dinner".

It is, least said, amusing to watch the different characters affect eachother's own story, and at the same time figure out what's going to happen next.

Some are left happy and filled with love, while others are simply left alone, with a large gap in their heart. Who will stay happy at the end of the day, and how will things settle for the intertwining couples and singles?

To the male audience's... and maybe some women's delight, the two sexiest Jessica's in Hollywood have a part in this film, and one quickly discovers that it contains loads of famous and talented actors.

I must say that I wasn't dissappointed with the acting of any actor in this movie, but then again, they are very experienced within their job. (Though I never expected to see Taylor Swift in a movie).

If I were to find a less good attribute with the film, it would be the lack of suspense and the feeling of a new surprice waitng around every corner. Instead, I found the film quite predictable, and not many events came unknowingly, apart from one...

Apart from this movie not being able to escape my extreme sense of knowing what will happen next (lol), I thought it was a well written work with loads of laughs and mixed feelings for the different characters.

For all you guys out there being unsure whether this movie actually sucks or not, I say you should give it a clean chance... Because after all.. it has your favorite actresses in it ;)

This movie gets the rating 7 out of 10.

Ironclad

Title: Ironclad.
Playtime: 121 min.
Genre: Action Adventure.
Release Date: 26 july 2011.

When I'm about to watch a film on my computer, I make sure I follow a few simple steps to make an atmosphere, fitting to watching a film alone. Yes, sadly I tend to watch some films alone, as there are some that you just know you're not going to see with your pals, and you just have to see it.
Anyways.. I muted the guys at skype, closed my curtains, fixed a bowl of potato chips, and filled up a large glass with some nice, cold water.
My expectations were high as I started the film, partly because I enjoy old thems, but I had also heard some praises about it.

An intro scene shows how the king of England is forced to sign a treaty, made by the rebelling barons of the country, who won the great war that lasted over a year.
The treaty was made for the purpose of limiting the kings power, rendering him unable to controll his country with an iron-hand.
The time passes, and we are sure to understand that King John (Paul Giamatti) is, least said, displeased with the treaty.
He decides that he want to regain his former power, and he shall do so with the help of a danish warlord and his army. King John is certain, that if he seizes every castle on the southern part of England, the rest of the country will fall easily. There's just one, not so large, but very important castle that just wont give up that easily; The castle of Rochester.
To the kings' dislike, there's one of the baron (Brian Cox) who rebelled against him, defending the very castle that would become his victory in this reclaiming of his former power. The baron has rallied few, but strong men to aid him defend against the siege. A templars knight (James Purefoy) has joined them to avenge his dead maester (...or so I guessed at least).
They defend the castle against great waves of countless norwegian enemies, whom oddly sounds like russians, or anything else but norwegians.
I couldn't help but to think of 300 when I saw the movie, since it's basically the same thing with outnumbered men taking on larger numbers, dispite knowing that they cannot succeed.

Brian Cox was convincing has the baron, and he was very accurate for the part. Though I must say his screams didn't sound very... real.

James Purefoy has to be the worst actor in the whole film! He's charming like a cobblestone and all he was ever good at was fighting norwegians. His love scene was very lame as well...

Though I haven't seen many of his movies, Paul Giamatti strikes me as a very talented actor, and I'd love to see some more of his acting. He does his part very well, and he might just be the one carrying the whole film.

The only highlights are the long fighting scenes, with gore effects, brutal violence, and other great stuff men such as I enjoy in a movie. For a low-budget movie, I have to admit they made some pretty nice effects.
A very large, disturbing minus are the "lovescenes" in this movie that feel more stiff than I imagine the Twillight Saga has. (No I have never seen the Twillight movies).
I wouldn't advice a friend to watch this film, but if you're still tempted after reading this, go ahead, it's only two hours.

This movie gets the rating 4 out of 10

PS. I'm still pretty confused on whether to use the word "movie" or "film"...

Your Highness

Title: Your Highness.
Playtime: 102 min.
Genre: Adventure Comedy Fantasy.
Release Date: 8 April 2011.

Brave knights, decieving thiefs, dangerous beasts, powerful wizards and fairly... hot maidens. These are the qualities of a normal film in the genre: fantasy.
Your highness is, however not a normal fantasy film. Throughout the film, we witness angry dwarfs, pervert wizards, penisless old men, a warlock going through puberty, a horny minotaur, and of course... the hot maiden.
Your highness is a parody of adventure, fantasy films, but without the lousy humor with jokes taken from a kindergarden. The humor may not be as sharp as in House, but it rates far higher than the cheap humor of films as Superhero Movie, or Epic Movie.

Prince Fabious' (James franco) is the typical heroic knight seen in almost any fantasy film. His brother Thadeous (Danny McBride) however, is quite the opposite. Being fat and playful, he's the black sheep of the family. When Fabious bride-to-be is kidnapped, it's time for Thadeous to set out on his first grand quest, along with his squire, brother, and the company that comes with him, to retrieve the bride from an evil warlock known as Leezar.
As one might figure, things don't go quite as well for Thadeous and his gang...

Despite never have seeing Danny McBride acting before, I found myself very fond of his acting. People may say he's none but a fool, but I believe it takes some talent to play a clumsy fool.

James franco played his role well, but nothing more than that. After Spider Man and 127 hours, I can't see him playing a role where he's not serious.

Natalie Portman, who acted as Isabel, was never dissapointing as a female rouge, determant to avenge her family. Anyone who has ever seen a film with Natalie Portman acting must agree that she's a damned talented actor.
As a fine bonus, we get to see her rear butt naked, as she decides to take a swim. ;)

Sadly, the effects felt kind of B, but I personally think the rest of the film was good enough for me to close my eyes for that.
I definately urge anyone who likes medieval films with a touch of humor to watch Your Highness.

This movie gets the rating 7 out of 10.

Entering the world of blogging.

I have, for a long time thought about making my own blog. My only hindrance was a lack of any interesting subjects that could capture a reader, make them discuss my thoughts and appreciate them. After fooling around with different possibilities, an idea came to my mind...

I decided that the writing would be about my passion for movies and reviews of both new and old films, classics, and terrible ones alike.

As I watch movies from now on, I will take a note on every feeling I get from watching it. By doing this, there should not be any problems to recapture some of the story, and at the same time grade the movie, including its' actors.
This blog was not made to compete with Imdb. Neither was it made as a commandment to which movies you should or should not watch. This is a blog where I review movies as fairly and accurate as I can, through my own perspective.
A site where I could freely speak of my movie experiences and get the readers' full attention, if only for a brief moment..