So I never really got the chance to watch Lucy in the theaters, because of a combination of not having a ride and a lack of cash (story of my life). But I remember being excited for its release, the trailer looked good and the previews were fair. And it basically follows the same idea as Limitless, which in all honesty, was a blast and I loved it. So I got the opportunity to watch Lucy last night, and let's just say, my day could have gone waaaaaay better if I chose to watch Tropic Thunder for the millionth time as opposed to this shit-fest.
So, the story is about Lucy (obviously), who's tricked by her boyfriend into becoming a drug mule for a Korean mob boss (Triads?). So they plant the drugs into her abdomen and send her off, but the drugs eventually leak into her body, giving her the ability to utilize more than 10% of her brain and thus the ability to become superhuman.
Let me start by crushing your hopes children, this myth that a human being only uses 10% of their brain is total utter bullshit. It's science man, you can't argue with SCIENCE (Breaking Bad reference). Now that we got that out of the way, let's move on. I have never realised how much of a bad actress Scarlett Johansson is until I watched Lucy, like I don't see talent there. I mean she's a sex symbol, that's it, not a sex symbol that can act like Angelina Jolie. She fails as an actress just like Hitler failed when he tried to invade the Soviet Union.
She's really pretty but she just can't act
Another thing that pissed me off was the direction this movie was going in. *SPOILER ALERT* It went too over-the-top, I mean what's it supposed to convey to us (let's assume that this myth is a fact)? That if we reach 100% of our cerebral capacity, we just turn into this giant Daedric looking supercomputer and release a flash drive then disappear*SPOILERS END HERE*. Going back to Limitless, I mean that movie too was over the top, but it had appeal. It engaged the audience and it had a twisty-ish plot. Limitless was a "realistic" version of movies that are based on the "10% of the brain myth", whereas Lucy was just fuckin' weird. Lucy is a prime example in which the direction of the movie was literally just forward, and not in a good way. No subplots, no emotion, and just to top it off, an abrupt ending that would literally make you want to throw your TV from a fuckin' airplane.
Anyways, I'm losing brain cells just talking about this shit-fest. So let me cut to the chase, do not watch Lucy, because I swear to god you'll hate yourself for it. If you want a movie that explores the same idea as Lucy, watch Limitless, and trust me, you WILL thank me.
As a HUGE Metallica fan (and a fan of heavy metal in general), can you imagine the disappointment I felt when I found out that Bahrain's oh so perfect (sarcasm level breaking the roof) theater company, Cineco, only released Through The Never for a WEEK!! Now that my friends, is what you call pure bullshit. So I couldn't watch it in the cinema and experience the whole thing. But lucky for them, I have a pretty awesome sound system and a pretty decent TV, so my experience wasn't the full one, but it was fair to say the least. So the movie is about a roadie called Trip (Dane Dehaan) who goes to fetch a bag that the band needs...let's just say his journey's smooth at first, but after a while, anarchy steps in; and all hell breaks loose in the streets. All this is happening whilst Metallica are playing a concert of epic proportions.
Let's just say that I was glued to the TV, for an hour and a half I didn't take my eyes off the TV, I don't even think I blinked man, cause in the end I was in tears (Or maybe that's cause they played Orion). And that brings me to the set-list, it was perfect, they played fan favorites from every album since Kill 'em All (except for Load and St.Anger, which are my least favorites so I couldn't give a fuck). And I say the set-list was perfect because the songs were appropriate to the plot of the movie. The minute they started playing Creeping Death, every song was getting progressively better in terms of the pyrotechnics and effects on the stage. Although my personal favorite was when the electric chair came down from the ceiling and they started shocking the shit out of it with 4 Tesla coils during Ride The Lightning.
Yes, this is where I wanna be in life.
The level of anarchy in this movie is sky high, I mean Metal and Anarchy go together like Bonnie and Clyde man. I particularly liked the scene where Trip finds himself in no man's land between the police and the rioters, and that Sitar like intro of Wherever I May Roam starts playing, then just as both groups start to charge towards each other, Cyanide starts playing, that scene was perfection man. After a brief encounter with the Horseman (the main antagonist in the movie), Trip is left walking on a road with bodies hanging from a bridge...what happens next made me scream. Ahhh, as Trip walks we hear the familiar harmonious intro of And Justice For All, and I said to myself "Are they really gonna play it in its entirety?" Well yes they did, now you have to understand, before this movie came out, Metallica never played And Justice For All in its entirety, so having them play it in a movie was fuckin' insane, what a treat!
