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kelby393
Reviews
Bruno (2000)
Good - not perfect, but good
I had seen this movie on TV before getting it on DVD from Amazon. And after re-watching it today, I know why - it's a charming little flick that teaches tolerance. The acting is solid across the board. The characters, while sometimes a little too caricature-ish, are actually pretty likable (minus the Catholic school bullies, of course, but what do you expect out of bully characters?) The dad, I don't know, he could have used a little bit more character besides standing around and scowling at his cross-dressing son and his flamboyant mother and then finally being accepting at the end, but oh well. At least what little character he has gets developed to that accepting point.
If I had to complain about some things in this movie, it's just that sometimes there's a little too much gratuitous swearing (the Catholic school headmasters swear, the little bullies at the school swear too much, and Bruno's grandmother even swears at the bullies at one point.) Another thing is that Shawniqua, the little girl, says that her father is living in China, then changes it to Afghanistan. Well where is your father, sweetie? What's he doing there? Yes her father wasn't crucial to the story, but then why even mention him? And like I said, Bruno's father could have had more personality to begin with. Besides the swearing, sometimes the dialogue feels a bit awkward, like they should say more things to develop the characters and story a bit more. Also, if you're not religious like I'm not, the whole religious theme will probably get on your nerves a bit, but well, if you don't believe in it, why worry about it?
But if you can get past these flaws like I could, you'll like this. This movie has a bit of heart and soul that I felt and enjoyed. I almost cried at the end, that's how much emotion it has. :) I recommend it.
Doogal (2006)
Good animation but HORRIBLE execution!
So the creators of the Fairly Odd Parents were behind this American version - that explains EVERYTHING.
Pros: the animation and graphics are quality standard. (British version, too)
Cons: EVERYTHING ELSE! -First of all, the title "Doogal" - the British version was titled "The Magic Roundabout" and that title was just fine! Also the dog's name was originally spelled "Dougal" but then the American version had the spelling changed to "Doogal." STUPID, RIGHT?! Why???????
-Story is terribly clichéd, and full of unexplained plot elements. Why are people STILL using the carousel when there's an evil being locked inside it? How did the main characters befriend Zebedee in the first place to be able to call him down from the sky whenever they want? Also the whole action plot seems to be just forced into the story and it just doesn't match the essence of the original French stop-motion series this movie was based on. (This goes for the British version, too.)
-The American re-dubbing: Why why WHY in the world did they even bother re-dubbing over the original British version?? I'm sure we Americans would be able to understand the British version just fine! (And if not, there's always closed captions, right?) This wouldn't be such a big problem if the casting wasn't so screwed up! Whoopi Goldberg voicing the cow for instance - her speaking voice does NOT match the cow's opera-singing voice at all! So obviously mismatched it hurts!! And the kid voicing Doogal is just annoying and it's a Completely different voice from the one in the trailers. (Even though that voice didn't fit Doogal so well.) There's even a moose in the American version that TALKS (voiced by Kevin Smith) when the moose in the British version was SILENT. Unnecessary acting, right?? Everyone else in the cast is talented and/or at least trying, but alas, their efforts are wasted. Poor Ian McKellen and Judi Dench.
-Soundtrack: Yes, there are pointless pop songs in this that come right out of nowhere and don't match the essence of the story at all. Yuck. (British version is guilty of this too.)
-"Captain Obvious" narration - Judi Dench as narrator (this version and British version) does a good job at first, but then after the main group of characters set out to gather three crystals to trap Zeebad back into the carousel (I know, just go with it), she goes overboard and starts describing things the audience can CLEARLY see for themselves. At one point in the volcanic region, she says "The path was very, var far. The path was very very narrow. The lava was very very hot." When we clearly SEE the train going on that long, narrow path over hot boiling lava! So yeah most of the narration gets pointless and just terribly annoying after that.
-References: Yes, this movie either references or outright RIPS OFF other movies like in a quote from Pulp Fiction (in a kid's movie???), Pirates of the Caribbean (skeletons attacking), Halo, Harry Potter, that "It's Hammer Time!" thing wherever that came from, and CSI - and it's so forced and painful it's not even funny. When the group is in the cave or something and gets attacked by skeletons, one of them says "Pirates of the Caribbean!" and then somebody else actually says "Hey, I thought we said no Disney jokes!" Then why did you PUT this joke in, you idiots!?! Most of all, Lord of the Rings gets ripped off the most - yeah, with that whole "My precious!" blue crystal part, Zeebad saying he's the "Lord of the Springs," and the part with Zebedee falling to his death (Zebedee being voiced by GANDALF who met the same fate in Fellowship of the Ring, no less!) Good God, this movie sucks sucks SUCKS so much it cant even come up with it's own original story without ripping off every other BETTER movie out there!!
