People bitch about how video games get a bad rap, but these days so many action movies are built around this concept that make them live action video games. It’s impossible not to hate on video games when so many action movies want to convince us that they really could be if a studio tried hard enough. Take “Redline” a movie thankfully obscure due to a poor release date and terrible publicity, but is really just constructed like a video game. We have cut scenes, colorful characters, bosses, and various drivers all of whom are introduced with profiles and name inserts by heroine Natasha who takes great pains to give us back story without the script ever having to do the work to good old fashioned storytelling.
Tag Archives: R
Roger Dodger (2002)
See kids, this here’s what we call a thinking piece. It’s verbose, intelligent, evenly paced, and all kinds of brilliant, which is why I’m glad it never got in to the hands of a commercial director, because with tweaking it could have been a very cheesy rip off of “Alfie” in the vein of “Hitch.” “Roger Dodger” is a character study about a womanizer whose principles are always of use to the aspiring lover of all women, while the individual is so sleazy and manipulative that he may soon find himself alone and without a person to love be they a wife or any other family near him. Though Dylan Kidd does demonize the man who approaches women with such disrespect, he also explores that the character Roger isn’t truly a lost cause to society.
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired (2008)
Like the abortion issue, everyone has an opinion about Roman Polanski and his crime. They have opinions about the particulars; they have thoughts about why he committed this crime, and are often very quick to label him a pedophile, or rapist, or criminal. And much like the abortion issue, every thought is controversial and turns heated. What “Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired” does is try to look at the issue from all areas. It never completely deifies Polanski, and it never demonizes him as a sexual deviant. It instead asks you to think of why he fled the country, and for some that may be a hard pill to swallow.
Reign Over Me (2007)
Part of me wants to acknowledge that perhaps Sandler is woefully oblivious of the talent he possesses and is just a guy who doesn’t appreciate the potential to deliver great dramatic tales. But watching “Reign Over Me” confirms that he’s likely very aware of the talent he possesses and instead just chooses to have fun with a horrible comedy every once and a while. And I can respect that. Even if I’ll take “Reign Over Me” over “You Don’t Mess with the Zohan” any day of the week. Only one in the growing number of dramas specifically geared toward men, “Reign Over Me” is that middle of the roads melodrama that explores how grief and loss can often control the way we live.
Re-Animator (1985)
Rake me over the coals all you want, but up until today, I have never seen “Re-Animator.” Shocked? You probably are. But the legendary horror film that’s managed to spawn comic books, video games, sequels, fan fiction, and even cross overs with other horror icons (Cassie Hack, baby!) has just evaded me all of my life. When I was a kid I was not allowed to see this, and as a young adult I found it difficult to track it down. It’s just one of those film classics that I could never really get a hold of and watch. Watching “Re-Animator,” I can see what every horror geek raves about because even at over twenty years old, Stuart Gordon’s gory sickening classic hasn’t aged much at all.
Ring of Death (2008)
“Death Warrant,” “Undisputed,” and “Enter the Dragon.” If you’ve seen those films then there’s a good chance you won’t need to see the oddly titled “Ring of Death” which is a simultaneous nod and derivation of the aforementioned with none of the charm of either of them. “Ring of Death” is a movie with every such potential to be a fun guy’s action film, and fails to be nothing more than a sub-par television movie with the illusion of edge embedded into its rather predictable story. The writers never really provide us with the slightest bit of originality, opting instead to rely on our familiarity with the action genre.
The Ruins (2008)
Relying more on psychological terror rather than CGI plant monsters, the reason “The Ruins” will get under the skin of most audiences is because Smith prefers to leave the plant terrors as silent sadistic predators that—well—get under the skin of its victims through cuts, and open wounds. These creatures are merciless in their pursuits to chomp on some thirty something college goers revealing some truly shocking abilities to lure prey, and breaking down the hunted through manipulation and classic torture methods.