Sci-Fi

Big Hero 6 Review

November 13, 2014 by JD Hansel

MINOR (MINOR) SPOILER ALERT

Watching this movie was an odd experience for me because I felt like I was a spectator rather than part of the experience. That is not to say that I did not enjoy it. Big Hero 6 is a well built film, that successfully makes the characters likable, the story understandable and interesting, and the twist sorta kinda mildly surprising. The score to this movie is really cool, and it accompanies the lovely animation (that often had me gushing at its beauty, which I hardly ever do with CG movies) very nicely.

They were even kind enough to label the hero of the movie! I’ve been wanting movies to do that for a long time.

Essentially, this is a good movie that was done correctly. However, it felt distant to me. Maybe it’s just because CG films tend to have that effect on me for some reason, or maybe it’s because I went in with an observer-like mindset. I think a large part of my problem was the fact that it was, at its core, a superhero movie. It is about a genius who has the ability to make the gadgets and gear necessary to fight a masked criminal, who happens to be the guy who caused the death of someone important to the hero. We have seen that movie before. This movie may introduce new elements, but it does have a rather cliché story, and pretty cliché characters, making it seem like I have seen it before. It also has notable Disney movie clichés, which also make me step out of the experience and become an observer.

Still, this is a fun movie that has many impressive elements, and is certainly a good time for the kids. If you like simple stories in slightly futuristic worlds with simple characters and great animation, you’ll really enjoy this one.

Star Trek 4: The Voyage Home Review

November 9, 2014 by JD Hansel

The Star Trek movies and I have an interesting relationship. I love the original series, but I find that with the films, even Wrath of Khan, which I really like, I can never remember anything that happens in them. I have no memory of how the first one ends. Or begins. Wait … did I even finish that one? Once I even forgot that Christopher Lloyd was in Star Trek III. Actually, I keep forgetting the whole plot to that movie.

I believe this curse on my poor brain has finally been broken by a Star Trek film I can remember: The Voyage Home. I watched a wee bit of the third movie before hand so I would know what was going on, and then I started what I hoped would be a fun blast. It was a fun blast eventually. I really do not like it when a movie waits over 25 minutes before the inciting incident, but this one only went over that by a couple minutes, so I can cut it some slack. Once the story finally gets moving, it turns into one of those crappy movies in which the characters who are normally seen in their own world are suddenly transported into our worldand have to figure it out. (Seriously, they spend the film in 1986 San Francisco.) This movie however, much like The Muppet Movie, Follow That Bird, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit, did it very well.

This is the movie that the franchise needed after a bunch of serious movies – a film that felt a lot like an episode of the show, like Wrath of Khan did, but a comedy that shows off the characters at their best, and their funniest. Unfortunately, because it continues the events of the third movie (and now I forgot even the name of the third movie) I can’t recommend this to everyone who has not seen Star Trek before. Actually, I think I will anyway. I will just suggest that they watch it with me so I can explain what they “missed.”

I want everyone to see this movie because no other Trek movie I’ve seen has topped it. I nearly gave this movie 4 ½ stars, which I only give to my highest favorites (call me snobby, but I’ve reserved 5 stars for my top favorite film). The opening is slow, and the “save the whales” message gets a wee bit annoying after a while, but it is still good. This is the one I’ll remember.

Signs Review

October 12, 2014 by JD Hansel

(SPOILER ALERT)

It’s easy to criticize a filmmaker as infamous as M. Night Shyamalan and completely ignore his good decisions, but in Signs, one must acknowledge that there’s a lot of good aspects to this movie. The credits are visually appealing, the music is basically good, the characters and their development are fine, the suspense is well done, etc. From what I’ve seen though, Shyamalan seems like he doesn’t take things very seriously. The upside to that is that he doesn’t seem to take himself too seriously, which makes working with him easier. The downside is that he doesn’t seem to take his films seriously either.

He ignores the obvious problem in the story completely, making it one of the most talked about plot holes in history: the aliens that must not touch water came to a planet that is mostly water. There are other story elements that do not make sense, such as how every television station decided to stop broadcasting their regular programming to show the same network’s coverage of a story that may have been a hoax. This is completely unbelievable, and while some may say that the unbelievable is acceptable in a science fiction story, when ordinary humans are portrayed reacting to events inappropriately, it really hurts the story. From a dialogue perspective, the writing is still not totally realistic in many parts of the film, but the children were written for rather well.

While the child actors are certainly very impressive, the movie offers little that is new or impressive from a story perspective, and does not stand out all that much as an alien invasion story. It is not terrible, and it has some redeeming qualities, but its flaws make it feel very “meh.”

Gravity Review

August 2, 2014 by JD Hansel

When I first saw the trailer for Gravity, I must say that I was impressed. It was clear that the movie had excellent lighting, keying effects, and cinematography. However, my fear was that the movie would turn out to be rather boring because it might lack character interaction and development of relationships. Unfortunately, I was correct in thinking that way. I think that people who enjoy movies that are good from a technical standpoint will love this movie, and those who like dramas, or who like the main actors in it, will probably like Gravity a lot too. I, however, found the movie to be slow, not very interesting or exciting, sometimes predictable, and often annoying. There was one part of the story that was really starting to get me interested and excited, but the moment that part began, the movie ended. That kind of infuriated me, so as much as I respect the film’s technical achievements, I have to say that it just didn’t do it for me.