112: Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998)

Title: Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998)
Starring: Scott Innes, Billy West, Frank Welker
Directed By: Jim Stenstrum

This direct-to-video offering is one of the few instances where the ghosts and ghouls aren't all bad guys in a mask. I liked the dark tones and the takes on most of the characters, but I think their voices took a little getting used to and Scooby talked way too much. I understand why you'd want to use him as the focus of the story, but since he's almost always accompanied by Shaggy, Scooby doesn't necessarily have to be the voice of exposition. He is a dog after all!

That said, it was still nice to see a throwback to the old school adventures of the Mystery Inc. team. Recommended.

Score: 7.5/10

111: Trucker (2008)

Title: Trucker (2008)
Starring: Michelle Monaghan, Jimmy Bennett, Nathan Fillion
Directed By: James Mottern

This is the story of a loner female truck driver having to take care of her estranged 11-year-old son for the first time in ten years. Michelle Monaghan's performance alone merits a view or two of this indie drama, but for me Nathan Fillion stole the show. He tends to excel at "everyman" roles, and here he almost hops off the screen and hands you a cold one. I really enjoyed getting to know these characters, especially how their relationships effect their dynamics with one another. The strong performances all around helped to really flesh out what easily could have been melodramatic schlock.

Highly recommended.

Score: 8.5/10

110: Knowing (2009)

Title: Knowing (2009)
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Chandler Canterbury, Rose Byrne
Directed By: Alex Proyas

Sci-Fi and conspiracy theories collide in Alex Proyas's intriguing tale of potential impending apocalypse. Everything leading up to the last act is well executed, but the film ultimately falls flat with it's unnecessary (and kind of predictable) twist ending. Still though, it's a pretty decent Nic Cage movie, and those are always fun. :)

Score: 7/10

109: Wallace and Gromit: A Matter of Loaf and Death (2008)

Title: Wallace & Gromit: A Matter of Loaf and Death (2008)
Starring: Peter Sallis, Sally Lindsay, Melissa Collier
Directed By: Nick Park

Wallace and Gromit star in their most dangerous (and mature) adventure yet. Themes of murder and betrayal are at the forefront of this 30 minute animated short, but it is ultimately the humor and innocence of our two heroes that shines through. Top notch entertainment as always from Nick Park.

Recommended.

Score: 8/10

108: Mystery Team (2009)

Title: Mystery Team (2009)
Starring: Donald Glover, D.C. Pierson, Dominic Dierkes
Directed By: Dan Eckman

Really raunchy yet innocent and heartwarming at the same time; this first film from comedy troupe Derrick Comedy (Dominic Dierkes Donald Glover, DC Pierson) was a real surprise for me. I had high expectations going in, and was blown away by the film's heart while simultaneously guffawing loudly.

My hat is off to Derrick Comedy for crafting a tightly scripted, hilarious first outing. I hope to see LOTS more from them soon.

Highly recommended.

Score: 9/10

107: Away We Go (2009)

Title: Away We Go (2009)
Starring: John Krasinski, Maya Rudolph, Maggie Gyllenhaal
Directed By: Sam Mendes

This movie is kind of a conundrum for me.

On the one hand, I REALLY enjoyed it. I enjoyed the characters of Burt and Verona and I enjoyed the performances by the actors who portrayed them. I enjoyed the complexity of their relationship. I enjoyed the names in the supporting cast. I enjoyed the plot, and I really connected to the idea of finding a place that just feels like "home".

On the other hand, there was a lot to dislike about this film. It feels a little pretentious and times, and a little too "indie" for its own good. It constantly tries to "out-quirk" itself with every new character we meet. It fixates its attention on the menial while broad themes and plotlines are too often pushed aside. Usually in favor of a meaningless interaction between our heroes and their obviously temporary, overbearing companions. It's a formula that wears too thin too quickly and yet, it's on repeat until the pretty obvious conclusion.

All that being said though, the only way I can really sum up my feelings for Away We Go are this: it's a good movie. That's all. It's got a heart and a charm that are undeniable, and there's more than enough originality in the script to keep your ears peeled during the dialogue. The likability of John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph don't hurt either.

Recommended.

Score: 8/10

106: The Losers (2010)

Title: The Losers (2010)
Starring: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana, Chris Evans
Directed By: Sylvain White

This may seem like a cheap capitalization on a slightly obscure comic property just to make money. It isn't. It's more similar to Kick-Ass in that it's a decent adaptation of a comic, while still feeling fun and breezy and summer-movie-y.

This isn't just an origin of Andy Diggle's The Losers either, like so many other comic book movies yearning for a franchise. This is more of a condensed retelling of the 32-issue series as a whole, and the movie benefits from that. This should be a standalone summer movie.

