Movies Adapted from Books

The Rating System:

Filet Mignon=Excellent, fresh, and a memorable piece of art.

T Bone= Good helping, but not worth trading for a Filet.

Pork chop= In the middle, barely recommended.

Hotdog= Nearly complete garbage.

Cat Food= The slums of the food/movie franchises.

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Angels and Demons-(PG-13)-(Blu-ray worthy)

I have never read the Da Vinci Code, or Angels and Demons. I’ve also never seen the Da Vinci Code. This movie was literally placed in my hands, and I’m open to watching a movie, so I watched this one with no knowledge of the first movie, and thankfully, I didn’t have to know anything about the firs to understand the second. Angels and Demons is about Robert Langdon, a symbolist who is called to Rome to help find a lead as to where four preferitti are. They were kidnapped by the Illuminati, a society known to have bad blood with the Vatican since their creation. Clues, symbols, and puzzles lead Robert on a chase through Rome, as he tries to stop the execution of the four preferitti every hour. The three key points to this movie are acting, and plot. The acting had some high points. Tom Hanks and Ewan McGregor (Forrest Gump and Obi-Wan Kenobi, for the less actor savvy) were great, and Ewan especially impressed me. He pulls off his dazed, spacey, lost in thought, peacefulness just as well as he did while he was a Jedi, and there were no issues with his performance. Tom Hanks shines as well. The acting was impressive even from the no-names. The cops and scientists were played very well. Concerning acting, this movie had no flaws. The plot, I’m sure, wasn’t as in depth as the book’s. I’ve heard from numerous people that the book easily demolished the movie, but because I haven’t read the books, I have nothing to compare it to. Therefore, I didn’t know what to expect. The plot is witty, intense, and fast-paced. The plot revolves around finding clues and solving riddles, but there is a time-frame (one hour) to find where the execution will take place. This hangs tension onscreen at all times. The plot is similar to National Treasure. Nicolas Cage must find the clues to find out where to go next. Here, however, there is a time-frame rather than a item to defend. The plot takes many turns and twists, and at first, you feel like the book is feeling rushed into to hit all the key points, but then, the movie takes its time, and you forget that there was a book. Over all, Angels and Demons is a T-Bone. I recommend it to anybody who likes National Treasure, or anyone who likes history. It will entertain and surprise you. I guarantee.

Interesting Facts: This film wasn’t allowed to be filmed in Vatican City, for obvious reasons.

Behind the Scenes

Ewan McGregor Interview

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Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows-(PG-13)-(Blu-Ray worthy)

Oh, how I’ve missed you Holmes. Nobody I know except for me greatly enjoyed the first Sherlock Holmes. I enjoyed the amazing chemistry between actors, Robert Downey Jr’s performance, and the stylized action. Now, Sherlock is back for round two. Is it just as good as the first? Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is about Sherlock’s battle against Professor Moriarty, a man whose intelligence is nearly equal to Sherlock’s. He is a genius, and so this time around, Holmes’ enemy is a mastermind rather than a black magic wizard. The three key points to this sequel are characters, action, and thrill. Sherlock is just as witty as before, and Watson is just as irritated. They still work together as one while they’re on screen, which is refreshing. Moriarty is sinister and calm at the same time, and well acted. The characters worked very well together. The action was heavily stylized. Lots of slow-motion and close-up shots were used, but at appropriate times. It wasn’t overused, but they weren’t used sparingly. It was a good amount. The action is really cool and fast paced. This leads us to talk about the thrill. I must say, the movie drags at points. It is slow, but after the train scene, things pick up. The story is a bit jumbled during the beginning, but things clear up quickly. The thrill with this movie is the fact that it’s clever. Sherlock is clever. Blackwood is clever. The plots and story are clever. If the movie wasn’t so clever, I wouldn’t rate it how I will. Some of the things Sherlock does puts a grin on your face, because his plots are unnaturally genius. A handful of the scenes are so witty, which is why I enjoyed this movie. That’s why this movie works. Game of Shadows is a T-Bone. It drags a bit, but humor, stylized action, great moments, and memorable scenes will keep it a well-cooked T-Bone.  It was Sher-locking good.

