NRGWasp Reviews

The Bourne Supremacy (2004)

The Rock, Vin Diesel, Arnold Schwarzenegger take heed...

[9/10 · 25 July 2004]

The Bourne Supremacy is everything an action-packed, gadget-filled, butt-kicking action film should be. The story is superb... maybe even better than the original, the action is intense, and the pacing is quick. There's never a dull moment. 'Supremacy' is smart, quick, and exciting. All those Arnold Schwarzenegger, Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson (The Rock), James Bond vehicles should be ashamed of themselves.

Matt Damon returns as infinitely-more-compelling-than-James-Bond super spy Jason Bourne. Set two years after 'Identity', Bourne is forced out of hiding to once again protect himself and Marie from shadowy bureaucrats and possibly Bourne's own shadowy past. 'Supremacy' is grittier, darker, more suspenseful than 'Identity'. Bourne seems more desperate and has more difficulty eluding his would-be captors, and the film is better for it.

The one problem I have with the film, and it seems I'm not alone on this, is that the hand-held camera work is atrocious. Thankfully most of the camera work is steady, but some of the more action-filled scenes shake uncontrollably. So much so that it's hard to focus on what's happening. This prevents me from giving an otherwise flawless action flick a perfect score.

9/10

Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)

A film that should be seen, not censored.

[6/10 · 28 June 2004]

Michael Moore is a man people love to hate. I, myself, am on the fence. I didn't particularly enjoy "Bowling for Columbine" and I've not seen his earlier work, but "Fahrenheit 9/11" is an astounding film. Factually sound and relentless in its assault on the Bush White House, "Fahrenheit" takes us from a real art-house opening with the audio-only attacks on the World Trade Center to the run-down neighborhoods of Flint, Michigan, to the front lines of Iraq.

Particularly notable during the Iraq segments is the Fallujah debacle, complete with charred corpses being dragged through the streets and beaten with steel rods. Whether or not you think an R rating is appropriate, the film certainly earns it with these grotesque and horrifying scenes.

More important than the Bush-Bashing, I think, is the expose of the Military-Industrial Complex (which Bush and Cheney happen to be part of). Moore expertly connects the dots between the Bushes and oil-rich arabs. What we're left with is the government and cowed mass media badgering a populace to start a war which is in no way involved with the attacks of September 11th... a war not about WMD or al-Qaeda, but a war about the second largest known oil reserve in the world.

The only thing I would have to liked to see in Moore's "Fahrenheit" is republican Dwight D. Eisenhower's farewell address, warning Americans about the dangers of the Military-Industrial Complex... which is in full swing here.

9/10

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

We come to it at last...

[10/10 · 17 December 2003]

Indeed, we come to the end of an epic filmic quest... THE epic filmic quest. Where does one start when reviewing such a movie?

It's absolutely wonderful. The minor cracks are easily overlooked for the sheer beauty and awesome power of The Return of the King. New Line Cinema is quite lucky to have taken such a gamble, as the studio stands to benefit excessively because of it. A small time indie director working out of New Zealand takes $300million and molds it into an epic trilogy for the ages. Worthy of standing with such timeless classics as The Godfather, the Original Star Wars trilogy, and Indiana Jones.

Despite having already read the books (and thus basically knowing what happens next), I couldn't help but be surprised and excited and saddened and thrilled by RotK.

The Battle of the Pelennor Fields is gigantic in scope and incredibly exciting. Indeed it does make Helm's Deep look like a minor skirmish.

Shelob's Lair and Shelob herself are truly terrifying. I love the attention to the book here, because it was one of my favorite parts, where Sam takes up the ring and vows to continue on. I saw Frodo staggering towards the tower of Cirith Ungol and thought "drat, they went and changed it." But lo and behold, Shelob crept up and mummified him in her webbing. It was breathtaking, eliciting quite a reaction from the midnight crowd.

The death of Theoden King is very sad. I pride myself on being able to hold back the emotion at the theater, but this was one of several scenes where I got all choked up and misty eyed.

The final struggle up Mt. Doom and the confrontation inside were truly suspenseful. Nitpickers looking for the Failure of the Ringbearer will be pleased to see it here. Frodo reaches the brink, only to finally succumb to the ring before being attacked by Gollum.

