Movie Review: Pacific Rim

I really wanted to love this movie.  After all the hype and hearing all the praise, I was sure it would be amazing.  And although it was good, it wasn't a favorite.

What I liked:  I love the premise.  It's so unique, and the setting has a wonderful futuristic feel to it.  I also enjoyed the addition of the minor characters; they were well-developed and really added to the plot.  The action scenes were phenomenal.  They actually reminded me a bit of the action scenes in Man of Steel in that they were well-done and will keep your attention.  The special effects for those scenes turned out amazing.  There's some great dialogue that made me chuckle a few times, too.

What I didn't like: Ugh, what was with the two main characters, Raleigh and Mako?  I couldn't stand them.  They didn't have any character depth - there was so much action and plot development that I couldn't bring myself to actually care whether the characters survived or not.  And what was with the romance?  Mako has a crush on Raleigh and the movie suddenly ends with them being in love?  It was so unrealistic and just not necessary.  I also think the movie could've used more backstory about the scientific side of things; there were a few things that I didn't added up or needed more explanation.

Overall - I enjoyed Pacific Rim but probably wouldn't watch it again.  It's so long and dragged out, and I just needed more character development for this movie to work for me.  Fans of action movies should definitely check it out, though!

Favorite quote:
Raleigh: "I think we took this guy out.  But just to be safe, we better check for a pulse."
*shoots monster several times*
Raleigh: "No pulse."

My rating:  7 out of 10

~ Kaitlyn

TV Review: Sherlock

Recently my sister convinced me to watch a few episodes of BBC’s Sherlock TV show.  I was very surprised at how much I liked it!  The first episode is very intriguing, and watching Sherlock deduce people––he can look at a person, analyze them, and spout off facts about them in a matter of seconds–– is so cool.  I really like Sherlock’s character, the way he is so introverted and intelligent.  He’s such a genius that he rarely shows emotion.  So it’s heartbreaking at times to see how, despite his smarts, he has no one who cares about him, up until he meets his friend John.  I also love how Sherlock plays violin, which I thought was an interesting quirk to his character.  John Watson is incredible, and I love how kind he is to Sherlock. 

I will warn you this is a TV show for teens and adults.  There are quite a few references to gay people in the first episode, and Sherlock mentions one of the detectives had cheated on his wife.  As far as language goes, there are a few words, but not a very large amount.  There is some violence, but not a lot of it is shown.  However, with Sherlock being a detective, he investigates various suicides and murders of innocent, common people, which can be a little frightening.   

The acting is very good, and the plot lines are brilliant.  It is a very suspenseful and exciting show, and I enjoyed it!

My rating:  8 out of 10

~ Faith

Movie Review: Catching Fire

My grandmother took me to see “Catching Fire” the day after Thanksgiving. I had recently watched the first Hunger Games movie, which I enjoyed but did not have that “wow” factor for me. “Catching Fire” greatly exceeded my expectations in both staying true to the book, as well as having outstanding acting and cinematography. Jennifer Lawrence (Katniss) has several scenes where she has to show deep emotion, and several times I found myself crying along with her.

If you like the kind of movie that stays true to the book that it is based off of, this movie will not disappoint. There was nothing added to the storyline that was not in the book, and some of the same lines from the book were used in the dialog. The only thing of importance the movie failed to portray was when Katniss and Gale saw the Avoxes in the forest.

Content-wise, there were 2-3 instances of s***, and Joanna drops the f-bomb twice during her interview, but is bleeped out for the audience’s benefit. She also claims that she was “screwed.” I can’t remember for sure but I think there may have been scattered d**n and h*ll words, but not an overwhelming amount compared to many other PG-13 movies. There is one awkward scene where Joanna completely strips down in an elevator, however, only her neck up and her back are actually shown; there is no real nudity. During the same scene Joanna makes a comment to Peeta about how a lot of people want to “lie around” with him.

The violence is moderate to heavy, however it is mostly bloodless and “necessary” for the plot. The movie does not in any way glorify the violence, and it was considerably less than the first movie (in my opinion). There is one scene in the games where three bedraggled-looking people emerge from the forest covered in blood (from the blood rain), so if you are queasy about the sight of blood that might be disturbing. Katniss refers to the violence of the Games in a negative manner and often has nightmares of her time in the arena. Because of this she has Peeta sleep with her (not in a sexual way).

All in all, this may have been the best movie I have ever seen, and I highly recommend it for teenagers and adults alike. Just keep in mind there are some scenes that could be disturbing to children, so I would be cautious if you are a parent taking your kid to see it. Keep in mind this is not a family movie and was not made to entertain young children.

 

~ Nicole