Archive
Archive for the ‘Action’ Category
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 8.0/10 (19 votes cast)
Description:
In 1959 at William Dawes Elementary School in Lexington, Massachusetts, a time capsule containing students’ drawings of their ideas of the future is buried and set to be ceremoniously opened 50 years later. A girl named Lucinda Embry contributes a page full of seemingly random digits. That night Lucinda is found in a school closet, where her fingers are bloodied from scratching at the inside of the door, and she complains about hearing voices.
In 2009, the time capsule is opened and the drawings are given to the current students. A boy named Caleb receives Lucinda’s envelope. His father, John Koestler, a widower and professor of astrophysics at MIT, takes interest in the paper and soon realizes some of the digits represent the dates and death tolls of every major disaster over the past fifty years, and suggests three disasters still to come. Meanwhile Caleb begins receiving visits from mysterious figures in overcoats, “The Strangers”. During these encounters he hears their overlapping telepathic whispers.
Cast:Nicolas Cage, Rose Byrne, Liam Hemsworth, Chandler Canterbury, Lara Robinson
Watch It Now – Knowing
Action, Crime, ThrillerDecember 20th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 7.3/10 (12 votes cast)
Description:
In a penthouse on the roof of a skyscraper overlooking Basin City, a fancy party is in progress. A woman (Marley Shelton), dressed in a red evening gown, is alone on the balcony. A man (Josh Hartnett), who is narrating, walks up behind her and offers her a cigarette. They exchange some small talk; he tells her that he sees in her eyes the “crazy calm” of someone who is tired of running, but doesn’t want to face her problems alone. He tells her that he will save her, and take her far away. They kiss, and then he shoots her. She dies in his arms. He says that he does not know who she was running from, but will “cash her check in the morning.
In the DVD commentary, Frank Miller explains that the victim in this story (the Customer of the title) is actually committing suicide. The unnamed woman had courted a mobster, and when she tried to break it off, he said that he would kill her in the most terrible way possible. She then used her connections to hire a hit-man (known as the Salesman) to provide her with quick death.
Cast:Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen, Jessica Alba, Benicio del Toro, Brittany Murphy
Action, CrimeDecember 20th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 7.0/10 (2 votes cast)
Description:
Forced by a corrupt Chinese man to steal information off a computer, an affable IT guy – George – finds himself surrounded by violence and mayhem as he tries to get the disc with information to the crime lord. Thwarted each step of the way by ruthless killers determined to stop him, George must race against time to save his girlfriend’s life. But he soon learns that it will take more then guts to survive the day.
Cast:Roland Gaspar, Malcolm Ferreira, Nicole Smart, Shaun Myburg
Action, Comedy, HorrorDecember 20th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 4.6/10 (14 votes cast)
Description:
The Lesbian Vampire Killers plot revolves around two down-on-their-luck slackers, Fletch (James Corden) and Jimmy (Mathew Horne). After Jimmy is dumped by his on-again-off-again girlfriend, Judy, and Fletch is fired from his job as a children’s clown, they decide to temporarily escape their woes and go hiking to a remote and, to them, unknown village selected by throwing a dart – while drunk – at an old map. The story continues as they are trying to make their way through a dense forest, with Fletch constantly complaining about the lack of “fanny” in their hiking-adventure. As they arrive to the local pub in the village, with Jimmy upset about Fletch destroying his phone, they spot a bus-load of attractive foreign female history students leaving the rural building. They both decide to enter the pub, in hopes of finding more women like the latter. Instead they are greeted by a morose crowd of men and approached by a seemingly crazed vicar (Paul McGann) who believes Jimmy to be a long lost descendant of a local vampire slayer. As the barman offers the two young men free ale as an excuse for the vicar, they find out that the students they saw earlier are heading to a nearby cottage – where they are to stay the night. Immediately they, with Fletch as the driving force, head off in pursuit of the bus – into a darker part of the forest. They manage to catch up to the bus as the engine temporarily breaks down, are introduced to the four girls (Heidi, Lotte, Anke and Trudi) and they both get invited to join the party that’s been going on inside of the bus all along.
