RANGO Review

We’ve all heard the age old joke… Why did the armadillo cross the road?  To get to the… Eeeekkk! Ok maybe not, but after this weekend you will get what I’m trying to say.  Director Gore Verbinski shares a story that over flows with life due to his unusual method of recording voices by actually having his actors acting out the scenes and recording the action to create a base line for the animated characters that are soon to follow.  Rango is a film that has placed the bar so high, that one can only hope it delivers.

Rango follows the journey of a chameleon who goes from being a family pet to finding its inner strength to become the hero to a small western town named Dirt.  Having lived a rather boring life behind four glass walls, when accidently thrown from the family car out into the hot dessert, and needing to quickly find his footing in order to survive in the Wild West.  Rango is one of those unlikely heroes who spent his entire life dreaming of adventure, when suddenly he is put into a situation where he has to use his acting skills to play the role of his life!  Rango must save Dirt from drying up and prevent it from being taken over by bandits.  This little animated western can easily rival any western that has come before.

Rango is a fantastic film full of little nods to a variety of previous films that ultimately makes a transition from being a kid’s film to a film more likely enjoyed by adults.  Paying homage to a wide variety of western films, as well as some film and entertainment references easily recognized and others not quite as obvious that it is the “big kids” that will truly enjoy the film for what it is.  With a classic camp fire scene that reminds us of the great Mel Brooks’ Blazing Saddles, to an Apocalypse Now aerial action sequence, to a bridge crossing that rivals The Fellowship of the Ring, to a Mariachi band of owls whose reappearance throughout the film, with perfect timing, only adds to the overall hilarity of the story. There’s even a bit of Fear and Loathing visible during some of the hallucination scenes, and there is even a little nod to Verbinski’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End.   With a quirky main character voiced by the talented Johnny Depp and a leading lady-lizard, voiced by the beautiful Isla Fisher, the caliber of talent that lends their voices to so many well developed characters almost makes you forget you’re actually watching a cartoon.  The ensemble includes Alfred Molina (Sorcerer's Apprentice) as Roadkill, who will leave you squirming in your seat; Bill Nighy (Pirate Radio) as Rattlesnake Jake, who is the epitome of a western bandit; Ned Beatty as the crocked Mayor; Abigail Breslin (Zombieland) as Priscilla, who you can identify a little with True Grit’s Hailee Steinfeld; Harry Dean Stanton (Big Love) as Balthazar; and Gil Birmingham (Twilight) as Wounded Bird, just to name a few of the memorable characters.

But if that was not enough, there is one scene in particular that will make this film a true hit.  Bare in mind this is purely for the adults in the room as it is highly unlikely that anyone under the age of 15 would appreciate what Verbinski delivered just before the end of the film, and it is at this point that I fell head over heels in love with Rango.  It is the Spirit of the West who brings the film full circle, and once you met this character will you understand the perfection that is Rango.  My only complaint is that for my own selfish desire I wish the actor chosen actually sounded a little more like the person they were portraying.  Even though I love Timothy Olyphant (Justified and I Am Number Four) who voices the Spirit of the West, and was thrilled that he was attached to Rango, I felt that they could have found someone a little more fitting.

Over all the team up between Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies was extremely successful, giving audiences of all ages a story that hit the ball so far out of the park that we are not likely to see a competitor in the near future.  It is rare these days to find an animated project that is this well developed and not from the powerhouses of Disney, Pixar or Dreamworks.  Audiences will be thoroughly surprised and impressed by the way these two companies are able to provide you with an entertaining story that is well fitted to be called a modern western, exceptional animation and characters that you can’t wait to see where the story takes them.   I suggest that you attend a showing of Rango, whether or not you have kids that provide you an excuse to attend a cartoon.  I guarantee that you will be thoroughly entertained and leave the theater wanting more.

I give Rango a 4.5 out of 5.   

