What is it about threes? I typically enjoy third installments, even the ones most people dislike (“Robocop 3”, “Alien 3”, “X-Men 3”). However, I can rarely bring myself to argue that the third entries are often the weakest. Does being the weakest installment in a fantastic franchise somehow make “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” a bad movie? I can honestly say that no, it does not. And while “Pirates 3” may not be my favorite entry into the trilogy, that by no means should imply I didn’t enjoy the heck out of it.
Quickly picking up where “Dead Man’s Chest” left off, Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is very much dead, Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) is very much alive and with Davy Jones (Bill Nighy) in the servitude of the villainous Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander), the crew of the Black Pearl is very much screwed. The only way to defeat Beckett and Jones is to gather all nine Pirate Lords from across the globe to a summit at Shipwreck Cove so that they might band together for a final stand. Impeding this is the fact that one of the more notorious Pirate Lords, a Mr. Sparrow, is currently suffering unimaginable pain within Davy Jones’ Locker. And while Barbossa and his crew trek to the Nether Regions to haul Sparrow back, other characters are forming their own questionable machinations, namely Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), who will do whatever it takes to rescue his damned father from his imprisonment onboard Jones’ ghost ship, the Flying Dutchman.
While “Pirates 3” ranks third in regards to my preference for the series, it’s still a glorious movie and a satisfying conclusion to the storyline. The “Pirates Trilogy” reminded me a great deal of the Star Wars Trilogy, at least in structure. The first film tells its own self-contained adventure and can be watched isolated from its sequels. The second film starts a new plotline that remains unresolved by the film’s conclusion, leaving the audience with a cliffhanger ending and quite a few “WTF?” questions that need to be answered. And finally, the third installment ties up the lose ends and concludes the adventures, though not all will be pleased with the results. Granted, there’s nothing as diabolical as Ewoks in this movie, but you get where I’m coming from, right?
All the actors deliver performances worthy of the franchise. Johnny Depp is a riot as Captain Jack Sparrow and all, but to me, the real treat was seeing Geoffrey Rush return as Captain Barbossa, the villain from the first flick. While the explanation for his resurrection left me a bit unsatisfied, I can’t bring myself to complain, as his presence really boosted the film. The love triangle between Will Turner, Jack Sparrow and Elizabeth Swan (Kiera Knightley) is all but resolved for this film, with most of the tension coming from Will’s and Elizabeth’s inability to trust one another. The “comedy relief” members of the crew can begin to grate on one’s nerves after a fashion, but Director Gore Verbinski seems to know when to cut their antics short for the most part.
I suppose if I have any nits to pick it would be the constant switching of sides between characters and the numerous plot threads all going on at once. It can get a bit overwhelming at times, making the film a bit hard to follow unless you’re devoting your absolute attention to it. One bathroom break could lose you entirely, as three characters could have swapped allegiances in the time it takes you to wash your hands.
If any word best sums up the Pirates Trilogy it would have to be “fun”. There’s a strong sense of humor throughout the series, a concept that few films have chosen to explore lately (how many good pirate movies can you name from the last decade?), jaw-dropping special effects, memorable characters, a solid cast…the works. Being the “weakest” installment in a franchise as spectacular as this one is nothing to be ashamed of.
Grade: B
Shrek the Third – Review
I enjoyed the original “Shrek” well enough. I even enjoyed “Shrek II” almost as much. “Shrek the Third”, regrettably, is far from measuring up to the standards set by its predecessors. The humor comes across as stale and forced and otherwise predictable, which does little to honor the clever and innovative comedy of its older siblings. “Shrek the Third” isn’t up to the standard of its name and instead feels like one of the many Shrek “knock-offs” that began polluting theaters shortly after the original proved to be a hit, such as “Doogle” and “Happily N’Ever After”.
With the King of Far Far Away (John Cleese) about to croak, the reluctant Shrek (Mike Myers) is next in line to assume command. A simple ogre, all Shrek wants is to settle down back in his swamp with his lovely wife, Fiona (Cameron Diaz). To escape such dreaded responsibility, Shrek sets out to collect the only other heir to the throne, Arthur Pendragon (Justin Timberlake). Shortly before setting out, Fiona drops a bombshell on her poor husband: she’s expecting. As if Shrek’s problems weren’t bad enough, it would seem that young Arthur has no intentions of coming along willingly. And yet all this is only a slight nuisance when compared to the real threat, the villainous Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) and his legion of fairy tale villains who lay siege to the kingdom of Far Far Away in Shrek’s absence.
