scobbah Reviews

Wrong Turn 2: Dead End (2007 Video)

Henry Rollins saves WT2 from 1/10 vote

[3/10 · 21 October 2007]

Utterly poor, how is that for a review? Some people gather in the woods to shoot an adventurous reality show, but they soon find themselves being hunted by a group of hideous cannibals. Noteworthy is that the characterisation is boring, because all the characters are stereotypes to such an extent that one has problems deciding whether or not this film is a parody of genre, or just extremely cliché and trying to get away with it.

I can conceive of the target audience of the film being either teenagers or young adults; the film only features stereotyped characters; the soundtrack is pretty limited to teenage pop-rock music; some of the experiences of the characters, prior to the gory part of the film, are simply those teenagers or young adults are likely to experience.

I guess Henry Rollins is the true hero of this film and the only reason why I am not giving this film a 1/10 vote. Amidst poor effects and even poorer acting, Henry Rollins contributes in a great way to this film with his Ramboish cliché character.

Even if you are looking for a film which requires no thought whatsoever, I would not recommend this film.

3/10

Madhouse (2004)

When there is nothing better to do a Sunday evening

[5/10 · 1 October 2007]

Last night my friends and I decided to rent a DVD and we found this one interesting. First of all, the setting is by no means original. It is a classic mental health facility presumably situated in the countryside where people are locked up: people whose mere existence the society tries to forget about. Clark Stevens, a soon-graduating student of psychiatry, arrives at Cunningham Hall to finish his practical training, but soon discovers that there is something strange about this peculiar mental health facility.

The plot is not the most original one there is, yet the producers wound up with an OK result. Once the story begins to unfold I pretty much lost interest in the film though, as though the film did not manage to keep the tension throughout the last part of the film. The film is worth seeing if you have nothing better to do a Sunday evening, but do not expect too much entertainment. 5/10

Trailer Park Boys: The Movie (2006)

Get the series or the film and enjoy some white trash mockumentary tonight

[7/10 · 16 August 2007]

I am a huge fan of the complete series and I was worried that the film would disappoint me. Luckily, it did not.

Clattenburg and his team managed to craft a Trailer Park Boys film which has an excellent story, and indeed the story itself is a somewhat "typical" TPB story - something a fan immediately can recognize and acknowledge. Although I believe that people who have yet not seen the series might not completely follow at all times, the very same people will never find themselves lost while watching the film. I mean, the film introduces the characters rather well to those who make their first acquaintance with our Trailer Park heroes, but the film has much more to offer those who know the characters well.

Do yourself a favour and get the series or the film and enjoy some white trash mockumentary tonight. In conclusion, the film is great. 7/10

Casshern (2004)

A film I must definitely see again

[7/10 · 10 August 2007]

I consider Casshern (2004) to be hugely underrated. It is a thoughtful film which borrows heavily from anime techniques and the blend is awesome, giving the film some sort of a 3D-feeling - without getting too cliché while I am at it but the mix between animation and real pictures gives the film a new dimension.

As for the plot, it is original and keeps the suspense great. I was never bored or looking at the clock to find out how much time it was left (noteworthy is that the film after all is 141 minutes). The film keeps the suspense in a way that I could never guess what was coming next which in other words mean that the plot of the film was pretty unpredictable. Furthermore, the action had a decent mix between thoughtful dialogues and scenes of violence, so there is not any brain-dead violence which lacks purposes. I cannot really make any elaborate comments on the plot. Again, I consider it to be original and I advise the reader of this comment to give this film a try and find it out yourself - it is well-worth it, I think.

At any rate, I must definitely see Casshern again. 7/10 from my side.

Necronomicon: Book of Dead (1993)

Not even good enough for time-killing!

[3/10 · 10 August 2007]

I have to admit that I have not read any of Lovecraft's works, hence I cannot include any comparisons between the stories to the film in my verdict.

Although films based on books rarely meet expectations, there are those which are a great and sometimes they are even better than the books. I suppose fans of Lovecraft's works will be inclined to support the former case as I find it difficult to imagine any fan possibly enjoying this film. I was restless, constantly looking at the clock and tried my best to hang in there until the credits rolled just for the hell of it. This film is neither coherent nor interesting, but just loose tales cut and edited together with nothing that catches your attention or interest.

