valentinestanford

If you wanna see another recycled Mad Max, go elsewhere.

Some reviewers have ragged on this movie for lack of character development, or weak plot. Many idiots call this a propaganda film. I believe this was a solid movie that worked with ideas we know and love and interjects something new that not many people have seen before, especially in this type of film.

Firstly, this movie takes a solid setting we're familiar with (post-apocalyptic world, shanty towns and burned out cars and buildings) and a familiar theme (the lone wanderer) and makes it all look good. I haven't seen a barren wasteland look so good in a long time. It felt like I was playing Fallout 3, but w/o the controller.

Secondly, never once did it pretend to be something it wasn't. There was no deep twisting plot (although there is a twist at the end), but there never needed to be. Character creation wasn't too heavy, again it didn't need to be, as we know from decades of film who these survivors are, and what their motivations are going to be. Because of this we don't have to go through the always present monologues describing how evil the villain is and how he came to be, or how good and righteous the hero is and where he came from. Sure you find out, but its short and simple, no need to be over elaborate with silly flashbacks. This leaves time for storytelling, action, and beautiful cinematic shots. This movie was two minutes shy of two hours, and I didn't notice the time even once. Very well balanced with action, story, and dialogue.

Third, God forbid movies have substance these days, this is a movie that has something more than flash pans and giant robots: it has Hope. Hope for the future, hope for mankind, hope that, even when everything is burned down (literally), we can still work towards a future and make one for future generations.

I already kinda knew about the movie before I watched it (a friend saw it and gave me a briefing) but I didn't know about the ending, and I have to say I cried at this one. Wow, what a powerful ending for the main character. I'd have to say that was one of the best ever for best endings in my book (pun intended).

How to summarize, great plot, really great voice acting, good to great animation, memorable characters and great writing.

This was one of those series where you loved every part and couldn't wait for the new episodes each week. This show is why they invented popcorn. :)

***Spoilers from here on. If you just want the summary, skip to the last paragraph.***

Each character had life breathed into them and had depth beyond most any other series ever made (cartoon or live action). The acting was a bit childish, sure, but it was done so as to make the characters more human, which it did very well. Sokka was dorky, kinda stupid, a screwball, yet very cool, the kinda kid you'd want to hang with because he was so funny, even if it was an odd sense of humor. Aang was a fun, lovable, really bright kid, the most popular and talented kid we all wished to be like, but without the tremendous pressure to save the world.

The story was mostly unique, and kept about as perfect a pace as one could ask for. The only issue I had with the pacing was in the third season, at the end they seemed to conveniently wrap up a few things, just so they could keep the number of episodes in the season comparable to the first two, but it was by no means unforgivable.

The villains had huge depth of character, very well developed back stories and motivations, and each had their own agenda, which often did not coincide with other villain's agendas even though they were, in theory, on the same side. This provided for lots of conflict and realism as many times these agendas conflicted with each other. You don't find this kind of writing every day. Priceless.

You find throughout the series that the people who are supposed to be the villains are really not that bad at all. Some were uppity and self important sure, maybe a little brainwashed by government propaganda, but aren't we all like that to some extent? Almost every episode had extras with great history, and the telling of each one added greatly to fleshing out the cultures involved.

The issues the characters worked through during their journey presented some serious situations and topics, such as love, romance, loyalty, life and death, hate, self worth, and lots of morality issues. More than any other series I've seen, this one related to the human condition and the issues we face in life, all without being a heavy emo drama, which was very cool.

***End spoilers***

In the end, Avatar: The Last Airbender is a great series with great characters and an epic story that will last a very long time. Avatar is worth watching again and again. You won't regret it.

Even then, I'm kinda iffy on the "Ok for kids" part. The buddies movies tend to be eye candy with little plot, stale scripts, and cute, well groomed dogs.

The shows all have the Disney polish we've all come to expect from their films, and nothing in this film looked cheaply done or out of place. The dogs were adorable, and both my kids loved them (6 and 3).

Christopher Lloyd was good, and added a recognizable fixture in a mostly unknown cast. The acting was good and most everyone did a great job with the script they had. Strangely enough, I thought George Wendt (Santa Claus) was the weakest actor. Compared to the rest of the cast his body language and deliveries seemed really off and wasn't on par with the quality of the rest of the film. The plot revolved around a magical icicle they had to stop from melting ... you have to admit that even for a Disney movie that's pretty lame.

Ultimately, Santa Buddies suffers from being just another forgettable, consumable kids movie. Pop it in to keep the kids entertained for a bit, better yet just let 'em play outside.

One thing you can count on in M. Night movies: Everything is the way it is for a reason. You can count on always seeing exactly what you are supposed to see in his movies. Every emotion, each turn of the head, any lines delivered that feel a little off. None of this 'oh lets let the actors ad lib for 12 pages because they're a superstar and must know what they're doing' crap.

***Spoilers!***

The characters in The Happening actually acted like the normal people they were supposed to be. Some of the lines felt like they hadn't been rehearsed. Some of the reactions weren't what you'd expect from a seasoned Hollywood actor. DUH! Real people don't know what to say at every moment. The reactions were still Hollywood, but they were more real than most of the drivel we get these days.

This was one of those movies that made you feel like something was wrong, just off enough to make you uncomfortable, but not so much that you had to get away. Great suspense, and it was just long enough that you didn't get bored.

Awesome movie, and one of my favorite M. Night flicks.

The best way I can describe Waterworld, is a live action Anime movie.

-It has weird (religious or Asian) undertones. -The enemies are over the top. -Really odd yet cool sci-fi or fantasy setting. -The hero is often battling "red shirts" who are better armed, mostly faceless, and just quirky enough to evoke a chuckle here and there from odd antics.

For several people, this will be a bad thing, causing them to pass Waterworld out of hand. All for the simple fact that it is comparable to a cartoon and, as everyone knows, cartoons are for kids six and under. Obviously this is sarcasm, but it goes to show that many people don't realize just how much Anime in particular has influenced current cinema....well, I'll save that for another time. Anyways, this is a great movie with a great story, much better than most of the tripe of the day. The effects were awesome, the acting very much in-character.

***A few spoilers from here on in, you've been warned.***

Despite silly comments left by others, the Mariner was not mean, but rather a fairly complex character. If people wanted to kill me as much as people wanted to kill him (unreasonably I might add) I'd be a little stand-offish too. He didn't really hate anyone, and you saw he had lots of reason to not trust people (watch the movie, even the main characters betray him at a point). About the only thing that made me groan in the movie was the HQ of the villain (I won't give that away).

This movie stands the test of time, a true sci-fi classic.