While my opening paragraph may paint “Shrek the Third” as the anti-Christ of animated film’s, it really isn’t all bad. While the humor is dreadfully subpar when compared to the standard the franchise set, the story and animation are actually quite good. The talented folks at Dreamworks outdo themselves this time around, presenting a very visually gorgeous film. The plot of Prince Charming and his hordes of fairy tale villains overthrowing the kingdom is also pretty fun. I actually found the scenes featuring the villains to be the most entertaining (especially Captain Hook). Merlin (played by Eric Idle) also got a few chuckles out of me.
The downside of the film is that aside from a few moments of inspired comedy, “Shrek the Third” just isn’t all that funny. I know humor is subjective and all that, but the movie relies on far too many hackneyed and predictable gags while riding on several call-backs and nostalgic bits from the previous films. These jokes are fine when used sparingly, but they unfortunately encompass most of the film’s comedy. You’ll find yourself more interested in watching the characters run around doing their thing rather than laughing yourself silly.
As far as the voice performances go, there isn’t a whole lot of new blood to speak of. The returning cast members deliver as well as they have in previous installments. Eric Idle portrays a humorous “New Age” Merlin and does it quite well, as he’s no new-comer to the world of voice acting. Justin Timberlake, on the other hand, does a rather poor job as the bratty Arthur. Not exactly being a follower of Timberlake’s, I don’t know how much experience he has in the field of voice acting, but he comes off rather forced and awkward. While I’m not the dude’s biggest fan, I don’t think he’s a terrible actor, he’s just not very good at doing voice overs.
“Shrek the Third” epitomizes the term “losing steam”, as you can really tell the franchise is about done. Not a very strong note to go out on, I must confess, but I’m sure it’ll clean-up at the box office anyway thanks to the inescapable marketing blitz and the overall power of the brand name.
Grade: C
Gerard Butler Adds 2 more films his upcoming slate
After the success of “300” it’s no surprised the Gerard Butler is the hottest new action star in Hollywood. He is currently attached to an “Escape from New York” remake/prequel, as well as a sci-fi action film called “Game”.
Now, he’s added two more films to the list.
He will join Jodie Foster and Abigail Breslin in Fox Walden kids adventure “Nim’s Island,” based on Wendy Orr’s kids book. The film is set for release next April, and revolves around a girl who lives on a tropical island with her father. One day his boat has trouble, leaving her stranded on the island alone. She begins emailing the author of the book she is reading, and with the author’s help, is able to manage.
“Nim” will film first, followed by “Game”. After that, Butler will star in Brian DePalma’s “Untouchables” prequel “Capone Rising” for Paramount. It appears as though he’ll be playing a younger version of Sean Connery’s character in the original film.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2007) – Review
My childhood can be summed up with three simple ingredients: “Ghostbusters”, “X-Men” and “Ninja Turtles”. I love me some Turtles. Now, contrary to what a lot of people might have you think, the TMNT hardly ever went away. They’ve almost always existed in some form or another since their debut. I mean, a year after the original cartoon was cancelled, that live action TV show came around. Four years after that went bust, the current Ninja Turtles cartoon began airing on Fox. The comics hardly ever went away, though publishing would sometimes jump around between Mirage, Image and Archie. So really, what have people been missing about the TMNT? What aspect of the franchise has been sorely absent for so many years?
A theatrical movie, of course. It’s been fourteen years since their last effort and the TMNT haven’t seen the silver screen since. This new film almost seemed to come from nowhere, mostly due to a very late marketing campaign that didn’t seem to get going until a few weeks before the flick’s premiere. Not a very good strategy, I must confess.
