The Last Stand

The Last Stand
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: Jee-woon Kim [IMDB]

Arnold's back baby! The Governator officially dropped out of politics and has returned to the acting game. This is his first leading role and I was eager to see my boy back on the big screen in an action flick.

Synopsis: The sheriff of a small border town gets unexpected company when a drug cartel on the run decides to stop by for a visit.

The Last Stand is a suitable action film. It's not too bad and worth a poke if you're looking to zone out for a bit and have some fun at the movies. Knowing what Jee-woon Kim is capable of, I was hoping for a little better, but I wasn't disappointed either.

Arnold is okay and gets by on his usual schtick. His one liners weren't too amazing and some of his dialogue seemed a bit stale. I enjoyed seeing a lot of good character actors... mainly Luis Guzman, Harry Dean Stanton and Peter Stormare. I could have done without the lame quasi love story between the girl cop and the inmate. The drug lord was a little forgettable and seemed like an uninspired choice to me.

At the end of the day (or end of the review, if you will) The Last Stand gets by on good action, Arnold, and a solid supporting cast... I'd recommend it if you're a fan of Mr Schwarzenegger and guns.

Alfred Hitchcock: The Masterpiece Collection

I received the most bad ass blu-ray box set for Christmas this year.... the Alfred Hitchcock Masterpiece Collection. I will now give a brief breakdown and review of the set.

Saboteur
(1942)
I loved how Saboteur opened up with the smoke against the wall, it looked like something out of a David Lynch film. This was entertaining and a nice little mystery piece. It was a little heavy handed at times and the ending could have been stronger, but ultimately it was a good intro piece to this set.

Shadow of a Doubt
(1943)
This is just a great story in itself and even without Hitchcock's direction, would still probably be pretty entertaining. I loved the way Shadow of a Doubt opens in this dark depressing room... it sparks an interesting character study on the secretive Uncle Charlie. There are a few parts where it slowed a little for me, but it didn't bring the overall experience down. One quick note... I loved the dialogue between the neighbor and the father.

Rope
(1948)
Rope is a fantastic little gem in this collection and the first of the films in color. Again, this is another great story and to see it play out on screen was a delight. I love the use of all the long takes that Hitchcock incorporates, it's pretty cool for a film from the 40's. Jimmy Stewart is awesome in this and I also loved John Dall who stole the show in my opinion. The closing shot to this film is one of the greatest endings to a film I've seen in a long time.

Rear Window
(1954)
I'm only four films in but one thing I've noticed already is that there is such ease to watching a Hitchcock film... they really feel timeless and extremely entertaining. Rear Window is no exception. This film is a masterpiece and set the bar high for the other films I have left in this collection. Jimmy Stewart rules in this, watching him watch other people and just seeing his reaction to everything is great. The other impressive thing is the set, I couldn't tell if it was a real building or not. Rear Window unfolds perfectly and leaves you wondering the whole way through if the neighbor is a killer or not. Absolutely my favorite so far.

The Trouble with Harry
(1955)
Another pleasing selection from Mr Hitchcock. The Trouble with Harry is probably the best looking of the all the films so far, it had incredible cinematography. This is a brilliant comedy and one that has an interesting view on murder. All of the players involved seem completely unfazed by the dead body they've stumbled upon and watching them handle the corpse is part of the fun... it's all very macabre.

The Man Who Know Too Much
(1956)
The Man Who Knew Too Much could be released tomorrow, with all current actors and modern techniques... and it would be a huge hit. By now I've realized how many people rip off Hitchcock.... it's comical. This film is solid and extremely well executed. James Stewart is the man. The ending is a heavy hitter.

Vertigo
(1958)
I've been wanting to check Vertigo out for awhile now, but have held off until this set was released in order to partake in a proper viewing of the film. It is awe inspiring and a testament to the power of blu-ray. The visuals and cinematography are stellar and you can see why this is such a highly influential film. Jimmy Stewart cranks out another great performance... I love Jimmy Stewart. Vertigo is a highly suspenseful story and it takes a few crazy turns that I didn't expect, especially the ending, which is brilliant. I dug this film big time.

North by Northwest
(1959)
One of the best chase films I've seen. North by Northwest is quality entertainment and peaked my interest throughout it's entire run time. Both Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint are great together. It's apparent to me how influential this film was on later films that followed. Actually, I've noticed that a lot so far... so many people rip off Hitchcock.

Psycho
(1960)
It's been a long time since I've seen Psycho and I forgotten how awesome it is. The score is one of the greatest out there, it makes this film so much stronger. I actually watched half of (I fell asleep) the 1998 remake right after this (I will not be reviewing it) and it's so crazy how much better the original is. You also realize after watching the remake how much more effective Anthony Perkins and Vera Miles were. I'm a big fan of this film, it's a must if you're into thrillers and horror.