The above review was originally written for Picktainment.com.  Please take a minute and follow the link to view the original posting...  Picktainment: RANGO Review

RANGO Trailer


RANGO Featurette

Blog Contributor Article Review

Hey Everyone!

I recently wrote a review for Picktainment.com and it has just been published.  Yes it is a second review on I Am Number Four, but if you are interested please check out the link below.  The more hits I get the better standing my articles are on the page, so please help me become one of the highest viewed contributors. 

Thank you very much!

Hannah

http://www.picktainment.com/blog/2011/02/review-i-am-number-four/

I AM NUMBER FOUR -- Review

I have always heard that imitation is the highest form of flattery. Well I guess that means that I Am Number Four is a film meant to flatter all things science fiction and fantasy, or at least that is the impression. Granted the concept of the story is very interesting and has great potential as a film, but the images and story that is given to the audience is less than flattering.

Unfortunately I Am Number Four does not live up to its potential. With an opening scene that left some audience yelling out "What is this... just another Twilight?", and characters that look like pathetic knock-offs of other recognizable sci-fi characters I can't help but question the longevity of the franchise.  If you have never heard of I Am Number Four, you should be aware of the fact that it is a film adaptation to a young adult novel by author Pittacus Lore (which is actually a pen name used by co-authors James Frey and Jobie Hughes). Although this is set to be a series, the second book (The Power of Six) is not due out until August. That being said, if you have not read the story then film does little to help you along as it gives you little to no back story and then leaves you scratching your head with confusion so many times that your not sure what the story is.  There is no clear indication as to what is going on in the opening sequences, and by the time the story has started you question if they even had a script to shoot with.  However if you have read the book and are able to keep up with the film... I'm sorry to say this but be fair warned the story has pretty much been slaughtered.

SOME SPOILERS AHEAD: Very early on I knew things were going to be bad.  When you have to guess and hope to piece together information on your own it seems like it defeats the purpose of going to the movies a bit.  I mean think of it like this, when Harry Potter first came out no one really knew what a Muggle was, right?  But now I'm sure that every (even those who have never picked up a Potter book) know what it means.  Now, with I Am Number Four there is enough information that is extremely important and relevant to the alien worlds that are created that if you don't know what a Legacy is (magical power developed by the "gifted") or that a Mogadarians are an evil race that invaded the home planet of the main characters, than you are kinda left hanging.  There was enough time during the opening scenes to have developed this information during the voice overs that were used, but for some reason it never happened.  You are slowly fed the information over time and then have to think back to an earlier scene just to recall something that was seen or mentioned.  Even some of the characters are all over the place and not quite who they should be.  Like Herni (Timothy Olyphant - Justified and Hitman) should have a much larger role but is instead left on the side of the road to hang, or the fact that Four (Alex Pettyfer - Beastly), who goes by the name John Smith, is almost just as clueless as the audience AND THEN Six (Teresa Palmer - Sorcerer's Apprentice) shows up and she's doing things that she should not be doing.  And the reveal scenes to John's friend Sam (Callan McAullfie - Flipped) and his girlfriend Sarah (Dianna Agron- Glee) are so out of place and messed up that it just made my heart sink at how badly the production had hurt these great scenes.  But before I give too much else away I will move on...

SPOILERS OVER

With an opening scene that looks as though it was pulled from Twilight's New Moon and a complete lack of information regarding who any of the characters are, audiences are given little chance to connect with the characters and story. I understand that this is a film adaptation, and it would be one thing if the majority of those going to see the film have read the book, but that does not seem to be the case.  At the screening I attended I over heard more people questioning what they had even gotten themselves into as they had neither heard of the film and clearly had no idea it was based off a YA novel.  My biggest disappointment is how poorly they represented some of the pivotal scenes in the story.  Pittacus laid out so many great scenes that could have been built off of, while instead it seems as though the film adaptation has turned into nothing more than a parody or satire of the story.  The one-liners are so bad that they are more likely to just leave you laughing, and with the way the film is laid out it is unclear how much time is actually covered.  On top of that, several important characters are introduced and then forgotten halfway through the film only to return just before the credits roll and have performed a comlpete 180 for no explainable reason.  I can't help but wonder who had the final say on the edit.  With the number of holes that exist in the story I don't understand how Disney approved the cut and gave a release before it was truly ready.

