Like the tagline suggests (Every war has a beginning) UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS is a prequel to UNDERWORLD and traces the origin of the original blood feud between the Vampires and the Lycans. With the help of his secret lover Sonia (Rhona Mitra), Lucian (Martin Sheen) stands against Viktor (Bill Nighy) to free his kind of their life of slavery.
Having been a fan of the first 2 movies I was interested to see what would happen with UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS without two key components from the first movies – Len Wiseman as director and of course Kate Beckinsale in the lead role. Wiseman was still involved with producer and writer credits but this time directing was left with Patrick Tatopoulos. He too had been involved in the first two movies, in which he had designed some of the creatures that we saw in the movies.
In all honest Tatopoulos doesn’t do much wrong with UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS but I fear it will be heavily criticised and labelled as the worst of the trilogy. Yes, It probably is the worst of the three but I say that not in a disrespectful way as I enjoyed it but I didn’t offer anything the first two hadn’t already.
One of the more noticeable problems it did suffer was the camera work during action scenes. At time it was difficult to make out what was happening which did detract ever so slightly from the death scenes. The biggest problem was simply the story. As it was a prequel we already knew what was going to happen – Infact we actually saw some of the very scenes in the first movie. RISE OF THE LYCANS then had to rely on how it got to these points in time an unfortunately I doesn’t do enough to deviate enough from the other movies therefore making it pointless.
All that being said I still managed to enjoy it. There were some good performances from Martin Sheen as Lucian and another from Bill Nighy as the evil Viktor which helped the movie along. If I strip it back to the bare bones it’s simply done for me exactly what it said ob the tin. It had Vampires, Lycans, Action, Gore and of course the not just as, but still sexy as hell Rhona Mitra. Yes typical guy answer, I know, but at the end of the day if you go see a movie like this you have to know what your gonna see. Of course we aren’t gonna be seeing an award winning movie, we are gonna treated to a non stop action movie and plenty of guts and gore.
For those of you who were big fans of the first two movies you may still enjoy this one but for anyone else I would probably only recommend it if you were a completist but even then if you do decide to skip it then you won’t miss anything as nothing new is offered.
Date: 25/01/2009
Rating: 3.5/5
Copyright ©2008 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
Wednesday 28 January 2009
Seven Pounds (2008)
After the success of THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS it was inevitable that Gabriele Muccino and Will Smith would team up for another big pouting. On this occasion it’s SEVEN POUNDS, the story of Ben Turner who is an IRS agent with a fateful secret. He sets out on in search off redemption and in hoping of change 7 strangers life but his plans are made complicated when he falls in love with Emily (Rosario Dawson), a woman with a heart condition.
To go into more detail on what SEVEN POUNDS is all about would only serve to spoil it, it’s one of those movies where the less you know before you see it, the better it will work. On the other hand if you do know next to nothing about it you may end up confused for a good portion of the movie. Indeed anyone involved with the movie kept their cards close to their chest and wouldn’t say much about it during interviews but once you’ve seen the movie it’s easy to see why. Without that element of mystery the movie really would be quite poor. For me not knowing much about it sat just above poor mark but still below average. I definitely expected much more from the man who brought the excellent THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS.
It’s good to see Will Smith tackling much bigger and darker roles like that in PURSUIT and I AM LEGEND instead of the safe roles we’ve seen him in time and time again but on this occasion even Smith himself failed to win this movie anymore appeal for me. It was also quite disappointing to see Woody Harrelson so under used – to cast such a well know face I would have definitely expected to have seen him in a bigger role.
I think those who actually enjoy SEVEN POUNDS, and I have no there will those who will, will be hard pushed to get the same sense of enjoyment a second time around as once you have seen it, the mystery is gone and really outwith that it doesn’t have much going for it.
The problem for me was the pacing, at times I thought it was far too slow and I have to admit I felt close to sleep on a number of occasions. I’m not asking for a fast paced action movie, just that it progressed perhaps a little quicker as to keep the viewer interested.
All in all a disappointing for Muccino’s second outing in Hollywood with Will Smith but you may find some enjoyment if you are a Will Smith fan or a fan of a romantic movie. Ultimately it’s one that will try to appeal to the heart instead of the head…
Date: 20/01/2009
Rating: 2.5/5
Copyright ©2008 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
To go into more detail on what SEVEN POUNDS is all about would only serve to spoil it, it’s one of those movies where the less you know before you see it, the better it will work. On the other hand if you do know next to nothing about it you may end up confused for a good portion of the movie. Indeed anyone involved with the movie kept their cards close to their chest and wouldn’t say much about it during interviews but once you’ve seen the movie it’s easy to see why. Without that element of mystery the movie really would be quite poor. For me not knowing much about it sat just above poor mark but still below average. I definitely expected much more from the man who brought the excellent THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS.
It’s good to see Will Smith tackling much bigger and darker roles like that in PURSUIT and I AM LEGEND instead of the safe roles we’ve seen him in time and time again but on this occasion even Smith himself failed to win this movie anymore appeal for me. It was also quite disappointing to see Woody Harrelson so under used – to cast such a well know face I would have definitely expected to have seen him in a bigger role.
