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Reviews
The Hangover Part III (2013)
1st - classic. 2nd - OK. 3rd - the worst.
For me the Hangover Part 3 was simply the WORST installment of the hangover trilogy. It made me realize just how great the first two hangovers were because the ideas were just so much better and funnier.
The first Hangover is not the funniest R rated comedy I've ever seen, but the whole idea of three groomsmen losing the groom during a bachelor party in Las Vagas was such a clever idea that lead to a great plot and tons of fun that made it such a damn good movie.
The Hangover 2 was just the same rehash as the first, but what made part 2 so good is that it took the same idea from the first one and put different twists into the plot that at least made an attempt to make it as good as the first one. In fact, I thought it was almost just as good as the original.
The Hangover 3 on the other hand was nothing more than a conclusion film that told the audience that this was the final adventure. We all knew Phil, Stu, and Allen couldn't possibly lose a bachelor party friend for the third time, so what we got here was a darker more action- themed Hangover movie. Hell there's no bachelor party or anything to get hung over from in this one.
What happens is that Chow escapes from prison after being captured in the 2nd one, and heads back to the United States. Meanwhile Allen's father passes away and his friends and family decide its time to have him put in a mental hospital after he stops taking his meds. Phil, Stu, Allen, and Doug on the way to the mental hospital get run off the road by a group of thugs and are captured. Marshall the head thug, tells them how Chow stole a large amount of gold from him during a heist, and because they are close friends to Chow they have to bring Chow to Marshall or else they will kill Doug...again... And that's basically the short intro summary to the Hangover 3. Boy that all sounds like it escalated quickly didn't it?
Everything else from that point on is nothing more but boring R-rated comedy humor that drags on. The Hangover humor is just dry and old by now. I got a few chuckles and that was it while I was laughing much harder at the other two movies. The other two hangovers were so much more fun and exciting while this one was a more epic-themed action flick that was too predictable. Chow was actually just starting to get old in this one to the point were he was actually annoying. He was funnier in the other two because he just played one of the minor characters. In this one, he is an essential character to the plot who you see all the time and all the dialogue he says is just so Unfunny. Who ever wrote the script for Chow was really trying to push some desperate laughs. They should have just called this movie ''The Changover part 3.''
In conclusion, if you enjoyed the first two hangover movies, chances are you will be quite disappointed by this one.
Ted (2012)
Now I understand all the bad reviews.
Yep, this movie was a PURE disappointment. Just got this movie on DVD last night and watched it. Sure enough, I didn't laugh as much as I thought I would. In fact, I barely laughed at all to be quite honest. Everyone probably knows what this movie is about, so I'm not going to jump into that. All I know is that the dialog was bad, I barely found any of the jokes funny, the story and plot didn't seem to go anywhere. It was just another poorly thought through comedy that tried to be funny. Like just because there is a dirty mouth-talking teddy bear in the movie we are supposed to laugh at everything he says? I really didn't find Ted that amusing at all. The love relationship thing between Mark Wahlberg's character and Mila Kunis's character was just the same old mushy crap. The couple have their struggle's because Ted interferes too much with their lives, they break up, but because they save Ted at the end of the movie, that finally makes them realize that they were meant for each other. Just the same old love story, you knew they were going to get back together didn't you? Jew jokes, homo jokes, sex jokes...BORING!
Or how about at the end of the movie during the climax when Mark Wahlberg punches the fat kid in the damn face. Oh yeah...haha. There's not really much I can say that hasn't already been said by all these other reviews. Mark Wahlberg wasn't that great in this movie either, the acting just wasn't good. I'm not just talking about him, I mean the whole cast. I don't even get the villain in this movie either. He was just some lame-ass psychopath with a fat son who wanted to kidnap Ted, and we barely get any background information on that character.
In conclusion, its sad to admit that the trailer for this was funnier than the movie itself. My favorite parts in the film were probably the party scene, and the motel fight scene between Mark Wahlberg and Ted, THAT WAS IT! Don't hold you're breath people, because this movie is not what you think it is. 3/10.
Red Dawn (2012)
Average-good movie...nothing more.
This was just another average-good war flick, nothing special, nor was it anything new. It had a good back story, a well developed plot, and a fair amount of character development. The action scenes were just the same old. Quick cut shots with loud gun shots and explosions that will rattle your theater. The story didn't really seemed that rushed. It was simply about a town that gets invaded by an army of koreans, and a group of teens are forced out their town, and take cover in a shelter just outside the town. They decide to fight back, so the main point of the movie is just the kids developing attack plans to fight back against the koreans. They fight, take cover and think of the next plan they will use. And of course there is a bunch of drama talk between the younger and older brother who are the two main characters of the movie. The one thing that bothered me the most was the very ending. Josh Peck's character is giving a speech to the surviving citizens of the invasion, and then there's a quick montage of them breaking into a prison to free the captured citizens and THEN!...credits scroll. This isn't one of the most intense war films I've ever seen, but I think its worth seeing.
