Green Lantern (2011) Review

DC superheroes have sort of been "meh" compared to Marvel superheroes, of course with the exception of Batman. Green Lantern has been under my radar, but it stood far behind Thor, X-Men First Class, and Captain America for the summer. How's all the green going to fare?

"Everyone has fear, but you have the power to overcome it."

Let me just start off by saying, I don't know anything about Green Lantern. All I know is that there's many generations of human green lanterns and they are part of a universal group of superheroes who protect the universe from evil by harnessing the power of willpower, thus the green color. Well then, what's willpower's greatest enemy? Fear, and... for some reason that's yellow. Anyways, the good guys and bad guys are color coded, so you know exactly who's on what side.

Now... also in the same DC universe, there's Batman, who also uses the idea of fear in his story. In Green Lantern, Hal Jordan must not give in to fear and overcome it with courage and willpower. In Batman, Bruce Wayne embraces his fear and uses that to inflict fear on evil, kind of like fighting fire with fire. Now who's cooler? Batman of course.

What I'm trying to say is, Green Lantern had soooo much potential. With a bad script and directing, the film felt rushed. Blake Lively was beautiful no doubt, but their little loveline was kind of pointless. To be blunt, Green Lantern was all over the place. The CGI effects felt really "yesterday" and pales in comparison to other superhero movies *ahem* X-Men Origins and Thor *ahem*.

I enjoyed the movie for what it was, but I found myself looking at my watch several times throughout the movie.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 6/10.

X-Men First Class Review

Hollywood, take a good look at this movie and learn from it. This is how a prequel is supposed to be made.

"When you focus on that point that lies between rage and serendipity, the extraordinary can happen..."

I'm blown away. Best X-Men movie to date. I honestly wasn't a fan of the first three to begin with, and the Wolverine one just kinda sucked. With many movies out this summer, aka Hangover 2, Captain America, Thor, Transformers... it's easy for me to overlook this one. Just having the name "X-Men" in there gives me the impression that it will go down the same horrible road as the first three did. However, this movie proved me wrong, and I just love it when movies do that.

X-Men First Class is all about individualism. On the surface, it has cool superheroes with super powers, but under that layer hides a deep and meaningful theme concerning individualism. Feared by some and hated by others, they must do all they can to fit into the harsh society and at the same time, they must learn how to cope with their unique powers. Along comes Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr, one who wishes to make peace with humankind and one who wishes to exterminate them before they terminate the mutants. X-Men First Class is about how the two best friends become archenemies.

This film was surprisingly emotional. Best emotional scene in the movie by far, not a spoiler by the way, is when Magneto tries to rotate a satellite. That scene screamed shonen jump to me in every way, yet it was deep and emotional. The relationships between the characters were great. There was one minor problem that I had with the movie though. Even though it's at least two hours long, it felt rushed. How I wish this movie would've been broken up into two parts to flesh out the story and the characters more. There was so much story to tell and so much character development to convey, yet there was so little time to do it all.

X-Men First Class is a GREAT start for a reboot of the franchise and I look forward to the upcoming movies. Definitely give this one at least one viewing. It's totally worth it.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 9/10.

Hangover Part 2 Review

Can Hangover 2 stand on its own two feet without having to rely on its prequel? Or does it suffer from "the-sequel-sucks" syndrome?

"My uncle once saw an albino polar bear." "Aren't polar bears already white?" "It was a black polar bear." "Are you sure it wasn't just a black bear in the snow?" "..."

The Hangover 2 is about the three guys getting back together for Stu's wedding in Thailand. However, as we all know, the bachelor party goes horribly wrong and the guys wind up lost in the city of Bangkok. What's worse is Stu's fiance's kid brother is missing in all this mess. As guys try to make their way back to the wedding, they have to find the kid before the father in law chews them up.

It would probably be a good idea to watch the first one before watching this one in order to get a grasp of the characters because there's a lot of references to the prequel. some stuff that you might not find funny is hilarious to others because of the references to the first one. Though you can still enjoy it without watching the first one, you'll understand a lot more if you do.