The CGI was once again top-notch. How will anyone ever do better? I have no idea. Gollum, the Oliphaunts, the Dead Men of Dunharrow all look spectacular and utterly believable... Really outstanding work by Weta Workshop.

Acting was excellent all around, yet again. However, one performance did stand out. Despite being a short Hobbit, Sean Astin's performance as Samwise Gamgee stands head and shoulders above the rest. He's my pick for a Supporting Actor Oscar.

But enough of that, eh? Let's get to the dirt. If anyone has been paying attention to my FotR and TT reviews (and I doubt they have), they'd know I'm not a stickler for word-for-word adaptation. There are some troubling changes... particularly Pippin finding the Palantir in the flooded courtyard of Isengard rather than inside Orthanc. Why they changed it, or why they omitted how the Palantir got there, I'm not sure. More troubling omissions are the Houses of Healing, the romance between Eowyn and Faramir (save for but a glimpse at the end), Faramir being retained as Steward of Gondor, and Eomer becoming King of Rohan.

Also absent is the Scouring of the Shire, of which I'm sure you're all aware. Truth be told, I wasn't a big fan of the Scouring... and I think it's appropriate that it -- and Tom Bombadil from FotR -- be omitted.

But like I said before, these cracks are easily overlooked, because they do not detract from the movie (which is what you paid to see, you didn't pay to read the book).

Besides, I'm sure they'll appear on the Extended DVD!! Yes! One last wait to endure!

Spider-Man (2002)

Good But Not Record-Setting Good

[7/10 · 28 May 2002]

The movie is good, and I can't think of a kiss better than Tobey/Kirsten's, but it's far from deserving so many box office records. I doubt very much Spider-Man will be considered for awards that aren't visual effects or sound related. *I* certainly wouldn't consider it.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

An absolutely incredible film!

[10/10 · 2 May 2002]

Simply incredible. Never before have I seen a 3 hour movie that didn't seem like 3 hours. I read the Lord of the Rings very recently and I was surprised at how similar Peter Jackson's vision was to my own.

Now about the omissions and alterations. I'm not a crazed fanatic who gets worked up over every little detail. I didn't mind Arwen's inflation and I'm actually glad Tom Bombadil was scrubbed (I felt Tom Bombadil was an unnecessary addition to the book). Despite these minor changes, the screenplay stays extremely close to the book and flows very very well (and the prologue was a nice touch).

The acting was flawless. As I've read many many times in other reviews, McKellen doesn't play Gandalf, he IS Gandalf. Wood, Mortensen, Holm, Astin, everyone was fantastic. My hat's off to Sean Bean who delivers an excellent performance as Boromir, a character who's intentions are good but wrestles with the corrupting power of the Ring. Bean portrays it VERY well. Oh, and Andy Serkis does a PERFECT Gollum voice. It's EXACTLY as I imagined it myself.

The special effects were incredible, the cave troll, the balrog, Gollum, and Sauron's Eye all looked amazing. I was also very impressed by the seamless shrinking of the vertically challenged characters.

What's wrong with this movie? I have no idea... I thought everything was perfect. MY biggest gripe is having to wait an entire year to see The Two Towers!

Rounders (1998)

An Excellent Poker Movie

[9/10 · 27 April 2002]

I love poker movies. I don't know why; I'm not that good at the game, myself... but I love 'em. If you're like me, if you have a thing for poker movies, then this movie's for you. It does much more justice to poker than Maverick does. While it is a great movie, Maverick inaccurately portrays poker as a game of chance where any ol' fool can draw an ace of spades and get a royal flush to win a poker tournament. "Ha" is what I say to that. Rounders, on the other hand, sets the record straight. Poker is a very complex skill game and many times during the movie, Rounders will tell you this.

Anyway, Rounders is about a hardcore poker player Mike McDermott (Matt Damon) who quits the game after he loses it all in a hand of No Limit Texas Hold 'Em at a shady club run by Russian Mafia man Teddy KBG (John Malkovich). When Mike learns that his newly-out-of-prison friend Worm (Edward Norton) owes several thousand dollars to a couple of loan sharks, he gets back in the game and the two set out to make a big score and settle their debts.

I highly recommend this movie for anyone who's in the least bit interested in poker.