Cobra - Review

Over all, my favorite genre of movies will always be horror. I love horror films but really I do like all films. So for once I'll touch on another popular genre, Action.

The other night I watched Cobra, staring Sylvester Stallone. It's one of those cheesy, predictable action films with the good cop that has a bad attitude. Classic. Just the opening of the flick tells you that your in for a good old fashion, shoot em up, action hero movie. Now some people might say these movies, like the series of Stallone and Schwarzenegger action flicks, are too cheesy and old fashion. But that's all part of the fun. So after seeing Stallone in his more serious roles as Rocky or Rambo, seeing him as just a straight up action hero detective is kind of hard to buy, but he pulls it off.

The story line is pretty basic for the most part. The Cobra (As he as known) is a pretty bad detective, with a leather jacket, sun glasses and a hand gun that has a cobra on it. Oh yeah. A murderer is after a super model and Cobra has been assigned to looking after her. Stallone acts along side ex-wife Brigitte Nielsen once again, after working with her in the 4th Rocky film a year earlier. There is a bid of a love interest between the characters as there usually is in these action movies. The twist is that the murderer has an insider who is feeding him information on where his victim is being held.

Over all it's a pretty good movie but only if you look at it my way. I know it's a pretty calculable movie and Sly plays the basic action hero cop but it's good fun so if your in the mood for a cheesy action flick. Check out Cobra.

5 Stars on the action scale !

Rocky 5 (The worst Rocky film)

Rocky 5, in my opinion, is the best Rocky film since the original. Sure theres Rocky 2, the film where Rocky becomes champion of the world. And sure there's Rocky 3 where Mick dies and Rocky has to fight a monster opponent to win back the champion ship he lost. Rocky looses Apollo and defeats the strongest opponent possible in part 4. And Balboa was great, especially coming out in 2007 after plans for a 6th film were denied repeatedly. But Rocky 5 is a film that surpasses the action flick direction that the series had pointed in, with films like Rocky 3 and 4. After those two films, it was clear that the series was becoming more well known as an action series about Rocky, the boxer who punches people's faces in rather then the under dog, street bum character that one Rocky the award for best picture in 78. It is also for this reason that people hated Rocky 5 so much. After seeing Rocky fight Mr. T and beat Ivan Drago, a Steroid pumped, Russian monster, getting back to where it all started, attempting to end the series on, not another crazy action flick, but a movie that reminds you of who Rocky is and makes you remember the original was a hard turn I guess. The series came full circle taking the character back to the streets of Philadelphia after he looses all his money. Now it's a cheap plot to get Rocky back to his roots but I can't see how els it would of been done. The other problem with this film and the #1 reason why it is hated is Rocky did not fight Tommy Gunn (The bad guy in this film) in the ring. Instead this battle was settled on the streets of Phillie in a good, old fashion, street brawl. It gets pretty scruffy. Just another way of showing the character getting back to where it all started for him.

For me, the film is not about the fighting, it's about this Rocky character and also the memories of this powerful series. It's a pretty sad movie and it gets you thinking, feeling sorry for the character and also reflecting on your own Rocky memories. It's one of those movies that makes you think back to an earlier time in your life where the movie was included. And all though I am only 13, I still think back to living in my old town and the family I once had that I no longer do, watching this. I first saw it when I was about 9. It's strange but it makes sense of you are on of those people that thinks that way and is reminded of thing through film, television or music.

Rocky is really the story of, not a boxer, but a fighter. A man who became the champion of the world, only to loose everything and everybody that he loved. Rocky 5 captured this perfectly and was a perfect end to this amazing series that played a big part in my 13 years as well as many people's lives. As for the 6th film, all though we really did not need it, it topped Rocky 5 and ended the series on a higher note then the 5th film. And what surprises me the most is that Stallone made Rocky Balboa to end the series on a high not and make up for 5, as he puts it. I never understood why Stallone himself let people turn him against his film, that he wrote. You don't write an idea you hate, he did love it, but fake Rocky fans that hated this film because it was not an action flick like 3 and 4 turned him against his own work. Well, Sly, I think it's great!

Rocky will forever be one of the greatest movie series of all time, and with the 7th film on the way, it does not look like the series is quite over.