The guys are hilarious. Everything they do gets them deeper and deeper into trouble. The jokes range from slapstick to sex jokes and from dark humor to flat out knee slappers. I didn't find it as funny as the first one, but I'd be lying if I told you I didn't have a great time watching this. I'd recommend this movie to anyone above the age of 16, because there are some nasty jokes in here, hahaha.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 8/10.

Thor Review (2011)

I thought that having a hammer for a weapon would suck. I thought wrong.

"Superheroes have special powers, but Gods are on a whole another level."

Thor, as most of you probably already know, is one of Marvel's Avengers. Thus far, the Avengers that we have seen in action are Spiderman, the Hulk, Wolverine, and Iron Man. Now that we have Thor, all we're waiting for is Captain America, which is rolling by pretty close, considering its release date in mid July.

I am not all too familiar with the Norse Gods and Goddesses (I'm more of a Greek mythology person), but the cool thing is you don't have to be familiar with Norse mythology in order to understand the story. Also, the roles that they play in the comic book series is totally different from their roles in their respective mythology, so if you see any irregularities, don't freak out on Marvel.

We have Thor, the almighty God of Thunder, and son of Odin. Thor has a brother named Loki, who just kind of gets tossed to the side most of the time while Thor stands in the spotlight. Thor is probably one of the few Marvel characters who starts out as a badass (looks over at Spiderman, Hulk, and Captain America). He's also one of the extremely few Marvel characters who didn't get their power through some sort of mutation (looks at the whole X-men cast and pretty much almost everyone in the Marvel Universe). Because of a foolish and selfish act, Thor is banished from the Realm of Asgard by Odin and sent to earth both losing his god-like abilities and his place as the next king of Asgard. Now with Thor stuck on earth and Odin slowly dying, Loki steps in as king in order to prove himself a worthy son to Odin.

There aren't really any real villains, unless you count the frost giants. It's more of a story about a sibling dispute over who should be the rightful heir to the throne. There were A LOT of supporting characters which I just wished they were either more developed or had more screen time. From Thor's warrior friends to the crazy research group, more information about them would have sufficed, although that would kind of be pushing the limit here since the film is already running at about two hours long.

The fight scenes were very well done. You can clearly tell that this isn't your average Marvel superhero. One swing of that hammer and you've got yourself quite a large mess to clean up, seriously. Compared to previous Marvel superhero fights, Gods DO fight on a whole another level. For example after a fight with Iron Man, you'd probably have a few destroyed buildings, several cars tipped over, and junk lying all over the ground. However, with Thor, you're gonna have to rebuild a city because there's not going to be anything left over after a fight involving him. Thor's presence in Marvel is pretty much equivalent to Superman's presence in DC, if I say so myself.

Thor is a great summer flick and now I'm hyped up and really looking forward to Captain America.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 9/10.

Trailer:

Scream 4 Review

The first one was a cult classic, the second one was a little dry, the third one milked it. How will Wes Craven's fouth installment fit in with the rest of the series?

"What's your favorite scary movie?"

This movie was part comedy, part thriller, and part social commentary about the horror movie insdustry. The story is about the sole survivor of the original Scream coming back to her hometown where the ghost face murders took place. And of course, now that she's back in town, the murders are happening again.

With most flasher flicks, you have to be creative or else stabbing someone in the stomach with a knife can get really old really fast. Scream 4 falls into the latter category unfortunately. With the prequels to act as a spine for its story and very little to almost no character development, this movie was almost a flop. What saved it was a great ending, which surprised me to say the least.

Watch it if you have time, but don't expect any creative stab scenes.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 6/10 overall.

Bedevilled (2010) Review

A Korean slasher flick? This what happens when you're holding a cup full of piss and someone just comes along and tips it over...

"The sun... it spoke to me... it said that I don't have to take your shit anymore..."

Everyone has a limit of how much they can endure before they break, thus the term limit break, and this movie does just that. It centers on a woman, abused by her husband and brother-in-law, overworked by the old ladies, and ignored by her best friend. She does all that she can for her daughter, even begging her friend to help her get off this horrible island. Eventually with no one to turn to, no one to listen to her, and no one to help her, she takes matters into her own hands.

