Change Your Image
trevor-johnson
Reviews
Love Thy Neighbour (1972)
Racist to the easily offended only.
This show has to be taken and viewed in the context it was written in.
As a black man born in the early 70's, this show is funny for all the people of my parents age I mentioned it to. 'Political Correctness' is more about white people feeling comfortable with what other white people say in their presence, than making black people feel comfortable about whats said to them by white people. Eddie Booth takes the brunt of nearly every episode as his ignorance shows him to be the fool so often. His bigoted ways always showed him up to be the narrow minded, unintelligent idiot he is and regularly needed his wife's help to set him straight.
Fair enough, its not everyones cup of tea, but it is funny and to think it got shelved from being re-run because of our over protective PC fanatics thought it would re-ignite racism in our streets is a shame. News is that racism hasn't gone and will never go and considering racism is a learnt behaviour, if parents want to educate their young children to be racist, they will just get the DVDs at home and let them watch it that way. ted00043 from Australia just doesn't get the show. Its like a die-hard Columbo viewer watching Bablyon 5; it messes with their head.
If your going to do it, do it properly. Ban it all together (from our shelves, TV and archives) or let it be seen by everyone, everywhere.
Clash of the Titans (2010)
Awful....
Let me start on the plus points.
The caste did a real good job at playing the parts they were given. Hats off to the casting crew.
Thats it.
Now the rest of the film.
Nothing like the original or book. Certain key characters have severely reduced parts, which you could call cameo appearances. They have taken out large chunks of plot line and character development in order to cut corners on cost. I could go on, but there's little point. Its a bad film and if I had paid to watch it, I would have been extremely annoyed. As it happens, I got in for free.
My final note is to Hollywood. Don't ask why people are watching your films illegally when your making crap like this. You should have left this and many of the other remakes you have done, well alone.
Dragonball Evolution (2009)
Don't you just hate Hollywood?
From looking at some of the reviews on here, I will keep mine simple as people seem obsessed one way or another. I am reviewing this film on the credits.
1. Relation to the original series. 2. Quality of script 3. quality of actors/actresses/acting 4. quality of effects 5. Final product.
This film bears two relations to the original. The characters and the Dragonballs. There is nothing else to link the two. This is so sad when you consider how much they had to work with and all they could produce was this. The characters also bear little resemblance to their anime predecessors. None of them do what they are supposed to do, except Chi Chi, who didn't do much anyway. Where's Roshi's turtle shell. Why does Bulma carry several fully automatic weapons? And why is Yamcha now a ladies man? To their credit though, Roshi's behaviour soon after he appears is very accurate even if it is short lived.
The script for this film is its downfall. It's just awful. The writers have tried to fit too much into a short period of time. This film needed to be 2.5 to 3 hours long to even come close to allowing all the characters to be fleshed out. Attention should have been paid to Transformers when they were making this film. If you want to make a film based on a TV series, as those who watched it, not a bunch of suits that are paid to watch it and come up with a story. Many people who enjoyed the show could have given suggestions throughout the whole movie making experience.
AS bad as the film was, it doesn't take anything away from the actors themselves. They did the best they could with the tools they had. If you ask a builder to build you a house out of sticks, don't complain when it falls over.
This film had all the effects of an 80's movie. Think of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and the scene where the Freddie battles the kid in the wheelchair. That's the level of effects in this film. And I will leave the dragon, Shenron, so you come to your own conclusions. I don't want to seem prejudiced.
This film lands not just way off the mark for a spin off movie, it's in another continent. They should never have made it if it was going to be so lack lustred. It could have been done with a comedy element, which would have saved it, but no. They even try to throw in romance, but you have only seen the characters for an hour so who cares. Why so many inconsistencies from the original anime series? For example, Roshi does not live on an island. All these little details could have been included with another hour of film time. No one wants to watch an 88 minute film nowadays. Its just not value for money. Some may think that 1 out of 10 is harsh, but when they made such a hash of what could have been another Transformers, its all it deserves.
Monster House (2006)
It scared my 6 year old into laughter on the way home.
Lets take this film for what it is on the surface. Its an animation that target older children whilst providing something for teenagers and adults at the same time. The animation is of a new format that may not please all, but is far superior to that of many Japanese animations and a pleasant change to the usual Disney styles we have become used too. There are lines in there that if you don't listen well, you will miss that give the film its adult humour.
I expected another dreary wrong-to-right story line with morals and lessons learnt at the end, but there was none of that. All of the main characters are the same throughout and none of them came out thinking 'I'm glade I learnt from that experience'. The fact that this film went right to the brink of being a 'PG' without falling off the edge into the '12' certification was a masterpiece of film making on Dreamworks part. My six year old son went from the regular seating position, to being on the edge of his seat, to then standing behind the seats in front and then finally back into his seat again. All of this in the first 20 minutes. Superb.
Give it a go for sure.
House of 9 (2005)
Would have been a great film if the script was better.
Many people say that this film is like Saw, Cube and other reality TV shows, but I judge this film on its own merits.
On the down sides, the plot is slow at times but not for long. These lulls give you time to mull over what has happened and how bonds are forming without affecting the plot lines progression. Then the scripting is weak, but maybe this was done deliberately so as not to over do the films dialogue. This has happened in some films that have left you with too much too process when you consider that the number of characters are enough to keep track off. The accents are awful. When are British film makers going to learn that not are English actor and actresses have to speak the Queens English or have a cockney accent? It became painful at times to listen to Kelly Brook deliver her lines with that accent. I know shes well spoken, but that could have been worked on I'm sure.