Downey Jr. Dropped out of Cowboys and Aliens in order to make this movie

Though the plot involves lipstick, lipstick wasn’t invented then.

Be Careful with the Face Scene

I Timed it Pefectly Clip

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2-(PG-13)-(Blu-Ray worthy)

Considering I have read all of the Harry Potter books, seen all of the Harry Potter movies, and done a biography on JK Rowling, I would say that I am a Harry Potter fan. That means that I, along with millions of people, were expecting a movie that wrapped up the story and featured out favorite characters. I have to say, this movie pulled it off. The movie continues from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, and has the same storyline. The main characters must find the remaining horcruxes, which are parts of Lord Voldemort’s soul, and destroy them. The trio we know and love winds up back in Hogwarts, and so they reunite with old friends and teachers. It sounds like a happy reunion, but the problem is that Harry didn’t come back to Hogwarts for a pat on the back and a cocktail. He came to find the horcruxes, and Voldemort has a detour for him…. he and his army are outside the school. The three key points to this movie are visuals, characters, and the whole wrap-up. The visuals are much better than the previous Potter films, considering the fact that Dementors, spiders, giants, dragons,  Death-eater smoke, and spells were included in this film. The wand, smoke, and CGI effects were very impressive for a Harry Potter movie. Now onto the characters. What I like about this movie is that the majority of all characters from the previous movies are seen at least once in this film. Each one is shown taking a stand and contributing to the plot. I must say, McGonagall is pretty kickass in this movie, and Molly Weasley has  a line from the book that got the whole theater clapping. Neville Longbottom will win everybody’s approval, and Luna is just as loopy as ever. Here’s the thing…the full cast of schoolkids (or school young adults) isn’t shown in unity fighting side by side. The characters are rather scattered around Hogwarts. It’s as if each character has a little cameo. Hagrid is only on screen for (at most) three minutes. I expected as much, because there are a ton of characters, and most screentime is with Harry. It is HIS conclusion, after all. I remember my dad telling me how in every Potter movie, Harry barely has any dialogue, and the movies aren’t so much revolving around him, but the wizarding universe.  I am pleased to say that this movie is all about Harry, and I have a feeling that Potter fans will appreciate the humor and story wrap-up more than people looking for a good movie. This movie has most of the series’ characters in once bunch, each with a bit of time on screen, and it worked very well. Though it has only been roughly 8 months since we have not seen Hogwarts, you feel relief and a sort of welcome feeling when Harry goes back to his original home and reunites with his classmates.

The battle, visuals, and characters were great, but how about the story? How about the wrap-up and conclusion? I have to say, the movie didn’t show the significance of the horcruxes as well as Part 1, but it could have been intentional rather than a forgetful mistake. I guess the makers assume that the viewers already understand the concept of Voldemort’s soul being split up in pieces. The only complaint I have was how the ghosts of Hogwarts didn’t make it into the movie. Well, it didn’t make me that upset. Concerning the ending, it was satisfying, it was pleasant, and it will leave you proud to be a Potter fan. This movie will emotionally and mentally take you away, and new sides of characters will be revealed. This movie isn’t the best or best made, but people will be watching it over and over because they won’t be able to let Harry Potter go. This movie is a Filet waiting to fill you up, not for the directing or acting, but for the fact that it’s the conclusion to a great series, and that the characters deliver great one-liners and memorable scenes that will last a lifetime. Oh, and the 3-D is professional and impressive. See this movie for the great scenes, lovable characters, and Molly Weasley’s line alone. You won’t regret it.

Interesting facts: All of the goblin bankers were actually short people with heavy makeup. Not CGI.

Crabbe didn’t make it into this movie because of drug charges.