This movie justifies the horror that is the last third of the movie. You as the viewer will become angry and immediately take sides with the wife and when she finally does her limit break, you do not sympathize with the antagonists at all, no matter how horrible they were murdered.

The only drawback is the one dimensional characters. They do not give a valid reason why they are treating the wife so horribly, other than their intention to make her life completely miserable. Warning, this movie isn't for kids, but it's great welcome to the Korean thriller genre.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 8/10 overall.

Trailer:

Hello Stranger (2010) Review

Finally a break from my Korean thriller genre. Here's a refreshing romantic comedy with fresh new ideas as it tries to outdo the cliche trend of asian romantic comedies.

"I don't drink Pepsi. Why? They say Pepsi is so acidic it can dissolve your insides."

And ladies and gentleman, this is how asian love stories shit all over american romantic comedies like always. With dozens of asian romantic films out there, it's extremely difficult to come up with a fresh and brand new idea to introduce to the genre. Well, here we have it. A jokester dude who is forced to go to Korea by his friends accidentally gets lost and can't find his way back to his tour group. With only a bath towel, a tshirt, and a pair of shorts, he stumbles upon a korean drama freak girl and asks to tag along with her until he can find his tour group. They agree not to tell each other their names so there would be no hard feelings if they bash on each other.

This film is a little under 2 hours long and it feels like it drags on at some points, but when it finally ends, it leaves you hoping for more. The ending provides enough room for a sequel because it does not provide enough closure to leave the audience satisfied. The humor in this film are all over the place which ranges from witty lines to dark humor to sarcasm of all sorts of extremes.

Cool movie with cool characters deserves a cool viewing.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 8/10 overall.

Trailer:

Psychic (2010) Review

Synopsis: After losing his job at a scrap metal yard, Kyu-Nam (Ko Su) finds a new job at a small pawn shop named Utopia. He is immediately drawn to the family atmosphere at Utopia, working with his new boss Jung-Sik (Byeon Hie-Bong) and boss's daughter Young-Sook (Jung Eun-Chae). Unfortunately for Kyu-Nam, his moment of happiness will only be fleeting. Cho-In (Kang Dong-Won) lived through a brutal childhood. He has had to use a prosthetic leg since an early age, grew up with an abusive father and lived with a mother who at one point attempted to kill her own son out of despair. Cho-In also possesses an awe-inspiring supernatural gift. Cho-In can control other people's minds when they are within his field of sight.One fateful day, Cho-In walks into the Utopia pawn shop to steal whatever money exists in the safe. Not expecting much resistance, Cho-In is surprised to find one man at the Utopia pawn shop is able to break free from his mind control abilities. That man is Kyu-Nam. Cho-In then resorts to killing the owner of pawn shop to make his escape. All of this is captured on CCTV. "An epic battle will soon occur between these two people with supernatural abilities and nothing to lose."

A refreshing take on the sci-fi thriller genre.

"You will wish you've never met me. Oh? I'll make you wish you've never met me."

With two of Korea's top stars in this movie along with a fresh idea, this film caused heads to turn when it first came out. This movie focuses on two individuals, one who can control anyone within his line of sight, and one whose own free will does not allow himself to be controlled. Their rivalry reminds me of L and Light's rivalry in Death Note. One of those "if they've met on different terms, they would've became best friends" sort of rivalry.

As entertaining as it was, it was never clearly explained why or how these two individuals acquired their powers. There were a lot of stuff left unexplained and some characters get killed off too quickly. The beginning was also sort of a drag, but it gets really intense later on in the movie.

Regardless of its flaws, this movie was entertaining till the end.

Trailer:

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 8/10 overall.

I Saw the Devil Review

This film is definitely not for little kids. In fact, the producers and directors were forced to cut out some scenes from the original or else it'd be banned indefinitely from Korea. Fortunately, I got to watch the original in all it's glory.

