Of all the films I have watched in recent times, let's say this year, nearly all of them that i had never seen before had something fresh about them. Franklyn, Outpost, City of Embers (which I must watch remember to watch again and review, that was good. And Franklyn, for that matter) and even Punisher: Warzone all had an air that they were having a go at something innovative. The Mummy: Tomb of The Dragon Emperor, however, was shamelessly similar to the other two, which were distinctly similar in themselves.
But, as is usual with me, I can't see this as a bad thing. I enjoyed the original film, even had some of the toys if i remember correctly, and this still has the same old school charm i enjoyed back in the day. The introduction of the whole "in China instead" thing was enough of a difference that the obsene similarities were almost ignorable. The film was so shameless in it's similarities (sorry to go on about it) that it just downright said it. The amount of references to having "done it all before" were numerous. I liked it, some people may not.
The film was still good though. Alex is all grown up and the father-son thing he has going on with Brendan Fraser's character (you know, the old main character) is cool, and though there is a love interest it's an immortal freakin kung-fu expert ninja motherfucker who looks good if i do say so myself. Her mum's not bad either.
There are a lot of guns, a lot of explosion, a car chase and all the other staples of these films, just two-fold now Alex has his own gun collection and ideas on how to... well, have car chases and blow shit up. Add some martial arts and just plain Jet Li, add in the pretty cool battle scenes, fucking YETIS and awesome special effects then it makes for a film that if it were the first in the series would have been hugely popular and would've been loved as much, if not more than its predecessors.
As a film, i would give it a 8/10, but because it never shocked me and because of the sense I really had seen it all before, even if it wasn't actually in the other two films, the real score is 6/10. If you liked the other two, watch it. There really is no reason why not, just to watch a fit Chink talk yeti and proceed to have her abominable slaves fuck up a small section of the chinese army it's a film worth saying yes to.
Thursday 20 August 2009
Cruel Intentions
I watched a tonne of films i've never seen last night, and although most of them were girly (being at a girls house, oddly enough) at least a few were decent films. As much as at the heart of them is the purest good, and there is a love story unfailingly in every one, i have no intrinsic hatred of films that are designed for females.
This film, above all others, pretty much states fully my feelings on why these films should be watched without too much resistance. The pretense of Cruel Intentions is simple, a man takes a bet (on the possible loss of his '56 Jaguar Roadster no less) that he can fuck the new headmasters daughter (who, being Reeses Witherspoon, is fairly good looking anyways) before school even starts, starting his reputation a-rolling before the year even starts. The whole story gets a bit confused when he wants to fuck his step-sister in return, but you know how these things go.
This is a simple story, and as much as it would have been a frankly TERRIBLE film if that was all that was involved I genuinely enjoyed the film. The intertwined stories are interesting, and the plot twists obviously to be expected with a brother and sister (played by a young Sarah Michelle-Gellar in various scanty outfits. FIT) infatuated with eachother but in an eternal power struggle to control one another were actually slightly shocking at times. I guess i've come to be able to predict the type of film i enjoy, this was a nice escape.
I can't write a review of this film without mentioning how outrageously bonerific it was. It was surely made with men being dragged to the cinema in mind, there were some fantastically lacking costumes and Sarah Michelle-Gellar had a lesbian make out scene with a stupid but fit girl whose name i've forgotten. The film at times was positively gratuitous, and god damn would that have kept me going long enough to watch the film even if the rest was a shitstorm. Which it wasn't.
So, all in all, a good film. I'll give it... 6/10. It was a film that, if in female company who disliked guns, violence, gore and obsene nudity entirely out of context i would crack out. It was enjoyable enough that if i were in the mood i may even watch again, albeit not alone. I wouldn't crack it out alone for fear of cracking one out alone.
This film, above all others, pretty much states fully my feelings on why these films should be watched without too much resistance. The pretense of Cruel Intentions is simple, a man takes a bet (on the possible loss of his '56 Jaguar Roadster no less) that he can fuck the new headmasters daughter (who, being Reeses Witherspoon, is fairly good looking anyways) before school even starts, starting his reputation a-rolling before the year even starts. The whole story gets a bit confused when he wants to fuck his step-sister in return, but you know how these things go.
This is a simple story, and as much as it would have been a frankly TERRIBLE film if that was all that was involved I genuinely enjoyed the film. The intertwined stories are interesting, and the plot twists obviously to be expected with a brother and sister (played by a young Sarah Michelle-Gellar in various scanty outfits. FIT) infatuated with eachother but in an eternal power struggle to control one another were actually slightly shocking at times. I guess i've come to be able to predict the type of film i enjoy, this was a nice escape.
I can't write a review of this film without mentioning how outrageously bonerific it was. It was surely made with men being dragged to the cinema in mind, there were some fantastically lacking costumes and Sarah Michelle-Gellar had a lesbian make out scene with a stupid but fit girl whose name i've forgotten. The film at times was positively gratuitous, and god damn would that have kept me going long enough to watch the film even if the rest was a shitstorm. Which it wasn't.
So, all in all, a good film. I'll give it... 6/10. It was a film that, if in female company who disliked guns, violence, gore and obsene nudity entirely out of context i would crack out. It was enjoyable enough that if i were in the mood i may even watch again, albeit not alone. I wouldn't crack it out alone for fear of cracking one out alone.
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