The Birds
(1963)
The Birds is half love story, half horror film. It takes it's time to get to the horror, instead Hitchcock toys with the audience and injects little slivers of the impending doom that's ahead. Some of the effects used didn't hold up that well, but I still enjoyed them, especially the scene of the group of kids being chased by blood hungry crows... or were they blackbirds?

Marnie
(1964)
The girl from The Birds returns for Marnie, she's also accompanied by Sean Connery, both do a good job. There's a few moments where the acting seemed a little over the top, especially coming from the mother. Marnie has a cool story behind it but the ending seemed a little over done... still it's a good film.

Torn Curtain
(1966)
A decent enough flick. Paul Newman and Julie Andrews were engaging but the story is so-so. I felt like it dragged a little towards the end. There's a cool scene at a farm house where Newman fights a German, that was the highlight for me. Torn Curtain is fine I guess, I would rank it low on the list compared to the others.

Topaz
(1969)
My least favorite at this point. Topaz is pretty boring. There's a bunch of characters and no real development of them. The story is pretty lack luster and the acting is average to below average. I'd pass on this one.

Frenzy
(1972)
A pleasing crime thriller which keeps you hooked in throughout the whole ride. The protagonist, Jon Finch, did a great job and the supporting cast were all fantastic. It's not perfect, but a rad little film that's worth the time.

Family Plot
(1976)
Family Plot rounds out the collection and is the last film Hitchcock ever made. Bruce Dern (from The Burbs!) is awesome in this. It's a pretty interesting film but starts to where out its welcome towards the end. There's a great score and fantastic cinematography as always. It's a nice way to go out... not perfect, but nowhere near bad.

After watching 14 Hitchcock films back to back I can say one thing for certain... there is an inherent watchability to everything he does. Even his films that aren't great, are still good and far superior than the best titles from an average director. Hitchcock is master auteur and is able to visualize such a complete work of art from beginning to end... it is incredible how harmonious all of his films are. I'd now say he sits in the upper echelon of my favorite directors and I just ordered a bunch of his other titles I haven't seen yet... so excpect more Hitch in the future of Curtis... reviewer extraordinaire.

Life of Pi

Life of Pi
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: Ang Lee [IMDB]

This is the last in the crop of 2012's Oscar contenders that I've yet to see. I really wanted to check this out before I made my Best of 2012 list, but time is money and I'm broke.

Synopsis: A young boy named Pi gets stranded at sea with a bangle tiger and hilarity ensues.

Life of Pi is a wonderful film and probably would have secured a spot in my Top Ten... I don't know if it's kosher to go back and edit a list once it's been posted... but I should. Ang Lee is hit or miss for me, but he hit a big home run here. The visuals in Life of Pi are amazing, this is a must have on blu-ray when it comes out. I thought the CG tiger would bother me but it doesn't deter from the experience at all. The story of Pi is an interesting one and where the film leaves you at the end worked well for me. It's a mysterious film and one that could definitely benefit from a re-watch or two.

Spoiler time... I feel it is necessary to talk spoilers here because of the subtext of the film so....

SPOILERS! The religious beliefs of Pi were interesting. He picked pieces out of each religion that he liked and choose to believe what he wanted. Ang Lee leaves the viewer doing the same thing at the end of Life of Pi. You're left with two stories to believe in, which one is right? Or... are they both wrong? Or... were they really intertwined? Who knows... and I think that may be the point. It doesn't really matter which one is right, it's up to you to believe what you want since no one was there to witness what really happened. They spend most of your time with the story involving the animals because it makes for a better film, so I think you want to believe that's the real outcome... but at the end of it there's still this shadow of a doubt. I think that's a cool idea that hasn't been explored in any film the way Life of Pi does. 

I would absolutely recommend you check out this film.

The Impossible

The Impossible
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: Juan Antonio Bayona [IMDB]

I remember when the Tsunami hit Thailand. It was intense watching all the footage of people getting blasted by waves and the after shock of it all. I also remember thinking it wouldn't take Hollywood long to make a movie about it and sure enough, 8 years later... here you go.

Synopsis: The story of one family's fight to live through a monster Tsunami.

The Impossible is exactly what you think it'd be. It doesn't strive to do anything unique or different, it's just a sappy Hollywood story set in wake of the Tsunami. There are a few cool scenes when all the shit goes down but once everything dissipates and the family is searching for one another, it starts to get boring quick. There's lots of cheese and being that The Impossible is based on a "true story", you have to wonder... how much of it was embellished? There are a few things in this film that really ruined it for me, unfortunately they are spoilers, so if you don't want to know... skip to the bottom... check the Arnolds... then bounce!

SPOILERS: Two things that really bothered me. One: Why the hell, in a foreign country after a major catastrophe, would you leave your two kids (both under the age of 5) alone with a group of strangers while you went off to search for your wife? Two: When they are flying out of the distaster zone, it's just the family all alone on this big ass plane? Did they not feel the need to help anyone else get out of there? 

Anyways... I'd say take a pass on The Impossible, it's not the worst film out there, but there's certainly better stuff worth your time.