037: Ong Bak 2: The Beginning (2009)

Title: Ong Bak 2: The Beginning (2009)
Starring: Tony Jaa, Sorapong Chatree, Sarunyu Wongkrachang
Directed By: Tony Jaa & Panna Rittikrai

With Ong Bak 2, Tony Jaa has shown us something entirely new. He has taken the idea of a tragic hero and added a karmic level of redemption and resurrection.

The main character in this film is Tien. He is either no relation to Ting, his character from the first movie, or an ancestor from long ago. It's never really explained. Some other familiar faces from the first film do make appearances, but no one reprises their original roles, as this story takes place in a completely different time.

Tien is the son of a wealthy Lord. When his parents are murdered, he is taken in by a gang of thieves. Tien then uses what they teach him to exact revenge on those responsible for his parents' deaths. Of course, there's a little more to it than that. But I'm summarizing. :)

What we have in Ong Bak 2 is the total package. It's not just your typical shoot 'em up or fists-a-flyin' kind of action film. It's beautiful and deliberate. It will challenge you. And, if you're anything like me, you'll like it all the more for it. Recommended.

Score: 7.5/10

036: Zombieland (2009)

Title: Zombieland (2009)
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone
Directed By: Ruben Fleischer

Zombieland is the latest in a growing genre, the Zombedy (or Zombie Comedy). To be a successful Zombedy, you have to have established rules for the zombies in your universe (which are presented hilariously here), you need to have likeable, witty survivors, and you need to tell a story that's been told a thousand times before differently. Zombieland succeeds on all accounts, and at times even exceeds expectations.

The few hiccups this movie has are minor enough to overlook. The cast is fantastic! The zombies are gruesome and effective. The look of the film works. Perhaps most importantly though, the story is great. These are fleshed-out (pardon the pun), believable characters in an absurd situation acting the way they probably should. It makes for a fun ride.

Highly recommended. Especially if you like using the word Zombedy as much as I do.

Score: 8.5/10

035: From Paris With Love (2010)

Title: From Paris With Love (2010)
Starring: John Travolta, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Kasia Smutniak
Directed By: Pierre Morel

This is Pierre Morel's third film as a director. His other two, District B-13 and Taken are both compelling action films. All three were co-written and produced by Luc Besson, a man who knows a thing or two about making a compelling action film (Leon, La Femme Nikita). This film however, is more of a disposable action movie than something memorable or unique like his others.

In it, we follow the unlikely partnership of James Reece, a foreign US Ambassador's personal assistant (Meyers) and Charlie Wax: super-spy (Travolta). Wax is wild and unorthodox (because what's a buddy cop movie if he isn't?), while Reece is on his first real mission (obviously). The two bicker the entire time they're forced to work with one another and they eventually form a friendship based on uneasy trust (of course).

Everything about this movie is cut-copy-paste from the genre. It's a fun waste of time if you don't mind cliched action movies (which I don't), but I can't exactly recommend it. I will say though, that there's a fun little in-joke for Travolta fans, especially fans of Pulp Fiction. :)

Score: 7/10

034: Shutter Island (2010)

Title: Shutter Island (2010)
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley
Directed By: Martin Scorsese

Martin Scorsese is a brilliant filmmaker. That's pretty much been accepted as fact. I don't blame the shortcomings of this film on him. Nor do I blame them on the cast, who all do well enough here; or the story itself which is a creepy, tight-knit mystery. I blame the combination of the three. Perhaps it just wasn't meant to be that Marty and Leo make this sort of a film. It's hard to tell. What I can say though is that it just doesn't come together as I would've hoped.

From the first ten minutes, we're being force-fed how creepy and mysterious this island is supposed to be. Our main character is on-edge. The basic mystery is spelled out. The score is over dramatic and "ooooh spooky". But something's missing. I knew who the protagonists were. I knew what they were there for. I was completely on board with this mystery, and yet, I didn't care. It didn't matter to me what happened to these characters, and that's the whole movie's fault.

The direction is superb as far as cinematography and design. The performances are all pretty good and delivered by a fantastic cast. I just never got involved. It didn't grab me. I wish it would've though, I really do.