Elf (2003)
My Holiday is not complete without this movie.
Since its almost thanksgiving, its that time in November were I start watching all my traditional holiday films. Elf without a doubt is one of them. Hard to believe this movie is 9 years old already. I laughed watching it when I was a kid, and I'm still laughing just as hard today. This movie got so creative with the humor, slapstick, puns, lines, this is literally my favorite Christmas film next to Its a Wonderful Life. Will Ferrel was perfectly casted as Buddy the Elf, a heart loving Christmas elf from the north pole who finds out he's actually a human being who was raised by elves after he snuck into Santa's toy bag at an orphanage when he was a baby. The plot was just fantastic, and was thought thru well. The movie teaches a very valuable lesson, do what you love in life, don't let others stand in the way of that ever, and that you should always be yourself. The movie shows the great relationship between a father who doesn't believe his son is an elf from the north pole, but accepts him the way he is in the end. Many can learn the true meaning of Christmas, as well as life lessons in this holiday classic. This is another holiday film that will live on for the years to come.
Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009)
This movie knew how to be funny.
This movie started out in the mid .5 range, but now it's in the low .5 range. Oh well, I guess everyone today just expects an Oscar worthy performance in every comedy they see. No this isn't the best comedy ever made, it got very unrealistic, the whole idea was just ridiculous, but I for one enjoyed this movie. I remember seeing it back in the theaters when it first came out, this had everyone laughing. It's not because people were amused easily, it's because this movie used new funny clique's. Kevin James was the perfect cast to play a bumbling security mall cop who is very faithful to his job. The action scenes were either unrealistic or just over the top, but it kept the story flowing, and it all made sense. I thought the plot was great for the most part, and it even had a back story to it. The biggest a flop I thought was after when all the hostages were captured, no swat team or police officers have the back of the mall covered. And the villain escapes out the back of the mall with two of the hostages, and gets away in a van. That was the biggest stretch in the movie. But other than that, I really enjoyed this movie and have found it to be a lot of fun. Worth seeing if you ask me. 7/10.
Little Fockers (2010)
The 3rd is the worst in the series.
Just like everyone else has pointed out, the 3rd Fockers movie just sucked plain and simple. I just watched it at a friend's house the other night, and all I noticed myself NOT doing was laughing. Whenever a humorous part was about to happen, not only was it not funny, but it was so predictable, and you knew what was going to happen. You could tell for sure that the movie was trying hard to be funny, but when you know a movie tries hard to be funny, you know it's going to fail and that you won't get a single laugh out of it. I've seen the first one, but haven't seen all of the second one. All I know is that I got laughs out of the other two, but surely not this one. What a let down, and how humiliating that Robert De Niro gets a shot to the penis. Like that's how HARD they were trying to get you to laugh. But all I did was cringe when De Niro got stabbed in the dick with a needle.
The Wonderful World of Disney: Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House (2002)
Yep...it's terrible people.
I just finished watching Home Alone 4: Taking back the house. I do remember seeing this when it first premiered on television ten years ago in November 2002. I was 9 at the time, and I remember I thought it was awesome, and the best Home Alone movie yet. But of course ten years later at the age of 19 in November 2012, I celebrate the 10th anniversary of this movie by saying it sucks major big time, and is the weakest link in the Home Alone trilogy. The only reason I gave this a 2/10 is because it did have a reasonable plot, maybe a few chuckles, and yes I am being dead serious here, some of the actors were actually good at acting. But everything else aside from that is downhill. Mike Weinberg was a great little actor, and did a great job playing your typical 9 year old kid who only prays for the best Christmas ever, but he had nothing on the original Kevin played by Macaulay Culkin. He just didn't play Kevin MCcallister like Culkin did.
That was huge error in the movie, what point of Kevin MCcallister's life was this? He claims to be 9...AGAIN! Well, he was 8 in Home Alone 1, 9 in Home Alone 2, and this is his 3rd Christmas in the series so he had to have been 10 in this one right? Kevin and his mom also mention a couple times that they recall when he was left Home Alone in the past, so this obviously continues on from Home Alone 2. The writers just didn't do their research. I'm just an IMDb writer and I noticed that mistake. Why did this even revolve around the MCcallister family again? They should have just made the characters a completely different family. Using the name MCcallister in this only insults the first 2 movies.
The slapstick was pure crap, and far from anything I would consider funny. I thought the traps in Home Alone 3 were unrealistic, but the ones in this film proved me wrong. I just sat there and felt like I was watching a bunch of stupid special effects do all the work. And even when the traps weren't by special effect, they were still lame as hell and didn't provide any laughs. The most ridiculous over the top one was when the 2 burglars get launched out of the rotating bar in the wall, and get shot out onto the chandelier in the foyer. How in the world is anyone supposed to get a laugh out of that when it's not only done by special effects, but IMPOSSIBLE!!!??? The movie just relied on Kevin using the smart house as a weapon and nothing else.
