stephengraley

IMDb member since April 2006
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Shadow in the Cloud
(2020)

Horrendous
I was hoping for the best, I got the worst

Just an awful film, how low Chloe Grace Moretz career has sunk, based on this film, not much lower !!!! With good films like kick ass and The 5th wave I can only hope for better in the future, please don't pick a turkey like this next time Chloe.

Warrior Nun
(2020)

Great Fun
Dont listen to the negative reviews, this is an infectious, series.

Right from the opening Scene i knew i would be hooked. Demons, Religion, martial arts, comedy, action, It was just a rollercoaster of fun.

Twists and turns, you really didn't know what would happen next, story has some holes but the action made up for that and ended on a real setup for a Second Series, Please Netflix keep this Series going.

Mai wei
(2011)

Excellent but it's not Brotherhood.
I have been waiting for this film for a long long time, after watching the trailer and realising it was directed by Je-kyu Kang who made Brotherhood which has to be one of the best movies ever made i was extremely excited.

My Way is based on the true story of Yang Kyoungjong who was a Korean soldier who not only fought in the Japanese Army in World War 2 but also the Soviets and German armies. the story centres around 2 men, Jun Shik who works for Tatsuo's grandfather's farm while Korea is colonised by Japan, but he has a dream to participate in Tokyo Olympics as a marathon runner. Tatsuo also aims to become a marathon runner, so the two are rivals from Children. But war breaks out and they both are forced to enlist in the army. the story then follows all the trails and tribulations of them both through this.

Dong-gun Jang was outstanding as always, the Battle scenes are incredible and some scenes such as the sniper attack and the Normandy Landings are truly brilliant but i didn't feel the story was there like in Je-kyu Kang's previous outing Brotherhood. I am not sure if the characters really ever liked each other so i am unsure why Jun-shik Kim attempted to save Tatsuo's life in scenes through the film. I feel a lot of the story may have landed on the editing floor and thats a shame as the story seemed to have sections missing. I will say on the whole this was an excellent movie however. I really would like movies such as this to get a general cinema release rather than having to wait for it to be released on DVD here in the uk.

Centurion
(2010)

A poor mans version of Jerry Bruckheimers King Arthur
I was really looking forward to this release, the trailer looked good and good Roman battle movies are at a real premium, I could list all the good ones on one hand.

After watching this i was slightly disappointed, It was as if i had watched a cheap version of the 2004 version of King Arthur. Roman men stranded in Scotland behind Hadrians wall, being chased by the enemy picking them off one by one, even the Blue battle make up for the Scottish Woads/Picts as they were called in each movie was the same. It also appeared that the director had stolen ideas from various other films, Last of the mohicans for the attack on the Road and Spartacus for the fireballs being rolled at the Roman soldiers. Olga Kurylenko, what a waste.......giving her a role as a mute !!!! We did not really see much acting ability from her here.

It was after this list of complaints still a watchable movie with some good action scenes and a pretty predictable ending. I would say the first half of the movie was better and then became predictable. If you have 90 minutes to kill and you don't want a too deep movie then watch this as there are a lot worse movies out there.

Motherhood
(2009)

Motherhood. It took just £88 over its opening weekend and I was one of the Fools who went
Yes, £88 in the opening Weekend and i got dragged along by the wife !!!

So shall i start with the positives, its less than 90 minutes long and there we have it. Now lets start with the negatives, lousy story, poor lead character, No Humour, no point to the story, no direction and not entertaining. If it was not for Minnie Drivers Character (as brief as it is) this movie would score a massive Zero.

I really could not relate to this film, my wife and I are about to have our first child but if this is what motherhood/parenthood is like its extremely depressing. Uma Thurmans character has no character, I don't know if this was down to the writing or the acting

All i can say is 11 people in the UK watched this on opening weekend, 11. I can see why it is going to be a major flop.

