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Saturday, March 28, 2015

[3.75/10] The Intruders (2015)

The Intruders (2015)

Quick Review: The unexpectedly silky smooth cinematography makes it better looking than it should be, considering its tiny budget, and the acting is passable for the most part, but "The Intruders" fails to impress otherwise, as it's a rather lazy effort, unable provide any actual thrills, or even cheap scares to its audience, offering a mostly familiar storyline, suspiciously similar to that in "The Pact", only less exciting and not half as intense. In other words it's simply a dull little horror movie.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

[6.00/10] Black Sea (2015)

Black Sea (2015)

Quick Review: Do not expect any depth from this otherwise well-made underwater film, because the only deep thing "Black Sea" provides is its submarine setting. That said, this partially intriguing treasure hunting thriller is still worth watching for the intense dynamics between its greed and despair-driven characters, the atmospheric environment, and last, but certainly not least, Law's superb performance as the tough, but fair veteran Captain, hungry for a bold adventure with benefits.

Sunday, March 22, 2015

[4.00/10] Monsters: Dark Continent (2015)

Monsters: Dark Continent (2015)

Quick Review: Probably the only thing the original was missing was more monsters. Instead of fixing that big mistake in the sequel and make them the focal point of the film, the director decides to neglect those, and go with a more ‘human’, but not necessarily more effective storyline. Therefore, "Monsters 2" feels more like a war movie, rather than a sci-fi creature feature, and that is likely disappoint those anticipating some sheer monstrous action.

 Click HERE to read the full version of this review, 
written exclusively for White Cat Publications

Saturday, March 21, 2015

[3.50/10] The Pyramid (2014)

The Pyramid (2014)

Quick Review: Taking place in an underground pyramid filled with dark tunnels and creepy chambers, the film is inevitably claustrophobic, but that is "The Pyramid" one and only strength, as everything else is lame beyond believe, from the ludicrous plot, irritating characters and pretty awful camera work, to the absolutely cheesy special effects and utter lack of quality scares. Also, if you expect to see the ominous-looking mummy from the poster, you'll probably end up deeply disappointed.

Friday, March 20, 2015

[3.75/10] The Cobbler (2015)

The Cobbler (2015)

Quick Review: It's definitely not the worst Sandler movie thus far ("Jack and Jill" anyone?), but what starts off as a toned-down, oddly charming fantasy comedy with a pretty original premise, that suggests the film to be a decent fun at least, quickly turns into a messy, downright ludicrous, and annoyingly silly thug story with zero laughs, sloppy action, and no entertainment value at all. And not even Adam Sandler's effort to make things better pays off, because this effort is, well, very little.

Thursday, March 19, 2015

[6.25/10] The DUFF (2015)

The DUFF (2015)

Quick Review: It will hardly turn into a teen comedy classic, like the awesome "Mean Girls" did, but "The DUFF" still breathes fresh air into the genre, showing the high school students' dynamics from a different and rather unexpected point of view, providing as many laughs as strong moral messages to feel comfortable in your skin, and fully embrace your individuality. The film mostly owes its success to Whitman and her funny performance as the duff, who makes unpopularity seem cool.

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

[5.00/10] Focus (2015)

Focus (2015)

Quick Review: It has a modern, cool vibe, and a specific moodiness that sets the tone from the start, but ironically enough, "Focus" does not give its audience too much to focus on, offering a barely intriguing story about professional pickpockets who steal with style, and a further less engaging romance between its two charming leads, who fail to generate any believable chemistry on screen. The twists near the end inject some excitement, but those are too many, and coming a little late.

Monday, March 16, 2015

[1.00/10] Muck (2015)

Muck (2015)

Quick Review: Offering buckets of gore but zero actual horror, a bunch of irritating characters played by an attractive young cast with no acting skills at all, and an underdeveloped, under-conceived often bordering on nonexistent plot, "Muck" is a rather hideously acted, scripted, directed, and executed slasher with no true qualities other than its decent looks, that leaves way too many question unanswered, trying to cover that up with tons of attention stealing nudity, and some cheap tricks.

Sunday, March 15, 2015

[6.50/10] Cinderella (2015)

Cinderella (2015)

Quick Review: Sticking strictly to the fairy tale, "Cinderella" will please everyone with traditional taste, and probably disappoint those expecting to experience something fresh, but either way, it cannot be denied that Branagh's rendition is enchanting in an old-school way, even if it tends to get soppy at times. Beautiful to look at, the film captures the eye with its exuberant production design, lavish cinematography and richly exquisite, if overdesigned costumes. Blanchett is the one to watch here.

Friday, March 13, 2015

[5.50/10] Chappie (2015)

Chappie (2015)

Quick Review: It has its director signature gritty visual style written all over it, and it's very refreshing to watch the relatively underused Hugh Jackman playing a villain, but Neill Blomkamp's latest and unfortunately weakest effort so far is too muddled, tonally inconsistent, and emotionally disconnected to be fairly successful, properly engaging, or at least a tiny bit enjoyable, and not even its semi- likable titular protagonist, occasional originality, and first class CGI work are able to change that.

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

[6.00/10] Clown (2015)

Clown (2015) 

Quick Review: With a better cast, bigger budget, and more capable director behind the camera, this Eli Roth-produced horror movie could have been an instant classic, but for what it is, "Clown" is a reasonably original flick with spot-on practical effects, a couple of decent scares, and some solid ideas, most of which rather badly-executed. Thankfully, it introduces one of the most sinister-looking clowns since the one in "It", and that's a good enough reason to check this 'creeper' out.

Monday, March 9, 2015

[4.25/10] Dragon Blade (2015)

Dragon Blade (2015)

Quick Review: Unnecessarily over dramatic more often then it should, and way too cheesy to be taken seriously, "Dragon Blade" is a wildly uneven historical Asian drama with two major American stars, designed to please western audiences also, even if that is unlikely to happen, as apart from some wonderfully staged swordplay, the movie has nothing to flaunt with, because of its below-par direction, sluggish script, and lack of consistency. And, let's face it, Chan is too old for this stuff.

Sunday, March 8, 2015

[5.25/10] The Loft (2015)

The Loft (2015)

Quick Review: There's a passable idea behind it, and the strong, good looking cast all do a solid job, even if most of them play unsympathetic characters, all of whom have their dirty secrets to hide, but Van Looy's erotic thriller becomes intriguing too little too late to be fairly successful, and its twisty story is too convoluted to be credible enough. On the top of that, "The Loft" is lacking quite a bit execution-wise, despite its sleek art direction, plus, pretty much nothing about it seems genuine.

Monday, March 2, 2015

[2.00/10] Frankenstein vs. The Mummy (2015)

Frankenstein vs. The Mummy (2015)

Quick Review: It is pathetic when an obviously cheap flick is trying to look slick, and even more pathetic when a dumbass film attempts to be smart. This is exactly the case with "Frankenstein vs. The Mummy" -- a rotten fish-stinky disaster of a horror movie with an ambitious but hideous and awfully tasteless execution, that takes itself so seriously in its desire to be both medically and historically accurate, and even philosophical at times, it gets laughable.