It’s “Die Hard.” But now it’s set in a private school. And it stars a bunch of child actors now young men that band together to bring down terrorists. You have to love the nineties. Most of it tried to establish its identity, while the rest pretty much cribbed ideas from the eighties. If you can buy that Will Wheaton and Sean Astin are action heroes, “Toy Soldiers” is passable action escapism that mixes “Die Hard” with a touch of “Red Dawn.”
Category Archives: Movie Reviews
Thinner Blood (2013)
It’s very refreshing when indie filmmakers don’t just seek to create a short film, but a short film that can make a difference. “Thinner Blood” is a remarkable and effecting short drama that could easily be stretched in to a feature film. But on its own it works and stays with you long after the credits have rolled.
Skinhead Requiem (2013)
Director Jason Victor Everett’s short dramatic thriller “Skinhead Requiem” is a powerful and compelling short look at two men on the cusp of realization in their lives that they will take with them to their graves. Director Jason Victor Everett takes a startling transformation as the ultimate extremist skinhead, while the legendary Tom Noonan plays a priest speaking with him as he prepares to leave for his execution.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie (1995)
It’s kind of sucky that, though “Mighty Morphin” is a solid bit of silly escapism, it’s also a film that promises a lot, but never really amounts to anything, in the end. If you followed “Power Rangers” in the 90’s rabidly like I did, the series was overhauled again after the movie, and everything cool that was in this movie was never featured. Even the cool helmet headlights/scanners. Also, how horrible must it be to live in Angel Grove, eh? Does anyone else suspect this is a hell mouth or is it just me?
Venom: Truth in Journalism (2013)
With “Truth in Journalism” director Joe Lynch proves that he’s not only a wonderful indie filmmaker, but that he knows how to add flavor and originality to a popular property. This time it’s a comic book property, and one that’s been iconic since the late eighties.
Quicksilver (1986) [Blu-Ray]
In spite of my appreciation for actor Kevin Bacon, I never actually managed to see “Quicksilver.” Even when it was on television, I always actively made a point of not watching it. It just never interested me. Thankfully now with the advent of Kevin Bacon’s 1986 thriller now on Blu-Ray, I’m happy to discover that “Quicksilver” is an entertaining and somewhat underrated action thriller where Bacon thrives once again.
Mortal Kombat (1995)
After cribbing from the Cronenberg filmmaking handbook in “Event Horizon,” director Paul WS Anderson took the reins of the popular fighting game “Mortal Kombat.” A precursor to his handling of another popular genre game “Resident Evil,” director Anderson handles the adaptation of “Mortal Kombat” much in the way studios enjoy it. He takes a controversial, volatile, and violent video game, and transforms it in to a PG-13 action romp for teenage boys. With “Mortal Kombat” director Anderson almost gets it right. Close but no cigar.