Score: 6.5/10

033: The Blind Side (2009)

Title: The Blind Side (2009)
Starring: Quinton Aaron, Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw
Directed By: John Lee Hancock

It was hard for me to go in to this film with no expectations. I mean, it got nominated for the Best Picture Academy Award and Sandra Bullock is nominated for Best Actress. From the trailer though, and just through knowledge of Michael Oher's story (which was STILL unfolding when they started making the film), I didn't see how it could be anything more than your typical inspirational sports film a la Remember The Titans or Glory Road. Honestly, that's all we get here but that doesn't make it any worse of a movie. It's a solid film with a solid story and solid performances. With all the hype surrounding it I did want to see something different, something special, but instead I got pretty much what I figured I would.

The film is based on Michael Lewis's book The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game. It follows the story of Michael Oher, who was born to his crack addict mother in the ghettos of Memphis and would become a star athlete playing football for Ole Miss and The Baltimore Ravens. The book only covers through his freshman year at Ole Miss, as it was published in 2006. The film does show footage of the offensive lineman being drafted in the first round in 2009 by The Ravens.

In it, Sandra Bullock plays Leigh Anne Tuohy the woman who took Oher in and eventually adopted him legally. Her husband Sean is played by Tim McGraw. One of the fundamental problems with the film is that we never really get to see why they take "Big Mike" in. He could've been anyone. They could have helped, or chosen not to help, any single person in a similar situation. Granted, Michael's was a pretty extenuating circumstance, but still. I can only hope that their story has been explained more clearly in the book or somewhere else. If so, I hope it legitimately opens doors for other students in bad situations who wish to succeed, and not just athletes.

The film itself is standard. Sorry, but it is. It's not extraordinary, but it isn't sub par either. You've seen the trailer, you've seen the movie. That's not to say it isn't still a good movie though. One that I'd probably even watch again. Recommended.

Score: 8/10

032: The Libertine (2004)

Title: The Libertine (2004)
Starring: Johnny Depp, Samantha Morton, John Malkovich
Directed By: Laurence Dunmore

From the little bit I've read about him, John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester was (to say the least) a very intriguing man. It was public knowledge, even in his own time that he was a drunk, a bisexual adulterer, and an author of dirty poems. With his works, he made an enemy of King Charles II and was exiled from the court.

So this officially qualifies as a "fun role"; especially for Johnny Depp. The film opens with Depp addressing the audience directly and telling us that we will not like him. In fact, he doesn't want us to like him. This would be all well and good, but the lines are delivered with such charm and confidence that we do like him. The story hasn't even begun, and I am interested in this man. I'm invested in his story.

What follows is a pretty straightforward period piece revolving around Rochester's affair with up and coming theatre actress Elizabeth Barry. Unfortunately whenever the film isn't directly portraying Rochester, it falls a little flat. In fact, because of the richness of the character, it's a bit boring whenever he's not on screen. Malkovich is fine as Charles II and Samantha Morton is really good as Barry, but there's just something missing whenever Depp isn't delivering another clever line.

His character's failing health and public ousting cause for a rather slow third act, as well. It's right about here I started to feel the less-than-2-hr runtime begin to drag. Still though, it was a fun character to watch Johnny Depp bring to life. They can't all be Mad Hatters and Jack Sparrows and Willy Wonkas, you know.

Score: 6.5/10

031: Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone (2008)

Title: Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone (2008)
Starring: Spike Spencer, Allison Keith-Shipp, Brina Palencia (English Cast)
Directed By: Masayuki, Kazuya Tsurumaki, Hideaki Anno

Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone is the first in a series of big screen "re-imaginings" of the classic 1995 anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. For fans of the original, this version may seem a little repetitive, as it's almost identical to the origins presented in the series. I've heard though that the second film Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance, released in Japan in June of '09, starts to break away from the original series and tell a new story. Still, it's probably a good idea to start with this one if you plan on getting into the film series.

For newcomers, Evangelion tells the story of Shinji Ikari, a lonely 14 year old schoolboy in Japan after an apocalyptic event called the "Second Impact" has wiped out most of Earth's population. The UN and a secret government-funded company called NERV, which is run by Shinji's elusive and mysterious father Gendo, reach out to Shinji for help. It turns out that he is destined to pilot a giant half mechanical/half biological being known as an EVA in a war against the creatures that came to Earth in the impacts called "Angels".

