martok2112

I remember seeing this movie as a kid back in 1978. I thought it was a pretty fun film. As an adult, I picked this movie up on DVD for nostalgia, and I'm pleased to say that it holds up very well. This is a movie I would be happy to show my guitar player's kid. It is a nice family film with just the right amount of action and humor to keep it friendly. Another reason this movie resonates with me is because of its cast, at least four of whom starred, or guest starred in my all-time favorite TV series, M*A*S*H. The late McClean Stevenson (LCol. Henry Blake), and Harry Morgan (Col. Sherman T. Potter) , the commanders of the 4077th. It was nice to see them on screen together in this film. Sorrell Booke (uncredited) as the judge, and Rick Hurst as Dydee One. (The two would also star in later seasons of Dukes of Hazzard.) You cannot go wrong with a family film like this..especially if your young ones have an affinity for light science fiction, and a love of cats. And Jake is a beautiful little cat. Pick this one up to add to your family film collection.

I don't know if I can really say what many other people have already said in the way of praising this very overlooked film, but I am so glad to see so many fans of the film posting here.

This film is my all time favorite comedy, and I think it would be safe to say that if I had a top ten (across the spectrum list) this film would be in that too.

Gene Wilder and Harrison Ford are probably my two most favorite actors, and to see them paired in this film....well, someone had a stroke of genius on that score.

I first saw this movie when I was ten years old. My mom, my younger brother, and I loved this film the first time we saw it on Cinemax. And I have to say it is a TRIBUTE to the comedic genius of Gene Wilder that his Yiddish inflections STILL make me laugh my head off to this day. This film is not just a comedy. It is indeed a dramedy...and it has plenty of comedy and drama to really round the film out well.

A scene that almost always brings a tear to my eye is when Avram (Wilder) makes to leave the Amish folk who gave him shelter, and this exchange ensues:

Amish man: We hope this will help thee on thy journey, Brother Avram.

Avram: (with the most genuine look of gratitude I've ever seen an actor emulate) I will never forget thy kindness.

That scene is just beautiful.

Harrison Ford and Gene Wilder teaching each other the relative phrases for complete surprise was rib-tickling.

And probably the one scene that nearly makes me see stars laughing every single time is when Avram shouts his newly acquired colorful metaphor as his horse jumps off a cliff into a river below. "Whoa! Whoa horsey! I didn't tell you where to go! Whoa! Oy...oyoyoyoyoyooyoyoyoyoy oy! Shee-IT!"

With Harrison Ford's Tommy Lillard adopting the Jewish phrase of complete surprise and shouting it out in earnest as he follows suit: "Oy gevald!"

If I recall, I do believe Gene Wilder is Jewish. (His real name is of a Jewish nature). If he went to Synagogue, he remembered his time there well, and in my most humble opinion PERFECTLY played a Jewish Rabbi. The prayers and rituals all looked and sounded genuine. And Gene Wilder's comedic talent only tops this off exquisitely.

I am pleased to say that I own the movie on DVD, and this is a film I will be hard pressed to ever give up. This is a comedy for the ages...and I recommend families pass this movie on down the line to their descendants, as a reminder of what great comedy really is.

Respectfully, Steve Dunlap

FILM: KING KONG DISTRIBUTOR: UNIVERSAL DIRECTOR: PETER JACKSON PRINCIPAL CAST: Jack Black, Naomi Watts MPAA RATING: PG-13 for frightening adventure violence and some disturbing images. RUNTIME: 3hrs., 7min.

Story: 5/5 Acting: 5/5 Sound: 5/5 Visuals: 4.5/5 Endorphin Factor: 3/5 Big Screen Experience: 5/5 Scoring system: Average: 4.5/5

MOVIES IT COULD BE COMPARED TO: Classic KING KONG, GODZILLA,

DETAILS: Well, I decided to go and see this to give the vaunted "King of All Directors" Peter Jackson another chance. This film was surprisingly good. That is NOT to say that I have suddenly become a Peter Jackson convert. I ain't gonna kiss his arse about this movie, and swear total fealty to his film-making prowess, and mere presence as a human being, but it was damn good, and I do applaud him for making a damn good film.

The story had a nice pace to it, and thankfully (unlike Fellowship of the Ring) it did not put me to sleep in 20 minutes. There were even a few good laughs in this film, all throughout.