Cast:James Corden, Mathew Horne, Paul McGann, Emer Kenny
Action, Adventure, Sci-FiDecember 20th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 7.7/10 (6 votes cast)
Description:
Outlander begins when a spacecraft crashes onto planet earth. The ship lands in Norway during the time of the Vikings, 709AD, a space craft streaks across the sky and crashes in a Norwegian fjord. From its wreckage emerge Kainan, a soldier from a far away planet, and a deadly alien stowaway called a Moorwen. Before he has a chance to track down the alien, Kainan, the Outlander, is captured by a Viking warrior and held prisoner in the local village led by King Rothgar. Man and monster both seek revenge for violence committed against them. As the Moorwen ravages the Viking lands, killing everything in its path, Kainan forms an alliance with the primitive but fierce warriors. Whilst trying to hunt for the Moorwen, war brews among the Vikings, which culminated with both sides taking immense losses. As the enemy Vikings retreat into the forests, the Moorwen strikes, leaving the vikings no choice but to run for help to their once close enemies. Together, the two sides attempt to destroy the Moorwen. The village takes massive casualties, including both of the tribal kings. The village in fear and its warriors demoralised, most of the vikings leave the village in search of a new home and safety. Kainan and the remaining warriors stand together to destroy the Moorwen. Kainan assists the Vikings by salvaging pieces of his crashed spacecraft and forging weapons capable of harming the creature. After a harrowing journey, the Vikings and Kainan confront the Moorwen in caves under the village where it is finally defeated. Kainan then destroys a homing beacon he set at the start of the film, deciding to remain on Earth as King of the tribe rather than return to his homeland.
Cast:James Caviezel, Sophia Myles, Jack Huston with Ron Perlman
Action, Crime, Drama, ThrillerDecember 20th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 8.4/10 (28 votes cast)
Description:
Raizo (Rain) is raised by the Ozunu Clan to become their next successor. As a child, Raizo experiences severe training under the guidance of his “father”, Lord Ozunu: he is whipped and/or cut whenever he fails and is encouraged to hurt his ninja kin for their training failures. The only kindness he ever receives is from a kunoichi (female ninja), Kiriko (Kylie Goldstein).
As they grow older, Kiriko (Anna Sawai) and Raizo developed a romantic bond, however Kiriko’s desire to leave the Ozunu clan for freedom was greater.
One stormy night, Kiriko decides to escape from the Ozunu. Kiriko encourages Raizo to join her, but he decides to stay. They kiss and she then climbs over the wall to freedom; only to be caught and brought back by her ninja kin. Branded as a traitor, Kiriko is executed (a katana through her heart) by her elder ninja brother Takeshi (Rick Yune). As a result of Kiriko’s death, Raizo begins to harbor resentment and doubt towards the Clan.
Cast:Sung Kang, Randall Duk Kim, Jonathan Chan-Pensley, Yuki Iwamoto
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 7.3/10 (16 votes cast)
Description:
After several meteoroids destroy the Space Shuttle Atlantis and bombard New York City and several other parts of the world, NASA discovers that an asteroid the size of Texas will collide with Earth in 18 days at 22,000 miles per hour, destroying all life. The scientists at NASA in cooperation with the Russian, Japanese and French space agencies plan to detonate a nuclear bomb at a precise point under the asteroid’s surface which will split it in two, causing it to miss the Earth. The bombs must be buried at least 800 feet below the surface within eight hours of landing, and no later than four hours before Earth impact. NASA locates the best oil driller on the planet, Harry Stamper (Bruce Willis), to get advice. When invited to NASA, Harry brings his daughter Grace (Liv Tyler) to keep her away from A.J. (Ben Affleck), a young rambunctious member of Harry’s crew who has become – to Harry’s unfortunate surprise – her lover, which angers him. Head of NASA Dan Truman (Billy Bob Thornton) informs Harry of the dire situation. Harry recognizes that he and his crew must accompany the astronauts to ensure the job is done properly. After Harry’s crew is collected and NASA acquiesces to their demands, they are put through a 12-day training program and outfit a drilling rig with the proper equipment.
Cast:Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler
Action, Romance, WarDecember 19th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 8.3/10 (10 votes cast)
Description:
The film opens in Tennesse, 1923, two boys Rafe McCawley and Danny Walker are pretending to be fighting the Germans, until Danny’s father tells him to come home, and starts beating him because Rafe flew his fathers plane without permission. Rafe defends Danny by calling his father a “Dirty German”, Danny’s father countering by explaining that he fought the Germans in World War I.
