MY FAVOURITE MOVIES - BATMAN & ROBIN {YES, REALLY!}

 

Now I know what you're thinking and no, the men in white coats have not been informed just yet, I say yet. Whilst this film has been dubbed one of the worst films ever made {and in all honesty it is], allow me to give you my honest review, and also express why I love this zany, farcical, campy superhero film of my favourite superhero, Batman.

 

Now I am a huge Batman fan, having seen all the films and a fan of the video games too I have seen the good {The Dark Knight}, the bad {Batman Returns} and the ugly {Batman & Robin}. I even enjoyed the very campy 60s Batman series with Adam West playing the caped crusader. This film is directed by Joel Schumacher and he took over from Tim Burton whose last Batman film was Batman Returns, a film I didn't enjoy at all as I felt as good as Danny DeVito was as The Penguin, it didn't have the "fun" factor and was disappointing to me. However, Schumacher's first film in this series was Batman Forever, a much more kid friendly film and I thoroughly enjoyed it especially the performances by Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones {The Riddler & Two Face/Harvey Dent}and whilst this film is very campy and filled with one-liners, I enjoyed it a lot and consider it one of my favourite Batman films.

 

I will be very fair in my review and point out the bad points of the film, and by that I mean in a general film making sense. This film was considered a huge flop in a box office sense. I always found the decision to name George Clooney as Batman to be terrible. I feel he is not a "believable" Batman and true to form he proved a huge disappointment and seemed to look like he didn't want to be in the film at all, and to be honest who could blame him! Chris O'Donnell returns as Robin and within the first  minutes of the film, the one-liners are on show with Robin telling Batman "I want a car!...chicks dig the car!". To which Batman responds with the gem that is "this is why superman works alone!.." O...K then.

 

There is less of Alfred in this film and the actor playing him {Michael Gough} must be physic as he must have known how bad this film was going to be so decided to agree to his small role! This film is FULL and I mean FULL of one-liners that to many will drive them insane, but to many others {including myself}, prove to be the best part of this entire film! The director and writers of the film have clearly no idea how to write a decent plot as very little in this film makes any sense. Now are Clooney and O'Donnell the worst actors in the film, nope and not even by a LONG shot, enter Mr Freeze and Poison Ivy {played by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Uma Thurman}. Wow, just wow. Freeze and Poison Ivy's plan to take over first Gotham City, and then the world, is so silly and campy that it defies belief but the two actors involved make it so silly that you just accept it and go along for the ride! Mr Freeze's dialogue consists of one-liners only it seems, such gems like "The iceman cometh!", "What killed the dinosaurs?...the ice age!" and the corniness that is everybody just. Chill" I kid you not ladies and gentlemen. Uma Thurman is just as corny as Poison Ivy with a cartoonish performance which goes with the tone of the film, but you would never have guessed that this woman was once nominated for an OSCAR! Oh dear.. what a fall from grace!

 

The special effects are just awful too. Icicles wobble like they are made of plastic, oh wait, they ARE made of plastic! The whole tone of the film was to make it so unrealistic and market it as one big toy advert/commercial, which ironically is what contributed to its lack of success as it was put into production after the toys of the film came out, which explains a lot to be honest.

 

Also on a side note, to any fans of Bane, and especially those who like his portrayal in The Dark Knight Rises by Tom Hardy, were horrified when Batman & Robin came out as Bane was made to look like a complete fool, and even though I wasn't annoyed by Bane in this film, I can see why some comic book fans were upset by his portrayal.

 

So why after all the bad points that I have just noted before you today, do I love this film so much? Because it is so entertaining to watch! As a film in general, it is a disaster, but my word what a beautiful disaster it is. Not many films in your lifetime will have so many memorable moments than this one. Heck, I still quote Mr Freeze's epic lines from time to time! It is so outlandish and cartoonish that after a while you cannot help but enjoy the ride this film takes you on. It is truly one of the funniest, and quite frankly silliest, films I have ever seen and is one of my favourites of all time. I love The Dark Knight and consider it my all time favourite Batman film, but this, along with Batman Forever, are without doubt in a league of their own {not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing!}

 

My rating - {as a film in general} 2/10

                   {as a memorable and funny film} 9/10

 

I love this film even with all of it's flaws, and yes there's plenty of them!