So Trip finds the duffel bag that the band needs, the contents inside it are never revealed (although it is rumored that the bag contained Cliff Burton's soul), and Master of Puppets starts playing. Towards the end of the movie, Trip faces the Horseman in a rooftop battle that makes the city fall apart, literally. So this happens whilst Metallica plays Enter Sandman, but they stopped playing it towards the end cause the stage started falling apart. At this point I though the movie was gonna end, like that's it the Horseman is dead, and the stage is fucked, so this must be the end right? But wait, they didn't play any song from their debut album, Kill 'Em All. This can't be happening, how can they forget?!?! But oh no they didn't, after assessing the damage, they play it...they play the big one....the song in my opinion that is bigger than Master of Puppets, fuckin' HIT THE LIGHTS!!! Yes as you can probably tell it is my favorite Metallica song.
Oh yeah baby!!
After that epic conclusion to what was already a mind blowing concert, Trip arrives back to stage, duffel bag in hand, and watches Metallica play Orion in an empty stadium as the credits roll. I mean you can't complain, you really can't. Even if you're not a Metallica fan, watching this movie will kick your ass so hard you'll end up in a wheelchair. It's a true concert film, like it doesn't get any better than that. It's definitely worth watching on a big screen TV with a banging stereo system. Because to be honest this is one of the best modern performances I've ever seen by Metallica. These days they're not as good as they were live, and I'm sorry but Robert Trujillo's backing vocals cannot match Jason Newsted's. But all that aside this movie is worth the watch, I would really recommend it if you just wanted to take a break and watch pure radness and anarchy (which everyone needs once in a while).
Boogie Nights.....what a fantastic movie. Now I would love to make this a one word review, but hey, that's not the way it goes (Unfortunately). But seriously, why hasn't anyone told me about it!! The minute I read the summary, I was hooked, I was like "Pause everything you're doing in life, and watch this movie.", no joke. In my opinion, Boogie Nights is the first movie to accurately give you an inside look at the excesses that pornographers engaged in the the 70's and 80's, drawing heavily from the likes of legendary pornographer John Holmes. The story is about high school dropout Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg) who works as a dishwasher in a nightclub. One night, he is discovered by porn director Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds), who decides to introduce Eddie to the porn industry. Eddie runs away from home and starts working for Jack using his new stage name "DIRK DIGGLER", probably one of the best fucking stage names ever!! So anyways, all is good until the 80's roll in and the excesses start to come.
This movie has guts man, I'll give it that. It dives into the world of pornography full force, flipping off anyone who mentions the word "taboo". It gives us a detailed look into the life of a successful pornographic actor during the "Golden Age" of porn. It has a fine balance between violence and comedy, which is something hard to achieve, and I realized that when I tried to categorize it; I was like "This isn't a comedy, nor is it an action, or a drama". It's one of those movies you can't really classify, no matter what IMDB or Rotten Tomatoes tell you. I like the symbolism in the film in a sense that it shows us that even a nobody, can become a somebody, given the right circumstances (and the right body parts). And wow man, Julianne Moore was pretty hot in the 90's, holy shit!
Eddie Adams aka Dirk Diggler
I also like how despite the fact that there's a number of subplots, the movie does such a job in not fucking up how they're presented, smooth transition, that's the way to go. And all the sub-plots eventually come together to form the whole plot of the movie in such harmony I couldn't believe it. And my god but Mark Wahlberg does such a good job portraying Dirk, you'd actually think he was a pornstar in his past life. At the beginning he gains so much as a result of entering the porn industry, you start thinking of actually becoming a pornstar, but that's just the beginning, what happens next ain't so pretty. Lets just say that Dirk Diggler rises, then falls on his face...hard.
Perfect Cast
But, despite all the coolness and the glitz and glamour that Boogie Nights has to offer, it still bears a very important message. Too much of anything is bad for you, don't dive into the world of excess cause you're bound to break a leg and drown. But beside all that serious stuff, Boogie Nights is an amazing movie, I mean it is one of my favorites. Because it's just funky and cool, you know, with a good balance of action for good measure, and an amazing plot. You'll appreciate the movie, because it is worth it, trust me. One complaint though, the run time, 2 hours and 35 minutes; that's a lot of film. Apart from that, I haven't got anything negative to say. I'd say the only people who would complain would be like hardcore overcaring, overprotective parents; and you know when THEY complain, 9 times out of 10, the movie is bound to be awesome.
