Movie review: Taking Earth

 

 Rumors of a strange viral outbreak. Alien ships hovering in the sky. Two survivors struggle to stay alive, but one of them may hold the key to fixing everything.

Ronan Quarmby (David), Brad Richards (Garabon/Graeme), Barbara Harrison (Ellen), Marco Torlage (Cameron), Richard Sorensen (Devanera).

Taking Earth begins a bit mysteriously and continues the theme throughout the film. The question of aliens rather than an epidemic is not really clear until later in the film. At that point a couple more bits of information are shared which only serve to further complicate things. Between all of that is some interesting action, characters, and technology splattered with drama. The result is a somewhat incoherent storyline in a good production value film.

Acting was, strange. Quarmby was okay at times, but ridiculously fake in some scenes. Torlage was mildly better with only infrequent moments of insincerity. Richards on the other hand perpetually overacted with his tough guy glare-and-stare method of acting. The remainder of the supporting cast felt inexperienced.

Camera work, sets, and backgrounds were enjoyable with some lovely scenery used as a backdrop. CGI was clean, crisp, and nicely done. Dialogue was okay but some slow, dramatic scenes were very overdone. Sound and soundtrack were pretty good.

Overall Taking Earth is a surprisingly low energy film considering the human population is being devastated with a couple of teenagers as the saviors. Those who enjoy a convoluted plot and weak acting should enjoy this one.

Nothing much to limit audience age in this one. A bit of violence, a couple of potentially disturbing situations with aliens, but teens and above should be fine.

Released: 2017
Reviewed: 8.8.17
Star rating: 2 out of 5
Genre: Alien Sci-Fi, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Aliens

copyright ©2017 Dave Riedel

Movie review: John Wick: Chapter 2

 

 Back from retirement a second time, hit man John Wick just can't seem to stay on the sidelines. This time he is tasked with taking down an international group of assassins in Rome.

Keanu Reeves (John Wick), Riccardo Scamarcio (Santino), Ian McShane (Winston), Ruby Rose (Ares), Common (Cassian), Claudia Gerini (Gianna), Lance Reddick (Charon), Laurence Fishburne (Bowery King).

In this installment of John Wick, Chapter 2, John is pulled from retirement for a second time and tasked with taking down an international group of assassins. The film launches fairly well and gets right into the action. What it doesn't do is explain the plot or introduce characters well. The action moves along nicely, and eventually the plot cleared slightly, but it absolutely feels secondary to the action. The film wraps about as expected, with the possibility of yet another sequel.

Acting was good with Reeves delivering a solid performance as always. He continues to do surprisingly well as an action actor. Scamarcio was okay but couldn't quite come across as menacing or evil which left him lacking as a nemesis. McShane was entertaining and did well, as did the remainder of the supporting cast.

Camera work, sets, and backgrounds were all nicely done with good detail and fit. CGI was light but fitting and well done. Dialogue was okay but could have helped with plot presentation a bit more. Sound and soundtrack were nice.

John Wick: Chapter 2 is a nice entry in the franchise, even if not quite as good as the first film. Those who enjoyed the original should enjoy this one. Those who want a solid plot line may be slightly disappointed.

Some nudity, plenty of violence, and foul language, but this should be fine for older teens and above.

Released: 2017
Reviewed: 8.7.17
Star rating: 4 out of 5
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller, Action & Adventure, Action Thriller

copyright ©2017 Dave Riedel

Movie review: Here Alone

 

 Ann has survived the zombie apocalypse using skills learned from her now dead husband. When she encounters two strangers however, her skills with people are what is tested.

Lucy Walters (Ann), Gina Piersanti (Olivia), Adam Thompson (Chris), Shane West (Jason).

Here Alone begins slowly and other than a few short bursts, remains slow pretty much up to the end. Surviving the zombies using skills her dead husband taught her at the beginning of the outbreak, Ann is surviving but also suffering mentally from the death of her daughter. Add two other survivors, a sudden romance, and the zombies are the last of Ann's problems.

Acting was pretty bland in this one but then again, the entire film was bland. Walters sold her role fairly well and delivered consistently. Piersanti felt a bit out of place. Thompson was interesting for a few minutes, while West and the rest were flat.

Camera work was decent but the washed out look with post-apocalyptic films is becoming tedious. Effects were decent with both zombies and make-up. Dialogue was dry and lacked life. Sound was decent while the soundtrack was ridiculously depressing.

Here Alone is proof that even in the midst of the zombie apocalypse there will be quiet days when we can return to the old ways and focus on personal drama rather than staying alive.

Some mild nudity, a fair amount of foul language, zombies, and boredom in this one so save it for teens you truly dislike and above.