I know this can sound a little hard to follow, but it's not. It's presented in the story one step at a time and even someone who's never seen a single frame of an anime will be able to follow the plot, which is beautifully animated here. The artwork is first-rate showcasing hand-drawn traditional 2-D animation interlaced with 3-D computer animation for the Angels. It really does look fantastic and some of the visuals the creative team present here are awe-inspiring.

Having seen the original anime, I was a little disappointed to see so many familiar scenes. I had hoped for a little more from this film in terms of new material. Overall though, it was great to reconnect with this story, and I'm definitely anticipating the next chapter in this four-part film series. Recommended.

Score: 7.5/10

030: Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010)

Title: Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010)
Starring: Logan Lerman, Brandon T. Jackson, Alexandra Daddario
Directed By: Chris Columbus

The Harry Potter books are magical fantasy epics aimed at younger readers. So are the Percy Jackson books. The first Harry Potter is about a pre-teen wizard destined for great things and fantastical adventures. The first Percy Jackson is about a pre-teen demigod destined for great things and fantastical adventures. Chris Columbus directed the first two Harry Potter films, which are arguably the truest to their source materials. Chris Columbus also directs this film, the first of a planned franchise, which completely deviates from its source material. It's a shame too, because this could have been great.

I've never read the books; but I know that Percy's supposed to be 12 in the first one, and is only 16 at the end of the 5-book series. I'm not exactly sure why the change was made to make the character in his late teens (maybe it seemed too similar to the 1st HP for Columbus' liking), but I can't help but think the film suffers from it. There are awkward moments of immaturity amongst the characters, and an even MORE awkward drug-induced-trance scene.

There's just something off about these kids. Most notably, the character of Grover the Satyr is depicted as a horny, girl-crazy, one-liner machine. If he were only 12 yrs old, I don't think the character would have been very family-friendly! It's a shame too, because Brandon T. Jackson is a natural presence on the screen, oozing charisma and charm. In this role though, he's wasted and uncomfortable.

The story itself is essentially "what would Harry Potter do if he was in Clash of The Titans"? He'd have special abilities, he'd have a loyal male best friend and a clever female best friend, and he'd save the day on sheer luck and determination. Just like Harry Potter, uh, I mean Percy Jackson does.

For his part, Columbus does what he can with the clumsy script. The graphics are top-notch, even though the situations in which they're deployed are laughable. Still, he brings the pretty.

The cast is great too, and wasted here. Which is a shame, because any of them would have been more interesting to follow for the hour and a half runtime instead of watching the lame quest our three teenagers embark on. Steve Coogan plays Hades as a rock star with a charming swagger. Rosario Dawson as Perephone is strong-willed and determined. I even would've enjoyed more of Catherine Keener as Percy's mortal mother who fell in love with Poseidon, the God of the Seas. And that's not to mention Pierce Brosnan, Kevin McKidd, Sean Bean, Uma Thurman, or a RIDICULOUSLY wasted Joe Pantoliano. His depiction of Percy's sleazy stepfather is AWFUL. It feels like a script problem though, more than a Joe Pantoliano problem.

I'd say I went in to this with modest expectations, and was sorely disappointed. But, hey, at least it's pretty!

Score: 6/10

029: Crazy Heart (2009)

Title: Crazy Heart (2009)

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Colin Farrell

Directed By: Scott Cooper

I've always kind of hated it when reviewers call someone's performance a "tour de force". It's a term that has never made sense to me in this medium. They're just doing their job as actors. Shouldn't it be "the standard" that someone's performance is so good you believe them as that character unconditionally? And then everything less would just be a crap performance, right?

I think when people use "tour de force" they're referring to the type of performance that Jeff Bridges puts forth as Bad Blake in Crazy Heart. The story became almost unnecessary compared to what I was seeing from Bridges. I just wanted to see more and more of Bad Blake. It wouldn't have mattered who he was with or where they were, I just wanted more. Here Bridges completely loses himself in his character, he IS Bad Blake. And he's fascinating to watch.

I did like the plot. It's essentially a coming-of-age story turned on its side. It follows an aging alcoholic country singer who feels his career and his life may be slipping away, and how he discovers who he really is while dealing with that.