American Virgin
(2009)

Another teen sex Comedy
Yeah okay there are too many teen sex comedy's out there started with American Pie but this is likable. Its not as bad as many of the reviews in IMDb so far. The story is around a girl who gets a college scholarship based on her beliefs to abstain from sex until married. The organisation pays for her scholarship and sends her to college where she gets the room mate from Hell and then everything goes wrong for her then on.

It is basic stuff with no real twists and turns but you do laugh and thats what a comedy is supposed to do. The characters are all likable and believe it or not some of the scenes are like real life. The possessive Girlfriend who rings every 5 minutes when you are away is my favourite.

I would comment that the film was probably aimed at a younger audience as it had the feel of a family film but there was a lot of nudity so i am not really sure what age group this was aimed at. The main point though is it made me laugh so i enjoyed it.

Imagine That
(2009)

Best Eddie Murphy Film for years
Yes eddie Murphy's Film Career has been on a bit of a downward spiral and with the exception of the Shrek films it would have gone down the toilet a lot quicker but this is just a feel good fun film.

The movie does not aim to be something special just when the end credits role it makes you feel good. Thomas Haden Church's character is just mental and he pulls it off really well with a crazy performance. There are some real gem scenes in the movie, hilarious when eddie murphy and his daughter have to say grace but i wont spoil it.

On the whole this was just a fun movie to watch and enjoy and makes you realise how great it is to have children in your life just when you are wondering why you had children !!!

Are We Done Yet?
(2007)

Can i go Home yet ?
What a Shocker, the film should have been renamed Can i go home yet because i wanted to from 10 minutes in.

I have never been so bored watching a film, it was almost painful to watch, lets see where it all went wrong.

Are we there yet, This was hilarious and this was due to a couple of key areas. 1) The story revolved around the kids and they made all the moments of laughter. 2) The Beloved Car 3) Satchel Paige sitting on the car dashboard.

Now lets see where "Are we Done yet" went wrong.

The kids were hardly in the movie compared to the original, The car was hardly seen and Satch was not even in the movie. Add to that the most annoying character in the history of cinema played by John C. McGinley and we have a turkey of a movie roasting to perfection. It breaks my heart to say this as i have seen, Are we there yet like 20 times and it still has me in fits of laughter, my 2 year old nephew wants to always watch it and i am more than happy to. They should have called this Home Improvement as the whole story revolved around McGinley's character. it was also embarrassing the way the movie tried to cling to successful scenes from the original movie, Aleisha Allen singing and the scene with the rabid Deer.

In conclusion i am sorry to say that this film is another poor excuse this summer on a bandwagon of shocking Sequels.

Killshot
(2008)

Totally Wasted Cast
Diane Lane, Mickey Rourke, Rosario Dawson & Thomas Jane.....Not a bad cast in my opinion however they were totally wasted in this movie.

There was no real direction, there were no unusual turns, in fact the whole movie was very predictable from start to finish. Mickey Rourke had a really annoying sidekick who did nothing but irritate you from the start. Rosario Dawson was totally wasted and there was hardly any point in even having her character in the film.

I really do believe this is one of those straight to DVD movies that everyone will forget about very quickly which is a shame as the movie could have been so much better.

Passengers
(2008)

The Cast were Passengers in this effort
Read the review, saw the cast, major studio release.............sorry to say the expectations never hit 1st gear.

The acting was extremely poor, Anne Hathaway was so unconvincing in her role. She has real talent and some of her previous performances show this but this is one she will hope never gets mentioned in any interviews in years to come. Tell me anne what made you take the role in Passengers ?? "I needed the money" !!!! hopefully not the truth but i hope it was not for the script.

To be honest this is a poor mans version of The sixth sense, i will let you watch it and see if you agree.

Starship Troopers 3: Marauder
(2008)

Rico Returns in a very average third instalment
I am probably re-iterating the same as everyone else but yes the 1st Starship Troopers was fantastic, the 2nd awful and this is average, the only saving grace being the return of Johnny Rico (van Dein). I suppose it was too much to ask for the return of Denise Richards.