 

Thanks again everyone for reading this review it means a lot to me. If you would like to share this review on other blog sites feel free, you can also +1 this on Google+, follow me on Twitter @MARRAMD, leave a comment below and share your thoughts on this film!

 

Question of the day - What is your favourite Batman film? also, feel free to tell us why :}

 

My next review will be uploaded very soon guys thank you for all the support!

 

Take care :]



 

 

MONSTERS UNIVERSITY MOVIE REVIEW

 

Monsters University is a animated children's comedy film brought to you from Pixar, who are arguably most famous for the Toy Story trilogy. This film is a prequel to the highly successful Monsters Inc.

 

For those who have seen the original film, like myself, it was a huge box office success and in my opinion one of Pixar's best animated presentations. The two main characters in that film were Mike Wazowski {voiced by Billy Crystal} and Sully {voiced by John Goodman} and I remember really enjoying the original a lot so going into this prequel I had my doubts it could live up to the previous film. The film's main plot {no major spoilers} follows Mike and Sully again, but as kids, and not instantly friends either. Mike first visits Monsters Inc., a scare company on the fictional area on Monstropolis, on a school trip as an impressionable 6 year old. after meeting some of the senior scare majors, he is instantly fascinated and strives for the next 11 years to become a student at Monsters University. Fast forward those years and Mike has made it to Monsters University as a freshman. He quickly meets his new roommate Randy Boggs, a chameleon type creature who is all brains, but has no scare factor whatsoever. Mike eagerly awaits his first day on the programme and believes with his superior knowledge he can become a scare major in no time. Upon his first day, he and his class, whilst answering scare related questions, are interrupted by a loud and terrifying roar from Sully {James P. Sullivan to be exact}. His father was a major at Monsters U so he is a legacy child, and with that his arrogance becomes clear that he doesn't need smarts to get by as he can be scary without really trying.

 

Also during the class, they are introduced to the very strict {and also strange looking} dean of the university, Abigail Hardscrabble. She informs the new students that she will only tolerate and accept the very best scares in her programme, and the weakest will be kicked out if they fail to pass the upcoming test in a week's time.

 

Mike fails as he is too busy concentrating on his knowledge of scaring instead of balancing that along with the physical side of things. Whilst Sully fails due to the opposite, he doesn't possess the knowledge of scariness to progress, Their futures at Monsters U appear over, until they discover a competition called The Scare Games, a series of challenges designed so the winners will become the top monsters in the campus and evidently will be top of Hardscrabble's class. There are a number of typical groups in this scare games, there's the :jocks:, the cheerleaders, the "emo" students ', and then there's Mike and Sully's group of nerdy misfits. Whilst they still don't get along, Mike and Sully, along with their oddball group, must win the scare games and win a place back in the university.

 

I will stop the review of the plot there as I don't want to spoil anymore of the film, never the less this film I s very entertaining! Fans of the original Monsters Inc. film will enjoy this entry to the series. Is it a children's film? Yes of course but it's not without its comedy element that will appeal to kids and adults alike. The plot goes exactly where you think it will go, however I was still interested in it and enjoyed watching it unfold. Mike and Sully aren't just the only characters you will enjoy. Their oddball group of the least scary looking monsters ever assembled each have their own moments that make you laugh, and even though Abigail Hardscrabble isn't exactly friendly, I enjoyed her part in the film and she was voiced by Helen Mirren.

 

Pixar's animations, for me, have always been stunning to look at and this film is no exception. The attention to detail is fantastic. There are a couple of references back to the original film, they felt a little forced in at times but it was nice to see these elements mentioned.

 

I found myself enjoying the film and when it seems to have a ending, it then carries on for a good half hour longer and I felt that made the film more entertaining as the ending I thought was going to happen would have been too "cute" and predictable.

 

I would recommend Monsters University to people who not only have kids, but people who just enjoy good animated films.

 

My Rating - 7/10

 

Positives - Great animations, funny, fun for people of all ages

 

Negatives - Not as good as the original, references to the original felt forced at times, story was extremely predictable.

 

Thanks for reading this review everyone it means a lot to me. Hope to have more regular additions coming soon. If you like this review feel free to share this link on any other blog page{s}, +1 this on Google plus, share it, follow me on Twitter @MARRAMD, leave a comment below, let me know what you thought of the film!

