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Reviews
Cowboy Bebop (2021)
Relax
Drink a beer... smoke a joint... just relax and enjoy. It's better than the reviews say it is. Maybe it doesn't align to the anime 100% but who cares? Rewatch the anime if that bothers you.
Son of a Gun (2019)
Solid Independent Film
The filmmaker Travis Mills gets better with each movie he makes. This one is his most polished to date. The cinematography is great, as well as the sound, and music. It all comes together as a rich story telling experience.
The story unfolds and builds throughout with good pace, allowing the viewer to wonder and contemplate what is right and wrong, myth and truth. With some above average acting from experienced actors and newcomers alike, this movie is worth watching.
Underworld: Evolution (2006)
Strange Evolution
gave the first movie an 'A'. I thought it was slick, very stylistic, and as well acted as that type of movie could be.
Underworld II was at the other end of the pole. The story was disjointed, full of holes, and too expansive for the time allotted on screen. The key to a good story is to make the unbelievable seem believable. This story was just too hokey for me. Characters did things that made no sense and they were driven by little more than the will to kill each other.
The acting was weak. It's OK to have average acting in a movie like this, but at least put some effort into it. It seems, and I certainly wouldn't doubt, that the major roles were shot in a couple days. That is sad.
It's hard to say anything about the direction, when the rest of the movie was so weak. I'm not sure what the director could do, with a grade F script, to turn it into a stellar film. I noticed Kevin Grevioux wasn't a real part of the script writing this time around. I can't say or not whether this is why the script was bad compared to the previous movie. Maybe he can write the 3rd installment and prove himself. Unfortunately I highly doubt Beckinsale will agree to a third movie without some major compensation.
The visuals are what you would expect from this type of movie. It was more frenetic though than the first. While it was a dark film visually, the true Gothic feel seemed to be missing. I would have liked it to have slowed down a bit. Also the costumes were absolutely horrid.
The good thing about this film was the action. If you like pure action with little plot and dialogue to get in the way, then you picked the right movie. While the fight scenes are not overly intricate, there is lots of gore and explosions.
Overall it's one of the biggest negative turnarounds from one installment to the next that I can remember from recent memory. I would say probably the degradation of the Matrix films from one to the next come close. Sometimes it pays to stick to what works.