Marv returns again NOT played by the classic Daniel Stern, but the bad poor actor who did not know how to play Marv, French Stewart. And Harry isn't his partner this time, nope, its some dumb hoe who nobody will give two cares about throughout the whole film. The two robbers are not idiotic, but retarded in this one. There's a difference between idiotic and retarded. They weren't funny like in the other Home Alone movies, their puns were stupid, and they had ABSOLUTELY no common sense before they were hit by a trap. The traps weren't even traps, they were just random objects that hit them. Harry and Marv from the original home alone at least had common sense. The robbers in this one just acted like retards, and just expected us to laugh at anything they did.
The subplot to this movie is that Kevin's parents get divorced, and Kevin's father finds a new woman who lives in a huge mansion. So Kevin decides to go live with his dad and new step mom in the mansion which is also referred to as a ''smart house.'' But after all the stupid pointless mayhem that occurs in this crappy film, the parents get back together just after Kevin catches the robbers. Also, what was the point of that kidnapping the royal prince thing? Thats why Marv and that pointless female robber were trying to break into the smart house to kidnap the prince. You don't even see him or the royal family til LITERALLY the last few minutes of the movie. What a poorly thought thru film.
The only good things about this movie was the dialog, a lesson to be taught like needing a family on Christmas, and that being wealthy isn't everything. The twist at the end when Kevin discovers Prescott isn't the robbers accomplice I have to admit was good, because I thought Prescott was bad all along. And it's hard to say, but the movie did have a story. But any attempt to make this funny like a good Home Alone movie should be...FAILED. 2/10 for me.
Monsters, Inc. (2001)
Another childhood Pixar film I'll never forget.
I was 8 years old back in November 2001 when my parents took me to see this when it was first released in theaters. I remember walking out of the theatre after the movie was over, and all I could think about was how awesome and funny Monsters Inc was. There was not a single moment where the movie lost my 8 year old's attention. It takes a lot of amazement to grab an 8 year old's attention, and this movie surely did. The plot was excellent, the story, the unforgettable characters, the climax, this is a movie I will never let go of. I can't believe this masterpiece is already 11 years old. Every kid growing up should see this movie just like I did, because it is something kids of all generations will want to see. I'm looking forward to seeing Monsters University this next June of 2013. Though I have a feeling it won't be as good as this original classic, I'm sure it will be worth seeing in the end. I can easily add Monsters Inc to my childhood movies just like Toy Story. Thank Pixar for another great movie.
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
What I call an excellent sequel.
In my opinion, Home Alone 2 is just as funny if not funnier than the first Home Alone. It was the same idea as the first, but they added different twists that made it a great sequel. The traps throughout this one were almost the same as the traps in the first movie, but they got even more creative. Even the plot was perfectly executed. Instead of getting left Home Alone again, Kevin gets split up from his family at the airport, and accidentally jumps on the wrong plane after he follows a man who looks like his dad. This plane lands him in New York city. The title to the movie is a little misleading, because he's anywhere but home, he's lost in New York. The movie got a lot more cartoonish and unrealistic compared to the first one when it came to all the slapstick parts, but Home Alone 2 had me laughing just as hard as the 1st Home Alone. The idea, the story, how well it was all played out just made this an excellent sequel to the classic Home Alone.
It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
You Can't beat the Classics.
God forbid if they ever attempt to remake this movie in any way. I know they probably already have in different versions and ways of telling the story, but this is a movie that will never die. Like everyone else, I and my family watch this movie every Christmas eve. It's like a tradition in a lot of families who celebrate Christmas. The best thing about it, is that this movie never gets old. You know the story, you know what is going to happen every Christmas you watch this. But this movie has a very deep meaning to it that a lot of movies in the history of film DON'T have. Every Christmas eve I watch this it gets me in the perfect Christmas mood, and makes me forget about all the worries, problems, and struggles I have to put up with in life. This movie teaches me that everyone in the world can make a difference, and that everyone, no matter who you are has a purpose of existing. Even when its not the holiday season, I'll just watch a couple scenes of this movie just to put me in a good mood anyway. They just can't make movies like this anymore that teach you a very meaningful lesson. Even to people who don't celebrate Christmas can still enjoy this film. I can't wait for Christmas this year, for it is my favorite time of the year, and the time to be very happy in life.
Quantum of Solace (2008)
What the h*** is this Bond film even about?!
