bobbo72 Reviews

Devil (2010)

What a twist! - It wasn't horrible

[7/10 · 21 August 2011]

A friend of mine kept telling me this wasn't too bad and finally convinced me to check this out. Even then, I expected the movie to be crap. While watching it I had in the back of my mind that it's not bad now, but at some point it's going to be stupid.

The "twist" in the movie was fairly obvious, but the bigger twist is this was a half-decent movie from M Night Shyamalan.

For those that suffered by watching the many other steaming piles M Night calls movies, check this one out. It's actually decently paced (i.e. not glacially slow like everything else) and the acting was decent.

A Christmas Carol (2009)

Great rendition of Christmas Carol

[9/10 · 19 November 2009]

At first I thought this would be awful. I dreaded seeing this classic Dickens tale made into a farce by Zemekis (he has the rare gem, but usually his movies are awful). I expected Jim Carrey would be hamming it up as Ebenezer. To make matters worse, it will be a kiddie 3-D Cartoon no less.

My wife dragged me kicking and screaming to this and I was extremely pleased that I could not be more wrong. Carrey does a very good job, bordering on brilliance, in his roles as Ebenezer and the 3 Ghosts of Christmas. Collin Firth and Gary Oldman provide excellent supporting roles.

Great performances, but the visuals are the real star here. Yes, this has the same motion capture as Beowulf and Polar Express, but this was a great improvement on both. It didn't have the chilly computerised look and feel of those two movies, this had an amazing warmth that had you completely immersed into the picture.

Really a great surprise for those doubters.

Surrogates (2009)

Bad Combo - Boring and Ridiculous

[3/10 · 2 October 2009]

At first I thought robot surrogates is an interesting concept. I can't see it being possible that it would become the norm so quickly, which immediately had me question the premise. This wouldn't be too big a deal if the storyline was written better and didn't have so many holes. It's never good watching a movie and finding yourself constantly challenging it - Why would people bother having their surrogates drive, how likely is the severe segregation of people in just a short time, why was crime so abruptly eradicated (the surrogates cost money don't they), etc.

All that would be excusable if it was still entertaining in a mindless action movie sort of way. Unfortunately, this movie tries to be smart and deep with little action.

The result is a very bad combo for a movie - boring and ridiculous.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009)

Not to be taken seriously - A great ride

[8/10 · 11 August 2009]

If you just want to sit down and enjoy taking a break from thinking for 2 hours this is the movie for you. Great action and special effects/CGI. I loved this movie even with the strange storyline and brutal acting. Marlon Wayans has no business getting paid to be in a movie - he is that bad.

I saw this with two of my buddies and we had a good laugh after the movie. We all knew it was crap, but loved it anyways. We agreed that the best actor in this movie was Snake Eyes.

No doubt the critics will pan this movie. Yes, the acting is awful and the plot is full of ridiculous holes. But if they get off their high horse and are honest about it, they will admit it was fun.

Up (2009)

Guess I'm in the Minority

[5/10 · 8 June 2009]

Reading other comments, it seems that this film was hugely popular with others. I don't think of myself as generally being contrary to the popular opinion, but this movie didn't do it for me.

I'm not saying I hated it - The story was okay, it had some funny parts and the animation was fantastic. However, I just didn't seem to get into it that much. After the movie I asked my oldest daughter what she thought of it (I'm married with 2 girls - 5 & 7). Her first reaction was that she didn't like it, then she came around a little and said it was okay. I don't believe that I biased her by letting on what my feelings of the movie were. My wife felt the same (my youngest didn't like it at all, but she was a little scared by some scenes).

Compared to Monsters vs Aliens - For my family at least - This fell well short of the mark.

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

May be the best action movie I've ever seen

[10/10 · 14 August 2007]

This is the first 10 out of 10 that I've given any movie. What made this movie so good for me? Constant action - there isn't any slow parts, great acting, smart writing. I also liked the filming style where the shakiness and different angles just made it feel like you are a part of the scene. Finally, I get to see an action movie that doesn't try to please all sectors of the public (i.e. there's no forced romance).

I liked the first two Bourne movies, but I loved this one.

Warning - after watching this movie, you will be full of adrenaline and you may want to calm down a bit before driving your car!

Elizabethtown (2005)

Pretty good movie, some awkward moments

[7/10 · 12 March 2006]

I agree with another poster's opinion that Sarandon's speech was painful and felt out of place. I also agree that the road trip home was a little out of place and incongruous with the rest of the movie.

However, this movie has so many touching, or clever moments that I generally enjoyed it. I was really surprised with Orlando Bloom's very good performance. I see one post that says Kirsten is a bad actress and ugly. She will never be confused as Judy Dench (I know, Dame Dench is the cliché great actress), but I think Kirsten is believable and better than many actresses in her age group. I like Cameron Crowe's eccentric movies. They are at least unique and usually entertaining. They do not fall within the formulaic approach in a generally stay-safe Hollywood.

-- But not a "chick flick". -- I rented this movie expecting a "chick flick" romance for my wife (what can I say, my wife likes the light and fluffy) to counter "my" rental, Sin City. From that perspective, I suppose Elizabethtown failed. She was bored with Elizabethtown and commented on it being long a couple of times. She also was really turned off by Sarandon's speech saying it was just stupid. This coming from a fan of Lohan movies and too many other movies that can be painful for me to watch, but she enjoys.

By the way Sin City is amazing, one of my favs.