The numbskull duo from the bland action yarn “Shanghai Noon” return for yet another vehicle sequel “Shanghai Knights.” I was not a fan of the original film, I thought it was yet another bland vehicle for Wilson and Chan who seem to only be charismatic and funny when paired with a complete opposite. This sequel didn’t prove to be anything new or innovative as well; it was just an endless sequence of comedic dialogue, fight scene, comedic dialogue, fight scene, and so on, so it’s obvious I felt jumbled by the sloppy story and cheap plot devices.
Tag Archives: Adventure
The Last Samurai (2003)
This elegant love letter to the samurai and to the old world Japanese culture takes place in the late 1800’s, the civil war era, an ex-confederate soldier Captain Nathan Algren, a drunken has been is tortured by his past after being forced to slaughter an Indian village during Custer’s last stand is now a has been who advertises guns for the Winchester company until he’s approached by friend Zebulon Grant played very poignantly by Billy Connolly who makes an offer to Algren to re-claim his respect as a soldier and take a job from the Japanese government to modernize their army to fight against the rebels, an army of Samurai’s, a dying breed from the old world, who are being led by a mysterious leader known as Katsumoto.
A Guy Thing (2003)
Jason Lee is a prime example of a very talented actor who has the chops to make primo movies yet consistently star in cinematic fecal matter such as “A Guy Thing”. Lee continues starring in half-baked terrible films like “Dreamcatcher” and “Stealing Harvard” and continues to waste the talents he presents in his past films. “A Guy Thing” has the plot of a sitcom with a storyline done to death and is inevitably doomed to the fate of posing as an hour and a half long big screen commercial sitcom and is just as bland. Lee has shown promise in films like “Chasing Amy”, “Dogma” and the excellent “Almost Famous” in which he managed to steal most of the scenes he was in, but Lee has proved that though he’s excellent as a supporting actor, he just can’t hack it as a leading man yet.
Daddy Day Care (2003)
Eddie Murphy’s career continues its downhill slope into oblivion with this bad and bland re-tread of “Mr. Mom.” Taking it’s cue from “Mr. Mom”, Charlie Hinton is fired from his job as an advertising exec when his department shuts down, and now he and his friend Phil are out of work and must stay home to take care of their children and are forced to be father’s again. But when they begin getting desperate to get back to work, they decide to market taking care of children and begin a daycare center despite the fact they have no real qualifications nor are they ever asked by the parents. In a skewed attempt they begin taking care of children and engage in various derivative scenes involving toilet humor, relying on children’s amusing qualities to draw laughter, and the usual falling over stuff for comedy.
After Hours (1985)
Street Pickup: Why don’t you just go home?
Paul Hackett: Pal, I’ve been asking myself that all night.
Everybody knows “Taxi Driver”, everybody knows “Goodfellas”, everybody knows “Cape Fear”, but a little known film from legendary director Martin Scorsese that film buffs rarely ever talk about is Scorsese’s vastly under-appreciated 1985 dark comedy “After Hours”. This intriguing, funny, and sometimes mind-blowing film takes place in the grim lonely streets of downtown Manhattan where a workaday word processor named Paul Hackett meets a young girl at a cafe. The two spark up a conversation and he calls her trying to set up a date with her. Seeking a change from the monotony of his everyday routine, Paul travels downtown for a late night rendezvous with Marcy (Rosanna Arquette), a shy beautiful girl who seems innocent enough. What starts off as a gentle tale ends up as a horrifying nightmare.
The Punisher (2004)
Let those who enter this film remember, this is nothing like the film which was released in 1988. A film that was very loosely based on this comic book yet was only used as a cheap vehicle for the fading acting career of Dolph Lundgren. Don’t get the two mixed up; for that one was a mindless action cheese fest, this one is far more superior and intelligent. For those who have read my reviews and noticed my high reviews for the comic book movies, you’ll notice I’m a comic book fanatic. I read “The Punisher” comic books when I was a kid; they were very violent but they were damn good and fun to read, and I wasn’t surprised to discover that Marvel has scored another hit with this loyal adaptation that respects its audience and readers. Hear that DC Comics? Marvel respects its audience.
Before Sunrise (1995)
Two people from different parts of the world meet on a train and decide to tour Vienna for one night and witness everything the city has to offer while they bond with one another and fall in love, but as the night ends and the two become closer, will they separate come morning, or will they stay together? I’m officially considering myself a fan of Richard Linklater; this director/writer creates some of the most thought provoking films ever made, it’s hard to believe his films aren’t being released into the mainstream.