So, I finally watched Desolation of Smaug. And I usually don't say this, and I hate it when other people say this, but the book was way better. I didn't even like The Hobbit that much, but it did have some memorable bits... and every single one of them was either watered down or removed entirely for the movie. In the book, there was a lot of time devoted to Mirkwood, setting it up as a truly eerie place. In the movie, there's just spiders. Not only that, but Bilbo rescuing the dwarves was massively dumbed down, replacing the first truly helpful thing that Bilbo did in the book with elf ninjas doing elf ninja stuff. What really puzzles me is that they were trying to stretch a short (compared to any of the LOTR books) novel into a trilogy of three hour movies, and yet they cut the book up so heavily. And yet they still have time to throw in a new elf, make Legolas a main-ish character, make Bard into a character, and Gandalf's side adventure. Really the only thing the movie changed that I liked was the forge battle at the end. Overall, 5/10.

Yes sir. T_T

I definitely disagree with your review. Yes, I definitely don't think The Hobbit needs to be three movies, but I'll take as many movies set in Middle Earth as Jackson is willing to give me. They are still far more enjoyable than nearly any other fantasy movie out there. In fact, I cannot tell you a fantasy movie I like outside of Lord of the Rings and Hobbit.

I don't get why people say the Hobbit movies are just a bunch of last minute rescues and they suck because of that. Mother fucker, did you not watch Return of the King? The entire plot of the movie was based on last minute rescues.

There will be a two week hiatus on my Disney reviews, that way I can get started on Bionicle: The Game

This review is not part of my Disney marathon.

The Lego Movie (2014):

http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/i/2014/02/07/LEGO-Movie.jpg

I just finished watching this movie (thanks to my first use of a Redbox machine). What the f*** just happened? That movie was so odd and random that it just..... Erm..... What I am trying to say is.....

I loved it. The cheesiness and randomness of that movie made me love it. That movie is so...... aw screw it....

Everything is AWESOME!!!

Due to this being a fairly new movie, I shall not give out any spoilers (another reason being that my brain is fried from the randomness of it all.)

I give this movie a 9 out of 10.

My Disney reviews will start back up on August 16.

Personally, I think the Harry Potter are better.

I still believe that spoiling the ending of The LEGO Movie is a cultural, secular sin.

Harry Potter is all right. The first three were pretty good, but the fourth movie was just down right awful. THe fifth and sixth movies were decent, but there was no need to turn Hollows into two movies when half of the movies are spent watching them do nothing but argue and camp instead of actually showing us characters die. Oh yeah, who cares if Mooney and the werewolf dude were important characters, we need to spend time showing Harry and McWhinyLoser arguing for the 800th time. And then we are going to give you the most cop out ending by having Harry marry a girl who has had NO character development at all during the entire series (and she was nothing more than Princess Peach) and just throw out the Asian girl they spent 2 movies building a relationship with just because. OH yeah, and let's just completely ruin Dumbeldore's character because it is edgy.

I don't know what the hell Rowling was on, but she needs to go George Lucas on that last book and have them remake it into ONE movie.

Char's Counterattack.

I won't be reposting my long thoughts but here's the TL: DR version

A good 0079 sequel and great action but no representation from Zeta or ZZ is the biggest bummer about this movie.

The movie was already a convoluted clusterfuck, would you really want Kamille and Judau having their characters ruined like this movie did with everyone else?

BTW, I forgot to mention this in the anime thread, but did you know Judau is voiced by the guy that does Ninjaman in Kaku, the meteor monster in Kyoryu, and Dr Z in AkibaRanger (and Franky in One Piece)?

For me, my brain couldn't fathom the fact that you have an organization like Londo Bell, who is being led by people who were in the 3 previous wars, yet don't call up Kamille and Judau to help out too. Especially when you have this new psycoframe technology that Kamille and Judau would take much better advantage of then Amuro.

Even if they were just on the sidelines or made a cameo, it'd at least acknowledge fix the fact that there's this big plothole elephant in the room.

WHAT.

Aside from that, I think it would be best to read the books. There was only so much they could do in the movie, and while they did the best they could, a lot of the subtle things that served to better develop the world did get cut out. Ginny had a lot more development in the books than in the movies, and even then, I think the movies handled her fairly well. This scene in particular is one of my favorites between the two:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCIGztWc1lY

I have to agree with him there , Goblet of Fire isn't a great film even if the Tri Wizard tournament bits are pretty great.

