Showing Tag: " dc" (Show all posts)

REVIEW: Because Frank Moses Requested Some Pension Checks, His Fellow Seniors Get to Show They're Retired But Extremely Dangerous

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, July 14, 2013, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Red





Directed By: Robert Schwentke

Starring: Bruce Willis, Mary-Louise Parker, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich, Helen Mirren, Brian Cox, and Karl Urban

The actors of today have definitely earned their place in the hearts of moviegoers, but we still love our stars of old.  In the world of action movies for instance, just look to the success of The Expendables and the seemingly unending careers of the legends of the 80s and 90s.  Somehow, the likes of Schwarzenegger and Stallone are still going, gra...

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REVIEW: Why the World Doesn't Need Superman Returns

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, June 1, 2013, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Superman Returns





Directed By: Bryan Singer

Starring: Brandon Routh, Kate Bosworth, James Marsden, Frank Langella, Eva Marie Saint, Parker Posey, Kal Penn, Sam Huntington, and Kevin Spacey

Before we entered this era of filmmaking where studios reboot a franchise at the drop of a hat, studios opted to keep franchises alive forever and ever.  There are countless examples of this.  Look at the Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street series, kept alive through the 1980s, the 1990s, and most of th...

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REVIEW: The Quest for Peace is the Quest to Take Superman to New Lows Entering the Nuclear Arms Race

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, June 1, 2013, In : 0.12% Hard Liquor 
Superman IV: The Quest for Peace





Directed By: Sidney J. Furie


Starring: Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Jackie Cooper, Marc McClure, Jon Cryer, Sam Wanamaker, Mark Pillow, Mariel Hemingway, and Margot Kidder

DC Comics has been getting spanked by Marvel at the movies.  Just look at Iron Man 3 and how that kicks off Phase 2 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  DC seriously needs to step up their game and leverage the abundance of comic book mythology at their fingertips.  As badly as they're losing...

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REVIEW: In Superman III, Richard Prior Happens to Be a Computer Genius. Seriously???

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, May 4, 2013, In : 0.12% Hard Liquor 
Superman III





Directed By: Richard Lester

Starring: Christopher Reeve, Richard Pryor, Jackie Cooper, Marc McClure, Annette O'Toole, Annie Ross, Pamela Stephenson, Robert Vaughn, and Margot Kidder

We've come to the point in this Superman retro series where I have to deliver some harsh truths.  First and foremost, we haven't had a good Superman flick in over 30 years.  It saddens me to say that Superman II was the last great movie about our favorite Kryptonian donning red and blue tights.  Since th...

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REVIEW: Superman II Is All About the Man of Steel Kneeling Before Zod and Finding Some Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice

Posted by James Brown on Thursday, March 7, 2013, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 
Superman II





Directed By: Richard Lester

Starring: Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman, Ned Beatty, Jackie Cooper, Sarah Douglas, Jack O'Halloran, Valerie Perrine, Susannah York, Clifton James, E.G. Marshall, Mark McClure, and Terence Stamp

Superman is rarely given a physical challenge.  Because the yellow sun of our galaxy makes him the closest thing to immortal, there are very few who can really go toe-to-toe with him.  Because of this, it's a special treat whenever the Man of Steel ...

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REVIEW: With the Man of Steel and the Greatest Criminal Mind of Our Time, Superman Heralds the Birth of Comic Book Moves in a Grand Way

Posted by James Brown on Thursday, January 10, 2013, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 

Superman: The Movie





Directed By: Richard Donner

Starring: Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Glenn Ford, Phyllis Thaxter, Jackie Cooper, Mark McClure, Valerie Perrine, and Ned Beatty

"You will travel far, my little Kal-El.  But we will never leave you... even in the face of our death.  The richness of our lives shall be yours.  All that I have, all that I've learned, everything I feel... all this, and more, I... I bequeath you, my son.  You will carry me inside yo...