It’s been several years since the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles defeated their arch enemy, the Shredder. Over time, the four brothers have grown apart. Leonardo (James Arnold Taylor) has left to Central America for over a year to train, Donatello (Mitchell Whitfield) has gotten a job as a tech support consultant, Michelangelo (Mikey Kelly) is living it up as a children’s birthday party chew toy and Raphael (Nolan North) has taken up the guise of a vigilante known as the Nightwatcher. The four brothers are quickly drawn back together when immortal corporate executive Max Winters (Patrick Stewart) hires the ruthless Foot Clan to help him gather a horde of grotesque monsters. Winters intends to awaken his four stone generals and use the monsters to open a gateway to another dimension. If the Ninja Turtles wish to stop him, they’re going to have to learn to work as a team once again.
As a Ninja Turtle fan, I really enjoyed the flick. It had all the plot of a Saturday Morning Cartoon, so don’t go into this expecting all sorts of complex storytelling. Honestly, had the script been shopped to 4Kids Entertainment and not the Weinstein Company, this probably could’ve ended up as an episode of the cartoon series and nobody would’ve noticed. Yet it’s rated PG and it’s a kid’s movie, so really, what else did you expect? As far as being a kid’s movie is concerned, don’t worry, this is far darker and more intelligent than both “Secret of the Ooze” and “TMNT III”. This new film never gets any grittier than the original 1990 TMNT film, but that’s okay by me.
The CG animation is exceptionally good. Though it’s not the popular opinion, I believe that CG animated films are a market of untapped potential. I mean, for every action film like TMNT or Advent Children, there are two dozen Shreks, Doogles and Open Seasons. Studios are more interested in copying Pixar’s brand of animated comedies than actually seeing what other kinds of storytelling they could accomplish with the genre. So in that respect, TMNT is refreshing. Now, don’t be expecting this film to be all hyper-realistic just because it’s CGI. It’s a cartoon and it knows it, with character designs that are heavily stylized and occasionally (occasionally) employing “Looney Tunes”-like cartoon sight gags. However, I found this to be anything but a set-back and gave the film a fun charm. You can only take something like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles so seriously.
The characterization of the cast is everything you’d expect. Leo and Raph once again take center stage while Don and Mike fall into the backseat. Granted, Leo and Raph’s polar-opposites dynamic is quite interesting, it isn’t anything we haven’t seen before. Mike has always been my least favorite Turtle, so of course I found him rather annoying in the film. He’s there to provide burp gags, puns and generic comedy relief I’d rather do without…but on the bright side, his sewer skateboarding segment was pretty sweet. Don gets the short end of the stick as usual, only popping up to do something technical and then fade away. Splinter was wonderful in this film, thanks mostly to a fantastic performance by Mako. Then there’s April and Casey, who get just as much a spotlight as the Turtles. April runs her own business alongside Casey and has been training in Ninjustsu, apparently becoming nearly as good as the Turtles. Karai and the Foot, I must confess, fall a bit on the wayside. There’s a hint of animosity between her and Leo, but most of their quarrel is shamelessly reserved for the inevitable sequel.
The voice acting is mostly good. There was nothing wrong with any of the actors playing the Turtles, at least nothing I noticed. Sarah Michelle Gellar phones in a rather underwhelming performance as April and her lines are delivered with all the fluidity of a pile of rocks in a tornado. The late and great Mako almost steals the show as Splinter, balancing the stern martial arts sensei with the loving father and throwing in some hilarious character quirks along the way. A terrible shame we’ll never hear him in the role again. Kevin Michael Richardson voices the most prominent of the four generals, General Aquila, and does fine. He’s one of my favorite cartoon voice actors and can sound very villainous when it counts. Patrick Stewart has become quite good at voice acting over the years and plays the sympathetic Max Winters as well as you can imagine. Ziyi Zhang is a bit of an oddity, I must confess. Karai is supposed to be Japanese, but Zhang’s accent is entirely too Chinese sounding. In all likelihood, most Americans won’t be able to tell. And finally Chris Evans delivers a perfectly appropriate performance as the lovable hockey mask-clad vigilante, Casey Jones.
And then there’s the leftovers. Laurence Fishburne, of all people, provides an opening narrative briefly recapping the Turtles’ history as well as the backstory of the villains. Kevin Smith also makes a surprise cameo as the cook at a diner. He actually does a pretty good job. A few more recognizable cartoon voice actors can be spotted throughout the movie if you’re a cartoon buff like me. You’ll notice Jim Cummings as a generic thug who keeps winding up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Billy West also shows up as a news anchorman.
