Penguin Rush'Doom'ed 'Transporter', 'Sky' ain't 'High' enough... (no spoilers)
Doom is another one of those movies adapted from video/PC games. Speaking of movies in this genre, two movies come to my mind. First, Resident Evil - the movie lived up to its expectation (to a certain extent). However, Resident Evil Apocalypse fell into the trap of 'sequels usually not as good as the first movie'. Then, came House of the Dead (HOTD), which was so horrible, you wanted to shoot yourself to death just to end the misery of watching it. With laughable performances, horrible sets, and not-scary-at-all-play-the-video-game-is-more-fun moments, HOTD was one of the worst movies ever existed on planet earth.Be it adapted from a video game or a book or it's an original screenplay, we have seen many movies about zombies, the undead and the like being released for many years. Some sucked big time, while others are pretty good. Here are some examples that I can recall:
Good - Dawn/Day/Night/Land of the Dead, Resident Evil, 28 Days Later (UK), Shaun of the Dead (UK)
Suck! - House of the Dead, Resident Evil Apocalypse, Undead
Now, back to Doom. See the lead characters; The Rock, Karl Urban (of LOTR) and Rosamund Pike (of James Bond), fight for their lives against a plague that has infected some staff in a research facility located in Mars. At times, the movie really have the Alien's edge-of-the-seat feel. Surprisingly, the plot is good, fast paced and each characters is given enough screen time (even the minor ones) so that we care a little bit about them. Also, fans of the game would be satisfied as there are a few minutes of RPG moments.
2nd review - The Transporter 2. I didn't watch The Transporter but I heard it was good, which prompted the makers to come out with part 2 obviously. The Transporter 2 was released with rave reviews from the critics and the public alike. The fact that the storyline is not a continuation of the first installment, prompted me to catch it. All I can say is that Mr. Transporter is not another clone of 'James Bond' or 'Jackie Chan'. He stands on its own and Jason Statham is suitable as Frank Martin; an ex-Special Forces operative cum driver cum investigator cum Mr. Transporter.
Anyway, the movie has outstanding car chase sequences, top notch fighting scenes and a great plot. It also has some funny and witty lines to entertain us along the way. But one thing makes me wonder though. In an earlier scene, we see the mob leader practising some kind of ninja-sort of martial arts and he defeats about 5 'opponents' with a breeze. If only the mob could give such a good fight and a hard time to Frank Martin at the end of the movie...
Now, we move to the 3rd review - Sky High. You might think that quite a childish of me for watching the movie (altho to some extent, that is actually true haha). The reason that I watched it was because I thought it was another rendition of The Incredibles, except that this time the family is humans, not cartoons.
Sky High will most likely appeal to children and early teenagers. But for late teens, young adults and adults (whether young at hearts or not), they would find the predictabilities and similarities (with other movies made before) appalling. In fact, one can say that Sky High is an Americanised version of Harry Potter. Here are some of the similarities between Sky High and Harry Potter/other movies:
Sky High: Cannot use special powers outside school.
Harry Potter: Cannot use magical powers outside school.
Sky High: Students are allocated to different classes/status at the beginning of their junior year.
Harry Potter: Students are allocated to different classes/status at the beginning of their junior year.
Sky High: Subjects being taught at the school are very much related to leading a life as super heroes.
Harry Potter: Subjects being taught at the school are very much related to leading a life as wizards and witches.
Sky High: Some parents are both super heroes, while for some, only a parent is.
Harry Potter: Some parents are both wizards, while for some, only a parent is.
Sky High: The school is located at some 'secluded and hidden' place, and can only be reached by special buses.
Harry Potter: The school is located at some 'secluded and hidden' place, and can only be reached by a special train.
Sky High and other movies: The climax of the movie is during a prom.
Sky High and other movies: The bullies turn out to be real baddies.
Sky High and other movies: A character is secretly in love with another character.
Sky High and other movies: A trap is set. Someone is not as nice as they seem to be. Also, a lead character will screw up real bad by breaking some rules, humiliates a friend, puts friendships at jeopardy etc etc.
posted by The Pisces Man @ 2:00 pm
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