I, Robot (2004)

Title: I, Robot
Director: Alex Proyas
Genre: Sci-Fi/Action
Highs: Interesting not so distant future look.
Lows: Nothing new here to see.
RhynoBot Grade: B

"AH, HELL NO!" That there is a Fresh Prince staple and is only a matter of time before he spouts those words just like Arnie's, "I'll be back". I wish I could say I loved this movie but I can't. Don't get me wrong it is very entertaining, lots of thrills, lots of action, and Will Smith is great at playing the cop on the edge. But what I find disappointing is that there isn't anything here that we haven't seen already a million times. It basically follows the standard Hollywood cop movie formula: friend of cop gets killed, no one but said cop believes it was a homicide, cop sets off to find killed against departments wishes, cop tracks down killer but wait there's a twist - it's not who the cop thinks it is after all. Standard fair with some cool futuristic technology inserted. The movie actually reminded me a lot of Minority Report in the style and imagery, not a bad thing since that movie had loads of style, probably the best thing about it. The most interesting aspect of the movie is the use of Isaac Asimov's "Three Laws of Robotic", essentially: 1. Robot may not harm humans, 2. Robot must obey all orders by human, 3. Robot must protect own existence. This is the basic premise for the movie, moreover, what happens when these laws are in conflict with each other. I will not proclaim to be an Asimov expert, since I have never read any of his work, but it would seem prudent to provide sufficient information regarding the man's theories of robotics and artificial intelligence if you are going to make it the central theme for your movie. I feel director Alex Proyas falls short here. His respect for Asimov is obvious but his implementation is lacking in that the theory takes a backseat to the explosions. Ultimately I blame the studio, god forbid they release an intelligent movie that makes people think. One final complaint - if you are going to put a scene in a movie with a woman showering, of which the only reason to do so is to show the woman naked, then for god's sake you better show her naked. That scene was completely pointless and irritating. I digress. Despite it's obvious limitations I was entertained by the action, the technology, and of course Will Smith.

This is an good eye candy movie, you should see it.

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Title: The Maltese Falcon
Director: John Huston
Genre: Classic
Highs: I now understand more Looney Toons jokes.
Lows: Acting was sub-par.
RhynoBot Grade: C+

This movie is the first in a series of movies I will be watching that are always listed on movie enthusiast's Top 100 lists as I attempt to figure out what exactly makes these movies so "great".

Well I watched this movie because it is currently listed as #23 by the American Film Institute's (AFI) 100 Greatest American Movies list. http://www.filmsite.org/afi100filmsA.html

However, I don't get it, this movie is in the top 25 greatest American movies? I personally have seen 25 better movies in the past 10 years compared to this one. In all fairness I wouldn't consider this movie a bad movie since it is entertaining for the most part but what I have trouble swallowing is the regard this movie has as a great American movie. OK, OK, I am aware that you cannot hold classic movies to the same standards as current movies, due to increase budgets and advancements in technology, etc. but still in my mind in order to be named "greatest" there is a minimum set of timeless criteria that makes a movie great. The most important of the criteria is acting ability, which is where this movie and many others like it made in the 1940's fail miserably as many of the actors of the time were trying to crossover from the over dramatized silent pictures into talkies. Luckily this movie isn't a complete disaster since Humphrey Bogart and Peter Lorre are undeniable the best actors in this movie and hold up pretty well over the test of time but everyone else are quite forgettable and often times annoying. The story is interesting enough filled with a little bit of intrigue, back stabbing, and double-cross but constantly has abrupt edits that make the movie not flow as well as it should.

Anyway, I can see why some people really like this movie especially with Bogart cast in a perfect role for his talents, on the edge, tough guy, private detective, but top 100 greatest American movie??? I say no. Maybe it has to do with a distinct lack of sophistication that movie made today have or my own personal bias (which is more likely) against movies from this era but it will be interesting to see as I move my way up the AFI 100 list if my opinion improves as I get closer to the #1 movie "Citizen Kane". Stay tuned.

This is an OK movie, it's worth a look.

Kung Fu Hustle (2004)

Title: Kung Fu Hustle
Director: Steven Chow
Genre: Foreign
Highs: Very entertaining action sequences.
Lows: Not as light hearted and funny as expected.
RhynoBot Grade: B-

Kung Fu Hustle is Steven Chow's second entry into the American movie market, his first being the very funny and entertaining "Sholin Soccer". This movie doesn't quite match the charm and light heartedness of Sholin Soccer but did however meet my expectation for entertainment value. The movie starts out very dark. We immediately see a handful of people get chopped down, literally, by the psychotic axe gang. The heavy death theme continues throughout the movie but the entertainment value soon improves with the appearance of Steven Chow and his exact same cast of characters (meaning actors) that made Sholin Soccer so hilarious. Chow by far single handedly makes this movie work. His knack for physical comedy and stage presence is right up there with some of the best American physical comics including Jerry Lewis, Jim Carrey, and John Ritter. The movie has kind of a wacky Loony Toons meets Kung Fu kind of feel to it which works well is some areas but really gets old in other areas. The movie does have some tender moments between Chow and the deaf/dumb girl that he tried to protect as a child with his newly acquired empty palm sholin moves he studied from a pamphlet sold to him by an old beggar. The moves didn't work for him as a kid and he got his ass kicked but it just so happens to turn out the beggar sold the pamphlet to the right person since Chow's character ultimately turns out to be to chosen one - a great sholin master.

Anyway, the movie is fun at times, grim at others but is good entertainment and can be enjoyed by a wide variety of Marshall Arts enthusiast's but is definitely not for everyone. If you haven't seen Sholin Soccer, see that instead, it has more universal appeal.

This is a good movie but not for everyone, watcher beware.