Reviews by BAMF

Initial Thought: The trailer looked pretty interesting and I have been like Frank Grillo for awhile. It's good to see him rising up in Hollywood. Also James Wan is presenting this so I expect it to be somewhat of an interesting watch.

Characters/Acting: It has a pretty recognizable lead cast led by Frank Grillo and Maria Bello. In fact other than Cody Horn I enjoy who I see here in their other stuff. She still doesn't interest me here either.

Story: An investigation of murder that involves demons/ghosts. It's also a little bit found footage, but it mostly has regular filmed scenes. So many jump scares and only one in particular was actually effective for me. The mystery aspect of this was pretty good. It's a whodunit with paranormal and found footage elements. It actually starts getting pretty creepy a little bit after the fifty minute mark. It wasn't all that bloody except for one scene and the death scenes are quick. It doesn't seem to show the order of who died, but it doesn't necessarily matter to the story. There is a pretty good twist at the end. That wasn't what I was expecting.

Directing/Writing: I haven't seen Will Canon's other two movies. He wrote and directed this and it has James Wan's attention so it can't be that bad. Doug Simon also co-wrote this as well as Canon's other two movies. This is the first writing work for Max La Bella. If this is what Will Canon has to offer let's hope he can keep this skill up.

Final Thought: I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this. I mean I expected it to be a good watch, but it was a bit better than I had anticipated. I mean it starts off just average then it really builds itself up. It is definitely worth a look.

Initial Thought: Honestly I'm not too sure what the exact reason I'm watching this is. I guess the cast is pretty interesting. Also the storyline sounds like a cute little idea. I watched the short and it was pretty funny so I am hoping this will be just as entertaining. I do tend to enjoyed most of Dreamworks animated films.

Characters/Acting: We have quite an interesting cast here from Jim Parsons to Rihanna. We even have Jennifer Lopez and Steve Martin. The way the Boov talk is pretty amusing and definitely reminds me of how foreigners talk when they somewhat understand English, but don't understand the order in which it should be said. I enjoyed all the characters here. They were all great in their own ways.

Story: Aliens take over earth, but one little girl and an outcast alien most likely end up turning it back to the way it was. I mean it's a cartoon so I mean it has to end like that right? This is a little different than what I had expected. We have evil aliens and "good" aliens that are cowards. There are some good beats of music in a few scenes in particular. The scene where Oh starts dancing made me chuckle quite a bit. I really liked the idea that it doesn't necessarily have a bad guy. It's about family and friendship.

Directing/Writing: Can you believe it that this is based on a book. I guess it shouldn't really be a surprise given that it's Hollywood. We get adaptations, sequels, or reboots. Tim Johnson directed Over the Hedge which I highly enjoyed as well as Antz (Dreamworks A Bug's Life copycat) which I enjoyed despite that. The only one he made so far that I hated was the Sinbad cartoon. Tom J. Astle hasn't really wrote anything above average other than Epic. Being as that and this are animated I'm hoping he keeps that touch. Same goes for Matt Ember who worked with him on those films.

Final Thought: This was such a beautiful movie. I'm surprised by how extremely underrated it is. The music probably doesn't appeal to everyone since it's almost completely Rihanna, but that didn't take away my enjoyment. Visually it is quite remarkable. Who cares if it is "safe" movie and somewhat cliche. It isn't meant to really push any boundaries. It's a nice little family movie in my opinion. Well at times I can be a real kid at heart. Besides there are much worse animated features out there.

Initial Thought: I honestly don't get all the hate on Nadya Suleman. Okay so she has made a few poor decisions, but at least she is trying to provide something for her kids. I love horror movies and I hear she is actually good in this. Well let me see for myself and all of you who listen to my rants.

Characters/Acting: While I don't get the hate it is not the best sign when the only known person isn't known for good reasons. Well Nadya Suleman isn't the worst actress, but she does need to work on her timing. It seems she keeps talking over other characters and talking a little bit too fast. I have seen a lot worse than her. I really didn't care for Brad who is pretty much a nymphomaniac. Do the girls he sleeps with even know or are they just accepting? The girl in the beginning he just leaves immediately for the next one. I just don't think that is a likeable trait. To be honest though I felt Suleman was the best thing about this moving not that it says much.

