As times change, technology improves, and stories resonate differently with new generations, it’s to be expected that a film remake will differ, sometimes radically, from the original. But while the new Total Recall improves on the vision, themes, and action of the Arnold Schwarzenegger version, it leaves out the essential qualities that made the 1990 movie a classic.
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Remember T-Ball when you were a kid? It seemed so easy – the ball just sitting there, ready to be blasted out of the park. Then you stepped up, swung your hardest, and it only went three feet. The Watch is much like this: teed-up perfectly at the comic strengths of its stars, writers, and director, it seems like a home run in the making, but in the end it barely gets on base.
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It’s an all-too-human failing that we’re unable to encounter new experiences without comparing them to previous ones. The Dark Knight Rises – third (and everyone says final) film in director Christopher Nolan’s Batman series – is action-packed, dark, dramatic, and consistently thrilling. It’s everything comics fans and ordinary moviegoers want in a summer blockbuster, and especially this one. Unfortunately, in the inevitable comparison with Nolan’s brilliant previous effort, The Dark Knight, this new instalment comes up short. While it’s by no means a disappointment, the feeling of something lacking nags at the back of your mind throughout.
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http://www.oakville.com/articles/the-dark-knight-rises-movie-review/
Seth MacFarlane knows his audience. The creator of Family Guy, American Dad, and The Cleveland Show has specialized in animated TV sitcoms that push the boundaries of appropriateness while simultaneously honouring their origins in classic family comedy. With Ted, his first live-action feature film, he provides a similar experience that should please his fans. But is it enough to justify the ticket price for the same kind of thing you could watch for free at home?
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However much we might approve or object, the reboot has quickly become Hollywood’s tool-of-choice for the revival of successful franchises that have lost their lustre. For the creators, it’s a handy shortcut: by re-jigging the essential elements, they don’t have to do as much heavy-lifting as they might in creating a concept from scratch. And by linking in a new backstory, they have options to explore for future films.
There are limits to this technique, however. Sam Raimi’s highly-successful Spider-Man was released only a decade ago, and then followed by a sequel that some critics called the best superhero movie ever. When Spider-Man 3 faltered and failed to meet expectations, a decision to reboot was made, and now we have The Amazing Spider-Man. But while it’s largely entertaining, the memory of the older films is still too fresh for this new version to be fully engrossing.
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http://www.oakville.com/articles/the-amazing-spider-man-movie-review/
Family life can sometimes be tough, especially if your family has a public reputation to uphold. Often, it’s the kids who feel it the most, whether chafing under the demands of their parents, or being unfairly judged by the outstanding performance of their siblings. The former sums up the plot of Brave, the latter the public impression of Brave the film as it compares to the other highly successful productions of Pixar Animation Studios. It’s a great movie, but it’s in such stellar company that the shine’s been taken off it.
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There was a time when an Adam Sandler movie was mostly greeted with anticipation. Happy Gilmore, Big Daddy, and even The Waterboy may not exactly be classics, but they seemed fresh, and we at least got the sense that Sandler was trying his best. That’s My Boy feels like nothing more than a mindless cash grab. It’s a film you’ll have to be a diehard Sandler fan to enjoy, and even that may not be enough.
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By the time a film franchise reaches its third instalment, a certain problem sometimes arises. The main characters’ major weaknesses or flaws have been corrected or resolved by the previous stories, and as a result the original lineup is no longer able to drive a plot by itself. New characters appear to provide the heroes with the motivation to run off on further adventures. The larger cast then throws off the film’s focus to make room for everyone, old and new. Such is the case with Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, but even so, much of the action is so anarchically silly that you may not mind. Certainly, the kids won’t.
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http://www.oakville.com/articles/madagascar-3-europes-most-wanted-movie-review/
“This is no fairy tale,” an ad for Snow White and the Huntsman warns us, and it’s right: while the film preserves many of the same elements, it raises both the scale and the stakes of the classic story. On the whole, this makes it a worthy summer blockbuster, though it sometimes buckles under its own weight.
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http://www.oakville.com/articles/snow-white-and-the-huntsman-movie-review/
It’s been ten years since the last Men in Black movie, long enough for many to ask “Why now?” However, if a third film in the series gets the elements right, and presents an enjoyable experience, then maybe we should ask “Why not?” Helpfully, Men in Black 3 does those things for the most part, even if it’s not a triumphant return to form for the franchise.
Read the rest of my review at Oakville.com:
http://www.oakville.com/articles/men-in-black-3-movie-review/