The entire cast is outstanding, especially Maggie Gyllenhaal & Colin Farrell. At first I didn't think I'd buy their respective relationships with Bad. But I did! Maggie plays Jean as strong and independent but still vulnerable and open to love. Farrell plays a commercially successful country artist who wouldn't be where he is if not for the help and guidance of Bad at the start of his career. With his subtle, humble performance the character of Tommy Sweet comes across as gracious and sincere instead of callous. There is real respect between the two, and that shines through on the screen. It was great too, to see Robert Duvall (who also produced) playing so well off of Bridges.

The film is solid throughout in terms of pacing, but it does seem to linger just a little too long in some bits and skip too quickly over others. There were times where I would have liked to stay with Bad. Such as when he was dealing with his addiction. Instead of spending so much time establishing how bad it really was only to fast forward to him already recovering, it might have been nice to see a little bit of the ACTUAL recovery process. It's just a minor quibble though. My only other complaint would be that I had hoped for a little more music. The soundtrack is great (even for a non-country-lover like myself). It would've been nice if they could have squeezed a few more minutes of music performances in there and take the film up to an even 2 hrs.

If you're a fan of Jeff Bridges, or great performances in general, you owe it to yourself to see this film. Highly recommended.

Score: 8.5/10

028: Edge of Darkness (2010)

Title: Edge of Darkness (2010)
Starring: Mel Gibson, Ray Winstone, Danny Huston
Directed By: Martin Campbell

The trailer wants you to think that this is this year's Taken. It's not. Taken was an action revenge thriller. The kind of film that Mel Gibson has been great in in the past (Ransom, The Patriot, Payback). Edge of Darkness is ACTUALLY a corporate conspiracy movie more akin to The Insider, but with elements of an action revenge thriller.

But how is it? It's pretty good. The best thing about this movie are the performances of Mel Gibson and Ray Winstone. Especially when the two are onscreen together. The rest of the film though, is pretty by-the-numbers.

My biggest complaint would be that there are just way too many convenient plot devices used here. Also, the film looks and feels a LOT like The Departed. There are a lot of the same tricks at play.

I do recommend this, not because it's a strong film per se, but for the strong performances at its center.

Score: 7/10

027: An Education (2009)

Title: An Education (2009)
Starring: Carey Mulligan, Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina
Directed By: Lone Scherfig

Like many movie lovers, I like to watch the Academy Award nominees for best picture every year. Sometimes I'll see a film and think the best picture nod was unwarranted (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Crash), and sometimes I'm surprised a movie I like got recognized at all (The Full Monty, Sideways). I wasn't really sure what to expect from An Education, but I can definitely say "okay Oscar, I get it".

Here, Danish director Lone Scherfig has crafted a beautiful, moving story of a repressed 1960's British teenager becoming a young woman. Her direction in this film is much like the girl's journey: flighty and innocent at first, but then more mature and determined as the story progresses. It's truly a testament to the filmmaker how the whole thing comes together, but she isn't the only one deserving of praise.

Nick Hornby is a talented author whose works have been adapted into great screenplays. Here though, it's he who does the adapting of a memoir by Lynn Barber. His screenplay is funny, poignant, subtle and brilliant. Each scene plays off the one preceding it, adding up to a fitting finale in which our heroine has to decide what's really important to her and put what she's learned to use.

Along with Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars, Carey Mulligan has also been nominated for Best Actress. She deserves it. Her portrayal of Jenny is impeccable. She's innocent, mature, smart, determined, confused, solitary, strong, naive and lovestruck all at the same time. She's a teenage girl. And this character comes to life through Mulligan's expressive yet subtle performance.

I also really enjoyed the supporting cast. Alfred Molina is fantastic as Jenny's father, Jack. Peter Sarsgaard, as Jenny's older lover David is great as well. So are Olivia Williams, Dominic Cooper, Rosamund Pike, Cara Seymour, Sally Hawkins and Emma Thompson rounding out the cast.

This is a very smart and very classy take on a coming-of-age story that definitely lives up to the hype. Recommended.

Score: 8/10

026: Outlander (2009)

Title: Outlander (2009)
Starring: James Caviezel, Sophia Myles, John Hurt
Directed By: Howard McCain

Basically, this is what you get when you mix The 13th Warrior with Pitch Black. And I mean that in a good way.

