Sam on a Ledge

Man on a ledge...let me first say that they stole this idea from me...though my story was named 'Man in a Fridge', or something like that.  Actually, it's all a stinking lie, I never thought up a story like this.  Though I do like the title...I think that the guy who made this should hook up with the guys who made 'Snakes on a Plane' and then keep making movies...'Lobster in a basket'...'Painting in a toilet'...'Nun in a bar'...

Anyhow, this movie is basically part Negotiator, part The Score.  It's a heist movie and hostage negotiation drama rolled up into one.  Was it ludicrous?  Yes, there were parts of made me say "uh-huh".  Such as Sam Worthington's car being rear-ended by a train and he escapes without a scratch (though that's a movie thing). Ed Harris' character framing Sam for stealing a diamond just so he could collect on the insurance money and keep himself out of bankruptcy (framing a man for theft and ruining his life or simply selling the diamond for the cash...hmmm...).  The insane lengths the burgulars had to go to break into Harris' vault and yet the ease in which they got into his personal office...(uh-huh). 

You may think I don't like this movie, but it isn't true.  I did like it.  I like heist movies in general, usually (with some exceptions...Oceans Eleven and The Italian Job come to mind) and I love cat-and-mouse negotiation movies, which this also had, but I have to say that instead of splitting their attention and giving us 2 decent parts to the movie instead of concentrating on one and giving us one great movie is a definite miss.  There was some nice suspense though and the acting was good, there's an all-star cast with a lot of familiar faces.

As for twists and turns, there was really only one thing I didn't call and it didn't really matter in the big scheme of things.  If you're someone who has seen a lot of these types of movies, there's nothing really new for you here, it's all been covered in better movies, but it's not bad for what it is and at least it was a 90 minute time-waster that didn't piss me off. 

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

- Stephenstein

Into the great Unknown...

Alright, now that I have all that bile out of my system, time to review a movie I saw with a bunch of jerks! People are drawing a lot of comparisons between this and Liam Neeson's other action movie, Taken, but it's not the same. Liam in Taken was walking around, "a man with a certain set of skills", that was trying to find his daughter's kidnappers. In this one, he has no special skills...in fact, he's not even really sure who he is. He thinks he knows, but who knows?
Well, his wife for one. She's not talking, though. In fact, she's acting like she doesn't even know him...

So, I liked this film. I actually liked it more than Taken. This one had a better mystery. Not a mystery so good that I couldn't figure out the answer to the mystery (or at least have a sneaking good suspicion), but that's me. I've seen a lot of movies, so it's hard to trick me. This one though, it had a lot going for it. Liam Neeson walking around, investigating, acting all confused and pensive is good. It had a lot of good suspense. Even though there wasn't a lot going on some of the time, it was still interesting. It was like part investigation movie, part cold war thriller. If you're into that sort of movie, then it's your cup of tea. Lots of intrigue and what not.

I don't have a lot of negatives. The first fight scene was filmed poorly, quick cuts and zoom-in's, but that's a standard complaint. Strangely enough, the second fight scene was easier to watch...but it was in the dark, and the combatants weren't as skilled? That was weird. This movie also involves some leaps of faith. Either you're willing to take them, or you aren't. They weren't ridiculous leaps of faith (we're not talking Armageddon, here), but leaps nevertheless. There was one thing bugging me for half the movie, but it made sense when all was revealed. That sort of thing. It's a movie, so you either buy it or you don't.

So all in all, if you like good intrigue movies, with investigations and a "what the hell is going on?" sort of feel, then this movie is for you. There's not a lot of action, it's all suspense and finding out what's going on. If you like that, then see this movie, or buy it on DVD when released. I will be, and since I don't have Taken, that looks like a pretty good little 2-pack.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

- Stephenstein

I dream of Leo

I know some people who read this blog have not seen the movie yet, so I have no intention of giving anything away. There's enough spoilers bouncing around the internet without adding to it. So, the big question is, is it good?

Well, other than Insomnia, all of Christopher Nolan's movies have been solid (at least the ones I've seen...I haven't seen Following, yet). With apologies to the rabid Dark Knight crowd, my favourite Chris Nolan film is still Memento. The concept behind this movie is just awesome, as was the acting, and the story, and the plot, and how it was shot and edited. It's the total package. All preceding films have been damn good, but I've had small nitpicky problems with it.

Inception fits into this category. Look, this film is well-written, with an awesome concept, and it is professionally executed by the all-star cast. Nolan never gets cheated on his production values. The movie looks great, and it's engrossing. It's not the sort of film too, where you can duck out for a leak. You need to pay attention.

That being said, there are a few tiny problems. I'm sure there's logistical flaws in the story (thought nothing comes immediately to mind, one of the astute readers/contributors to this blog will find one, I'm sure), and the problem is, Nolan makes "realistic" films with fantastical twists. He tries to make fantasy realistic, and that doesn't always work. Also, there's some extraneous shots, and everyone who sees the movie will know what I'm talking about, that is supposed to build suspense. There is no suspense, though. It's really well-written, but it's not what I would call unpredictable. Everything that you guess will happen, does happen. That doesn't mean it's bad, it's just trying to add suspense for suspense sake. It doesn't really matter. I also have another problem, that I won't address in this blog, but after you see the movie, I will tell you personally.

So, that's it. It's a really good concept-driven movie, that delivers exactly what you expect, and hope it does. Like I said, I don't want to give anything more away, so see it yourselves, and tell me what you think.

I bid thee a fond inception.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

- Stephenstein