"I will catch you... then I will torture you... then I will let you go... then I will catch you... then I will torture you... then I will let you go... then I will catch you... then I will torture you... then I will let you go... then I will catch you... then I will torture you... then I will let you go... then I will catch you... then I will torture you... then I will let you go... then I will catch you..."

What a movie... I was literally breathless after watching this movie. This movie, like I said before is definitely not for little kids. This is by far one of Korea's most brutal thrillers in recent memory. The movie follows a secret agent, highly trained in the arts of pursuit and stealth. One day his wife gets murdered by a ruthless serial killer. The secret agent then goes on a manhunt, tracking down his serial killer, one murder at a time... But no, killing the man who murdered his wife is not enough for the secret agent. He brutally beats up the killer, let's him go, catches him, does it again, and rinse and repeat.

This story is extremely dark and gritty. The most phenomenal scenes in this movie are the taxi stabbing scene and the final scene. Each scene is breathtaking, making you cringe, yet it grabs a hold of you and won't let you look away from the screen. Character development of the main character is also a treat. It slowly shows his transformation as his actions blur the lines between good and evil. Being a good guy can't triumph evil... Being a bad guy can't triumph evil... Only an evil person can stand toe to toe with another evil person and that's exactly what happens.

Though this movie is extremely violent, has plenty of explicit scenes, and even a hint of cannibalism, it was thoroughly enjoyable. What's the scary part? This can happen to anyone, anytime in real life, which leads you to contemplate further afterwards. Another great revenge flick from the Korean movie industry and a must-watch film for fans of the genre.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 9/10 overall

The Man From Nowhere Review

Did you know this movie did better in Korea than what Inception did in America in terms of sales?? That's gotta say something about this movie.

"You thugs, who live for tomorrow... will never defeat me... a person... who only plans to live for today..."

The premise is simple, the execution is phenomenal. It takes a cliche story and turns it into a heart-pounding thriller with exquisite cinematography and a soundtrack that will be ringing in your ears for weeks to come. A pawn shop owner with a mysterious past befriends a neighbor girl, a kid to be exact, and she is his only connection to the world. Her mother is a dancer and gets involved with a dangerous drug deal that ultimately leads to the kidnapping of her daughter. With only one goal in mind, the mysterious pawn shop owner goes out of his way to rescue the little girl.

If you've been a fan of the Korean movie industry, you'll know how well they do thrillers and this is no exception. This movie takes the Korean society and turns it into a drug-dealing, human-trafficking hell of a place, and our hero has to sift through it all to save his little neighbor. The fight scenes in this movie are extremely well done and well shot. One scene where you have the main character jumping out of the window onto the streets in a third person camera shot that follows him all the way is just one of the many impressive scenes that you'll experience in this movie.

If you're a fan of the genre, or even movies in general, this one is a MUST WATCH. You'll be amazed at how well-paced the movie is up until the final, but very satisfying ending. You won't regret it.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 9/10 overall.

Insidious Review

The best horror movie this year?

"It's not the house that's haunted... It's your son..."

The story is simple. A family moves into a new house only to find out that it's haunted. Right? Wrong... The story is not truly original because it borrows concepts from Paranormal Activity and Devil. However, the way that it takes these concepts and views them in a completely different manner is what makes it stand out above the rest. A boy falls into a coma after falling down a ladder, however, it's not really a coma. At first we get a few scares, and we don't really know why these random entities are appearing until later.

One thing that I really liked about this movie was how they approached the situation very scientifically instead of religiously. Unlike The Exorcist, where the priest would take out his bible and his cross, we have two geeks with heavy equiptment and cameras that can detect temperature changes and suspicious sources of energy. The atmosphere in this movie is incredible. You always feel like something is there in the scene, even when there isn't anything.

The scares are genuine. It's not the usual "lamp falls over, lady goes over to check, turns out it's a cat." Every scare in this movie is genuine whether it's a jump scare or one of those "Holy shit" moments. You won't catch yourself giving a sigh of relief after receiving a relentless scare... the movie won't allow you to do so.

This is a must-see for all horror fans.

FluffyBunnyPwn gives it 9/10 overall.