Bridge Scene

Daniel Radcliffe Interview

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127 Hours-(R)-(Blu-Ray worthy)

127 Hours was nominated for 6 Academy Awards, and James Franco starred in it…that’s all I needed to be convinced. 127 Hours is about Aron Ralston, a very knowledgeable hiker, climber, and athlete, goes canyoneering near Moab, Utah. Everything is going fine until his arm gets trapped in a boulder under the earth. He has to survive by himself for days, fighting starvation, hallucination, dehydration, and most of all, loneliness. You might be thinking, ‘Oh, a movie about a guy stuck in a rock. How dull.’ It’s not. There are constant hallucinations, video broadcasts (he has a camera with him) and montages. The three key points to this movie are sound, realism, and enjoyability. The sound was great. Tons of songs were jammed into montages and sequences, each expressing a point. You don’t hear tumbleweeds and whistling wind the whole time. Lots of tracks are included. The realism was right on. Because this is based on a true story, I hoped that it would be close to it. I know that Hollywood doesn’t have to make accurate movies, but I would like to see some realism once in a while. Thankfully, I got it. What is shown is almost exactly like the true story. James Franco watched over the real tape that Aron Ralston made. When Aron Ralston was asked how close the movie was to the actual event, he said  that it could be a documentary.

The Social Network, on the other hand, was admitted by Mark Zuckerberg to be exaggerated. The story was real, so don’t think Hollywood corrupted it too much. Lastly was the enjoyability. If you aren’t squeamish, scared of blood, or grossed out easily, this should be a great movie for you. If you cry at the sight of blood, don’t like gore, or can’t stand breaking bones, stay away. Yes, the ending is very gruesome. Anyways, James Franco’s performance was amazing. You feel his pain, and the gory scene at the end is acted so well that I believed it was really happening. James should have won an award for this movie. He was pretty much running a one man show, which is very hard to do. He is the only actor that is being really focused upon, and his performance was believable from start to finish. If you don’t know the story walking into the movie, you will be very amazed, but if you already know the true story, you will be kind of amazed. Overall, 127 Hours was a T-Bone with a lot of bones (that break). It wasn’t as upbeat as the Social Network, or as good, but it was decent. Very well filmed and acted. I have to say, if this wasn’t a true story, it would have failed. I think that it was great because it was true…but I wouldn’t watch again. The only big complaint of mine was that nobody from his family or friends searched or called the cops to look for him. In real life, his parents were scared to death and his friends were on the hunt. Other than that, it was well done.

Interesting facts: Aron Ralston really did record himself hallucinating, drink his urine, and talking about his life.

The amputation scene caused some people to receive medical assistance.

The amputation scene was done in one take.

James Franco Interview

Aron Ralston Interview

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The Social Network-(PG-13)

This movie received 8 nominations, and 3 wins…that was a wake up call that told me to get my head out of the clouds and to see the movie…so I did. Though I am not a Facebook addict, I enjoyed it. I expected it to be a series of montages, parties, and drinking with a genius, smart-talking guy as the main character…kind of like 21. This movie was very similar. The two key points to this movie were characters and attention factor. The characters were greatly acted and showed their own personality. Mark Zuckerberg showed you that he believed in what he was doing, and that he WASN’T just some nerd. He had purpose. His lines were witty, and though he wasn’t the strongest character in the movie, you keep rooting for him through the whole movie. At the end, however, you are unsure about who he really is: a loyal, honest, smart guy or a selfish, backstabbing, dishonest guy. Still, seeing his character change was great. Another lovable character was Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake). He is the famous, party loving, rich guy of the group. Though I’m not a fan of Justin Timberlake, I thought his role was impressive. The rest of the characters had their own likable or horrible  personality. The characters are acted so that you could tell what they were thinking and how they were feeling. The acting was right on. The next thing I would like to point out is the attention factor. When you go into a movie like this, you may think: ‘I’ll probably be bored to death’, or, ‘this is going to be slow.’ Why? The plot doesn’t sound so great: Watch the creation of a website. It sounds dull, but it will keep your attention. Great characters, loud parties, and lots of drinking will keep your eyes wide open.

 

You WANT to see what happens next. What the trailer doesn’t show you is that there are lawsuits being discussed, and the creation of Facebook is a flashback. The plot breaks to show the lawsuits being argued. The movie was a good rent for anybody over 13. It was an overall decent movie, because it tells the tale of a website that the majority of Americans use. It has spread worldwide, and when you see the credits, you think: Woah. This is a true story. Still, this is LOOSELY based on what really happened. Still, who cares? You pay for a movie, and you get it. This was a T-Bone. It wasn’t Oscar worthy, but we can’t take back what happened. This is a movie you should see.