The plot, effects and acting are all pretty average. The movie also ripped off most of the first film with the TV adverts with the line (Do you want to know more) every 5 minutes, Troopers shouting It's a good day to die sir and some of the fight scenes although the cgi was not as good could have been cut directly from the original film.

However its far far far better than the second film which should have never been made. My only disappointment is that if the sequels were not going to be of the same standard as the first film, why bother making them !!!

4/10

War, Inc.
(2008)

Duff steals the show
You movie is basically a rant at America and the way they police/Destroy all minor nations real or in this case "Turaqistan" make believe. you then have your story within this with Mr Cusack, a down on his luck assassin sent to do a job in Turaqistan and all that follows to distract him from this.

The movie has some hilarious moments, basically every scene with Hilary Duff is hilarious. She plays Yonica Babyyeah an oversexed brat that performs a fantastic solo of "i'm gonna blow you.....up". Priceless and worth the admission price alone. You then have the tanks rolling around with advertising slogans like a Nascar.

the movie still could have been a lot better, at points it just seemed to muddle its way through with no real direction. In the first 45 minutes you don't always understand the scenario of the private security forces, the American soldiers, the company etc etc, it does get a little confusing.

However the performances of John Cusack and Hilary Duff are top drawer and with the humour this is certainly worth watching.

Boot Camp
(2008)

I would probably give this the Boot.....
For a $14 Million film i would have to say this is probably not one of the best. Christian Duguay has brought some good but not amazing movies in Art of War, Extreme ops and the mini series Human Trafficking but this is far far below his best.

The story is average although the movies does not look like a cheap budget film with ropey sound, casting and cinematography. It actually looks quite good (at $14 million i would hope so) but the movie has no real direction. There are no major action scenes, no dramatic story, no humour, no real suspense, in fact on reflection i am not sure what there was that made the movie very interesting.

Your story is around an island where parents send their uncontrollable teens for a harsh lesson in life through a BOOT CAMP. Whether they are fairly there or not you decide but its up to the camps Chronies to show the teens the error of their ways. I was thinking all the way through right, abandoned island, rebellious kids, brutal guards....here comes the updated version of Ray Liottas No Escape but what i got was Survivor without the tribal councils and any of the trials !!!!

Boarding Gate
(2007)

Another Masterpiece from Michael Madsen
You have to start worrying when you see that Michael Madsen is leading the Cast of any movie. I wont go through the list of shame that is his movie career.

I watched 45 minutes and still was not sure what really was going on. The movie consisted of a love hate relationship between Madsen and Argento, Which basically was Madsen insulting her, threatening violence and generally treating her like dirt. She on the other hand loves him, then shes doesn't, then she does, the she desires him, then she loves him again......whats wrong with you woman !!!!

The Script is awful, lousy soundtrack and pointless aggressive and crude sexuality which i believe was added to entice some viewers as the movie has little else to offer. I would have given the movie a 1 but it just about managed a 2 with a little excitement in the last 20 minutes. It did actually answer one question in the final few minutes but i am not going to share that, i will make you suffer for the full movie like i did.

Deal
(2008)

Burt Showing his age...
It would appear from the comments that this is the worst movie in history !!!!, well its not really. I am not going to say its award winning material because it is not. I watched the movie from start to finish and not once did i look at my watch thinking isn't it about time this finished.

Burt is looking old which is a shame as to me he will always be JJ from Cannonball Run with Capt Chaos (Dom DeLuise) for Company. Shannon Elizabeth is totally wasted, looked good though and why Jennifer Tilly was in this movie was beyond me.

the story was predictable with no great surprises. I could have written the finale 30 minutes into the film however it does keep you captivated. I felt you actually cared about the characters which is pretty unusual.

Watch it, enjoy it, forget about it would be my advice.