 

Question of the day - What is your favourite Pixar/Disney film? Mine is Toy Story 1 :}

 

Take care :] 

Hey guys just a quick update and my apologies for my lack of World War Z review. I have yet to go and see it yet as I haven't had time to go at the moment but will be seeing it within the next 7 days so keep visiting the site, follow me on Twitter @MARRAMD and I will let you know when I have the review uploaded :} Thanks for your patience and have a great day!

This is the end Movie Review

 

 

This is the end is a comedy starring Seth Rogan, Jonah Hill, James Franco, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson, Jay Buruchel  and a whole load of cameo appearances from various other celebrities {whom i will not spoil for you} and they are essentially playing themselves. A more exaggerated version of themselves, but themselves none the less. The film starts out with Seth Rogan and Jay Buruchel heading to a party at James Franco's house where they act how they do in most of their films, Seth gets high, Jonah's drunk, James Franco is over the top and crazy, then all of a sudden the world goes to hell, literally. Giant holes in the ground start appearing and swallow up people, buildings are on fire, all signs point to an "end of days" fate for our actor heroes. People are also being engulfed by a bright blue light that takes them to heaven, so they barricade themselves in Franco's house and together they must survive the apocalypse. Now I'm just going to say right now that this in my opinion is one of the funniest films I've seen in a couple of years, this film is hilarious!

 

The actors play actors and how they are perceived in their films and I found it very, very funny. There is also a lot of times where they take jabs at each others' less successful films and there's a lot of film reference humour in this film that I particularly enjoyed. The chemistry between the cast and indeed with the various cameo actors/actresses is genuine too and they act like a huge group of friends for the most part.

 

I will warn anyone though who maybe is not a huge fan of Seth Rogan style comedy, the more drug related jokes and sexual innuendoes may not get what they want with this film as its more of the same here. I however, don't mind that kind of humour so it didn't bother me, except a few times where they seem to stretch a joke out too long but that only happens maybe twice in the entire film.

 

The film was never dull in my opinion and whilst the CGI was average at best when the "monsters" are shown attacking people, it did its job well and doesn't take you out of the film. There is so much to laugh at in this film that I'm finding it very hard to keep this spoiler free! It's not always my style on these reviews to tell you to go and see a film, because the choice is evidently yours to make, however I would highly, highly recommend this comedy, especially if you want to see a ton of film references, great and funny cameos, a decent story and just a good comedy then I would say go and see this as soon as you can!

 

I will say though, there is a MAJOR cameo at the very end of the film that I loved! {and any 90s child will enjoy as well!}

 

My rating - 9/10

 

Positives - {where to start?!} The main cast, the cameos, very funny, good to see actors playing themselves, decent CGI, just a very fun film!

 

Negatives - Too many male sexual references at times, CGI could have been better, if you're not a fan of gross humour you may not enjoy it

 

Thanks again for reading this review everyone I am sorry I can't go into much more detail but I would be giving away the cameos and I think you will enjoy them better if you weren't aware who was in it. Unless of course you guys want me to do a spoiler review of the film if so leave a comment below!

 

If you like this review I have many more in the side bar if you want to see more of my material. Also, if you want to you can share this review and blog to your friends, or any other blog sites that would be appreciated! Also, +1 this on Google+, follow me on Twitter @MAARRAMD, leave a comment below let me know what you thought of This is the end, did you enjoy it? Which particular cameo was your favourite?

 

Thanks again everyone I appreciate every view and every bit of feedback! My next review will be of one of the favourite games, Resident Evil 5, but that is not before I review World War Z starring Brad Pitt which will be uploaded on Wednesday.