It's not Chamber of Secrets levels of bad, but it's definitely one of the lower tier Potter films.

Then I will have to disagree. I have always felt that Goblet was consistently enjoyable even after rewatching it so many times, and it added a lot of world-building for the movie's world. It balanced out the zaniness of Azkaban and condensed a thick plot into a decent movie length. The only thing I disliked about it was Dumbledore's portrayal, and Michael Gambon improved in the movies after this one.

In general, I loved all the Potter movies, although I'm least enthusiastic about Chamber, which I felt was a tad too long.

Goblet was a train wreck of a movie. Ten minutes in I say to my g/f, "Why does it feel like they just went through 100 pages in 10 minutes?" and she says, "That's because they did." The movie was just poorly written, poorly paced, half of it did not make a lick of sense (like why there were black hooded KKK members blowing up the campsite), and they threw out all of the great visuals that the first three movies had. Instead of a gothic medieval style backgrounds they went for a more bland classical style. Not to mention it featured the horrible acting of Robert Pattinson.

And no, I've made a decision that except for finishing the original James Bond novels, I will not read a book I have seen the movie to. I had to listen to hours of discussions from my g/f and her parents (among some) about how much they changed this from the book, how they changed that from the book, how this was ruined, etc.

Robert Pattinson was not that bad in Goblet of Fire.

And that's your decision to make.

I felt that the weakest was Sorcerer's Stone, simply because I found the other movies to have more interesting stories.

I think the Potter movies aren't all that terrible or even bad. They're actually quite well made and are pretty good film adaptions of the books. If I had to pick my least favorites, probably Azakaban and Half Blood Prince.

The "Harry Potter" film franchise definitely suffers a bit from the release schedule. With the books still being released as films were being made, the production crew likely had no idea what scenes would be important later on. Id guess some people regretted a number of cuts.

If they had it to do over again (which will probably happen, sad to say) things might be different.

Honestly, I think Order of the Phoenix is the only one that really suffers from cutting stuff plot specific stuff. And even then the films manage to get the story moving fine.

Goblet of Fire cuts a lot of stuff at the beginning (Kain's girlfriend isn't wrong in saying they did about 100 pages in 10 minutes), but a lot of it is just fluff and world building. Fluff and world building I missed though, as its about the only time I found quidditch interesting outside the first book/film.

Fixed.
Bad KRX, you don't say that around British people :p

? I just looked at our BD and it says Sorcerer's Stone.

Granted, Philosopher's Stone would make more sense since that was the damn thing is.

I'd love to see Harry Potter remakes.

Fifteen years from now, anyway.

I wish they kept the stuff with the House Elves. They were criminally underused.

:(

The titles are different depending on the country.

:lol I no longer feel awkward about not having seen TLM until a couple weeks ago.

Yes, Robert Pattinson wasn't that bad. He nailed the character of Cedric.

I don't know whether I find Philosopher's or Chamber weaker, but the thing about Philosopher's is that it was a shorter movie and started the franchise, so I'm more lenient on that. Chamber was one of the longest. :p But in terms of story, overall Philosopher's is the least interesting of the 7 books.

The Lego Movie:

EVERYTHING IS.... you know what, we've heard that before, we can move on.

The Lego Movie is an incredibly animated movie, that works around one of the most creative products of our time, as such it's colorful, radical and incredibly over the top, seeing all the pieces flowing together is amazing, and never ceases to amaze.

The humor is great, silly, crazy, and all kinds of ridiculous, it's a riot, turn your brain off and prepare to die of laughter.

The cast is really charming, and everyone has great performances.

As for the plot it's well, simple, but in a good way, and the constant and extravagant twists will keep your mind from it's simplicity.

On the other hand... the main reveal is nowhere near as shocking as the movie wants it to be, it's essentially telegraphed at the middle fo the film, and as soon as it starts you know how it'll solve itself.

Nonethelesss it is a fun ride, and one of the most visually impressing movies I've ever seen.

Finally! Alright!

I went for Guardians last night and it was AWESOME! Basically satisfies the Star Wars nut in me. Can't wait to see more of these guys!

Guardians of the Galaxy

Keeping in tradition of the Marvel movies, having a simple overall plot with a lot of nitty gritty nerdy details all throughout the movie, Guardians not only does a good job at creating an awesome sci fi world but also being a good movie.