I would like to keep myself short, but I advise anyone to stay away from this horrible film. It is not even good enough for time-killing! 3/10

Hot Fuzz (2007)

Simon Pegg and Nick Frost bring more British humour to our big-screens

[7/10 · 4 August 2007]

I first saw Simon Pegg in Shaun of The Dead (2004) and I have to admit that even though I enjoyed that movie, Simon's face did not become etched into my memory. I will definitely remember his face after seeing Hot Fuzz, however, and he is one superb actor, that is one thing for sure.

Hot Fuzz brings British humour to the big screen, a kind of humour which I find really enjoyable. Simon Pegg plays a fine police officer who cleanses London from perpetrators in the most satisfactory way, which turns out to be too satisfactory as Simon becomes promoted and then transferred to a small city situated in the English countryside. Although this peculiar city seems to be peaceful and has numerous times won a sort of annual "greatest village" competition, the city seems to be stacked with a great number of original characters of who all of them seem to be law-benders to some extent. Simon Pegg's law-abiding character thus faces a great challenge as regards enforcing the law in this peculiar city.

This film is well-executed comedy mixed with mystery, and if I was not a fan of Simon Pegg in the past, I am certainly one now. Fans of Shaun of The Dead will most likely enjoy this one and perhaps some fans will be attracted to Hot Fuzz simply because Simon's friend and side-kick Nick Frost is featured in this film, too.

I think I must see Hot Fuzz a second time. At any rate, this film is well-worth a 7/10 from me.

Crank (2006)

Very original and a good piece of contemporary challenging film

[7/10 · 1 August 2007]

A feature film that puts Jason Statham in the front is more or less destined to be action-packed from the beginning to the end and Crank is not an exception. At first glance the duration of 1h30min might seem as pretty standard but I experienced the film to be somewhat longer due to its high pace. Trust me, 1h30min of this roller-coaster adrenaline chase is enough and I do not mean it in a negative way - I would not like to see the flick shorter nor any longer as it is perfect as it is! Anyone who has grown a predilection for Statham's acting ought to see this one. I can imagine that fans of films such as Snatch and Lock Stock And Two Smoking Barrels will love this one. Noteworthy is that I perceived the pace of Crank to be somewhat higher than the pace of the other films previously mentioned. Crank brings about violence, drugs, sex and even more violence, so sensitive viewers may want to take caution. Crank is not just another film depicting fast-cut scenes of violence, however, and I believe it as a lot more to offer the cinema-goers than just stimulating their thirst for violence. The film is very original indeed and it is a good piece of contemporary challenging film since it is not flirting with all the conventions of the genre, I believe.

7/10 - well worth a try!

John Safran vs. God (2004)

John Safran vs. God - an ironic approach to the search for spiritual enlightenment

[6/10 · 8 July 2007]

Watching the complete series of John Safran vs. God was the first time I got in contact with this peculiar Aussie. Although religion as a subject might be a difficult one to make a series on, John carries out his task diligently. He tries out several religions, some of them being well-known such as Zen Buddhism and Hinduism while other religions might be less known. How about a church where peyote, a a cacti which contains the psychedelic substance mescaline, is in the centre of religious practice? How about cursing "priests" in Mozambique of whom are accused of Australia's football team's weak performance due to a curse cast 30 years ago? There is a lot more to this series than this as John tries out several ways of reaching a higher spiritual state of mind. John has a sort of sarcastic approach to his search for enlightenment and he frequently mixes the footage of his experiences with a heavy dose of irony and rants about religious practice in the context of hypocrisy, I would say.

Although I do not regret that I watched the series as some of the episodes are great, I must stress that John at times becomes a bit silly about his rants. Yet the series is worth to give a shoot.

6/10

Free Jimmy (2006)

Anyone who has a predilection for irony will probably find this piece entertaining!