Story: Well the title and poster pretty much say it all. The trailer shows it to be along the lines of found footage. I mean the idea here has been told before many times. I think it's even been done in the style of found footage as well. It's just an interpretation of a used idea with nothing really all that interesting to differentiate it. How can you be in your 20s or 30s and never heard of "never have I ever"? I really get frustrated about these little parts I guess it's a pet peeve. Wow that ending was pretty stupid and nonsensical. This was a seventy minute movie that felt like two hours.

Directing/Writing: Never heard of either of them. There are a lot of dumb shots here. I actually thought there were even points where they made the characters use the camera for no real reason other than to just show us what is going on.

Final Thought: This was pretty bad. I honestly don't think they even tried to make this a sensible movie. The beginning with the knife doesn't even match with what happens at the end! Some things don't even get fully explained. Anyways this wasn't as awful as Area 51, but it was pretty damn close. Avoid this at all costs.

Initial Thought: I'm watching this to get it over with. I really enjoyed this show growing up and I still enjoy it. The problem here is the movie looks awful especially the CGI. The only reason I am checking this out now is because I do like the actors that are involved here. Hopefully it turns out to be funny like the show.

Characters/Acting: Well we get all the actors/characters returning from the series. We even get the likes of Antonio Banderas. Also if you are a big Youtube user then you may notice Epic Lloyd and Nice Peter have parts as well. Whoa even Frankie Muniz is out of hiding for a quick appearance. Not to mention a lot of great voice actors are in this. It was interesting to see Antonio Banderas as a pirate let alone a villain, but I thought it was great.

Story: Well he comes on land again this time to save a recipe and also to become really awkward looking CGI creations. We get a lot of the usual antics from the series as well as some new ones. I always found it quite humorous whenever they showed stuff like that. One moment I remember from the series where the phrase about playing the world's tiniest violin is put in literally. The seagulls and pelicans had the best CGI, but I still didn't like how the main characters (other than Sandy) looked in that style. I thought the music was pretty enjoyable with the final song being the best and you will know why.

Directing/Writing: Paul Tibbitt worked on the series both directing and writing. He also wrote the other SpongeBob film. This however is his first time directing a film. Hopefully his skills with the series can transfer to directing film. I do find it a bit odd that it took four people to write this story though. Glenn Berger has been on (with the Kung Fu Panda films) and off (with the Chipmunks films). Let's hope this isn't like the latter. The same exact thing goes for Jonathan Aibel who worked with him. Stephen Hillenburg the creator of the show returns from his departure after the first film. He wrote and directed the first movie before he took an extensive leave. This time he decided to skip on the directing. He also worked on Rocko's Modern Life. I expect with all this talent this shall at least be a little entertaining.

Final Thought: Despite my feelings on the CGI I thought this was an enjoyable time with characters I grew up with. The music is fun and catchy. It's good to see people who made Spongebob awesome still got it. I honestly think I might have liked this more than the first film. It's definitely a good one for the family especially the kiddos.

Initial Thought: Robert Lasardo was in a local film festival and signing autographs a poster was in the background for this. I told myself I would check it out when it came out because I enjoy the actor. With all the comments I have seen about it this sounds like Hostel with tattoos.

Characters/Acting: Robert LaSardo is my main reason for seeing this. We also got a few actors from Gage's Raze who are here of whom Tiffany DeMarco was the most memorable of the ones in this. The acting isn't awful, but it could be better. As usual LaSardo is creepy as hell and quite entertaining. His girl Uta is nice to look at, but her personality can be a bit too much. Jesse was a weird character he started off pretty cool and then randomly flipped out. It seemed like a complete change of character and a bit unnecessary if you ask me. The most annoying character though is Kevin's girlfriend. She just seemed so over the top to me.

Story: It seems to be on the likeness of Hostel just with the whole premise revolving around a tattoo parlor. I liked the music throughout especially the Lithuanian rap group in the beginning. I have to say that was different. Okay I did not see that twist coming, but it totally made sense given how much a jerk he becomes when searching for Amy. The whole premise is actually kind of interesting and different. That ending was something I didn't expect. We got that whole Stockholm Syndrome thing happening here. A few of the death scenes were pretty good especially the one in the alley and one near the end.