On the plus sides however, there are no irrational reactions from any of the characters (even though the circumstances would have allowed for it). There was no annoying running around and screaming like in most teen slasher movies, but instead a calm acceptance of the circumstance that lay before the group. There was also no need for the killings to start straight away. In most films like this, someone dies whilst the introduction credits are still rolling but not in this one. Makes a refreshing change to see such reservation in the scripting as to hold the audience for a good while without having to resort pointless violence.
For me, the most intriguing part of the film is to see how we as humans can resort back to our primal instincts without much effort. How we can turn on one another when personal survival take precedence. In a way they are forced to kill each other, but the speed at which they turn after the first dead is pretty much how I think it would happen. Great job with the accuracy in delivering how animalistic we still are.
All in all, a good film that would have been much better with certain tweaks.
I would if there will be a sequel?
The Hills Have Eyes (2006)
Almost as bad as 'Wolf Creek'
Lets cut to the chase.
This film is awful with one exception, its graphic. Boy, oh boy is it graphic! This element of the film is a perfect example of how horror movies should be. None of the 'cutting the camera away just as the pick axe is being implanted into the head of someone' antics that you see on so many films now, you see everything. This improved my rating of this film from two to three out of ten.
Everything else about this film is tragic.
Spliting up the party in the hope of finding a way out of a predicament.....ridiculous! Seeing things that should not be there and not telling anyone.....ridiculous! Finding dead animals that have been gutted, but not eaten by Cayotes.....ridiculous! I understand the inability of the human mind to handle extreme trauma, but all of this happened before anyone knew they were in danger.
The real pity is that they are making a sequel. Tragic.
I will not waste no more of my time reviewing this film as I have to go and dig a hole for no apparent reason, and thats far more important.
Dirty (2005)
I have seen worse, barely.....
I have no intentions of wasting my time writing a big review on this, so I will summarise.
This film was awful. Most of the roles were acted as well as the actors could do, considering the script but where the hell was the story or plot line? Yes there is massive corruption within the police force across the USA, but I think this film went a little too far with the concept. I am not saying the implied story in this film could not happen, I am merely pointing out that it was poorly portrayed. Avoid it if you can and find other films of this genre from a few yews back like Training Day for example, or even Deep Cover.
My most disappointing character in the film was Wyclef Jean. Whoever told him that his accent was an authentic Jamaican was must have been drunk. I have heard Homer Simpson do a better Jamaican impersonation that Wyclef did. Truly awful.
Wolf Creek (2005)
Where did this story come from?
OK. Bear with me on this one.
This film, if taken on the solo scale of being a horror flick is pretty good. The tension, the possibility of complete failure in the face of impossible odds for all the characters is very good. The pursuits have you hoping that they get away and don't get caught. All in all it is a good scary movie.
So why do I give it a 2/10? This is supposed to be based true facts and events, but what I just could not shrug off was who the hell gave these facts to the police/script writers/producer etc...
Throughout watching this movie, I kept on saying 'why are they doing that? Its stupid!!', 'Why are they being so irresponsible and thinking that that action is a bad idea?'. Maybe I am too logical, but no sober, drug free, clear thinking person would do some of the things they did. I watched Havoc and some of the things the girls did in that was seriously stupid, but I could understand that they did it for the frill. At no point could I say the same for this film. Putting aside their illogical actions though, I go back to my original point of where did the story come from? The only survivor was locked up during the other two events, so how did they knew what the other two did? How did anyone know of the car chasing incident and the same goes for the Camcorder scene? It made no sense. This film I put in the same sparsely populated category as Open Waters. Another film that is supposed to be fact based, but who the hell brought the facts back.
If you like an empty headed horror flick, then this will do, just don't expect any rationality from it because your not going to get it.
Hostel (2005)
Whats scary is this could happen.....
A lot of people have come on here and praised or slated the film for its gore/lack of gore, and how people would have passed out through shock, and how the scene looked real/not real but I have a different outlook on this film.
The most scary thing I could get from this film was if this could really happen. Thousands of people disappear every year when they head off back packing on the other side of the world for a once-in-a-lifetime thrill and they are never heard from again. The Societ block has only just been broken up and there are large countries that have taken their Independence from Russia but how no full knowledge on how to use it. Most people know that the Russain mafia still have strong influences in these countries, so why could (not would) they not set up something like this? A small remote town out in the mountains somewhere with operatives all across Asia, Europe and Africa (just like the guy in Amsterdam). All tourists who are looking for anything different are 'informed & advised' to visit this place and they will find what they are looking for there. Once there, they are never heard from again. Bear in mind that in this film they are not only working against the organisation that has ensnared them, but the police and a few of the locals too.
This film may not have met the levels of SAW & SAW II in many peoples eyes, but I find the possibility of this actually happening far more terrifying than the SAW series. A serial killer as in SAW would just not elude the law long enough to get away with so much bloodshed as the US government has tight monitoring processes in place that would let them track down such a criminal in their own lands pretty swiftly. Out in many of the broke away Soviet block countries, they are no where near as advances.
I think this could truly happen.
Havoc (2005)
Started well, peaked and then....
I am not a big review writer, so I will keep this brief.
All of the main eight or nine characters were played well (even the wannabe gansta's), brilliantly I must add for the lead two. The storyline was very believable as I could imagine rich kids who can buy nearly anything they wanted, putting themselves into dangerous situations in the hope of finding a new frill. What killed the movie for me was the ending.
I won't give away anything that would spoil it for someone who has never seen it before, suffice to say all films need an ending. This film does not have one.
My questions are:
1/ How does one person recover from their experience? 2/ What is the conclusion of the last five people in the two cars? 3/ What happens to the lead male after his final scene?
Watching this movie was like watching 'Lord of the Ring: The Two Towers', and knowing there would be no 'Return of the King'.