Now in the United States Army Air Corps and now First Lieutenants Rafe McCawley (Affleck) and Danny Walker (Hartnett) are experienced, reckless, but talented pilots under the command of Major Jimmy Doolittle (Baldwin). McCawley volunteers to serve with the Royal Air Force’s Eagle Squadrons. He meets Evelyn Johnson (Beckinsale), a Navy nurse, before leaving for England; Johnson and Walker are transferred to Pearl Harbor. In Japan meanwhile, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto plans an attack on Pearl Harbor after the U.S. freezes its trade.
Cast:Ben Affleck, Alec Baldwin, Jon Voight, Josh Hartnett
Action, ComedyDecember 18th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 10.0/10 (1 vote cast)
Description:
Black Dynamite is directed by Scott Sanders and co-written by White, Sanders, and Byron Minns, who also co-star. The look of the film is a retro homage to all of the blaxploitation movies of the seventies, but unlike Grindhouse (Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino’s exploitation homage) Black Dynamite does not employ “fake scratches or digitally generated retro deterioration”, according to director Scott Sanders. The cinematographer Shawn Maurer tested a Super 16 Color Reversal Kodak film stock to get the high contrast and saturated look for the movie. The filmmakers supplemented their shoot with the use of period stock footage from several blaxploitation films and from Sony Pictures Stock Footage. The film has been discussed with approval on numerous movie-related websites. This is the story of 1970s African-American action legend Black Dynamite. The Man killed his brother, pumped heroin into local orphanages, and flooded the ghetto with adulterated malt liquor. Black Dynamite was the one hero willing to fight The Man all the way from the blood-soaked city streets to the hallowed halls of the Honky House.
Cast:Michael Jai White, Salli Richardson, Arsenio Hall, Kevin Chapman
Action, CrimeDecember 17th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 6.7/10 (3 votes cast)
Description:
Luis (Christian Mendez) is the head of a Columbian drug cartel. K (Rick Jordan) leads a LA-based street gang. Erik (Erik David) is K’s younger brother. David (Tim Aslin) is Erik’s best friend who happens to deal drugs through Luis’ cartel. When David double crosses Luis, things begin to get nasty for both David and Erik. K is forced to change his plans to save his brother … plans that include robbing an armored truck in broad daylight on a busy Los Angeles street corner. What happens next is a story of greed, betrayal, lust, honor, and a bond between brothers and thieves.
Cast:Rick Jorda, Christian Mendez, Erik David, Tim Aslin
Watch It Now – Heist
Action, Comedy, FamilyDecember 17th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 7.9/10 (7 votes cast)
Description:
The film starts with a man (later known to be Lau Xing) (Jackie Chan), robbing and escaping from the Bank of England. To evade the police, he hides in Phileas Fogg’s house. From a window he observes police officers searching for him, asking foreign-looking men in the street for identification; so when Phileas Fogg (Steve Coogan) asks him for his name he responds “Passport…too”. Phileas takes his name to be “Passepartout” (pronounced Pass-port-too), and takes him on as a valet. Phileas Fogg is trying to break the 50-mph speed barrier, and after succeeding with the help of Passepartout and managing to avoid the police, they head to the Royal Academy of Science.There Fogg is insulted by the other ‘brilliant minds’, in particular the bombastic William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin (Jim Broadbent), who believes that everything worth discovering has already been discovered and there is no need for further progress. The bank robbery is also discussed. In his blind rage, Phileas says that he is glad the bank was robbed, because it is outdated and says that the thief could be in China in little over a month, which interests Passepartout. Phileas Fogg is pressured into a bet to see whether it would be possible, as his calculations say, to travel around the world in 80 days. If he wins, he would become Minister of Science in Lord Kelvin’s place; if not, he would have to tear down his lab and never invent anything again.