Directing/Writing: Devon Downs takes his first step here with a slightly more experienced Kenny Gage. The both are directing for the first time, but only Gage has experience in the writing department with a movie called Raze. If his skill from that is anything to go by I am sure I will enjoy his directorial debut. Not a bad go for their directorial debut, but it could have used a few tweaks here and there.

Final Thought: This has flaws sure, but it is a well thought out lore. I feel like there were some plot holes. I guess some things were just left to the imagination. It leaves an opening for a sequel which I wouldn't mind checking out. I would like to see how the story can progress with how everything ended.

Initial Thought: Well I was intrigued by the concept of this film. It looks and sounds like it would be interesting. It also helps that it's produced by the people who brought us The Purge. My only problems here are that it's directed by that Paranormal Activity guy which is a big no no for me and also the fact that this should have been out 6 years ago.

Characters/Acting: I've noticed most of these found footage films have a bunch of dumb young people trying to explore in the dumbest ways. We do have a little bit of a horror icon here with Suze Lanier-Bramlett from the original Hills Have Eyes movies which is kind of cool. We also get David Saucedo who had been in Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones (which was one in the series I actually liked and everyone else hates). I really couldn't care less about the characters here. While most of the movie is pretty much character driven they are all one dimensional bore fests.

Story: We have a found footage film that tries to show us the horror that is within Area 51. The camera seems to go back and forth between good quality in well lit areas to quite fuzzy looking in the dark. Not sure what the deal with that was, but I would prefer to be able to see the whole film with the same quality. There are jump scare moments galore here with literally nothing of interest for a majority of the film. Stuff finally starts to get a little bit more interesting at a little over an hour. The ending made me so annoyed. I did like that the credits had no music I thought that was a good touch. There is a little scene after the credits. Nothing at all important so you don't necessarily have to watch that if you even plan to check this out. I had questions that never got answered unfortunately.

Directing/Writing: Oren Peli has a really up and down hold on me. Sometimes I enjoy his work and sometimes I wish he would just stop. He has only directed this and the first Paranormal Activity the latter of which I wasn't pleased. If that is anything to go by then this will not be good. His writing however I tend to like a bit more with Chernobyl Diaries, The River series, Paranormal Activity 3, and Marked Ones. I hope these will reflect on him instead of his first attempt at directing. Well as a director he still didn't provide a plentiful story even the writing here was pretty bad. So many questions very little answers.

Final Thought: The premise of this film was really an interesting idea that got executed way too poorly. The characters were card board cutouts with no one really interesting among them. Of course we barely get to see the aliens as usual. Why did he feel the need to go to Area 51? Was he abducted before or something? It seems likely, but that doesn't make sense for his need to see Area 51. What is with Reid and everything reacting to him but not the others? Was he abducted by the aliens and brainwashed into helping their kin escape Area 51? Why then would the aliens abduct him and his friends? I really am so confused by this movie and I hate that. I highly recommend never watching this. It's a complete waste of time.

Initial Thought: I didn't know anything about this one until I saw it promoted at my theater for the Dallas International Film Festival. The only people who weren't there for it unfortunately were Maika Monroe, James Badge Dale, and William Forsythe. Everyone else had shown up. I told them I would check it out as soon as I could. After not being able to watch it there I finally have the chance.

Characters/Acting: It's a small cast with some actors I really enjoy. I have had a crush on Beth Broderick since Sabrina and meeting her in person was awesome. They producer's wife told me she had a nude scene. So yeah you can imagine how I feel with that news lol. Ethan Embry is always a cool head to watch on screen. Maika Monroe the rising star of recent with some of the most interesting film choices like The Guest or It Follows. The most memorable name here is William Forsythe which is pretty cool although he hasn't been very big for awhile. James Badge Dale is enjoyable, but doesn't always make the best of choices. Rhys Wakefield is young and has been in some recently memorable roles in The Purge and After the Dark. It will be interesting to see all them together here. The acting is fine, but nothing really all that spectacular. I think the best of the bunch were James Badge Dale and Ethan Embry. Beth Broderick didn't really do anything in this which was disappointing. I hardly cared about any of the characters which is far from a good thing. The worst here though was definitely the kid who played Sammy whose acting honestly was just atrocious.

