GIJOE Rise Of Cobra

I just watched this movie (in HD) and as an avid GIJOE fan (all the way back to the original cartoons) here is what I thought:

They screwed up the following characters:

Snake Eyes (what's with the stupid mouth?)
Scarlet (what's with the stupid smarts?)
Snake Eyes (terrible costume)
Baroness (American accent?!!???)
Destro (whip city! he's supposed to be twice the size and have a cool deep voice with a hint of a German accent)
Cobra Commander (oh god, this was so wrong on so many levels)
Zartan (oh my, where to begin? no powers? voice?)

I didn't have a terrible time with the storyline as I did with the characters. Here's the thing, JUST like Transformers... these studios need to get one thing straight. There is NOTHING wrong with the original characters so DO NOT screw with them. When you do... you end up messing everything up and then you get the GIJOE and Transformer movies. I'm going back to the cartoons.

Eisner seems to think he knows something here...

Michael Eisner... the former Disney CEO who went head-to-head against many during his time at Disney (including Disney's own grandson) and was finally brought down by none other than Steve Jobs had some words about the writers strike happening now.

Talking at a keynote in New York Eisner was as "forward" as ever. You know this guy might be a prick but I do like how straight he is about his opinions. I might not agree with him but at least I know where he stands.

He seems to think that the writers strike is "stupid" and that there is no money in the new digital media yet therefore the writers cannot ask to get more money from it... yet.

So I hope people do not just take what someone like Eisner says without doing at least a little digging. As successful as the man has been... he is a business man at the core, and that will never change.

So Eisner started his own investment company after leaving Disney. His new company is in the delivering-of-digital-media-via-the-Internet business. What does that mean? Simple... the longer he doesn't have to pay writers for their work the better. Yes, it's that simple. The other point the Eisner seemed to "forget" to mention was that the writers guild wants to get more money from distribution of their material on DVD's as well... clearly a well established digital medium that has been VERY profitable for the studios (and that's after years of them fighting not to do digital distribution, much like the VHS fight, which the studios lost yet made more money than previously thought possible).

Eisner is a funny guy. He hates to lose more than anyone (well about the same as Steve Jobs) and the fight with Jobs was a bit like the old Street Fighter 2 days. You would sit at the local arcade playing this game, being the best, beating everyone (like Eisner) then some kid walks in and beats you in front of everyone (enter Jobs). Now Eisner has to show the world he's back and to do what he can to stay in the media spotlight (something Jobs does better than anyone it seems).

While I do wish Eisner well... I can't stop thinking of him as one of the old-school guys trying to do new age media (the same way he's always done media). I for one think that is a mistake, because the Internet is a whole new animal and if you can't accept that now there are new rules to follow (and make) than you should get out of the business all together (hint to the RIAA... please go away).

Spiderman 3

I just watched Spiderman 3 and have to say... I think I know what the problem was. You see to make the story flow better, some things had to be changed from the comic book (such as his web coming out of his hands... instead of using mechanical web slingers).

Now I think the writers decided to add a little too much into a single (2 hour) movie. Especially the amount of villains.

First villain issue is the "new" Goblin. Ok, so I have NO idea why someone came up with the "new" Goblin as the comic book had already explained how the Green Goblin's son took over as his father. They could have skipped some parts and made Harry Osborn the Hobgoblin instead, now that would have been cool. But no... they decided to make him the Goblin Jr. complete with his own flying surf board (not even the original Goblin glider)

The Sandman was pretty close but the real problem was the Alien suit. See the comic book introduced the Alien suit during the Secret Wars series. This allowed time to develop the relationship that was between the suit and it's host (namely Peter Parker). The comic also showed how Peter Parker almost died trying to get the alien suit off him. All these details had to be cut out of a 2 hour movie... a shame really.

I think if they split this movie into two (or even better, a trilogy) that would have worked for the best. Many people do not realize the depth that comics go into developing story lines, characters, and conflicts. Usually movies cannot do them justice (same problem as when movies try to adapt a book).

Overall, it wasn't a bad movie, the special effects were pretty good, the action wasn't bad... I liked the ending. I just wish they didn't rush through it... these heroes and villains are all very complex with so many years of history behind them. I hope they do a better job with the next one.

3/5 Stars

Scoop

In 2006 Scoop came out, a movie by Woody Allen that didn't get too much press. So I decided to finally give it a shot and see if Woody pulled it off or not.

The movie begins with the death of Joe Strombel (Ian McShane) a very well known London reporter. During his ocean voyage on the ship of death (ahhh, Woody's sense of humour) he encounters a co-passenger... a secretary of to the VERY famous Peter Lyman (Hugh Jackman) who explains that she was killed by Lyman because she found out he was the famous serial killer the police could not catch. When Strombel heard this, and as he is the best reporter in London, he decides to cheat death and find a way to get the scoop (hence the name).

Without ruining it, the rest of the important cast is Scarlett Johansson and even Woody Allen himself.

It was a fun movie, Allen through in a few twists and things to try to keep the interest up. Jackman didn't really play a very convincing rich serial killer (perhaps it was the 15 movies he did in 2006 that are taking their toll), but... overall, I'd say the movie was fun. Good date movie.

3/5 Stars

Sicko... as seen by the insurance and drug companies...

This is a good article from the San Francisco Chronicle about the response from the insurance and drug companies. It's just interesting to see what they could possibly say about this movie. I mean the question is simple... is it the truth or is it a lie. So far, looks like EVERYTHING is the truth. Just amazing really, how much power these companies have, problem is they are playing with people's lives and they should be 100% responsible for EVERY death they cause... homeless person or not, each life is precious, even the ones that can't afford insurance.

No Man's Land

So few movies touch on things that really matter. Most are just another movie. Some, and I do mean VERY few, actually make you think, and realize things that you may not have known before. The movie No Man's Land (2001) is such a movie. It shows, in a wonderful way, the conflict between Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 1993 war. A war which most people, including myself, still have an issue really understanding. It's so much easier when there is a bad guy (Hitler) and good guy (Churchill), when one side just invades another country (Germany invading Poland)... but, the world is rarely black and white (even WWII wasn't really black and white but I used it for my example never the less). This conflict, the Bosnia and Herzegovina war was one of the most grey, and confusing war I have ever tried to understand. In fact, even the movie makes the point to show how similar both sides were (and are) and how even they can't always tell each other apart. It's a wonderful story that shows, with a bit of black humour, some of the ridiculous aspects of ANY conflict... especially this one. Everything about this film is wonderful, the characters, the story, and especially the ending. This is obviously NOT a Hollywood movie... but a true film.

5/5 Stars

Next

I just saw this... interesting movie Next. About a man (Nicolas Cage) who has an amazing ability to be able to forsee his future. The limit, though, is 2 minutes so that makes things a little more interesting.

While he's working in Vegas (as a magician) who likes to go to the local casino's and win a little (but not too much not to get thrown out). He ends up being spied on by the FBI and by the bad guys who want to blow up New York (with a Nuke of course).

Anyway, the story is a bit weak, though Jessica Biel is a incredible as ever. Many things are not explained, some things are not consistent. A few cool scenes... I had fun watching this, but don't expect too much.

3/5 Stars