Natural Born Killers
Directed by: Oliver Stone.
Written by: Quentin Tarantino (story), David Veloz (screenplay), Richard Rutowski (screenplay) , Oliver Stone (screenplay).
Actors: Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Robert Downey Jr., Tom Sizemore, Tommy Lee Jones.
Released: 1994.
MPAA Rating: Rated R.
Length: 119 min .
Action .

Brief outline (no spoilers):
Mickey Knox (Woody Harrelson) and Mallory Wilson (Juliette Lewis) are two crazy teens who run away and start on a trail of murder and mayhem. They travel across America on route 666 and kill for fun. They soon get famous in the media and always leave one victim alive to tell the story. Their story is glorified by the unscrupulous reporter Wayne Gale (Robert Downy jr.) while the sadistic cop Jack Scagnetti (Tom Sizemore) tries to catch them.

Personal opinions
The movie is really a critique of the media, and the double moral shown. First they seem to be shocked and oppose violent events and in the next moment the media feeds on the event and without such events the media could not exist.

The script was originally written by Quentin Tarrantino, but Tarrantino has made complaints about the final outcome of this movie. He was not happy with Oliver Stone making substantial changes to it.

Good
The movie is esthetically beautiful in a crazy sort of way. The movie is filmed in a variety of formats, from 16mm, black and white, surveillance camera, handheld camera to regular movie film. It also uses a lot of strange colors like pure green or red. It also uses a lot of archived movie clips from various sources. This creates a very chaotic and may be seen as confusing. This is done intentionally to underline the chaos and cut & paste culture portrayed in the movie. If you do not see this, the movie may be confusing. It most certainly is not a standard movie that follows the rigid Hollywood recipe for how a movie should be. You leave the movie with a feeling of unrest.

Aside from all the talk about what the movie is “really about� it has a lot of crazy action, and mayhem. And it builds up around a spectacular ending.

Tommy Lee Jones plays a funny character and it brings some humor to it, and the movie needs it.

Bad
This is not Stone’s best movie and it is not the worst. The violence is a part of the life for the people in the movie. All the violence makes it difficult for a lot of people to accept it, since it is argued that it is a speculative movie that wants to sell the violence. And that is part of what the movie critiques.

You do not get really close on any of the characters or sympathy for any of them; you sort of get the view from outside on all the characters. Again this could be how it is in the “media-lized� world, where you get to know everybody from their TV appearance.

Bottom Line
Young people will like it for the violence, old people will be shocked.
Rating: 7/10 (where 10 is the best).

The Passion of the Christ
Directed by: Mel Gibson.
Written by: Benedict Fitzgerald (screenplay), Mel Gibson (screenplay).
Actors: James Caviezel, Maia Morgenstern, Hristo Jivkov, Francesco De Vito, Monica Bellucci.
Released: 2004.
MPAA Rating: Rated R.
Length: 127 min .
Drama.

Brief outline (no spoilers):
The movie deals with the final hours of Jesus Christ’s life before the crucifixion.

Personal opinions
This is the most realistic and accurate version of this momentous event. The film is faithful to and based primarily on the four Gospels. Mel Gibson has shown incredible bravery undertaking this project, and the result is very credible. Mel Gibson allegedly financed a big part of the movie himself with around 25-30 million dollars to see that he had the full artistic freedom. Making such movie about a very controversial topic takes a lot of bravery. Religion is not a topic that is easily goes without debate, and it has been debated that this movie builds up around anti-Semitism.

The language spoken in the movie is Armanic. The realness the movie gets from the language far supersedes the drawbacks of this. Of course the American speaking audience that is not accustomed to watching movies in other languages than their native would complain. There is not that much dialog that this becomes a problem and also with a little imagination everybody understands what is said even without reading the subtitles.

Good
The movie gives a very literal and graphics portrayal of the final hours of Jesus Christ’s life. Nothing is put between in the making of the movie to have the story more adjusted for the movie screen or in such a way that it would be more appealing. If the movie had been made in any other way it would not have been believable and not have become such a great success. The movie is also very emotional.