 

Take care :]

 

 

 



 

MY FAVOURITE GAMES - RESIDENT EVIL 4

 

As some of my friends know, I am a HUGE Resident Evil fan. I adore the games {the films on the other hand..not so much!}My favourite RE titles being RE1, RE3 and this title Resident Evil 4. This is a survival horror game with action elements created by Capcom who brought us most of the other RE games. Old school RE fans will know our hero who you play as, for anyone else you play as police officer Leon S. Kennedy who is sent on a mission to a rural part of Europe {Spain to be exact} to find and rescue the U.S president's daughter Ashley Graham who was last seen in the country having been kidnapped by a unknown {at the start of the game} terrorist organisation. As soon as you're thrown into the action the graphics are very, very good { I've played the Xbox live version and also the PS2 version however for the benefit of this review I will revert to the Xbox version}. The camera is focused over the shoulder so you can see your surroundings very well. After the first cut scene where {minor spoiler} you encounter a very unfriendly local with an axe, you are instantly under attack from a group of the local inhabitants. These are not zombies like in previous RE games, these are people who have injected with a parasite called Las Plagas which turn normal people into mind controlled animalistic murderers and worshipers of the Los Illuminados, headed by their leader Osman Sadler and is made clear that they have captured Ashley.

 

The story is very entertaining and whilst its a step away from the horror zombie gameplay that previous games have gone, its a very welcome change for the series and provides a lot of action packed and suspenseful scenes. The voice acting in this game is top notch too, while the villagers speak in varied amounts of Spanish and the main bosses in the game have great dialogue exchanges with Leon, and eventually Ashley once you find her. The creatures' movements are zombie - like, and you think you have them under control, even when a group surrounds you, but then they run quickly and violently towards you, throwing your calmness into a mad dash melee of physical attacks, shooting and all important dodges. 

 

You also run into other characters during the game, some very helpful, some not so much! The boss battles in this game provide a decent challenge and whilst ammo is available it is fleeting so sometimes running away is the best option!

 

You also encounter a Merchant, he will offer you various items throughout your adventure ranging from new guns to maps and even larger attaché cases in order to carry more guns and ammo. He is a very helpful addition to the game and just when you seem to be struggling, he appears and helps you out, provided you have the right amount of cash of course!

 

The story itself is very well written, acted and fleshed out with a few good plot twists and nerve shredding moments that are now a big part of the RE series.

 

Upon completion of the game, and if you can max out your weapons you can unlock various guns with unlimited ammo, including the fan favourite Rocket Launcher, going through the game with that weapon is a fun experience and great for people who like doing speed runs and getting the best scores. Also, upon completion you unlock a secret mini campaign featuring Ada Wong, an old friend of Leon's that you regularly run into as the story progresses. Whilst it shows a lot of the same levels as Leon's story, it ties in well with the story and fills in any missing links the player may have within the story. There is also a Mercenaries mode to unlock, a level based game where you basically kill as many infected creatures as you can within the time limit. This adds a few more hours to the gameplay.

 

The game was originally released on the GameCube and due to its enormous retail success, was ported to a Wii version along with PlayStation 2, PC, and Xbox live versions. This game is an older game now but I felt id like to share my joy as this game and it is without doubt the best game I've ever played. I've completed this game 10 times and still play it now when I fancy a RE fix!

 

Is it a perfect game? No it isn't but its a very close to perfect for me and that is why I couldn't give this game anymore than my top rating.

 

My Rating - 10/10

 

Positives - Great action, suspense, cut scenes, voice acting, boss battles, survival horror elements, good extras, and of course the merchant :}

 

Negatives - I cant find many to be honest but this change from full on horror to action/horror did divide the hardcore RE fans so if you are a old school RE fan this may not be for you.

 

Thanks for reading this classic game review guys and girls very much appreciated! If you like this review please +1 it on Google+, share it on other blog sites and /or amongst your friends and family, follow me on Twitter @MARRAMD, and if you want to check out my other film and game reviews they're in the sidebar so please check them out!

 

If you want to leave a comment and/or +1 this review that's great!

What did you think of Resident Evil 4? What console did you play it on? Did you enjoy it or were you let down by it? What is your favourite game of all time? Let me know whatever you want!

