blaklife Reviews

Hostel: Part II (2007)

Scary Hostel III anyone?

[28 October 2007]

MILD SPOILERS BELOW!! I agree with the comments here. I was thinking of how great this movie would have been if it were a horror comedy (horroremdy?).

The scenes all could have been bloody fun to watch instead of the lack of timing and suspense that was forced. That music score was gawdawful and boring. Nothing in the movie made me wince although the bloodbath scene was really sicko perverted. I thought it would be funny if the upside down girl chewed up some of those spritens?? (she tried to give to the kids) in red and then spit on the chick on the ground. That woulda been really funny! I'm thinking Mr. Roth needs to team up with the Zuckers and Weinsteins, make "Scary Hostel III" and stop trying to take this crap seriously.

Westworld (1973)

The Ultimate Fighting Championship Man vs Robot

[10/10 · 16 September 2007]

Well ahead of its time. Gives greater suspense than later reincarnations of the same theme as "I Robot" comes to mind. Yul Brenner is excellent despite the lack of speaking lines. The art direction is great as it depicts the themed worlds of Delos. You are caught up in the characters despite the obvious limitations in the story. The idea of indulgence in your greatest fantasies and not realizing what it might actually cost you is interesting. There are some interesting trivia tidbits on the supporting cast. Take a good look at who's in this movie. You might be pleasantly surprised and/or amused. The direction doesn't bog us down in minor characters in fact you want to see more of them. That suggests the movie was quite entertaining because you're not so focused on just the major stars in the movie. In other words, rent or watch it now on Netflix. Worth the price of admission.

Sleeper Cell (2005–2006)

one of the best

[10/10 · 11 August 2007]

Has the drama, suspense, and character developments you would enjoy if you like drama that engages you and entertains as well as educates.

The writers know their material and it shows. The direction is always engaging and not blase, and the acting terrific. Why this show didn't win any awards tells me the "powers that be" in Hollyweird don't know drama or much else for that matter.

There is a plot twist in this episode at the end was a complete surprise and was very well played out. I'm glad it wasn't used as a shock scene for any climatic end to this series which would have been more typical and dull. Rent this series at once! Let's hope its brought back from celluloid extinction.

Pulse (I) (2006)

The first one is better than the second

[4/10 · 10 June 2007]

mildly entertaining. The first one from Japan "Kairo" had better subtlety and kept me watching, despite its moody feel and slow direction. A lot of the original movie never made the final cut (go figure) which makes it suffer (watch the bonus material if you rent it) The 2006 version has some decent acting, but no actor can carry a piece that isn't worth acting in, the movie just can't carry your interest for longer than 45mins since there is a problem with the screenplay adaptation. If the ghosts come thru technology then why would everyone still be retaining their gadgets aka Mattie? Also, how does red tape stop a ghost who walks thru walls or elevator shafts? The movies was just too short in material to make into a horror flick. I found myself "soul less" in continuing to watch so I turned away in time but went to my laptop to look for better movies. Surprisingly I waited but no ghosts arrived!