Cast:Jackie Chan, Steve Coogan, Cecille de France, Jim Broadbent
Action, Comedy, CrimeDecember 17th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 7.2/10 (6 votes cast)
Description:
Leo works for Next Day Air (NDA), a package delivery company, but is going to get fired for any more mistakes. While delivering a package addressed to Jesus in apartment 303, Leo accidentally delivers it to apartment 302. Before Leo can leave Jesus asks if Leo has the package and gets worried when he is empty handed. Guch and Brody, two inept criminals, open the package and find ten bricks of cocaine hidden in a clay pot. Brody remembers that his cousin, Shavoo, has cut cocaine before. Shavoo and his partner, Buddy, come to Guch’s apartment and settle on $15,000 a brick.Bodego, Jesus’s boss and original sender of the package, calls to confirm the package was delivered. Jesus tells Bodego it was not delivered even though the tracking information says otherwise. Jesus is concerned that Bodego is going to kill him and assumes that Leo stole the package. While searching Jesus tells Chita that his previous boss was killed because of a similar situation. Jesus and Chita find Eric, another employee of NDA, who they hold at gun point and steal his watch. Finally realizing that it is not Leo they continue their search.
Cast:Donald Faison, Mos Def, Mike Epps, Debbie Allen
Action, Sci-FiDecember 17th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 9.0/10 (9 votes cast)
Description:
In 2003, Doctor Serena Kogan (Helena Bonham Carter) of Cyberdyne Systems convinces death row inmate Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington) to sign his body over for medical research following his execution by lethal injection. One year later, the Skynet system is activated, perceives humans as a threat to its own existence, and eradicates much of humanity in the event known as Judgment Day (see Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines). In 2018, John Connor (Christian Bale) leads an attack by the Resistance on a Skynet base. John discovers human prisoners and plans for the development of a new type of Terminator incorporating living tissue, but is the only apparent survivor of the attack after the base is destroyed in a nuclear explosion. However, Marcus emerges from the wreckage of the base and proceeds on foot to Los Angeles.
Cast:Christian Bale, Sam Worthington, Anton Yelchin, Bryce Dallas Howard
Action, Sci-FiDecember 17th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 7.9/10 (7 votes cast)
Description:
In the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes in 3067 BC, a warrior known as the Scorpion King led his army to conquer the known world. However, the Scorpion King lost the campaign and his army was scattered into the desert of Ahm Shere. One by one they died of heat exhaustion, leaving only the Scorpion King. To survive, the Scorpion King swore an oath to the god of the underworld, Anubis, exchanging his soul for the power to defeat his enemies. Anubis granted his wish, creating an oasis to hide the Scorpion King’s pyramid and giving him the Army of Anubis (an endless legion of demonic anthropomorphic jackal-headed warriors) to exact his revenge. The Army of Anubis swept across Egypt, destroying everything in their path, and once their task was finished Anubis claimed the Scorpion King’s soul.
Cast:Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, Freddie Boath, John Hannah
Action, Sci-FiDecember 17th, 2009
VN:F [1.7.8_1020]
Rating: 7.5/10 (6 votes cast)
Description:
The movie begins in Egypt, circa 1290 BC. High priest Imhotep engages an affair with Anck-su-Namun, the mistress of Pharaoh Seti I—other men are forbidden to touch her. When the Pharaoh discovers their tryst, Imhotep and Anck-su-Namun murder the monarch. Anck-su-Namun then kills herself, intending for Imhotep to resurrect her. After Anck-su-Namun’s burial, Imhotep breaks into her crypt and steals her corpse. He and his priests flee across the desert to Hamunaptra, the city of the dead, where they begin the resurrection ceremony. However, they are caught by Seti’s guards before the ritual could be completed, and Anck-su-Namun’s soul was sent back to the Underworld. For their sacrilege, Imhotep’s priests are mummified alive, and Imhotep himself is forced to endure the curse of Hom Dai: his tongue is cut out and he is buried alive with a swarm of flesh-eating scarabs. The ritual grants eternal life, forcing Imhotep to endure the agony of his wounds for all time. He is buried under high security, sealed away in a sarcophagus below a statue of the Egyptian god Anubis, and kept under strict surveillance by the Medjai, descendants of Seti’s palace guards. If Imhotep were ever to be released, the powers that made him immortal would allow him to unleash a wave of destruction and death upon the Earth.
Cast:Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz,John Hannah,Arnold Vosloo