-Characters: The characters just aren't interesting. They're flat and undeveloped, and Doogal is a terribly unlikable mutt who started this entire thing by trying to STEAL candy! Then he goes and takes EVERYONE with him and lets THEM do all the work to solve the problem while he just lazes around! Worst of all, this is never resolved. Great opportunity for character development LOST.
Some people say the British version is better, but I disagree - it's the same lame quality. Neither version is really worth your time.
Overall rating: 3/10 (only because of the quality animation)
Der Untergang (2004)
The most powerful WWII movie I've ever seen...
I admit that I also heard of this movie from the many parodies on YouTube. Seeing Bruno Ganz's haunting portrayal of the Fuhrer was so fascinating (and so hard not to laugh at because it is so spot on!), I decided to see what the rest of the movie is like so I found it on Netflix.
And oh my goodness, I think this is the most powerful WWII movie I've ever seen. The cinematography and sets are wonderful and 100% realistic to the years 1943-1945. More importantly, though, is the story and characters - it's Hitler's 56th birthday, and for the next ten days, he will face his own downfall. In all that time, he watches his whole world fall apart, with his most trusted officers betraying him, and his army failing at his most desperate time. You see all this happening to him, topped off with a HUGE nervous breakdown (which explains him holding his injured left hand flapping behind his back), and shockingly enough you actually feel SORRY for him!! The movie gives Hitler a human personality and not a caricature villain personality. If a movie can do this and still NOT justify any evil thing that this monster did, that is an accomplishment.
Not only do you feel sorry for Hitler, you also feel sorry for every other person who is either traumatized or killed. The emotion is powerful in this movie - depressing, yes, but what do you expect? I mean there are even CHILDREN that die in this movie!! I guarantee, no matter how thick a shell you have, when you see this movie, you WILL feel something. The score, what little there is, is wonderful and bold. The amount of research that went into the production of this movie is phenomenal, and it shows. You are completely convinced that every bit of everything in this movie actually happened.
The acting - oh my god, the acting. When the actor/actress injects as much life as physically possible into their character, to the point where the audience sees them as not just an actor but the real character they are portraying, that is a great accomplishment in itself. This movie has great acting like this, beginning to end.
It's easy to see why there are so many parodies out there - because the movie was so great!!!! I completely recommend this. 10/10
Titanic - La leggenda continua (2000)
This movie is a travesty!
I'm another one of the people that saw the Nostalgia Critic review and he and I totally agree that this movie is a huge slap in the face to all the lost souls of the Titanic. They must have turned in their graves when this came out...
Just the idea to make an ANIMATED movie of the Titanic disaster was weird enough to begin with - but oh my goodness. Ripoffs from every Disney/other movie imaginable (Cinderella, 101 Dalmations, Secret of NIMH, An American Tail, etc.), racially-insensitive Mexican mice, and a RAPPING DOG?????? Rap in 1912, ROFL! That's like putting a rap number in a movie set in the antebellum South ("DJANGO UNCHAINED", ANYONE??) Wait a minute, Django was AWESOME, why am I comparing that to THIS PILE OF CRAP MADE BY SOME FAT TURD IN ITALY? The animation is...okay I guess, but what do I care when the story hardly makes any lick of sense? There's too many subplots too.
But, the worst sin of all... nobody died when the Titanic sank!!!! Dolphins saved the animals, the two lovers got married and EVERYONE lived happily ever after, teehee! Oh my god, this is a Holocaust of wrong!!!! Nobody lived happily ever after because 1500 people DIED!!!!!
Well at least you won't have trouble avoiding this abomination because copies of this are very rare anyway (good!) But if you ever do come across this, please take it and smash it to pieces and throw it in the trash. After that, go watch the Nostalgia Critic's review of it on YouTube - it's much better!!!
Django Unchained (2012)
Words cannot describe the entire epicness of this awesome movie
Actually, another reviewer put it so perfectly: Tarantino-gasm :D
Wow this movie was epic. In fact, I left the theater smiling and laughing at how so beautifully it all wrapped up. Literally the movie goes out with a bang!! Even the black couple that sat next to me were having the time of their lives!