Interesting facts: Justin Timberlake lost about 15 pounds for this movie.

When Sean Parker’s girlfriend gets the beer bottle tossed to her and it hits the wall, there’s no liquid inside.

The beginning

Interview with Jesse Eisenberg

Interview with Justin Timberlake

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21-(PG-13)

This 2008 movie is about a mathematically minded group of MIT students who are recruited by a teacher to learn how to count cards. The movie starts with Ben Campbell, who is a genius, witty, dedicated student. Ben wants a scholarship to go to Harvard Medical School…but in order to afford the education, he needs $300,000. He works at a suit department and is a working class guy….getting $300,000 would be difficult. Luckily, Micky Rosa, Ben’s math teacher, recognizes his skills and recruits him to a team. First, Ben is reluctant, but then he agrees to join the team, only until he makes $300,000. The team focuses on the game of blackjack. The students use a system of hand signals, words, memorization, and  code to play the cards, as well as their brains. Every weekend, they go to Las Vegas, win a lot, and then come back.

Ben pours in more money every weekend, but problems arise. His friends leave him, he upsets his teacher, and the security is keeping tabs on him and his team. This flick was lightly based on the true story, but still, it was dramatic, lovable, and simple. Sure, it wasn’t a Rambo, but it wasn’t Valkyrie either. It was a casual, fun movie. After seeing how well developed the word and hand signals were, I almost wanted to take out a deck of cards and try it myself. The movie makes it look easy. It used montages and music at the right times, and was able to divide the attention between characters. Still, I was honestly confused at Micky Rosa. He called Ben an infant. An infant? What? I thought you had to have at least a little pride in Vegas? This film is fun to watch with friends, family, or anyone for that matter. The way the story is exaggerated impressed me, and is worth a watch. This Vegas T-Bone is worth a rent, but not worth a buy on Blu-Ray or a triple disk pack.

Interesting Facts: In real life, the team that counted cards was Asian.

The main actor had to get a language coach to speak in an American accent.

Interview with Jim Sturgess

Airport Scene from 21

Learning how to count cards in 21

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Sherlock Holmes-(PG-13)- (Blu-Ray worthy)

Though it may seem old, dull, boring, unappealing,irrational, and ancient, this movie was a roller coaster ride! It is about Sherlock Holmes, a dirty and clever detective. After putting a sorcerer named Blackwood in jail, bad things start to happen…Very bad things. People die and seem to be cursed. Then, Blackwood gets hanged for his crimes. A few days later, he comes back from the dead. Sherlock must find him and stop him  before more people get killed.

With exploding guns, humor, slow motion fights, giants, “magic”, and tazers, Sherlock Holmes was a great movie. It was very loud, but that was the only turn down. What turned me down, however, was the beginning. It made me think that the movie would be some kind of witchcraft magic movie. It wasn’t, but it is still an issue. Many people see the beginning of a movie and judge it on that portion. If they do not like it, they don’t watch it. For example, Paranormal Activity starts slow, and that ALMOST turned me down. This should have been a movie like 007 Die Another Day, with a very intense start. Either way, it started up, and had the usual plot twists of Robert’s movies. If you cannot sit through slow movies, steer away from this. It may involve too much thinking and talking for the action lovers. Robert Downey Junior makes the movie hilarious, and that’s why it was a tweed T Bone.

Interesting facts: Robert Downey Jr. was accidently knocked out during one of his scenes while filming.

Sherlock’s house was used as Sirius Black’s house in Harry Potter

A raven is seen every time somebody dies, or is thought to have died

In some scenes, cars on the right side of the road, but in England, they drive on the left side.

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/7432847/

Howey, not singing! But making a joke (I MADE THIS VIDEO)

YOU HEAR THIS SONG A LOT DURING THE ACTION

INTERVIEW WITH ROBERT AND JUDE

Fight Scene

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Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs- (PG)- (Blu-Ray worthy)

Before I say anything, I want to let you know that this IS a kids movie. Not a family movie. A KID’S movie. It’s about a man named Flint Lockwood, who lives in a town where the only food is sardines. After many failed experiments, he finally invents something useful….a food generator. The town is greatful,  but when the food machine starts raining food that is building sized, problems arise. The mayor gets fat, the Great Wall of crushed by corn, the sardine town is forced to build bread boats, and big doughnuts crush people. Weird. Still, it was a good laugh if you’re a kid. When you’re waiting for a laugh out loud moment, it doesn’t happen. Still, icecream snowball fights, a fat mayor, jello houses, a gummy bear eating monkey, and meatballs are all amusing.