Bikini Bloodbath
(2006)

Possibly the WORST Movie ever made - so far.............
Before i start, i was not expecting much from the title but, I have Finally found a movie worse than any Ben Afleck film and thats a promise. I honestly never thought i would see this day.

What we have here is a standard slasher flick, you get all the usual nude shower scenes, Lesbian Butch Gym teacher and parents away so lets have a party at the house scenario. Now Imagine and its damn hard to but just for a minute imagine a world where the music goes from one scene of Metalica to the next with Busted !!!!. The Killer i am sure is the lead singer from ZZ Top wearing a Chefs outfit........WHY.

Anyway the girls organise a party, its an all night Chick party so what kind would you have in this sort of cheap effort, pyjama party or lingerie party or fancy dress party. Ohhhhh Noooo they have balloons and streamers, i thought i had gone back 30 years to my 4th Birthday. I was waiting for the Jelly and Ice Cream to arrive next.

I don't want to even get started on the sports Jocks. The usual would be adolescent boys throwing an American football to each other, you would think then, hey these guys are the football team. No these boys are all chubby wasters wearing t-shirts with the words "Football Player", i also counted 57 times they high fived each other.

Just as all hope seemed to fade away a noise started to grown from the background, it was getting clearer and clearer, yes the jocks were dancing to Footloose. I was expecting Kevin Bacon to make an appearance but all we got were a bunch of overweight Muppet's dancing to what looked like Chunk doing the truffle Shuffle from the Goonies.

In conclusion i shall leave you to decide but take this one last line to give you inspiration when deciding whether to watch this abysmal effort. A Girl is killed on the toilet in the bathroom, the guy runs out and shouts "shes dead, shes dead" and another girl responds are you sure she is not in there for number 2.

I shall say no more.

He Was a Quiet Man
(2007)

Excellent Performances
This was a very surreal movie that had everything for the avid film fan. The performances from Cuthbert and slater were top draw and the script was excellent culminating on my opinion with a below par end. I feel i would have given a 10 if there had been a little more thought in the last 5-10 minutes.

The story revolves around Slater, he has a very mundane life and is treated like a piece of dirt by his work colleagues. He works in a cubicle and spends all day planning to literally shoot the office up until just as you think he will another colleague does. He then saves Cuthberts life and this is where the story really begins.

There are various surreal moments, on several occasions Slater is talking to his fish and they have some witty responses. Cuthbert looks great as always but nice to see her in a movie where some acting is required, i would find it hard to criticise though as the film "the girl next door" is my favourite film of all time and Cuthbert can do no wrong. The Karaoke Scene is terrific and shows both the humour and serious message from this film.

Slaters character was another complex part of the story, you at the beginning don't really have time for him. He then starts to improve his life and his character becomes more likable but, ultimately his character goes more and more into depression and looses his trust of everyone again and you start to dislike him again.

On the whole this film will not set box office records alight but with all the rubbish rolling out of the studios recently this is a little gem that has snuck out. I would definitely recommend you see it at your earliest opportunity.

Smiley Face
(2007)

I Just don't get it !!!
As the title states, i watched the whole film from start to finish and i just don't get it.

Why bother to even make this film as it had absolutely no point to it.

The film revolves around our main character (Faris) who smokes pot, gets high, 60 minutes of daydream scenes where she has no idea whats going and then the film ends. Well that about sums it up in my belief.

I have never watched a film that was so totally pointless and if someone could please let me know if i'm being totally naive then feel free.

I did not really want to write this as someone will read this now and think i must watch this film to see but please please don't waste your time.

Botched
(2007)

Botched.......Yes this film was totally botched
This was horrific, i cannot actually believe i managed the whole movie.

Where do i start on this tale of woe, the film basically centres around a "Botched" Robbery in a hotel and the cast arrive at a floor that nobody knows about which has a killer running around murdering all and sundry.

