Starting to fall behind with my new music feed a bit. Here's a bit, first off a little bit of beat-making wizardry with a little angry kid...

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It's like Justice Leage - War all over again, but with a new villain, and a totally new cast. Instead of (most of) the Justice League there's Constantine, Zatanna, Deadman, the human/demon duo Jason Blood and Etrigan, and Swamp Thing, no less!

I read through a batch of comics starring these somewhat lesser-known superheroes last summer, so the new cast was fun to see, but the script itself is... not new.

Maybe all these movies follow the same formula somehow, but though exciting and intense it also feels used, and too powerful. They just keep going and going. There's no limit. You never feel like one of the characters might be in danger for real when there's always one more hero lurking behind a corner; ready to jump in. It's fluent, but at the same time it feels broken. Aimless. A mash-up instead of a masterpiece. I like the characters and their get-together against evil, but it doesn't go beyond 'good'.

The beginning showed promise, with humans seeing other humans as demons - a plague that was sweeping over the world, and the Justice League was called together to stop the threat... but then Batman says something about how de doesn't believe in magic, and goes off by himself to find... guess what? A magician. And poof: it all changes.

A while later Constantine and his magic house (plus good-looking material manifestation of ditto) enter to save the day, a few more show up for the ride, and they go on an adventure of their own like the demon plague is a thing of the past, and then get back to a city where the rest of the Justice League are suddenly their enemies - taken over by the darkness (for some reason the new heroes are all immune). Time for one EPIC SHOWDOWN.

Whatever happened to the League, though? It feels like an incredible mistitle of the movie. And whatever happened with the soundtrack? Dubstep just because it's the new thing. And whatever happened to the plot? Loose ends. So many. It's like a wig just fell apart and the hairs are all over the place. It was fun to watch, but I get why the IMDB score doesn't go more than a third of the way. The voice acting, animation and such is great, and it never gets dull, but the script feels rushed and inconsistent.

Wish the new guys would've received a more proper introduction.

 rated 3/5: not bad

What a dark movie this was! A guy gets into prison because of an accident, and gets into a gang, and from there on it just keeps going downhill... but he takes it all like a man.

It's not action. It's drama. The main character's no good guy, but he sort of is, still. He doesn't make excuses. Life is ruthless. You can't chose it. Surely he regrets a lot but he doesn't show a thing, he just keeps on going, and so is king.

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau puts on a killer performance. Never mind the similarities to Snitch with The Rock, this movie stands well on it's own two feet because he's a beast... with a conscience.

Great watch.

 rated 4/5: fo shizzle

I don't really like Jim Sturgess as an actor (at least not in this movie, with the people he acts with/against), some of the special effects don't show promise for the future, and the post-apocalyptic scenario - and effects, and angles feel a bit run down by now, but otherwise... it was a pretty good movie.

Gerard Butler is great, at least. Abbie Cornish and Zazie Beetz too. Ed Harris plays a good but somewhat non-notable villain, and Andy Garcia a mostly equally non-notable president. Except for the highway scene. That was kick-ass.

In the end it feels overly patriotic, overly apocalyptic and overly emotional without actually getting-said emotions across - because they play on the same constricted topics and relations as always, and the characters bond the way they always do. It just feels unfortunately cliche, even if the main idea of a network of satellites to steer the weather - turned into a weapon, is both relevant and full of potential. Not new, but new in a movie... as far as I know. At least new in a Blockbuster like this.

It's far from the best apocalypse movie I've seen, but it's worth a watch if you like the theme, and I hope you embrace the message as well! Let's not mess too much with Mother Earth, because really, we all love her. I hope the rest of the world does too.

As long as we remember, that we share one future, we will survive.

 rated 3/5: not bad

What a thriller! The credits were great too. Stylish. And prepare for twists in the plot! Or better yet don't prepare. Be surprised.

It's one wild night at a casino, with good cops, bad cops, bad guys and good guys. And a girl. And a son. And a hostage drama. It reminded me a bit of Smokin' Aces in grit and style, and in how all these different people gather at the same place for the showdown - though it's not fully that wild.

It's also apparently based on Nuit Blanche, which is thus another movie I need to see.

Will there be a sequel? I sure hope so! It gets better, and better, and I feel like I grow with the characters in their fights. A gritty, grungy and all-out great watch, even if certain inconsistencies and imperfections had me really weighing it on the edge between a 3 and 4.

Jamie Foxx and Michelle Monaghan make a great duo though. Tough cops. They hold the weight of whatever else is wonky and keep it on its feet. Hope to see more!

 rated 4/5: fo shizzle

This was like Crank 2 but without the attitude. An explosive actionfeast featuring a hit man who one day falls in love with the protector of his target, who kills him, yet is brought back to life to betray her, yet decides to help her instead and ends up crushing the organization he worked for in the first place. Sounds almost like a soap opera huh?

I'm both happy and disappointed with how it ends. It shows promise, but at the same time it feels like this was the ending I hoped for... and I get it. I hoped it would surprise me. What's next though? 48 Hours? It's the eighties all over again. :)

All in all it was an action thriller done well, no more no less, starring Ethan Hawke, Rutger Hauer, Nathalie Boltt, Tanya van Graan and a bunch of others. Gritty, good, violent and futuristic. It's got it... but it could have been better.

 rated 3/5: not bad

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