AE: Apocalypse Earth (2013) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_385" align="alignright" width="353"] Official Score = 2 Devils[/caption]

When I was a kid one of the Science Fiction movies that I found to not just be an interesting concept, but was actually a lot of fun, was the movie, Highlander (1986) with Christopher Lambert (Mortal Kombat).

I mean the concept of an immortal man that goes from age to age, and living through out history, fighting against his own kind... (Because there can be only one), was just a great movie, and a fun time in general...

Well when the show came to TV, Adrial Paul (The Void) took over the lead role for the TV series, and well, the truth is, is I think he did an absolutely awesome job in the lead on that show...

I hate to say it, but I have not seen to much of his work since, which is a shame, because in a role when he kicks ass he does an absolutely awesome job... And you know what? AE: Apocalypse Earth (2013) may not be a great movie, but it is a great example of Adrian Paul and his work as an actor!

Written & Directed by: Thunder Levin (American Warships). Starring: Adrial Paul, Richard Greico (Coachella Massacre), Bali Rodriguez, Gray Hawkes (The Hermit) & Jayson McCardell (From Faith To Freedom).

The concept behind this movie I found to be rather fascinating... What I mean by this, is that when humanity looses the war against an alien invasion force, Earth manages to get a couple of escape ship off the surface and away from the alien invasion forces...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="480"] Mankind as they are trying to crowd in to their escape crafts![/caption]

On their way, through the cosmos and while the survivors of Earth are under cryogenic suspension, their ships end up crash landing on to a hostile world, where they are being hunted by a group of hostile aliens that would be ok with wiping out humanity!

And for them to survive, they are going to have to band together with the humanoids on this new planet till they can get a ship they find up to working order and off this planet, so that they can go home...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="624"] Richard Greico with Adrian Paul in, 'AE: Apocalypse Earth'... In which they play the last survivors of humanity![/caption]

In the end, the truth is, is the concept behind this movie is an awful lot of fun, and the locations were great, the acting, and the vision of, 'Thunder Levin' was absolutely amazing... The problems though are as follows:

1. If the aliens are supposed to be completely camouflaged, then how come it seems to be easy to kill them?
2. Also, the alien ships are just a little to easy to destroy...
3. Also, the alien weaponry looks just a little to cheap, and I have to wonder, why with so much going for them did the makers of the movie end up using weapons that were dressed up to looks like more then they really were, but in the end was probably some sort of plastic toys that they got from the dollar store?

This movie may not be the best in the world, but it is a fun one, and I am glad that I have seen it at least once...

http://youtu.be/BDCnKOPYvd8

Aeon Flux (2005) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"] Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

I am not 100% certain of this, but I am fairly certain that with the subsequent success of, Johnny Mnemoic (1995) and the release and subsequent success of ‘The Matrix’ franchise, (both of which are great movies that starred Keanu Reeves), that the studios started working on big budget Science Fiction movies that had to do with a specific hero that has very unique powers that they had kind of been given to them at least to some extent…

Now there is something interesting that I thought that I would mention about these types of films. First off usually these types of movies tend to have big budget talent working on them, and they often are pretty well made, but oddly enough, don’t seem to do really good in the box office (or in some cases never made it on to the big screen!)

A few examples of course of these types of films being:

1. Equilibrium (2002), a fun movie that starred Christian Bale (The Dark Knight Rises) before he became the, ‘Batman’, and worked to take down a drugged out advanced society…

2. Another one is Ultraviolet (2006), a movie which starred, Milla Jovovich (The Fifth Element)… Now this movie was sort of a bland and extremely far-fetched attempt to show how a super soldier can take on her masters and win (some times going so far as to take out 100 guys at a time….)

And the last one that I thought that I would mention here is the movie, Aeon Flux (2005)… Now this movie which was written by Phil Hay (Clash Of The Titans), Matt Manfredi (The Tuxedo) and directed by Karyn Kusama (Girlfight), and which starred: Charlize Theron (Prometheus), Martin Csokas (xXx), Jonny Lee Miller (Hackers), Sophie Okonedo (Hotel Rwanada), Frances McDormand (Almost Famous), and Pete Postlethwaite (Inception) was great!

You see this movie told the story of how after a plague nearly wipes mankind off of the face of the planet, one man ends up curing the human race… The only problem is that there appears to be unforeseen consequences that he and his future generations will race against the clock to try and fix before the end of the world really comes!

