Quickie review: The Expendables

Looks like Van Damme got the last laugh...

Writer-director-star Stallone not only should've handed over the camera, but he should've let somebody have a go at the script, and even more important, he should've secured the rest of the gang (Van Damme, Seagal, Snipes), even if it took waiting a year or begging them on his hands and knees. The Expendables is a messy, watchable movie that could have been so much more. Cheap production value doesn't help either. You don't just throw something like this together on a whim.


** out of ****

~ Patrick Fryberger

Quickie Review: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Broad and self-evident video-game referencing surprisingly doesn't spoil the show

Self-assured, confident direction saves what could've been a hollow or uneven exercise. Edgar Wright's frenetic-kinetic dazzlement sparks up early and often; it's innovative and not afraid to make mistakes, making such all but disappear. Cera doesn't fall into parody, and Wright proves he can do more than just make them. Above all, is the supporting cast: Kieran Culkin, Alison Pill, and Jason Schwartzman steal the show, among others.


***1/2 out of ****

~ Patrick Fryberger

I'd play it

Gets it right

Great reactions:

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Great yarn

The theater experience: memorable movie nights from a dozen or so critics. A great, worthwhile read. Check it out.

"Back the fuck up and watch"

A literally 'red' band trailer for Machete. No Lohan billing OR Don Johnson? LAME.



Still going to be there opening night.

More on Inception

Inception is showing the critics’ true colors. It’s a smart film for smart people, not a genius for geniuses, but smart nonetheless. Like a good ol’ healthy math equation, bringing our eloquent, cinematic authority back down to Earth. If you scan Rotten Tomatoes or even Metacritic, the lack of a coherent assessment is alarming, yay or nay. Judgment day, folks, judgment day.

But then again, maybe it’s not their fault. Maybe Inception’s one of those films that transcend the medium itself. More puzzle then cinema.

Either way, I’m impressed, Christopher Nolan. Bravo.

Quickie Review: Inception

It's all on a plane...of reality

A sense of inherent dorkiness runs through Inception, but frankly, it doesn’t give a damn. For once, the spectacle is in the smarts, and the at times underwhelming, other times ludicrous action pieces somehow gel within the mesh of it all. It’s intellectualism paced to perfection. Simply put, Christopher Nolan is keeping mainstream, Hollywood cinema alive. A joy to behold.

**** out of ****

~ Patrick Fryberger

Expendablettes?

This really got me thinking. I agree with a lot of the list, actually, but I haven't had the time to fully construct my own. Very cool stuff.

Check it out here.

Source: Bidonica

New Machete trailer

Saw this at the theater last night... pretty slick trailer, better than the first, and better than what I was seeing/Rodriguez's other summer effort, Predators.

"Introducing Don Johnson" never fails to make me laugh... I love how Seagal gets second-billing--let's hope the part lives up to that. No Lohan with the big controversy, a shame. I love the flashes of villiany around the :40 mark. De Niro, Johnson, Seagal, and don't forget Jeff Fahey. Some of the best villains come in ensembles... RoboCop, Kill Bill, even The Dark Knight, and this looks to be one helluva example. And M-Rod is so ridiculously hot I don't even know what to say. Should be fun.