When you watch the movie, you think, And I’m eating popcorn? Still, it has a lesson to it, and it is an imature flick. The only mature humor is the cop’s wise cracks. He and his son make the people amusing. The best part must have to be, The fortune cookie on the Great Wall, reading, you are about to be crushed by a giant corn. The book isn’t like the movie, but the plot is still simple. If you want to treat a younger sister or brother, see the movie, but don’t get too excited. It’s only a slightly entertaining kids movie. It wasn’t very funny. It had a cool concept, but it wasn’t applied well. Out of all the food raining down, I got a big Hot Dog.

Interesting facts: Mr. T voices the cop

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/7375809/

Deformed Obama sharing his opinion (I made this video)

Snowball fight scene

January Madness: Computer Scene

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Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief-(PG)- (Blu-Ray worthy)

After reading the book, I wanted to see the Lightning Thief so bad. I had a free day and I decided to head down to the movies. after seeing this film, I realized that Chris Columbus (the director) twisted the plot around to a whole new  movie. I didn’t mind. In fact, most of the Percy jackson fans would agree that the movie story should have been the book story. There were 3 key points of this movie: characters, visuals, and music. The charactrs in the movie were played by perfect actors, and were very convincing. The movie was interesting because of Grover’s hilarious wise-cracks, Annabeth’s speed, and Percy’s strength. Chiron is wise and Luke is kind but devious at the same time. Lastly, Smelly Gabe is a drunk abusive dad, who seems like he’s a dirty old hobo. The visuals were also very great. It wasn’t fake or laggey, and the water, fire, and monsters were detailed perfectly. Plus, the music of the film was varied. When Percy was going to the UnderWorld, Highway to Hell started playing, which was pretty funny.

Plus, the percussion and composition was basic, for a loud movie. Also, language was added, and that wasn’t in the book either. At the end of the movie, after a minute of credits, there is a funny scene with Gabe and Percy’s mom. Fans, like me, of the book, may hate how the director crushed the storyline. He did, but it was good for a book-movie, and advertisment was done well for it. If you’re interested in monsters, Greek mythology, weapons, violence, humor, and cars, you should like it. A casino scene IS included:) This was too fast paced and random, overall, so I have had an undercooked Pork Chop.

Interesting Facts: Luke is playing Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2 on Favela

Athena doesn’t have children, according to mythology, but Annabeth is daughter of Athena

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/7360335/

Bot Head sharing his opinion (I made this video)

Special Effects of the Movie

Interview with Logan Lerman

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Clash of the Titans-(PG-13)- (Blu-Ray worthy)

Alright….I’m trying to make a long story short…the critics are wrong, don’t know a thing about movies, and are clueless. they dissed this movie to make it sound like it was a black and white 1802  picture of an old lady taking a nap. It wasn’t the best movie of all time, but it didn’t stink. The special effects were amazing, clear, and detailed. It was very basic, easy to understand, but was thinly plotted, and there wasn’t much meaningful diolougue. The Greek monsters were well designed, and seemed strange yet intimidating.

But here’s something that will make let you save money. IT’S NOT AN OPINION: The movie is worse in 3-D. There was only one 3D part, and with a throwing spear. It ruined the color and brightness of the movie. Trust me, see it without 3D. This movie seemed rushed, but if you like Sci-fi movies, you’ll enjoy this. Some characters seemed to be pointless, as well as some camera movements. If you’ve seen the Lightning Thief, you’ll see how similar it is to this. The first Clash movie was said to be better. My dad told me, “Someone could have written the script for this on the toilet,” and I agree. The predictability killed the plot. Hotdog with some ketchup.

Interesting Facts: Perseus is really wearing Nike’s with toes painted on them, rather than sandals, because of the difficult stunts.

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/7351129/

Behind the scenes look

Scorpian Fight

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