The visuals in this movie are always great with some really interesting lokking tech. The locations rival stuff like the Cantina bar from Star Wars as iconic space sci fi locales.

There wasn't as much comedy, or as many moments that made me laugh, as I thought there were going to be, but it can't hold it against the movie. I also loved the 80s music interspersed throughout the movie.

Groot was awesome. Although his powers got a little Deus Ex Machiniaish towards the end.

Rocket has got to be one of the best character introductions I've seen in any Marvel movie. He's hilarious, he sounds awesome, he kicks ass and he's adorable.

Gamora is sort of your standard action hero chick. I really couldn't find anything unique about her but maybe in the sequel something will happen.

Chirs Pratt as Star Lord is awesome. He's got such a good range, from being funny, to serious to a man of action, the dude's got everything.

I'm surprised Thanos was in this movie. But he's purple now? Wasn't he red at the end of Avengers? And that blue chick was Amy Pond from Doctor Who? It was kinda hard to tell it was her but I couldn't care less about that character.

End Credits this time was nothing special the collector is hanging out with Howard the Duck and good lord does his CGI look terrible. And he looks like he was doing boatloads of meth before being there. I guess we might get a new Howard the Duck movie?

NO!! He does NOT need another movie!!

....Now I'm totally gonna want a new Howard the Duck movie because I spite people.

*picks up Thor's hammer and slams you on the head with it*

Why?


Marvel has already set a date for a big Omnibus for the series, so it's very likely a movie might not be far off.

♪Duck Tits, woohoo!♪

What KRX said, the American version changed the title to make it more "appealing" to US audiences.

Due to recent events, the Disney marathon will temporarily resume with the Aladdin trilogy

Day 5:

Aladdin (1992):
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kXXY9Eul-1...per-normal.jpg

What can I say? I LOVE this movie. The characters are great. The story is great. The songs are great. There is no denying that this movie is one of THE greatest Disney movies ever!

The movie is about a "street-rat" who falls in love with a princess. He finds a lamp and meets the Genie, played by the one and only Robin Williams..... :cry He wishes to become a Prince, but the evil Jafar steals the Genie's lamp and becomes an all powerful sorcerer. Aladdin then tricks Jafar into wishing to become a genie, and then this happens:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUfP6IGQD00

Robin Williams was EXCELLENT in this movie. Some of the best scenes in the movie involve his character.

I give this movie a 9 out of 10

Aladdin 2: Return of Jafar (1994)

http://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb2...ofjafar852.jpg

I like to call this Direct-to-video sequel the "Robin William-less Aladdin", because, well, that's what it is. The film focuses more on the funny, yet sometimes annoying, parrot Iago.

The movie starts out with Aladdin steal some stuff from a group of thieves, then it cuts to Iago getting out of the lamp that Jafar is in. One of the thieves gets the lamp, Homer Simpson.... erm.... I mean the Genie shows up, everyone gets captured, Iago turns good (and gets not one, but TWO overly annoying songs), and then this happens:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBcXJpOt9gQ

Damn.... Talk about an over the top way to die.....

This sequel is.... not the best.... Only one of the songs is memorable (Jafar's own song "You're Only Second Rate"). The story is interesting, but all in all, this is obviously just setting up for the TV series (which I will NOT be reviewing).

I give this movie a 5 out of 10

Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996)

http://content9.flixster.com/questio...880335_std.jpg

You have no idea how difficult is was for me to track down this movie.... Well, here we go.

In Aladdin and the King of Thieves, Aladdin and Jasmine's wedding is crashed by none other than the 40 Thieves. Aladdin finds out that his father is still alive and is with the 40 Thieves. Aladdin battles one of the members of the thieves, and becomes an honorary member. Aladdin's dad gets arrested, then he gets broken out of jail by Aladdin. The thief that Aladdin beat returns and betrays Aladdin's father. The dad is captured and he and the remaining thieves go after the Hand of Midas. Aladdin, Iago, Abu, Jasmine, and the Genie (voiced once again by the late Robin Williams :cry) find them, beat up the thieves, find the Hand of Midas, and throw it into the sea. Also the merchant from the first movie returns at the end, bringing this trilogy full circle.