[7/10 · 24 June 2007]

First, I must warn non-Scandinavian viewers (primarily thinking of viewers who are neither Norwegian nor Swedish) as there are some jokes in the flick which allude to local stuff such as the 'Lappmafia'. Hence everyone may not understand all the jokes due to them being unknowing of the contexts of the jokes. At any rate, this is a hilarious flick! I think they nailed all the characteristics of the drug abusers, animal rights activists, the Russians and many more in a great ironic way (people who consider themselves to belong to any of these groups with a lack of self-distance might find this flick offending at times). Not to mention the animation itself which is simply awesome with its wonderfully depicted scenery whether the characters roam in the late-night city or take a hike in the mountains. I am impressed! I would not consider this flick to be much of a stoner movie, as a newspaper chose to put it, since there is a lot more to the flick than simple pot romance. Anyone who has a predilection for irony will probably find this piece entertaining! Lovely! 7/10

Devil's Prey (2001)

Stay away from this one!

[2/10 · 24 June 2007]

As somebody else stated so well, this is a complete waste of time and money. B-movies can be very entertaining indeed but there is nothing here that appeals to me. Over-exposure of breasts, depicting drug use in a way that is far from reality and poor acting - none of those mentioned appeals to me, sorry. If it appeals to you perhaps this flick is for you. Was there even a plot? I cannot remember myself noticing it if there ever was one. I consider this one to be a complete failure as regards making a college flick with goals set on appealing to young people.

2/10 - my advice is stay away from this one!

St. John's Wort (2001)

Not exceptionally good but still a good piece of entertainment a Saturday night

[5/10 · 24 June 2007]

I am really into Japanese stuff but I have been laying low the past year due to lack of time to indulge in such movies. A group of friends and I rented this one last night without having any expectations on it. The flick started out pretty funky using a lot of colour filters which we discovered were kept throughout the entire movie. I had no problems adjusting to it but some of my friends had problems enjoying the flick due to these filters.

As for the plot, I did not find it that bad. Conventional indeed with a few people going to an abandoned house so if you are looking for original cinema, I suppose this one will not save your day. I cannot really comment on the acting. The main actors did not do exceptionally well but not poor either. However the scenery was really nice, the interiors of the house coming to mind.

I was a bit unhappy with how the story unfolded. I suppose I expected something more. At any rate it was an OK time-killer and I think it is worth at least 5/10. The flick is not exceptionally good but still a good piece of entertainment a Saturday night.

Beowulf & Grendel (2005)

A waste of time

[4/10 · 15 June 2007]

I do not really know how this flick earned a 6/10 at IMDb, as I found very little in it to be interesting. The scenery adds a lot to the movie, but in my humble opinion the overall performance by the actors is poor with the exception of Stellan Skarsgård as Hrothgar and Sarah Polley as Selma.

There were scenes where I did not know whether or not to laugh. I conceived those scenes as meant to be 'serious', yet I only found them hilarious such as when Grendel is enraged beating himself with two rocks while screaming in what I felt was a boyish kind of way (which is hilarious since Grendel is after all meant to be a large troll and thus his character ought to own some vocal power, does he not?). My impression was thus that his character together with the rest of the film is depicted rather weak and poor. As mentioned earlier, Skarsgård and Polley do a good job though, especially the latter (who is incredibly hot by the way, I just had to add that, which I think is the first time I ever comment on someone's looks on IMDb :)). Yet I am afraid their performances cannot save this flick, and when the credits rolled I felt that this was a waste of time. Even more annoying was that quite a few Geats and Danes spoke with a Scottish accent which feels like joke to me, being half Swede and half Dane. Could they not have conducted a bit of research before or was the Scottish accent just the most convenient way to depict early Scandinavians since viewers outside Scandinavia would not care? 4/10

Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

To execute such an epic tale which is set in such a special environment is a very difficult task

[6/10 · 10 June 2007]

I decided to give Kingdom of Heaven a go as a friend of mine told me that people who are interested in history might enjoy this epic flick. I cannot really say I did not enjoy Kingdom of Heaven since it entertained me most of the time (I watched the ~3 hours long directors cut), but it turned out a bit dull at times.

