Why do Asian movies always have to be so sad?

Can't complain though, it's a good thing in a movie, and this is a great movie. The action starts out regular, with punches and kicks, goes up a notch with knifes and sharp objects, and ends with guns and intensive mayhem. All through the movie the gore stays realistic, bloody, yet realistic. Smoke trails, small explosions and carnage are in a perfect balance between realism and wanted special effects... though I do wonder how the main character so often manages to hit people's legs or feet, he should be aiming at the torso, legs and feet are hard to hit.

Anyhow, the story is about a gangster, working for his boss, sent out on a routine mission to keep an eye on a girlfriend of the boss, things don't go as planned and all hell breaks loose, though. The movie is shot from some really interesting angles, like from the back side of a car while it's driving, and with the main character far away in the background while some other characters stumble around after a car crash.

It's not only the angles that are different but also the events in the movie, small details like really savoring a chocolate dessert or speaking about how the branches aren't stirred by the wind, but by your heart and soul. Read on...

This movie sucks. I shouldn't even post a review, but I thought I would do it anyway just so I can save people from wasting their time watching it. Sure, the actors are good, the action is good, the story is good. The only problem is that it still sucks. For a movie with such a ravishing title, there is really not enough action. The main character spends his time riding around town, threatening people, eating & shooting in the roof. The rampage is just not there.

There aren't any good dialogs. Nothing special happens. You go through the whole movie just waiting for the action to start, thinking, maybe it'll start soon, maybe now, maybe after he's finished eating that burger he'll go out and do some serious damage... but nothing ever happens. The story is planned well, the ending is clever, but what's a good story in a movie when everything else is no good?

I've heard people criticizing the works of Uve Boll (the producer) earlier but I didn't think much of it, I actually watched a movie he directed a while ago about the war in Vietnam and people crawling around in tunnels killing each other (don't remember the name) and it was really good, but this, it's a disaster. You wont be satisfied by anything, really, no, seriously, I'm not kidding. At least not if you're like me. I can't speak for the possible psychological differences that made so many other people not completely degrade this cinematical disasterpiece.

 rated 1/5: shit shit shit

Can't give it a zero since it is well made. The only problem is that they made it into a really crappy movie.

The first SWAT movie was great, this one was so so. Great acting, great filmography, very realistic action, yet it doesn't have the same atmosphere as the first one had. The idea of putting a camera on the rifles (hidden as the scope... I guess) was pretty interesting, makes the movie look a little like an FPS game. This isn't an entirely new concept, but they managed to mix it up with the otherwise realistic filming pretty well.

The story is simple, a tale of revenge and rookies and so on. Cliché.

It could be a more than decent movie if it wasn't for one fatal flaw, the characters don't have enough time to build up personality, or they don't use the time well enough to build up the personalities. At the end when one of them dies it's not a tragic moment, he's just dead, oh, shame, but the main character just goes right on and takes his revenge and everything is happy ever after. It doesn't feel right. If people get hurt or injured it's hard to relate to them when you don't know them yet at all.

Good movie, yet it doesn't have that extra... something.

 rated 3/5: not bad

I watched this movie at the movies first time I watched it. I was there with buddy Bear a Thursday afternoon long after the premiere and there were no other people in the room at all! Wish it were that empty more often, or maybe not, it would be reason enough for any cinema to go bankrupt... but still, it was nice. I laughed out more than I would ever do in a room full of people.

Though I like Jackies HK movies better than any of the newer ones, the Rush Hour series seems to go way beyond the old Jackie. It's not just about stunts any longer (the great attraction with his older movies where everything was real and everybody risked their life in the movies making), or creative martial arts. It's eh, well, of course it has some of that, but it's much more dialogue and encounters with different people. Like Shanghai Knights, but better, because, well... I don't know. Whatever. Read on...

I like musicals, yeah, really, as movies. Across The Universe is a favorite I remember easily, and there are many others. You would think action is my genre of absolute preference since that is what I mostly watch, but maybe that's just because there are so few musicals in movie format. The ones that do exist, with no exceptions that I know of, are all good. Why do I like musicals? Well for starters, I love music, beautiful women & inspiring theatrics, something many normal movies lack large amounts of.

As for this movie, it was great, reminded me of Moulin Rouge, which was great too. I haven't liked Christina Aguilera much earlier. Her songs have been trashy, normal pop, but now, wow, what an amazing voice, and the acting not too bad either.

The story starts out at a cafe. She decides to give up her job and to pursue something else, and when she gets to Burlesque and sees Cher's performance (who owns the place in this movie) she knows what she wants to be. She picks up a tray and starts working as a waitress, temporarily, until the opportunity to stand on stage appears.

Of course the movie is mostly romance and drama and jealousy with really no comedy or action other than when Cher almost breaks a glass window, but still, the performances are great and that's what counts. That's what makes the movie worth watching.

 rated 4/5: fo shizzle

Unstoppable is a movie about a train that won't stop.

A few people play key roles in the story. Among them there's Denzel Washington as a very experienced railer and then there' that actor who played the captain in the Star Trek movie from 2009, Chris Pine was the name, as an inexperienced conductor. Both have great charisma and really fit in the leading roles. There are a few other interesting people in the mix, among them a pony-tailed cowboy with a red truck and that stupid guy from My Name Is Earl. I've been wondering if he really is stupid or just acts stupid, so I decided to look him up. The name is Ethan Suplee, and though I haven't seen a movie (or series) where he doesn't play someone stupid, it seems like he really isn't, which suddenly makes him a much more admirable actor. I haven't cared for actors earlier, I just watched the movies, so what's with this sudden change I wonder?

Anyway, the movie starts with the stupid guy losing his train. The train speeds up, without air brakes, apparently carrying a few containers of something really toxic that could do great damage like leveling out a whole town for added suspense and the two main actors just happen to be on the wrong track at the right time. It all ends with... well, I probably shouldn't say, go watch it. Overall it's a movie filled with suspense and a lot of trains, so if you like trains, you might like this movie. I don't know if the trains act like they do in reality or if enthusiasts will be disappointed by the lack of realism, but it looks real to me. The filming is great, the acting is great, the soundtrack is gritty and fitting and there's always something happening. There are no real villains, no guns, and few explosions, yet still they managed to keep up the pace.

This movie gets a strong

 rated 3/5: not bad

by me, clearly good, worth watching.