The Losers isn't trying to reinvent the wheel, it's trying to be a fun action movie. I'm glad to say it succeeds. Summer 2010 is fulled with comic adaptations and action movies alike. While this one will likely be overlooked by a lot of people, I'm glad I gave it a chance. I ended up really enjoying it. Recommended.

Score: 7.5/10

105: The Slammin' Salmon (2009)

Title: The Slammin' Salmon (2009)
Starring: Broken Lizard, Michael Clarke Duncan, Cobie Smulders
Directed By: Kevin Heffernan

This fifth film from comedy troupe Broken Lizard (Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter and Erik Stolhanske) is definitely funny, but more than a little uneven at times. Maybe it's because this is Kevin Heffernan's first directorial effort. Maybe it's because the script gives all the best lines to Michael Clarke Duncan, who easily steals the show with his scenery chewing turn as a former boxer turned restaurateur.

Whatever the reason, I can still say that this movie brings the funny in a big way. I laughed when I was supposed to, and for me, that more than made up for the downtime between gags. Recommended.

Score: 7.5/10

104: The Karate Kid (2010)

Title: The Karate Kid (2010)
Starring: Jaden Smith, Jackie Chan, Taraji P. Henson
Directed By: Harald Zwart

It's an interesting take on a movie that never needed to be remade in the first place. This story definitely benefits from the location change and from Jackie Chan's presence, he steals the show. The only real complaints I have are pretty nit-picky. Things like Jaden Smith looks too young and too small to be any kind of a real threat to the bigger, more skilled bullies; or the adolescent love story that seems uneven and sometimes jarring to the viewer. My biggest beef with the film though is its name. The studio didn't think audiences would get that this was a remake if they called it The Kung Fu Kid. They were wrong. And it makes no sense to keep the title and then show absolutely nothing to do with karate the entire film! It's stupid.

The film, however, is somewhat enjoyable and some of the fight scenes are actually pretty good. See it if you wanted to, but don't go out of your way or anything.

Score: 7/10

103: The A-Team (2010)

Title: The A-Team (2010)
Starring: Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Sharlto Copely
Directed By: Joe Carnahan

This movie just looks like a group of guys having an absolute BLAST making 2 hours of fun. It's silly, it's preposterous, it's everything that the TV show was; just bigger and louder!

If you can suspend disbelief for a while and allow yourself to be sucked in by the ridiculousness of it all, you might just have as much fun with this movie as I did. Recommended.

Score: 8/10

102: Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010)

Title: Justice League: Crisis On Two Earths (2010)
Starring: William Baldwin, Mark Harmon, Chris Noth
Directed By: Sam Liu and Lauren Montgomery

Surprisingly mature, even for PG-13. The action feels much more authentic when it's allowed to be a little bloodier, and this movie is all the better for it.

This is a great take on a classic comic arc that easily could've spanned across several movies, but doesn't necessarily feel truncated or abbreviated here. The film stands on its own as a solid retelling, although the climax did feel a little rushed. Batman fans should know that Batman owns in this! More than I even thought he would.

DC scores again with their solid animated DVD releases. Highly recommended.

Score: 8.5/10

101: The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008)

Title: The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008)
Starring: Kang-ho Song, Byung-hun Lee, Woo-sung Jung
Directed By: Ji-woon Kim

At times deliriously goofy and at times quite engaging and even suspenseful. Great flick either way. Highly recommended.

Score: 9/10

100: Get Him to the Greek (2010)

Title: Get Him to the Greek (2010)
Starring: Jonah Hill, Russell Brand, Sean Combs
Directed By: Nicholas Stoller

Following up on his 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall, writer/director Nicholas Stoller creates here more of a spin-off for the character of Aldous Snow (Russell Brand) than a direct sequel. Also returning are Sarah Marshall herself (Kristen Bell in a quick cameo) and Jonah Hill (but playing a COMPLETELY different character than he did in the first).

The thing that surprised me the most about this movie was its heart. I had expected it to be funny, but I didn't expect that there would be a legitimate emotional core at the center of this film. The other big surprise, to me at least, was how incredibly funny Sean "P. Diddy" Combs was. He's been halfway decent in some smaller movies (see Made right now), but I had no idea that he'd hold his own so well alongside some of the best names in the comedy business right now. There's one scene in particular where it shouldn't have worked at all, but just because it's him, it does. Brilliantly.

If you liked Sarah Marshall you should definitely see this, as it more than lives up to its predecessor. If you didn't like it, or didn't see it, just know that this is a stand-alone film and the other isn't prerequisite viewing for you to enjoy yourself. I honestly didn't expect a story centered around Brand's character to work on its own, but I have been pleasantly surprised. This movie is VERY funny and highly recommended.