Outlander is the story of Kainan, a man from another planet, crash landing onto Earth. But he isn't alone, he's brought a vicious alien monster here with him. Oh, and he also landed in 709 A.D. That's right! It's "Spaceman and Vikings VS Alien Monsters"!!! And it's AWESOME!

In what could have been a ridiculous low-budget straight-to-DVD disaster, I found instead a masterful piece of sci-fi fantasy. The direction is crisp and balanced. The creatures, called the Moorwen, are well-designed and rendered beautifully. The characters, while a little bit stereotypical to the genre, are all full-fledged and written well. The cast are all great, especially James Caviezel, John Hurt and Ron Perlman.

The few negatives I found were trivial little things. There were several cliches in the story. I thought the Vikings called Kainan "Outlander" too many times. There's a point where the characters merge Iron Age metalwork with Kainan's futuristic technology that I thought was a little underplayed. I would've liked to have seen more done with that. It comes off as a bit of lazy writing as it is.

But all things considered, I really enjoyed this movie. If you're looking for a surprisingly well-executed low-budget sci-fi film that has something fresh and new to offer, I highly recommend Outlander!

Score: 8/10

025: The Adventures of Pluto Nash (2002)

Title: The Adventures of Pluto Nash (2002)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Rosario Dawson, Randy Quaid
Directed By: Ron Underwood

The biggest problem with The Adventures of Pluto Nash is that it suffers from an identity crisis. What kind of movie is this supposed to be? It's not funny enough to be a comedy. There isn't enough action to consider it an action movie. And sci-fi enthusiasts would balk at this monstrosity if you dare to call it sci-fi.

So what is it? It's bad. Really, just horribly bad. The jokes fall flat, the action beats are boring, the characters are stupid and cartoonish. It's just an incredibly inept film all around.

The only credit that's due here, is in the production design. The film is one set piece after another, and that's no easy feat. But other than that: the dialogue is terrible, the performances are wooden, and the direction is amateurish.

I'll assume you already have, but just in case, avoid this movie.

Score: 2/10

024: Wonder Woman (2009)

Title: Wonder Woman (2009)
Starring: Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Alfred Molina
Directed By: Lauren Montgomery

Wonder Woman is the fourth straight-to-DVD DC Universe Original Animated Movie. I have every intention of seeing them all, AND in order. Before this, I had seen the three preceding this film: Superman: Doomsday, Justice League: The New Frontier and Batman: Gotham Knight. And since this was released they've also put out Green Lantern: First Flight and Superman/Batman: Public Enemies. So far, all of them have been well-done in terms of casting and animation, and they've stayed mostly true to their source materials.

The same is true here. Basically, this is a retelling of the Amazon princess's origin story. The animation is crisp and works well with the plot. At times the villains can seem a little too big and muscle-bound, but it isn't usually a problem. After all,they are dealing with Gods and Demons here; as well as the differences between the sexes, so it's excusable.

The cast is well-rounded and everyone puts forth a strong effort across the board. The main cast consisting of Keri Russell as Wonder Woman, Nathan Fillion as Steve Trevor and Alfred Molina as Ares are all great. As are their supporting counterparts. It's fun to hear such great actors bringing life to the grand, mythological characters in this story. Familiar voices include Oliver Platt as Hades, Rosario Dawson as Artemis, Virginia Madsen as Hippolyta and more.

All in all, I'd say this probably ranks second of the first four animated films released by DCU (after Justice League: The New Frontier). I'd have to re-watch them all and re-evaluate to be sure. But I know I look forward to seeing the others that have come out since this one, and whatever else DCU decides to release as they've all been solid, mature, high-quality animated films so far. Recommended.

Score: 7.5/10

023: Constantine (2005)

Title: Constantine (2005)
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Rachel Weisz, Shia LeBeouf
Directed By: Francis Lawrence

Constantine is based on the Vertigo Hellblazer comics. Now granted, a lot of comic adaptations have some changes made to them to be more bankable as a film. In the comics; John Constantine is older, British and damned to spend eternity in Hell for contributing to the death of a little girl when he was younger. In the movie; John is younger, American, and damned to spend eternity in Hell because he once tried to kill himself. These trivial changes wouldn't normally spell big problems for the movie, except that here John Constantine is Keanu Reeves. That's all. Keanu Reeves being a Keanu Reeves character in another freakin' Keanu Reeves movie.