I wanted to watch this movie the day it came out, which was
May 1st, but unfortunately I kind of lost track of time because that tends to
happen when you're on your summer vacation. So I had the chance to watch it
today and in 3D, which was pretty nice considering that I barely attend 3D
movies. Now I must say that I'm more of an Andrew Garfield fan than a Tobey Maguire
one. But in all honesty, I had high hopes for this film bearing in mind the fact
that I loved the first one, I'm sad to say it didn't quite deliver it for me.
Let me start off with some good points, for instance the
battles between Spiderman and Electro are fantastic, I've never been so engaged
into a battle like this for quite some time and it's just a pleasure watching
them fight it out with awesome choreography and spectacular visuals and music,
I mean Hans Zimmer is the composer so you'd expect the music (especially during
battle scenes) to be epic, and oh boy it was. Jamie Foxxx was spectacular as
Electro, I had my doubts about him I must say, but he impressed the hell out of
me. Just the fact that he goes into extreme territories of obsession indicates
that he's not the type of guy you'd want to tread on. The CGI on him was terrifyingly
realistic and his character is just so unpredictable and live, you feel like
he's just doing to get recognition, and that's scary, how extreme he goes just
to be recognized. And let's not forget the chemistry between Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone was flawless, my god Emma Stone is beautiful!
Goddess
And Dane DeHaan did
quite a good job portraying Harry Osbourne and I loved the way that he's
actually a goblin. As freaky as that may sound but he actually transforms into
a goblin. Rather than in the original Spiderman where the Green Goblin was just
Norman Osbourne wearing a goblin suit. Also
this film is meant to be seen in 3D cause you'd really be missing out, it's not
the kind of movie you'd watch in 2D because it won't make sense.
But now let me movie to the negatives. First off, this movie
felt kind of like a videogame in some sequences, it was too CGI-ish. For instance
with the slow motion segments, I felt like I was playing a videogame where one
of the objectives is to save people before time runs out (you'll know what I'm
talking about when you watch it). The run time was just over 2 and a half
hours, but they were wasted, I'll tell you why. There were supposed to be 3
villains in this movie: Rhino, Electro, and the Green Goblin. Electro gets
enough screen time, so no problem there. Rhino and Green Goblin though, not so
much. Green Goblin only appears for a total of 15 minutes maybe, and Rhino
(which really pissed me off) only has about 5-7 minutes of screen time, OUT OF
2 AND A HALF HOURS!!! Instead they focused more on the relationship between
Gwen and Peter, like seriously I didn't give two shits, I just wanted to see
Rhino smash shit up. you'd think that they'd use 2 and a half hours efficiently,
but no they just had to complicate the love story. *SPOILERS* After all that
complex romantic side plot development, Gwen dies, hoo-fucking-ray *SPOILERS
END HERE*. Rhino and Green Goblin were so rushed that they didn't even bother
trying not to make it obvious, it's as clear as solid sunshine. Like seriously,
screw the romance and put more fight scenes. This is an action movie NOT a
romance film.
Ma Man!
But seriously though, I would reluctantly recommend it, I
loved Electro and the fight scenes between Spiderman and him, but in all
honesty, this movie was shit. I'd recommend you attend it with a group of
friends so you could all just have a laugh and diss this movie's flaws till you
run out of breath
Yep, I said I'd do it, here's my list of the Best and Worst flicks of 2013, lets start off with the best shall we? And I'm not listing them in any particular order....
I'd first like to say that 2013 was an awesome year with it's ups far outweighed its downs. Initially, I was supposed to make a best and worst list movies released in 2013, but since some movies that are released in 2013 in the US are gonna show in 2014 here in Bahrain, so I'm probably gonna release a best and worst list by mid-January.
But worry not, the following is a list of 13 personal and entertainment's best highlights of 2013:
13) Iron Man 3's twist. We both know that this was the last thing on our mind when we entered the theater, I won't spoil it for you in case you haven't watched the movie yet (although if you didn't, you gotta get your shit straight man!), but it made me scream "What the Fuck!" in the cinema.
Yes, It involved him.
12) Captain Phillips' Ending. I'm telling you, those 6-7 minutes in the end are good enough to grab Tom Hanks a third Academy Award.
Yeah, that's definitely an Oscar that I see.
11) Ben Affleck cast as Batman in upcoming Man Of Steel Sequel. This has to be one of the most disappointing decisions ever made, ever! Don't get me wrong, Ben is an exceptional actor and an even more exceptional director, but I just can't imagine him as batman; I don't think he can pull it off. In my mind Bruce Wayne/Batman will always be Christian Bale.
Yep, that's more like it.
10) GTA V. Do I even need to elaborate on this one?