The actors were perfectly cast. And I have to say that Naomi Watts (much like Charlize Theron) has this '30's silver screen beauty and charisma about her. She IS glamorous, without BEING glamorous.

Kong himself looked surprisingly good for a CGI puppet, but was still very much CGI.

This film was actually three or four in one. It was Jurassic Park II, Starship Troopers, and of course King Kong. Nothing in this movie really blew me out of my seat though....although I did go "eewww" during one Kong Kombat sequence. LOL!

BOTTOM LINE: This was a good ride. Not a wild one like I'd hoped...but it was fun. Still have to say, my favorite film thus far this Holiday season is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. (Disclaimer: No monkeys were spanked during the production of this film...unless it was over Naomi Watts. :D )

FILM: THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE DISTRIBUTOR: Disney/WALDEN MEDIA DIRECTOR: ANDREW ADAMSON PRINCIPAL CAST: Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, William Mosely. Anna Popplewell, Tilda Swinton, Liam Neeson MPAA RATING: PG for Battle sequences and frightening moments RUNTIME:

Story: 4.5/5 Acting: 5/5 Sound: 5/5 Visuals: 4.5/5 Endorphin Factor: 4/5 Big Screen Experience: 5/5 Scoring system: Average: 4.6/5

MOVIES IT COULD BE COMPARED TO: Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Harry Potter films

DETAILS: So Thomas7g and I are talking, and we bring up the Yahoo IMVironment on chat for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. As we're talking, I tell him that although the first preview looked good, it really wasn't on my dradis for priority movies this holiday season. However, when I went to Narnia.com, and checked out the new trailer, my mind was immediately changed, and so off I went to take in what looked like a very promising movie.

I was not disappointed. The film really does stand out well, and even with only my vague memories of having read some of the C.S. Lewis classic (and seen the animated feature that was broadcast on CBS many years ago), I fully understood the story. The actors in the film were all perfectly cast, and played their roles to perfection. Liam Neeson, as the voice of Aslan, was easily recognizable.

The visual effects were damn good, but much of it could be easily discerned as CGI. The sound effects rocked, and I loved the soundtrack to this film. Might just have to pick it up.

There was an awful lot of crying in this movie...more than I remember seeing in previous incarnations.

There were good laughs, and much of them came from either the talking animals, or from Lucy, the youngest of the four siblings who is actually a little wise beyond her years.

The Witch, Jadis (Tilda Swenton) was ferocious in this movie. At first, when I saw her, I thought it was Alice Kriege (The Borg Queen from Star Trek: First Contact), but the accent told me otherwise. Nonetheless, Jadis was a bad ass...especially in battle.

Fantasy movies are really starting to see their heyday, with the overwhelming success of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, and the Harry Potter movies. This film looks to continue that heyday with great success. In fact, it's actually made me get up the urge to give the LOTR movies another chance.

BOTTOM LINE: I'd still have to prefer the Harry Potter films over this, but The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe is a beautiful film in its own right, and will find its way into my DVD collection upon release.

Respectfully, Martok2112

FILM: DOOM DISTRIBUTOR: UNIVERSAL DIRECTOR: Andrzej Bartkowiak PRINCIPAL CAST: Duane (The ROCK) Johnson, Karl Urban, Rosamund Pike MPAA RATING: R RUNTIME: 1hr. 40 mins.

Story: 3/5 Acting: 3/5 Sound: 4/5 Visuals: 4/5 Endorphin Factor: 3/5 Big Screen Experience: 2/5 Scoring system: Average: 3/5

MOVIES IT COULD BE COMPARED TO: Resident Evil, Resident Evil Apocalypse, ALIENS

DETAILS: Well, initially I just went to the mall to pick up a couple of things when lo and behold it turns out that the mall theatre is now partially reopened for 6 houses. I had hoped that they would've had Serenity there, but alas, it is not playing there. They did however have the opening of DOOM, based on the hit video game series from Id Software. Perfect, I thought.

Now, let it be said that I did not have high hopes for this movie. It's a translation of a video game after all. With that said, the movie is actually not too bad. I found it as enjoyable as the two Resident Evil movies (which in my opinion are some of the best translations of videogames to big screen film.)