Bad
-

Bottom Line
Everybody (except children) should see this movie, even if you are not a Christian.
Rating: 9/10 (where 10 is the best).

Tango & Cash
Directed by: Andrei Konchalovsky, Albert Magnoli
Actors: Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Teri Hatcher.
Released: 1989.
Studio: Warner Studios.
MPAA Rating: R.
Length: 98 min .
Action.

Brief outline (no spoilers):
Ray Tango (Sylvester Stallone) and Gabe Cash (Kurt Russell) are two rival LA cops. They are both very caught up in their own fame. They both have huge egos and think that they are the best cop in LA. Their crime fighting skills do not go well with the organized crime lords in the city. The crime lords plot a scheme where they both will get arrested and sent to jail. In jail waits a lot of people that Tango and Cash have previously have arrested.

Personal opinions
The movie is the type of movie that has a lot of shooting, and when the shooting stops it is just light funny conversation. An example of what is funny is when Gabe has to dress up as a woman to escape the police control in the club. It does not have any deep thoughts and philosophical questions. Stallone has never been a philosophical actor anyway. It is nothing wrong with that, sometimes you want to see such a movie. It is packed with action and pyrotechnics.

Good
Stallone and Russell do a great job in making this movie watchable. Their contrasting characters, Stallone the refined upper-class cop and Russel the slob cop. Their constant desire to be the best creates a lot of fun, who has the biggest gun, who should make the statement in court and so on.
You get to see a slightly younger Teri Hatcher do that dance performance.

Bad
The script and story of this movie is a bit thin. And it is a bit obvious what is going to develop.

Bottom Line
It is a enjoyable movie and you should see it. It is a movie for those who want to see a fun action comedy and do not care about a intricate story and characters that do a lot of deep thinking.
Rating: 7/10 (where 10 is the best).

The Village
Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan.
Actors: Bryce Dallas Howard, Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody, William Hurt, Sigourney Weaver.
Released: 2004.
MPAA Rating: PG-13.
Length: 108 min .
Horror.

Brief outline (no spoilers):
We get to meet a people in a little isolated village. They live a simple life, but an enemy lurks outside the borders of the village. The people in the village is psychologically terrorized by this enemy and must do everything they can not to upset it. The people in the village must never cross the borders and they must never show red colors because that will upset the enemy. They have managed to live in peace with this enemy for a long time, but it seems as the peace is about to end. This enemy is some a mystical creatures that live in the forest around them.

Personal opinions:
The movie manages to set a mysterious setting. And you manage to get a bit scared when you see the frightening creatures. The movie has an interesting twist that makes it worth while. Without spoiling the plot it comes to getter in the end. It is an original ending and it this pulls it up. This sets it a part from other Horror movies that end sort of pointless and in a way that is very easy to anticipate.

Good
The movie has a plot that thickens, it is scary from time to time, and it has strong characters that want to do difficult things that require courage for their friends and loved ones.

Bad
Some people may argue that it is not a true horror movie. It is something in between a horror movie and a thriller, a scary thriller. It features the supernatural creatures and things like that.

It is worth the time if not somebody has spoiled the plot to you.
Rating: 6/10 (where 10 is the best).

The Grudge
Directed by: Takashi Shimizu.
Actors: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Behr.
Released: 2004.
Studio: Sony Pictures.
MPAA Rating: PG-13.
Length: 92 min.
Horror.

Brief outline (no spoilers):
Inside a house in Tokyo lurks a hidden terror, the Grudge. The curse is afflicted upon all that enters the house. Karen (Sarah Michelle Gellar) is a student that agrees to cover for a nurse that does not show up for work. Inside the house of the elderly woman see has to look over she discovers a supernatural horror. The horror escalades and Karen must try to stop it.

Personal opinions:
This is a horror movie, and yes it is a bit scary. At least if you are scared of a crazy looking little Japanese boy and something black wavy whirlwind thingy. The mystic of the oriental may also be adding to the tension. A fragile American girl in this strange and mysterious country that can never end well…

Good
I think a lot of people goes and see this movie just because Sarah Michelle Gellar is in it. And that is probably the main good thing about it.