Orlando Bloom is a great actor indeed, yet I am not sure whether or not he is suitable to play such a hero as he is supposed to do here, since the flick is an epic after all and thus require a special type of character to take the lead. I read similar comments here about whether or not he is suitable, but I leave that for you to decide. At any rate, I think he is not.

To execute such an epic tale which is set in such a special environment is a very difficult task, I would say - but I think the director and the staff did a decent job here, especially when it comes down to the great battles. The amount of violence depicted is pretty well balanced. It is not too much nor an absence of it, and there were moments when I feared unnecessary amount of violence to be depicted, yet there was none at those times and the flick took a different turn than I had thought.

This flick is not among the top 10 flicks of 2005, yet was entertaining - and - at least it got me further interested in the Crusades so I decided to do some more reading on it.

6/10

Apocalypto (2006)

Mel and his staff have done a good job here

[7/10 · 9 June 2007]

First, I must admit that I have yet not seen Mel Gibson's The Passion of The Christ, hence I cannot point out any similarities or differences between that one and Apocalypto. Indeed I was expecting a bit of gore due to several other comments I have read, but I cannot really say there was too much of it. Yes, there was a heavy dose of violence but since it was depicted in a very artistic style the violence never really felt exaggerated like it would earn the flick comments such as 'too much gore'.

As for the flick itself, executing it in Mayan language contributed a lot to the overall feeling of authenticity (even though one ought to question whether the flick really gives a fair view of the Mayan culture). The actors did a great job on their part, no question about that. I rarely find myself connecting with the hero or heroine in Hollywood flicks these days as they tend to be so exaggerated and cliché that I quickly lose interest in them. Mel and his staff have done a good job here though, having Rudy Youngblood playing Jaguar Paw was a very good decision indeed.

To put it short as regards the scenery, it was simply amazing.

7/10 - well worth a view

Sunshine (2007)

What seemed to be so promising...

[5/10 · 7 May 2007]

We went to the cinema last night to give 'Sunshine' a shot. The flick seemed to be very promising during the first hour or so, then I do not know what happened. As some people have remarked here and whose opinions I support, the latter part of the flick turned out to be a total disaster. I left the theatre very dissatisfied. At any rate, the effects and scenery were all first class but for the plot, I cannot find words. The actors did a decent job, especially Cillian Murphy as 'Capa'. I would give the first part of the flick an 8 out of 10, but due to the disastrous latter part, I would not give the flick a total point of more than 5 out of 10.

300 (2006)

Well executed

[7/10 · 6 May 2007]

I tend to like flicks that cover historical events so I thought I would give '300' a go. Before dealing with the plot, I must say that the featured scenery is first class. There is something special about the scenery that makes it sort of magic, as though there was some sort of mysterious magic filter processing the video content.

I do not feel that I am in a position to press charges against any of the actors due to poor performances. Gerard Butler does his job great indeed acting as King Leonidas. What I do feel though is, that the flick unfolds a bit too fast to the point where the Spartan army finds itself at war with the Persians. At any rate, the violent scenes of the war are well executed and I found the balance to be decent between art and war.

In conclusion, I give '300' a solid 7/10.

Evil Bong (2006)

Watching a lousy-rated stoner-flick just to be able cry out 'I did it'" aloud

[2/10 · 19 March 2007]

First, I must stress that I only saw this flick with the sole purpose of giving a lousy-rated stoner-flick a chance just for the heck of it and I suppose there is no need to mention that I had close to non-existing expectations when I hit the play button on my remote control.

Noteworthy is, that the low-budget feeling was definitely evident but not in a charming way such as 'Bad Taste' or anything like it, but more as though they, at times, were trying to put a vile upon the viewer and thus conceal the truth, investing the whole budget in bong equipment and fake ganja while letting the plot develop (without suspension) in a limited number of rooms (I will not tell you how many, as I might spoil your fun watching this). Not to shed light upon the characters, who were so stereotyped that the producers could never have been expecting even stoners to enjoy their flick, depicting stoners as being utterly dumb and only longing for the next hit and getting zoned out - an illustration of something I cannot imagine too many of us are able to confirm, with that said, keeping in mind that I hang around stoners myself.