Yeah the previous Bond film didn't impress me that much to be very honest. In fact, this is probably the bottom 5 of my least favorite Bond films. It's something that you will notice throughout just about the whole movie, and what is it? The story, and the plot. I'm a huge James Bond fan, and every other James Bond film I have ever watched has always had a clear plot, and an on going story line that I could perfectly understand. To say the least, this has got to be the first Bond film that doesn't have that. When I first saw this Bond in the theaters a few years ago in 2008, I didn't know what the hell was going on in the story NOT even half way through the film. The only thing that kept my head in the movie were these random little thrilling moments and these out of nowhere action scenes. It's like the movie was telling me, ''okay person watching this movie, I know this Bond film has no clear story about what is going on, but we will just throw in some random action scenes to make sure it's not losing your attention!'' I mean it's good that the movie had plenty-enough action scenes, that is essential to every James Bond film. It goes without saying though, that in order to have these actions scenes, it has to go along with the story, and since there was NO clear story to me, I didn't understand what was going on with all the Bond-action stuff. I mean let me recap on a few random moments, 1. Bond gets picked up by the Bond girl off a street in Haiti in some old rusty car, they are talking when all of a sudden, she pulls a gun on Bond and almost blows his head off. Bond jumps out of the car and she speeds off. 2. Bond knocks out a guy on a dirt bike who was tailing the car Bond was in with the Bond girl AFTER he jumps out of it. Like, what the hell? 3. The movie is going forward when Bond suddenly fights that guy in the rundown motel room in Haiti. After he kills the thug in the motel room, he picks up some brief case, and that's were the randomness of the movie begins. 4. Bond is talking to Felix (from the previous Bond film) in a bar. They are talking about something so fast you won't be able to understand what it is unless you watch it over and over again a couple times. All of a sudden, a SWAT team raids the bar and Bond flees. Like, what???!!! WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THAT?! And it's also revealed that Bond is trying to save Bolivia from some water drought from the bad guy. Like are you kidding me? So much for world domination. I thought this was James Bond saves the world, NOT James Bond saves the environment. Either way, this has got to be one of the most random Bond film I have ever seen. Skyfall has just come out, and I'm hoping that will be a huge bounce back from this one, because this one provided no clear plot or story on what the HELL was going on!
A View to a Kill (1985)
One Bond Film too many for Sir Roger Moore.
Great Bond film, but with one major flaw that just killed the movie for me. The James Bond actor himself, Roger Moore. Roger Moore at this time had been James Bond for a total of 12 years, and his age no doubt began to show that. During the filming of A view to a Kill, Roger Moore had turned 57 years old. The character James Bond, is not 57 years old, nor is he even in his 50's for that matter. Ian Fleming pictured the character James Bond to be in his mid to late 30's and maybe his early to mid 40's. Definitely NOT his 50's! Now don't get me wrong, bless Roger Moore for being a great James Bond, for I did enjoy all his Bond films, but I think it's pretty fair to say that Roger went one bond film too far. I always felt his final Bond should have been For Your Eyes Only, or obviously his previous Bond, Octopussy. If Moore had back out of the role then, we would have gotten to see a lot more of Timothy Datlon who I thought was the perfect James Bond who was dark, and portrayed the character just like Ian Fleming pictured Bond in the novels. I mean Roger was still physical enough for the role, but his age just ruined the film which is why it is one of my least favorite Bond films. It was a good Bond film, but Roger and his age just stuck around too long which made it look VERY awkward that he was making love to college-age women. Roger Moore is a classic Bond that will never be forgotten, but I think his last one will. 6/10 for me.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie (1998)
Great attempt to beat the original.
I have to say, this was good. Not great or excellent, but average-good. Nothing will ever beat the original 1964 Rudolph, but this remake almost did. This remake took everything from the original, and tried to twist into the 90's version of Rudolph. The plot was great, the whole story had a goal to achieve, you knew what the characters were trying to accomplish, everything just had a good purpose that gave this remake a solid flow to it. The songs were amazing. You won't remember them like the one's from the 1964 Rudolph, but the songs used in this remake are just as unforgettable in my opinion. Every other scene has you wondering were the story will take you next, and the climax toward the end will actually give you that feeling whether it's gonna be a happy or bad ending. Overall, this is absolutely worth seeing, and a great remake to the classic 1964 Rudolph.
No Country for Old Men (2007)
LORD is this overrated.
I just recently sat down to watch this whole movie, and all I have to say is GOOD GOD is it overrated. It was good, but not excellent or great like all the other hype it's getting. It was realistic, the action scenes were great, the plot was going along good. But when the movie ended, I just sat there and shrugged my shoulders like, ''ok, it was good, it got my attention and all, but, nothing spectacularly amazing.'' I didn't feel like the movie could have been better or anything, it just felt like any other violent R-rated movie I have ever seen in the past. I just gave this a fair 6/10 because though people think it's one of the best movies ever made, I think it's only one of the many ''good'' movies that are out there today.