X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)



IMDB Movie Summary http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458525/
Wolverine lives a mutant life, seeks revenge against Victor Creed (who will later become Sabertooth) for the death of his girlfriend, and ultimately ends up going through the mutant Weapon X program.

Harlods's Review
I actually liked this movie a lot! I did not know what to expect after X3 but I was pleasantly surprised.

I am a big fan of Liev Schreiber and I thought this was a great roll for him. The rest of the cast was equally great. I also liked was how it tied into the first X-Men movie. I was going Ahhh and Hmmm the whole movie.

It seemed to me that it was more character driven as well and not just special effects. The opening shots of Logan and Victor living and fighting in many wars during many years was interesting. Introducing Gambit was a treat as well. I could have used more of Will-i-am! What a cool role for him!

The forest scenes were exceptionally shot. It really tied into the fact that these guys have major animal instincts and feel more comfortable living a hard life. Seeing Logan trying to live a quiet life was like Rambo trying to stay out of the way - it just could not last for long!

I only grimaced a couple of times during the whole movie when the action got corny but all-in-all I liked this movie and I will defiantly buy it.

Resident Evil Extinction (2007)

IMDB Movie Summary http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0432021/plotsummary
Years after the Raccoon City disaster, Alice (MILLA JOVOVICH) is on her own; aware that she has become a liability and could endanger those around her, she is struggling to survive and bring down the Umbrella Corporation led by the sinister Albert Wesker (JASON O'MARA) and head researcher Dr. Isaacs (IAN GLEN). Meanwhile, traveling through the Nevada Desert and the ruins of Las Vegas, Carlos Olivera (ODED FEHR), L.J. (MIKE EPPS), and new survivors K-Mart (SPENCER LOCKE), Claire Redfield(ALI LARTER), and Nurse Betty (ASHANTI) must fight to survive extinction against hordes of zombies, killer crows and the most terrifying creatures created as a result of the deadly T-Virus that has killed millions. Written by Akoksum2003

Harlods's Review
While I am big fan of Horror and Sci-Fi movies, I was really hoping this would be as good as the last Resident Evil movie and have some good zombie ass-kicking in it. I was a little let down.

While a nice follow up it just did not have the same kick to it. I also thought it ended pretty quickly to really leave much of an impression. I did have a few jumps here and there, but they were mostily the same kind of jumps I had watching the new Halloween movie - they were there just to keep you on edge a little bit. Without them, the movie would be much less exciting.

I am a HUGE fan of Milla Jovovich and love her in the role of Alice. The rest of the cast did not really stand out to me. You never really get to know any of them so when they are killed you do not feel anyting.

The zombie kill shots are good and what you expect from this movie. The dogs are getting kind of old and I would of liked to see a cat or racoon or something else attack Alice. The birds were not as scary as Hitchcock's and could have been built up a little more.

Do I always complain about movies? No, I just expected more!!! I guess the 3rd movie is usually not going to be as good as the previous ones (except for Indian Jones) but I can always hope!

I need to see a good movie! Maybe I will go open Harlod's Video Fault and watch Dawn of the Dead again!

3:10 to Yuma (1957)

Movie overview from IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050086/plotsummary
After outlaw leader Ben Wade is captured in a small town, his gang continue to threaten. Small-time rancher Dan Evans is persuaded to take Wade in secret to the nearest town with a railway station to await the train to the court at Yuma. Once the two are holed up in the hotel to wait it becomes apparent the secret is out, and a battle of wills starts. Written by Jeremy Perkins {jwp@aber.ac.uk}

Harlod's Review: I enjoyed this movie quite a bit. Slow and engaging, full of action, it kept my attention.

I really enjoyed this movie. Glenn Ford can do no wrong, the supporting characters were great. Even the town drunk was cool!

As with all westerns from the 1950's this was in black and white. The kids were curious and the wife was ever-loving. Innocent as far as today's movies go, this was a little edgier than normal. You could sense the desperation in Dan Evan's to provide for his family. The need to stay and work for his keep.

A very moral and trusting person who would not do anything wrong to look bad in front of his family. I found it interesting that he almost breaks down by the end of the movie and it is actaully Ben Wade that helps him keep to his morals.

Of course the Ben Wade character was likable, cool, sure, and dangerous. He could charm you one minute and then kill you the next. His attraction to Dan was interesting. Was he playing with him, seeing if he could break him? Did he really like him? The banter was very interesting and missing in most of today's films.

I loved the quote from the movie. "My own grandmother fought the indians for 60 years and then choked to death on lemon pie"!

I loved the look of this film. Little things here and there made it visually interesting. The story was great, the characters interesting, an exciting ending - what more would you want!

Heck, I might even watch it again!

In the Valley of Elah (2007)

Movie overview from IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0478134/plotsummary
When model soldier Mike Deerfield (Jonathan Tucker) mysteriously goes AWOL, shortly after returning to the U.S. from the front lines in Iraq, his career officer father Hank (Tommy Lee Jones), enlists the aid of police detective Emily Sanders (Charlize Theron) in the search for his son. His wife Joan (Susan Sarandon) also joins them to uncover the truth of his disappearance. Written and directed by Paul Haggis ("Crash"). Inspired by Mark Boal's Playboy Magazine article. Written by alfiehitchie

Harlod's Review: I was a little unimpressed by this movie and not moved as much as I knew the filmmaker wanted me to be.

I know I am not going to be popular with this review, but Paul Haggis' newest film "In the Valley of Elah" did not impress me that much. I went into the movie not really knowing what it was about so I had no advanced warning other than that I had heard it was getting good reviews and that it was a Paul Haggis film. I loved "Crash" so I assumed I would love this as well.

The main message of what these soldiers were going through seemed muddled and confused. The relationship between the wife and husband seemed proven and aged, but I really saw no emotion there.

The soldiers multiple confessions seemed fake throughout and forced. Of course something was going on, but even the quick ending to the movie with the soldiers confession I was waiting for more. I sat there wondering what the real story was. There was no way this confession was real. Even after the movie ended I was still not sure. Seemed to tidy. Maybe that was the point, but it left me more confused than anything.

No one really seemed that concerned about this kid. The father was so morose and stubborn that I was not sure he really wanted to find the kid or his killers. Even the Mother's pain was not convincing to me. The only real pain you saw was one phone call and a turned over table.

One thing that really bothered me was the short film clips throughout the movie. I could not ever really see what was on them. Even with the explanation at the end of the movie, I was still unsure what I saw. Maybe that was intended.

I usually find myself absorbed in a movie, but I found myself looking around the theater about half way through wondering what the other people were thinking.

You could also tell that there was missing pieces from the film. An obvious one was at the very end when he drives off an she is holding his Bible. When did he give that to her? Maybe that happened when I was looking around the theater!

Is it too soon to be talking about the war and what is happening to our soldiers? No. Is it important to share this pain? Yes. I am just not sure this movie helped the cause that much.