So, all in all, what did I think of the new TMNT movie? Honestly, I liked it. It’s a kid’s action movie, for sure, but there’s hardly anything present to turn off an older audience. There are lots of references and nods to the “classic” TMNT to get the nostalgia rivers flowing, but enough entertainment value to keep from relying on it. Some great fight scenes and a mostly impressive voice cast. Definitely check it out.
Grade: B
Bridge to Terabithia – Review
The trailers and television spots for this film gave me the impression that it was going to be another “Harry Potter” or, more appropriately, another “Chronicles of Narnia”. You know, a movie where a group of adorable kids travel to a beautiful fantasy world and engage in a slew of amazing adventures, jam-packed with gorgeous special effects and CGI from start to finish.
Well, that’s not what this movie is like at all, but I’m sure that everyone who read the book (ie: not me) already knew this. So, even though this movie is only somewhat similar to what the marketing campaign promised, is it any good? Yeah, actually, it’s pretty good.
Jess (Josh Hutcherson) is a young boy with a gift for creative art but is constantly forced to repress his imagination by his father (Robert Patrick), who wants him to “keep his head out of the clouds”. Things change when a new girl, Leslie (AnnaSophia Robb), arrives at school. Leslie is the daughter of two fiction authors and has a wild imagination. Gradually, she helps Jess set his imagination free and the pair become fast friends. Together, Jess and Leslie create their own fantasy world known as Terabithia, where they use their imaginations to escape from reality as well as devise means to conquer their own personal problems.
At first I was disappointed with the film because I felt like I’d been snookered by a very misleading marketing campaign. Then, as I began to understand the real point of the movie, I came to appreciate it. For the most part, anyway.
“Bridge to Terabithia” is for kids, more-so than “Narnia” and “Harry Potter”. It is not crawling with special effects like the trailers imply (in fact, just about all the special effects in the film are shown in the trailers), but instead is a much more personal tale about two close friends growing up and making the most of the time they have together. For at least the first half of the film, yes, the entirety of the plot is basically two kids frolicking in the woods and having imaginary adventures. Kind of like live action role-players, only okay, because they’re children and not mentally-stunted 30 year-olds.
I was a bit “Meh” through the first half. I could tell it was a good movie for kids, and I’m sure if I’d been a ten year old I would’ve been having a great time, but I didn’t feel like I was in the right target audience. Then the big twist happened halfway through and I was in shock. I won’t say any more about it for those of you who don’t want spoilers, but I will say that it was an emotionally thrashing moment which hits you like a bus (if you haven’t read the book or had it spoiled for you, anyway). It was here where I understood the movie’s true lesson, or at least, the dominating one: treasure every moment of your childhood and never let the good memories escape.
It’s kind of hard to talk about the movie (the parts I really liked, anyway), because I don’t want to spoil it. So I’ll talk about something else.
The special effects provided by Walden Media (the “Lord of the Rings” people), as sparingly as they’re used, are up to their usual standards of quality. The fantastic creatures and landscapes which make-up Terabithia are quite cartoonish, but they’re supposed to represent the imagination of a child, so it’s perfectly appropriate.
There’s also the acting from the two lead kids, which impressed me quite a bit. AnnaSophia Robb shines brightest as the wild and rambunctious one, not coming off anywhere near as annoying as characters of her archetype usually do. Josh Hutcherson also carries his role quite well, playing a boy with a strong imagination but crippling amounts of responsibility. The kids who played the supporting characters, such as school bullies and what-not, aren’t so notable. They’re your typical child actors, so I’m not going to rag on them for being underwhelming.
One of the film’s other lessons is one I felt rather strongly about: kids, use your freaking imaginations! In this age of video games where fantasies are mass-produced by corporations and kids are getting out and playing with each other less and less, a movie that comes along and inspires kids to play “pretend” is quite welcome. It was always my favorite game, growing up. The film captures what having fun as a kid and using your imagination is like, and as an adult whose not allowed to do that anymore, I almost found myself longing for simpler (and more fun) times.
So if you’re expecting sword, sorcery and epic quests from “Bridge to Terabithia”, I’m sorry, but you aren’t going to find them here. Now, if you have kids and you want to inspire them to go outside and play, then this is more up your alley.
Grade: B+