 

Take care guys and my next review will be uploaded very soon :}





 

MAN OF STEEL - MOVIE REVIEW

 

Man of Steel is a comic book adaptation of the famous "Superman" superhero starring Henry Carvil as Superman {although referenced as Kal-El in this film}, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Russell Crowe, Diane Lane, Kevin Costner and Michael Shannon. For those who may not have seen any of the Superman films { I myself have only seen the very first film with Christopher Reeve} this is essentially the origin story of Superman. The film opens on the planet Krypton, a planet on the brink of destruction after running out of its natural resources the planet is doomed. Scientist Jor-El and his wife Lara have conceived Krypton's first natural baby in years and in order to save their son from natural disaster, they place him in a spacecraft with specific co-ordinates to send him to Earth, whilst infusing his cells with a genetic codex, that will preserve the Krypton race. However, Jor-El stole the codex from Krypton's evil leader General Zod and upon finding out of the theft and indeed the new-born's journey to Earth, Zod murders Jor-El. Zod and his followers are soon captured by the planets council and in order to suffer for their actions, are transported to The Phantom Zone, a sort of Black Hole out of reach of Krypton, however soon after the demise of Krypton, Zod and his followers escape and set out to find the baby with the future of Krypton in his hands {or cells}. Upon his descent onto planet earth, Kal -El is found on a farm in Kansas by middle aged couple Jonathon & Martha Kent, and raise the child as their own, giving him the name Clark. From a young age, the Kents are aware that their son isn't a normal child and although they don't know his exact whereabouts, they must protect his true identity from the rest of the world. Clark's struggle throughout his early life is seen through various flashbacks depicting various amounts of bullying from his fellow school children, however he never fights back as he knows how strong he really is and following advice from his father, decides to only use his powers for the greater good. Once General Zod escapes from the Phantom Zone however, that's when the film really kicks into gear, and this is where I stop revealing anymore of the films plot as I don't want to give anymore away. I will say though, that I thoroughly enjoyed this film!

 

Henry Cavil's portrayal of Superman was very interesting and very well acted. As many Superman fans will agree, the late great Christopher Reeve was a brilliant Superman and whilst many think nobody could come close to being as good as he was, Cavil in my opinion, is a very worthy Superman. I particularly enjoyed Russell Crowe's brilliant performance as Jor-El his dialogue with General Zod was brilliant and exciting to watch. I also liked Clark Kents' parents too {Costner & Lane} there was very good chemistry between them and Cavil especially from his mother. General Zod was played by Michael Shannon and whilst I thought he was a good villain and played a decent role, I felt anyone could have played his role and the film would be no different, he was an okay villain though don't get me wrong.

 

The special effects and CGI in Man of Steel are fantastic, and seeing this film in 3D is well worth it in my opinion, a lot of very elaborate action scenes and good versus evil clashes that were hard not to enjoy. The musical score in the film was well done too, setting the tone for every scene whether sombre or action orientated.

 

The only very slight drawbacks for this film to me, were that it maybe could have been a half an hour shorter, but that's just my view. The film is very well acted in most parts, a solid if not cheesy villain, good action and CGI usage, and solid performances specifically from Crowe, Cavil and Costner as well as Amy Adams who was a good Lois Lane and her chemistry with Cavil looked very genuine.

 

Would I recommend this film? Definitely! Some critics have panned the film some saying it was too bland and nothing special, and while I don't think its the best superhero film I've ever seen, it is a very solid film and very entertaining.

 

My Rating 9/10

 

Positives - Great action scenes, Cavil, Costner, Crowe, Adams all very good, good backstory for first time Superman viewers, some good humour in some scenes.

 

Negatives - Not a strong enough and memorable villain, sometimes too much CGI.

 

Id also like to add that Christopher Nolan Directed this film {He also played a huge role in the Dark Knight Trilogy} and I know some critics of those films weren't happy that not enough focus was on Batman and too much was about Bruce Wayne, I feel those same people may complain about this film too as we don't see that much of Superman until the last 30 minutes or so to be honest. However, this is the first entry in the Superman reboot so this is establishing the origin of the character.

 

Thanks a lot for reading this review guys it means a lot to me that you support my reviews! If you like this review please comment below let me know what you thought of the film, also What was your view on General Zod? Was he a good enough villain for you? Do you think Henry Cavil is a good Superman? Let me know anything you want about this film!

 

Also if you are on Google+ why not share this review amongst others, follow me on Twitter @MARRAMD, +1 this, share this review on other sites if you'd like to!

