NEW/AWESOME TRAILER ALERT - The Avengers 2nd Full Theatrical Trailer!

Just released today and still warm off the interweb presses, here is the 2nd full length trailer for The Avengers:




Its...*sniff*...so...*sniff*...beautiful!


So there it is! Director Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, Serenity, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog) giving the fans exactly what they want and the masses one hell of a spectacle. For those not aware: The Avengers is the culmination of the films Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger into one ultimate event movie (check after the credits of most all those films and you will get a scene that leads into The Avengers). It brings all of these characters together, including all the original actors (sans Edward Norton, unfortunately...still plenty of faith in Mark Ruffalo though), into a super team to defend the Earth from an invasion by Thor's a-hole of a brother Loki (Norse God of Mischief) and his army of creatures still unknown.

Considering this movie has been built up over the course of 5 worth-watching films and 4 years...I'd consider this one of the most ambitious movie projects ever produced and, seriously, that trailer is friggen awesome.

Agree? Don't agree? Talk it over in the comments!...If you want...no pressure or anything...to chat and stuff...you know...whatevs...and stuff...

REVIEW - Wanderlust will have you laughing your pants off

The title of this review is funny because there's a nudist in this movie...heh...anyways...

Dare I say that Jennifer Aniston is actually starting to be involved in decent movies? After years of less than mediocre chick flicks and bad romantic comedies, out come Horrible Bosses (not amazing, but still enjoyable) and now Wanderlust. This comedy had me laughing almost consistently and pretty hard, at times.

The story (without giving much away) is  about a married couple (Rudd and Aniston) who buy their first place (a very small and expensive studio condo, or "micro-loft" as their realtor tries to pass it off as), end up loosing their jobs and their new place, and then deciding to move in with George's (Paul Rudd) douche bag brother while they work to get back on their feet. The long car ride to said brother's place is in part a hilarious montage of a what you'd expect from a down-on-their-luck couple's extensive road trip: highlights of singing out loud to cheesy music, arguing about what got them in this situation in first place, blaming one another, apologizing, then arguing/blaming again, more cheesy music singing...it's a bipolar and very amusing scene. The other part of their journey leads them trying to find a hotel and ending up to a the free spirit, hippie commune where the majority of the movie takes place.

The overall theme of the movie is about trying to balance doing what you need to do to get by, while still being able to enjoy life, and it does the theme justice. That "justice" at times being in the form of full frontal male and female nudity (male more so, and in hilarious fashion), some drug usage (not overly/distastefully done), and some uncomfortable free love talk...but still "justice." So if you're adverse to any of these topics, you'll probably want to steer clear of this one. However, if this movie still sounds like a good time, you'll find a there's a lot of fun to be had.

Wanderlust also has a fair amount of moments meant to be funny that end up coming off more uncomfortable and/or awkward than anything else. This aspect had a tendency to bog down a few scenes a bit, but I found the film's positives of a talented and likeable cast, good pacing (I was never board), and great comical situations/script to outweigh the negatives.

If you're still not sure if you'd like to see this film...as the hippie commune's leader Seth says to George earnestly during the film, and without the intent of innuendo: "suck on it" (think it over).

Score: 7.5/10

In honor of President's Day

I ask that you watch this trailer for Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter and keep in mind the brave sacrifices of one of our nation's greatest Presidents. For without his chivalrous acts of quelling the vampire hoard...the South might have won!




A little note on this project: The director of this film is directed by Timur Bekmambetov  (correctly pronounced in English as: Beck-mla-blah-blah-tov), who also directed Wanted. So if you enjoyed that film, or at least have an appreciation for the style in which it was filmed, then this ludacris little movie right here should stay on your radar!

Let me know what you think in the comments below.

REVIEW - Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance burns out

This review comes with an admitted bias: I love comic book movies! At they're best, they can be a blend of many different genres in one. They can encompass action, romance, comedy, drama, and horror in one movie (Spider-Man 2 for example). They also often offer visuals that cannot be pulled off in any other movie without being considered a rip off of that particular comic book character. You'll never see any other movie where a guy has knives pop out of his hands without thinking "Wolverine rip-off!"