Story: Here we have a western where I'm sure we will see the traumas of war and their effect on the troubles faced at home. I'm really having a hard time finishing this. I'm not opposed to slow burning drama, but this is just so bland. It's not compelling or even original. I keep hoping something interesting will happen. It does have a very few scenes that are half-way decent, but most of it is just plain boring. It comes off as a western style Romeo and Juliet without the passion you feel for the characters. About ten minutes from the end something finally happens and then it goes back to a waste of time afterwards. Also I believe a few things were just unnecessary here and there.

Directing/Writing: They aren't known for directing or writing anything else so it shall be interesting to see their first go at filmmaking. It can't be awful seeing who they caught the interest of for this. Well I was very wrong. This was indeed not good. These guys have no idea how to make a slow burner that is actually compelling. The characters are so poorly written specifically Wade whose actions don't make any lick of sense even with PTSD.

Final Thought: This was a waste of time. I was highly disappointed with this jumbled mess. It had very few moments of interest. The end just felt so unreal. It just made everything else that happened seem like it didn't matter all that much. Do not waste your time on this!

Initial Thought: I really don't know much about this one. It's a foreign movie about people who break into a home and mayhem ensues. I decided to check it out for movie group weekend because it was something I hadn't seen before. Apparently they have played it a few years now.

Characters/Acting: No one here I recognize although one guy has been in a few things I've seen. The only people I liked here were the youngest of the bad guys, the leader, and the father. Everyone else here were not so good. The blond haired villain was the most screwed up and evil for what he does throughout. The daughter was so annoying. I get that situations like this can be traumatizing, but the way she was crying was excessive and overacting. It may be realistic given what happens, but she literally does it the whole time even when seriously nothing at all is happening. The mother doesn't do much at all really good or bad. She is pretty much just there. The boyfriend has to be one of the worst boyfriends I have seen in film that isn't a bad guy. He is just a pathetic waste of screen time probably only added to put an additional person on the body count . The father seemed like a good man. I thought he did what he could with the situation. I felt that he did make a few errors, but other than that he was the most likeable of the family for sure. The young villain was interesting as he was the usual guy who disagrees with the extreme stuff although he still runs off with the money. The main villain was pretty badass and although obviously not a good guy by any means he is pretty entertaining especially near the end. I would have liked if the daughter left and came back when everything was over to avoid the excessive overacted crying.

Story: Well the plot sounds like Panic Room, The Purge, Trespass, or similar to those. It came before some, but not all. I'm sure it will be fine even if a little bit unoriginal. I really don't understand what the beginning of the movie has to do with anything. He looked like the father or maybe I wasn't paying too much attention. I'm guessing it was intended to show that these guys have done this before. It didn't really do anything for the story though to be honest. It really felt out of place. I think that daughter changed her clothes at least 2 times after taking a shower. I swear women can be odd haha. There are some obvious foreshadowing moments here and there. It's a bit predictable unfortunately although mostly to a certain extent. The last like ten minutes were great due to sheer shock value.

Directing/Writing: I haven't heard of the writer or director. The director though is having a film coming out this year that has a cast member I am familiar with. I think the director did a fine job with pacing and how everything pulled together. I liked how they showed the view of two of the characters in totally different settings as they come together and the screens join one.

Final Thought: It wasn't excellent, but it was still a decent watch. Most of the characters kind of sucked though. I wish they weren't all so damn pathetic. I mean I guess it was realistic and who knows I myself might actually turn out to be pathetic in such a situation. In a movie however I don't want to see the good guys be so useless. Anyways for a one time watch it wasn't a waste of time. I liked the ending because it was different. A warning though this does contain a rape scene that can be uncomfortable and upsetting. The guy who does it gets what he deserves and then some trust me on that! I cheered when that happened to him. Other than that I say you might like it or not. It's not a bad movie the characters just weren't all the pleasant for me. It could have been much worse.

Initial Thought: Since District 9 Neill Blomkamp has been on the radar and he brought Sharlto Copley with him. This one looked fun although not entirely original. The fun here is seeing the way they go about it. Also when I saw that Die Antwoord was in it I was quite intrigued.