Now of course no one knows about this, and everyone appears to have been relegated to one major city (The last major city on Earth)… and a rebel group by the name of, ‘The Monacans’ have decided to try and stop the reign of the governments tyranny against the population, and they are about to get their chance…

You see, The Monacans have gotten their opportunity to strike at Chancellor Goodchild (Csokas), and end up sending in their assassin, by the name of Aeon Flux (Theron) to assassinate him… but by the time she gets their she ends ups getting more then she bargained for and ultimately ends up fighting with the one man she has sworn to fight against!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="630"] Some times she even surprises herself with just how good she is![/caption]

Now I thought this movie had a great concept (which, so that I don’t ruin it for you guys I won’t be saying.) I also thought that this movie was very well written and acted, and some fun action scenes that should keep you on the edge of your seat… In the end, the only thing that I really thought was dumb, was the special effects and the over use of the concept of genetic engineering to cure all ills (including some sort of weird tiny little light switch in the back of the Monacans that could be used as a telephone, and some sort of plant life that shot spikes like machine guns…

All in all though definitely a fun one, and one that you guys might like as well!

http://youtu.be/wQ2LSS2QA2c

Planet OF The Apes (1968) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_415" align="alignright" width="350"] Official Score = 4 Devils[/caption]

I would be surprised if anyone on this planet has not heard of the, Planet Of The Apes movie series in some capacity at this point! I mean after all there was a prequel to the first movie that was released a while back with, James Franco (Spider-Man) called, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes (2011)!

But for those of you newbies to the series who probably got their start watching the latest movie, but have yet to catch up with the classic original series…

Well before James Franco did his prequel, and even before Mark Wahlberg (The Perfect Storm) did his remake of the original movie, Charlton Heston (Soylent Green), did an awesome job in the first, (and still in my opinion the best of the series), movie just simply called, Planet Of The Apes (1968)!

Written by: Michael Wilson (A Place In The Sun), Rod Serling (The Twilight Zone), and Directed by: Franklin L. Schaffner (Patton). Starring: Charlton Heston, Kim Hunter (A Street Car Named Desire), Roddy McDowall (Deadly Game), Maurice Evans (Rosemary’s Baby), James Whitmore (The Shawshank Redemption), Linda Harrison (Cocoon) and Woodrow Parfrey (Dirty Harry).

“TAKE YOUR STINKING PAWS OFF ME YOU DAMN DIRTY APE!” – George Taylor (Planet Of The Apes)

Planet Of The Apes tells the amazing tale of a group of astronauts led by Colonel George Taylor (Heston), from modern day Earth who while they are in a sort of a hyper sleep aboard their spaceship as it travels through space, end up waking up when their ship crash lands on some sort of a planet…

Of course when they first disembark, they don’t think much of the planet (as it seems like mostly a lifeless world (despite the breathable atmosphere…

So the crew sets out in search of shelter and food and the like (since their ship is now under water and currently unsalvageable…) As they are walking though, they come to discover certain interesting facts about their new planet… Like the fact that it looks like Man is an Animal and Apes reign supreme!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="850"] Taylor (Charlton Heston) as he is being held captive in a special (Human Zoo) and being studied by Dr. Zaius (Maurice Evans) and Zira (Kim Hunter)[/caption]

This crew gets that harsh dose of reality when they (and a group of savage humans end up being chased by a group of Apes that are trying to hunt them down and capture them!)

After they are captured, the survivors of the ship are taken to different areas where one of them is lobotomized, the other is killed and stuffed and sent to the Apes Museum, and the last one (Colonel Taylor) is left alive when he begins to not only demonstrate that he is intelligent, but that he can talk as well…

He demonstrates this to Dr. Cornelius (McDowall), and Zira (Hunter), who decide to protect him from a world where Apes treat mankind as the specimens! And now it will be up to Cornelius, Zira, and Taylor to get Taylor to safety before the rest of the Ape world gets the chance to destroy him! Because in a world like, the Planet Of The Apes, Taylor, is going to find out a truth about himself and mankind that will change both mankind and Apes in such a way that neither species will ever forget!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] 'Taylor' (Heston) with, 'Nova' (Harrison), 'Zira' (Hunter) and, 'Cornelius' (McDowall), as Zira and Cornelius try to help Taylor and Nova find a life for themselves![/caption]

Now if that hasn't got you interested yet, than let me tell you this.

A: Unfortunately just about everyone from this movie is dead… And it is a true shame, because the talent that was brought to this movie is unparalleled in how truly fantastic of a job that everyone did!

B: Unfortunately I have not had the chance to read the book that this movie is based off of… Before I continue on here, let me say this (most movies that are based on books that I have seen are usually not as good,) so I have to assume that if what I just mentioned holds true in regards to, The Planet Of The Apes, then the book will be mind-blowingly amazing!

