gaboonviper-605-441518 Reviews

Mega Shark vs. Kolossus (2015)

Great! If you take it in the spirit it was made...

[7/10 · 11 August 2015]

You could try and rate this movie by realism, acting prowess of the cast, and the excellence of the story. But that's like trying to rate the Shawshank Redemption by the amount of comedy, and its suitableness for kids.

This is a mega-monster parody.

It's the kind of movie you watch with your friends while laughing and generally having a good time. And its excellent at that. The movie is chock full of action sequences, special effects and interesting twists that keep your attention. At the same time, it doesn't make the mistake of taking itself too seriously with the drama and art.

The acting is not great, but good enough to prevent you from gouging your eyes out. The characters are likable clichés from all of your favourite movies. And the story makes sense almost half of the time.

You don't HAVE to see this movie. But if you're looking for something fun to watch that's not too heavy; this is as good a choice as any.

Pacific Rim (2013)

A blockbuster done right

[7/10 · 5 October 2013]

Pacific rim has everything a blockbuster needs: Great graphics, great action, an interesting storyline, simple characters, cheesy lines, and a decent bit of humor.

The graphics are top of the line. And unlike some movies *cough* Transformers 2 *cough*, the action scenes are actually immersing and thrilling, rather than confusing. They are also regularly interspersed with some storyline, so they don't get too drawn out.

The story is your basic alien invasion science fiction with some small differences. I'm not going to give away anything more, though to be honest there isn't all that much I could tell you that you would really regret hearing. The movie isn't about story, even if it's interesting enough that it could have been.

There will be some plot devices that you will see coming from miles away. But the movie also occasionally and refreshingly differentiates from the norm. For example: not everyone you expect will get eaten by the monsters.

As for the acting, this seems to be criticized mostly. And although the characters are shallow, I can't say that the acting was so bad that I actually noticed. In fact I kinda thought the little Asian girl did an exceptional job, and I rarely notice good acting. I also rarely notice bad acting, so maybe I'm not the best compass in this area.

Humor is also important for a blockbuster. Since the story is about an apocalyptic event, the amount of humor is sparse, but it's placed in the right moments where you can use a bit of laugh. Without it the whole thing would just be a bit too depressing.

Pacific Rim not a masterpiece by any means, which seems to be why some critics give it terrible ratings. But like all movies, you should watch it in the spirit it was intended, in this case: a mindless thrill. This is where it succeeds well, and even above expectations. I'd put it on par with the classic 'Independence Day'. With a bit of luck this movie will reach that same status.

Defiance (2013–2015)

Surprisingly good if you let it draw you in.

[8/10 · 6 July 2013]

The Defiance TV show is certainly deserving of some criticism.

For starters, the CGI isn't all it could be. Oh there are some pretty space ships, and explosions. But they look like they come from a well-made cartoon movie, not a live action show. And some shots, particularly the moving flora shots are just plain ugly. It's as if they were concept scenes they forgot to take out.

Then there is the cliché story lines, as other reviewers mention: Romeo and Juliets, Alien apocalypses, Rogue sheriffs. Then again, if you hate clichés, maybe you should refrain from watching TV at all.

But I'm not here to make excuses. The series deserves recognition for many other aspects.

The characters, though they seem one-dimensional at first glance, are actually well fleshed out. There are no plain evil bad guys, nor are there any over-the-top gooey good guys. The characters are more human, and much deeper than in many other shows.

The acting is a bit of a mixed bag, but the most important characters are well-represented. Though I'll admit that I'm probably not the best judge in this area.

The best part of this show is however the story. Yes, I mentioned its clichés, but the clichés aren't necessarily bad, they have just been done before. The important part is how well they are executed. And in this case they are indeed well, and even realistically, executed.

If you think the good guys will never kill criminals if they have a chance to spare their lives, think again. If you think bad guys don't have any sense of morality, you're dead wrong.

Many shows thrive on drawn out angst, caused by characters acting more stupid than is necessary. I hope I'm not in the minority when I say that I highly prefer shows that don't join in that sort of nonsense, shows such as: Defiance.

One last word of advice. If Defiance doesn't completely haul you in right from the start, don't worry, it takes a few episodes to warm up to it. I kind of liked it at the start, but only just enough to keep watching. And now I prefer it to most shows I'm following.

Vice (2013–2021)

Unpolished view of the extremes in the world.

[9/10 · 4 May 2013]

There are two kinds of programs on T.V. at any given moment. Entertainment: which tends to either dumb down, or completely distort reality. And News: which is painted so objective and distant it gives no clues about the human motivation behind it all.