The movie starts out with a lot of running and screaming as a genetic experiment has gone horribly wrong. The RRTS (Rapid Response Tactical Squad), led by Sarge (The Rock), is ordered to Mars Oduvai research facility to investigate the harrowing circumstances that befell the UAC scientific team there.

The pacing of the film is pretty good. Like ALIENS, it doesn't just drop you into the thrills and chills right away. There is a good deal of searching, and sweeping and clearing.

The film even tries to add a slightly deeper story line as one of the Marines, Reaper (Karl Urban) has a loved one (Rosamund Pike) on Mars, and seeks her out, reluctantly joining the RRTS mission.

There are some interesting characters among the Marines in the film... a horndog, a destroyer, a "kid", a man of faith, and a loudmouth. The usual motley mix for sci-fi Marines.

The acting ranges from pretty damn good (Karl Urban) to pretty okeeday (The Rock). Fans of Dune may even recognize the actor who plays Dr. Carmack as the one who played Dr. Wellington Yueh from the Sci-Fi Channel Production of DUNE.

This movie is more of a big screen experience than Serenity was, but not by much. All told, this movie would probably have been better suited as a Sci-Fi Pictures Original.

The film even goes into a brief segment of First Person mode near the end of the film. The result is a mix reminiscent of DOOM 3 on Xbox/PC, and a Halloween Haunted House....sometimes it's cool..other times, downright laughable.

Gore factor: Plenty.

There were a couple of instances where I flinched a little bit, but in many ways the movie still left me wanting.

It seems to leave the possibility of a sequel. (Where hopefully we might see such creatures as the Spider Mastermind, or the Cyberdemon.) It covers all the important aspects of the video game upon which it was created.

Monsters: Check Heavy array of weaponry: Check Gung ho Marines: Check Cooperative mode: Check Deathmatch: Check

The BFG did seem a wee bit underpowered in the movie. Still, it was nice to see in action a couple of times.

BOTTOM LINE: As long as you turn your brain off and pass the popcorn, DOOM is a pretty enjoyable flick. I don't predict major box office for the movie. I'll be amazed if it does as well as, or better than Serenity.

Respectfully, Martok2112

FILM: SERENITY DISTRIBUTOR: UNIVERSAL DIRECTOR: JOSS WHEDON PRINCIPAL CAST: NATHAN FILLION, ADAM BALDWIN, SUMMER GLAU, JEWEL STAITE MPAA RATING: PG-13 RUNTIME: 2 hours

Story: 4/5 Acting: 5/5 Sound: 3/5 Visuals: 3/5 Endorphin Factor: 3/5 Big Screen Experience: 1/5 Scoring system: Average: 3/5

MOVIES IT COULD BE COMPARED TO: Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

DETAILS: Well, I went to Serenity. My day started out perfectly enough as the bus ride to get me over to Superior from Duluth was sheer perfection in timing.

I walked into the theatre, sat down, played my PSP until the previews started rolling. Thankfully, they were kept to only three previews, finishing off with DOOM.

I was stoked. I was ready to join collective Browncoats in sheer joy at the playing of this movie, and to come out singing its praises when the end credits rolled.

Then the movie began. It started out deceptively big screen enough.

And then the signal that can't be stopped just seemed to stall from there.

The movie had its humorous moments, and Kaylee was always a pleasure to see. Everyone performed their roles to perfection, just like the TV show.

The story itself was tight, with a couple of plot holes (but then, what story is perfect.)

The special FX varied from pretty darned good to pretty darned good for a video game cut scene.

Otherwise, the cinematography, combined with the varying quality of special FX and the nature of the story just kinda meshed in a way that didn't jive for me.

I really, really wanted to be blown away by this movie, but ultimately (with the exception of a few laughs) I really was rendered stone cold.

One major inconsistency that irked me was "sound in space". What?! Firefly was vaunted for its realism of NO SOUND IN SPACE, which it held for most of the movie...and then all of a sudden, in a major FX sequence...there's sound?! And they were still in space!!! The movie lost serious cool points with me there. I was at a point of: "Make up your mind!"

I am doing my best to avoid spoilers for anyone who has not seen the film.

BOTTOM LINE: To sum SERENITY up in three words: A Good Episode.

Joss, I think it's time for that moment of silent contemplation.

Respectfully,

Martok2112