The Alphabet Killer

A serial killer is killing people with double initials and dumps the corpses in towns matching the letter of the initials.

I love crime movies and this one looked interesting. Based on some bad reviews I was a little skeptical but as I should know by now, never listen to bad reviews. Watch the movie and make up your own mind. Luckily for me I did and I liked it quite a bit.

The movie is supposedly based on a true story. What I have been able to gather is that this is very loosely based. That does not stop this from being a good movie with a twist from regular crime films. The whole detective having mental problems and seeing ghosts thing actually works mixing in some horror elements. I must say the plot was pretty good and although a lot of you out there will see the final plot twist coming, it was a nice twist. The final scene is the only part I was left with a feeling that they didn't end it the way I would have liked.

Acting is also decent. The cast is mostly unknown or half known actors and actresses. The main lead Eliza Dushku some may have seen in the TV show "Dollhouse". She does a superb job in her role and really saves the movie.

Sadly, this could have been ever better if the rest of the movie was on par. Directing is by the books but nothing special. The same goes for the dialog and music. I know people disagree with me, but I liked that we never quite know if our main detective is just going nuts from a mental illness or if she actually sees the ghosts of the dead girls. That gave the movie something extra that separates it from every other crime film out there. 7/10

Twilight

A high school girl movies to a new town to live with her father. There she starts a new school and meets a boy different from everyone else.

Twilight is a different vampire movie. Where most vampire movies focus on action and fighting this one focuses on the romance between a human and a vampire. Twilight has been called a chick flick in disguise, and I can see why. However It is still a very good movie.

The acting was solid from just about everyone. Especially the main people. The chemistry between Bella and Edward is amazing and they both do terrific work with their characters. In this kind of movie this is essential for it to be good and thankfully they found the correct people for the roles.

The next thing that could have ruined this film was if it was filled with clichés. Thankfully they do not follow the well used myths about vampires. In stead they have some new and fresh twists. For example that vampires shimmer in sunlight. This really helps the movie feel new and different and not just another average vampire flick.

The setting is also realistic. The kids look their age at the high school. The town looks like a small knit town you could find any number of places in America and even the vampires are chillingly realistic. If there where such things, this is how I would picture them.

Normally I do not watch that many romance or chick flicks. I find most of them to be uninteresting and boring. Thankfully this was not the case with Twilight. It has a strong plot, great acting and a beautiful love story. If you like vampire movies, but want a new and different angle this is the movie for you. 8/10

The Thirteenth Floor

A group of scientists make a machine with a virtual world you can plug into. When the lead professor is killed the suspicion is pointed towards Douglas Hall, one of his friends and colleges. Hall sets out to uncover the truth but what he finds no one expected.

This is a similar movie to "The Matrix" and "Dark City". It discusses virtual worlds and artificial intelligence. Important questions in our society. Personally I find these kind of movies to be very interesting and both Matrix and Dark City are among my favorite. The Thirteenth Floor lacks that little extra but is absolutely a well done and solid movie.

The plot is very good. It starts kind of slow but as the movie progresses you will be amazed. I had some ideas to the plot twists yet when everything was revealed I was very content.

What prevents this from being a masterpiece is probably the acting. At times it seems a bit stiff and some of the cast could have been recast with other people. The rest of the film is luckily so good that this is just a minor flaw.

The big variance between the simulated 30's and the real world helps the viewer understand the plot. It also gives the movie a noir feel. The Thirteenth Floor will leave you with some interesting questions and make you think twice about the reality around us. 8/10

The Spirit

An ex-policeman that died and was brought back by a crazy scientist is now fighting crime in Central City under the alias "The Spirit". He helps police try and stop the maniac "The Octopus".

The second movie from Frank Miller that uses the technique from Sin City. I do not know why this movie is rated as low as it is, I found it to be very viewable and entertaining.

This is yet another movie based on a comic. And yet another comic I have never heard about. Luckily the movie is still highly viewable. The story itself is decent and is very similar to other comic book stories. With a hero and a his villain and the fight between them.

The characters are a bit hollow with exception of The Octopus, played by Samuel L. Jackson. Jackson has an unique way of coloring his characters and they almost always end up interesting and cool. The rest of the movie is above average, yet not perfect. Music is decent, the same goes for screenplay and directing. It lacks the little extra that Sin City had but is overall a good movie. 7/10

DOA: Dead or Alive

A wide range of skilled professionals in different fighting techniques are invited to a tournament called Dead or Alive. The movie is based on the popular video game with the same name.