Vice is nothing like anything I've ever watched. It's a documentary of the extremes in the world as they are now, and they aren't pretty. It's not so much objective as it is honest.

You get a glimpse of how it's really like living in places and situations they make movies about. Suddenly Afghanistan, China, rebellious Europe, and small-town USA aren't mystical places where things are completely backwards. It's just people who live in circumstances that are impossible. Circumstances where you and I would do exactly the same things as they are, if we didn't know how things could be.

What I love most about this show, is the rawness. It's not trying to be a piece of art. It's not trying to spoon-feed you with their view. It's just trying to show you how it is.

It's refreshing.

The Darkest Hour (2011)

Better than most rubbish out there

[7/10 · 29 March 2012]

The amount of negativity the film gets is a bit surprising to me. And I'm not the easiest to please.

No, it's not the best movie you'll ever see, but it's certainly enjoyable. It's not as epic as independence day, but it's better than that in many other ways. The story itself is cliché(is it even possible to think of a story that's not cliché anymore?), but the way it's told is quite good.

The characters have much more depth than your average summer blockbuster. It doesn't have the unrealistic 'a single virus will destroy them all'- ending. And the Graphics are well done.

Unless you're expecting some-kind of newfangled eccentric piece of unique art, or you're looking for the non-stop ridiculously unrealistic Rambo action, I don't see any reason for you not to like this movie.

It's refreshing to see some semblance of quality in the movie scene once more.

Spymate (2003)

Simple fun

[7/10 · 29 July 2010]

Nothing about this movie is particularly good. The story, the acting, the characters are all terrible. Don't expect any clever plot developments, original one-liners or anything extraordinary. Then you'll be okay.

I mean, it's a movie about a monkey(alright fine, it's a chimp for all you zoologists, for the rest of us it's a monkey) who happens to be a spy. What did you expect? Oscar-worthy content? But that doesn't mean you can't have fun watching it. Just watch this with your friends and family and I'll guarantee you'll have plenty of laughs.

There's lots of action, absurd spy gadgets, a monkey, circus performers, silly comedy, light drama and a happy ending(this doesn't count as a spoiler does it?). What's not to love?

Dexter (2006–2013)

Great premise, but...

[7/10 · 25 December 2009]

The show is about a serial killer, who is gunning only for other killers. It's based on the Dexter books by Jeff Lindsay, but only loosely. The first season is fairly close to the first Dexter book, but after season one it derails into something quite different.

One thing you have to realize about the show is, that while the story revolves around Dexter's extracurricular activities, he is only barely the main character. The show tries to diversify by showing the lives of the other characters as well. Considering these characters are everyday cops working in the homicide department of the Miami police force, they had to spice up their lives a tiny bit. The result is basically a soap opera with lot's of romance, angst, about 10 times as extreme as anything you're bound to see in real life. Dexter's life is also spiced up, as if that was necessary, as the show tries to humanize him over the course of the series. My personal preference is for inhuman Dexter.

Of course, pretty much everything you see on TV is like that these days. Unrealistic relationships, and attempts to throw every single movie cliché into one show are hardly a strange concept. So, coupled with the originality of the premise, this is in fact one of the best shows out there, right now. I personally enjoyed it very much, but I recommend anyone to record the show before you watch it, so you can skip through the all the boring parts.

Also if you're like me and you watch this show mostly for the Dexter character, you might want to try out the books. The books are in fact so different from the series, you can read them and watch the series without noticing much overlap.

Dharma & Greg (1997–2002)

Extreme stereotypes, yet realistic(huh?), and of course fun.

[8/10 · 11 December 2009]

Where a lot of shows, even comedies, are about angst, 'Dharma and Greg' is very forgiving with the characters. The writers managed to create relatively realistic relationships (in comparison to what's usually on TV) with the most ludicrously stereotyped characters anyone could possibly make. They have stereotypes of all kinds in here, so everyone is bound to find some character he or she likes.

Like any show, it has its ups and downs, but overall it's a pretty good mix of everything. Some episodes are plain silly, some are romantic, some are just good fun, there's even a handful of angsty ones in there. It keeps entertaining, and although elements in the show are reused quite often, it rarely becomes tedious. Actually it makes a lot of sense, the characters in the show do develop somewhat, but just like real life, a lot of their character remains the same throughout all 5 seasons. And that means their flaws as well.

Anyway, I'd recommend this show to anyone who likes comedy, and doesn't mind extreme stereotypes. And while the show may seem to be just a lot of silliness, there are some surprisingly brilliant scenes in there occasionally.