The running around is by far the worst i have encountered. There were more chase scenes than a Bond film but these had a ring to the old TV series Benny Hill. I honestly expected the killer to grab someones backside and eventually the Benny Hill music playing in the background. I don't want to even get started on the killer it was a cross between the Highlander & Rocky. Rocky because Rocky sounded more Russian than this guy.

The Russian accents were laughable, the only thing the film lacked here was each cast member playing a Russian to have a bottle of vodka and one of those woolly hats all KGB agents have in classic soviet union movies.

This film has got to be the worst film i have seen in years. Please do not listen to these Muppet's stating its not pretending to be art house but plays to its strengths, total rubbish. It does not matter which way you describe this, the movie is total pap.

I shall leave it with one last comment. You are cornered the main character and the piece of eye candy, The killer enters the room with his sword and blood everywhere, you are hiding behind the curtain with say 10 bodies hanging from hooks, you are scared and the killer is about to find you so what do you do............... Well i would run like hell but no Stephen Dorff is way too cool for that, he snogs her.

In Conclusion WHY oh WHY oh WHY oh WHY

I Could Never Be Your Woman
(2007)

One Sexy Momma
Yes, Michelle Pfeiffer is who i am referring to. She looks absolutely amazing at 49 and when i was a kid i could only wish all my mates mums looked this fine.

I am a massive fan of romantic comedy, i hear you all say but you are a bloke whats wrong with you !!! Who can forget Love Actually which basically has some of the all time funniest moments in cinema. I could never be your woman unfortunately does not hit these highs but you will laugh and the characters have a certain warmth.

The film really focuses on the relationship between Pfeiffer and her daughter which is unusual in the fact the most of the good comedy moments arise from the daughters relationship with her mother and her mothers personal life. You have to love Jon Lovitz, the guy is a genius. He is barely in the movie but his dead pan matter of fact character is a perfect foil to Pfieffers Character.

On the whole i would say watch this, probably wait for DVD but its certainly worth a rental. The film had the potential to be both funnier and also some pointless Scenes especially with Mother Nature.

On a final note i know this is only a film and it was 90 minutes long but if i have children in the future i would like to be a parent like Pfieffers Character. Honest, open with a great relationship with her daughter.

Kickin' It Old Skool
(2007)

Retro Fun
Knightrider, Garbage Pail Kids, Plastic Smurfs, Flashdance, Rubiks Cube, Different Strokes and the list goes on..........Its the 80's. This film pays homage to all the good and not so good memories of the 80's, i actually sat in my seat squirming remembering it all. Its was a strange thing because i had forgotten about the craze for Garbage Pail Kids cards and Plastic toy Smurfs but i never and i will repeat never wore a white string vest.

The film itself had myself laughing with hysteria at all these memories that i had long forgotten, there were a few parts over the top and lost the humour it was supposed to represent. The mini cameo from The Hoff would not have been as good if it were not for his T-shirt "Dont Hassle the Hoff"......Priceless.

Please do not expect much from this movie, just remember the nostalgia of the 80's and we all used to dress like that, yes even you did if you are in your late 20's/30's. The cast just played along with the script as best they could as it has little in substance it rely's totally on the humour. The Dance off finale has some funny moments but don't let me spoil it for you. Its certainly not the best comedy around but watch it and enjoy yourself for 90 minutes.

Partition
(2007)

Small budget = Fantastic Movie
What an amazing breathe of fresh air this film was, following the start of the summer bandwagon of Rubbish comes a small movie that proves budget & stars does not always mean success, look at the less promoted titles also.

I must admit that i did not realise like i am sure a lot of people the intense hatred between the Sikhs and the Muslims at this period of time. I being white and married to a Indian girl myself had a very big interest in this movie and although i found the film amazing it did not historically shed any light on what i did not know about this point in time. The slaughter of both the Sikhs and Muslims was graphic and the cinematography was fantastic.

The only down side to this spectacular movie was giving a role to Neeve Campbell, the British accent was laughable. Mistry and Kreuk were brilliant with Mistry putting in an alround stunning performance.

