There hasn't been a good western in about a million years, so I was delightfully surprised after watching 3:10 to Yuma.

This is a movie--you've got strong characters, a solid story, great acting, excellent production, cool action, and...
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There hasn't been a good western in about a million years, so I was delightfully surprised after watching 3:10 to Yuma.

This is a movie--you've got strong characters, a solid story, great acting, excellent production, cool action, and engaging drama that never feels pretentious. Not once did I ever feel bored, that of which can be credited to the superb direction of James Mangold.

The only thing I can think of when thinking about 3:10 to Yuma is: "That's how it's done." Sure, the film isn't groundbreaking and some things will feel a little too familiar, but the good tramples the bad with a half dozen horses, and then, it shoots it in the face.

War almost constantly fails to impress.

Just the fact that Jason Statham and Jet Li are in a movie, billed to fight each other, should be promising enough to guarantee an $8.50 well spent on a night at the movies. Unfortunately,...
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War almost constantly fails to impress.

Just the fact that Jason Statham and Jet Li are in a movie, billed to fight each other, should be promising enough to guarantee an $8.50 well spent on a night at the movies. Unfortunately, everything that happens feels like it stops short of being as cool as it could have been.

War has everything you would expect from a movie like this (dudes getting shot in the head, a car chase, crap getting blown up, etc.), but the problem is that you've seen everything that's done here before, and done much better. This leads to every "memorable" action scene to be utterly forgettable.

The acting and narrative are mediocre, and these things aren't always necessary to movies like this, but it definitely would have helped in War's case.

I didn't have a bad time watching War, it's just that I was always frustrated because it felt like I only got to see half of what I wanted. The movie builds up for an hour and 14 minutes to an unfufilling climax, and then you forget you ever saw it.

Good compared to the other Halloween movies, not so good when standing on its own.

I really wish this movie didn't have to fall into the same old slasher flick mold. Sex is an underlining theme in almost every scene, bad language just...
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Good compared to the other Halloween movies, not so good when standing on its own.

I really wish this movie didn't have to fall into the same old slasher flick mold. Sex is an underlining theme in almost every scene, bad language just to be vulgar, and if you see a girl's boobs, it probably means she's going to die. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I'm offended by that stuff, it's just that it's so played out and unnecessary that I think it disservices the film.

It does some cool things with the lighting and camera work, but the novelty of shaking the camera like crazy does get old pretty fast.

I think everyone going to see this already knows what to expect, and if you don't, then let me say: It's Halloween. Better than the recent sequels, but nowhere near the original. See it with an open mind and you should enjoy the show. I doubt you'll ever feel like sitting through it again, though.

The third installment into the "Pirates" series can be entertaining, but it's far too long and complicated than it should be.

I'm not saying the series doesn't deserve it's success--lot of work obviously goes into these...
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The third installment into the "Pirates" series can be entertaining, but it's far too long and complicated than it should be.

I'm not saying the series doesn't deserve it's success--lot of work obviously goes into these films--but after watching At World's End, I can't help but feel it's gone on too long since Dead Man's Chest.

When the action hits in Pirates 3, it's done wonderfully. The special effects are wonderful, the fight scenes are fun, and it's when the characters are at their best. Unfortunately, you're forced to sit through long, tedious scenes of rambling dialogue (am I watching The Godfather III?) and a bunch of uninteresting, aimless events happening in one of the movie's numerous plots. If this movie is supposed to be something the whole family can enjoy, then why write it so it's difficult for an adult to understand? If my 20-something year old friends have trouble grasping the story, then chances are a 13-year-old is going to be foaming at the mouth and going into convulsions by the time the climax hits.

At World's End isn't a bad movie, but it does fail to put the series on anywhere near the same level as something like The Lord of the Rings. Go see it if you loved the first two, but if you didn't like Dead Man's Chest then you probably really won't like this one.

The Untouchables could have been great, but cheesy cliches and an uninspired script never let it reach its potential.