Game of the Decade? Maybe
9) Last Vegas Ensemble. Last Vegas was an extremely predictable and mediocre movie for me, but seeing Michael Douglas, Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Kline all in one movie was an unforgettable experience. The satisfaction I got from seeing these 4 superb talents all in one film doing what they do best was mind blowing.
Cheers!
8) The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. You all know how much I loved this movie, despite its ending which was a complete pisser, I adore this movie so much that it had to be included on this list.
Legendary.
7) The Great Gatsby parties. The Great Gatsby was not one of the best movie I saw in 2013, in fact, I don't even like it that much. It's deviation from the source material, Tobey Maguire, and the overall feel of the movie did not impress me. But the parties, my god, I loved the over-the-topness of them, they are exactly the way I imagined them when I read the book.
Exaggerated goodness
6) Metallica: Through The Never. Master of Puppets, And Justice For All, Creeping Death, and Hit the Lights all live in 3D, need I say more?
MASTER! MASTER!
5) My Metallica collection is complete. December 20th, 2013 was the day I completed my Metallica collection FINALLY, as you may or may not know, I've been a HUGE fan of the band since god knows when! And to have all their albums here with me is just *sniff* sensational.
Doesn't that look sexy?
4) My discovery of TipsyBartender. I absolutely love this channel on YouTube, ever since I discovered it I was hooked, my favorite channel on YouTube by far. Cheers Tipsy!!
3) Jean Claude Van Damme's Epic Split. Just watch the video, you'll understand why this is the most epic things that happened this year. Badassery level: 1000000000000000000.
2) SENIOR YEAR BABY!! Yep, I'm finally graduating after all these year of blood, sweat, and tears. So far I'm enjoying every single moment of it, and I think it'll continue this in 2014 :D.
And NUMBER ONE IS.....
1) Breaking Bad. The rise and fall of a king, the end of a masterpiece, but the memory remains! I started watching Breaking Bad in the summer of 2013, and I was so hooked to it that I got up to season 5 in one week. To this day, I can't stop talking about it, such a legendary show that won my heart. Breaking Bad is the best thing that happened to me this year, and I will continue to love the show forever! Now, Say My Name.....
All Hail The King!
Finally, I would like to thank all my readers, friends, and family for their undying support and encouraged me to continue writing on this blog despite my lack of motivation. Happy New Year to all of my dear readers; party hard, live life to the fullest, and be safe.
I've waited a year, a whole year to watch this movie, I expected great things from it, and oh boy did it deliver. It surpassed my expectations, the wait is finally over and the reward was incredible. I just got back from watching The Desolation of Smaug like an hour ago, and I couldn't stop talking about it, it's actually one of the best films I've watched this year. It takes off directly-ish after the events of the first movie and it continues the story of Bilbo Baggins and his Dwarve companions' quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from Smaug.
The movie was 2 hours and 40 minutes long, but I was so engaged and absorbed in the movie that I actually forgot about time itself! I did not want it to end. I felt like I was in another world, it was that amazing. I could not take my eyes off the screen, I was hooked, filled with suspense and excitement at every scene. It was definitely better than the first movie, but that's not a bad thing to say, that gives us a good sign of things to come with the third installation.
As usual, the visuals in the movie were beyond epic, I still can't comprehend the fact that there are locations like this on our planet. The action scenes were fast paced, intense, and satisfying. The CGI was extremely convincing. And Smaug! Smaug was fantastic! Just the way I imagined him to be from the way he looks to the way he speaks and moves. We also see returning characters such as Legolas from the Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, oh and even Gimli gets mentioned!! Oh damn I forgot to mention, Sauron (Not the eye of Sauron, but Sauron himself) has a cameo, which just puts the icing on the cake really!! It was a really satisfying movie, but the ending was kind of a pisser, you'll know what I'm talking about when you watch it. (Fuckin' Cliffhangers)
Smaug, the greatest dragon I've see in a movie
If I could summarise The Desolation of Smaug in one sentence, it would be something like: "A brilliant combination of romance, action, suspense, horror, and comedy all tied together with brilliant acting, amazing directing and execution, engaging storyline, and a wonderful cast." And don't forget that the book was a little over 300 pages long, and director Peter Jackson managed to stretch that into three movies, now that takes skill and a lot of imagination. Kudos Sir Peter!
Is it better than the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, to be honest, with the direction it's going and with my expectations, I think it's gonna be really close. I won't even complain about the run time because I was so wrapped up in it that It didn't feel like 2 hours and 40 minutes passed. I urge everyone who enjoys movies to watch The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug right now! Would I ever recommend a bad movie to you guys? NEVER! (get the reference all you Metallica fans out there)