With the evil bong seizing control over the poor stoners and the way it was depicted, we all burst out of laughter, sort of agreeing in unison that the motives behind the flick were all but to enjoy stoners nor anyone else who might be into stoner flicks.

Do yourself a favor and stay away from this flick unless you do not wish to carry out a task as mine defined: "watching a lousy-rated stoner-flick just to be able cry out 'I did it'" aloud - checked.

2/10

Nacho Libre (2006)

Well worth a shot

[6/10 · 5 January 2007]

I found this piece to be very weird to tune in to at first, but once I got in the mood I found it to be hilarious at times. The jokes have a sweet, sort of surprising approach and with, at times, a darker touch. I must admit that I choked a few times out of laughter. Jack Black's character ventures into some utterly weird projects, and with his companion, they're forming an excellent pair whose future adventures are anything but easy-going. I must emphasize the beauty of the scenery in this flick, as the surroundings are giving it a certain magic touch.

I must definitely get into some more of Jack Black's stuff after seeing this one.

6/10 - well worth a shot.

Deja Vu (2006)

Predictable, but alright for brain-dead Thursday hours

[6/10 · 29 December 2006]

I'm not too fond of predictable Hollywood flicks, but hey, I had a free ticket so I thought I'd give it a chance yesterday evening, as I like going to the cinema and there wasn't anything else to see.

It would be a lie if I'd say that this one wasn't predictable, at least not in my humble opinion. One could figure out most of the flick pretty fast, and besides the plot, I even found the scene development to be too familiar with the typical Hollywood touch to it; a girl facing herself in the mirror while wearing only her bra on top, the implicit promotion of certain ideals and industries... well, you know it. It kind of makes me wanna throw up, but anyhow... it wasn't too difficult to blindfold oneself for these kind of things and just focus on the plot, as the flick kept a quite decent pace. Even though by judging what's written above might draw one to an easy conclusion that I wasn't fond of the flick it all, I must emphasize that it was after all a quite good brain-dead action. I mean, a flick like this one doesn't require too much of one's concentration.

6/10

Terrorstorm (2006 Video)

Conspiracy theories?

[7/10 · 18 December 2006]

First, I found this piece at times to be a bit too... well, propagandistic. I mean, I do genuinely agree with a lot of the interesting stuff that Alex Jones does bring up on the subject of government-sponsored terrorism, but at times, it feels like there's a lot of focus put on Alex himself, his speeches, activism and him as the first one to question the official truth about 9/11 and all. I won't judge the flick itself, but perhaps there's a bit too much glorification about the guy in the end, at least that was the feeling I got both during the flick as well as after the credits rolled.

For the facts and theories presented, I can't say else than that the material just confirms a lot of the so called cynical beliefs and theories I do have upon the subject of the attacks on 9/11. Though the piece presented some really interesting points that was new to me, I sometimes felt, during the roll of the flick, that I longed for a deeper explanation regarding some of the presented material. I also longed for mini-texts in the bottom-left of the screen explaining who the respective interviewed subject was and their position/relevance for the "conspiracy theories". I mean, if one weren't keeping 110% focus during some sections of the flick, I believe the director just could've interviewed more or less any random guy throwing their views upon the camera lens.

Anyhow, all-in-all, I liked the flick and I think people should at least try to see it once, though take it with a bit of salt. To me, the potential of this flick, is to let it act as a trigger - to start questioning the establishment and their statements. With that said above, I wouldn't consider it to be a great source of the most objective thoughts on the planet, as there is a subjective reason (of course) why Mr Jones made this film from the very beginning.

7/10 from me.

Saw III (2006)

A bit more gore than in its predecessors

[7/10 · 11 December 2006]

We went to the cinema yesterday to see this flick. I can't really say I had any expectations, I mean, it's a third part in a series and such are rarely keeping the same quality as their predecessors. After seeing it, I have to admit that this flick is definitely keeping the same touch of quality work as the first two parts. I'd say it's better than the second piece, and if it's not better than the first piece, then they're at least even.

