Action

Blade 2 film review

The original Blade was a demonstration of frenzied visual effects, a technological vampire bloodbath with no meaning or direction. Although the series is still very physical, emphasizing battle sequences and special effects over story and characters, Blade II knows where the first film went awry and does not repeat those mistakes. Instead of creating a ….

The Bourne Identity film review

Last year, Christopher Nolan took memory loss to a new level with his masterful thriller Memento, in which the hero tattoos notes on his body to help him cope with his condition. This year, the amnesiac champion of The Bourne Identity uses brains and brawn as a means of sorting out his memory loss. Doug ….

The Bourne Supremacy film review

Attention all adventure-starved, action-crazed moviegoers: kennel the cat, wreck the robot, and step on that spider. This summer’s best action hero is not Catwoman, Spider-Man, or a CGI robot – it’s just a dude named Jason Bourne! Matt Damon is back to reprise his role from the widely popular The Bourne Identity as Bourne – ….

Casino Royale film review

Though great he may be, there is a limit to the amount of uninterrupted Burt Bacharach music one can endure. And sadly, that limit — of music punctuated by kazoos, harpischords, and accordions — is far less than 137 minutes. There’s also a limit on the length of a spy spoof one can sit through ….

Die Another Day film review

Here we go again. The James Bond franchise – Hollywood’s thinnest excuse to stage elaborate set pieces, photograph scantily-clad women and decimate fleets of sexy cars – returns for its twentieth installment, the fourth with current star Pierce Brosnan. Surprisingly, the all-too-familiar formula continues to wring out passable intrigue. Die Another Day contains everything we ….

Goldeneye film review

After six years in the freezer, Bond is back. Any 007 fan worth his salt will be aware of the fact that Timothy Dalton is out, and Pierce Brosnan is in as the U.K.’s ultimate spy. Out is Bond’s Aston Martin. In is a new BMW. Out with another actor playing "M." In with Judi ….

The Matrix Reloaded film review

In 1999, Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) uttered memorably, "Unfortunately, no one can be told what the Matrix is." In 2003, no one needs to be told, because everyone fully knows what the Matrix is. The idea of the Matrix has entered the popular lexicon. Magazines, with utter seriousness, create polls asking whether readers think we are ….

The Matrix film review

What many people forget when comparing The Matrix to its own sequels (or the Star Wars prequels, or any other maligned sci-fi epic) is that this 1999 original has bad dialogue too. In fact, search the entire trilogy for a line more cringe-inducing than “Buckle up, Dorothy, ‘cause Kansas is going bye-bye,” spoken by poor, ….

Kill Bill: Volume 1 film review

Sean O’Connell: "writes itself into the Hollywood history books" Quentin Tarantino’s fourth film, Kill Bill, reminds us why we, as a collective moviegoing society, wish he’d work more often than he does. The acclaimed director rocketed to cult stardom with Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, cranked out an overlong homage to film noir in Jackie ….

Kill Bill: Volume 2 film review

Editor’s Note: Last year Sean O’Connell and Jeremiah Kipp went at it — Tarantino style — over the merits of Kill Bill: Volume 1. The results were classic: O’Connell loved it, Kipp despised it. With the second installment of the highly-anticipated flick, the tables are turned. Now O’Connell’s got his blade sharpened, and while Kipp ….

King Arthur film review

Bruckheimer is back with the costumes, swordplay, sexy Keira Knightley and another talented albeit mildly-experienced director for King Arthur. The formula still works here, but not quite as very as the fun Pirates of the Caribbean. It works for about an hour or so. King Arthur, a historical version of the British myth, strips away ….

Mad Max film review

"They say people don’t believe in heroes anymore. Well, damn them! You and me, Max, we’re gonna give ’em back their heroes!" Those empty words come from the chief of police (Roger Ward) to his top dog on the force. Mad Max, read as a fairy tale horror film, follows the logic of a Jacobean ….

BASIC INSTINCT 2

Studio: Sony Pictures Cast: Sharon Stone as Catherine Tramell, David Morrissey as Dr. Andrew Glass and Bill Murray Crew: Michael Caton-Jones (director); Leora Barish and Henry Bean (screenwriters); Moritz Borman, Mario Kassar and Andrew G. Vajna (producers); Dan Maag and Philip Schulz-Deyle (line producers) Synopsis:Novelist Catherine Tramell (Sharon Stone) is once again in trouble with ….