Characters/Acting: Sharlto Copley returns in another feature from Blomkamp. I have to say this guy really does seem to enjoy an expansive amount of unique character roles. Die Antwoord who is one of the strangest bands I have seen seem to play a big role here which I think is pretty interesting. I have a strange crush on Yolandi because she is just so unusually appealing. Hugh Jackman plays the villain here which we don't see too often from him. Slumdog Millionaire Dev Patel returns to the slums in a futuristic setting. Also Sigourney Weaver is in this making me more excited to see Blomkamp's take on the Alien saga. Unfortunately with limited acting experience Yolandi and Ninja aren't the best of actors here, but I have seen much worse. In fact as the movie progresses they seem to do quite a bit better. Chappie is just plain adorable. I thought he really makes you care about him. It's hard to believe it's Sharlto Copley as the voice as it sounds nothing like him. I wouldn't say Hugh Jackman necessarily played a conventional villain. He was more like the outcast nerd who just wanted to get noticed in this worst way possible. Also that hair I wonder if he had it like that because of Die Antwoord or just to show how out of touch he is.

Story: A robot with a personality who grows up in the ghetto. How can this not be a fun and crazy watch? Anyways this is quite a bit like Robocop and even uses the voice from Robocop for the scout droids. The only difference is that Chappie is not human and is working with criminals. I see there are references to Die Antwoord's songs as well as the radios always playing their songs. I have to say this is basically a glorified Die Antwoord movie. For me that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I really enjoy the duo in their music and in this. The problem is most people probably didn't like all the focus on them. They came for a movie about a robot named Chappie. So I can understand why critics and audiences were really disappointed in this movie. For me though I didn't mind it. The ending felt very much like District 9. You will know what I mean if you watched both.

Directing/Writing: Neill Blomkamp is definitely rising up in Hollywood after District 9. I also really enjoyed Elysium despite the average ratings. I am also excited for his upcoming Alien saga entry. This guy is an interesting one to watch. His movies are always so visually stunning and quickly paced. His wife who wrote District 9 returns to write this with him as well. With her this was rated higher than Elysium. I suppose the people are trying to tell him he needs his better half with him to make his films more enjoyable. With or without her I am quite fond of these movies.

Final Thought: I really enjoyed this. I think it's my favorite Blomkamp movie so far. The main characters are pretty likeable even though they aren't all good people. If you aren't a fan of Die Antwoord you most likely will hate this movie. While it is called Chappie they seem to be in this a bit more than him. Visually this was excellent. I feel like Chappie would be awesome to hang around if he wasn't just a movie character. Anyways this may not appeal to the massed, but it sure was fun in my opinion.

Initial Thought: I like these kinds of science fiction movies. It looks crazy and full of twists and turns. In addition foreign films seem to allow for a more intense story than American cinema.

Characters/Acting: While Bren Foster isn't a particularly good actor he does have some pretty good action movie capabilities. This will be my first look at the third Hemsworth whom at the moment is only really well known in Australia. The acting here is really good in my opinion. The characters are alright as well with only Carmichael, Huntington, and Menzies as the most interesting. There is a very brief subplot with Morgan and Claire that was a bit eh to be honest.

Story: Other than what the plot is I'm not entirely sure what exactly will happen. I do know that the reason this takes place though is that the dangerous jobs are where any decent money is at. So I gather that there is a hell of a lot of time travel mumbo jumbo here. It takes a long while before anything interesting happens, but when it does it definitely catches your attention. It has a few elements that keep making me think of Pandorum. I have a feeling the twist is obvious to me half way through. If I'm wrong then I will be quite happy that this wasn't so predictable. Well I was wrong I think. I don't really fully understand what happened at the end, but I think I get a little bit of it.

Directing/Writing: The writer/director here has only done one other movie called Gabriel. I think I have heard of it, but I know I've never seen it. If this is good I might think of watching that too. Brian Cachia has only worked on this so let's see what he does for first impressions. I think they did an alright job here, but this was far from perfect. It is very flawed and left me with a lot of questions.

Final Thought: It was decent to a certain extent. There are really good scenes here and there. The acting was pretty well for this kind of movie. It was just quite a bit too confusing. I had so many questions at the end. I think I understood, but then I question my thoughts too. It's also way too long and for the first half of the movie it's pretty slow without even really letting us get to know our characters. I think the whole massacre stuff that happened before they got there could have been a much more interesting story. I think this would have to warrant some re-watches if it was more entertaining. As it stands I will just skip on that and just stay in wonder. Okay never mind I guess I was over-thinking things. My thoughts were correct about the end. I had to go ahead and read what others said about the ending. I'm still not sure I liked it all too much though. I think it's a hit or miss.