Warrior (2011)

I watched Warrior on the recommendation of some of my football teammates. A feel-good, bro movie was the impression that I got when watching the trailer and hearing what my friends had to say about it. That's pretty much all this film is. It's not bad, but the conclusion to its plot is obvious the whole movie and the poor familial relationship that has the characters realize family is worth fighting for seems a little overdone.

The Conlon brothers are two men hoping for their luck to turn. Both were abandoned by their alcoholic father after a childhood of competitive fighting and familial conflict. Brandon, the older brother, chose to stay with his father due to his girlfriend at home while Tommy, the younger brother, chose to leave with his ill mother. The film picks up when Tommy comes back home as a mysterious grown man, hardened by circumstance. When he fights, it is obvious that he unleashes all of his pent up anger. His style is the exact opposite of his brother's fighting style. Brandon on the other hand takes a beating from the opponent in order to tire them out before he pins them. This recipe of brothers with opposite personalities sets these two characters on the obvious crash course of a high stakes fight.

You can guess who wins (hint: Brandon is older and has a family, Tommy has nothing but a crap attitude). After watching this movie, I did sense the feel good aspects, but I didn't necessarily feel good. In the end, it is still a story of a damaged family and a cash prize to one of the brothers shouldn't have the ability to fix any of that. Conclusion: Pass On It

Rating: 7/10

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

The first installment of the prepositional saga. 

After watching Tim Burton's 2001 reboot of the Planet of the Apes, i was so disappointed by the ending because it left way, way, way too many questions without even a trace of an answer. It was irritating and it made a mediocre movie terrible especially since it didn't have a sequel to answer any questions. 

But I'm not reviewing that flop in this post. Instead, I'm taking a look at ROTPOTA. The story follows Will Rodman and his scientific experiments to find a cure to decaying brain diseases. He tests his solution on a baby chimp named Caesar. Foreshadow much?

As we know from the lengthy title, this is the first installment of a series that features the rise of an ape civilization here on Earth. The film concludes with the apes retreating to the redwood forest in northern California, hinting that this is only the beginning of their civilization that will eventually overtake planet Earth.

The film was not necessarily enjoyable to watch. As a human, I don't want to see us get overrun by an animal evolutionarily inferior. The film has little resolution, so it may be a better idea to watch all of the films together in succession if and when they are released. Conclusion: Pass On It

Rating: 6.75/10

Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011)

Crazy, Stupid, Love is everything its title hints at except for one thing: stupid. This smart and lighthearted comedy is crazy in the context of love, but it does such a good job at tying up all the crazy knots that its colorful and busy plot line introduces and follows. 

The story follows Cal, a newly deemed cuckold after his wife, Emily, sleeps with David Lindhagen and asks for a divorce. This isn't the usual premise for a feel-good, romantic comedy; however, the grace comes in the form of a smug playboy, Jacob. Jacob helps Cal rediscover his manhood, all the while Cal yearns for his life with Emily. In the end, the audience is able to connect all of the stories together as the film manages to reach a happy, fulfilling conclusion.

This is one of the better comedies I have seen in a while. Given the cast, I shouldn't be too surprised, but the film obviously had a well written script. Another aspect of the film that I have come to enjoy since watching it in theaters is the watchability. The story never gets old, so experience it at least once. Conclusion: Watch It

Rating: 7.5/10

Super 8 (2011)

Every now and then, there is a film that draws you due to pure curiosity. Super 8 was one of those films. "What does the alien look like?" So essentially, you could say that Super 8 is a Cloverfield minus excessive found footage plus kids with a hint of Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Except to compare Super 8 to either Cloverfield  or Close Encounters would be a crime. 

8 is a much better made film than anything Cloverfield had hoped to be. The plot hooks you in as it follows the awestruck kids as there small town and way of life is suddenly impacted by an alien and the army trying to cover up the tracks. Like Cloverfield, this film has the occasional suspense the viewer can experience when a camera is left at the scene.

Steven Spielberg has always had a thing for kids in his films and science fiction. So 8 follows the mystery and search for the other like Close Encounters, but also incorporates a kid-to-alien relationship like E.T. Overall, it was a pleasant viewing experience that had feel-good elements, thrills, and a satisfying conclusion. Conclusion: Worth A Watch

Rating: 7.25/10

Inception (2010)

When it comes to Inception, it's incorrect to call me a "hater" because I had such high hopes for the film. I thought it had all of the promise of special effects along with an engaging story, the formula for a great summer film. However, I was unset by something. This attempt at another The Matrix may have been better than the 1999 classic in many people's eyes, but it fell leaps and bounds short.

The story is based on the idea of sending professionals into the dreams of other people. Cobb, the protagonist of the film, who wants to lead a the normal family life he has been deprived of has been called to do one of the most ambitious and complicated dream extractions. Once he achieves this task (as they always achieve the impossible in films like these), Cobb can return to life. As he embraces his kids, there is that ominous top that spins just before the picture blacks out. the significance of the spinning top is that if it continues to spin, your in a dream. If it stops and falls, it is reality. So many people yearn for the answer to the ambiguous conclusion when in reality, the ending is not ambiguous at all. The filmmakers didn't happen to realize that though.

If you learn anything from this film, it is that Cobb spends just as much time in the dreamworld as he does in reality. Being reunited with his kids is a fitting ending to his story. Whether or not that reunion is reality or not, it simply doesn't matter as he is truly happy and to him, the dreamworld is almost like his reality. If he can hold his kids, whether real or imaginative, it does not matter to him. He wouldn't bother looking back at the top. Why should you? Conclusion: Disappointing 

Rating: 6.5/10

Splice (2010)

This is a sickening movie. Not Human Centipede sickening, but quite sickening. Headed into the theaters, I expected Splice to be an interesting, sci-fi flick about biological engineering. The result was a film about perverts playing God.

The actual combination of a human with other animals does make my spine tingle and I don't see why there is a point to that. However, a movie is a movie and I expected thrills from this. Instead, in Adrien Brody's comeback campaign, we got a film where he has sex with the humanimal and if that wasn't enough, the humanimal (I know it's named 'Dren', but 'humanimal' sounds better) dies, turns into a male, and rapes the female protagonist. The female protagonist is seen pregnant at the end of the film. I'm sorry, but that's disgusting. 

I don't recommend this film. To anyone. Conclusion: Do Not See

Rating: 1/10

District 9 (2009)

District 9 is one of the best and most original mockumentary that I have seen. 

The story follows Wikus Van de Merwe, an awkward office worker for MNU, who has just been promoted to evict the prawn from District 9. A little bit of backtracking, prawn-like aliens hovered overhead Johannesburg for several weeks until humans went up to get them out of their broken ship. So now, the prawns have settled in the slum-like District 9. With minor conflicts between the humans and prawns, MNU is forced to move the prawns elsewhere. The story picks up when Wikus is evicting several prawns and comes across a black fluid that sprays on his face. 

The fluid slowly turns Wikus into a prawn and he loses everything. Forced to cooperate with the prawns, he befriends prawn Christopher Johnson. Christopher had been working for many years to get a fluid that will repair the ship and allow the prawns to leave for their homeland. The two set to infiltrate the MNU headquarters to find the fluid container, only for Christopher to witness the brutal tests the humans have run on the prawns. 

As Wikus makes the full transformation from human to prawn, the question begs: who is the real monster? Though the prawns look like monsters, the humans in this movie are the true vile creatures in the galaxy. A sequel seems possible and would be welcome, but it is not needed. This movie is good enough to stand alone. Conclusion: Watch It

Rating: 8.25/10