Before watching this you should know this is what I call a boys movie. By that I mean that I think men will enjoy this a lot more than women. It has hot girls in bikini's, martial arts and a lot of action. At first glance this can look like a crappy movie and for some people it will be. Personally I call it a "guilty pleasure" It is not great in any way, yet while watching it is very entertaining.

The story is very thin and the plot is thrown in so that the rest of the movie can be justified. In most films a bad story results in a bad movie. In this case I did not watch it for the story, so it really did not matter.

The fight scenes are very stylish done and a pleasure to watch. The same goes for most of the ladies. They have assembled a large cast of half known actresses and surprisingly the acting is decent given the material they have to work with. Don't expect a masterpiece. But if you want to relax in the sofa, grab a beer with the boys and watch something brainless and fun. This is highly recommended. 7/10

Ip Man

The life of Yip Man the first martial arts master to teach the Chinese martial art of Wing Chun.

If you asked me 3 months ago who Donnie Yen was, I would have had no clue. Ip Man is the second movie staring Donnie I have watched and both where just recently. Jet Li has always been one of my favorite actors when it comes to martial arts movies and now Donnie Yen is among those. He has an incredible talent and can play a wide range of characters, both young and old. His martial arts is also wonderful to watch.

The story of Ip Man is very interesting, starting of in China in the late 30's where Yip Man is the greatest martial arts master. Then WWII comes and the Japanese invade. Yip Man is left with no money and has to do what he can to protect his family. At no point does the movie get boring and the fights are very well done.

I really liked the camerawork and colors used to show the different parts of the story. The first part is full of colors in contrast to the second part were everything is more gray and dull. Directing seems solid as well. Overall a very interesting movie that tells a story more or less unknown to us westerns. 8/10

Armageddon

A meteor is heading straight for earth and NASA has about 2 weeks to assemble a team of astronauts and deep oil drillers to land on the rock and blow it up from the inside before it hits earth and wipes out all life.

Armageddon is in my eyes the ultimate blockbuster. It has everything a blockbuster needs and should have including major action scenes, an epic story, romance, cheesy humor and stereotypic characters. When working with all these elements and a few more at that, movies can tend to turn out bad. This is where Armageddon proves itself. The story and plot is very epic and although it is not very realistic it does not fail to include everything needed in a blockbuster.

The movie has a massive cast of known actors and actresses and overall they all do a great job portraying their characters. The music is also very good, with a broad selection of known songs. Some of the scenes in combination with the selected music is bound to make you cry or at least make you're eyes wet.

No blockbuster without explosions and great special effects and Armageddon is no exception. The movie is pretty long yet the action and suspense basically never stops leaving you physiologically tired when the credits roll. The special effects are amazing and help tremendously in the overall enjoyment.

Why this movie only has 6/10 score on IMDb is beyond me. It is one of the most epic movies I know about and deserves a 10/10. If you like blockbusters and have not seen Armageddon yet, I urge you to do so right now. You will not be disappointed!

Mutant Chronicles

In a distant future the world is divided in 4 superpowers who are in a war against each other. During a battle an ancient seal is broken and a new evil enemy is unleashed upon the world. They are the mutants and are created from humans by a machine deep underground. A group of veteran soldiers set out on an impossible mission to destroy this machine and save the world.

I was a bit skeptical before watching this movie, all I had seen was bad reviews. Sometimes however I disagree with the critics and this is one of those cases. I found Mutant Chronicles to be very entertaining and highly viewable.

It is clear that the makers have had a big "world" to work with. There are a lot of small details showing this. Although the plot itself is pretty cheesy and straightforward, saving the world is after all a popular theme. It is the setting, color and lightning effects that makes this unique from similar films. Pretty much the whole movie is in brownish and grayish colors giving it a no hope feel.

The cast is decent and perform well. No exceptional performances but no horrible ones ether. I feel that this movie is underrated. My vote is 7/10

A Time to Kill

A young white lawyer defends a black man who has killed two people. These had in return raped and tried to kill his daughter. The trial sets of a huge blacks vs. white discussion and sparks the rebirth of the KKK.

This movie is great for a lot of different reasons. It discusses the racism towards the African American population, the American law and legal system and the ethical problems of taking the law in your own hands. This is accomplished through a great story, superb choice in actors and very good directing.

When it ends you are left with your own choice to decide if Carl Lee Hailey deserved his fate or not. The movie is 2 and a half hours which can seem long for some people. I found it to be about perfect giving us enough time to really see the problem from all sides and understanding the complexity of the situation. Take a moment and think. What would you have done if something similar happened too you're children?