 

Take care guys and sorry it was late uploading I didn't get chance to see the film until today so my apologies :}

 





 

RESIDENT EVIL : REVELATIONS GAME REVIEW

 

Now I know this isn't my review of Man of Steel {that comes out this Friday} however i decided to review this game as I am a huge Resident Evil fan and after deciding whether to review this game or the god awful film The Last Exorcism Part 2, this game won hands down. Now for those who don't know, I have played near enough every Resident Evil game that has been on PlayStation and PS2, and also Xbox 360, with my personal two favourites being RE4 and RE5. I adored the older classic games don't get me wrong but when the series took the controversial step to produce a more action based game instead of the survival horror genre, I was pleased and felt the series needed something new injected into it to stop it from becoming stale.

 

Set between RE4 and RE5, old favourites Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine return to fend off waves of mutated creatures and attempt to foil a terrorist group from global domination, heard this plot before? If you're a RE fan you will have seen this done many times before. You first start off with Jill and her partner Parker, who are both sent to investigate a strange ship named SS Queen Zenobia and set about looking for Chris. However as you expect, the duo are not alone on the eerie ship as they are quickly "welcomed" by Oozes, a zombified, mutated species that inhabit the Queen Zenobia.

 

Old school fans of the series will be pleased with this release, as it is mainly survival horror based and has some very good creepy moments. The old fixed style camera is back like from previous older titles and this adds genuine tension as you never know what is lurking around the next corner. This game was originally released on the Nintendo 3DS, however its popularity spawned demand for its console release, and this is a direct port from the 3DS. While there is some action packed scenes in this game, like I said its roots are survival horror, the creatures while not mind blowing in terms of design and originality, are difficult to beat at times especially when low on health and low ammo, which can be rife in this game. Some creatures have instant death attacks, so dodging is required however very difficult to time just right as the controls can be a bit jarring at times. As this is a direct port, the game does sometimes suffer from low texture popping from time to time and in particular in the middle part of the game where you are dashing around the ships main hall, you will fins doors with anchors on them, pressing the right button to open the door triggers a quite long wait for the next stage to load and that can destroy any tension building at times. That being said, this RE title is a very solid addition to the series and one that many craved after some felt RE6 was very disappointing.

 

The game is also made to look like a T.V show, upon completion of a specific chapter, the next chapter will begin with a recap of what you have just accomplished with a "...previously on Resident Evil Revelations..". I myself enjoyed that element to the game however if its not your kind of thing, you can skip it completely by pressing the start button. So, with the great tension building moments, creepy creatures and overall solid game design, what are the negatives? Well, as fans of the RE series have come to expect, and can look past, the main story itself is completely unbelievable, almost slapstick at points, but still very enjoyable if you don't think too much about it! Also the voice acting isn't very good, at all. The partners that accompany Chris & Jill on their respective missions are different in likability, Jill's partner Parker is a wise cracking, good guy and is very likeable and helpful in combat, however Chris' partner Jessica is very obnoxious and whiny throughout and you don't feel they have the chemistry that Jill & Parker have. That being said, there isn't a lot wrong with this game, I found myself beating the campaign in 8 hours and i am an average player so you could probably do it even quicker.

 

One other addition to this game is the popular Raid Mode, a stage based points scoring game where you basically go wild and kill as many creatures as possible and get the highest score. You have multiple characters to chose from too and of course many different stages to complete so that will add a few more hours of gameplay for you. Also in campaign, similar to RE6 you will get the opportunity to upgrade your weapons with custom parts found throughout the game and by completing certain criteria in Raid Mode.

 

So, would I recommend this game? Yes. Don't expect RE6 type action this is back to its original horror roots and is a very solid game with a very entertaining yet convoluted story.  I thoroughly enjoyed playing this game and will attempt to complete it again on a harder difficulty.

 

My Rating 7/10

 

Positives - Good tension, never got boring story wise, survival horror roots return, good cut scenes and final boss battle

 

Negatives - Awful voice acting, Jessica, Creature design not very original, long loading portions in middle part of game.

 

Thanks again guys for reading my review and my first game review! If you enjoyed this review please be sure to +1 this, add and share this on Google+, share this blog with our friends, follow me on Twitter @MARRAMD leave a comment below what did you think of the game? How do u feel about the RE series going in a more action based style or do you want Capcom to go back to just survival horror? Whatever you want to comment about, let me know!

 

Take care and my Man of Steel review will be on this page on Saturday :}