I Am Number Four takes over an hour to develop and then ends before it can begin to redeem itself. Granted there is one amazing scene just before the end that almost makes up for all of its faults, if only you can get past the Mogadarians appearance. As I watched the film I could not help but think that the Mogs looked like poor imitations of the Romulans from Star Trek, although they were dressed in "Goth" clothes and 6" platformed boots and their faces resembled a cross between a fish and the vampires from 30 Days of Night.  It was almost a laughable offense to what those characters should have been. Unfortunately there is little else I can say about the film, but if you are able to get through the first hour I promise you will be rewarded with one amazing fight sequence when Six (Teresa Palmer - Sorcerer's Apprentice) shows up to help the main character John (Alex Pettyfer - Beastly)  fight the Mogs. I'm sure that the follow-up film will make up for all the mis-haps, if it is given a chance to survive opening weekend.

As much as it pains me to do this I give I AM NUMBER FOUR a 2 out of 5.  The film can't touch the novel.  So, if you are looking for something that is a quick read that is fun and somewhere along the lines of a Harry Potter or Percy Jackson type of story I would recommend checking out the young adult novel by Pittacus Lore.  EVEN BETTER... pick up the book at the library or book store and read it before going to see the movie.  It will help guide you through and in all honest, even though I disagree with a lot of what they did with the adaptaion, I enjoyed the film knowing all of the backstory.

The Crazies -- Review

Have you ever reached your breaking point?  Been pushed beyond the limit and just gone crazy?  I know that lack of sleep causes a paranoia that could drive a person mad especially under strenuous situations.  What's the longest you've gone without sleep?  When I was younger a group of friends and I challenged each other to see how long we could go without sleep.  We lasted 3 days, but we had totally lost it by the time we crashed. How long do you think you'd last before going crazy? Have you ever tested the theory?  Now granted that is not exactly relevant to the film, but I wonder what each person's breaking point is.  The Crazies is a remake to the 1973 George A. Romero film and it will definitely push you right up to the edge as you follow 4 characters from escaping an illness that drives people crazy.

The Crazies was one of the few recent horror films that legitimately had me jumping in my seat.  The filming was gritty and dirty and added to the elements in a way that HD cannot touch.  For me the coarse picture with the filmed on 35mm film heightened my senses and allowed me to fall right into director Breck Eisner's hands by throwing in my face the fact that this film would not be a "nice clean" film.  I loved that not only were we given a taste of the crazies and their illness but elements were also left to our imagination by not showing us everything.

Granted, for as much as I enjoyed the thrill and suspense of this film, it almost felt like the beginning dragged just a little after a quick glimps of what was in store for us during the opening credits and then beginning the story.  The timeline only cover about 3 days, so with a running time of 101 minutes it roughly spent 30 minutes showing us the events that occurred in the small Iowa town.  With that I feel that we did not need as much time spent walking through fields, and would have preferred a little more information or interaction during the initial containment period rather than vomiting just enough information in to our laps at the end of the film.  Aside from timing, my only other complain is with the choice in ending.  I do not want to give away anything but I will say that it was a nice attempt but as the batter was swung I wanted the ball to get hit out of the park, but Eisner just happened to tip the ball back over home plate. 

In the end, after taking everything into consideration, I truly enjoyed Breck Eisner's The Crazies.  It was a success when it comes to remakes.  It definitely held its own in the world of horror and aside from the few fouls, this film gave me everything I went in looking for.  It scared me when I wanted to be scared and left me wanting just enough to go back for another round.  I give The Crazies a 3.5 out of 5 stars and with one of my favorite actors, Timothy Olyphant (Deadwood and Hitman) I could not take my eyes off the screen.