My rating is 9/10

I'm Not There.

Bob Dylan's life portrayed trough 6 different people. Each one being a specific part of his life and work.

I know a lot of people will disagree with my review of this movie and I would like to point out that this is just my point of view. I recognize that Bob Dylan is a great songwriter and musician and although his music is not among my favorite he is widely known for his skills. This movie has an unique take on portraying a well known figure that I have never seen before. Instead of just making an biography about his life, Todd Haynes has split his early life into six pieces and given each piece a new identity. This made the movie very confusing to watch and I had a very difficult time following the story.

The movie switches between these six identities seemingly at random. They are also played by six very different people. From a black boy to a woman playing a man. The film also switches between black and white and color depending on what character is on screen. I prefer biographies like Walk the Line where it is easy to follow the story and thus the life of the person it is about.

The movie has some strong elements. The acting is especially good with an amazing cast. Cate Blanchett is brilliant and hardly recognizable. Sadly the acting is not enough. Sometimes the creative ways of storytelling go overboard and it ends up being more confusing than biographic. 6/10

Infernal Affairs

A gang boss sends one of his men into the police force as a mole. At the same time the police sends one of their police officers undercover to expose the gang boss. Now the race is on. Who will discover the others identity first?

What I did not know before watching this but that I soon realized is that the movie "The Departed" is a remake of this Hong Kong film. I really like the Asian movie industry and this is yet another great Hong Kong flick. The story is solid, the acting is great and the directing is high quality. As normal with movies with non speaking cast where I have to read the subtitles the story and plot can be hard to follow at times. However this was not that hard to follow and I believe I understood most of it. The cultural difference may have influenced my understanding, but I very much enjoyed to watch the movie and that is after all the most important aspect.

My interest in foreign movies is growing day by day and I try to watch as many as I can. I rate this 8/10 and hope I will find a lot more quality Asian films in the future.

Crank

A professional hitman is poisoned with some fucking high tech sci-fi Chinese synthetic shit and the only thing keeping him from dying is if he keeps his adrenaline levels really high.

Crank is possibly the most fun and entertaining action movie I have ever had the pleasure of watching. Too many action movies take themselves way to serious and this is where Crank differs. The plot is totally ridiculous and still the movie delivers in every way possible. This is because it is not supposed to be realistic, it's supposed to be entertaining. And wow does it deliver. The action basically never stops, you are right there with Chev Chelios filled with adrenaline just wondering how the next scene can outdo the previous.

Jason Statham, my personal favorite action actor is the main ingredient in this adrenaline filled experience. He fills the role perfectly. Without him I doubt this movie would be as much fun. The rest of the cast are also great. The quick shots and the unusual style further improves the movie. Throughout there are random bits that are subtitled or other images put on the screen. Many have said, me included, that this is Grand Theft Auto in movie format. In my personal opinion I rate Crank 10/10

Dead Snow

A group of friends spend their Easter vacation in an old cottage in the north of Norway. What they do not know is that something horrible happened there 60 years ago. Something evil that is still around.

This is as far as I know the first Norwegian zombie splatter I have seen. My view on Norwegian movies are often skeptic and I did not have to high hopes for this little flick. This is no masterpiece, but it was also not horrible. The mix between horror and comedy gore is very good. Switching between scenes where you are on the edge of your seat too scenes with upbeat music and bodyparts and guts flying.

The plot is pretty stupid, but it's kind of supposed to be. The script is filled with small jokes and tributes to similar movies. The whole Nazi zombie idea is original. Thankfully it ended the way splatters are supposed too. I won't spoil anything but it's great fun.

Sadly what brings the movie down is the horrible acting. If the cast was filled with professional actors this would have been a lot better. That being said there are a few decent performances. Overall it's a fun bloody splatter with some horror elements. Worth at least one viewing if you like these kind of movies. 6/10

Dragon Tiger Gate

Two brothers, split up during childhood, run into each other again. One is working for a crime boss and the other is working at a Kung Fu training facility. They must put aside their differences and together fight the boss of a rival gang.

I had no idea what kind of movie this would be before watching it except that it would be heavy on martial arts. It sure was full of martial arts and some of the best I have seen on screen in a long time. The fight scenes are no less than amazing thanks to fantastic camera work and the actors. The camera style is different than most western movies, with a lot of rotating shots. It really does wonders in these kinds of movies. The acting is decent and with English subtitles it is more or less painless to follow.

