abbo450 Reviews

Wrong Turn 2: Dead End (2007 Video)

It really isn't bad.

[7/10 · 21 October 2008]

If you are looking for a intelligent, well acted and original gore film, do not watch this. However, if you are looking for a fun night in that occasionally makes you laugh and wince at the same time, Wrong Turn 2: Dead End is certainly for you.

I have seen so many gore/slasher films and most of them are as predictable as England losing a penalty shootout. You can always tell by guessing who is going to survive before the killing begins. Usually I'm spot on but this time my top two three nominations died. This is refreshing and makes you want to see the end to see if there any more surprises.

Again the actual deaths usually are slightly un-original e.g. head decapitated. But not this film, the first death makes you recoil so much that you end up molded to the chair your sitting in and there is one more death that I don't think has ever been done before.

There is a slight bit of storytelling and back story for the main characters but mostly it is just kill and kill and kill. Overall it was a very surprising and enjoyable film (apart from the end) and it baffles me that this was a direct to DVD while Hills have Eyes got a theatrical release.

Doctor Who (2005–2022)

Enough of the Daleks!

[7/10 · 18 August 2008]

Before I start moaning, I just want to say that the majority of Dr. Who episodes are great and I like it. Especially the 1st series as it was so original and the chemistry between Ecceleston and Piper shined. But over time it has gradually got more stale. And I believe that's because of Dalek syndrome.

The 1st series was great because we got our first taste of the exterminating gods of Dr. Who and they were terrifying and brilliant at the same time. Next series, they were back but they had company with the cybermen. To me it was a bad move. The daleks were great because they were the only villains. Now, because of the authority they have over anybody on screen, the iconic cybermen were completely shunted out of the spotlight which should have been theirs in series 2. I know that it was a grand confrontation between the two greatest enemies of Dr. Who but they could have given the cybermen a little bit of dignity.

So in the next series the daleks were back, although they were back as the only villains and it was an okay episode but nothing special. Again it didn't feel as they should be their so soon after that dramatic final episode in the last series. The only blessing was they were not in the final episode.

This had given me hope that they would take a short break in the next series, but no, they returned with davros as well. I concede that the episodes were great if the daleks had been absent from a series before hand but now I'm getting bored. I know they are the greatest enemies of the Doctor, and they are the most popular and marketable, but sometimes there is such a thing as "too much of a good thing."

Naruto (2002–2007)

damn: i love it

[9/10 · 8 January 2008]

When the first trailers for naruto aired in the UK, my first thought was, o my god this is going to be the most annoying show on earth. And when i watched the first episode i thought that i was right. However when i was bored one night i watched it again and it had all changed. It had become more serious, more violent, much better. Sure, Naruto Uzamaki was still extremely annoying (believe it)! But with the secondary characters like kakashi and sasuke the show was definitely watchable.

However i believe that with the chunin exam arc that it became great. It now had a purpose that could be carried on for a few more seasons. And with the introduction of Rock lee, neji and orichimaru the already strong cast was beginning to come together. To make it even better we had the introduction of the supreme Gaara of the desert. This guy is awesome and because he is basically an evil version of naruto. the sand, the eyes, the personality and the silent coolness all adds to my love of this character. And as the story continues you really must admire the ability of Liam o'brain who voices him.

Apart from gaara I can't but the finger on the reason why i like naruto so much. I have never liked Japanese anime, and of course naruto is still annoying because of his stupid voice and the fact that the Japanese always have to take 5 minutes explaining everything. But with gripping fights, story lines, characters and the grown up nature of the programme and not making it for 6 year olds only makes naruto the best cartoon i've seen from japan (and they make a lot.)

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)

You have to concentrate

[10/10 · 8 January 2008]

I have no problems with critics and viewers commenting on how confusing the script of pirates is. take the the scene on the Asian ship for example. First Will betrays Sparrow because he wants to free his father using the pearl. Then Feng breaks the agreement with Will and captures him. Then it's revealed that Beckett has been behind it all promising him the pearl. THEN Beckett persuades Sparrow to surrender the brethren of the pirates to him in exchange for his freedom. THEN barbosa persuades seng that elizabeth is the living embodiment of the goddess calypso. So seng captures her in exchange for the Pearl. THEN Sparrow Beitris Beckett and flees the Endeavor back to the pearl and then sails off destroying one of the Endeavor's sails in the process. have i made my point clear.

However, if you really concentrate and follow the plot, during the break in the cinema or pausing it on DVD you can keep up with it. And by doing this you are able to keep up on one of the best stories told this decade. Jones & Beckett make great villains with Hollander giving a excellent performance. The humour has been carried on through all the films with Jack the monkey creating a classic. But with some wonderful novelties such as the song at the start and the pieces of eight the already strong story gets added depth. Add that with the wonderful scenes and conclusion of the end and this is easily the best film of the year.

Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire (2006)

Very hard to decide which is better

[8/10 · 11 November 2007]

In recent years there has been two dramas to depict roman life, this and the much more glamorous Rome. There are positives and negatives to both. This is much better in terms of the mechanics of the events that happened. In Rebellion we get to see why the Jews rebelled, how the general's family was important and the motivations behind all the character's decisions. In Rome i would expect, the characters would say "there's a rebellion in Judea... bye." In Ancient, we also get to see some much more interesting characters that i didn't know about, not only the emperors, but Alaric King of the Goths, Tiberius Graccus and the rival emperors of Constantine. So at this point Ancient is miles ahead.

But now Rome claws back. This gives a much better picture of Roman society. There is no mention of what the common people of Rome were feeling at the time of these events, where i'm sure Rome would address that. Also it is much better cast, written and acted. Aside from Michael Sheen (nero) there is no stand out actor in Ancient. Whereas, all of Rome's characters are superb. All perfectly cast and how the writers truly knew how to portray these people. Anient, is kind of lacking in that department (trevor in Eastendersas Antony?) So which is better? It depends on what you're looking for. if you are looking for a "soap" of Rome where society is portrayed, and where there is plenty of X rated action go for Rome. If you're more interested in what happened in a brief general view that doesn't really care if there script came from a 5 year old, go for Ancient. And that's what I'm interested in.

Snakes on a Plane (2006)

Those were the days

[8/10 · 14 October 2007]

Those were the days when you used to enter a video shop and you saw films such as "the spiders from mars" and "attack of the swamp man." And now those days have returned with a brilliant thrill ride that deserves all the internet hype that went with it.

Of course it is a B movie, so the script, plot and acting are poor (apart from Jackson) and since it is a B movie the production value is "low." However it doesn't need a big budget to be a good movie. The snakes look decent for digital and the deaths are well received in the cinema and some are extremely funny at home. Don't forget it is a B movie, so don't expect anything Oscar worthy, have low expectations like I did and it will be brilliant.

Predator 2 (1990)

the killer of a franchise

[2/10 · 25 August 2007]

The original Predator was a really good film to watch. Although it wasn't particularly scary, it was fun, exciting and it had Sir. Arnie. So when I rented this out a couple of nights ago I was expecting something similar, fun but chilling (despite Glover). Instead I get a stupid boring piece of garbage!

As I expected Glover is awful but everyone in the film gives terrible performances, even Paxton is average after his brilliant performance in Aliens. The script is full of senseless dribble and the racist gangs are so- American stereotypical, drug smoking lunatics. Also I have an unusual quip about the language. I have no problem with swearing in films and sometimes it is sort of essential. In this film they just pack it in, every 5 minutes a person swears!. I'm sorry but this is too much and totally ridiculous and pointless.

And then we come to the worst thing about it, The Predator. Arnie's guy was menacing, stealthy and strong at the same time which is helped by the total beat down and laugh scenes at the end of the first film. Also it looks brilliant, just as good as the alien effects. This makes him formidable and certainly not someone you'd want to meet. In this film the predator could have been beaten up by a hard teen. You need the creature to be threatening in a these films for it to work, this weedy thing doesn't help things and coupled with the other terrible parts of this film it turns into a cesspool.

The thing that "saves this" is the interesting ending where we discover some of the culture of the predators. Them rewarding glover with a trophy and the collection of skulls on the spaceship's wall is very insightful and was the only decent thing in this film.

All successful sagas (and by that I mean 4-7 films) the sequel needs to be quite good. If this had been better I think we could have seen a lot more predator films but this pile of garbage destroyed a potentially great franchise.

King Kong (2005)

Skull rules: the rest drools

[4/10 · 19 July 2007]

When I first saw this in the cinema i thought that it was amazing. However after a few days i realised that this film is actually pretty dull. Sure the skull island section is awesome, the special effects are great which do deserve their award, the b class characters, jimmy, Hayes etc are interesting and Kong is fantastic in the fight scenes.

However this section cannot save the film. The new york scenes at the start are boring and no one cares what is happening on the ship as all the people in the world watching just wanted to get to the island. Black's acting is rubbish and Ann's Darrow's character suffers from the terrible writing in part.(Come on doing your dance routine in front of a giant ape trying to dissuade him from eating her????) The biggest problem is after the thrill ride of skull, we are forced to sit through 30 minutes of Kong being constantly tormented of not finding his one true love. When they are finally reunited, there is a totally embarrassing scene of them ice skating!!!! Whoever came up with that needs to be fired from every job that is coming to them. Yes the ending is sad but as with all the film it takes too long. Learn from this Peter and make your next film shorter and of skull island quality.