Score: 8.5/10

099: Harvie Krumpet (2003)

Title: Harvie Krumpet (2003)
Starring: Geoffrey Rush, Julie Forsyth, John Flaus
Directed By: Adam Elliot

A decidedly adult claymation short from 2003, this Academy Award winning film is definitely dark in tone but still with a heart and charm that won't be denied. It's the 23-minute-long life story of Harvie Krumpet, a lovable schmuck with Tourette's Syndrome and a never ending case of miserable luck.

Writer/Director Adam Elliot has crafted quite an interesting tale of love and life, of growing and feeling. It is skillfully narrated by Geoffrey Rush, who never allows himself to become too "cartoony". His emotionality helps drive the highs and lows of the story home instead of it ever becoming derivative.

I was very impressed with the animation, and with the AMPAS' decision to honor the film as highly as they did. It's got a few layers to it, which are better served with multiple viewings. Be warned though, this is definitely not kid-friendly fare. Highly recommended.

Score: 8.5/10

098: Gotcha! (1985)

Title: Gotcha! (1985)
Starring: Anthony Edwards, Linda Fiorentino, Nick Corri
Directed By: Jeff Kanew

As far as I'm concerned this movie deserves to be up there with all the other "classic" 80's movies, but I think it's usually overlooked. Fans of the era (or of a time when PG-13 movies could get away with a LOT more) should definitely give this a shot, I don't think you'll be disappointed. I know I'm glad I gave it a look. Anthony Edwards rules!

Recommended.

Score: 8/10

097: The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009)

Title: The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009)
Starring: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, Luis Guzmán
Directed By: Tony Scott

This is a surprisingly effective thriller that never strays too far from the 1974 original , but still stands solidly on its own. This could easily have dissolved into a way over-the-top action movie, betraying the original, but instead Scott treads a fine taut line of (reasonable) believability. Kudos to the cast and especially to screenwriter Brian Helgeland for their efforts in modernizing an already great story, you did good guys. I was surprised that I actually got into it, so thanks for that.

Score: 7.5/10

096: The Runaways (2010)

Title: The Runaways (2010)
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Michael Shannon
Directed By: Floria Sigismondi

The Runaways is a fairly straightforward biopic about the 70's all-girl rock band. More specifically, it's mainly focused on guitarist Joan Jett and lead singer Cherie Currie. The film chronicles their humble beginnings through to the band's dissolution 4 years later.

The thing that works best in this movie is the cast. Kristen Stewart plays Joan Jett as fearless, yet vulnerable. Dakota Fanning portrays Cherie's innocence and sexuality both equally as playful. The supporting cast includes band mates Stella Maeve (Sandy West), Scout Taylor-Compton(Lita Ford) and Alia Shawkat (playing "Robin", the only fictional character as Jackie Fox refused her rights to the production); and Michael Shannon as producer Kim Fowley, each handling their responsibilities well.

While there isn't much here that hasn't been done before, the film does do a good job of representing its setting (both in place and time), and never overdoes it. It feels "real" enough onscreen. On a more personal note, I'd say the only hard thing for me to watch was seeing Dakota Fanning participate in acts of sex and drug use. She's playing (slightly) older, but was still only 15 when this was filmed! And while she pulls it off believably, and that's definitely to her own credit as an actress, it became a little hard for me to separate actress from role and just roll with it. That's not really a criticism of the movie, just something I found myself thinking while watching it.

The real star here though, should have been the music. And it IS definitely as much a character as anyone in this film. The problem though, is that it quickly becomes second fiddle to the narrative and the movie suffers for it. Strong performances from the three leads could have been the icing on the cake had they nailed the music aspect down, but unfortunately it never takes center stage like I had hoped. All-in-all though, this is a highly entertaining film, and a decent take on a pretty interesting story too. Recommended.

Score: 7.5/10

095: The Penthouse (2010)

Title: The Penthouse (2010)
Starring: Rider Strong, April Scott, Corey Large
Directed By: Chris Levitus

This is like a really bad National Lampoon movie that isn't actually a really bad National Lampoon movie. Bad script, poor performances, lame jokes and a fairly likeable young cast that is COMPLETELY wasted.

Please don't watch this movie. Please?

Score: 2/10

094: Push (2009)

Title: Push (2009)
Starring: Chris Evans, Dakota Fanning, Camilla Belle
Directed By: Paul McGuigan

The only bad thing that I can really say about this movie is that it wasn't a comic first. See, similar to 2008's Jumper, it probably would've helped to have some kind of familiarity with these characters and the rules of their universe. Instead, everything is revealed to the audience piece by piece and it all seems pretty slapdash. Rules are created or changed late in the film, which makes for little-to-no continuity and ultimately the movie suffers for it.

Chris Evans and Dakota Fanning are pretty watchable, even as they stumble through the nonsensical script. Camilla Belle though, is terribly miscast. I didn't buy her character's story and I didn't buy her relationship with Evans' character at all. She looks too young for this part, and that's only half the problem. She really phones it in. As does Djimon Hounsou, who's American special agent can't even half-fake an American accent. His origin is never explained, but it's more than a little weird that "Agent Henry Carver" from "America" sounds like he's doing an impression of Russel Crowe's friend from Gladiator.