After watching The Untouchables, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. The film is plagued with the...
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The Untouchables could have been great, but cheesy cliches and an uninspired script never let it reach its potential.

After watching The Untouchables, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. The film is plagued with the aforementioned flaws, but something I find really wrong is Brian De Palma never goes into enough detail about Al Capone (played by Robert De Niro). We catch a glimpse into his personality in the beginning of the movie, but after that they only show short scenes of him being a bad guy. You'd think a movie made about the capture of one of the most notorious figures in the history of organized crime would develop the character a little more.

With that said, The Untouchables does do a good job of looking like the era it takes place in. You can tell a lot of work went into the costumes and settings. It's just too bad not as much attention was paid to other aspects of the movie.

De Niro and Connery do the best acting jobs here. If there were more scenes with them, then the film itself could have been much more enjoyable. Everyone else does a mediocre job, but it's not all their fault--the script isn't exactly engaging.

This movie was frustrating to watch because, scene after scene, I had to watch as my expectations slowly failed to be met. I did learn something from watching The Untouchables, though--never buy a movie off hype alone.

300 may not have the thickest plot, but it succeeds in almost everything it's trying to accomplish.

As most people know by now, 300 is based on the graphic novel, of the same name, by Frank Miller (Sin City). When a movie comes out...
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300 may not have the thickest plot, but it succeeds in almost everything it's trying to accomplish.

As most people know by now, 300 is based on the graphic novel, of the same name, by Frank Miller (Sin City). When a movie comes out that's based on a novel; there are two questions that come to mind: Does it stay true to the original iteration, and does it stand on its own? 300 manages to do both, which is a very rare thing these days. You don't have to know, or care, about the graphic novel to like the film, but it stays true enough to keep most of the fans at bay.

The well-made fighting scenes and fantastically done CGI will impress most people, but there are a number of things that may turn some away. For example, some people may think the CGI is overdone, and others might not like the fantasy-theme it has going on. Also, it doesn't quite have the epic feel it seems to be going for.

Overall, Zack Snyder delivers a movie that reaches a fairly broad appeal. It may not be for absolutely everybody, but most should find something to like about it.

Aqua Teen Hunger Force's appeal probably won't extend far beyond its hardcore fanbase.

The main problem with ATHF is the comedy doesn't stay consistent thoughout the movie. Admittedly, there are some knee-slappers, but these moments...
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Aqua Teen Hunger Force's appeal probably won't extend far beyond its hardcore fanbase.

The main problem with ATHF is the comedy doesn't stay consistent thoughout the movie. Admittedly, there are some knee-slappers, but these moments are too few and far in between. What you end being left with is one long, mediocre episode of the TV show.

I've been watching the show since it first started, but I can't recommend this to anyone who doesn't already, at least casually, watch the show--even in that case, I say wait until it's on DVD to rent it first.

On the surface, Hot Fuzz appears to be just a parody of the action/cop genre, but much like Shaun of the Dead, they take it a step further and make a really good movie that stands on its own.

Admittedly, the first half of the movie...
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On the surface, Hot Fuzz appears to be just a parody of the action/cop genre, but much like Shaun of the Dead, they take it a step further and make a really good movie that stands on its own.

Admittedly, the first half of the movie moves somewhat slow for what it's trying to make fun of, but the jokes, characters, and mystery plot make it easy and interesting to sit through. Your patients is richly rewarded because when Hot Fuzz picks up the pace, it really picks up the pace. Action fans will absolutely love everything that is going on here and of course, Hot Fuzz maintains its humor all the way through.

What sets Hot Fuzz (and Shaun of the Dead) apart from the genres it's making fun of is that they actually make you care about the characters, which in turn makes you care more about the story and movie when it's all over. They're taking worn out, cliched genres and making them fun to watch again.

I personally hope Simon Pegg, Edgar Wright, and company plan on making these kinds of films for a long time -- the movie industry needs it.