C: The last thing that I wanted to say about this movie is this… I thought the special effects in this movie were amazing… Sure there were some campy moments in the special effect (but that was still good in my opinion… I mean after all it was the 60s…) But in the end, this movie had some of the best special effects that have come out of that era (short of Ray Harrhausen of course… But then again, he did set the standard back then…)

In the end, this movie for me was definitely worth the watch and could be for you as well!

http://youtu.be/uAH-Tw2hue8

Armageddon (As Seen On Screen)

The truth is, is that there are many types of Science Fiction movies that are a lot of fun, there are of course the variations on the old Orwellian theme of, ‘a brave new world’ which usually pits somebody that has broken free of the brainwashing that the advanced society has programmed everyone in to.

A great example of this type of movie, and as a matter of fact, it is one of George Lucas’s first films, is THX 1138 (1971). A movie which tells the story of a civilization that is so tightly controlled that even the very emotions of it’s citizens are controlled by drugs! And it took Robert Duvall (The Godfather) to finally break free and escape from that Orwellian nightmare and up to the surface of the planet!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="580"] THX 1138 (Duvall) being carried away by two robotic Cops![/caption]

There is another great Science Fiction movie that I thought that I would mention here, and that is the movie that usually is either based on a video game or on a movie, and has those heroes kicking invading Alien ass! Let’s be honest here folks, with all the comic book movies coming out lately, do we really need an example?

The next one that I thought that I would mention here is the dystopian post-apocalyptic movies! Now these movies are awesome! I mean, they usually tell of a hero, whom after a disaster (one that is usually a catastrophic man-made disaster), unites all, or a group of survivors, in an effort to fend off or destroy marauding bandits that are trying to destroy those that are trying to bring civilization back to the world!

A great example of this, is the movie, The Postman (1997), now this movie which stars, Kevin Costner (Waterworld) tells of how after a loner finds an old mail truck full of undelivered mail before the end of the world occurred, turns out to be the catalyst that brought the world back together again, and tears a tyrannical Army that had been controlling things, apart, and which ultimately restarts civilization in the whole!

Now this next one I thought that I would mention is those movies that have to do with apocalyptic end of the of the world scenarios! Another truly classic style of movie that oft times usually has a great cast and amazing special effects and a great story line to it as well!

These movies oft times will have one or a small band of people that are trying to stop usually ignorant, and frequently arrogant people from unleashing such things as a, ‘plague’, or ‘a virus’, or hell, even a, ‘black hole’. Sometimes these movies have to do with invaders from space almost destroying the world in an effort to inhabit it!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="570"] This apocalyptic scene is a scene from the classic Alien Invasion Apocalyptic movie, 'Independence Day' (1996)![/caption]

A truly classic example of these types of movies is Independence Day (1996). In this movie, the world is attacked by a group of Alien Invaders, and it is up to what is left of the United States to stop this Alien threat before they destroy the rest of the world!

These are just a few of the great examples of sub genres that deal with either preventing the end of the world from occurring, or watching the aftermath of the end of the world after it has occurred!

http://youtu.be/4hLXOVCZr-8

http://youtu.be/bPxBW1Ox13Q

http://youtu.be/3XHKZsH_A7w

Top 5 Films For Halloween 2012

With Halloween coming up real quick, and with the release of Hellinspace.com, A friend of mine and CEO of AwesomeBMovies.com, Matt Dowling helped give me this great idea for doing my top 5 choices for Halloween…

So please enjoy this list, and I hope you are able to find something to enjoy this Halloween from my top 5 list of films for Halloween 2012!

At Number 5: Slumber Party Massacre (1982):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="420"] A truly classic horror movie that is a fun way to kick off a Halloween extravaganza![/caption]

The name may not win some people over, but the truth is, is this is a great scary Corman/slasher that is really worth sinking your teeth in to!

Number 4: Friday The 13th (1980):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Alice as she is about to meet the woman that will change her life forever![/caption]

Come on, you know I had to put it in there… I mean it is a truly genuine classic horror fest that is definitely worth watching on Halloween!

Number 3: The Changling (1980):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="627"] Home Sweet Home....[/caption]

A truly great paranormal classic that I do think you guys might truly enjoy!

Number 2: The Pit And The Pendulum (1961):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Damn if that ain't the biggest butchers block ever![/caption]

A great Vincent Price classic that was based on an Edgar Allan Poe novel and has some great scares in it!

And finally, for number 1 we got: Halloween (1978):

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="800"] This guy is taking out trick 'r treaters left and right![/caption]

The truth is folks, is that this movie is my absolute all-time favorite movie in general… And let’s be honest here… The name says it all!

Anyway folks I hope that this series of movies helps you in your decision making on what to watch on Halloween night… and hey… Happy Halloween to all you fright fans out there!

http://youtu.be/Dqxl33EFIYA

http://youtu.be/2S8YFTcEDME

http://youtu.be/xTzgXVosQOU

http://youtu.be/4INAmCYjWZk

http://youtu.be/WLPbtz19rng