Hellboy

When I saw this in the theatre I didn't care for it too much. Not that I disliked it, I just didn't like it much either. Pan's Labyrinth floored me though, so I decided to take a second look and I'm glad I did. Although it seems like there is a bit too much crammed into this film (I think he felt like it was his only shot to make a Hellboy life action movie) the film really shines at times. The motivation for Rasputin (HELLBOY WE NEED YOUR MITTENS!) is kind of cheap but otherwise a very well done film with the occasional spark of brilliance.

A- and I am excited to see the sequal, although I'm waiting for HD. Also, if you liked this film at all you should watche the animated ones (also by DeToro). Good stuff.

Rambo

Well it's better then I thought. It's a man-fantasy of one man takes all, but a well done one. Still not a huge STalone fan but he does a good job in this film even if most of his lines are grunts. At least most of the characters have beliveble motivations.

B+ for taking the pure action movie genre to it's limit in a semi belivable way.

Battlestar Galactica (Remake)

My sister was the first person to tell me about how good this series is, and I can see why she likes it. They manage to crank up the suspense every episode, but it's not done subtley. In fact I feel like I've been beat with a psychic hammer after watching a few episodes. The actors for the most part don't have the chops to pull off some of the scenes that are written for them and there are invariably some really bad spots in each episode. That being said they do a great job showing the interpersonal dynamics of people under immense stress. I really enjoy the father-son interaction between the commander of the shop and his son, the portrail of the chain of command and personal responsibility and the fight that the XO has to live up to the expectations of the CO he obviously idolizes. Certainly good for television, but it's no Heroes season 1

A-

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

This movie was a delight. It's basically a tounge in cheek take on film noir and the pulp detetive films of the past (think Mike Hammer). If you like that kind of thing and are willing to take meta-cinema with a grain of salt this is a great film where the people are real people, just a bit smarter (and braver) then most.

An A

Highlander

A cult classic I loved as a kid (I think I saw it when I was 14 or so), this film has aged reasonably well. Christopher Lambert and Sean Connery both do a decent job but I think that Clancy Brown (the evil Kurgan) is probably my favorite, walking a fine line between camp and horror. This film could use a remake with modern fight scenes and special effects, but it's still a great flick. And a remake might fail, although you could get the brothers W to do it and have a fantastic film.

A-

Pirates of the Caribean:At the World's End

I liked the first movie in this series and didn't care for the second at all. This film lies somewhere in between, taking advantage of the moral abiguities between the main players to decent effect, but a deep film it's not. Lack of focus really hurts this film and the fact that it's a purely fabricated sequal made to cash in on the franchise in Holywood style shows. Still it's not boring so I'd say it's a B-, which I am pleasantly suprised at, mostly due to Depp.

Conan the Barbarian

This was pretty much what you expect...but a well done version of it. If you ever wanted a simple life of rutting like a dog, killing anyone that pissed you off and drinking yourself into a stupor then this will appeal to you. The granddaddy of epic fantasy, don't watch this film if you're looking for good acting or deep characters, but if you want to see bad guys get chopped to pieces and check out Arnie back in the steroid days this is not a bad flick.

B+, just keep in mind the genre.