H20 - Review

So as always, I am happy about any older horror film continuing on with extreme amounts of sequels. And even though sometimes this factor is what destroys a series that could have been perfectly ended, I still love seeing my favorite movie monsters and killers still around in my time. Halloween's H20: 20 years later film is the 7th installment in the Halloween series and one of the most interesting of all the later sequels, in my opinion. In this film Lory Strode returns. She is living under a new name, working for a private school in California, still in fear of her brother coming after her on the anniversary of the day it all happened. The movie reenacts the original in so many scenes, such as the scene where Lorie's student is day dreaming in class and looks out the window to find Michael Myers staring at her, after she turns to the teacher to answers a question, that she explains, she turns back to look and Michael is gone. Lorie also bumps in to another teacher who says "It's Halloween, I guess every body's entitled to one good scare" and she replies "I've had my share" that's awesome. There are also flash backs to the original film and a mentioning of Dr. Lummes, as well as a scene that shows his old house in which he had countless posters and news cut outs of Michael myers and Lorie Strode in. That really shows the Dr. Lummes Character and gives you the feeling of who he is even though he is dead and not in the film. A man who spent his life trying to destroy a monster, but wasted his life because the monster simply could not be destroyed. Towards the end of the film, Lorie goes up against Michael with no fear and goes head to head with him in this big final battle.

The final scene in this film is amazing. When Michael Myers is healed up between a car and a tree and she reaches out to Lorie with what seems to be confusion in his eyes. Lorie puts her hand out and shows a look of "wanting to believe it good be true" in her eyes. Sort of thinking maybe her brother is changing or trying to be loving towards her and she is giving in. But she pulls back and in a split second chops his head off! That's were the Halloween series ends! The greatest finale to one of the greatest horror film series of our time. There could not be a more fitting end.

But of course they had to go ruin it with Halloween Resurrection which was an ok film, but no way to end the series. That being the last Halloween film before the remake sucked.

So Over all, this film gets 3 1/2 stars. A great movie and amazing ending.

Oh, and I forgot to mention the Sand Man song that opened the film, like in Halloween 2...... That was awesome as well.

Long Live Micheal Myers..but for God's sake, not in the hands of Rob Zombie. :)

Friday the 13th (2009) - review

Last night I watched the Friday the 13th 2009 remake and I am ready to lay down my thoughts. First of all, starting from the beginning, I never cared for Friday the 13 films, I only watched them because I loved the Jason Vorhees character. The 1st film was a big hit but I feel it is too basic, a woman killing kids at a camp. The story line is cool, but the film is nothing special to me, same with the 2nd film because it was another plane ordinary killer killing people, nothing special. I guess I really did not get into the series till the later films, part 6,7,8 ect. I always thought they were much more fun. In those films Jason was not just a guy running around killing people, he was a cool looking zombie who wheres an old fashion goalie mask. Now on to the remake. When I heard there was going to be a remake of this film, I was not thrilled! Personally I think some films are better left alone. The first thing everybody noticed about the film was it was a remake of Friday the 13th but Jason Vorhees stared in it, so that ether ment it was a remake of the original film but they changed it so Jason could be the star knowing he was way more of a horror film icon then Mrs. Vorhees ever was or it was a remake of one of the later films. To my surprise it was actually a bit of each. The beginning of the film is the very ending of the original Friday the 13th where the one camp counsler who survived chopped Mrs. Vorhees head off! actually, come to think of it, I can't remember exactly how Mrs. Vorhees was killed, but it's ok, the point has been made. Then it takes you through the 2nd film and the rest of the film is a remake of the 3rd movie. So the whole film is really only a remake of the 3rd film, but that's ok, who would want to see a Friday the 13th remake with out Jason and his hockey mask on anyways, right? But the rest of the film is what you would expect. Kids partying at crystal lake and truly not seeming to mind the fact that Jason stalks Crystal lake even though the characters in the film state that they know who he is and know that he is still alive. When Jason appears and starts killing everybody these kids seem shocked! One thing I always wondered about these films is why these kids want to party in a place where millions of people are killed!!! The One twist is there is a guy driving around the lake asking people if they have seen his sister who Jason is holding hostage under ground! What??? When has Jason ever held people hostage and what is the point of this? He is a murdering zombie, why does he not just kill her??? Well, to make a long story short, the film is everything you would expect from a Friday the 13th film except it is scary and these past years I don't think people feared Jason like they did when the first 3 films came out, I never have, this film makes him scary! One more complaint I have is there was no awesome, scary, Jason zombie face reveling scene like in the other films and the ending was way way way way way to easy and predictable, but it acknowledges the older films rather then start a whole other film that has nothing to do with the older films that made this Jason character a horror film icon for the ages!