The story keeps you entertained the whole time and you do not know what the ending has in store. I being an old romantic was waiting for a happy ending but you see for yourself. I can only strongly recommend this as a must watch film, a stunning film from story, score, performances, i just cannot fault it. You will see little better and a lot worse this year so please go and enjoy this film as thats what cinema is there for, enjoyment.

The Last Legion
(2007)

Totally Mis-cast but i loved it
This film has to have one of the strangest cast lists in history but i loved the film, it kept well to the book but there were certain areas where i think it made a detour. The opening began with the talk of Caesars Sword and this made the film goer believe the story was about this but on reading the book it was about the relationship of Aurelius & Romulus the new Caesar. The film also took slightly different direction in scenes such as the attack on Romulus's Home and if my memory is correct the battle right at the beginning of the book was completely scrapped.

This film needed Ridley Scott as Director as i think he probably would have made more of it and i am certain that this film will get totally panned by the critics. I mean Colin Firth as a Roman Commander Protecting the emperor, the absolutely amazing and gorgeous Aishwarya Rai as an eastern assassin and the annoying kid from Love actually as the Child Caesar. I know why not have Mr Bean as Rambo or Arnie as Forrest Gump. All this aside the film is a good film to watch with all the family, Violence is moderate, no sex, no swearing so its a good film for all the family to watch.

On the Whole i enjoyed this but please don't go in expecting Gladiator, i was waiting for Bridget Jones Pants to blow across the Screen like tumbleweed but alas that did not happen.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
(2007)

A Series that Echos the first is always the best
I was so so hoping that this would be the finale to really recapture the fans after an average sequel but alas it was not. It echos the saying of the original is always the best in so many ways.

I am not going to jump on the bandwagon and say this film is awful as it was not but i felt the film had an appearance that it had been rushed. I saw more of Barbossa than Jack and everyone knows that Jack Sparrow makes the whole film come alive.

I am not going to contain any plot information but i felt the ending left a gap, the more entertaining characters we hardly used and I hardly saw Orlando Bloom in the film. The plus sides are there, the monkey was hilarious, some of the island views/battle scenes were amazing and i would watch the film again.

Its a film you have to watch if you are a fan of the series, if you are not you must watch the 1st two films then this one as it will get confusing. The film could have been a lot better but films these days are getting more predictable and there is a serious lack of entertainment so on the whole this is a film worth watching.

Severance
(2006)

Another Dyer Movie From Danny
Why oh why do producers continue to offer lead roles to Danny Dyer !!! Everyone knows that the second you see the name DANNY DYER in lights you are about to see what can only amount to a real Turkey. This boy cannot act, i don't mean like in a Julia Roberts way i mean he would not get a role on some ropey TV soap opera. I ask you do you know of one film that he has acted in that is at all decent ??? Mean Machine is the only one and he plays the correct sort of character.................a total Muppett.

The films trys to mix comedy and horror but fails all the way, i think they attempted to mix Hostel with Shaun of the dead but it never works. The acting is poor, you never relate to the characters and ultimately you don't care what happens. The UK film industry should stick to what it does well, Comedies with Hugh Grant and IRA Movies, although the latter has not had a lot released lately. Its always fun watching an American pretending to be Irish with the cracking lines of "Its a Grande Day" "I know People" and "Top of the morning to ya" i am just waiting for "Where are me lucky Charms"

I am not here to slate Danny Dyer but i have to, he has speech problems worse than Stallone. I hope that everyone in the world does not think we all sound like this cockney plonker. awight, tweacle its like cockney rhyming gone Psycho.

I paid good money to see this atrocious movie at the cinema, £6.50 to be precise and i would willingly pay this to watch a Sandra Bullock Movie over Severance and thats real pain. If you do decide to watch this rubbish go for the matinée so when you walk out disappointed it wont have cost as much as i paid.

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