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REVIEW: Everything Burns in the Joker's Gotham, But We Have a Silent Guardian and Watchful Protector in The Dark Knight

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, May 13, 2012, In : 0.00% Water 
The Dark Knight





Directed By: Christopher Nolan

Starring: Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Morgan Freeman

"You'll hunt me.  You'll condemn me, set the dogs on me.   Because that's what needs to happen.  Because sometimes... the truth isn't good enough.   Sometimes people deserve more.  Sometimes people deserve to have their faith rewarded."
-Batman (Christian Bale)


Once in a long while there comes a movie that changes the way you look a...
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REVIEW: Mr. Wayne Embraces His Fears, and the Legend of Batman Begins

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, May 12, 2012, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 
Batman Begins





Directed By: Christopher Nolan

Starring: Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Gary Oldman, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman, Tom Wilkinson, and Ken Watanabe

"If you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal and if they can't stop you, you become something else entirely – a legend, Mister Wayne."
-Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson)


With summer 2012 heralding the reboot of the Spider-Man franchise, I feel like déjà vu. All I hear is that five...
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REVIEW: Patience Phillips May Land on Her Feet, But Catwoman Lands Flat on Its Ass

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, May 12, 2012, In : 0.12% Hard Liquor 
Catwoman





Directed By: Pitof

Starring: Halle Berry, Benjamin Bratt, Sharon Stone, Lambert Wilson, Frances Conroy, and Alex Borstein

After Michelle Pfeiffer's seductive and fiery performance as Catwoman in Batman Returns, there was talk of a spinoff film about the feisty feline starring Pfeiffer and directed by Batman Returns director Tim Burton.  With Batman Forever taking a lighter turn and Joel Schumacher taking Burton's place in the director's chair, the chances of the spinoff happening with B...
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REVIEW: The Heat Is On. Clooney and Schwarzenegger Need to Get Out of the Kitchen in Batman & Robin.

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, May 6, 2012, In : 0.12% Hard Liquor 
Batman & Robin





Directed By: Joel Schumacher

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, George Clooney, Chris O'Donnell, Uma Thurman, Alicia Silverstone, Pat Hingle, and Michael Gough

The on-screen role of Batman was cursed back in the 90s.  Batman was like the Defense against the Dark Arts post at Hogwarts.  Each live action Batman film was headlined by a different guy, and this became increasingly to the detriment of the series.  Michael Keaton reprised his role as the Caped Crusader in the spectacular B...
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REVIEW: Warner Bros. Killed the Bat We Loved in Batman Forever

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, April 29, 2012, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Batman Forever





Directed By: Joel Schumacher

Starring: Val Kilmer, Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey, Nicole Kidman, and Chris O'Donnell

Batman may be the most successful superhero of all time at the box office.  For a time though in the 90s, he was the worst managed hero.  After the magnificent films Batman and Batman Returns directed by the imaginative Tim Burton, Warner Bros. decided that they wanted this superhero franchise to be more “family-oriented”.  Apparently, a few little weak kids went ...
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REVIEW: Batman Returns Helps Us Find the Man Behind the Bat & the Woman Behind the Cat

Posted by James Brown on Tuesday, April 24, 2012, In : 0.00% Water 
Batman Returns





Directed By: Tim Burton

Starring: Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Christopher Walken

Later this year in The Dark Knight Rises, Anne Hathaway has the hardest job of all.  She's got to be Catwoman.  She's got to grab some skin-tight vinyl and a whip and bring out a dark, seductive side in her we've never quite seen on screen.  It couldn't be a more fitting year for this.  While 2012 marks the epic conclusion to the legend of the Dark Knight, it also marks the 20...
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REVIEW: Did You Ever Dance with the Devil in the Pale Moonlight? Vicki Vale Did in Batman. His Name was Joker.

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, April 22, 2012, In : 0.00% Water 
Batman





Directed By: Tim Burton

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Michael Keaton, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl, Pat Hingle, Billy Dee Williams, Michael Gough, and Jack Palance

With the excitement over the upcoming epic motion picture event The Dark Knight Rises, it's definitely worthwhile to revisit some of the older Batman films.  Before talk of Bane, Catwoman, and the Dark Knight himself reaches a fever pitch in the coming months, we need to talk about the movies that laid the foundation for films like TD...
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REVIEW: Green Lantern is a Little Too Green for the Big Screen

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, February 12, 2012, In : 0.09% Cocktails 
Green Lantern





Directed By: Martin Campbell

Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong, Angela Bassett, and Tim Robbins

Bringing the mythology of comic books to the big screen in live action films is one of the toughest jobs a director can tackle.  Not every hero is easy to bring to theaters like Batman or Spider-Man.  Some of the most popular comic book heroes are just not meant for live action films.  Green Lantern is one of those heroes.  Martin Campbell falls flat on ...
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