I enjoyed this Aladdin sequel more than the previous one. The songs in King of Thieves is memorable, and the main villain is excellent. The one complaint I have about this movie is the amount of references made by the Genie. I counted about 25 references made by the Genie.... more than the previous movies. There is one scene that shows the full brilliance of Robin Williams in this movie that should be shared, though:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGqsCeN8Lh4

I give this movie a 7 out of 10.

The Disney Marathon will resume on August 16.

Rurouni Kenshin, the live-action movie.

Terrific movie in most aspects, the best part is Takeru Satoh's acting as Kenshin. Kenshin is a complex character, and he nails it perfectly, from his mannerisms, to his way of speech, even to his emotional expressions and the way he stands. Just like Kenshin in the anime, he can be a murderous madman one scene and a clueless idiot the next.

The movie also adapts the anime very well, combining as necessary to create a coherent story. The themes they try to put forth, such as repentance, are executed excellently.

Also features beautiful swordplay and exciting fight scenes. All in all, the best anime adaptation I have ever watched, and a surprisingly great movie.

This review is not a part of the Disney Marathon:

Robots (2005):

http://images.amazon.com/images/G/01...ots7-large.jpg

Right off the bat, I have to say that this movie is definitely better than I remember it. The movie stars Ewan McGregor (known for playing Obi-Wan Kenobi in the prequel trilogy of Star Wars) as the main character, a robot named Rodney. The movie also stars Robin Williams as the loveable and hilarious Fender, Halle Berry as the voice of Cappy (Rodney's love interest), Jim Broadbent as the villainous Madame Gasket, and Mel Brooks as Bigweld.

The movie is about a young robot inventor who dreams of working alongside his childhood icon, only to find himself in the middle of a battle between the company's new management and the "rusty" robots that oppose the new "upgrades" made by the compay.... wait.... upgrades..... robots.....

http://images.wikia.com/herofactory/...a_Team_2.0.jpg

Damn it, Hero Factory......

Anyways, the first half of the movie kept me laughing for the mot part, but then things started to get slow. That's when Bigweld was brought in. That's when the final conflict began.

This movie holds a special place in my heart, as it was one of the first movies I saw in a theater and was a part of my childhood (although I haven't seen it in a few years). I enjoyed then, and I enjoyed it now.

I give this movie a 7.6 out of 10

Rifftrax Godzilla - My god this movie is so god damned boring. Thankfully, the Riffing was as awesome as always. Some of my favorite jokes included the Ninja Turtles sparking, the legal Raptor team from Jurassic Park is coming, being alive to do Smurfs 3, the "I'm going to be in three Transformers movies," and before there was Michael Bay there was Roland Emerich. The movie itself is obviously a 3/10 stars but the Riff Trax gets a nice 9/10. It was odd that there was no short this time though.

This movie is not part of the Disney marathon:

Hook (1991):

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/i...Fjho6QszRNOg57

All aboard the feels train...

This movie, after watching it for the first time, has become one of my favorite Robin Williams films. It's one of those films where it makes you feel, well, happy. The movie is about Peter Pan. He has left Neverland, grown up, and has two kids. He has also forgotten about his past. Unfortunatly, a vengeful Captain Hook kidnaps his children, and Peter goes back to Neverland to rescue his children with the help of Tinker Bell (played by Julia Roberts).

This movie caused me to have tears falling out of my eyes when it was over. It was THAT good. Robin William's performance in it was EXCELLENT!

I give this movie a 8.7 out of 10

Sin City - To get ready for the new one rewatching this was a no brainer. I absolutely love this movie. The neo noir style is incredible. The stories are interesting and unique. The characters are all great. I think my favorite is The Hard Goodbye, but even that tends to change depending on my mood. There is nothing bad I can say about this movie outside of the fact that we should have had a sequel sooner. Other than that, this is a fantastic movie all around and one of Rodriguez's best and it is also one of the best comic book movies out there. I give this great train ride an 8/10 stars.

So me and my sister checked out the Harlock film that got added to Netflix not too long ago... JESUS IT WAS AWESOME!

Don't be Afraid of the Dark- Guilermo De Toro

Holy frick, that was scary. Especially in the middle, and at the end. I think it got less scary towards the end, especially since I could guess what was going to happen, and that the father was being an idiot. If your daughter has multiple photos, drawings and descriptions of creatures, you groundskeeper was attacked and there's one crushed between two library bookcases, according to this guy, you just hang around. Don't do this, kids. Your girlfriend gets turned into an evil creature thingy.

I give it an 8.5/10