So, generally, I go into a comic book movie willing to overlook many faults for the enjoyment of seeing some of my favorite characters brought to life in live action. That being said, it should mean something when I say Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is a bad movie. Going into it, I had all expectations of it being a dumb, but fun enough, movie. But sadly it's not even that.  And really, at several parts, it's just plain dumb. 

I'd go as far as to say the first movie was better, which most people find to be crap anyways and I enjoy as a guilty pleasure. Hell, the scene in the first film where Ghost Rider drives up a skyscraper, chain whips a helicopter to him, tells the pilot "YOU'RE PISSING ME OFF," and then flings the helicopter away was a better Ghost Rider moment than anything you get in this new movie.

 
Spirit of Vengeance does have it's moments. Ghost Rider wreaks havoc on the some bad people, acting as gloriously nuts as only Nick Cage can. Seeing him climb into a giant piece of construction equipment that looks like a massive buzz saw, lighting it up with demon fire, and go to town with it while cackling maniacally was freaking sweet. That and the car chase scene accompanied by a knock-down-drag-out brawl on the hood of an SUV were really well done action sequences. We have directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (also directed Crank) to thank for that and their "over the top, in your face" touches that are seen throughout the movie, but they were too few and far between to keep it from all falling flat. Due to the ho-hum plot and script, the movie was actually straight up boring at several parts. It felt like there was a better movie boiling under the surface...the movie it should have been: ridiculous/hilariously over the top action with some good dark and cheesy humor thrown in, but you only got glimpses of it throughout the movie.

If you feel you still need to see this movie (I'd probably still go see it even after reading my own review here) save your money and see it in 2D. The 3D was barely utilized at all. Things don't get thrown at the screen much and most the entire movie still manages to appear 2D.

As a side note, I feel like Nick Cage is really starting to show his age.  I'm thinking he should give up trying to portray these comic book heroes who are most often shown as in their late 20's to mid 30's and stick with the Big Daddy type roles (from the movie Kick Ass, which I'd say is easily his best role in several years now).

Last, but not least: the best part of this experience was seeing the new Amazing Spider-Man Trailer in 3D.

Score: 4.5/10

Salutations Citizens!

Hola amigo! Bonjour ami! Ciao amico! 友人こんにちは!!مرحبا صديق

I am Sir Scottastic, and this is my movie blog (which will only be in English from here on...sorry for getting your hopes up)! I'd like to start off by dedicating this blog to the people who have inspired it: my friends and loved ones. For without them telling me to "stop talking about movies all the time and just make a damn blog already," this blog would not exist. But seriously, I've gotten a lot of great support from many terrific people who seem to have enjoyed my movie banter and opinions enough to suggest I make a blog. So here it is!

As for my main reason for starting this blog: I love movies. As simple as that.  Freaking love'em! I've loved watching movies since forever, I follow movie news, I worked at a theater for 2 and a half years while going through high school (best high school job in the world, free movie dates!), I have a collection of over 360 movies, and I get bummed when there are a bunch of great movies out and I'm unable to see them before they leave the theater. So there are some of my credentials.

Close mindedness is not something I subscribe to. Anything from Sci-Fi to Chi-Fli (just made that up...stands for "Chick Flicks," copyright Reel Hero Inc!), I'll give it a chance.  So if you have  suggestions of any movie you think I should check out, let me know! 

The initial focus of this blog was to review movies, giving people a good idea of what to expect going into one. But I'll also be throwing out some general opinion blogs and posts about upcoming movies to look out for.

The reason for the name of this blog: I enjoy a good play on words, I like to warn people before they waste their precious time and hard earned money on a movie they probably won't like, and I like giving attention to movies that get over looked. For example, one of my favorite movies is Serenity (high quality Sci-Fi action flicks are in short supply, this is one of them...had it made more money at the box office they'd have made well deserved sequels).

Speaking of reviews and opinions: mine are not that of a professional columnist, film industry specialist, or English major (so go gentle). I am simply a person who watches movies to be entertained. A part of the "general movie going public" if you will. So if you are looking for really in-depth, hyper analytical, hob-snobbish, professionally rendered opinions...and if you can only find enjoyment in movies that are critically acclaimed and/or Oscar worthy, then you're in the wrong place. If you just love watching movies for the fun of it and can look past some faults for a good time...then welcome to my blog :)