Reeves is often criticized for his acting, and I hate to pour gasoline on the fire, but it has to be pointed out how poor his performance is here. He can't even smoke right! He's supposed to be playing a cynical chain smoker dying of lung cancer. But every time he lights up, he looks like an awkward teenager who stole one of Daddy's butts from the ashtray to give it a try. The character is meant to be smoking most of the movie, yet whenever he does it looks distractingly bad. Keanu just can not pull it off. It's one of the movie's biggest flaws.

Other than Keanu not knowing how to smoke, the rest of the cast is par. Some good, some bad. Rachel Weisz is pretty alright as our female protagonist and potential love interest. Shia LeBeouf does his "annoying but faithful sidekick" thing that he's done in I, Robot and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Djimon Hounsou is almost wasted here as Papa Midnite, but gets to be a little more of his charming self later in the movie. Tilda Swinton and Peter Stormare are both terrible and might as well be screaming "lookitme lookitme!" with their borderline silly performances. Basically, I don't think any of them are going to put this on their resume demo reels.

Actors aside, what we're left with is pretty much what you'd expect from a flashy Hollywood comic book movie. This could have been Spawn, or Ghost Rider, or Judge Dredd. It wasn't great, but it wasn't horrible either. The whole thing was just (as usual with these types of movies) "meh".

Score: 6/10

022: Black Dynamite (2009)

Title: Black Dynamite (2009)
Starring: Michael Jai White, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Tommy Davidson
Directed By: Scott Sanders

If you have ever seen and enjoyed a blaxploitation film, you kind of owe it to yourself to watch this. Black Dynamite is a fantastic tribute to the over-the-top ideas and under-sized budget production values that are the true staples of the genre. And it's HILARIOUS.

Michael Jai White (who also co-wrote) is pitch-perfect as our hero Black Dynamite. He nailed all of the little quirks that are essential to bringing a 70's blaxploitation hero to life. He's mad, he's bad, he's smooth, and he knows kung-fu. The supporting cast here is great as well. Even though most only appear in a cameo capacity, they do deserve to be recognized. You really can't go wrong when doing this type of film and finding creative ways to include Arsenio Hall, Brian McKnight, Tommy Davidson, Kym Whitley, Obba Babatunde, John Salley, Mykelti Williamson, Roger Yuan, Nicole Ari Parker, Phil Morris, Bokeem Woodbine, Miguel A Nunez Jr., Nicole Sullivan, Cedric Yarbrough and more.

And when it comes to the look and feel and sound of a 70's blaxploitation movie, they are flawlessly duplicated here. Everything on the screen is done with a wink to the viewer, but it still captures the mood perfectly. I couldn't help but be reminded of movies like Coffy, Willie Dynamite, Super Fly, Dolemite, or Shaft. For a while there, I almost forgot this was made last year. The film looks grainy, the soundtrack is bassy and distorted at times, the costumes are authentic. It's not the first time a parody like this has been done, but it's easily the best I've seen (sorry, I'm Gonna Git You Sucka).

I cannot stress enough how much fun I had with this film. It was spot-on from top to bottom!

Highly recommended.

Score: 9/10

021: The Last Dragon (1985)

Title: The Last Dragon (1985)
Starring: Taimak, Vanity, Christopher Murney
Directed By: Michael Schultz

The Last Dragon is a tongue-in-cheek homage to Bruce Lee and Americanized martial arts films. It never takes itself too seriously, and that's definitely a good thing. Looking back at it now, it's easy to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all and how "80's" it looks. But beneath the cheesy surface is a good, kind-hearted story about one man trying to be true to himself.

The central performances are all as silly and heart-on-their-sleeve as can be, but you can't really fault the actors for it. This isn't Shakespeare. It's a man eating popcorn with chopsticks, it's 4 grown men playing double-dutch craps, it's Sho'nuff: The Shogun of Harlem, and it's a faceless killing machine in a tank filled with murky green water. Basically, it's the 80's personified. And it's a LOT of fun!

I've always liked going back and revisiting some of the movies I watched growing up with fresh eyes. This was definitely one of the more fun trips down memory lane. Recommended.

Score: 7/10