I'm proud of Jamie Foxx - it takes some real guts to be involved in a movie set in slavery times - as a freed SLAVE, no less! He played the part perfectly. So did Christoph Waltz as Django's companion Dr. Schulz. This guy stole every scene with a joke or funny line EVERY TIME! I was a bit surprised to find Leonardo DiCaprio playing the part of the villain, but hey, it's Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack from Titanic! His performance reminded me of how Christian Bale was in American Psycho - he let the character freely jump deep into the darkest depths of despicability without holding back ONE BIT! Kerry Washington as Django's wife didn't really have many lines or parts (she was mostly seen as flashbacks and illusions), but with all that she had to work with, she was fantastic! 100% convincing emotions from her, not to mention a BEAUTIFUL smile. :D
Oh and let's not forget Samuel L. Jackson who was in another one of Tarantino's movies "Pulp Fiction," which is one of IMDb's top 250 movies by the way. He was just like Dr. Schulz - hilarious, and not to mention he took every black stereotype and played them out almost to the point of hilarious absurdity. Ironically, his character was Calvin's assistant, and the head of the other black servants there, and he treated those servants and Django almost as spitefully as Calvin and any other white men did. Don't worry, he got punished for it in the end - BRUTALLY.
Yep, not only are the characters fantastic, but also there's a hearty dose of shooting, explosions, and blood - just like a good action movie! Roger Ebert obviously loved this and I can totally understand why. When this comes out to DVD, I'll be the first in line for it!! 10/10
Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away (2012)
Beautiful!
First of all, try not to analyze too much why this or that is there - remember it's a circus. *Also, **small spoilers ahead**
But yes, this was a beautiful, awe inspiring experience. The basic story is a young woman meeting the Aerialist and when he falls into the sand pit below him, he and she sink into this other world, and then they're separated and have to go through all these different worlds to find each other again. By "worlds" I mean a bunch of other Cirque du Soleil performances put together with rather great transitions. Even the Beatles LOVE performance is in it!
Speaking of the Beatles, the music a lot of times is wonderful and very pleasing, especially the Beatles part (which I tried to sing along to) and the part with the Asian looking people with the red tights :) The 3D, courtesy of the legendary James Cameron, is stunning and reminded me a lot of Avatar. Same thing for the acrobatics, the performers did a great job!!
Very recommended, 9/10
La leggenda del Titanic (1999)
Words cannot describe how completely insensitive and stupid this is!!!
Poor Nostalgia Critic - he had to sit through this festering pile of crap, this ungodly disgrace to the 1500 people who lost their lives in the Titanic! I don't know which is worse - this or The Legend Goes On that came along after this one. (BECAUSE APPARENTLY ONE INSENSITIVE PIECE OF CRAP MOVIE Wasn't EVEN ENOUGH!!!)
I cant believe something like this actually exists! Yes I know it was inevitable that ripoffs of James Cameron's "Titanic" would be inevitable (I mean $2 billion!! Holy crap, James Cameron had it made!) Who wouldn't want to capitalize on that, right? But for someone to go as far as to try to sugarcoat this tragic historical event with historically incorrect Titanic events, talking animals, magic that is unexplained, a stupid "save the whales" subplot, horrible musical numbers and a HAPPILY EVER AFTER ENDING???? OH MY GOD!!!! What are they gonna rip off World Trade Center like this? Imagine the WARS that would result in... I'm surprised there weren't any wars after this piece of crap, or the OTHER piece of crap after it!
If you ARE going to watch this, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE watch with friends with an amazing sense of humor, or at least have a few drinks beforehand, because holy cow is this bad.
The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue (1998)
Do these producers even KNOW what a sequel is???!!! *minor spoilers if you even care*
A sequel is supposed to CONTINUE the story, you idiots!!!
NOT pull a false prophecy out of its arse (saying one of Johnathan Brisby's sons would someday save everyone from NIMH again when Nicodemus NEVER made such a prediction!)
NOT toss the original hero aside like trash - Mrs. Brisby is BARELY in this movie, and she's not even on the front cover, instead it's all about her little son Timmy that had only one line in the original movie.
NOT turn away from the style of the original - the original was dark and riveting, with an inexplicable charm (especially with the characters) that drew you into the story. In this sequel, everything is too bright and cutesy, and there are actually MUSICAL NUMBERS - YES, MGM was trying to copy Disney's tired out style. You know what, IT'S GETTING OLD!
Last but not least, a sequel should NOT make the main characters and settings look like crap - the original was dark and very detailed in its backgrounds, and so were the characters. In this piece of lard the colors are so bright and cheesy, and the characters are empty. AND I CANT BELIEVE THEY MADE MARTIN THE VILLAIN!!! DUMBEST TWIST EVER!!!!
Also, the voice acting isn't great - Dom DeLuise and Eric Idol are the only good things, but it's STILL NOT ENOUGH! By the way, I watched this long ago as a kid and so i never noticed the flaws, and I remembered this again because I watched the Nostalgia Critic review of it. So while I go try to forget about this abomination again, why don't you look up that Nostalgia Critic video on YouTube and watch that instead of this so called sequel - at least it's HILARIOUS and doesn't insult your intelligence like this piece of lard will!!!