It was like something out of a Western this film; a gang called “The Warriors” is blamed for the death of the highest gangster of them all and must race to their Coney Island turf before trouble stirs beyond their grasp. It sounds simple enough except every single gang in the city is out for their blood and they must fight their way through colorful delinquents all of whom want to make the small band of rejects pay for the murder. “The Warriors” is a movie I fondly remember being introduced to by my pops who rented this one night and sat us down to bask in the glow of the television and let Walter Hill perform his magic.
Tag Archives: Adaptation
Blood: The Last Vampire (2009)
I guess it was only a matter of time for “Blood: The Last Vampire” to be turned in to an honest to goodness big budget movie. I mean the original short film by Hiroyuki Kitakubo has become somewhat of a cult classic in spite of its short running time and brings to the table some of the best animation I’ve ever seen in a horror oriented anime I’ve ever seen. The original take focused on a vampire hunter who had to infiltrate a girls school to stop vampires hiding among the ranks of students and teachers. You’ll find that the 2009 live action version by Chris Nahon isn’t much of a departure. In fact there are times where the movie duplicates scenes from the anime shot for shot which ends up becoming a mixed bag in the end.
Pontypool (2008)
Okay, I’m just going to throw it out there and admit that I didn’t get “Pontypool.” Maybe I’m losing my touch or maybe this is one of the most incomprehensible messes I’ve seen in years, but “Pontypool” makes no sense. It’s abrupt, awkwardly paced, and often times doesn’t even know what to do with the formula it’s set up. We’re supposed to be watching a movie about what I can assume are zombies that have turned in to the walking dead (?) due to a sudden infection that’s carried through the English language. Did you understand that? Because I sure as hell didn’t!
Max Fleischer's Superman 1941-1942 (DVD)
Speaking as a hardcore fan of the Man of Steel it was a real thrill to sit down and watch the collection of animated shorts from the Fleischer’s from the period of the forties that gave way to the innovation of rotoscoping and telling genuinely entertaining stories where Superman takes on a new obstacle every time from mad scientists, mobsters, and giant monsters. The quality is fantastic this time around and you get to peruse the Superman animated episodes based around their dates released.
Star Trek (2009)

I’ve never been much of a fan of “Star Trek” as personally I’ve always found the intelligence vastly oversold by zealous fans, but I digress. I’ve spent most times admiring the light saber than I have the USS Enterprise and I think JJ Abrams has found a great balance where even folks who have written off the franchise can enter with a clean palette. And that’s not easy considering the Trek has lost its punch over the last ten years with a waning film series and television stake. “Star Trek” is a film that reboots the aforementioned franchise with all of its guns loaded as it looks to not only show what becomes of James T. Kirk and Spock but who their parents were and how they lived as soldiers of the Star Fleet.
Fanboys (2009)
I have never not laughed so much since I saw “Gone Fishin'” and that says a lot. I was dying to see “Fanboys” ever since I met eyes with the theatrical trailer and whether or not it was because of the constant recuts or my sky high anticipation, “Fanboys” suffers from mediocrity. Sure it’s not a bad movie but it’s not a particularly good one because every joke and every single “Star Wars” reference falls like a flat football and falls hard. The war between Trekkies and Warsies, debating on Boba Fett, discussing the connection between Luke and Leia as a romantic couple it’s all here and can I get a giant yawn? Because none of it is ground that hasn’t been treaded by a million fans before and beyond but “Fanboys” attempts to corner the market and use it as a buffer for the comedy that is never really all that funny.
Dragonball: Evolution (2009)
Well, here’s the odd news. Director James Wong and Twentieth Century Fox seem to rely heavily on mimicking the “Spider-Man” movies by turning our hero Goku in to a new age Peter Parker who has immense power and responsibility with every reason not to use them on his foes; pair that with a Luke Skywalker death scene and you have a mélange of influences with no bond that keeps the film from falling apart from the seams. That is until the day comes when a force of evil conveniently gives his training a purpose. Had “Dragon Ball” been adorned with a different name and a completely different set of characters, it wouldn’t actually be so bad, but when you make the inevitable comparison to the anime, the flaws are quite obvious and ridiculous.