Bad
It is a bit scary, but that’s it. The movie was released in 2004, but and it do not use any new methods for scaring people, it is noises, and strange mysterious ghost like creatures. It does not have any original plot; it is just a house with something in it that kills everybody. You sit there and wait to get really scared, but all you get is half scared. You never piss your pants.

Rating: 4/10 (where 10 is the best).

The Matrix (1)
Directed by: Andy Wachowski, Larry Wachowski.
Actors: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving.
Released: 1999.
Studio: Warner Studios.
MPAA Rating: Rated R.
Length: 136 min.
Sci-Fi, Action

Brief outline (no spoilers):
Neo (Keanu Reeves) is a computer hacker. He gets contacted by Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) that wants him to join his hacker group. Morpheus believes that Neo is the messiah that will free the humans from the tyranny of the machines. When Neo joins Morpheus he gets a mind boggling journey of what is the reality. He soon realizes that he has been living all his life in a computer simulated world. The mission to set the human race free from the enslavers begins.

Personal opinions:
This movie has become a classic, and it created a paradigm shift in action sci-fi movies. It is before and after the Matrix. All the images in the movie is almost art like. A lot of work apparently has gone into that. The look of the world inside the matrix almost looks sterile and polished, and the look in the real world looks very dirty. The story behind the concept of the Matrix is also very original.

Good
The Matrix is mind-boggling in two ways, it is a very philosophical story on what is the reality, and second it follows that up with some unbelievable impressive movie effects. It really sets a new standard for movie effects. The fight scenes are almost like a ballet.

Bad
Reeve’s acting in the movie is probably not in the top of what has been done on the movie screen, but that perhaps do not matter. The movie is a lot about looking good, fighting fast, running fast and shooting fast. It is not all bad acting. Weaving does a good job portraying the slightly psychopathic robot character Agent Smith. It is a very enjoyable movie, and there is not much bad to be said about it.

Rating: 9/10 (where 10 is the best).

Falling Down
Directed by: Joel Schumacher.
Actors: Michael Douglas, Robert Duvall.
Released: 1993.
Studio: Twentieth Century Fox.
MPAA Rating: Rated R.
Length: 113 min.
Drama, Thriller

Brief outline (no spoilers):
William (D-FENS) (Michael Douglas) has been laid off from his job in the defense industry. He is frustrated with the world. Nothing seems to be going his way. It is his daughter’s birthday, and his divorced wife will not let him come visit her. He tries to visit her anyway, and on his way he meets he meets a lot of bizarre obstacles that he has to deal with. His fury and rage increases. Detective Pendergast (Robert Duvall) is a police detective that is retiring on this particular day. Pendergast starts to investigate these episodes that William (D-FENS) is involved in.

Personal opinions:
The movie is really about a person becoming obsolete. The world has no longer any place for for William (D-FENS), the technology and times have changed in a way that there is no longer any use for him or his skills. When you get old it is hard to learn new skills, and nobody wants to hire middle aged persons without the right qualifications. There is obviously a parallel in this movie with William and the deskbound detective Pendergast. Pendergast is also in many ways also obsolete and he is about to retire.

Good
Michael Douglas does an excellent job playing a man on the verge of insanity. But who is it that is really insane, is it the world or is it William (D-FENS)…? He sure has to deal with a lot of people that do not make sense and you get some empathy for what he has to go through.

Bad
The part where William (D-FENS) launches the M-72 rocket down in the underground tunnel and then the rocket turns a little and makes a horizontal flight down underground ending in a huge explosion down the road, it looks totally unbelievable. Take it from someone that has fired a M-72 training rocket.

Rating: 8/10 (where 10 is the best).

As a side thing three actors in Falling Down also appears in Apocalypse Now, Robert Duvall (Falling Down: Detective Prendergast, Apocalypse Now: Lieutenant Colonel Bill Kilgore) , Frederic Forrest (Falling Down: Surplus Store Owner, Apocalypse Now: Jay ‘Chef’ Hicks), James Keane (Falling Down: Detective Keene, Apocalypse Now: Kilgore’s Gunner).

Born On The Fourth Of July

Red Dawn

Constantine
Crash