Released: 2016
Reviewed: 8.3.17
Star rating: 2 out of 5
Genre: Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Zombies, Post apocalyptic films

copyright ©2017 Dave Riedel

Movie review: Spawn: The Movie

 

 Double-crossed and murdered by his boss, Al Simmons deals with the devil so he can return to Earth as Spawn to lead an army of evil. Tasked with killing his boss, who is supposed to destroy the world, Spawn must choose between good and evil.

Michael Jai White (Simmons/Spawn), John Leguizamo (Clown/Violator), Martin Sheen (Wynn), Theresa Randle (Wanda), Nicol Williamson (Cogliostro), D.B. Sweeney (Terry), Melinda Clarke (Jessica), Miko Hughes (Zack).

Spawn begins well enough with a bit of backstory and plot setup. Once Spawn is created the main plot appears with the remainder of the film being fairly predictable. What the film doesn't develop is a lot of energy, feeling like it meanders and almost gets lost at times. The film finally finishes with an ending that is more of a letdown than expected.

Acting was mediocre here. White got better as the film progressed, but still felt somewhat dry. Leguizamo was great in his role as the insane clown. Sheen was okay, as was the remainder of the cast.

Camera work, sets, and backgrounds were enjoyable. CGI was something of a disappointment with almost cartoonish representations and effects that are not aging well at all. Dialogue was plodding and bland. Sound and soundtrack were decent.

While Spawn may be entertaining to some, at this point most will likely find it outdated and lacking energy. Unless you are a die-hard Spawn fan, there are better options out there.

With violence and some foul language, this should be fine for teens and above.

Released: 1997
Reviewed: 8.3.17
Star rating: 3 out of 5
Genre: Action, Horror, Action & Adventure, Superhero movies

copyright ©2017 Dave Riedel

Movie review: Cave

 

 Three ex-soldiers gather to explore a dangerous cave, but the real danger may be old romances finding new life. Before long all three are struggling emotionally, and physically, to find a way out of the cave.

Heidi Toini (Charlie), Mads Pettersen (Adrian), Benjamin Helstad (Viktor), Ingar Gimle (Erlend).

This one started off horribly and just got worse. The first thing we realized was that the film is dubbed in English. Then we realized how poorly the dubbing was done, with mismatched emotion and bad timing. Shortly after that we began to wonder if any of these people had actually ever been in a cave. It did not appear they had. Next up; Why in the world would you invite your obviously sociopathic ex-boyfriend to join you and your new boyfriend on a dangerous cave expedition?

Acting was poor, though some of that might have been due to poor dubbing.

Camera work and the cave itself were done pretty well. Did we mention the dubbing was awful? Dialogue was dry. Sound was okay.

This one has more problems than it does entertainment value. Take a pass, or turn the lights off and pretend you are in the cave with them. It couldn't hurt.

Some violence, sexuality, partial nudity, so save this one for the older kids you really hate.

Released: 2016
Reviewed: 8.2.17
Star rating: 2 out of 5
Genre: Adventure, Thriller, Action & Adventure, International Films

copyright ©2017 Dave Riedel

Movie review: The Accountant

 

Accounting is about balancing the books but for autistic math savant Christian, it is about complete balance. Sorting the books for a new client, the Treasury Department begins closing in and the body count begins to rise.

Ben Affleck (Christian), Anna Kendrick (Dana), J.K. Simmons (Ray), Jon Bernthal (Brax), Jeffrey Tambor (Francis), Cynthia Addai-Robinson (Marybeth), John Lithgow (Lamar), Jean Smart (Rita), Andy Umberger (Ed)

The Accountant is an interesting film that is much more than a simple action-thriller. The film splits time between Christian's youth and adulthood, showing us how he uses his autism to become a talented niche accountant. Also reflected is self-defense training by his father which Christian incorporates as a way to balance the scales for his client in a personal manner. The result is a film with nice breadth that explores so much more than expected and remains entertaining through the end.

Affleck was very good in his role here and it felt like he was stretching himself, showing a new side we enjoyed. Kendrick played against Affleck well and delivered wonderfully. Simmons was solid as usual. Bernthal was another good addition that fit his role nicely and worked with others well. The remainder of the supporting cast was solid and entertaining.

Camera work, sets, and backgrounds were varied and well done with good detail and fit. Action scenes were intense and well composed. Dialogue moved things along and added good depth. Sound and soundtrack were nicely done.

The Accountant does a nice job of looking at autism from a different perspective, and blending it well with drama, action, and mystery. Those who enjoy an action thriller with depth should enjoy this one.

With a fair amount of violence and some foul language, older teens and above should be fine with this one.

Released: 2016
Reviewed: 8.2.17
Star rating: 4 out of 5
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller, Drama

copyright ©2017 Dave Riedel