These movies tend to have ether small or nonexistent plots. The plot was kind of hard to follow in this movie and I was a little confused at times, but I think if I understood the language it would be easier. The movie has a nice blend of fantasy CGI and nice sets making it very unique. For all the martial art fans out there I strongly urge you to watch Dragon Tiger Gate. You will not be disappointed. 8/10

Out of Sight

A bank robber escapes from jail and in the process kidnaps a US Marshall. They fall in love with each other and an impossible romance begins.

I had never heard about this movie before I watched it and I was very pleasantly surprised. It has a perfect mix of romance, crime and comedy. Both George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez do great acting and the chemistry is very good between them. The rest of the cast is also great.

The story was surprisingly good with a lot of comedy mixed in. I was left with a big smile on my face. It is a feel good movie and although the plot can be a little confusing at times you will be satisfied when the credits roll. They did a good job with the music as well further helping you enjoy this little gem. It does not feel like a masterpiece, but it sure did entertain me. 8/10

Se7en

Two police detectives, a veteran and a new guy, tracks a serial killer using the seven deadly sins as his MO.

I remember the first time I watched se7en a long time ago. I was shocked and amazed at how good this movie is. The plot and story is among the best ever written in the cop/crime department. The writer put a lot of effort into the story. I did not see any of the main twists coming and the climax at the end was fantastic.

The acting is superb as well. Largely thanks to the good choice in actors. Both Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman prove yet again they are among the best actors we have. Kevin Spacey has a somewhat smaller role, but is equally superb the times he is on screen.

David Fincher is known for quality movies and he does a flawless job directing this one. The city the story takes place in is never revealed, my guess because it is supposed to be any random big city in America. Most of the movie is dark and gloomy giving it a creepy feel. I gave it a 10/10 the first time around and it get's the same now. A must see!

The Big Lebowski

A man named Lebowski is mistaken for somebody else. Suddenly he finds himself in the middle of a large plot including kidnapping, stealing money and porn.

Coen movies are known for their special humor and this is no exception. The story is great and they way it is told is even better. The plot twists come one after another and you never really know what is going on. This could become problematic in some movies, but in this one it works great. This is mostly thanks to the great performances by the cast, the funny way the story is told and the direction of the Coen brothers.

That being said it's not all fun and games. The main guy, known as Lebowski or "the Dude" can be annoying to watch and personally he was as much annoying as he was funny. The same goes for his best buddy Walter. They have some golden moments of course, but as mention it can become to much at times. This is probably the main flaw of movie. I am sure others will disagree with me on this point but it is my opinion. It's worth the watch though so don't be scared away. 7/10

The Fly

A scientist invents a machine that can teleport objects and living things, but when he teleports himself something goes horribly wrong.

David Cronenberg does a great job in remaking the old "The Fly" movie. The story is different from the original but is unique and different. It is tagged among other things as a horror movie, however personally thought it was a lot more about romance and love than horror. That being said it has it's moments of horror with some strong scenes with a lot of gore. They did an excellent job with the special effects and the human/fly transformation is fantastic. It is a typical 80's movie and this shows well in the dialog and acting. Both main actors do great performances. Jeff Goldblum is terrifying as he changes and Geena Davis is the love interest.

I personally liked the plot change from the original. It combines romance and horror in a unique way. Mixing in enough sci-fi for all kinds of fans to be happy. The end is the best part of the whole movie and will shock you yet leave you feeling content. My personal opinion rates this movie 8/10

Marley & Me

We follow the life of a dog named Marley and his owner and family.

I remember reading about this movie and my first thoughts where that this would be boring. However my mom asked me to download it for her and I ended up watching it with her. Now I am glad I did, because it was a really sweet movie. The movie is based on a book by John Grogan and is a true story about his life with his dog Marley. Owen Wilson does a great job portraying Grogan and the rest of the cast is great as well.

The movie is both funny and heartwarming, but it also has it's sad parts. The dog steals the show being naughty yet kind. The story itself is pretty straightforward. We follow the family from when they get Marley until he dies of old age. The quality of the movie is what you expect. Directing and screenplay is good with no mayor flaws that I could find.

The only thing I think they could have changed is that there is no real plot twists. This can for some people make the movie a little predictable at times and maybe even boring. However if you like animals and especially dogs you will not notice this. This is also because it is based on a book and as far as I understood it does a good job of following the story of the book. All in all a fun and family friendly movie. If will make you smile and maybe even cry but don't expect it to stick in your brain as a masterpiece. 7/10