Effects-wise the film succeeds at selling the special powers. Perhaps a few cuts here and there at the script stage, and this may have been a serviceable action movie. As is though, it's all just a disappointment to genre fans (like me).

Score: 5.5/10

093: Mega Man (2010)

Title: Mega Man (2010)
Starring: Jun Naito, Sung-Mo Cho, David Maulbeck
Directed By: Eddie Lebron

It's hard to know how to judge a fan film when writing an actual review for it. That being said, this is probably about as good as it's gonna get when trying to make a Mega Man film that stays as faithful as possible to the first game. Writer/director Eddie Lebron shows us here that he definitely knows his stuff, and is OBVIOUSLY a fan of Mega Man.

The biggest problems that I had with the film were with the performances. See, I can excuse sub-par CG in a live-action fan film. The video game fan flicks that I have seen that try to integrate computer generated props and characters, are all relatively guilty of it. But it also kind of has to be commended for even trying it in the first place. This isn't Avatar, these filmmakers are trying to bring these stories to life on shoestring budgets and usually with their own equipment and their own home computers. I can even excuse the relatively silly-looking costumes and character design, as they WERE trying to stay relatively true to the first game, and again budget and resources come into play. The performances though, that's where you have to sell the audience that your film is worth watching. The cast HAS to have it together and really SELL the universe that we're supposed to be witnessing. I saw giant robots in the middle of a secluded city street, and no one reacted; cars just drove by, people kept walking in the background, and even our hero didn't really seem very intimidated by them. It was just hard to believe in or care for Rock (aka Mega Man) when he seemed genuinely uninterested. These mediocre performances are standard across the board, except for one shining example. Dave Maulbeck plays Dr. Wily as a 1960's serial villain, complete with silly German accent and menacing cackle. Sure, it seems a little cartoony at times, but it worked for me. I liked seeing Dr. Wily come to life pretty much as I would have envisioned him, a hideous over-the-top megalomaniac.

Another sore spot in the production is the locations. Much of the film looks like it was shot in basements and friends' houses. That's all well and good depending on set decoration (which is usually pretty bare here), but even when the story moves outdoors it still feels so small. The city doesn't feel like a city, it feels like a block or two. It really does become distracting when you're witnessing what's supposed to be a battle for the city, nay the entire world, and yet you never leave the front of an apartment building. Or a street next to a park. Or a (really small) rooftop. It just never feels big enough to sell its own plot.

All that negativity aside, let me tell you what I saw when I watched Mega Man. I saw love. I saw passion. I saw a TRUE connection to these characters, even if they didn't look or sound or act or feel like I thought they might have. This movie presents a painstakingly faithful adaptation to a game that honestly, probably shouldn't work as a film. It does though. It's a little long-in-the-tooth between action sequences, but for the most part it's a fun little movie.

I can't really recommend this to anyone, except maybe for fans of the game, or of fan films in general. This movie definitely has them in mind as its audience. I did, however, really like the nods to fandom and to other gaming properties; and I'm sure they will too.

See the complete film online for free HERE!

Score: 6.5/10

092: The Haunted World of El Superbeasto (2009)

Title: The Haunted World of El Superbeasto (2009)
Starring: Tom Papa, Sheri Moon Zombie, Paul Giamatti
Directed By: Rob Zombie

Rob Zombie directs this animated take on his own comic of the same name. It's basically the adventures of El Superbeasto (Tom Papa), a luchador/porn star/director/spy and his sister Suzi X (Sheri Moon Zombie), a hot one-eyed sidekick/femme fatale/spy. Together(ish), they battle the evil Dr. Satan (Paul Giamatti). This is a rude, vulgar, COMPLETELY over-the-top mess; that happens to be surprisingly funny at times!

Zombie gets zero points in creativity or originality, but it has to be said, it is still pretty darn funny. Papa's voice tends to grate a little near the end, as his character becomes slightly too boring and one-note given what's going on around him (which, to me, is inexcusable considering Papa co-wrote the script). The supporting cast though, is all aces. Special props go out to Rosario Dawson, whose crass and raunchy Velvet Von Black nearly steals the show. She threw all caution to the wind and goes WAY overboard with this character, and it's all the funnier for it. Other supporting cast members who do well here include Brian Posehn, Clint Howard, Harland Williams, Danny Trejo, John DiMaggio, Rob Paulsen and more.

Altogether, this movie isn't exactly trying to reinvent the wheel. It's just trying to be a silly, dirty fun time. I can gladly say it succeeds at that, and it got a few more laughs out of me than I expected it to.

Score: 7/10