Showing posts with label Adventure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adventure. Show all posts

Sunday, January 1, 2012

The Adventures of Tintin (2011)

1st View
Venue: Galaxy Highlands (Press Screenings)



Thoroughly entertaining throwing to Spielberg's classic adventure films made all the more thrilling by the fact that the mo-cap animation means he is unburdened by the laws of physics. My pic for best animated film of the year.


Rating: 8/10 Atkins

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Hugo (2011)

1st View
Venue: Regal Metropolitan (Press Screening)


I have issues with its pacing and bizarre cinematography, but Hugo is a beautiful love letter to cinephilia and the origins of film itself. For that, I loved it.

Rating: 7/10 Atkins

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Revisit
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell


Never a bad time to revisit one of the greatest action movies ever made.


Rating: 10/10 Atkins

Saturday, July 30, 2011

The Mummy (1999)

Revisit
Format: HD-DVD
Venue: Rivendell


As fluffy as adventures films get, but that does little to detract from the experience. My boy Luke covered this tightly-wrapped schlock tart for this week's Junkfood Cinema. Read it from Film School Rejects...not the Book of the Dead.

Rating: 7/10 Atkins

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Sunday, January 2, 2011

The Quest (1986)

1st View
Format: VHS
Venue: Rivendell (home)


I've decided to dedicate January to sifting through my gargantuan collection of VHS and DVD that I bought blind and that have been sitting neglected ever since. Predator 2 technically counts because I blind bought the VHS and was about to pull it from the shelf when I remembered it was also streaming. This one, a well-kept VHS copy was a housewarming gift from fellow Tallyteer BTSjunkie.

The Good

Aussie director Brian Trenchard-Smith once again proves his ability to make something out of nothing. Despite a weak concept and a budget looking to barely enter triple digits, The Quest manages a certain amount of charm and entertainment. I even liked the bargain basement monster for its quirky silliness.

The Bad

The story is so bare bones that it never really seems to get rolling. It spins its wheels and goes through certain motions but I never really felt like I was given the chance to get on board. I also think Henry Thomas is miserable in this. He mumbles through his lines, keeps looking at the ground, and barely registers an emotion at any point. But I will have to concede that perhaps I need to give The Quest another shot sometime when it isn't 2:00 A.M.

The Weird

It's probably just something lost in cultural translation, but I found it weird that the kids kept saying "blacks" when they were referring to Aborigines. When you first hear it, it sounds as if this is a film about the three most racist kids in Australia. "Should we go down there? Are there blacks down there?" Yikes.

Rating: 5/10 Atkins