Dr_MIX Reviews

Batman: Gotham Knight (2008 Video)

Cool animation doesn't justify weak stories

[6/10 · 9 July 2008]

I'll admit, I was somewhat disappointed after viewing what I had hoped would be on the same level as the animatrix in terms of story, however I think the filmmakers behind this put more emphasis on the animation than did in their stories.

The one thing that crippled this film the most was its dialogue, I don't know what it is with anime films that are dubbed in English, but the voices and lines come off forced and extremely cliché.

But the animation is breathtaking, each short gave its distinct visual style and its variety helped the film distinguish itself as being in a league much higher than that of the other animated Batman films. But interesting animation does not make up for a lack of engaging stories.

Among the six shorts, there were 3 I liked, and three I disliked. The first one being the one I liked the least, but that goes without saying among these boards. And the conceptual design of Batman in Field Test made him look like a teradactyl. Kevin Conroy's voice didn't often match the 14 year old Bruce Wayne either.

I recommend this film if you are a fan of the character, but I don't suggest buying it. Worth a watch.

Cloverfield (2008)

Looking for something different? Look no further.

[8/10 · 6 April 2008]

The marketing department for J.J. Abram's Cloverfield did an excellent job to build up the mystery surrounding this film; it was the first time in years I had gone into a movie theatre without knowing much of the film's premise.

The film seems to be combining elements from The Blair Witch Project and Godzilla in this tale of survival and love amidst a monster attack in New York City. Although this sort of apocalyptic story has been done well over a thousand times in New York, it is executed brilliantly and it seems as though the filmmakers have reinvented the way we see monster films by taking this home video style approach to the film. However, the shaky cam could make some individuals feel somewhat disoriented as a result.

Many people criticise this film for not shedding light on where this creature comes from, what it is, and what happens afterwards, although that is the film's strongest asset; keeping the audience in the dark allows them to let their imagination run wild and fill in the gaps themselves. It is a much smarter approach than to have a random scientist in a lab coat spoon feeding the audience exactly what is happening, but unfortunately, that is what many people were expecting. The exclusion of recognizable stars gives the film more credibility, but that could also have been because of budgetary constraints. What the actor's are experiencing looks genuine and convincing enough for me to watch the film without judging their acting performances.

Psycho (1960)

The first of a kind

[9/10 · 10 February 2008]

I had always avoided watching Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho due to its age and how our media has ridiculed its famous shower scene for the past forty years. I just thought I would not be able to take it seriously. However, as I was watching it, I was fully immersed in its world and I couldn't look away.

Many criticise it for its somewhat slow pace, I supposed that's to be expected from my generation, who are used to watching quickly paced Michael Bay trash. But I didn't find this film to be terrifying like many believe it is, though I suppose that's because I don't carry that nostalgia of having grown up with this film and also because when it was first released, it was the first if it's kind. "Slasher" films had scarcely been done in 1960, but now there are at least two released each week.

The lighting in Psycho is terrific; it really made me uneasy in the scenes in which Norman Bates was talking to Marion Crane because the lighting is so atmospherically creepy, especially in relations to the shadows the stuffed birds emitted. Alfred Hitchcock did an amazing job at building suspense as well. I was on the edge of my seat up until the shower scene, it felt like the climax, halfway through the film, and things sort of trailed afterwards I find. Anthony Perkin's acting abilities really impressed me, how he could easily switch between his multiple personas all the while still showing us that there is a crazy man behind all his facial expressions of friendliness was fantastic.

The score was extremely well written and the composer really connected the visuals to the music in a way that made the viewer uneasy. However, the actual killings weren't well executed in my humble opinion, they felt more unintentionally comedic than frightening, and I'm sure it wasn't Hitchcock's intention for viewers to feel this way. But back in 1960, I'm sure audiences were scared out of their minds, but by today's standards, explicit gore is more common and the killings in Psycho felt a bit weak.

It was an excellent film nevertheless 9/10

Predator 2 (1990)

Possibly the dumbest film I have ever seen.

[4/10 · 16 June 2007]

Now I came into this film with low expectations seeing as how this was rated 5.6 here. I always try to underestimate a film so that I can be pleasantly surprised afterwards when it turns out to be surprisingly entertaining. But never in my life would I have thought my low expectations would be shattered to a million pieces by this sequel. The original was quite good, this was not.

Had I watched this film alone, I would have turned it off 20 minutes into film, but thankfully a friend and I were laughing our a**es off at the idiocy of the supporting characters, the dialogue, and the goofy action sequences. Good time all around, but for all the wrong reasons.

This film doesn't contain one character I like, let alone someone I can endure, their all so incredibly two dimensional and annoying with all their one liners and the random use of swear words, that movie sure was "hardcore". Perhaps the one person this film could've have done without was that tough female cop, a cop that has nothing much more to add than to emphasize the obvious and look pi**ed off, to which we later find out she is pregnant, but never hear from her again. Pointless.