So this “Astroboy” may not be the most loyal and faithful adaptation to its source material, but that doesn’t automatically make it bad. Deep down it has an undertone of sadness and tragedy with some thoughts about afterlife and the meaning of life that we all ponder. Sure, the target audience for “Astroboy” won’t even understand or care about where writers Tim Harris and David Bowers take the story, but at least “Astroboy” seems to try to have something for everyone. I vaguely recall watching “Astroboy” as a kid but I loved the direction David Bowers took the animated movie where Astroboy becomes a hero who just refuses to adhere to the norms of the robot world, especially when pushed in to a corner. As a robot he’s expected to act like a clunky stupid machine, and when he finds that he garners an attachment and new sense of purpose with both man and machine, he decides that he just can’t harm anyone who isn’t posing a danger to the world.
5 MTV Shows Worth Watching
I am by no means a proponent of MTV. I hate the channel and I hate the institution with a passion. They have turned America’s youth in to mush and exploited it for the sake of increasing their stock. When they’re not chronicling the lives of paper bag brown pieces of Jersey douches, they’re sensationalizing the lives of preteen skanks now in over their heads with kids. Shocking enough most of these girls are Southerners. Then there are shows like Cribs where you’re supposed to feel bad for being poor, Skins where MTV just pushes the line of child porn every single week, Pregnant and 16 the prequel (yay?) to “Teen Mom” where young skanks are pregnant, and it just keeps going on.
Hunter Prey (2010)
Director Sandy Collora is known around the country for being one of the most, if not the most talented fan filmmaker of the modern era. Collora is a skilled artist and a man capable of creating his own visions of a mythos that are nothing short of brilliant and dazzling. Not surprising, Collora eventually took time out to create his own world with his own characters and it happens to be a pure work of science fiction excellence that channels the likes of “Hell in the Pacific” to convey a wide scope of a grander story that is scaled down to the personal battle of two soldiers in the middle of a inter-galactic war. Collora paints the picture of two soldiers stranded on an island during a great war that eventually becomes their own personal battle.
Species II (1998)
I never actually understood the appeal of the first two “Species” film. The first film basically piggybacked on the revelation of sex bomb shell Natash Henstridge who incidentally ended up being a one note actress, and then the series inevitably fizzled out in to obscurity. Natasha Henstridge looks about as incredible as ever, and as Eve she presents a surprisingly significant change in personality and demeanor. This is a new shade of the monster where as Sil was much more “The Creature from the Black Lagoon” based around its predatorial habits, Eve is The Creature in “The Creature Walks Among Us,” still vicious but much more vulnerable and open to humanity, for better or for worse. It’s easy to buy that Sil and Eve are different entities, and Henstridge carries this career making role well and looks dynamite with shorter hair.
Species (1995)
Let’s face it, the only reason why “Species” was remotely a financial success was because of Natasha Henstridge. The newcomer not only radiates on-screen but her searing sexuality and ability to look incredible no matter what position or what kind of gelatinous goo she’s covered in outweighs any quality of the film. Sure, the fans can attempt to argue the film’s merits by claiming my own reasoning faulty, but let’s cut the crap here. “Species” was a hit because it offered up two key elements. It had a gorgeous woman was a decent actress, and had an iconic moment of 1995 where the predatory Sil proceeds to bust the backs of heads off of a few unlucky guys who don’t meet her standard for mating.
Assault Girls [Asaruto gâruzu] (2009)
Wow, so Zack Snyder got the idea for “Sucker Punch” from “Assault Girls.” Interesting. Watching 2009’s “Assault Girls,” it was tough not to compile that thought, considering this film and Snyder’s upcoming film all involve gorgeous women having adventures in their imagination to stave off suffering in their own reality, all the while they’re instilled with their own individual personas as applied to their personalities that reflect their powers and weapons during battle. The only difference is, “Assault Girls” chronicles this imagination through a virtual reality system called Avalon that allows the women (whom we never see in actual origin) to become warriors. With “Sucker Punch,” it’ll be based more around fantasies and delusions.
Starship Troopers 3: Marauder (2008)
I really don’t care that Ed Neumeier is behind this. I applaud his history with science fiction cinema and Robocop, but as a sequel and standalone film “Starship Troopers 3” is a terrible film. The satire I can often stomach since it was so much apart of the original film, but the fact that the satire is much too obvious to even call it respectable satire is just much too clumsy at times. “Marauder” is that film in the series many fans were anxious to watch mainly because it’s much more loyal to the novel, but that doesn’t entirely promise entertainment.