Monthly Archives: January 2010

Jan 22 2010

G.I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra

Viewed – 22 Jan 2010  Blu-ray

Over here in the UK, I don’t think the G.I. Joe toys really caught on as well as in the states.  Re-branded Action Force, I was a big fan of them and the subsequent cartoon TV series as a kid.  Yet that seems a long time ago now, and their nostalgia value is clouded at best.  So here we have, much belated I might add, the big budget movie adaptation.  Best approached as a sort of X-Men meets Mission Impossible, this follows a young soldier named Duke (Channing Tatum) who along with his best bud Ripcord (a for once, not annoying Marlon Wayans) becomes embroiled in the search for a missing, high tech warhead after a team of highly advanced super-solders steal it during a routine escort mission.  Soon our naive solder, is drafted into the ranks of a secret government squad known as G.I. Joe; the only guys with the skills, training and the technology to take on this new threat.

Basically, like any movie with aspirations of becoming a franchise, this is mostly an origins story with a few flash backs thrown in for key characters, helping to flesh out the band of likable, colourful characters.  Christopher Eccleston heads up the bad guys as a megalomania arms-dealer, aided by a sultry, dark-haired Sienna Miller and a band of souped up grunts, with the odd white ninja thrown in for good measure.  On the side of the Joe’s we have a very sexy Rachel Nichols and kung-fu genius for hire Ray Park, lead by Dennis Quaid which made me wonder what the hell this once big name actor has been doing for god knows how many years.  Directed by The Mummy’s Stephen Summers, this is a fast, fun and exciting movie, with some great set-pieces (especially the Paris-set chase) and impressive special effects.  At times the story seems a little confusing and I did lose my way at times, but then again, this one was so packed with action, it was hard to ponder the finer points of the plot.  So again, another 2009 summer event movie that knocks Transformers 2 out of the water, and hopefully a sequel is already in the pipeline!

Verdict:  4 /5

Jan 21 2010

Upcoming reviews

G.I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra  (Blu-ray)

I remember loving the toys as a kid, and have heard some good things about this summer blockbuster.

Mesrine: Parts 1 & 2  (Blu-ray)

France’s finest actor, Vincent Cassell plays career crim Mesrine in this epic gangster-fest.

Suspiria  (Blu-ray)

Dario Argento’s legendary horror gets the high-def treatment, and I’ll be eager to see how this one shapes up!

Up  (Blu-ray)

Pixar’s latest.  I simply must see it.

Jan 19 2010

Crank

Viewed – 18 January 2010  DVD

It has to be said, Jason Statham is the finest British export American action movies have ever hired.  I first discovered this charismatic, hard-as-nails actor in Guy Ritchie’s excellent Snatch (a movie the director hasn’t come close to since, and I’ve yet to see Sherlock Holmes).  Yet thinking back to that character seems a world away from the ass-kicking shit-talking granite made hard man we have come to love through the Transporter movies and beyond. 

This action-heavy off-shoot from that franchise has Statham as a gun-for-hire who at the very start of the movie has been piosened and discovers he must keep his adrenaline running to stop himself from dying.  So naturally the clock is ticking and he must discover what has happened and find an antidote.  The story is thin, granted, but Statham brings it to life with a very energetic, desperate performance that boarders on comedy at times, but never looses the overall point – that this is a full on, fast paced action fest with plenty of chases, fights, blood, violence, naked women and sex.  It’s a man’s movie.

The supporting characters are little more than caricatures, with a couple of boo hiss villains, a girlfriend (Amy Smart) who beyond being a great piece of ass, is your typical dumb-blonde stereotype, and a cross-dressing side-kick is (mercifully) under-used.  It all gets a bit ludicrous towards the end, but by then you’ll have been deafened by the heavy-metal soundtrack and gasping for breath by the sheer intensity of it all, to not really care.

Verdict:  3 /5

Jan 15 2010

Darksiders – first impressions

Well after buying a PS3 recently, I was eager to sink my teeth into a game that would really absorb me, and after seeing this one being played in a games store recently, and having read many positive reviews, I thought I’d take the plunge.  This action / adventure slash ‘em up pits you as one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse, who after bringing about the end of the world prematurely, is ordered to return to a ravaged and destroyed earth to fight the denizens of hell and somehow restore order once again.  The story is nonsense, but the action, borrowing heavily from God Of War and to some extent The Legend Of Zelda, is chock-full of style as you explore the richly detailed, comic-book inspired world defeating the undead in your quest, and solving a few puzzles along the way.

As the first game by famed comic-book writer / artist Joe Madureira this oozes personality and is a vibrant treat for the eyes, even if on a technical basis it doesn’t push the PS3 much compared to the likes of Uncharted 2.  There’s a deep combat system to master and you can upgrade your abilities along the way, unlocking new weaponry and gadgets at the same time.  The combat feels satisfying and requires a bit of thought more than mindless button mashing, and the variety of enemies is decent, which along with the eye-catching environments, means there’s plenty to keep you enthralled.  I hear it also clocks in at an above average 20 hours, so you won’t be finishing this one too soon either.

So if like me you’re a fan of this sort of game, loved God Of War but can’t wait until God Of War 3 appears, then this will fill the void nicely.

UPDATE (20/01/2010):  Well have done about ten hours of the game so far, and am loving every minute of it.  The gradual build up of abilities and weapons, upgrading and learning new combos can’t be faulted.  The graphical style is superb, and the animation and detail of all the characters, from the demonic enemies to the various bosses is brilliantly done.  War himself is a moody but visually stylish creation and probably looks a bit tougher than God Of War’s Kratos.  Playing it the game for me most resembles PSOne classic Soul Reaver than what some reviews have said it resembles Legend Of Zelda – why?  Bacause it has a boom-a-rang thingy?  On a negative note the game suffers quite badly from frame-rate slow down at times, and screen tare is evident throughout, despite what you may have heard when in comparisson to the 360 version.  This doesn’t spoil the enjoyment of the game though, and I am eager to get back to this one as soon as possible!