I think those who actually enjoy SEVEN POUNDS, and I have no there will those who will, will be hard pushed to get the same sense of enjoyment a second time around as once you have seen it, the mystery is gone and really outwith that it doesn’t have much going for it.
The problem for me was the pacing, at times I thought it was far too slow and I have to admit I felt close to sleep on a number of occasions. I’m not asking for a fast paced action movie, just that it progressed perhaps a little quicker as to keep the viewer interested.
All in all a disappointing for Muccino’s second outing in Hollywood with Will Smith but you may find some enjoyment if you are a Will Smith fan or a fan of a romantic movie. Ultimately it’s one that will try to appeal to the heart instead of the head…
Date: 20/01/2009
Rating: 2.5/5
Copyright ©2008 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
Sex Drive (2008)
Ian Lafferty is an eighteen-year-old virgin who is down on his luck and can’t seem to catch a break. Bullied by his older brother Rex (James Marsden) and shown up in the girl department by his 14-year-old younger brother, Ian just doesn’t know how to talk to girls except when it’s on the Internet. He decides to do something about it by bravely ‘borrowing’ his brothers pride and joy, A Vintage Pontiac GTO and along with his 2 friends Lance and Felicia he sets of on a drive cross country to meet Miss Tasty, a girl he’s been talking to on the internet for a while and finally lose his virginity before starting College. As you would expect things don’t go according to plan and they end up leaving a trail of mayhem along the way.
SEX DRIVE is a teen comedy in the same mould as AMERICAN PIE and ROAD TRIP so if your going to see it you have to accept that this is the type of humour your gonna get. For the first 20 minutes, indeed up until the time their Road Trip begins the movies roles along with a few chuckles here and there but as it gets into it’s stride the laughs start to pour out and we are treated to some genuine side splitting moments much in the same manner as SUPER BAD.
Ok, so maybe it’s a tad predictable but it’s a tried and tested formula and given the following of the afore mentioned movies then why not try to replicate that?
James Marsden and Seth’s Green performances as the Cock sure brother and sarcastic Amish farmer respectively, are brilliant and are hands down the reason I enjoyed the movie much more than I probablt should have.
In a year when there hasn’t been and abundance of great comedies SEX DRIVE holds it’s own. When your consider we’ve only had a handful of movies like TROPIC THUNDER, PINEAPPLE EXPRESS and the dark and intelligent Coen Brothers movie BURN AFTER READING then SEX DRIVE actually comes out fairly well.
Take a look at your DVD collection before deciding whether or not to see this. If you see movies like THE 40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN, AMERICAN PIE and SUPER BAD in there, then SEX DRIVE may just be up your street. It certainly kept me entertained.
Date: 18/01/2009
Rating: 4/5
Copyright ©2009 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
SEX DRIVE is a teen comedy in the same mould as AMERICAN PIE and ROAD TRIP so if your going to see it you have to accept that this is the type of humour your gonna get. For the first 20 minutes, indeed up until the time their Road Trip begins the movies roles along with a few chuckles here and there but as it gets into it’s stride the laughs start to pour out and we are treated to some genuine side splitting moments much in the same manner as SUPER BAD.
Ok, so maybe it’s a tad predictable but it’s a tried and tested formula and given the following of the afore mentioned movies then why not try to replicate that?
James Marsden and Seth’s Green performances as the Cock sure brother and sarcastic Amish farmer respectively, are brilliant and are hands down the reason I enjoyed the movie much more than I probablt should have.
In a year when there hasn’t been and abundance of great comedies SEX DRIVE holds it’s own. When your consider we’ve only had a handful of movies like TROPIC THUNDER, PINEAPPLE EXPRESS and the dark and intelligent Coen Brothers movie BURN AFTER READING then SEX DRIVE actually comes out fairly well.
Take a look at your DVD collection before deciding whether or not to see this. If you see movies like THE 40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN, AMERICAN PIE and SUPER BAD in there, then SEX DRIVE may just be up your street. It certainly kept me entertained.
Date: 18/01/2009
Rating: 4/5
Copyright ©2009 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
Based on the novel by Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE tells the story of Jamal Malik (Dev Patel), An Orphan from the slums of Mumbai who grows up to break the bank on the Indian version of the popular game show ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’? He is one question away from the top prize when he is arrested on suspicion of cheating and has to explain to the police how an uneducated street orphan could possibly know the answers and so we are treated to the tale of his childhood and what he learned from his life experiences from the early days when he met ‘Latika’, the girl he loved and lost to how he came to be on the show in the first place.
Having already been nominated and won loads of awards it’s fair to say there was a lot of hype surrounding SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE and sometimes with that hype there is a danger that you’ll ultimately be let down as you were expecting a master class in cinema. Not being my preferred genre of movie I was able to disassociate from all the hype and sit down to watch it as a complete neutral. Yes, I loved Danny Boyle’s previous work like 28 DAYS LATER and TRAINSPOTTING but that doesn’t mean I’d watch just anything he made.
SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is an exquisite rags- to-riches fairytale, which tells of the hardship of the people in the Slums of Mumbai. At times it can be desperately dark and gritty and then it can be happy and upbeat. Whilst the tale may seem far-fetched sometimes that’s why we go to see movies - we need escapism and SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE offers just that and more. It’s the feel good movie of 2008 and for that I can’t recommend it highly enough.
As well as Danny Boyle’s brilliant directing and Simon Beufoy screenplay there are also some strong performances from the young cast especially Dev Patel who gives a mature performance as the lead star, so much so you actually care what happens to him.
Easily one of, if not the best movies of 2008 (yes I know it hit UK screens in 2009!) SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is now my personal favourite of 2008. As far as I’m concerned they can now give Danny Boyle a blank chequebook and let him make whatever they hell he likes. One request from me first though as a horror geek – 28 MONTHS LATER please...
Date: 11/01/2009
Rating: 5/5
Copyright ©2009 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
Having already been nominated and won loads of awards it’s fair to say there was a lot of hype surrounding SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE and sometimes with that hype there is a danger that you’ll ultimately be let down as you were expecting a master class in cinema. Not being my preferred genre of movie I was able to disassociate from all the hype and sit down to watch it as a complete neutral. Yes, I loved Danny Boyle’s previous work like 28 DAYS LATER and TRAINSPOTTING but that doesn’t mean I’d watch just anything he made.
SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is an exquisite rags- to-riches fairytale, which tells of the hardship of the people in the Slums of Mumbai. At times it can be desperately dark and gritty and then it can be happy and upbeat. Whilst the tale may seem far-fetched sometimes that’s why we go to see movies - we need escapism and SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE offers just that and more. It’s the feel good movie of 2008 and for that I can’t recommend it highly enough.
As well as Danny Boyle’s brilliant directing and Simon Beufoy screenplay there are also some strong performances from the young cast especially Dev Patel who gives a mature performance as the lead star, so much so you actually care what happens to him.
Easily one of, if not the best movies of 2008 (yes I know it hit UK screens in 2009!) SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is now my personal favourite of 2008. As far as I’m concerned they can now give Danny Boyle a blank chequebook and let him make whatever they hell he likes. One request from me first though as a horror geek – 28 MONTHS LATER please...
Date: 11/01/2009
Rating: 5/5
Copyright ©2009 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
Steel Trap (2008)
It’s New Year and 7 strangers are unknowingly brought together as they celebrate a party on the top floor of an abandoned building. They each receive a text message inviting them to a mysterious and exclusive party on the 27th floor. When they arrive they are presented with a set of clues to what they believe is a treasure hunt but instead find themselves fighting for survival with no idea of how they are linked to each other or who their host is.
Director Luis Camara-Silva doesn’t try to sugar coat STEEL TRAP, it’s obvious even from watching the trailer that it’s a slasher and plays by the rules as far as the genre goes. Instead of being forced into watching another-sub standard PG13 movie like PROM NIGHT we are treated to some pretty decent death scenes and loads of the red stuff.
Unfortunately STEEL TRAP has its flaws, which drag the movie down, and the biggest gripe I had was the acting. At times it was cringeworthy and wouldn’t have been out of place on a daytime soap. The other problem was that it was far too predictable. Horror geeks will have it sussed early and most mainstream movies goers will most likely see the end coming just before it happens too.
That aside the ending is never the less enjoyable and stops it from being completely poor. STEEL TRAP has its moments and does flirt with being decent but unfortunately the flaws outweigh the good points and make it a disappointment.
Worth a watch if only to see some decent death scenes but be warned – It can be very frustrating as it follows all the usual clichés and the acting is of a pretty low standard.
Date: 18/01/2009
Rating: 25/5
Copyright ©2008 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
Director Luis Camara-Silva doesn’t try to sugar coat STEEL TRAP, it’s obvious even from watching the trailer that it’s a slasher and plays by the rules as far as the genre goes. Instead of being forced into watching another-sub standard PG13 movie like PROM NIGHT we are treated to some pretty decent death scenes and loads of the red stuff.
Unfortunately STEEL TRAP has its flaws, which drag the movie down, and the biggest gripe I had was the acting. At times it was cringeworthy and wouldn’t have been out of place on a daytime soap. The other problem was that it was far too predictable. Horror geeks will have it sussed early and most mainstream movies goers will most likely see the end coming just before it happens too.
That aside the ending is never the less enjoyable and stops it from being completely poor. STEEL TRAP has its moments and does flirt with being decent but unfortunately the flaws outweigh the good points and make it a disappointment.
Worth a watch if only to see some decent death scenes but be warned – It can be very frustrating as it follows all the usual clichés and the acting is of a pretty low standard.
Date: 18/01/2009
Rating: 25/5
Copyright ©2008 Rough Cut Reviews.
Read this review and more on: http://www.roughcutreviews.com/
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