I found the third part to have a bit more gore in it, compared to the other pieces in the series. Some scenes are really disturbing and even I, who claim myself to be quite difficult to disturb through film as a medium, at times felt really... well, it was almost a bit too much. It's far from snuff, please, don't get me wrong here, since the utter disturbance is very beautiful in a way and very artistic, I'd say.

For the plot, I can't pull off any complaints. Anyone familiar with the first two pieces and the plot of theirs, will recognize the atmosphere and the touch of the flick here. The acting is neat, no complaints there either. All-in-all, this is a well-made flick and among the best deliveries from Hollywood I've been confronted with in quite a while. I recommend it. 7/10.

Silent Hill (2006)

Tasteful scenery

[6/10 · 23 October 2006]

First, I should point out that I can't really identify myself with the group of people that adore the Silent Hill video games. I've just tried out one of them and I was quite impressed, but I'm not really much of a gamer these days. So I thought I was in a quite good mood for a movie like Silent Hill tonight, and I can't say I got too spellbound by judging the plot... Although I think the scenery was amazing! I'm a bit interested in art and this flick just had what I'm into, that sort of morbid and doomsday kind of feeling to it. For the action and the acting, I didn't get too involved... I mean, it was just another American flick, considering the acting and the Hollywood style. But hey, it was two hours of good effects, so the time watching it wasn't completely wasted. I give this 6/10, where at least 4 points are earned just by the scenery.

Joint Security Area (2000)

Deeply moved

[7/10 · 20 July 2006]

I think "Oldboy" was the first flick I ever saw by Chan-wook Park and it turned out to be a good entrance to the realm of Korean movies. Before that, I was particularly fond of Japanese flicks (and still am) but I discovered that Korean flicks have the true potential of delivering that little something something, too.

"Joint Security Area" features much more than classic tension between two worlds (in this case regimes), and, the flick depicts very well the emotions carried by the characters here. Along with some great acting performances, the scenery is really sweet. There are a few of these which are really that something something! To those who expect raw violence of war, keep on looking because you're not going to find it here.

I have nothing really to rant about. The plot is nice and with ease I perceive this original flick to be a piece by Chan-wook Park and with that comes good quality all along. 7/10.

Hostel (2005)

Beautiful scenes but that's it...

[5/10 · 20 July 2006]

For what reason I do not know, I've been trying to avoid this flick for a while due to the bad reviews I've read and heard about it. So it came the other day that I had the chance to see it and I took it. I'm not really disappointed, I guess I didn't expect too much of it, did I? For the plot, the build-up didn't really move me at all. I was more amused with the beautiful scenes being depicted in the latter part of the flick, which are quite dark and for some reason the scenes brought my thoughts to the Dark Ages, don't ask me why.

I was heavily annoyed by some of the lines in the flick, which gives a subtle boost to prejudices about Europeans and Americans and to what is supposed to be "seperating" us. I'd rather see the flick without this generalizing crap lines, but they're there so let's try to forget about it and focus on, again, the beautiful scenes. 5/10.

Bijitâ Q (2001)

Viewers should take caution about the level of disturbance that's being exposed here.

[7/10 · 7 June 2006]

Of all Miike's flicks this one ought to be among the most weirdest, psychological ones out that has yet been released. I guess the main topic would be: what are we supposed to feel. And that's what Miike succeeds to evoke in us, the viewers. I really find myself having a hard time to find words to describe what I've just seen and experienced. Violence, gore, necrophilia, kinky and much more are featured here and the viewer should take caution about the level of disturbance that's being exposed here.

Whilst feeling terribly lost, I still find this film somehow to be beautiful in a disturbed way. Miike's a master when it comes down to depict violence without ever losing it on screen, thus creating this atmosphere which is so rich of contrasts between disturbance and beauty. If I were you and I hadn't seen this one, I'd skip reading the plot and just head over and put that disc into the DVD player as soon as possible to tune in. This is, if anyone is, a flick to be experienced first - before investigating it further in Net zines.

7/10: I got to see this one again.